RIP United States of America

A glimpse into the next 12 months and how to control the things you can control

If you scare easily or are allowing your normalcy bias to lull you into complacency and denial, this piece of writing isn’t for you. If you’re one of those tantrum-throwing crybabies who accuses truth tellers of fear mongering, read no more. You’ve landed on the wrong side of Substack.

If you’re someone who feels beat down — but not out — by the shock and awe of the first 23 days of the Trump Crime Syndicate, stick around.

I get a lot of direct messages asking me if this is the end of the United States of America as we know it. My answer is an unequivocal yes.

While I’m scared, I hold out a tiny slice of hope that we can destroy this system together and build back something better, something universal and humane that works for those outside of the one-percent.

Anyone who says America isn’t at its end hasn’t been paying attention for a very long time. I don’t say that to sound like the smartest person in the room; I’m not. I came to my own liberation journey far too late in life. I didn’t start unraveling my own indoctrination until my late 40s which very much makes me a late bloomer.

I believe we are watching our country collapse before our eyes. And if I’m honest, I always knew we’d end up here. This cruel, extractive system that we accept as normal and sane was destined for failure. People are quick to say that socialism and communism doesn’t work, and history proves it.

I can make the same observation about capitalism. And yet I also know we haven’t experienced actual, free-market capitalism. We’ve had a bastardized version of it. American capitalism is anything but free. It’s extractive, exclusionary and white supremacist. There’s always been some oligarch or stooge standing on the scale, tilting it against the average citizen’s interests.

Now, the system is unraveling before our eyes. Before Trump, the oligarch class tried to hide their misdeeds. These days, they’re brazen and full throated about their exploitation.

What Happens Next

I’m not Nostradamus or a psychic. I just pay attention and have a good eye for recognizing trends and patterns. I suspect that “gift” comes from the hypervigilance of being traumatized and abused as a kid.

Over the next 12 months, Donald Trump and the oligarchs and transnational criminals who control him will keep flooding the zone to keep us stressed and overwhelmed. When we’re in fight or flight mode, our emotions take control. We can’t sustain that persistent trauma. We need to take breaks from the 24/7 news cycle and find our center. Getting centered gives us time for the cognitive side of our brains to kick in. That’s when the magic happens, when we tap into our creativity and innovation.

Figure out how you will pace yourself each and every day to keep your emotions regulated. Maybe commit to just checking in on the news once a day or every other day. You could also commit to doing one good thing for your community and country every day. That could be calling an elected official or donating to a food bank. Get outside, take walks, have coffee with friends, love on your pets — anything to imbue a sense of normalcy and goodness into your routine.

I anticipate our elected officials will continue to abandon us and disappoint us for their own gain. I’m sorry to say, I don’t believe either laws or the courts will wholly save us. In the words of poet Audre Lorde, “The master’s tools will never dismantle the master’s house.” This system has been fucked by design since its inception.

If you don’t believe me, take a look back through history at all the awful things we did to become a nation. Also, take a look at the constitution itself. As intended by the framers, we have no ability to recall our congressional representatives. The only way a member of the House or Senate can vacate a seat involuntarily is death or expulsion by the body itself.

So much for democracy, huh?

America’s decline will feel like a freight train over the next few months. Decide here and now who you want to be as that enormous hunk of metal hurtles toward you. Are you a cowardly narc who rats on your neighbors for your own gain? Or are you someone who is willing to stand up to bullies and take some risks in the name of your values, democracy and humanity?

Very soon, our economy will tank because of the prevailing sense of uncertainty. Businesses will stop hiring, stultified like the rest of us. It’s already happening.

Many small businesses will cease to exist because tariffs will put them out of business. And that’s even before the higher prices hit consumers. Out of the gate, increased tariffs will be a liquidity issue for many small businesses and larger ones on the margins. That 10-25% tariff will have to be fronted by businesses, especially ones that make a physical product. Many of them don’t have the cash to finance such a significant increase in costs. Borrowing isn’t an attractive option because of high interest rates and uncertain (and likely declining) consumer demand. That reality will cause many to layoff employees or file for bankruptcy.

Alongside the decimation of small businesses, larger companies will unravel as consumer demand diminishes and the unrealized promise of artificial intelligence (AI) continues to accelerate layoffs.

All of this will happen against a backdrop of unprecedented inflation. Forcing 13 million immigrants out of the country has repercussions. These folks are valued community contributors and work in critical sectors like agriculture, construction and manufacturing. They pay $100 billion in taxes per year. Their absence in our economy is a massive hit. More importantly, it speaks volumes about the cruel, transactional white supremacists we are.

While Elon Musk is building an in-house federal payment system with our data and funds, it is likely the current system will be compromised. None of Musk’s hacker bros understand COBOL, the ancient language the current system is built on. These children have also shown little interest in the business functionality behind the system. That means one small code error can render the current federal payment system unusable.

