I’m starting to really consider the whole “reality is a simulation” angle, and whoever is running the game has put in a cheat code. (not really really, but more than I ever have before)
It’s like a shitty unrealistic movie plot has unfolded over the past decade. And every time it looks like maybe things are heading back on track, BOOM, we get another event that just turns us right back on the track to crazytown.
I’m having a hard time coming up with anything I can cling to in the hopes that Project 2025 isn’t going to go exactly as planned down to the last detail.
How are we not going to become real-world Gilead (but with more racism)?
Most of the safeguards were removed in trump’s previous term, and now the way’s open.
Good luck.
I’m starting to really consider the whole “reality is a simulation” angle, and whoever is running the game has put in a cheat code. (not really really, but more than I ever have before)
🙄
I have some reeeeeeal bad news for you: the American voters handed Trump and the Republicans not just 1, not 2, but ALL 3 fucking branches of government, on top of a media in which at least 33% is in his fucking pocket and at least another 33% is too stupid to see through his bullshit.
I’m not sure what kind of push back you’re expecting or who you’re expecting it from exactly, but to whatever extent there IS push back it’s gonna be 90% performative gesturing and hand-wringing until at least 2026. And that’s the best case where people are smart enough to vote in their best interest, which knowing how fucking stupid you all are, I’m not gonna hold my breath.
GLHF.
All I’ll say is you’re not taking the “reality is a simulation” angle far enough, because you still believe that there is some sort of outcome that is both objectively good AND long term stable. But the only such outcome is that the simulation goes on, with or without you.
You are still on the acid trip, just ride it until it’s over. It’ll be more fun if you just let it do its thing.
Did you not see Obama and Trump joking around? If it was serious Obama wouldn’t be joking like that. He’d be busting heads.
Trump triedcseveral times before Obama, polite as he is, answered.
You are experiencing what they want you to experience in this situation: A state of shock.
This is “Shock and Awe.” It’s a blitz to make the enemy feel like the task to fight back is insurmountable and to give up before trying.
Shock and awe (technically known as rapid dominance) is a military strategy based on the use of overwhelming power and spectacular displays of force to paralyze the enemy’s perception of the battlefield and destroy their will to fight
This is not a military battle, but it is clear that Trump is practicing rapid dominance. He is using the Project 2025 pre-written Executive Orders to execute rapid dominance over the US government and make us feel shocked, confused, and desperate.
Naomi Klein wrote The Shock Doctrine in response to the Iraq War, and this is the Shock Doctrine being used on the US citizenry to whip them into submission.
We must resist this shock. The feeling you have, that it is hopeless, that no one is pushing back, is exactly how they want you to feel.
Get involved in Mutual Aid. Give back to your local community. Check out of national politics, we can’t affect it anymore. Focus on building parallel systems (food banks, community gardens, community mesh-networks, community first aid) for people to rely on since we can no longer rely on the systems that Trump is actively trying to dismantle or twist to harm the American populace.
Losing hope right now means losing the long-term battle against this. Losing hope is what they intend to force you into, broken, submissive, no hope. Do not go silent into that good night.
If you’re asking for someone to push back with effectiveness, you can be one of the first by giving your skills to your community.
In Klein’s own words:
Trump is a rolling shock machine, which a recipe for keeping us scattered and reactive to the latest shocking news. There will be moments when we need to react forcefully and meaningfully to protect one another.
EDIT: This also seems relevant right now:
When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”
-Fred “Mister” Rogers
I literally went and bought her audiobook after reading this post A few chapters in and it’s hard to believe it was written 20 years ago and not, like, last week.
Thanks, lots to think about there and just the sort of thing I needed.
You’re welcome. There’s lots of other real efforts, too. There’s been various successes at people preventing ICE from getting at people. I know a lot of people in /r/Seattle were doing the legwork of communications to help people avoid getting snared by ICE. The West coast will be a hold out. A school in Chicago also successfully repelled ICE agents from entering the school. Look for the helpers, they won’t be from the government anymore, they will be people like you and me.
Naomi is brilliant and you’re right, her book perfectly describes what is happening to us right now. Thanks for elevating it into the conversation!
I agree with all except the “Check out of national politics” part. You cant decide who is President anymore, but you should still keep an eye on what national laws they may pass or should be prevented from passing
There is [email protected] to help keep track of all these things
Have to be honest, the shock is working on me.
Thank you! 🙏
Yeah grow a food coop for the first band of fascist thugs that show up with guns. We need to arm ourselves and train just as much as decentralize our food. If you think they’ll go away peacefully and leave our gardens alone you’re horribly naive.
Yes, OP’s asking where the alleged helpers are.
Putting a much finer point on it, we just got a 4 year long demonstration of how utterly disinterested Democrats are in helping.
