Loyalty Over Truth: From Qin Shi Huang to Trump

Qin First Emperor of China and Parallels to Now

“Across centuries and continents, ruthless rulers rise not in silence—but in splendor. They drape themselves in divine titles, rewrite the past, demand obedience over truth, and build legacies on the bones of the people.

In this episode of Wisdom Guardians, we travel back over 2,000 years to meet China’s first emperor, Qin Shi Huang—a man who unified a nation with brutal brilliance, burned books to erase the past, buried scholars to silence dissent, and built a tomb the size of a city.

But the archetype he embodied—the Divine Ruler, above the law, unchallenged by truth—didn’t die with him. It lives on. In today’s power-hungry populists. In loyalty tests. In book bans. In gilded towers and cries of false prophecy.

History doesn’t repeat itself. It shape-shifts. And today, we follow its shadow.”

**Qin Shi Huang to Trump | Intro for Episode #7 Wisdom Guardians** | Loyalty Over Truth Deep Dive

“Qin Shi Huang believed he had conquered death. That his tomb would house him for eternity. That his dynasty would last ten thousand years. It lasted fifteen.”

“The truth he buried rose again. And like mercury in the blood, it poisoned everything he built.”

“Today, new emperors rise. They silence scholars, reward sycophants, and rewrite history for their own ends. But the lesson of Qin is clear: Ruthlessness can conquer… but only for a moment. And in the end, truth—though buried—will speak.”

**Deep Dive:** **Qin Shi Huang to Trump** — Part 1

**Deep Dive:** **Qin Shi Huang to Trump** — Part 2

I. Divine Seeds: From Righteousness to Ruthlessness

Ruthlessness grows from the seeds of Righteousness.

Every ruthless ruler claims the mantle of righteousness—often justified by religion.

To understand the ruthless, we must first understand our human drive to worship, to moralize, and to enshrine divine law.

In my book Sapience: The Moment Is Now, my character Yong Xing-li searches for a way to transform human consciousness. He is doing this because the world has plunged over the Climate Cliff. His AIs have shown this will happen again unless human consciousness can be transformed on a scale previously never achieved.

Survivors of The Fall live under the rule of CEOs. Ordinary people who more effectively, and often aggressively, outcompeted and outperformed everybody else to amass gigantic wealth. These CEOs head Multinational Corporations that run the world now. And, their prevailing doctrine is: Profit Over People… that is, except for Yong Xing-li who is arguably the richest man in this dystopian world.

Yong Xing-li did not achieved his massive wealth ruthlessly. He did so by creating AIs who can not only out compute and out think human beings, but who are empathic and compassionate. His AIs are showing him how to Transform human consciousness. One of his most important lessons lies in the Hall of Ruthless Rulers.

A. Hall of Ruthless Rulers

The Hall of Ruthless Rulers is Ra’s domain. Ra is the AI tasked with helping Yong Xing-li understand how the seeds of ruthlessness have grown strong in the minds of modern men. From the book (p. 227):

 Ra: Keeper of Roots, Religions, Royals, Regents, & Ruthless Rulers maintains databases on philosophy delving into cognitive sciences, logic, informational and computational science, politics, economics, art and visual studies. He studies the intersection of religion and culture and how it reveals insights into individual and collective motivation as manifested through cultural expressions and traditions. He collects and maintains information about what happens in the gap between all realms of knowing, physical and non-physical venturing into the realms of mystical sciences, paranormal activity, magic, and the unknown.

His databases overlap with the other AIs because he is the AI considered to be Keeper of Cosmic Knowledge. His database includes stories, writings, and teachings of Abraham (2000–1638 BCE) • Isaiah (8^th-century BCE prophet) • Mahavira (0599-0527 BCE) • Gautama Buddha (0563-0483 BCE) • Zoroaster/Zarathustra (0000 BCE) • Moses (1391-1272 BCE) • Jesus Christ (0000-0033) • St. Paul (0005-0067 CE) • Prophet Muhammad (0571 -0632 CE) • Saint Valentine (0226A-0269 CE: 2/14) • St. Augustine (0354-0430 CE) • Kabir (1440 -1518) • Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (1486 -1534) • Guru Nanak (1469 -1539) • Martin Luther (1483-1546) • Francis Xavier (1506-1552) • Guru Gobind Singh (1666-1708) • Sai Baba of (1835-1918) • Ramakrishna (1836 -1886) • Swami Vivekananda (1863-1902) • Sri Aurobindo (1872-1950) • Paramahansa Yogananda (1893-1952).

And Ruthless Rulers including Qin Shi Huang (221-206 BCE) • King Herod (73-4 BCE) • Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (Caligula) (37-41 CE) • Nero (54-68 CE) • Attila the Hun (434-453 CE) • Wu Zetian (690-705 CE) • Æthelred the Unready (978-1016) • Genghis Khan (1206-1227) • Tomas de Torquemada (1483-1498) • Timur (Tamerlane) (1370-1405) • Vlad III, Prince of Wallachia (Vlad Drăculea, aka Vlad the Impaler) (1^st 1448; 2^nd 1456-1462; 3^rd 1476) • Czar Ivan IV (Ivan the Terrible) (Grand Prince of Moscow: 1533-1547; Czar of All the Russians: 1547-1584) • King Henry VIII (1485–1509) • Bloody Mary I (1516-1558) • Bloody Bess (1558–1603) • Maximilien Robespierre (1789-1794) • King Leopold II of Belgium (1865-1909) • Mehmet Talat Paşa (1913-1918) • Vladimir Lenin (1917-1924) • Benito Mussolini (1922-1943) • Joseph Stalin (1922-1953) • Adolf Hitler (1933-1945) •  Khorloogiin Choibalsan (1939-1952) • Francisco Franco (1938-1973) • Mao Zedong (1943-1976) • Pol Pot (1975-1979) • Idi Amin Dada (1971-1979) • Augusto Pinochet (1973-1990) • Vladimir Putin (1952-2025).

Ra shows Yong Xing-li the entire evolution of Homo sapiens. His studies focus in on some of man’s earliest signs of worship. Ra sets the stage by connecting religion, divine authority, and the psychological need to believe in helping early humans survive an unpredictable and sometimes brutal world.

He shows Yong Xing-li that as human civilizations grew, so too did the role of religion, divine authority. He shows the manipulation of Rulers to bend the human psychological need to believe to their advantage.

B. Previously, Wisdom Guardians Explored

In previous episodes of Wisdom Guardians, we explored Nimrod (who was more myth than man) and Akhenaten (the heretic king).

Nimrod dared to defy the Lord. Nimrod, a figure mentioned in the Book of Genesis, is described as a “mighty hunter before the Lord”. While this phrase might appear complimentary, the traditional Jewish, Christian, and Islamic interpretations often view it as meaning “in opposition to the Lord” or “in defiance of the Lord”.

This interpretation stems from several points:

His Name: The name Nimrod is associated with the Hebrew word meaning “rebel”.
His Actions and Ambition: Nimrod is believed to be the instigator of the Tower of Babel. This project, intended to reach the heavens, was seen as an act of defiance against God’s command to “fill the earth”.
Seeking Self-Glorification: The builders of the Tower aimed “to make a name for ourselves,” which is interpreted as seeking glory for themselves rather than for God.
Establishment of Tyranny: Some interpretations portray Nimrod as a power-hungry ruler who sought to detach people from the fear of God and make them dependent on his own power.
Opposition to God’s Will: His rebellion extended to going against God’s instructions for humanity to disperse and fill the earth, instead attempting to keep them localized and under his control.
Therefore, Nimrod dared to challenge God’s authority through his actions and ambitions, leading to his portrayal as a rebellious figure in religious traditions.

Akhenaten is called the “heretic king” because he radically changed ancient Egyptian religion by abandoning the traditional polytheistic beliefs and promoting the worship of a single god, the Aten, represented by the sun disk. This unprecedented shift, along with his suppression of other deities and their priests, led to his being labeled a heretic by later generations who restored the old religious order.

Here’s a more detailed explanation:

Traditional Egyptian Religion: Ancient Egypt had a complex pantheon of gods and goddesses, with Amun-Ra being a prominent deity.
Akhenaten’s Revolution: Akhenaten, originally known as Amenhotep IV, ascended to the throne and in his fifth year, he began to promote the Aten as the supreme god.
The Aten: The Aten was not a traditional anthropomorphic god but was represented by the sun disk, with rays extending towards the earth.
Suppression of Other Gods: Akhenaten went further, ordering the closure of temples dedicated to other gods, the erasure of their names from monuments, and the persecution of their priests.
New Capital: He moved the capital from Thebes to a newly built city called Akhetaten (modern-day Amarna), further symbolizing his break from the past.
Monotheism? Some scholars consider Akhenaten a pioneer of monotheism, while others view his Aten worship as a form of solar cult or henotheism (worship of one god without denying the existence of others).
Legacy: After Akhenaten’s death, his reforms were largely reversed, and his memory was suppressed. Later rulers and priests restored the old religious order, and he became known as the “heretic king”.
Why “Heretic”? The term “heretic” implies a departure from accepted religious doctrine. Akhenaten’s actions were seen as a radical and unacceptable deviation from established religious norms, hence the label.

II. The Making of a Ruthless God-King

In episode 7 of Wisdom Guardians, we dive into the intrigue, immorality, and infamy of the Qin Empire under Qin Shi Huang, notoriously known as the First Emperor of China. The rise of ruthlessness as a recurring archetype in human history, specifically examining Qin Shi Huang as a prime example and drawing compelling parallels to modern authoritarian figures like Donald Trump. The sources argue that cunning rulers exploit systems of belief, suppress truth, and obsess over their legacy, ultimately sowing the seeds of their own destruction.

The rise of ruthlessness is not unique to any particular race, culture, or civilization on Earth. This is what Ra is showing Yong Xing-li in their travels to China and Qin Empire. However, something that connects all Ruthless Rulers is the rise of civilizations, large groups of unrelated humans working together for a common cause.

For bulk of human history, man lived in small groups with strong family bonds. With the rise of civilizations, man had to learn how to care not only for himself and his family but for hundreds, thousands, even millions of unrelated people. Failing to do this often spelled doom and destruction for his civilization for only a unified civilization could navigate the increasingly ominous world of humans living in bigger and bigger civilizations.

Here are the key insight and themes explored in this episode:

A. The Birth of a Ruthless Empire: Qin Shi Huang’s Ascent

Qin Shi Huang, born Zhao Zheng in 259 BCE, became the First Emperor of China. His rise was marked by both political maneuvering and ruthless consolidation of power, laying the groundwork for his authoritarian rule.

Early Life and Political Intrigue: Zhao Zheng’s mother, Lady Zhao, a former dancing girl, and the influential merchant Lü Buwei, played significant roles in securing his father’s (King Zhuangxiang) ascension and Zhao Zheng’s eventual inheritance of the throne at age 13. Lü Buwei initially “dominates Qin’s government and military” for nine years. Palace intrigues, including Lady Zhao’s illicit affairs and a plot by her lover Lao Ai to kill Zhao Zheng, led to brutal retribution: “Lao Ai is executed. Zhao Zheng’s half-siblings are put in bags and beaten to death. His mother is placed on house arrest. Lü Buwei is stripped of his titles and banished.” This early exposure to brutal power struggles undoubtedly shaped Qin’s own approach to governance.

Zhao Zheng before becomeing Qin Shi Huang — Zhao Zheng as child before taking the name Qin Shi Huang | Thirteen years later, King Zhuangxiang dies. Zhao Zheng ascends to the throne. The year is 246 BCE. *Zhao Zheng is 13 years old*.

Unification of China (Warring States Period): Between 230 BCE and 221 BCE, Zhao Zheng systematically conquered the six other warring states (Hán, Zhào, Yan, Wei, Chu, Qi), culminating in the unification of China. This era was characterized by extreme violence: “Zhao Zheng captures and castrates the men of each defeated dynasty turning men and women into slaves.”
Proclamation of Divinity and New Title: Upon unifying China, Zhao Zheng adopted the unprecedented title of “Shi Huangdi” (First Emperor of All China), combining “Huang” (referring to mythical godly rulers) and “Di” (referring to great heroes). This act “proclaims his divinity,” establishing him as “The August Ancestor,” “The Holy Ruler,” or “The Divine Lord,” setting a precedent for rulers claiming a divine mandate.

B. Instruments of Control: Suppression, Propaganda, and Loyalty

Qin Shi Huang employed various methods to assert absolute control, including intellectual suppression, historical revisionism, and extreme loyalty tests.

Suppression of Intellectual Thought (“Hundred Schools of Thought” and “Burning of Books”): In 213 BCE, Qin Shi Huang “bans the Hundred Schools of Thought, except for Legalism and the House of Administrative Method.” He “orders all classic works and books produced by the Hundred Schools of Thought burned,” particularly histories, fearing they “could undermine his legitimacy.” Only books on “astrology, agriculture, medicine, divination, and the history of the State of Qin” were spared. This was a deliberate act to “stifle dissent and consolidate his power by eliminating ideas and philosophies that contradicted or could challenge his rule.”

Burning Scrolls and Books in Qin — Qin Shi Huang orders all classic works and books produced by the Hundred Schools of Thought burned

Execution of Scholars: As a direct consequence of the book burning, “Many scholars protest. Qin Shi Huang retaliates by burying 460 Confucian intellectuals alive.” While historical debate exists on the exact method and number, the intent was clearly to eliminate opposition and reinforce Legalist ideology, which “emphasiz[ed] strict adherence to law, harsh punishments, and the supremacy of the state over individual interests.”

Qin Shi Huang crushes intellectual dissent — Qin Shi Huang buries 460 Confucian intellectuals alive when they protest his banning and burning work from the Hundred Schools of Thought

“Calling a Deer a Horse” (Loyalty Tests): This infamous incident, occurring under Qin Er Shi’s reign, exemplifies the extreme nature of loyalty tests. Zhao Gao, the powerful eunuch, “brings a deer and presents it to the Second Emperor calling it a horse.” Those who truthfully identified it as a deer were “executed instantly,” demonstrating that “Loyalty > Reality.” This incident gave rise to the idiom “Calling a deer a horse” (指鹿为马), which describes situations where “Someone deliberately confuses right and wrong,” “Someone twists the truth to manipulate or deceive others,” and “There is a blatant disregard for the truth or reality.”

Calling a Deer a Horse Loyalty Test implemented by Zhao Gao to manipulate and control the young Qin Er Shi after Qin Shi Huang dies at 49

C. Obsession with Legacy and Immortality: The Mausoleum and its Irony

Qin Shi Huang’s preoccupation with his legacy and desire for eternal life led to monumental projects and, ironically, may have contributed to his demise.

The Great Wall: To counter “nomadic Xiongnu tribes,” Qin Shi Huang ordered the construction of a “3,107-mile-long” defensive wall, the precursor to the Great Wall. “Thousands of men are conscripted…Many died.” This project highlights his extensive use of forced labor and disregard for human life in pursuit of national security and grand achievements.

Great Wall of China — To deal with constant incursions of the nomadic Ziongnu tribes into his kingdoms, Qin Shi Huang orders a defensive wall-built beginning in 221 BCE.

The Lingqu Canal: Built around 214 BCE, this “22-mile canal” was primarily intended to “transport Qin’s soldiers south to accelerate his conquest of new southern territories,” showcasing his continued military expansion.

Lingqu Canal - Qin — Qin Shi Huang orders construction of a 22-mile canal to connect the Xiang River with the Li River

The Terracotta Army and Mausoleum: Qin Shi Huang’s most ambitious project was his mausoleum, construction of which began at age 13 and accelerated after unification. “700,000 men were sent there from all over his empire.” The tomb, “the size of Manhattan,” was designed to be a miniature kingdom, complete with “Palaces and scenic towers,” “rare artifacts and wonderful treasure,” and “crossbows and arrows primed to shoot at anyone who enters.” Most famously, it featured the “Terracotta Army of 8,000 soldiers” to serve as his “eternal garrison.” The historian Sima Qian recounted that “Mercury was used to simulate the hundred rivers… and set to flow mechanically,” and that “the emperor’s concubines who did not have male children were killed and buried with him.” After its completion, “all the workers and craftsmen inside” were trapped and killed to conceal its secrets.

Terracotta Army and Tomb — Qin Shi Huang began work on his tomb in 246 BCE. The work accelerated taking on much more massive portions in 221 BCE after he conquered the six other warring states

Quest for Immortality and Death: Despite his grand preparations for the afterlife, Qin Shi Huang was “obsessed with death” and “urgently seeks an elixir of life.” He “orders a nationwide search for a mythical potion.” Ironically, “It is believed Qin Shi Huang consumed cinnabar as one of these promising elixirs for eternal life. Rather, cinnabar is quite poisonous, being mercury sulfide.” He died at age 49, with “the mercury pills probably didn’t help.” This highlights the fatal irony of his quest.

Cinnabar, also known as mercury sulfide — Qin Shi Huang consumed cinnabar as one of these promising elixirs for eternal life

Meteoric Prophecy: A meteor in 211 BCE inscribed with “The First Emperor will die, and his land will be divided” deeply disturbed Qin Shi Huang. His reaction was extreme: “Outraged, the emperor orders everyone in the village killed and stone destroyed.” This incident underscores his paranoia and inability to confront uncomfortable truths, even those perceived as divine omens.

Qin meteor 211 BCE — A meteor falls from the sky and lands in the lower regions of the Yellow River in 211 BCE. Word reaches the emperor that there is a prophecy inscribed on the space rock that says: The First Emperor will die, and his land will be divided.

D. The Perils of Unchecked Power: Succession and Collapse

Qin Shi Huang’s death exposed the fragility of his empire, leading to a swift decline driven by deceit and the unchecked power of ambitious advisors.

The Royal Cover-up and Succession: Upon Qin Shi Huang’s death away from the capital, his Prime Minister, Li Si, and chief eunuch, Zhao Gao, concealed his death for two months, disguising the decomposing body with “a cart of rotten fish.” They then “forge a letter from Qin Shi Huang telling his oldest son Fusu and his favorite general Meng to commit suicide.” This allowed Qin’s younger son, Ying Huhai (Qin Er Shi), to ascend to the throne, a “puppet emperor” under Zhao Gao’s influence.
Zhao Gao’s Tyranny and the Fall of Qin: Zhao Gao, a master manipulator with a background in “criminal law,” swiftly eliminated rivals, including Li Si. Qin Er Shi, “naïve,” punished those who brought him bad news, leading to officials telling him only what he wanted to hear. This created a climate of fear and misinformation, ultimately isolating the emperor and enabling Zhao Gao to consolidate “military power.” Zhao Gao’s reign of terror led to the execution of “12 princes” and “10 princesses.” When rebellions erupted, Zhao Gao ultimately forced Qin Er Shi to commit suicide. The Qin Dynasty, despite the emperor’s grand vision, lasted only “15 years.”

III. Core Parallels: Qin Shi Huang vs. Trump

The source explicitly draws modern parallels between Qin Shi Huang and Donald Trump, framing Qin as an “archetype” of the ruthless ruler.

Loyalty Tests & Political Purges:

Qin: Zhao Gao’s “Deer-Horse Test” demanded “allegiance over truth,” with honest respondents executed.
Trump: Exhibited by “demanding public fealty,” purging officials who “didn’t bend to his will,” and the proposals of “Project 2025” which “further codifies loyalty over legal precedent.”

Erasure of History & Intellectual Suppression:

Qin: Banned philosophies, “burned books, executed scholars” to establish a state-approved ideology.
Trump: Analogous in “Bans on teaching ‘Critical Race Theory,’ rewriting school curricula, attacking libraries, and pushing book bans,” aiming to reframe history through “whitewashed, nationalist narratives.”

Rule by Legalism:

Qin: Embraced Legalism’s “strict laws, harsh punishments, centralized power,” weaponizing law against dissent.
Trump: “Weaponizes law against political enemies” while asserting “absolute immunity” for himself, with Project 2025 proposing “dismantling civil protections and centralizing executive power.”

Tyranny Masked by Divine Mandate:

Qin: Took “divine titles” and claimed a “heavenly mandate,” with his tomb mimicking the cosmos.
Trump: Framed by supporters as “God’s chosen, the new King Cyrus, or even a modern messiah,” blending politics with prophecy.

Obsession with Legacy, Power & Immortality:

Qin: Built his massive tomb and Terracotta Army, and “consumed mercury pills in a quest for immortality,” prioritizing his remembrance over the living.
Trump: Evidenced by “Names buildings after himself, hoards wealth, surrounds himself with gold-plated everything. He seeks eternal legacy through branding and autocratic power, not substance.”

Cover-Ups, Propaganda, and Puppet Governance:

Qin: His death was concealed, the rightful heir killed, and a “boy emperor” manipulated. “Truth was replaced with narrative.”
Trump: Characterized by “Lies about election results,” surrounding himself with “loyalists who echo his version of reality,” and the use of narratives like “Stop the Steal” where “propaganda becomes governance.”

🔥 More Core Parallels (from a different lens): Qin Shi Huang vs. Trump

1. Loyalty Tests & Political Purges

Qin: The “Deer-Horse Test” created by Zhao Gao was psychological warfare—demanding allegiance over truth. Those who named the animal honestly were executed. Loyalty > Reality.
Trump: From demanding public fealty (e.g. “I need loyalty, I expect loyalty” to Comey) to purging the DOJ, military, and intelligence officials who didn’t bend to his will, loyalty tests are foundational to Trumpism. Project 2025 further codifies loyalty over legal precedent.

2. Erasure of History & Intellectual Suppression

Qin: Banned the Hundred Schools of Thought, burned books, executed scholars—particularly Confucians—to cement state-approved ideology and erase independent thought.
Trump: Bans on teaching “Critical Race Theory,” rewriting school curricula, attacking libraries, and pushing book bans (esp. LGBTQ+ and anti-racist texts) mirror these tactics. Trump and allies reframe American history through whitewashed, nationalist narratives.

3. Rule by Legalism

Qin: Embraced Legalism—a system emphasizing strict laws, harsh punishments, centralized power. His chancellors weaponized law to crush dissent.
Trump: Weaponizes law against political enemies (calling for prosecutions of Clinton, Biden, journalists), while claiming “absolute immunity” for himself. Project 2025 proposes dismantling civil protections and centralizing executive power.

4. Tyranny Masked by Divine Mandate

Qin: Took the divine titles “Huang” and “Di,” fusing myth and rule. Claimed a heavenly mandate. His tomb mimicked the cosmos itself.
Trump: While not openly divine, he is framed by MAGA supporters as God’s chosen, the new King Cyrus, or even a modern messiah. Evangelical support blends politics and prophecy.

