In the technocratic dystopia of modernity, things are undeniably grim, and they are getting worse at an accelerating rate.

This is not merely an observation for the hopelessly naive normie who still believes the evening news; it is a reality that even the most savvy lifehacker must confront daily. We find ourselves trapped in a pincer movement of economic instability and biological decline. If you are a Millennial or a member of Gen Z (I shall dub thee: Gen Zer), looking at the sordid state of affairs and deliberating between the career options of selling your body on OnlyFans, becoming some specie of online scammer/grifter, or signing up to die in some utterly pointless foreign war, I have a contrarian option for you.

There is a shockingly simple, personal, and pragmatic solution that my mind keeps returning to. It is a solution that addresses the very core of what ails both society and the individual. Before I reveal it, we must first categorize the five specific crises that this path mitigates, for we are meticulous empiricists here, and we must define our problems before we solve them.

Five horsemen of the modern apocalypse

First, we have the technological unemployment crisis. Growing numbers in our society simply will not have work in the near future because of the "enshittification" of the economy via AI, outsourcing, and corporations running leaner and meaner. These unemployment and underemployment numbers are only going to tick upward for the foreseeable future.

Second, we face a dire food quality and cost problem. Especially in America, the food of the masses has become overpriced poison. The cholesterol-rich eggs you need for neurological repair have become a luxury item, while the mainstream options are laden with glyphosate and metabolic disruptors.

Third, many of us are developing chronic health problems related to a sedentary lifestyle. We spend our lives in front of glowing, dopamine-draining screens for both work and play, incurring a massive biological cost.

Fourth, our formerly first-world cities are devolving into urban dystopias of crime, chaos, and a total loss of community. These centers (where the housing crisis intensifies as the cost of living skyrockets) are increasingly succumbing to socialism, which, as history dictates, only serves to make everything worse.

Finally, we face a "meaning crisis." The work available feels meaningless, starting a family feels impossible, and we have become agency-less passengers on a crazy train hurtling toward a cliff of nihilism.

The solution

Early in the mornings, in those contemplative moments after I have taken my smart drugs, or after a cold shower, or after a non-ejaculatory tantric lovemaking session with my wife, my mind oddly keeps returning to one specific solution to the modern "everything crisis." Why aren't more people talking about THIS? Is it really that simple? My solution, which you should be dying to hear by now, is this: Become a farmer.

I am suggesting that you reject the digital panopticon and return to the land. This is not some "back-to-nature" hippy sentiment; it is a hard-nosed, AI-proof career strategy. Farming is actually far cooler than the stereotypes of the old man on a tractor would suggest. With modern regenerative farming practices, there is an incredible amount of science and natural engineering involved in the production of food.

I'd suggest rebranding "farmer" to something cooler, Sovereign Soil Hacker.

The AI-proof entrepreneurship of the soil

Farming is one of the few careers that will remain shielded from the voracious appetite of AI and robotics for a long time. There is an innovative movement in regenerative farming that results in a much higher yield of nutritious food while simultaneously regenerating the land.

Years ago, I read a compelling, albeit "fringe," case that the Amazon rainforest was actually constructed by the Atlanteans thousands of years ago. They utilized Terra Preta, an incredibly rich, dark soil that is actually reproducible. This type of high-level agricultural engineering allows for the production of food that is biologically superior to what you'll find in a mainstream supermarket.

And that's not all, other innovations are fueling and multiplying the yields of forward-thinking independent farmers...

• Molecular Hydrogen (H2​) Agriculture: Research indicates that treating plants with hydrogen-rich water can significantly increase yield, improve antioxidant levels, and enhance resistance to environmental stress. This is effectively "Biohacking" the plant's own stress-response systems. (Molecular hydrogen is a fascinating area of Biohacking that I'm going to be leaning into this year).
• Electroculture: This involves using atmospheric electricity (via copper antennas or coils) to stimulate plant growth. It appeals to the "hacker" mindset by utilizing neglected energies to increase fertility without chemical fertilizers.
• Nutrient-Dense Infusion: While colloidal silver is primarily used as an antimicrobial (an alternative to nasty pesticides) for seeds, the broader biohacker move is Regenerative Agriculture, which uses compost teas and microbial inoculants to restore the soil's "microbiome," mirroring the human gut-health focus common in lifehacking.

According to the USDA 2022 Census of Agriculture, there is currently a major deficit of farmers, which is a significant reason why food prices are skyrocketing. This creates a massive entrepreneurship opportunity. There will always be a market of discerning people who want their food produced by humans rather than big corporate factory farms. If you produce organic, regenerative food, you are creating a product with intrinsic value that inflation cannot easily erase. Furthermore, as a farmer, you can always eat your own product. You don't have to worry about the inflated prices at the grocery store when you are the source of the supply.

