Outrage Overload Syndrome . . .

[OneBlueSky]

I have it . . . the symptoms are psychic numbness, and the inability to become thoroughly outraged at anything anymore . . . simply for self preservation . . . you can only experience complete and total outrage so many times in a given day/week/month before your outrage system just shuts down and prevents any further outrage from registering . . . instead, you just shrug and say "Whatever" . . .

anybody know of a treatment or cure? . . .

[MADem]

1. Regime change usually fixes that annoying problem

...but if the treatment isn't administered promptly and decisively, the patient could be co-opted, develop political avoidance behavior, or a reasonable fear of police knocking down their door because they once held "dangerous" views...

[Jamastiene]

2. So, are you saying you

want someone to "outrage" you? :P

I'm feeling the same way, btw. After a hellacious Easter weekend, I am beginning to show signs of another stress induced stomach ulcer. Hooray for me. I get to start hugging the porcelain throne. I should've avoided stooping and took the moral high ground, but there have been some threads around here lately that I couldn't resist, even if I came away licking my wounds and wishing for a "okay, I'm rested now" pill, so I could go take the bait some more. I'm so apathetic right now that I think I will only stay on here an hour or so tonight.

[cornermouse]

3. Impeachment works for me.

[TWiley]

9. Hard to concieve of when repukes control the Senate.

And, that is where impeachment proceedings would take place.

Don't get me wrong though, I am a member of votetoimpeach.org

Even though it is a long-shot, it is nice to be at least a small burr under the texan's saddle.

[ima_sinnic]

4. rising up with torches and pitchforks would work wonders

--in the meantime, all I can do is dig in and watch the idiots make the world crumble around me.

[applegrove]

5. Take a step back and look at the big picture. Accept the awful mess

you are in. Use discerment to decide which battles to fight. Save your strength for election time. You will need it.

[mopaul]

6. bite a bullet, or your shoe

and we know the cure, but withdrawals are a bitch

[LdyGuique]

7. I don't know of a cure

I dropped away from politics for years as I couldn't handle the stress and work 80 hours a week, raise five kids, etc. At this point, I've got a lot of time and it's sucking me under again -- only I'm far more outraged than I was during the VietNam/Nixon years.

Those years had some good news periodically. It wasn't nearly as bleak.

I'm going to focus on the Millennium Ecosystem Reports for a while -- of course, that's a bunch of really upbeat news. (not)

I'm going to stay away from anything-shaivo and religious in content. It all just confuses me and pisses me off. I know all of the facts, but I'm tired of being played.

[TWiley]

8. Success would be a cure.

The most debilitating component of this disease is the lack of any tangible success registered by us democrats, and the complete lack of any media attention given to our issues.

12 to 18 people protest outside Terri Schaivo's room, and the result is world wide media SATURATION. Meanwhile, 100,000 to 400,000 people can protest the evil chimp or his odious policies, and there is hardly a glance.

[gratefull4u]

10. First time ever for me.

This describes me exactly, So glad to see I am not alone. At the same time I am worried that this can't be good for our side. Lately I find myself not able to contribute to political arguments because I am not as informed as I used to be.I flip my TV to old reruns of sitcoms to relive the "Good Old Days" All in the family & The Golden Girls still depict the extreme right for the idiots they are and always have been. All my life I had my TV tuned to news stations. Now with the airwaves filled with propaganda, whats the use? I have always wondered how events took place in Hitler's Germany and now I understand. After the last election I threw up my hands too weak to fight anymore. If it were not for this site and you great people who post here I don't know what I would do.

[Armstead]

11. To quote Elvis Costello...

"I used to be disgusted, but now I'm just amused."

Not really, but I think that is a fairly widespread syndrome. The combiantion of Democratic ineffectuality, Republicans balls, media complicity and public apathy makes it hard to feel like there's any counterveiling forces.

But the Republican overreaching is beginning to look ridiculous, there are some in the media who tell the truth, and the last election at least pulled together the skeleton of a progressive infrastructure.

I guess there's a happy medium between outrage and apathetic amusement. At least that's what I'm aiming at.