I will not make any major predictions either but I do expect that while things will be bad for all of us, they will be much worse for the uneducated, underemployed, white racists in red states who thought that Orange Caligula was going to fight for them. His non-mandate will be used by red state Republicans to put ever more oppressive restrictions on daily life from women's reproductive health to access to Medicaid, Food Stamps and heating assistance. They will also drive employers away when the promise of low taxes pales in the face of an inability to attract skilled workers. And the corrupt SCOTUS will be there, lurking in the background, on the prowl to inflict unpopular Republican wet dreams on the rest of us, further eroding their status with the public. My two part question - will Democrats unite as a true opposition party and will we, the people, demand that they do their damn jobs in opposition? No more Democratic bailouts when MAGA Republicans cannot govern!
Thanks for this, Peter. I think you're right. And if the Dems are going to unite as an opposition party, I don't know who the leader will be. Harris seems to have abandoned the job. AOC is too polarizing. Etc. I fear that things will get worse before they get better (if they get better).
Happy New Year. Excellent end of year summary! My theory on the traitors that visited Moscow on the 4th of July: they handed over Ukraine to Putin. I think Granger is trying to forget, and Thune looks like a good guy, but he’s got Ukrainian blood on his hands. Maybe the only good thing was watching Joe and Mika get destroyed. If you get a chance, Josh Brolin busted their balls on their show! I’m loving the return of Howard Stern to my life; his interviews with Biden, Harris, Brolin and the Boss 👏👏👏
Thanks, Sue. It will be interesting to look at the Ukraine timeline and overlap it with that trip, and what happened before and after. The Joe/Mika thing puzzles me...they were all-in on Trump in '16 bc it looked like he had something on them. Even in the moment that seemed obvious...and then the thing came out, and it was their secret relationship. Not sure why anyone took them seriously after that. Hurray for Howard! Happy New Year!
As happens to many subscribers, I am working my way through back copies of The New Yorker and hit on Elizabeth Kolbert's piece on the melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet, and, more to the point, the strong possibility that we have passed the tipping point for self-reinforcing climate disasters. It isn't actually a secret or particularly new information. I bring it up because I suspect that the likely inevitability of climate disaster is a central driver of Elon Musk's behavior. Trump is a nihilist who doubtless hates the fact that others will live after he dies and is quite happy to diminish their numbers in any way that he can. Musk, a devotee of science fiction, I believe thinks that humanity - for which he has little regard anyway - is doomed, has given up on it, and thinks he is creating the alternative future for the human race. He has said as much. He's a fantasist of the worst sort (the incredibly rich kind), and since both he and Trump and the MAGA movement, in general, are very much at peace with the suffering of others, has made common cause with them as long as it permits him to advance his agenda. Seen through this lens, his childishness, buffoonery and erratic behavior have a certain internal logic no matter how inherently cynical and harmful the goal.
Thanks, Frank. I have been following Kolbert's work for a long time; she knows as much about all of that as anyone. I think Musk and his cohorts want to hasten climate change. Crypto takes up enormous amounts of energy, as does AI...and especially with crypto, you'd be hard pressed to find something more wasteful and ridiculous. But he's dumb, I think, and Mars? There are no good restaurants there and the wi-fi sucks!
I share the worry that our country has taken a step back. President Trump will face a lot of push back as he tries to act outside the law.
I am reminded of the movie ‘Moses’ that I saw as a child. The pharaoh would say something in an ordinary tone of voice and the guy behind him with thump his big staff on the ground three times. Bang, bang bang and say in a very loud voice “As pharaoh has spoken spoken, so shall it be!)” it scared me a little, but I thought that it was a pretty cool system.
But things don’t really work like that. It takes a big organization to get things done. And a lot of work. I don’t think things will get too bad as long as HE spends lots of time playing golf. Billserle.com
Happy new year Greg! Thanks for another year of insightful writing and bringing to the fore literature of which I was unaware, but delighted in thanks to you.
As a doctor, I usually didn’t make predictions about what would happen to someone, because in my experience, those predictions usually turned out to be wrong. I hope that many of the dire predictions will equally turn out to be wrong and that come New Year’s Eve 2025, we will look back on the year and say our republic held and will likely continue to hold.
Happy New Year Greg! To you, your family and followers. Thanks for regularly shining a bright light in the darkness. The maga tribe will continue to suffer and bemoan the left for all their problems. Things don't change, they stay the same.
I feel like I’m sitting on another planet watching a dark comedy with a surprise ending coming up soon.
I saw a comment somewhere about keeping Vance hidden on purpose, but for what we don’t know. Takeover?
I hope all the musk/vic shit is making the ignorant trumpers think "what have I done", but I’m sure they will grovel and spout the superiority of trump and how he is looking out for them, while the wealthy trumpers lick their chops.
