Is is time that Trump got himself some 'big boy' pants?

[Gasmantle]

What do you think - is he the saviour of a nation or a power crazed idiot?

Edited November 7, 2020 by Gasmantle

[shellac]

Much like Brexit he’s the wrong answer to a real set of problems in the US (and in much of the West in general). The problems being neoliberalism, neoliberal trade policies, and massive worsening inequality. 

Those problems which he pretends to fix he actually made worse. He did a few good things, like killing off the TPP and ignoring the four star generals, but a whole host of other much more terrible things. Most recently the horrendously botched Covid response, which started with the US refusing WHO diagnostic tests when we had none and in general downplaying it instead of being aggressive at the outset like South Korea. IMO

[Gasmantle]

Now that his time in the Whitehouse is numbered my concern is the havoc he could cause in the final few weeks.

He seems to me to be a sore loser and if he's going to sink he'll take it out on the American people.

Edited November 7, 2020 by Gasmantle

[RetroThruster]

He'll certainly try to burn it all down, I see lots of pardons at least, he will still be very vocal on social media after he's gone, remember, he got a lot (~48%) of votes and current Republicans will still talk favorably of him merely for their own re-election concerns.  All I want to see is a less deeply divided nation, I'm amazed at what my republican neighbors are saying, it's almost frightening.  To answer your question, I think he falls into the PCI category:)

[atdlzpae]

As a European, I don't care much about US domestic issues. However, I do care about online censorship. And so I cheered for Trump, mainly because of that one issue.

I think that censorship on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube will only get worse in the next years. And "cancelling" of people for wrongthink will continue.

########################################

Trump is a bull that's rampaging in the Ivory Tower, elected by the people who have had enough of the tower.

USA needs a populist who is pro free-speech, anti-war and anti-establishment like Trump, but with charisma and demeanor of Obama.
And unfortunately, Joe Biden is neither.

These will be hard few years for the USA...

Edited November 8, 2020 by atdlzpae

[.....]

11 hours ago, atdlzpae said:

Trump is a bull that's rampaging in the Ivory Tower, elected by the people who have had enough of the tower.

USA needs a populist who is pro free-speech, anti-war and anti-establishment like Trump, but with charisma and demeanor of Obama.
And unfortunately, Joe Biden is neither.

These will be hard few years for the USA...

BINGO! I don't honestly think that many of us feel like Trump has been a diplomatic success. Most will agree that he has somewhat undermined himself because of his behavior. Still, many support him and I'm sure the fact that he's making other people so angry, keeps it going. Usa hasnt had a decently eloquent person for pres elec since Obama(not that i agreed with him). You want something to get done, get a selfish for usa agenda and speak like an adult. Sadly, we havent had much selection lately. I do know this... Joe better not go insane or croak on us. Noone seems to notice who's under him and the hell that would ensue should she rise to 'power'.  Still, I take comfort in knowing that the president isnt that much in power. I find it funny how we all seem to think he's in control of much of anything. Our president doesnt even have top level security clearances. Just like in the movie/book 'the hitchiker's guide'. the president doesnt do much, he's merely a distraction.

Isnt MOST of the USA government filled with 'power crazed idiots'? Nothing new to see here at all. A little hint... there will be no savior of the usa people or political system. Historians already can tell us how its gna go, all thats left is to argue about the 'when'.

Edited November 9, 2020 by ShanesPlanet

[atdlzpae]

2 hours ago, ShanesPlanet said:

Isnt MOST of the USA government filled with 'power crazed idiots'?

That's true of almost everywhere. Show me a country where people aren't fed up of corona restrictions.
There are some (ex. Sweden), but they are exceptions. The world has gone full totalitarian in the last 10 months.

Trump is the first president who didn't start any wars since Gerald Ford. Hillary Clinton was openly pro-war and I doubt Biden/Kamala will be any different.
Democrats had a sensible anti-war candidate in Tulsi Gabbard, but she recently lost a seat in Hawaii. And thus, I don't see any alternatives on the democratic side.

2 hours ago, ShanesPlanet said:

A little hint... there will be no savior of the usa people or political system. Historians already can tell us how its gna go, all thats left is to argue about the 'when'.

Yep, another country on a brink of being devoured by the gods of socialism. Isn't that a story we've seen a 1000 times.

Edited November 9, 2020 by atdlzpae

[LanghamP]

Are you in the fossil-fuel industry or are you in the information industry?

Almost without exception, depending upon which aforementioned culture you're in is what defines if you're a Liberal or a Conservative. 

And since the fossil-fuel industry and the information industry are now so different from each other (they are most often direct competitors ie Zoom conferencing vs motorized transportation), then it shouldn't be surprising they strongly diverge.

