It Could Happen Here: “What Happened in 2025 with Andrew” (Jan 15, 2026)

Host: Andrew Sage (Andrewism)
Guest: James Stout
Main Theme:
A comprehensive retrospective on 2025’s cascading crises—climate disasters, political upheaval, technological challenges, and intensifying global conflicts—and what these events reveal about systemic brittleness and community resilience. Through an anarchist and activist lens, Andrew and James dissect the year’s pivotal moments, considering lessons for collective action and the ongoing project of liberation.

Overview of the Episode

Andrew Sage welcomes James Stout for a wide-ranging discussion cataloguing the key stories and systemic shocks of 2025. They examine not only the raw facts—unprecedented climate events, state and grassroots responses, youthful uprisings, tech-induced resource strains, and wars—but dig into the deeper patterns of resilience, the failures of state and capital, and the questions that activists must wrestle with heading into 2026.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

[02:36] The Value of Archiving Collapse

• Andrew: “Why do you listen to this podcast? ...I want to archive this past year of systemic collapse, a pileup of small and large failures…”
• Theme: The importance of naming and recording the interlocking crises, both as a source of comfort and as a tool for collective learning.
• Insight: Without historical memory and synthesis, we risk being overwhelmed and paralyzed by an endless present.

[03:59] Climate and Infrastructure Breakdown

Record Heat, Disastrous Weather, Failing Systems

Major Events:

• 2025 among the hottest years ever.
• Power systems overwhelmed -> rolling blackouts, school closures, increased mortality.
• Brazil: Agricultural collapse, supply chain shocks.
• South Asia: Monsoons caused catastrophic flooding (Bangladesh, India); millions displaced.
• Horn of Africa: Prolonged drought, water scarcity; escalating hunger crisis in Somalia.
• North America/Europe: Record wildfires; mass evacuations in Canada, infrastructure destroyed in Greece/Spain.
• Caribbean: Hurricane Melissa devastates Jamaica, Cuba, Haiti—weeks without power.

Key Quote:

• Andrew [06:12]:
  “Our systems cannot handle the new extremes being brought about by climate change. They may have been built for previous normals, but not this.”
• Systems built for incremental load are buckling, with states mostly reactive and slow; recovery is long and uneven.
• Community solidarity, improvisation, and mutual aid are key—but require proactivity, not just reaction in disaster.

Actionable Wisdom:

• Invest in horizontal capacities: skills training, community drills, food sovereignty projects, decentralized energy/water, and robust documentation.

Memorable Advice:

• Andrew [08:32]:
  “Don’t wait for a disaster to hit your area to learn the lessons that other places had to learn.”

[09:43] State Failure & Sacrifice Zones

Myanmar Earthquake & Alaskan Indigenous Flooding

• Myanmar: Earthquake compounded by state refusal to accept international rescue; local revolutionaries forced to become rescuers.
• Alaska: Entire indigenous coastal communities destroyed, erasing generations of self-sustaining life.

Key Quotes:

• James [10:47]:
  “The end is not nigh for them. The end is here. Their ways of life are being destroyed by climate change.”
• Andrew [12:03]:
  “The state will often get in the way of our survival, our well being. The crisis is here...the people being hit right now are the ones designated as sacrificial lambs for economic growth.”

[15:57] The Coming of Age of Political Uprisings

Gen Z at the Center of Global Movements

Events:

• Uprisings in Madagascar, Morocco, Kenya, Nepal, Peru, Mexico—driven by cost of living, corruption, police violence, and generational frustration.
• Digital organizing (Discord/Telegram) led to rapid mobilization, but outcomes vary: some led to limited concessions, others to violent crackdowns, or state co-optation.

Andrew’s Analysis [18:09]:

• On the classic tactic: “incorporating a radical movement into the machinations of the state to temper its energy.”

James on Urgency [19:55]:

• For Gen Z, “the town that you live in will continue to exist is up for debate... the planet that Gen Z was promised isn’t going to exist for them.”

Notable Insights:

• The revolutionary paradigm is shifting: less about seizing state power, more about questioning and reimagining governance entirely (ex: Myanmar students envisioning a system that can’t facilitate genocide or tyranny).
• Quote [22:15] (James):
  “They’re not thinking about changing one ruling party for another. They’re thinking about changing the way governance works.”

[24:31] Reflection on Movement Sustainability

• Andrew: “We cannot keep rising up again and again...For movements to matter beyond these episodes of disruption, I believe they need to develop infrastructure...do something that lasts longer than a headline."
• OpSec (operational security), anonymity, and resisting surveillance are critical, as movements are targeted via platforms.

Key Takeaway:

• Building out networks, unions, and infrastructure is how spark becomes fire. Recurrent uprisings inspire, but need concrete structures for sustained impact.

[27:28] Inspirational Wisdom

• James (citing Subcomandante Marcos) [27:28]:
  “To open up a pinprick of light in the curtain of darkness... to show people what is possible.”

[28:37] The Tech Crisis: AI, Resource Extraction, and Inequality

• The rapid build-out of AI (data centers, server farms) is straining land, water, power—4% of US electricity now goes to data centers, over half from fossil fuels.
• Andrew [29:55]:
  “All this scaling up of AI is pushing us much faster towards the limits of growth. It feels like we are being ruled by accelerationists at times.”
• AI seen as “just another vector of extraction, consumption, and inequality.”

People’s Response:

• Grassroots resistance to AI overlays in culture and economic life; increasing support for open source, digital commons, and autonomy from tech oligarchs.

