Awful April

America right now feels like someone throwing things onto the lawn while their house burns down. At the same time, the water sprinkler is running. You can hear screaming and shouting, yet you can’t look away from the circus unfolding before your eyes. They’re yelling at you and blaming you for everything—a former friend turned into a monster. It’s a stark reminder that we’re all just one bad decision away from becoming monstrous or evil ourselves.

That’s exactly how I feel about this trade war and their overall behavior—switching sides, burning alliances, and becoming radicalized before our eyes as their new boyfriend grins. A couple of years ago, I suggested we should take a sledgehammer to online systems to stop the radicalization of people. Now, I think that step is absolutely necessary.

The irony here is that George Lucas’s Star Wars epic portrayed trade wars and the decline into authoritarianism. It feels eerily inspired, as it was influenced by the Vietnam War. Perhaps we’ll see something similar in years to come; it already feels like satire at this point. This current trade war feels stupid and genuinely worrying. Why the backsliding and lack of pushback? Checks and balances are meaningless if they aren’t enforced. It’s easy to forget that some of the worst leaders and regimes in history were once elected.

This reminds me of a video I saw recently from A Man for All Seasons—the devil speech. The point of the speech was simple: if you remove due process from one group, you can remove it from all groups. It’s a lesson people seem to forget as the worst moments in history fade. Law should be respected and applied equally to everyone. Because who’s to say it can’t be used against you, and what’s standing in the way to prevent it?

The reason I bring this up is because people are crying about a two-tier justice system, taking into account racial and social factors. But the reality is that most people don’t realize we already have a two-tier justice system—those who can afford lawyers and those who can’t. Yet there’s no outcry to address that problem. This is where the ideological inconsistencies of most voters drive me mad.

My point is that the radicalization of people is happening and should be considered a major problem. Watching the leader of the UK opposition spread falsehoods and lies about a TV show is disheartening—it’s radicalization happening in real time. Instead of banning porn or other distractions, we should be focusing on social media models and algorithms. Something far more sinister is happening globally, and it deserves attention. I understand the world is chaotic with many problems, but honestly, something needs to be done. Banning is the easy option, and it doesn’t work. Regulation and restoring trust matter. Otherwise, who’s to say we won’t be next?