Funny you should say that, Mary, because I resonate with the "dark comedy" aspect and my intuition has been telling me since the election "Things can change on a dime" and "What you see is not necessarily what you will get or reflection of what is really happening." To me the key is to stay focused on present moment which as a Scorpio rising Irish person is tough considering the need to nurture grievances that have lasted longer than Law & Order reruns which for the record I adore.
Happy New Year or whatever Greg. Glad you mentioned Vance’s absence. Been wondering myself what he has been doing these many weeks in the shadows.
Been thinking a lot about the late President Carter and how we’ve devolved so badly from electing him in the aftermath of Nixon/Ford to trmp after what could be called an almost miraculous rebound by President Biden from trmp’s first disastrous debacle of a totally dysfunctional administration. It’s almost like running back into the house fire because you forgot something. Maybe President Carter’s memorial will serve as a light for what we once were and what we still could be if given another chance. I remain hopeful.
Predictions: Deconstruction insanity continues. The wealthy get more.
The poor less.
Homelessness increases.
Jared, MBS and Israeli millionaires develop Gaza into playgrounds when the Arab cleansing is complete. Trump is allowed to toss in a new hotel as he sinks into demented insanity. Baron with the backing of his mother advises his dimwit half brothers thier out as he is taking control of the Trump buisness empire.
Musk tries to control the planet via Starlink while dreaming of breeding on Mars. ( whileThe CIA secretly makes plans).
Meanwhile the planet objects and gets hotter and more violent.
Happy New Year, Greg.
Happy New Year!
I will not make any major predictions either but I do expect that while things will be bad for all of us, they will be much worse for the uneducated, underemployed, white racists in red states who thought that Orange Caligula was going to fight for them. His non-mandate will be used by red state Republicans to put ever more oppressive restrictions on daily life from women's reproductive health to access to Medicaid, Food Stamps and heating assistance. They will also drive employers away when the promise of low taxes pales in the face of an inability to attract skilled workers. And the corrupt SCOTUS will be there, lurking in the background, on the prowl to inflict unpopular Republican wet dreams on the rest of us, further eroding their status with the public. My two part question - will Democrats unite as a true opposition party and will we, the people, demand that they do their damn jobs in opposition? No more Democratic bailouts when MAGA Republicans cannot govern!
The Democrats still haven't figured out what happened even though it's been coming for decades.
John Birch
Or they know and don't care.
Money in the hands of the vipers
Thanks for this, Peter. I think you're right. And if the Dems are going to unite as an opposition party, I don't know who the leader will be. Harris seems to have abandoned the job. AOC is too polarizing. Etc. I fear that things will get worse before they get better (if they get better).
No words - God bless America. I wish you and your beautiful family a very healthy and blessed 2025, Greg.
Thanks, Paulina. I appreciate your support this year. Happy New Year! Maybe 2025 will be awesome? Maybe?
Sorry, I missed this - The quick answer is YES, It will be regardless of the garbage thrown at us, my friend.
It’s TUESDAY🎉 Happy New Year everyone - we’re one day closer to the midterms!
Ha! Yes we are! Happy New Year, Lisbeth!
Happy New Year. Excellent end of year summary! My theory on the traitors that visited Moscow on the 4th of July: they handed over Ukraine to Putin. I think Granger is trying to forget, and Thune looks like a good guy, but he’s got Ukrainian blood on his hands. Maybe the only good thing was watching Joe and Mika get destroyed. If you get a chance, Josh Brolin busted their balls on their show! I’m loving the return of Howard Stern to my life; his interviews with Biden, Harris, Brolin and the Boss 👏👏👏
Thanks, Sue. It will be interesting to look at the Ukraine timeline and overlap it with that trip, and what happened before and after. The Joe/Mika thing puzzles me...they were all-in on Trump in '16 bc it looked like he had something on them. Even in the moment that seemed obvious...and then the thing came out, and it was their secret relationship. Not sure why anyone took them seriously after that. Hurray for Howard! Happy New Year!
Don’t forget Helsinki
As happens to many subscribers, I am working my way through back copies of The New Yorker and hit on Elizabeth Kolbert's piece on the melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet, and, more to the point, the strong possibility that we have passed the tipping point for self-reinforcing climate disasters. It isn't actually a secret or particularly new information. I bring it up because I suspect that the likely inevitability of climate disaster is a central driver of Elon Musk's behavior. Trump is a nihilist who doubtless hates the fact that others will live after he dies and is quite happy to diminish their numbers in any way that he can. Musk, a devotee of science fiction, I believe thinks that humanity - for which he has little regard anyway - is doomed, has given up on it, and thinks he is creating the alternative future for the human race. He has said as much. He's a fantasist of the worst sort (the incredibly rich kind), and since both he and Trump and the MAGA movement, in general, are very much at peace with the suffering of others, has made common cause with them as long as it permits him to advance his agenda. Seen through this lens, his childishness, buffoonery and erratic behavior have a certain internal logic no matter how inherently cynical and harmful the goal.
