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What do the Supreme Court’s student loan ruling, Netflix sharing rules, Costco aggressively checking membership cards, return to office plans, and increases in homelessness all have in common? The Economic Police State operates on a system of surveillance, control, and seemingly random rules, randomly singling out people to take economic blows, that build up silently to intimidate the working class, while setting the narrative so you, the worker, enforce the wealthy capitalists’ order for them while judging your fellow worker. It starts with little things, subtle mechanisms to increase profits by charging more and paying workers less, taking small comforts away from the customer and employee experience while blaming so-called freeloaders, so you cheer on the capitalists’ attempts to recapture their profits rather than have class solidarity with those affected. But in its more serious form it knocks the most vulnerable off the economic ladder in the hopes that the masses will gaslight them. 

 

Episode notes (always rough, may contain errors):

 

• We’ve already talked quite about employers enforcing more workplace rules, no work from home, being far more picky for good jobs, but there’s bad changes on the consumer side too.

 

• The Economic Police State sets the narrative so you, the working class, enforces the wealthy capitalists’ order for them.

 

• They are using enforcement, surveillance, and “small” changes to push profits out of the working class both as workers and consumers, and for the corporate class to assert its power dynamic. And they are pitting workers against each other to fight their battles.

 

• Sets up the tone for “everything’s fine, it’s just you” or “you must be doing something wrong.”

 

• They bait the “good upper middle class worker” to look down, sneer, and taunt those who are down with ease, and accuse them of stealing.

 

• The “I pay my bills” comments are rampant on anything related to student loans.

 

• Increasing prices to pad profits is just the start

 

• The difference between the economic police state and straight-up recession is that the former picks off the most vulnerable and gives them the most punishment.

• Side hustles and the creator economy are drying up. Fewer DoorDash deliveries available, less capital in the tech sector. This means people are forced back into the low wage slave economy.

 

• Shawnee, KS bans roommates

https://www.kcur.org/housing-development-section/2023-05-10/shawnee-kansas-co-living-ban-roommates-federal-lawsuit

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZT8e9bWVG/

• Buying a home and living with roommates can get you out of the landlord system. Email me at greyson@offspeedsolutions.com to get a great real estate agent anywhere in the USA. (Licensed by the  California DRE # 02101592)
• Spying on workers to get more productivity, distrusting workers and sending them back to the office. Saying remote workers are pretending to work. Making us look like we’re working is more important than productivity.

 

• Companies less generous in helping customers during bad economic times. No mercy when they’re trying to recoup profits.

 

• Bad customer service is the fault of big companies making cuts but they use workers as a shield – More Perfect Union video explains it well: https://youtu.be/6JhobRAWDzg

 

• Netflix sharing issues, Costco going crazy with membership cards

 

• The cuts to customer service, hours from COVID have become permanent

 

• These things tend to be permanent

 

• Cuts from 2008 still in effect today

 

• Industry consolidation accelerates with bad economic times

 

• Real estate agents turning to fraudulent investment schemes, creatives turning to copyright trolling, have to keep the facade with fraud (as Patrick Lovell says)

 

• People doing the bidding of capitalism is a big part of the economic police state

 

• Promoting an “I’ve got mine” attitude. The political and business leaders are booking an everyone for themselves, Royal Rumble-type attitude. Workers fighting each other.

 

• Making workers a part of enforcing capital’s rule

 

• Call center subreddit is veers into pro-company and anti-consumer advocacy and work from home subreddit still has some anti-worker sentiment and especially gets upset at “low-skilled workers” and those with disabilities 

 

• Politics Done Right podcast featured documentary series “The Big Con” with Patrick Lovell discussing how Americans were fleeced during the 2008 recession: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6hpelT4R3gevrqRZBarzBB?si=d2cmwVfJSvypXunZw2Pm_w

https://open.spotify.com/episode/7mXbxbZX7mxqpEiMkHvf8g?si=RABQCm7HTi657BJ0eH5KqA

https://open.spotify.com/episode/0klPQxuMlb1O00ZxUECvmn?si=JXvPbp30QYqf2bCtXUJarQ

 

 It states that in the financial crisis some bank employees were given gift cards as incentives for foreclosing on people

 

• The corporations weaponize government for their own purposes.

 

• Legal system corruption and weaponization – judges assisting in foreclosure based on campaign donations

 

• Quote from The Big Con documentary: “A perfect crime is a crime that involves everybody” 

 

• Los Angeles city homelessness increased by 10%. Another case of conomically vulnerable being picked off.

https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-06-29/la-county-homelessness-unhoused-population-count-jumps-increase?utm_source=reddit.com

 

• Of course it is! We have withdrawn pandemic aid that helped people breathe and save, layoffs for good jobs, $71k is low income in LA, and done nothing for affordable housing

 

• Financial markets profit off of failures. Most of the money is not from investing in the real economy.

 

• COVID pandemic economic leniency is unlike any recession before.

Start preparing now: 

• Maintain a high level of savings and an have an

“escape plan” from bad bosses

• You need to be on high alert for bad business and financial deals.
• Be ready to know the legal system to defend against any collections issues

Got questions or comments about this episode? Is there another political or social issue you’d like me to cover? How will the student loan forgiveness being struck down affect your life? Are you facing the economic police state? Have you faced oppression, have a story about bad bosses, a corrupt company, or another injustice you want to vent or spread the word about? I’d love to hear from you! Call in and leave a voicemail any time, day or night, toll free at 844-477-PUNK (7865)

Or submit your question by email:

greyson@offspeedsolutions.com

 

Off Speed Solutions provides strategy and consulting for advocacy communications, digital marketing, websites, community engagement, day-to-day operational support, and media ecosystems. Proudly serving nonprofits, political organizations, individual advocates, media and content creators, entrepreneurs, and socially responsible enterprises. Learn more at http://www.offspeedsolutions.com

 

This is not financial advice. This content is for entertainment and general informational purposes only. We do not warrant or guarantee the accuracy of the information herein. The viewer should not rely solely upon such and consult a competent professional before deciding to follow any course of action.

