General News

[Sampson]

Interested to see how Starmer reacts to all this. He can’t keep sitting on the fence like this, refusing to call Trump out.

[Dahnsouff]

Time to put our big boy pants on whatever direction this old power circle jerk travels.

[reporterpenguin]

1 hour ago, Lionator said:

Holy crap, that Trump post about Zelenskyy ☹️

It’s also quite a mixed message, he’s said it as a criticism but we all know of his fondness and admiration for dictators. 

[Lionator]

24 minutes ago, Sampson said:

Interested to see how Starmer reacts to all this. He can’t keep sitting on the fence like this, refusing to call Trump out.

It doesn’t matter really does it? European politicians are powerless and pathetic. 

Edited 19 February by Lionator

[Foxdiamond]

23 minutes ago, Sampson said:

Interested to see how Starmer reacts to all this. He can’t keep sitting on the fence like this, refusing to call Trump out.

Not sure it would help to react in public. 

[Dunge]

1 minute ago, Foxdiamond said:

Not sure it would help to react in public. 

I think given the situation there’s a good argument for keeping his cards close to his chest.

[leicsmac]

5 minutes ago, Lionator said:

It doesn’t matter really does it? European politicians are powerless and pathetic. 

If that's true and nothing can be done we may as well fold our hands, make peace with whatever power we think governs the universe and call an end to this experiment called "civilisation" right now.

 

 

3 minutes ago, Dunge said:

I think given the situation there’s a good argument for keeping his cards close to his chest.

Double edged sword; it might be a good idea to act the adult in the room by not getting involved with strong words right away, but bullies tend to thrive on indecision as well.

[DJ Barry Hammond]

29 minutes ago, Sampson said:

Interested to see how Starmer reacts to all this. He can’t keep sitting on the fence like this, refusing to call Trump out.

There’s no way he says much now, given he’s in Washington next week.

 

I think what will be more interesting however, is what Farage says / does.

 

These series of outbursts are far from useful for him as a ‘close friend’ of Trump.

 

And not only does it weaken him by association, this gives Starmer a great opportunity to prove statesman like on the international stage. 

[Foxdiamond]

25 minutes ago, leicsmac said:

If that's true and nothing can be done we may as well fold our hands, make peace with whatever power we think governs the universe and call an end to this experiment called "civilisation" right now.

 

 

Double edged sword; it might be a good idea to act the adult in the room by not getting involved with strong words right away, but bullies tend to thrive on indecision as well.

Not worth it to score a few points with the public. Do the hard talking behind closed doors

[String fellow]

Chamberlain talking peace with Hitler in 1938 didn't end well for Europe. Let's hope Trump talking peace with Putin in 2025 doesn't follow a similar pattern. Zelenskyy's solemn face yesterday made me realise what a pivotal year this could be for both Ukraine and Europe as a whole.

Imo neither Trump nor Putin really cares about democracy or even NATO, they both just want to grab hold of Ukraine's large reserves of lithium, manganese, cobalt, nickel and titanium. 

[Parafox]

2 hours ago, FoxesDeb said:

The man is an actual lunatic I'm certain. 

A paranoid narcissist 

 

The dangerous psychology of Donald Trump | openDemocracy

 

A section taken from the above link:

 

"Like the nuclear centrifuges that separate heavier Uranium 238 atoms from their lighter and more explosive Uranium 235 counterparts, I argued that Trump was himself behaving like a human centrifuge by acting as a great divider - stoking fears, increasing tensions, and undermining international agreements and alliances. Given the nature and scale of the crises facing America and the rest of world like nuclear proliferation and climate change, it’s essential that Trump’s angry centrifuges are spun down and that rationality is restored to domestic and foreign affairs.

