The First Amendment was enshrined for way more than a subscription plan.

Several of my friends are upset, borderline panicking about the unprecedented radical change that Trump and his administration are enacting across the federal government. The core of their fear is that the systems that are supposed to be in place do not appear to be fighting back in any way. The system we were taught to believe in—checks and balances, three co-equal branches with built-in oversight—has rolled over and asked for a treat. They are less watchdog, more taxidermied lapdog on a velvet pillow behind the register of a crappy antique store.

Our expectations are that our independent branches should be keeping this in check—but that’s not happening. Neither are the many watchdog institutions that are somehow still whole after Musk’s chainsaw massacre. There is so much confusion and anger about what is happening, and everyone I know who is distraught over these events has the same reaction: I don’t know what to do. We’re called to call and write our elected officials because that will make a difference—but it hasn’t. We’re told to protest because the White House pays attention—but it does not.

The New Republic published their “citizen guide to resistance” which calls for the same actions but also includes handy suggestions like suing the federal government—which is so not within the grasp of everyday citizens—especially those who are out of work because our corporations are not resisting, but in fact contributing money to shrines for Trump and falling in line by canceling DEI programs because their Glorious Leader, Cheeto Shitpants, told them to do it.

Meanwhile, The Guardian—a for-profit entity—asks me for more money on a weekly basis even though I am a paid subscriber. They are not the only publication to feel the need to remind me that we’re skipping into another apocalypse and that giving them more money is essential to my ability to stay informed. That used to mean knowing enough to not be ignorant. Today, that word means a firehose of minute-by-minute updates, however meaningless—until they have programmed FOMO doomscrolling into your psyche, your raison d’être. Our “fourth branch” of government is doing just as much harm to our country—especially broadcast. They are the layer of the resistance that has chosen to take a knee.

This week a House representative quoted Nazi Joseph Goebbels, Minister of Propaganda for the Third Reich, during a censorship hearing. If the sadistic irony doesn’t hit you, that would be like quoting Adolf Hitler during a hearing on antisemitism. How did the press report this? How's this for a biting headline: GOP Rep Quotes Infamous Nazi Joseph Goebbels During Censorship Hearing. That’s not journalism. That’s stenography.

What in the actual fuck is happening? We’re reminded over and over again that our democracy is frail, that we’re on the cusp of losing it, and the media has decided to put down their Freedom of the Press and sell tickets. “The Guardian would like to remind you—again—that democracy is dying. Could you spare $9.99 a month to watch?” Not to fight. Not to inform. Just to watch. It’s not journalism—it’s ringside narration for the fall of the republic.

Meanwhile, people are losing rights, jobs, safety nets—and the press is writing it up like a quarterly earnings report. The global economy just took a multi-trillion dollar nose dive because the President of the United States declared economic World War, then spent another $3.4 million in taxpayer money to go swing golf clubs for the Saudi government.

They tell us to resist. To march. To write postcards. As if fascism can be outmaneuvered by Etsy activism and well-intentioned hashtags. Meanwhile, the machinery of control grinds on, uninterrupted. A funny thing about the recent calls to resist—they include all of the typical anti-government and anti-corporation moves—but they leave out one that might have the most immediate response:

Cancel your subscriptions.

Go into your newspaper and magazine subscription accounts and close them. And tell them why. Leave behind a message that makes it clear they’re not fulfilling their obligation to the public to keep our officials and institutions in check. Publishers are playing nice with a crazy tyrant—for whatever reason, it does not matter—instead of honoring their duty and their social contract with this democracy. They remind us frequently that the First Amendment is vital to this country, but they are not using it.

Cancel your subscriptions. All of them. Even if you’ve already paid.

Their forms will ask for a reason. Here’s one: “I’m canceling because you’re failing to meet your obligation to the public. When you stand up to power, I’ll be back.

Log out. Show them you are not interested in their pandering and fear-mongering. Signal that when they’re ready to show up and do their job, you’ll be back. Choose a week and log out. Go dark.

Choose a week. Cancel. Log out. Disappear. En masse.

Use the time you would normally blue-light scare scroll and touch grass. Call your mom. Talk to your neighbor. Phone up a friend. And trust me—if anything drastic happens, you will know.

You want to make your voice heard? Make it felt. Withdraw your support from the ones who could shake the foundations of tyranny—but won’t. Cancel your subscriptions. Log out. Go dark. Tell them: You don’t get my money while you play nice with a madman. You don’t get my clicks while you peddle fear instead of truth.

When they’re ready to do their job, we’ll be back. Until then, we’re gone—tab closed.