I have a couple of big announcements today. First of all, if you have been with me from the start, you may be surprised to hear that today, April 1st, 2026, is the 20th anniversary of the first Rembis Report. Of course, it wasn’t a solid twenty years of writing this blog. There was lots of down time because I was doing other things. Looking for jobs. Going to work while plucking away at multiple creative tasks and still writing essays between everything.

Twenty years sailed by really quick.

If you have been with me for a while, you may recall my post about the scary story I wrote. However, if you are relatively new here, and only know me from my essays, you may be intrigued to know that I also write screenplays, poetry, critiques of other works, and novels.

It is with great pride and immense pleasure I announce that my novel, Eternity’s Grasp, has been welcomed to drop anchor and take up mooring at Dark Harbor Press.

It is an absolute thrill to be invited to partake in traditional publication, and I am so thankful. It took me quite a while to reach this goal. I wrote the first draft in the 1990’s and presented it to a few alpha readers in 2002-2003. I took all those notes and digested them for a long time, writing and rewriting, and all the while, cranking out screenplays and essays and getting sidetracked by other creative endeavors, like making films, and trying to promote all that.

About five years ago, I picked up Eternity’s Grasp again, dusted it off, tweaked it to exactly what I wanted it to be, and asked beta readers for guidance. Thanks to them, I got it where it is today. After a long bout of the obligatory submission letter being revised again and again after dozens of (around 140) rejection letters from agents and publishers, I was finally accepted by Dark Harbor Press.

This is not only a big win for me, but a true milestone for Dark Harbor. Eternity’s Grasp will be their first novel. Based in Charlotte, North Carolina, editor Jimmy Blakemore established the online editorial Macabre Magazine a few years ago. It hosts a wonderful library of short stories dedicated to horror. The move into long form fiction comes as a natural progression and it is my honor to be such a huge part of this growth.

There are final edits to be done, so the complete manuscript will be presented in early 2027. In the meantime, I will still be writing occasional essays and posting them here. It has been a year now since my position at Florida Fish & Wildlife was eliminated. Although I am technically unemployed, and it is a pleasure to write and research, my only means of support through this undertaking are from the generosity of my readers. However, while I find the subscription model which Substack offers writers to be somewhat distasteful, it is an absolutely necessary evil for writers like me, who have few other places to set up shop and find exposure to an appreciative audience.

You have seen it when subscribing to a writer you enjoy. Donation options appear. Free is always free, but you may not get to see everything the writer posts. To do that you need to sign up for monthly or annual pay plans. And there is a higher price level for Founding Members, kind of like getting your name on a brick. The higher the plan, the more the reader gets to break through the paywall to read everything. There is no paywall for The Rembis Report, because I would love for everyone to be able to read and share it, but there are multiple options for appreciative readers to pledge their support. If the internet itself is all somebody can afford, then I would hate to be that guy who teases somebody with a few paragraphs and hits you with now pay up sucker!

This may be narcissistic on my end, and to some degree, I concur with that, however, I am looking far forward, beyond myself and my own life, in consideration of what I will leave the world when I am no longer around to see it. If I put up a paywall and die, and stop writing, who gets paid? The Substack platform, that’s who. Not that there is anything wrong with that. Of course, they should get a cut for providing a service, but what happens in fifty or a hundred years from now, when my little time capsule that is The Rembis Report sits here awaiting discovery? It might be able to teach or entertain somebody with a window to the 2020’s, so why would I want to stop anybody from reading it? I consider this a library of my viewpoint of the world. Libraries should be free.

So, with the Substack platform, everybody may read everything I post here, for free. That said, the utility companies aren’t giving me anything free, so I still need to pay them if I want lights and water, which I do. While waiting for books to hit bookshelves and for millions of people to send Eternity’s Grasp bounding onto The New York Times Bestsellers list, I have another option for those who wish to support my writing. You may now commission an essay.

That’s right. I will write an essay just for you. Well, sort of.

You tell me what you would like me to write about and I will. Think of it as a request line with a tip jar.

A few rules:

I write the way I write. My style. My rules. It might be short, it might be verbose, it may even be several issues long, but it will be purely my own opinion on whatever you ask me about.

You won’t get the essay all to yourself. It will be public for all to read. You can let me know if you would like to remain anonymous or thanked publicly, but no bylines. This is strictly a commission.

I may refuse your offer. While I appreciate the opportunity, not every subject is for me.

To request an essay, please visit the link below.

Mike Rembis' Shop | Buy Me a Coffee

Just to be clear, I am not really asking for coffee. I have coffee. This is to get cash. It’s like a metaphorical cup of coffee.

Speaking of coffee, one of my books of poetry is named Coffee. That is because it is a long poem about coffee. If you would like to know more about what I have written besides the Coffee poem, this blog, and my upcoming novel, please visit my new and improved website. Like me, it is a work in progress, but I dropped a lot of info there, and much more is on the way.

Mike Rembis - Writer

For most of us, this April First will be a typical Wednesday. For me, it is kind of special, for all the reasons just stated. To make it even more extra special and momentous, NASA scheduled the Artemis launch for today, in my honor, which I find quite humbling.

Hey, Mike, I think that is just a coincidence, and not really in your honor.

You look at things your way, and I’ll look at them, mine.

Thanks again for reading The Rembis Report, following along on my writing journey, sharing my work with your friends, and your financial support. To those who pledge, and for everyone blessed with spare change, before sending it my way, please consider sharing your gifts with those less fortunate than myself.

Millions of people are suffering from war and famine. Millions of acres of land and vast stretches of our oceans are in decline. Millions of species are at risk of extinction.

Millions in every category. This is not an exaggeration. And there are many, many different ways to help. Too many to list. Please search online for something you care about and help that cause, because if you don’t do it, who will?

Give a gift subscription

But forget about all that for right now. In the great scheme of things, you can’t do anything about it. Any decision you make from your chair as you read this on your little screen will make absolutely no difference at all. If you are not entrenched in the conflict, up close and personal, all you can do is watch. Maybe pray, if that is your thing.

But there are other things you can do for the world. Right here in the good ol’ USA there are problems we can solve. There is another war, a possible ending, an Armageddon we can derail and avoid altogether, if you can take a few minutes to actually do something about something that you can actually do something about.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) does not operate in secret. They do, however, take no great effort to advertise what they are doing with our public lands.

Today I bring you a time-sensitive issue that you should weigh in on. Oregon’s ancient boreal forests are under threat of being decimated through the renewal of decades-old management policies. Just a couple weeks ago, on February 19th, the BLM published a Notice of Intent to start harvesting Oregon’s old growth forests to the tune of 2.5 million acres to bring wood production levels back up to one billion board feet per year. This is what they used to harvest before restrictions were in place.

As of this writing, you have less than three weeks to respond.

Thanks to biologists and ecological activists who see the coming devastation for what it is, they have sounded the alarm. I can’t put it more plainly than brothers Jim and Will Pattiz who run the Substack blogsite More Than Just Parks have.

Please read this article BLM Announces Plan to Fell Oregon's Last Great Forests.

Your U.S. Federal government is looking at tapping into 2.5 million acres of land. That’s bigger than Rhode Island. If you have never been to Rhode Island, imagine something bigger than Yellowstone National Park, which is 2.2 million acres. If you haven’t been to Yellowstone, you should go before they decide to attack that. But to see what we are talking about here, look at all those bright green blotches in this map of Oregon. Those are the O&C Lands.

You have until March 23, 2026, to tell the BLM why we have no true need to harvest these forests, that they should be left alone to be explored and enjoyed for what they are. Peaceful wilderness for the sake of tranquility.

According to Jim Pattiz - “There is no lumber shortage. We already produce enormous amounts of timber. Canada, the world’s softwood giant, can supply more lumber than we could ever reasonably use, and at bargain prices.

The Trump administration imposed tariffs, drove up prices, then declared a crisis of its own making to justify logging old growth.

And now they’re talking about returning logging to 1960s levels — the era of industrial clearcutting that scarred the Pacific Northwest and nearly erased what little ancient forest remained. For what? We’re not running out of lumber. We’re not dependent on old growth to build homes. Most of that timber wouldn’t even stay here, it would go overseas.

Cutting down 400-year-old forests when we already have all the lumber we need is vile and senseless. The only way to explain this is that it’s greed mixed with staggering economic stupidity.”

You can do your own research and hear the arguments that we need more timber, that Johnny Chainsaw needs a job, that all these little communities will prosper from destroying the land that all the tourists come to see.

You will hear that increased timber production won’t harm tourism at all. But you won’t hear anyone pointing out that when you have less forest to roam in peaceful serenity, and force all the tourists into a condensed region, that area gets crowded and overdeveloped, and defeats the purpose of wilderness, because what once was, will no longer exist.

It is a fact is that there is no true need to increase timber production this aggressively. There are enough trees being grown and harvested throughout North America to build anything we need right now. Harvesting more will not bring down the price of lumber or make anything else cheaper as a result. There is no good reason to decimate the habitat of wild animals and centuries old trees. It is just another cash grab by friends of the Trump administration to make already rich people richer, even faster than they could before, so they can buy more garbage that does nothing useful, like data farms that keep track of how many acres of forest are left to mutilate, wildlife be damned.

Since time is truly of the essence right now, and I urge you to take action today, I am not going to add a lot here. No big, long, structured rant with a bunch of statistics to prove a point. It should be fairly obvious that once you cut down trees that are centuries old it is going to take centuries to replace them. Replacing them with a sign for future generations and telling them to come back in 500 years to see what they missed will not do the trick.

There is plenty of wood to be harvested from burn scars throughout North America. Yes, even though it is singed, lots of it is perfectly good wood. It can still be used for toilet paper, junk mail, and charcoal. Bigger trees can still be used for plank wood. The technology to harvest burned wood is there and Johnny Chainsaw doesn’t care. For him, it’s still a six-pack at the end of a shift no matter what you cut.

I have roamed Oregon on several occasions. Lost backroads near the California border, the sanctity of the Cascade Range, the Pacific Crest Trail, are soulful, magical places. Anyone who has stood in its forests will concur.

It is understandable that wood will always remain a resource and valuable commodity. Yet there are alternatives to chopping down old growth forests. Bamboo, hemp, straw, even mushrooms can replace much of the wood pulp used for lightweight materials we use every day. Many of these options can even substitute for plastics, when plastic is not particularly necessary.

When it comes to building materials, steel and concrete are considerable alternatives to lumber and can also come from recycled materials.

The main argument you will hear from naysayers of recycled material is that associated costs are too high. But so, what? Just build less stuff. Build smarter. We have the technology to destroy less and produce better, cleaner alternatives in every facet of our lives. We should be doing so for one simple reason: it is the right thing to do.

In case you missed my 6-part essay series this addendum is for, here it is.

It is an examination of recycling, the pros and cons of clean energy, like windmills, and climate change. I hope you will read it.

But right now, please pen a letter to the Bureau of Land Management and weigh in on their proposal to restart aggressive timber harvests.

Submit a comment. You can do it right now:

• Online: ePlanning project page — click “Participate Now”

• Email: BLM_OR_Revision_Scoping@blm.gov

• Mail: Bureau of Land Management Oregon/Washington State Office, 1220 SW 3rd Avenue, Portland, OR 97204, Attn: Elizabeth Burghard, RMP Revision

To learn more about the importance of Oregon’s beautiful forests and how you can help protect them, please visit Oregon Wild. They are Oregon’s oldest statewide environmental nonprofit working to protect wildlands, wildlife, and waters for generations to come.

After you send your notification to the BLM, mark your calendar for Earth Hour. It is (always the last Saturday in March) March 28th, 8:30 PM Local Time. Dim your lights and look up to the night sky. Think about your planet and how you can help it. Then, make a plan to do something fun for Earth Day, on April 22nd.

We do not fight for wilderness for selfish reasons; we do so in order for future generations to enjoy what we leave as legacy.

We should not leave anything less than our very best.

Thanks for reading.

Reading from the start is recommended.

• Click here to read Part I

• Click here to read Part II

• Click here to read Part III

• Click here to read Part IV

• Click here to read Part V

• Click here to read Part VI

• Click here to read part VII

  

There is a lesson to be learned from E.B. White’s story of Charlotte’s Web. In case you are unfamiliar with the novel, first published in 1952, taught in schools, produced as a full-length feature animation boasting a musical score with Paul Lynde as Templeton, the original singing rat, long before Ratatouille, you may wish to familiarize yourself with the plot. But, since you are already here, I will give you the Cliff Notes version.

Wilbur is a pig who gets along with all the other animals on the farm. He is almost killed as the runt of the litter, but when Fern, the farmer’s daughter protests, she is allowed to raise Wilbur. She doesn’t realize she is raising him to be bacon and ham hocks. When she figures it out, Wilbur’s friends, the other animals, come to his aid. One of those animals is Charlotte, a spider who lives above his pen. She has the amazing ability to spin words into her web, and one morning the farmer finds “SOME PIG” miraculously written in Charlotte’s Web.

Wilbur becomes a star. People come from all over to see the famous pig with the amazing spider web. This kooky spider somehow saves him from the slaughterhouse. But when the celebrity stories simmer down, that talk is raised again, so Charlotte gets back to work and weaves the word “TERRIFIC” in the web, then follows up with “RADIANT.”

Wilbur goes to the fair as that infamous terrific, radiant pig. Charlotte tags along to the fair and weaves “HUMBLE” into the web. Judges choose another pig as best in show, but Wilbur, the humble, radiant, terrific pig gets a reprieve from the chopping block, and wallows in his fame for the rest of his days.

So, what’s the lesson, Mike?

Well, there are many. But first of all, let’s look at the guardian angel, the protector, the weaver of the web. The one who creates what they want everyone to see.

Just like a train crash, where seeing everything in one fell swoop is impossible, you may think you know who is weaving the web but fail to realize the conspiracy behind the messaging. The farmers never knew that the other animals gave Charlotte words for her web to describe Wilbur, just as you can’t see exactly who is really crashing the train. All you see is the messaging of the day, which is meant as a distraction, to save the pig. The pig is not a person. The pig is money.

A piggy bank?

If you like. However, its purpose is not so much to save money, as it is to steal it. This is the whole reason for the train crash of the United States of America. To make money.

The brilliance of the crash is that the spider sending the message is completely hidden from view. You will see the web and marvel at its construction, but the messenger remains in the shadows.

Building the web requires people working toward their own selfish goals. One person can’t build such a complex structure alone. So, looking at any one person proves nothing, but when observed together, examining the web and the crash together as an interactive structure, you discover these unwitting conspirators, so far removed from the crash site there is not one single person you may point to with confidence and say, “They did this.” Instead, the crash is blamed on failures of the systems in place, on multiple levels.

The crash, which has already happened, may now only be viewed as a catastrophe. Walking it back and resurrecting the train as it once was, is impossible. You can’t just put it back on the tracks.

Just like you can’t rewind any other kind of crash. You can’t pull cars back after they run red lights and smash into other vehicles. You can’t reverse a ship slamming into a bridge. You may only study the aftermath and learn how failures arise to avoid such things from happening again.

When the military helicopter and commercial airliner struck each other over the Potomac River last year, there was not one single person to blame. “Deep, underlying systemic failures — system flaws — aligned to create the conditions that led to the devastating tragedy,” said NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy.

That’s all you get. Just something to study. Go back to the drawing board and try not to let it happen again. It is as simple as that.

But with a country caving in on itself, like the United States is now, a new concept of a plan is needed, and it must go into motion immediately. It is imperative that those rushing to take the helm fully understand these failures, work to tear down the web that exists, and begin building stronger security measures to safeguard against autocracy and fascism.

The most devastating recent developments are how the EU and Canada have found it necessary to build up resistance to the United States. Canada will now get their fighter jets from European countries, and the United Kingdom has suspended sharing intelligence with the United States. Cutting ties with the strongest economic and military force on the planet is not done without good reason. The public message displays a moral decision, based on the rhetoric and posturing of Trump on the world stage. What you don’t see is that this is happening because they have more information than the general public has access to. They know something you don’t.

Looking at all of the factors, what you have heard on the news, what you have witnessed with your own eyes, and considering the changes in the policies of other countries; you should know how this affects you whether you are American or not. The wealth of information that is available should help you realize that you may not know everything. But some people do. A minute fraction of people know much, much more than lots of other people.

This is how conspiracy theories thrive. You are presented with facts derived from news and world events that you have witnessed yourself. Facts that have been scrutinized by scores of pundits and bloggers and dissected and rewritten as opinions, such as my own, for example. Because these people do not have all of the facts, they fill in blanks with what ifs? Many opinions grow into theories which may or may not be true. These theories flourish.

The internet is rife with conspiracy theories about everything.

EVERYTHING.

So, the reliability factor is up to the readers, the listeners, the viewers, who may choose to believe them or not. Now, as we examine what we think is the full scope of the train crash, let’s take a look at what some people believe.

One crime syndicate controls the entire world. This may be the boldest claim of all. Meeuwis T. Baaijen wrote the book The Predators versus The People, where he says that a Global Mafia (what he calls Glafia) has been running the world for the last 500 years. The self-published expose is only sold via online download. His 300-page PDF file is available in six languages. Baaijen presents evidence that the wealthiest of families, names you have heard in history books, through current day, are the people who actually run the world. These are the people you work for whether you realize it or not.

They gained extraordinary wealth and used it to shape the world we live in now, and make everything happen, so that you, if you are a cog like me, are exactly where you are because you were not born into that wealth or forced your way into it through marriage or invention. It’s why you are in the 99%. Nice to know that somebody took the time to explain this to us, so we don’t feel so bad about shopping at Walmart or waiting in traffic behind hordes of Amazon trucks. This is your destiny, child.

The most recent and prevalent conspiracy theories are arising from the millions of pages of newly released Jeffrey Epstein files. There is no way to read them all. I say that because it would be the equivalent of somewhere between 10,000 to 20,000 three-hundred-page novels, and personally, I just don’t think anyone could do it. Even if you could, would you want to? This is the kind of work that takes a village. A cadre of dedicated people poring through page after page, one over the other, to dissect and learn who he associated with, what they did, and find absolute truth.

Since so much of it was made public, you too, may don the mantle of sleuth and search to your hearts content.

This is a link to the official Department of Justice Epstein files. Check in, let them know you are over 18 years old and away you go. Search for a person. Search for a date. Search for a random phrase. I searched for corduroy and nine files popped up. It’s like the whole world is in there. According to several conspiracy theorists, it is.

Once again, many links here go to writers on Substack, which has transformed into a community of well informed and easily accessible people with strong opinions and ideas about everything. EVERYTHING! Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) investigators have found their niche and audience here. Based on what I have learned from sources both here and outside of Substack, like mainstream media, a lot of them make a lot of sense. They are presenting evidence backed up with citations for their information and spend considerable effort connecting dots. I think many are worth paying attention to.

The Cabal Is Real: Epstein’s Project to F*ck America is a posting by anti-disinformation activist Jim Stewartson. He offers dozens of links to files that include FBI tipline documentation, private emails with Elon Musk, and redacted photographs of Epstein and others with (presumably) young girls. Stewartson is not alone. Far from it. There are now thousands, maybe millions, of people sifting through the information. Spend a little time on Twitter (I know it’s X now, but I am still calling it Twitter because Musk hates that), Bluesky, or Substack, and in one second you will find dozens of links to what everyone found. Just go ahead and take a look. One thing that Stewartson is right about is that there is a level of unconscionable depravity among the wealthiest people Epstein dealt with.

Some writers don’t use their full names. They prefer anonymity because they like their privacy. When tackling rough subjects, maybe they need it. While you may wonder about the authenticity of their offerings, writers like Ricky at Council State Media, scrape through the Epstein files and share things you can easily verify through a simple cross reference. It is a lot easier than searching yourself, and his latest issue, The Epstein files contain admissions of murder and other serious crimes so why no arrests? is one of the few who are sharing screenshots of some of Epstein’s sickest emails.

Like I say, EVERYTHING is out there. Now, stuff you never thought you would ever hear is one click closer. Check out some of these conspiracy theories:

• Preposterous Narrative around The Charlie Kirk “assassination” that Never Happened

• America’s Cult of the Car is Behind the Greenland Invasion Plans

• The Epstein files show we are ruled by demonic paedophiles

• These Dumb Bastards Actually Think They Can Pull This Off

• They Built Jeffrey Epstein: Do Birthday Letters Reveal a 20-Year Intelligence Operation?

• Exposed: The Putin-Epstein-Trump Connection

• We can’t pretend that Trump is calling all the shots

• No, Epstein was not a Russian spy, he was an Israeli one

• ‘The perfect target’: Russia cultivated Trump as asset for 40 years – ex-KGB spy

• How the KGB recruited Donald Trump

• ‘Trump Has Already Rigged the 2028 Presidential Election’: US Defence Insider

I know it is a lot, but this is a tease compared to everything else. There are classic conspiracies, like the ever popular: PROOF: Jeffrey Epstein didn't hang himself.

And if you like quasi-occult observations, you might like to read about The Remote Viewer Who Is About To Expose Trump, or if you can handle something a little darker, try this Epstein Shocker: They Were Selling Babies.

It seems like there is no end in sight. There are so many stories to tell that finding a proper beginning and end is the toughest part. Like trying to figure out a train crash in real time.

As your guide through this trove of information, I must make one thing perfectly clear; I do not necessarily believe any of it. I present these observations for you to make your own decisions. While I might lean toward belief in some cases, I try my best to present these options in a fair and balanced manner, so that you may decide for yourself which absolute facts lead to obvious truths, which lead to fiction, and which ones put you squarely on the fence of judgement.

As always, do your own research, draw your own conclusions, and speak out.

While our intrepid federal government brought us the Department of Justice Website’s Epstein Library, another internet desk chair warrior compiled all of Epstein’s emails into Jmail — The Jeffrey Epstein Emails. You can click this link and look through a compilation of his emails. It’s like he walked away from his computer and left it on for you to read. You can scroll through emails between him and Ghislaine Maxwell, Elon Musk, Steve Bannon, Peter Theil, Bill Gates, and more. Even Deepak Chopra. But not Bill Clinton or Donald Trump. Can’t find anything from them. Maybe that’s another mystery to solve.

There are other sources, though. Not everything comes from the Epstein files. And not everything is a conspiracy. Sometimes it’s something that feels too real to be false, no matter how bizarre. People get into that warren of wonder and write stuff like this: Examining Trump’s Diaper Secret, and while it at first sounds like it is just poking fun at the president, it is a lot more serious. Allegations of sexual assault and murders with timelines to prove it. As nutty as some things appear, it’s weird to listen to a whole story that in the end, sounds like it makes sense. Unbelievable, yet plausible.

That’s what the explanations for the train crash are. Fantastic. Unbelievable. Possible. Plausible. Horrifically reasonable. If somebody were to write a screenplay based on everything about Donald Trump, and Donald Trump did not exist, nobody would ever believe it, so the film would never be made. The whole true story is just too weird.

As world leaders draw away from Trump and look into prosecutions of their own, based on the Epstein Files, they now see Trump as unfit for office. They are looking at our country as a systemic failure with people unable to choose an adept leader. When we look at Trump through the lens of age and deterioration, we get summations that reach beyond incontinence, and dive right into mental illness and decline.

Doctors and psychiatrists weigh in from afar with Is Trump well enough to lead? This is one of many articles that examine his health in detail. The New Republic outlines his health issues and faux paws stemming from them with a countdown of highlights from his 2025 return to office with Cognitive Decline? These Were Trump’s 11 Most Senile Moments This Year.

Publicist Wendy A. Lawrence offers an alternative observation in Trump’s Behavior Isn’t Dementia. It’s Much Worse, where she details Trump’s alleged drug use over the years, and how it affects his health and the presidency.

With all this information, based on first-hand accounts, rumors, physical observations, and irrefutable facts, the main question I have is: What if everyone is right that he uses illicit unprescribed drugs and he has dementia? What then?

Wow, Mike. I never thought of that. Mind-blowing!

Okay. If that snags your tripwire, get a load of this - what if everyone is wrong? He never used drugs and doesn’t have dementia at all. He is aware of everything, and he is who he is, and we are dealing with a sane person who really wants everything he says he wants and believes everything he says, even when he is provably wrong. What then?

Oooh, never considered that.

Well, now that you have, consider everything else you don’t have all the facts about.

Is he really writing his own Truth Social posts with everything spelled correctly? Or is it a manipulation where he doesn’t even know that Truth Social exists? How is it that he has never commented on South Park putting him in bed with Satan or complained at all about anyone calling him a pedophile rapist? Is he really getting all the information we have, or is he being fed a sparse diet of facts and rumors so that he can be manipulated into being who he is? It is my bet that this is the case.

Essayist Heather Delaney Reese says We can’t pretend that Trump is calling all the shots. It is her conclusion that Trump is not autonomous. Instead, he is a puppet who is suspended by strings held by every person who supports him, from the White House cabinet to billionaires. They can make him do anything. This may also be true.

Can you just pick one theory and stick to it, Mike?

Can you? Take a look at your train crash and you tell me what’s really happening.

We could go the existential route and take spirituality into consideration. We could conclude that angels and demons are real and somehow these super-wealthy people sold their souls for earthly riches, and when the Devil comes to collect, he helps you craft a noose from your jail cell bed sheets, completing the transaction for the chaos left in your wake.

Or we could reject that and go the political route, the one that leans into the long game of world dominance and stick with the idea that Russia is usurping America.

To explain the train crash, this theory makes the most sense. When you look at everything; medical issues, psychological issues, personality traits, the supporting cast of despicable characters, the policies they are pushing, and how much money is involved, it all sounds like a Russian agenda to crack up the United States from inside the White House, like the killer hiding in the closet in a horror film.

Who else benefits from the United States becoming a pariah? Stealing oil, killing people on random boats, hunting our own citizenry, threatening sovereign nations with invasion, building large, isolated prisons, and bombing anyone without warning are the hallmarks of Russia.

So, if I were to craft my own conspiracy theory about what caused the train crash of the United States of America, I would start here. His aforementioned meetings with Russian leadership and oligarchs throughout the 1980’s and 1990’s, Trump’s insatiable desire for more of everything, his unrelenting drive to remain in the spotlight, and the solid belief that he can do anything he wants, because it has mostly been allowed to happen, make him the perfect patsy. Other than Joe Biden’s presidency, he pretty much got everything he wanted, and as a result, our current situation is ideally a push in the direction Russia and Vladimir Putin wants. Remember that Russia is playing the long game. They don’t need to win right away to really win. They do so by chipping away at a target until they attain it and now Russia may be close to making a deal with Trump.

According to The Washington Post Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says he has seen intelligence documents “that laid out a framework for U.S.-Russian economic cooperation” worth about $12 TRILLION!

This is a huge deal. The biggest deal ever in the history of the world. You should know by now how much Trump would not be able to resist a deal that huge. And Zelenskyy’s sources are probably those intelligence agencies who stopped sharing information with us, so it’s probably true. A package like that would change everything. EVERYTHING!

And the thing is, Trump does not even realize he is being manipulated and has been for a long time. I think Craig Unger was right to dub him the American Kompromat. I also think there may be truth in the Epstein files that leads us toward his involvement with Russia and Israel. When you look at how all these boxcars line up you get a big mess. They don’t fit together perfectly, not exactly, you get engines on completely different tracks from their cabooses, ghost cars with nothing in them, engineers and conductors with no true connections, all decoys to make you look elsewhere, like any shell game, but lots of damage in the end. Plus, there is lot of money coming from and going to everyone funding the railway.

So, yes, it makes sense to me, that Russia did this.

But how are they manipulating Trump exactly, Mike?

While Russia spins the web, in order for it to work, for the messages to get across and create outcomes that work in their favor, they need leverage. So, it’s not just a matter of grooming Trump, but forcing others to work on him, too. The biggest groomer is probably Elon Musk, who would have been manipulated into a situation with Jeffery Epstein (the great facilitator), where once inside, he too was compromised, and had no option, but to go with the program and help destroy everything he could through DOGE and steal every social security number and all kinds of other sensitive American information.

Musk recently used his private executive power to shut off Starlink internet access to Ukraine. He did this once in 2022 during a Ukrainian raid on Russian ships, saying it was to avoid complicity in the war. It definitely sounds complicit in Russia’s favor. But now he has done it again, in Ukraine’s favor, shutting down Starlink terminals used by Russian soldiers.

Sounds sketchy, like he can’t pick a side.

It’s the deal of the day. Maybe now that millions of files connecting him to pedophilia are out there, he doesn’t care anymore and will help Ukraine win the war. The guy is kind of jerky. I thought he had a real human reason for buying Twitter, but now, it seems he only did so to let MAGA propaganda flourish, probably at Russia’s behest. The messages woven across that platform were repeated ad infinitum.

Now, America is uniquely divided. But I don’t see the division lasting forever, or a new civil war breaking out. Even if they want it to, the authoritarians will lose. Lots of people will wake up and realize they were played. Most will, but some won’t.

Nobody wants to believe they were duped by Melania.

Melania?

That’s right. In the end, she is the silken thread tying it all together. It is my theory that Melania has been Trump’s handler from the beginning. She came from Slovenia. Epstein was already handling money for Russia and its oligarchs when he and Trump were partying together. The Russians already knew how easy it was to manipulate him with flattery and Eastern European women were his weakness.

Enter the beautiful model Melania Knauss, formerly Knavs. She was a real model, yes, but underneath that sexy skin, was a Russian asset, recruited and trained for one mission: Donald Trump. She was sent to Epstein specifically for the introduction. She latched on and never let go, taking orders from Russia through other assets, to whisper in his ear everything he wanted to hear; You should close down those casinos, take the money and run! You should have your own TV show! You should be the President!

And that’s all it took. A steady stream of manipulation, from Russia with love. He never even knew he was an asset himself. It is still happening. You won again! They love you! They can’t stop you now! Release all the January 6th rioters and tell them they are heroes. Elon Musk could really help you make America great again. You should hire people who nobody likes, like RFK, Jr. and Kristi Noem, to show people you can’t be pushed around. They will do whatever you say. You should invade Venezuela and take over Greenland. You can do it because this is what everyone wants.

That kind of reinforcement from the right source is exactly what an egotistical power-hungry dealmaker falls for. They need a cheerleader. Somebody they will do anything for. Then they go ahead and do it.

So, Melania is the boss? But they have a kid!

You have to admire commitment to a role. Part of that commitment is staying silent, never backtalking anything he does, never fighting on his behalf in the press by doing anything more than saying “Boys will be boys.” Never really doing much of anything important when you look at her “career” as First Lady. Other than her “Be Best” campaign against cyberbullying and opioid use, which failed because her husband was the world’s biggest cyberbully, and taking no real initiative to do anything about drug addiction, she hasn’t done much else. Because she doesn’t need to. Her job is to whisper sweet nothings in Donnie’s ear and make suggestions.

Her entire existence is to play the role of a decoy, so that we don’t pay attention to her, or who she speaks with, and never hear what she says to her husband. But she can’t be the only one. The web cast by Russia is massive. There are others who have her back, and she will secretly be hailed as a Russian national treasure by a select few.

The deception in plain sight makes us dismiss her destruction of the Rose Garden and East Wing of the White House, because we are too busy looking at what Trump is doing, and trying to explain it. The latest piece of propaganda is Melania, the movie. The reason for this is not so much to force you to watch it but make her even more invisible before Trump’s exit, because Russia knows her appeal is low. Nobody asked for a movie about her, so a nonsensical documentary is just the ticket to distract from the reality of who she is. Make her look like a ding-dong doing nothing for three weeks before the second inauguration and make sure that’s all we see.

Because Russia does not want us to see the truth.

That’s quite a claim, Mike.

It’s a theory. Just like any other. I can’t prove it, but I think it makes sense.

What if you are wrong?

What if I’m right?

Please don’t say that!

I could take it a step further, too, into the mysterious realm of what names mean. Imagine the universe as a spider, spinning its web with names inside, like Charlotte did. The name Putin is believed to have originated from the Russian verb “putat” meaning “to entangle,” “to confuse,” or “to muddle.”

Recall now, my favorite Trump quote, “It’s always good to do things nice and complicated so that nobody can figure it out.” The name Donald John Trump has its own strange meaning. According to Scottish lore, Donald comes from the Gaelic name, Domhanll, which means world-ruler. John is the English derivative of the Hebrew name, Yohanan, which means Graced by Yahweh. Trump is derived from the German word, trumme, meaning drummer. So, a loud, world-ruler, graced by God. Hooray.

Finally, Melania Knavs. This was her name long before she anglicized it to Knauss. Melania is derived from the Greek word for dark. Knavs comes from Germany, meaning knave, or servant.

Dark Servant. How’s that for a revelation?

This series has been quite a ride, thanks for joining me for it. I read a lot of stuff to get here and hope you enjoy some of the links.

On a personal note: The thing that bothers me most about the Epstein files is the absolute neglect of the English language. The improper punctuations, the lack of capitalizations, poor sentence structures, and overall sloppiness when it comes to writing. It is like these people never went to school. These are supposed to be billionaires. Highly educated people. They communicate like animals, grunting their way through texts and emails. This is on all fronts. Jeffrey Epstein’s emails with everyone, police reports, long comment chains from social media websites; everyone is so damn lazy. It is disgusting.

One last thing. In his essay, The Biggest Epstein Revelation Goes Unsaid, Lee Camp points out what may be the most important thing of all. It is not that wealth corrupts people, but that corruptible people are the most likely to drive themselves toward wealth. This is not just about Epstein and those he associated with, it is about capitalism, and how our society deals with it. How we should do better as a people.

So be as terrific, radiant, and humble as you can.

When you feel the universe may be weaving a message just for you, it probably is.

Thanks for reading.

• Click here to read Part I

• Click here to read Part II

• Click here to read Part III

• Click here to read Part IV

• Click here to read Part V

• Click here to read Part VI

It is time for everyone to come to terms with the fact that Donald Trump is at war with the world, and he thinks he is winning. It is me, the great DJT, against the world. This is his mindset. This is what he has manifested for his destiny. He is just like James Cagney’s villain in White Heat, who runs to the top of a refinery tank, declares “Made it Ma! Top of the world!” and ignites it in a final blaze of glory. The last thing he will do is destroy himself, everything, and everyone surrounding him. That is, if he can.

But it won’t be the end of the train crash.