In a later article published in 2018 - Does Donald Trump's foreign policy actually make sense? - I extended this analysis by examining the alarming summit in Helsinki in which he sided with Vladimir Putin, and against his own intelligence agencies, on the issue of Russia's interference in the 2016 US presidential election. In the context of a well-established pattern of attacks on democratic allies and praise for authoritarian leaders, this piece focused on Trump's paranoia in an effort to explain why it is entirely logical for him to seek alliances with authoritarian leaders.

Individuals with acute paranoia, which is a feature of pathological narcissism, are characterized by a worldview that sees other people as inherently untrustworthy and out to harm them at every turn. Paranoid leaders therefore recoil from alliances with democratic allies because they believe that such alliances are treacherous, and that only strong nations standing alone can survive. This is a conviction that’s shared by other strongman leaders like Putin".

Edited 19 February by Parafox

[Dunge]

20 minutes ago, Parafox said:

A paranoid narcissist 

 

The dangerous psychology of Donald Trump | openDemocracy

 

A section taken from the above link:

 

"Like the nuclear centrifuges that separate heavier Uranium 238 atoms from their lighter and more explosive Uranium 235 counterparts, I argued that Trump was himself behaving like a human centrifuge by acting as a great divider - stoking fears, increasing tensions, and undermining international agreements and alliances. Given the nature and scale of the crises facing America and the rest of world like nuclear proliferation and climate change, it’s essential that Trump’s angry centrifuges are spun down and that rationality is restored to domestic and foreign affairs.

In a later article published in 2018 - Does Donald Trump's foreign policy actually make sense? - I extended this analysis by examining the alarming summit in Helsinki in which he sided with Vladimir Putin, and against his own intelligence agencies, on the issue of Russia's interference in the 2016 US presidential election. In the context of a well-established pattern of attacks on democratic allies and praise for authoritarian leaders, this piece focused on Trump's paranoia in an effort to explain why it is entirely logical for him to seek alliances with authoritarian leaders.

Individuals with acute paranoia, which is a feature of pathological narcissism, are characterized by a worldview that sees other people as inherently untrustworthy and out to harm them at every turn. Paranoid leaders therefore recoil from alliances with democratic allies because they believe that such alliances are treacherous, and that only strong nations standing alone can survive. This is a conviction that’s shared by other strongman leaders like Putin".

Shame he can’t see Putin as inherently untrustworthy though.

[Foxdiamond]

Wonder what US military chiefs and diplomats think of Trump's attitude towards Nato. 

[Trav Le Bleu]

I'm really impressed how you hear Trump speaking and you can't see Putin's lips moving.

 

Very much the Shari Lewis and Lamb Chop of the 21st century.

[Lambert09]

As someone who lives in Canada it’s hard to take your eyes off of America right now. It’s beyond madness that he can brazenly side with Russia and still not lose support. 

 

When he started all the talk about wanting Canada, I think people expected the whole of Canada to unite against it. But the Canadians that were trump supporters whom I fully expected to be just as insulted, all seem to go along with it. I think those that are already hypnotized by him are not going to ever change their minds.  
 

I still don’t fully believe things are as they seem and that the online pr campaign paints a different picture to the support in reality. But it shows how easily some people can be influenced online. Some of the nicest Canadians I know have been sucked in and embrace him without any logic behind it. The only reasons I’ve ever heard are pointing fingers at the other side, rather than ever actually defending him.  The world is crumbling and is going to be picked apart one nation at a time 

[Parafox]

30 minutes ago, Dunge said:

Shame he can’t see Putin as inherently untrustworthy though.

He can't because they are essentially the same in terms of narcissism and psychopathy.

 

He sees Putin as a strong leader who wants his country to stand alone and be dominant, which resonates with his own self belief. It's no surprise really that they share the same, yet politically opposite views, on the world order.

 

Ultimate power. Dominance and control. Simple as.

Edited 19 February by Parafox

[Detroit Blues]

7 minutes ago, Lambert09 said:

As someone who lives in Canada it’s hard to take your eyes off of America right now. It’s beyond madness that he can brazenly side with Russia and still not lose support. 