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Happy Father’s Day and Happy Juneteenth tomorrow for all who celebrate.  I continue the discussion of the Repressed Warrior Paradox by explaining the key principles and steps in terms of self-care and mindset that activists, entrepreneurs, and other unlikely high performers need to follow if they are experiencing the puzzling combination of being fought as the biggest threat ever while being ridículed for their weakness and called things like whiny or lazy, and feeling defeated, kicked when you’re down. There is hope, if you choose to train and embrace your inner warrior the right way. Listen to the prior episode to know who these ideas are most important for.

 

But briefly, the Repressed Warrior Paradox is where those with strong potential are held down and being fought back against out of proportion with what they expect, and they don’t realize that is because of their extremely strong potential to create both social change and personal victory. Because they don’t see their own potential, they will back down or be blindsided and are prepared to be the kind of fighter they need to be, and are on the inside, to ultimately achieve their potential for unexpected victory.

 

Episode Notes: 

 

Notes are always rough and may contain errors/typos. 

 

Don’t go into a fight blind and untrained.

 

If you Internalize Repressive Ideas, you lose their ability to create change and can destroy your potential

 

Those with potential in oppressed populations have this happen more often, so if you are a POC, LGBTQ+, disabled, it’s more likely

 

The actions of those who are oppressed to seek political or economic power most frequently fall in that category. For example Black Lives Matter is seen by some conservatives both as weak cry babies and the greatest threat to America of all time.

 

Why are conservatives so scared of “weak and lazy” leftists?

 

You may be strong but viewed as excessively sensitive

 

Even (and sometimes especially) when you were at your weakest, worst moment, they see you as a threat

 

You may not be able to rely on the normal systems so you have to be very prepared and stronger than normal, even as people perceive you as weaker or you are in need.

 

From a policy perspective, safety nets are designed for an average person and with other interests in mind, largely conformity and capitalism (sometimes real estate and community nuisance/NIMBY too)

 

The workplace can far too often be more about abusing people to give bosses a rise than it is about productivity

 

Won’t be able to work yourself up the ranks. you have to leap

 

You may need to consider entrepreneurship (but also consider unionizing/organizing your workplace for better conditions)

 

This is why you need to especially make sure you are financially prepared to not have a job, if you have to quit or become unemployed otherwise, and not have to rely on a bad boss at a low-wage job you’re forced into by necessity or manipulative “welfare to work” systems

 

Make sure you maintain more than adequate savings. I have other episodes on high yield savings accounts and using CDs to make sure you don’t spend your savings 

 

Listen to The Uncertain Hour from NPR for more on the ills of the so-called “welfare to work” system: https://www.marketplace.org/shows/the-uncertain-hour/season-6-the-welfare-to-work-industrial-complex/amp/

 

You may get ridiculed by comparison eg. someone saying “I have seen people with worse disabilities do really well under the conventional way.”

 

You’re not going to be  the “model minority” or “model disabled person” etc. per se

 

The people who keep commenting on my TikTok video about the disabled person being kicked out of her mom’s house. A bad case of “generational warfare” in the comments section but also a case study of people demeaning young people living at home as a threat but also weak and lazy. 

 

You may be the exact opposite of a tailored high performance lifestyle or the stereotype of a “successful person” who needs one.

 

Things will look different for you than the hustle culture Huberman Lab obsessed Tech Bro

 

You may have difficulty with compliance. It just means you have to do so in a different way.

 

Analyzing the statement “This is a ruthless world and you must be ruthless to cope with it.”

Should it be this way? Absolutely not.

 

Maybe you can’t get away with things the way normal people can.

 

How you do it will be more unique and perhaps stricter than others, or maybe less strict.

 

It could be that nothing less than peak performance works for you because you have more to overcome

 

• What to do:

Embrace it and know that’s who you are. Just knowing can help you not become hopeless when you see all this negative stuff happen. Stop fighting yourself.

 

Most important is to know what works for you and stick with it!

 

Become who you’ve dreamed of being. If you don’t, it will blow up inside you.

 

Ignoring it or trying to make yourself feel better about your failure only makes things worse. Being weaker makes it worse. Accommodate and care for yourself but don’t succumb to weakness.

 

Don’t let their imputation of weakness become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

 

Focus on key practices and knowledge. Care for your physical and mental health. Be trained for high stress. Know when to back out.

 

Getting beaten up before you can get up creates a death spiral. Victory, not submission, is the only remedy.

 

The right environment that allows you to be you is key, not trying to make you something you aren’t.

 

Hard to get the right resources to perform well with a unique personality when you’re oppressed

 

Invest in yourself when you can

 

Avoid excessive judgmental rhetoric, but don’t avoid all difficult things

 

Take control of your own development. They want you to stay weak and easy to beat up, so the threat is neutralized. Systems may not help you how they help others.

 

Focus on results and what you uniquely want, not on behavioral compliance

 

Remember your nature is to fight behavioral control, though some people do well with harder rules sometimes if they are aligned with them.