Fossil-fuel industries are obviously and grossly harmful to us and the world, but the information industry is just as bad. That is, if you look at any present information application, it depends on catabolic capitalism. Catabolic capitalism makes money by dismantling/destroying/looting social systems that were painfully placed there for the public good. For example, Uber/Lyft are information systems that depend on looting social support systems. Paying workers little, using public services such as roads, and directly competing with public transportation is what Uber/Lyft does. 

Name one recent information system, and I guarantee it depends upon breaking a law in order to turn a profit. Even the mantra of silicone valley is "move fast and break things."

If you're part of the fossil-fuel industry and need a motor to do your work, drive a truck while denying climate change, and basically be a dirty dirty dude, you're a bad guy.

If you're part of the information industry, and are dismantling social systems by outputting propaganda (advertising is the art of making people miserable so they buy things), by inventing laws that fine people (red light cameras, credit card debt, mortgages, surveillance, ride sharing, lobbying, etc...) then you're a bad guy.

We need to move way beyond this oil vs information dichotomy. We need to understand that unlimited capitalist expansion is unrealistic and dangerous (96% of mammals consist of humans and their livestock). And we need to understand tech companies utterly depend on breaking established social systems in order to survive and profit.

[Scubadragonsan]

We should first teach Trump to ride the wheel, get him addicted, then have him invest some money to manufacture wheels in America... Manufactured in the good old USA and sell worldwide! Tell him to stop Frump (F + Trump) around!

[Toshio Uemura]

On 11/9/2020 at 1:49 AM, atdlzpae said:

These will be hard few years for the USA...

Once people snap out of this left-right controversy and start shifting their focus to the real problems that lie ahead of us all, important things like: 

- a comprehensive energy plan on how to responsibly use our energy and the other limited resources of our planet, 

- peaceful and respectful social live together, as we are blessed with and value it in Japan,

- a health care system that doesn’t push half a million people into medical bankruptcy every year,

- a monetary policy that makes sense and mends the gap between the rich and the poor instead of making it bigger and bigger,

- and finally a responsible climate policy,

then may be we can all work together on a peaceful future in harmony with our planet.

So far none of your two political parties neither the left nor the right have come up with any plans addressing these issues. 

[.....]

55 minutes ago, Toshio Uemura said:

Once people snap out of this left-right controversy and start shifting their focus to the real problems that lie ahead of us all, important things like: 

- a comprehensive energy plan on how to responsibly use our energy and the other limited resources of our planet, 

- peaceful and respectful social live together, as we are blessed with and value it in Japan,

- a health care system that doesn’t push half a million people into medical bankruptcy every year,

- a monetary policy that makes sense and mends the gap between the rich and the poor instead of making it bigger and bigger,

- and finally a responsible climate policy,

then may be we can all work together on a peaceful future in harmony with our planet.

So far none of your two political parties neither the left nor the right have come up with any plans addressing these issues. 

Everytime I hear how Japan is so great and how America isn't, it makes me just dig in and take great joy in the fact that the USA is NOT Japan.  A monetary policy that strips the core of capitalism, no thank you. A health care system that is govt run and eventually the ONLY option, no thank you. Taking huge financial hits to a climate policy, no thank you.  Peaceful harmony with our planet?  Yeah, let USA take the steps, spend all the money and eventaully gain the least... no thank you. To be fair, its not the job of the usa politicians to solve the worlds problems.  After other countries can get off their high horses and see that they are comprised of the same problem... humans, maybe we can all get along a little better. The elitist way you feel about Japan is tiring. Its easy to make country wide changes, when your country isnt hardlly the size of one of our states. Usa was founded on selfishness and it has served us well. I don't think it will change until democracy falls altogther. In time I'm sure, but hopefully not before my ass is gone..

Edited November 14, 2020 by ShanesPlanet

[atdlzpae]

39 minutes ago, ShanesPlanet said:

Its easy to make country wide changes, when your country isnt hardlly the size of one of our states.

Japan has a population of 120 million people, so it's more like 15 states, not one.

53 minutes ago, Toshio Uemura said:

- a comprehensive energy plan on how to responsibly use our energy and the other limited resources of our planet
- and finally a responsible climate policy

How come? The whole western world is slowly pushing towards CO2 neutrality. It will take decades, but it is pretty much inevitable.
What do you propose to make China stop dumping plastic into oceans? And make them cut back on coal?

53 minutes ago, Toshio Uemura said:

Once people snap out of this left-right controversy

I hope you're aware that BOTH sides have legitimate grievances that can't be just "snapped" away?
I have no idea how to fix it. I myself am biased towards the center-right. And I'm scared about the erosion of freedom of speech.