Imagine not getting your social security or military pension for months while Musk plays games with a live system. Who needs a test case when you have a $5.4 trillion functioning system to play with? Also consider, that it took Mr. Nazi Boy Genius 17 years to get Tesla to profitability — and that was with a plethora of support and subsidies. How long do you think it will take him to figure out a mythical payment system?

In DonLon’s America, families will be unhoused, hungry and vilified. Children who depended on free lunches at school for their only decent meal of the day will go hungry. That’s until Trump and his minions do away with the Department of Education. Then, public schools will be on the chopping block in every state in America. Sure, the states will call it a voucher program or some similarly worded hooey. The end goal will be threefold: 1) paying welfare to rich white people; 2) forcing women to stay home and 3) grooming our children to become cheap labor.

Women will be denied the right to an abortion or any form of birth control nationwide. All facets of our healthcare — and the healthcare of anyone who isn’t a straight, cis-gendered, white man — will be governed by men who view us as chattel, the enemy or both.

Our institutions will continue to disintegrate right before our very eyes. Healthcare will get worse, food will be tainted, pandemics will rage, public lands will be gutted, and climate change will accelerate. Lots of people will be left behind in the fallout. Collectively, we will have to be the safety net for our neighbors.

DonLon will make sure we’re perpetually at war so they can pilfer resources from all over the world and hide behind the guise of being “a war president.” Hey, it worked for George W. Bush.

It will start with Canada. Trump’s preposterous idea of annexing Canada isn’t just saber-rattling. In his twisted, toxic mind, annexing Canada is the only way to get access to their energy resources. He will implement the draft and ship our young people all over the world to steal for him and his band of oligarch, criminal backers.

Never forget that in his fantasy, he’s just like his handler Putin, both a head of state and an oligarch. Putie’s wealth was stolen directly from his people. Donny will do the same, taking a giant chunk of everything he takes or destroys.

I suspect going to war with Canada is when many of us Americans will find our backbone. A lot of us love our Canadian neighbors and will fight for them to protect their sovereignty and way of life. The individual members of our military will need to decide whether they work for the constitution or the piece of shit in the White House. It’s not a trick question. There’s only one right answer here.

The prison industrial complex, a legalized form of enslavement thanks to our thirteenth amendment, will gain even more steam. As I type this, so-called immigrant detention centers (prisons) are being planned near San Francisco, Phoenix, El Paso and Seattle. Many of these are and will be run by private prison operators GEO Group and CoreCivic.

Horrifyingly, Guantanamo Bay is also being used to imprison some immigrants, much to the shock of anyone who cares about human rights. The facility is a notorious black hole where human rights don’t exist. It’s not a leap that all of these “detainees” across all facilities will be put to work for the federal government’s money-making prison labor operation, Unicor. Unicor offers prison labor at a vastly reduced rate to some of the biggest corporations including Coca Cola, Tyson Foods, Wendy’s and Yum! Brands (KFC, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut). Many states have their own version of Unicor. You won’t be surprised to know that in Southern states like Louisiana and Alabama, they literally operate like plantations of old.

Increasing the flow of slave labor to our prisons and detention centers is merely phase one of DonLon’s detainment plan. It’s the softening phase, the one meant to normalize imprisoning innocent people. Phase two will focus on detaining and punishing Trump’s enemies. Phase three will be for anyone who’s different and for those who speak out against the Trump Crime Syndicate. If it sounds like the Holocaust, that’s because it’s a version of that human rights massacre. Despots aren’t terribly imaginative.

DonLon and his lemmings aren’t making America great again. They’re making wholesale bigotry loud and proud again. As we’re already seeing, hate crimes against trans people and women are increasing. Employment discrimination is now sanctioned and out in the open. President Cheeto is threatening to deport college students who have protested for Palestine. This initial salvo is a threat to immigrant students. But it won’t end there. I expect anyone, including those of us with birthright citizenship, will be threatened with being sent to Gitmo for standing up in any way to the Trump regime.

If I convey anything to you in this article, it’s this: eventually, our white skin and birthright citizenship won’t save us. Neither will the courts or the flimsy checks and balances constructed by elite men 250 years ago.

This crime syndicate will roll over us unless we stand up. It will plunge us into the dark ages — literally and figuratively.

What We Can Do (from Easier to Harder)

1. Write Your Elected Reps: Write and call your elected officials often. I call or write mine every day and recommend you do too. Demand they take specific actions. I’ve demanded mine use Senate procedures to slow-roll Trump’s nominations. I’ve also demanded they cut off Elon Musk’s access to our personal data. I’ve sent my senators and congressman screenshots of their AIPAC and other dirty money contributions to let them know I see them. We want to put them on the ropes and keep them there. We’re feeling constant stress. They should feel the heat too.

