There’s a familiar pattern playing out in America’s progressive-run cities. Infrastructure crumbles, energy grids buckle, and instead of fixing the problem, politicians ask you to sacrifice — to use less, expect less, and be grateful for it. They call it solidarity. They call it doing your part. What they never call it is what it actually is: failure.

And when the politicians making these demands happen to be self-described collectivists, the ask takes on an even darker undertone. Scarcity stops being an inconvenience and starts looking like a feature — the perfect excuse to tell free citizens how to live in their own homes.

From the Daily Wire:

Far-Left New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani told New York City residents and business owners to take on the heat wave in the name of collectivism, urging them to keep their thermostats set to a toasty 78 degrees.

“New York: it’s hot out there, and the power grid is working overtime to keep us cool. Set your AC to 78 degrees, turn off lights/electronics you’re not using, and unplug what you can,” Mamdani told residents.

The internet’s response was swift, merciless, and deeply satisfying.

Barstool founder Dave Portnoy — who recently floated a mayoral run against Mamdani — didn’t mince words: “78 degrees??? Welcome to communism people! Hope you enjoy!” Florida Governor Ron DeSantis twisted the knife with surgical precision, asking, “Is this what was meant by the warmth of collectivism?” — a direct callback to Mamdani’s own infamous rhetoric about replacing “the frigidity of rugged individualism” with collectivist warmth.

Barstool’s Jack McGuire took a more hands-on approach: “I have texted all my coworkers who voted for Zohran to send me a photo of their A/C set to 78.” One defiant New Yorker replied directly to the mayor: “As a New Yorker I’ll be setting my AC to 62 degrees for the foreseeable future as a direct retaliation to your authority.”

Perhaps the most colorful response came from Moshe Spern, president of the United Jewish Teachers: “My Mayor is Muslim. My Bagel is Jewish. My Christian Dior. Thermostat set to 74. Or lower. Only a Communist believes distribution of wealth also means distribution of air conditioning.”

The real problem isn’t the thermostat

The backlash was entertaining, but the underlying issue is deadly serious. New York Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik cut straight to the bone: “This is the stark scarcity of socialism. New York is a state of extraordinary abundance in energy, power, and natural resources. Yet it is only because of the failed policies crushing our state’s energy independence that we have to settle for this Third World scarcity.”

She’s right. New Yorkers weren’t sweating because of the weather alone. They were sweating because years of progressive energy policy — including the decommissioning of the Indian Point nuclear plant under Andrew Cuomo — have left the city’s power grid so fragile that a 91-degree day triggers rationing pleas. Several residents pointedly noted that Times Square’s blinding lights blaze around the clock while they’re told to sit in near-darkness and sweat.

A pattern of managed decline

Former Los Angeles mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt offered a warning that should chill anyone still comfortable with collectivist governance: “Communism always goes the same way. They smile & promise you the world. Free this, free that, abundance for all! Then they get into power, and the rationing begins. First a smiley ask. Then a demand.”

This isn’t a one-off. Eric Adams made the same 78-degree plea in 2023. The grid isn’t getting stronger. The policies aren’t changing. And now New York faces mandates to go fully electric — on infrastructure that already can’t handle a summer afternoon.

America was built on abundance, innovation, and the freedom to cool your own home however you please. The nation that invented air conditioning — in Brooklyn, no less — shouldn’t be rationing it. But that’s what happens when collectivism moves from campaign rhetoric into City Hall.

Turns out the “warmth of collectivism” runs at exactly 78 degrees.

Key Takeaways

• Mamdani’s 78° thermostat mandate drew fierce backlash and accusations of communist-style rationing.
• Progressive energy policies have left New York’s grid too fragile for routine summer heat.
• Americans from DeSantis to everyday New Yorkers rejected the collectivist framing outright.
• Managed scarcity is the inevitable result when collectivist ideology replaces sound energy policy.

Sources: Source, New York Post