How many of you have seen the film "Idiocracy"?

[mainer]

Adam Kinzinger has been blogging about it, pointing out the many parallels to the Trump Admin.

The premise is deceptively simple: Joe Bauers, the most average man in America, gets frozen in a military experiment and wakes up 500 years in the future. Humanity, having out-bred intelligence for generations, has devolved into a civilization of breathtaking stupidity. Crops are dying because agribusiness replaced irrigation water with a sports drink called Brawndo: The Thirst Mutilator — because “it’s got electrolytes.” No one can explain what electrolytes are, only that Brawndo has them, and Brawndo is good, so shut up.

The President of the United States is Dwayne Elizondo Mountain Dew Herbert Camacho — a former pro wrestler and porn star turned head of state, who opens his State of the Union address by firing a machine gun into the air from a stage surrounded by pyrotechnics, monster trucks, and screaming fans. He communicates in slogans. He doesn’t know how to fix anything. But he’s entertaining, and in the world of Idiocracy, that’s the whole job...

When Idiocracy was released, it felt like a warning. By 2016, it felt like a prophecy. By now, it feels like a documentary with a ten-year delay.

Consider the parallels. President Camacho is a pro wrestler turned entertainer turned head of state. Donald Trump is a pro wrestler — legitimately, having appeared in WWE events and been inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame — turned reality TV star turned President of the United States. Both men built their brands on spectacle, dominance, and the performance of strength to adoring crowds. Neither was elected because of policy expertise. Both were elected because they were watchable..

Link to tweet

?s=20

[Aristus]

1. Billed as a comedy. Jesus, were they wrong.

I was in a deep, depressed daze for weeks after I watched it. And I won't watch it again. If I want shit that depressing, I can always turn on the news.

[mainer]

2. I haven't seen it yet. Now I have to.

You're right, it doesn't seem like a comedy at all now.

[mwmisses4289]

3. No. It's on my list of top most boring, stupid movies film was wasted on.

[UpInArms]

5. if you haven't seen it, why are you calling it boring?

that makes my head hurt

[mwmisses4289]

6. I tried watching it. Got about 10-15 minutes into it, and kept nodding off.

[UpInArms]

11. okay

thanks for the clarification

[thought crime]

52. The topic and concept was excellent, but it lacked the quality of Brazil, etc.

I feel like Fred Armisen and Bill Hader could have done a better job.

[UpInArms]

4. Saw it back in 2008 or 09

have watched it several times since and given copies to many people

It was a mockumentary that has become a prescient docudrama

[PatSeg]

17. I saw it when it first came out

and I got a really bad feeling about it - "My god, that's where we're headed!"

[Sequoia]

7. Brought to you by Carl's Jr.

[Bettie]

8. I have seen it several times

and it was a prescient warning.

However, the people weren't evil, they were stupid, but not malicious.

The current crop of idiots are also mean, filled with malice.

[Lovie777]

9. Yes.......

shithole and the Republican Party are dumber coupled with so much hatred.

[Initech]

10. I own multiple copies on DVD!

[littlemissmartypants]

57. I have the music on 8 track.

[ms liberty]

12. Seen it several times. It's funny, but it has always hit too close to home for me

Amurikka is such a disappointment. 'Muricans even more so.

[alittlelark]

13. At least 4 times.... Posted a free link

Link to Idiocracy streaming on Internet Archive

https://archive.org/details/Idiocracy_201507

[JPK]

14. My wife and i have been watching the Tom Hank's WWII doc

The parallels between the rise of Hitler and Trump is truly amazing. Frightening really.

[Baitball Blogger]

15. Oh, I don't think Idiocracy was a documentary.

I think it was a teaser, because the reality is much, much worse. The documentary of Trump's rise and fall in the presidency will go beyond reason and understanding. For some, it will be a reminder that the US was never immune from the same social dynamics that took Germany down. And worse, we will need to find a way to live alongside of racists who will begin to gaslight us once they realize their reign of terror is over.

[awesomerwb1]

16. I have

It's an absurd movie that in a lot of ways describes our current reality.

[crud]

19. The cabinet meeting where they discuss the crops and Brawdo.

Was actually more cogent and sensible than tRump's. At least they wanted to hear what the smart guy had to say.

