Here we go. Time Magazine has done it. They’ve crowned Donald Trump Person of the Year. It’s not exactly a shock, but that doesn’t make it any less stomach-churning. We’ve all been down this road before, watching this chaotic, orange monster rise from the depths of reality TV and bankruptcies to somehow, impossibly, take over the goddamn country. And now, this delusional freakshow of a man, who has built his entire career on lies, bluster, and sleaze, is being officially recognized as the defining figure of our time. It’s a joke and the punchline is printed in bold letters right on the cover.
Let’s be honest: this isn’t some grand celebration of greatness. This is acknowledgment. A grotesque, tragic acknowledgment that, for all his faults and failings, Trump has shaped the world we live in today. Time didn’t pick him because they think he’s a “great leader” or “visionary.” They chose him because he’s been the uncontested center of chaos and confusion for years. He’s the flawed, ego maniacal, airbrushed hero of America’s ugliest, most embarrassing story.
But here’s the thing that really gets under your skin: This choice is a clear symptom of everything that’s gone horribly wrong with our understanding of power and success. Trump’s rise wasn’t some accident — it’s the result of an America where spectacle is substance, where the only thing that matters is the headline, not the actual work behind it. Where fame — or better yet, infamy — is the only real currency. His presidency will be the grand finale of a reality TV show gone off the rails. A never-ending train wreck of eye-popping, mind-boggling moments that we can’t look away from, even though we should. The election, the endless news cycles, and now, this Person of the Year title — it’s a sick joke, and it’s on all of us.
So here we are, staring at the Time cover, and you’ve got to ask: What kind of world have we created, where a man whose entire existence is built on chaos and destruction is the very figure who defines us? This is the ultimate commentary on a culture that has thrown nuance, empathy, and integrity out the window, and instead rewards the loudest, most divisive voice in the room. And we’ve allowed it to happen. Now, we have to live with the consequences.