Earlier today, I mentioned about how my enthusiasm for celebrating Independence Day has lessened almost year after year, as things just seem to get progressively worse (particularly politically) within the United States. So the idea of donning patriotic clothing and wearing the red, white, and blue and shooting off fireworks at a time when an aspiring dictator is trying to murder our democracy hardly feels responsible, much less something that I can get fired up for. Even today, the headlines dominating the news are about the "Big, Beautiful Bill" and the opening of what is being called "Alligator Alcatraz (some are calling it Alligator Auschwitz), the new de facto concentration camp (detention center) that this administration just built in Florida.
To add insult to injury, MAGA personality Laura Loomer just "joked" about how "Alligator Lives Matter" and joked about them feeding on 65 million. Now, that's not a minor point. First of all, that's a horrifying sentiment, frankly. But it obviously is meant to get a rise from some people. Beyond just that, however, we need to pay attention to that number. Because 65 million people is not the estimated number of "illegals" in this country, but it is pretty much the population of Latinos.
Yes, that smacks of more than a hint of racism. Things like that just seem to keep recurring with MAGA nation. And yet, they will always protest loudly if they are called racist.
Meanwhile, in a heartwarming declaration that should remind everyone just how sincere he was when he declared himself to be the president "for all Americans, Donald Trump just suggested that he hates the Democrats who voted against his "Big, Beautiful Bill." Because nothing says "president for all Americans" and "Make America Great Again" on the Fourth of July weekend like loudly and proudly declaring your hatred for whole groups within your country, eh?
That's as American as apple pie.
What freaking times we live in.
So no, I am not celebrating Independence Day.
However, it seemed like in the spirit of independence - independent thought, in this particular case - it would be good to add a few quotes from actually intelligent people. These quote were thought-provoking, and felt to me more in keeping with the true spirit of independence than anything that Trump, Loomer, or the minions of MAGA nation.
Below are some quotes that, hopefully, will give you pause for thought about what independence of mind really means.
Enjoy.
"Reclaim your mind and get it out of the hands of the cultural engineers who want to turn you into a half-baked moron consuming all the trash that’s being manufactured out of the bones of a dying world."
~ Terence McKenna, 'Reclaim Your Mind' (recorded lesson)
“The deepest sin against the human mind is to believe things without evidence.”
~ Aldous Huxley
‘Alligator lives matter’: Trump pal Laura Loomer slammed for saying Florida ‘Alcatraz’ beasts will get ‘65 million meals’ “Alligator lives matter,” MAGA activist Laura Loomer wrote to swift backlash. Isabel Keane in New York Thursday 03 July 2025:
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/laura-loomer-alcatraz-alligator-lives-matter-trump-b2782150.html
Donald Trump’s most ‘hateful’ comments yet make him 'unfit’ to be President, critics claim by Harry Fletcher, July 4, 2025:
https://www.indy100.com/politics/trump/donald-trump-hate-democrats-big-beautiful-bill
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