It depends on how many productive years I could get, how much I could undo. Assuming indefinite lifespan, or at least a generation 60-70 years, I’d go back to 1900. Let me paint the scene; the gilded age was crashing down, as workers more and more started standing up for themselves and refusing to work in deadly conditions. At the same time, quietly, racism and bigotry were also on the rise. I wouldn’t undo much at first; inform the worker of the future tactics of the fat cats, prep them for a long fight so they don’t declare victory in 1950 (which is what they did)
I will admit also that going back to this time period means I could meet a few of my favorite authors such as Lovecraft, Twain and Dickens. It was still the peak of the novel as an art form, and that was a beautiful time.
Also going that far back, I could prevent the dust bowl. I don’t know about the great depression, but the dust bowl was preventable, which is why it was such a tragedy. I’d start repopulating the gray wolf and bison earlier too, because it was during this time they were overhunted to near extinction.
If they taste good, it’s worth keeping a healthy population would be my pitch.
Moving forward to post WW1, I’d probably go to Europe and try to help the former Holy Roman Empire keep their cultural heritage while moving into a modern economy. This effectively puts the end to Nazism. I’d also try and get the French to pay for more of the after war costs. In my ideal post WW1, Hitler has a job designing new housing developments, and never has the time to develop the bitterness that drove him to what he did in our timeline.
Coming up to WW2, you’d still have FDR, you’d still have most of his policies. What you wouldn’t have is a war in Europe. There might be a war in the pacific, but it wouldn’t get nearly as large in scale with Europe free to use their resources.
The final thing I’d prevent/undo is the red scare. I’d get messaging out explaining exactly what the Soviets are after, and how by talking to them and negotiating we could do much more for them as opposed to the cold war which while profitable short term, we’re still cleaning up the mess.
This prevents Reagan from ever getting a foothold. That’s the thing I want undone the most, Reagan and the villainization of poverty and race. You’d also see better environmental policy, because the EPA wouldn’t be defunded. Oh, and the FTC would still be strong, which would mean the monopolies of the 1990s and 2000s wouldn’t get a foothold. You wouldn’t see consolidation of assets like we’ve seen, and venture capitalism would get treated as what it is; looting the public trust and coffers with no interest towards helping anyone.
I’d commend you for still wanting to try and thinking you can effect change. I’m so jaded at this point that I don’t think it’ll work- i don’t think a lone average person can do it. There are too many forces, too many powerful greedy vicious assholes who want all of the pie that it’s near impossible to defeat. Every single one of those assholes banded together to loot the coffers. How does avg Joe battle that? Any Joe that tries get snuffed out. Look what they did to JFK, the LAST president that ACTUALLY tried helping the masses.
Take a look at the “progressive” Democrats, who wanted to uproot corrupt establishment power, only to find themselves now part of the establishment and thus, the problem. Every one of those people ran against war, but now vote for more war. Every one of those people ran for M4A, now you won’t hear a peep out of them on any of those issues.
Not pooing on you- you were me years ago when I wanted this world to have truth and justice and equity and equality- something America does NOT have.
Wouldn’t it be nice if we could look into a crystal ball and see if we could change anything? Not pooing on you, I just don’t think a single avg person could do it. I mean, JFK tried to do it, look at what happened to him. MLK tried to do it, look at what happened to him. They let MLK talk racial equality all he wanted, but the second he started talking about economic equality and tried banding together whites, blacks, middle income, poor, white collar, blue collar, etc- THAT is when they snuffed him out. Bernie Sanders tried to do it, and they shut him up real fast, after rigging the primaries against him, twice.
It usually takes a LOT to change anything that helps the masses. And even then, it’s only a matter of time when another wave screws over the masses again…and the cycle continues. If you look at past history, at all the peasant uprisings, they rise and get quashed, occassionally the peasants win a little, but then the pendulum eventually swings back to screwdom.
You do remind me of early 20s me though. Always fighting for justice and fairness. But I got kicked just enough, and stabbed in the back just enough to go, fuck humans.
It’s strange when you’re fighting for everyone, it’s your “friends” and “colleagues” who are the ones that knife you in the back, not the enemies you know. It’s funny how that works eh?
How do you try to undo the Red Scare when that’s still going on? All throughout the 2016 and 2020 primaries. All these outlets screaming “Russia Russia Russia” (yes Rachel Maddow) and all of left wing MSM shouting about big bad Russia. We are STILL being propagandized in 2023. Russia is the big bad wolf and poor innocent Ukraine…that is why we must throw BILLIONS of dollars to Ukraine, meanwhile our own citizens in Flint, MI and East Palestine, OH have no clean drinking water.
just to clarify- i am definitely NOT right wing, so it’s not me bashing the left bc it’s the left and i’m on team right. the left and right are both in on the con- on the theft of american coffers. they’re all in it together. all of the establishment. those in power are not going to let go of power easily.
I commend you for knowing what you know tho. That’s more than I can say for most people I meet IRL or online. About Reagan, FTC, EPA, etc etc. Too many sheeple. Too many who either genuinely don’t know, or those who do but desperately try to pretend they don’t know the ugly truth.
can I go back to the big bang and stop it from happening?
idk man it’s like that movie The Butterfly Effect, every change would probably bring new catastrophic results. so I’d have to go back to the beginning of everything… the Original Sin.
