We are living in a golden age of American degeneracy.

The guy who tried to violently overthrow American democracy four years ago will be running the country in a few weeks, and is at the height of his popularity. The guy who currently has the job lacks the mental capacity to do it on a daily basis; a fact which his inner circle systematically covered up. The guy who assassinated the CEO of United Health Care has aroused the sex drive of young women in a way that boring, law-abiding men can only envy. And the world’s richest guy has recently declared that most Americans are retarded, censored his critics on X, and is still going strong.

Indeed, even center left commentators are now aligning with Musk, and embracing the language of retards and chuds.

At the same time, misogyny, racism, antisemitism (from both left and right), and transphobia are now openly and routinely expressed in public in a way that’s unprecedented in modern America. And yet Republicans, who have embraced this toxicity far more than Democrats, are doing better than ever with women and non-white voters.

Notably, over the past couple of weeks, there have been a series of major sexual misconduct stories from both Europe and America which, not long ago, might have prompted a mini-revival of the MeToo movement.

In France, fifty men, including her husband, were found guilty of repeatedly drugging and raping Gisele Pelicot. In Germany, a government investigation discovered Telegram group chats where tens of thousands of men from multiple countries shared tips on raping women. Meanwhile, in America, Donald Trump endorsed a Truth Social post seeking justice for himself against E. Jean Carrol, a woman who successfully sued him for defamation and sexual abuse, and whose trial court victory was just affirmed at the appellate level. Plus, the actress Blake Lively has alleged that she was subjected to a smear campaign because she complained about sexual misconduct while working on a film. The rapid accumulation of these stories would have at least prompted some performative soul-searching a few years ago, but today they’re just pebbles splashing into the pond.

Another indicator of degeneracy is the popularization of gambling, both in-person and via smart phone apps. Betting is all over the place - on crypto, stocks, and sports - and casinos are more popular than ever. Gambling used to be considered a vice, but now it’s been normalized.

Finally, vaccine skepticism has been on the rise for decades, but it reached a new peak during Covid. Today, there’s a real risk that long suppressed diseases like polio and measles will make a comeback. Biden’s mass vaccination campaign against Covid may well have been the last of its kind.

Putting all of this together reveals an America which is swimming in the muck, and apparently has no desire to rinse off anytime soon. And lest readers view me as just a high minded scold, I freely admit my own ethical decline.

For example, despite being an enthusiastic supporter of immigration, I rooted for Lara Loomer against Elon Musk on the topic of skilled immigration, because I can’t stomach the prospect of mass deporting poorer, less skilled immigrants, while welcoming richer, higher skilled engineers from abroad. If America’s going to be xenophobic, let’s be equitable about it and close the borders completely. Relatedly, I have zero sympathy for Silicon Valley immigrants who supported MAGA’s racism against lower class migrants, but are upset now that the same vitriol is being directed against themselves.

Furthermore, I am familiar with the kinds of vengeful political fantasies which have animated both January 6th and Luigi supporters. The contemporary desire for political revenge is powerful, and has certainly led my mind to dark places.

More prosaically, in the aftermath of the election, I was a complete asshole to a number of my MAGA relatives, including close relations.

To be sure, I still believe in trying to come back together as a nation. But, ever since November 5th, I’ve found that the emotional and psychological effort required to rise above degeneracy, and to maintain my aspirational centrism, is often far too onerous.