It isn’t just the insane tariffs. They are just the coup de grace. As Lawrence Summers posted: the tariffs are to economics what creationism is to biology, astrology is to astronomy, or RFK thought is to vaccine science. In fact, it is likely that their effects will hasten the fall of our mad would-be king, as plutocrats join the millions of ordinary Americans appalled by the wholesale destruction of American governance and the world order.
But the larger damage has been done, and it is not remediable.
Perhaps the most accurate–and damning–analysis was from The Bulwark.
We cannot overstate what has just happened. It took just 71 days for Donald Trump to wreck the American economy, mortally wound NATO, and destroy the American-led world order.
He did this with the enthusiastic support of the entire Republican party and conservative movement.
He did it with the support of a plurality of American voters.
He did not hide his intentions. He campaigned on them. He made them the central thrust of his election. He told Americans that he would betray our allies and give up our leadership position in the world.
And that is exactly what he’s done. The article quoted Canada’s Prime Minister’s sorrowful eulogy.
The global economy is fundamentally different today than it was yesterday. The system of global trade anchored on the United States, that Canada has relied on since the end of the Second World War—a system that, while not perfect, has helped to deliver prosperity for our country for decades—is over.
Our old relationship of steadily deepening integration with the United States is over.
The eighty-year period when the United States embraced the mantle of global economic leadership—when it forged alliances rooted in trust and mutual respect, and championed the free and open exchange of good and services—is over.
While this is a tragedy, it is also the new reality.
So–how did we get here?
Historians will undoubtedly spend decades looking for answers, and there are certainly lots of contributing factors: lack of civic education, an information environment that facilitates confirmation bias, the ballooning gap between the rich and the rest, the arrogance of the tech “bros”. But while all those elements contributed, my own research tells me that the single most consequential support for Trumpism is America’s entrenched racism.
When I use the word racism, I’m not simply referring to anti-Black animus, although that is indeed its most prominent characteristic. I am using that term to include the other persistent, notable bigotries that continue to be prominent elements of American society : anti-Semitism, raging misogyny…the simmering resentment that all too many Americans harbour for anyone they consider “Other.”
As Trump and Musk have taken their hatchets to the federal government, they have made no effort to hide their major target: those Others. They have moved to expunge DEI, diversity and “woke-ism” from America’s society– “epithets” that are thinly veiled terms for civic equality and equal rights.
A plurality of our fellow citizens cast their votes for a President and a political party devoted to White Christian supremacy. It’s doubtful that they intended to destroy Pax Americana, but placing America under a regime of know-nothings, bigots and buffoons could hardly have done otherwise. And as the linked article says, “There is no going back.”
If, tomorrow, Donald Trump revoked his entire regime of tariffs, it would not matter. It might temporarily delay some economic pain, but the rest of the world now understands that it must move forward without America.
If, tomorrow, Donald Trump abandoned his quest to annex Greenland and committed himself to the defense of Ukraine and the perpetuation of NATO, it would not matter. The free world now understands that its long-term security plans must be made with the understanding that America is a potential adversary, not an ally.
This realization may be painful for Americans. But we should know that the rest of the world understands us more clearly than we understand ourselves….
The article’s conclusion is depressing–but realistic.
We have a deeply stupid government—from our economically illiterate president to our craven and foolish secretary of state, from the freelancing billionaire dilettante who is gutting American soft power to the vaccine-denying health secretary who is firing as much talent as he can. From the senior economics advisor who thinks comic books are good investments, to the senators who voted to confirm this cabinet of hacks, to the representatives who stumble over themselves justifying each new inane MAGA pronouncement.
But also, we have the government we deserve.
The American age is over. And it ended because the American people were no longer worthy of it.
RIP.
I am leaving Lisbon this evening for Zurich. The Portuguese Empire- “lead”- the Brits followed, Hitler and Stalin tried and ultimately failed. The U.S. Empire “took over” leading into 1945 if not before. The Chinese might take over if Nuclear Weapons and or Climate Change don’t prevent them. Caring for Others- Loving Community is Necessary!
