I feel all that you are saying here: chronic dread is becoming the norm for all of us who are aware of what’s happening to our planet and our civilization. The only effective coping mechanisms I have found are (1) meditation (breathing, observing, letting go, and abiding in the present moment), and (2) growing gardens, growing community, and growing awareness through the study and practice of permaculture. That, and expanding my allegiance to embrace the whole planet. So I’m more of a “Matriot” than a “patriot”—that is, a Gaian, not just an “American.” My one remaining hope is that after the inevitable collapse and die-off of industrial civilization, there will be enough of us Gaians left over to be the seeds of a new Gaian culture that is symbiotic with, rather than parasitic upon, our living planet.