A best of post right here, thank you for the run down
The Inspectors General that Trump is trying to fire basically told him to fuck off.
Under a law passed in 2022 (you know, when the Dems were doing nothing 🙄) the president has to give Congress 1) 30 days notice of firing an IG and 2) enumerate the reasons why that IG was being fired. The second any reason is given to Congress these people are going to sue for wrongful termination since it’s blatantly obvious to everyone Trump is trying to rid the government of anyone who could hold him accountable.
What is the consequence of not following these rules?
If the only consequence is a lawsuit he doesn’t have to pay personally, then I don’t think he cares.
I suppose if the firings are regarded as “official acts,” the courts will support POTUS on this one.
Currently the consequence is they aren’t accepting the termination of their enjoyment and aren’t leaving.
If the consequence of not following the rules means it doesn’t get enforced then he cares very much.
Why does trump care if someone he tried to fire refuses to accept that they’re fired. He can still hire a replacement and pretend the person he “fired” doesn’t exist, and as long as the rest of the bureaucracy plays along with him (which it always seems to) then trump faces no consequences for breaking the rules.
This happened time and time again last term where he broke norms and rules that had no codified repercussions. Dems would say “you can’t do that, it’s not allowed” but he’d do it anyways and succeed.
The checks placed on the POTUS need to have actual teeth and not just be a gentlemen’s agreement
Oh yeah I saw that headline when I got up this morning and it made me happy to see. But talk me down the tree a little further if you can.
In the current state I don’t see how it matters. I’m glad they did it. I appreciate the gesture, and I think it was an important one. But I feel like we’re all still pretending that laws and norms matter when clearly they no longer do for Trump and anyone under him.
What exactly stops him from having these people forcibly removed and/or their access to government resources cut, their paychecks held, their clearances revoked, etc? Who is in charge of those things that can stand up to that?
What exactly stops him from having these people forcibly removed and/or their access to government resources cut, their paychecks held, their clearances revoked, etc? Who is in charge of those things that can stand up to that?
What stops him is people willing to ignore obviously illegal demands, and the more people that stand up to him the more people will be encouraged to do the same. Now, if Trump openly defies court orders and the executive branch has enough sycophants in it that they’re willing to help him, then it becomes up to us to solve that problem.
Solid summary, the best way to deal with authority in general is to ignore them. Mind you someone can always use violence but often times thats a sign of weakness from someone who is trying to claim they have power.
What exactly stops him from having these people forcibly removed and/or their access to government resources cut, their paychecks held, their clearances revoked, etc? Who is in charge of those things that can stand up to that?
Trump doesn’t directly do any of those things, he would have to order other people to do so, and the risk of doing so is that if he encounters more resistance people start to notice that the emperor has no clothes.
The more people resist the more it encourages others to do the same. The president is not a king that can dictate commands, and the more people stop obeying the more Trump runs into those protections that stop him being a tyrant.
My concern as well. Trump really doesn’t seem to give a damn this go-around. There were people in place that hit the brakes on him last time, but this time nobody’s doing shit.
There’s the Reagan-appointed federal judge who near instantaneously ruled that trump’s birthright citizenship EO was unconstitutional and expressed disbelief that anyone recognized by the Bar Association would argue for such a position.
I don’t think they expect this one to hold water, but it does serve as an excellent distraction from all the other nefarious shit coming down the pipe. Don’t lose sight of that other stuff - especially attempts to liquidate the treasury into $doge, $trump, or any other shit coin. That is the monumental heist they’re gunning for, make no mistake.
It’ll be like Roe. Where they lose at every level because it’s obvious until they get to SCOTUS. Who will decide in the GOP’s favor based on the Papal Bull of 462.
He only issued a TRO, though. I am unfortunately confident they will find a way around this.
Thank you this is what I’m talking about! (Holding my breath to see if he’s somehow overridden or disbarred.)
It’s the rich buying off both major political parties in the US. One is paid to implement a fascist oligarchy. The other is paid to pump the breaks on the fascist oligarchy when the population freaks out.
In both cases, political bribery has run amok and unchecked. Neither party is beholden to the will of the people. Low voter turnout means Republicans and oligarchy wins. High voter turnout means Democrats and the same oligarchy wins.
The world could really do with a few more Luigis.
Some reporting is saying impeachment is being floated, suing the president has been a matter of course since Obama took office and hasn’t stopped since, he’s already issuing orders that are blatantly illegal and clearly violate the constitution. There are a lot of openings to fight back right now. Is anyone? Idk.
Are you un-ironically suggesting that impeachment is actually a viable check on a US president?
I doubt this to the point I would bet money against it if I could.
Did you not see that a proposal to amend the constitution for 3 terms was ACTUALLY proposed by a Congressperson from TN?