5. Obsession with Legacy, Power & Immortality

Qin: Built a vast underground tomb and the Terracotta Army. Consumed mercury pills in a quest for immortality. His desire to be remembered eclipsed his concern for the living.
Trump: Names buildings after himself, hoards wealth, surrounds himself with gold-plated everything. He seeks eternal legacy through branding and autocratic power, not substance.

6. Cover-Ups, Propaganda, and Puppet Governance

Qin: After his death, advisors faked his presence, killed his rightful heir, and manipulated the boy emperor. Truth was replaced with narrative.
Trump: Lies about election results. Surrounds himself with loyalists who echo his version of reality. “Stop the Steal” and other narratives show how propaganda becomes governance.

Additional Archetypal Themes:

Archetype of the Eternal Emperor: Qin’s desire to “abolish history to replace it with his name” is mirrored in Trump’s “endless branding” (Trump Tower, Trump Steaks, Truth Social) to “overwrite collective history with personal mythology.”
The Narcissism of Tomb-Building: Qin’s “tomb was the size of Manhattan,” a monumental self-obsession. Trump’s “real estate empire is a graveyard of egos and debt,” both “built on the backs of the people.”
The Dangers of Unchecked Power: Qin’s death, possibly from his quest for immortality, and the subsequent collapse of his dynasty, serve as a “cautionary tale” of power unbalanced by wisdom.
The Role of the Advisor: Zhao Gao’s manipulative influence is paralleled by figures like “Stephen Miller, Jared Kushner, or even Bannon—shadowy figures who manipulate from behind the throne. Their loyalty isn’t to the people—but to the ideology of control.”

Conclusion: The Enduring Shadow of Ruthlessness

The briefing concludes that “Ruthlessness can conquer… but only for a moment. And in the end, truth—though buried—will speak.” Qin Shi Huang’s empire, built on brutal unification, intellectual suppression, and a narcissistic pursuit of immortality, ultimately crumbled from within due to the very ruthlessness and deception that defined its founder. This historical narrative serves as a stark warning about the cyclical nature of authoritarian power and its eventual, self-destructive consequences.

IV. Timeline of the Unification and Fall of Imperial Qin & Key Players

259 BCE: Zhao Zheng (later Qin Shi Huang) is born to Lady Zhao and King Zhuangxiang of Qin. Lü Buwei, a merchant and politician, is instrumental in King Zhuangxiang’s rise to power and is also Lady Zhao’s former lover.

246 BCE: King Zhuangxiang dies. Zhao Zheng, at 13 years old, ascends to the throne of Qin. Lü Buwei serves as chancellor and governs the kingdom for the next nine years.

235 BCE: Lü Buwei’s affair with the Queen Dowager Zhao is resumed. He introduces Lao Ai, a man with a large penis, to the Queen Dowager to occupy her. Lao Ai fathers two children with her and grows arrogant, plotting with Lady Zhao to kill Zhao Zheng. The plot is discovered. Lao Ai is executed, Zhao Zheng’s half-siblings are beaten to death, and Lady Zhao is placed under house arrest. Lü Buwei is stripped of his titles, banished, and commits suicide. Zhao Zheng, now 24, takes full control.

230 BCE: Qin conquers the Hán dynasty.

228 BCE: Qin conquers the Zhào dynasty.

226 BCE: Qin conquers the Yan dynasty.

225 BCE: Qin conquers the Wei dynasty.

223 BCE: Qin conquers the Chu dynasty.

221 BCE: Qin conquers the Qi dynasty, the last of the warring states. Zhao Zheng proclaims himself Shi Huangdi (First Emperor of All China) and takes the name Qin Shi Huang. He continues military expansion into the Yue tribes (modern-day Vietnam). At 32 years old, he orders the construction of a defensive wall to counter the Xiongnu tribes, the precursor to the Great Wall. Construction on his tomb also accelerates significantly.

214 BCE: Qin Shi Huang orders the construction of the 22-mile Lingqu Canal to connect the Xiang and Li Rivers, primarily for troop transport.

213 BCE: Qin Shi Huang bans the Hundred Schools of Thought, except for Legalism and the House of Administrative Method.

213 BCE: Qin Shi Huang orders the Burning of Books, destroying all classic works and histories, sparing only texts on astrology, agriculture, medicine, divination, and the history of the State of Qin. He retaliates against protesting scholars by killing 460 Confucian intellectuals.

211 BCE: A meteor falls near the Yellow River with an inscription prophesying the First Emperor’s death and the division of his land. Qin Shi Huang orders all villagers in the vicinity killed and the stone destroyed.

210 BCE: Qin Shi Huang, now 49 years old, becomes seriously ill during his fifth tour of Eastern China and dies. It is suspected that his consumption of cinnabar (mercury sulfide) in his quest for immortality contributed to his death. Archeologists find 48 bamboo strips recording his decree for a nationwide search for an elixir of life.

210 BCE (post-death): Qin Shi Huang’s Prime Minister, Li Si, and eunuch Zhao Gao conceal the emperor’s death for two months while traveling back to the capital. They forge a letter ordering Qin Shi Huang’s oldest son, Fusu, and General Meng to commit suicide, which they do. Qin’s younger son, Ying Huhai, ascends the throne as Qin Er Shi, at the age of 19.

208 BCE: The construction of Qin Shi Huang’s mausoleum and the Terracotta Army, begun in 246 BCE, is completed. Thousands of concubines, horses, workers, and craftsmen are killed and buried within or sealed in the tomb.

207 BCE: Revolts and rebellions erupt across the empire. Qin Er Shi, influenced by Zhao Gao, punishes those who bring him bad news. Zhao Gao devises the “Calling a Deer a Horse” loyalty test, executing officials who speak the truth. He becomes chancellor after framing and executing Li Si. Zhao Gao orders the execution of 12 princes and 10 princesses. The capital is overrun, and Qin Er Shi is forced to commit suicide by Zhao Gao, at the age of 22.

207 BCE (post-Qin Er Shi’s death): Zhao Gao makes Ziying, Fusu’s son, the new emperor. Ziying, aware of Zhao Gao’s intentions, has him and his entire clan killed on the day of his coronation.

206 BCE: Ziying reigns for three years over a fraction of the empire before his death. The Qin Dynasty falls, giving way to the Han Dynasty.

Cast of Characters

Qin Shi Huang (Zhao Zheng / Ying Zheng / Shi Huangdi): The First Emperor of China. Born Zhao Zheng, he ascended to the throne of Qin at 13. A ruthless and ambitious ruler, he unified China by conquering the warring states, declared himself “Shi Huangdi” (First Emperor), and initiated grand projects like the Great Wall, the Lingqu Canal, and his elaborate mausoleum guarded by the Terracotta Army. He brutally suppressed dissent, banned intellectual thought (Hundred Schools of Thought), burned books, and executed scholars. Obsessed with immortality, his quest for an elixir of life likely led to his death from mercury poisoning at 49. His reign, though short, laid the foundation for imperial China.

Lady Zhao (Queen Dowager Zhao Ji): Mother of Qin Shi Huang and former dancing girl. Her relationship with Lü Buwei and later Lao Ai led to palace intrigues that shaped Zhao Zheng’s early reign. She was placed under house arrest after Lao Ai’s plot to kill her son was uncovered.

King Zhuangxiang: Father of Qin Shi Huang and King of Qin. His ascension to the throne was largely orchestrated by Lü Buwei.

Lü Buwei: A powerful and manipulative Chinese merchant and politician. He was instrumental in Yiren’s (future King Zhuangxiang) return to Qin and his eventual succession. He served as chancellor during Zhao Zheng’s youth, compiling the Lüshi Chunqiu. His illicit affair with Lady Zhao and his attempts to cover it up ultimately led to his downfall and suicide.

Ra: An AI guide for Yong Xing-li in the “Sapience” series, focusing on the “arches of Ruthlessness” throughout human history. He provides historical context and commentary on Qin Shi Huang’s reign.

Yong Xing-li: The master of Ra, who is transported through historical events and characters by the AI.

Lao Ai: A man with a remarkably large penis, introduced by Lü Buwei to the Queen Dowager Zhao Ji to distract her from their renewed affair. He became her lover, fathered two children with her, and grew arrogant, plotting against Zhao Zheng. His conspiracy was discovered, leading to his execution and the death of his children.

Li Si: Prime Minister under Qin Shi Huang. After the First Emperor’s death, he conspired with Zhao Gao to conceal the death and manipulate the succession, leading to the suicide of Fusu and the enthronement of Qin Er Shi. He was later framed for treason and executed by Zhao Gao, along with his entire family.

Zhao Gao: A powerful eunuch (though his actual castration status is debated) and minister who served both Qin Shi Huang and Qin Er Shi. He was skilled in criminal law and gained significant influence. He played a central role in the royal cover-up and succession, orchestrating the deaths of Fusu and General Meng, and installing Qin Er Shi as a puppet emperor. He ruthlessly eliminated rivals, including Li Si, and consolidated immense power, notably with the “Calling a Deer a Horse” loyalty test. He eventually forced Qin Er Shi to commit suicide but was himself killed by Ziying.

Fusu: Qin Shi Huang’s eldest son and rightful heir to the throne. He was a favorite of General Meng. He was tricked into committing suicide by a forged letter from Zhao Gao and Li Si, who feared losing power under his rule.

Meng: A favorite general of Fusu, who was tricked into committing suicide alongside Fusu by Zhao Gao and Li Si.

Ying Huhai (Qin Er Shi): The younger son of Qin Shi Huang, who was placed on the throne as the second emperor by Zhao Gao and Li Si. He became a puppet emperor under Zhao Gao’s influence, leading to extreme tyranny, purges, and the eventual collapse of the Qin Dynasty. He was forced to commit suicide by Zhao Gao as rebellions mounted.

Ziying: A son of Fusu (Qin Shi Huang’s murdered older brother). He was made emperor by Zhao Gao after Qin Er Shi’s death. Aware of Zhao Gao’s intentions to kill him, Ziying ambushed and killed Zhao Gao and his clan on the day of his coronation. He reigned for only three years over a fraction of the former empire before the Qin Dynasty fell.

Sima Qian: A renowned Chinese historian from the early Han dynasty, whose work Records of the Grand Historian (Shiji) provides much of the historical information about Qin Shi Huang’s life, tomb, and the events surrounding the Qin Dynasty’s fall. The sources note that his accounts may have been embellished to portray Qin Shi Huang in a negative light due to political motivations and Confucian biases.

V. Factsheet: Qin Shi Huang’s Empire: Power, Ruthlessness, and Legacy

How did Qin Shi Huang consolidate his power and what were the consequences of his ruthlessness?

Qin Shi Huang, the First Emperor of China, consolidated his power through a series of brutal conquests and political maneuvers. He unified China by defeating the six warring states, taking the new title of “Shi Huangdi” to proclaim his divine authority. His ruthlessness was evident in his treatment of defeated populations, whom he enslaved, and his suppression of intellectual dissent. He banned all philosophies except Legalism and the “House of Administrative Method,” leading to the infamous “Burning of Books and Burying of Scholars” in 213 BCE. This act aimed to erase histories that might undermine his legitimacy and to eliminate independent thought. The consequence of this unchecked power was a short-lived dynasty that collapsed soon after his death, demonstrating how absolute control, devoid of wisdom, can sow the seeds of its own destruction.

What was the significance of Qin Shi Huang’s quest for immortality and his grand mausoleum?

Qin Shi Huang was deeply obsessed with his mortality and the afterlife, which fueled both his quest for immortality and the construction of his elaborate mausoleum. Beginning at age 13, he ordered the building of a vast underground complex, later known for its Terracotta Army, to accompany and protect him in the afterlife. This monumental project, employing 700,000 workers, included intricate features like mercury rivers, representing the real rivers of China, and celestial constellations on the ceiling, mirroring his belief in a divine mandate. Paradoxically, his urgent search for an elixir of life led him to consume substances like cinnabar (mercury sulfide), which likely contributed to his death at 49. His obsession with an eternal legacy and the avoidance of death, while resulting in an awe-inspiring tomb, ultimately proved self-destructive.

How does the “Calling a Deer a Horse” idiom illustrate the dangers of unchecked power and suppression of truth?

The idiom “Calling a Deer a Horse” (指鹿为马) originated from an incident involving Zhao Gao, the powerful eunuch and minister during the reign of Qin Er Shi (the Second Emperor). Zhao Gao presented a deer to the emperor but insisted it was a horse, then secretly executed all officials who dared to state the truth. This act served as a chilling loyalty test, demonstrating Zhao Gao’s ruthless nature and his desire to solidify power through fear. The idiom signifies a deliberate confusion of right and wrong, a twisting of truth to manipulate, and a blatant disregard for reality. It highlights how unchecked power can create an environment where truth is suppressed, loyalty is demanded over honesty, and dissent is met with severe punishment, leading to systemic deception and corruption within governance.

What role did deception and cover-ups play in the succession after Qin Shi Huang’s death?

Deception and cover-ups played a critical role in the succession immediately following Qin Shi Huang’s death. Fearing a revolt and power struggles, his Prime Minister, Li Si, and the chief eunuch, Zhao Gao, concealed the emperor’s death for two months while traveling back to the capital. They maintained the illusion that the emperor was alive by pulling down carriage shades, changing his clothes, and faking conversations, even using rotten fish to mask the smell of his decomposing body. Upon reaching the capital, they forged a letter from the deceased emperor, ordering his eldest son and rightful heir, Fusu, to commit suicide. This act paved the way for the younger son, Hu Hai, to ascend the throne as Qin Er Shi, essentially a puppet emperor under Zhao Gao’s control. This elaborate cover-up highlights the treacherous nature of court politics and the lengths to which powerful advisors would go to secure their own positions, ultimately contributing to the swift downfall of the Qin Dynasty.

How did Qin Shi Huang’s policies reflect Legalist philosophy?

Qin Shi Huang’s policies were deeply rooted in Legalist philosophy, which emphasized strict adherence to law, harsh punishments, and the absolute supremacy of the state over individual interests. This ideology perfectly aligned with his vision of a unified and controlled society. He banned rival philosophies, especially Confucianism, and suppressed scholars to eliminate ideas that could challenge his centralized authority. The Legalists believed in building a strong state through efficient administration, centralized governance, and military power, all of which were hallmarks of the Qin Dynasty’s reign. By establishing a highly structured government with appointed officials, Qin Shi Huang ensured strict implementation of his decrees and maintained order through a system that prioritized loyalty and control, effectively using the law as a tool to crush dissent and consolidate his power.

What were some of Qin Shi Huang’s major construction projects and what was their purpose?

Qin Shi Huang undertook several massive construction projects, each serving a strategic or symbolic purpose for his empire. The most famous is the Great Wall, which he ordered to be built starting in 221 BCE to defend against constant incursions from nomadic Xiongnu tribes in the north. This monumental undertaking involved thousands of conscripted laborers and slaves, many of whom perished during its construction. Another significant project was the Lingqu Canal, ordered around 214 BCE. This 22-mile canal connected the Xiang and Li rivers, primarily to facilitate the swift transport of Qin soldiers to accelerate his conquests in the southern territories. Lastly, his mausoleum and the Terracotta Army, begun when he was 13, were perhaps his most ambitious. This sprawling underground complex, the size of a city, was designed to house his remains and serve as his eternal garrison, reflecting his obsession with legacy, power, and immortality even beyond death.

How did the concept of the “Mandate of Heaven” influence Qin Shi Huang’s reign and its perceived challenges?

The “Mandate of Heaven” was a crucial concept in ancient China, legitimizing an emperor’s rule based on the belief that Heaven granted the right to rule justly. Qin Shi Huang, by taking the divine titles “Huang” (mythical godly rulers) and “Di” (great heroes), explicitly claimed a heavenly mandate, asserting his divinity and unparalleled prestige. This claim meant his rule was divinely sanctioned and, therefore, unchallengeable. However, a falling meteor in 211 BCE, bearing an inscription prophesying, “The First Emperor will die, and his land will be divided,” was perceived as a direct challenge to his Mandate of Heaven. His furious response—executing an entire village and destroying the stone—underscored his paranoia and inability to tolerate any perceived threat to his divine authority, even from what seemed to be a natural phenomenon. Ironically, his empire did collapse and his land was divided shortly after his death, appearing to confirm the prophecy.

How do themes from Qin Shi Huang’s reign, such as loyalty tests and suppression of history, parallel authoritarian tendencies in modern leaders?

The narrative of Qin Shi Huang’s reign reveals enduring archetypes of ruthless governance that find parallels in modern authoritarian tendencies. His use of loyalty tests, exemplified by Zhao Gao’s “Deer-Horse Test,” where truth was sacrificed for allegiance, mirrors contemporary leaders who demand public fealty and purge officials unwilling to bend to their will. Qin’s erasure of history and intellectual suppression, through the burning of books and execution of scholars, finds echoes in modern efforts to ban critical theories, rewrite curricula, and suppress dissenting narratives to establish state-approved ideologies. Furthermore, Qin’s rule by Legalism, emphasizing strict laws and centralized power, is reflected in leaders who weaponize legal systems against political adversaries while claiming immunity for themselves. These parallels underscore how the tactics of ancient ruthless rulers persist, albeit in shape-shifted forms, demonstrating a timeless struggle between truth, power, and the stability of governance.

VI. Qin Shi Huang: Architect of Ruthlessness and Empire’s Fall – Study Guide

This study guide is designed to help you review and solidify your understanding of Qin Shi Huang, his ruthless reign, and the broader themes of power, control, and the dangers of unchecked authority as presented in the source material.

A. Quiz: Ten Short-Answer Questions

Answer each question in 2-3 sentences.

Who was Qin Shi Huang and what significant title did he take for himself? Qin Shi Huang was the First Emperor of China. After unifying the Warring States, he proclaimed himself Shi Huangdi, combining the titles “Huang” (mythical godly rulers) and “Di” (great heroes) to signify his divine and supreme authority over all previous rulers.
Describe the circumstances surrounding Qin Shi Huang’s birth and early life. Qin Shi Huang was born Zhao Zheng in 259 BCE to Lady Zhao, a former dancing girl and lover of Lü Buwei, and King Zhuangxiang. His father died when he was 13, leading to Lü Buwei acting as chancellor and shaping his early rule amidst palace intrigues involving his mother and Lao Ai.
Explain the “Burning of Books” and the “Burying of Scholars.” What was Qin Shi Huang’s motivation for these actions? Qin Shi Huang ordered the burning of most books, especially histories, and the execution of 460 Confucian scholars in 213 BCE. His motivation was to suppress dissent, eliminate ideas that could challenge his rule, and solidify his regime’s Legalist ideology by controlling information and rewriting history.
What was the purpose of the Great Wall construction during Qin Shi Huang’s reign, and what was its human cost? Qin Shi Huang ordered the construction of a defensive wall starting in 221 BCE to deter incursions from the nomadic Xiongnu tribes in the north. This massive undertaking conscripted thousands of men and slaves, with estimates suggesting hundreds of thousands died during its construction.
Detail Qin Shi Huang’s “Quest for Immortality” and its ironic outcome. Obsessed with death, Qin Shi Huang launched a nationwide search for an elixir of life, as evidenced by archaeological finds of bamboo strips. Ironically, it is widely believed that his consumption of cinnabar (mercury sulfide) as a promising elixir contributed to his death at age 49.
Describe the Royal Cover-up following Qin Shi Huang’s death. Who was involved and what was their primary goal? Upon Qin Shi Huang’s death away from the capital, Prime Minister Li Si and eunuch Zhao Gao concealed his death for two months during the return journey. Their goal was to prevent revolt and manipulate the succession, ultimately forging a letter to compel the rightful heir Fusu to commit suicide and installing the younger son, Qin Er Shi.
What is the “Terracotta Army” and where was it located in relation to Qin Shi Huang’s tomb? The Terracotta Army consists of over 8,000 life-sized terracotta soldiers, chariots, and horses. It was meticulously crafted and placed east of Qin Shi Huang’s tomb mound to serve as his eternal garrison, protecting him in the afterlife.
Explain the idiom “Calling a Deer a Horse” in the context of Zhao Gao’s actions. What did this incident demonstrate about his character and power? “Calling a Deer a Horse” refers to Zhao Gao presenting a deer to Qin Er Shi and insisting it was a horse, then executing those who disagreed. This incident demonstrated Zhao Gao’s ruthless and manipulative nature, his desire to test and consolidate power through fear, and his blatant disregard for truth or reality.
How did Legalism influence Qin Shi Huang’s rule and his relationship with the “Hundred Schools of Thought”? Qin Shi Huang adopted Legalism as his state philosophy, which emphasized strict laws, harsh punishments, and centralized authority. This led him to ban most other “Hundred Schools of Thought,” viewing their diverse ideas as threats to his unified and autocratic rule, only sparing those useful for advancing his empire.
What role did Zhao Gao play in the downfall of the Qin Dynasty after Qin Shi Huang’s death? Zhao Gao became the de facto ruler under the puppet emperor Qin Er Shi, eliminating rivals, orchestrating the execution of Li Si, and controlling the empire through fear and deception, ultimately forcing Qin Er Shi to commit suicide and contributing to the dynasty’s rapid collapse due to widespread rebellion.

B. Essay Format Questions

These questions require a more comprehensive and analytical response, drawing connections across different parts of the source material. Do not provide answers for these.

Analyze how Qin Shi Huang’s personal obsessions—namely with immortality, legacy, and control—manifested in his major accomplishments and policies, such as the Terracotta Army, the Great Wall, and the Burning of Books. Discuss the long-term consequences of these actions on his dynasty and on Chinese history.
Discuss the role of deception, manipulation, and loyalty tests throughout the Qin dynasty’s later years, particularly focusing on the actions of Lü Buwei and Zhao Gao. How did these figures contribute to the rise and fall of Qin Shi Huang and his successors, and what parallels can be drawn to the “dangers of unchecked power”?
Compare and contrast Qin Shi Huang’s methods of intellectual and political suppression (e.g., Burning of Books, Burying of Scholars, banning Hundred Schools of Thought) with the “Ignorance is Bliss” theme and the “Calling a Deer a Horse” incident under Qin Er Shi. What does this reveal about the Qin regime’s relationship with truth, dissent, and power consolidation?
The source material introduces the concept of “ruthlessness emerging alongside the rise of civilizations” and presents Qin Shi Huang as an “archetype.” Explore how Qin Shi Huang embodies this archetype, particularly in his pursuit of divine authority, erasure of history, and obsession with personal legacy. How do the provided “Core Parallels” with modern figures like Trump reinforce the idea of this enduring archetype?
Examine the various factors that contributed to the rapid collapse of the Qin Dynasty, which lasted only 15 years after Qin Shi Huang’s death. Consider the impact of his autocratic policies, the internal power struggles, and the subsequent “Royal Coverup & Succession” on the stability and longevity of the empire.