I warned you. Jimmy Kimmel and Stephen Colbert warned you. Numerous pundits, political experts, psychologists, psychiatrists, medical professionals, economists, and the ladies on The View warned you. The babysitter watching your kids warned you. The dude who mops your halls at work warned you. Even Joe Biden and Kamala Harris warned you. We were right. The guy is a whack job. A venomous clown who would terrify Pennywise. The most dangerous person ever elected President of the United States.

His recent eclipse of the spotlight on the world stage has made you all but forget about troubles at home; Renaming the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts after himself and losing multiple talents who now refuse to perform there - Oh yeah, forgot about that! The idea that Trump may be a Russian asset - Right, is that still a thing? The ballooning Epstein files, which went from tens of thousands to millions of pages, that were supposed to be released a month ago - OMG! What happened? Where are they?

Sorry, kids. We can’t answer all that just yet because we have much bigger whales to harpoon. Your president, Donald John Trump, is making history as the man who is seemingly, singlehandedly, destroying the United States and every major alliance that keeps this country safe.

This week at the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, world leaders who spoke the day before Trump took the stage, expressed deep concerns about how other member countries of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) alliance will gird themselves against Trump’s willingness to engage in economic hostility toward any country opposing his designs on U.S. control of Greenland. The European Commission’s President Ursula von der Leyen, Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney and France’s President Emmanuel Macron, all noted the drastic change we have seen in the world order due to Trump, and they did so without calling him by name. They say we have reached a turning point, cited past misalignments of colonialism, and expressed the need for cooperation and solidarity regarding the hurdles of globalization that rise from new technical challenges like artificial intelligence capability. They were thoughtful and uniquely adult, as world leaders should be.

Then Trump took the stage. He spoke for over an hour and ended his treatise with these hopeful words.

“. . . some of you are the greatest leaders anywhere in the world. You’re the greatest brains anywhere in the world. And the future is unlimited. And to a large part because of you, we have to protect you, and we have to cherish you.

I always say we have to cherish our brilliant people, because there aren’t many of them. So together with confidence, boldness and persistence, let us lift up our people, grow our economies, defend our shared destiny, and build a future for our citizens that is more ambitious, more exciting, more inspiring and greater than the world has ever seen. We’re in a position to do things that nobody else has ever even thought of before.

And many of the people in this room are the ones that are doing it, and I want to congratulate you. And I’m with you all the way. You can do things that nobody else can even think about. So, I congratulate you on your tremendous success.”

If any of what he said preceding this had been similar, it might have been a great demonstration of American leadership. But it was not. Many of his remarks were childish, misleading, demeaning, outright wrong, and full of guile. Before a roomful of world leaders and economists, he; displayed an ignorance of basic math, referred to his predecessor as “Sleepy Joe Biden” multiple times, insulted several world leaders, said people buying windmills are “stupid," threatened higher tariffs for European allies, dismissed NATO as unreliable, claimed the American economy was booming because everybody who lost their federal jobs got better ones, told them the U.S. has the lowest gas prices ever, mentioned that he settled eight wars, and said “we gave Greenland back to Denmark,” after World War II.

None of this is accurate. But to compound his confusion about Greenland, he called it Iceland four times and said the U.S. would not try to take it by force, as has been speculated from his rhetoric: “We need Greenland.”

But do we, really?

Trump said, “Greenland is a vast, almost entirely uninhabited and undeveloped territory, sitting undefended in a key strategic location between the United States, Russia and China. That’s exactly where it is, right smack in the middle.”

If you also cut out of geography class, maybe you agree with that assessment. To be exact about it, you take the geographic center of China and Russia combined, which is in the Sayan Mountain Range region, near the Russia-Mongolia border and draw a straight line to the geographic center of the United States, a bit north of Belle Fourche, South Dakota, and your midpoint lands in the Arctic Ocean at 79°05’55.5”N, 166°21’28.5”W which is approximately 750 miles from the North Pole, and about 1,200 miles from Greenland’s nearest coastline.

So, it’s not right smack in the middle, Mike?

No. It is not.

When he lies, I understand. I get it. Misdirection. Sleight of hand. A means to an end. But absolute inaccuracy really bugs me.

Especially when it comes to geography.

If you don’t get what’s so great about Greenland that Trump lobbies for it so fervently, take a look at this examination by Al Jazeera. It’s close enough to that geographic center to be of concern, surrounded by a couple dozen military bases belonging to the U.S., Russia, Canada, Norway, Denmark, and the United Kingdom. The melting of sea ice due to global warming sometimes opens shipping lanes from the Atlantic to Pacific oceans. Recent geologic surveys show that Greenland is one of the most mineral rich places on Earth, ripe for exploitation. It is also pristine wilderness. Untouched virgin land.

It will be a shame to pollute Greenland just to extract minerals, but barely anyone seems to care about that. Those who do may be powerless. The people of Greenland don’t need the money and don’t want the invasion. Whatever fouling takes shape, the Trump train crash will no doubt play a role in it.

A BRIEF NOTIFICATION

My research for the Rembis Reports takes me across the internet far and wide. You may notice that many of the links provided will take you to other Substack authors. This is not by design, but simply a byproduct of my searches concerning the topics at hand. Many other writers have done vast research on these same subjects, and Substack happens to be a great reservoir of knowledge. We are fortunate to find so many writers with unique and varied viewpoints. So, my discoveries often prompt me to share their expertise, not as footnotes, but as links. These links are not promotional in any way. I do not profit from clicks. Links are meant as citations to show how my research is conducted. Whenever I find something relevant, interesting, or amusing, if I think it is worth sharing, I do.

The past week has been extraordinarily busy, internationally speaking. There is so much to keep up on, so many amazing facets to what I have deemed The Train Crash, that I may not get to everything by my self-imposed Saturday night deadline. With the help of these sources, I will bring you everything I consider of utmost importance, so that you may consider the multiple sides of this story and unravel the dust cloud yourself.

Trump’s designs on confiscating Greenland, the world’s largest island, still dominate headlines. There are many aspects to this story, but I will keep it as simple as possible.

In the wake of his address at the World Economic Forum, world leaders scurried. Rumors flew like snow geese. Suddenly, the island was being surrounded by Chinese and Russian naval warships, ready for invasion. It needed to be protected. Trump claimed it only made sense for him to be the one and only savior, by bringing it under the control of the United States. While they knew that was untrue, nonetheless, the heads of NATO convened with Trump for, if nothing else, to figure out what to do about him. Before you knew it, some kind of agreement had been reached. According to Trump, it was “a concept of a deal,” where he decided to drop pursuit of heavy tariffs on ally countries and they would move forward with discussions about building an arctic Golden Dome missile shield system. He later said that the U.S. would assume control of Greenland forever.

Later that same day, Europe decided to get ahead of the eight ball and think about how to do things without the United States. The European Parliament convened (without Trump) and discussed the sovereignty of Greenland amidst “growing unpredictability and isolationism in U.S. foreign policy, including the risk of troop withdrawals from Europe. It therefore calls for European Union contingency planning, increased and coordinated defense spending in member states, stronger European defense capabilities, and greater strategic autonomy, while maintaining a balanced transatlantic partnership.”

The next day, Trump used his time in Davos to convene his new Board Of Peace. It is a vanity project. A cheap Trump-branded knockoff of the United Nations. It’s main purpose, at this point, is to oversee the rebuilding of Gaza. Trump is the Chairman. Good thing he isn’t busy doing anything else. For a $1,000,000,000 buy in, you can take part in the action and help.

This is who signed on for that:

• Isa bin Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, minister of the prime minister’s court, Bahrain

• Nasser Bourita, minister of foreign affairs, Morocco

• Javier Milei, president, Argentina (where did he get that kind of scratch?)

• Nikol Pashinyan, prime minister, Armenia

• Ilham Aliyev, President, Azerbaijan

• Rosen Zhelyazkov, prime minister, Bulgaria

• Viktor Orban, prime minister, Hungary

• Prabowo Subianto, president, Indonesia

• Ayman Al Safadi, minister of foreign affairs, Jordan

• Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, president, Kazakhstan

• Vjosa Osmani-Sadriu, president, Kosovo

• Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, prime minister, Pakistan

• Santiago Peña, president, Paraguay

• Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, prime minister, Qatar

• Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, minister of foreign affairs, Saudi Arabia

• Hakan Fidan, minister of foreign affairs, Turkey

• Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, special envoy to the U.S. for the UAE

• Shavkat Mirziyoyev, president, Uzbekistan

• Gombojavyn Zandanshatar, prime minister, Mongolia

This is who is on the Executive Board:

• Marco Rubio, U.S. Secretary of State

• Steve Witkoff, U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East

• Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law

• Sir Tony Blair, former U.K. prime minister

• Marc Rowan, CEO, Apollo

• Ajay Banga, World Bank president

• Robert Gabriel, security advisor

It is most notable that nobody representing Gaza was present. No Palestinians were invited. It is clearly a land grab in the wake of an ongoing genocide.

Even Benjamin Netanyahu and Vladimir Putin, the world’s biggest warmongers alive, were invited to join. They didn’t show up, but that is because they would be arrested if they set foot in Switzerland since they both have outstanding international criminal arrest warrants. Something the United States failed to do when Putin came to Alaska.

You see how tough it is to keep up?

It sure is, Mike! With all that going on, how does President Trump have time for anything else?

He plans ahead. For example, a year ago, upon his return to the White House, he withdrew the United States from membership in the World Health Organization (WHO).

He did not!

Yes, he did. On his first day back in office, because you can’t just cancel your country’s WHO membership and get out the same day, like with Netflix, it takes a year for the withdrawal to activate. That anniversary hit the same day as the Board Of Peace initiation.

So now, instead of being a part of a global infrastructure that protects the world from pandemics, the U.S. leads a rogue alliance of real estate speculators with no regard for who dies as long as they make a buck.

Just another crumple in the train crash. Another distraction from everything else, with the sole purpose of profit, serving to distract from whatever other diabolical schemes they cook up. A team of dictators bunched up together like vampire bats huddling for warmth, waiting for the veil of nightfall, when they will fly out in every direction to suck blood and money from whatever else they can exploit.

The steps of a train crash are similar to a business model. Planning / Preparation / Permitting / Lighting the fuse / Derailment / Distract / Kill / Steal. Something like that.

The crash begins. You watch in real time. Gloating. Reveling in the destruction. Then rewrite history to make your villainous self the hero.

This is why we must document everything. Hit record and keep track of the truth. Keep the cameras rolling. We must also do the hardest work of all. Containment.

The containment phase starts right away and never stops. There are three sides to containment.

For the culprits, it is getting their story straight. They will rewrite history and bend facts to spin it just right and make sure their chemical leaks go to some unseen place where they can’t hurt themselves until it is too late to prosecute them.

For the reporters, it is telling the truth. Not a revision of history, but facts. Pointing fingers and holding those responsible accountable.

For those trying to survive the train crash in real time, they must begin containment while boxcars are still tumbling. They need to reform laws and rules and hold culprits accountable. They attend to the injured and find justice for all.

The cleanup will take years. The aftermath will echo throughout time.

With the crash happening at the same time as containment there is always more work to do. It’s like those sea monsters I told you about. Now, there are MAGA supporters rallying on behalf of ICE, even while they hunt the streets for anyone who looks vulnerable. Many don’t even realize what kind of monster they have unleashed, and that they too, may be injured or killed by the very thing they voted for. There are way too many videos to share but look at these to get an idea of what it’s like out there.

Here is a video of a woman from Minneapolis.

Here is a video of a man from Minneapolis.

Here is a video of a protester in Minneapolis.

Here is a video of a woman who was detained by ICE.

I could keep going, but you get the idea. There is so much to look at that you can’t see it all. However, you should be able to see by now that Trump is the manifestation of a stupid idea. If you voted for him against Hillary Clinton, it was a gamble, sure. Maybe he would shake things up and reform government into something you liked better. He won and put up walls.

But then Sleepy Joe Biden came on the scene and called your leader a clown. You couldn’t stand that. How dare he make fun of your President, who defeated Covid, and recognized that there are good people on both sides, strengthening the country’s divide into ideological factions. He got your vote again.

But he lost that election and you believed it was rigged, because he said so, with no evidence to back it up. Then he released a mob on Capitol Hill who would have literally killed Vice President Mike Pence with a rope around his neck on January 6th to make America great again. For the next four years you stewed on that loss, in disbelief, telling yourself that the insurrectionists were heroes. Because Trump said so.

When Biden dropped out of the race, you voted against Kamala Harris. Maybe because she was black, or a woman, or spoke about equality and the rights of women, or maybe just because she wasn’t Trump, who kept telling you that he was robbed, that he was your retribution, and you believed that he alone could fix it. Maybe it was because she warned you about all the terrible things he did and was planning to do next to spoil the country, and you refused to believe it. Maybe you never listened to her at all. Because Trump called her a liar. Because you wanted retribution for something and now you can’t even recall what that was.

Then you cast your vote a third time. And here we are. Right where you chose to be. Where ICE and Border Patrol Agents are killing people in the streets.

This happened on Saturday morning, January 24, 2026. A fellow named Alex Pretti was directing traffic and filming Federal Agents in Minneapolis. In a few seconds, he and two women got in the way of an Agent who pushed one of the women down. When Alex went to her aid he was sprayed in the face with a chemical. He kept clinging to her, pulling her as he tried to stand, probably because he was blinded. The Agent who sprayed him then pulled Alex away from her and threw him to the ground. He was quickly surrounded by six Agents. Four of them held him down. Alex was punched in the face three times. He was brought to his knees and a shot was fired. He attempted to stand and another Agent shot him twice in the back.

It has been all over the news today, captured by shaky cameras from multiple angles. This is the money shot. The one that proves murder. In the video you will see the scuffle. Who fired first is unclear, but shots two and three are in Alex’s back from a foot away. Shot four is heard as the camera drops the view. Shots five, six, seven, eight, nine, and ten are heard in the following seconds as the camera rises up to show the Federal Agents a good ten feet away from Alex as he crumpled on the ground and died, still pointing weapons at him.

This video was taken by a woman on the scene and distributed by Drop Site News, who provides an in-depth analysis.

The dead man, Alex Pretti, was a 37-year-old Veteran’s Administration Intensive Care Unit nurse, who took to the streets of Minneapolis to observe the Federal Agents, record their deeds, and help whoever he could. Word from Department of Homeland Security chief Kristi Noem is that he was a dangerous terrorist with a gun who was attempting to kill Federal Agents. There is no evidence of that. But this is the spin.

Stuff like this is getting typical now. I am completely desensitized and won’t be surprised at all when people start embracing their second amendment right to keep and bear arms, brandish them, and fight back. The Black Panthers have already reorganized. There are undoubtedly others ready to rise up and take back the streets, to make America great again, this time without red hats.

We may soon hear stories of massacre unlike any before. Indulge me a few moments more, if you will, and let me set the scene. If done with precision, there may soon be bodies lining the streets, and nobody will know how they got there.

Not dead civilians, citizens, like the thousands who rallied against the Iranian government and were massacred by government security forces in recent weeks. Instead, we may find Americans turning on our own federal forces, because Americans despise terrorists, and if it walks like a terrorist, threatens like a terrorist, and guns down innocent people like a terrorist, guess what - lots of Americans will consider them terrorists.

So, don’t be surprised if something incredible happens on top of what is already happening. The Trump Train is underestimating the resolve of American citizens. You may soon find federal forces completely devastated, killed in the streets, left to be found by - somebody - stripped of their government issued weapons and cameras. Their vehicles will be left abandoned, not burned, because that would be a waste of resources and the valuable time of firefighters. No video footage will arise. No witnesses will come forward. There will be no proof of who took them out. Nobody to prosecute. Just dead fascist terrorists eliminated by Americans with guns who decided enough is enough, and if they can play Judge / Jury / Executioner, so can we.

And they lived happily ever after. Or something like that. The dystopian drama Trump started may end with much more bloodshed than even I can imagine.

If he has his way in Europe, and all goes well in eradicating Gaza and Palestine, what’s next? Ukraine? According to one estranged associate, Lev Parnas, who assisted Rudy Giuliani in fabricating information about a Joe Biden - Ukraine bribery scandal, Trump used Greenland as a decoy. It’s not exactly what he wants, it’s a step toward a new world order.

Parnas is not alone in this assessment. MarketWatch columnist Charlie Garcia shares a similar concern. He applies game theory to the Greenland situation. Taken together, these views make a compelling argument for what Trump is really up to, and when taken into consideration with everything else happening, you can see how dangerous he is to American democracy.

Congressman Jared Huffman (D) California says, “If we are real and honest about what is going on, we have a madman in the White House.” He is not exactly wrong, as the train crash is proving. While Federal Agents roam the streets of Minneapolis and kill American citizens with impunity, as he combats NATO, the World Health Organization, and the world at large, here is what he cares most about.

He cares what people think of him yet does nothing for anyone other than himself. It is the highest level of hypocrisy.

No wonder the train is crashing.

Thanks for reading.

Click here to read Part VIII

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I recommend reading this from the beginning.

CLICK HERE for Albatross - Part I

Hello, my dear friends,

I want to thank you all for joining me in my exploration of world events and all things wonderous. If you have been with me for a while you may recall my Albatross essay series, and if you are new here, thanks for checking out this post.

I find the study of dreams and quantum entanglement to be most fascinating. Albatross explores my take on these subjects in detail, as these are some of my favorite things to talk about. Today’s addendum is to let you know about a wonderful discussion I had with Elizabeth Wipperman on her podcast Talking Shit About… It was absolutely lovely to delve into the Albatross essay and expand on these subjects in detail.

If you haven’t read Albatross yet, or would enjoy a refresher, please click the link above to start with Part I, and please leave any feedback you wish. I would love to hear what you think and expand the conversation about these observations.

In fact, more interaction on all of my work is most welcome. I want to know what you think so please dive into the comments sections and share your thoughts. Not just on Albatross, but all of my essays, old and new. Reposting is also greatly appreciated.

I want to give a big THANKS to Elizabeth for having me on her show. You can watch Episode 62 - Dreams and Quantum Entanglement with Mike Rembis, on her Patreon page. Take a peek at the two-minute preview and then, to watch me stumble through my thought process and have a few laughs, please drop $5 into Elizabeth’s tip jar to see the entire hourlong program. If you like this, you will love more of her work, so please consider joining her team as a patron.

Thanks for reading and stay tuned for more!

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• Click here to read Part II

• Click here to read Part III

• Click here to read Part IV

• Click here to read Part V

It is fair to ask; how will it end?

Before I took down my Christmas decorations I lingered a few moments to stare at them. The twinkling lights draped across the cabinets. The little snowman music box. The Santa Claus candle we never light so that it never melts away. The battery-operated candle that spins a flurry of glitter in a liter of clear emulsion encased in glass, like a lava lamp. It was all so pretty. I took a picture, so I could look at that from time to time. In case I ever want to get a glimpse of Christmas in springtime. To remember how it looked just before I put everything away into boxes.

But, other than the flickering light of the glitter candle, all was still. It was easy to observe. Taking it all in, I pondered endings, and what would be the last thing I would ever see before my own light fades to black.

I am not looking forward to my own demise. But I do wonder about that last thing a train crash victim sees when they realize their ride is ending. I suppose they must be wondering; this can’t really be the end, can it? This is not my stop!

The train that is the United States, with boxcars folding upon one another as they are now, is being viewed from millions of different perspectives. There is not a single one that can snap a final frame to encapsulate exactly what we are experiencing. There is no way to boil it down to a single story, to one stoic image that tells everything.

It has to be analyzed from multiple angles. From above, below, the left, the right, and most of all, from within. What is important to realize, especially now, while the crash continues, is that so much has yet to be discovered. Some events were never meant to be seen, while what is happening right before us, is meant to distract you from those things.

U.S. military forces bombed parts of Venezuela and captured President Nicolás Maduro Moros and his wife, Cilia Adela Flores de Maduro, and indicted them, their son, and others on charges of importing tons of cocaine to the United States. Your President Donald John Trump says that “We,” the United States, will run Venezuela indefinitely and take control of their oil while the country “transitions.”

So thoughtful, right? The American president who would end all wars just stole a country full of oil. At least, he is trying to. There are over thirty-million people in Venezuela. Many of them are Maduro supporters despite the high prices and poverty. Maybe they think affordability is a hoax. Many are not, so when they hear of Maduro’s fate, perhaps they will rejoice.

The infrastructure there, while much of it may be as connected as any American city, has lousy communications. How fast news travels is anyone’s guess. Whether or not Venezuelans are going to accept being invaded by Americans remains to be seen. For some it may be a welcome change, a glimmer of hope, but others, depending on how they get their information, and what that information is, may reject American intervention and rebel.

Those without complete information will wonder what exploded and why. Who is attacking us? What have we done to them?

Some of the soldiers who dropped the bombs are likely asking mirrored questions. Why are we attacking them? What have they done to us? All this for an arrest warrant?

Initial reports indicated that about 40 Venezuelans, soldiers and civilians, were killed in the January 3rd strikes. That number soon rose to over 80. A few American soldiers were injured, but none were killed. It’s easy to not get hurt when pushing a button from overhead or miles away. Not so easy to avoid death from above when you are in the line of fire.

But it’s not a war. It was an arrest. A police action, a favor to the people of Venezuela, really. Right, Mike?

Congress never voted to declare war, so, technically, it’s not a war.

Define it, justify it, or vilify it all you want, any way you like, no matter what - it happened. Now it is just another boxcar in the train wreck.

It is yet another distraction from all other distractions. They are building and unfolding upon each other like a four-dimensional tesseract so that you really don’t know which way to look and are basically unable to predict what will happen next. This is how it is meant to be. I will remind you again of the most important thing Trump ever said.

“It’s always good to do things nice and complicated so that nobody can figure it out.”

When you take that into consideration, invading a country to steal oil is just par for the course. Watching that will take your mind off all the other atrocities there are to think about.

You mean like the Jeffrey Epstein files?

Sure, that’s one, but there are plenty of other things to ignore we haven’t even touched on. Things that conspiracy theorists are screaming about.

THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 2024

It was a record year. More votes cast than in any other American election ever. Over 152 million.

But 109 million Americans, about 41% of those eligible to vote, did not.

Trump won all seven swing states (Pennsylvania, Georgia, North Carolina, Michigan, Arizona, Wisconsin, and Nevada), the proverbial keys to the kingdom, in a sweep which has only happened twice in recent history; Ronald Reagan in 1984 and Richard Nixon in 1972.

Election Truth Alliance and This Will Hold are the main characters in the current drama of election truth investigators. These groups run by anonymous sources are doing their best to find a smoking gun to uncover election fraud and prove that Elon Musk helped Trump steal the election. So far, while their work appears intriguing, it is wrought with speculation and misinformation. One news broadcast on election night cited fake counties turning in votes and This Will Hold ran with it. This has since been debunked as a simple editing error in the control room.

CBS News correspondent Major Garrett, and former Director of the elections program at The Pew Charitable Trusts, David Becker shared similar concerns about Trump’s allegations of the 2020 election being stolen from him. They published their investigation as the book The Big Truth, where they detail the evidence of the security of American elections, and prove that Joe Biden won fair and square.

Unless somebody actually figured out a way to tamper with election results, it is safe to say that Trump defeated Kamala Harris in 2024, fair and square. The American electoral process is solid. It all came down to who had the most votes, as it should be.

In the end you have to decide if you want to go with common sense or anonymous sources. Whatever makes you happiest is who you will side with. No matter what you pick you will either live in doubt or confidence, and it will be based on whatever you decide, just like your vote.

Or you could be one of those who made no choice at all, so you don’t really have anything to complain about, do you? Unless somebody actually presents proof that the election was stolen, I can point to 109 million reasons Trump is your president.

Not that they would have made an absolute difference. There is no way to know. And as far as Trump is concerned, this may be a welcome distraction, because like all theories, they are just speculations without proof. Like owning the Supreme Court.

THE SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES

They are the most visible and watched court in the world. The most trusted among decision makers. They weigh the facts, study the law, listen to arguments, and deliver verdicts and dissents based on weighty ponderance. All they do is listen and think.

Like our free and fair elections, Supreme Court Justices are confirmed in open forum. They are nominated by the President and sit before the Senate Judiciary Committee, where they answer a lot of questions about their character, like if they go to church, if they ever drank beer, ever engaged in coitus in daylight, etcetera, you know, typical job application questions. Senators may throw a curve ball like “Have you ever been in a car that ran a red light?” or not, just to hear the answer. Of course, this is our one and only chance to judge the judges, so it can be tough. In the history of the Supreme Court from 1789 to the present 22% of nominees have been rejected. Those who do rise to the top and are confirmed then face a whole new level of scrutiny.

The public eye. This is where they will be for the rest of their tenure, until retirement or death, whichever comes first. This is where conspiracies rise. When we find out what they are voting for and how they vote, who gives them gifts, and how they shape the laws of the land, we can pass judgement but can’t do anything about it.

One of the rulings the current court has passed feels so detrimental to democracy that many are convinced that a conspiracy is afoot. In response to the 2023 indictment of Donald Trump by special prosecutor Jack Smith, alleging three counts of conspiracy and one count of obstruction for his conduct as President leading up to the January 6th insurrection, Trump’s attorneys filed a motion to dismiss the indictments, citing Presidential immunity. The argument was simple. In a nutshell: The U.S. President should be able to do whatever they want without repercussion.

The Supreme Court ruled in Trump’s favor in a 6-3 decision and established a framework for Presidential immunity.

Kids, let this be a lesson to you about how powerful attorneys can be. Jack Smith has absolute proof that Trump tried to overturn the fair and free election results of 2020, but because he was President, he could do that. Does it spit in the face of democracy and push our nation toward autocracy and fascism? Sure, but it’s legal, so -

You see the issue here?

Is the system broken because the court is corrupt? Or is it the other way around?

Decide for yourself. You get a vote. Use it. While you are at it, tell one of your 109 million friends who didn’t vote to start making smart choices, too.

While there is no real proof that the Supreme Court is corrupt, there is solid evidence that some of them could be. Of the nine current justices, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito have been accused of conflicts of interest due to accepting expensive gifts and fancy trips from billionaire friends. Billionaires who have business interests and friends who are rich Republicans with businesses that could be impacted by Supreme Court decisions. Friends with strong ties to the Federalist Society.

And who could want Trump to succeed more than the 77 million people who voted for him? The 1% of American society who holds more wealth than the other 99%, that’s who. With Trump, as the consummate capitalist who puts money first, the mega-rich who think the same way have everything to gain by keeping him in power. People who could afford to fund a ballroom - or anything else.

THE $300 MILLION DOLLAR BALLROOM

In October 2025, without warning, the entire East Wing of the White House was demolished.

The East Wing was a historic structure. It was the informal setting of “The People’s House” where government work was set aside for simpler, relaxed gatherings. Not huge, it hosted a small movie theater, sitting areas like The Garden Room, meeting spaces, and a museum dedicated to our country’s heritage and art. In a couple of days, it was rubble.

The guys with the bulldozers and jackhammers are not to blame. Like anyone else, a soldier attacking Venezuela for example, they were just doing their jobs. They probably wondered about it, even saw themselves on the news, wondering why, but as a paid employee, a contractor, they had no say in what happened. Fallout came in waves from politicians and pundits far and wide. Nobody was happy about this. Permits were not pulled. It wasn’t discussed with anyone. Congress and the Senate had no say. It was just destroyed.

Trump committed to kicking in $200 million of his own money to replace the East Wing with a grand ballroom. He had teased the idea for years, but nobody considered that he might just pull the trigger without congressional approval. It’s not like a covert military raid that had to happen overnight, but that’s how it went down. Fast and furious. Then the price tag rose, to $300 million, now projected to be over $350 million.

But this won’t cost the American taxpayer, or Trump, a cent.

Doesn’t matter because pennies are no longer being minted anyway.

Thanks for reminding me. Anyway - instead of Trump paying for it, he has found private donors to foot the bill.

Why would anyone want to pay for a ballroom at the White House, Mike?

I am so glad you asked. To join the club, just like at Mar-A-Lago. To cut the line to access, to have influence within government, and urge politicians to work in your corporation’s best interest. Because you are a sponsor. You are a team player. Even though your donation may remain private, you know that it is not just a line on your Form 8283 that lowers your taxes, it is advertising that you are one of Them. You are paying for favors in advance.

It is not cheap by any means to become a staple of the infrastructure, to become part of the machine.

What machine, Mike?

Let’s just call it The Big Machine. I don’t have a better way to describe it. Government projects, like upgrades and remodeling of public buildings, should be done with taxpayer funds. The White House is, after all, “The People’s House,” right? Any modifications should have gone through Congressional channels and vetted through an established process of checks and balances, to make sure our government was not wasting taxpayer funds. But The Big Machine knows how long that stuff takes. Could be years before anything gets approved, knocked down, and replaced. So, with private donations, and a couple phone calls to contractors, who are just doing a job, in a matter of days, if not hours, it is out with the old, in with the new, and anyone who doesn’t love it can lump it. What’s done is done and its full steam ahead, don’t worry about how sharp that curve might be at this speed. Just hit the pedal and hammer down.

What’s the big rush, Mike?

Let’s just say, there is no time like the present. The sooner the better. With Trump pulling the strings, shooting first, never asking questions at all, things just happen, and before you know it, there is a contractor standing at the bottom of a 200-foot man-made cavern guiding wet concrete into place that will be fifteen feet thick. He might look at it and think, this is going to make one hell of a basement! But it is going to be so much more.

The ballroom is the illusion. What you won’t see is what lies beneath. A bunker housing safe rooms and data centers in preparation for the next phase of government. If some theorists are right The Big Machine is building an AI and cryptocurrency data center underground to create a system akin to George Orwell’s character Big Brother from 1984. It will be the hottest hub in the world. The most advanced digital tech ever created. Built for spy craft, warfare, and producing so much computer code that it will be able to harvest its own blockchain, creating digital currency that will rival all others on the planet combined.

It will be an engineering marvel. The amount of energy needed will be massive, and so will fresh water, for cooling. A mere mile and a half from the Tidal Basin on the Potomac River, it won’t take much to dig a new tunnel and install pumps alongside the existing sewer system. If all goes according to plan, this system can be up and running in the next 18 months or so, inshallah. Our friends in Saudi Arabia are going to love this!

I don’t get it. Why would the Saudis want this?

Because of the Strategic Artificial Intelligence Partnership, an agreement between the United States and Saudi Arabia to strengthen economic interests between the Kingdom and the United States. Part of that will undoubtedly be communications and sharing intellectual data. Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 initiative is a plan for the Kingdom to pave the technological way and be world leaders in artificial intelligence. If they are to be successful in this endeavor, it only makes sense for them to partner with us, as The Ballroom will become the most important data center in the world.

The Kingdom has already begun working toward this. They task AI with infrastructure projects, logistical challenges, and medical analyses. Working with Oracle, Google Cloud, Amazon Web Services, and Microsoft Azure, they aim to be the leader in AI by training 20,000 AI specialists by 2030. Those vendors have a lot to gain from Arabian ḥaṣāfah.

When it comes to The Ballroom, here is the list of disclosed donors.

• Technology Companies: Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Google, HP, Palantir.

• Crypto Companies: Coinbase, Ripple, Tether, Gemini (Winklevoss brothers).

• Other Corporations: Altria, Booz Allen Hamilton, Caterpillar, Lockheed Martin, Hard Rock Intl., T-Mobile, Union Pacific.

• Individuals/Foundations: Adelson Family, Betty Wold Johnson Foundation, Stephen Schwarzman, the Lutnick Family, Laura & Isaac Perlmutter Foundation, Winklevoss Twins.

Two-thirds of the 24 known corporate donors have recent government contracts for projects, totaling $279 billion over the last five years. No wonder they can be so generous.

Say everyone is chipping in $10 - $20 million each. The cost is covered but that is overkill. If it were just a ballroom, you could probably get away for building that alone for $20 million and have enough change leftover to throw a nice grand opening.

There is way more to this than meets the eye. Audrey, an open-source investigator, posts her blog as The Drey Dossier. In her report, presented here, Audrey gives us details about the donors, the contractors, and the logic behind The Ballroom.

WATCH THIS VIDEO: Trump Isn’t Building a Ballroom - The Drey Dossier

The Drey Dossier

Trump Isn’t Building a Ballroom

When Trump announced a $300 million ballroom at the White House, something went off in my brain. The pattern recognition part started tingling. Ninety thousand square feet, $300 million, underground construction at a secure government facility. I had heard about something like this before. Something with those exact specifications, that scale, that pric…

Listen now

4 months ago · 14415 likes · 981 comments · The Drey Dossier

Take this evidence into consideration and think about what I told you in Part III of this series: “. . . think about how integral AI is to this equation. With about a quarter trillion dollars invested so far, the whole plan may be to erase and rewrite history.”

Now, consider the propaganda website that the White House produced a few days ago, on the fifth anniversary of the January 6th insurrection. This documentation effectively rewrites history, painting the insurrectionists as peaceful protesters, and Capitol Police as aggressors.

FROM THE J6 WEBSITE: Capitol Police Response Escalates Tensions

Capitol Police aggressively fire tear gas, flash bangs, and rubber munitions into crowds of peaceful protesters, injuring many and deliberately escalating tensions. Video evidence shows officers inexplicably removing barricades, opening Capitol doors, and even waving attendees inside the building—actions that facilitated entry—while simultaneously deploying violent force against others. These inconsistent and provocative tactics turned a peaceful demonstration into chaos.

This could not be further from the truth. As previously documented, Capitol Police were outnumbered and overwhelmed, and the earliest footage gathered shows them reacting favorably to the crowd out of an abundance of caution.

So, the revisions have begun. They will name the place The Trump Ballroom, just like they renamed The Donald J. Trump and John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. If there is a factory cranking out gold letters for signage, maybe Audrey can help us find them. There is probably a warehouse full of these things somewhere.

When revisionists spin an untruthful narrative, they use desensitization to achieve their goals. To get you accustomed to watching people die, they released all the footage of every boat strike. They want you to see how effective they are at destroying their targets, even if they take an extra hour before firing on survivors clinging to boats. They want you to believe that when you see people die at the hands of the U.S. government, it is acceptable, because it is okay to watch terrorists die.

“To all ICE officers, you have federal immunity in the conduct of your duties. And anybody who lays a hand on you or tries to stop you or tries to obstruct you is committing a felony.” Deputy White House Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, October 24, 2025

While Miller’s above statement is not by any means an official license to kill, it is by all means the attitude of The Big Machine. This is what they are pumping into the heads of ICE agents, the new American Gestapo, who are now terrorizing our streets, ironically, to fight terrorism.

