- The Department of Homeland Security imagines a future in which 1/3 of the American population is deported;
- The idea of “collective effervescence”;
- Brief posts about the dirty 1970s, Trump and aspirin; Florida giving God citations passes; and items from JMG.
This is going around on Facebook today.
This is bonkers — they want to deport almost 1/3 of the nation?? — but also revealing. MAGA and the Trump aren’t just racists and xenophobes and white supremacists, they’re itching to ethnically cleanse the United States. Who at DHS is responsible for this??
Here’s an item about it here at Huffington Post.
The US is reverting to primitive, tribal human nature.
\\
Here’s a piece from yesterday’s “Forum” talk show on KQED: The Delightful Experience of Collective Effervescence
There’s audio but no transcript. Here’s the description.
Singing along with the crowd at a concert. Cheering together at a sports game. Laughing with the audience at a funny moment in a movie. Even getting work done in a busy cafe or library. These are moments when you might experience what has been called collective effervescence, a feeling of social unity that comes from a shared moment. As the year draws to a close, we want to celebrate the uniquely human moments that people share together. Tell us about a recent moment of collective effervescence that you’ve experienced.
I note this because this “collective effervescence” is essentially the same thing as what I’ve been calling mob mentality, and have warned against: the condition in which individuals are absorbed into a group and cannot think for themselves. As I listened to this I realized, yes, they’re talking about what I’ve been, but in an opposite manner. Sports events, church services, pop concerts. They think that personal diminishment into such groups is a good thing, or at least an exhilarating experience. I think it robs you of your ability to think for yourself, and see through the illusions of these groups. It’s a battle between survival and reality, very broadly speaking.
\\\
This would be a good piece if it had more than this one pic.
LA Times, James Salzman, 29 Dec 2025: Photos of the dirty 1970s will make you appreciate the EPA
Maybe there are more pics at the many items linked here, but I’m not going to take the time to check them out.
The broader point is: life *wasn’t* better in the old days. And we *have* made progress.
\\\
Quick takes.
- CNN, 1 Jan 2026: Trump tells WSJ he takes a higher daily dose of aspirin than his doctors advise in lengthy interview on his health
-
“They say aspirin is good for thinning out the blood, and I don’t want thick blood pouring through my heart,” Trump, 79, said of why he takes a larger dose. “I want nice, thin blood pouring through my heart. Does that make sense?”
- No, it doesn’t. He’s an idiot.
\
- Friendly Atheist, 31 Dec 2025: Can students fail an assignment if they cite God? Not if Florida Republicans get their way., subtitled “Two Florida lawmakers are weaponizing student failure to further their fake religious persecution crisis”
- Apparently “God did it” will be an acceptable answer for everything. Thus America is fallen.
- Oh, and the caption to the photo: “Samantha Fulnecky freely admitted she just whipped her paper together in about “30 minutes” after realizing she had to finish the assignment before heading out to an event. She didn’t say she ever read the paper she was supposed to respond to.” And yet MAGA is outraged that the instructor flunked her paper.
And some headlines from JMG.
- Trump Admin Un-Retires Two Coal Plants Because Solar Power Doesn’t Work If The Sun Isn’t “Shining”. Idiots; simpletons.
- Sen. Foghorn Leghorn Appears With Stuffed Alligator: God Loves Louisiana More Than Any Place. Simpletons always think their own place in life is the bestest ever.
- OK Bill Would Let Doctors Refuse LGBTQ Patients. Christian morality.
- Kari Lake: Imprison Trump’s Critics For Life. On the road to totalitarianism, as many of us have been saying for years.
- Trump: I’m Bringing Down Drug Prices By 3000%. Yet another example of Trump’s innumeracy.