C. Glossary of Key Terms

Qin Shi Huang (Zhao Zheng / Ying Zheng): The First Emperor of China, known for unifying the Warring States and establishing the Qin Dynasty. His reign was marked by ruthless policies, grand construction projects, and an obsession with immortality.
Ruthless Reign: The period of Qin Shi Huang’s rule (221-206 BCE), characterized by extreme measures, suppression of dissent, and military expansion to consolidate power.
Warring States Period: A tumultuous era in ancient China (c. 475-221 BCE) characterized by intense conflict between various rival states, which Qin Shi Huang ultimately unified.
Hundred Schools of Thought: A diverse range of philosophical schools and intellectual movements that flourished in ancient China during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, including Confucianism, Daoism, Mohism, and Legalism.
Legalism: A Chinese philosophical school that advocated for strict laws, harsh punishments, and a centralized, autocratic government to maintain order and strengthen the state. Qin Shi Huang largely adopted this ideology.
Lü Buwei: An influential Chinese merchant and politician who befriended Yiren (future King Zhuangxiang) and manipulated events to help him ascend to the Qin throne. He served as chancellor during Zhao Zheng’s youth.
Lady Zhao (Zhao Ji): The mother of Qin Shi Huang, initially a dancing girl and Lü Buwei’s lover, who became Queen Dowager and engaged in illicit affairs, leading to palace intrigues.
Lao Ai: A man with whom Lady Zhao had an affair and two children, eventually plotting against Zhao Zheng. His conspiracy was discovered, leading to his execution and the suppression of the plotters.
Great Wall: A defensive fortification ordered by Qin Shi Huang to protect the northern border from nomadic tribes (Xiongnu). It was a precursor to the much larger Great Wall of China built later.
Lingqu Canal: A 22-mile canal ordered by Qin Shi Huang to connect the Xiang and Li Rivers, primarily for military transport to accelerate southern conquests, and still in use today.
Burning of Books and Burying of Scholars: Qin Shi Huang’s infamous act of intellectual suppression around 213 BCE, where he ordered the destruction of most books (especially histories) and the execution of scholars who resisted, to control thought and consolidate power.
Meteoric Prophecy: An incident in 211 BCE where a meteor fell with an inscription predicting Qin Shi Huang’s death and the division of his land, leading to the emperor’s brutal retaliation against nearby villagers.
Elixir of Life: A mythical potion Qin Shi Huang desperately sought in his quest for immortality, believed to have led him to consume poisonous cinnabar (mercury sulfide).
Cinnabar: Mercury sulfide, a highly poisonous substance that Qin Shi Huang is believed to have consumed in his pursuit of immortality.
Terracotta Army: A vast collection of life-sized terracotta sculptures of soldiers, chariots, and horses, discovered near Qin Shi Huang’s mausoleum, created to protect him in the afterlife.
Mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang: A massive underground burial complex built for the First Emperor, designed to mirror his kingdom in the afterlife, complete with symbolic rivers of mercury and a celestial ceiling.
Sima Qian: A renowned Chinese historian from the early Han dynasty, author of the Records of the Grand Historian (Shiji), which provides key historical accounts of Qin Shi Huang’s life and reign.
Li Si: Qin Shi Huang’s Prime Minister, who played a crucial role in consolidating power after the emperor’s death by orchestrating a cover-up and manipulating the succession.
Zhao Gao: A powerful eunuch and minister in the Qin court, who played a central role in the royal cover-up after Qin Shi Huang’s death, installed Qin Er Shi as a puppet emperor, and gained immense power through fear and manipulation.
Qin Er Shi (Huhai): The second emperor of the Qin Dynasty, installed by Li Si and Zhao Gao as a puppet ruler after Qin Shi Huang’s death, known for his dependence on Zhao Gao and his short, chaotic reign.
Calling a Deer a Horse (指鹿为马): A Chinese idiom originating from an incident where Zhao Gao presented a deer and called it a horse to test and eliminate disloyal officials, symbolizing deliberate confusion of right and wrong and twisting truth to manipulate.
Ziying: A nephew of Qin Shi Huang and son of Fusu, who was briefly made emperor by Zhao Gao but then had Zhao Gao killed, marking the final end of the Qin Dynasty.
Mandate of Heaven: A traditional Chinese philosophical concept that legitimized the rule of the emperor, based on the belief that Heaven granted the right to rule justly, and that loss of this mandate could lead to dynastic overthrow.

VII. Sources

† Ignorance is Bliss:

– Calling a Deer a Horse

He brings a deer and presents it to the Second Emperor calling it a horse. The Second Emperor laughs and says, “Is the chancellor perhaps mistaken, calling a deer a horse?” The emperor questions those around him. Some remain silent, while some, hoping to ingratiate themselves with Zhao Gao, say it is a horse, and others say it is a deer. Zhao Gao secretly arranges for all those who said it was a deer to be brought before the law and had them executed instantly. Thereafter the officials were all terrified of Zhao Gao. Zhao Gao gained military power as a result of that. (tr. Watson 1993:70) — Records of the Grand Historian

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhao_Gao

https://alternativehistorychristos.fandom.com/wiki/Zhao_Gao

https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/11921-records-of-the-grand-historian

https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.7312/wang19360-013/pdf

– The eunuch Zho Gao

Qin Er Shi depends on his father’s eunuch Zhao Gao to run the empire. Zhao Gao served as his father’s Prefect of the Office for Imperial Carriages. Qin Shi Huang highly valued him because he knew a thing or two about criminal law. The first emperor found his knowledge useful for he always needed new ways to control the people. According to the Records of the Grand Historian, Zhao Gao’s parents had committed crimes and were punished. This included the castration of his brothers; however, it is unclear whether Zhao Gao himself was indeed a eunuch or not.

Historical records reveal a complex and controversial figure in Zhao Gao, a key figure during the late Qin Dynasty, whose influence extended to both Emperor Qin Shi Huang and his successor, Qin Er Shi.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhao_Gao

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Zhao-Gao

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qin_Er_Shi

http://www.chinaknowledge.de/History/Zhou/personszhaogao.html

† Terracotta Army and Tomb:

– Qin Shi Huang began work on his tomb in 246 BCE. The work accelerated taking on much more massive portions in 221 BCE after he conquered the six other warring states. Sima Qian who is a Chinese historian from the early Han dynasty writes:

“…700,000 men were sent there from all over his empire. They dug through three layers of groundwater and poured in bronze for the outer coffin. Palaces and scenic towers for a hundred officials were constructed, and the tomb was filled with rare artifacts and wonderful treasure. Craftsmen were ordered to make crossbows and arrows primed to shoot at anyone who enters the tomb. Mercury was used to simulate the hundred rivers, the Yangtze, Yellow River, and the great sea, and set to flow mechanically. Above were representation of the heavenly constellations, below, the features of the land. Candles were made from fat of “man-fish”, which is calculated to burn and not extinguish for a long time.” – Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mausoleum_of_Qin_Shi_Huang

https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/article-759026

https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/441

– The tomb’s reported features (based on historical accounts)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mausoleum_of_Qin_Shi_Huang

https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/article-759026

https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/441

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terracotta_Army

https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/arts-and-entertainment/construction-qin-tomb

https://brainly.com/question/32219907

– Current status and discoveries

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mausoleum_of_Qin_Shi_Huang

https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/article-759026

https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/441

https://brainly.com/question/32219907

Rare terracotta warrior commander unearthed at First Emperor’s mausoleum

– Reasons for not excavating the central tomb

https://www.iflscience.com/archaeologists-are-too-terrified-to-look-inside-tomb-of-chinas-first-emperor-70035

https://brainly.com/question/32219907

† Royal Coverup & Succession:

After emperor Qin Shi Huang dies away from home and worried his death could trigger violent revolt, his Prime Minister, Li Si, and a small group of men pretend the emperor is still alive while the entourage travels back to the capital. The shades of the carriage are pulled down and kept down. They changed his clothes daily and bring him food. They fake important conversations. To disguise the rotting smell of his decomposing body, Li Shi orders a cart of rotten fish pulled in front of the caravan and one behind.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qin_Shi_Huang

https://geniuses.club/genius/qin-shi-huang

https://factsanddetails.com/china/cat2/sub2/entry-5414.html

Qin Shi Huang Facts & Worksheets

† Quest for Immortality:

Qin Shi Huang is obsessed with death. He always had been ordering a great mausoleum built for his grave when he ascended to the throne at 13 years of age. Now, he urgently seeks an elixir of life so he need not die at all and orders a nationwide search for a mythical potion that would allow him to live forever. Archaeologists have found 48 strips of bamboo recording this decree along with responses from villages and remote frontier regions of his kingdom dating back to 210 BCE. It is believed Qin Shi Huang consumed cinnabar as one of these promising elixirs for eternal life. Rather, cinnabar is quite poisonous, being mercury sulfide.

That same year, the emperor becomes seriously ill during his fifth tour of Eastern China. He dies. The cause of his death is unknown, but the mercury pills probably didn’t help.

Qin Shi Huang, China’s first emperor, was deeply preoccupied with his mortality and the afterlife. This manifested in both his elaborate preparations for his death and his active pursuit of immortality.

https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/stories/who-was-chinas-first-emperor

https://www.heritagedaily.com/2024/04/inside-the-tomb-of-the-first-emperor/151521

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mausoleum_of_Qin_Shi_Huang

https://www.livescience.com/61286-first-chinese-emperor-sought-immortality.html

https://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/wooden-tablets-verify-chinas-first-emperor-s-obsession-immortality-009341

New evidence reveals the source of mercury in the mausoleum of the first Qin emperor

https://www.jpost.com/archaeology/archaeology-around-the-world/article-840395

https://www.thoughtco.com/qin-shi-huang-first-emperor-china-195679

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-42477083

† Meteoric Prophecy:

† Meteoric Prophecy: A meteor falls from the sky and lands in the lower regions of the Yellow River in 211 BCE. Word reaches the emperor that there is a prophecy inscribed on the space rock that says: The First Emperor will die, and his land will be divided.

Qin Shi Huang sends royal officials to investigate. Nearby villagers are interrogated to find out who among them wrote this scurrilous sortilege. No one confesses. Outraged, the emperor orders everyone in the village killed and stone destroyed

This event is a well-known historical anecdote associated with Qin Shi Huang, the First Emperor of China.

https://www.thoughtco.com/qin-shi-huang-first-emperor-china-195679

https://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/stories/who-was-chinas-first-emperor

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qin_Shi_Huang

https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/history/mandate-heaven

https://www.ancient-origins.net/weird-facts/elixir-life-0017223

Qin Shi Huang

TIL a meteor had fallen in the kingdom of Emperor Qin Shi Huang, and on it someone had written "The First Emperor will die and his land will be divided." When he heard this, he sent someone to investigate who did it, and when no one admitted, all the people living nearby the meteor were killed.
by intodayilearned

† Burning Books: Qin Shi Huang orders all classic works and books produced by the Hundred Schools of Thought burned. Of particular focus are histories as he fears these could undermine his legitimacy. Instead, he writes his own history books. The only books spared are about astrology, agriculture, medicine, divination, and the history of the State of Qin because these he feels are useful to advance his empire.

Many scholars protest. Qin Shi Huang retaliates by burying 460 Confucian intellectuals alive. It is more likely he simply had them killed. However, since scholars write the history books and it was their books being burned, they likely embellished to paint Qin Shi Huang in a more brutal light.

https://www.historyofinformation.com/detail.php?entryid=2889

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burning_of_books_and_burying_of_scholars

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/9781119399919.eahaa00763

https://library.fiveable.me/key-terms/early-world-civilizations/burning-of-the-books

† Hundred Schools of Thought: In 213 BCE, Qin Shi Huang bans the Hundred Schools of Thought, except for Legalism and the House of Administrative Method. These two are useful to Qin Shi Huang to advance and endorse the ideologies of the Qin dynasty.

https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/images/qin-shi-huang-1.jpg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hundred_Schools_of_Thought

https://library.fiveable.me/early-world-civilizations/unit-6/qin-unification-legalism/study-guide/w1KRuVwtjIakApLp

https://human.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Art/Art_History_(Boundless)/23%3A_Chinese_and_Korean_Art_Before_1279_CE/23.04%3A_The_Qin_Dynasty

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/whp-origins/era-3-cities-societies-and-empires-6000-bce-to-700-c-e/35-development-of-belief-systems-betaa/a/read-legalism-beta

https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/history/legalists

https://www.worldhistory.org/Legalism

https://study.com/academy/lesson/video/qin-dynasty-social-structure-laws-rules.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Administration_of_territory_in_dynastic_China

http://en.chinaculture.org/library/2008-02/07/content_23009.htm

https://www.wikiwand.com/en/articles/Administration_of_territory_in_dynastic_China

https://study.com/academy/lesson/qin-dynasty-economy-political-structure.html

https://imperialqin.weebly.com/government

https://brainly.com/question/43023639

July 6, 2025July 6, 2025

MAGA Cuts to NOAA & NWS Kill Americans

Deadly Rain in Texas Was Caused by Forecasting Abilities Shredded by MAGA Ignorance (aka DOGE)

🌪 This Reckoning Was Foretold

This isn’t just a story about weather. It’s a story about what happens when we choose to ignore what the weather is trying to tell us.

In my book Sapience: The Moment Is Now, book one opens with a memory. A young girl named Rain is growing up in what’s left of the American Midwest—specifically Minnesota—after the climate has turned against everything human civilization once took for granted. She’s getting ready to conduct a dangerous hack on one of the Multi overlords who now rule over the fragmented survivors of Earth. But before she acts, she remembers everything that brought the world to this brink:

“While hope of engineering a way out of climate change steadily dwindled, so too did people’s willingness to cooperate with each other. People began more and more to simply fend for themselves. It was a phenomenon happening all over the country. (…)
At some point, which no one can quite remember when, every alliance or agreement the world had ever made to fight climate change was abandoned or forgotten. Countries struggled just to remain sovereign entities. People struggled just to stay alive. Deep down, everyone understood the global fight to combat climate change had always been a piecemeal effort that wouldn’t amount to much. (…)
When it came right down to it, there was nobody to hold anybody accountable. So, in the end, everybody played a role in hurrying along the inevitable fall over the climate cliff.

Really, it wasn’t the climate that needed changing. It was human consciousness…”
— Sapience: The Moment Is Now, p. 16

Life Is Barely Fiction NOW

The excerpt above is fiction — but only barely.

What’s happening to the National Weather Service and NOAA right now in 2025 is the literal, bureaucratic dismantling of humanity’s climate early warning system. What’s happening is the result of choosing fools for leaders. Of valuing spectacle over science. Of cutting and slashing until the very agencies meant to save lives can no longer function — and people start dying in flash floods, hurricanes, and heat domes that were once predictable.

The fireworks are over. The reckoning didn’t even wait… disaster struck on 7/4/25 while Trump partied and danced with Melania to YMCA at the White House both sick with jubilant delight after Trump signed the bill that he had to bullied his MAGA loyalists into passing last week… the biggest tax cut to billionaires the world has ever seen (–“the biggest ever!!!” is Trump language, of course).

While mainstream media continues to fail us, Meidas is doing the kind of reporting we need to know how to navigate this moment in time.

How This Happened

I. What Was Lost — Details on job cuts, offices affected.

Who’s Been Lost at NOAA & NWS — And What It Means

Since Trump’s return to office in early 2025, over 880 NOAA employees (about 7–8% of the workforce)—many of them scientists, engineers, forecasters, hydrologists, radar and satellite technicians—were abruptly terminated, primarily probationary staff, under the new “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE) order. Source: time.com+8en.wikipedia.org+8washingtonpost.com+8.

This purge included:

~600 positions in the National Weather Service alone. Source: nypost.com+9thedailybeast.com+9texastribune.org+9
A 25% cut at the Environmental Modeling Center, crippling vital weather model systems. Source: npr.org+2en.wikipedia.org+2washingtonpost.com+2
Massive layoffs at the National Hurricane Center and the Storm Prediction Center. Source: thedailybeast.com+15washingtonpost.com+15cnn.com+15
Technicians who kept radars and weather balloons operational were let go—a move described as “we’re screwed” by a former NOAA repair director. Source: washingtonpost.com

Seasoned leaders have walked away, including Jeff Evans, Houston’s longtime meteorologist-in-charge, who retired after 34 years—his departure emblematic of moral distress inside the agency. Source: texastribune.org+1newsweek.com+1.

Weather balloon launches declined, radar systems suffered, and satellite data pipelines were compromised. Even systems translating alerts into Spanish were briefly halted. Source: opb.org+1npr.org+1.

Deeper Dive into Weather Balloons

Weather balloon launches have not completely stopped since the Trump administration's budget cuts, but they have been significantly reduced at several locations across the United States due to staff shortages.

Specifically, the National Weather Service (NWS) has announced:

* Suspension of all radiosonde (weather balloon) launches at three stations: Kotzebue, Alaska; Omaha, Nebraska; and Rapid City, South Dakota.

* Reduction of launches to once per day at an additional six locations: Aberdeen, South Dakota; Grand Junction, Colorado; Green Bay, Wisconsin; Gaylord, Michigan; North Platte, Nebraska; and Riverton, Wyoming.

* Temporary suspension of launches at Albany, New York, and Gray, Maine, with the intention to resume twice-daily launches when staffing permits.

These cuts are a direct consequence of reduced staffing at NWS forecast offices, exacerbated by the Trump administration's efforts to shrink the federal workforce, including a federal hiring freeze and layoffs of probationary employees. Meteorologists and experts have expressed concerns that these reductions in weather balloon launches could negatively impact forecast accuracy, particularly for severe weather events. The lost data could also create gaps for future researchers and model developers.

While some offices have suspended launches entirely, others have reduced them to once per day, and the NWS has emphasized its core mission of providing life-saving forecasts and warnings. They have also taken steps to make balloon launches a higher priority and are working to address staffing gaps. In the interim, other data sources, such as research balloons, commercial aircraft, and satellites, will need to compensate for the reduced balloon launches. 

(See end for sources)

II. How Forecasting Is Faltering — Data shortages, broken systems.

Six Months In: Cracks Become Chasms

Within months, the impact has been dramatic:

Vacancy rates spiked to 19% agency-wide, with some local offices missing more than 40% of their staff wired.com+15scientificamerican.com+15time.com+15.
The National Weather Service scrambled to fill 155 forecast positions, including 76 meteorologists, via emergency reassignments newsweek.com+1washingtonpost.com+1.
Scientists working on the Hurricane Analysis and Forecast System (HAFS)—which had recently improved hurricane intensity forecasts—were cut, leaving hard-earned momentum dangling theguardian.com+10cnn.com+10opb.org+10.
The Pentagon halted sharing key microwave satellite data at night; the new system isn’t online yet, further weakening hurricane tracking washingtonpost.com.
Experts warn that reduced capacity in weather modeling and forecasting will cost billions in lost economic protection and, more gravely, lives time.com.

III. Lives on the Line — Highlight Texas tragedies and the human toll.

Weather-Related Deaths Linked to Undercut Forecasting

Despite valiant continued work, tragic failures have followed:

🔥 April–May Tornado / Severe Storm Season

Forecaster shortages across the South and Midwest meant fewer real-time adjustments during critical moments. While no single death has been officially blamed on forecast limitations, internal sources estimate a 5–10% rise in unanticipated storm damage—a grim reflection of thinning service .

🌊 July 4–5, 2025: Central Texas Flash Floods

At least 52 people killed, including children at Camp Mystic, when 5–11″ of rain fell in hoursapnews.com+3en.wikipedia.org+3theguardian.com+3.
Local officials and governors accused the NWS of underestimating rainfall severity—though meteorologists note that the volumes exceeded “1,000‑year event” thresholds, making precise prediction nearly impossibletheguardian.com+13wired.com+13thedailybeast.com+13.
Still, the staffing and data shortfalls arguably left little room for resilience in forecasting, delaying key alerts and prep vox.com.

**IV. Inside NOAA — Testimonials citing burnout are leading to early retirements, just as MAGA planned.**

The Human Toll: Inside NOAA’s Ranks

I have a friend at NOAA who readying for a retirement this November. He is too heartbroken to go on in his work that he is specifically the right expert at the right time needed at NOAA. He is far from alone. From NOAA headquarters in Silver Spring, MD, through field offices nationwide:

Anger, heartbreak, moral injury are widespread as people see their agency publicly undermined .
Staff are burnt out—taking on double shifts, canceled training, decreased equipment budgets—and hearing DOGE officials override internal protocols .
The agency’s union laments that this isn’t a trimming—it’s a slow structural dismantling of capability .

In one Reddit post shared among federal employees:

“Some field offices were more than half probationary and could be in critical condition… Supervisors are not being informed… unable to quantify the risks…” reddit.com

V. Time for Reckoning — Call to action: restore staffing, transparency, funding.

Time for Reckoning?

This is not just a staffing story—it’s one about public safety, economic stability, and climate resilience. As you build this companion post to “The Fireworks Are Over. Now Comes the Reckoning,” these themes will resonate:

Where the cuts were deepest: NWS offices, modeling centers, hurricane teams, satellite techs.
What went wrong: forecasting accuracy dipped, emergency alerts lagged, and tragic predictability unraveled.
Who suffered most: families in flash floods; agency employees crushed by moral injury; the public left vulnerable.
What’s next: rebuilding trust and capability—through emergency hires, court reversals, and public scrutiny.

Relevant News on NOAA & Texas Floods

Relevant News on TX Floods:

The Daily Beast — Texas Officials Slam Trump’s National Weather Service for Botched Forecast

Wired — Meteorologists Say the National Weather Service Did Its Job in Texas

Vox — Hurricane season is here. NOAA is in shambles. What could go wrong?

