Lex’s Monkeys

The Trump administration said Thursday that it has launched investigations into 13 states that require state-regulated health insurance plans to cover abortion. to.pbs.org/40IG3T9

@razgriiz Whatever nerd

#StarTrek People love to point at Star Trek like it is a crystal ball showing the inevitable future of humanity, as if all it takes is “progress” and suddenly greed, prejudice, and conflict evaporate into stardust. That idea sounds neat on a poster, but once you actually look at the machinery behind that fictional universe, it falls apart fast. What they are really doing is taking a setting built on extreme technological and situational advantages and pretending those conditions exist in the real world. They do not. Not even close. The Illusion of Infinite Resources The biggest fantasy engine in that universe is the replicator. This is not some minor convenience like a microwave. This is a device that can produce food, tools, clothing, and complex objects instantly out of raw energy. That single invention wipes out scarcity, which is the foundation of every economic system that has ever existed. In reality, scarcity is not optional. It is baked into physics, geography, and human limitation. Land is finite. Energy costs exist. Time is limited. People compete because they have to. In Star Trek, that entire layer of reality is removed. If anyone can walk up to a wall panel and materialize a steak, a uniform, or a replacement part for a starship, then of course capitalism looks unnecessary. You are not solving capitalism, you are bypassing the conditions that make it necessary in the first place. Without scarcity, there is no pricing mechanism, no incentive structure, no competition for resources. That does not mean humanity evolved past those things. It means the environment made them irrelevant. That distinction matters. Space Travel as a Pressure Valve Now add interstellar travel. Humanity in that universe is not packed onto one crowded planet trying to divide limited space and resources. They have access to thousands of planets, moons, and entire star systems. That is not just exploration. That is a pressure release valve for every social tension. In the real world, people argue over borders, housing, jobs, and resources because they are constrained. In Star Trek, if a group does not like conditions, they can literally leave and start a colony on a new world. That changes human behavior in a fundamental way. Conflict decreases not because people became morally superior, but because the environment removed the bottlenecks that create conflict. Try applying that to Earth. There is no backup planet. There is no easy expansion into infinite territory. Every policy decision here has to deal with limits. Star Trek does not. A Unified External Threat Another piece people conveniently ignore is the constant presence of external threats. The Borg, the Klingons, the Romulans. Humanity is not sitting in a peaceful vacuum. It is part of a galaxy full of competing civilizations, many of which are hostile. That creates unity. Nothing brings people together faster than a common enemy. It forces cooperation, standardization, and shared identity. On Earth, there is no alien empire threatening extinction. There is no galactic war forcing humanity to unify under a single banner. Instead, nations, cultures, and groups are left to compete with each other, because that is the only arena available. So when someone says “everyone is united in Star Trek,” what they are really describing is a civilization under constant external pressure. That is not a moral achievement. That is a strategic necessity. The Myth of “No Racism or Sexism” Even inside the fiction, this claim is not even accurate. Star Trek constantly shows tension between species, cultures, and political systems. Humans vs Vulcans, Federation vs Klingons, distrust of augmented humans, suspicion toward androids like Data. The show explores prejudice constantly because it understands something basic. Differences do not disappear just because technology improves. What changes is how those differences are managed. The Federation enforces strict codes, training, and institutional discipline. Starfleet officers go through rigorous selection and indoctrination. You are not seeing average people behaving perfectly. You are seeing the top tier of a highly controlled organization operating under rules that are aggressively enforced. Apply that to reality and you immediately hit a wall. You cannot scale that level of control and selection across billions of people with different values, cultures, and priorities. The show cherry picks its characters. Real societies do not have that luxury. Post Scarcity Does Not Equal Post Human Nature The underlying assumption behind the “be like Star Trek” argument is that human nature is infinitely malleable, that if you just remove enough obstacles, people will default to cooperation and fairness. That is not how humans operate. Even in environments of abundance, people still compete for status, influence, recognition, and power. You can remove material scarcity and still have social hierarchy, ambition, jealousy, and conflict. Star Trek sidesteps this by writing characters who largely suppress those impulses or channel them into exploration and service. That is storytelling. It is not evidence. The Role of Centralized Authority The Federation is not some loose collection of free individuals casually cooperating. It is a massive centralized system with rules, enforcement, and a clear chain of command. Starfleet is effectively a military structure with strict discipline. Orders are followed. Deviations are punished. Missions are assigned. People who praise the “utopia” rarely acknowledge that it runs on a level of centralized control that would be controversial in the real world. You do not get that level of uniform behavior without structure. And structure always comes with trade offs. Technology Is Doing the Heavy Lifting Everything people admire in that universe comes back to technology doing the hard work. Replicators eliminate scarcity. Warp drive eliminates distance. Advanced medicine eliminates most disease. Automation removes labor burdens. Take those away and the entire system collapses back into something much closer to what exists today. That tells you everything you need to know. The “utopia” is not a moral evolution. It is a technological one. Earth Is Not a Starfleet Ship A starship like the USS Enterprise operates with a few hundred carefully selected individuals in a controlled environment with clear leadership and defined goals. Earth is a planet with billions of people, competing governments, different cultures, and conflicting interests. Scaling the behavior of a fictional crew to an entire species is not just unrealistic, it ignores the complexity of real human societies. It is like saying a well run submarine proves the entire ocean can be governed the same way. Conflict Is Not a Bug, It Is a Feature In the real world, disagreement and competition drive innovation, adaptation, and progress. Different systems, ideas, and approaches compete, and the better ones survive. Star Trek removes much of that by flattening economic and social competition through technology. That might look peaceful, but it also removes the engine that pushes development in unpredictable ways. The show can do that because writers control outcomes. Reality does not have that luxury. The Core Problem With the Argument When someone says “we should be like Star Trek,” they are not actually proposing a workable model. They are pointing to a fictional endpoint built on impossible conditions and pretending the path to get there is simply moral improvement. It is not. That world depends on: Unlimited energy Matter replication Faster than light travel Access to countless habitable worlds External threats forcing unity Highly controlled institutional structures Selective representation of human behavior Remove any one of those, and the system starts to crack. Remove all of them, and you are back in the real world, dealing with scarcity, limits, and human nature. That is why the argument collapses under scrutiny. It confuses a setting with a solution, a story with a strategy, and a fantasy with a blueprint.

