Fake Feuds, Real Crises: Your Questions Answered

On Trump vs Musk, the LA protests, the US military firing on Americans, and more.

Thank you, everyone, for your thoughtful questions! I answered most and tried to address the main points of those I didn’t include. I focused on topics that came up most often so look for the theme of your question even if you don’t see your name.

I do these Q & As once a month. If you’d like to submit a question, become a paying subscriber. You can do that here:

I am very grateful for your support! I am also exhausted and trying to stay strong for the weekend. Look out for each other, folks! These are tough times and I’m impressed by the resilience and defiance I see out here.

And onto the questions…

Star: How do you tell when feuds that involve the administration are real or not (e.g. Trump/Musk recently)? David M: What are the odds that Trump/Musk is just kayfabe?

SK: Trump’s first term and forty prior years of public life were filled with fake feuds to either distract from serious crimes or rehabilitate the reputation of an enabler by portraying them as an enemy. For those who believe this is “too complicated”, it is not — especially for a professional propagandist with a career in reality TV, tabloid media, and crime. Donald Trump has been playing “Donald Trump” for 60 years. This is not “3D chess.” It is charades and Trump is a skilled performer.

With that said, when determining if a feud is fake, ask:
1) Who does it benefit? Does it change your perception of an individual to believe they are against Trump? Why? Is everyone who opposes a bad person automatically a good person, or could they have their own nefarious agenda?
2) Have any material concessions been made or forced? Or do pre-existing business agreements persist despite the “feud”?
3) Does the individual feuding with Trump have a history of working behind the scenes? Does it benefit that individual now to be out of the spotlight?
4) Who is portraying the feud in the media, and how have they previously portrayed Trump and/or his “opponent”? Does their old coverage stand up over time, or is it erroneous, functioning as propaganda? What are their sources? Are the sources also people seeking reputational rehab?
5) Is the topic of the feud something that is legally actionable? Or is it scandal covering up crime — one of Trump’s time-tested tactics?
6) Why does this feud even matter? In my article “Intermission”, I encouraged people to put themselves and each other before Trump. Our political crisis is not a game. Lives are on the line. Folks can watch what they want — that’s their choice. But it is bad to fall into a purely reactive mode unless the feud impacts our life. Dictators seek to be the sole star of a spectacle state. Doing so drains public imagination, making it difficult for citizens to conceive of a politics beyond the demagogue.
7) The most important question: Who is getting hurt? I do not mean Trump and his alleged rival. Who, among ordinary people, is getting hurt? For example, if the feud is about Epstein, do Epstein’s victims finally get justice? If it’s about Trump or Musk’s criminality, does the public get transparency and accountability? If it’s about policy, will innocent Americans be used as collateral damage as each party proves their bona fides through mass abuse?

I’m batting a thousand when it comes to detecting fake feuds, in large part because Trump is a creature of habit in the limelight for half a century and often repeats schemes. (I detail these in my books Hiding in Plain Sight and They Knew.) Trump also has a collaborative relationship with the DOJ, Democrats, and other “enemies” that is widely ignored because the pretense of animosity benefits all of them.

The Trump/Musk dynamic is more difficult to follow. Unfortunately, due to the power each wields, it does matter somewhat. Some aspects of their “feud” followed familiar patterns: for example, nothing Musk said about Trump and Epstein was new. He was using a tactic I called “deja news” in my 2022 book They Knew: presenting well-known horrific information as new to create distance between himself and the criminals (Trump and Epstein) or to dodge accountability for a prior lack of inquiry.

But there are a few twists: 1) Musk’s wealth exceeds that of anyone else with whom Trump has either collaborated or fought 2) Musk’s erratic behavior, exacerbated by alleged drug use 3) Unlike Trump, Musk has not held consistent positions for decades but has become increasingly radicalized and susceptible to outside pressure 4) Musk owns one of the main communication platforms on which the feud took place.