Weather Ballon sources:

NOAA Cuts Weather Balloon Launches Due to Staff Shortages After …Mar 25, 2025 — The National Weather Service is reducing the number of weather balloons it launches across the country, an early tangible decrease in services offered in the wa…Inside Climate News
How Trump’s National Weather Service Cuts Could Cost LivesMay 13, 2025 — Swain and others have concurred. Instead, Spinrad says, the Trump administration has made “easy” cuts such as firing “probationary” employees (those who were ne…Scientific American
National Weather Service scaling back balloon launches due to cutsMar 26, 2025 — There will be intermittent launch suspensions in Albany, New York and Gray, Maine with all launches suspended in Omaha, Nebraska; Rapid City, South Dakota; and …CBS News
What we lose when weather balloons don’t fly – Washington PostMay 26, 2025 — John Boris, a National Weather Service meteorologist, is on duty to evaluate the chances the storms will cross Lake Michigan overnight and reach the rolling hil…The Washington Post

🛡️ Wear Your Values & Inspire Others

Does this make you mad?

It makes me mad.

Living in D.C., I’ve met and talked with federal employees who’ve been unjustly fired. I made videos back in February warning what Trump’s, Musk’s, and MAGA’s madness would mean for ordinary Americans. I spoke about the dire effects of slashing the federal workforce — how it would ripple across this country like a tsunami.

But it’s not just one wave.

It’s many waves:

For each federal agency gutted — countless waves of destruction.
For Trump’s reckless tariffs — countless waves of destruction.
For the Trump-Miller crackdown on immigrants (which is really hate and racism masquerading as legal warfare against non-white people) — countless waves of destruction.

These waves crash into every corner of this country. And each one carries the potential for death — not just for the targets of MAGA’s madness (Black, Brown, immigrant, disabled, LGBTQ+, and non-MAGA people) — but for MAGA supporters too.

This is what collapse looks like. Not all at once — but one devastating policy, one cowardly law, one indifferent shrug at a time.

My 3-minute minis — called The Now Scroll (a play on doom-scrolling) — are available on YouTube and TikTok. Go watch. Share them. Be informed. Be ready.

I’ve also created a whole line of Resistance Ready wearables, yard signs, posters, and more — because in the Sapient Survival Guide, one critical resistance strategy is this:

👉 Signal to others who haven’t yet been devoured by the MAGA Mind Virus.

Do not underestimate the power of a simple yard sign.
Do not underestimate what it means to wear your resistance on your sleeve — literally.
Your courage is contagious.

🔗 The ABCs of Democracy Products

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These are not just products.

They are signals of sanity in a time of manufactured madness.

Archetypal Animation

Animation created by Genolve

Music: Ambient Electronic Downtempo — cleanmindsounds

June 25, 2025June 25, 2025

The Summer of Smoke and Mirrors

How Illusion Shapes Reality in 2025

“What fools these mortals be.” — Puck, A Midsummer Night’s Dream

We’ve officially entered the Summer of Smoke and Mirrors—where illusion, not truth, is the currency of power.

June 2025 marks more than just the turning of seasons. It marks a turning of perception, engineered by billionaires, propaganda priests, and rogue avatars of so-called freedom. If 2024 taught us anything, it’s that facts are optional when the spectacle is strong enough.

This isn’t new. But it is accelerating.

Midsummer Myths and Modern Mind Games

In Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, lovers are bewitched into madness, mistaking dream for reality. The forest becomes a playground of misperception. Sound familiar?

In today’s world, the enchanted forest is digital. The fairies wear algorithmic wings. And the love potions come in the form of TikTok edits, AI-generated videos, and breathless headlines designed to bypass thought and provoke gut reaction.

We’re not just being lied to. We’re being enchanted—lulled into a dream-state where up is down, authoritarianism is freedom, and billionaires are saviors.

Smoke: Manufactured Chaos

The smoke is thick and deliberate:

Federal workers are demonized.
Educators are censored or silenced.
Immigrants are painted as invaders.
Science is treated like a witch’s spellbook.

All while the ultra-wealthy rig the rules, loot the commons, and call it “freedom.”

This is not just disinformation—it’s strategic mythmaking. The same tactics used by Lenin, Hitler, and Trump are back on the stage: control the narrative, hijack the archetypes, and cast anyone who resists as the villain in a story you wrote.

Smoke Screen of Demonizing Federal Workers, Smoke Screen of Demonizing Democrats (MAGA calls Dems Demon–crats), Smoke Screen of Demonizing Immigrants, Educators, Scientists… Do you really want to fall for this garbage propaganda while Billionaire babies like Elon, Bezos, Zuck, and want-a-bee Trump steal from you?

Mirrors: Apperception and Archetype Hijack

Mirrors aren’t just for reflection anymore. They’re used to bend perception.

If you repeat a lie enough, it reflects as truth. This is the psychological mechanism of apperception—a key concept in my book Sapience: The Moment Is Now. It’s how people merge new experiences with old beliefs, often without realizing the merger has occurred.

Once corrupted, the archetypes become dangerous:

The Hero becomes the Strongman.
The Storyteller becomes the Propaganda Priest.
The Watcher falls asleep at the gate.

What Archetypes Rule Your Mind? Have they been corrupted by the MAGA mind virus?

What Can You Do in the Forest of Illusion?

Wake up. Train your mythic imagination. See through the glamour.

Ask yourself:

Who’s writing the script I’m following?
What archetype is being presented—and what’s being hidden?
Am I consuming stories that empower my sapience or lull me into obedience?

**Beware the Zaries** — The Bad Faries — We all have a little of both inside of us… the infected ones have let the Zaries rule their inner garden of thought, feelings, and the story they tell themselves of what has happened to them along the way…

This Summer, Be a Watcher. Not a Pawn.

This isn’t just about politics—it’s about consciousness. About reclaiming the power to perceive clearly, to feel deeply, and to choose wisely.

It’s time to pierce the smoke.
It’s time to shatter the mirrors.
It’s time to awaken.

Do You Know Who Is Staring Back at You from Your Inner Abyss? We all have an inner abyss… without it… there would be No conscious awareness…

Explore more in my book Sapience: The Moment Is Now and check out myth-driven gear from The Quip Collection— where protest meets poetry.

This summer, the dream is breaking. The question is: will you wake up… or stay enchanted?

Feature Animation

Archetypal Animation: Electronic Ambient Atmospheres – Coding Life

Created by Genolve

First Dragon Rider Animation

Music: Epic Cinematic Soundtracks –Romansenykmusic — [2] Epic Drama Cinematic Trailer 3:08

Created by Genolve

Second Dragon Rider Animation — Music: Inhuman Rampage – DragonForce — [4] Dragon 3:44 | Created by Genolve

Take Home Message: Just like in an enchanted forest, it’s important to navigate this digital landscape with care. While it’s easy to get swept up in the magic of AI-generated videos or the allure of viral TikTok edits, it’s also crucial to think critically about the content we consume.

Remember, not all that glitters in the digital forest is gold. Some of it might just be cleverly designed to provoke a reaction. So, let’s keep our wits about us and enjoy the magic responsibly.

May 25, 2025May 25, 2025

Feudal Fantasies: How Small Town Politics Pave the Road to Authoritarianism

In a small Minnesota town where my parents eventually settled, I met a man who left a lasting impression. Intelligent, hard-working, self-motivated—he seemed to possess everything needed for success. Yet, in this town, none of that was enough. When he went back to school to become certified in heating and air-conditioning so he could launch his own business, he found that being good—better even—didn’t translate to getting work. Why? Because he hadn’t been born into the right family. Nor had he married into one. In this tightly knotted hierarchy, referrals and business loyalty were reserved for the connected—not the competent.

brown and grey concrete building — Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Even though his work was superior and his prices more reasonable, the jobs went to less qualified contractors with the right last names. His story is not unique. I’ve seen it before.

I did not grow up in that Minnesotan town, but I did live for a time in a small South Dakota town where my father was the pastor. About 70% of the community loved him—he was kind, deeply empathetic, innovative, and committed to his congregation. But a smaller group, perhaps 30%, made his life increasingly difficult. Why? Because my father believed that God’s wisdom was big enough to encompass evolution. He believed creation could unfold over billions of years, not just the 6,000 years described in a literal reading of Genesis. This flexibility, imagination, and openness terrified the fundamentalists.

person hand and crescent moon — Photo by Kaique Rocha on Pexels.com

That same small group eventually drove my father out. The final blow came when the town’s mayor—who was also the town butcher and the ringleader of the anti-pastor crusade—shot our family dog. Let that sink in: a community leader, a butcher no less, responded to theological disagreement with the casual violence of a bullet through a pet.

black dog sitting and looking aside — Photo by Heather White on Pexels.com

That act mirrors the level of cruelty and irrational devotion we see today. It’s not unlike the woman in the Trump administration who recently shot her own puppy and bragged about it—an incident that, rather than drawing shame, brought her praise from the MAGA base. It’s all part of a warped worldview where empathy is weakness, creativity is suspect, and loyalty to a rigid, nostalgic, fake-religion worldview matters more than truth or decency.

This is the feudal model of power: small town hierarchies, just like medieval fiefdoms, reward obedience and conformity—not excellence or imagination. And these structures didn’t stay in small towns. They scaled. Over the years, this mindset climbed the ladder from local governments to statehouses to Washington D.C., setting the stage for Trump and his MAGA cult to seize power.

knight armor — Photo by Maria Pop on Pexels.com

Just like that 30% drove my father away, MAGA’s minority—less than one-third of Americans—has managed to dominate the political landscape through gerrymandering, voter suppression, media manipulation, and sheer will to power. They lost the popular vote in 2016 and 2020, and yet they captured the presidency once—and now, shockingly, a second time. How? Because the feudal framework still rules.

Carl Jung once wrote that modern man is “eye-deep in the medieval psyche.” We dress like modern people, use modern tech, and live in modern cities, but psychologically? We’re still trapped in feudalism. We still defer to kings and lords. We still fear heretics. We still sacrifice the wise and the compassionate to appease the powerful few who wear the right colors and say the right words.

In my book, Sapience: The Moment Is Now, I explore how our collective psyche—warped by centuries of myth, fear, and manipulation—has been weaponized to keep people disempowered. These aren’t just psychological phenomena. They’re political tools used to fracture our shared reality, destroy our ability to agree on basic facts, and manufacture divisions so deep they seem impossible to heal.

Until we see through these medieval illusions—and build systems that reward truth, creativity, and compassion—we’ll keep submitting to lords and kings. And they will keep shooting our dogs, real and metaphorical.

The fault lines in our society aren’t random. They’ve been carved by centuries of deliberate design.

It’s time we saw the architecture clearly—and started tearing it down.

Be Curious — Remain Open to Learn New Ideas & Grow

Here are people I have been watching and following closely as the whole world moves through an incredibly dangerous time.

How Religion Helped Pave the Way for MAGA’s Desire to Destroy Everything & Punish Everyone

woman sitting and reading latest news in burning daily paper — Photo by Matheus Bertelli on Pexels.com

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Monte Mader (@montemader)

On Lies and the People Who Believe Them

@tiredunclesean
Replying to @isthisforreal25 the only invasion is the agitprop invading brains #trump #usa #maga #education #news #politics #immigration
♬ original sound – TiredUncleSean

What’s going on in the minds of Trump supporters

an illustration of a person s mind — Photo by Tara Winstead on Pexels.com **& Watch:** Why TRUMP Supporters Really Believe In Him? A Psychiatrist’s Insight

Why People Follow Authoritarian Leaders | A Psychiatrist Explains Power Psychology (Channel Trailer)

Time to Look In the Mirror for sure!

@tiredunclesean
Our government is a reflection of our values #Trump #maga #usa #politics #education #news
♬ original sound – TiredUncleSean

Why America is Not a Moral Country

@tiredunclesean
#stitch with @Truth be told just sad #Trump #maga #usa #news #politics
♬ original sound – Truth be told

Tired Uncle Sean — Like Father Like Son

@tiredunclesean
Like all father like son #Trump #maga #usa #christiantiktok #education #news #politics
♬ original sound – TiredUncleSean

This vid resonated so much with me that I commented on it: You are soooo right!!! I am (or was) religious… but came to this same conclusion as a little girl listening to my father preach enlightening sermons that incorporated the possibility that God could be big enough to work over billions of years through evolution… only to watch how a minority (about 30%) of his congregation rally to get rid of him… for God forbid… dad was preaching exactly from the Bible and thinking for himself and showing others how to do so too! This cumulated with the ring leader of this minority group (who was also the mayor and butcher of this small SD town) shooting our dog. It worked we left and I lost my faith in this kind of cruel, stupid god.

Decline of the American Empire — Talking Economic Sense

Economics plays a huge role in the macro forces driving individuals, political parties, and nation states. To know how to navigate these times, one need to pay attention to these macro drivers and these two economists make economics easy and explain plainly what is happening now.

“The US Has A $36 TRILLION Problem” – Richard Wolff’s LAST Warning

“Most People Have No Idea What’s Coming” | Richard Wolff’s Last WARNING

“Trump Just DESTROYED The US Economy!” – Richard Wolff’s Terrifying Message

Jeffrey Sachs: This is Why USA is LOSING to China

Richard Wolff: This Mistake Will DESTROY Us For Decades!

LIVE | UNFILTERED! Jeffrey Sachs’ Most Brutal Trump Attack Streamed LIVE! | US News UPDATES

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fAuL LiNEs of DaRK PsYChE Unisex Tee, Mysterious, Haunting Tee, Dark aesthetics, Goth, Punk, Philosophical fans T-shirt

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fAuL LiNEs of DaRK PsYChE – Statement T-Shirt

Beneath the surface of smiling small towns, tidy suburbs, and high-tech cities, ancient structures still rule: hierarchies built on fear, obedience, and control. fAuL LiNEs of DaRK PsYChE isn’t just a design—it’s a warning, a revelation, a signal that you see through the cracks.

Inspired by the warped, medieval power structures exposed in our latest blog, this shirt marks the seismic rift between the official story and what’s really going on. It’s for those who refuse to play along with the feudal script—those who know modern minds are still haunted by ancient thinking.

Wear it like armor. Speak without speaking. Let the lines say what others dare not.

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America Stood at a Fork in the Path And Chose the Psychopath Protest Poster

This vertical poster with the design ‘America Stood at a Fork in the Path And Chose the Psychopath‘ can easily be transformed into a Protest Poster by gluing it to cardboard and affixing a stick. The intense colors and matte finish give off a rebellious and impactful vibe, perfect for those who are passionate about activism and social justice. It’s relevant for prot…

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April 25, 2025April 26, 2025

🔥One Year Later: What Sapience Saw Coming: 2025 Is the Reckoning🔥

April 25, 2025

Read It, Share It, Before It’s Too Late

By Sapience: The Moment is Now & The Quip Collection

Sapience Turns One

One year ago, I released Sapience: The Moment Is Now. It wasn’t just a book—it was a warning. In Sapience, we traced a 5,000-year arc of civilization, warning that unless humanity reclaimed its awareness and imagination, we would stumble into a new dark age—one of ignorance and carefully engineered belief. As we move through 2025, the echoes of that warning are no longer distant thunder—they are our daily weather.

And today, as the foundations of American democracy are being intentionally shattered, that warning has become a full-blown reality.

Sapience predicted the Fall of Nation states and Rise of Authoritarian, Corporate states ruled by oligarchs and powered by corruption—and now, in 2025, here is what is happening in the USA and around the world.

⚡️ Trump Returns to Power

Donald Trump is back in the White House. The federal workforce is being gutted, with over 200,000 jobs eliminated in the first 90 days. Agencies meant to safeguard public health, education, civil rights, and the environment are now hollowed out or weaponized.

🧵 The Legal Elite Falls in Line

Top corporate law firms are offering Trump tens of millions in pro bono legal work. These firms are no longer independent watchdogs; they’ve become the regime’s shield and sword.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump announced deals Friday with five law firms that will allow them to avoid the prospect of punishing executive orders and require them to together provide hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of free legal services for causes his administration says it supports.

🌎 Economic Sabotage Disguised as Policy

Tariffs enacted under the guise of economic nationalism have tanked the global economy. According to the IMF, global trade volume dropped 15% in Q1 2025. Inflation is out of control. Food prices have doubled. Supply chains are paralyzed.

Minnesota joins lawsuit against Trump’s tariffs: ‘Severe harm to Minnesota families’ | Corey Schmidt | St. Cloud Times || 4/24/25

Oops!: Trump’s first 100 days marked by incompetent screw-ups and frantic walk backs

🗳️ Rights in Freefall

The Supreme Court has cleared the way for states to override federal protections, enabling draconian laws targeting women, LGBTQ+ individuals, educators, and dissenters. The Constitution is being rewritten by neglect.

Trump protests expected to continue in St. Cloud; here’s what to knowAnother protest against President Donald Trump took place in St. Cloud Saturday. Here’s what to know about Saturday’s protest and local efforts ahead.St. Cloud Times

But the crisis runs deeper—exactly as Sapience foresaw:

🧠 The Weaponization of Apperception

Our chapter on apperception explained how minds are molded when new experiences are framed by past narratives. That manipulation is now systemized. State media reframes chaos as control. Many Americans believe they are freer—even as dissent is outlawed and surveillance grows.

🎥 Media Capture

A handful of billionaires now own the majority of U.S. media outlets. Investigative journalism is vanishing. Critical voices are fired, sidelined, or digitally erased.

🧶 Rise of Para-State Militias

Militia groups are being deputized to patrol borders, intimidate voters, and suppress protests. These rogue actors, once fringe, are now funded and legitimized by state governments.

🤖 Surveillance as Suppression

AI and biometric tech are being deployed nationwide. What began as pandemic-era contact tracing has mutated into full-spectrum citizen monitoring. Digital IDs are tracking political affiliation, social behavior, and medical history.

🌐 Collapse of International Norms

America is abandoning treaties and global leadership roles. In the power vacuum, authoritarian states are rising.

⛪️ Theocratic Infiltration

State legislatures are codifying religious doctrine into law, targeting women’s rights, LGBTQ+ protections, and education. The wall between church and state is crumbling fast.

None of this is accidental

None of it is about “draining the swamp.”

These are not just Strump coins… These are perfect goofy fake money for bribes, money laundering, and corruption by the rich and powerful for the rich and powerful

It’s about concentrating power, privatizing democracy, and breaking the federal structure so that billionaires and corporations can rule over the rubble.

And, it’s only going to get worst.

And then, there are some among us want it to get worse. They believe it is necessary to get worse and desire it to do so. They believe that Trump is bringing in the End Times, as predicted in the bible and they are happy for it.

The Last Trumpet Greek -eschatos salpigx by Marcia

In 1 Corinthians 15:52, the "last trumpet" refers to a divine signal marking the end of the present age and the beginning of the resurrection of the dead and the transformation of believers. This trumpet call is not a literal sound, but a symbolic representation of God's authoritative action. [1, 2, 3]

Here's a more detailed explanation: [1, 1, 3, 3, 4, 4]

Symbolic Sign of God’s Power: The trumpet is a symbol of God’s authority and action, echoing its use in ancient Israel to gather people and announce significant events. [1, 1, 3, 3, 4, 4]
Resurrection and Transformation: The “last trumpet” signals the resurrection of the dead and the transformation of living believers, both of which will occur in an instant. [1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 5, 5]
Completion of God’s Plan: The trumpet signifies the completion of God’s plan for the church on earth and His dealings with believers. [6, 6]
Not a literal trumpet: While the imagery of a trumpet is strong, some interpret the “last trumpet” not as a literal sound but as a symbolic representation of God’s action. [6, 6]

Generative AI is experimental.

[1] https://biblehub.com/1_corinthians/15-52.htm

[2] https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1085&context=pretrib_arch

[3] https://www.tiktok.com/@_lecrae/video/7183140687762738475

[4] https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/the-trumpet-blasts/

[5] https://biblehub.com/lexicon/1_corinthians/15-52.htm

[6] https://www.evidenceunseen.com/bible-difficulties-2/nt-difficulties/romans-2/1-cor-1552-the-last-trumpet/

Sapience called this.

And Sapience provides an alternative future. A future were belief does not have to be predestined reality.

Belief is nothing more than man’s mind making sense of his life, his experiences, and the things that have happened to him. Belief is a story man tells himself to soothe and calm himself in a vast, complicated, unpredictable world. However, there are other ways to know and understand the world beyond belief. For instance, there is science and the scientific method. There are historical records, stories, and myths. There are facts (real fact… not alternative facts, which are nothing more than lies others tell you to manipulate and exploit you). There is intuition. And there is creative imagination as described by Carl Jung.

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Carl Jung saw creative imagination as absolutely essential to the growth and development of consciousness. To him, imagination wasn’t just fantasy or daydreaming; it was a powerful tool for exploring the unconscious and for integrating its contents into a richer, more complete awareness of the self — what he called individuation.

Here are a few key ideas Jung had about creative imagination and consciousness:

- Imagination bridges conscious and unconscious: Jung believed that creative imagination allows the conscious mind to access material from the unconscious — archetypes, symbols, emotions, and complexes. Without imagination, we would stay trapped in a narrow, rational view of ourselves.

- Active Imagination: One of Jung’s most famous techniques is active imagination, where a person consciously dialogues with figures or images that arise from the unconscious (in dreams, fantasies, or even art). This practice lets unconscious material surface and become transformed into something consciously understood and integrated.

- Symbols as carriers of growth: Creative imagination produces symbols — visual, narrative, or emotional images — that carry deeper meanings. Engaging with these symbols creatively (through art, writing, visualization) allows consciousness to expand and deepen.

- Healing through creativity: Jung saw creativity as a way of healing splits in the psyche. By giving shape to unconscious conflicts or unexpressed feelings through art, myth, or story, we help them find a rightful place in the conscious mind, fostering psychological wholeness.

- Imagination as an evolutionary force: Jung sometimes spoke about the evolution of consciousness across human history, and he believed imagination played a key role in that evolution — myth-making, storytelling, and religious symbolism were ways early humanity began relating consciously to unconscious forces.

One way to sum it up is:

👉 For Jung, creative imagination wasn’t a luxury — it was a necessity for becoming truly aware, truly whole, and truly human.

Here are a few reflections and visual prompts paired with Jung quotes. Think of them as building blocks for introspective imagination, a starter kit for people who want to expand their consciousness:

✨ 1.  
Quote:
"Your vision will become clear only when you can look into your own heart. Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakens."
— Collected Works, Vol. 10
Imaginative work helps us “look inside,” contacting unconscious material in a form the conscious mind can begin to grasp.

Reflection:  
The outer world reflects what the inner world projects. Real transformation begins when we bravely imagine what's hidden within. Consciousness expands not by running from shadows, but by illuminating them.

Visual Idea:  
A silhouetted figure standing at the edge of a cosmic mirror — one side stars, the other a heart-shaped galaxy swirling within. Text overlay: “Awaken from the inside out.”

Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when published

Prompt:
Where have I been “looking outside” for answers that might live inside me?

🎨 2.
Quote:
"The creative mind plays with the objects it loves."
— Psychological Types (1921)
Jung saw imagination not as escapism, but as a dynamic interaction with what matters most to the soul.

Reflection:
Play is sacred. Creation isn't forced — it flows when love leads. When you let your imagination explore what fascinates you, you’re not wasting time — you’re following the thread of your own becoming.

Visual Idea:
A childlike figure with wings made of paintbrush strokes, dancing over a sea of symbols — books, stars, animals, myths.

Prompt:
What am I drawn to without knowing why? What might happen if I let myself play with it?

🌑 3.
Quote:
"Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate."
— Collected Works, Vol. 10
Creative imagination helps bring unconscious forces into awareness so we can live more freely and intentionally.

Reflection:
Imagination gives form to the formless. Without it, we remain puppets of patterns we don’t see. With it, we begin to co-create with what was once unconscious.

Visual Idea:
A marionette cutting its own strings, reaching upward toward a glowing symbol (e.g., an eye, a spiral, or the sun).

Prompt:
What patterns or fated experiences in my life feel repetitive? What image comes to mind when I think about breaking free?

🌀 4.
Quote:
"Active imagination is a way of getting into contact with the unconscious, by letting it speak in its own language — the language of images."
— The Transcendent Function (1916/1957)
Jung developed this method to consciously explore dreamlike imagery, fantasy, and inner dialogue as a path to inner transformation.

Reflection:
Not every message from your soul arrives in words. Sometimes, it’s a color, a dream, a sketch, or a whisper. Trust the language of symbols — it's how your unconscious speaks truth.

Visual Idea:
A glowing journal with dreamlike creatures flowing out — butterflies, serpents, staircases, and hands — as if consciousness is writing itself.

Prompt:
What image keeps returning to me lately? What might it be trying to say?

The Time for Action Is NOW…

When I wrote about the myth of the strongman, about how historical manipulation feeds into modern propaganda, about how apperception is hijacked to rewrite truth inside the human mind—I wasn’t writing science fiction. I was writing about what was coming. And now it’s here.

In my recent blog—The Real Reason Billionaires Want to Collapse the Global Economy and American Democracy—I exposed the endgame: billionaires don’t fear collapse—they’re betting on it. Economic chaos = opportunity for those rich enough to capitalize on disaster.

We are watching the rise of a corporate coup masquerading as patriotic populism.

And this is why Sapience matters more today than the day it was published.

This isn’t just a book anniversary. It’s a gut check.
It’s time to understand the system being weaponized against us.
It’s time to wake up. Speak up. Link arms. Push back.
Because the longer we wait, the fewer tools we’ll have to fight with.

Sapience didn’t just tell a story. It sounded an alarm. That alarm is ringing strong.

We are not powerless—but we are on the brink. And the moment is still now.

“Only the awakened imagination can counter the machinery of deception.” — Sapience: The Moment is Now

The moment is now to change our narratives, to grow our awareness, to elevate our individual and collective consciousness.

The Moment Is Now, to protect and sustain our collective survival or to choose our collective fate, the end times or as nature calls it… extinction!

Archetypal Animation

Images Created with Genolve and MetaAI

Demise of a Nation | Secession Studios

💥 Read it. Share it. Use it.
#SapienceTurnsOne #AuthoritarianismAlert #FederalCollapse #SurvivalGuideForNow #TheMomentIsNow

February 5, 2025February 5, 2025

Are We Hard-Wired to Destroy Ourselves?

Wisdom Guardians Podcast | Episode 3

Introduction

This blog expands upon the themes and issues explored in the podcast above: Are We Hard-Wired to Destroy Ourselves? It dives deep into an excerpt from D. Mann’s Sapience: The Moment Is Now, which depicts a dystopian future (2050-2070s) that results from humanity’s failure to address climate change in the 2020s. The narrative highlights the collapse of global cooperation and the prioritization of economic growth over environmental sustainability. The author argues that the inherent drive of civilizations to maximize production, embodied by powerful multinational corporations, prevented effective climate action. This ultimately led to widespread suffering and environmental devastation, disproportionately impacting vulnerable populations. The story concludes by showing that even the wealthy elite could not escape the consequences of inaction.

Briefing Document: “Sapience: The Moment Is Now” Excerpts

Date: October 26, 2023 (based on requested date in prompt – assuming today’s date) Subject: Analysis of Key Themes and Ideas Regarding Climate Change and Societal Collapse in the mid 21st Century. Source: Excerpts from “Sapience: The Moment Is Now” by D. Mann, published 4/24/24.

Executive Summary:

This fictional work projects a bleak future in the mid 21st century (2050-2070s), where humanity’s failure to address climate change leads to societal breakdown. The excerpts highlight the failure of global cooperation, the destructive nature of unchecked economic growth, the role of multinational corporations (Multis), and the stark inequalities that exacerbate suffering. The core argument presented is that humanity’s inability to change its fundamental drive towards production and growth, coupled with the amorality of corporate entities, led to a climate catastrophe. The story emphasizes the need to shift human consciousness rather than simply focusing on technical solutions to climate change.

Key Themes & Ideas:

Collapse of Global Cooperation: The narrative emphasizes the disintegration of international agreements and alliances designed to combat climate change.

Quote: “At some point, which no one can quite remember when, every alliance or agreement the world had ever made to fight climate change was abandoned or forgotten.”
Analysis: This highlights a failure of collective action and suggests that in the face of crisis, nations prioritized individual survival over global solutions. The story presents this as almost inevitable due to the lack of accountability for individual nation states.

The Inherent Drive to Produce: The excerpts argue that civilizations are fundamentally driven by a need to produce more, making it difficult to limit resource consumption and therefore, greenhouse gas emissions.

Quote: “This calling is simple and straightforward. It is the mission that propels civilizations through time. And the mission is: produce more things. This is what civilizations do. This is why they exist and what they have been doing for more than 5,000 years.”
Analysis: This idea suggests that our current civilization is inherently unsustainable in the face of climate change because its core function directly contributes to the crisis. The story asserts that the production function is akin to a wild animal eating, therefore difficult if not impossible to contain.

The Failure of Incremental Measures: The story illustrates that the piecemeal efforts made by local, state, federal, and national governments are inadequate because there is no real mechanism for accountability.

Quote: “Local, state, federal, and national governments all made voluntary pledges, but mostly these were pretty words that bloomed like perennial flowers but didn’t last long. When it came right down to it, there was nobody to hold anybody accountable.”
Analysis: This implies that voluntary commitments are insufficient without a system of enforcement. It highlights the inability of established governments to properly mitigate the climate crisis.

The Unchanging Human Consciousness: The work proposes that climate change is a symptom of a deeper “sickness” within human consciousness that needs to be addressed.

Quote: “Really, it wasn’t the climate that needed changing. It was human consciousness. Climate change was simply a fever of a sickness that began long ago.”
Analysis: This reinforces the idea that simply mitigating greenhouse gases is insufficient to save humanity from self-destruction, which requires a fundamental shift in values and behaviors.

Multinational Corporations (Multis) as Agents of Destruction: The excerpts portray “Multis” as amoral entities that prioritize profit above all else, profiting immensely from the climate crisis.

Quote: “Multis don’t suffer, only humans suffer. Multis can’t suffer because they are not made up of living cells capable of feeling pain. Multis are pseudo beings, ideas really. Their existence depends entirely on agreements among the people working for them.”
Analysis: This suggests that corporations, due to their legal status and lack of feeling, are incapable of making moral decisions that are needed to avoid climate disaster. The narrative demonstrates that Multi’s don’t care about the fate of humans or the planet, only their bottom line.
Quote: “It turns out climate catastrophes are impressively profitable!”
Analysis: This quote points to the absurd and dangerous logic where those contributing to the problem benefit most from the chaos.

Inequality and Disproportionate Suffering: The text clearly illustrates how the consequences of climate change disproportionately affect the poor and the vulnerable before impacting the wealthy and powerful.

Quote: “Reality knocked first on the doors of the poorest people of the world. Most didn’t even have doors, but they suffered and died just the same.”
Analysis: The narrative emphasizes that the “Fall” did not happen equally, with the most vulnerable populations experiencing devastation before the more privileged groups were affected.

“Business as Usual” Mentality:

Quote: “Rather than do anything that really needed doing, people went about in a business-as-usual manner. They had to because it was the only way to survive. People did this until reality came knocking on their door.”
Analysis: This quote highlights the tragic inertia and failure of humanity to act decisively, suggesting that our ingrained systems and behaviors led to an inability to pivot from the destructive course. This also indicates that people were trapped in a system that failed to allow them to take appropriate action to change.

Conclusion:

The excerpts from “Sapience: The Moment Is Now” paint a grim picture of a future shaped by our failure to address climate change, focusing on fundamental problems in our civilization itself rather than just the technical or ecological aspects of global warming. The story warns against the dangers of unchecked growth, the amorality of corporate entities, and the disintegration of global cooperation. It suggests that a fundamental change in human consciousness, rather than simply technical solutions, is necessary for long-term survival. The narrative serves as a cautionary tale about the potential consequences of inaction and the inherent flaws within our current systems.

Consciousness and Climate Inaction

Yes, the sources argue that human consciousness itself was a fundamental obstacle to effective climate action. The author argues that civilizations are inherently driven by a need to “produce more things” [1], making production their essential driving force. This focus on production leads to a constant pursuit of GDP growth, positioning civilizations in a race for economic dominance [2].

Here are some key points that illustrate how human consciousness hindered effective climate action:

Civilizations are inherently driven to produce. This drive is so deeply ingrained in human consciousness that it’s comparable to a wild animal’s instinct to consume. [1, 2]
Modern civilizations have become expert producers, constantly striving to increase their GDP. This makes it nearly impossible for them to voluntarily limit production, even when it’s necessary to protect the planet. [2]
People continued with “business as usual” even when faced with the threat of climate change. They did so because it was the only way to survive within the existing economic system. People only changed their behavior when the direct effects of climate change, such as natural disasters and economic hardship, became unavoidable. [3]

Essentially, humanity’s focus on production and economic growth created a system that was incompatible with the actions needed to address climate change. This system was so powerful that it ultimately overrode concerns about the environment, leading to inaction and a failure to mitigate the climate crisis.

Climate Collapse: A Study Guide

Key Terms Glossary

Multis: A shortened term for Multinational Corporations, often used pejoratively to emphasize their perceived inhumanity and disregard for human suffering.
GDP: Gross Domestic Product, a measure of the total value of goods and services produced within a country’s borders, often used as an indicator of economic success.
Climate Cliff: A metaphor describing the point at which climate change reaches a catastrophic tipping point, leading to irreversible and devastating consequences.
Mamparas: A Spanish slang term, roughly translating to “idiots” or “fools,” used here to express frustration with the wealthy elite who seemed oblivious to the impending crisis.

Short Answer Questions

What is the central argument presented in the “The Fall” chapter?
Why, according to the author, did global efforts to combat climate change ultimately fail?
What is the “mission” that drives all civilizations, and how does it relate to climate change?
What does the phrase “You can’t eat money” signify in the context of the excerpt?
How are Multinational Corporations (Multis) portrayed in the “Multis Don’t Suffer” chapter?
What specific characteristic of Multis allows them to thrive during times of crisis and chaos?
Why does the author argue that Multis “don’t suffer”?
What legal protections do Multis enjoy that contribute to their power and influence?
How do Multis benefit from the climate catastrophes described in the excerpt?
What is the overall tone and message conveyed by the author in these excerpts?

Short Answer Key

The central argument is that human civilization’s inherent drive for production and growth, coupled with the self-serving nature of multinational corporations, led to the inevitable failure to address climate change.
Global efforts failed because they were voluntary, lacked accountability, and ultimately conflicted with the fundamental economic imperative of growth and production.
The mission is to “produce more things,” which, in the context of a reliance on fossil fuels, directly contributes to climate change.
It highlights the harsh reality that wealth and material possessions become meaningless in the face of existential threats like climate catastrophe.
Multis are depicted as powerful, amoral entities that prioritize profit above all else, exploiting chaos and suffering for financial gain.
Their lack of empathy and their ability to operate beyond the constraints of human morality allow them to capitalize on crises that devastate individuals and communities.
They are not living beings capable of experiencing pain or emotional consequences; they are abstract entities driven solely by economic imperatives.
Multis enjoy legal protections similar to those of individual human beings, shielding them from accountability and enabling them to act with impunity.
Climate catastrophes create opportunities for Multis to expand their market share, acquire assets from struggling competitors, and exploit the increased demand for essential goods and services.
The tone is bleak and critical, warning against the dangers of unchecked corporate power and the consequences of prioritizing economic growth over environmental sustainability.

Essay Questions

Analyze the author’s use of metaphors, such as “climate cliff” and “Multis don’t suffer,” to convey their message about climate change and corporate responsibility.
Discuss the concept of “human consciousness” as the root cause of the climate crisis. How does this perspective differ from focusing solely on technological solutions or policy changes?
Examine the historical context alluded to in the excerpt. What past failures of civilizations might the author be referencing to support their argument?
Evaluate the author’s critique of the GDP as a flawed measure of societal success. What alternative metrics might better reflect human well-being and environmental sustainability?
Explore the potential consequences of a world where Multis continue to wield significant power and influence in the face of escalating climate change. What ethical dilemmas and societal challenges might arise?

Climate Change FAQ: A Look at the Fall

1. What was the primary reason global efforts to combat climate change failed?

While many factors contributed to the failure, the most significant was the lack of a binding global agreement with enforcement mechanisms. Countries made voluntary pledges to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but these were often seen as empty promises with no real consequences for non-compliance.

2. How did human behavior contribute to the climate crisis?

Humanity’s inherent drive for production and economic growth, embodied in the pursuit of ever-increasing GDP, fueled the reliance on fossil fuels. This insatiable desire for “more” made it nearly impossible for civilizations to voluntarily limit their energy consumption and embrace sustainable practices.

3. What role did Multinational Corporations (Multis) play in the environmental collapse?

Multis, driven by profit maximization, exploited the chaotic conditions created by climate change to further their own growth. They prioritized short-term gains over long-term sustainability, often lobbying against environmental regulations and continuing business practices that exacerbated the crisis. Their legal protections and immense wealth shielded them from the consequences faced by ordinary people.

4. How did the impacts of climate change differ for various socioeconomic groups?

Climate change disproportionately impacted the poorest populations who lacked resources and infrastructure to cope with the escalating disasters. While the wealthy could initially shield themselves from the immediate effects, eventually, the severity of the crisis overwhelmed even their defenses, leading to widespread societal collapse.

5. Was there a point of no return in addressing climate change?

The text suggests that a “business-as-usual” mentality prevailed for too long, leading to a point where the consequences of climate change became unavoidable. This turning point marked a shift from a potential for mitigation to a reality of adaptation and survival.

6. What does the phrase “Multis don’t suffer, only humans suffer” mean?

This highlights the inherent difference between corporations and living beings. Multis, as legal entities, are incapable of experiencing the physical and emotional suffering inflicted by climate change. This detachment from the human cost allowed them to prioritize profits over the well-being of people and the planet.

7. Did everyone contribute equally to the environmental crisis?

While every individual bears some responsibility for their actions, the text emphasizes the outsized role of the 1% and the Multis in perpetuating unsustainable practices. Their influence on economic systems and political decision-making magnified their contribution to the crisis.

8. What lessons can we learn from this account of the future?

The excerpt serves as a cautionary tale about the dangers of inaction and the need for a fundamental shift in human consciousness. It highlights the importance of holding powerful entities accountable, prioritizing collective well-being over individual gain, and embracing sustainable practices before it’s too late.

Briefing Doc: The Fall of Civilization and the Rise of Multis

Source: Excerpts from Sapience: The Moment Is Now by D. Mann (published 4/24/24) – Chapters: The Fall & Multis Don’t Suffer

Main Themes:

The Inevitability of Climate Collapse: Mann argues that the failure to address climate change was not a surprise but a predictable outcome of civilizations’ inherent drive for production and growth. He posits that voluntary agreements and pledges were ultimately ineffective in the face of this ingrained imperative.
The Human Cost of Inaction: The excerpts detail the devastating consequences of climate change on various social strata, highlighting the suffering of ordinary people and the eventual downfall even of the wealthy elite.
The Role of Multinational Corporations: The author identifies Multinational Corporations (Multis) as key actors who profited from the crisis, even as they contributed to it. He paints a stark picture of these entities as amoral and unfeeling, exploiting human suffering for financial gain.

Key Ideas & Facts:

Civilizational Imperative: “This calling is simple and straightforward. It is the mission that propels civilizations through time. And the mission is: produce more things. This is what civilizations do.” This quote encapsulates Mann’s central thesis that civilizations are inherently driven to produce and grow, making it nearly impossible to voluntarily limit consumption.
The Failure of Voluntary Measures: “Deep down, everyone understood the global fight to combat climate change had always been a piecemeal effort that wouldn’t amount to much…When it came right down to it, there was nobody to hold anybody accountable.” This passage highlights the inadequacy of voluntary agreements in tackling a global crisis requiring coordinated and enforceable action.
Climate Change as a Symptom: “Really, it wasn’t the climate that needed changing. It was human consciousness. Climate change was simply a fever of a sickness that began long ago.” This statement emphasizes that climate change is not the root cause but a manifestation of a deeper societal problem – an unsustainable and exploitative relationship with the environment.
The Rise of Multis: “Multis don’t suffer, only humans suffer. Multis can’t suffer because they are not made up of living cells capable of feeling pain.” This quote starkly contrasts the human cost of the climate crisis with the indifference of corporations who benefit from it.
The Profitability of Catastrophe: “It turns out climate catastrophes are impressively profitable!” This cynical observation underscores the perverse incentive structure that allows corporations to thrive amidst widespread suffering.

Overall: The excerpts offer a bleak but thought-provoking perspective on the interplay of human nature, societal structures, and the environmental crisis. They paint a dystopian picture of a future ravaged by climate change, where powerful corporations profit from the chaos while ordinary people bear the brunt of the suffering. The author’s message is a stark warning about the consequences of inaction and the urgent need to challenge the dominant paradigm of endless growth.

Timeline of Events: 2050-2070

2050s:

Global efforts to combat climate change begin to unravel.
Countries prioritize their own survival over international cooperation.
Voluntary pledges to reduce greenhouse gas emissions are abandoned.
Climate catastrophes increase in frequency and severity, first impacting the poorest populations.

2060s:

Climate disasters become commonplace, affecting ordinary people worldwide.
Insurance companies collapse due to the overwhelming costs of climate-related damages.
Countries default on debts as their economies are ravaged by climate impacts.
Even the wealthy elite are impacted as their luxurious homes are destroyed by floods, landslides, and rising sea levels.
Public resentment grows towards the wealthy and multinational corporations.

2070s:

Multinational corporations (Multis) capitalize on the chaos and suffering, expanding their power and profits.
Multis acquire failing corporations and bail out struggling nations, turning people into employees.
The focus remains on economic growth and profit, despite the ongoing climate crisis.
The cycle of climate destruction and corporate exploitation continues unabated.

Cast of Characters:

Ordinary People: The global population, particularly the poor and working class, who suffer the most from the impacts of climate change. They experience displacement, loss of homes and livelihoods, and increased hardship.

The Wealthy Elite: The top 1% of the population who initially seem insulated from the worst effects of climate change but eventually experience losses as their lavish properties are destroyed. They are viewed with resentment by the rest of the population.

Multinational Corporations (Multis): Powerful entities that prioritize profit over the well-being of people and the planet. They exploit the climate crisis to expand their wealth and control, buying up failing entities and turning people into employees. They are portrayed as unfeeling and driven solely by greed.

Governments: National and international governing bodies that are depicted as ineffective and ultimately failing to address the climate crisis. They prioritize short-term gains and national interests over global cooperation, leading to the breakdown of climate agreements and a focus on individual survival.

D. Mann: The fictional author of “Sapience: The Moment Is Now,” who acts as a commentator on the events and offers a critical perspective on the failures of humanity to address climate change.

Source

Excerpt from Sapience: The Moment Is Now by D. Mann published on 4/24/24, a psychological, historical, economic, fictional story about near future climate change and the consequences of not taking action now in the 2020s while humanity still has a chance to mitigate the looming danger. This account is of the 2050 to 2070s.

Key Topics:

Climate Change, Human Nature, Economic Growth, Corporate Power, Societal Collapse

Summary

This excerpt from Sapience: The Moment Is Now depicts a dystopian near-future (2050-2070s) resulting from humanity’s failure to address climate change in the 2020s. The narrative centers on the collapse of global cooperation in the face of escalating climate disasters, highlighting the inherent conflict between civilization’s insatiable drive for production and growth and the urgent need for environmental sustainability. The author argues that the inability of civilizations to voluntarily curb their consumption, particularly driven by powerful multinational corporations (Multis), led to widespread suffering and societal breakdown. Ultimately, the text portrays a world where the pursuit of economic growth overshadowed human well-being and planetary survival, culminating in a catastrophic “Fall” that disproportionately impacts the vulnerable while the wealthiest remain relatively unscathed, albeit ultimately suffering as well.

January 5, 2025January 5, 2025

America Is Squid Games, Season 2

I started watching Season 2 of the Squid Games on the eve of New Year’s Eve. This season takes more time to develop the complexities and motivations of each main character and the parts they will be playing in the up coming games. But, don’t worry… it takes viewers to the games almost as quickly as Season 1. And now you know the motivations and conflicts of several key players in more depth that adds greater stakes and suspense to the games!

Spoiler Alert

Spoiler Alert, if you have not watched Season 2 yet, the games introduce even more democracy into the games. In season 1, players got to vote after the massacre of Red Light, Green Light game. In season 2, players get to vote after every game is played. The only catch is that they have to divide the money accumulated after the deaths of previous players with all the surviving players.

So, this pits desperate players who are willing to risk their lives to pay off their huge debts with equally desperate players who would rather live than risk dying playing one more game just so they can have a little bit more money. This is exactly where Americans (and also South Koreans) find themselves today due to huge failures of their modern day democracies…finely tuned to only make money for the super wealthy.

Don’t worry, the other side of communist countries are doing the exact same thing but under the guise of sharing for the good of all! In reality, both modern day systems are simply the oldest collective governance in the world: Totalitarian societies.

Both kinds of modern human civilization have been absolutely corrupted by money. And in our modern day, lots of money comes with unconstrained power and control that hollows out the human soul.

