Once More Into the Breach

Donald Trump will be the 47th president. I’m feeling numb, disconnected.

Last night and this morning, I’ve been talking with friends, trying to make sense of this, wondering what we should do next. I’m still not sure what that is. So, here’s just a rough stream of thoughts.

The Harris campaign raised more than a billion dollars, and yet the map still swung red in so many places.. It’s clear that money in elections doesn’t mean what it did even a decade ago. What actually seems to matter now is how effectively candidates can command social media—the skill of fostering engagement and riding the algorithm. Trump, for all his faults, knows how to do this better than anyone. He’s able to control the narrative.

Then there’s the filter bubble. It’s hard to ignore how these platforms curate everything we see. We scroll, thinking we’re getting informed, but what we’re actually seeing is so finely filtered by algorithms that it feels less like reality and more like entertainment tailored to keep us glued to our screens.

It’s a strange shift from newspapers, which used to serve us a range of stories in a single package. Sure, there was bias, but there was also a balance—like a balanced meal delivered to your doorstep. You’d get the main stories, the editorials, maybe even some fluff at the end. There was an editorial voice choosing what was published. And that set a common floor of understanding. Now, every story floats on its own, a buffet of options where we’re free to consume only what confirms our existing worldview or enrages us enough to keep clicking. And I think most people feel like they’re getting more news, a wider array of voices and topics.

A few weeks back, I deleted social media from my phone. I wanted to reclaim a bit of quiet, to step back from the endless scroll. But this morning, I reinstalled, opened, scrolled, and deleted Instagram, Threads, Reddit, and even Twitter X more than once. I was reaching for something, anything, to help explain what’s happening. Now they’re all gone from my phone again, but the pull is still there. Social media promises instant clarity, but it rarely delivers anything beyond temporary relief, and then the questions come right back.

I’m going focus on stepping away from filters and algorithms. I’m not sure if that’s just me trying to exert a modicum of control in a situation where I feel powerless in my country, but it’s what I can do this week.

I’m going to make art. I’m going to write. I’m going to focus on fostering my local community. Take care of the people around me, and hope they can take care of me.

🎵 Listening to MJ Lenderman