 

You can burn out far more easily as well, so you may not be able to be constantly working really hard. It’s hard to find an environment that will allow you to use your value and not hurt you.

 

You have to find the balance between not being demeaned, shamed, or burned out, and being pushed to be better. Other people may respond better than you to typical tactics.

 

Be vulnerable and kind, but don’t let yourself be knocked down

 

Preparation is key. You may have to work a lot harder because you have strength and capabilities you don’t know you have. Be prepared to share your expertise and toot your own horn.

 

Be more diligent and careful than usual.

 

Get The RIGHT mental health care – you need to consider a provider with a mental performance approach if possible rather than only alleviating symptoms or sedating you

 

Your warrior side can come out at the absolute worst possible time in the worst possible way. Be prepared and try to avoid those kinds of situations. Take some time to think and back away for a moment.

 

You have a lot more power. Easier to hurt someone with a 90 mph fastball than a 60 mph fastball. You need to have more control.

 

Fighting too hard at the wrong time especially can be your downfall.

 

You have to be more disciplined than normal but it can be harder to do so in a “normal” way or a rule-bound manner

But know this can make you worse as well. Know what works for you and stick with it

 

Regular health and psychological screenings by a qualified doctor (ideally one trained in performance)

are imperative

 

Again sadly challenging to get the right care for those with poor socioeconomic status

 

You have to find what is exactly right for you and stick with it, whether it’s more or less structure or discipline.

 

Policy change is needed to create a more inclusive world that doesn’t require extreme level of victory to survive it.

 

Use your power and unique strength to create social change while also improving your own life and achieving your victory. This is your special opportunity to not only help yourself but also others. Take this opportunity and do it. 

 

Don’t be afraid to seek help but choose the right help that gets your values, your ideas, and your personality. You may need to offload some things.

 

Contact Off Speed Solutions for support with your advocacy or business goals with communications strategy and implementation, including social media, content marketing, digital and traditional media, and cultural analysis, and a variety of other business support services! OffSpeedSolutions.com

 

Just because you are not perfect and haven’t had the love/support from others or haven’t had the victory or success, doesn’t mean you aren’t capable of great things.

 

The fact that you were feeling this way, the fact that you’re seeing this opposition, means that you can have success beyond what you imagined.

 

These are just a start. More ideas to come. Follow for more.

 

Got questions or comments about this episode? Is there another political or social issue you’d like me to cover? Are you realizing you are a repressed warrior seeing how opposition indicates you have more potential than you think and want to tell your story? Have you faced oppression, have a story about bad bosses, a corrupt company, or another injustice you want to vent or spread the word about? I’d love to hear from you! Call in and leave a voicemail any time, day or night, toll free at 844-477-PUNK (7865)

Or submit your question by email:

greyson@offspeedsolutions.com

 

Off Speed Solutions provides strategy and consulting for advocacy communications, digital marketing, websites, community engagement, day-to-day operational support, and media ecosystems. Proudly serving nonprofits, political organizations, individual advocates, media and content creators, entrepreneurs, and socially responsible enterprises. Learn more at http://www.offspeedsolutions.com

 

If you suspect any medical or mental health concern, please promptly consult a qualified physician. 

 

This content is for entertainment and general informational purposes only. We do not warrant or guarantee the accuracy of the information herein. The viewer should not rely solely upon such and consult a competent professional before deciding to follow any course of action.

Subscribe On Your Favorite Platform

Facing opposition and challenges way beyond what you expected? Feeling like you’re always being kicked when you’re down? Noticing a strange pattern of being called weak and small, while you’re being treated as the biggest threat in the world? It could be a sign you have strong potential and will succeed in a bigger and better way than you expect. Whether you are an activist for a marginalized community, trying to advance from a lower socioeconomic status, building a business with a new, unconventional set of ideas, or doing anything that bucks the establishment, you don’t want to miss this episode. Develop a strong, fighting mindset, don’t internalize the ways they make you seem to be weak, overcome the ridicule, and stick to your values and uniqueness to gain success in advocacy and in your personal goals.

 

This episode introduces what I have termed the Repressed Warrior Paradox, where those with strong potential are held down and being fought back against out of proportion with what they expect, and they don’t realize that is because of their extremely strong potential to create both social change and personal victory. Because they don’t see their own potential, they will back down or be blindsided and are prepared to be the kind of fighter they need to be, and are on the inside to ultimately achieve their potential for unexpected victory. This is the first of three parts, in three episodes – this episode is focused on describing the typology. Next are individual steps if you are facing this experience to feel more confident and achieve success, and discussing the systemic designs that keep people with strong potential down, and how we can create better policies in a better society that allows more people to achieve at their highest level. 

Notes: 

 

You’re an activist and realize that somehow weak, lazy people are the biggest threat in the world to conservatives. Why? 

 

Major principle: Today’s nuisance can be tomorrow’s champion

 

The Repressed Warrior Paradox typology:

You are being beaten up on, you just want to live your life, but can’t.

 

Wondering why things are so hard for you.

 

You just can’t fit in and nothing can go your way, and everything is harder for you, but you just can’t point out why

 

Ridiculed even when doing the right thing.

 

You just can’t do things the way others can do them, but you can do a lot more than them

 

A lot of potential but just cannot make it in conventional spaces and manners

 

You are frequently a failure, but not because you’re bad, but because you disagree or you just cannot stand how things are done.

 

You may be strong but viewed as excessively sensitive

 

Even little stuff may seem harder, this sometimes comes along with neurodivergence but is not the same)

 

Has to do more with an anti-authoritarian attitude

 

For seemingly no good reason, being knocked out for extended periods of time. Left defeated, confused, and helpless.

