For a while I had my phone set to show NPR news alerts. Sometimes breaking news is interesting but lately I find it more and more alarming – mostly clarion calls for fascism. Grow the government, more police, more laws, less freedom chant the fascists who have taken over the mainstream media.

I’d rather just ignore the news, focus on what’s right for myself rather than waste my energy fighting a society that’s increasingly addicted to bigger and bigger government that’s more invasive in our lives, more fossil fuels, and more toxic emissions. Most of the things that the media talks about doesn’t impact me except the traffic and weather.

At this point in my life, my focus is on saving and investing, consuming less and enjoying more in the wilderness. I have no real opinion on the problems impacting society, I just want to be left alone, noting that while money is not an end, it’s a means to an eventual life in a small town far away from New York living off grid, taking care of my own needs in as low consumption minimalist way as possible.