“”According to Dartmouth economist Douglas Irwin, tariffs have served three primary purposes: “to raise revenue for the government, to restrict imports and protect domestic producers from foreign competition, and to reach reciprocity agreements that reduce trade barriers.”[3] From 1790 to 1860, average tariffs increased from 20 percent to 60 percent before declining again to 20 percent.[3] From 1861 to 1933, which Irwin characterizes as the “restriction period”, the average tariffs increased to 50 percent and remained at that level for several decades. From 1934 onwards, which Irwin characterizes as the “reciprocity period”, the average tariff declined substantially until it leveled off at 5 percent“”
NAFTA was Clintons fault, he admits the mistake. The rich got richer and workers lost their jobs.
15% tarrifs play a better dividing line.
80% of stocks are owned by 8%?
“The American age is over. And it ended because the American people were no longer worthy of it.”
I had thoughts along that line as I watched the news films of floods, floods everywhere, floods in areas that haven’t flooded in many years. President Biden’s Infrastructure Bill needs to be allowed to fully continue, fully staffed, to repair the damaged and ignored infrastructure throughout this country…by both parties…to repair and replace what we are losing during these storms and tornadoes. But that takes us to Republican’s determined repeal of the EPA every time they are in the White House. No way to resurrect the lost lives brought about by what those who believe is the current possible “wrath of God” due to Republican ignorance, greed and hunger for control and power.
“It isn’t just the insane tariffs. They are just the coup de grace.”
We are living in fear of spreading poverty due to Trump and Musk and their creation of DOGE, which is probably illegal and against the Constitution, as well as the forces of nature determined to destroy all in their paths.
It’s really difficult to preside over your own funeral. Blogs like this one are great for people to vent their fears and anger as well as provide suggestions for improvement.
The current executive and the Republican Congress need to be pushed off the proverbial cliff and replaced with people who actually love humanity, our country and a peaceful world – in that order. They exist. But how do we get them into office?
Time never stops defining life, whether we talk about you, me, the country, or evolution.
For the first time in history, the we of yesterday played a significant role in what the whole earth of the present and future will inflict on civilization. We love our energy, and now the waste from how we harvest energy has changed and will change our home planet even more.
Added to that is the success of our other efforts to live long, safe, and comfortable lives and its insatiable demand to turn natural resources, the source of wealth, into waste after a brief period of utility. We should not be surprised that our dream world is ending.
MTV represents the vultures, consuming the remains of the civilization that must now morph into something else. Nobody knows yet what that will be, certainly not the vultures.
MTV, the ruling triumvirate of the united States of mid-North America, is even more desperate to protect the extra safety and comfort they enjoy now. But their thrashing around will hasten the demise of civilization in our part of the world.
Nobody, certainly not me, knows where the human world will be once this mega-change has settled into a new and brief stable reality.
Nobody, though, is without influence over their reality. I plan to use mine to make any part of the process more collaborative.
John S. Does that 8% include all of the people who have shares of stock based mutual funds?
I’m full of questions this morning. Next up is crucial to determining next steps. Are we better off with an narcissistic ignoramus in the Oval Office or with a narcissistic jackass, whose memaw convinced that he was “just as good as them other fu…rs.” J.D. Vance’s disdain of others is one of the things that set him apart from mere mortals. I no longer have cats or dogs, but I’m sure that the company of any type of animal, wild or domesticated, would be preferable to his.
Question number three is how do we deal with having two of the absolute worst people in the world at the top of the pecking order? For this one I have an answer, vote for democrats to overwhelmingly win both the House and the Senate.
Sadly, this leads to a fourth question and that is the crucial one. Can we find enough great candidates to do the job. We need younger people with brains and charisma. Are there enough of them to turn us around? I hope so.
Frankly, I don’t find this post helpful. We need to have hope and this depresses hope. As true as it may be from an intellectual and international perspective, we need to be doing all we can to limit the damage and turn this around and start rebuilding. There are people scraping government websites and putting some of them back up in private servers. I expect that there were and are people backing up existing government computer systems.
Probably the most famous book series, being made into a mediocre movie that doesn’t even follow the original story very well are the Foundation series by Isaac Asimov. Asimov’s main character, Hari Seldon and his Psychohistorians have come to understand that the Galactic Empire although apparently strong is rotting from the inside out and will soon (in galatic measures) collapse, a collapse which will take 100,000 year to recover from. The Psychohistorians job is to reduce 100,000 years to 10,000 years. Our job is to reduce 100 years to 10, annihilating Trump and the Christian Nationalists in the process. As Ministers are taught, if you take your congregation down, you must end by bringing them back up!