While it is important to see their videos and hear what they are saying, so we can weigh their words with caution, and call out their lies, it is most important to watch the videos taken by bystanders, who are not spinning a narrative, who are presenting facts, who show us exactly what happened. So, you can judge for yourself.

On Wednesday January 7th, 2026, around 9:30 AM, an ICE agent killed Renee Nicole Good because she disobeyed them. She was a bystander watching ICE agents. Her vehicle was blocking the street. She did this deliberately. To impede them in an act of civil disobedience. We know this based on the many videos that have now been released. Here is the first one I saw, the one that is being most widely distributed. The New York Times also presents this event from other angles, showing the moments before. CNN presents a 3-dimensional animated reconstruction from all available data.

There was confusion. The earliest video shows Renee stopped in the middle of the street. Based on the direction her wheels were pointing, it reveals that she purposely blocked traffic, and would eventually try to make a left, or U-turn, which would have also blocked traffic. Possibly a driving infraction, but not a threat. If she had been turning right at the time, she could have driven off, but a government vehicle parks to her right, impeding that route, and other cars are trying to get around her, so she waves them through.

Her driving options were impeded by the adverse conditions created by the ICE vehicles and masked men walking near her car, who were yelling at her to “Move!” This would have been confusing because they then blocked the right side of her vehicle with another car. Once she was blocked, the men on foot screamed at her to “Get out of the car!”

But she was busy maneuvering, trying to back up without hitting anyone, so she could drive away, and then, it all happened so fast. Quicker than she could process. Her dog was in the back seat. Her wife was standing outside the car filming an ICE agent who was, in turn, filming her. Then a guy grabs her door, yelling again, “get out of the car!” Even though her wife is locked out of the other side of the car, she has no interest in vacating her vehicle and decides to drive off. The guy who was just on her passenger side, filming her, is now right in front of her. Foot on the brake, shifting out of reverse, the car lurches forward, then she steps lightly on the gas and steers to the right to avoid hitting the ICE agent in front of her. She thinks, He’s moving, he will move. I’m just going to get out of the way and pick up my wife, and we’ll get out of here. They can’t make me get out of the car.

He’s obviously moving out of my way, right? she thinks, because in that split second, she sees him stepping to the side, out of the way, but - What? Is he seriously pointing his gun at me? He isn’t going to shoot me, is he? BANG! He shot me in the face! WHY! What do I do? Help!

Her automatic reflex is flight. Her adrenaline spikes. She no longer has time to weigh options, to consider anything, her basic instinct is to escape. She accelerates, in the next second, she is hit with at two more bullets. BANG! Her foot slams on the gas. BANG! The vehicle is out of control roaring a hundred feet at a parked car. She is trapped. What may have registered in Renee Good’s mind in those last moments as her circulatory system shot blood out the window, leaving behind a trail of sticky red snow, will be forever unknown. Whether or not she was even capable of steering her vehicle or making any kind of decision, if the first bullet hit her in the brain, will also remain unknown.

Because of the mystery of death, and that doorstep we all must linger on at some unforeseen time, we do not know what she may have felt exactly, what she might have heard, or thought. What she might have wanted to say if she could. We don’t know if she could hear people screaming or could hear the doctor begging to administer her aid or heard the ICE agent tell the doctor flatly, “No!”

We don’t know if she could hear her wife, Becca, as she climbed into the driver’s side door for a final embrace and took the dog from the back seat.

All we can know is what we see in these videos.

Right after the crash Becca sat, bloodied and crying, on a nearby doorstep. The aftermath was filmed by a man on the porch of that apartment building. He spoke to her. She is sitting in the snow with their dog, absolutely distraught. This is the most important video of all. This shows the time wasted by ICE in extracting the victim. This proves that they let her die.

Of course, word of this spread like wildfire, so the spin happened fast. Kristie Noem painted a picture of an American hero who killed a terrorist. But this is a lie.

 It was an act of domestic terrorism. What happened was our ice officers were out in enforcement action. They got stuck in the snow because of the adverse weather that is in Minneapolis. They were attempting to push out their vehicle, and a woman attacked them and those surrounding them and attempted to run them over and ram them with her vehicle.

An officer of ours acted quickly. And defensively shot, uh, to protect himself and the people around him. And my understanding is, is that she was hit and is deceased. We’re continuing to gather more information, but this goes to show the assaults that our ICE officers and our law enforcement are under every single day.

These vehicle rammings are domestic acts of terrorism. We’re working with the Department of Justice to prosecute them. As such, we will continue to protect our ICE officers, and in cooperation with other law enforcement agencies as well.

Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, January 7, 2026, 1:10 PM EST

Her statement is a complete fabrication.

A while later the President weighed in to share even more disinformation.

President Donald John Trump, January 7, 2026, 3:28 PM EST

Here is that guy Trump said was recovering in the hospital, moments after the killing.

He has been identified as Jonathan Ross, and he didn’t look like he was on his way to a hospital.

Many are calling this a cold-blooded murder because that is obviously what it is. While his defense will be that he was intending to neutralize a threat, his intent was to kill, and he should have known better. No need to sugarcoat truth, like The Big Machine does. The only reason to rewrite history is to cover up lies with more lies. It is murder, plain and simple. Whether it gets officially classified as a murder, or manslaughter, or justifiable homicide as self-defense, well, it’s too early to say. That is going to take some jurisprudence.

But luckily, he filmed this with his own camera so you can watch the entire incident from his perspective and render your own decisions.

At the start of the 47 second video, he exits his vehicle and walks around Renee Good’s vehicle from the passenger side, crossing in front of her and filming her. He holds his cell phone in his right hand, as evidenced by his reflection in the vehicle. Smiling, Renee tells him, “That’s fine, dude. I’m not mad,” indicating that she bears no animosity toward him. He walks around the back of the vehicle and focuses on the license plate.

Then, Renee’s wife Becca, standing outside the vehicle tells him, “We don’t change our plates every morning, just so you know. It will be the same plate when you come talk to us later.” He walks past her, circling the vehicle while she films him. The whole time, he says nothing. At the 30 second mark of the video, Becca asks, “You want to come at us?” This is when he moves his phone from his right hand to his left (you can see the left hand take the camera in the video) and presumably unbuckles his holster with his right hand.

At the 40 second mark Renee Good acknowledges his presence in front of her vehicle, putting up her right hand as she cranks her steering wheel with her left hand, all the way to the right to ensure that she does not hit him. She shows no aggression. All three shots are fired in quick succession within the 41 and 42 second mark. It takes three more seconds for her vehicle to crash.

So, all the evidence is here. Multiple perspectives. Clear audio. Cameras held in relatively steady fashion. Everyone can see exactly what happened. But The Big Machine’s spin cycle is running point to regurgitate this as an act of survival in the extermination of a monster, along with a reminder not to trust the news.

Here is what your Vice President J.D. Vance said about it the next day.

“This was an attack on federal law enforcement. This was an attack on law and order. This was an attack on the American people. The way that the media, by and large, has reported this story has been an absolute disgrace, and it puts our law enforcement officers at risk every single day . . . that woman was there to interfere with a legitimate law enforcement operation . . . [she] is part of a broader left-wing network to attack, to dox, to assault, and to make it impossible for our ICE officers to do their job. . . people in the media have been lying about this attack. She was trying to ram this guy with her car. He shot back. He defended himself.”

Vice President J.D. (given name James Donald Bowman, later changed to James David Hamel, then changed again to James David Aikins before settling on) Vance, January 8, 2026

Vance put the most spin on this, doubling down with regime rhetoric, telling us about the time this same officer was dragged by a vehicle driven by a fugitive. “That very ICE officer nearly had his life ended, dragged by a car six months ago with 30 stitches in his leg, so he’s a little sensitive about being rammed by an automobile.”

Vance makes a good point, helping us understand the mindset of Agent Ross. He has an inner monologue, just as Renee Good must have, like we all do. While he filmed, he said nothing. As he stepped out of his vehicle and turned on his camera he may have thought This is not my first rodeo. What is she doing? Good thing I am recording this. Not mad at me? You better not be. Then he sees Becca Good as he films the license plate. You have one license plate. Right, whatever. She’s a yappy one. Oh, a dog. They have a dog. Old dog. Not a threat. But this yappy one - Come at you? Other ICE Agents approach the driver, ordering her to exit the vehicle. Is that a threat? These guys think so. I’m ready. Not going to be like last time. He moves his phone to his left hand. Did she just call me Big Boy? Forget lunch. Don’t try to distract me. I am watching your friend Smiley-face over here. What is she thinking? Ready when you are, lady. There it is! She’s coming at me! BANG! You are not going anywhere! BANG! Try to run me over? BANG! How you like me now?

Then someone muttered a profanity about her as Renee Good crashed and died.

It is surprising that the video taken by Jonathan Ross surfaced so quickly. Alpha News is a Minnesota online news network with a low credibility factor that sometimes espouses extreme right-wing bias in their reporting. Maybe he or one of his ICE associates knew they would like it, that they would broadcast it as a means of vindication, to show his side of the story.

Whatever the reason, it is out there now, along with many others, some presented here, and some that may not have surfaced yet. No matter what, the ensuing fallout and response from the Trump regime proves to us that they will stand by their goons for as long as they must. When Jonathan Ross proves to be a burden he will be handed over to some authority, caged, and if not set free, likely spend time in prison, until some other inmate decides that prison is too good for him, or he figures his own way out. Whatever happens, happens, right?

There is no death penalty in Minnesota.

Unless you dare to question the authority of ICE. The Big Machine will kill you.

Renee Good did not have the luxury of a calm and peaceful last moment, like staring at a beautiful glitter candle, or a sunset, taking in the beauty of life. Maybe she felt her dog sniffing her hair or felt her wife holding her one last time.

The last thing she saw was the culmination of the Trump train. The world crashing around her, wondering; this can’t really be the end, can it? This is not my stop!

Thanks for reading.

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If you spend enough time on a train getting to know your fellow passengers, after several hundred miles down the tracks, you may like to think that you know some of them fairly well. You get familiar with people, make fast friends, and eventually decide who you trust. Everybody, to some degree, is a wealth of information. Some folks may know something you don’t, and sometimes you learn new things. They might know stuff about other passengers, the train crew, the conductor, even proprietary information about contraband or anything else you can think of.

But when the train starts crashing, akin to an Agatha Christie who-done-it, there is a lot that is not meant to be seen. Many questions have fuzzy answers, sometimes, more than one.

Why is the train crashing? Where was it really going? Who is telling the truth?

Much of it may be highly accurate and verifiable. Other information, not so much. But when you take a look at the big picture and scour the image of the train crash frame by frame, find the metadata, and define it, you get a clearer picture.

To understand what you are seeing you may have to look back further than you ever thought you would. To encapsulate the year 2025 and understand all of it requires we look beyond the conductor, Donald Trump. He is by no means the one and only person responsible for the wreck. A production of this scale takes a great many actors, props, events, and a bevy of cosplaying audience members who are easy to manipulate.

In short, conspiracy abounds.

Conspiracy is a real thing. Many lawmakers currently conspire to attain liberty and justice for all, universal healthcare, free school lunches, better pay for teachers, and higher taxes for the wealthy to pay for it all.

Also real, are conspiracy theories. Suppositions that may or may not be true. Things which sound like they make sense that nobody seems to be able to prove. And conspiracy theories run rampant on a crashing train when not a single person has every last bit of information, or if they do have it, refuse to share.

So, when you watch the train crash, whether or not you believe everything you see and hear is what informs your decisions about how you react to the information you get. For a conspiracy theory to work, whether truly fact or fiction, people must believe it.

There are a lot of them out there. When they pile atop one another like rail cars in a ravine, it really makes you wonder; What is true? What is false? What are we looking at? Why is this happening?

Here are 2025’s most relevant topics of conspiracy/outrage in no particular order.

• The Trump assassination attempts

• The stolen presidential election of 2024

• The January 6th insurrection

• The White House east wing demolition

• Renaming the Kennedy Center

• Supreme Court corruption

• Trump, the Russian asset

• Cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence

• The Jeffrey Epstein files

• The Charlie Kirk assassination

• ICE, border security, and deportations

Wow! That is a lot of stuff, Mike! Where do you even begin?

Great question. You might start at the beginning. Not the beginning of this year, but when a lot of things were set into motion, decades ago. Since Trump is the linchpin of the train crash, it may be wise to look at what got him here.

In case you missed it, please read this essay I wrote just before the last presidential election. It stories how Trump became the person we know and got him to where he is. How The USA's Most Successful Career Criminal Became Our First Super-Villain

While I like to think it answers a bunch of questions, in reality, it really begs us to ask even more questions. This is where popular conspiracy theories comes into play.

TRUMP IS A RUSSIAN ASSET

Is he?

Maybe. That’s why it’s only a theory. The idea of Donald Trump being used by Russia to destroy America has been around for a long time. Even though former KGB officer Yuri Shvets claims this to be fact, detailed his knowledge to author Craig Unger for his book American Komopromat, and the writers and researchers of Trumpfile.org stand by these assertions, providing proof of their own through a verifiable timeline, there is no single smoking gun. There is no absolute proof that Trump is working for Russia.

Sure, you can look at all this information and say that makes a lot of sense. But then you have to step back and ask yourself, is he really that smart? Did he conspire to destroy America and move forward with a plan hatched by Russia? If so, why?

This is where that argument loses steam and gets weak. However, if true, it is devastating. It also makes you wonder if he was really able to come up with this next one on his own.

THE JANUARY 6TH INSURRECTION TO OVERTHROW THE GOVERNMENT

In a play to maintain authority, Trump denied the results of the 2020 election. He never submitted to the idea that he could possibly lose and stands by that belief to this day. Like many other fallacies, such as larger crowds gathering to see him, costs declining by hundreds of percentage points, the absolute halt of inflation, Hannibal Lecter being a real person, Trump sincerely believes that he won that election and it was stolen from him.

Trump’s perspective is but one of many competing for your attention about that day. Another, and perhaps most important one is special counsel Jack Smith’s 174-page report, where he determined that Donald Trump was primarily responsible for the events of that day. Smith sat for a closed-door deposition before the House Judiciary Committee. He wants that video recording released so there can be no quarrels about what he actually said under oath. Jack Smith wants the record to show, “Our investigation developed proof beyond a reasonable doubt that President Trump engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and to prevent the lawful transfer of power.”

In conflict with this there are other theories that the federal government engineered the January 6th insurrection, with paid federal participants ushering people into the Capitol.

When asking why either of these scenarios make sense, Jack Smith makes a stronger argument. However, the level of confusion among the crowd is what fed into events spiraling out of control. There was no clear leadership. When you examine the footage from every angle, it is apparent that the melee took on a life of its own, indeed raising questions. Once it started happening, and the police were overwhelmed, only a few who maintained anonymity and evaded captured, now appear to actually have had true objectives and used the crowd to their advantage. Who they were, what they wanted, and whether or not they completed their missions are debatable.

THE ASSASSINS

While on the campaign trail last year, bullets flew near Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, and a spectator was killed. Trump’s ear was nicked by a bullet.

A couple months ago, activist Charlie Kirk was killed by a gunman on the University of Utah campus.

The Trump shooter in Pennsylvania was killed by police.

The killer of Charlie Kirk was turned in by his family.

The motives of these young men, to aim high-powered rifles at high-profile people, are vague.

It’s weird, right?

Indeed. Looking at both shooters, the only immediate similarities is that they are young men, 20 and 22 years old. They both had some firearms training, and they both took sniper positions on roofs with clear shots of their targets. What differs most is their motives.

Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, who allegedly shot Trump, wounded two others, and killed one, had a secret double life and was somewhat prepared for more damage after the assassination attempt, as his car had incendiary devices in the trunk. What he might have done next, had he not been stopped, is anyone’s guess.

Tyler James Robinson, 22, the alleged killer of Charlie Kirk, had recently formed a relationship with a transgender person and stated he was fed up with Kirk’s hateful statements about the transgender community. He is currently jailed in Utah awaiting trial for murder.

Both cases have been heavily scrutinized by media and pored over by internet sleuths. There are tons of questions about these guys, and like all great conspiracy theories, those questions lead further down seemingly interminable rabbit warrens. Just check out some of these headlines and their accompanying stories.

Trust the FBI? Not until it tells us about Thomas Crooks | Representative Burlison

Charlie Kirk's Killer: What we know, and what we still don't

Charlie Kirk Hoax Explained In Six Minutes

Fact check: Debunking the Charlie Kirk murder conspiracy theories | CNN Politics

These are just shards off the iceberg. Not only do some people think that Charlie Kirk is alive and kicking it on a beach somewhere, but the attempt on Trump gets really juicy once you dive into it. Some people think the entire event was staged from the beginning; Trump was never injured and his security detail used fake blood, Thomas Crooks was a patsy, and the attendee killed, firefighter Corey Comperatore, was collateral damage.

The Ultimate Reality Show: How Trump and the GOP Staged an Assassination

Like the events of January 6th, there is a lot to process, so sift through it and decide for yourself. And when you get tired of that there are millions of other documents for you to wrap your mind around.

THE JEFFREY EPSTEIN FILES

Go ahead. You know you want to.

CLICK THIS LINK and search for your name in the infamous Epstein files.

I did and am quite happy that the name Rembis is not in there. The name Trump, however, is listed in 332 documents. Each document is a PDF that may be several hundred pages long, so once a name is spotted in a document, it may appear there several times within. There is a lot to go through. Epstein is listed in 9,393 documents, which is not surprising, it is all about him. Maxwell is found 3,527 times. Clinton, 386 times. Gates, 90 times, but some references may refer to security fencing. Musk, only 11 times, but some of those could refer to an odor.

This is just what the Department of Justice has made public, and as of this writing was last updated on December 19, 2025. There are millions more documents to go through. It will take a small army of real people to scan it all into formats that other real people, and artificial intelligence can handle, to go through it all and find whatever is in there that creates something actionable and indictable, and it will take years.

Theories about who knew what are rampant across the internet. Too much to link, and nobody has any real proof of anything. This is because of the blacked-out redactions on what has already been made public and future redactions to come. It has been reported that if you have the right software, you can copy and paste from the files to your computer and see behind the blackouts. I tried it and it didn’t work for me, so I must not have the right program.

Setting the files aside for a moment, the most intriguing conspiracy theory related to this affair, may be Who Killed Jeffrey Epstein? -or- Epstein Didn’t Kill Himself!

The disgraced financier was a convicted child sex offender. He had business and personal relationships with hundreds of well-heeled people around the world. People who could presumably have whatever they wanted. Who they were and what they got from Jeffrey Epstein and his partner Ghislaine Maxwell (who is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for sex-trafficking) is thus far unproven, however, about a thousand women have come forward to detail their abuse. Prince Andrew of the Windsor monarchy was stripped of his royal title due to allegations of sexual abuses through his affiliation with Epstein and Maxwell.

Scrutiny is placed on Donald Trump because of his and Melania’s proximity to Epstein and Maxwell in the 1990’s. They lived right down the street (so to speak) from each other in West Palm Beach. They were all friends. They hung out at Mar-A-Lago and up in New York. The allegations are that they knew each other well, partied together, Trump flew on Epstein’s plane several times, and they exchanged bawdy notes and birthday cards with allusions to women. Nothing so far has shown that Trump did anything wrong, according to most news reports.

To get an idea of what was found so far that connects Trump to Epstein, SNOPES offers a fair presentation and even has a picture of these guys with Godfather of Soul, James Brown, which only proves they once met James Brown. Even I once met James Brown, but I did not get a picture with him.

Another document that puts Trump and Epstein together is this demand for a jury trial for the rape of a 13-year-old girl. The plaintiff is JANE DOE, proceeding under a pseudonym. The document is exceptionally graphic and damning. The claim is Trump and Epstein abused her in 1994, and she brought suit in 2016. There are also two declarations by TIFFANY DOE, and JOAN DOE, proceeding under pseudonyms, that offer other accounts of abuse by the defendants when they were minors.

Why this never went to trial is a mystery. The suit was dropped days before the 2016 election, which Trump won. It was said she received threats. You can find this document on multiple websites, not just the one I provide above. Plaintiff Jane Doe later came forward as Katie Johnson. Her lawyer was confident she told the truth, but because she was intimidated and fearful, nothing happened. They got away with it.

That’s the story, anyway.

But, Mike, there’s one more question.

What’s that?

Who had the power to get into Epstein’s prison cell and make it look like suicide?

Maybe the CIA. Could be why there are so many redactions.

What we are looking at is a cloud of dust. Shadows doing things we can’t see. When you can’t see clearly, you can’t prove anything. Even when you can see something clearly, like all those videos of ICE agents accosting people, like they did at their auditions on January 6th, you can’t be sure who they are because they are wearing masks. To find out, you will need to follow them home. But if you do that and post their name and address in a public forum, they may be attacked, and you may be held responsible. So, if you decide to take action, better just keep it to yourself.

Things happen, right?

The best thing any of us can do is document exactly what we see and show everyone the proof, truthfully, like an ethical reporter would.

Like 60 Minutes would. Or would have, if they weren’t afraid of retribution by the Trump administration. If they had been fearless, we would have seen this report last week on American TV. Instead, it was pulled at the last minute, and we heard all about Sherpas on Everest instead. Luckily, it aired in Canada, and our fair and balanced neighbors to the North saw fit to share it with us, so we could see through the smokescreen, and have a better understanding of why this train is crashing.

Thanks for reading.

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Long before a train leaves a station, on say, a cross-country trip to some port city, it is loaded with tons of goods for delivery. It may be filled with iron ore, steel, copper, grains, timber, chemicals, oil, raw plastics, boxes full of miscellaneous stuff like bicycles or furniture, toys, lawnmowers, and - you name it. Whatever you can think of; even airplanes, rockets, chicken, and cattle ride on trains.

The train route is meticulously planned to be as efficient as possible. It will pick up more freight and make deliveries on the way. A train makes no side trips or unexpected stops unless it has to. It generally runs on time. Its mission is simple - go from here to there, stick to the schedule, and don’t crash.

On the train that is the United States, we have millions of passengers, and systems in place to keep us chugging along. We have fuel enough, so the train never stops. Food enough, so that nobody (allegedly) goes hungry. A sleeping berth for all on board. We should all be comfortable walking the length of the train, day or night, as we are protected from the elements outside.

Yet, the train is crowded, so it doesn’t always operate exactly as it was designed. On board, rules can change enroute, sometimes without notice. There may be bandits, crooks, ne’er-do-wells who would do you harm. There are kidnappings and murders. Property goes missing. People get cheated. There are all kinds of things going on you may not even be aware of in the compartment right next to yours.

On any given car there could be contraband. Somebody may have an unauthorized weapon. They might possess an endangered wild animal that doesn’t belong anywhere but its native habitat. There could be drugs.

Maybe and might and could are promising adjectives. These things are definitely on the train, no doubt about it. Like everything else, and everyone else on the train, they contribute to the economy. Your economy, whether you realize it or not. Maybe to your benefit, maybe not, but either way, contraband makes an impact.

We could focus on a lot of other things that affect your economy, but right now, let’s look at drugs.

Think of all the ways drugs contribute to society. Whether they are legal pharmaceuticals, or illegal substances; trade routes, gas, hotels, food, everything you use, so does the drug industry, right down to water and grow lights.

Health care costs. Law enforcement. Education. Employment. Every facet of society is connected to drugs whether you realize it or not.

Could the train run without drugs? Probably.

Would the country function the same way without them? No way.

Just like oil and food and water, drugs are connected to all of us in some fashion. You may be somebody who never takes drugs. Except an aspirin once in a while. If so, good for you. But just because you don’t use drugs, does not mean they have no effect on your daily life.

Let’s start with legal drugs. The pharmaceutical industry. Healthcare itself is the fourth largest industry in the world, right behind retail, agriculture, and construction, and just a step before oil and gas. Pharmaceuticals play a huge role. Global revenue in 2023 was $1.6 trillion USD. That’s just 20% of healthcare revenue, and healthcare simply would not exist without drugs. Pharmaceutical revenues are expected to exceed $2.3 trillion USD annually by 2030.

Think about that for a second. Chances are you have been to the doctor at least once in your life, if not several times. A doctor may have been the first person you ever met. The healthcare industry, and by proxy, pharmaceuticals, are a huge part of your life. We don’t have one without the other.

Consider all the ways that healthcare is connected to your life. The number of hospitals and emergency services. The personnel who live down the street, who shop in the same stores and pay the same utility bills you do. The transportation needs. The insurance. The hospital’s cafeteria and building maintenance. It all adds up. No matter how you slice it, the beast that is healthcare contributes to your economy.

Drugs, whether you take them or not, are a staple of your existence.

Go ahead and let your mind sauté that for a while. Try to come up with something that isn’t affected by pharmaceuticals.

Now do the same thing with illegal substances.

Drug runners use all the same systems everyone else does. Transportation routes, cell phones, computers, banks, you name it. As far as economics are concerned the only difference between these industries is the legality. But it is tough to measure illegal drug revenues due to a lack of regulation of their activities.

There are no balance sheets or financial reports for an eager statistician to pull numbers from, so we must rely on estimates. The global illegal drug industry is estimated to be worth between $426 billion and $652 billion per year. Since it takes a while to get worldwide numbers crunched, the latest report from the United Nations says that a record 316 million people used illegal drugs in 2023. That is about 4% of the world population.

Now that you’ve had time to sizzle your brain, spark up the grill and try not to burn yourself too much thinking about how a half a trillion dollars contributes to the economy. Imagine the dent if drug interdiction completely succeeded on a worldwide scale and all that money were to go away. Not only would you have over 300 million people looking for a new way to get a fix, but the systems that rely on revenue from the illegal drug trade would really feel the pinch.

Sure, 300 million people would have more money to spend, but where? Certainly not on what it takes to support a functional supply chain. Chemists and chemical suppliers would take a huge hit. The cost of guns and ammunition would go up. So would transportation costs, but not much. But think of everyone along the way. The loss of revenue for anyone reliant on bribes or transportation. Your local dealers who dine at the same restaurants as you. Where are they going to work with the supply chain gone? Who is going to hire a drug dealer? How will the restaurant fill that empty table? What will the cops do with nobody to investigate and bust?

You see the toll?

That’s crazy, Mike.

I know, right? What kind of world would that be? How will nightclubs survive if the bartenders only have alcohol for sale? Where will everyone get their fix?

Not to worry, four-percenters. There is no real way to completely quash illegal drugs. Marijuana, cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, ecstasy (MDMA) aka Molly, LSD (Lysergic acid diethylamide), psilocybin (Magic Mushrooms), synthetic cannabinoids (Spice, K2), fentanyl, and bath salts are not going away completely any time soon. You can’t kill a half-trillion-dollar industry overnight.

What you can do, however, is legalize it. Marijuana, the most used of all, is completely legal in much of the world. Despite U.S. federal law classifying marijuana as a Schedule I drug, loopholes created by Congress and State Legislatures have made it readily available all over the country. Depending on the laws of the state or territory, to get marijuana “legally” you may need a medical endorsement. For recreational use in some states, all you have to do is be over the age of twenty-one.

Yet, illegal trade routes still exist. As long as there are variations in the definitions of distribution methods (the level of legality of your local pot shop), there will always be a law to skirt. For a customer to get exactly what they want, where and when they want it, may be illegal. So, the entrepreneurial illegal marijuana dealer will always exist, because the beautiful thing about regulation is that if you and your customers don’t care about it, you can ignore it.

So will most cops at a local level. Once somebody has a bag of weed in a place where you can buy it from a legal shop, nobody is going to care where it came from. The same is true for psilocybin. You can start microdosing today.

Companies like Floh and Noom promote their mushroom products to relieve anxiety and promote weight loss by rewiring brain function. It is a legal work-around to sell drugs. It is not the traditional dice roll you get when walking around in a cow pasture, popping a few mushroom caps and tripping, maybe dancing with a cow, locking yourself in a car, or trying to shut down an airplane mid-flight, but it might give you that little something you can’t get any other way. A little mind-expanding taste of the universe.

There is no way to stop mushrooms from growing or the people who go looking for them. It is almost as pointlessly illegal as marijuana. Plants are going to keep growing with or without harvesting. Same with opium poppies. Whether or not anyone uses the poppy seeds for breads and pastries, or the latex within for morphine and heroin, or smokes the tar, the flowers will bloom.

Then there is coca.

I love chocolate!

Coca, not cocoa. A mountain plant that only grows at specific elevations near the equator in South America. The derivative cocaine was popular as a headache remedy and recreational drug, completely legal in the 19th century. When addiction rose, the government stepped in outlawed it in 1914. But its popularity never waned. Cocaine has been with us our entire lives.

These four plants and their effects are the basis for narcotics regulations. The 96% doesn’t need the other 4% tripping out and getting wacky. A lot of the 96% also think that they are going to be able to beat down this mega-industry into submission or stop it completely. They are wrong. There will always be illegal drugs because you will never erase the 4%.

The demand for other substances will always be there, and the chemists will always rise to the challenge of creating the synthetics.

Take a look at the scourge of the day. Fentanyl.

Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid. It is pure chemical. No plants or animals are harmed in the manufacturing process. It was developed in the 1960’s to relieve the harsh pain associated with cancer and is up to 100 times more powerful than morphine, and more addictive. It has ill effects that can kill the user when taken with other drugs like antihistamines, or they get adventurous and overdose. You would think that with all that info out there, nobody would want to try it. But there’s always that fraction of the four-percenters who will try anything once. For a lot of them it will be the last time they try anything.

Depending on your source, you will find death counts by fentanyl ranging between 48,000 and 100,000 annually in the U.S. According to the World Health Organization, 600,000 people died from opioids in 2019. A DEA intelligence report from 2020 found that China and India were main suppliers for the raw chemicals and most manufacturing is done in Mexico. This is still believed to be accurate.

This is the basis of the war on drugs. Even with statistics like this, what some like to point to as staggering numbers, it only comes out to about two deaths for every thousand drug users dying of overdose on a worldwide scale.

Or one in five hundred.

However you like your fractions.

Why do we want to save druggies lives anyway?

Wow! And you call me dark? Basically, we don’t want Americans dying from overdoses because a dead tool is a useless tool. The economy is better off when we put people into rehab instead of in the ground. It keeps law enforcement busy, emergency personnel and doctors employed, and rehab facilities cranking at full tilt. Without all that, these saviors would have less to do, need part time jobs or other professions altogether, and prices for everything go up.

Peek back at your train wreck again. You probably didn’t expect that the drug wars that have waged for years had anything to do with providing security for so many support personnel. From the manufacturers of both legal and illegal drugs, to the people who steal them or smuggle them or prescribe them, to the police who investigate, chase, and detain crooks, to the healthcare workers and counselors and janitors at their facilities, and everyone in between, the dollar in your pocket probably has a bit of flake on it from passing through this system.

To define the suppliers as “narco-terrorists” is a bit of a stretch. To be a terrorist an individual or organization would have specific directives and an agenda to strike fear into an adversary for the purpose of intimidation and dominance. Drug dealers of narcotics, both legal and illegal, have no such agenda. They are salespeople. They do not want to terrorize anyone. They just want to sell their products. As long as there is a consumer market ready to buy, all they are trying to do is meet demand.

This is why the alleged war on narco-terrorism by the Trump administration is nonsense. It’s like declaring war on the perfume and fragrance industry. Not everyone wants these products, but those who do, enjoy them quite a bit. Perfumers just want to sell their cologne. They know they won’t sell to everybody. It’s not like food or gasoline. It’s an acquired taste. That’s why it costs so much and is only available at select outlets. Not every store can deal perfume.

Nobody is ever going to be scared into buying perfume or fentanyl. People buy it because they want it. Do we get offended when somebody uses too much perfume? Sure, maybe, especially if we have an allergic reaction. Same thing with drugs. If somebody in our immediate vicinity is high, they can be offensive or downright dangerous. But hate the player, not the game. Nobody in the supply chain is out to actually “terrorize” anyone. They just want to make a buck.

Blowing up boats that may or may not have drugs to kill dozens of people who may or may not be drug runners and destroying all evidence is lame. It is wrong. It is foul play. Forget about pondering whether or not it is a war crime. It is a crime, plain and simple. It is murder.

In all that destruction in the Pacific and in the Caribbean off the coast of Venezuela, while there may have been evidence of narcotics, how will we ever know for sure?

There are at least a dozen reasons for anyone to be at sea in a boat other than transporting illegal drugs. They could be human traffickers transporting illegal immigrants. Or they could be legal immigrants choosing the cheapest method of transportation they can. They might not even be coming to the United States. They might be on their way to another island belonging to some other country. They might be fishing. They might be nice folks out for a fun time on the ocean. They might be transporting bananas and coconuts to sell in Trinidad and Tobago.

There is no way to know without stopping to ask. But did the U.S. military have jurisdiction to do even that? Probably not in international waters, definitely not in Venezuelan waters without the expressed permission of that country.

There is evidence that many of these boats were indeed ferrying drugs, but where to? None of them could have had enough gas to get to the U.S. mainland.

For an in-depth look at Operation Southern Spear and the body count so far, click this link: U.S. Military in Latin America and the Caribbean – Airwars

At least one boat was more likely to be a pair of fishermen than criminals.

MSNOW anchor Ali Velshi delivered a segment last weekend entitled No Quarter that detailed the attacks, offers a brief history on rules of engagement, rescue of maritime combatants, and the ramifications of what this all means for those pulling the trigger. It is a good breakdown of what has happened so far. I recommend it.

But that was before we stole a Venezuelan oil tanker. This is a game changer. If you thought blowing boats to smithereens was an abuse of power, this move clarifies it. Now we are pirates.

Why would they do that, Mike?

It’s part of the train wreck. It is a smoke screen, so you don’t see the big picture. The road to world domination. Watch the craziness of the boat strikes and debate it while we take over Venezuela to install Nobel Peace Prize laureate and Trump supporter Maria Corina Machado as the country’s new de facto leader, remove President Nicolás Maduro Moros, and return the tanker to secure a new deal to buy more oil at a steal. We sewed up ties with Argentina by throwing billions of dollars at them a while back. A little military might and a deal to buy oil will be just the thing to have a couple corners of the South American continent under control.

But remember Greenland? What happened with that? What’s going on up there?