Biohacking the agrarian lifestyle

This path also solves the health crisis of sedentary life. Farmers spend their time outside, under the sun, and in nature.

In the past, this meant back-breaking labor and mobility problems. However, we are Biohackers. By yielding the tools we have, such as high-dose collagen supplementation, red light therapy for recovery, an injection of BPC-157 from time to time, and meticulous ergonomic practices, one could maintain a high-performance body while doing vigorous work. It is about taking the toll of physical labor and tempering it with advanced recovery protocols.

This lifestyle also addresses the "meaning crisis." Have you ever heard of a "depressed" farmer? Me neither! Working with your hands to produce something essential is a freedom-oriented existence.

Become a farm-life "influencer"

You have probably played with the idea of pursuing a career as an "influencer." This isn't as vain and vapid as it may seem; it is actually a viable entrepreneurship option that connects directly to being a Sovereign Soil Hacker. In an era of AI-driven technological unemployment (a crisis I saw coming way back in 2012, listening to the ever-prescient Singularity.FM), the "influencer" model is one of the few paths that may prove AI-proof for the foreseeable future. People are biologically wired to form parasocial relationships. In the coming AI economy, they will continue to buy from, support, and trust recommendations from humans who have earned that trust through transparency and expertise.

I certainly don’t regret the career pivot I made a decade ago from web developer to what could be broadly described as "influencer." Building an audience and establishing trust is a form of entrepreneurship that survives the "crazy train" of modernity. As a Sovereign Soil Hacker, you will need to market your produce; the "influencer" model of content syndication, collabs, and podcasting is the most cost-effective way to build that market.

On social media, I've seen a new breed of "farmer-influencers" who produce high-quality organic products and use content creation as their marketing. It is a contrarian lifestyle that allows you to escape the overpriced, dystopian urban centers. As you travel between cities, look at the sparsely populated landscapes; much of that is land that could be turned into productive, sovereign territory.

As far as I can tell, the only modern Millennial/Gen Zer problem this doesn't solve is that it probably won't help you much in finding a nice girlfriend or boyfriend to eventually start a family with. (In fact, I know a couple of dudes who forsook modernity and retreated to the land to do the homesteading thing, but they did this before getting a girlfriend/wife, and they remain very single). So get the trad girl (or trad guy) first before you go all-in on the sovereign soil hacker life!

Decentralization for the win

I've also done a lot of thinking and writing on decentralization; it's the solution to almost everything that ails modern society.

This blog started with a comment that I posted, which sparked some discussion. I'll quote from some of the (smarter) replies I got...

[Farmers are] using drones armed with lasers to zap individual pests, apply spot fertilizers in precise doses to each individual plant, and much more. Your impulse and general intention are spot on, but you haven't escaped the box of centralization we have suffered across human history. Decentralization of the means of production is outcompeting centralization in every field of industry today, without exception... Holistic synergy is fundamental to decentralization, as resource availability and expertise vary across the landscape. AI is not the enemy. Dependence on centralized supply is. Little can better; maximize your productivity than AI you can employ personally, locally, and absent surveillance. Seize ALL the means of production suitable to your personal circumstances, and work with good people to help them do the same so that you can enjoy their good company in good faith to create goodwill that will enable as many people of merit to work together to withstand the coming anarchotyrannical oppression that seeks to kill everyone who dissents at all.

The objections to my solution--become a sovereign soil hacker--pointed to the fact that farming is increasingly coming under corporate consolidation...

This is part of the Agenda 21 Technocratic project that financial capitalist elites are pursuing. The plutocrats aim to enclose all commons by financializing all land and natural resources. When virtually every acre of land and every natural resource produced from that land has been tokenized, and the tokens are being traded on securities exchanges along with all the industrial and commercial firms which manufacture and distribute goods and services, then those financial entities which control the majority of all capital (think Blackrock, State Street, Vanguard, Blackstone the elite megabanks etc.) can essentially control the entire economy. All they have to do then is coordinate their actions, and they will have created a de facto state socialist system.

I don't see the fact that farm land is largely consolidated as a good excuse to not become a sovereign soil hacker. The innovative regenerative practices I describe open up a lot of opportunities on land that the corpos are ignoring. I'm willing to believe that it's challenging to secure fertile land in a place like the United States; so it seems like another good reason to do what I did (which I regard as one of the best decisions of my life): expatriate somewhere freer that's not so under the thumb of rapacious and voracious corporations. 