In short: I think the feud is largely fake, but there may be some genuine animosity underneath. Pay attention to the tech oligarchs and their goals: not only Musk, but Peter Thiel and his frontman, JD Vance. It was interesting that the Trump/Musk feud about Epstein occurred hours after Thiel’s financial ties to Epstein’s estate were revealed, causing that story — an important story — to fade from view.

As I’ve said before, I don’t think Trump likes the actual job of being president. He likes the money and immunity to prosecution. Now that he has that, he may want to hand the reins to Vance/Thiel, but he has to walk away while not looking like a loser. This could be a way to test those waters. You should expect drama since Trump cannot exist in unscripted reality.

Sarah: My question is about Gavin Newsom. While he has had some great messaging this week, I can never quite shake the sense that he is all in on the balkanization of America, given his ties to Pelosi and the Getty family, his, ahem, appreciation of the finer things in life, and so on. Jodie: Do you think targeting LA, and California in general, is a push to get California to secede? I know the world's chaos agents have long dreamed of the dissolution of the USA.

SK: I do not trust Gavin Newsom. He has cultivated relationships with the hard right and enacted vicious policies on Californians. He was previously married to Donald Trump Jr’s girlfriend, which gives the Trump camp a wealth of blackmail material. He is tied to the Pelosi family through marriage, and Pelosi and Trump share a number of shady backers, particularly from Silicon Valley. Newsom is in the same circle.

Trump and his cohort have always sought to strip the US down and sell it for parts. As I explained in my book They Knew and elsewhere, this is easier to achieve if the country is partitioned. The states ripest for secession due to their size and pre-existing secessionist movements are Texas and California. Newsom has done little to assuage my fear that he wants to be President of the Country of California instead of governor of the state of it.

Newsom is portraying himself as a symbol of democracy versus Trump as an autocrat. If he is sincere and trying to protect California against Trump’s illegal military onslaught, then great. It does make me wonder why he has enacted such cruel policies on Californians while governor, but obviously it’s better that he does the right thing now for the right reasons than not.

Keep a close watch on civil war rhetoric, especially false proclamations that California is different than the rest of the country — rhetoric from either Newsom or Trump. Californians are Americans being abused by the federal government, like all Americans. At this juncture, they are getting the worst abuse. The most important thing to do is back the people of California while being wary of leadership. Make sure officials do not manipulate public fear to create an even more disastrous outcome. Secession would be a tremendous disaster for Californians and for everyone else.

Declining Democracy: Between the rhetorical pushback and the CA AG's pending lawsuits, I'm hoping Trump will back down. What are your thoughts? And if Trump continues to escalate, what are Newsom's next moves? He floated a CA federal tax strike; do you think he can pull it off?

SK: As I said, I don’t trust Newsom. Trump’s tactics are backfiring in the public sphere because most Americans do not want to see the military weaponized against civilians or masked men snatching innocent people off the street. Pundits fretting about optics forget the optics of that. But I do worry that there is an arrangement being made for civil war that both Newsom and Trump have approved. I know Trump doesn’t care if the US exists, but I hope I am wrong about Newsom. I might be, so don’t take my word as gospel. Watch events with a critical eye.

Rebecca: I live in Los Angeles and worked about 1/2 mile from the protests in downtown LA on Monday. There was a sickening feeling all day of impending doom that didn't let up. I'm not sure what to do. In times like these, what do you suggest? I know that's a vague question, but it's been a rough time for us Angelenos.

SK: I am so sorry you and others in LA are going through this. It reminds me a lot of the 2014 Ferguson events. Isolated acts of violence took place on a few blocks, but the media presented St. Louis as if the whole city was burning down, and reduced complicated and painful situations to stereotypes. It’s also frightening to have militarized police or actual military roaming the streets.

