Flightless Bird Podcast – "Inauguration Week" (Jan 28, 2025)

Host: David Farrier (with Rob)
Theme: An outsider’s view on the chaos, comedy, and consequences of Trump’s second inauguration week

Overview

In this episode, David Farrier, the ever-curious Kiwi marooned in America, teams up with co-host Rob to process the week following Donald Trump's return to the presidency. What was planned as a whimsical look at American peculiarities pivots into a candid, at times darkly funny, and frequently bewildered exploration of how the Trump 2.0 inauguration upended America’s cultural, political, and digital landscape. The episode balances doom, humor, and acute observations, making sense of a barrage of headlines and existential questions about why David remains in the US.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Inauguration: Horror, Humor, and Surreality

• David’s Check-in with New Zealand (00:18–02:46)

  • David calls Hayden in NZ for an outside perspective, noting the world’s fearful watching of America:

    “We're just cowering in fear, seeing what you guys will do next.” —Hayden (00:33)

  • The inauguration combined dark comedy (Trump’s ‘cake cutting sword dance’) with international dismay (Elon Musk’s Nazi-like salutes; Jewel’s unexpected performance).
  • America is described as both “incredibly corny and not very self aware and at the same time able to nuke every single one of us out of existence” (Hayden, 01:48).

• David’s Reflections on the Show’s Purpose (02:46–04:14)

  • The show, meant for “whimsical” outsider perspectives, now must “hit the brakes and go, ‘what the fuck is going on?’”
  • Watching Trump’s return: a spectacle of tech billionaires, TikTok/Meta/Amazon execs—those “whose platforms increasingly steal our time, brains, and reality.”

2. Living in a Bubble: California vs. the Rest of the Country

• Rob and David acknowledge their “layer of protection” in California (07:26–09:25) — white, relatively safe, and in a liberal stronghold.
  • Serious existential questions arise for non-white friends considering emigration:

    “He was talking to me about… does New Zealand take people? We’ve got skills. How could we get in there?” —David referring to a worried friend (09:15)

3. Sheer Velocity of Changes & Executive Orders

• The episode details the return to “overdrive” of American political whiplash, including mass deportations, TikTok drama, and the rapid signing of executive orders.
  • Ezra Klein quote on Trump’s focus:

    "Almost everything mentioned was an executive action that Trump would take and the courts would decide... What interests Trump is what he can do alone." —Ezra Klein, via David (10:34)

4. TikTok & The Return of Disinformation (11:22–13:16)

• Discuss the irony and impact of Trump first pushing a TikTok ban, then being hailed as its savior upon its reinstatement.
• Media’s struggle to keep up with "what is factual and what is not," and fears about acclimating to a “boiling lobster” climate of craziness.

5. The Pardons and Rewriting of Historical Events (14:12–15:53; 33:59–35:37)

• Pardons of Jan 6 rioters and far-right figures:
  • “He’s basically making his truth come true.” —David
  • A police officer, beaten during Jan 6th, found the pardons deeply demoralizing after working the inauguration (35:16).
• Both hosts note: “there is no accountability... that’s gone.” —David (35:37)

6. Elon Musk’s Inaugural Nazi-like Salute (24:02–28:46)

• The hosts dissect Musk’s gesture—debating media reluctance to call it what it plainly appears to be, the ‘dog whistle’ effect, and the chilling normalization of such imagery.
  • Quote from The Present Age (Parker Molloy):

    "A billionaire can make a gesture that Neo Nazis celebrate…and major news organizations feel compelled to describe it as exuberant…” (28:11)

7. Social Media, Tech Billionaires, and Chaos (21:27–23:28; 45:30–51:29)

• Social platforms are now perceived as “controlled by people in the President’s inner circle.”
• Friends grapple with quitting social media for sanity and resistance, but note:

  "If we can't even sacrifice our little meme yum yums in order to hurt one of the biggest threats to democracy, what hope do we have?" —David quoting a friend (22:10)

• Instagram/META Account Snafu: Many users found themselves auto-following J.D. Vance and Trump due to transferring administrative accounts, sparking confusion and conspiracy (45:44–51:29).

8. Petty Culture War Orders & Their Legal Implications (53:04–55:47)

• Trump’s “Only two genders” executive order, with embedded fetal personhood language, alarms abortion rights supporters:

  “A fully enacted fetal personhood would…lead governments to treat abortion as murder…” —David reading The Guardian (54:40)

9. Cultural & Media Absurdity: Team America, Doge.gov, and “Dick Waving” (32:35–41:04; 51:48–52:34)

• The “propagandistic” WhiteHouse.gov website (“Team America World Police ridiculousness”), Musk’s Doge.gov “Paw Patrol” aesthetics, and petty redefinitions (renaming the Gulf of Mexico “Gulf of America”, claims of planting a US flag on Mars).

