Bibliography
1. Associated Press, “Vance talks about the end times and the attempted assassination of Trump in Christian podcast,” Sept. 2, 2026. Vance’s comments on the Antichrist, AI, human relationships and “dark spiritual energy.”
2. J.D. Vance, “How I Joined the Resistance,” The Lamp , April 1, 2020. Vance’s first-person account of Peter Thiel’s 2011 Yale Law School talk, Thiel’s argument linking cutthroat professional competition with technological stagnation, and Vance’s subsequent encounter with René Girard.
3. Peter Thiel, “Apocalypse Now? Peter Thiel on Ancient Prophecies and Modern Tech,” Hoover Institution. Thiel on technological catastrophe, world government, monitoring “every keystroke everywhere,” and the Antichrist’s promise of “peace and safety.”
4. Peter Thiel, “Peter Thiel on Political Theology,” Conversations with Tyler . Thiel on the katechon , or restrainer, and his warning that “there’s always a risk that the katechon becomes the Antichrist.”
5. J.D. Vance, remarks at the Artificial Intelligence Action Summit, Paris, Feb. 11, 2025. Vance on “AI opportunity,” excessive regulation and American AI as the global “gold standard.”
6. The White House, America’s AI Action Plan , July 2025. Administration policy on AI deregulation, federal and military adoption, infrastructure, exports and international competition with China.
7. The White House, “Preventing Woke AI in the Federal Government,” July 23, 2025, and subsequent administration actions concerning federal AI procurement and national AI regulation.
8. U.S. Army Public Affairs, “U.S. Army Awards Enterprise Service Agreement to Enhance Military Readiness and Drive Operational Efficiency,” July 31, 2025. The agreement consolidates 75 contracts and establishes a ten-year purchasing framework with a $10 billion ceiling rather than a guaranteed expenditure.
9. Reuters, “Palantir defies tech gloom as Trump momentum powers stellar share gains,” June 3, 2025; Reuters, “Palantir CEO defends surveillance tech as US government contracts boost sales,” Feb. 2, 2026. Reuters reporting on Palantir’s $30 million ICE contract and its use in tracking undocumented immigrants, as well as Palantir’s description of safeguards intended to constrain unauthorized government access.
10. Catechism of the Catholic Church , §§675–676, on the Antichrist and political “pseudo-messianism.”