We are still working on taking that over. Since Greenland doesn’t have an oppressive government in place, or boats that do anything more than go out to look at icebergs, a gentler approach is being exercised. Ambassador to Denmark, Paypal co-founder Kenneth Howery went there last week to make a nice soft-sell pitch to make sure we could still use the island for nuclear weapons, possibly through the restoration of an incomplete under-ice facility the U.S. constructed in the 1960’s. This, of course, is just a ruse to eventually extract minerals. It is the long game.

But the Mister Nice Guy act isn’t passing muster with Danish intelligence. Last week they issued a report citing concerns that “The United States uses economic power, including threats of high tariffs, to enforce its will, and no longer rules out the use of military force, even against allies.” So, while they might play nice and listen to the ambassador, they are wary about U.S. designs on the island nation.

This stems from the recent release of the National Security Strategy, published by The White House, which states in part: “We want to ensure that the Western Hemisphere remains reasonably stable and well-governed enough to prevent and discourage mass migration to the United States; we want a Hemisphere whose governments cooperate with us against narco-terrorists, cartels, and other transnational criminal organizations; we want a Hemisphere that remains free of hostile foreign incursion or ownership of key assets, and that supports critical supply chains; and we want to ensure our continued access to key strategic locations. In other words, we will assert and enforce a “Trump Corollary” to the Monroe Doctrine.”

The fifth U.S. President James Monroe established the doctrine as a foreign policy to oppose European colonialism. None of this is Trump’s idea. He does not have ideas. He goes after the shiniest coin in the fountain until he sees a shinier one. He is just moving along the train, smiling, shaking hands, and standing for selfies with anyone who doesn’t understand that it is going off a cliff and into the ocean.

The tool who is Trump is being used by the Heritage Foundation to exert pressure on every neighbor in our hemisphere to control the hemisphere. Pundits are calling their current list of priorities Project 2026. They hate China, government spending, anybody entering the country, people who vote against Trump, liberal educators, people without children, and whoever they define as the “deep state.”

They are the ones cranking the train along, directing exactly how, when, and where it should crash, so they can rebuild it as they see fit.

Who are they?

Billionaires like Larry Ellison, who can afford to take over Netflix and CNN so they can control the narrative of whatever it is they want you to believe. The train crash is not an accident. It is being sophistically manipulated.

They don’t care that Donald Trump has pardoned high profile drug dealers or that we are jailing and killing people indiscriminately. The hypocrisy of the drug war doesn’t bother them because they are the ones running the pharmaceutical industry. Illegal drugs are just competition.

They don’t care about stealing oil tankers because own oil companies and are the only ones equipped to handle thousands of gallons of crude oil, so chances are they will probably get in on that deal and make some money.

When twenty boats explode and thousands of pounds of cocaine go into the ocean, the only ones who will care are environmentalists like me, who can’t do anything about it. Anyone with money or clout hasn’t spoken up. Nobody is stepping up to defend the ocean against whatever devastation resulted from the bombings.

I asked Google AI about the ramifications of this pollution. Here is what it said:

The explosion and sinking of drug boats carrying large amounts of cocaine can negatively impact marine ecosystems, primarily due to pollution from narcotics, debris, and related chemical substances entering the ocean.

Potential Environmental Impacts of Drug Boat Explosions at Sea

When a drug boat carrying cocaine explodes and sinks, several factors may harm the surrounding marine ecosystem:

• Chemical Pollution from Cocaine and Its Byproducts

Cocaine is a synthetic compound that can be toxic to aquatic life. When large quantities of cocaine enter seawater, they may contaminate water and sediments. Although the ocean’s vast volume dilutes substances, localized concentrations of cocaine and its chemical additives can affect fish, invertebrates, and microorganisms by poisoning or disrupting biological functions.

• Debris and Structural Pollution

Exploding boats release fuel, oil, plastics, and other materials that pollute the marine environment. These pollutants can smother marine habitats such as coral reefs or seagrass beds, harm animals through ingestion or entanglement, and contribute to long-lasting contamination.

• Toxic Residue from Fire and Explosions

Boat explosions often involve burning fuel and chemicals, releasing soot, heavy metals, and other harmful compounds into the water. These residues can accumulate in marine food webs, affecting species from plankton to larger predators.

• Impact on Marine Wildlife

The noise and physical disturbance from explosions may injure or displace marine mammals and fish nearby. Chemicals introduced into the water can reduce reproductive success and disrupt ecosystems over time.

• Mitigating Factors and Uncertainties

Because the ocean is vast, many pollutants disperse quickly or degrade over time. However, repeated incidents or large-scale explosions near sensitive habitats can cause more severe and lasting damage. Researchers emphasize the importance of monitoring and mitigating maritime pollution from all sources, including illegal activities.

Summary

While drug interdiction operations are crucial for law enforcement and public safety, the environmental consequences of drug boats exploding and sinking include potential chemical pollution, habitat damage, and harm to marine life. These risks underscore the need for careful environmental assessments and cleanup strategies after such incidents to protect ocean health.

In conclusion, the destruction of cocaine-laden boats at sea presents complex challenges for marine ecosystems, balancing interdiction efforts with environmental stewardship.

Remember that the reason for crashing the train is to blindfold you in a fog, so that you don’t see something else happening. Once again, it is a distraction. You know that old saying, everything happens for a reason? These are just a few of the reasons. Look at the whole of the train crash. When you see something in plain sight, that doesn’t seem quite right, that seems unexplainable; people disappearing, prison releases, warlike atrocities without cause, remember that it is something you are meant to see because something else is being hidden from you.

But it is also a call to action. All of it. Just like our founders who started this country, who stood up to authoritarianism, it is our duty to emulate them.

As we sail into the fog of revolutionary war, so does Lady Justice. She may be blind but still guides her children to safety. Lady Justice is always with us, on the train, on the boats, standing beside us in protest. She will always be there, ready to wield her sword and hold up the scales of equality so that freedom may endure.

Thanks for reading.

Click here to read Part V

If you are new to the Rembis Report and would like to read any of the previous issues, PLEASE CLICK HERE to access the archives. To read it from the beginning, PLEASE GET A COPY of The Rembis Report: An Observation.

Click here to read Part I

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In his book Blink, Malcom Gladwell explores how the human mind makes split-second decisions based on a number of factors, like the number of events happening around us, the speed of these events at the time, and the stress involved in dealing with them. So many things can be happening in a life-or-death situation all at once that the observer’s brain breaks down the event into smaller snippets of time in order to deal with it and survive. When it comes to making lethal decisions, our brains help us react to events in microseconds and recall of an event that took place in a literal blink of an eye, takes multiple paragraphs, if not a full report, to describe in detail.

This is why, when you are on a crashing train, you can see everything and take note of the finest details to react instantly, when observers at a distance, who are not directly involved, see things differently and generally can’t do anything about it. Then, for observers after the fact, they can punch into the instant replay as armchair quarterbacks all they like, yet in retrospect, they can’t change what happened.

This is where we are now with what the Trump Administration has done to the country. Much of the destruction looks to be beyond repair, particularly that which has been done to the poorest and least represented among us. Namely, immigrants.

The United States has been deporting people at an alarming rate since January. It has never been like this. There are approximately 80,000 law enforcement agents working for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) across nine federal agencies:

• U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)

• U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

• U.S. Secret Service (USSS)

• U.S. Coast Guard (USCG)

• Transportation Security Administration (TSA)

• Federal Protective Service (FPS)

• Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers’ Office of Security and Professional Responsibility (FLETC)

• Office of the Chief Security Officer (OCSO)

• Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Mount Weather Police Department (FEMA)

Their major task, in a nutshell, is to secure the border and deport criminals. When Trump stepped back into the oval office, he shouted out orders to start detainments and deportations before the first adornment of new gilt hit the walls.

ICE got right to work. They removed restrictions on hospitals and schools, as they were no longer termed “sensitive locations.” They went wherever they pleased. Masked. Armed. Unmarked. They chased down people in the street, in parking lots, in stores. They even raided an entire apartment building, bashing in doors, destroying private property, zip-tying kids, and scaring the living hell out of everyone they could. They use tear gas and pepper ball and rubber bullets to make their point, which is, they are in charge. Thousands of people have documented these tactics first-hand. Instead of pointing out a single example of atrocity, let me direct you to Raider on Bluesky. Take a look.

Raider (@iwillnotbesilenced.bsky.social) — Bluesky

Raider reposts amazing videos they find on TikTok and other feeds. Not just historical photos like this one of Bernie Sanders, but up to the minute observations from protests and skirmishes around the country, sometimes moments after they happen.

There are videos of people being chased, choked, beaten, and taken into custody. The personal accounts are much more than just what you see on the news. The level of abuse is rightfully being defined as cruel, unusual, hostile, and authoritarian. It is state sponsored terrorism. Sadly, some people are on board with it, but they are Nazi scum. Do yourself a favor and surf Raider for ten minutes to see what is really happening. There are videos from everywhere.

However, when it comes to pictures and video, you can’t always believe your eyes anymore. Things can be faked with Artificial Intelligence (AI) helping us out now more than ever.

This video is a fiction created with the help of AI.

@mannyfigueroa4720I want you to watch this video — this is such an interesting video showing a restaurant owner standing up to ICE, refusing to be intimidated by agents hiding behind a mask. The courage on display is powerful, and it shows that ordinary people can still speak out when they see injustice happening right in front of them. #ice #agents #Trumpsupporter #breakingnews #losertrump #government #politics

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Amazing how real it looks, right?

Raider did not post this. Somebody on Substack reposted it from TikTok. But they did not bother to tell readers that it was computer generated, as the disclaimer by the posting TikTok account @mannyfigueroa4720, clearly shows.

While this video sends a clear message, emphasizing the feelings of those who detest the presence of ICE in their communities, it unfortunately reinforces the illusion that a false narrative is afoot. Some people will see this and decide that if this is fake, videos of law enforcement acting in a detestable manner may also be fake. And they could be right.

Makes you a little sick to think about it, right? Wondering who to believe? What is to stop AI creators, or anyone really, from marking up authentic video and denouncing it as fake?

This is the trouble with online creativity. Anybody can say anything, warp it just right, enough to make plenty of people believe a lie, and diminish the truth until there are so many competing narratives, doubt becomes the norm. Tools like AI give people the power to do this better than ever before.

If not for the thousands of hours of footage out there to begin with, we may have a hard time believing that over 66,000 people were detained in the first 100 days of Trump 2.0. We might not believe that Los Angeles residents felt besieged by ICE, Border Patrol agents, and the National Guard.

If many of us were not there to see it with our own eyes and talk about it, we might have trouble believing that thousands of people took part in the No Kings protests. If we did not witness it ourselves, we might not believe that Chicago, Portland, Charlotte, and other American cities were inundated with masked men in unmarked vehicles, jumping out and kidnapping people off the streets, busting out car windows, and tearing them from the arms of loved ones, disappearing them to unknown places.

If we didn’t see Kristi Noem standing proudly before hundreds of men in cages, we may not believe that over 500,000 people have been deported this year.

So, were they, Mike?

Maybe. The government is the one giving us these numbers, and we have seen all this stuff from allegedly trusted, reliable sources, so why would anyone lie about it?

Because illusion permeates the dust of the train crash.

The numbers could be that high. There are a lot of bean counters out there keeping tallies for Octo-Trump. I mean, remember those rallies before he got elected? The biggest ever, way bigger than Kamala Harris. Not really. He said his 2016 inauguration crowd was the biggest on record. It was not.

Inflating numbers has been his thing, like, forever. Hotel floors, casino revenues, holes at a golf course, how many kittens fit in a basket, viewers tuning into The Apprentice, back when he said he was too busy for politics due to being “very busy with major business deals all over the world.” Everything he has ever done, when it came to discussing the magnitude of whatever it was, the numbers would always be record highs, according to him.

Here’s a fun look back at the good old days, before he held keys to a nuclear arsenal.

PolitiFact | 2015 Lie of the Year: the campaign misstatements of Donald Trump

Oh, yes, fun times, those political campaigns!

Sure. Whatever.

To get you back on track, let’s do some fuzzy math about deportations, spoiled food, starving people, and the future of farm work in Trump’s America. Once you rip enough people out of American society and deport them, leaving a glut of undesirable job vacancies, whoever is left of the impoverished will be the ones to fill that vacuum.

Trump and company want to deport millions of people. Lots of these people happen to work on farms, in hotels, and other traditionally low-paying jobs, like trash collection, roofing, construction, and yard work. But we need all this stuff. These may not be great jobs but are necessary for a functioning society and economy. However, when you scare people away from work, or pull them away and deport them, crops are left unattended, hotel rooms take longer to clean, trash is hauled off less frequently, and it will take longer for hired help to show up and attend to your lawns and restaurant kitchens, if they don’t shut down altogether.

Suddenly, there is a job surplus. So many jobs! Unemployment at an all-time low. Hip-hip-hooray! Since so many things need to be done, once we get rid of Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and Section 8 Housing, everybody should be completely on board with getting a job, because everybody needs to earn a living, right? With so many vacancies, it will be everyone’s responsibility to make sure that nobody is sponging off the government. Without government assistance programs and so much work to be done, not only will it be awesome making America great again, it will be time to incentivize. Let the farmers, hotel owners, and construction companies know they can take responsibility for their workers and guess what - indentured servitude is back and better than ever. New and improved, because now, whoever needs a job can get one! As long as you agree to the conditions.

Back in February, when the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) was halted, about 500,000 metric tons of food worth $340 million was in limbo. Whether or not those numbers were accurate when reported by Reuters, I can’t say, but according to Fox News most of it spoiled and had to be destroyed.

The Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET), the U.S. entity that produced regular food security alerts meant to prevent famine, was also shut down. Its loss leaves aid organizations without a key source of guidance on where and how to deploy humanitarian relief. So, we may no longer have accurate numbers when it comes to recording how many people died of starvation this year.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, Mike! You’re all over the map here. You went from deportations to AI to lost jobs to worldwide famine in a couple of minutes. Is it really all connected?

It is. There are so many tentacles out there, doing so many things, each one was a story you followed for a while, but as the train kept crashing, you look over at law enforcement behaving badly, you blink, and you miss other stuff like this. You suddenly forget all about the farmers and who they employ, the food packers, the truck drivers, the warehouse personnel, anybody responsible for ensuring the safety of the food and getting it where it needs to go, and what happened to the food that never got to where it was needed most.

Ripping off the United States’ humanitarian arms and decapitating USAID and FEWS NET is meant to cause a global cascade of instability. As the weakest die off, those on the brink will become even more desperate for food, and while hunger has not yet killed them, it will drive them mad. We will see a ripple effect among the poorest of the poor, fighting for survival. Theft and betrayal will rise. They will start migrating to neighboring countries because they have no choice. This will stress every system already in place and test humanity as we have not seen in our lifetime. As this global catastrophe unfolds, count on seeing rebellions rise in the poorer countries, and a soured attitude toward the United States of America.

I once described Trump’s many dealings as icebergs calving, splintering off, and floating away to every corner of the world and melting into oblivion.

Iceberg. Train crash. Tentacles. Same thing?

Sort of. The train crash is the adrenaline rush of watching the iceberg calve as the tentacles spread out to make everything happen at once. Imagine that every time a decision is made, a shiny new iceberg upends, cracks open, and hundreds of little sea monsters pour out to suction onto whatever they find until they can drain the life out of it, before disappearing back to the depths. This is how Trump operated his businesses, and it is what he is still doing. Divide and conquer and suck every last cent out of everyone, while giving nothing back and admitting no fouls.

This is the main distinction between Trump and other presidents. If you are not working for him, you are working against him, and he will not stand for that. Forget about loyalty to your country. Loyalty to Trump is all he wants.

Trump is killing a lot of people.

His proposed deal between Ukraine and Russia would cost Ukraine access to rare earth minerals. Reopening Alaska in favor of drilling for oil, will probably not decrease our purchase of Canadian oil, because the pipelines are already in place and easily accessible. Then, other suffering countries, who have lost millions of people to starvation, will need the U.S. to come in and buy something from them. Hey - what about more oil and minerals, we could always use more of that! Before you know it, tariffs are lifted from all those places that give up their resources, and we now have a surplus. Who is going to buy all that surplus oil, liquid natural gas, gemstones, and heavy metals? Those who already buy them - but wait - surplus again! Who wants to take some of this stuff off our hands? Russia. North Korea. Israel. Iran. Anybody and everybody who can afford it. The never-ending cycle of famine, war, and rebuilding is what Trump will use to enrich himself and others who can afford to get on this gravy train.

Now, after murdering dozens of boaters off the coast of Venezuela, our military is poised to strike that country under a false flag operation to control their oil and steal their beachfront property. Gas is going to be cheap and that Caribbean vacation you were thinking about - Isla de Margarita, here we come!

What is the end game? Is it about trophies?

Good question. Possibly, to some extent, but I think it is more about Trump doing whatever he wants, whenever he wants, because nobody is bothering to stop him. In his essay, We Have Descended into Utter Madness, David Rothkopf scolds America, righteously so, for putting Trump into power to begin with. After watching him in office the first time around, I published my own warnings against a second term. It should now be quite clear that Trump is a terrorist and an existential threat to humanity.

Not only is he in charge of the most powerful economic and military forces on Earth, but he has also turned our government into a - here’s a fun word - kakistocracy.

Kakistocracy - A kakistocracy (/ˌkækɪˈstɒkrəsi/ KAK-ist-OK-rə-see) is a government run by the worst, least qualified, or most unscrupulous citizens.^{[1]: 54 [2][3]} The word was coined as early as the 17th century,^[4] and is derived from two Greek words, kákistos (κάκιστος, ‘worst’) and krátos (κράτος, ‘rule’), with a literal meaning of ‘government by the worst people’.^[5]

But why?

There are lots of ways to answer that, and I will keep trying in the weeks ahead. For now, just think about how integral AI is to this equation. With about a quarter trillion dollars invested so far, the whole plan may be to erase and rewrite history.

They are building it to fool you. To destroy what already exists and kill everyone who speaks truth. This is what you are up against.

Try not to blink. You might miss something important. And keep speaking your mind.

Thanks for reading.

Click here to read Part IV

If you are new to the Rembis Report and would like to read any of the previous issues, PLEASE CLICK HERE to access the archives. To read it from the beginning, PLEASE GET A COPY of The Rembis Report: An Observation.

Click here to read Part I

Thrill seeker. Daredevil. Just a couple of ways to describe that person reaching for an adrenaline boost by doing something risky. When we were kids, we jumped our bikes over mounds of dirt, catching air two feet high and sailing for ten before touching sod again. Crash or no crash, it was an accomplishment, and it felt great. Oceanside residents find solace in waves. They surf, starting on small crests before building up to the big ones, and some go on to ride monsters. Then, there are skydivers, base jumpers in wingsuits flying under bridges, climbers thousands of feet up sheer cliffs without ropes, skiers racing avalanches down mountains and even more extreme bike riders jumping canyons. Some even ride rockets to the sky.

Whatever thrill you seek, if you can conceive it, you can achieve it. Just don’t expect every well laid plan not to go awry. Things can go off the rails in a heartbeat.

Then there are those who plot train wrecks for one reason only. To watch. Not necessarily to revel in the aftermath, but to actually watch it happen. To witness it in real time. To marvel at it, happily pointing, and saying “I did that.”

It is not about the end. The ending is unimportant. How it ends is irrelevant. For the adrenaline junkie, be they a biker, wave rider, sky captain, or train wrecker, it is not about the destination, but the journey itself. It is all about the experience, doing whatever they are doing, right here, right now, getting as jacked up as they can be from the live action. That unmatched ethereal moment of bliss.

This is key to understanding President Donald J. Trump.

Consider an insect flitting from one daring moment to the next, dodging whatever might kill it, and killing whatever it must. An insect (as far as we know) does not think about its future, what it is doing next week, or where it might go next year, it only knows of its own life, right here, right now. It only knows the instinct to survive.

This is how Trump thinks. He has no concern for his own legacy. He lives in the moment, rarely asking “what’s next?” Because whatever happens next is irrelevant. It doesn’t matter. Everything is about what is happening right now.

Sources say he barely sleeps, but he’s been getting a bit more rest lately. It’s like he has so much to do and so little time to do it, that he must do it all, right now. The current life expectancy for a 79-year-old man in the United States is 87.64 years, with a 5% chance of death within a year. Maybe that is what drives him to do everything all at once. Throw it all at every wall to see what sticks, and if it doesn’t, just knock down another wall and build a ballroom. Even if it will take years to complete, and he may not even be there for the ribbon cutting, he will forever live in the moment of watching the timbers crumble to dust.

This is why he wanted to be President. It’s a thrill ride. It was not out of a sense of patriotism, devotion to his country, respect for humankind, defense of natural resources, duty to the poorest among us, or to leave the world a better place than he found it. It was all about him. It still is. It is all about the adrenaline rush.

Trump is known to not partake of alcohol or illicit substances. This is well documented. Instead, he is as high on life as you can get. His self-absorption is what drives him to do everything now, now, now - right now.

During his debate with Kamala Harris before the election he stated, “I have concepts of a plan,” and that was the truth. He still does have concepts of a plan and every day he rolls out something new that leads us further along the road of concepts.

It is not an exaggeration to say that in the first two weeks of his second presidency Trump escalated from Super-Villain to Worldwide Existential Threat.

Trump’s seventh signature on day one, Executive Order 14153 of January 20, 2025, Unleashing Alaska’s Extraordinary Resource Potential, aimed to decimate pristine wilderness areas throughout the state. It rescinded protective status for Gates of the Arctic Wilderness and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) and denied the Indigenous Gwich’in request to establish a sacred site in the Coastal Plain in favor of drilling for oil and gas. Environmental destruction became a top priority. In April, a federal judge stalled these plans, temporarily upholding President Joe Biden’s suspension of work that would be destructive to the ANWR.

Sadly, this past Thursday, the Trump administration finalized plans to start drilling in the area. You may not have noticed that with all of the Jeffrey Epstein email drama going on. Trump welcomes distractions like scandal to keep you from noticing that he is ready to rape Mother Earth herself. Does it even matter how many jobs it creates when it ultimately destroys a fragile ecosystem? How is that trade-off even measurable?

This is how it has been from the start. I could go all the way back to the first administration, but that was a primer, a dress rehearsal for what we are experiencing today. He signed 52 executive orders (EO’s) in his first two weeks back in office and has signed 212 to date. They are exhaustive to pore through, to find everything. Not as intense as 20,000 pages of Epstein email, but much more damaging to the nation than emails will ever hurt Trump. He is just a man. The planet is much more important.

While many may scoff at the EO’s, directing disdain to Trump, remember that he did not write them. He is the grand patsy, the fall guy, the cheerleader, the heavy hitter who takes one for the team. The team is The Heritage Foundation, who wrote Project 2025, the billionaires who direct from the shadows and profit from Trump’s train wreck. These EO’s and everything Trump does is in service to that cause and to enrich himself and other already rich people. His job is to distract you from whatever else is happening. But step back once more, and remember, it’s not about the payoff for Trump, it’s the adrenaline rush. Being all that he can be at all times.

Those with money easily get into his ear and stay in his head. When a person with money tells him that they are a very smart person, he tends to believe it and repeat it on occasion. Not everything Trump does is his idea. Some things might be, but for most entrepreneurs, when they have a dream and set a goal, they generally do everything in their power to make it happen and keep it from failing. Of all the projects he has initiated over the years, Trump Plaza is one of the few he saw to completion and success. Other endeavors failed. Casinos, a football league, an airline, a beefsteak company, a university. Most, if not all of these failures and dozens of others, were ideas pitched by somebody who got him excited enough to sign on. The adrenaline was there. Waiting. Taunting him to do it.

Same thing with the presidency. Maybe it was his idea, a concept of a plan, but if somebody had not cemented it into his head that he should be president, he may not have latched onto it. But here we are.

Somebody sold him on the idea, maybe himself, but he had a lot of help getting to where we are now. And he still gets a lot of help doing whatever it is somebody who can afford him wants him to do. He is the front man. A puppet.

Many people including himself convinced him that he should have won the 2020 election. The January 6th insurrection was probably not his idea. Somebody like Steve Bannon may have told him that he could have his own civilian army, he just needed to rally the troops, and he did. When he saw that it worked and his army was jailed, somebody egged him on to keep being president, and in his own mind, he was. He looked at the entire Biden term as time stolen from him. Every day, he lived in the moment of being President Donald J. Trump, even when he wasn’t the acting American president. Somebody told him that when he got the job back, he should thank all those who stood up for him (attacked the Capitol) and pardon the insurrectionists. On inauguration day Trump pardoned over 1,500 people who were arrested for storming Capitol Hill that day, even those who pled guilty. He still calls them heroes.

Since his first day back Trump has pardoned over 50 other criminals. Most of them with strong political and financial connections. Not because they were close personal pals. Because somebody told him to. Because every single one offers something worth exploiting. Silk Road founder Russ Albricht was one of the first. He knows how to hide money with Bitcoin. So does Binance founder and CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao. Tax cheats, venture capitalist embezzlers, fraudulent electors, anyone who knows how to launder money, concoct a scheme, or with the mindset to attack other people in service to him was sprung free and are ready to offer their own mad skills up to get back in the game, now financed by whatever dark private puppet master pulls Trumps strings.

It’s just one of those things. Part of doing business. He didn’t even know who Changpeng “CZ” Zhao was when he pardoned him. He heard he was a guy who got a raw deal and Trump’s sons like him because he is good with crypto. So, if they like him, Trump likes him. He will make a good soldier.

This is how the United States of America is being run. The guy in charge is not really in charge. He doesn’t always know what he is doing. He doesn’t always care what he is doing. If it sounds good at that moment and keeps the adrenaline pumping, he does it. He has said on multiple occasions, for decades, that he “loves money.” When somebody with money needs a favor, all they have to do is fork it over, and they get whatever they want. If you pay enough for your ticket the train conductor will make it golden. He will help you maneuver the crash site like nobody’s business, so that you get out clean, without incident, because making deals is what it is all about.

Trump doesn’t know how the world is supposed to work, he only knows how he thinks it should work. He throws everything at the walls to see what sticks. This is what he has always done. Whatever fails, fails, and he moves on, hiring lawyers to account for his misdeeds, and whenever something makes it, he claims a win. Not everything wins, so he is merely playing the law of averages, and in his mind, gambling with house money that he can’t really lose, because he knows the house always wins.

Remember this from his 1997 New Yorker interview with Mark Singer.

Donald Trump stated, “Whatever complicates the world more - I do.”

Mr. Singer wrote Come again?

“It’s always good to do things nice and complicated so that nobody can figure it out,” said Trump.

I like to remind you of that exchange now and then because it really explains that he is doing what he has always done - created chaos.

While people express outrage over the presidential pardons that do nothing for the country, they completely miss executive orders like this one: EO 14353: Assuring the Security of the State of Qatar, Signed on September 29, 2025.

Here is a snippet.

Sec. 2 . Commitment. (a) The United States shall regard any armed attack on the territory, sovereignty, or critical infrastructure of the State of Qatar as a threat to the peace and security of the United States.

This falls right in line with the Qatari Air Force training program at Mountain Home Air Base in Idaho and making deals with Qatar to bring Hamas to heel in Gaza. Remember that time they gave Trump a jet? This is payback for that. The quid pro quo. The back scratch. Many never even noticed it happen.

On September 29th, even though we peered at the dust cloud billowing around the train crash and saw pieces flying off in every direction, lots of people missed what Trump and Qatar were up to that day. We worried about the looming government shutdown, the impending Gaza peace treaty, and the video Trump posted of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) wearing a sombrero and a funny mustache. When distraction is necessary, he posts garbage like this so people miss what he is actually doing.

Once again, consider how busy he always is or should be. He shouldn’t have time to peruse the internet for memes. Somebody feeds these to him and says, “Know what, Donye? You should post this today. It’s funny. And it will distract from all that other stuff we’re doing so they won’t ask about it.” A wink and a nod later, mainstream media is buzzing with the news about how racist and childish he is, and in the meantime, he is making Qatar great again.

It is foolishness like this that sets him apart from other world leaders and prompts our allies to reconsider sharing intelligence, as Columbia, The Netherlands, and the United Kingdom have. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine has been fighting a war with Russia since 2022. The world shows him a great deal more respect than Trump and he used to be a comedian.

Trump doesn’t care about the backlash. Whatever negativity comes his way as a result of his own folly, he enjoys. It’s another hit of adrenaline. Like any criminal obsessed with the chase, looking into the rearview mirror, saying ‘Catch me if you can,’ he just keeps on trucking. If the law ever catches up to him, he has one simple strategy, the same one he has always used. Deny, deny, deny.

This is why he has no fear of whatever is in the Epstein files. It’s all hearsay. A printout of an email does not prove anything. It could be fake. Unless there is video, which could also be faked, he has nothing to worry about and he knows it.

He will point to the evidence and say ‘Look what they’re doing? Lies! It’s a smoke screen so you don’t see the Democrats for the train wreck they’re trying to make of your country.’

In the meantime, don’t try connecting the dots between cryptocurrency, Qatar, Hamas, Gaza, Argentina, a false flag Caribbean operation, and Venezuela. The puppetmasters wouldn’t want you to figure out that it’s a huge scheme to take over vast stretches of beachfront property on two continents and turn it all into luxury resorts.

It will take years anyway, long after he is gone, and if there is anything to hold him accountable for, it will be too late, because he will probably run out the clock.

Thanks for reading.

Click here to read Part III

If you are new to the Rembis Report and would like to read any of the previous issues, PLEASE CLICK HERE to access the archives. To read it from the beginning, PLEASE GET A COPY of The Rembis Report: An Observation.

A train wreck can be a beautiful thing.

Locomotives and photography have both been around about 200 years. The first train wreck to be filmed happened in 1853 in Valley Falls, Rhode Island. 13 people died. 40 were injured. A photographer who happened to be there snapped some pictures. Still shots. Amazing enough to make the mind reel, asking, how did that happen?

As with all technology, things occasionally go awry. Sometimes trains would crash. But getting that on film, back in the day? Well, you need a guy with a camera in the right place at the wrong time for that.

As photography got more popular and train tracks started connecting every inhabited region on Earth, it was inevitable that we would see more carnage, the aftermath brought to us through newspaper headlines. Of course it would always be front page news. Who doesn’t want to see photos of behemoth vehicles wrecked beyond recognition, blasted into oblivion? If it bleeds it leads.

Train crashes became so popular, they were done for exhibition. In 1896, crashes were staged in Ohio and Texas, drawing thousands of lookie-loos who just wanted to see it for themselves. Could you blame them? A spectacle of such magnitude, a head-on collision of defunct locomotives, headed for the scrap yard, weighing tons, hauling into each other at over 40 miles per hour - who wouldn’t want to see that? Sure, some people were hit with flying shrapnel, and a couple got killed, but - history, right? Luckily, moving picture technology was just emerging during that era, and soon, train crashes were staged for film. Finally, you no longer had to schedule travel to watch a real train crash. You could enjoy it from the comfort of a theater seat complete with candy and popcorn. The first people to see a train in a moving picture were said to jump from their seats and run from the theater as the engine barrelled toward the audience.

When a crash is imminent you know you are going to see something spectacular. Your body tenses up, your senses spike to hyper-vigilance, you stare at the speeding locomotive and can’t look away. How could the action get any better?

Slow-motion. Seeing every nuance of a crash as it happens is truly mesmerizing. Your mind reels as you stare at the grinding wheels, listening to the piercing screech of steel on steel, steam and flame blasting from newly formed cracks, like a cinder cone erupting. You can’t look away. Maybe it is two trains plowing into each other, or a runaway that can’t be stopped, chugging full steam into the station and breaching the walls at the end of the line, crumbling bricks to dust, collapsing ceilings, even rushing through to the street at the other end of the building. No need to run, because it is safely captured on film. Usually done with great care and precision by dozens of cameras strategically placed above, below, behind, and beyond the tracks.

A slow-motion crash is absolutely breathtaking. Especially so, for the one who causes the crash. Like a mad bomber, who may claim an agenda, and just wants to see what happens, or the arsonist, enraptured by the flames, whose only goal is to see how everything burns, the train-crasher wants not only to watch, but for you to watch with them, and earn recognition when they proudly say, “I did that.”

This is all U.S. President Donald J. Trump really wants. For everyone to know that he can do anything. So, to prove it, he does. His presidency is the equivalent of a deliberate, well-orchestrated train crash.

When he swept seven swing states to win the election, emboldened by the architects of Project 2025, the Trump train picked up steam. Republicans cheered from the club car. Full throttle ahead to Inauguration Day, when the wheels started coming off the rails. Trump hastily commuted sentences and pardoned every single January 6th insurrectionist. He signed multiple executive orders reversing dozens of thoughtful decisions made by the Biden administration regarding the climate crisis, protections for natural resources and wildlife, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, clean energy initiatives, and border security. He withdrew the U.S. from international climate agreements and the World Health Organization. He issued memorandums to pause foreign aid, withdrew from a tax deal agreed to by 140 countries, and issued directions that the architecture of federal buildings should be more “classical,” presumably to appeal to white nationalists. He issued proclamations that the United States is being invaded at the Mexican border, suspending migrant entry to the country. Then, instead of honoring recently deceased president Jimmy Carter with flags at half-staff for 30 days, as we had been doing, Trump ordered that flags must be flown at full staff on inauguration day, in the midst of the traditional mourning period. The nation could then lower the flag and continue mourning the next day. Some chose to fly flags upside-down to show their nation in distress.

This was just day one, merely a fraction of his actions that day. The wheels didn’t just come off the rails; they buckled from the axles and every car uncoupled. The country skidded and ground deeply into the railroad ties as rocks flew in every direction. There was so much to keep track of no single reporter could do it all.

But this was his plan. He blatantly told us in his 1997 interview with New Yorker reporter Mark Singer, “It’s always good to do things nice and complicated so that nobody can figure it out.”

Please note that this report required months to prepare. Mind you, that while accuracy is of utmost importance, so is the timeline of the train crash, starting with inauguration day and leading up to the day of these publications. So, to maintain clarity, some events will unfold in what was real time earlier this year, and the conclusions of those events will be noted as they are known to exist today.

The golden age of distraction is upon us.

It only took one day for Trump to begin dismantling the USA and wreak havoc across the globe. But he did not do it alone, and if you think that Trump is the engineer of this train, hold onto your ticket stub, because he is not. The guy crashing the train is the conductor who jumps out just in time to watch it all unfold. The engineer is still on board, and he is steering this thing right toward the edge of the ravine. But he has a golden parachute.