Thanks, Frank. I have been following Kolbert's work for a long time; she knows as much about all of that as anyone. I think Musk and his cohorts want to hasten climate change. Crypto takes up enormous amounts of energy, as does AI...and especially with crypto, you'd be hard pressed to find something more wasteful and ridiculous. But he's dumb, I think, and Mars? There are no good restaurants there and the wi-fi sucks!
Nothing I said should be construed to mean I think it's anything other than a moronic plan.
I share the worry that our country has taken a step back. President Trump will face a lot of push back as he tries to act outside the law.
I am reminded of the movie ‘Moses’ that I saw as a child. The pharaoh would say something in an ordinary tone of voice and the guy behind him with thump his big staff on the ground three times. Bang, bang bang and say in a very loud voice “As pharaoh has spoken spoken, so shall it be!)” it scared me a little, but I thought that it was a pretty cool system.
We just need to make Yul Brenner the pharaoh and we'll be ok. ; )
But things don’t really work like that. It takes a big organization to get things done. And a lot of work. I don’t think things will get too bad as long as HE spends lots of time playing golf. Billserle.com
I hope so. Wishing for their incompetence seems wrong, but that's where we are.
Happy new year Greg! Thanks for another year of insightful writing and bringing to the fore literature of which I was unaware, but delighted in thanks to you.
As a doctor, I usually didn’t make predictions about what would happen to someone, because in my experience, those predictions usually turned out to be wrong. I hope that many of the dire predictions will equally turn out to be wrong and that come New Year’s Eve 2025, we will look back on the year and say our republic held and will likely continue to hold.
Amen to that, John. Amen to that. Thank you, and Happy New year!
Happy New Year Greg! To you, your family and followers. Thanks for regularly shining a bright light in the darkness. The maga tribe will continue to suffer and bemoan the left for all their problems. Things don't change, they stay the same.
Helenbirdart.com
Thanks, Helen. Happy New Year!
I feel like I’m sitting on another planet watching a dark comedy with a surprise ending coming up soon.
I saw a comment somewhere about keeping Vance hidden on purpose, but for what we don’t know. Takeover?
I hope all the musk/vic shit is making the ignorant trumpers think "what have I done", but I’m sure they will grovel and spout the superiority of trump and how he is looking out for them, while the wealthy trumpers lick their chops.
Trump considers Vance an idiot.
Great analogy. I feel exactly that way.
Trump no longer needs MAGA, so he can do whatever he wants now.
Funny you should say that, Mary, because I resonate with the "dark comedy" aspect and my intuition has been telling me since the election "Things can change on a dime" and "What you see is not necessarily what you will get or reflection of what is really happening." To me the key is to stay focused on present moment which as a Scorpio rising Irish person is tough considering the need to nurture grievances that have lasted longer than Law & Order reruns which for the record I adore.
Happy New Year or whatever Greg. Glad you mentioned Vance’s absence. Been wondering myself what he has been doing these many weeks in the shadows.
Been thinking a lot about the late President Carter and how we’ve devolved so badly from electing him in the aftermath of Nixon/Ford to trmp after what could be called an almost miraculous rebound by President Biden from trmp’s first disastrous debacle of a totally dysfunctional administration. It’s almost like running back into the house fire because you forgot something. Maybe President Carter’s memorial will serve as a light for what we once were and what we still could be if given another chance. I remain hopeful.
Thanks, SPW. I will remain hopeful, I will always remain hopeful. Things can't be THAT bad, right? Right?
Happy New Year!
Riiiight Greg 🫣.
My prediction is that solidarity will have an inverse relationship with the degree of suffering.
Personally, I'm sick and tired of the counterproductive blaming.
Wonderfully put, Rick, as usual.
Excellent wrap-up Greg! All the best to you and yours in 2025.
Thanks, John. You too!
Predictions: Deconstruction insanity continues. The wealthy get more.
The poor less.
Homelessness increases.
Jared, MBS and Israeli millionaires develop Gaza into playgrounds when the Arab cleansing is complete. Trump is allowed to toss in a new hotel as he sinks into demented insanity. Baron with the backing of his mother advises his dimwit half brothers thier out as he is taking control of the Trump buisness empire.
Musk tries to control the planet via Starlink while dreaming of breeding on Mars. ( whileThe CIA secretly makes plans).
Meanwhile the planet objects and gets hotter and more violent.
Manifest Destiny!
I tried to tell you, paleface.
No argument, Cal. No argument...
I love reading your articles everyday filled with whit and insights . I must thank Steven Beschloss for recommendation to your Substack.
Happy 2025
Then I must thank him as well, and thank YOU for joining us. Happy New year!