A Timeline Cleanse

Why I Started "SnowHimbo Streams"

The World’s In A Pretty Shitty Place

We all know this, existing in the independent media sphere, obviously - we’re the ones pointing it out on a daily basis. Hell, I’m the guy who’s yelling about how shitty it is in practically every show I do. However, I think an aspect of living under late-stage capitalism (and watching it progress to terminal capitalism, that is) that is oft-overlooked, is maintaining your own sanity. Witnessing atrocity after atrocity, and experiencing the nigh-unavoidable feelings of helplessness and anxiety that follow, can take a toll on anyone’s mental healthy. As such, as someone who contributes to the endless doompills by being an outspoken online voice myself, I kind of mused one day that perhaps what we could all use is a little break.

That is, dear viewers/readers/fellow dirty-ass commie humans, the point of SnowHimbo Streams. I want to provide a bit of a palate cleanser, both for you, and also for me. Being exposed to nothing but information that invokes anxiety, rage and disappointment isn’t healthy. Yes, it’s important, and you should be as well-informed as you can be, but you also need to think of your own wellbeing. After all, we’ll need class solidarity to climb out of this hellscape, and I will be the first one to say with confidence that we will climb out of it. It won’t be easy, and we’ll have to fight with everything we’ve got, but I will bet everything I have that in our lifetime, we will see capitalism fall.

We All Need A Hard Reset Sometimes, Right?

There’s far too many psychological studies (trust me, I’ve read most of them) clearly concluding that consistent negative stimuli to a human being is detrimental, and more specifically, that the impact of a steady stream of worrisome news is considerable. If you’re not affording yourself breaks from the madness, to put it simply, you’ll probably end up going mad. Most of us tune in to independent news sources on a daily basis, and are exposed to this negativity, so I figured that the same folks who appreciate our work could probably use a break. I also, admittedly, feel a bit guilty, since I’m currently running multiple shows that primarily feature nothing but bad news and hopelessness. With SnowHimbo Streams, while I may cover some stuff here and there, the focus is always going to be taking a break, hanging out and playing some video games.

To get a bit personal here, I’ve always used video games as an escape. The reason why I hold games like Outcast and EverQuest in such high regard is because they were my only escape growing up when my parents’ tumultuous marriage finally hit a fever pitch, and they were a welcome reprieve from the chaos I had to wake up to and go home to every day after school. To an extent, I think we need that, now more than ever. Not just for video games, but whatever you enjoy doing - fishing, playing pool, acting like a T-Rex in the sporting section of a Walmart - you need to ensure that the misery of our sick world doesn’t consume you. You still need to get through the day, and you still need to find joy in your life, even if it feels overwhelming and, possibly, pointless.

Speaking From Personal Experience…

I’ve been there, myself, which is why I’m doing this. While I did have a lot of IRL shit going on, I can’t say that constant, daily exposure to negative and discouraging events didn’t contribute to the break I took. Frankly, I think I would have had to have taken a break at some point, even if I didn’t go through what I did. It seems like a lot of us just have this underlying dread, like we’re all just waiting for the other shoe to drop, you know? I get it, and that’s why we’re all going to take a break for a couple hours a week from the insanity that is living in an actual dystopia. I think it’s needed, but more so, I hope it helps.

So, that’s why I’m doing SnowHimbo Streams. I really do think that we could all use a little break from the constant stream of depression that is reality. I cannot remember the last time I saw an actual positive story worthwhile of reporting on, and sadly that’s just where we’re at. It won’t be forever, and we’ll eventually get this thing on the right track - but until then, let’s have some fun, goof off, and play some video games.

As always, you can follow me at https://www.youtube.com/@SnowHimbo/streams to join the party. Everyone needs a break from doom, after all.

Here’s a playlist on INN’s YouTube Channel with the most recent episode on top.