Meet Elon Musk. The wealthiest man in the world at that time, currently worth a reported $488 Billion USD. That is about $59 for every single person on the planet. That’s what it was the last time I checked. The fortune fluctuates with the markets, but you get the idea. Musk has way more than any one single person will ever need, and possibly more than anyone could ever spend. You would think that a guy like this would have something better and more interesting to do with his time than to act as Trump’s chief cheerleader, but no. He has big plans for the world. He wants to bring back apartheid and make white supremacy great again. Trump is his tool on the western front, helping him divide and conquer.

But how, Mike?

The old-fashioned way, by killing people. But this time, there’s a new twist. Instead of rounding up everyone into concentration camps and executing them -

Hold on, Mike, aren’t we doing that with Alligator Alcatraz?

Hold on yourself, we’ll get there, but first - it’s easier to cut off food supplies and let people starve.

One of Trump’s day one executive orders created the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). This was done in concert with another executive order announcing a hiring freeze on federal employees. Yet, somehow, DOGE kicked itself up from the gravel of the wreckage. While officially run by administrator Amy Gleason, it was helmed by Elon Musk.

Elon Musk was appointed to spearhead the agency as a special government employee, which is defined as somebody who works no more than 130 days in a 365-day period, so the position was immune from the hiring freeze. Musk even agreed to handle this task without pay. While Amy Gleason was in charge on paper, and Musk was not an employee of DOGE, as chief engineer of the operation, he made sure that nuts and bolts flew off in every direction, never to be seen again.

A week after Trump took office over two million federal employees were offered buyouts to vacate their positions and go away. A few days later about 10,000 employees of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) were placed on administrative leave as the agency was dismantled. By March 28, 2025 USAID was completely shuttered. Besides the thousands of USAID employees suddenly out of work, thousands of impoverished people across the globe suddenly lost a vital lifeline. Medical care, food, water and sanitation, and recycling and educational programs were crippled. Food in transit was stranded enroute to wherever it was scheduled to go. Food programs in Afghanistan, Yemen, Sudan, and Southern Africa shut down quickly, leaving people to starve. Farmers and food suppliers were left with a glut of food that suddenly had nobody to buy it and no place for it to go. An estimated five-hundred metric tons (1,102,310 pounds) of food was destroyed.

All for an America First agenda. Remember that. Everything the Trump Administration does is for an alleged America First agenda.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said “This era of government-sanctioned inefficiency has officially come to an end. Under the Trump Administration, we will finally have a foreign funding mission in America that prioritizes our national interests.” But what Rubio and others fail to realize is that USAID was never about American interests. It was meant to support what is in the world’s best interest, and show the USA as leaders by example.

What Trump doesn’t get about the billions in food that goes to starving people is that it is not giving money away, it supports (mostly American) farmers and keeps surplus food from going bad. An evil double-down of harming farms now comes from the ICE roundup of immigrant farmhands, who are running for their lives to escape detention, and leaving fields of food to rot. It is like the administration is trying to find a way to farm less. Maybe that is the plan.

Last year, JD Vance said “I think that if you deport a lot of violent criminals and frankly if you make it harder to hire illegal labor, which undercuts the wages of American workers, I think you go a lot of the way to solving the illegal immigration problem,” and went on to suggest deporting a million people.

At the same time Vance is encouraging mass deportations, he and Trump are also suggesting a baby boom for American citizens, calling for increased Child Tax Credits and funding newborns with “Trump Accounts,” which kickstart every child born in the USA with an investment account. Under a pilot program, the Treasury Department would seed the accounts with $1,000 for children born between January 1, 2025, and December 31, 2028, who have a Social Security number and are U.S. citizens. This was part of what Trump deemed his Big Beautiful Bill which passed the Senate, the House, and was signed into law by Trump on July 4th, 2025.

Mike, seems like you’re going off the rails here. Isn’t it quite a tangent to take us from starving people to savings accounts?

Exactly! This is how a train wreck works. You can’t see everything all at once. While you are watching the timbers of the trestle disintegrate, something else is about to emerge from inside that dust cloud behind it, and you won’t see it until it is too late. Every single thing in the Trump presidency is meant to be a distraction from everything else, so that you do not know which way to look next. Over here? You might miss that other thing over there, but don’t worry, you can see it on the instant replay, if the reporters happen to catch it.

Like what, Mike?

The Jeffrey Epstein files, for starters. This is how Trump obscures the drama of that mess, which even though he says he has no problem releasing, has not happened. Whatever and whoever is in those files, it’s a safe bet that Donald Trump is mentioned at least once if not multiple times, as the evidence they were once friends is overwhelming. These guys were even co-defendants in a lawsuit alleging rape of a minor.

We’ll get back to that sadness in a bit. For now, let’s take a closer look at the hits taken by our federal workforce.

Besides gutting USAID, similar cuts were made to every sector.

Here is a peek at the federal layoffs in the first 100 days of Trump 2.0.

By Day 278 of this presidency, the federal government has cut over 275,000 jobs. Analysts at the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) estimate that we will maintain the approximate 1,000 job a day loss to reach about 300,000 by the end of the year.

Besides that, another 150,000 or so opted for the deferred resignation program. Discrepancies as to the actual number abound due to competing bean counters tallying their own numbers. OPM, the Partnership for Public Service, and Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), all produced similar numbers, give or take a dozen or so thousand here and there.

Senator Blumenthal’s scathing report also concluded that DOGE wasted $21.7 billion in resources in only six months.

Here are some highlights. Estimates below come from various sources, but usually the agencies themselves, if they are not closed, like USAID.

• NASA: 3,870 confirmed plus 550 at Jet Propulsion Laboratory

• Department of the Treasury: 1,446 confirmed

• Federal Aviation Administration: 400 confirmed with 11,000 furloughed during government shutdown

• Environmental Protection Agency: 3,700 projected

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: 3,000 confirmed plus 1,300 on administrative leave

• Department of Housing and Development: 2,300 confirmed

• National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration: 1,300 confirmed

• Department of the Interior: 1,000 confirmed with 2,050 projected

• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: 1,500 terminated; decision temporarily blocked by a federal judge, but then allowed to proceed

• Department of Education: 1,300 confirmed plus 600 through voluntary resignations or retirement

• Department of Energy: 1,200 confirmed, possibly up to 2,000, though some were rescinded

• U.S. Department of Agriculture: 21,500 confirmed with 6,000 ordered to return

• United States Postal Service: 10,500 confirmed

• Internal Revenue Service: 26,000 confirmed

• Department of Defense: 55,000 civilian jobs confirmed

• Department of Veterans Affairs: 30,000 projected

• US Agency for International Development: 19,187 American jobs confirmed, 176,818 global jobs confirmed

So, what are we doing with all this money we are saving on payroll, Mike?

Well, for one thing, we are giving $40,000,000,000 to Argentina.

Okay so - Wait! What? How many zeros is that? What does it mean?

Argentina is getting a $40 billion bailout from the Trump administration. First, the U.S. Treasury is providing a $20 billion currency swap, exchanging dollars for pesos, with the intention of strengthening the Argentine peso to prevent further market collapse in that country. Then another $20 billion will be financed through a combination of sovereign wealth funds and private banks.

Even though Argentina was already struggling and had already used up the $57 billion loan they received from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in 2018, the IMF granted them another $20 billion in April 2025. Still, that wasn’t enough to shore up the country’s severe financial problems.

Hold up! I don’t get it. Why are they in a financial crisis to begin with? What happened?

In 2018 it was a perfect economic storm. A severe drought wiped out crops and livestock, prices rose, jobs declined, and faith in the Argentine Peso was diminished. The U. S. Dollar steadily gained ground, and the country came to rely on a two-currency system which proved to be unsustainable. Two years ago, Argentina had the highest annual inflation rate in the world, around 211%. The Argentine Peso once again plummeted in value and the locals started saving their cash in American dollars. After they devalued the peso, the unemployment rate skyrocketed to over 50%. Nobody was happy with the way Argentina was running.

Enter Javier Milei, Argentina’s own home-grown disruptor. Like Trump, he hit the spotlight with his sights set on the presidency, ran on a platform of radical economic reformation, and won. Once he took over, he started slashing away at what he considered government waste. Elon Musk was so inspired by his actions that when he started working with DOGE, in a show of support and inspiration, he gave Milei a shiny new chainsaw at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC). The process of cutting jobs and not creating new ones created a lot more hungry, impoverished people. President Milei called his austerity measures “shock therapy,” with the intention of righting the economic balance of the country and expecting the poorest of all to take the biggest hits. This tack is right in line with Trumpism. While some of that economic shuffling helped to bring down inflation and restore Argentina’s budget to a positive level not seen since 2008, the poorest are still suffering.

That’s awful for them, but what about America First? And making America great again?

Sounds good, right? Statements like that would mean something if they had meant anything to begin with. “America First” and “MAGA,” when uttered by Trump was nothing more than a ruse to get a vote and build confidence in a scheme to defraud everyone who fell for it, and everyone else who is simply in the way.

Whether or not Trump saw Argentine President Javier Milei as a playbook on how to hijack the U.S. government, or if other Project 2025 architects did, or if it is sheer coincidence that everything Trump is doing, Milei already did, it is clear that when Argentina slashed government spending, they wound up hurting a lot more people, and by following this same path, so will the United States.

To sort it all out, I employed the internet at full capacity to get my answers.

This chart and summary were created by Google AI based on public information.

While there is no formal link, Javier Milei’s tactics and Project 2025 share significant similarities in their ultimate goals of dismantling the state and empowering conservative interests. Both use similar methods, including targeting public services and regulations, consolidating executive power, and using populist rhetoric to frame their actions as fighting a corrupt establishment.

That is quite a coincidence. With Argentina getting another $60 billion on top of the $57 billion they got in 2018, are they finally going to create jobs and feed the poor?

That’s cute. You’re funny.

No. This is all so that billionaires with investments in Argentina will profit from the massive reserves of rare earth minerals there. But the poor will probably get mining jobs. Minimum wage in Argentina is about $1.29 USD per hour, but an underground miner in Argentina earns an average hourly rate of $6.91 USD, so big bucks, right? While that might make Argentina great again, the number of those jobs will be limited.

So, why does the United States government have such a strong interest in Argentina?

Really, it’s all Trump. He likely sees a lot of himself in Milei. This video posted three weeks ago explains a lot, and I urge you to watch it to learn more. While the producer incorrectly predicted the outcome of last week’s Argentine elections, thinking that Milei’s party would lose ground, it answers a lot of questions you might have and outlines the corruption surrounding Milei’s power.

Once a staunch Trump supporter, Georgia representative Marjorie Taylor Green has a huge problem with giving money to Argentina. She spoke out against it, demanding “Tell me how it’s America First to bailout a foreign country with $20 or even $40 BILLION taxpayer dollars.”

Last week on Meet The Press, Kristin Welker mentioned this to U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. He refused to call the $40 billion for Argentina a bailout, instead saying “It is America first because we are supporting a U.S. ally, there will be no taxpayer losses, this is a swap line, this is not a bailout, and it is from the exchange stabilization fund which treasury I control, the - at treasury - It has never registered a loss. It is not going to register a loss this time. We are supporting a U.S. ally, - the - in Latin America, and we want to set the tone in Latin America, because look at what’s going on in Venezuela.” He managed to segue into a discussion about the rest of U.S. relations throughout South America and avoid talking about his personal relationships with billionaires who are heavily invested in Argentina.

Scott Bessent was instrumental in facilitating the deal. Hedge fund manager Robert Citrone of Discovery Capital Management and investor Stanley Druckenmiller of Duquesne are known to have significant Argentine investments and both are closely aligned friends of Scott Bessent, who was a hedge fund manager and soybean farmer before he worked for the Trump administration. Citrone reportedly lobbied Bessent for the package to protect his interests.

So, what are they investing in?

Remember the miners? They dig lithium. Not because they think lithium sounds cool. It’s for the lousy paycheck to keep from starving to death so the rest of the world can have batteries. You know who needs lots and lots of lithium batteries? Tesla. No wonder Elon Musk is handing out chainsaws.

There is more lithium in Argentina than most other places on Earth. They also have lodes of copper and plenty of other natural resources, like oil, natural gas, and rare earth minerals. Plus, plenty of fertile ground to grow soybeans much cheaper than you can in the United States, with export fees to other countries that are much lower than American tariffs. Who wouldn’t want to invest in that?

Hold up, you never answered Marjorie Taylor Greene’s complaint.

You’re still stuck on that America first stuff? Okay, dig this - once the billions were forked over to Milei, Trump made another deal that Argentina could not refuse. Officers of the U.S. Navy’s Special Warfare Command will soon join the Argentine Army for joint military exercises. Milei and Trump were said to have discussed the creation of a U.S. Naval base in the southernmost part of the continent last year. Milei is wholly responsible for this claim. While no work on that has commenced, with Trump’s newfound freedom to bomb boats in international waters without fear of reprisal, don’t be surprised if they dig into some ecologically sensitive area and displace a bunch of penguins just to take over the Falkland Islands.

So, there you have it. Sort of looks like the U.S. has plans to take over South America. Strengthening ties with Argentina while simultaneously attacking boats in the Caribbean, and threatening to send troops into Venezuela, this kind of makes America great again. Since Trump couldn’t get Canada and Greenland on board, he went south. If we add a whole continent, that would make America really great, right?

Plus, look at all the money the billionaires will make. Tearing up Argentine wilderness and raping the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge are just the start. The jobs resulting from this destruction will be minimal and the losses will be extraordinary.

It is clear that the Trump Train is a mirror of Milei’s presidency. It exists only to make money. That’s it. Get in there, scrape up all the resources you can and forget all about destroying the environment. When it comes to your constituents, the people and the country you purport to represent, all you have to do is say that what you’re doing is for them, even when it is not, because you are in charge, and nobody is going to challenge you, but if they do, just take them to court, cut them off, or kill them.

It’s all for microchips and batteries and plastic and making rich people richer. Poor people can’t afford phones and cars, anyway, so don’t worry about them. Don’t be concerned about the ones who are going to starve to death because they will be gone soon enough, and when they are, they will stop complaining.

Mike! That’s really bleak! Maybe you’re exaggerating a bit?

No, that’s about the shape of it from what I see. The engine is off the rails, and the cars haven’t even started buckling yet, so we still have aways to go before it all comes to something of a full and complete stop and we figure out how to clean up the inevitable mess of the toxic spills ahead.

What about everything else? Congress has been shut down for weeks! Americans are losing SNAP! They need jobs! Air traffic controllers are missing paychecks. The East Wing of the White House was demolished for a ballroom that won’t be completed for years! What about all that?

Yeah, right. Well, don’t focus on that because we are talking about billionaires getting richer here, and that is the priority. A lot of people are going to die, they have to, so there will be less people to feed. Then we won’t have to grow as much food as we did before, and a lot of those who will be left may be a majority of white Christian nationalists, just like the Nazis who escaped to Argentina in the 1940’s, right in line with Project 2025, so it’s all good.

Make sense?

No, Mike, that doesn’t make any sense at all! What is happening is absolutely horrible.

It is supposed to be. The sleight of hand within an orchestrated train wreck is classic misdirection. There is way more to see than what you catch in one shot. This is what a cold and calculated crash looks like. It is horrible.

What’s next?

Besides the holy war Trump just announced against Muslims in Nigeria, Your President also said he wants the U.S. to restart nuclear weapons testing. He wants to make war great again.

Nukes!

You ain’t seen nothing yet.

Thanks for reading.

Click Here to read Part II

If you are new to the Rembis Report and would like to read any of the previous issues, PLEASE CLICK HERE to access the archives. To read it from the beginning, PLEASE GET A COPY of The Rembis Report: An Observation.

Just eight years ago, Donald Trump was in the first year of his first presidency. The U.S. saw its most horrific mass shooting to date, with 58 dead, and 850 injured by a suicidal gambler in Las Vegas. Football players started kneeling during the national anthem to peacefully protest and call attention to racial inequality and the treatment of minorities by police officers. The Geneva Academy reported 55 armed conflicts in 29 states and territories.

Eight months ago, the Trump administration slammed the handle down on the runaway train that is Project 2025, barreling forward with a barrage of executive orders and reformation of U.S. government to become a leaner, meaner machine. Mass shootings in the U.S. were averaging one a day, keeping armorers in business while the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) was shuttered. Taylor Swift watched her boyfriend Kansas City Chief tight end Travis Kelce play in the Super Bowl. Final score: Philadelphia Eagles 40 - K.C. Chiefs 22. Some blamed the loss on Taylor Swift distracting Kelce from the game. Vice President J.D. Vance and Trump lashed out at Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for not capitulating to Russian forces invading his country and being thankful enough to the U.S. for allowing Ukraine to exist.

Over the last eight weeks, The Trump administration sent stern warnings to Russia and Hamas that they better cut out all this warlike foolishness, or the U.S. will send Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine and keep allowing Israel to eradicate Gaza so it can become another Trump property. To get bigger and bolder than ever before, Trump signed an executive order to change the name of the Department of Defense back to the Department of War, which is what it was originally established as in 1789. To celebrate they called air strikes on unidentified boats in international waters near Venezuela, destroying the crafts, presumably killing all on board under the guise of a war on drug cartels. No response from anyone concerning these specific crafts have surfaced. Venezuelan authorities have stated that the first attack never occurred and told The Guardian that eleven people on the second boat had no ties to drug cartels. Another person told Univision that one of the people killed was his neighbor, a known drug runner. That person refused to be identified. They hit another boat with six on board on October 14th.

On the home front, peaceful protesters are out in major cities like Chicago and Portland (which Trump deems war zones) in response to the surge in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers and masked men in unmarked vehicles zip-tying children and kidnapping people. The Super Bowl announced that Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny would be the 2026 halftime show performer, much to the chagrin of mostly MAGA Christian conservative football fans, who despise foreigners, non-Christians, and liberals. They are doubly annoyed to learn that Puerto Rico is part of the United States, the Spanish language is as old as any other (fourth most spoken [worldwide] behind Hindi #3, Chinese Mandarin #2, and English #1), and that Bad Bunny is a devout Catholic. Many Christian conservatives were also upset to learn that Catholics are considered Christians. Mass shootings are still a daily occurrence. At the time of this writing, year-to-date, we are up to 358 incidents with 355 deaths and 1,593 injured (as of October 18, 2025). Oh, and Publix supermarkets just announced that it’s okay to carry a loaded shotgun into their stores, so you don’t have to leave them in your truck, for those who suffer from weapon separation anxiety. Now you can safely guard your milk on the way back to your bunker.

To top it all off, Project 2025 is full steam ahead, nearly off the rails, as the Trump administration gets closer to their goal of supreme dominance by bringing back the magic of Nazi fascism we considered defeated 80 years ago.

In the last eighteen days or so, The Trump administration has been experiencing a barrage of backlash and fallout from multiple public faux pas by Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Steve Miller, Director of the Office of Management and Budget Russell Vought, Attorney General Pam Bondi, Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (RFK, Jr.), FBI Director Kash Patel, and President Trump himself.

Trump recently signed an executive order that reinstated the penalty for burning the American flag. To explain the administration’s position on this decision, which was considered “free speech,” Trump said “We took the freedom of speech away, because that’s been through the courts, and the courts said you have freedom of speech but what has happened is when they burn the flag it agitates and irritates crowds. I’ve never seen anything like it, on both sides, and you end up with riots.” What most people heard was the “We took the freedom of speech away” part, which is admittedly, difficult to ignore. Basically, burning a flag is no longer “freedom of speech.”

As far as flags and freedom of speech are concerned, self-expression is a big no-no at the Federal Bureau of Investigation. After ten years of service at an FBI Los Angeles field office in a non-agent capacity, an employee moved across the country to enter the agent training program in Quantico Virginia. How proud they must have been to make the move. To be accepted as an agent after ten years! Yet, during that decade in L.A. they had proudly displayed a Pride flag at their desk. This personal decision resulted in them being fired for their choice of self-expression that was not at issue prior to joining the training program. The dismissal letter signed by Kash Patel read, in part, “After reviewing the facts and circumstances and considering your probationary status, I have determined you exercised poor judgment with an inappropriate display of political signage in your work area during your previous assignment at the Los Angeles Field Office. Pursuant to Article II of the United States Constitution and the laws of the United States, your employment with the Federal Bureau of Investigation is hereby terminated.”

So much for what you can do with a flag these days. Conspiracy-theorist-in-chief RFK, Jr. raises big red ones all the time. This week he touted connections between Tylenol consumed during pregnancy to autism, saying “Anybody who takes the stuff during pregnancy unless they have to is-” choking through his unfortunate affliction of spasmodic dysphonia, “is irresponsible.” Confirming no proof of this claim, he added, “We’re doing the studies to make the proof.” Kennedy has been obsessed with finding a cause for autism for quite a while. What he has against autistic people, I do not know, but he doubled down on this claim, adding that circumcision could make things even worse, saying “There’s two studies that show children who are circumcised early have double the rate of autism and it’s highly likely because they’re given Tylenol.” Two separate studies from 2013 and 2015 claimed to show links between circumcision and autism. Autism researchers who are highly critical of these studies say that no such causality exists.

Florida gal Pam Bondi found herself in the hotseat last week fielding questions from the Senate Judiciary Committee Hearing focused on oversight of the Department of Justice (DOJ). While she may have been questioning the causality of her existence there, she never mentioned it. The senators made sure she understood. They wanted answers! Bondi was hit with questions about everything from this Truth Social post by President Trump to the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files.

Senators got nowhere. The hearing was an exercise in absolute futility. She deflected every question served, flat-out refusing to answer those she disliked. Pam Bondi had no explanations for anything. The American people got no answers, just more questions. Why won’t she answer? Who is she protecting? Where is the $50,000 cash the FBI lured Tom Homan with in a bribery sting operation? Tom Homan is now the White House Executive Associate Director of Enforcement and Removal Operations, aka “Border Czar.” Both White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt and Vice President JD Vance said Homan never took the cash, but Homan never directly denied that, even when he was pressed for an answer by Fox News, he just said he did nothing wrong. Once the question was posed by Representative Adam Schiff (D-CA) Bondi replied in a hostile tone and told him to ask Kash Patel. Schiff choired a litany of at least a dozen questions she had not answered that day as she mocked him between statements.

She never said she did not know anything about anything, but maybe she doesn’t. In the end we got a lot of nothing. Maybe she knew everything and just forgot because she is a blonde, but nobody mentioned that, because you just can’t make jokes about how dumb blond people are anymore, especially in politics.

Is that because Trump is a blond?

Possibly. It’s up for debate. So, she either knew all the answers and wouldn’t share them, which is honestly, quite rude, or she really doesn’t know. If that’s the case, what are we paying her for?

In case you are in need of a good five-hour afternoon nap, you can hit up the Fox News replay on YouTube. If that doesn’t put you to sleep, try reading the passages that Russell Vought wrote for Project 2025. His hefty contribution to Section 1: Taking The Reins Of Government is clearly summarized on page 20 as a clarion call to dictatorship. “The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America.” Accordingly, Vought writes, “it is the President’s agenda that should matter to the departments and agencies,” not their own.

For those who don’t know exactly who Vought is and what he gets paid for, it is to crunch the budget numbers and figure out how the country will pay off the national debt, which currently rose above $37 Trillion.

Since we seem to be paying a lot of people for nothing, like Pam Bondi, “RIFs have begun,” Vought announced on the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, which now apparently serves as the major bulletin board for everyone in the world. RIFs are reductions-in-force. People’s jobs. Eliminated. Apparently, to pay the national debt. This is another futile exercise that will do virtually nothing to drive down that debt, because these people who had jobs, need the money they were paid for allegedly doing nothing, so they can buy stuff, and support businesses where other people do things. It’s the money that makes the world go ‘round. It doesn’t matter if your job accomplishes nothing as long as you get paid and are able to spend money. This is the flaw in Vought’s financial plan. Curtailing spending via job elimination to pay debt is nowhere near as financially effective as taxing the richest people and corporations. Cutting taxes for the wealthiest of all drove up the debt. Trump is wholly responsible for this.

Vought doesn’t seem to mind. Because he and the other architects of Project 2025 are clearly focused on driving the country into a submissive state. Take everyone’s money away and desperation will grow. They will work for less, and accept less, while rich people with financial cushions in place, will have everything they need. This financial chasm is the pathway to slavery, which is what they want.

This is why Trump put Steve Miller in charge. This Steve Miller is not the same guy from The Steve Miller Band. Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Steve Miller is a nationalist authoritarian numbskull. He is fully on board with last week’s government shutdown, laying off and firing thousands of federal employees, and not paying them. At least, he should be, since this aligns with his vision of what he described as the President’s “plenary authority,” a phrase he dropped when discussing National Guard troop deployments to American cities with CNN’s Boris Sanchez. One Pentagon source tells CNN that Miller and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have more involvement with military operations than Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, with Miller being the one who pushed for strikes against suspected drug-smuggling boats in the Caribbean, like the one they blew up this week.

Miller has become the go-to authority in sparking the fire and fanning flames of civil unrest by spouting a false narrative about insurrectionists destroying American cities. “They are actually, as we speak, trying to overthrow the core law enforcement function of the federal government,” Miller said in the interview with CNN. “It’s absurd, it’s unconstitutional and must be put down.”

The fiction of war zone cities is then reinforced by aforementioned supporting characters like Pam Bondi, who says, “We’re deploying the full might of the federal law enforcement to crack down on antifa and other domestic terrorist organizations, led by Stephen Miller.”

I asked Google’s AI Gemini: Can you narrow down the earliest use of the exact term “antifa”? I know it means antifascist, but when is the first time anyone referred to “antifa” as an organization?

According to Google AI Gemini :
The exact term “Antifa” was first used as a shortened form or nickname for an organization in Germany in the 1930s.

Specifically, it was an abbreviation and nickname for the Antifaschistische Aktion (Anti-Fascist Action), a multi-party front initiated by the Communist Party of Germany (KPD) in 1932 to counter Nazism. The German word Antifa itself is recorded as appearing as early as 1930.

While anti-fascist movements have much earlier roots, this organization is the source of the specific, shortened name “Antifa” that is used today. In the United States, a modern group that used a variant of the name, Rose City Antifa, was reportedly formed in Portland, Oregon, in 2007.

This turned out to be a pretty long Q&A. I posted the exchange to Bluesky. Please link there to read it. Basically, anyone who thinks antifa is an actual organization is mistaken. It is a movement, like an unofficial fan club, not a registered de facto institution. Google Gemini cites Wikipedia as its source.

False flag propaganda videos like this one, featured on the official White House website, are spinning a tale that ANTIFA is a criminal enterprise. It is not. It is an antifascist movement without a central headquarters, leader, or doctrine, made up of people who refuse to submit to an authoritarian regime, and are proud be antifascist.

Who would want to be a fascist? Why would they choose fascism above freedom?

Not sure. Maybe these people.

This is a disinformation campaign by, guess who? Fascists.

Kristi Noem, Pam Bondi, Kash Patel and others lend their voices to fire up the MAGA base for no other reason than to stoke division among Americans. Dropping military forces like ICE and the National Guard into cities under the guise of rounding up illegal immigrants is meant to instill fear in the meek and goad anyone with a short fuse, so they will react violently for being shoved or pepper sprayed, and be able to claim that your government is fighting the enemy within, who they call Antifa. By forcing knee-jerk reactions of people who can’t maintain calm and civility, this band of alleged law enforcers, some wearing masks, not displaying badges, and driving unmarked vehicles, are successfully secreting people away.

In this TikTok video by attorney Rachel Cohen, she shares the story of an ICE detainee who is being forced to work 60 hours a week and how prisons become work camps through a slavery loophole. There is no question that ICE is taking people into custody. This week ICE reported that a 3-day sting operation in Oklahoma netted 120 illegal aliens a few weeks ago. Most of them had commercial driver licenses. But ICE doesn’t talk about where anyone gets sent, that’s why we must rely on first-hand reports, and TikTokers like Cohen to break it down and bring it to our attention.

You could just say that everyone is simply doing their jobs. But how much work is too much work and when does working too hard become detrimental? This may not appear to be a logical, or even relevant question at first glance, however, it seems to me that this crackdown is overkill, and more of a way to instill fear, than do anything productive for the United States of America.

In another basic Google search, I asked about credible reports of violence by Antifa.

From Google: There have been multiple credible reports of violence involving individuals who identify as Antifa, though experts emphasize that “Antifa” is a decentralized movement rather than a single organized group. Law enforcement officials, government agencies, and research organizations have documented incidents of property damage, assaults, and clashes with opposing groups at protests.

False reports and conspiracy theories regarding Antifa have also circulated widely. In 2020, Twitter shut down fake accounts impersonating Antifa members that were attempting to incite violence. Similarly, law enforcement and fire officials debunked false rumors blaming Antifa for wildfires. Some law enforcement agencies, like the Los Angeles Police Department in 2020, also found little evidence to support claims of organized Antifa involvement in widespread looting.

My take is that the government considers Antifa a dirty word. They either refuse to recognize the definition or do not understand the concept of what antifascism is, so the Trump administration does not realize that they are actually exercising fascism. All they think is that they are making America great again. You know, like when woke was something you did when you got out of bed, when diversity, equity, and inclusion sucked, and the military had different standards.

After stepping out of his dressing room, Pete Hegseth got in front of over 800 military leaders at the Pentagon last week to deliver a speech to highlight these exact bullet points. He stood before the highest-ranking commanders from every military branch, dressed like a midwestern Tuesday night meteorologist, in an ill-fitting suit, a shirt without a button-down collar, shoes which did not complement his outfit, a bracelet instead of a wristwatch, and an American flag pocket square (in violation of Title 4 U.S. Code § 8, aka Flag Code). At least his hair was combed, his makeup was impeccable, and he looked sober.

Practically quoting Project 2025, page 91, “Ever since our Founding, Americans have understood that the surest way to avoid war is to be prepared for it in peace,” Hegseth paraphrased this repeatedly in his opening remarks, then somewhat parroted the tone of Trump’s first inaugural speech when the newly elected president said, “This American carnage stops right here and stops right now!”

Hegseth explained why the name was changed to the Department of War and appeared to insult every member of every branch, saying “We became the woke department.” Before the twelve-minute mark of his speech he said, “This administration has done a great deal from day one to remove the social justice, politically correct, and toxic ideological garbage that had infected our department, to rip out the politics. No more identity months, DEI offices, dudes in dresses. No more climate change worship. No more division, distraction or gender delusions. No more debris. As I’ve said before and will say again, we are done with that shit.”

For the next forty minutes he reveled in misogyny, homophobia, and Christian faith, railing against overweight people and facial hair, while calling for a strengthening of the baseline physical standard among all service personnel, which already exists for combat ready troops. Women would be held to the minimum performance levels of men, and all personnel would now undergo more frequent and routine physical tests.

His attempt to portray himself as the leader of the strongest and most dynamic fighting force on Earth was met with both derision and praise. These links to The Atlantic and Glenn Beck exemplify the division of thought among Americans regarding the issues he raised, and the new standards presented.

Hundreds of Generals Try to Keep a Straight Face - The Atlantic

Why Pete Hegseth’s military speech was GAME CHANGING - Glenn Beck

Hegseth later issued a memo ordering all military leaders to ensure that his speech is reviewed by all personnel by the end of October.

Since I am not a military man I don’t have much to weigh in on. I also shave almost daily and have never had a beard more than a week old, as that is my personal preference. However, the shaving rule and many of the other concepts presented, will be detrimental to our military as some of those choosing a beard over a clean shave do so for a variety of reasons. Some have exceptionally sensitive skin conditions, so shaving is, quite literally, a physical pain. Sikhs, Muslims, Rastafarians, and Jews who serve wear beards or dreadlocks as part of their religious culture. Some women also have facial hair, so this is not just about men. This is a human choice that should not affect one’s ability to serve their country. We will lose good patriots for lousy reasons.

Wow, Mike, that is a lot of stuff! What else happened?

Taylor Swift dropped a new album. She sold over four million units of The Life Of A Showgirl right off the bat. I like the first three tracks a lot. The Fate Of Ophelia, Elizabeth Taylor, and Opalite are bouncing tunes with sweet beats. The rest of the album is okay, typical Taylor, nothing I am too excited about, but worth a listen. Oh, and Congress couldn’t agree on a spending bill, so they shut down the government and now nobody is getting paid. Air traffic controllers who generally work sixty hours a week are still expected to show up, even when their paychecks do not. And bonus - without Congress in session the Jeffrey Epstein files can’t be released.

President Trump posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Charlie Kirk, putting him in league with Congressman Jim Jordan and conservative radio personality Rush Limbaugh. He then allegedly ended the war in Gaza and whined about not getting the Nobel Peace Prize. After the cease fire and hostage exchange, according to Hamas, Trump gave them the green light to go ahead and clean up Gaza any way they wanted, so they killed the Dagmoush family, who they considered traitors to Palestine, for helping Israel. They publicly executed over 50 people.

The White House issued Trump’s 20-point peace plan which renames the devasted area New Gaza. Key factors in the plan rely on Hamas staying out of the way of key areas designated for redevelopment. With everything running so smoothly back home in the good ol’ U.S. of A., Trump has a lot of time on his hands, so he will head and chair, with other members and heads of state to be announced, including Former Prime Minister Tony Blair, a new international transitional body called the “Board of Peace,” to ensure that investments in New Gaza will create plenty of jobs and opportunity.

It’s great that he is so caring about what happens in Gaza staying in Gaza. Trump will be like the guy who runs the homeowner’s association who never shows up at tenant meetings, reaping reward for administering pain. It was only 8 months ago when the first cease fire teased everyone with a path to peace. Trump even posted a video, not realizing that it was meant to be a slap in his face satire. The A.I. generated video "Trump Gaza,” showed up on Truth Social showing a destroyed Gaza rising like a phoenix under the golden hand of The Donald. It was not a serious vision of the future, but, like everything Trump looks at, he only sees what he wants to see. The video creators did it as parody and never meant for it to go viral, promoted by Trump himself, or whoever really manages his Truth Social and other online accounts. The video is still posted on Instagram.

Trump also gave Argentina $20 billion and committed another $20 billion on top of that to ensure that American billionaire investors don’t lose money in that country’s failing economy. Never mind American citizens without jobs.

The military fired missiles from a U.S. Navy ship in the Pacific Ocean at Camp Pendleton, flying right over Interstate 5, snarling traffic to jerk everyone around in retaliation of Saturday’s No Kings Day protests, which went considerably well today, drawing out millions of peaceful protesters across the country in support of antifascism.