[whopis01]

20. It is my favorite horror movie

Last edited Sat May 30, 2026, 09:23 AM - Edit history (1)

And you aren’t kidding about the similarities.

?si=jYM1XkIdis5JSmSp

[littlemissmartypants]

58. Replace shorts/ with

watch?v=

If you want to embed the video so DU readers who may be interested can see it. 😉 ❤️

[whopis01]

64. Thank you - I appreciate that.

Living up to your screenname!

[Snackshack]

21. I knew...

Not long after renting it that it was a documentary cleverly disguised as a comedy. I tried watching not long ago again but now it hits like Saving Private Ryan did my grandfather.

Dwayne Elizondo Mountain Dew Herbert Camacho in 2028...

[cksmithy]

22. Yes, I've seen it at least 3 times. Right now, I consider it a documentary.

When it was first released, my 25 year old daughter told us about. At that time, we thought we were heading in that direction. Since the 2016 election, we worried it would come true. Now, 10 years later, it is true. The pictures of the White House side by side, says it all. (Someone has already posted that meme. )

"It has the electrolytes that plants crave." I keep expecting to hear that.

[Wiz Imp]

23. It's an astronomical stretch to call Donald Trump a pro wrestler

He was involved in the WWF/WWE for a while, but he was was never remotely a wrestler.
https://www.wwe.com/superstars/donald-trump

In January of that year, The Donald interrupted Mr. McMahon’s “Fan Appreciation Night” on Raw and dropped tens of thousands of dollars from the rafters of the arena onto the WWE fans below. Red-faced that a rival would steal the spotlight from him, Mr. McMahon challenged Trump to a “Battle of the Billionaires” at WrestleMania 23 with the stipulation that the loser of the bout would have his head shaved bald.

A record number of viewers tuned in to watch The Donald back Bobby Lashley to victory over Mr. McMahon’s Umaga and subsequently shave the WWE Chairman’s signature mane in the center of the ring.

The business magnates locked horns again in June 2009 when Trump purchased Monday Night Raw and immediately announced that next week’s show would air commercial-free and that every WWE fan that who purchased a ticket would be given a full refund. The trademark Trump public relations flourish nearly made Mr. McMahon’s head explode and forced him to buy his show back from The Donald for twice the price.

It was all a pathetic act. (obviously Trump couldn't act either) He never wrestled. Any legitimate wrestler would have killed him.

[eppur_se_muova]

46. I'm kind of hoping he'll try to insert himself into the UFC "action" and take an elbow in the face.

It seems like something you could believe him trying to do.

[CaptainTruth]

24. Yep, & I feel like watching it again.

[Marcuse]

25. "It has electrolytes."

[live love laugh]

49. "He's a businessman."

[Sequoia]

54. On May 27. 2016

A video was posted with Trump talking about electrolytes which I posted (not here), and referenced this movie. Ten bloody years ago.

[question everything]

26. I have. This was when the "heroes" were talking in very low voice

[Wounded Bear]

27. Yep, seen it and not enjoying the reenactment in real life...

[alittlelark]

28. Not Sure

,

[jmowreader]

29. There's something else in that film that parallels what we're seeing now

Specifically, all the "behind closed doors" stuff.

Idiocracy is FULL of technology that the people depicted in the film couldn't have made in a million years - electric cars the police can pull over by remotely disabling their batteries, the Carl's Jr vending machine with a built-in self defense mechanism, the light rail system at Costco, the big-screen TVs, the animated billboard, all the ultra-processed foods people eat, the barcode tattoo machine and the diagnostic machine at the hospital are just the ones I can think of. Oh yeah, and also the vehicles used in Monday Night Rehabilitation. SOMEONE is behind the scenes creating these things. Plus, SOMEONE had to invent Brawndo and make the decision to buy several government agencies so they could act free of controls.

The same thing is happening in our government. A series of right wing think tanks and hostile foreign governments are telling Trump and his GOP minions what to do.

[EuterpeThelo]

30. And at least

President Camacho was dumb but he tried to figure out how he could make things right. With this lot, cruelty is among the GOALS.

[Emile]

31. I seen it, but wasn't impressed. Now thinking back it makes sense with the people worshipping a conman.

[Xavier Breath]

55. People rave about it, but I've never seen it as anything other than mediocre.

One viewing was enough for me. There are too many good movies for me to waste my time with a second viewing.

