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Want Your Funding? Name That Train Station After Me!

Cover of Manfred F.R. Kets de Vries’ new book, “The Theater of the Absurd: A Nation in Trump’s Shadow (The Trump Trilogy: A Psychological Exploration of Power and Democracy).” On the back cover: “Theater and politics have always shared a stage. But in the age of Trump, the script has turned into satire—and satire into tragedy. ‘The Theater of the Absurd: A Nation in Trump’s Shadow’ is not just about one man. It is about what happens when unchecked narcissism, authoritarian drift and mass delusion collide with fragile institutions and a willing audience. Donald Trump has become more than a politician; he is a prism through which the fractures, fantasies and fears of our time are revealed. In this collection of essays, Manfred Kets de Vries, renowned leadership scholar, psychoanalyst, consultant, executive coach, and a keen observer of leadership, explores Trump’s impact on America and the wider world. He shows how charisma can intoxicate, how denial can metastasize, and how entire societies can lose their bearings under the spell of spectacle. Moving from the psychology of the man himself to the complicity of his followers, and from the corrosion of democratic norms to the global spread of populist strongmen, this book offers both diagnosis and warning. It challenges us to face the mirror unflinchingly and ask: How did we get here? Why are we still here? And what must we do to wake up? This is not a comfortable read. But it is a necessary one.”

Theatre of the Absurd: Major media outlets have been reporting that POTUS 47 recently approached Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) to offer releasing the funds for the nearly halted Hudson Tunnel Project (centerpiece of the Gateway Program) in exchange for Schumer supporting naming Penn Station New York after him as well as Dulles International Airport, to include changing its IAD designation to DJT.

“The White House declined to comment, and Schumer’s office did not respond to a request for comment,” NBC News reported. “A source close to Schumer told NBC News that ‘there is nothing to trade.’ ‘The President stopped the funding, and he can restart the funding with a snap of his fingers,’ the source said.”

”It seems like blackmail to me,”  NJ Transit customer Brandon Ellis told The Gothamist after arriving at Penn Station.  ”If you want to appeal to a narcissist sure, go ahead … it’s a stupid thing to have to do to get funding that’s already been appropriated by Congress. Maybe they should do a cage fight about it. We can pit [Mayor Zohran] Mamdani and [POTUS 47] together. That sounds just as stupid as putting [the President’s] name on it.“

But wait! New York’s Democrat Governor Kathy Hochul seemed to come into POTUS 47’s sphere of mass delusion in April 2025. After the federal government took over the Penn Station redevelopment project last year, Hochul indicated she was open to renaming the station after [POTUS 47]. “If he puts $7 billion into it? Who knows,” she said.

Gulp! Thanks a lot, Kathy! NOT!

“POTUS 47 wasn’t in charge of selecting a design for the project two years ago,” Streetsblog writer Dave Colon opined in November. “Fast forward to 2025, and [Amtrak project head Andy] Byford has said that the President will have the final approval of the developer and its design of the project. Amtrak officials insist it’s standard practice for the President to review the project, but it’s easy to imagine would-be developers proposing extravagant and expensive touches to catch the eye of a man currently attaching gold filigree and a $300 million ballroom to the White House.”

The Hudson Tunnel Project funding was provided in a Biden era bipartisan infrastructure funding bill, and POTUS 47 had no authority to withhold the funding—or, of course, use it as a tool of extortion to add his name to yet other national treasures, like the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. Aside from being afflicted with extreme cases of both ASPD and NPD,* what type of psychological problems does the President have that prompt him to engage in such bizarre behavior?

Fortunately, POTUS 47’s agreeing that a Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern merger “sounds good to me” did not contain a demand to name the unified railroad after himself. Perhaps that‘s because several model trains have been produced with his name and/or likeness, and he is distracted from playing with the 1:1 scale versions?

I have zero plans to add this abomination of a Wabtec ES44AC MTH model to my O scale collection. Shouldn’t the trucks be painted gold?

TACOs, anyone?

*ASPD (Antisocial Personality Disorder) is characterized by a profound lack of empathy, conscience and remorse, and a disregard for social norms and others’ safety. People with this condition frequently display manipulation, deceit, impulsivity, aggression and irresponsible behavior, often struggling to form genuine emotional connections. NPD (Narcissistic Personality Disorder) is defined by a deep-seated pattern of grandiosity, constant need for admiration and a profound lack of empathy, often paired with entitlement and manipulative tendencies. It manifests as self-centeredness, exploitation of others, arrogance, and inability to handle criticism, frequently damaging personal relationships and work environments. In POTUS 47’s case, the damage he is inflicting is affecting not just the United States, but the entire world. But this too shall pass. The only thing stronger than hate is love.