One thing that’s helpful for LA residents to do is explain what is actually happening on the ground to people outside the city who get their news from Fox or X. It clarifies misconceptions and reminds folks that California is a fellow state full of people just trying to live their lives (including immigrants and migrants). California is a special place, because every state is special, but it is not an exotic enclave. Bad actors are going to exaggerate differences between Los Angeles and the rest of the country. It is good to dispel those myths.

KM: Science and healthcare please. Are all the collective things happening because they truly want “the lower class” sick and poor because we’ll be easier to control? Is this out of the authoritarian playbook?

SK: Yes. A sick and scared populace is easier to control. It is crucial to note, though, that even when we had a more democratic government, Americans were denied healthcare or had it tied to our jobs. This is to prevent our independence. We have never been a free country. They are just getting much more aggressive in the approach they take to killing us and bolder about admitting it.

Jonathan: You've mention in the past that the Biden administration enabled the re-installation of Trump by not putting him in jail. I assume this enabling was really about keeping the status quo of big money lining pockets of both Dems and Republicans. But do you think they knew how far and fast the Trump administration would dismantle the US? Were they so naive?

SK: I cannot imagine that any official is naïve after ten years of candidate or president Trump. We have been living in an eternal rerun. One has to be deep in denial to not understand that of course it would go this far. What threw people off the most was the inaction of Biden’s DOJ, which I pointed out in 2021 was an indicator of complicity, likely directed by operatives behind the scenes. You don’t let sedition go unpunished unless the plan is for the seditionist to return.

Trump has always been open about his plan to destroy the US. Project 2025 gave a road map. Americans could not quite believe it was true because, if it were, then surely the Biden admin and law enforcement agencies would do everything possible to prevent it, right? The terrifying conclusion — that, no, they would not, and they seem fine with collapse of the United States — is difficult to accept. But just because officials are fine with collapse does not mean we have to be! I do think plutocrat donors play a major role, but so do religious fanatics of varying faiths and tech oligarchs who see human beings as disposable. Refuse their vicious logic, think around them, and hold on to your humanity.

JARoemer: Sarah, you predicted all of this. I’ve been surprised only with the speed at which it’s happened. What do you think our chances are of getting out of this mess?

SK: People have finally caught up to what I’ve been saying for over a decade, but I hate that this is how. I do not want to see the good aspects of America destroyed or people abused. It breaks my heart. I’m furious about the wasted Biden years and the institutionalist enablers who made Trump’s return possible.

I do think that we can get through this. There will be a lot of losses. There have already been a lot of losses, and we’re expected to shrug them off instead of grieving them. But grief is a reminder that our lives and fate matter, even if officials do not agree. The years ahead will be difficult, but that makes it all the more important to hold onto your values and take advantage of openings in the chaos to try to create the kind of country you want. Positive change will likely come through shifts in political culture rather than through elections.

Lydia: Wondering if you think there is anybody that can stop Israel's genocide of the Palestinian people? I'm still struggling to understand the utter chokehold Israel seems to have over the U.S and many other countries? How much of this ties back to Epstein and child sex trafficking? The blackmail information Mossad has gathered?

SK: The story of the Israel chokehold on US policy is a long one, and it intertwines with transnational organized crime and espionage. Robert I. Friedman did great work on this before he died; Seymour Hersh’s early work is worth a look too. I covered Epstein/Maxwell in my books and encourage people to look at the sources cited in the end notes (the ones that haven’t been censored anyway).

The genocide of Palestinians is the most horrific event I have seen in my life, in part because I’m seeing it: dead bodies of children on social media every day. It’s a level of sadism that I do not think has precedent. Murdering children is a universal taboo. Children have long been casualties of war or recruited as soldiers, but I have never seen soldiers boast of child murder the way Israeli soldiers do. Usually when a government is caught abusing children, they are ashamed and try to hide that it’s happening. That was the case for every authoritarian regime I studied, even the most brutal ones, like Uzbekistan, which used child labor in the cotton fields. Israel lacks shame and seems surprised that people worldwide are appalled.