Don't delay!

If you're warming to the idea, don't put it off for a couple of years. The technological unemployment trend will undeniably be awful for those with normal salaried jobs, but the truth is that AI is pretty awesome for entrepreneurs (temporarily). Marketing, product development, logistics management, accounting, and customer service are now easier and cheaper than ever to do.

Statrys here makes a strong case that in just a few years, corporate consolidation will eat the lean start-up/entrepreneurship space. And then what are you going to do? Go on UBI?

If you're struggling to buy eggs, you probably can't afford to buy farm land, but there are a lot of ways to transition into the kind of lifestyle I'm describing. Maybe start by getting a job at a smaller farm. Or start by sharecropping like my friend, Cahlen (it takes very little start-up capital).

A confession of cosmopolitan hypocrisy

Now, here is the part where I must admit to being a total hypocrite. A few years ago, my wife and I were in the perfect position to implement this very solution. Her family owned a vacant yet livable house in a lovely mountain town in Bulgaria, a place you have certainly never heard of. It had a giant garden where I spent summer days lounging under vines bursting with grapes and walking past the most vibrant rosemary I've ever seen erupting from the soil. It was the perfect staging ground for the regenerative life I am describing.

But we didn't do it. We stayed in Sofia, the cosmopolitan capital. Why? Because we were addicted to the convenience of the urban center. I didn't want the "convenience cost" of moving to a small town where I would need a car and have a lot fewer immediate amenities. We ended up selling that house, and with it, that specific opportunity for sovereign farming.

It seems my generation is perhaps too addicted to the soft comforts of the cosmopolitan zoo, even as the bars of the cage are being electrified. But the toxic modern stew of AI, rapacious corporations, and retarded politics is not going to relent in its destruction of your chance at living a meaningful life doing good work.

So hopefully, this inspires you to break out of your cosmopolitan comfort zone, or perhaps you should share this with a young person facing the headwind of the everything crisis who's got the gumption to take up the title of "Soil Hacker."

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If they think this tribal EDM song about transhumanism is lame, that's a good sign...

Nicotinic acid, in its various forms, is the subject of a fairly heated debate over its fantastic properties when it comes to anti-aging, Schizophrenia, alcoholism, and trauma.

There is a specific question I refuse to answer. A question I get privately from members of the Limitless audience from time to time: How much money do I make doing what I do?

Here is why I refuse that question: I have no desire to dilute my field by producing a swarm of pseudo-experts who would, no doubt, awkwardly and melodramatically end up competing with me. The only reason to talk about my income would be if I wanted to sell you a course on how to 'get rich quick' as an Applied Neuroscience Strategist, like me.

But even if I created the greatest course on the planet about launching a lucrative career as a health or personal growth "influencer," the data is clear: 80% to 90% of the students would fail to achieve even moderate success, simply because entrepreneurship is just that hard. The fact that I’ve never released such a course should make you think...
We live in an era of endless digital pitches; gurus and influencers selling 'masterclasses' and 'blueprints' for day trading, crypto-investing, or building automated AI empires. But the big question you must ask when faced with these opportunities is simple: Why? If their niche is as profitable as the marketing claims, why are they spending their time selling you the map instead of just mining the gold themselves?

I don't sell 'secrets of smart drug dealing on the internet' course because I’d rather spend my energy doing the actual work that provides for my family. That is why I’m not in the pyramid-building business. I want you to carry that same nugget of critical thinking with you the next time you see a four-figure price tag on a profit machine pitched. Because the moment you stop questioning critically is the moment your 'Human Firewall' begins to crumble.

Biohacker Review: A notable uptick in gym performance

I've taken 1000 milligrams (two capsules) of HMB before workouts, and I believe there is a notable uptick in my gym performance. I'm able to lift more, along with doing more pull-ups and push-ups. I've been getting acquainted with some pre-workout supplements in the last few weeks. I've also tried Mildronate before workouts. It's hard for me to compare and contrast the two from my subjective experience because I'll admit that when it comes to my gym performance, it's hard to tell the difference between pharmacologically enabled gains and me just being more aggressive or the placebo effect. There's not much subjective experience with HMB as there is with many Nootropics.

I answer the May Biohacking and lifehacking questions in the Q&A podcast below.

And I share some philosophical thoughts on the contraction of freedoms due to the global pandemic and explain why personal and interpersonal freedom matter more than political freedom in living a good life. Listen to it on the go here on Castbox.