Thank you for an extraordinary synthesis and analysis. The word that seems most apropos is “coup”. What makes this one especially deplorable is the evident motive: personal greed for Trump and his benefactors - for power and control, yes, but perhaps more so for personal wealth obtained by extracting and exploiting the “public inheritance” of this nation in all its manifestations.
Trump operatives are drunk on lies, cruelty and power without conscience or shame. We can laugh at the absurdity of claiming healthy dissent is the work of communists, and elections are valid only when a Republican wins. Was it Voltaire who said “those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities”?
The patient is not fine. Military and paramilitary forces are being funded, formed and trained with dangerous rhetoric calling for all opposition to be crushed. We must not let this coup succeed.
Adam Kinzinger reported in his Wednesday daily video that, after the administration said there was no plan to send ICE agents to election sites, a judge found 11,000 pages of just such a plan. I'm glad of the find although I instinctively knew there was a plan. But who generates all these pages??? Eleven thousand??? And there's millions of pages of Epstein crap already released and millions more held back. These criminals are too verbose. We need conciseness, succinctness, brevity (notice I used 3 words where 1 would have done the job?) Good thing we invented AI cause what human would read all that bs. Besides, it goes without saying ... of course ICE is going to be at election sites. They've already got the masks and the guns.
This administration gives me a surprise every single day ... something I could not have imagined. Yesterday it was testosterone testing. OMG!
Bless you all for doing this outrageous journey with me ... you are my lifeline to sanity.
Ruth Ben-Ghiat is a stellar source of information regarding how authoritarian regimes consolidate power. I always find that her well researched points of view are both thought provoking and spot on relevant. Hearing what she has to say is not a bad way to share time with a spouse (writes this woman who just celebrated her #64 wedding anniversary and who has shared a myriad of historical and political viewpoints for many years with her husband)!
Another excellent piece. I desperately hope that your conclusion is right and that there is some hope to arrest what is happening, before the democracy frays beyond redemption. Yesterday's news included mention of Hegseth's proposed testosterone checks for servicemen over 30 which I thought was beyond parody...
This is an outstanding essay, Shanley. Let me summarize: The patient is on life support, the doctors and nurses have been fired, and the hospital is burning. Meanwhile, the crowd is hunting for marshmallows.
Thank you, Shanley. We, the Public, must take our role seriously and fight this with all of our might. The leaders we elected are supposed to work for us, but since trump took office, it is clear that we are working for them. That must stop. Protest, make those calls, protest some more, and make your votes count.
I read recently that this regime has dragged us further down the road to totalitarianisn in 18 months than most totalitarian countries slide in 10 years.
Hopefully, Congress will wake up and grow a spine! Trump's approval ratings are below 40%, yet our Reps remain asleep at the switch.
Thank you for an extraordinary synthesis and analysis. The word that seems most apropos is “coup”. What makes this one especially deplorable is the evident motive: personal greed for Trump and his benefactors - for power and control, yes, but perhaps more so for personal wealth obtained by extracting and exploiting the “public inheritance” of this nation in all its manifestations.
Trump operatives are drunk on lies, cruelty and power without conscience or shame. We can laugh at the absurdity of claiming healthy dissent is the work of communists, and elections are valid only when a Republican wins. Was it Voltaire who said “those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities”?
The patient is not fine. Military and paramilitary forces are being funded, formed and trained with dangerous rhetoric calling for all opposition to be crushed. We must not let this coup succeed.
GREAT! Thanks, Julie!
This is a must-read.
Adam Kinzinger reported in his Wednesday daily video that, after the administration said there was no plan to send ICE agents to election sites, a judge found 11,000 pages of just such a plan. I'm glad of the find although I instinctively knew there was a plan. But who generates all these pages??? Eleven thousand??? And there's millions of pages of Epstein crap already released and millions more held back. These criminals are too verbose. We need conciseness, succinctness, brevity (notice I used 3 words where 1 would have done the job?) Good thing we invented AI cause what human would read all that bs. Besides, it goes without saying ... of course ICE is going to be at election sites. They've already got the masks and the guns.
This administration gives me a surprise every single day ... something I could not have imagined. Yesterday it was testosterone testing. OMG!
Bless you all for doing this outrageous journey with me ... you are my lifeline to sanity.
Ruth Ben-Ghiat is a stellar source of information regarding how authoritarian regimes consolidate power. I always find that her well researched points of view are both thought provoking and spot on relevant. Hearing what she has to say is not a bad way to share time with a spouse (writes this woman who just celebrated her #64 wedding anniversary and who has shared a myriad of historical and political viewpoints for many years with her husband)!
Another excellent piece. I desperately hope that your conclusion is right and that there is some hope to arrest what is happening, before the democracy frays beyond redemption. Yesterday's news included mention of Hegseth's proposed testosterone checks for servicemen over 30 which I thought was beyond parody...
My heart goes out to the flora and fauna that will be affected by the landgrab.
This is an outstanding essay, Shanley. Let me summarize: The patient is on life support, the doctors and nurses have been fired, and the hospital is burning. Meanwhile, the crowd is hunting for marshmallows.
Thank you, Shanley. We, the Public, must take our role seriously and fight this with all of our might. The leaders we elected are supposed to work for us, but since trump took office, it is clear that we are working for them. That must stop. Protest, make those calls, protest some more, and make your votes count.
Excellent commentary! I fell asleep last night wondering how often Hegseth has his own testosterone level checked.
I read recently that this regime has dragged us further down the road to totalitarianisn in 18 months than most totalitarian countries slide in 10 years.
Hopefully, Congress will wake up and grow a spine! Trump's approval ratings are below 40%, yet our Reps remain asleep at the switch.
Another brilliant essay, Shanley. Thank you for making me smile while reading it, too. There is hope.