The Chat GPT debacle highlights what is actually happening in the Administration. There are no grown ups. Just entitled (mostly white) young men with no sense of history and even less compassion. We have deeply depleted FEMA and cybersecurity programs at the exact time we need them most. The sad deaths of little girls and their counselors at summer camp should have been enough to prove climate change is real. This is not hotel management. With a war in Iran, we need literal and figurative boots on the ground here at home to protect us. Gutting important infrastructure designed to keep us safe was a petty and shortsighted move.
Trump gutted Foundation of Health and Scjence. what didn’t trump gut? Tax breaks for the billionaires maga votes against their children ‘s lives and future. I’ve never understood it. Masked men. I mean the complete ignorance while child trafficking / Pedophilia perpetrators are in news daily. Along with all pertinent news they are clueless about.
If one steps back from the hourly miasma that is all things Trump, it’s worth asking ‘how did we get here?’
I’ll answer that.
It began with Reagan prioritizing tax cuts for the wealthy over exactly what you talk about Olivia: Decency and humanity.
AIDS was ignored, social services were slashed giving us the homeless problem, and white America loved it all, even some who were being hurt by his policies.
Sound familiar?
Then Newt with his Family Values charade, W and more tax cuts and an insane war to boot.
The road was paved for the next generation of intellectually and morally vacuous leaders - Palin enters the chat, followed by McConnell, Comer, Jordan, Grassley, Ron Johnson and Speaker Grindr.
And Fox News turbo charged it with their 24/7 low IQ, hot take hateful “news”.
Look what we have today:
- A president (small p) who’s being dog walked by Bibi and Putin, as he takes in billions from crypto, bribes for pardons and God knows what else
- Healthcare being taken away from the most needy
- Christian nationalism that’s more about hate than actual Christianity
- An entire political party that’s caved to a deeply dishonest, unintelligent, felon with a history of criming and sexual abuse.
- A GOP electorate with a large % who vote against their own interests because … gotta own the libs
- Empathy and human decency are now seen as weakness, woke. I guess these are bad things now. We’re becoming a cruel nation that values authority and power over kindness
But worst of all?
A media, in all its forms that’s increasingly dominated by dangerous right wing, white men (plus Bari Weiss) who exist only to self enrich. THEY will control everything we see/read/hear for decades to come
Yes, DECADES. They’ll make Goebbels look like a choir boy.
So …
ALL of this was predictable. I remember saying to myself back in the 80s and 90s “God, they lie so effortlessly; they seem so cruel”.
On the other side, my party is led by two astonishingly weak men who are cut out for simpler times. Like the 50s.
We purity tested two intelligent, highly qualified women into oblivion and some are consumed by pronouns and think bipartisanship is still a thing.
I’m 72. I don’t know how we pull ourselves out of this in my lifetime
You're absolutely right, I'm 70 years old and am also wondering how/if we can pull ourselves out of this in our lifetime. Many of us remember what life was like pre-Reagan.
I live in Wisconsin and keep hoping Ron Johnson and Bryan Steil (Congress) will be voted out of office. Grateful we finally got rid of "Scotty" Walker after the Foxconn disaster.
Thanks Olivia. It is always challenging to select the most disturbing of your five weekly stories. This week I am leaning towards “War Abroad, Warnings Delayed At Home.” If the federal agencies tasked with protecting Americans from domestic terror threats and coordinating with local law enforcement are not trusted by the White House to communicate threat information in real time then we have a huge national security problem.
It has indeed been double coffee days in my home as well. (sometimes with an espresso added to the daily bevs). As always thanks for your expert compilations that keep us informed to truth. What a mess we have on hand.
But meeting Jose?!?? Wow, just wow! He is one of my heroes too!
DOGE- the most destructive "departments" ever created in US history to dismantle and gut existing departments, agencies and programs whose goals were to improve and help in various areas of American life. DOGE even destroyed America's soft power in providing aid to foreign countries via USAID, a very compassionate program that saved thousands of lives. All for the "reasonable sounding" excuse of increasing efficiency and getting rid of govt waste? I thought that was the IG's job....the very officials who were fired. Now we are more challenged than ever in securing our safety and general welfare as a result. How was this nihilistic approach to govt even legal?
Thank you--excellent commentary as always. Is there any way to get perspective on the DHS shutdown and the blocked release of the bulletin? I feel like we're supposed to assume it has to do with the shutdown and start calling Democratic representatives to end it. (Never mind the offered compromise that would carve out ICE and let everything else get funded.)