Emphasize what we want to build instead of what we want to knock down. That shift in perspective is important and powerful. It will tend to pull people into the movement instead of firing up their defense mechanisms. As Sheila has told us before, how you frame the problem will determine how you solve it. The same thing is true in scientific research. How you ask a question determines how you create the tests needed to answer it.
Instead of asking how we get people into office, ask how we get people invested in our vision. When they are invested in it, they will sweep all before them, just as they have so many times before.
Every Saturday, Zeteo sends a newsletter of the past week’s daily events (highlights). They’ve been doing this since Trump took office. It illustrates the helter-skelter management style of Trump’s administration. You quickly notice the many versions of lies from the administration, from Karoline Leavitt to Trump. Even though there is a Project 2025 framework, there doesn’t appear to be a commitment to any plan whatsoever. Marco Rubio and Trump are truth-averse. From now on, after “Liberation Day,” I would not want to be Rubio traveling around the globe. He will not get a warm reception.
This past week, I’ve read so many versions of tariff analysis that it gave me a headache. There are deep thinkers on the subject, but they are overcomplicating Trump’s efforts. Essentially, they give him too much credit for what he’s trying to do. Trump is ego-driven, and he wants to send a notice to ALL foreign and domestic leaders/corporations that Trump is in charge. He isn’t just in charge of the US; he controls all other countries and their corporations. He sent them a notice on “Liberation Day.”
Trump’s narcissism is in complete control of his decisions—every decision he makes. It’s all about him. Every country on that list will contact Trump personally, and every corporation, domestic and foreign, will contact Trump personally. We’ll see if there are any concessions to the tariffs in the coming days and what Trump got in exchange. He’s not just the ‘King of the USA,’ he’s the ‘Earth’s Emperor.’
Also, I would like to know how many of Trump’s insiders and his family, especially Kushner, who holds billions of Saudi Arabia dollars, sold the market short before the tariff day announcement. I’ve not read a single statement from all the ‘experts’ regarding insider trading. Do you think any Russian oligarchs knew it was coming and bet the market short? If so, they made a fortune!
Trump is demanding complete subservience to his ego. He’s been getting the media to bow and all his appointees. Europe has begged him, but he’s not impressed. He won’t let go of Ukraine because BlackRock has a significant investment in Ukraine. They want access to the fertile soil and minerals; if Trump leaves, he’ll lose control.
We’ll see after he hosts the Saudi Arabia-sponsored golf kick-off this weekend on Trump’s golf course in Florida.
There is a lot of denial out there. Perhaps it is too soon after the disastrous tariff “Liberation Day” for people to understand what has happened and how their world has changed for the worse.
From a West Coast liberal techie, “I think I lost over 30% of my investments, but it will all come back just as soon as he takes back the tariffs.”
From a Midwest Maga voter, “It’s just going to be a little rough for awhile, but then things will be OK.”
I figure by next weekend reality will begin to settle in. And with it a strong dose of panic. Sad.
This entire situation is really based on a belief of entitlement. Certain folks are entitled to whatever there is to offer or glean or steal, and others are not. Even if those others for the ones that were gleaned of their humanity, blood, sweat, and tears!
I mean if you really think about it, if you ponder it, if you contemplate the entirety of what’s happening, it really is based on entitlement. I mean there’s other things involved, there is a certain malevolent religious aspect to it, but that goes along with entitlement. And humanity’s staunchly, with blinders at full tunnel vision focus, plows forward to the abyss.
The Papel Bull of 1493, gave explicit permission for the subjugation of the entire continents of North America, South America and Africa! Was this based on anything in the scriptures? Absolutely not. It was based on power and wealth. They talk about the greatest transfer of wealth in the written history of humankind, that transfer happened with the permission and the encouragement of Pope Alexander VI.
If you remember your history, the Pope during that time, was really the ruler of the world. And the church hammered its stanchions to brace it’s authority and power, for an eternity, or, however long this palatable evil existed/exists.
