ICE will also have a lot of "chancers." A Chancer is someone who risks their future on unsteady prospects. Rejected military recruits. Failed police officers. Middle-aged fighters who never broke into a full career. Bitter divorced dad types. Men who have failed.
(Notice the likely correct assumption of a male bias. ICE will be a force that is overwhelmingly men.)
Recall the Banality of Evil, of ordinary men finding themselves holding smoking weapons and standing over death pits they are busy filling. Much of ICE's bulk stormtroopers will be FOX News/OANN sadists, but not that many. The physical requirements are too stringent (at first, anyway as history shows mass recruiting drives for police forces rapidly compromise to get bodies) and the rabid lunatic Right shades older. Once might think the Jan 6 crowd would be a wellspring of stormtroopers, but I suspect most of them already have jobs. Anyone who was ever in a trump Boat Parade isn't going to sign up to a prison guard in a concentration camp.
But a lot of otherwise normal desperate men will. I don't know if there's anything that can be done to subvert this that isn't helping them be employed and socially validated. But it's worth noticing.
edit: The Proud Boys will I think contribute quite a few. They're essentially kind of pathetic. They're a vortex of losers. But this might be their next step or maybe eventual destination.
I am sure at one time Hakeem Jeffries could deliver a forceful clear idea. Now he puts an idea out there and wraps it softly in bubble wrap or monotones it to an eventual flat line. Why? He needs to just stop it. Where is this authentic Hakeem Jeffries?
Let’s cut to the chase and get rid of the root cause of all this mess: FIRE DONALD TRUMP! Then let’s do what he’s done to the rule of law, congress and the constitution: kneecap JD Vance, Mike Johnson, Pete Hegseth, Kristi Noem, Pam Bondi, Bobby Kennedy and Stephen Miller.
It is so scary to hear that Trump was able to get so much money for ICE and hire thousands of agents, many of whom will abuse their power. I wish there were clear things we could do to stop all this. Writing to our members of Congress (Democrats for me), is like talking to nobody. A large protest once every few months is definitely inspiring, but the decision-makers don't seem to care at all and won't care. I donate to candidates and groups when I can, but it is a drop in the bucket compared to the major donor class. So, it just feels like no matter what we do, we are stuck just talking about this and don't really have a roadmap to stop all this. I still want all the discussions and information, don't get me wrong. But what I really want is to know what we are supposed to do that will have a real impact.
I talked to a staffer in my congressman's office (he's an R who won by 30 points) about rounding folks up who have been in the country for years. He said all folks in the country without authorization commited a crime. He was not moved by the fact that some of these folks had portected status. Nor did he seem to care that there might be a difference between Juan who has been a productive landscaper and Demetri who currently shakes down local businesses. Maybe he thinks the latter is noble character since the Great Leader practices it daily.
I finished the call by asking If he personally supported the congressman's position. When he said he could not give his personal opinion, I told him to find another job if he didn't and it was truly sad if he did.
I agree, JVL. looking back on the passage of the Big Ugly Bill, it will be the massive money given to Trump to build a personal security force that will be the most important and dangerous outcome. Fast hiring? No problem. They WANT to open it up to unqualified people. Proud Boys, Neo Nazis, gun crazies—these are the ones that Trump and Miller want on payroll. And in steady, well-paying federal jobs with benefits. Oh the irony….
Add on billions of dollars for prisons run by companies with a profit motive to fill every cell—prisons that Trump has said he wants in every state. Do we really think there will just be immigrants with lapsed green cards in there?
Wake up, everyone, the dystopian future has arrived.
The official White House Twitter account Rep. Jimmy Gomez with an AI doctored photo because, well because we’re in the Idiocracy Bad Place. But, Gomez punched back with a real photo of Trump and Epstein. As discussed in the podcast, more of this please Democrats. https://bsky.app/profile/paleofuture.bsky.social/post/3ltpo4amzr22g
ICE will also have a lot of "chancers." A Chancer is someone who risks their future on unsteady prospects. Rejected military recruits. Failed police officers. Middle-aged fighters who never broke into a full career. Bitter divorced dad types. Men who have failed.
(Notice the likely correct assumption of a male bias. ICE will be a force that is overwhelmingly men.)
