Notes from the edge of civilization: March 29, 2026
Who's the real sharpie?; 'bugging out' gets a new meaning; exorcists have an HR problem.
This week brought oil shocks, airport meltdowns, and more senseless loss of life — both civilian and military.
The moment that best sums up the insanity, however, came during a televised Cabinet meeting, when the president went off on a seemingly unscripted tangent about how much he loves Sharpie markers.
(As one commenter on the Associated Press story said: “Sounds like grandpa took a long cruise on the USS Sea Nile yesterday.”)
Trump explained that the White House once used “beautiful” pens that supposedly cost $1,000 each, which offended his inner fiscal watchdog when he handed them out at bill signings. So replacing those with $5 black Sharpies, featuring the White House logo in gold print, saved a tremendous amount of money.
Everyone knows, fiscal prudence is much needed at this time of soaring national debt. Naturally, the massive savings from $1,000 pens allows for more money to be directed to the military-industrial complex, which desperately needs the cash influx. Genius!, Mr. President.
Bad news for the bug-eating evangelists: the public would apparently rather keep its dignity. The insect food industry, once sold as the righteous future, is now buckling under bankruptcies, stalled projects, and the minor inconvenience that people do not actually want grubs for dinner. We’d love to think these clever Collapse Life t-shirts are what did the industry in, but really it’s just a matter of mathematics.
Of the 20 or so largest insect farming startups, almost a quarter have gone belly up in recent years, including the very largest, Ÿnsect, which ceased operations in December.
It may be one of the only instances where higher energy costs are actually having a positive impact on the food system: apparently it takes a lot of fuel to keep these ‘farms’ warm enough for insects to be raised in Europe and North America.
Former WEF head, Klaus Schwab, said: “Eat ze bugs” so chances that we’ve avoided them as a future food source are pretty slim. What is obvious is that it feels like the elites got their sequence wrong: Plow massive amount of resources into data centers FIRST, then, as you enslave people in the digital gulag, use the residual heat from those data centers for food bug creation… then you can then feed a desperate, starving population. Pretty obvious, no?
Some industries lobby for subsidies or tax breaks. The exorcists, apparently, are lobbying for an increased headcount.
In a recent meeting with the Pope, the International Association of Exorcists asked the pontiff for his help to ensure every diocese has at least one trained priest ready to deal with what they describe as a surge in cases tied to occult practices and “extraordinary action of the devil.”
In many ways, this reads like any other institutional memo: demand is rising, the workforce is unprepared, and the solution is standardized training, better oversight, and global coverage. What makes it harder to dismiss is the context.
Western culture has systematically dismantled organized religion and outsourced its spiritual needs instead to astrology apps, psychedelic therapy, and in some cases actual worship of the devil. When even exorcists are talking about capacity issues, it’s a reminder that whatever is breaking right now isn’t just economic or political. Something much deeper is fraying — and we’d venture to guess exorcists are only a small part of the solution.
The spiritual battle space is one worth watching in the coming months and years.
I actually approve of the move to Sharpies. Yes, it's silly and not even a blip in the overall budget but it is a good precedent. So much of the excess of government spending has just been normalized over time.
I really don't find much fault in Trump doing what should have been done long ago in Iran. They have been supporting the spread of terrorism and have basically been at war with much of the world for decades. It is long overdue. Yes, it is horrible that their people should suffer the effects of war. It is also horrible for the people who have been their victims. Hopefully it will end soon.