[34:37] Geopolitics: Wars and Wars by Proxy

Summary of 2025’s Deadliest Conflicts

• Palestine: Repeated Israeli assaults, genocide by siege/starvation, US complicity.
• Sudan: Civil war, millions displaced, regionally-fueled.
• DRC: Ongoing atrocities supported by neighboring Rwanda, resource extraction.
• Yemen: Saudi/UAE/Western-backed violence, ongoing suffering.
• Ukraine: War with Russia endures.
• Caribbean: US military escalation (Venezuela).
• Myanmar: Long resistance, Chinese support for the junta.

James [36:52]:

• On drone wars and psychological terror: “It probably won’t be you. Very unlikely. Might be someone you saw today, might be someone you’d ever met... Dozens of people get killed, but thousands of people have to live with this sense of fear. And maybe after a while you get used to it. I don’t know.”

Trauma and the Cycle of Violence:

• The aftershocks of war extend across generations, embedding suffering that catalyzes further cycles of violence.
• The abstraction of war in Western consciousness versus the tangible devastation for those on the receiving end.

Media, Memory, and Global Solidarity:

• The necessity of independent media and documentation (“keep a record offline”), as mainstream outlets show their biases.
• Despite decades of propaganda, global anti-imperial solidarity is rising, especially for Palestine (referencing Ms. Rachel and grassroots backlash as a hopeful sign).
• The importance of recognizing anti-Muslim, racialized bigotry as a barrier—and the breakthroughs as awareness grows.

[45:53] Political Economy of Endless War

• Ongoing wars are sustained by external patronage (money, weapons, “diplomatic cover”).
• Extraction continues even amidst conflict (mining in DRC/Sudan).
• Humanitarian aid is politicized and delayed, leaving grassroots action as the only meaningful form of relief in many regions.

Andrew [48:37]:
“Our system is brittle as hell and people are resilient as hell... The future has not been written yet... Think about something you want to build or strengthen...that can serve you and those around you going forward.”

Memorable Quotes by Timestamp

• [02:36] Andrew:
  “If we don’t keep these moments and events in our memory, it’s very, very easy to get stuck into a perpetually overwhelming present.”
• [06:12] Andrew:
  “Our systems cannot handle the new extremes being brought about by climate change. They may have been built for previous normals, but not this.”
• [10:47] James:
  “The end is not nigh for them. The end is here. Their ways of life are being destroyed by climate change.”
• [18:09] Andrew:
  “…incorporating a radical movement into the machinations of the state to temper its energy.”
• [19:55] James:
  “The town that you live in will continue to exist is up for debate. The planet that Gen Z was promised isn’t going to exist for them.”
• [22:15] James:
  “They’re not thinking about changing one ruling party for another. They’re thinking about changing the way governance works.”
• [27:28] James:
  “To open up a pinprick of light in the curtain of darkness.”
• [29:55] Andrew:
  “All this scaling up of AI is pushing us much faster towards the limits of growth. It feels like we are being ruled by accelerationists at times.”
• [36:52] James:
  “It probably won’t be you... might be someone you saw today, might be someone you’d ever met... Dozens of people get killed but thousands... have to live with this sense of fear.”
• [41:48] James:
  "In a world where we can see and know more about other people's lives than ever, we've done this thing [genocide by starvation]... it's just so sad... somehow us still not seeing our common humanity."
• [48:37] Andrew:
  “Our system is brittle as hell and people are resilient as hell... The future has not been written yet, we don’t know, but we do have the ability to choose what we do next.”

Key Takeaways for Listeners

• Systems are failing—but people are not powerless.
  The collapse of old norms is coupled with the rise of mutual aid, grassroots skill-building, and direct action.

• Uprisings are crucial, but cannot stand alone.
  Without infrastructure and ongoing organizing, the energy of rebellion is too easily dissipated or co-opted.

• Technology is not neutral.
  The expansion of AI and digital infrastructure is entrenching inequality, draining resources, and accelerating extraction—demanding new autonomous, collective responses.

• Wars and genocides persist—fueled by outside powers and systemic factors.
  Documentation, independent media, and global solidarity are vital, as mainstream narratives falter.

• The future is undetermined.
  Building skills, relationships, and projects now is both self- and community-defense in an age of systemic brittleness and uncertainty.

Important Timestamps

• [02:36] - Framing the episode: why archiving collapse matters
• [03:59] - Deep dive on 2025’s climate disasters and infrastructure failure
• [09:43] - State obstacles to survival during disasters (Myanmar, Alaska)
• [15:57] - Gen Z political mobilizations and global uprisings
• [24:31] - The sustainability of movements: needs for infrastructure
• [28:37] - Tech: resource consumption and AI-driven extraction
• [34:37] - Geopolitics: review of major ongoing and emerging wars
• [45:53] - External powers fueling endless conflict, grassroots humanitarianism
• [48:37] - Final thoughts: system brittleness, community power, and future-building

Final Thoughts/Closing

The hosts stress that while 2025 was relentlessly hard—and the systems around us more brittle than ever—there are seeds of hope in community resilience, self-organizing, and the ongoing capacity for collective solidarity. The work is to build on that foundation for whatever may come in 2026 and beyond.

Parting Words:
“All power to all the people. Happy New Year. Peace.” ([48:58] Andrew Sage)

This summary is designed as a rich primer for those who didn’t listen, capturing the substance, urgency, and reflective tone of the episode, with clear speaker attributions and timestamps throughout.