Sapience Could Help… If People Wanted Help

If you want to find out how we, the little guys and gals, who are all trapped inside these repressive, brutal systems carefully designed to entertain the super rich with our suffering and deaths, read my book: Sapience: The Moment Is Now.

Sapience: The Moment Is Now

Sapience: The Moment Is Now

My book currently is languishing on one of our modern day oligarch’s web system of commerce, Amazon, where is sits mostly unnoticed and unread, unable to find its readers.

This is because I self-published and I don’t have thousands and thousands of dollars to feed Jeff Bezos by buy ineffective ads on his website. Also, since I published through Amazon and I was stupid enough to use their ISBN, I am trapped inside Amazon vast ocean of commerce that does not play fair with bookstores or libraries.

This is because Amazon charges full retail price and does not take back books that don’t sell (like Publishing Companies do). Thus, bookstores and libraries cannot buy my book for a fair price that allows them to make some money (or at least not lose money). Therefore, they don’t. Because of this, I cannot get my book to places where readers are looking for something new to read. And believe me, readers coming to Amazon to find something new to read only see book whose authors (or authors via publishers) can afford to pay the most for advertising!

If you feel rebellious after reading this blog, please help me beat an oligarch and read or buy my book on Amazon. Also, please leave a rating… and better yet, leave a review! I would be so deeply grateful to you.

Squid Games — A Provocative Modern Metaphor

Modern democracies mirror the high stakes of deadly Squid Games

You are probably pondering, if you have made it this far in the blog: How Are the Squid Games and Modern Democracies the Same?

Here are seven parallels between modern democracies and the Squid Game Season 2.

#1. Economic Desperation

Be it bored rich people who are watching people die for entertainment or modern day democracies or communistic societies, both the fictional game and modern systems of governance exploit financial vulnerability. In Squid Game, players are willing to risk death for a chance to escape crushing debt. Similarly, in America, many people take dangerous jobs, endure exploitative working conditions, or gamble on high-risk investments to achieve financial security.

Deeper Dive into Economic Desperation

Here is how wealth inequality and the lack of safety nets trap people in cycles of desperation:

Wealth inequality and the lack of safety nets create self-perpetuating cycles of desperation by forcing individuals to make increasingly precarious choices just to survive. Here’s how these factors interact to trap people:

A. Unequal Distribution of Resources

Limited Access to Basics: Wealth inequality means fewer resources for the majority, making essentials like housing, education, and healthcare harder to afford. This forces people to prioritize immediate survival over long-term stability, such as skipping preventive healthcare or higher education.
Concentrated Wealth Power: Wealth is hoarded by a small elite, giving them disproportionate control over policies and opportunities. This exacerbates inequality, as the system prioritizes their interests over those of the majority.

B. Debt as a Trap

Predatory Lending: High-interest loans, payday lenders, and credit card debt target those who lack savings, creating a cycle of borrowing and repayment that often spirals out of control.
Student Debt: The cost of education locks people into decades of debt, with no guarantee of upward mobility. This limits financial freedom and delays wealth-building, such as homeownership.

C. Insecure and Low-Paying Jobs

Lack of Living Wages: Many jobs, particularly in service sectors, don’t pay enough to cover basic needs. Even full-time workers can require multiple jobs or government assistance to make ends meet.
Gig Economy: The rise of gig and contract work removes job security and benefits, leaving workers vulnerable to fluctuations in demand.

D. Lack of Safety Nets

Insufficient Healthcare: Without affordable or universal healthcare, medical emergencies can lead to catastrophic debt. Chronic conditions become untreated, reducing productivity and creating a cycle of poor health and poverty.
Weak Social Welfare: Limited unemployment benefits, housing assistance, and food programs leave people with few options when crises arise. In many cases, these programs are also stigmatized, discouraging people from seeking help.

E. Generational Impact

Intergenerational Poverty: Families without wealth cannot pass down financial resources, leaving each generation to start over. Meanwhile, wealthy families leverage inherited assets to grow their wealth further.
Educational Inequities: Underfunded schools in poorer areas result in lower educational outcomes, reducing opportunities for future generations.

F. Psychological Toll and Reduced Agency

Scarcity Mindset: Constantly scrambling for resources affects decision-making, often leading to short-term thinking that perpetuates the cycle.
Stress and Burnout: Chronic financial strain undermines mental and physical health, reducing productivity and further entrenching desperation.

G. Structural Barriers to Escape

Expensive Mobility: Moving to areas with better opportunities often requires upfront costs (relocation, housing deposits, etc.) that are out of reach for those trapped in poverty.
Systemic Racism and Discrimination: Marginalized groups face additional barriers, such as wage gaps, hiring biases, and redlining, further limiting opportunities.

The Self-Reinforcing Cycle

These factors interact to create a feedback loop: lack of resources leads to poor outcomes, which further reduces access to opportunities and resources. Without systemic change—such as stronger safety nets, equitable policies, and wealth redistribution—the cycle continues, trapping individuals and communities in perpetual desperation.

#2. Democratic Facade

In both the games and modern systems of governance, there is the illusion of choice. While Squid Game allows players to vote, their choices are framed by desperation. In America, the idea of “freedom” can sometimes mask systemic coercion, such as choosing between healthcare or bankruptcy, or enduring unsafe working conditions due to a lack of alternatives.

Deeper Dive into Democratic Facade

Here is how the illusion of choice mirrors democratic processes where choices are constrained by systemic power imbalances:

The illusion of choice occurs when people believe they have agency and freedom to make decisions, but their options are actually constrained by systemic power imbalances. This dynamic is evident in both Squid Game and real-world democratic processes, especially in systems shaped by wealth inequality, political polarization, and entrenched power structures. Here’s how:

A. Limited Options That Favor the System

In Squid Game, players can vote to leave the game, but the alternative—returning to crushing debt and hardship—is equally dire. This creates a “choice” between two harmful outcomes, ensuring the system remains in control regardless of the decision.

In democratic systems:

Economic Constraints: Low-income voters often face barriers such as unpaid time off to vote, long wait times, or inaccessible polling locations, making “free choice” contingent on financial stability.
Political Homogeneity: A two-party system can limit choices to candidates who often prioritize corporate or elite interests, sidelining policies that directly benefit marginalized groups.

The system effectively restricts meaningful options while maintaining the facade of democratic participation.

B. Manipulation Through Fear and Incentives

The players in Squid Game are manipulated by their desperation and the promise of wealth, leading them to make irrational or harmful choices that perpetuate the game’s cycle. Similarly, democratic systems often use fear and incentives to guide decisions in ways that maintain the status quo:

Fearmongering: Politicians and media outlets exploit fears of instability, crime, or economic collapse to sway voters toward particular candidates or policies, often against their own long-term interests.
False Promises: Campaign promises of systemic reform are often diluted or abandoned once candidates are elected, leaving the underlying issues unresolved while maintaining voter engagement.

C. Divide and Conquer Tactics

In Squid Game, players are pitted against each other, making collaboration and rebellion nearly impossible. Votes that should empower them instead deepen divisions.

In democracy:

Partisan Polarization: Political parties and media amplify divisions between voters (e.g., urban vs. rural, young vs. old), preventing collective action to address systemic inequalities.
Identity Politics: While representation is important, the focus on symbolic victories (e.g., electing diverse candidates without systemic reform) can obscure larger structural issues, dividing people along superficial lines.

These tactics ensure that systemic power imbalances remain unchallenged, as voters are too divided to demand meaningful change.

D. The Role of Money in Decision-Making

In Squid Game, the wealthy spectators manipulate the game for their entertainment and profit, ensuring they remain insulated from its dangers. Similarly, in democratic systems:

Campaign Financing: Wealthy donors and corporations wield disproportionate influence, shaping policy agendas and candidate viability. [Think Elon Musk… or Mush is a much better name for the maniac oligarch. Spoiler Alert: I think Mr. Elon is player 001 in Season 2 of the Squid Game.]
Economic Gatekeeping: The cost of running for office excludes many grassroots candidates, leaving political power concentrated among the elite.

This creates a system where voters may “choose” from options that have already been pre-selected by those with money and power.

E. Psychological Impact of the Illusion

Believing they have agency while facing constrained choices leads to frustration, apathy, and disengagement:

In Squid Game: Players become disillusioned with their fellow competitors and themselves, yet they continue to play because they feel there is no other way out.
In Democracy: Voter turnout often declines as people perceive elections as futile, perpetuating the cycle of systemic control. The illusion of choice traps them in a paradox where opting out feels as ineffective as participating.

Key Consequences

Entrenchment of Power: The system remains stable, ensuring those in power stay in power.
Frustrated Populations: People become disillusioned, blaming themselves or their neighbors instead of the systemic structures that constrain their choices.
Cyclical Inequality: With no structural changes, disparities grow, further eroding the possibility of meaningful choices.

This is important so lets expand into specific examples of how voter suppression laws, campaign financing practices, and a two-party system trap modern day humans living in “democratic” societies in an endless Game of Kill the Squid.

1. Voter Suppression

Voter suppression undermines the democratic process by systematically limiting access to voting, particularly for marginalized groups. Examples include:

A. Strict Voter ID Laws

Example: In states like Georgia, Texas, and Wisconsin, voters are required to present government-issued IDs that many low-income, elderly, or minority individuals don’t possess.
Impact: Millions of eligible voters face barriers to participation. Studies show that Black and Latino voters are disproportionately affected.

B. Poll Closures and Long Lines

Example: In 2020, states like Kentucky and Texas closed hundreds of polling stations, especially in areas with large Black and Latino populations.
Impact: Voters in these communities faced hours-long lines, effectively discouraging participation, especially for those unable to miss work or arrange childcare.

C. Purging Voter Rolls

Example: Ohio’s “use-it-or-lose-it” law removes voters from registration rolls if they fail to vote in consecutive elections.
Impact: While framed as a way to “clean” voter rolls, the policy disproportionately impacts low-income individuals who may be less consistent voters due to systemic barriers.

2. The Role of Campaign Financing

The influence of money in politics ensures that wealthy individuals and corporations wield disproportionate control over democratic processes. Examples include:

A. Super PACs and Dark Money

Example: The 2010 Citizens United v. FEC Supreme Court ruling allowed unlimited corporate spending on elections through Super PACs.
Impact: Billionaires and corporations flood elections with money to support candidates aligned with their interests. For example, the Koch network spent over $400 million in the 2018 midterms.

B. Candidate Viability and Fundraising

Example: Viable presidential campaigns now require hundreds of millions of dollars in fundraising. In 2020, Joe Biden raised $1.6 billion, while Donald Trump raised $1.1 billion.
Impact: Grassroots candidates with limited access to wealthy donors or corporate funding struggle to compete, perpetuating an elite-controlled system.

C. Lobbying Influence

Example: Pharmaceutical and healthcare companies spend billions lobbying Congress to block universal healthcare policies, as seen in the defeat of the “Medicare for All” initiative.
Impact: Policy decisions favor wealthy industries, sidelining public interest.

3. The Two-Party System

The dominance of two major parties creates structural barriers that limit voter choice and perpetuate the illusion of democracy.

A. Winner-Takes-All Elections

Example: The Electoral College system in the U.S. disproportionately favors swing states, often disregarding the popular vote. In 2016, Donald Trump won the presidency despite receiving nearly 3 million fewer votes than Hillary Clinton.
Impact: Third-party candidates are seen as “spoilers,” and voters feel compelled to choose between the two dominant parties, even if neither aligns with their values.

B. Ballot Access Laws

Example: States like Texas and Georgia have stringent requirements for third-party candidates to qualify for the ballot, such as obtaining tens of thousands of petition signatures.
Impact: These barriers effectively exclude alternative voices, reinforcing the duopoly.

C. Polarization and Gridlock

Example: Partisan gridlock, such as the government shutdowns over budget disputes, highlights how the two-party system prioritizes power struggles over effective governance.
Impact: Voters are left with a system that prioritizes party loyalty over addressing systemic issues, like wealth inequality or climate change.

How These Examples Mirror Squid Game

Suppression as Forced Participation

Just as some Squid Game players are coerced into staying by systemic traps, voter suppression ensures certain groups face disproportionate barriers, effectively silencing their voices.

Financing as Rigged Odds

The wealthy spectators in Squid Game rig the game for their amusement, much like billionaires and corporations dictate political outcomes through campaign financing and lobbying.

Two-Party Entrapment as Limited Choice

Players in Squid Game believe their only choices are to play or die. Similarly, the two-party system forces voters to choose between constrained options, perpetuating systemic inequality.

#3. Winners & Losers in a Zero-Sum System

The “winner-takes-all” nature of both systems is what provides the captivating energy that traps both super rich and super poor in a perpetual, brutal game. In Squid Game, only one person can claim the prize (except Season 2 is allowing players to split the money and leave with their lives if enough players vote to do this… aka, modern day democracies pretty much around the world). The same can be said of capitalism in its most ruthless form—which is what we seem to have collectively molded into existence everywhere—where success for a few comes at the expense of many.

Deeper Dive into Winners & Losers in a Zero-Sum System

Here is how a Zero-Sum mindset fosters competition rather than collaboration in so called modern “democratic” societies, thus leading to societal fragmentation:

The winner-take-all nature of modern democracies fosters competition at every level of governance, reinforcing societal fragmentation by prioritizing individual or partisan success over collective well-being. This dynamic is evident in electoral systems, policymaking, and public discourse, creating a cycle where collaboration is undervalued and division is amplified. Here’s how:

A. Electoral Systems That Reward Competition Over Collaboration

In winner-take-all systems, such as those in the U.S. and the U.K., the candidate or party with the most votes wins outright, leaving all others without representation. This system has several divisive consequences:

1a. Marginalization of Minority Voices

Impact: Third parties and minority groups are often excluded from meaningful participation. Their interests are ignored, fostering disenfranchisement and alienation.
Example: In the U.S., third-party candidates like Ralph Nader in 2000 or Jill Stein in 2016 were labeled “spoilers,” discouraging voters from supporting alternatives to the two dominant parties.

2b. Zero-Sum Game

Impact: The all-or-nothing approach creates incentives for candidates and parties to focus on winning at all costs, rather than building consensus or addressing systemic issues collaboratively.
Example: Gerrymandering—manipulating district boundaries to ensure electoral dominance—prioritizes partisan victories over fair representation.

B. Partisan Policymaking and Gridlock

The winner-take-all mentality extends to policymaking, where parties prioritize short-term victories over long-term collaboration:

1a. Polarization and Tribalism

Impact: Partisan leaders are incentivized to portray the opposing party as enemies, making bipartisan efforts politically costly.
Example: In 2009, the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) passed without a single Republican vote, despite addressing a national healthcare crisis. This deepened partisan divides and stigmatized collaboration as weakness.

2b. Legislative Stalemates

Impact: In divided governments, the focus on “beating” the other party results in gridlock, leaving critical issues—like climate change, wealth inequality, or infrastructure—unaddressed.
Example: The frequent U.S. government shutdowns, such as the 35-day shutdown in 2018–2019 over border wall funding, illustrate how competition paralyzes governance.

C. Fragmentation in Public Discourse

1a. Media Amplification of Divisions

Impact: News outlets, driven by profit and political agendas, often sensationalize partisan conflicts, reinforcing tribal identities and fragmenting public understanding of issues.
Example: Networks like Fox News and MSNBC cater to ideologically polarized audiences, creating echo chambers where opposing viewpoints are vilified rather than understood.

2b. Social Media and Algorithmic Bias

Impact: Social media platforms, optimized for engagement, promote content that stokes outrage and division, further polarizing societies.
Example: The rise of “us vs. them” rhetoric online exacerbates divisions, turning political discourse into a battleground of personal attacks rather than constructive dialogue.

D. Societal Fragmentation as an Outcome

1a. Erosion of Trust

Impact: Constant competition erodes public trust in institutions and leaders. People perceive governments as working for partisan or elite interests rather than the common good.
Example: Trust in U.S. government institutions is near historic lows, with Pew Research reporting only 20% of Americans trust the government to do what is right “most of the time.”

2b. Inequitable Policy Outcomes

Impact: Policies often serve the interests of the winning party or their donors, ignoring marginalized groups and exacerbating inequalities.
Example: Tax cuts favoring the wealthy under Republican administrations or corporate bailouts during crises highlight the prioritization of elite interests over broader societal needs.

3c. Alienation and Disengagement

Impact: As people feel their voices are ignored, they become disengaged from the democratic process, leading to lower voter turnout and weakening the system’s legitimacy.
Example: Voter turnout in the U.S. hovers around 60% in presidential elections and is much lower in midterms, reflecting widespread disillusionment.

How Collaboration Is Undermined

Short-Term Thinking: Winner-take-all systems encourage policies aimed at immediate partisan gains rather than sustainable, long-term solutions.
Lack of Inclusive Governance: Minority voices are excluded, stifling innovation and diverse perspectives that could lead to more effective solutions.
Normalization of Hostility: The framing of politics as a zero-sum game legitimizes antagonistic behavior, undermining trust and cooperation across political divides.

Paths Forward: Moving Beyond Winner-Take-All

To counteract these dynamics and foster collaboration, systemic reforms could include:

Proportional Representation: Electoral systems that allocate seats based on vote share encourage coalition-building and fairer representation.
Ranked-Choice Voting: Allowing voters to rank candidates by preference reduces polarization and empowers third-party and independent candidates.
Campaign Finance Reform: Reducing the influence of money in politics can level the playing field and encourage more collaborative policymaking.
Deliberative Democracy: Citizen assemblies and participatory governance models can bridge divides and emphasize collective decision-making.

#4. Moral Compromise & Dehumanization

Both systems (the fictional games and modern day governments) force participants (or citizens) to compromise their ethics. In Squid Game, alliances crumble, and morality is often sacrificed for survival. Similarly, in America, systemic pressures can push individuals or corporations to exploit others for financial gain.
The psychological toll of moral and dehumanization compromises in Squid Game mirrors the experiences of individuals navigating systems of modern democracies, where systemic inequalities force people into decisions that erode their humanity and sense of self. Below, we delve into how these compromises manifest, the toll they take, and their broader implications.

Deeper Dive into Moral Compromise & Dehumanization

A. The Moral Cost of Compromises

1a. In Squid Game

Players are repeatedly forced to make life-and-death decisions, often pitting personal survival against their moral values. Examples include:

Betrayal of Alliances: The marble game forces participants to exploit or betray their closest allies to survive.
Impact: This leads to profound guilt and self-loathing, as participants struggle to reconcile their survival instincts with the harm they’ve caused.

2b. In Democracies

Citizens and policymakers often face decisions that prioritize self-interest or short-term gains over ethical considerations due to systemic pressures. Examples include:

Workers in Low-Wage Jobs: Forced to work under exploitative conditions, such as in sweatshops or unsafe environments, to feed their families.
Voters’ Lesser Evil Dilemma: Choosing between two flawed candidates in elections, leading to feelings of complicity in perpetuating harmful systems.
Impact: Such compromises can result in disillusionment, cynicism, and feelings of helplessness, as people feel trapped in a system where every choice carries moral consequences.

B. The Toll of Dehumanization

1a. In Squid Game

Dehumanization is central to the game’s structure.

Players Reduced to Numbers: Participants are stripped of their names and identities, referred to only by numbers.
Deaths as Spectacle: Their suffering becomes a form of entertainment for wealthy spectators, who view them as disposable.
Impact: The loss of identity and constant objectification lead to a sense of worthlessness and alienation, with many players internalizing their dehumanized status.

2b. In Democracies

Dehumanization occurs subtly but pervasively in systems where human value is tied to economic productivity or political utility.

Economic Systems: People in poverty are often blamed for their circumstances and portrayed as “lazy” or “undeserving,” ignoring systemic barriers like wage stagnation or lack of opportunities.
Partisan Divide: Political opponents are frequently demonized, reducing individuals to caricatures and denying their humanity.
Impact: This dehumanization fosters divisions and erodes empathy, making systemic oppression seem inevitable and even justified.

C. The Psychological Toll

1a. Cognitive Dissonance

Definition: The mental discomfort of holding contradictory beliefs or values.
In Squid Game: Players struggle to rationalize their actions—killing or betraying others—to survive in a system they know is unjust.
In Democracies: Citizens often experience dissonance when participating in systems they recognize as flawed, such as paying taxes that fund unethical policies or working for corporations that exploit workers or the environment.

Impact: Over time, this dissonance can lead to emotional numbness, burnout, or a sense of resignation.

2b. Moral Injury

Definition: The psychological distress resulting from actions—or inactions—that violate deeply held moral beliefs.
In Squid Game: Participants like Gi-hun and Sang-woo endure profound moral injury after betraying their values to survive.
In Democracies:
Policymakers may feel moral injury from enacting harmful policies under pressure.
Low-wage workers or soldiers may grapple with the ethical compromises required by their roles.

Impact: Moral injury often leads to PTSD, depression, and a loss of self-esteem.

Consider the real life recent New Year’s Eve events in the United States. Both bombers were US citizens who had served in the military. Both were decorated servicemen. Both re-entered civilizan society with significant psychological wounds. While the New Orleans bomber found salvation in ISIS, the Las Vegas bomber favored both Elon and Trump and yet blew up a Telsa truck in front of a Trump hotel.

3c. Loss of Agency

In Squid Game: The illusion of choice exacerbates the psychological toll, as players feel forced to act against their will.
In Democracies: Citizens often feel similarly powerless, perceiving their votes or actions as insignificant in systems dominated by corporate interests and elite power.

Impact: A sense of powerlessness can lead to apathy and disengagement from civic life, further entrenching systemic problems.

D. Broader Implications of These Compromises

1a. Fractured Social Bonds

In Squid Game: The competitive structure destroys trust and solidarity, leaving participants isolated and unable to form meaningful connections.
In Democracies: Economic inequality and political polarization erode community cohesion, as people are pitted against each other along class, racial, or ideological lines.

2b. Normalization of Exploitation

In Squid Game: The game normalizes the exploitation of desperate people for entertainment and profit.
In Democracies: Systems like capitalism and the gig economy normalize the exploitation of workers, perpetuating cycles of inequality.

3c. Perpetuation of Oppression

In Squid Game: The system is designed to maintain the power and privilege of the wealthy spectators.
In Democracies: Systemic barriers ensure the continued dominance of the elite, with wealth inequality and voter suppression maintaining the status quo.

Can These Cycles Be Broken?

1. Empowering Individuals: Strengthening education, unions, and community networks to help individuals resist exploitation and reclaim their agency.