Time out, Mike! This is just too much stuff. It is all happening so fast! How is anyone supposed to keep track?

That’s just it. You’re not. You are supposed to shut up and get out of the way, not protest, don’t make waves, be Republican and so on and so forth, do whatever Trump says and like it.

Obviously, you can see that such a tack is not realistic. You can’t just ignore everything. When I started writing this essay a week ago, looking back over the prior week, I finished most of it in short order, but things kept happening, just piling on, so I kept writing. Now, I am looking at stuff that happened nearly two weeks ago, when it still feels like just last week. It’s like a never-ending train wreck. I am getting close to the end of this one, so hang in there, and keep reading because the hits just keep on coming.

You remember that schemer I wrote a six-part series about? George Santos? Well, Trump thought a 7-year prison sentence was a bit much for such a staunch supporter, so he was pardoned yesterday.

Trump also met with Volodymyr Zelenskyy again and decided not to hand over any Tomahawk missiles to fight Russia. He says we need missiles more than everyone else. We could sell those things for $2 million a pop, but you never know when we may need one to blow something up ourselves.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio made an appearance at that meeting. He has been pretty quiet lately, only insisting that assaults on boats coming from Venezuela are narco-terrorists. The latest hit was discovered to have two survivors who were injured, taken into custody, and given medical attention aboard the USS Iwo Jima, before being returned to their countries of origin [respectively] Ecuador and Colombia, for detention and prosecution. Rubio has been waging a personal war against dictatorship in the region for a long time. His parents emigrated from Cuba and told him stories of bloody regime change. So, he grew up with a chip on his shoulder for Fidel Castro and dictators, and a soft spot for immigrants, that has somehow morphed into being a cop who puts all of his faith into his captain and has firm grip on his crew, who are shooting first and asking questions later. The preemptive strikes against those they call terrorists appear to be the terrorist actions of a regime that considers themselves judge, jury, and executioner, much like the dictators Rubio claims to fight against. In the wake of the unwarranted strikes, 4-star Admiral Alvin Holsey quit his post without notice or explanation.

However, not everything between Rubio and Trump is sinister. Some photos get taken completely out of context. Judge for yourself.

But I digress, where were we? Ukraine?

No. Nothing is happening there. Stick with Gaza for now.

Oh, yes. Gaza. That again. There is a whole lot more to unpack there, but before I conclude this Saturday evening, allow me just another minute or two, because there is just too much left, and I don’t exactly want to leave you hanging, so check this out -

Once the latest cease fire and prisoner swap was in the works, Pete Hegseth announced that Qatar would build a training facility at Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho. Lots of folks got riled up, especially MAGA supporters. The statement was taken out of context really fast. It’s a training facility for Qatari pilots to learn how to fly F-15s alongside American pilots. The Republic of Singapore Air Force already utilizes this base in a similar fashion.

Conservative commentator Amy Malek said, “Qatar has spent $100 billion buying influence in the U.S., and it’s paying off. I am in shock that Washington would approve a deal letting Qatar, Hamas’s #1 financier, open a Qatari Air Force facility on U.S. soil.”

Whoa, Mike, Hamas is funded by Qatar?

In part, yes, and they have a good explanation for why. But they also fund Al Jazeera News. They spend money on lots of things. They gave the United States a new $400 million dollar plane that Trump plans to refurbish to become the new Air Force One.

If you don’t see how this whole cake is baked yet, let’s wipe the frosting off, wedge up a big chunk, and look inside. But not today. There is way more to this story than I can fit into one newsletter. It is going to take a while. For what I have in mind, I plan to deliver a report every other week for the next two or three months, all on the subject of the Trump administration, their place in world politics, how their new policies are affecting us in the United States, how our country may survive, and what we may become in the future.

Like past American presidents, Trump gets around, makes deals and decisions and lots of noise. But does he actually have a plan?

Is he leveraging the country to do something so extraordinarily good for us that it is absolutely beyond our comprehension?

Is his going to sell us out?

Is he gaslighting the whole world?

I am going to try and figure it out.

Please stick with me and go for the ride.

And please, do me a huge favor, if you will. Share my newsletter. I need all the visibility I can get. If you like the way I present my unique perspective of facts and humor, tell somebody. Post your favorite reports to your social media and ask others to read. This newsletter is free to all who want to read it, and I don’t have any extra perks for paid subscribers, but if you feel that what I do is valuable and entertaining, however you choose to support me is greatly appreciated. If you are able to make a monthly pledge, thank you so much! I make my best effort to present you with something I love writing and hope you love to read. Right now, this is my best shot at earning a salary of any kind. I am not currently employed, my TV show production stalled, and I haven’t sold any of my books or screenplays yet. However, I am always writing, as I always have something to say. It keeps me going to know you like this.

Contribute to the comments below if you are so inclined, and thanks for reading!

See you in two weeks!

If you are new to the Rembis Report and would like to read any of the previous issues, PLEASE CLICK HERE to access the archives. To read it from the beginning, PLEASE GET A COPY of The Rembis Report: An Observation.

How will South Park parody this?

Only a few short weeks ago, Charlie Kirk was parodied by South Park in the episode entitled Got A Nut, *SPOILERS AHEAD* where Eric Cartman challenged his rival Clyde Donovan for superiority as a master debater. Eric was upset that Clyde had “stolen his schtick” for Clyde’s podcast, where he railed against Judaism and independent womanhood, much like the real-life right wing evangelical commentator Charlie Kirk. In pure Cartman fashion, Eric started a podcast to spew his own harsh opinions, and soon Eric and Clyde were both contenders for the Charlie Kirk Award for Best Master Debater, which Eric lost to Clyde.

Charlie Kirk himself was said to have enjoyed the episode. He thought it was funny and admired the satire for what it was. This episode also explored how easily jobs are lost, when South Park Elementary School counselor Mr. Mackey is unceremoniously fired by PC Principal after 26 years of service, how dependent we are on banks for survival, and how simple it is to get a job at United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). To fuel the episode further, Department of Homeland Security chief Kristi Noem was portrayed as having a face that sloughed off every so often and her character shot five puppies to death, one of which was already dead, as an angel in heaven, when ICE raided the pearly gates to round up anyone with brown skin. The episode climaxed in Mar-A-Lago, portrayed as Fantasy Island, with President Donald Trump as Mr. Rourke and Vice President JD Vance as Tattoo, where Dora The Explorer and Clyde wound up giving massages to clientele. Presumably, Dora was a sex slave, Clyde was deep in debt, and Mr. Mackey ended up counseling him after all. Then the episode cast cooed Hark The Herald Angels Sing parodying the ending to A Charlie Brown Christmas.

Nothing is off limits for South Park creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker. They have modeled themselves as the embodiment of free speech from the start of their careers and never looked back. Each show starts with a slate of white text on a black background warning viewers that they impersonate whoever they like, whether anyone likes it or not, and thus we have been warned. Nobody has to watch. Lots of people don’t. But some who do may be offended or outraged, lashing out via social media or interviews, when they get the chance. More prominent figures who are parodied tend to complain most, but nobody ever seems to get too harsh, because South Park may strike back in a future episode without warning.

Kristi Noem told Glenn Beck that she had not watched the episode, but tread lightly, saying "It never ends, but it’s so lazy, to make fun of women for how they look. Only the liberals and the extremists do that. If they wanted to criticize my job, go ahead and do that, but clearly, they can't. They just pick something petty like that."

In this episode and the prior one, season opener Sermon on the 'Mount, President Trump was shown getting into bed with Satan, who complained that Trump was even worse than his last boyfriend, Saddam Hussein. That episode closed with an AI rendered Trump staggering naked through the desert, speaking to his penis. While the White House issued a statement saying, in part, “This show hasn't been relevant for over 20 years and is hanging on by a thread with uninspired ideas in a desperate attempt for attention. President Trump has delivered on more promises in just six months than any other president in our country's history — and no fourth-rate show can derail President Trump's hot streak." But Trump himself said nothing. Nobody has confirmed or denied that he has even seen the show, but for him to stay personally silent about such scathing content, leads me to believe that he may not even know what South Park is. So, the joke is literally, on him.

The South Park team delayed their most recent episode, saying that it would be late. Some theorize that they may be purposely stalling, trying to figure out what they may or may not say to avoid being silenced. I don’t think that. My guess is that these artists are working hard to produce a fine quality production they will be proud of, and if they need extra time, so be it. Paramount, who owns Comedy Central, where South Park airs, made a $1.5 Billion deal with them to deliver 50 episodes over the next five years. For $30 Million per episode, South Park is probably striving for excellence above all else. No matter the paycheck they are still going to do what they want, and my bet is that it will still be funny and weird. I am looking forward to it. After all, they have not been censored.

Not yet anyway.

What’s that? You think Paramount is going to break that contract and pull them off the air? Probably not. South Park can go back to the drawing board multiple times and tweak their show before airtime, whereas more spontaneous productions, like Jimmy Kimmel Live, can disappear immediately because when a show airs the same day, it is recorded with little to no editing, so what a comedian says in the aftermath of a volatile event becomes part of the national consciousness. Comedians are the Jiminy Crickets and coal mine canaries of our political and civil dialogues.

Late night TV hosts have long been a staple of proverbial water cooler chat. While the water cooler itself has been largely replaced by the home office, the discourse has expanded on social media, exponentially growing conversations by replaying what a comedian says, responding to it, reacting with fervor or derision, and sharing it over and over again. It doesn’t matter whether or not you watched the show live, once it is out there, it lives forever. Same thing with South Park.

So, why was Jimmy Kimmel cancelled, Mike?

Jimmy Kimmel was not cancelled. He was “Pre-Empted Indefinitely” because Jimmy Kimmel is real, not a cartoon character, and his absence sends a stronger message. The Trump regime wants you to know how powerful and dangerous they are to get you to shut up. An adult focused cartoon that costs $30M a show may only appeal to a niche audience, but a wider variety show like Kimmel’s may do way more damage to the regime, because people will identify with a real person before they will a puppet, and when they identify with the enemy of the regime, the regime faces failure.

This is what is happening now. Your first amendment right to freedom of speech is in the crosshairs of the Trump regime. It stopped being an administration a while ago. In case you don’t understand the difference, the simple explanation is that an administration manages policies for the good of its citizens, while a regime manages the citizens for the good of the administration. This is how the United States is becoming a regime. You are considered a tool, nothing more.

While the regime did not fire Jimmy Kimmel directly, they did get the message over to ABC that he needed to go, post-haste, for making an observation of Trump regarding Charlie Kirk. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr (who wrote the broadcasting Chapter of Project 2025) told right-wing podcaster Benny Johnson that, “we can do this the easy way or the hard way. These companies [Nexstar and Tegna] can find ways to take action on Kimmel, or there is going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.” Then Trump said that TV networks should have their licenses taken away if they give him bad press. Next thing you know, Jimmy’s out of work, along with his whole crew of 200+ people.

But this was all just a shakedown. A way to force compliance with the regime. To get corporations in line and Make Censorship Great Again. To understand how all this makes sense, listen to this offering from Politics Girl.

What terrible things did Jimmy Kimmel say?

Jimmy mocked Trump’s reactions to Charlie Kirk’s murder. It was a funny bit and didn’t seem so outrageous to me. But what do I know? I am just a sort-of-wannabe comedy writer. It was typical Jimmy Kimmel, not much to get excited about. Click here to link to Jimmy Kimmel’s Monologue. See and hear for yourself.

What did Charlie Kirk say that drove a gunman to shoot him for it?

Lots of things! But first - Full disclosure about my knowledge of Charlie Kirk. I didn’t even know who he was until he was killed. Even though I watched the South Park episode featuring the Charlie Kirk award, I did not even think enough of the character to look him up to find out if Charlie Kirk was real. Everything I learned about him; I found out after he died. This is because I watch 18 - 22 minutes of NBC Nightly News with Tom Llamas most nights, not every night, and spend about 10 - 20 minutes a day scrolling through Bluesky, but that’s mostly to see videos of baby goats and tornados. Not together. Separately. Nobody wants to see a baby goat flying through a tornado. While I am there, I generally catch some news headlines. So, between these sources, and the occasional channel surf hopping onto CNN, I caught the Charlie Kirk and Jimmy Kimmel stories. Once I found censorship afoot, it piqued my interest, so here we are, getting the facts.

Charlie Kirk started his organization, Turning Point USA, when he was only 18 and built it into an impressive dynasty boasting annual revenues around $80 million. He had a podcast that reached about five million listeners. No doubt that this is quite an accomplishment. Still more amazing to me is that a guy this popular is somebody I never knew existed. How did I miss it?

Probably because I am not the target audience. I know there are other well-known people out there I have never heard of, too. Writers I have not read, celebrities and politicians in other countries, sports figures, musicians I have not heard. There is always somebody to discover and something new to learn. This is how it happens. Charlie Kirk’s true 15 minutes of fame came from his death. But why were millions of other people paying so much attention to him? How did his funeral practically fill a stadium and draw in the President of the United States and other notables?

It must have been something he said.

You’ve got that right. It’s a long, long list. There are dozens of websites dedicated to quoting Charlie Kirk. They go both ways, both scorn and praise. To which of these columns does your glass raise? Let’s just mix it up, shall we?

Some Notable Quotes by Charlie Kirk

• “When you deliberately distort and selectively present the truth, you lie.”

• “I can’t stand the word empathy, actually, I think empathy is a made-up, new age term that does a lot of damage.”

• “I’m far more interested in what God wants from me than what I want from God.”

• “A man who calls himself trans is wearing ‘woman face,’ no different than I would wear Black face trying to be a Black person. It’s assuming an identity that isn’t yours.”

• “The simple truth is that America is locking up too many people, for too long, and spending too much money on them.”

• "Black women do not have brain processing power to be taken seriously. You have to go steal a white person's slot."

• “Leaders should be servants, not rulers.”

• “Gun control, like vaccines and masks, is focused on making people feel ‘safe’ by taking freedoms away from others. Don’t fall for it.”

• “If you erase history, you will repeat its mistakes.”

• “If I see a Black pilot, I’m going to be like, ‘Boy, I hope he’s qualified.’”

• “Healthy debate makes us stronger; censorship makes us weaker.”

• “Now, I will say that for future retirees, people under the age of 45, we should absolutely raise the retirement age.”

• “Truth is not determined by the loudest voice, but by reality itself.”

• “Capitalism has done more to lift people out of poverty than any other system in human history.”

• “America is the greatest experiment in freedom the world has ever seen.”

• “The Constitution doesn’t grant rights—it protects God-given rights.”

• “Political correctness is the deadliest of political weaponry.”

• “Democrats have long been the party of voter fraud.”

• "The one issue I think that is so against our senses, so against the natural law, and dare I say, a throbbing middle finger to God, is the transgender thing happening in America right now."

• "Are you comfortable with both London and New York having Muslim mayors? I'm sorry. I think we should have a little bit of caution with that. That doesn't feel right."

• "That's awfully graphic... but the answer is yes, the baby would be delivered" -- when asked how he would respond if his own child was raped and became pregnant.

• "I think it's worth it. I think it's worth to have a cost of, unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year so that we can have the Second Amendment to protect our other God-given rights. That is a prudent deal, it is rational."

• “All death can do to a believer is deliver him to Jesus.”

In his final moments somebody asked him, “Do you know how many transgender Americans have been mass shooters over the last 10 years?”

“Too many,” said Kirk.

“Five,” they told Kirk, and then asked, “do you know how many mass shooters there have been in America over the last 10 years?”

“Counting or not counting gang violence?” Kirk asked.

He never heard the answer. At that moment, yards away, a fellow with a rifle took aim to dispatch him, and that was the last thing anyone heard from Charlie Kirk, the master debater.

These are just a few links to some of his quotes.

Fact-checking Charlie Kirk's Awfulness - by Erik Veland

Viral Claims About Charlie Kirk's Words - FactCheck.org

13 of Charlie Kirk's most anti-LGBTQ+ quotes

There are tons more out there. Search if you wish. Comparing Charlie Kirk’s rhetoric to anyone else’s is futile. His legacy is being spun in every direction. A martyr for Christian conservatives, who somehow ignore his racism, homophobia, transphobia, and misogyny, they embrace every reference to God. Staunch liberals focus only on what his fan base ignores. Indecisive observers focus on his broad statements that mention freedom and censorship without picking a side. Comedians however, cast light on his hypocrisy, pointing out that while he makes some excellent points, he does so while marginalizing specific groups of people, and downplaying the horror of mass casualty events.

It seems Kirk’s schtick was trying to be an everyman. His undeniable following gave him a pulpit and freedom to lecture. He was able to get in front of crowds and say whatever he liked, utilizing his powerful first amendment right to free speech. He said demoralizing and incendiary things that offended people. So do comedians, sometimes. In his own twisted way, he was trying to be funny, while at the same time deconstructing the freedoms of personal choice, degrading women and minorities, touting the right to bear arms, and taunting everyone. Just like some comedians, he was a jerk that some people really loved in spite of himself, and they bought into what he sold.

Compared to Jimmy Kimmel’s faux pas, heckling the President for changing the subject from Kirk’s death to the White House ballroom remodel, Kirk did a lot more to divide people. He enveloped his right to free speech. The main reason he could was because he owned the stage he was on. He could not be canceled. Well, not legally. All it took was a guy with a steady hand to aim the bullet. A most foul play, indeed, but one that we have seen time and again, and will likely see in the future. When the wrong person gets fed up with what they are hearing, they grab a weapon and lash out.

Then, typically, the assassin is captured or killed or dies by suicide. Victims are always honored, and the killer, if known, gets the 15 minutes of fame Andy Warhol promised.

The big question is, why do assassins keep getting caught? Look at most assassinations attempts over the last few years. They always get busted.

I’m not talking about mass shooters. I mean the one-on-one hitters trying to make their mark. Such sloppy work these days. They get caught on camera, hunted down, and captured in hours. Sometimes they hit innocent bystanders, and get killed where they stand, or don’t even get a shot off, winding up in court trying to stab themselves with a pen. It’s like they just got up out of bed and decided they were going to give it a try. See what happens. That’s no way to get a job done. What ever happened to putting in the work?

In our grade school classes at St. Cunegunda the nuns taught us the basics of being professionals. Obviously, we all have to start somewhere. We weren’t all as gifted as the elite and venerable Vytas Norkunas right off the bat, ready for prime time, but they gave us a good start. By eighth grade we knew how to cover our tracks and get away with anything. And look us now. Nobody from the class of 1978 has ever been indicted, considered suspects, or called in for questioning. Sister Natalie would be proud.

They just don’t teach the old school ways anymore, do they?

Not based on what we’ve witnessed. It’s sad. It really is. If we had better assassins, just think how much more exciting conspiracy theories would get. Then, everybody might be right.

As I write this, Jimmy Kimmel has already returned to work. His show airs in an hour. I think I will watch it for a change. In the short week of his absence, it is said that Disney (ABC’s parent company) stock tumbled nearly $4 billion in value following the hoard of Disney+ and Hulu streaming service cancellations. I did not cancel in protest, like others, as I use Hulu as my main TV streaming platform. Messing with it was too much trouble for me. I had other stuff to do. But I am glad it is working out in Jimmy’s favor. If I had cancelled, I would have probably gone back to it anyway. Disney+/Hulu also announced a price hike today, so I am paying more now, like I might have paid elsewhere for about the same TV.

Make no mistake, it was the huge turnout in support of Jimmy Kimmel’s freedom of speech that drove the stock price down and got him back on the air. Even though some Sinclair and Nexstar station affiliates are reportedly standing firm, refusing to air Jimmy Kimmel Live, it won’t stop anyone who wants to watch. You will still be able to catch the show later on YouTube, so the demonstration of censorship is mainly an appeasement to advertisers in specific markets. These markets will likely lean towards a Christian conservative base.

Think about what is happening at these corporations. A cadre of attorneys, sales managers, and program executives are hashing out who gets cut where. How do we keep making the most possible revenue? It is likely that attorneys have coached Jimmy on how far he can push his first amendment right to free speech on the airwaves and still have legal backing, because broadcast corporation attorney’s jobs are to ensure that they minimize lawsuits, while sales and programming figure out the best way to monetize free speech from every angle, in both news coverage and entertainment.

Don’t trick yourself into thinking that, for the corporations this is about anything more than money. Whatever avenue produces the most revenue is the one they will take. If it pays more to be silent and alienate people, that is what will happen. As long as your voice is strong enough to reflect dollars in the coffers, you will always be able to say whatever you want.

But for Christian conservatives it is about maintaining and promoting a value system. They are not interested in the broadcaster’s corporate structure as much as the broadcaster cares about how viewers spend their money, and the corporation does not care where these people worship, as long as they tune in and hand over their cash. So, this fickle lot of cultists, true believers, liberals, gun lovers, and everyone else with a TV are weighed against each other to decide where loss is minimum and profit is at a maximum, and they give us whatever makes the most sense for that outcome. The Almighty Dollar always wins.

Note however, that those who are easily offended, who can’t take a joke, who only see the good, and not the bad, or ugly in Charlie Kirk, will not stop with Jimmy Kimmel. If we keep shutting people up, we will lose our sense of humor and will be condemned to Nate Bargatze filled comedy programs that don’t require laughter. The only reason that guy has an audience is because the Christian conservative cult who supports non-edgy family style humor does not understand what humor actually is. They don’t get jokes that cleverly address race, sex, politics, religion, bureaucracy, drugs, gambling, or alcohol, because sadly, they are too busy contemplating suicide to pay attention to anything really fun.

It is practically Catch-22. The government supports freedom of speech. Anybody can say whatever they want, just like Charlie Kirk did. You can’t just kill somebody for saying what they want, or silence them for it, or threaten their job, as they are simply utilizing their first amendment right. The Trump Regime claims Charlie Kirk died for freedom of speech. Anyone speaking about Charlie Kirk or Donald Trump, utilizing their freedom of speech in a way the Regime does not like, is considered combative, and must be silenced. Once silenced, they are free to say anything. This way, as long as nobody hears what you have to say, you can say whatever you like.

Thanks for reading.

Mike Rembis

It can’t just be me.

In fact, I know it is not just me, because half of polled registered voters these days inform that they are voting for Kamala Harris, just like me. So, it makes me wonder, what do the other half of the polled registered voters who champion Donald Trump see in him?

How did one man, who has done so much for himself, and so little for others, divide the nation? Was it his plan all along? How did he know exactly what to sell to those, both with, and without money? How did he know they would buy it?

It takes great insight to uncover vulnerabilities and exploit them. This is why we must not dismiss Donald Trump as a madman, but accept with horrific fascination that he is an evil genius. He knows how to manipulate people. Right now he is manipulating millions of people into voting for him. He got 62 Million votes in 2016, and won, then got 74 Million votes in 2020, and lost. We’ll find out what happens this time around next week.

But why? What’s so great about Donald Trump?

There are loads of things to unpack here. Look at his first term as president. Misogyny and racism were voiced openly as mainstream values, fearlessly, in spite of persecution and shame, and still are. Decisions to save wilderness areas were reversed to make way for pollution, which many still lobby for. Millions of people disclaimed the reputability of science, despite volumes of proof that global warming is real, even denying that Earth is round, and still do. The world clamored forth to the brink of nuclear holocaust, and is still inching over the precipice.

Trump saw it coming. Instead of doing something good for the world, however, he looked at the problems of humanity and asked “What’s in it for me?” His answer was to not get caught in the tidal wave of war, distrust, and climate control, but to rise above it, and watch the disasters unfold. He knew that people would fight about such issues with or without him. He also knew that he could take advantage of the really stupid ones.

So, it’s a marketing scheme.

Indeed. What happens when the leader of the United States, commonly referred to as "The Free World," tells the country that he is right and the experts are wrong? When too many people believe him in spite of facts, which are supported with common sense and scientific proof? Society fractures and insurrection bolts forward as it did on January 6th, 2021, four short years ago.

There was no way to stop this from happening. Especially when viewed in retrospect. It is evident that stupidity had been growing for a long time and Donald Trump had the expertise to harness and exploit that stupidity.

Donald Trump is not stupid. He may be greedy, but I think not. He may be a thief, but not in conventional terms. He may even be defined as socially inept, but he is not stupid. He understands exploitation and has a unique grasp of how to use people. He mastered how to find what people want and promise it to them, even without any intention of delivering on the promise, and getting what he wants.

A mastermind of public persona. An architect of self. He has orchestrated his path to become loved, feared, and loathed. But how? And who is he, really? Let's take a look at the facts.

IT STARTED WITH REAL ESTATE

Donald Trump was born into wealth. His parents paved the way for him to attend University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School and join the family business. Like any ambitious capitalist, he set out to invest in things and find leverage to boost that wealth. His first major achievement was turning a profit on the foreclosed Swifton Village apartments in Cincinnati. He did this by remodeling and bringing the occupancy rate to 100%, from roughly 800 vacancies to fill the 1,167 unit complex, over an eight year period. His father had purchased the property in 1964.

Donald invested time, and paint, and polish, and made the property nice. Part of keeping it nice was keeping out black people. The first lawsuits were filed in 1969. In 1972 Donald sold the property for a $500,000 profit and moved on. He had other properties to spit and shine.

Trump's father once owned nearly 40 buildings with over 14,000 apartments throughout New York City. In 1973, The U.S. Justice Department filed suit against The Trump Organization when it found systematic discrimination against African Americans. Black families who had applied for tenancy brought allegations against 17 Trump properties. Investigations revealed that doormen told blacks that no apartments were available and apartment managers would use the letter "C" for colored, or the number "9" to flag black applicants.

Trump hit back at the Justice Department with a $100 million counter-suit claiming that his reputation was damaged. The case was dismissed.

By 1975, an agreement was reached to bring The Urban League in as an intermediary to represent every fifth rental applicant so that The Trump Organization did not have to accept welfare applicants unless they met all other criteria to qualify for residency, as any other applicant. The Trumps made no admission of wrongdoing. This behavior would set the stage for his appeal to the far right white voters who have no issues with discrimination, because it does not happen to them.

Then there were his initial forays into Manhattan real estate development. Upon turning the failing Commodore Hotel into the Grand Hyatt Hotel, next to Grand Central Terminal, he would begin construction of Trump Tower, a massive monument to himself. Building it required the demolition of a famed landmark, the Bonwit Teller department store, which sported massive art deco sculptures on the façade. The friezes which overlooked the city were 15 feet tall, carved by Beaux-Arts trained sculptor Rene Paul Chambellan in 1928 and were so culturally significant to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, they begged Donald Trump for their donation to the museum, valuing the work at approximately $200,000. After making a promise to deliver the art to the MET, he reneged and personally ordered their destruction, later boasting that the décor of his Grand Hyatt Hotel in New York City included "Real art, not like the junk I destroyed at Bonwit Teller." Some see this action to be on par with ISIS, who destroyed the Roman Ruins in Palmyra Syria, as a crime against humanity.

When writer Mark Singer interviewed Donald Trump for The New Yorker in 1997, they met in Donald’s Trump Plaza penthouse, where Mr. Singer could not help but notice the two story high ivory frieze that adorned the dining room. Trump said “I admit that the ivory’s kind of a no-no,” while bragging about the massive fifty-three room apartment being the best in the world.

In that interview Donald Trump stated “Whatever complicates the world more - I do.”

Mr. Singer wrote Come again?

“It’s always good to do things nice and complicated so that nobody can figure it out,” said Trump.

This statement has proven to be the key to his success. A complicated person living a complex life so intricate that dissemination by anyone becomes nearly impossible. He is not only financially complex, but personally. Singer witnessed Trump stopping his driver so he could jump out of the car and tell laborers on one of his job sites what great work they were doing, adding to his personal mystique. There may be no logical way to delve into every aspect of The Trump Organization and see how the pieces fit together, and that is by design. Throughout Trump's first presidential campaign, he spent much of his money at Trump properties and throughout his presidency, he kept doing so. Every time he visited anywhere, including his home estate at Mar-A-Lago, taxpayers would foot the bill.

“I don’t think people know how big my business is,” Trump told Singer.

I don’t think people realize how complex his mind is.

This is because Trump has put himself out there for so long, staying in our faces every chance he got, that many people dismissed him. They thought that he could not be as smart as he claimed nor as dumb as he looked. Can anyone really fake being themselves 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, plus leap day, for decades?

Somehow Donald has duped almost everyone, supporters and detractors alike. He took ‘fake it ‘til you make it’ to a whole new level. His rise to stardom continued in the entertainment world - first as owner of the Miss Universe, Miss USA, and Miss Teen USA beauty pageants, then as host of NBC reality show, The Apprentice.

The whole time, with plenty of brick and mortar, what he was truly building was his brand. He emblazoned hotels and golf courses and a short lived airline with TRUMP. Some properties licensed his name to add mystique or style to their buildings, with the idea that it exuded luxury. He sold clothes with his name on the labels. Bibles. A school. Vodka. Steaks. There is even toilet paper with his picture on it. I wonder what he gets paid for that.

Hey Mike, you called Trump a career criminal. None of this sounds illegal. What gives?

We all have our own definitions of legality. I consider racial discrimination and destruction of art to be criminal. I even sided with Donald Trump, hypocritical though he may be, when he condemned the destruction of Confederate statues. They are still art. The statues didn’t do anything wrong. Sorry, dead artists of the past, nobody is ever going to see your work again. But that is how it goes sometimes.

Great career criminals generally don’t get caught or do jail time. They have patsies, like Michael Cohen, and tons of money to throw at other attorneys who will line up to take it as long as there is something to defend and appeal. Trump, more specifically, his company The Trump Organization, inflated the value of his properties to such an extent they were found guilty of fraud in 2022. They were fined $355 million plus interest. He sexually assaulted E. Jean Carroll in the 1990’s. In 2023, she was awarded $83 million. Trump was also charged with 37 felonies for possession of sensitive documents taken from the White House when he left office. That case was dismissed by a federal judge when she decided that the prosecutor’s appointment was unconstitutional. Finally Trump was convicted of 34 felonies this May for falsifying business records in connection to a payment Michael Cohen made to porn actress Stormy Daniels on Trump’s behalf. Sentencing is scheduled for November 26th, three weeks after Election Day, the Tuesday before Thanksgiving.

So, does all this really make him a career criminal?

Again, judge for yourself and choose your own definitions, but when this much evidence is presented it is safe to say that a commanding effort was put into each and every deed. This is just the tip of the iceberg. A humongous, blinding, monstrous iceberg. Remember, what is visible above the surface is a mere fraction of what lies beneath. It is fair to ask what else is down there, that you don’t know about. What was successfully drowned?

TRUMP HAS MANY ICEBERGS

Between building Trump Tower and lots of other buildings, all the pageantry on and off-screen, and emblazoning TRUMP on whatever he could, Trump got into the casino game. He knew it was a safe bet because there are two fundamental rules in gambling: A fool and his money are soon parted and the house always wins. The casinos were a conduit for money, plain and simple. He knew they would rake in cash, not just from the patrons who filled the hotels and slammed money into slot machines, and let’s face it, anybody laundering cash can dump it here, click the payout button and get fresh new money.

Then, you have investors. These were the suckers he was really after. The big money. They fell starstruck for TRUMP, the brand. They saw busloads of conventioneers filling the banquet halls and exhibit floors, unfolding wallets and spilling out purses. Entertainers rolled in to perform. Gaudy, gold-trimmed, lights everywhere. OMG! Awesome! Mucho Grande! Spectaculario! Atlantic City is back, baby! They were going to be rich!

Oh, yes, money rolled in. TRUMP, the brand, was a winner-winner, chicken dinner. Until it wasn’t. Investors weren’t worried. “He’s Donald Trump! He’s good for it.” 

This was not to be. The mastermind behind the scheme did everything right. He took money from whoever would give it to him, and when it was time to pay it back, and the books said he didn’t have it, he just went bankrupt. It’s the American way. Maybe not a perfect solution, but a perfectly legal one, nonetheless. Were the bookkeepers right? Maybe. Maybe not. Even I have gone bankrupt. It’s not a crime.

But doing it over and over again, six times, is a bit of a stretch, isn’t it, Mike?

Well, you have got me there. I wish I were rich enough to go bankrupt six times.

The six bankruptcies were the result of over-leveraged hotel and casino businesses in Atlantic City and New York: Trump Taj Mahal (1991), Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino (1992), Plaza Hotel (1992), Trump Castle Hotel and Casino (1992), Trump Hotels and Casino Resorts (2004), and Trump Entertainment Resorts (2009). A total of $1,800,000,000.

That’s a lot of ice cubes. How does anyone recover from that?

This is when the evil genius really kicks into high gear. It is 2009. He has transfixed himself on TV’s The Apprentice, where he has been allowed to do and say nearly anything within network censorship limits. He does not care about another bankruptcy, he has been filing these for 18 years. When he does the math all he sees is that he was able to get away with blowing $100 million dollars a year of other people money and they just keep coming to him for more stuff. Endorsements. His opinion. That billionaire smile.

Once it was apparent he could get away with all that at once, and had gotten away with so many other things, grabbing whatever he got his hands on, it only made sense to step into the political arena and take control, despite having no traditional political experience. He wasn’t just some actor who would become mayor of a small beachside community, like Clint Eastwood, or govern a state, like Arnold Schwarzenegger. He was not an actor. He was a genuine self-made personality, and he knew it. He had no need to learn how to act. He knew he could make his way onto the most provocative stage on the planet as himself, and in six more years he did. Upon manipulating just enough of the electorate to make it happen, he assumed the presidency, and the US taxpayers covered his costs for food, lodging, and travel for the next four years. He won. Bigly.

Despite warnings from liberal pundits and seasoned reporters like NBC’s Andrea Mitchell and Katy Tur, who sounded the alarm early in his 2016 campaign about Trump being unfit for office, a robust marketing effort rebranding Ronald Reagan’s 1980 presidential run flooded the Republican party with red and white MAGA hats and the most prolific cult in American history was born. Votes prove membership in the tens of millions. Compared to other native American cults, Mormons have about 17 million members worldwide, and Scientologists are estimated to be around 40,000 worldwide, though the Church of Scientology claims membership of over 4 million.

Clinching the presidency was a pivotal moment not just for Trump, but for the country. His campaign style proved that there was more to America than meets the eye. New icebergs splintered off and popped up everywhere. Factions of all kinds coalesced under the MAGA banner. Staunch Republicans, Christian conservatives, NRA loyalists, white nationalists, pro-lifers, and anti-vaxxers all found common ground. Trump made friends with Kim Jong Un of North Korea, Russia’s Vladimir Putin, and Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu. In a weird way, Donald Trump was bringing the world together.

