As the year winds down, it’s worth reflecting on Y2K—a prime example of how mass hysteria can turn the absurd into the inevitable. Millions of people braced for disaster, convinced that a glitch in computer clocks would end modern civilization. The buildup was staggering. And yet, when the clock struck midnight, nothing happened. It was a reminder that panic often feeds on itself, untethered from reality.

From there, we move to Trump’s cabinet picks and tariff policies. Tariffs are not magic, nor are they free. They are economic realities, their costs felt not by faceless corporations but by ordinary people. And then there’s the Department of Education—an institution that, despite its noble rhetoric, has seen outcomes decline alongside its ever-growing budget. If dismantling it seems radical, perhaps the real question is why maintaining failure is seen as reasonable.

Dalton then explores three season finales—Night Sky, Severance, and Silo—alongside early impressions of Landman, Taylor Sheridan’s newest project. These stories, fictional though they may be, reflect a deeper truth: the human struggle for meaning, survival, and purpose. On a lighter note, Tron: Legacy earns its due—proof that style and substance are not mutually exclusive.

Finally, there’s D.B. Cooper—a mystery whose allure lies in its lack of resolution. Yet perhaps the answer was never far. Life rarely provides neat endings, but that doesn’t mean the answers don’t exist. Sometimes they are simply ignored.

In the end, these are not just stories—they are reminders. About incentives, outcomes, and how easily perception can outpace reality. Prepare yourself, the dye has been cast.