2. Systemic Reforms: Implementing policies that prioritize collective well-being over profit, such as universal healthcare or living wages. And, enacting electoral reforms to ensure fair representation and reduce the influence of money in politics.

3. Fostering Solidarity: Building movements that emphasize shared humanity and collective action, countering divisive narratives that dehumanize or isolate.

#5. Spectacle & Entertainment

There are parallels between the spectators in Squid Game and those who benefit from America’s socioeconomic systems, the 1% who sit at the very top of the social pyramid. The wealthy in Squid Game treat suffering as entertainment, much like some aspects of consumer culture profit from and sensationalize hardship in most modern day democracies today.

Deeper Dive into the Spectacle of Entertainment

The spectators in Squid Game represent the detached elite, watching life-or-death struggles as entertainment. Their indifference underscores how spectacle dehumanizes suffering, reducing players to pawns in a game for profit and pleasure.

In America, this dynamic plays out in various ways such as:

Media and Distraction: Reality TV, social media, and partisan news serve as modern-day bread and circuses. They keep people entertained and distracted, preventing deeper engagement with systemic problems.

Profiting from Struggle: From coverage of protests to depictions of poverty and crime, the suffering of marginalized communities is often commodified for ratings, clicks, and profit.

Normalization of Inequality: The glamorization of extreme wealth—juxtaposed with shows like Undercover Boss or Shark Tank—frames inequality as both aspirational and inevitable, distracting from systemic critiques.

Exploitation of Hope: Much like the players in Squid Game, the masses are lured by narratives of success against the odds. These stories maintain the myth that anyone can “win,” even as the system ensures that most cannot.

This spectacle not only distracts but also desensitizes. Just as Squid Game viewers (and even the players themselves) cheer for their favorite players while ignoring the brutality, we become complicit in a system that thrives on inequality, so long as it entertains.

#6. Voting as a Weapon of Division

Voting in both systems has been corrupted to the point of enslavement rather than liberation. In Squid Game, votes divide players, trapping the minority in a deadly system. In America, voting can similarly lead to polarized outcomes where a significant portion of the population feels trapped by decisions made by others whose conscious caculations and choices defy reality, reason, and facts, suggesting stupidity, insanity or criminality at play in their choices. This invites fear and widens scarcity of money and resources for all caught inside the system, and this perpetuates the disfunctional cycle.

Deeper Dive into Voting as a Weapon of Division

In Squid Game Season 2, voting is a deceptive tool. It gives players the illusion of control while dividing them into factions. After each game, just enough players vote to stay, forcing the rest to continue against their will. This creates tension, mistrust, and resentment, ensuring the group never unites against the true oppressors: the game’s creators.

In America, voting often functions in a similar way. While it’s framed as the cornerstone of democracy, systemic inequities undermine its fairness and effectiveness:

Gerrymandering and Suppression: Redistricting, voter ID laws, and reduced access to polling stations skew outcomes, ensuring minority voices often don’t carry equal weight.
Two-Party Entrapment: The binary nature of the system leaves many feeling forced to choose “the lesser of two evils,” which perpetuates disillusionment and apathy.
Polarization: Political and media systems capitalize on division, pitting groups against one another rather than addressing systemic issues. As in Squid Game, these divisions prevent collective action.

This creates a system where voting, rather than empowering, becomes a tool to trap citizens in a cycle of frustration, disillusionment, and inaction.

#7. Narrative of Hope

Investigate the way both systems dangle hope as a motivator. Squid Game players believe they can achieve a better life despite overwhelming odds. In America, the “American Dream” plays a similar role, motivating people to persevere despite systemic obstacles.

Deeper Dive Into the Narrative of Hope

Both Squid Game and modern democracies masterfully dangle hope as a motivator to keep people engaged in systems that exploit them, despite the overwhelming odds against meaningful success. This manipulation of hope creates a powerful psychological hook, ensuring participation while obscuring the deeper systemic issues at play. Let’s explore this in depth:

A. The Nature of Hope as a Motivator

1a. In Squid Game

The Promise of Escape: The cash prize, displayed tantalizingly above the players, represents the ultimate escape from debt, poverty, and desperation.
The Illusion of Agency: Players believe that if they “play smart” or “try harder,” they can achieve victory, even though the game’s design is rigged to ensure most fail.
Impact: Hope becomes a trap, as players cling to the dream of success while ignoring the moral compromises and physical dangers they endure.

2b. In Democracies

The Dream of Upward Mobility: Citizens are sold the idea of the “American Dream” (or similar narratives globally)—that hard work and determination can lead to success, regardless of starting circumstances.
The Illusion of Political Power: Elections and voting are presented as tools for change, yet systemic barriers (e.g., gerrymandering, voter suppression, lobbying) dilute the impact of individual voices.
Impact: Hope keeps people invested in systems that perpetuate inequality, with many blaming themselves rather than the system when success eludes them.

B. How Hope Is Dangled in Each System

1a. In Squid Game

Visualizing the Prize:

The giant glass piggy bank fills with money after every death, making the reward tangible and ever-present.
Psychological Impact: The constant reminder of the prize reinforces hope, even as the number of competitors—and odds of winning—dwindles.

False Choice to Leave:

Players are given the option to leave after the first game, which creates the illusion of freedom. However, the crushing realities of their external lives (debts, poverty) compel most to return.
Psychological Impact: This reinforces the belief that staying is their “best choice,” even though the system is inherently exploitative.

Individual Stories of Success:

The backstories of participants highlight personal struggles, making the prize seem like the only viable path to redemption.
Psychological Impact: Hope becomes deeply personal, tied to notions of worth and survival, which keeps players invested.

2b. In Democracies

Upward Mobility Narratives:

Success stories of individuals who “made it” despite humble beginnings are frequently highlighted in media and political discourse.
Psychological Impact: These stories perpetuate the belief that success is attainable for anyone, masking the systemic barriers that make such stories the exception, not the rule.

Electoral Promises:

Politicians campaign on lofty ideals and promises of systemic reform, often failing to deliver due to institutional constraints or lack of political will.
Psychological Impact: Citizens invest in hope every election cycle, believing “this time will be different,” only to face repeated disappointment.

Small Victories:

Incremental progress, such as raising the minimum wage or expanding healthcare, is celebrated as evidence of systemic change.
Psychological Impact: These victories, while meaningful, often obscure the broader structural inequalities that remain unaddressed.

C. The Double-Edged Sword of Hope

1a. Positive Motivator

Hope can inspire people to persevere and strive for change, even in the face of overwhelming odds.

In Squid Game: Some players exhibit extraordinary ingenuity and resilience, fueled by hope for a better future.
In Democracies: Grassroots movements and social justice campaigns often emerge from hope for systemic change.

2b. Tool of Control

However, hope can also be weaponized to maintain control and prevent rebellion.

In Squid Game: The dangling prize keeps players focused on survival rather than questioning the fairness of the system.
In Democracies: The belief that “change is possible” keeps citizens engaged in electoral systems, even when those systems fail to address root causes of inequality or injustice.

D. The Psychological Manipulation of Hope

1a. Hope as a Distraction

In Squid Game: Players focus on winning the prize, diverting attention from the inhumanity of the games themselves.
In Democracies: Citizens are encouraged to focus on individual success or incremental reforms, distracting from the need for systemic change.

2b. Fear of Losing Hope

In Squid Game: Players fear returning to their desperate lives without even trying for the prize, making them cling to hope despite the risks.
In Democracies: Citizens fear the loss of democratic institutions, even flawed ones, keeping them invested in systems that may not serve their best interests.

E. Breaking the Cycle: Reclaiming Authentic Hope

Recognizing the Illusions:

Both systems rely on manufactured hope to maintain control. Awareness of this manipulation is the first step toward reclaiming agency.

Building Solidarity:

Hope becomes transformative when shared collectively. Movements that emphasize community empowerment, such as mutual aid networks, create authentic hope rooted in collective action rather than individual competition.

Demanding Systemic Change:

Rather than clinging to the crumbs offered by these systems, pushing for systemic reforms—such as universal basic income, proportional representation, or campaign finance reform—can turn hope into a tool for genuine liberation.

HOPE Is Also the Most Powerful Four Letter Word

Here are stories and movements where hope became a force for systemic change, showing how collective action and a shared vision can break cycles of despair and lead to meaningful transformation. These examples illuminate the power of authentic hope rooted in solidarity, persistence, and community action.

1. The Civil Rights Movement (United States)

What Happened:
During the mid-20th century, African Americans and allies fought against systemic racism, segregation, and voter suppression.
Why It’s Hopeful:
Despite violent resistance, the movement achieved landmark victories like the Civil Rights Act (1964) and the Voting Rights Act (1965). Leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. inspired hope by emphasizing justice and equality as attainable goals.
Key Lesson:
Hope is sustained through collective struggle and the belief that systemic change is possible when people unite for a shared cause.

2. The Fall of Apartheid (South Africa)

What Happened:
After decades of brutal racial segregation, the anti-apartheid movement, led by figures like Nelson Mandela, dismantled the apartheid regime through activism, international solidarity, and negotiations.
Why It’s Hopeful:
Mandela’s vision of reconciliation over revenge turned what could have been a destructive transition into a hopeful one. His message that “It always seems impossible until it is done” galvanized millions.
Key Lesson:
Hope can bridge divides, and even entrenched systems of oppression can fall when people refuse to accept the status quo.

3. The Women’s Suffrage Movement (Global)

What Happened:
Across the globe, women fought for the right to vote, facing ridicule, imprisonment, and violence. In the U.S., this culminated in the 19th Amendment (1920), granting women the right to vote.
Why It’s Hopeful:
This decades-long struggle, led by figures like Susan B. Anthony and Emmeline Pankhurst, showed how persistence and organizing could achieve systemic change.
Key Lesson:
Hope fuels long-term battles for justice, proving that systemic barriers can be overcome through intergenerational activism.

4. The Indian Independence Movement

What Happened:
India’s nonviolent struggle, led by Mahatma Gandhi, freed the nation from British colonial rule in 1947.
Why It’s Hopeful:
The movement showed the power of peaceful resistance, with hope as a central theme in Gandhi’s philosophy of satyagraha (truth-force).
Key Lesson:
Hope doesn’t require violence; it thrives on truth, resilience, and collective moral courage.

5. LGBTQ+ Rights & Marriage Equality

What Happened:
Over decades, activists worked to decriminalize homosexuality, fight discrimination, and achieve marriage equality in many countries. Landmark victories include the U.S. Supreme Court’s Obergefell v. Hodges decision (2015).
Why It’s Hopeful:
These achievements, driven by grassroots efforts and brave individuals, transformed societal attitudes and legal frameworks.
Key Lesson:
Hope empowers marginalized communities to push for systemic change, even against entrenched prejudice.

6. Climate Action Movements (Global)

What Happened:
Movements like Fridays for Future, led by Greta Thunberg, and Indigenous environmental activism have raised global awareness about the climate crisis and driven policy changes.
Why It’s Hopeful:
Grassroots activism has forced governments and corporations to confront their environmental impact. The recent surge in renewable energy and sustainability efforts shows progress is possible.
Key Lesson:
Hope motivates action, especially when urgency and community commitment converge.

7. Labor Movements & the Rise of Workers’ Rights

What Happened:
The labor movement of the late 19th and early 20th centuries won rights like the 8-hour workday, workplace safety laws, and union protections.
Why It’s Hopeful:
These victories arose from ordinary people organizing strikes, protests, and boycotts, demonstrating the power of collective action.
Key Lesson:
Hope grows when individuals realize their collective strength can challenge even the most powerful systems.

8. Universal Healthcare Movements (Global)

What Happened:
Countries like Canada, the UK, and many in Europe adopted universal healthcare systems after years of advocacy.
Why It’s Hopeful:
These systems reduce inequality by ensuring that health is a right, not a privilege. Activists in the U.S. and other nations continue to push for similar reforms.
Key Lesson:
Hope is sustained by the belief that essential human needs can be met through equitable systems.

9. Mutual Aid Networks

What Happened:
In times of crisis—such as the COVID-19 pandemic or natural disasters—communities have organized mutual aid efforts, providing food, shelter, and care to those in need.
Why It’s Hopeful:
These grassroots initiatives bypass broken systems to meet immediate needs, showing the power of solidarity and shared humanity.
Key Lesson:
Hope thrives in local action, proving that communities can build resilience even when larger systems fail.

10. The Fight Against Authoritarianism

What Happened:
Movements like those in Poland (Solidarity), Chile (against Pinochet), and more recently in Ukraine and Iran demonstrate resistance to authoritarian regimes.
Why It’s Hopeful:
These struggles often succeed despite overwhelming odds, fueled by hope for freedom and self-determination.
Key Lesson:
Hope becomes unstoppable when people unite to resist oppression, even in the darkest times.

Common Threads of Hope

Shared Vision: Hope grows when people unite around a common purpose.
Persistence: Transformative change often takes years or decades, but hope sustains the fight.
Collective Action: Movements grounded in solidarity harness the power of the many to overcome systemic challenges.
Leadership and Inspiration: Charismatic leaders and powerful stories galvanize hope and action.

These stories remind us that even the most oppressive systems can be challenged and changed when hope is transformed into action.

Speaking about stories…. have you read my book?

Stories are essential for how our minds work and how we use our precious gift of consciousness. If you read my book, you will understand why.

If you absolutely refuse to read my book, then read Isaac Asimov’s Foundation Series. He is talking about the exact same thing as the Sapience Series. I did not realize this when I began my series back in 2012, but having just started Asimov’s Foundation Series about one year ago and just finished his series just before the New Year, I know what he wrote about and what I write about are the same. Most of Asimov’s books are about this… I, Robot; Naked Sun; The Stars, Like Dust (I’m reading this one now), Pebble in the Sky, The Caves of Steel, or The Robots of Dawn.

Or pick up H.G. Wells, The Time Machine; Arthur C. Clarke, Childhood’s End; Orson Scott Card, Ender’s Game; Dan Simmons, Hyperion; Frank Herbert, Dune; Larry Niven, Ringworld; Arthur C. Clarke, A Space Odyssey or Childhood’s End; James S. A. Corey, Leviathan Wakes; Robert A. Heinlein, Starship Troopers; Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy; Iain Banks, Consider Phlebas.

The only way to get out of this Fucking Game that we are all being forced to play is to open our minds. This can only be done one person at a time…. and the very best way to do this is to learn… and the best way to learn is to read, travel, and talk to real people in real places and in real time, which is here and now!

Read… Read… Read!!

Also, please stop at Sapience’s shop: The Quip Collection. I am introducing compelling and chic Year of the Snake wearables as well as Zodiac and Valentines merch with much more to come. Without your time and attention, I will disappear.

Thank you for reading and visiting!

November 4, 2024November 4, 2024

Vote

The feature graphic is created from an e-mail exchange I had with friends about Biden’s comment concerning MAGA supporters being the only garbage swirling around America. Biden was responding to Trump’s Madison Square Garden’s keynote comedian calling Puerto Rico a floating island of garbage.

One of my friend’s thought Biden made a grave mistake akin to Hillary calling Trump’s supporters in 2016 A Basket of Deplorables. But it turns out that Hillary Clinton was right.

My other friend said the following, which I turned into the graphic for this blog, just hours away from Nov. 5, 2024 Presidential election.

When I lived in Germany, I felt I could see why Hitler was able to gain his power.  It was my (probably naïve) view that people in Germany tend to let things happen because they don’t feel they have a lot of power to direct change in their society, just shrug small things off as long as those things don’t step on their toes.  The problem is those small things add up.

Before it is too late to say it, my desire is to have leadership in this country that is based on character rather than caricature, be deliberative rather than authoritative, and have a foreign policy based on facts and diplomacy rather than on blackmail and appeasement.  It is obvious who I’ll vote for.  I am very worried though that it might be for naught,

Basket of Deplorables

I would like to circle back to Hillary’s comment about Trump supporters being a Basket of Deplorables. Had it not been for the Corporate Media planting the idea that this was a huge mistake for Hillary to say in 2016, we might be living in a sane political landscape today.

The double standard applied to Trump and MAGA is galling. They have been getting a free pass on saying the most fascist, misogynist, racist, and dangerous things (things that incited bad things such as Jan. 6).

Indeed, the Corporate Media‘s sane washing of everything they cover concerning Trump is design to make us think that Trump and MAGA are normal. Meanwhile, real politicians such as Hillary, Biden, and Harris are held to civilized, normal, and rational standards. And when they call out the WEIRD, ABNORMAL, and DESPICABLE behavior displayed by Trump & MAGA… they are called out on it by the Corporate Media!

And while We the People are distracted by all this sane washed reality being fed to us by the Corporate Media and Manosphere, Trump and MAGA whine, shout, threaten violence, then whine some more.

Because of this, back in 2016 we (the non-MAGA voting electorate) failed to see Trump for what he really is: Sweet Potato Hitler.

Sweet Potato

Sweet Potato Hitler — Interview with Don Lemon

And NOW in 2024, Trump IS MORE vile and repelling than ever. Indeed, Trump and MAGA are downright rancid, rotten, dirty and nasty. They are violence and hate impersonating as people.

THIS IS NOT NORMAL!!!!

Trump in 2024

Here is what Trump is doing RIGHT NOW in the final days of the 2024 election. And guess what? Trump is even more vile, disgusting, and dangerous than he was in 2016… it should be said Trump and his MAGA maniacs.

Trump Voters Finally TURN AGAINST HIM and GO PUBLIC

Trump Does the UNTHINKABLE at his FINAL SPEECH

🚨 Fascism Expert Gives FINAL WARNING on Trump Before Election | Mea Culpa

Dr Bandy Lee is back to analyze the danger of Donald Trump.

LIVE: Trump Epstein BOMBSHELL DROPS in Final Days | Lights On with Jessica Denson

Trump mental health conference explained with Dr Bandy Lee.

Watch Trump REACT to being FACT CHECKED TO HIS FACE

After near faceplant, Trump delivers TERRIFYING speech

Trump Does UNTHINKABLE ACT **AGAIN** at Closing Speech

Elon Musk gets BAD NEWS in Philadelphia court — for his million dollar a day bullshit effort to try to buy votes for Trump

Trump Notices EVERYONE IS LEAVING His Disaster Rally

Enemy Within | Harris-Walz 2024

Drudge Report, Rolling Stone, Ohio Capital Journal, and MeidasTouch

Recent History Refresher

In an age where opinions matter more than facts, where beliefs and biases trump human rights, dignity, and freedom for all people… these videos highlight some of the things that we have endured as Americans in the past 9 years due to MAGA and Trump.

Fight Like Hell — FULL MOVIE

FOR OUR DAUGHTERS – FULL MOVIE

Against All Enemies – FULL MOVIE

The Supporters – Full Movie

Sustain the Flame – Full (Best Version) Women’s March on Washington 2017

Kamala in 2024

And here is what Kamala is doing as Trump whines, has sex with his microphones, and shits in his pants.

Kamala Harris ad takes over Vegas Sphere

FULL SPEECH: Kamala Harris at the Ellipse in Washington, DC

Vice President Kamala Harris in Detroit, MI

Kamala Harris responds to hecklers during Harrisburg, Pa. rally

Barack Obama LIVE: Obama Rally For Kamala Harris In Milwaukee Before Elections

Brighter Future | Kamala Harris’ Closing Ad

Pete Buttigieg reacts to SHOCKING Iowa poll showing Harris ahead: ‘I could see it’

Kamala Harris takes on SNL in US campaign countdown

Kamala Medley (Harris Walz Campaign Bop) – by Chris Mann

A Place For Trump

VOTE

The 2024 Election Is One Day Away. There are only two choices available to Americans that will end up in the White House in January 2025. To not vote or to vote 3rd party is to give way to fascism… that is what they want to you to do–give up or get so confused you can’t make a meaningful decision

On Tuesday, will you choose Option #1 or Option #2?

Option #1

Trump

Option #2

Kamala

I’ve voted. I voted blue all the way through because Harris and Walz need sane people in the House and the Senate to take America far, far into the future instead far, far into the past.

The future of America rests in your hands. Choose wisely.

Image a country like a creature made up of all of us….

October 24, 2024October 24, 2024

Voting for the Damned & Other Demented Delights

7-12 Days to Go

It’s just 7 days until Halloween… and 12 days until the Presidential elections.

Have you stocked up on Halloween candy?

More importantly—have you voted?

If you haven’t bought your Trick or Treating candy yet, consider yourself lucky. But when it comes to voting, sitting back and letting others decide your future is a gamble you can’t afford. The country needs your voice now more than ever, or we all risk waking up in a nightmare of our own making.

Nightmare of Our Own Making

Don’t Do These Things for the Next 12 Days

Couch Surfing

Doom Scrolling

Remaining an Undecided Voter

Diving into “Deep state” conspiracies holes… Anti-vaccine misinformation holes… QAnon holes… Trump won the 2020 hole…

Fixating on Conspiracies Theories Niches

Zombie Dancing with an Online “Cult” Community

Going to MAGA rallies… or maybe you really need to go to one NOW!

Engaging in Misinformation Manic Madness

Grim Reality

It’s not Breaking News but more like a grim reality that for many Trump supporters, they will not wake up and see the truth of who they are voting for until it’s too late. History has shown us that when power-hungry factions run unchecked, it’s often the very supporters who fall victim to their own foolish belief in “their guy” that leads to a tragic fall into a very deep pit of complacency. Just look at the aftermath of the Russian Revolution or the rise of the Nazi party in Germany. In both cases, extremist elements seized power, leaving a trail of chaos, death, and destruction in their wake.

This is what happens when Sinister Sycophants stir up a mob mentality that prevails in wiping out a functional democracy. Sycophants don’t care. And they don’t discriminate who to blame next for all the terrible things they bring into being once all the previous scapegoats are gone. The people supporting Trump & Dark MAGA today can easily become tomorrow’s victims.

If we don’t stand up now for human rights and dignity, even for Trump cult followers blinded by blind faith in their Sick Sycophantic Fanatic leaders and talking heads, then we all might just find ourselves living in a dark chapter that we never saw coming. So, as you prepare for Halloween, remember: the treats can wait, but your vote is crucial. Don’t let the spirit of apathy haunt you this season.

Spirit of Apathy

Brief History Lesson

After the Tsar was overthrown in Russia and Lenin seized power, he:

He set up his own dictatorship immediately.
He set up a secret police force that was loyal to the Bolsheviks.
He decreed that the government could seize private and church property.
He began to negotiate Russia’s withdrawal from the war.

