Oh, look. Another Ivy League academic has emerged from the mahogany-lined bunkers of Philadelphia to inform us that the world is on fire. Claire Finkelstein, a professor who spends her days directing the 'Center for Ethics and the Rule of Law'—two concepts that have as much relevance in modern America as the VCR—has noticed that Minnesota is currently serving as a live-fire beta test for the collapse of the republic. It seems her high-level 'simulations' at the University of Pennsylvania are being outpaced by reality, which is what happens when you try to apply logic to a country governed by the collective IQ of a damp sponge.

At the center of this burgeoning dumpster fire are 2,000 ICE agents who have descended upon Minnesota under the laughable pretext of a 'fraud investigation.' Because, obviously, when you suspect a clerical error in a tax filing, the only rational response is to deploy two thousand untrained, undisciplined federal goons to terrorize the local populace. It’s the kind of overkill that only the American government could devise—a paramilitary solution to a bureaucratic itch. These agents aren't just there to check paperwork; they are the advance guard of a new era of 'absolute immunity,' a legal concept that essentially translates to: 'We can shoot you in the face and the only consequence will be a slightly more annoying morning briefing for the Secretary of Homeland Security.'

Speaking of the Secretary, we have Kristi Noem at the helm, a woman whose primary qualification for managing national security seems to be her storied history of resolving conflicts with unruly family pets. Under her watchful eye, the Department of Homeland Security has decided that the Bill of Rights is more of a 'suggestions' list. The Trump administration’s declaration of absolute immunity for these agents is the final, pathetic nail in the coffin of the 'Rule of Law' that Finkelstein so desperately wants to believe in. It is the ultimate get-out-of-jail-free card for people who have been given guns, badges, and the psychological stability of a cornered raccoon.

In just the past week, the 'Minnesota Experiment' has yielded exactly the kind of results you’d expect when you give a small army of idiots a license to kill. We have the death of Renee Good, a mother of three who was shot shortly after dropping her child off at school. The state’s logic here is presumably that if you eliminate the parents, you reduce the future number of protesters. It’s efficient, in a psychopathic sort of way. Then there are the protesters who have been blinded by 'less deadly' weapons. I’ve always loved that term—'less deadly.' It’s the linguistic equivalent of saying a punch to the throat is 'less fatal' than a guillotine. It’s technically true, but you’re still gasping for air while some guy in a tactical vest laughs at your lack of spatial awareness.

The highlights of this federal circus include tear-gassing a family with six children, sending a toddler to the emergency room because their tiny lungs couldn't quite handle the 'freedom fumes' being pumped into their car. This is the 'protection' the government offers. We are witnessing a systematic deconstruction of civil society, not by some grand ideological movement, but by the sheer, grinding weight of institutional incompetence and sadistic indifference. The Left will cry about 'human rights' while doing absolutely nothing to stop the funding of the very agencies they claim to despise, and the Right will cheer for 'Law and Order' while the 'Law' is being used to shoot mothers in broad daylight. Both sides are playing their roles in a script written by people who view the citizenry as nothing more than annoying data points in a civil war simulation.

Finkelstein’s fear that we are heading toward a civil war is cute. It assumes that a civil war requires two organized sides with coherent goals. What we have instead is a slow, agonizing disintegration fueled by a government that has realized it doesn't need to follow court rulings if it simply ignores them. A federal judge tried to place limits on these ICE agents, and the response from the administration was effectively a middle finger wrapped in a flag. When the law becomes optional for those who enforce it, 'Ethics' centers become nothing more than expensive hobby shops for professors who like to watch the world burn from a safe distance.

Minnesota, with its reputation for 'Minnesota Nice,' is the perfect stage for this tragedy. It turns out that 'Nice' is easily steamrolled by 'Absolute Immunity.' We aren't watching the start of a civil war; we are watching the final act of a comedy of errors where the punchline is a tear gas canister through your windshield. Everyone involved—the agents, the politicians, the academics, and the cheering spectators—deserves the chaos they are inviting. Grab your popcorn, or perhaps a gas mask; the simulation is over, and the reality is far more stupid than anyone predicted.