 

You’re called weak, lazy, a whiner, despite of how hard you work, and are also somehow a massive threat, public enemy #1

 

You feel you’re not conventionally strong or smart but there’s a small voice that tells you that vou are better than you are being told. Maybe you have shown strong potential and achievement in the past but maybe not now.

 

Oppressed populations have this happen more often, so if you are a POC, LGBTQ+, disabled, it’s more likely.

 

Kicked when you are down. Why? Maybe it’s because you are a threat and stronger and more capable of victory than you think.

 

Happens to anyone who has the ability to validate or spread ideas the establishment does not like.

 

They want to knock you out before you can ever win. Interference comes to take you out ahead of time because you are a big threat, a bigger threat with more of a chance of victory than you ever believed.

 

Simply put: the better of a fighter you are, the more likely you are to get badly beaten up. And this has less to do with physical fights than it does potential and oppression.

 

Orange Cassidy – sometimes staying low-key and underestimated can be a strategic advantage

 

Embrace that you are a warrior and capable of victory

 

This comes with needing to live a more high performance lifestyle, and taking steps to stay prepared. I will explain more on the practical steps to feel better and start succeeding on the next episode.

 

You have a lot more power. You need to be more careful than normal and show control. It’s easier to hurt someone with a 90 mph fastball than a 60 mph fastball. 

 

www.Fixerpunk.com

 

Got questions or comments about this episode? Is there another political or social issue you’d like me to cover? Are you realizing you are a repressed warrior seeing how opposition indicates you have more potential than you think and want to tell your story? Have you faced oppression, have a story about bad bosses, a corrupt company, or another injustice you want to vent or spread the word about? I’d love to hear from you! Call in and leave a voicemail any time, day or night, toll free at 844-477-PUNK (7865)

Or submit your question by email:

greyson@offspeedsolutions.com

 

Off Speed Solutions provides strategy and consulting for advocacy communications, community engagement, day-to-day operational support, and media ecosystems. Proudly serving nonprofits, political organizations, individual advocates, media and content creators, and socially responsible enterprises. Learn more at http://www.offspeedsolutions.com

 

If you suspect any medical or mental health concern, please promptly consult a qualified physician. 

 

This content is for entertainment and general informational purposes only. We do not warrant or guarantee the accuracy of the information herein. The viewer should not rely solely upon such and consult a competent professional before deciding to follow any course of action.

 

Subscribe On Your Favorite Platform

Inside Safe, the initiative created by new Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass to move unhoused people out of encampments into hotel and motel rooms and ultimately more permanent housing has recently come under fire for poor, unsanitary conditions, uncaring staff, lack of food, poor communication, and sometimes ridiculous policies. Mutual aid groups, and other advocacy organizations involved with the homeless have termed the program “Inside Starving” and established a website showing atrocious stories of incompetence and poor quality services from the program: http://www.insidestarving.com

 

This is a perfect example of how homeless service programs fail on the basics of customer experience and make themselves ineffective by not doing the little things right. It also shows the pervasive attitude of not treating unhoused people as equals which ultimately results in negative publicity, a bad reputation of services amongst the unhoused community, poor adoption of the services by unhoused people, reluctance to accept future services, and ultimately program failure. Just by following the same steps of hospitality one would show to a customer in the private sector, or even a guest in your own home and having a systemic attitude shifters towards such, we can make these programs actually work without having to resort to the use of force. 

 

The episode is a little rough and ran longer than expected, so my apologies.

 

Notes:

 

Inside Safe program is way better than other efforts but could use some improvement to say the least

 

No food, jail-like conditions, very

unsanitary, roaches, etc., no toiletries, not able to go to their work

 

Someone’s tent got thrown away and didn’t get a room because he was in the hospital getting amputation surgery. This is who needs the help!

 

The homeless service people all ordered themselves food but didn’t get food for anyone else

 

Homeless service providers should listen to marketers. We also make people do things they don’t want to do, but we can’t hold a gun to your head to make you buy something.

 

My approach includes both policy expertise and marketing and sales knowledge, which is somewhat uncommon among social service providers, who see their customer as donors only and those people who know only work with donors

 

Inside Safe’s “customer” is seen as those adversely affected by encampments

 

The solution is not more coercion, it’s better services!

 

Overall patronizing inconsiderate attitude, even if they want to help and care, this is part of the system

 

They wouldn’t do this to someone they invited over their house for example

 

A decent meal is cheap! Anyone organizing some kind of event knows this.

 

Homeless communities stick together, have a form of solidarity, and inform each other.

 

Word of mouth spreads

 

It’s just like product reviews, but why don’t we see it that way?

 

Capitalism makes it so that when we provide a service to one type of people we feel like we can do it badly, even when it’s easy to do it better. 

 

Give them something nice! People are happy when you treat them (and feed them) well. Doesn’t take much more money than what you were already spending

 

There’s a major difference in how the private and public sectors do temporary housing. It’s not impossible to get it right. I got temporary housing through insurance. It was great. This isn’t hard.

 

Make them feel good about their decision, like it’s exclusive and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity

 

Call staff “concierges” and little,stupid stuff like that, along with the substantive things that hospitality and human decency would call for. 

 

Feed them! You do that at sales presentations to get them to talk to you. Give them the continental breakfast when you show up or something like that. 

 

Or give them a brown bag once on the bus so it creates incentive, if you must make it only for those who accept the offer.