The republicans do not have enough of a majority in either house to get that through.
I sincerely doubt they are going to convince a third of the Dems to support it either
Remember that you’d have to get at least 38 state legislatures to ratify it as well. Getting any amendments passed in the modern day is a whole circus in and of itself, and I highly doubt there’s enough political capital to get such an obviously targeted amendment (since the candidate in question would’ve had to have two nonconsecutive terms - meaning this applies to Grocer Cleveland and Donald Trump) passed.
I’m beginning to think this term is more about Vance more than Trump. At least, that’s the plan by those behind Trump.
Let Trump go mad and do everything evil at a hundred miles an hour, which is what’s underway. Create utter chaos and make it impossible for anyone to draw breath and structure a defence. Then when the country finally pushes back (Maybe after about year) and he’s impeached, slip in JD Vance as a more moderate leader and everyone will be so grateful the Republicans secure several terms by turning against and blaming everything on Trump.
I could be wrong. Anyone making predictions in this chaos is guessing.
Not a single soul in the government is going to help or save you. I’m sorry you’re only realizing this now, but the U.S. government has never been your friend or given a shit about you. It was captured by corporate forces at least 20 years ago, and set down this path to fascism over 40 years ago by Reagan. At this point, you will have to be one of the ones to resist, and you should reach out to local organizations to resist with them.
Can the US government just fire anybody they want for whatever reason? (I’ve seen lots of things implying they can, but I’ve never seen anything stating it clearly.)
Because if that’s the case, yeah, nobody there will help. You’ll just see a lot of people exiting it.
Not really. The goal aside from probationary employees is to make the workforce miserable so they quit and starve itself in the process. RTOs (especially for those hired remotely, say states away), is one example.
“Hey the government is even more inefficient, let’s fire all the low performers.” - To the employee left doing 5x usual workload at 50% efficiency.
Can the US government just fire anybody they want for whatever reason?
Only when a Republican is in office. When a Democrat is in office, we have to keep DeJoy running the post office.
Who’s going to stop them?
The first day of his inaguration, Trump put forth an executive order that will attempt to make all federal employees Schedule F, basically, the same protections as a political appointee instead of a civil servant. This will make them basically at will employees.
DunkinCoder is correct they are also making it really awful to work for the federal government with RTO and freezing of funding. And the hiring freeze. But it’s not the complete picture, its actually much worse.
There will be court cases with federal employees trying to keep their jobs. I suspect they will fail, due to how the courts are republican controlled right now. The firings haven’t started yet. Expect them soon. There will be loyalty tests. There’s an email floating around asking federal employees to rat on “DEI hires”, whatever that is. Are minorities that are actually entirely qualified for their federal position a “DEI hire”? Do you get fired if you don’t pretend that they are?
Edit - article: link
Who just knocked?31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’
44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’
45 “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’
46 “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
–
The Gospel According to MatthewLiberal Talking PointsThere are trumpers that read the bible. I always wonder what goes through their heads when they read the teachings of Jesus.
In verse 40, “brothers and sisters of mine”, they think it means white, middle class, cisgender, heterosexual, neurotypical, conservative people.
They really love using
Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me
in the context of abortion.
I hate white Jesus
And I hate flappy lipped, diaper-wearing, orange peel wannabe Jesus.
Yeah, white Jesus is kinda a dick. We should deport him.
Edit: but not like the Romans did.
Indeed. Western portrayals of Jesus are likely historically inaccurate, it’s more probable that he was dark skinned
Project 2025 won’t go exactly as planned, but at least half of it will and the rest will sow enough discord during the attempt to run the country into the ground. We will most likely still be the most powerful nation unless we split, just because of the massive population and resources available.
There are two countries on this planet with more than three times you population and enough resources to take over your position of most powerful nation if they stop fucking around and you guys screw up badly enough.
China? Maybe. India? Fucking no. We’re not even going to hit middle income trap like China. We’re going to remain underdeveloped country for the foreseeable future.
If you keep voting for people like modi yes, but you guys still have more of a democracy than China so there’s still a possibility
Nice to see you believe in my county more than I do. I’ve no hope from my country. It’s going to hell.
I don’t know, China is kind of closed off. On the other hand, there are Indians all over the planet, they go and become successful in every country on earth. They could easily achieve a Cultural Dominance Victory a la Civilization simply due to the breadth of how far their culture could expand at this point. Bollywood is way bigger across the world than Chinese cinema. I can see it happening for India, even if the country itself doesn’t develop like you think it will (which it sounds like you’re much more familiar with than I, of course, being from there it sounds like). Cultural dominance is part of what allowed Britain to dominate half the planet for a good long time, I can see Indian culture achieving a similar cultural dominance.
India still has a lot of issues and hurdles to overcome before it solidifies itself as a major super power.