He did that by denying the credibility of established news media. Anything negative was deemed “fake news.” He tweeted his way to the top. Speaking directly to the masses, who preferred what Kellyanne Conway coined as “alternative facts,” got him in front of people who Hillary Clinton did not. Then, he kept it up. 60 Minutes correspondent Lesley Stahl was the first to interview him upon his win. She described his demeanor immediately following the election results as somewhat stunned, and suddenly more serious than he had been in a prior meeting, as a candidate. The most important thing she gleaned from his communication style was that he realized the world had changed, that he could speak unfiltered, and deliver exactly whatever message he wanted.

The fan base ate it up. He wasn’t just some boring politician, here was a guy who spoke their language. Before entering the White House, somehow, all those bankruptcies, all those wives and girlfriends, all those people he fired on TV, all those lawsuits and indictments didn’t matter. The fans picked a side. Even though many said there was a lot not to like about him, they believed many of his outright lies, fell for drastic conspiracy theories, sent him money, and bought his swag. It was a brilliant marketing plan. Free advertising from news media 24/7 and millions of people repeating and retweeting his words of alleged wisdom, whether true or false.

But the 2016 election was not about winning for Trump. It was about free advertising. Win or lose, it would still be a win for all things TRUMP. The icebergs he had created on the cruise to Washington D.C. would pay off in cold hard cash no matter what happened. Days before the results turned in his favor he called the election “a rigged system.” He was ready for a fight. And more free advertising. The kind you get from suing the government and taking up space on the news.

He did not receive the popular vote. Hillary Clinton did. But, lo and behold, he won. Even with nearly 3 million more votes, she lost through the electoral college, a system that Trump himself said was rigged.

The reason Trump veered toward calling the system rigged was because he himself was a puppeteer. Throughout his career, and then on The Apprentice, he called all the shots, hiring and firing. It didn’t even matter that the election was legitimate. He kept on calving icebergs of doubt, knowing this would keep him in the spotlight, because wherever they point the spotlight, that’s where the money is at.

Four years later, days before the 2020 election, he sat down with Lesley Stahl again for another interview. Trump said “I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t have social media - but the media is fake, and frankly, if I didn’t have social media, I’d have no way of getting out my voice.”

Lesley Stahl pointed out to him “You told me a long time ago, when I asked you why you keep saying fake media, you said to me, ‘I say that because I need to discredit you,' so that when you say negative things about me, no one will believe’.”

Then he denied that, saying, “You discredited yourself.”

Social media paid off. He got a new plane. First class worldwide service with an elite security detail. Every camera pointed at him blasting his image around the globe. McDonald’s any time he wanted. No reason to seek safe harbor now. Bring on the waves. If he won the 2020 election - Great! If not - Full steam ahead to “Stop The Steal.” In the vast ocean of his mind it was sweeps season, icebergs be damned.

He claimed fraud. It was a ploy to win the election and he thought that by simply saying he won the election, he would. He knew he could fool some of the people all of the time, and that was enough to turn a protest into a fiasco that would morph into insurrection at the January 6th election certifications.

Of course, we know how that turned out. But the important thing for Trump was that he remained in the spotlight. That’s all he really wanted. Just to be looked at. Admired. Complimented. Talked about. Arrests and court drama come with the territory. Convictions don’t even matter. The ever loving light of the midnight special is all about him. News is continuous. The same show, every day, that never gets cancelled, and as long as he is the star, he writes us a script where he gets to say and do anything. There are no guardrails in that icy ocean. It doesn’t matter what anyone tells him to do, because like he told us before, “It’s always good to do things nice and complicated so that nobody can figure it out.” And he does.

NO END IN SIGHT FOR THE TRUMP SHOW

Sweeps season is upon us again, this time with an all new supporting cast. Instead of a cordial old man for Trump’s antagonist, a younger, dynamic mixed race woman is his adversary, along with her chummy sidekick, the high school coach; good people who tell it like it is. Then, Trump’s co-star, a younger puppet than he had the last time around. Bright shiny eyes and a beard, because, why not? We haven’t seen a beard on a politician in like, a century. A faithful lap dog with no thoughts of his own, just a repetitive talking head who says what Trump tells him to say. Roll the laugh tracks.

But wait, there’s more! A new Speaker Of The House is now sailing right through those frigid waters, navigating by the map of Project 2025. Catch the whole gang of representatives avoiding every direct question with misguided strategic deflection to subjects nobody asked about. Plus, fresh out of prison, chief tale-spinner Steve Bannon is back, and boy, he is looking for trouble.

If that’s not enough of a supporting cast to compel you stock your liquor cabinet and take advantage of all those ice cubes, hold on sailor, the whole armada of zealots is gearing up for a new round of TRUMP WON AGAIN - 3 TIMES IN A ROW!

But, what if Kamala Harris wins? Will the Trump Show be cancelled?

If Democratic oracle James Carville is right, she will be taking the helm of the country in January. In a normal, civilized society where everything goes right with democracy, Trump voters will says “Aw, shucks,” and get over it. For Kamala voters, all those fears about Trump becoming a fascist dictator will melt away, former US Representative Liz Cheney won’t face a firing squad, women won’t need to worry about being protected by a convicted criminal known for sexual assault, and since he won’t be moving to the White House, he can start serving whatever sentence is handed down for his felony convictions three weeks from now in the big house. Then Tucker Carlson will suddenly disappear, nobody will notice, and all will be right with the world.

But, no. It won’t be that simple. The Trump show will go on even if he loses. As of this publication, two days before the election, I assure you, that is the plan. Because the cult has been brainwashed. They have been primed to believe that losing is impossible. That it can only happen by fraud, which is simply not true. This is why they are dangerous.

THIS IS A LOSE-LOSE SITUATION

Think about everything you have seen up to now. Everything Trump, his associates, and supporters have done. Constant lies. Criminal convictions. Inciting violence. A Nazi rally. This is why the National Guard is on standby in Washington state, Oregon, and Nevada. The MAGA cult has been primed to believe only what Trump and his supporters say. It is a misinformation machine which feeds and eats itself.

CNN reporter spent 24 hours consuming MAGA media. See the important trend he found | CNN Politics

Millions of Americans get most, or all, of their news and information (or misinformation) from the hundreds, possibly thousands, of pro-Trump MAGA media outlets. All these outlets are claiming there’s no way Trump can lose if the election is fair. CNN’s Donie O’Sullivan spent 24 hours in it.

www.cnn.com/2024/10/29/politics/video/maga-republican-conservative-trump-news-media-digvid

As Donie O’Sullivan reports, Trump voters are so dedicated to the belief they outnumber Kamala Harris voters, they have prescribed to the preconceived notion that if she wins, it can only be fraud, which will simply not be true. Our elections are free and fair and votes are counted correctly. I have absolute faith in this.

I also have absolute faith that Donald Trump is a true threat to democracy as stated by former generals under his command and the many liberal pundits and reporters who make it their business to study him and inform us. For you Trump supporters reading this, if you have not yet cast your vote for him, don’t do it. He is the bad guy. You might not like Kamala Harris, but that is only because he told you not to. A vote for anyone else is better than a vote for Trump.

Maybe you think your finances will suffer with Democrats in charge. They won’t. You are going to be just fine. It hasn’t been terribly different year after year no matter who the president was, and it’s not going to make a huge difference as long as we keep democracy in place. If you are worried about jobs, don’t. As long as you are willing to work you will find a job. By the way, immigrants don’t want your job, they want their own job, and they bring a lot more good to our country than some people who were born here. Ladies and gentlemen, abortion is not a crime. It is health care. If you think a fetus has a soul, that is your right, and you can visit those angels if you get to heaven.

‘January 6th is going to be pretty fun’: How MAGA activists are preparing to undermine the election if Trump loses | CNN Politics

Before Election Day has even arrived, the “Stop the Steal” movement has reemerged in force, with some of the same activists who tried to overturn former President Donald Trump’s 2020 loss outlining a step-by-step guide to undermine the results if he falls short again.

www.cnn.com/2024/10/31/politics/maga-activists-preparing-undermine-election-if-trump-loses/index.html

If you are a Trump supporter, are you ready to change the United States Of America? Are you really ready to turn on your neighbors, bust heads, kill, and jail people? Would you actually do that? Are you so loyal to this one person who has never done anything for you, and never will do anything for you, that you would do anything he asked? Really? If so, you are in a cult, and I hope you get out. Start by voting against him, because a vote against Trump is a vote for America.

Donald Trump is steering the MAGA movement into civil war. January 6th was a dress rehearsal for the next election denial. Project 2025 is meant to destroy the country as it is and build it into a sickening church state, a dictatorship that nobody likes. Read it.

At one rally Trump said “One rough hour — and I mean real rough — the word will get out and it will end immediately, you know? It will end immediately,” in describing law enforcement cracking down on crime. He calls the January 6th insurrectionists heroes. They are criminals. Just like him. This is a diabolical man. A true super-villain. The many followers who cheer these statements do so because they are sucking down that ice cold Kool-Aid. All because he is infatuated with himself and thinks his life is a reality show.

Time to change the channel.

Take care, and thanks for reading!

If you are new to the Rembis Report and would like to read any of the previous issues, PLEASE CLICK HERE to access the archives. To read it from the beginning, PLEASE GET A COPY of The Rembis Report: An Observation.

I want to thank everyone for sticking around as long as you have. Those relatively new to the Rembis Report may not be sure what I am talking about. If you have been reading this for the last couple years, or even further back, from my first mass email in 2006 and the monthly essays that followed until 2009, you know that it is time to shut the curtain for intermission, once more.

This was the plan all along.

When I restarted the Rembis Report in March 2022, I said I would write a newsletter every week, and I have. Even with a subliminal twinge of doubt, I goaded myself to make a firm commitment, and that tenacity devoured any lack of confidence.

Looking back on this, I don’t have an exact number, but I can honestly say the average report was about 2,500 words, and I produced volumes XXXVI through CXLIV (36-144), plus a couple of addendums, so erring on the side of apathy, I estimate that I wrote around 270,000 words. That’s equivalent to a couple of novels - or one really big one. Even I am amazed that I did that.

You would be.

And that guy, the taskmaster, looking over my shoulder every moment, helping edit and fine tune every piece, what a creep! It will be nice to get away from him for a while. It has been said that the hardest part of writing is _________________ (pick one and fill in the blank: rewriting, spellchecking, running out of coffee, or booze, or finding your muse), but I would say it is finding an audience. The actual writing is the fun and easy part. For me anyway.

But the audience - you are what this is all about. Without you, these are just words lost to the confines of the digital realm. So, thanks again, for reading.

So, what now?

Now, I get on with life (not that I ever left it), and you go do something else that means something to you. I shall proceed with writing something fresh, exciting, and new, and put that energy into a few other projects I started. The Rembis Report is not the only thing I write. In addition to the screenplays and books that I have already penned, there are more in development, and I am thrilled to be plowing ahead with what I hope may promise to be my most successful projects to date.

To my alpha and beta readers, thank you again for volunteering. Your input is invaluable and helped build my work into what it is. I consider my novel, Eternity’s Grasp, to be 100% complete. That is, until another editor comes along and makes me tweak it.

Probably needs it.

Alright, that’s enough out of you!

Eternity’s Grasp garnered a bit of recognition last year as a finalist for the Claymore Award at the Killer Nashville competition. It did not win, but I am confident that this novel is now where it needs to be and I am vigorously seeking representation and publication. I have no plans on releasing it as a self-published edition. If any of you would like to read the current final draft in PDF format, just ask. I am happy to oblige. Having more beta readers only helps.

I am also chipping away at another novel. It is heady and full of stuff that doesn’t belong anywhere else, like in a screenplay or short story, and I suspect that it is halfway finished. As you know, I am long winded, and I do not write particularly fast. I can’t say for sure how finished that novel actually is. We shall see.

On the screenplay side, I still tinker with the ones I think are finished, and the ones that I am completely happy with, are for sale on Sparroww.com. This new up-and-comer to the digital marketplace seeks to create virtual handshakes between writers, producers, and directors. It is just over a month old, and I like what I see here so far. Hopefully, it will bring some collaborations to fruition.

Speaking of collaboration, I have been blessed to join forces with the lovely and talented actress Emmy Perry, who is working alongside me as an executive producer to spearhead my TV show, Low Budget.

Low Budget (TV Series) | Comedy, Crime, Drama

Low Budget: Emmy Perry, Mike Rembis. When a tragic accident becomes a fatal mistake, a trio of novice filmmakers must choose whether to seek help or hide what they have done. With the right casting call they may find a way to do both.

www.imdb.com/title/tt30888294

I have 10 episodes written and intend to write a total of around 65 with the goal of producing 4 to 5 seasons of television. Those numbers are variable, but with a solid series arc in place, give or take a few episodes, fingers crossed, we plan to have something fun for you to watch in the next year or two.

Low Budget is now my main creative focus. Those of you who have been involved in TV know that production is a long, convoluted, and arduous process. While there are no specific roles to fill at this exact moment, anyone wishing to contact me regarding bringing your talent to the project may do so. I am always open to listening to your ideas.

Now, as requested, let’s open the floor to discussion. You - in the back!

Why does this seem to be all about you?

I thought that was obvious and kind of self explanatory, but that is an excellent question, thanks for asking. Who’s next - you, go ahead!

What is with the Roman numerals?

I just like the way Roman numerals look. I especially like that I am ending now on CXLIV. Using five of the seven letters that represent numbers without duplication within the number itself. I think it looks cool.

Why can’t you just use regular numbers?

When you say regular numbers - do you mean Arabic numerals?

Did 56% of Survey Respondents Say 'No' to Teaching Arabic Numerals?

It's difficult to answer survey questions if you don't fully understand their meaning.

www.snopes.com/fact-check/teaching-arabic-numerals

You think you are really funny, don’t you?

I know I am really funny. That is why I am writing a comedy.

Why do you include so many links to stuff?

I like to cite my sources. I feel like it gives you clearer path to the way I think.

If this is an intermission, when is the next Rembis Report?

No idea. I will be too busy writing and producing Low Budget. I will however, be available through email [email protected], and I may occasionally drop an essay at random if something strikes me. Might be a few months, or a few years, but there is nothing on the calendar at this time.

Do you have a personal favorite Rembis Report?

Not really, I think each one is pretty much a masterpiece, so it is hard to choose.

WOW!

I know right?

In case you are not aware, email newsletters like this one include analytics, the wonderful ability to know who opens them. Whether or not they are fully read is another thing, but to the many of you, who take the time to open every single one, I must say an extra special Thank You So Very Much! It means the world to me. Do not be surprised if I send a personal email to you in the coming weeks.

It is a lot of fun tooting my own horn and I appreciate the opportunity to be heard. I know there are other things you could read or watch or do instead of finding out what I have to say. So, again, I am humbled, and I do want to know what you have to share, too. Please send me your updates, links to your work, whatever you would care to boast. I would love to see it.

Why is this important to you?

I want my audience to know that my concern is reciprocal. It is not really all about me. The Rembis Report is my way of contributing to a greater digital community. It is fun to poke fun at myself, being a clownish caricature, and the butt of my own jokes, but I also like knowing what everyone else is up to. I am always happy to cheer you on.

Do you worry that your confidence comes across as smug narcissism?

No. My confidence outweighs that because I know I am just trying to be funny. Anyone who hasn’t got the joke yet stopped reading long ago.

You cover a lot of subjects. What makes you an authority?

I am by no means an authority. I have a perspective. Everyone has a viewpoint, and I like to think that mine is unique enough, that when I craft it into something informative it has entertainment value.

Entertainment is what I do best. The writing may not be perfect, delivery a bit off key, hair and makeup completely botched, and the audience may peer at me askance, but know that my attempts to deliver a fine performance are genuine.

I just want to make it clear that when I say I am going to do something I do it. When I said I would create a film festival, I did. When I said I would write over a hundred essays in two years, I did. When I say I am going to produce a TV show, I am going to produce a TV show, because I finish what I start. I look forward to the next step of this journey and sharing it with you.

I hope you will enjoy what is next because I love making you laugh.

Take care, and thanks for reading!

If you are new to the Rembis Report and would like to read any of the previous issues, PLEASE CLICK HERE to access the archives. To read it from the beginning, PLEASE GET A COPY of The Rembis Report: An Observation.

One last thing - I nearly forgot. Those who only open the emails and don’t click the archive link above may have never seen the accompanying pictures I use as the masthead for each report. I choose a new image for every edition. It may be my own photography, art I own, like from today’s issue (my book cover), or something carefully procured from the internet to set the tone of the essay. To see the complete gallery please visit my Instagram page.

When I studied mythology and religion in college I was humbled. Growing up Catholic, I knew the Christianity that our church had tried to convey, but never knew what I was missing from other religions. In a way, I felt sort of cheated. What did everyone else get that Catholics did not? One professor opened my eyes to multiple texts. Required reading included excerpts from the Bible, the Talmud, and the Quran. We studied Greek, Egyptian, Nordic, and Native American myths. We got a bit into Buddhism, too. The goal was to discover the similarities, recognize differences, and learn how these teaching shaped our world.

I found it fascinating and got into learning more about religion outside of the classroom and beyond my collegiate years. I read all of the Bible and the Quran. As an alleged Christian, I felt like reading the Bible was sort of a duty. The Quran, was just to know what it was all about. I found it exceptionally repetitive. I read more of the Talmud, but once I found out how long it really was, I got bored, and did not finish it. I read the Book of Mormon. That was fun. It was more like an Egyptian sci-fi novel with a hint of steampunk than a religious tome. Lots of people got killed in that one. Then I picked up a copy of Dianetics and made it to the middle of chapter three before deciding that it made no sense whatsoever. Not to me, anyway.

After all of that reading, I was not exactly sure what I had learned. But my thirst for knowledge, to understand what it was that made believers tick, helped me grow a thick skin and tolerance for superstition. I read other books which analyzed religion and decided that I understood how the faithful grew and maintained their belief systems. I could also see how they adopted a natural rejection of other’s belief systems. I felt that I had a better grasp of how the world worked.

Then I discovered politics and realized that the world, as entrenched as we are in tradition, and devoted to inequitable value systems, is sometimes ruled by nonsense.

American politics defy religion. In theory, that is. We have had In God We Trust emblazoned on our money since we starting stamping and printing it. Even though the founding fathers specifically chose to separate church and state to form a more perfect union, they remain hand in hand.

One’s personal belief system is what rules their decision making. Whether they are deciding what to eat, what to wear, how to behave, or how to vote, that personal choice stems from a religious construct whether anyone wants to admit it or not. It may not be immediately evident, but value systems, even for atheists, are rooted in religion.

The two party system, Republicans and Democrats, dominate our politics. Yes, once in a while you hear about the Tea Party, the Green Party, the Libertarians, No Labels, or some other group you never heard of, and you wonder why? What for? Who are these people and what are they trying to accomplish?

I don’t have answers for all that. If I got into it I would just come up with way more questions. For now, let’s just look at Republicans and Democrats. I have tried to distinguish between them in the past. It is difficult. This is why I flail in the center aisle and call myself a Repudemoculan. I like a little bit of some stuff, and other stuff, not so much, just like religion. Better to just be myself and not pick sides.

But eventually everyone picks a side. It is in our nature, which stems from religion. The most powerful thing that brings Republicans and Democrats together is war. The enemy of my enemy is my friend.

War is a great unifier. No matter what somebody’s background is, if they need to fight alongside a person of a different race, creed, or color to get what they want, they will. This is especially true of Americans. When people find a leader who will fight for what they think they want, they will forgive every flaw. They may not have a single thing in common with a candidate, disagree with them on multiple issues, may even despise them, and will still vote for them, if it gets them what they think they want.

What they think they want. This is the key to winning elections. Not necessarily offering anyone what they need, but promising what they think they want.

I have always read fiction. Long before I studied religion, I always enjoyed story books, so once I had enough of theology, I moved on and got back into literature. I have read a lot of stuff. Pure fiction, a story for the sake of a story, not meant for anything more than escapism and entertainment, except perhaps to make a statement on the culture of humanity, has always been a welcome haven for my wandering imagination.

Sometimes a story that reads as a fictional account is not fiction at all. Some stories are based in fact. One of my favorite books is Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood. It is a true story based on the slaughter of the Clutter family of Holcomb, Kansas in 1959. Capote interviewed the killers in prison and witnessed their executions by hanging. While the contents are horrific, the prose is so lovingly crafted, it is a work of art. The book has been made into films and attacked by critics for twisting fact with fiction, but stands on its own as a great read. If nothing else, In Cold Blood is the finest argument in favor of the death penalty that you will ever find.

Published in 1966, In Cold Blood was one of those trailblazing books that broke away from conventional storytelling. While Capote did not insert himself into the narrative, he relates the events as if he is standing right there, holding the ropes and weapons. It paved the way for Hunter S. Thompson’s gonzo journalism, where true observation of a subject is presented through first-person confessional storytelling that includes not only the up-close personal experience, but social commentary, sarcasm, and bizarre events that may or may not be true, to deliver a shock or comic effect. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is presented through the lens of alcohol and peyote stains, warping Thompson’s view of the world, and giving us a unique way of looking at it, too.

This is what great storytelling is. Crafting a view that you would otherwise not consider. This is what religion does. It offers a new outlook. This is what politicians do. They present a vision to follow.

In both religion and politics, nothing is solid. Everything is presented as a concept. Here is what you can have. This is how you may achieve it.

The tenets of religion and politics are presented as a stream of consciousness. That is where we were, now we are here, we want to get there. Are you with us?

Some authors utilize the stream of consciousness in their writing with great success. Jack Kerouac, Toni Morrison, Stephen King, to name a few, do so splendidly. This method speaks directly to the reader whether prose is first-person or not. It brings us into the moment where we can practically share the protagonists thoughts as they are having them.

The following may be considered a partial book review. No spoilers.

American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis is written like this. The protagonist delivers the first-person account of serial killer Patrick Bateman. This fiction is set in the late 1980’s in New York City. Bateman, 27 years old, works at a Wall Street brokerage. He and his friends, acquaintances, and co-workers are all relatively successful Ivy-leaguers. He is obsessed with working out strenuously and dandified grooming practices. He describes the designer clothes everyone wears, tells you what things cost, and discusses fashion over cocktails. He reports on the cuisine he is served at upscale restaurants with the same fine detail that he describes the torture and dismemberments of his victims. Gruesome accounts of pornographic debauchery and scenes from daily life; business meetings, lunches, shopping, dates, cringing at the homeless, absolute hallucinations, are interspersed with deep ruminations on popular music as Bateman reviews Huey Lewis And The News, Whitney Houston, and Genesis with and without Peter Gabriel. The stream of consciousness presents Bateman as a meandering soul, possibly in search of something intangible. It is for the reader to decide if he is a strictly diabolical sociopath or truly insane. Despite the horror some of his story is funny. His public persona and interactions with others when he is just being a regular guy in social situations, like a Christmas party or a nightclub gathering, present as relatable when describing embarrassing foibles. Then, something reminds him of somebody he killed and what he did with their body, and he blurts it out between thoughts on his favorite TV shows or in the midst of a review of hi-fidelity stereo equipment. Finally, Patrick Bateman is a fanboy of Donald Trump, who he mentions multiple times throughout the text. He discusses the real estate mogul with others in his orbit, recommends Trump’s book, The Art Of The Deal, and watches for him in restaurants because he frequents establishments where he knows Donald Trump is known to dine.

Patrick Bateman is a character who readers love to hate, yet somehow manages to come across sympathetically. This is because, like all of us, he is extremely complex. We relate to complexity.

Peering into the mind of Patrick Bateman, riding along with him as he spews his thoughts, gives us a glimpse of why he admires Donald Trump. It also helps explain why real people, not just fictional mass murderers, are attracted to Trump. Bateman is enamored with Trump’s wealth. He admires Trump’s taste in beautiful women. He fawns over Trump Plaza and other real estate.

Like the fictional Patrick Bateman, real life Donald Trump presents himself as a living, fluid stream of consciousness that barrels ahead in whatever direction makes sense at the time. That stream may be heading right off a cliff, but who doesn’t love a waterfall? People relate to this.

Like religion, one need not read the complete manuscript of their chosen holy scripture, they just need to find the part that works for them, that makes them feel good about their faith. It is the same with politics. We seek out the one who we relate to most. Not necessarily the one that makes the most sense, but the one that, in spite of whatever we do not like about them, there is one thing we do like.

Some people like Donald Trump because they think he is fun. A hoot. A gutsy rebel who will say anything. Like a warped fictional protagonist who may do something that will actually make the reader feel a little sick, they want to see what he does next, so they keep reading. They stay invested. They vote.

Some voters attend rallies and cheer and wave banners and wear red hats and listen to everything he says. But do they hear everything he says, or just what they want to hear? Is he promising anything substantial? Or is it vague rhetoric that just sounds good in the moment?

Those who have listened and agree with Trump should be able to point out exactly what it is that they like, exactly what it is they expect from their candidate upon election, from what he says. They should be able to quote him verbatim and say “This is what I am talking about.” 

However, it is a challenge to do so because Trump delivers his message via a rambling stream of consciousness. To see what I mean, watch last week’s speech from the rally for Ohio Republican Senate candidate Bernie Moreno, and follow along with the transcript provided in the video description.

Pundits of the day mocked Trump’s performance for saluting the criminals who were jailed for attacking the U.S. Capitol on January 6th, 2021. He called them patriots and said they would all be pardoned upon his return to the Presidency. He called some immigrants animals. He claimed Joe Biden was being controlled by China. He also claimed that Joe Biden was unable to string together a coherent sentence, which is a bold statement since a lot of what Trump says comes across with disjointed phrasing.

His speech pattern, appearing unrehearsed at times, delivered as a stream of consciousness, a thought in progress, which it may be, is erratic. Yet, supporters don’t seem to care. Biden’s delivery exhibits a thoughtful, measured form that stays on topic. While Trump may change subjects mid-sentence, it does not seem to matter to his supporters because they hear what they think they want to hear.

In all fairness, President Joe Biden’s state of the union address a couple weeks ago did practically the same thing, giving little in the way of substance, with a lot of big ideas but not much to explain exactly how goals would be accomplished. Both candidates are simply claiming that they are going to do great things. Neither offers a succinctly detailed plan of execution. We are still left with one simple question for either candidate, “How are you going to do that?” To which, they have no answer.

The most scrutinized line of Trump’s speech was, “Now, if I don’t get elected, it’s going to be a bloodbath, for the whole — that’s going to be the least of it. It’s going to be a bloodbath for the country.”

This was supposedly taken out of context by much of the media. While he was indeed speaking of the auto industry, claiming he would bring jobs back to America, imposing 100% import fees on Chinese cars, many saw this as a call to arms for a veritable repeat of January 6th, complete with freed hostage patriots.

This is where Trump’s stream of consciousness presents a concept that may be interpreted in multiple ways, depending upon who hears it, and in what context. Some people may not have heard the whole speech, but even if they did, they may take this sound bite, this concept, hear it repeated over and over again, and build it into whatever they think it should be. This is how January 6th happened.

We should heed the warning Michael Cohen gave us when he testified that Trump “speaks in a code.” When Trump says it is “going to be a bloodbath for the country,” or “if you don’t fight like hell, you are not going to have a country anymore,” this is code. It is concealed in plain sight. The message hidden within the rhetoric of policy is perfectly clear to anyone who is seeking an order and will accept the command to attack. “Stand back, and stand by,” was an early clarion call, “bloodbath,” is the latest.

This call will be answered by anyone who senses that some events are in motion, or they think that they must work to put events into motion at Trump’s behest, to make America great again. They may not know exactly how it will work, because the plan is vague, but it will probably be considered more important than January 6th was. We already know that self-proclaimed patriots with a warped sense of duty exist. All they need is a reason to act and they will do something crazy.

Are you calling Trump crazy?

Not at all. I am talking about the MAGA base, specifically, that minority faction comprised of home grown terrorist extremists who use Trump as a shield. He says “jump,” they say “who?” On the contrary, I believe Trump to have a sense of genius in the way of being able to manipulate people. This is where he excels. How many billionaires do you know get people to send them money with nothing in return?

Only one.

It is not only supporters attending rallies who will vote for Trump. Some staunch Republicans just won’t turn on the party. The hell-or-high-water, give-me-liberty-or-give-me-death Republicans, who were-and-always-will-be Republicans, will refuse to change for any reason. They will vote for Trump whether they like him or not because they have trapped themselves within a majority mindset which demands that whatever most Republicans are doing, like lemmings, is what they will do to ensure that Republicans rule. It doesn’t even matter what the ruling Republicans stand for, because they can’t see past the elephantine banners that depict the Grand Old Party as superior to the Democratic party and any others that claim to exist. It is absolute submission to a superiority complex. They won’t see the what lies ahead until they hit the edge of the cliff.

It was disappointing to see Nikki Haley lose her bid for the presidency and sullenly leave the field. She had to, of course, because the support was not there. Financially, it made no sense to stay. But in theory, she is still a better choice for the Republican party. Younger, new energy, and all that. Leaving as she did, quietly, holding the screen door gently, so as not to slam it on the way out, was sad. I would have preferred to see her march off kicking and screaming and bashing Trump to no end. She should have roared daily to anyone who would listen, getting in front of every camera she could find to warn the American people that “Y’all are making a big mistake. You might not like Biden, I get that, but if voting for him keeps Donald Trump out of power, you should do that.” I think she missed a unique opportunity.

If Trump is not completely financially and legally kneecapped soon and wins the presidency in spite of himself, Republicans will cheer. Some won’t be particularly happy about it but they will cheer anyway because a Republican won.

When I see people choose to support a political party for no other reason than they think they should support the party they have always supported, I am reminded of this monologue I performed in the film Live, Cry, Shampoo, and Die.

“It’s like, do you know what it’s like? I am going to explain to you what it’s like. It’s like the whole lot of you have been wound up with toy keys and thrown in a dark closet where you buzz into action, choose the first direction that finds pace with your feet and launch into the void, only to meet the wall straight on and come out 90 degrees blazin’ to the next target as if you have a clue what that is.” The Voice, Live, Cry, Shampoo & Die, Daryn Murphy, 2003

I wonder, when I hear people supporting a candidate that has so many issues, what are they thinking? Comedians have been asking for ages, Out of the millions of people you pick to lead you - this is the best you have got?

Trump appears to operate like Batman’s nemesis, The Joker, with the singular goal of only satisfying his own amusement, in the moment. He lives in the moment better than any other person on the planet because he can. Winning doesn’t matter because he has already won. Not this particular election, but in his own mind, the popularity contest of the world. When practically every person on the planet, save uncontacted subtropical forest tribes, knows you you are, you can’t get more popular than that.

He lives in the moment like a child pushing buttons on the control board of a nuclear reactor with no concern for the result. The pretty lights turn on and off, and that’s it. Whatever happens, happens. He knows the code words and only need utter them at the right time to get the wrong people to respond. Then he will get to see what happens, like he did on January 6th.

Not everyone will agree with this assessment. We may not actually have all that much in common, and that is okay, because, this is America. In America it is okay to disagree. When a person gets bent out of shape about it, and breaks a law, that is when it becomes a problem.

This is why we must remain vigilant. There are actors waiting in the wings for their cue. It only takes one mad bomber to kill thousands of people. They may not even want a spotlight or recognition, just a reason to flip a switch and do something nutty, then step back to revel in the anarchy, just for fun. Like the Joker or Patrick Bateman.

Some may think that all Trump cares about is money. He may not really care about money, or fame, or any of the trappings of success. He gets his kicks out of being able to make people do things, setting wheels in motion. No need to worry about buildings being taken away from him because he will still have other buildings. He might not care about people, family, friends, anyone. They may just be amusements for him. What happens to them may not matter. What happens to the world may not matter. With a fluid stream of consciousness running the show, one thought churns into the next so fast that whatever happens, happens, right?

Like the deer in the headlights who sees the oncoming vehicle, yet stands firm to watch it swerve away, careen over the cliff, tumble down, and explode in a ghastly fireball, then wonders, Why did it do that?, Trump will stand firm to the bitter end, doing only what he wants for himself, offering people nothing of substance except what they think they want.

"You see, in their last moments, people show you who they really are." — The Joker, The Dark Knight, Christopher Nolan, Jonathan Nolan, 2008

Thanks for reading.

If you are new to the Rembis Report and would like to read any of the previous issues, PLEASE CLICK HERE to access the archives. To read it from the beginning, PLEASE GET A COPY of The Rembis Report: An Observation.

It can’t just be me, right?

I mean, March has too many things that nobody cares about all at once, yet we still make a big deal out of them.

Speak for yourself, Laddie!

Okay, maybe it is unfair to say that nobody cares. Sure, some people care about some events, but others will dismiss those same events entirely. March is a good example of this. Not all events are for everybody. A lot of what happens in March, I just don’t participate in. Scheduled holidays are extremely important and culturally significant to those who celebrate so I do not want to diminish them.

But finding out what’s so special, that’s my thing.

Let’s start with what may be the biggest celebration of all. Saint Patrick’s Day. What for? What did Saint Patrick do that was so spectacular that he got his own annual celebration every March 17th? The quick answer, that I have heard my entire life, is that he drove the snakes out of Ireland.

Now, I don’t know which snakes they are talking about or why Patrick was in the right place at the right time to give them a ride or what kind of car he had, but that’s what I have always heard. I am guessing that The Snakes were an Irish rock band who never became as big as U2.

And, what do you know - I no sooner think up something weird like this, look it up to fact check it, and here they are.

THE SNAKES Great Music with an Irish Kick

I have no explanation for this. Maybe I conjured them into existence from another dimension just by thinking about it.

Back to Saint Patrick, who wasn’t really Irish and wasn’t really a saint. He was a kid who got kidnapped from England and enslaved by the Irish sometime in the 5th century AD. Just about everything we know about him should start with “Legend has it -” because he is one of those colorful characters who rose to legendary folk hero status through oral histories passed down for centuries and exponentially embellished into fantastic tales.