[FrankTC]

32. Idiotic To The Absurd

Loved the movie, still have a Brawndo coffee mug (somebody disappeared my Antifa mug -- maybe a Trumper in my family -- but I'll get another). The movie extrapolates current trends to their ridiculous end, and nuance and complexity are of course gone. I think there's too much emphasis on selective breeding for low IQ (actually, IQ has been increasing in recent years, a well established though almost unbelievable trend) and not enough emphasis on economic structures as determinative. But it's great entertainment for what it is.

[live love laugh]

50. IQ scores are declining according to Forbes and other sources

AI summary:

U.S. IQ scores are experiencing a "Reverse Flynn Effect." … extensive research reveals that US test scores have trended downward. … A major study by Northwestern University analyzing over 394,000 U.S. adults between 2006 and 2018 found a steady decline in composite IQ test scores…. across three categories: verbal reasoning, matrix reasoning (visual problem solving), and letter/number series.The Spatial Exception: One notable area defied the downward trend: 3D spatial reasoning scores generally increased during the same period.Most Affected DemographicsAge Variations: While declines were observed across nearly all age groups and education levels, the steepest drop occurred in younger adults (ages 18 to 22).

https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaeltnietzel/2023/03/23/american-iq-test-scores-show-recent-declines-according-to-new-study/

FrankTC
1:23 PM
32. Idiotic To The Absurd
Loved the movie, still have a Brawndo coffee mug (somebody disappeared my Antifa mug -- maybe a Trumper in my family - but I'll get another). The movie extrapolates current trends to their ridiculous end, and nuance and complexity are of course gone.
I think there's too much emphasis on selective breeding for low IQ (actually, IQ has been increasing in recent years, a well established though almost unbelievable trend) and not enough emphasis on economic structures as determinative. But it's great entertainment for what it is.

[hunter]

61. AI will accelerate the process...

It won't be less intelligent people having more kids that brings about Idiocracy, it will be people relying on AI instead of their own brains.

Use it or lose it.

[FrankTC]

62. Thanks For the Update

Happy to learn that the Flynn effect hasn’t been supported by recent data. It has been puzzling to think that people who have been getting smarter on average would vote for Donald Trump, whose version of the Beatitudes includes “Blessed are the igoramuses, for they will queue up for lobotomies.” Still, I think that the movies dips into victim blaming — the feral cretinism of the depicted populace is in reality a result not so much of genetics but of
manufactured stupidity.

[ALBliberal]

33. Fiction has become fact.

[biocube]

34. One part of the movie I can't get out of my head is...

the "Time Macheen" amusement park ride part that goes through the allies defeating the Nazis and how "the UN un-Nazied the world". That's just a strange thing to put in a movie about evolution in reverse.

[sinkingfeeling]

35. I have.

[GoCubsGo]

36. I saw it not long after it became available as a rental.

When I saw that first few minutes, I thought, "Oh shit! I can easily see this becoming our future." Here we are, only we have President Donald John Diet Coke Herbert Trump, and "protein" instead of "electrolytes." Except that it's way worse, and not at all comedic.

[Raine1967]

37. I have. The beginning was so precient.

I can't watch anymore. What was satire is now kinda painful.

Ivermectin is the new Brawndo.

[Justice matters.]

38. It has a sequel that pre-dated it.

Titled: "Soylent Green"

[thought crime]

51. Closely related...

Note that 'Soylent Green' is too subversive for a remake, as is 'They Live'. Now we get dumbed down Marvel Heroes.

[mahina]

39. I have and feel like I'm living in it daily.

But I do not accept it!

[jmbar2]

40. I've seen it twice...

The first time, I just thought it was a goofy but enjoyable flick. The second time was after Trump's first reign of error and I was shocked at how prescient it is.

If you haven't seen it, treat yourself. It's not a masterpiece, but it IS a good piece of satire with salience for today.

[Luz]

41. Seen it? We're living it.

[pansypoo53219]

42. a favorite movie. gwb led to obama. hope oompah 2 leads to something as good.

[liberalgunwilltravel]

43. Watched it when it was first released

And have watched it several times since. Have recommended over the years to friends and family, especially during fatass’ first term.

As a matter of fact, I just asked a good friend yesterday if he had his tickets to the Memorial Day monster truck rally on South Lawn of the White House with thinly veiled reference to it. Being in on the joke he replied he did, and his seats were near the mud wrestling pit.