Recall the Banality of Evil, of ordinary men finding themselves holding smoking weapons and standing over death pits they are busy filling. Much of ICE's bulk stormtroopers will be FOX News/OANN sadists, but not that many. The physical requirements are too stringent (at first, anyway as history shows mass recruiting drives for police forces rapidly compromise to get bodies) and the rabid lunatic Right shades older. Once might think the Jan 6 crowd would be a wellspring of stormtroopers, but I suspect most of them already have jobs. Anyone who was ever in a trump Boat Parade isn't going to sign up to a prison guard in a concentration camp.
But a lot of otherwise normal desperate men will. I don't know if there's anything that can be done to subvert this that isn't helping them be employed and socially validated. But it's worth noticing.
edit: The Proud Boys will I think contribute quite a few. They're essentially kind of pathetic. They're a vortex of losers. But this might be their next step or maybe eventual destination.
I am sure at one time Hakeem Jeffries could deliver a forceful clear idea. Now he puts an idea out there and wraps it softly in bubble wrap or monotones it to an eventual flat line. Why? He needs to just stop it. Where is this authentic Hakeem Jeffries?
I'm with Sarah, tear it all down.
I'm here in part for whatever random, draw-dropping, "I can't believe Tim said that", as I'm laughing my ass off.
Sam. You're adorable and I love you, but anyone sitting in for Tim really needs to up their tawdriness game.
Sarah had a lot of good points. Great show you all! I love you guys still and always.
Sarah is right on! Go girl keep speaking
Why isn’t anyone talking about the violence unleashed on Ukraine after Trump released the sanctions on Russia
We are behind these deaths!!!
Let’s cut to the chase and get rid of the root cause of all this mess: FIRE DONALD TRUMP! Then let’s do what he’s done to the rule of law, congress and the constitution: kneecap JD Vance, Mike Johnson, Pete Hegseth, Kristi Noem, Pam Bondi, Bobby Kennedy and Stephen Miller.
It is so scary to hear that Trump was able to get so much money for ICE and hire thousands of agents, many of whom will abuse their power. I wish there were clear things we could do to stop all this. Writing to our members of Congress (Democrats for me), is like talking to nobody. A large protest once every few months is definitely inspiring, but the decision-makers don't seem to care at all and won't care. I donate to candidates and groups when I can, but it is a drop in the bucket compared to the major donor class. So, it just feels like no matter what we do, we are stuck just talking about this and don't really have a roadmap to stop all this. I still want all the discussions and information, don't get me wrong. But what I really want is to know what we are supposed to do that will have a real impact.
Exactly how I feel.
I talked to a staffer in my congressman's office (he's an R who won by 30 points) about rounding folks up who have been in the country for years. He said all folks in the country without authorization commited a crime. He was not moved by the fact that some of these folks had portected status. Nor did he seem to care that there might be a difference between Juan who has been a productive landscaper and Demetri who currently shakes down local businesses. Maybe he thinks the latter is noble character since the Great Leader practices it daily.
I finished the call by asking If he personally supported the congressman's position. When he said he could not give his personal opinion, I told him to find another job if he didn't and it was truly sad if he did.
ICE is happening now, Medicaid happens in 2027. The time to focus on Medicare is in 2026. Tackle ICE now.
I agree, JVL. looking back on the passage of the Big Ugly Bill, it will be the massive money given to Trump to build a personal security force that will be the most important and dangerous outcome. Fast hiring? No problem. They WANT to open it up to unqualified people. Proud Boys, Neo Nazis, gun crazies—these are the ones that Trump and Miller want on payroll. And in steady, well-paying federal jobs with benefits. Oh the irony….
Add on billions of dollars for prisons run by companies with a profit motive to fill every cell—prisons that Trump has said he wants in every state. Do we really think there will just be immigrants with lapsed green cards in there?
Wake up, everyone, the dystopian future has arrived.
This was a great podcast! Love you and thank you!
I posted this before. Watch the "Qualifications" scene from "Blazing Saddles" for ICE's recruiting video.
Flummoxed. My favorite word. The most perfect description of the constant state of my psyche. Thank you for its usage, Sarah.
Most depressing ep yet, guys. Excellence comes in all flavors, and y'all are killing it in this one. :)
The official White House Twitter account Rep. Jimmy Gomez with an AI doctored photo because, well because we’re in the Idiocracy Bad Place. But, Gomez punched back with a real photo of Trump and Epstein. As discussed in the podcast, more of this please Democrats. https://bsky.app/profile/paleofuture.bsky.social/post/3ltpo4amzr22g