Here is the short version. Legend has it that Patrick escaped his captors, went back to England, became a priest, and later returned to Ireland as a Christian missionary. Nothing was written down about him (except his personal diary) for centuries, so take what you will of the stories, but the reason he got popular probably stems from a parable about his interaction with a woman who ran an inn and pub. He saw that she was stingy with the whiskey and told her that if she were more generous, she would have more repeat business. This tale morphed into one with a demon lurking in her basement and Patrick dropping a three-leafed clover into his glass, maybe for luck. Patrick went on his way, but when he returned to the woman years later, he found her to be the most popular among innkeepers and that the demon was gone. Add these tidbits to a story about a guy who died during the Ides of March, on the 17th, and -

Faith and Begorrah, we’ve got ourselves a holiday. Let’s have a drink!

There is way more to it than that, but one fact is that Patrick was never officially canonized by the Catholic church as a real saint. It basically became an honorary title that Irish Catholics prefer to overlook.

Keep talking nonsense, boy, and your backside will be having an intimate discussion with my shillelagh.

Okay, fine. Don’t believe me. Believe the internet. They did the research, I am just repeating what I heard, like everyone else did for years.

Saint Patrick - Wikipedia

Oy Mikey, you daft punk, suppose you are going to give us a history lesson on the Ides of March, are you? Are you going to tell us they were a rock band, too?

Indeed, they were. The Ides of March adopted their name from ancient Roman terminology meaning the middle of the month of Martius which eventually became March when the Gregorian calendar was adopted. The term became infamous in 44 BC when a seer warned Julius Caesar to watch his back on “The Ides of March.” Caesar met the seer on the 15th, and scoffed that nothing had happened. The Seer replied that the day was not over yet. Soon afterwards Julius Caesar was assassinated by around sixty people who took turns stabbing him on the Senate floor, led by political rivals Brutus and Cassius. Politics was not pretty back then.

Legend has it -

Oy!

Legend has it that a month before he was killed, Julius Caesar declared himself dictator for life. It’s a long story. Caesar made multiple reforms of government that did not sit well with a lot of lawmakers, particularly the Senate. While most of what he did had no lasting effect, one thing he did, that we still abide by today, is revise the calendar. The Julian calendar has 365 days with a leap day every four years. This calendar was followed for about 1,600 years until Pope Gregory XIII realized that something was out of whack. The days of his later years were not the same as those of his youth. Legend has it that Easter seemed to keep showing up earlier every year.

Just as Julius Caesar had inquired of his mathematicians and astronomers to solve the problem of why the seasons were out of sync with the dates, Gregory went to his scientific advisors, too. By Caesar’s decree, to get on track and start the new 365 day calendar off right, they put January first right where they wanted it, and the Roman year 46 BC had 455 days. This probably contributed to disgruntling the Senate and anybody who worked on salary, especially when people had made vacation plans and stuff. How are you supposed to work around that?

In 1582 Gregory introduced his new and improved calendar because the same thing was happening, but this time, instead of adding a bunch of days, he just cut ten days from history. October 4, 1582, was directly followed by October 15. So, nothing happened on October 5-14, 1582 because those days never existed.

Oy, the ides of October.

Right. Imagine trying to get everybody on Earth on board with the same calendar through ancient communication capabilities. They couldn’t just Tweet it out there. This information took days, months, maybe years, to reach everyone. By the time it got to the fringe sectors of the globe where people were relying on the Julian calendar, to find out that their kid, who was born on October 10th, 1582, was actually born on the 20th, was probably a mind-blowing experience. Not to mention all the paperwork they probably ended up having to revise. Imagine trying to explain the reasoning behind it to anyone without being able to convey the science.

To top it off, some people didn’t even use the Julian/Gregorian calendar. They had their own. There are over thirty other calendars out there, overlapping what Julius and Greg set up. October and March don’t even exist for them.

Oy, no wonder they killed Julius and Greg.

Gregory was not assassinated. Pope Gregory XIII died from complications due to a fever on April 10th, 1585.

Which would have been April Fool’s Day, had he not changed the date.

Actually it would have been March 30th. Let’s just stick with March, shall we?

Speaking of calendar changes, another thing we do every year is spring forward with daylight saving time. This is done all over the world, but they don’t do it in some places at all. Antarctica, I’m not sure, but most of Africa doesn’t bother. A couple of states, like Arizona and Hawaii do not participate. I don’t particularly care about it one way or the other, but I do get a kick out of seeing the clock on the dashboard of my car suddenly be corrected. It will show the right time until November, when I will need to start doing math again to know what time it is.

In addition to pagan rituals like dying rivers and beer green there are some big religious celebrations this March, 2024. Ramadan, Holi, and Easter.

Ramadan is a holy month in the Islamic calendar that is marked by fasting. This year it starts on March 11th, last year it was March 23rd, next year it will be on March 1st, and after that it will start in February. This is because the Islamic calendar follows a lunar cycle and those months are only 28 days long. No additional days for any reason. Twelve years from now Ramadan will be celebrated in October and November. This calendar is sacred to many people around the world and no reforms are on the horizon.

Lunar calendars are the basis for many cultural observances.

Holi is celebrated every year on the full moon day of the month of Falgun. This year it is on March 25th. If you thought Julius had some confusion to contend with, get a load of the Hindu calendar. It is extremely complex, following both lunar and solar cycles to find harmony and balance through synchronicity of astrological influence. Six different Sanskrit texts break the year down to seconds based on around 30 days per month and there are variants for seven different Indian dialects to interpret.

Turns out that Holi is a big deal no matter what language you speak.

Holi : a Joyful and Colorful Festival

Colorful springtime celebrations predate calendars. Pagan rituals incorporating the egg as a symbol of birth and renewal for the Spring equinox naturally dovetailed into the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ and Easter was born.

Easter Sunday, like Holi and Ramadan, changes every year. Easter is the first Sunday after the full Moon that occurs on or after the spring equinox. If the full Moon falls on a Sunday then Easter is the following Sunday. This is because, legend has it, Jesus died on a Friday and came back to life on Sunday. You always hear Bible quotes about Jesus rising on the third day, but technically, it was about 48 hours. They are counting Friday as day one, Saturday as day two, and Sunday as the third day. It is stuff like this that messes up calendars.

One thing we know for sure is that Jesus died on a Friday. That is one fine detail that has never been in dispute. But what day of what year? Well, astronomer Isaac Newton figured it out, knowing that it was a Friday and basing calculations or other astronomical reports from the Bible, he narrowed it down to April 3, 33 AD. By the way, AD does not mean After Death. It means Anno Domini, which is Latin for "Year of our Lord," which started with the year Jesus was born. If you decide to apply the Gregorian Calendar, Jesus would have died on March 23rd, but that was a Monday. It is pretty easy to sneak out of work on Good Friday, some places close down completely, but have you ever tried to take off on a Monday? You just can’t. There is all kind of work to catch up on from the prior Thursday.

The whole celebration is based on Easter being a Sunday, just like the Super Bowl. Side note - this puts the Last Supper squarely on Wednesday, April Fool’s Day. Seems like a better day to celebrate. I mean, now that’s a party!

Last Supper by Leonardo DaVinci

So, technically, what you are saying then, is that the original April Fool’s Day is basically St. Patty’s Day!

Technically, when you do all the math, it would be March 21st, which is generally the first day of Spring.

Close enough! Never say no to a four day weekend!

If that is how you see it, who am I to argue?

Sláinte!

Thanks for reading.

If you are new to the Rembis Report and would like to read any of the previous issues, PLEASE CLICK HERE to access the archives. To read it from the beginning, PLEASE GET A COPY of The Rembis Report: An Observation.

That click is me hanging up on the prerecorded message that sounds like a sad, lovelorn young man seeking his dear Stacy. I am not falling for it. I have heard it before, many, many times.

Perhaps you have, too.

The first time I heard this exact recording was a few years ago, maybe even as long as five or ten years ago. I am not keeping track. Back then, that very first time, I replied, you have a wrong number, and the reply was, “That’s okay, you would probably be interested in …” I don’t recall what they said after that. I still don’t stick around to find out.

Whoever is calling, they are still using that exact same recording to try and sell whatever it is they are trying to sell. But it won’t work. I won’t buy anything. I barely spend money in stores and rarely shop online. Absolute necessities are about all I care to invest in, if at all. So, whoever is pushing buttons on the other end of the phone to get to me, is really wasting their time. Wasting their life, when you think about it.

They could be doing so much more than trying to sell something. They could be creating something worthwhile, like helping to find solutions to aid the planet, or humanity as a whole. But phone soliciting exists because this is the only job some people can get. Some are homebound in wheelchairs, and can’t get around, for example. At least they are employed, I guess. That is something. It is not a fun job. Not really. Inbound customer service telephony is one thing. Lots of businesses need that, and need more people altogether. Whether or not anybody is willing to employ more customer service people is another thing.

Only a small percentage truly enjoy outbound calling to near constant dismissal, rejection, and abuse. They are most likely sociopaths you would not want riding next to you on the bus.

They are the ones who hang in there, pushing the buttons every day, waiting for somebody to give up and believe whatever they have to say, and fork over a credit card number. But phone solicitors are no longer dialing ten numbers to get to you. Computers dial swaths of numbers for them. Live people then sit back and wait for a live connection.

Auto-dialers ring number after number. Monitored through artificial intelligence software, the program hangs up on answering machines and disconnected numbers, and prompts the live operator to connect when it senses a live person on the receiving end. “Fish on,” so to speak.

It is my nature to always answer the phone. Because I don’t care who is calling. It might be important. Maybe it is the prize patrol from Publisher’s Clearing House calling from down the street looking for my address. You never know.

Maybe it is somebody I personally know, calling to invite me over, or just to say “Hi!”

Or maybe it is somebody I can mess with. This is the real reason for connecting with phone solicitors. To waste their time. If they didn’t have time to waste, they would not call in the first place, so I am helping them meet their goals. I mean, they are paid by the hour, right?

Over the years I have built up a long list of rebuttals to gaslight solicitors and keep them on the line as long as possible. Some replies got old or outdated so I rarely use them, and depending on my mood, or if I am truly busy, like watching TV for example, I won’t answer at all. But for the most part, I try to connect on every call and get past the robo-caller to reach the person whose livelihood depends on whatever they are trying to accomplish and waste their time, because I am just wired that way. Completely evil.

Our home phone has a call block feature. When a call comes in from somebody you want to block, two quick clicks adds that number to the list, and the next time they call, the phone rings once, the display reads BLOCKING CALL, and it hangs up. Easy-peasy. But then, you don’t get to mess with the caller, so there is that. Anyway, I noticed a feature in the phone menu that I did not know we had until the other day. The blocked caller list of every call we ever blocked since getting the phone. Not that it is real important, but I was shocked to discover that we have over 600 numbers on that list! I think the phone is only about five years old. I had no idea that we had blocked so many numbers.

A call coming in the other day was from the burger joint down the road, Pete & Shorty’s. I wondered, who would be calling from there? Somebody who had misplaced their cell? A wrong number, perhaps? No, it was Mary from Senior Care Authority, calling to sell something. I knew I wouldn’t want anything from Mary at Senior Care Authority, and she (or some other Mary at Senior Care Authority), had called in the past. This is not a robo-call, but a live person following a script, unwavering in their delivery, asking questions about who I am, how I am doing, and wanting to share some valuable news I don’t care about.

How do you know it is not important, Mike? What if it was something you would be interested in?

If it were something I was interested in I would have found their name in a phone book and called them, that’s how. When they call me multiple times, and spoof Pete & Shorty’s phone number, I know it is not important. Call it a gut feeling.

For this call, I employed my latest ruse that works every time to get rid of somebody quick. I said “This is the switchboard. How may I direct your call?”

Of course, Mary is not really paying attention, and just continues her spiel, so I add, “Who are you trying to reach?” Sometimes I add, “This is the Internal Revenue Service. What is your claim number?”, and they hang up, but this time I said “You have reached the County Detention Center, may I have the name of the inmate you are calling?” 

They usually hang up on the county detention center right away. But not Mary at Senior Care Authority, using the phone at Pete & Shorty’s! Mary says, “I am calling for Mister Michael Rembis to advise him of his Medicare benefits. Are you currently enrolled in Medicare part A or part B?”

Damn! Mary’s a badass.

I know, right? So I said, “I believe Mister Rembis is serving a life sentence in the state penitentiary, would you like me to transfer the call?”

If they are employing artificial intelligence that clearly huffs and continues with the pitch at all costs, it is really believable, but I think Mary was a real person this time. She continued, “No, that is not necessary. You can save up to thirty percent on your current medical prescriptions and much more on home health care benefits. What address may I send an information packet to?”

Wow! Impressive. But I don’t fumble. I have way more experience messing with people than Mary does. I said, “I don’t believe Mister Rembis is going to need that. He is a ward of the state. In fact, he may be on death row any day now, but would you like me to transfer the call?”

“No. I just need the address to send the information to.”

I said nothing and blocked Pete & Shorty’s phone number. So long, Mary.

So, who won?

Depends on how you look at it. Mary certainly isn’t mailing me anything and nobody is ever going to be able to call me from Pete & Shorty’s again, so maybe I did? I don’t know. I blocked the call before they hung up, so you decide.

Now, I truly doubt that Mary was using the phone at Pete & Shorty’s. How the technology works, I can’t describe the technical aspects, but it happens every day. Spoofing is when a caller hides their real phone number and uses somebody else’s. Depending upon whether or not the solicitor is following FCC rules for compliance, spoofing may be legal or illegal.

You mean, somebody can fake a number legally, Mike?

Darn right they can.

Is Spoofing Illegal? Yes and No. A Thorough Review

The FCC has been cracking down hard on caller ID spoofing and it’s safe to say it’s a practice frowned upon by both consumers and the regulatory commissions.

nobelbiz.com/blog/is-spoofing-illegal

Legitimate callers following compliance rules can assign a fake local number to a cell phone on the other side of the world. It may make more sense for everyone in your organization to have their phones reflect a caller ID from a local central number that can really be called back, than to have a bunch of different cell phones from all over the place confusing customers.

But crooks can do the same thing. Mary is probably a very nice person, and not a crook. She just works for some crooks. She needs the job. I get that. I don’t know the details of their scam, but I do know they are crooks because they are using Pete & Shorty’s phone number. It won’t affect Pete or Shorty (I never go there), but if they were legitimate, they would have their own local caller ID assigned to Mary and all their other outbound operators.

When receiving an inbound call, you may have heard an Asian dialect, generally from India. This is because there are almost 2,000 call centers in India. I couldn’t find recent statistics but in 2015 there were over 350,000 people working in Indian call centers. The Philippines had over 400,000. In the USA we had over 7,000,000.

How Does the U.S. Call Center Industry Compare to India & The Philippines?

SSG compares the call center industry in the U.S., India and the Philippines. We identify the top 10 states with the most call center workers.

info.siteselectiongroup.com/blog/how-big-is-the-us-call-center-industry-compared-to-india-and-philippines

Not all call center callers are scammers. With so many people staying employed in the profession there are plenty of legitimate firms. So, how do scams work, and how can you tell them apart from honest business? There are way too many ways for me to list here, but take a tour of call center scams on YouTube and you will be amazed to find seemingly endless content on the subject. Pick any video and you will learn something you never knew. After watching a few, what surprised me (that probably shouldn’t have) was how many call centers run a legitimate shop during the day, and run a scam by night, laundering the money through the front end business.

There are hundreds of different scams. Call spoofing is probably your best indicator that the caller is out to get you, and call blocking, while it may work, and make you feel good, it is not a solution.

I am not going to get into all the legislation and congressional battles we have seen and seek out impending dockets, but suffice it to say that lots of people want to make it stop.

In the meantime, you can do one of these things:

GET rid of your phone.

NEVER answer your phone.

BLOCK every call.

OR use one of my handy all-purpose rebuttals. Go ahead! Pick one and go for it! Flex those improv muscles! Have fun!

I have been waiting a half hour for the pizza, when is he going to get here?

So glad you called. Who are you voting for? I want to tell you why that’s a bad idea.

Is this Gary? I was holding for Gary. Can you transfer me?

To complete your purchase I just need your credit card number. Go ahead as soon as you are ready.

Dude - Learn how to dial. You are calling the other side of the room. I’m right behind you.

Okay, I have your appointment scheduled for tomorrow at 3:00 PM. Is there anything else I can help you with?

What was your name? Caller repeats name. Great. What is your social security number? No matter what they say just keep repeating, What is your social security number?

Stacy? Is that you?

I know these aren’t solutions for anything, but hanging up is a missed opportunity. Especially when it is a scammer. Don’t feel bad about trying to ruin their day. They were trying to ruin yours.

Thanks for reading.

If you are new to the Rembis Report and would like to read any of the previous issues, PLEASE CLICK HERE to access the archives. To read it from the beginning, PLEASE GET A COPY of The Rembis Report: An Observation.

I am not looking for a house right now, but if I were, I would definitely approach properties with quite a different perspective than people I see on House Hunters.

I told you about watching that show before. I am not a fan, and I don’t hate it either. I don’t go out of my way to watch it, but if it happens to be on when I and my dear, sweet wife Ellen are having lunch, so be it. I will watch. I have to. If Ellen is watching it, that channel is not going to change.

The way people shop on that show is not the way I would shop. Not at all. Their priorities are whacked out. I am bound to come up with a laundry list of stuff I wouldn’t even care about by the end of this report, not in any particular ranking of priority, so I’ll just start with one of the biggest things that boggles my mind, that every home buyer seems to place the greatest value on.

Room for guests.

What? Are you kidding? The first thing I think when I hear somebody say they like to entertain, and need room for guests is, Why would anybody want to visit these people? Plus, I know from experience, almost nobody is ever going to come and visit. I can count on two hands, and have plenty of fingers left over, the number of times guests have stayed with us in the last twenty years. They don’t show up often, so buying a house focused on where guests are going to stay, is just kind of pointless.

But that’s what they do. Especially the first time home buyers, and surprisingly, the ones moving overseas. Yeah, we are moving 10,000 miles away to Australia and everybody is going to want to come and visit! Sure, everybody wants to visit Australia, but do they? And when they travel that far for a once in a lifetime vacation, it isn’t going to be to stay with these people, it will be to visit Australia. Some people might show up, sure, might even hang out for lunch, but for the most part, that extra room is going to become a big closet.

Sometimes they just want to entertain and throw parties. Fine. I get that, but many times, they are moving someplace where they don’t know anyone. Bravo on the optimism! People you don’t know are just dying to come over and see inside your house? Not really. Maybe after they get to know you, a few months, or a year down the road, but not right away. Lots of people base their entire decision around a kitchen being the centerpiece of community. As for myself, I don’t want anyone in there when I am cooking. They just get in the way. Go find another room and stay out. Take your drink and hors d'oeuvres and go.

Man caves, game rooms, and TVs over fireplaces.

There is an unusually high priority on how much time people plan to spend in their basements. Sometimes they are finished, ready for gaming action, sometimes not, but either way, this seems to be the one space everyone is looking for within the house. They want to know where they can hide. A place for calm respite.

What happened to all those parties they were planning? Humans are complex. They want it all. Solitude is as important as companionship. Put the TV right over the fireplace where everybody can see it. To me, that doesn’t make much sense. Ruining the view of the family hearth, which generally doesn’t even work in most of these places, with a TV that you crane your neck to look up at is poor design. Plus, is the heat from the fire good for your TV? I don’t know about that, but would guess not.

Lots of times, poor design rules, and they lap it up. People go crazy for steep circular staircases without banisters, and lofts with 80-degree vertical ladders, and they love it.

Once in a while, we see a logical shopper who points out absolute stupidity, like an overabundance of doors, above ground septic systems, or gathering pits in the middle of a room made with sharp-edged rocks. If you slip and fall, you may get cut and bleed out, so don’t go sleepwalking.

Another show that focuses on anomalies like these is the Ugliest House In America. Comedian Retta travels the country touring some of the most unusually designed and bizarre properties. Ellen and I have caught this one a few times. I am always surprised at what people have done with their homes. Indoor waterfalls, dungeons, endless taxidermy, it’s all out there, and it gets weirder than I thought it could.

Proximity to coffee shops.

This is a huge one. I am always amazed at the number of people who go out for coffee. I haven’t bought a brewed cup of coffee since I was on my last vacation, which is to be expected for a coffee drinker. When at home I brew my own. I don’t get how there are so many people who won’t brew their own coffee. It is simply not cost effective to buy brewed coffee every day.

Lots of stuff like that surprises me. It is not so much that I am frugal, but more of a do-it-yourselfer. Why doesn’t everyone just brew their own when at home?

Remodeling no matter what.

Yes, I brew my own coffee, and I fix stuff, too, but another thing that surprises me is how many people walk into a property with visions of changing it. They just want to tear it down and build it up again. Not everyone, though. Plenty of people want a place that is move-in ready. That’s me. I don’t even want to paint. Whatever color it is when I buy it - that’s good enough. I don’t care what color it is. But somehow, we always end up getting our house painted. Usually more than once.

Anyway, a great contingent of home buyers love knocking down walls. They talk about changing everything, and spending years on the project to get it just right. How are they ever going to get that TV room solitude they were looking for? Their out of town guests who are allegedly coming to visit don’t want to stay in a construction zone, either. They are also going to be surprised to find out that their friends are heading down the street for coffee, too. If they wanted a vacation like that they would have stayed in a motel.

I also hear people planning to blatantly ruin a property right from the start. Cutting down trees. Putting up fences - destroying flowerbeds for an addition, a pool, a garage - why not just buy a place that has all that?

Asking what the kids think.

Why? They are kids. You are paying their way. They get what they get, right? Think again, Boomer. Not anymore they don’t. They have input. Lots of times, kids are running the whole show. Looking at the equity for when Mom and Pop finally kick it. They don’t come out and say that, but you know, that’s what they’re thinking. How much can I sell this for?

Paying way too much.

This is basically across the board. You know, I already think everything costs too much. I find housing to be especially pricey most of the time. When I hear shoppers spending upwards of half a million dollars and not blinking, it just blows me away. I am not in that league, but lots of people are, so that is who the shows are for, I guess. Maybe I shouldn’t be watching.

A lot of factors go into buying a home, proximity to work and family are tops on the list for many. I always look at savings. What better deal, or other quality of life, could they get someplace else, if they would just move away from whatever they are trying to stay near? Everyone has different priorities, so moving to an entirely new place doesn’t make sense for everyone, but there are a lot of better deals in some places than others.

The link below takes you to 156 properties around the USA. I got the listings from Zillow a while back, did a bit of cutting and pasting, and posted them all on my website for your amusement. I hope you will take a look.

Homes for sale on Zillow

List procured by Mike Rembis - I don't own these and they don't all look like this. These properties were recently listed for sale on Zillow. They represent a cross section of what you can get in each state or territory across the USA for $195 thousand, $400 thousand, and $1 million dollars. They were chosen at random in late 2023 based only on their active sale price.

wordpress.com/post/mikerembis819068836.wordpress.com/584

What surprised me most when I developed the list was the absolute disparity between what you get depending on location. In Kailua Kona, Hawaii, a million dollars fetches a 2 bed / 2 bath condo. In Louisiana, you can get a 40 acre pig farm. Maybe it was a chicken farm. It is off market now. In rural areas you can still find 200 acres for $400,000. Across the country, you can always find a house for $195,000.

It is reported daily that buying a house is getting harder than ever before. Multiple factors contribute, and demand steadily outweighs supply. I am surprised that most of the places on my list, that I wrote during November and December, are no longer for sale. It was a fun bit of research, maybe I will update it occasionally. While I would be happy with any of the houses for $195,000, I don’t think we are moving any time soon, anyway, but I admit, there are some really nice places to be had in the higher price brackets. That million dollar house in Connecticut really does it for me.

The American Dream is under siege | CNN Business

Allison Powell knew it wouldn’t be easy to raise a family and buy a home. But she didn’t think it would be this hard.

www.cnn.com/2024/03/02/economy/american-dream-cost-of-living-housing-childcare/index.html

The question remains, who can afford that? More people than I think, I guess, because they get sold. Then, sometimes, those same places are available for rent.

Not everyone on House Hunters is a buyer. Plenty of renters out there, and it is getting tougher for these folks. I have focused on the USA in this report, because that is what I know, where I did my research, so I don’t want to compare rental rates to other countries. It would not be a fair comparison, apples to oranges, so to speak. But here at home, no matter where you go, rental prices are shockingly high.

Ask the Governor of Hawaii, Josh Green. In a press conference this week he blasted mainland property owners with rentals in Maui, where hundreds of people have been displaced by last year’s devastating wildfire that destroyed Lahaina, for charging outrageous rates, upwards of $3,600 a month for a tiny two-bedroom unit. It would cost a family $10,000 just to move in. Not many people can come up with that. I caught the recording on TV, but can’t find a video online. He said “Housing is at the core of our problems in the state of Hawaii. We have too many short-term rentals owned by too many individuals on the mainland, and it is bullshit. Our people deserve housing here.”

I don’t know if he is going to make any headway, but to combat the price gouging, he is threatening a moratorium on vacation rentals on Maui. The cheapest thing on Craigslist in Maui right now is $1,200 for a 300-square-foot studio apartment.

I count myself lucky that I don’t have to go look for a place to live right now. When I first struck out on my own when I was 18, I left home with $500 in my pocket. I would have probably done better if I had a thousand but that would have taken another couple of months to save. In 1982, having $1,000 was like having $3,000 today.

Imagine trying to set aside that kind of cash now. It’s not easy for folks to get a start on life with prices the way they are, that’s for sure. It’s barely enough for two months rent and a security deposit. And that is just about everywhere.

Not everybody can do it.

Thanks for reading.

If you are new to the Rembis Report and would like to read any of the previous issues, PLEASE CLICK HERE to access the archives. To read it from the beginning, PLEASE GET A COPY of The Rembis Report: An Observation.

(d) The flag should never be used as wearing apparel, bedding, or drapery. It should never be festooned, drawn back, nor up, in folds, but always allowed to fall free. Bunting of blue, white, and red, always arranged with the blue above, the white in the middle, and the red below, should be used for covering a speaker’s desk, draping the front of the platform, and for decoration in general.

However, if you are former president Donald J. (Donye) Trump, and you have never read the constitution or the bible, you most certainly would not be aware of United States Code, Title 4, Chapter 1, Section 8, so you would have no idea that it is wrong to put the American flag on a pair of shoes.

Yet, here we are. And what is the penalty for such an atrocity?

Nothing. It is free speech. Poor form, yes, but because of a 5-4 decision by the U.S. Supreme Court in favor of a defendant who burned a flag in 1990, the Court held that the federal government, like the states, cannot prosecute a person for desecration of a United States flag, because to do so would be inconsistent with the First Amendment.

When the U.S. Codes were written in 1926, the lawmakers penned some of the longest sentences of all time to convey how improper it was to disrespect the flag. Embedded within Title 4 U.S. Code § 3 there is this humble yet stern warning for anyone who dares to desecrate the flag in any way, even for advertising or apparel: [they shall be] deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished by a fine not exceeding $100 or by imprisonment for not more than thirty days, or both, in the discretion of the court.

The lawmakers were modest. They did not ever expect anyone to disrespect the flag and have to impose such penalty. A hundred years ago, a hundred bucks was like $1,800 today. No way anybody was going to risk a fine like that, plus jail time. No way anybody would ever disrespect the American flag, which represents the blood sacrifice of soldiers who fought to defend the soil of our country, using our mainstay symbol of freedom from oppression for profit, right? No way! It was unimaginable. But, then, there is the fine print: in the discretion of the court.

That’s how they get you. If your argument can sway a jury, a judge, or the jurisprudence of the Supreme Court, the law as it was intended no longer matters. The flag becomes a piece of cloth. The symbolism is lost to all but those who truly understand it.

If you take a few minutes to read Title 4 and learn the dos and don’ts of how to properly display the American flag, it basically boils down to hoisting it upright, not letting it touch the ground, and defending it from harm. Pretty simple. But lots of people do not care about the American flag. Reasons range from contempt for the United States and all we represent, to lethargy. You can’t force anybody to respect the flag and care about it. Respect for anything must be earned. Respect for the flag comes not through pure indoctrination, but through the lessons of history. Even a person who can’t get fully on board with everything the United States has done to get where we are today; slavery, indigenous massacres, nuclear war, etc., can understand that the flag represents the strife of everyone who ever fought for and against it.

According to the code, only official municipal and government vehicles, generally during times of parade, are allowed to carry American flags. Yet, we see flags hanging off the backs of private vehicles every day, sometimes dragging on the road behind them, and in my neck of the swamp, they are mostly seen alongside flags praising Trump and degrading Biden. We also see lots of Thin Blue Line flags around here. These are American flags that have exchanged the red stripes and blue canton for black and replaced the red center stripe with a blue one. It is meant to convey respect for law enforcement, but instead of devising an entirely new design to do so, they have bastardized the original.

Police chief bans 'Thin Blue Line' imagery, says it's been 'co-opted' by extremists

Chief Kristen Roman of the University of Wisconsin-Madison said "hateful ideologies" run counter to the department's core values.

www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/police-chief-bans-thin-blue-line-imagery-says-it-s-n1256217

This is another sign of disrespect.

14 ways you are disrespecting the American flag and might not know it

And they have nothing to do with standing or kneeling during the national anthem.

www.pennlive.com/nation-world/2017/09/ways_you_are_disrespecting_the.html

The more you look, the worse it gets.

U.S. Flag Wall of Shame

Examples of egregious disrespect for the United States flag

www.ushistory.org/betsy/wallofshame.htm

When a picture says a thousand words it makes it tough to elaborate. I have seen Trump parades up close. From the very start, as they rolled past, what I thought most about were the ways I saw the flag being disrespected. It’s all here, in photos like these. I can’t say which instance I found most revolting. I have seen flags flown on the same staff as a Trump flag, a confederate flag, a Don’t Tread On Me flag, and a POW MIA flag. I have seen flags emblazoned with eagles, dynamite, and a muscular Trump holding a machine gun. I have seen flags drooping on poles, secured only by the bottom grommet. I have seen flags flown in the rain, and at night without uplighting.

I understand that sometimes it is tough to get out there to bring it in when a sudden storm blows in. But if you don’t have the ability to light your flag at night, it needs to be taken down and properly folded.

Worst of all, I think, are tattered flags. Leaving them out for so long that their ends rip to shreds does not make it look cool. If the flag survived a war, standing in the midst of artillery fire, until it could be properly lowered, that’s one thing, but there is no good reason for anybody to fly a flag with rips and tears. They may think they are showing their patriotism, but not replacing a tattered flag is the complete opposite.

This link from the National Flag Foundation tells the story of the U.S. flag and explains proper etiquette and behavior when one handles or is in the presence of the flag. I think this is an important thing that most Americans, especially those claiming to be patriots who fail the test of respect, should know.

EVOLUTION OF THE US FLAG

When the United States Flag was first recognized by Congress in 1777, it did not have the familiar thirteen stripes and fifty stars that it does today. Although still red, white, and blue, the Flag had thirteen stars and stripes to represent the original thirteen colonies of the United States.

nationalflagfoundation.org/flag-history-evolution

The flag is an important symbol that has lasted for over two centuries. Think about that. Lots of stuff does not last that long. I don’t feel this way because I spent years in military service. On the contrary, my stint ended quickly. I served 30 days and left with an entry level discharge. The Air Force was not right for me at the time. I was too young to hang in there, but I never lacked patriotism, and I always understood the significance of our flag.

So, I guess what irks me, is that so many people just don’t get it. They don’t realize what that symbol truly represents. Maybe they were never taught.

I would guess that Donye doesn’t get it because there is nothing in his world view that is more important than himself. Not another person, not the country he grew up in, and certainly not a flag.

For him, like so many others, it is just a piece of cloth. Like a cheap shoe.

So, why not plop it on a cheap shoe and sell it? A shoe that does not even have to be made in America. It has not been revealed where the shoes were produced. There is a lot of speculation about this, but so far, no confirmations. Even Trump’s dedicated website to selling them offers no clue.

Menswear writer Derek Guy offers his opinion on quality and cost analysis on his Twitter feed.

I don't know where Trump's shoes are actually made (pic 1). But from the soles, I will assume somewhere in a low-cost Asian country. Italian sneakers are often made with Margom cup soles (pic 2). For the sake of this thread, let's assume Trump's sneakers are made in China.

— derek guy (@dieworkwear)
5:28 AM • Feb 18, 2024

Trump has sold clothes before. He had a menswear line at Macy’s in 2012. When David Letterman interviewed him and asked where his ties were made, he said he did not know. Letterman had the camera focus on the label on the back of a tie that said China.

He was still selling clothes when he ran for president in 2016. Nothing wrong with all that, he is an entrepreneur, allegedly. But he defended his imports by saying that clothes were not made in the USA.

Trump's 'Made in the USA' Spin - FactCheck.org

When asked why he doesn't lead by example and have more of his products from the Donald J. Trump Collection made in the U.S., Trump wrongly responded, "They don't even make this stuff here." They do.

www.factcheck.org/2016/05/trumps-made-in-the-u-s-a-spin

Not an outright lie, but close enough. He just never cared where the stuff came from. He still doesn’t. And it is not about the clothes. It is about the exposure.

Those $399 Gold Trump Sneakers Are About a Lot More Than Shoes

What is Trump really selling when he is selling footwear?

www.nytimes.com/2024/02/19/style/trump-gold-sneakers.html

There were only 1,000 pairs of those gold shoes produced (or so they claim). So, it is not a pure moneymaking scheme. It is an advertising gimmick. A way to get in front of the attendees at SneakerCon in Philadelphia and deliver a message that says I like sneakers, too! I like them so much I invented the most beautiful sneakers in the world. The real deal. You should buy them and vote for me.

You will never see Donye wearing his own sneaker brand. They are valuable lead generators. Anybody who buys these shoes is a mark who will buy something else, and offer referrals. They are on “The List.” No matter what happens, Trump continues to build a revenue stream. Even if he is banned from running a business, if he can show any potential investor that he has people willing to buy things branded Trump, they will produce those things and send him his commission.

Think those 1,000 pairs are the last of the shoes? Not once they come back by popular demand, this time, with something besides a letter T. Maybe a 45, or a 47, even if he doesn’t win the next election.

Make no mistake, running for president, win or lose, is a branding opportunity. You don’t need to win to make money. That is what this election is all about for Trump. It is free 24/7 advertising.

It is about money.

I won’t buy a pair. I also won’t stop focusing on the real problem with those shoes. The American flag that doesn’t belong there.

Disrespect for the American flag, by an American citizen, is disrespect for the history of everyone who came before us, no matter what their role in forging this country was.

Thanks for reading.

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