Written in 2025
It’s been a while since I’ve done a free write.
So, here I am. Just sitting with my thoughts. Feeling okay. Not great, not awful. Just okay.
Lately, I’ve found myself ruminating. About everything and nothing at the same time. The paradox of politics has been especially loud in my head. We live in a moment where standing for something should matter more than ever, and yet we’re watching people fall for anything.
The divide between left and right feels enormous, but maybe we’re looking in the wrong direction. Perhaps it’s not about the dichotomy between what’s left or right. There has to be something else.
I look over at the book I’ve been reading, Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paulo Freire. Suddenly, the thought bubble is taken over by the little speck of light you see when you’re floating to the bottom of the sea. Small, but bright.
Maybe we should be looking up and down.
Because let’s be honest: we’re not on the up and up.
The Weight We Carry
Many millennials—often burdened by debt, high rent, and economic instability—are living in multigenerational households. As of 2021, approximately 18% of millennials (ages 27–42) were living with their parents or other older relatives (Pew Research Center).
Millennials have lived through wars, pandemics, and now the normalization of fascist rhetoric in American public life. From 9/11 to Iraq and Afghanistan, to COVID-19, to the destabilizing effects of misinformation and mass surveillance, we’ve been through it. And now Gen Z is dealing with it too. And so will Gen Alpha, which is a shame.
Coming together still feels like a dream. But dreams don’t happen unless we make moves. And the community needs to hit the ground running. We’re all going to have to pick up the slack.
Time does not stop for anyone.
Idiocracy, In Real Time
I finally watched Idiocracy the other day. It’s satire. But barely. It’s a little scary how books and movies help us make sense of our present day.
In the U.S., most adults read at a 7th to 8th-grade level, according to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). Post-pandemic studies have shown a decline in literacy, particularly among young people.
This is why my son has a “banned books” shelf, for all stages of his life. I am afraid that this type of information might slip through his tiny hands if I don’t provide it. So I will. I will teach him. The most radical thing I can do, as a parent, is teach my son what the schools will not.
Knowledge is the last vestige of reality. We’re watching it slip through our phone screens. Anti-intellectualism, algorithm-driven thinking, and an overreliance on AI-generated content have reshaped how we think, what we value, and how we interact. Like Baudrillard predicted, we’ve become a nation of simulations.
We’re watching the downfall of the United States in real time.
And it’s not some abstract future. It’s now.
This is literally something that no amount of therapy, medication, or Love Island could fix, due to economic instability like this. Our stock market is inflated, and the tariffs we will and already are paying will not help.
And then there’s still half of America that doesn’t realize that. Still.
What We Need: Community, Care, and Clarity
However, there is hope.
Creator: Jae Hong | Credit: AP
Copyright: Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
In California, we’ve seen mutual aid in action—from organizing during ICE operations to recovering from catastrophic wildfires. In July 2024, reports of targeted ICE activity in Los Angeles renewed the urgency around community defense, and the response was swift: neighbors supported one another. Legal aid groups mobilized. Volunteers stepped in.
We’re more than just voters. We’re protectors of the community. There may be a drastic digital divide that the wealthy abhorrently take advantage of — and people are starting to see it.
This isn’t just about left or right.
It’s about transcending fascism. About resisting late-stage capitalism. About caring for one another in a system that’s tried everything to convince us that care is a weakness. It’s about a community of care.
It’s about grassroots organizing, building community resilience, and mitigating misinformation. It’s about refusing to back down even when things feel impossible.
The population is waking up and putting their foot down. Enough is enough.
There’s still time to enact a call to action.
There’s still time to make a change.
All's Well That Ends Well 