OK, I get it: money's tight. A great many bets and certainties have turned to dust. 401K accounts have been decimated and the level of uncertainty about the future is pegged to 11.
It's times like this when the crazy-valuable content on Of Two Minds becomes even more crazy-valuable. Yes, many people reckon it's simply crazy, but look how many times what was dismissed as crazy by the mainstream turns out to be right.
For example, What If All the Cheap Stuff Goes Away? (March 30, 2018).
I try to turn a uniquely pragmatic, independent eye on the world, avoiding ideological tunnel-vision. My interest is in real-world solutions, both systemic:
The Only Non-Totalitarian Solution to Resource Scarcity: Decentralized Degrowth and The Community Economy Needs Its Own Money.
--and on the individual-household level:
Livelihoods in a Degrowth Economy and The Epidemic Nobody Talks About: Burnout.
I'm interested in grounded optimism, not empty optimism: Doom Porn and Empty Optimism.
I'm interested in what's becoming increasingly scarce, starting with common ground. The number of issues that divide us is expanding like a supernova as polarization disintegrates what few islands of common ground still exist. I'm interested in preserving the remaining bits of common ground and perhaps even establishing a few new ones.
The world is being forced to transition to degrowth, and this opens a path to a much more sustainable, human-scale way of life that is antifragile rather than precarious. Sure, we can cling to waste is growth, but why self-destruct when a brighter future beckons?
I can't help being frugal (see photos below) in both the tangible world and the world of ideas, where I try to identify the core systems dynamics in play, for example, What Happens When Complexity Unravels? (May 6, 2022) and Checking In On Five Long-Term Cycles.
I tend to focus on what one reader described in this way: "money richness and wealth are vastly different animals."
For reasons beyond my feeble comprehension, this led to Of Two Minds being shadow-banned, starting with my inclusion in the infamous anonymous hit-list PropOrNot in 2016. So far I've avoided being renditioned to a rat-infested cellblock in the 'Stans, so life here on the margins is lively though not exactly lucrative (see below).
Let's not overlook the entertainment/amusement value of crazy. Crazy has its own unique value, and if there's one thing that everyone can agree on, it's that Of Two Minds is unique (ahem, in a good way).
I don't expect you to agree with everything I post, or agree with any of it--that's not my goal. I don't see content as a popularity contest, I see it as an opportunity to contribute to our understanding and the debate on how best to respond to problems and obstacles. A mix of differing proposals and critiques is essential to the process of moving forward. You and I are part of that process.
I tend to keep expectations low, as my experience tracks Churchill's definition of success: going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.
So in the spirit of maintaining low expectations, I'm looking for ten of you thousands of readers who reckon the crazy-valuable (or just plain crazy) content here is worth a dollar. Heck, let's call it a dollar a month, or 12 Washingtons a year.
Those ponying up a Lincoln ($5) every month get the weekly Musings Reports, an incredible bargain given what you get. The goal here at Of Two Minds is to not just scrape through crises but emerge with greater skills, adaptability and real wealth--the kind that can't be taxed, stolen or expropriated because it's social and experiential capital. (A cushion of a few extra quatloos is also a goal, as they may come in handy.)
Alas, I'm never going to mint a million on TikTok or YouTube. Yes, I understand the value of video and podcasts, but this site is focused on data-driven analysis and marked-up Federal Reserve charts. (I fear my photos of garden veggies are not going to mint me a million on OnlyFans, either.)
So here's my question to you: are you one of the few, the daring, the foolhardy, the insanely generous readers willing to pony up a dollar a month to extend life-sustaining encouragement to the one-person content factory here at Of Two Minds?
If you are one of those rare and precious souls, please accept my sincere gratitude:
Yes, I'm rattling the begging bowl.
I'm asking you to consider becoming a patron or contributor. If you need a doorstop, paperweight or sleep-aid, buy one of my books. Heck, buy one as a doorstop and another as a paperweight; they work splendidly in these utilitarian roles.
Become a patron of my work via patreon.com
How to Contribute / Subscribe to Of Two Minds
Thank you very much for considering this beggar's banquet.
Recent podcasts/videos:
The Big Problems And Crash Dynamics Of The Spring/Summer 2022 Housing Market Crisis, Simplified (1:08 hr)
My new book is now available at a 10% discount this month: When You Can't Go On: Burnout, Reckoning and Renewal.
If you found value in this content, please join me in seeking solutions by becoming a $1/month patron of my work via patreon.com.
My recent books:
Global Crisis, National Renewal: A (Revolutionary) Grand Strategy for the United States (Kindle $9.95, print $24, audiobook) Read Chapter One for free (PDF).
A Hacker's Teleology: Sharing the Wealth of Our Shrinking Planet (Kindle $8.95, print $20, audiobook $17.46) Read the first section for free (PDF).
Will You Be Richer or Poorer?: Profit, Power, and AI in a Traumatized World
(Kindle $5, print $10, audiobook) Read the first section for free (PDF).
Pathfinding our Destiny: Preventing the Final Fall of Our Democratic Republic ($5 Kindle, $10 print, ( audiobook): Read the first section for free (PDF).
The Adventures of the Consulting Philosopher: The Disappearance of Drake $1.29 Kindle, $8.95 print); read the first chapters for free (PDF)
Money and Work Unchained $6.95 Kindle, $15 print) Read the first section for free
Become a $1/month patron of my work via patreon.com.
Contributions/subscriptions are acknowledged in the order received. Your name and email remain confidential and will not be given to any other individual, company or agency. All contributors are listed below in acknowledgement of my gratitude.
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Thank you, Cheryl N. ($100), for your outrageously generous contribution to this site -- I am greatly honored by your steadfast support and readership. |
Thank you, Bill S. ($50), for your magnificently generous contribution to this site -- I am greatly honored by your steadfast support and readership. |