nowadays I often see people pointing out funny quirks or hypocrisy about Trump's administration, like how Vance once called Trump "America's Hitler", or how they can't define gender correctly in anti-trans legislation and accidentally legally declared every US citizen a woman (this is actually false, it does not define everyone as "female", it just vaguely attempts to restrict gender definitions. if anything this fortifies my point about us distracting ourselves with pointless quirks.)
they don't care.
while we're laughing, they are continuing to appoint judges, shaping policies, enacting laws that entrench their power, and advancing their harmful agenda. we are literally falling for their playbook- create spectacle, distract the masses, and continue dismantling the democratic norms. besides, they don't care about slipping up or causing genuine harm because, ultimately, the average MAGA republican will continue to support Trump anyways.
"I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn't lose any voters."
- Donald J. Trump 2016
but jd vance baby face funny!
those jd vance face memes are sorta funny (ignoring that many use AI) but they're yet another distraction. even JD Vance himself joined in on it, co-opting the joke and turning our mockery into free publicity.
it's yet another form of mockery that does nothing but make us feel good inside, but it just numbs us to the real damage inflicted on working-class and marginalized communities through the constant erosion of democratic institutions.
distraction.
distraction is central to their strategy. while we are busy mocking, retweeting, sharing, and creating dumb edits, we could instead be mobilizing communities or building solidarity across oppressed groups. every single meme about trump's weird posture, RFK Jr.'s voice, or Elon Musk's strained family relationships represent a missed opportunity to highlight attacks on genuine threats; workers' rights, voter supression tactics, or judicial appointments designed to safeguard Trump's reign over the US.
every dumb pointless meme mocking republicans is a missed opportunity to raise genuine awareness around actual threats
trans rights.
trans rights are genuinely at risk, but many proposed bills by republicans don't have a chance of passing. we gotta realise that a lot of these insane, sensational bills (like making being trans a fraud felony) are intentionally designed as scare tactics to further divide our communities. rather than freezing in fear or conceding ground, we must organize, protest, and build genuine coalitions to empower not just trans voices, but marginalized voices.
our power.
we do have power. as workers, citizens, students, and organizers, without all of us- our labour, our cooperation, and our passive acceptance, the rich and powerful have nothing.
we must wield our power consciously. we must mobilize communities, educate ourselves and others, and push for systemic change.
stop falling for bait, stop endlessly debating Trump's latest distraction, stop being passive. act.