The sad part is, none of the is funny anymore.

My greatest fear though, is that when the next pandemic arrive RFK roadkill and Fatass will be recommending Brawndo as a cure.

How far and how fast we have fallen.

[Ilsa]

44. Trump boils his speeches down into absurd platitudes

and jokes. He dumbs down policy so the uneducated will buy into it and they'll feel so smart about it, even though they are grateful they don't have to think.

[Hassler]

45. It's a documentary. Didn't see that coming when it was released.

[jonstl08]

47. Seen it a few years ago

Saw it a few years ago. Thought I would never actually live through a real version of it though.

[IcyPeas]

48. Yes. We laughed. We didnt know half the country were really this dense.

[JoseBalow]

53. The opening scene perfectly sets up the premise for the film

(4:39)

Idiocracy serves as a social satire that touches on issues including anti-intellectualism, commercialism, consumerism, dysgenics, voluntary childlessness, and overpopulation.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idiocracy

It's a must-see classic!

[LeftInTX]

56. My kids watched it. They loved it. I sorta watched it with them.

That was about 15 years ago or so.

My son has a demented sense of humor. "Mom you gotta see this".
He also liked that Wayan's movie, "Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood"

[littlemissmartypants]

59. Is Adam talking about the psychopaths, too?

Psychopathy is a very common
mental disorder. It is twice as
common as schizophrenia,
anorexia, and bipolar disorder.
It is equally common as bulimia,
panic disorder, and autism.
The only mental disorders
significantly more common than
psychopathy are substance abuse
or dependence, depression, and
post-traumatic stress disorder.

Psychopathy affects all
ethnic, cultural, racial,
and socioeconomic groups.

...psychopathy
is a spectrum disorder,

Prevalence in the United States
Approximately 70% of the
population is estimated to
have no psychopathic traits
whatsoever.

Key Point
👇👇👇👇👇👇
The remaining
30% have low, medium, or
high levels of psychopathy.

Source:
https://psychopathyis.org/stats/

Characteristics of Psychopaths

1. Aggressive, callous, and cunning
2. Complete absence of conscience and empathy
3. Very adept at manipulating others
4. Willingness to engage in immoral, criminal conduct
5. Willingness to take what they want and do as they please, regardless of who is hurt or wronged
6. Deceptive ability to appear outwardly benevolent
7. Deceptive ability to behave in superficially charming ways to hide purely selfish motives
8. Willingness to use intimidation and violence to control others in order to satisfy their own needs
9. Willingness to intentionally violate the basic inherent human rights of others
10. Complete absence of any sense of guilt or remorse for the harm their actions have caused to others
11. Rationalization of their own immoral behavior
12. Will attempt to lay blame upon someone else for their own conduct
13. Denial, will deny their own wrongdoing outright
14. Utter contemptuousness toward the feelings and desires of their fellow beings
15. Pathological lying, will say anything without any concern for truth to advance their own hidden agendas
16. Ablity to feign [fake] normal human emotions and empathy
17. Distorted sense of the consequences of their actions
18. Total failure to accept any responsibility for their own socially irresponsible ways
19. Strong bellef that they will never be brought to justice for their criminal behavior

Learn how to spot one. If for no other reason than to save humanity and you might save democracy along the way.

❤️

[OAITW r.2.0]

60. Great documentary.

Oddly prescient of our current reality.

[alterfurz]

63. soundtrack by MAGAdeth

[hydrolastic]

65. IDK it hit a funny bone with me and I quote it all the time

" i'me the smartest man ? That test wasn't even hard ! "
" use water on the crops? The stuff in the toilet ?! "
" House of " REPRESENTIN "

[gulliver]

66. AI may save the day

I think Idiocracy is definitely really good, but it's way too kind when it comes to human nature. As long as we are allowed to choose who we have kids with, there are going to be a whole lot of people with true merit, whether that be IQ, EQ, beauty, skill, whatever.

The question really is what a huge majority of idiots, be they religious fanatics or just bands of wildly divergent, angry, mentally lost people do. In a true Idiocracy, without AI, the two smart people from the past wouldn't last five seconds.

[SamuelTheThird]

67. Idiocracy was overly optimistic

In it, automated systems were able to sustain society. That's truly fantasy

And President Camacho would be preferable to trump.