I do understand how the thought of religion is irritating to many, and the preface of religion is outdated and undeniably a symbiotic leech of evil. But this isn’t something that was permitted or cajoled through scripture. This is something that was actually predicted in scripture. And I wholeheartedly believe that we are now at the saturation point concerning the conflagration of filth, moral turpitude, evil, craven power grabbers, and idolaters kneeling at the altar of wealth.
When Christ himself said that he would not accept a kingship on earth, because his power was not here, it was from somewhere else. And that there was a difference between man’s law, and God’s law. He fought with the religious leaders of the time, it plays out throughout the gospel books. The Sanhedrin were the established theocratic rulers of religion at that time. Christ received a horrible death because of what he tried to do. Which was separate God’s law from a man’s law. The religious leaders recognized the power they could have over the secular rulers, no matter what their beliefs were. And as you can see from the beginning of this long comment, lol, You can see it in action today just as you can throughout history. Like I mentioned above, the saturation point has been reached. It might eb and flow, but, in essence, the religious conflagration has become a hedgemonic force the entire world has embraced. Just for an observation or observational purposes, the triple crown as they say that’s on the Pope’s crown. Is of course three levels, heavens, earth, and hell, in other words, he has the power over everything, even Jesus Christ! If you buttonhole them on it, they will admit it.
The Castrati, or the castration of boys to maintain their singing pitch, which the various Popes claimed must sound like the angels. This was based not on anything scriptural, but their own perverted and warped ideas of what is holy and what is not.
What is happening today, has been predicted for a long time. A prophetic marking of times that will be unbearable for most. Why? Well that takes a fairly expensive amount of time to go through, but it is worth it to understand what those who seem to be angels of light but are in disguise.
@Pete … your comments appreciated, but you seem to be enamored with reference to “MTV”. I decided to look it up in the commons. MTV is dominated by the entertainment industry revolving around the success of a Paramount Productions division known on the street as music television. Except for an Army acronym for mobile tactical vehicle, I discovered absolutely nothing and just came up empty handed. Pete, what is the meaning of MTV and its source? I do not have a clue.
Anne Johnson, “depresses” is both noun and verb to define these chaotic times. We seek the truth, facts, on this blog and “depresses” in past, present or future tense is the correct term to define the time we are living in.
theres alot of between the lines. since the tech bros may have ransacked the gov info, put that into AI. the lack of white house,cabnet and gov inst.when asked for comment by news sources,no comment..the military loses people in defense posture and its basically ignored by the DOD/white house. unkraine is getting vaque in news here, c span is getting vaque.the radio free anywhere is becoming a threat to turn it on, stocks that supported other institutions are now cashing in. your i phone may contain a new form of tracking, isreals defense (yea right)may lead to trumps hand in hand with saudis to iran. the rest of the world burns. obviously trumps meme is tiv and dont laugh, putin and trump may still have that bromance. as soon as ukraine dies in their hands.
your well being means nothing if your not producing a profit to his buddies.
welcome to the new hell…
wife and i went to bismarcks hands off, I still cant find people who read the news. just the scraping off the sidewalk.. most are informed by ear and not by choice..unless tou grab the depth of the issue here, we are losing this.
Theresa:
the investment you have, may have to personally pay off trump before that
tariff is reduced. like a campaign cont. yea, being open minded here may lead to outcomes. after all they still have a lobby in DC for that issue..
I have hope when I see all of those in government speaking out. Whether it’s Al Green, Bernie Sanders, Tim Walz, Jasmine Crockett, Corey Booker, Jamie Raskin, or Alexandria Ocasio Cortez.
People are just starting to wake up to protest.
Norris,
MTV is Pete’s acronym for Musk, Trump, & Vance.
Forty years ago my father told me that I would live to see the day when China would surpass the US as the world’s most powerful country. His prediction may come true.
Thanks, Todd. Come to think of it, “Muskrat Love” by Captain and Teneil was a big hit on MTV.
Hope is good, but by itself does not accomplish anything. The truths enunciated by those Sheila has quoted are hard to accept, but they are truths, nonetheless.
