Two weeks into the chaos of the new America there is no end to the dismay and anxiety on social media.

But few commentators seemed to have really grasped the obvious bottom line.

Here is a short video of two distinguished journalists I really respect that illustrate the point.

https://videopress.com/v/8a6arTUi?resizeToParent=true&cover=true&preloadContent=metadata&useAverageColor=true

Somewhere in the history of philosophical thought there was someone had the idea that before you could change a system, you had to completely eliminate/destroy the existing one. It’s not a new idea. (I read it somewhere recently – if any one can help me trace it, I’d appreciate it!)

In the video, the first journalist, David Brooks, is trying to salvage something from the unfolding disaster. Bless him! He is responding from his generous Jewish, humanising consciousness . The second journalist, Jonathon Capehart, has gone straight to the truth of the matter. We are getting no more or less than what the new President promised, before he was voted in. A wrecking ball. And I think it is pretty obvious where he is heading.

Housing, the cost of living, climate change, and so on, become suddenly relativised when the comfortable life you knew starts to look like the aftermath of Gaza, or the streets in the foothills of LA.

Watch out for some copycat playbook strategies from our Australian conservative politicians – like, “most government spending is wasted”. (So let’s get rid of all those public servants…)