53 minutes ago, Toshio Uemura said:

- peaceful and respectful social live together, as we are blessed with and value it in Japan

You're lucky that Japan is a monoculture. I'm lucky that Poland is a monoculture.
USA and France are not a monoculture and they are paying for it. Again, it's not something that can be "snapped" away. I have no idea how to solve it.

53 minutes ago, Toshio Uemura said:

- a monetary policy that makes sense and mends the gap between the rich and the poor instead of making it bigger and bigger

You're calling a 237% debt/GDP a "monetary policy that makes sense". This is what we call a "ticking time bomb" and is opposite of sensible.

Not that what USA is doing with quantitative easing is much better... S&P 500 is at the ATH during a crisis, what a joke...

Edited November 14, 2020 by atdlzpae

[Toshio Uemura]

38 minutes ago, ShanesPlanet said:

A monetary policy that strips the core of capitalism, no thank you. A health care system that is govt run and eventually the ONLY option, no thank you. Taking huge financial hits to a climate policy, no thank you. 

You are putting words in mouth by suggesting solutions from your left-right viewpoint that I am hoping people may snap out sooner or later. I was not suggesting any solutions (such as a govt run health care system)! I was merely pointing out that we (and that includes Europe, Japan, China, Russia and other nations) have serious problems to face that will have grave consequences for our children and grand children and that it is time to come out of the trenches and talk together creatively, learn from each other and work hand in hand on solutions instead of playing the egocentric blame game. We need to snap out of those woodblock print type schemes of thinking 🤔

Please don‘t throw me in a presumed left corner, since I don’t do “left and right” other than on my unicycle!

[Toshio Uemura]

26 minutes ago, atdlzpae said:

I have no idea how to solve it.

Me neither, but isn’t it a first step to talk and think about it TOGETHER.

[atdlzpae]

19 minutes ago, Toshio Uemura said:

Me neither, but isn’t it a first step to talk and think about it TOGETHER.

How do you propose we breach the echo-chambers and start talking?
IMO that's almost impossible. Look at how many debates there are between left and right (almost none).

And the YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and Reddit's censorship (all heavily biased towards left) doesn't help one bit.

Edited November 14, 2020 by atdlzpae

[.....]

33 minutes ago, Toshio Uemura said:

You are putting words in mouth by suggesting solutions from your left-right viewpoint that I am hoping people may snap out sooner or later. I was not suggesting any solutions (such as a govt run health care system)! I was merely pointing out that we (and that includes Europe, Japan, China, Russia and other nations) have serious problems to face that will have grave consequences for our children and grand children and that it is time to come out of the trenches and talk together creatively, learn from each other and work hand in hand on solutions instead of playing the egocentric blame game. We need to snap out of those woodblock print type schemes of thinking 🤔

Please don‘t throw me in a presumed left corner, since I don’t do “left and right” other than on my unicycle!

I don't know the difference between left and right. I dont follow political parties nor have I ever voted. You suggest we have a bad health care system. I presume that any 'system', has to be run by an entity. The entity that controls things here IS the goverment. Just the fact that the health care business is being called a 'system', indicates that it is part of a entity controlled be a larger faction... the govt.  I dont know what you propose, but it just seems like pointing a finger.  You werent merely pointing out that other countries need to work on things. You were pointing directly at the USA. You have done this before. Talk shit on the usa, then back pedal and claim you meant everyone else and the usa too.  You also seem to somehow work into the conversation about how Japan has such great social ideas and  USA should be more like Japan.  I'm not falling for it. You believe Japan is superior and I can read it in your responses. Then you back up and claim no such thing.  You know who wins when countries come together to talk 'creatively'? The countries with less to offer is who wins.

Edited November 14, 2020 by ShanesPlanet

[Toshio Uemura]

3 minutes ago, atdlzpae said:

And how do you do that? We're essentially contained to our echo-chambers.
If you try to push anything right on Reddit, you'll be downvoted to oblivion. If you try to push anything left on 4chan or thedonald.win, the same will happen.

How do you propose we breach the echo-chambers and start talking? IMO that's almost impossible. Look at how many debates there are between left and right (almost none).

