“And now, they are coming for your Social Security money. They want your f*cking retirement money. They want it back, so they can give it to their criminal friends on Wall Street.” — George Carlin
It has long been said that the late comedian George Carlin was a prophet when it came to matters of the social conditions of the United States. It turns out that he wasn’t far off the mark when he said that they are coming for your social security; it only took two decades from when he spoke those words for them to become a very real possibility—though instead of giving it to their Wall Street cronies generally, a lot of it is most likely going into the coffers of the world’s richest man. It’s really a straight-up heist as the country teeters ever closer to functional collapse.
Almost two months into the new administration, it is pure chaos and cruelty as DOGE continues to bulldoze its way through the government on a mission to supposedly root out waste and fraud when, in reality, DOGE is dismantling the U.S. government from the inside in plain view of everyone.
The United States is being hijacked in front of our eyes, while at least 70 million people are cheering on the eventual collapse of their own country, so caught up in the cult of MAGA and so fully fueled by ignorance and hatred and the inability to understand how we are all interconnected that they don’t realize they are cheering their own destruction, too. And then there’s the bloc of folks who are too cynical to believe it’s anything more than politics as usual when in fact this is a coup in progress. Finally, many of the rest are absolutely scared shitless and utterly frozen, awaiting marching orders from our leaders.
Unfortunately, most of the Democratic Party also appears to be frozen or unable to grasp that this is not politics as usual and thus aren’t really responding with the gravity and urgency that the situation requires. Instead, they are focusing on the midterm elections. Midterm elections? Are you stupid or high? I don’t know, but something tells me that unless we correct course quickly, legitimate elections in the future are wishful thinking. Especially with Trump being on record several times saying no one has to worry about voting again.
For many, watching critical government agencies decimated along with the funding for many vital programs erased or held up is unbelievable, especially now with Medicaid in severe danger. People keep mentioning how these cuts will impact children, families, and others who rely on our social safety nets.
Recently, former Maryland governor and Social Security Administration Commissioner Martin O’Malley said that the cuts DOGE is making at the SSA are putting monthly Social Security benefits at risk for almost 73 million Americans. Martin even went so far as to say that people need to prepare for interruptions in payments in 30 to 90 days. The agency is already experiencing intermittent outages which will ultimately impact the ability of the agency to carry out its mission. Elon Musk recently appeared on the Joe Rogan podcast where he referred to Social Security as a Ponzi scheme, while referring to the federal government as a pyramid scheme.
Yep, a foreign-born billionaire referred to the one social safety net that has always enjoyed bipartisan support as a Ponzi scheme. The one benefit that allows people to have some kind of money and a modicum of dignity after they have worked all their lives—and the people who receive money from that system that they paid into are deemed nothing more than parasites by the world’s richest man. Yet he’s here to rid our country of these evil schemes and save us money. Yeah, right/ Meanwhile there’s no talk of a viable alternative to take care of people after they exit the work world.
Then again, there is no need to care about people when they are no longer productive because in the view of the techno-fascists who folks like Musk are connected to—specifically a chap by the name of Curtis Yarvin—unproductive people could be turned into biofuel. Or we can be virtualized, imprisoned in a permanent solitary confinement, where we can be connected to an immersive virtual reality interface and experience a rich, fulfilling life in a completely imaginary world. Yarvin said he was kidding about the biofuel thing, but I’d be a bit leery of trusting someone who’d “joke” about that.
No doubt, you are probably wondering why I just told you about some weirdo named Curtis Yarvin and his weird-ass thoughts. Well, because his weird thoughts appear to be the blueprint for Musk’s actions. Sure, those actions are somewhat aligned to Project 2025, but that isn’t the whole picture, as many of the rich techbros have been feeding on Yarvin’s words and dreaming of making them a reality for a long time—Musk among them.
Here’s the thing: What I am about to say sounds so nutty that when I told it to a family member, they were side-eying me. But after seeing the workings of Musk and DOGE, it all makes a certain macabre kind of sense.
As early as 2022, Vox reported that Yarvin had outlined a plan to reshape the United States by finding an American autocrat who would campaign and win based on having an authoritarian program. That program would include purging the federal bureaucracy with a program he referred to as RAGE (Retire all Government Workers). He figured there would be judicial pushback, and his plan was to simply ignore court rulings that constrained them. They would gain compliance from Congress by mobilizing their populist base against Congress.
Let’s see, we have DOGE, which is purging the government, they are definitely not complying with all court orders and the administration is actively working to remove media outlets such as the Associated Press and rewriting the rules on media coverage. And we aren’t even 50 full days into it.