 

People who stay in the encampment are your top of funnel prospects, so still nurture those relationships.

 

Going through Inside Starving demands

 

This is an exchange. The homeless people have something the city wants and the city has something they want. The advocates need to get this. The city needs to as well.

 

You’ve got to give the people what they want, which is safe, accessible public spaces

 

One of them said don’t focus on aesthetics and “no cameras when council members come.” I think there should be limits and not get credit where it’s not due but this is an exchange. Let them get the recognition for doing something good.

 

Having a sanitary environment and not having drugs and crime are reasonable.

 

Both sides are going to posture. Like by saying that they shouldn’t have to give up their tent. But please don’t let the perfect become the enemy of the good.

Got questions or comments about this episode? Is there another political or social issue you’d like me to cover? Have you faced oppression, have a story about bad bosses, a corrupt company, or another injustice you want to vent or spread the word about? I’d love to hear from you. Call in and leave a voicemail any time, day or night, toll free at 844-477-PUNK (7865)

Or submit your question by email:

greyson@offspeedsolutions.com

 

 

Off Speed Solutions provides strategy and consulting for advocacy communications, community engagement, day-to-day operational support, and media ecosystems. Proudly serving nonprofits, political organizations, individual advocates, media and content creators, and socially responsible enterprises. Learn more at http://www.offspeedsolutions.com

 

This content is for entertainment and general informational purposes only. We do not warrant or guarantee the accuracy of the information herein. The viewer should not rely solely upon such and consult a competent professional before deciding to follow any course of action.

 

Subscribe On Your Favorite Platform

Fixing The Fixerpunk episodes cover ideas about changing yourself and society from my own self-development process. These are generally far more unstructured episodes.

 

The inspiration for the title of today’s episode comes from Brandon Cutler’s quote from his match against Jon Moxley and Claudio Castagnoli of the Blackpool Combat Club: “What do you do when the people that stand up to bullies aren’t here anymore? You Stand Tall, You Don’t Back Down, and You Be Elite!” I feel these words are very instructive amidst the manufactured debt ceiling crisis, created by Congressional Republican bullies (whom I will term the Black Pill Combat Club, get it?) who are holding the world economy hostage. I likewise feel they are applicable as pressures from the economic situation and a variety of manufactured crises are being applied to distract and intimidate workers seeking better conditions and a more equitable economy, and to those advocating for changes to create a better society through public investments in our social safety net, clean energy, and other programs that are being put on the chopping block.

 

• TikTok Live coming soon? http://TikTok.com/@fixerpunk
• The goal of the livestream is to help others through their journeys
• Key principle: Everything takes longer than it should
• Our idea of self improvement is based on that people know instinctively what they should do, and it’s the lack of resources more often that stops them from doing it, judgment and authoritarian ideas don’t help
• One important “rule”: As soon as you see something go wrong, do not let it linger without taking care of it
• Why this podcast has gotten deeper into politics
• We need to address the systemic issues and crises that prevent people from reaching their potential
• People are struggling out there, but we have to take time away to deal with contrived problems made up by people who want to oppress other people
• We get distracted by random crises, pathological or not, in our lives too
• A lot of today’s politics, especially with the GOP controlling the narrative, is fake issues designed to distract and take back progress
• COVID pandemic created astonishing progress around actually helping people economically
• Lots of people’s economic situations improved due to relief programs
• Even low-wage jobs started treating people better
• From this foundation, maybe now we have a chance to start building a better world.
• This debt ceiling situation is designed to get you to believe that our chance to create a more economically just world with less inequality is no longer possible and that your leverage against oppressive bosses is gone.
• Remember what your purpose and intention really is before you sell yourself short
• Very carefully define what an “opportunity” is to you so you don’t define the scraps they give you in a crisis as your purpose and goal
• My purpose is to advocate for others and find solutions to our economic and political state for those who have been oppressed can reach their full potential
• The false “wisdom” around economic talks
• What Darby Allin and Sammy Guevara can teach us about purpose, bad advice about “playing it safe,” and not selling out when given false “opportunity”
• Sammy Guevara retweeted me!
• Going beyond what others expect of you,
• listening to others can keep you stuck and not achieving your dreams
• There is practicality, reality, and time that need to be considered
• Having some fun before it all crumbles down
• Getting preoccupied with your worries when you are supposed to be having fun
• The Superkick Party Ahead of the Apocalypse
• Have fun responsibly and it can give you hope, it will help you know why you are doing all that hard work
• You have to know why you are putting yourself through the suffering and pain of whatever effort you are putting in
• If you lose sight of what will make you feel good, you won’t want to do the hard work
• Stagnated in the area of fitness, not feeling as motivated about summer as I expected
• Enrolled in a fitness challenge, still not motivated around diet and dropping fat
• Being consistent in the gym, getting stronger though
• Building a tolerance to dopamine
• My key nutrition strategy has been substituting unhealthy foods for healthier, similar ones with protein and fiber
• Have a ton of healthier snacks and junk food substitutes like Skinny Pop popcorn, Fiber One 70 calorie brownies, Quest frosted cookies, Chobani zero sugar yogurt, etc.
• You have to understand where your body has a limit and isn’t in tune with your goals. No matter what motivation you have, it might just not go.
• Have I weakened myself inadvertently? Hard to tell when you can push yourself more
• Hard to get experts in coaching for achievement and goals with neurodivergence
• Many are not economically able or socially discouraged to seek expert help
• Detecting scams and frauds. Maybe a new topic for the show?
• Your personal life and household tasks can be a bit too inefficient
• Find solutions that work for you
• Am I using too many of my resources on things that don’t matter?
• It’s okay to do things that you like even if others don’t get it
• When you are not able to be yourself, you won’t perform well
• Employers try to motivate with shock, anger, threats, and micromanagement, but that doesn’t work, especially long-term
• Employers’ motivational tactics won’t work if you are economically deprived and not being compensated well.
• “Shut up and go back to work” people don’t realize that this shame and force doesn’t create productivity or performance.
• Compensation, respect, and purpose create productivity
• The world’s leading high performance experts have moved to a 4 day work week, because they know it improves performance
• Standing up politically helps us to be better as we help others