And sadly under the current dangerous lunatics running HHS, you won’t get a serious effort to understand how they occur and effective treatments. Bobby Brainworms would just prescribe raw milk and ivermectin.
These are dark and difficult times and I thank you for bringing some light in. Jose Andres is a truly special soul who deserves a medal of freedom. God bless you both.
The limitations and dangers of AI are apparent all around us. Our government needs to drive common sense regulation to put guardrails around the use of AI. I am biased because I have been in Information Security for over 20 years, but AI-related mistakes will continue, and some will have grave consequences. We need to get our arms around AI sort of nowish.
Two arrogant young white men with zero experience in government or the humanities using a faulty tech tool to make decisions that affected thousands of programs and people.
Trump unleashed these people because Musk bought a president.
LOVE Jose Andres and his organization the World Central Kitchen. The man is a Saint and I wish HE could run for President because he's one of the most organized people I've ever seen! I donate to Feeding America for the same reason. These people understand what starvation and homelessness are and actually do something to help these people out. On the other side of the coin ChatGPT disturbs me greatly, there are too many "what if this happens or that happens."
This is wonderful news, I don't use any AI except what's on Facebook! And I don't even use it. I don't do special effects but would rather do them the "old fashioned" way.
The Chat GPT debacle highlights what is actually happening in the Administration. There are no grown ups. Just entitled (mostly white) young men with no sense of history and even less compassion. We have deeply depleted FEMA and cybersecurity programs at the exact time we need them most. The sad deaths of little girls and their counselors at summer camp should have been enough to prove climate change is real. This is not hotel management. With a war in Iran, we need literal and figurative boots on the ground here at home to protect us. Gutting important infrastructure designed to keep us safe was a petty and shortsighted move.
Trump gutted Foundation of Health and Scjence. what didn’t trump gut? Tax breaks for the billionaires maga votes against their children ‘s lives and future. I’ve never understood it. Masked men. I mean the complete ignorance while child trafficking / Pedophilia perpetrators are in news daily. Along with all pertinent news they are clueless about.
If one steps back from the hourly miasma that is all things Trump, it’s worth asking ‘how did we get here?’
I’ll answer that.
It began with Reagan prioritizing tax cuts for the wealthy over exactly what you talk about Olivia: Decency and humanity.
AIDS was ignored, social services were slashed giving us the homeless problem, and white America loved it all, even some who were being hurt by his policies.
Sound familiar?
Then Newt with his Family Values charade, W and more tax cuts and an insane war to boot.
The road was paved for the next generation of intellectually and morally vacuous leaders - Palin enters the chat, followed by McConnell, Comer, Jordan, Grassley, Ron Johnson and Speaker Grindr.
And Fox News turbo charged it with their 24/7 low IQ, hot take hateful “news”.
Look what we have today:
- A president (small p) who’s being dog walked by Bibi and Putin, as he takes in billions from crypto, bribes for pardons and God knows what else
- Healthcare being taken away from the most needy
- Christian nationalism that’s more about hate than actual Christianity
- An entire political party that’s caved to a deeply dishonest, unintelligent, felon with a history of criming and sexual abuse.
- A GOP electorate with a large % who vote against their own interests because … gotta own the libs
- Empathy and human decency are now seen as weakness, woke. I guess these are bad things now. We’re becoming a cruel nation that values authority and power over kindness
But worst of all?
A media, in all its forms that’s increasingly dominated by dangerous right wing, white men (plus Bari Weiss) who exist only to self enrich. THEY will control everything we see/read/hear for decades to come
Yes, DECADES. They’ll make Goebbels look like a choir boy.
So …
ALL of this was predictable. I remember saying to myself back in the 80s and 90s “God, they lie so effortlessly; they seem so cruel”.
On the other side, my party is led by two astonishingly weak men who are cut out for simpler times. Like the 50s.
We purity tested two intelligent, highly qualified women into oblivion and some are consumed by pronouns and think bipartisanship is still a thing.
I’m 72. I don’t know how we pull ourselves out of this in my lifetime
Someone tell me I’m wrong, please
You're absolutely right, I'm 70 years old and am also wondering how/if we can pull ourselves out of this in our lifetime. Many of us remember what life was like pre-Reagan.