The US stands out for its unconditional support of Israel even in the face of horrific crimes. The reasons for this are less poorly investigated than poorly explained, because Israeli lobbying groups are quick to use excessive litigation or career-ending whisper campaigns to threaten anyone who doesn’t cheerlead their carnage and instead tries to determine why it is happening. I don’t know who outside Israel can stop the slaughter: Israel needs to stop it, and they show no desire to do so. But people should keep pressuring US officials to stop funding torture and murder by a foreign regime. I’m ashamed that this is where our tax money is going.

Jac Qui: For demonstrators, is it better optics to hold up US flags as opposed to Mexican/Palestinian flags to show the world the US government is using force against its own?

SK: People are displaying different flags to symbolize different aspects of the crisis. The Mexican flag is a statement that Mexican heritage is nothing to be ashamed of (or deported for!), and it’s also symbolic of LA as a city due to the large and long-standing Mexican-American population. I don’t see anything controversial about it given this context. The Palestinian flag is being waved in solidarity because Palestinians are also being attacked by the US military-industrial complex. I like seeing US flags too — but folks should wave whatever flag means the most to them. Having that choice is the beauty of being an American.

Em: What (if anything) about how things have unfolded since Trump's re-installation in January has surprised you?

SK: That pundits and politicians treat Trump’s first term as if it never happened and as if there’s not a template to these crises. They’ve done that before (they ignored his entire organized crime career) but, like, we were there! He was the president and we saw the whole four years! This bizarre selective amnesia is a big part of why people do not trust the media or the Democratic party.

Joanna: Sometimes I feel like I haven’t gotten past the creation of “alternate facts”. How do you level with people who have disconnected from reality and truth, in general, not just GOP or Dems? How do we restore “truth” when we’re bombarded by news media (of all types and sizes) and social media “personalities” that legitimize all the lies? It’s like sinking in water and losing the sense of “up”.

SK: People respond better to honest emotion than to cold facts. Arguments should be rooted in factual reality, but it’s good to be compassionate, to listen, and to admit what you don’t know. Then look for points of commonality and figure out how you each got there. I’ve had productive conversations this way with people who are not evil, but who are confused and share my concerns about corruption.

Richard D: Do you have a top ten list of music albums and or films?

SK: Not offhand! If I made it, it would take me forever, especially since my music collection is enormous and always growing. But I am excited for the Spaceballs sequel! I love Spaceballs so much. Let’s hope we survive to 2027 to see Spaceballs!

Diane: I see lots of suggestions about how to protest and make ourselves heard. I feel like I’m all set there. But I see very little about how to prepare personally (financially, legally, geographically, etc) for living in an autocracy — just in case that is the outcome. I figure you might be a good person to ask!

SK: I’m a terrible person to ask about finance! I’ve been asked this in every Q & A and I do not know. I worry about it a lot myself though and I’m including it here in the hopes that someone does have a good answer! If so, leave it in the comments.

Louise: Will the Supreme Court ever act to enforce their rulings against Trump?

SK: We are going to be stuck with an anti-freedom SCOTUS for a long time, unless the court is expanded or dispelled. But many members are being threatened, blackmailed, or bribed by Trump’s cohort, in addition to being corrupt on their own (particularly Clarence Thomas and Brett Kavanaugh). It is possible that when Trump is no longer among us there may finally be a reckoning of his crimes, assuming they do not still fear retaliation. It’s not fun to live under the gun, which is why people in these seats of power harden their hearts and become worse over time. They may be relieved when Trump is gone, even if they are applauding him now.

Gretchen: Can members of Congress be held liable personally for violating their oaths of office and not at least trying to hold the regime accountable for their illegal acts?

SK: I think they should be! I do not know. Given that no one in power seems to follow the law anymore, perhaps it’s time for a reimagining of law in which they can be, since clearly the current system is failing.