Got questions or comments about this episode? Is there another political or social issue you’d like me to cover? Have you faced oppression, have a story about bad bosses, a corrupt company, or another injustice you want to vent or spread the word about? I’d love to hear from you. Call in and leave a voicemail any time, day or night, toll free at 844-477-PUNK (7865)

Or submit your question by email:

greyson@offspeedsolutions.com

 

 

Off Speed Solutions provides strategy and consulting for advocacy communications, community engagement, day-to-day operational support, and media ecosystems. Proudly serving nonprofits, political organizations, individual advocates, media and content creators, and socially responsible enterprises. Learn more at http://www.offspeedsolutions.com

 

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• “Degree inflation” is a known major issue: https://www.tearthepaperceiling.org/the-paper-ceiling
• Harvard study: 69% of jobs require a Bachelor’s degree or higher, 50% of workers don’t have one
• 61% of employers have rejected an otherwise qualified  candidate because they didn’t have a degree
• A caveat: one downside of emplovers opening up who they will hire is downward pressure on wages.
• Employers keep asking for highly specific degrees, so it’s not really any Bachelor’s degree any more
• Fast food and retail are the new American jobs, the default, where everyone will need to start or may regress to during economic hardships regardless of their career path. That is why we should care about making them quality jobs. They have replaced factory jobs.
• Factory jobs used to serve as a way of bringing people into the middle class without high skills (employers would train them) or a degree, and this was made possible by unions.
• WSJ: Employers getting way more selective for higher wage, white collar jobs: https://apple.news/AXW9of8HyS-eXWDJlfVCNxw
• People being subjected to nine rounds of interviews, having to create entire marketing strategies and defending them like a thesis before these employers, and having to spend upwards of 20 hours on one employer’s interview process
• Constant need for new, specific skills and technologies
• People are going to keep having to go into debt every 10-15 years for master’s and doctorate degrees to be able to meet employers’ requirements. This is really adding to the student loan crisis.
• Formal education should not have to play the role of job training. It provides the fundamental intellectual toolbox to learn and lead.
• Unions have provided apprenticeships traditionally and digital training in modern days
• But employers are like “what’s in it for me if they’ll just leave?” Hence they won’t offer training and just keep asking workers to pay for more and more education on their own.
• Employer lock in agreements/TRAPs from coding boot camps and even now for PetSmart groomers are capitalism’s crappy solution.
• Portability of union training vs employers promotes mobility instead of hindering it
• Bargaining for student loan repayment assistance and tuition reimbursement

Got questions or comments about this episode? Is there another political or social issue you’d like me to cover? Have you faced oppression, have a story about bad bosses, a corrupt company, or another injustice you want to vent or spread the word about? I’d love to hear from you. Call in and leave a voicemail any time, day or night, toll free at 844-477-PUNK (7865)

Or submit your question by email:

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Off Speed Solutions provides strategy and consulting for advocacy communications, community engagement, day-to-day operational support, and media ecosystems. Proudly serving nonprofits, political organizations, individual advocates, media and content creators, and socially responsible enterprises. Learn more at http://www.offspeedsolutions.com

 

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NPR interviewed a Federal Reserve economist and an economics professor from the University of Massachusetts who explain research that indicates profits are likely driving the majority of inflation, rather than workers demanding higher wages: https://www.npr.org/2023/05/11/1175487806/corporate-profit-price-spiral-wage-debate

Greedflation article from April: https://fortune.com/2023/04/05/end-of-capitalism-inflation-greedflation-societe-generale-corporate-profits/

• Latest debt ceiling status: Meetings on Friday between leaders postponed in favor of staff members’ meeting

• Politico reports that the White House wants a 2-year deal, but McCarthy wants a 10-year deal
• Politico article here: https://apple.news/AfUp5eakPT8eoaw91eEwstg

• Jake Sherman of Punchbowl News says Republicans need one item from each of the Limit, Save, and Grow categories: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7txhZ2QBY2EGfvckkx1Y2M?si=VK3SdmReS8u0_v8XMyXoCg

• There is no wage-price spiral but rather a Profit-Price Spiral or Price-Price Spiral

• Economist Isabella Weber of the University of Massachusetts says inflation = costs + profits, the profit part is what is moving inflation up, argues for price controls or windfall profit tax

• I think windfall profits tax could help the government fiscal issues presented now more than spending cuts could

• Work requirements and cuts to government spending, causing fear of layoffs, is to put downward pressure on wages and reduce demand overall (but that’s not necessary because that’s not the majority of the cause of inflation)

