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In late October 2024, the situation was completely distinct. Before the US presidential election, thoughtful citizens could recognize the country's significant faults – its injustices and disparity – but they could still perceive it as America. A free society. A land where legal governance carried weight. A nation headed by a dignified and upright leader, despite his advanced age and declining health.

Nowadays, in late October 2025, many of us scarcely know the land we inhabit. Individuals alleged as undocumented migrants are collected and pushed into vans, occasionally refused legal rights. The East Wing of the “people’s house” – is being destroyed to build a lavish event space. The leader is harassing his opponents or alleged foes and demanding federal prosecutors transfer an enormous amount of citizen dollars. Uniformed troops are deployed to US urban areas on false pretexts. The Pentagon, renamed the War Department, has practically rid itself of routine media oversight while it uses possibly reaching nearly $1tn from citizen taxes. Colleges, attorney offices, journalism organizations are submitting from leader's menaces, and wealthy elites are handled as aristocracy.

“The US, shortly prior to its quarter-millennium anniversary as the planet's foremost free society, has tipped over the brink toward dictatorship and extremism,” an American historian, stated recently. “In the end, more quickly than I believed likely, it did happen in America.”

Every morning starts to new horrors. And it is challenging to understand – and painful to realize – how severely declined we are, and how quickly it unfolded.

However, we know that Trump was legitimately chosen. Even after his profoundly alarming first term and following the warnings that came with the awareness of Project 2025 – despite the leader directly stated openly he intended to act as an autocrat just on day one – a majority of citizens elected him instead of Kamala Harris.

Frightening as the current reality may be, it's more daunting to understand that we are just nine months under this leadership. Where will another 36 months of this decline find us? And if that timeframe becomes a more extended duration, since there is no one to restrain this leader from deciding that a third term is necessary, perhaps for national security reasons?

Certainly, there is still hope. We will have legislative votes next year that could bring a different political equilibrium, if Democrats retake the Senate or House of the legislature. There exist government representatives who are attempting to impose a degree of oversight, such as lawmakers that are starting a probe concerning the try to cash appropriation from legal authorities.

And a presidential election in 2028 could initiate us down the road to healing just as the previous vote placed us on this unfortunate course.

There are countless citizens demonstrating in the streets throughout communities, like they performed in the past days in the No Kings rallies.

Robert Reich, commented this week that “the great sleeping giant of America is stirring”, just as it did after the Communist witch-hunt era during the fifties or throughout the Vietnam war protests or throughout the seventies crisis.

In those instances, the listing ship eventually was righted.

The author states he understands the signals of that awakening and sees it happening now. For proof, he references the widespread marches, the extensive, multi-faction opposition against a personality's dismissal and the largely united refusal by journalists to sign military mandates they report only approved content.

“The sleeping giant consistently stays asleep until specific greed grows too toxic, an specific act so contemptuous toward public welfare, some brutality so noisy, that the giant has no choice except to rise.”

It's a hopeful perspective, and I value Reich’s experienced view. Possibly he may turn out correct.

At the same time, the major inquiries remain: is the US able to return to normalcy? Can it retrieve its position internationally and its commitment to the rule of law?

Or should we recognize that the national endeavor worked for a while, and then – abruptly, completely – collapsed?

My pessimistic brain indicates that the second option is true; that everything might be gone. My positive feelings, though, tells me that we have to attempt, by any means we can.

For me, as a media critic, that means urging journalists to commit, more thoroughly, to their purpose of overseeing leadership. For different individuals, it may be working on congressional campaigns, or planning demonstrations, or developing approaches to protect ballot privileges.

Under twelve months back, we existed in an alternate reality. In the future? Or three years from now? The truth is, we cannot predict. All we can do is to strive to continue fighting.

What’s Giving Me Encouragement Today

The contact I experience during teaching with new media professionals, that are simultaneously idealistic and grounded, {always