Bjorkqvist: Which prominent Dems do you support who are not in league with the elites? What about AOC?

SK: I don’t support anyone. I also don’t oppose everyone. I don’t believe in blanket approval of a public servant, and I think political “stan” culture is very dangerous. I like some things AOC does, but not others, and hope she works for the public good. I’m wary of officials because the lack of accountability for sedition has no precedent, so anyone in office during this period is suspect. The more forthright an official is about state crimes — including their own party of enablers — the more I respect them.

Carl L: Given that there is a massive amount of criminality going on nearly every day from the Executive Branch, how do you see the country moving past this? Specifically, if there is a Democratic President in the future, should he or she be obligated to put all Trump lackeys on trial for crimes they aren’t pardoned for?

SK: Yes, they are obligated to prosecute. That’s what the DOJ under Biden was supposed to do, and failed, and now we see the results of that refusal. My guess is that if we make it through this period, we will be in survival mode, trying to rebuild public health, education, environmental protections, and other institutions that aid the broader public. Helping people is more important than punitive measures.

But it is critical that the cycle of autocracy cannot repeat itself. That means treating every state crime seriously, even if the perpetrators are old news. If this is not done, then it sets a precedent and makes it harder to contain new operatives who use the same illegal and destructive tactics. It is also critical to expose the entire story of transnational crime and institutional enablers, so Americans understand how we got to this point. Ironically, this process may be something that brings the country together, since the perpetrators straddle party lines.

Bill F: A couple of writers I’ve read, at least one with academic credentials, have said that Trump is running the authoritarian playbook too fast. That a better organized authoritarian would have let protestors march around for a couple of months, exhausting themselves and the public’s attention span before activating the national guard. That by acting so fast, he energizes the opposition, bringing out more protestors, engages the public in the story, and looks weak (which he does). Do you think Trump’s early overreaction hurts his efforts or just speeds the timeline without mattering much to the eventual outcome? Jack A: It is important to the orange menace to get the military to support him. What do you think the chances are that he will issue an order that the military will not follow? I know he has considerable support among enlisted soldiers, but what about the officers?

SK: The autocrat’s playbook is outdated. The playbook has been fed into AI and vomited all over the internet until its core concepts blur into the background. Speed is a friend to the autocrat in the digital era, particularly when algorithms control attention and curtail choice, making it hard for people to know what’s happening — including the military, which gets orders and receives information at a dizzying pace.

Trump needs a military that is willing to fire on Americans. The more time soldiers have to see through his fabricated pretenses, the less likely they are to fire. Trump needs frenzied, frightened soldiers who lack the ability to discern reality. Even then, it’s not guaranteed: I can envision a scenario where seasoned officers are wary of Trump’s approach and refuse to comply. But it’s key to note that it’s not only the military Trump is using for violence, but non-state militias and “deputized” civilians.

The other issue with “the autocrat’s playbook” is that Trump is lord of the mafia state, not of a 20^th century autocracy. He does not mind if the US collapses: that is why he is ramping up talk of civil war. I do not think he looks weak, or that most people see him as weak, since has been running roughshod over the US for a decade. However, many Americans hate him. Strength does not indicate popularity. It indicates a formidable enemy that requires strategy to defeat.

Zdoubleyoo: Wondering what your thoughts are when it comes to on-the-ground resistance against government/state violence. There are many who view Hamas, Hezbollah and other resistance fighters as nothing more than terrorists but being born/raised in Los Angeles and always trying to play my part for the resistance, things become a bit harder to define. Who are we to judge how the people on the ground resist unlawful, unjust and violent attacks from those in power who are and have been persecuting them forever? Violence for thee but not for me? Aren't all these groups labeled "terrorists" by the state just resistance fighters, akin to the rebel alliance? Everything that's happening in our world, but particularly the 24/7 live broadcast genocide of the Palestinians over the last almost two years (!!!) has really changed the way I look at things.