• Central banks are shifting their policies too, UK Central Bank was asking workers to stop asking for raises, now is asking companies to stop raising prices
• Fed economist Andrew Glover – Profits have always contributed to inflation after a recession, which we had in 2020
• Profit growth accounts for more than half of 2021 inflation
• Growth in markup not tied to demand
• Companies anticipated inflation – expectation created reality
• GOP policies are more about prejudice than economics – see the immigration bill, which restricts immigration, while immigration could fix a labor shortage.
• McCarthy is not as economically ideological but could use economic tools as part of the party’s primary priority of oppressing outgroups
• This is no longer about fiscal responsibility when it comes to the Republicans. Anti-woke banking laws related to not doing business with banks who restrict fossil fuel and firearms business could cost $300-500 million in interest to Texas taxpayers: https://apple.news/AmT33tQ1ZSVyEjZQKhu4KBw
• So economic reality may matter less now than then, which may bode poorly for Dems seeking to avoid Medicaid work requirements, which is the item that is least likely for them to agree to and would have the direst consequences on vulnerable citizens

 

Got questions or comments about this episode? Is there another political or social issue you’d like me to cover? Have you faced oppression, have a story about bad bosses, a corrupt company, or another injustice you want to vent about or spread the word about? I’d love to hear from you. Call in and leave a voicemail any time, day or night, toll-free at 844-477-PUNK (7865)

Or submit your question by email:

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Off Speed Solutions provides strategy and consulting for advocacy communications, community engagement, day-to-day operational support, and media ecosystems. Proudly serving nonprofits, political organizations, individual advocates, media and content creators, and socially responsible enterprises. Learn more at http://www.offspeedsolutions.com

 

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On this Advocacy Notes episode, I explain some of the most helpful lessons I’ve learned about dealing with the medical system in America while seeing multiple family members go through health issues over the past few months. Hopefully these tips will help you avoid unnecessary frustration and delays.

 

• Send copies of all records that are needed and check ahead of time they are received
• Many offices won’t take documents over email, so you may need to fax things. FaxZero.com is good for one time short faxes, but you may want something like eFax if you are going to be sending documents frequently to medical offices.
• Keep printed orders for radiology and lab on hand if possible when you go for a test
• Bring paper copies of records if you are not sure they have them
• Check your lab or radiology orders and prescriptions before leaving the doctor’s office. They can make mistakes and it is easier to fix them on the spot.
• Mind your timing generally
• Everything takes longer than it should, from getting the authorization, to the appointment to the wait in the office, especially anything walk in – plan accordingly
• Walk-in X-Rays/Radiology the same day of an appointment requires caution and maybe you should do it the day before
• Ask about and follow up on authorizations
• Know who to ask your questions to, where to ask, and when to ask.
• Medical providers are super busy and often do not want to hear extraneous information or about things you are advocating for outside their specific role.
• Keep a grievance form “in your back pocket.” Filing a written grievance can be a helpful tool but there are some instances where filing one could hurt your relationship with your doctor/provider.
• Leverage and power dynamics in healthcare situations are different from other consumer situations
• Grievances can be extremely helpful for billing issues. I explain more on grievances for excessive bills here: https://podcast.greysonpeltier.com/wp/2022/06/14/patient-advocacy-notes-dental-hmo-scams-and-how-to-resolve-most-health-insurance-disputes/
• Keep in mind why you’re doing the treatment. What is the goal? What is the timeframe? Are we achieving what we set out to do?
• Ask about medications ahead of time before a procedure or hospital discharge (and know when your pharmacy is open)
• For longer term medications, local independent pharmacies often offer free delivery, which can make things a lot more convenient
• Keep track of insurance deductibles, co-pays, and out of pocket maximums
• Know timelines to apply for assistance programs that can save you more on your bill

Got questions or comments about this episode? Is there another political or social issue you’d like me to cover? Have you faced oppression, have a story about bad bosses, a corrupt company, or another injustice you want to vent or spread the word about? I’d love to hear from you. Call in and leave a voicemail any time, day or night, toll free at 844-477-PUNK (7865)

Or submit your question by email: greyson@offspeedsolutions.com

Off Speed Solutions provides strategy and consulting for advocacy communications, community engagement, day-to-day operational support, and media ecosystems. Proudly serving nonprofits, political organizations, individual advocates, media and content creators, and socially responsible enterprises. Learn more at http://www.offspeedsolutions.com

 

This content is for entertainment and general informational purposes only. We do not warrant or guarantee the accuracy of the information herein. The viewer should not rely solely upon such and consult a competent professional before deciding to follow any course of action. If you have any medical or mental health concerns, please consult a qualified physician.

 

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Fixing The Fixerpunk episodes cover ideas about changing yourself and society from my own self-development process.

• Life and health issues get in the way of everything

• The best plan can still fail if things happen, and they do

3 assumptions of all kinds of personal improvement programs. Know these and you won’t gaslight yourself as much:

• 1 – Committed to that plan for that goal (not multiple competing interests at the same time)
• 2 – Full compliance
• 3 – Material circumstances and conditions are and remain conducive
• Nothing changes you like material circumstances do.
• Expensive fitness programs and gimmicks
• Physique program from Ultimate Performance that reportedly costs 5,400 Euros in the UK but is also available in the US: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-6354871/amp/Would-pay-5-400-six-pack.html
• Financial success stories can be fake
• Miraculous, rapid success stories tend to be based on these assumptions being at an ideal level. They are based on people who are in the perfect condition to succeed.
• In my opinion, it’s not always bad if you cannot meet these, most people can’t! You can still achieve a lot!
• You just have to change things strategically
• It requires more expertise to handle complex situations but most experts can’t seem to do this
• You can achieve and can improve from a bad situation, but it will look different than someone starting from a better point
• Am I fighting hard enough for my goals? It’s hard to know with comparisons that are created by inequality
• There is no such thing as total meritocracy in achieving goals
• The hope you have for your goal affects your adherence. If it’s not hopeful, you are unlikely to prevail.
• We need to create a society with material conditions that create hope for people
• Create a clear vision, but circumstances can cloud that up.
• People will ask “why try?” when outcomes seem bleak because of conditions in the economy and society
• Creating economic hopelessness disincentivizes performance and discipline
• Right now, our system is designed to take your hopes and dreams from you, and the only way to change that is to change material conditions collectively
• Not an excuse to not be disciplined
• We have to create the environment where people have something to hope for, not where the likely outcome is terrible
• Coaching for personal change is way too focused only on the individual and not acknowledging the collective and the assumptions behind the advice
• Coaches tend to see things through the lens of someone who is in perfect material conditions
• The cost of programs and treatments can create a skewed sample and hence skewed success rates
• There are alternative ways to achieve goals outside of what a typical program
• An example from my fitness approach: Why I track my workouts on a weekly basis instead of per day/workout
• Aim for 10-15 sets per week, 8 reps per set near failure
• Taking a “harm reduction approach” to diet: I am obsessed with Fiber One 70 calorie brownies, Quest protein cookies, and Skinny Pop popcorn
• How Dave Ramsey is killing your gains!
• Continuing to go for your dreams under less than ideal economic circumstances
• Good to find exemplars who overcame similar economic circumstances, however these are exceptional people and every person is different, so still don’t gaslight yourself
• Street Fight Radio has been a big example for me
• The collapse of media outlets
• The initial vision of The Fixerpunk Podcast to help those who are in less than ideal circumstances perform at their best, solve everyday life issues, and create a more socially conscious vision for personal development
• Hoping I can make these episodes shorter…or not. If you like it, hate it, whatever, let me know by calling 844-477-7865 or on social media.

 

Got questions or comments about this episode? Is there another political or social issue you’d like me to cover? Have you faced oppression, have a story about bad bosses, a corrupt company, or another injustice you want to vent or spread the word about? I’d love to hear from you. Call in and leave a voicemail any time, day or night, toll-free at 844-477-PUNK (7865)

Or submit your question by email: greyson@offspeedsolutions.com

 

 

Off Speed Solutions provides strategy and consulting for advocacy communications, community engagement, day-to-day operational support, and media ecosystems. Proudly serving nonprofits, political organizations, individual advocates, media and content creators, and socially responsible enterprises. Learn more at http://www.offspeedsolutions.com

 

This content is for entertainment and general informational purposes only. We do not warrant or guarantee the accuracy of the information herein. This is not medical, financial, or legal advice. The viewer should not rely solely upon such and consult a competent professional before deciding to follow any course of action.

 

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Kevin McCarthy and House Republicans have introduced a bill to raise the debt ceiling that includes a wide variety of cuts, with the most devastating cuts to social safety net programs disguised as “work requirements.” This shows how the GOP agenda is primarily designed to reduce the leverage of workers against exploitation of employers, by changing market dynamics so that workers are forced to obtain and remain in jobs being paid far less than they’re worth and being treated unethically, at the threat of losing their healthcare and food. This puts employees at a massive disadvantage in negotiations with employers, as they know that workers will lose their Medicaid health insurance or be unable to obtain it as a replacement for lost employer health coverage if they quit or are fired, which is not the case now. 

 

The most egregious portion of the bill is work requirements for Medicaid, which has never had work requirements prior to a few states under Trump, which were overturned by courts (save for one state), would result in many becoming uninsured and unable to access life-saving healthcare. The American Cancer Society, American Lung Association, and many other respected health advocacy nonprofits oppose work requirements as they do not increase employment and are more about “paperwork” than work, and are just designed to make people who qualify fall through the cracks and lose health coverage. However, there are also expansions to SNAP (food stamps) work requirements that would make things more difficult for older Americans and those in high unemployment areas.

 

Apologies for any audio issues, there was a point that got cut off in the middle very briefly.

 

References:

 

https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2023/04/19/politics/mccarthy-debt-limit-bill/index.html

https://www.lung.org/media/press-releases/2023-medicaid-work-requirements-statement

https://www.heart.org/-/media/Files/About-Us/Policy-Research/Fact-Sheets/Access-to-Care/Medicaid-and-CVD-Fact-Sheet.pdf

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/toxic-workplaces-are-bad-for-your-physical-health-surgeon-general/

https://www.commonwealthfund.org/blog/2020/did-medicaid-work-requirements-achieve-their-goals-arkansas

Full text of the “Limit, Save, Grow Act” here: https://www.speaker.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/LSGA_xml.pdf

 

Got questions or comments about this episode? Is there another political or social issue you’d like me to cover? Have you faced oppression, have a story about bad bosses, a corrupt company, or another injustice you want to vent or spread the word about? I’d love to hear from you. Call in and leave a voicemail any time, day or night, toll free at 844-477-PUNK (7865)

Or submit your question by email: greyson@offspeedsolutions.com

 

Off Speed Solutions provides strategy and consulting for advocacy communications, community engagement, day-to-day operational support, and media ecosystems. Proudly serving nonprofits, political organizations, individual advocates, media and content creators, and socially responsible enterprises. Learn more at http://www.offspeedsolutions.com

 

This content is for entertainment and general informational purposes only. We do not warrant or guarantee the accuracy of the information herein. The viewer should not rely solely upon such and consult a competent professional before deciding to follow any course of action. 

 

Follow on TikTok: https://www.TikTok.com/@fixerpunk

 

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