So, what’s the end game? The quick version: to eventually have dictatorships instead of democracy and reengineer governments so that there would be smaller patchworks that would be controlled by tech corporations.
By the way, JD Vance—the current vice president—in the past has cited Yarvin and referred to him as friend. Yarvin has downplayed the connection, but he was at the inauguration and both Yarvin and Vance have ties to Peter Thiel. The same Peter Thiel who was a cofounder of PayPal—the same PayPal that Elon Musk was involved with. If you want to get into the weeds with this, I highly suggest reading the work of Gil Duran over at the Nerd Reich. Or getting a copy of The Network State by Bilaji Srinivasan.
I wrote all of this to say that many Americans are wondering what the fuck is going on and why such extreme cruelty, but I tell you: The cruelty is the point.
This isn’t business as usual. Wherever we are going as a nation, whether you believe any parts of what I just wrote or not, there is no logical reason for even a shithead like Trump to blow it all up without a reason. Especially when it’s clear that Trump’s ego appears to be constrained by Musk. That man defers to no one and yet we have seen Musk literally overshadow Trump in the Oval Office.
Much of what was written in Project 2025 is happening, but with the addition of the world’s wealthiest man you must ask yourself, “Why does a man that wealthy with oodles of companies want to concern himself this deeply in our government affairs?” Sure, it’s partly for the contracts but he probably would have gotten them anyway for his generous campaign support of Trump. The thing is, in the techbro version of this, all the systems are getting blown to smithereens to make things easier for them to control. This is where the MAGA/GOP folks who think gutting the government is great are going to be in for rude awakening, as we are already starting to see.
Our systems are in the hands of bad actors and we are definitely in the middle of a coup. But I refuse to believe all is lost.
However, while all is not yet lost, this is a time when knowing exactly what we are facing is a necessity. You can’t fight back if you haven’t fully assessed the situation. Indivisible has some ideas, as does history. Read up on nations that have dealt with coups, for example. It’s true that much of what is easily available doesn’t quite fit our situation, in which a good third of our country at least is living in an alternative reality about what’s happening. It probably won’t be until Memaw doesn’t get her Social Security check that folks might start waking up in greater numbers.
Practically speaking, keep reaching out to your Congressional delegates. Protest at their offices. Call them daily, and use the 5 Calls app for guidance. In fact, if you are are willing and able, protest them wherever they go. There is no business as usual. The good folks in Vermont just showed us how to do it. JD Vance and family went away for a family ski trip in Vermont, and the good folks of Vermont were on hand to not let them have a good weekend. Reportedly the protests were so robust that the trip was cut short. Use your voice as much as possible and name this for what it is: a coup; a hostile takeover of our country. We also need to push mainstream media to do better reporting. Folks like Rachel Maddow have finally started talking about the Curtis Yarvin connection—others need to do so as well. We essentially need to do everything we can to make the lives of anyone attached to this administration uncomfortable. Donald Trump and Elon Musk don’t go get their own lattes and McDonald’s, but the folks doing their bidding—well, they are making a choice.
In addition, we still need to build in our communities and start planning for the very real possible food shortages, especially with the tariffs going into effect. Work and support local organizations that are working on the issues that are important to you. As the director of a small non-profit organization, I can say we all need cash, but we can also use volunteers. Assess your skills and bandwidth and see what you can offer in support of the movement. More importantly, now is probably a great time to cut spending if possible. Save it, but also—when possible—support indie writers, activists, and others who may eventually be targeted by the regime. Every time I write a piece, I know it could come back on me depending on how far down the rabbit hole this administration goes to kill dissenting views.
Lastly, as heavy as everything is, breathe, and still believe in the dream of freedom and knowing that together we can do hard things and get these people out of our government. The season of darkness is soon ending, so take solace in the sun and the soon-to-be-warming temperatures. Gather with people when possible and unplug as much as possible. You truly don’t need round-the-clock coverage of the awful, so consider doing a few mini digital sabbaticals throughout the week.
The cruelty is the point, but we get through this by never waving in our individual and collective humanity. It’s what separates us from these ghouls. Musk and ilk may be the wealthiest people in the world, but they are poverty-stricken in terms of humanity.
If this piece resonated with you, please consider a tip, or become a monthly patron, if you aren’t already. I offer my work freely, to ensure that it is accessible to all but if you have the means to support it, please do so. Remember, I do work with groups and organizations, if you want to work with me, please reach out for details.