10. Religious Courage: Bishop Marianne Budde’s Inauguration Prayer (41:25–44:49)

• Bishop Budde’s calm, gently confrontational prayer for mercy and empathy for immigrants is highly praised as a moment of genuine sanity and courage, contrasted with immediate right-wing media demonization.

  “I ask you to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared now. The vast majority of immigrants aren't criminals. They're our neighbors." —Bishop Budde (42:31)

11. The Fracturing of American Families and Social Fabric

• Example of Billy Ray Cyrus’s son publicly grieving his father’s choices after the inauguration (29:05–30:21)
• Acknowledges renewed rifts in families, echoing first Trump presidency and Covid divides:

  "It did feel like there was some progress in mending... and now it's just, like, ripped... that wound's ripped wide open." —Rob (30:33)

12. Federal Aid Used as Political Weapon (56:08–57:39)

• Trump withholds disaster aid to California unless state complies with his policy demands, compared by hosts to past politicization of federal help.

13. Historical Perspective & JP Morgan’s ‘Augeruption’ (58:05–59:49)

• JP Morgan describes Trump 2.0 as a “hodgepodge” of contradictory American presidential styles. Rob notes some comfort in the cyclical nature of American weirdness—though the present feels distinctly dire.

14. Listener Feedback and Everyday Surreality (67:21–78:00)

• Letters include wildfires, Blockbuster, lazy rivers, American Girl dolls in Iceland, and existential fatigue.
• A poignant final dedication to a late listener, Alex, bringing home the fragility and interconnectedness underlying the week’s madness.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Opening Tone:

  "America is so unintentionally hilarious at the same time... it's sort of hard to know the balance of terror and laughter." —David (01:33)

• On Media Confusion:

  "The information is so busy. Right. We can't keep up. And I think that's how he can keep pivoting where his audience doesn't recognize..." —David (15:37)

• Elon’s Gesture:

  "Just for me as a New Zealander in America... it was a batshit insane thing to see." —David (25:37)
  "We're living in a media environment where the truth has become nearly impossible to state directly..." —Parker Molloy (The Present Age), paraphrased by David (28:11)

• On TikTok/Fact vs. Fiction:

  "It’s crazy how quickly that, like, switch of this isn’t true, what is factual and what is not..." —Rob (12:52)

• On Pardons/Accountability:

  “These guys that beat the shit out of me are now...” —David referencing pardoned Capitol attackers (35:29)

• Petty Orders & Deeper Dangers:

  "Something that just seems petty and silly, suddenly becoming something potentially incredibly terrifying." —David on gender definitions and fetal personhood (54:57) "Is this pettiness, or is this something to be terrified of?" —David (55:05)

• Religion & Empathy:

  “It was like a moment of sanity. It was incredibly satisfying to watch...” —David on Bishop Budde’s prayer (42:58)

• History Repeating:

  "History repeating itself, we're never learning. We're doing the same old dumb..." —David (59:40)

Timestamps for Major Segments

• 00:18–02:46 — Hayden from NZ: How the world sees America
• 09:11–09:25 — Considering emigration: "Does New Zealand take people?"
• 11:22–13:16 — TikTok ban/savior saga, return of disinfo
• 14:12–15:53 — Trump rewriting history, pardoning January 6 rioters
• 24:02–28:46 — Elon Musk’s hand gesture: analysis and media reaction
• 33:59–35:36 — The impact and implications of widespread pardons
• 41:25–44:49 — Bishop Budde’s prayer: empathy and backlash
• 45:44–51:29 — Instagram account chaos: forced follows, conspiracy, technical failures
• 53:04–55:47 — "Two genders" order: Fetal personhood, abortion rights, and pettiness with teeth
• 56:08–57:39 — Federal aid as political weapon
• 58:05–59:49 — JP Morgan’s reaction: “Augeruption”
• 67:21–78:00 — Listener feedback on fires, Blockbuster, scrapbooking, and life’s randomness

Episode Tone & Style

• Alternates between incredulity, bleak humor, and genuine empathy
• Willingness to embrace “what the fuck” bewilderment
• Offers outside perspective without condescension
• Threaded with personal asides, listener stories, and existential reflection

Final Thoughts

The episode illustrates the chaos and cognitive dissonance of American life in the Trump 2.0 era: new forms of propaganda, social media dystopia, the collapse of common facts, and petty executive actions with profound legal consequences. The hosts balance panic, mockery, and empathy, continually inviting their audience to process—however clumsily—the “balance of terror and laughter” that defines this moment. The episode closes with letters from listeners, a dedication to a departed Kiwi fan, and the hope that—even if America has been absurd before—this time, maybe, the bubble of privilege can be pierced by bravery, community, and clear-eyed conversation.

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Watch on YouTube: YouTube.com/FlightlessBirdPodcast
Next week: Return to the regular (slightly less apocalyptic) format.