A Kakistocracy State is Coming

I recently came across the term kakistocracy in an opinion piece in the New York Times by Paul Krugman. Kakistocracy basically means a government run by the least suitable or competent citizens. Paul Krugman's basic argument is that if we can stand up to this kakistocracy that is coming with the incoming Trump administration then maybe we can come out better on the other side. I certainly hope this is the case because we are about to find out what it means to put those who have shown bad character, evil intentions, and incompetence in charge.

There are so many things that scare me including the mass deportations that are set to take place. Trump and his border czar have even said they are going to rescind the rule that law enforcement cannot enter schools, churches, hospitals, or other safe places to find people to take them into custody and ultimately deport them. This is scary on so many levels, but even more so as an educator and someone who attends church. I remember in 2016/2017 when Trump was first elected and I had a Dreamer in my class at the community college ask me or express her fear that she might be deported or that they would come after her. I told her then in Spanish to get a lawyer, which she already had, and told her I wouldn't allow them to do in my class. I am not sure if I will be able to say that same statement now because if I don't comply in the moment, I could easily be arrested or God forbid shot. Not to mention, do you know how disruptive this is going to be for a class that has to do deal with this? I can't even imagine what it will look like in K-12 education. How will teachers be able to teach after the ICE officials come and forcibly start taking children and teenagers out of classrooms?

What about going to church service on Wednesday evening or Sunday morning and suddenly the ICE officials storm in and start arresting and taking people? Are we supposed to continue to have service after that, worship God, and continue with the lines of how blessed we are, God will protect us if we believe, etc.? I am not meaning to be facetious here, but like what are we supposed to do? I guess the people that support these policies are probably going to their all white churches that promote Christian nationalism or American exceptionalism. We could look at a lot of evidence for why these stances and views are deeply flawed and not for "the greater good" but only for a select few or group of people.

We, also need to talk about the economic consequences to mass deportations. Immigrants often work for and are paid a lot less than American citizens, look at this study from California from last year (2023) and are still paying taxes and contributing to the American economy. There are a couple of things that will happen if mass deportations take place; we will have to find millions of American citizens or immigrants who have legal status to fill in the agriculture, manual labor sectors that many of these immigrants work in and they will have to be paid at least the minimum wages set by those states. Well, I am not sure if we have that type of workforce and I am sure that there are those that argue that we can kick all of those people off of Disability, Medicaid, and Food Stamps to do that work because they need to take personal responsibility for themselves. Yes, let's do that and see what the fatal consequences might be for so many people who cannot work those types of jobs, but the government says "work or starve." And like I said above, we will have to pay all of those people at least the minimum wage and a lot of industries and companies that rely on undocumented immigrants do not pay those workers minimum wage (I am not saying this is right at all), but what do you think those companies and industries are going to do if they have to start paying their workers more money? The prices that we pay at the grocery store and anywhere else will go up too! Hasn't Trump promised that grocery prices are going to go down, but there seems to be a disconnect between this promise and how his proposed plans and policies like for mass deportations and tariffs will actually have the opposite effect.

There are so many concerning things that come up every day with this incoming administration that would require this blog to be updated multiple times daily to cover, but that would be exhausting and not good for my mental health. I am a follower of Christ and ultimately know that God is greater than any politician or person and I have to keep my faith. This does not mean though that I think we should just sit back and respect those in authority if they are evil, do not respect the rule of law, and principles of justice. I am not saying that I am going to start a violent rebellion or put myself in danger, but I do not believe that God wants us to just sit on the sidelines while others are suffering and hurting under a current government regime because that is not showing the love of God either. Followers of Christ need to be true lights in the world where there is so much darkness and that doesn't always mean playing it completely safe.

I pray and hope that this country can unite during this incoming kakistocracy that is coming and ultimately come out of it stronger and better. May God help us to learn that the country will only thrive when those at the bottom thrive too!