The Made-Up Reality Problem

I need to talk about something that’s been driving me a little insane lately, and if you’ve been online at all, you already know what I’m talking about.

MAGA is just… making stuff up now. Not spinning. Not exaggerating. Not even “well technically if you squint.” Just fully inventing nonsense and then confidently building an entire worldview on top of it.

And the wild part? They say it out loud. Repeatedly. With their whole chest.

We’ve officially moved past disagreement over facts and into a space where facts are optional, vibes are law, and anything that feels right in the moment gets promoted to “truth.” It’s like improv, but with consequences.

Someone will post a claim that is objectively false. No evidence. No source. No attempt at logic. Just “I heard” or “people are saying.” And within hours, it’s everywhere. Screenshotted. Reposted. Treated as settled reality.

Then, when it’s disproven—clearly, publicly, painfully—they don’t retract it. They don’t update. They don’t say, “Oh, my bad.”

They just… move on to the next made-up thing.

That’s the part that matters.

Because this isn’t about being wrong. Everyone is wrong sometimes. This is about being completely uninterested in whether something is true as long as it’s useful. As long as it scares people. As long as it keeps the anger going.

There’s a constant need for a villain, a crisis, a betrayal. And if one doesn’t exist, no problem—just invent one.

Migrants are always about to do something.

Cities are always “on the brink.”

Schools are always “indoctrinating.”

Elections are always “rigged.”

Someone, somewhere, is always coming for you.

None of it has to be real. It just has to feel real enough to keep the machine running.

What gets me is how obvious it’s become. There’s no subtlety left. You can watch a claim form in real time. One account posts a vague accusation. Another account adds a detail. Another adds a motive. Another adds a fake screenshot. And suddenly there’s a whole cinematic universe built around something that never happened.

And if you point this out, you’re told you’re the brainwashed one.

That’s the inversion trick. Reality becomes propaganda. Propaganda becomes “common sense.” And anyone who asks for proof is accused of being part of the conspiracy.

It’s exhausting, but it’s also important to name what this actually is.

This isn’t confusion.

This isn’t ignorance.

This is a choice.

A choice to live in a story that justifies rage instead of reality.

A choice to reject information if it interferes with identity.

A choice to treat politics like fandom instead of something that affects real people’s lives.

And yeah, I know some people reading this are thinking, “Why even engage? They’ll never change.” Fair. I get that instinct. But the reason to talk about this isn’t to convert the loudest ones. It’s for everyone else who’s quietly watching and thinking, “Am I losing my mind?”

You’re not.

If it feels like the rules of reality have been loosened lately, that’s because they have—by people who benefit from chaos, confusion, and constant outrage. When nothing is true, everything becomes a weapon.

The goal isn’t to convince you of something new.

The goal is to make you doubt everything.

Including yourself.

So no, you’re not crazy for noticing the nonsense.

You’re not “too online” for calling it out.

And you’re not obligated to pretend this is normal just to keep the peace.

If we don’t name manufactured reality for what it is, it becomes the default. And once that happens, facts don’t just lose value—they lose relevance.

And that’s a place nobody accidentally ends up.

Take care friends,

Sean