And exactly that is the problem, I am trying to point out here. It is not about convincing anybody out of their reality tunnel view (or echo-chamber as you call it), it is about each of us leaving our echo-chambers and looking for solutions. This takes efforts and sacrifices but it can be as easy as starting to put some solar panels on your rooftop, deciding to not buy another huge SUV, but instead a tiny electric vehicle, if you live in a big city and are not a forester, or simply eating meat 🥩 only once a week instead of everyday. All this has nothing to do with left and right, right? So what is left is for everybody to do the right thing, and see the controversy is almost resolved 🤣 

[Toshio Uemura]

5 minutes ago, ShanesPlanet said:

I don't know the difference between left and right

Let me help you. Right is where your thumb is on the left, and left is where thumb and index finger form an “L” when you look at the back of your hands. 🤣 

[atdlzpae]

12 minutes ago, Toshio Uemura said:

It is not about convincing anybody out of their reality tunnel view (or echo-chamber as you call it), it is about each of us leaving our echo-chambers and looking for solutions.

An echo-chamber is not a "reality tunnel view". It's the fact, that people of a similar views group together.
For example, Parletr is an echochamber of the right, while Twitter is an echochamber of the left.
Not because it's a "tunnel view", but because people of each platform agree with each other. They don't mix.

And the fact that all mainstream platforms are heavily biased towards left is a problem.

This interview with the founder of Twitter happened 1.5 years ago. Did things get better since then? No - Twitter just got more authoritarian, it's even easier to get banned or censored. Recently even DM's with links to articles about Hunter Biden corruption scandal were censored.

So how do you suppose we solve the echo-chambers? Do we mail Jack Dorsey, Susan Wojcicki or Mark Zuckerberg to stop banning and censoring people? You know these e-mails will go directly to spam.

Edited November 14, 2020 by atdlzpae

[Toshio Uemura]

4 minutes ago, atdlzpae said:

So how do you suppose we solve the echo-chambers?

I am not on Twitter nor Facebook nor any other social network. Problem solved! 
Instead I read several local and international newspapers of all political and religious Couleur  (in Japanese, English, German, French ... and I am working on my Arabic and Russian, but it is not good enough yet to read newspaper articles In these languages. So I use translation software for information from these countries. ) And doing so it is quite obvious that Arabic extremists, German Neonazis and certain American and Chinese groups have more in common then they would admit. So they might as well start grouping together in one of the echo-chambers you just mentioned. 😝 

[Toshio Uemura]

I rest my case and go riding. The weather is perfect today. 👋 

[atdlzpae]

2 hours ago, Toshio Uemura said:

I am not on Twitter nor Facebook nor any other social network. Problem solved!

I'm the same. I'm banned from FB and I use Twitter to only DM one person.

Problem not solved. The fact that you or I don't use these platforms doesn't change the fact that censorship still goes on and one group is discouraged from joining. And thus, the echo chambers persist.

Edited November 14, 2020 by atdlzpae

[.....]

37 minutes ago, Toshio Uemura said:

I am not on Twitter nor Facebook nor any other social network. Problem solved! 
Instead I read several local and international newspapers of all political and religious Couleur  (in Japanese, English, German, French ... and I am working on my Arabic and Russian, but it is not good enough yet to read newspaper articles In these languages. So I use translation software for information from these countries. ) And doing so it is quite obvious that Arabic extremists, German Neonazis and certain American and Chinese groups have more in common then they would admit. So they might as well start grouping together in one of the echo-chambers you just mentioned. 😝 

Wow, and i thought I was offensive. Isn't it just safer to say that almost EVERY COUNTRY has groups with things in common? I hear that certain extremists in Japan have more in common with the Devil, than they would admit..    See, tho true, its a pointless and offensive statement. I will grant you this..  Somehow you seem to bring the offended pansy out in me. I should know better than to  respond but just can't seem to help myself. I gotta quit following this, for everyones sake.

Edited November 14, 2020 by ShanesPlanet

[Toshio Uemura]

1 hour ago, ShanesPlanet said:

Somehow you seem to bring the offended pansy out in me.

I am sorry 😐 That was not my intention at all. 😇  I apologize, if what I said, has offended you. Let’s better focus on our common interests such as riding our EUCs. May be it is my bad English that makes native speakers misunderstand, what I am trying to say. My bad. I hope you accept my apology. 🙏 

[LanghamP]

Trump has just now removed all civilian leaders from the Pentagon and replaced all of them with Trump loyalists.

Historically, one would only do that when attempting a military coup, and the US army does strongly lean right-wing. Also historically, Trump has tried to invoke the Insurrection Act but was prevented from doing so by the civilian Pentagon leaders.

I always thought people talking about a coup are silly, because while the social conditions are there the political set up hasn't. Now I think, with the army's blessings, there will be an attempted coup. There isn't even a hint of any transitional team and that's unusual.

This will be my third coup. I remember an army officer and his radio man requisitioning the bus I was on, just kicking everyone off. And trying to mail a letter at a completely smashed up post office. Still, those are banana republics while the US isn't.