News For People Who Don't Follow The News

"In 2025, the country
formerly known as the
United States of America
suffered a rapid
unscheduled disassembly."

“Terrible things are happening outside. Poor helpless people are being dragged out of their homes. Families are torn apart. Men, women, and children are separated. Children come home from school to find that their parents have disappeared.”

Diary of Anne Frank 

January 13, 1943

***

The White House has fallen to the fascists.

And in its first week of occupation the Trump regime initiated the wave of barbarity it long promised.

Did you know? Were you aware? Do you care?

Because apparently a lot of people who voted for Trump 2.0 didn't know, weren't aware, or didn't care that what's happening now is exactly what was planned all along.

Let's recap...

Day One

*The "president" pardons more than 1,500 domestic terrorists who attempted to overthrow the US government on January 6, 2021. 

The message he sent was unmistakable: commit violent crimes on behalf of the regime and you will be protected. Equally important, you can go out and acquire firearms and ammunition for the next time your "president" needs you—all nice and legal.

*The "president" tries to change the US Constitution via executive order.

The 14th amendment to the Constitution specifies that anyone born on US soil is automatically a US citizen. This status, known as birthright citizenship, was enshrined in the 1800s. 

Whether you agree or disagree with the precept, as a matter of law amending the Constitution requires approval by two-thirds of Congress and ratification by three-fourths of State legislatures. Trump, however, tried to bypass this process, and was immediately sued by 22 states.

*Right wing billionaire Elon Musk, who spent $250 million to get Trump elected, spoke at a post-inauguration rally in Washington, DC. During his speech, Musk enthusiastically gave a Nazi salute—not once but twice. No one associated with Trump, Musk, or the GOP condemned the act. Instead, the response was akin to, "You didn't see what you think you saw...but even if you did, it doesn't matter."

Day Two

Trump attends a prayer service at the Washington National Cathedral, and somehow does not burst into flames upon entry. He did, however, become extremely heated when Bishop Mariann Budde implored him to show mercy to many of his intended targets.

"Mr. President, millions have put their trust in you. As you told the nation yesterday, you have felt the providential hand of a loving God. In the name of our God, I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now. There are transgender children in both Republican and Democratic families who fear for their lives.  

"And the people who pick our crops and clean our office buildings; who labor in our poultry farms and meat-packing plants; who wash the dishes after we eat in restaurants and work the night shift in hospitals — they may not be citizens or have the proper documentation, but the vast majority of immigrants are not criminals. They pay taxes, and are good neighbors. They are faithful members of our churches, mosques and synagogues, gurdwara, and temples.    

"Have mercy, Mr. President, on those in our communities whose children fear that their parents will be taken away. Help those who are fleeing war zones and persecution in their own lands to find compassion and welcome here. Our God teaches us that we are to be merciful to the stranger, for we were once strangers in this land."

Trump was so offended by this Jesus-y plea that he demanded an apology—which Budde declined to provide. Probably because she's an actual Christian, not the Trump-worshipping kind.

 

Day Three

The "president" orders an immediate pause on all communications from the CDC, the National Institutes of Health, and the Food & Drug Administration.

What better time to gag the departments that fight epidemics, protect our food supply, and research cures for diseases than when human flu is rampant in the US, bird flu is decimating the nation's poultry flocks, and the largest tuberculosis outbreak in US history is spreading through Kansas?

Day Four

Pete Hegseth, a former Fox News talking head, was confirmed as the US Secretary of Defense.

In a vacuum you might be able to make a case for Hegseth as a mid-level spokesperson for a random, inconsequential department at DOD. But in a sane country his well-documented history as an abuser of alcohol, women, and truth would disqualify him even from that.

Put another way, if you were running a venture of any kind, no matter how large or small, would you hire a candidate whose personal sociopathy was so disturbing, his own mother called him out in a scathing email?
***

Day Nine

On January 29, an American Airlines flight collided with a US Army helicopter over the Potomac River in Washington, DC. Sixty-four people were killed.

Reporter: "Do you have a plan to go visit the site of the crash?"

Trump: "I have a plan to visit, not the site, because why don’t you tell me, what’s the site? The water? You want me to go swimming?”

Actually, yes.

***
Obviously this list is far from comprehensive, but it is representative. We're now well off the map, into the land of "I never thought it could happen here."

It's a good time to be thinking about what you'll do when you see something you know is wrong and can't be allowed to happen. You may be afraid and your voice may shake—but if we don't speak now, when it matters most, we may not get another chance.