SK: I’ve truncated some questions here for space, but I left yours in its entirety, because I want people to think about it. What’s happening in the US is not new except for how wide the net of abuse is cast. Native Americans, enslaved Black Americans, and other groups had their righteous rebellions portrayed, in their time, as barbaric violence — and until recently, these narratives were still widely accepted. The myth of “Palestinian terrorism” being the driving force of Israeli politics was accepted until recently as well, when smartphone footage from the victims of Israeli violence dispelled it. That does not mean that everyone fighting a brutal state is a hero. There are monstrous people lurking in the ranks of those fighting for a good cause too. That’s just human nature. Nothing is purely good or bad.

But yes, people need to think long and hard about who they are quick to label violent, especially when the “violent” group is largely targeting property or trying to oust brutal officials, while the “respectable” group is hiding sadism behind a uniform or law. This is not to encourage violence, but to encourage people to think about who is labeled “violent” and what the consequences of that are.

Rebecca W: What in history has been the tipping point for a population that is facing the loss of democracy for autocratic rule? Do peaceful marches make a difference? And does Trump even give a shit about polls at this point?

SK: Trump does not give a shit about polls. Neither should you. Give a shit about election integrity, because we don’t have it, and we need it. Polls are useless without that. Protests are good ways of showing dissent and noncompliance with immoral orders, but they should be strategic when dealing with a regime that seeks the collapse of the state.

The tipping point is different for each country. I actually think the US reached our tipping point in January/February 2021, and then Biden DOJ tipped it back through inaction. The inaction confused much of the public, leading them to conclude that Trump must be innocent, or else he’d quickly be punished. The refusal of the Democrats to examine why that happened is keeping the whole country from moving forward and reaching a new tipping point. People need to have confidence that if they bravely confront the Trump administration, they will have the backing of powerful officials. They have no confidence now, due to the abandonment of accountability by Biden administration, and that is a shameful thing.

Don M: The whole LA confrontation feels scripted with most if not all of ‘vandalism/grafiti’ being done by trumpy stooges. Am I being too paranoid?

SK: I’m not sure to what you’re referring, but there are always people manipulating these sorts of televised events. There will certainly be Trump acolytes hiding as protesters to try to portray them in a terrible light.

Debra: My question is about the GOP who is known for their hubris behavior, but the amount of self-satisfaction and arrogance is way beyond their normal range, at least to me. Does this mean they have gamed the system so much that we may never have a national election where they lose, or are they all that darned stupid?

SK: The GOP long ago abandoned the idea of trying to win people over through ideas and good will. They instead use gerrymandering, dark money, threats, bribes, and possibly cheating. Or they disregard the will of the people after the vote, as has happened with ballot initiatives in multiple states, including my state, Missouri. They have no shame because they have not faced recriminations in ages. That said, the reason they have to do all this is because most people hate the GOP and they would not win a fair fight. If there is a great rival candidate to the GOP, that candidate could win, though I think a 1/6 repeat would occur since the first one was never punished.

dkammd: The image of the Confederate "Stars and Bars" has populated southern states like the Carolinas, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana and, of course, Mississippi more than Missouri (correct me if I'm wrong.) And yet, NO state beats Missouri for what appears to be its majority fealty to the principles of the Lost Cause. WTF?

SK: I have not seen inordinate fealty toward the Lost Cause here, and I hang out in southern Missouri — in the most conservative areas, which have the best canoeing — a lot! I rarely see Confederate flags or the like. However, I do hear talk about militias and hating the government in general. That quality may be particularly pronounced in Missouri, but I think it dates back to the long tradition of outlaw violence in this state, especially in the post-Civil War era, and not to the Lost Cause.

Michael E: How would you organize a media campaign to oppose the authoritarian assault on the Constitution and government agencies? Who would you involve, and which communication channels would you use?

