While my personal outlook has never been stronger or more optimistic, I will say my general outlook, as a South African, is that things will get a lot worse before they get better. It's weird to be back here in this part of cyberspace, as I've largely ignored this kind of discourse online or offline. I realise retrospectively that my thoughts and intuitions regarding the kind of topics discussed here have only crystallized even further, despite nearly a whole year of trying to find counterarguments in my daily existence, I'm unable to do so. I feel like every experience I have just affirms my intuition despite an extreme effort from my part to over-search and over-fit for counterfactual evidence of the contrary. I'm tired of actively fighting my innate intuitions and feelings though.

Imagine every single city or town in your country being neighbored by a giant slum. Imagine the streets of all these major cities and towns lined with homeless people, tents and trash everywhere. Women do not feel safe to walk anywhere. The percentage as a whole of my friends or acquaintances I know who've experienced violent crimes(stabbings/shootings, rape etc..) continues to increase. I could go on but I'll spare you the details of daily life in what is probably Africa's most developed city.

Good to be back. Keen to get into some serious heavy reading, as previously I think my interest was mainly based on the DAR subreddit and my knowledge mainly came from light written/video essays/blogs and some race-realism stuff. Currently reading René Girard alongside Guillaume Faye.