12 comments
It depends on how many productive years I could get, how much I could undo. Assuming indefinite lifespan, or at least a generation 60-70 years, I’d go back to 1900. Let me paint the scene; the gilded age was crashing down, as workers more and more started standing up for themselves and refusing to work in deadly conditions. At the same time, quietly, racism and bigotry were also on the rise. I wouldn’t undo much at first; inform the worker of the future tactics of the fat cats, prep them for a long fight so they don’t declare victory in 1950 (which is what they did)
I will admit also that going back to this time period means I could meet a few of my favorite authors such as Lovecraft, Twain and Dickens. It was still the peak of the novel as an art form, and that was a beautiful time.
Also going that far back, I could prevent the dust bowl. I don’t know about the great depression, but the dust bowl was preventable, which is why it was such a tragedy. I’d start repopulating the gray wolf and bison earlier too, because it was during this time they were overhunted to near extinction.
If they taste good, it’s worth keeping a healthy population would be my pitch.
Moving forward to post WW1, I’d probably go to Europe and try to help the former Holy Roman Empire keep their cultural heritage while moving into a modern economy. This effectively puts the end to Nazism. I’d also try and get the French to pay for more of the after war costs. In my ideal post WW1, Hitler has a job designing new housing developments, and never has the time to develop the bitterness that drove him to what he did in our timeline.
Coming up to WW2, you’d still have FDR, you’d still have most of his policies. What you wouldn’t have is a war in Europe. There might be a war in the pacific, but it wouldn’t get nearly as large in scale with Europe free to use their resources.
The final thing I’d prevent/undo is the red scare. I’d get messaging out explaining exactly what the Soviets are after, and how by talking to them and negotiating we could do much more for them as opposed to the cold war which while profitable short term, we’re still cleaning up the mess.
This prevents Reagan from ever getting a foothold. That’s the thing I want undone the most, Reagan and the villainization of poverty and race. You’d also see better environmental policy, because the EPA wouldn’t be defunded. Oh, and the FTC would still be strong, which would mean the monopolies of the 1990s and 2000s wouldn’t get a foothold. You wouldn’t see consolidation of assets like we’ve seen, and venture capitalism would get treated as what it is; looting the public trust and coffers with no interest towards helping anyone.
I’d commend you for still wanting to try and thinking you can effect change. I’m so jaded at this point that I don’t think it’ll work- i don’t think a lone average person can do it. There are too many forces, too many powerful greedy vicious assholes who want all of the pie that it’s near impossible to defeat. Every single one of those assholes banded together to loot the coffers. How does avg Joe battle that? Any Joe that tries get snuffed out. Look what they did to JFK, the LAST president that ACTUALLY tried helping the masses.
Take a look at the “progressive” Democrats, who wanted to uproot corrupt establishment power, only to find themselves now part of the establishment and thus, the problem. Every one of those people ran against war, but now vote for more war. Every one of those people ran for M4A, now you won’t hear a peep out of them on any of those issues.
Not pooing on you- you were me years ago when I wanted this world to have truth and justice and equity and equality- something America does NOT have.
Wouldn’t it be nice if we could look into a crystal ball and see if we could change anything? Not pooing on you, I just don’t think a single avg person could do it. I mean, JFK tried to do it, look at what happened to him. MLK tried to do it, look at what happened to him. They let MLK talk racial equality all he wanted, but the second he started talking about economic equality and tried banding together whites, blacks, middle income, poor, white collar, blue collar, etc- THAT is when they snuffed him out. Bernie Sanders tried to do it, and they shut him up real fast, after rigging the primaries against him, twice.
It usually takes a LOT to change anything that helps the masses. And even then, it’s only a matter of time when another wave screws over the masses again…and the cycle continues. If you look at past history, at all the peasant uprisings, they rise and get quashed, occassionally the peasants win a little, but then the pendulum eventually swings back to screwdom.
You do remind me of early 20s me though. Always fighting for justice and fairness. But I got kicked just enough, and stabbed in the back just enough to go, fuck humans.
It’s strange when you’re fighting for everyone, it’s your “friends” and “colleagues” who are the ones that knife you in the back, not the enemies you know. It’s funny how that works eh?
How do you try to undo the Red Scare when that’s still going on? All throughout the 2016 and 2020 primaries. All these outlets screaming “Russia Russia Russia” (yes Rachel Maddow) and all of left wing MSM shouting about big bad Russia. We are STILL being propagandized in 2023. Russia is the big bad wolf and poor innocent Ukraine…that is why we must throw BILLIONS of dollars to Ukraine, meanwhile our own citizens in Flint, MI and East Palestine, OH have no clean drinking water.
just to clarify- i am definitely NOT right wing, so it’s not me bashing the left bc it’s the left and i’m on team right. the left and right are both in on the con- on the theft of american coffers. they’re all in it together. all of the establishment. those in power are not going to let go of power easily.
I commend you for knowing what you know tho. That’s more than I can say for most people I meet IRL or online. About Reagan, FTC, EPA, etc etc. Too many sheeple. Too many who either genuinely don’t know, or those who do but desperately try to pretend they don’t know the ugly truth.
can I go back to the big bang and stop it from happening?
idk man it’s like that movie The Butterfly Effect, every change would probably bring new catastrophic results. so I’d have to go back to the beginning of everything… the Original Sin.
i meant in your own life, but i get what you’re saying. stop all life from being created in the first place.
frfr
Just remember, there isn’t even an “Original Apple.” All of that was bs.
That’s actually my all time favorite movie. I wish I had a power like that.
I honestly would say if there was anyway to prevent me from being conceived, that’s what I would do.
well yes, i think most of us on SP would love to do that. sadly, we have been conceived and here we are… -_-