I’m reading “Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” for the first time ever, in preparation for attending a performance of Nan Colton presenting Harriet Beecher Stowe, later today. The book is well put together, and deeply explores varying views of slavery, including the Christian perspectives both pro and con; how differing, often “convenient” interpretations of the same “Good Book” played into the debate, pre-civil war.
And, yes, we are still at the mercy of our country’s deep-seated bigotry, and fear of the “other.” So, we have to find a way to re-build, this time from the bottom up.
Some of us who regularly comment here, have ;long repeated the mantra that Trump was elected by way of that bigotry, and misogyny added to the thing.
Maybe it’s time to end this blog in its current form and evolve to one where every entry must be positive action to build a 21st Century Democracy here in America. It gets really tiring to read the same complaining and depression every day…
I volunteer to start….each one of us should find out when the next local election is and help encourage potential servant leaders to run as independents – “partys” are self-serving and “of themselves”, not “the People”. More to come in the coming days….
Some of my best moments in life was nature photography with friends in the wilderness. I learned to be still and let that best image come to me. What comes first seems like chaos. The world’s best nature photographers say you look for what is right in the world, be still, F-8 and be there.
Yesterday, there were 1,200 “Hands Off” protests around the nation in opposition to Trump and his policy team. Right here in my hometown of Asheville, 7,500 people showed up at Park Square downtown.
I view this as a pivot day worthy of mention. Things are not as insane as they seem to be. A choir at a church introduced a new ballad that is receiving a lot of attention. The lyrics include: “Tillis, when will you stand up and do your job!”. Senator Tillis is one of our Republican Senators from North Carolina who has a sore knee from bending it to the floor too much.
Yes. Never manage your thoughts to the lowest common denominator. Look for what is right, and you will find it. We always have a choice to feed the bad wolf or the good wolf at the gate. The choice will determine the village destiny.
I really think that the Democrats need to “shoot the moon” and introduce a Motion to Impeach the President. They have an incontrovertible bill of attainder in the form of his mass of Executive Orders and DOGE actions. Just maybe enough sane Republicans still exist in office to join them in passing it. Same goes in the Senate that there may be enough sane Republicans to get a conviction this time.
I know that Vance would then become President and he is also a risk. But I think that he would get the message loud and clear that even his own party agrees that there is a limit to radicalism and tone down his approach. If he doesn’t, then impeach him too.
And I think that 2026 is going to be a massacre for the Republicans!
@CGH … I join you in that optimism. Victory 2026 for what is right in the world.
John Sorg, you make me want to gouge my eyes out and force ice picks into my eardrums. Blaming “entitlement” is your own terrible bigotry. The young people of today cannot even conceive of the incredible advantages that you had growing up. You grew up, fully expecting to get a job that paid well, so you could buy a house and start and support a family. You felt it was a given. You felt _entitled_ to it, naturally. Today, that basic dream is essentially non-existent. It’s no wonder to me that depression and anxiety are so rampant. So, when you constantly rant about entitlement and blame young people, it makes me rage. There is a segment of boomers that are completely unable to comprehend that things are fundamentally different now. I’m not sure if it’s a lack of empathy, simple arrogance and ignorance, or just a lack of imagination.
Vernon, getting Dems back in control of the the government won’t actually solve the problem. It’s a great mitigation, for sure, but that’s it. As I’ve noted before–just two days ago, for example–your government is fundamentally broken. Until _that_ is fixed, you’ll just be treading water until the next Republican regime gets power and destroys things again. And the world is well aware of this. (Personally, I think the first thing that needs to go is the filibuster. I don’t even care which party is in power at the time, except that it needs to be Dems, because the GOP will fight to their last breath to keep it). Another problematic aspect that doesn’t get enough coverage is the format and timing of your elections: you guys are _always_ in campaign mode, and this absolutely changes political behaviour.
I am quite stunned, and pretty sad, about the “Roman empire” falling. I grew up in the 70s and 80s, a time far enough removed from big wars and large civil rights changes that the world seemed generally stable and unchanging. Wars and strife always happened so far away that they barely seemed real to me. The idea that the events of the past few months would ever happen was utterly inconceivable to me.