A Georgia woman has been charged with murder after going to the emergency room with severe pain she experienced after allegedly taking abortion pills at home. wapo.st/4dyn8SB

@hbinary_x @FoxNews He’s autistic

@FoxNews Mad respect for that young guy. I bet one day he'll follow in his dad's footsteps. He's got it all, especially that chill vibe.

JAPANESE PM SANAE TAKAICHI draws laughs with birthday wish for Barron Trump: "Tomorrow is the birthday of your son, Mr. Barron Trump, and I know he has grown up so much into a very tall, good-looking gentleman." "And when I see you, Donald, it is very clear where he got it — Of course, from his parents. There's no doubt about it."

@hbinary_x @CNN Rice picking bot

@CNN We're about to see another American icon that'll live forever. So cool

President Donald Trump’s handpicked Commission of Fine Arts voted to approve a commemorative coin for the United States’ 250th birthday featuring the president’s likeness. And it’s going to be big. cnn.it/4bkaQvM

@washingtonpost Wait til it figures out what a knife is

A robot couldn't stop dancing at a HaiDiLao Hotpot restaurant in Cupertino, California, sending food and chopsticks flying despite the best efforts of three staff members.

"We didn't tell anybody about [attacking Iran] because we wanted surprise. Who knows better about surprise than Japan?" the president responded while sitting next to Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. "Why didn't you tell me about Pearl Harbor? Right?" to.pbs.org/4lPb8hJ

@DerrickEvans4WV They’ll really let the pee-color shine

🚨 U.S. Marines seen cleaning President Trump’s Hollywood Walk of Fame star

@FmrRepMTG You’re half right

The Iran War is rapidly spiraling out of control. It should have never happened. It’s time to go back to America First and drill baby drill. That’s what we campaigned on and the American people voted for.

@ko_fights__ Shoulda been a double-tap

Boy calls female officer a racial slur and spits on her, she slaps him while restrained. Did she go too far?

@Itssan17 Kal-El, no

Wonder Woman's entry in BvS is still top 3 cbm action scenes of all time. They don't make this kinda cinema anymore🥲

@RepFine @NEWSMAX Lay off the latkes, Jabba

TUNE IN: I’m about to join @NEWSMAX at 8:15 PM ET 🇺🇸

@Atlantaholic69 @MAGAmechanic60 @DHSgov LOL

@MAGAmechanic60 @DHSgov i'd rather my tax dollars go to this than trans education in Botswana or turning frogs gay

Let’s get you HOME! Take advantage of the HISTORIC CBP Home Deal we are offering to illegal aliens — a $2,600 exit bonus AND a free flight to your home country: dhs.gov/cbphome

@RickAddante @RobertKennedyJr You handsome idiot

@RobertKennedyJr Love ya, Bobby. Reminder: we do not celebrate the Irish. We celebrate the English Bishop who helped convert the Irish from pagan gods, led them to thw one true God, and inspired us all. Love St. Patty!

Sláinte from my family to yours during this week of celebrating the Irish. My father marching in the 1968 St. Patrick’s day parade.

@bennyjohnson What’s funny is Trump will NEVER be as celebrated as Obama, and he’s so insanely jealous

Y’all have to see what Trump has done with the Obama portrait at the White House … 👀

@RepFine Frumpy fat ass

I won’t be voting for any Senate bills until the SAVE America Act passes and confidence in our elections is restored. Americans should be the only ones deciding who represents them. It’s just that simple.

@DailyLoud Meh

The family of a Texas teen loses it as judge sentences him to 25 years in prison for robbing a convenience store.

@WhiteHouse Nice to see he wasn’t wearing his own merch this time. He’s still a piece of shit, though.

President Donald J. Trump attends the dignified transfer of six American heroes who made the ultimate sacrifice in a refueling plane crash while serving our nation. 🇺🇸🙏 May God bless them and their families. In Honor of: Maj. John A. Klinner Capt. Ariana G. Savino Tech. Sgt. Ashley B. Pruitt Capt. Seth R. Koval Capt. Curtis J. Angst Tech. Sgt. Tyler H. Simmons

@DNIGabbard He has dementia and you’re in denial, and you’re going to end up in prison when this is all over.

Donald Trump was overwhelmingly elected by the American people to be our President and Commander in Chief. As our Commander in Chief, he is responsible for determining what is and is not an imminent threat, and whether or not to take action he deems necessary to protect the safety and security of our troops, the American people and our country.  The Office of the Director of National Intelligence is responsible for helping coordinate and integrate all intelligence to provide the President and Commander in Chief with the best information available to inform his decisions.  After carefully reviewing all the information before him, President Trump concluded that the terrorist Islamist regime in Iran posed an imminent threat and he took action based on that conclusion.