What happens when America enters 'Garbage Time'

Despite its roots in sports, the term 'garbage time' applies to the waning days in the tenure of a government or empire when meaningful actions, reforms, or policies are no longer expected.

Basketball fans will recognize the term “garbage time” as that period toward the end of certain games where the outcome is all but decided. During garbage time, the leading team simply runs out the clock; star players gets benched to allow less experienced players to get some court time. The focus shifts from playing strategically to merely finishing the game.

The term first emerged in the 1970s and while it may seem dismissive, it serves a practical purpose: acknowledging that the competitive aspect of the game has ended and what remains is essentially a formality.

Oddly enough, it recently showed up in a newsletter by US orthodoxy shill, Peter Zeihan, who used the term to describe the dire economic and demographic situation the Chinese find themselves in at the moment.

Of course, garbage time can be a double-edged sword, in sports or otherwise. For the winning team, this is the moment to rest key players and avoid injuries. For the losing team, it’s an opportunity to test new strategies. However, the lack of stakes and intensity often leads to a less engaging experience for both fans and players alike. No one cares as much, and it shows. Hence the derogatory use of the word ‘garbage.’

As suggested earlier, the concept of garbage time has been co-opted beyond the sports arena and applied to political periods in history. And this is where, despite Zeihan’s best efforts to use it against China, understanding garbage time for the purposes of introspection helps to explain a phase in the tenure of a government or empire where meaningful actions, reforms, or policies are no longer expected.

That’s where we’re at.

We’re at the point where the current administration is merely ‘running out the clock’ until the next election or transition of power or until there’s a collapse. The focus shifts from governing to managing optics, maintaining the status quo, or damage control.

In basketball, it comes down to winning or losing the game. But in politics, garbage time can only be detrimental to society; there is no upside. Key issues may be ignored, and long-term planning is sacrificed for short-term survival. In extreme cases, it can result in a crisis of confidence among the populace, who see their leaders as disengaged or frankly, incompetent.

Is the US in political garbage time?

You might argue that the United States has been experiencing political garbage time for many years. Just look at the intense partisanship, legislative gridlock, and general sense of disillusionment and resentment among the public. Meaningful policy choices are increasingly rare, and the uni-party is more focused on short-term wins and electoral advantages than on addressing systemic issues that relate to our freedom and well-being. And that’s to say nothing of the callous disregard for fiscal prudence or, if you’re concerned about global affairs, US statecraft.

With elections every four years and an insidious web of lobbyists and corporations with deeply entrenched interests, the US political system almost encourages garbage time by incentivizing leaders to prioritize immediate gains over long-term planning. More often than not the government merely goes through the motions, kicking problems down the road and waiting for the next election cycle to come around.

The real work of governing has completely taken a backseat to political theater. There is no longer such a thing as “public service.”

Nancy Pelosi’s recent admission to the New Yorker’s David Remnick about her influence on Joe Biden's decision to drop out of the Presidential race pretty much says it all.

As Americans, we may not have noticed the moment when we slipped into garbage time. That transition was not lost on the rest of the world, however.

Although Zeihan wants to put the focus on China, ironically the garbage time concept has found resonance in Chinese internet circles. Pro-Communist observers are turning the label back on us, noting the perceived decline in American global leadership and the apparent inability of the US government to address its internal challenges.

“Endless elections will inevitably lead to social idleness and waste, and will inevitably lead to divisions and confrontations between different groups,” a well-known Chinese online commentator known as ‘Uncle Ming’ recently wrote:

When the country's economy has problems and class contradictions tend to intensify, ambitious people and demagogues will take turns to take the stage, and populists will take the opportunity to rise up and play hate politics to the extreme.

In order to come to power, they will not hesitate to push the country and society into a dangerous situation of sharp confrontation and unrest. This is the ultimate destination of vote politics under the capitalist system, and the United States is a more extreme example.

While Uncle Ming acknowledges that the US is still a long way from being truly "destroyed," his view is that the empire has already reached its peak and is doomed to collapse.

In a masterful propaganda ploy, the Chinese are even making documentaries about the decay and abject misery of American cities like Oakland. It’s hard to argue that the US is at its best when you watch these scenes.

Garbage time — whether in sports, politics, or broader societal contexts — is a useful frame within which to recognize when meaningful progress has completely stalled. For Americans, acknowledging that our country is in political garbage time could be the first step toward rekindling genuine, productive discourse and action.

The challenge is moving beyond garbage time; basketball games end when the clock runs out, but societies don’t. Can we use this period of stagnation as an opportunity to reassess and innovate, and to cultivate star players to take the court with new strategies? If so, we may be able to not just run out the clock but prepare for a future where meaningful progress is possible once again. Otherwise, we’re the team that’s running ourselves ragged knowing the game has already been lost.

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