Ending the Pax Americana

by DeWitt Cheng

August 30, 2025

It’s a Perfect Administration

The best people, hired by a stable genius, make perfect calls. Until they don’t, and then … OUT!

Zelenskyy Just Doesn’t Have the Cards

Inspired by the second memorable red carpet summit with Putin and the May Oval-Office “ingrate” ambush of Ukraine’s leader by Trump, Vance, and MTG’s current beau.

The Roberts Barons Club

Our gang of six injudicious MAGA judicial giants will go down in history as cartoon characters.

Americam Iteram Magnam Fac

A Make America Great Again Relic from last days of Pax Americana, as United States unilaterally surrenders global pre-eminence in exchange for a racial fantasy world.

Escape From Epstein Island Alcatraz

Because Trump apparently conceived of restoring Alcatraz to active prison duty after watching a Clint Eastwood movie, the idea of combining Alligator Alcatraz with an Epsteinized version of the Jurassic Park sequel islands — and Trump’s famous souped-up golf carts — seemed inescapable,. By the way, Trump’s 3 hour 7 minute silence in the Oval Office kitchenette on January 6 is exactly the length of Peter Jackson’s 2005 film, King Kong. Someone should look into that, strongly.

No Voting Accident

The 50th anniversary of JAWS, reminding us of Trump's well-known fear of sharks (and stated preference for death by electrocution to chart stack). Together they prompted my fantasy about moral regeneration from former MAGA confederates, now pardoned of their crimes. Reddy Kilowatt observes the tragedy from Robert Maxwell’s boat, while his daughter luxuriates and her victims commit suicide.

DeWitt Cheng is an art writer/critic based in the San Francisco Bay Area. He has written for more than twenty years for regional and national publications, in print and online, He has written dozens of catalogue essays for artists, galleries and museums, and is the author of “Inside Out: The Paintings of William Harsh.” In addition, he served as the curator at Stanford Art Spaces from 2013 to 2016, and later Peninsula Museum of Art, from 2017 to 2020. In 2025 he relaunched SquareCylinder with co-publishers Mark Van Proyen and Bill Lasarow.