SK: I’d set up a social media network that lets people follow who they want and see posts in chronological order and then watch who naturally earns the public’s trust. I would have posts written by people receiving PAC money or working for a political party labeled as advertising, and AI posts labeled as well. I don’t think a manufactured media is going to win. People need to trust again.

Tracy: Do you have any thoughts on Iran's claims of an espionage coup against Israel that allegedly contains details about Netanyahu's criminal and blackmailing activities? Could we be so fortunate as to get some sunlight on the activities of the abhorrent Netanyahu?

SK: As I write this, Israel is allegedly getting ready to attack Iran, so I don’t know! The whole situation terrifies me. Maybe by the time this posts you’ll know more. I’m leaving in your question in case it proves illuminating later.

Linda O: With the growing cracks in the MAGA movement and increased awareness in the Trump agenda, now that ordinary people are being impacted, do you see any possibility this situation will turn around and people will be willing take a more active role in citizenship and holding elected officials to account?

SK: Folks were extremely civic minded during Trump’s first term. We had enormous election turnout and the largest protests in US history. That stopped during the Biden era for a variety of reasons: covid exhaustion, a false sense of security under the Democrats, attacks on activism from both liberals and Republicans, etc. I do think the tide of protest is rising again, but I also do not blame ordinary people for our plight when they worked so hard to prevent it and our officials utterly failed them.

Karen B: Howdy Sarah! I know there will be many great questions for you. Thought I would have a fun one! Since you love being on the water and in nature, what is your favorite bird or birds, since it's hard to choose just one?

SK: Yay, bird question! My favorite is the great blue heron. That’s what my therapist is!

Nora: Are the recent efforts to rehire federal employees seriously about improving/sustaining federal services? I empathize with how demoralized federal workers must already feel, but I believe demoralization is one of the goals of the supporters of project 2025.

SK: That is a very interesting question, as it opens analysis of leverage. That the Trump admin is hiring back the people they fired with such fanfare shows there is some hesitation about gutting the country. I don’t know whether it has to do with the pace or the ultimate goal. I do think that doing things like cutting the national parks staff — beloved federal workers — brings home what government can do in a way they do not like. They do not want people remembering that the US government is capable of greatness, too, and not just corruption.

SB: As we return to classrooms and campuses in the coming weeks/months, what are the most critical questions to ask or trends to approach with caution and scrutiny regarding generative AI in the educational setting?

SK: I’ve got one kid starting college and one starting high school and I’m dreading this school year. I strongly oppose AI. I’m not a strict parent but I’ve banned it in my house when it comes to research and writing. I hope teachers ban it too.

I feel very sorry for teachers since so many kids are handing in papers written by ChatGPT. I also hope colleges understand that because of credentialism and the skyrocketing cost of tuition, it is natural for some students to see a college education as a burdensome transaction and want it over with as quickly as possible. Those are the students most likely to use AI to cheat. It sounds so cheesy, but I hope those students get that they really are cheating themselves. Creativity and critical thinking are blessings not to be squandered! I’m infuriated by the tech corps for blasting AI everywhere and sad for educators tasked with dealing with such sweeping changes.

Laura: What do you make of the PayPal mafia and their rise? It doesn't escape my notice that the guys who wanted to disrupt money are the same ones who want to privatize sovereignty, in what is referred to as the Network State ideology.

SK: It’s significant and I need to read more. I know the political side of the crisis better than the tech side. Thiel’s shutdown of Gawker via a lawsuit soon after Gawker published the Epstein logs is significant and set the stage for the next ten years of online media combat. I don’t know if anyone has written a good book on this. I would imagine a truly good book would piss a lot of powerful people off and may have gone under the radar. If anyone has reading recommendations, list them in the comments!

That’s it! Thank you to everyone who responded, and if you’d like to submit a question for next time, sign up below!

Welcome to Defiance.

A passage on “deja news” from my book They Knew, written in 2021.