What’s happening in the ‘United’ States is not normal
- Harry Colbert, Jr.
- 4 minutes ago
- 4 min read
This is not normal.
None of this is normal. And we cannot continue to behave as if this is normal. Otherwise this will become our new normal.
As I pen this, it is 10:21 p.m. on Saturday, May 30, 2026. There are so many things I could be doing, but my spirit won’t allow it. There was an exciting Game 7 in the NBA. Jay-Z had a triumphant return to the stage at the iconic Roots Picnic in Philadelphia. Here in the Twin Cities the weather is amazing … perfect for any outdoor activity. But my soul won’t allow me to enjoy any of it. My spirit is not at ease. And the opposite of ease is disease. I’m not well. Sadly, most of us are unwell. What we’re dealing with is a sickness for which I don't know if we’ve allowed to metastasis. And what’s most distressing is all the warning signs were there, all the way back at stage 1 of this cancer, but because “it didn’t feel that bad” we ignored the illness. Yet here we are at the precipice of our final gasp.
And while ignorance is bliss, that “bliss” is short-lived. Eventually the chickens will come home to roost.
It is Saturday, May 30, 2026. The supposed “United” States is in the midst of an undeclared Civil War. It’s been going on for a while, but we in the media are complicit in not calling it for what it is. Parts of New Jersey are on fire … literal fire … as righteous protesters clash with local, state and federal agents over the reported deplorable treatment of detainees and conditions at the Delaney Hall Detention Center in Newark. Yet if you check most of traditional media sites, there’s almost no mention of the clashes – clashes that have resulted in people having broken bones and multiple injuries and arrests. Sadly, to those of us in the Twin Cities, the scenes being broadcast through independent media channels are eerily familiar. The main difference is the temperatures are not in the sub zero range and the only ice on the ground are those in federal uniforms. I said it back in January – this is going to be a long, hot summer. And damn, I hate that I am right.
On this date, Saturday, May 30, 2026, the occupant of the Oval Office in the White House, to whom can take credit (or blame) for this current situation, instead of focusing on how to quail tensions, had his attention elsewhere.
In a flurry of unhinged posts to social media, the chief occupant of the White House took issue with such pressing matters as attacking the artists who pulled out of his prized upcoming “state fair” concert, the UFC fight on the White House lawn, campaigning for his likeness to be added to Mount Rushmore, threatening Greenland and railing against his name being removed from the famed Kennedy Center.
Those were his most pressing issues, yet I had to put down the salmon at Fresh Thyme because $11.99 a pound is too much of a luxury. Thankfully I was able to take the light rail to the store because the price of gas at the nearest station is $4.39 a gallon. Expect that price to rise as the last oil tanker to make it to the U.S. from the Middle East occurred more than three weeks ago. If the ill-advised war against Iran ended tomorrow it would still be another month or so before we get another shipment.
Six-hundred words in and I haven’t even discussed the absolute gutting of the Voting Rights Act or threats to go to war with Cuba. I haven’t talked about the weaponization of the Justice Department, including attacking working journalists. Haven’t mentioned Greg Bovino, the man in charge of ICE during the bulk of Operation Metro Surge, going to social media to show his support for ICE amid the Newark clashes by posting a picture of him in what appears to be a Nazi salute.
I haven’t discussed the fact that two Minnesotans, two Americans – two human beings – Renee Good and Alex Pretti were only granted 37 years of life apiece thanks to bullets from federal agents.
It’s Saturday, May 30, 2026 and none of this is normal. Please, I beg of us all, don’t let this become our new normal. I beg of us all.
It’s now 12:24 a.m. on Sunday, May 31, 2026 and for the first time in my journalistic career I’m posting a commentary because unlike too many in my profession, I recognize the urgency of the moment. Yes, it’s this serious. Things are that bad.
Thankfully, yes … there’s still time to save the patient. But all of us are needed to clock in. Overtime is required. But the patient is worth saving. The patient hasn’t always been perfect, but we’ll never know the life the patient could have if we don’t save the patient now. Together, we can cure this cancer. Let’s at least try.