2. Don’t Forget About Your Local Elected Officials: Our state governments can withhold tax payments to the federal government. Now is the time to put that on the table. If the feds aren’t working for us, why would any of us pay them? States can assert themselves with the power of the purse. Write your elected state officials and demand they stand up for your rights. Even if you live in a red state or have a Republican rep, they need to hear from you. These politicians are weak-willed and transactional. They will cave if they feel pressured enough.

3. Circulate Petitions: While we can’t recall our elected officials in DC, we can show them the numbers behind our mounting dissatisfaction. Every elected member of Congress should have a recall petition circulating right now. We need to keep it active and use it if we have the next round of elections. We very well may not.

4. Protest Peacefully: We need far more people protesting in DC and at state capitols. We need to have a constant presence at these venues. Ever see a French protest or strike? We’re going for that level of engagement and outcry. February 17th has been declared a National Day of Protest by lots of activist groups. Show up at the White House or your state capitol at 12 noon. February 28th is a Global Economic Blackout: no spending, no work, no school for 24 hours. Get hooked up with the organization Indivisible. They have community groups all around the country. If there isn’t one in your area, start one. Also, their website is full of information on protecting your safety and identity when protesting/organizing. If you’re planning on protesting, cover your face completely and any tattoos. Shut your phone off when you’re at the protest. Before you go, turn off facial recognition log-in. Law enforcement can force you to log-in with your face, but they can’t force you to provide your phone’s access code.

5. Use Your Privilege When ICE Shows Up: The most important thing you can do is tell people being approached by immigration agents to remain silent. They shouldn’t answer questions or sign anything. You may have to yell this information out. If people are being arrested, ask them for the name and number of a person they want you to contact. This will let their loved ones know they have been arrested. If you can, film the encounter with ICE.

6. Get Involved in Mutual Aid in Your Community: The easiest way to build community is to serve yours. Volunteer at your local library or food bank. This will help you meet people. Some will be likeminded politically; some won’t. That’s ok. Eventually, some of these people in the Trump Death Cult will see the light. When they do, recruit them to our cause of liberty and creating something better out of the ruins of America. Another good aspect is community involvement is that it gives us an outlet for banding together and helping each other meet basic needs when times get tough — and they will. This is not the time for rugged individualism. Lone wolves won’t make it through America’s demise.

7. Stop Spending & Disconnect from the Matrix: Many of us have already started this. Only buy absolute necessities like food, gas and healthcare/medications. Stop all discretionary spending. That means no more binge shopping at Amazon or Target. We should be boycotting all of these corporations that benefit oligarchs anyway. Spend your money with care. When you need things, try to get them used or in Buy Nothing groups. Get off the vapid diet of sports and celebrity culture that’s shoved down our throats. It’s meant to numb us from reality and glorify the reprehensible. Stop consuming corporate-backed media. These glorified entertainment outlets are heavily censored and paying bribes to the Trump Crime Syndicate. Instead, read and consume independent media. And if you haven’t already, get rid of all your Meta accounts — and X.

8. Strike: Our labor is our most valuable form of leverage. Without it, oligarchs can’t profit from us. This rotten society intentionally makes it very difficult to organize and strike. Yet, there will come a point soon when things will get so bad that striking will feel like our only option. Many of us are already at this point. Some will take longer to get there. If you’re open to striking, I encourage you to read this from the Shutdown 315 Movement. They’re planning a strike on March 15th, and I want to recruit you to it. I am planning on participating and spreading the word. They have a helpful rundown on the strike and how you can spurn capitalism in the run-up to it.

9. Have a Plan to Protect Yourself & Your Family: I hope it doesn’t come to this, and I fear it will. At some point, you may be targeted by your government or goons in the death cult. Have a plan for how you will protect yourself — in your home and outside of it. I‘m not suggesting you go around looking for trouble, but if trouble finds you, it’s prudent to be prepared. I’ve written a few different pieces on this. You can read them here and here.

10. Protect Your Privacy: Whether you realize it or not, we already live in a surveillance state. That will accelerate rapidly. Dictatorships look for dissenters. Don’t draw attention to yourself if you can help it. If you’ve been involved in DEI, know that there is are at least two lists circulating on DEI professionals and supporters. One is on Reddit and one is by the so-called American Accountability Foundation. I’m not linking to them because I don’t want to drive traffic to them. Now would be a good time to scrub your personal information (addresses and phone numbers specifically) from the internet. You can do this for free on Google Chrome by going here. You can also pay for a service like Delete Me. Now is also a good time to use a VPN to protect your online privacy. You also might consider switching to a more secure browser like Firefox. If you plan on organizing or protesting, use an encrypted app like Signal. Plain old texts and What’s App messages are not secure. In a regime intent on targeting dissenters, these precautions will help keep you safe.

Above all, take care of yourself and the people you love. The world going to hell doesn’t change that mission.

In solidarity. ✊🏼❤️