I live in Wisconsin and keep hoping Ron Johnson and Bryan Steil (Congress) will be voted out of office. Grateful we finally got rid of "Scotty" Walker after the Foxconn disaster.
Speaker Grindr...?
Thanks Olivia. It is always challenging to select the most disturbing of your five weekly stories. This week I am leaning towards “War Abroad, Warnings Delayed At Home.” If the federal agencies tasked with protecting Americans from domestic terror threats and coordinating with local law enforcement are not trusted by the White House to communicate threat information in real time then we have a huge national security problem.
It has indeed been double coffee days in my home as well. (sometimes with an espresso added to the daily bevs). As always thanks for your expert compilations that keep us informed to truth. What a mess we have on hand.
But meeting Jose?!?? Wow, just wow! He is one of my heroes too!
I also loved your post yesterday. I shared with
my like minded friends!
I'm beginning to think about pouring Irish whiskey in my morning coffee.
-or- Baileys Irish Cream...? (<Hiccup> / yum!)
DOGE- the most destructive "departments" ever created in US history to dismantle and gut existing departments, agencies and programs whose goals were to improve and help in various areas of American life. DOGE even destroyed America's soft power in providing aid to foreign countries via USAID, a very compassionate program that saved thousands of lives. All for the "reasonable sounding" excuse of increasing efficiency and getting rid of govt waste? I thought that was the IG's job....the very officials who were fired. Now we are more challenged than ever in securing our safety and general welfare as a result. How was this nihilistic approach to govt even legal?
Thank you--excellent commentary as always. Is there any way to get perspective on the DHS shutdown and the blocked release of the bulletin? I feel like we're supposed to assume it has to do with the shutdown and start calling Democratic representatives to end it. (Never mind the offered compromise that would carve out ICE and let everything else get funded.)
“Officials say none of the attacks were directly tied to the Iran conflict”
Hahahahahahaha
Get used to hearing more of that, from a drunk SECDEF and a near illiterate potus and his sycophants
This is like Goebbels blaming the Jews for Kristallnacht.
Are you referring to the original Goebbels -or- the Stephen Miller Goebbels reboot?
How exciting for you to meet Jose Andres, a true humanitarian! I'm happy for you!
The items you note are disheartening and dangerous for all of us! I can't wait for tRUMP to be gone forever!
Per 404 Media, the removed videos of Melon's script-kiddies is back up at the Internet Archive.
https://archive.org/details/Doge-Depositions-MLA-ACLS-AHA-Lawsuit-About-The-NEH
Thank you Olivia. All 5 points are bang on the money. Your micro view of security issues as reflecting the macro is excellent. Thank you again.
Good for you for bringing up the fibroid issue. It's a terrible problem for so many women, and rarely mentioned.
And sadly under the current dangerous lunatics running HHS, you won’t get a serious effort to understand how they occur and effective treatments. Bobby Brainworms would just prescribe raw milk and ivermectin.
These are dark and difficult times and I thank you for bringing some light in. Jose Andres is a truly special soul who deserves a medal of freedom. God bless you both.
The limitations and dangers of AI are apparent all around us. Our government needs to drive common sense regulation to put guardrails around the use of AI. I am biased because I have been in Information Security for over 20 years, but AI-related mistakes will continue, and some will have grave consequences. We need to get our arms around AI sort of nowish.
Hellaluyah -- AI is so wack, it's frightening -- no bots makin' DoD death calls, please!
Two arrogant young white men with zero experience in government or the humanities using a faulty tech tool to make decisions that affected thousands of programs and people.
Trump unleashed these people because Musk bought a president.
If you're not able to read Olivia's inked article about someone who was falsely accused because of Flock surveillance, here is one you can:
https://coloradosun.com/2025/10/28/flock-camera-police-colorado-columbine-valley/
It seems fair to assume that there are other stories like this that are not being reported.
LOVE Jose Andres and his organization the World Central Kitchen. The man is a Saint and I wish HE could run for President because he's one of the most organized people I've ever seen! I donate to Feeding America for the same reason. These people understand what starvation and homelessness are and actually do something to help these people out. On the other side of the coin ChatGPT disturbs me greatly, there are too many "what if this happens or that happens."
There have been calls from other Substack writers to quit ChatGPT and use Claude.
Or quit ChatGPT and use the brain God gave you.
This is wonderful news, I don't use any AI except what's on Facebook! And I don't even use it. I don't do special effects but would rather do them the "old fashioned" way.