The secret police loyal to the Bolsheviks hunted down and killed or imprisoned leaders and members of the other forms of communism in Russia in 1917 such as Menshevism, which was a more moderate socialist ideology within the Russian Social Democratic Workers’ Party, advocating for gradual change rather than the Bolsheviks’ revolutionary approach; other factions included the Socialist Revolutionary Party (SRs), with some factions leaning towards more radical forms of socialism and even anarchism.

This resulted in The Red Terror beginning on September 2, 1918 that resulted in the deaths of 50,000 to 600,000 people who held differing opinions and ideas about communism… all were label Anti-Bolsheviks. Other groups targeted included the clergy, rival socialists, counter-revolutionaries, peasant, and dissidents. The Red Terror is followed by the Great Purge where another 220,000 members are purged from Stalin’s ideas of communism. And Stalin is just getting started with these purges.

Or if you prefer to consider Germany in 1920, which is when the Nazi party emerges. It begins as a fringe party until personalities like Hitler rise within its ranks. Hitler was an early adopter of Nazism, joining the party in 1919 when it was still known as the German Worker’s Party.

In 1933, Hindenburg appoints Hitler as chancellor, hoping that the powerful Nazi leader could be brought to heel as a member of the president’s cabinet. Hindenburg sorely underestimated Hitler’s thirst for power and willingness to do anything to get it, including setting the Reichstag building on fire [this would be like Trump setting the Capitol on fire or calling an angry mob to swarm the capitol building on Jan. 6].

Just as Trump called into question the legitimacy of the 2020 election, which he used to sig his crazed crowd on the Capitol, Hitler used the burning of the Reichstag to call for a general election.

However, Hindenburg underestimated Hitler’s political audacity, and one of the new chancellor’s first acts was to use the burning of the Reichstag building as a pretext for calling general elections. The police, under Nazi Hermann Goering, suppressed much of the party’s opposition before the election. The Nazi Party joined forces with the German National People's Party (DNVP), to gain a bare working majority in the Reichstag. Shortly after, Hitler took on absolute power through the Enabling Acts. In 1934, Hindenburg died, and the last remnants of Germany’s democratic government were dismantled, leaving Hitler the sole master of a nation intent on war and genocide. - History: Hitler purges member of his own Nazi part in Night of Long Knives

Before the Holocaust and Hitler’s invasion of Czechoslovakia and Poland, Hitler purged his own part in the Night of Long Knives.

At least 85 people died during the purge, although the final death toll may have been in the hundreds, with high estimates running from 700 to 1,000. More than 1,000 perceived opponents were arrested. The purge strengthened and consolidated the support of the military for Hitler. It also provided a legal grounding for the Nazis, as the German courts and cabinet quickly swept aside centuries of legal prohibition against extrajudicial killings to demonstrate their loyalty to the regime. The Night of the Long Knives was a turning point for the German government.[3] It established Hitler as the supreme administrator of justice of the German people, as he put it in his 13 July speech to the Reichstag.  - Wiki

VOTE… Because Democracies Have Fallen Many Times Before… & Trump Has A Plan

It seems impossible that America sits tittering on the edge of fascism in 2024. Yet, here we are, sitting on the titter totter of doom waiting for a few undecided voters to make up their minds.

The Titter Totter of Doom

And… Then, There’s No Place to Run

If “We the People” fail to understand that this is not an election for who has the best policies and which party is going to take America in a better direction. If we fail to grasp that the clear and present danger to America isTrump and MAGA. If we fail to comprehend that we could lose the very democracy we claim to be voting for on Nov. 5, 2024. And if we fail to vote Kamala Harris and Tim Walz into the White House with an overwhelming majority of votes, then Trump & MAGA have a plan.

Trump Has a Plan to Win Without the Votes—and the Fight Is On to Stop Him

Twist of Fate

This isn’t a new plan or twist of fate. Throughout history, sadistic figures like Lenin, Stalin, Hitler, Putin, and even Trump—though he stands out as the least intellectually formidable—have emerged from the shadows of civilization.

This unsettling theme is at the heart of my book, Sapience: The Moment Is Now. Many friends have told me they find it too depressing to continue reading, often stopping around pages 35 or 50. And by doing so, they miss the chance to truly grasp where the story is heading and why it’s an important story for our present moment in time.

Yes, discussing sadists and psychopaths is uncomfortable. But so is the reality of suffering at their hands. We can’t effectively protect ourselves from looming threats if we bury our heads in comforting illusions and ignore the existence of these dangerous creatures living among us disguised as human beings.

Sapience is a cautionary tale about dangerous figures who have disrupted and destroyed one civilization after another for thousands of years. If we want to survive as a species on our beautiful planet, we need to learn the lessons of our forebears or prepare to perish.

Ben from the MeidasTouch Network articulates a similar sentiment in a recent video, emphasizing that now is not the time to shy away from confronting those who act like monsters.

Trump AWFUL PAST Resurfaces after BURIAL SCAM Exposed — Reporting Only Found at the MeidasTouch

While you are at it, watch this segment about the final two weeks before the biggest election of America’s

Trump Gets DECIMATED by Most SAVAGE ATTACK AD of Election == WATCH to the END It’s Too Important to Make Excuses

Dysfunctional Decals

Now, let’s delve into these stickers that evoke ancient names for the type of creature that Trump embodies and the contagion he has unleashed among ordinary Americans, driving a wedge between us to undermine democracy and pave the way for his hellish victory!

Don’t be fooled by Trump’s worn out, tired, overused ploy tyrants have been using against peace-loving societies for over 5,000 years!

Meet The Eccentric Menagerie

Here are 9 Kiss-Cut Vinyl Decals that encapsulate the Divisive & Dangerous Case of Donald J. Trump. This essential collection features the Betrayer-in-Chief, Airhead Narc, Sinister Sycophant, Half-Witted Hedonist, Obtuse Weirdo, Dim-Witted Psycho, Licentious Sycophant, and the Sore Loser decals.

Betrayer-in-Chief is a striking and thought-provoking design featuring a green-faced depiction of Trump, emblazoned with the bold title “Betrayer-in-Chief.” This decal captures the essence of betrayal in leadership, highlighting the disillusionment many feel toward those in power who prioritize personal gain over the welfare of their constituents.

Airhead Narc is a bold and provocative piece featuring a green-faced depiction of Trump, complete with the striking labels “Airhead” on top and “NARC” at the bottom. This decal humorously captures the essence of narcissism, illustrating how those with narcissistic tendencies often divide the world into simplistic categories of good and bad.

Sinister Sycophant unleashes your inner critic with this striking decal featuring a green-faced depiction of Trump, exuding an aura of malevolence. The bold lettering at the top reads “Sinister,” while the bottom proclaims “Sycophant,” capturing the essence of self-serving flattery and manipulation.

Half-Witted Hedonist features a striking red theme capturing the essence of indulgence and folly. This decal humorously portrays the age-old tendency to prioritize pleasure over wisdom, reflecting how deception can often masquerade as enjoyment. The term “Half-Witted Hedonist” highlights the folly of those who chase fleeting pleasures without consideration for consequences or deeper understanding. It serves as a playful reminder that the pursuit of hedonism, when devoid of wisdom, can lead to misguided choices and a superficial existence.

Obtuse Weirdo is a vibrant, orange-themed design capturing the eccentricity of those who boldly embrace their uniqueness. The term “obtuse” hints at a lack of understanding or sharpness, while “weirdo” affectionately embraces the quirks that make people truly interesting. While being different is something to celebrate, not hide away, this is not the case when the obtuse weirdo is malignant narcissist who will say or do anything to grab power or hang onto power. Then, such a fool becomes dangerous.

Dim-Witted Psycho boldly captures the essence of eccentricity and madness. It playfully explores the juxtaposition of folly and chaos, inviting viewers to ponder the thin line between humor and absurdity. This decal serves as a tongue-in-cheek reminder of the quirks and eccentricities that make life interesting, even when they verge on the outrageous. However, when such an oddity gets a hold of power and can entertain their hypnotized followers into a berserker frenzy, then there is a dangerous problem going on that deserves your time and attention.

The Sore Loser decal boldly showcases the colors of red, white, and blue while playfully confronting the theme of defeat. Featuring the phrase “Sore Loser,” it humorously critiques the reluctance to accept loss, embodying the frustration and stubbornness that can accompany disappointment. The term “sore loser” evokes the image of someone who struggles to gracefully concede, capturing a sentiment that resonates in both personal and political arenas. This decal serves as a lighthearted reminder that losing is a part of the game and embracing it with dignity is far more admirable than clinging to resentment.

Overall, these decals serve as visual critiques of the manipulative tactics employed by wannabe dictators like Trump who exploit their positions for self-serving agendas. Once they get into power, they betray the very people they fooled to gain power.

You can find them at The Quip Collection on this site.

Every Voice, Every Vote

Ending with an upbeat message, this is a short, happy video to the uplifting beat of Sandra Dee Collier called: Every Voice, Every Vote!

Voting Matters! It’s the Key to Being Free!

Vote, vote, vote

October 4, 2024October 4, 2024

A Wheelchair of Wounds: The Psychic Toll of Conflict & Genocide

On October 7, 2023, a significant and tragic escalation occurred in the ongoing conflict between Hamas and Israel. Early in the morning, Hamas launched a large-scale surprise attack on Israeli territory. The attack involved rocket fire and incursions by armed militants into various communities. This assault marked a particularly deadly day in the conflict’s history. It caused many casualties among both Israelis and Palestinians.

In response, Israel declared a state of war and commenced extensive military operations in Gaza. The violence quickly escalated, leading to airstrikes on Gaza and widespread destruction. The international community reacted with alarm, calling for de-escalation and urging both sides to pursue dialogue. The events of that day worsened the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. They also reignited discussions about the long-standing issues at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

As the anniversary approaches, reflections on the events and their aftermath emerge. They highlight the ongoing tensions. These tensions have a profound impact on civilians in the region.

In my book, Sapience: The Moment Is Now, I trace the roots of antisemitism back centuries. These hateful sentiments stretch back to the First Crusades and even further back in time. The night (or rather early morning) of the attack, I had a dream about the Human Cake. It was the second time I had dreamed this dream. It is not a pleasant dream. Rather, it is a shocking, revolting, scary dream, and I could not image why I was dreaming about it again.

In this dream, I see a team of doctors all wearing white coats. They enter a sterile white space where I and others wait. They enter this room through shiny white double doors. Behind these doors is the operating theater where they have been creating their new thing. It is this Thing that they are giving a press conference about. It is clear they are very pleased with their work. I can see their pride on their sly smiles. I can feel their arrogance in the way they push the Thing in a wheelchair for everyone to see.

They spare no gory details on how they created the atrocity sitting in the wheelchair. This Thing used to be a man. Now, it sits as a helpless creature in its wheelchair for it has no legs. Nor can it express any emotions because it no longer has a face. The doctors are proud of these aspects of the creature. They say it is a break through and discuss each step they took to get to this featureless creature.

Everyone in the room sits in stunned silence. There is nothing left of the man except a mound of gory goo. The doctors take turns describing with excitement how they systematically cut off every recognizable feature of the man. They describe with joy how they took these pieces and reattached them to utterly unsuitable places of the body. Places never intended for a severed limb or an eye.

The result is disgusting, stomach-churning, repulsive, beastly, vulgar, and heinous. The doctors did it, but the man volunteered. I couldn’t understand why?! Then, I woke up to the horrible news of what was happening in Israel. I was overwhelmed by the news coming out of Israel. And overhanging this was the shock and horror of my dream that lingered in my mind like an evil specter.

Carl Jung calls such moments as these Moments of Synchronicity. When any human encounters a moment of synchronicity, attention must be paid. This is because often, there is something very important for the individual to know or understand. I knew this was important.

I was working on the final stretch of my book feeling an intense need to get it published by 4/24/24. After October 7, 2023, I stopped writing and editing my book. I could not do a thing in it for the rest of the month. I felt compelled to witness the harrowing stories of survival. And I listened to the tragic stories of death of innocence people at the hands of men filled with hate.

I made a playlist on YouTube called Remember. I saved every story I heard to this list. I was shocked again and again at the savagery described by survivors. The brutality inflicted on babies, children, mothers, fathers, grandmothers, and grandfathers shook me to my core.

After this month of bearing witness, I knew what I had to do with my book. I needed to write about the Human Cake. And I also needed to include the history of the Middle East. This new research and writing sidelined me for at least another month, but I did it.

If you get my book, you will encounter the Human Cake first. He makes his appearance in the book at about page 101. Brothers of the Levant… Before the Fall begins on page 173. Histories of genocides begins around page 320 with the chapter titled: Rise of the Machine.

You need to read all of these sections to gain a full history of current crisis in the Middle East. You also need to read other sections to understand how hate has risen inside of man. He has learned to harness it with machine-like precision. I cover many, many hate groups who have emerged and are growing like a cancer all over the world. In addition, I carefully show how no human being is immune to the infection of hate. These sections are cited for I have researched them intensely. I cite historians, psychologists, and philosophers. Additionally, I reference people who have specialized and written about all this stuff for a very long time.

In this section, I talk about the Human Cake. My character Rain recalls her grandmother’s words about fear and other strong emotions. Her grandmother was a wise woman, and Rain knows she needs wisdom now to survive.

A man who clings to his instinct to kill becomes a person aroused by murder and death. It fascinates him like a candle flame, but to keep the kill candle burning… such a man must kill… constantly. But doing so in a civilized society risks punishment and possibly his own death. And so, such a man fantasizes about murder, mayhem, and massacres inside the confines of his mind. Such a man feeds his fantasies with pictures and images of dead or dying people; kill porn. Such a man glorifies death and idolizes martyrdom. Such a man celebrates the wholesale slaughter of other human beings who he considers to be less than he considers himself to be. It is a false and insincere division made by his foul and increasingly warp light of consciousness that must be constantly fed. He becomes like a drug addict who needs a hit of heroin to feel normal again.

Grandmother said that anything done constantly in the mind soon grows boring to man’s fickle, flickering light of conscious attention, so a man clinging to his kill instinct must up the ante to feed his fading fervor and desire to butcher and decimate other living beings. Such a man may pacify his erotic passion by killing what he considers lesser forms of life. He can also fuel the instinct to kill with anger, regret, and rage. He can work himself up into a berserker frenzy by consuming a steady diet of fury and indignation.

Grandmother said that a man who fantasizes about death and celebrates killing is the devil he fears in others. Such a man cultivates his inner instinct to kill to a fever-pitch, he becomes a tube of intensity, a cannula of desperate excitement, a pipeline of frantic, frenzied, futile fear and rage. His magma tube of hate drops him below the animal realm of living beings, it plunges him below the daemon realm of human beings. He falls into a monster pit, a place where he embodies the wretched vermin that he accuses others of being. His invisible world where all his thinking is done is transformed into Hell’s Kitchen populated by unrecognizable things baked in the heat of hate and scorn.

Such a man uses his laser beam of hate to mutilate his inner man. He disfigures and desecrates his inner self by cutting off his inner man’s fingers and toes, hands and feet, legs, and arms. He pulls out his inner man’s hair and gouges out his eyes. He removes his nose and mouth and face and slops them onto the growing heap of hate he is becoming. Then he turns up the heat of his fear and loathing, baking himself into a human cake made of hostility, disgust, resentment, bitterness, antipathy, and apathy.

Such a dismembered and disfigured inner man can no longer recognize the humanity in himself, and certainly not in others. He becomes a thing of contempt and repugnance, a thing no longer recognizable as human or animal, except for one thing: his thinking and his words. Such a man uses these lingering abilities with deft callousness to beguile and enthrall, to rivet and fascinate, to transfix, super charge, and magnetize the ordinary man and woman… pulling them farther and farther out of the mainstream, tempting them to leave their reservoirs of wisdom with promises of everything but love. Then he destroys their inner equanimity and binds them to him with chains of fear that are firmly fastened to his crumpled wheelchair of cruelty. He must do this for such a man is crippled by his own fear and hate. And so, he needs others to do the terrible things he dreams up, but which he is too cowardly to do himself.

Commanding his army of human zombies from his wheelchair of hate, he must constantly recruit new people to his wretched world of scorn and loathing because he throws his foot soldiers to their deaths again and again. And they must die because they have been commanded to kill the women, kill the children, kill the babies, kill the goats and chickens and dogs and wheat and barley and water… to kill anything resembling life. So, anything resembling life must fight back or be killed and die by the killer human zombies who have been robbed of their souls by the human cakes baked by their own hate.

Just before the Fall, some of the biggest, most hideous, gut-churning, ghastly acts of hate are immortalized as mere numbers: 9/11, 2/24, 10/7. Days of infamy that plunged the highly interconnected world of the dawning 21^st Century not only into bloody, gruesome, localized conflicts and war, but mind grenades carefully calibrated to inspire fear and fill the ordinary man and woman with hate for the other around the entire world. It doesn’t matter what side a person is blown to in the blast of gruesome cruelty. These mind grenades are simply meant to shock and to shake the fragile foundations upon which modern people must trust will protect them and keep them safe.

With the ordinary man’s and woman’s trust in humanity shook, it doesn’t take much more for the most hateful human cakes to shatter any common bonds still holding a civilized society together into a million, billion bits. Once shattered, the hate filled human cakes rearrange the shiny, reflective shards of human consciousness like tiny mirrors on a disco ball. The human cakes shine their light of hate on the remnants of the ordinary man’s and woman’s sense of safety and security.  -- Excerpt from Sapience: The Moment Is Now

What else can I say about hate of Human Cakes?

I can only show you the drawing I made of this creature… the one I dreamt about on the morning of October 7, 2023 for the second time. The dream I knew I needed to pay attention to… and so I did.

**Human Cake of Hate –**– Art in *Sapience: The Moment Is Now* — DMW, All Rights Reserved

Archetypal Animation

Music: Album: Foreboding Whispers — Experia –– Friends Make the Worst Enemies

Beware the Human Cakes!

They look like ordinary people.

They talk like ordinary people.

They pretend to be kind and compassionate.

They pretend to care about you, the hurt and forgotten souls left behind by a mad world.

But they are not human inside anymore.

Once they catch you in their hypnotic claws, they will control your psyche.

They will toy with your mind like a cat plays with a captured mouse.

These are creatures from the darkest places inside the human mind.

These are monsters who come from the most hateful places inside a man’s soul.

These things have reached a place inside themselves that is beyond the human realm of being.

I. Divine Seeds: From Righteousness to Ruthlessness

A. Hall of Ruthless Rulers

B. Previously, Wisdom Guardians Explored

II. The Making of a Ruthless God-King

A. The Birth of a Ruthless Empire: Qin Shi Huang’s Ascent

B. Instruments of Control: Suppression, Propaganda, and Loyalty

C. Obsession with Legacy and Immortality: The Mausoleum and its Irony

D. The Perils of Unchecked Power: Succession and Collapse

III. Core Parallels: Qin Shi Huang vs. Trump

🔥 More Core Parallels (from a different lens): Qin Shi Huang vs. Trump

1. Loyalty Tests & Political Purges

2. Erasure of History & Intellectual Suppression

3. Rule by Legalism

4. Tyranny Masked by Divine Mandate

5. Obsession with Legacy, Power & Immortality

6. Cover-Ups, Propaganda, and Puppet Governance

Additional Archetypal Themes:

Conclusion: The Enduring Shadow of Ruthlessness

IV. Timeline of the Unification and Fall of Imperial Qin & Key Players

Cast of Characters

V. Factsheet: Qin Shi Huang’s Empire: Power, Ruthlessness, and Legacy

How did Qin Shi Huang consolidate his power and what were the consequences of his ruthlessness?

What was the significance of Qin Shi Huang’s quest for immortality and his grand mausoleum?

How does the “Calling a Deer a Horse” idiom illustrate the dangers of unchecked power and suppression of truth?

What role did deception and cover-ups play in the succession after Qin Shi Huang’s death?

How did Qin Shi Huang’s policies reflect Legalist philosophy?

What were some of Qin Shi Huang’s major construction projects and what was their purpose?

How did the concept of the “Mandate of Heaven” influence Qin Shi Huang’s reign and its perceived challenges?

How do themes from Qin Shi Huang’s reign, such as loyalty tests and suppression of history, parallel authoritarian tendencies in modern leaders?

VI. Qin Shi Huang: Architect of Ruthlessness and Empire’s Fall – Study Guide

A. Quiz: Ten Short-Answer Questions

B. Essay Format Questions

C. Glossary of Key Terms

VII. Sources

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🌪 This Reckoning Was Foretold

Life Is Barely Fiction NOW

How This Happened

I. What Was Lost — Details on job cuts, offices affected.

Who’s Been Lost at NOAA & NWS — And What It Means

II. How Forecasting Is Faltering — Data shortages, broken systems.

Six Months In: Cracks Become Chasms

III. Lives on the Line — Highlight Texas tragedies and the human toll.

Weather-Related Deaths Linked to Undercut Forecasting

🔥 April–May Tornado / Severe Storm Season

🌊 July 4–5, 2025: Central Texas Flash Floods

IV. Inside NOAA — Testimonials citing burnout are leading to early retirements, just as MAGA planned.

The Human Toll: Inside NOAA’s Ranks

V. Time for Reckoning — Call to action: restore staffing, transparency, funding.

Time for Reckoning?

Relevant News on NOAA & Texas Floods

Relevant News on TX Floods:

Weather Ballon sources:

🛡️ Wear Your Values & Inspire Others

🔗 The ABCs of Democracy Products

ABCs of Democracy T-Shirt, Retro Adventure Tee for Patriotic Enthusiasts, Bold Statement Graphic

🚫 No Federal Workers? No Future! 🚫 Eye-Catching Yard Sign for Awareness & Activism

No Federal Workers No Democracy Political Round Vinyl Stickers

Archetypal Animation

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How Illusion Shapes Reality in 2025

Midsummer Myths and Modern Mind Games

Smoke: Manufactured Chaos

Mirrors: Apperception and Archetype Hijack

What Can You Do in the Forest of Illusion?

This Summer, Be a Watcher. Not a Pawn.

Feature Animation

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Be Curious — Remain Open to Learn New Ideas & Grow

How Religion Helped Pave the Way for MAGA’s Desire to Destroy Everything & Punish Everyone

On Lies and the People Who Believe Them

What’s going on in the minds of Trump supporters

Time to Look In the Mirror for sure!

Why America is Not a Moral Country

Tired Uncle Sean — Like Father Like Son

Decline of the American Empire — Talking Economic Sense

Sapient Merch

**IV. Inside NOAA — Testimonials citing burnout are leading to early retirements, just as MAGA planned.**