One-Page Exercises to Ward Off Creeping Despair

Read the news lately? Feeling glum or impotent?

Grab a pen and one blank piece of paper. In no more than that paper’s space list what you’d do in the 24 hours after you are inaugurated president of your home nation.

I have used this exercise repeatedly during the pandemic and find it kills some of my funks with inspiration and pure zeal.

Here is today’s, which I called Escape Velocity:

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  • Declare 2-3 month healing and quarantine period of economic pause

  • New tax code and property laws

  • Repeal/end electoral college and create plan for general election one year hence; one person = one vote

  • Recall all military, government and aid workers home

  • Enact a voluntary draft for all the above workers plus any other unemployed persons for one year of work service, featuring nationally standardized pay ($15/hr minimum, 40 hours/week, plus health care)

  • Create a parallel trainee corps with paid apprecenticeships in nursing, medical support technology, building and engineering trades, mental health counseling, and teaching

  • Establish one year of national rent assistance and eviction prevention

  • Establish community networks, units and hubs tasked with food security, shelter needs + reassignment, disaster plans including fire + storm recovery, and environmental + cultural protections

  • Enact a 5-year term limit on all federal judicial positions including Supreme Court seats.

Couple items come to mind for Day 2…. What would you do?

Alison McConnell