There is an old, leather-wrapped Jefferson Magnifier that years ago I stole from my parents and use it to read words and letters largely from time to time. As the moments pass and we get closer to the inauguration of the 47th President, I keep thinking about magnification, this time of ideas, rather than random passages in old books.

I wonder if the new strategy is to employ loyalists who won’t say much against, well, anything, and to wear down the resolve of those of us who still believe in parts of the government as good, functional, useful, purposeful, and necessary for our mutual survival as a country. I am consistently reminded, also, of the Batman movie in which Christian Bale is Batman and Heath Ledger is The Joker, and Alfred reminds Bruce Wayne that “some men just want to watch the world burn”. It could be that, too, I suppose.

I wonder how does someone advocating for the slashing-and-burning of the FBI impact me? Does it? What if the Department of Education is dismantled to pre-1979 laws. Would they go after those laws, too? What about IDEA? What about school lunch programs?

I wonder.

When I pull back on this philosophical magnifying glass, I see that this is both a detail and a long-term strategy that started way back when I was little and Reagan was president. So many big ideas had been codified into law during the 1940s-1980, and his administration wasn’t able to do much about it. But what about this one? 40 years later and a whole lot more vocal and indignant.

I hope that the federal government is not changed to a point where we can’t recognize it. I don’t know what that would mean for most people, especially young people and poor people and unhoused people and immigrant people. This last week’s news was emotionally draining for me, but I am trying to read the news about once per day. I do want to know about as much as the media will report. I hope they continue being brave and sharing details. Without them, I am not sure what might happen. I do remember that there were no press briefings during his last administration. Will that happen again?

This all so strange to experience, this shift in the United States. The shift is so dramatic as to be alienating and exciting but not in a happy way. The other side I think probably feels the same way except they are excited in a good way. This is so tiring; I hate that I am feeling so tired by all of it and I feel like my writing is not as clear as normal. But that is ok. Like one of my best friends said today, “it is all so fleeting”.