Four short, sort of, comments
First – John S – “80% of the stock is owned by 8% of the people” answers the wrong question, sorry. The question is, what percent of Americans rely on a stock based (or partially based) 401K/IRA for their future, or even their day to day living? How many people need both Social Security and their 401K to live through their retirement? [I could point to some issues with the whole system, but that’s for another time.]
Second, we forget how silence led us here. Sorry former-Republican friends and Clinton Dems. Nixon’s “Southern Strategy” was based in racism, but that was OK. Reagan started his campaign in Philadelphia, Mississippi, nodding “if you kill a couple of Kikes and a Ni**er, you’re my kind of people” and then continued to insist that the government was the root of all evil. He even appointed a corrupt HUD official to prove the point. Clinton agreed that government should be small (which also makes it a bit ineffective). The slide to today by both parties was evident for those who looked. Obama just put on the brakes for the Dems. Biden was more of and FDR/LBJ Dem so he brought us back a little way, but he is a horrible communicator.
Third, “We need a positive message”. I agree, but, as Will Rogers said, I don’t belong to an organized political party, I’m a Democrat. Now look at those on this blog. There are old school conservative Republicans, balanced budgeters, Clinton Democrats, New Deal 2.0 Democrats (sort of Bernie and AOC types), and perhaps some who would like to rebuild with a revolution from the left. What unites us is worry for our country and understanding that the people in charge are DANGEROUS. Otherwise, we would be having civil policy debates here with Sheila’s thoughts seeding the discussions.
Fourth, although I have been the pessimist, fully believing the worst of Trump and his crew, I am still a romantic with belief in the future. Once the rubble is cleared, we will turn to the world and say, “We are sorry. Democracy is fragile and we let ours be taken over by a madman. We are repairing our country and installing safeguards. We hope you will forgive us and let us forge a partnership of equals.” Then we will have to live up to those words. It has happened before.
For that vision, we must stay engaged and loud.
Lester. I look forward to seeing the results of your resolution.
DRAFT USA Obit first line:
“If there is a country in the world where concord, according to common calculation, would be least expected, it is America,” the pamphleteer Thomas Paine later commented (1791). “Made up as it is of people from different nations, accustomed to different forms and habits of government, speaking different languages, and more different in their modes of worship, it would appear that the union of such a people was impracticable.”
To Lester’s resolution: The “new middle” in American politics refers to a growing group of voters who are stepping away from extreme partisan divides and seeking common ground. This shift is described as the “courageous middle,” where individuals prioritize collaboration and creative solutions over ideological rigidity. These moderates aim to bridge the gap between polarized factions, advocating for policies that reflect shared values and practical approaches.
This trend is also tied to dissatisfaction with mainstream political parties, as younger voters and independents look for alternatives to address pressing social and economic challenges.
Victory 2026.
Len & Norris,
You speak my heart, THANKS.
Trump has made America as irrelevant as he is.
Racism, misogyny, and Christian Nationalism are undoubtedly an end for some, but they are the means to an end for those whose greed motivates and profits from these distractions.
Slavery was racist but also the basis of an economy which afforded profits by cheating others of a basic standard of living. The Civil War and Reconstruction devastated plantation owners and the economic interests supplied by them. So Jim Crow became the distraction to enlist poor white folks against poor black folks so an economic elite could take profitable advantage of the cheap labor of both, could charge too much for poor housing, could gain election to public office to write the tax laws and zoning ordinances and self-enriching economic development laws and ordinances. Lack of educational opportunity, access to capital, voting rights, and seating on juries were additional means to a profitable end for the few – without accountability – at the expense of the many.
It’s still very much at work today. Just one example – our Governor and state legislators are promoting vouchers (large tuition discounts) for exclusive private school enrollment for billionaires’ children AT THE EXPENSE of poorer taxpayers and the public schools which are open to ALL children.
I wouldn’t mind greed nearly as much if the greedy would understand that they become richer when everyone becomes richer.
You have completely nailed it Sheila: i have screamed this to the heavens. We put this fascist sociopath over the finish line with the racism and misogyny thats in our DNA. We need to acknowledge and accept it to have any hope of surviving. The most pervasive of it is what i refer to as latent racism and misogyny. I see it in so many people. Others refer to it as unconscious biases. And yes….the extensive damage is already done.