 

When he started all the talk about wanting Canada, I think people expected the whole of Canada to unite against it. But the Canadians that were trump supporters whom I fully expected to be just as insulted, all seem to go along with it. I think those that are already hypnotized by him are not going to ever change their minds.  
 

I still don’t fully believe things are as they seem and that the online pr campaign paints a different picture to the support in reality. But it shows how easily some people can be influenced online. Some of the nicest Canadians I know have been sucked in and embrace him without any logic behind it. The only reasons I’ve ever heard are pointing fingers at the other side, rather than ever actually defending him.  The world is crumbling and is going to be picked apart one nation at a time 

Imagine living here.

[Dahnsouff]

Makes me wonder if the Trump machine has judged the timing of the World’s apathy to perfection

[Parafox]

3 minutes ago, Dahnsouff said:

Makes me wonder if the Trump machine has judged the timing of the World’s apathy to perfection

 

What's going on geopolitically is creating the perfect storm IMO.

 

World politics is flawed more than ever before. 

[Dahnsouff]

1 minute ago, Parafox said:

 

What's going on geopolitically is creating the perfect storm IMO.

 

World politics is flawed more than ever before. 

Yeah, it is exactly this and the subsequent disfranchisement/disengagement that I was attempting to suggest is making this all possible.

[String fellow]

16 minutes ago, Lambert09 said:

As someone who lives in Canada it’s hard to take your eyes off of America right now. It’s beyond madness that he can brazenly side with Russia and still not lose support. 

 

When he started all the talk about wanting Canada, I think people expected the whole of Canada to unite against it. But the Canadians that were trump supporters whom I fully expected to be just as insulted, all seem to go along with it. I think those that are already hypnotized by him are not going to ever change their minds.  
 

I still don’t fully believe things are as they seem and that the online pr campaign paints a different picture to the support in reality. But it shows how easily some people can be influenced online. Some of the nicest Canadians I know have been sucked in and embrace him without any logic behind it. The only reasons I’ve ever heard are pointing fingers at the other side, rather than ever actually defending him.  The world is crumbling and is going to be picked apart one nation at a time 

Greenland is more likely than Canada imo. Trump and Putin have probably come to an arrangement - you can have Ukraine and we'll have Greenland. And any Europeans who object can whistle. 

[Clogger_]

British right wing really showing themselves off as phony patriots and fascist appeasers, aren't they. Really interesting to see how quickly they've fallen in behind Putin and Trump's BS.

[Bilo]

https://as.cornell.edu/news/trumps-abrupt-decision-play-dj-sign-accelerating-cognitive-decline-says-cornell-expert

 

Trump almost certainly has dementia. 

 

And this is very worrying, as it's likely that his cognitive decline will be covered up and denied by his supine, servile cabinet of brown noses, crooks and grifters. 

 

The first step is that Vance and a majority of his Cabinet would have to declare him unfit of discharging his duties. Unlikely given the obedient reprobates he's put in place, at least until he's pissing in his shoes and starts thinking his name is Steven the Wonder Horse.

 

Even then, Trump is narcissistic enough to object. At which point, Vance and the Cabinet would have four days to reaffirm their declaration. Not sure where they download that set.

 

If Trump still argues, and he probably will, then there has to be a two-thirds majority of both the House of Representatives and Senate agreeing that he's unfit to be president within three weeks or the dementia patient finishes his term not even knowing what day it is.

[Lionator]

Changing the subject, if raising the minimum wage is inflationary (and therefore judged as bad) what motivation do politicians ever have for actually reducing deprivation and improving living standards? 

[Lionator]

2 minutes ago, Bilo said:

https://as.cornell.edu/news/trumps-abrupt-decision-play-dj-sign-accelerating-cognitive-decline-says-cornell-expert

 

Trump almost certainly has dementia. 

 

And this is very worrying, as it's likely that his cognitive decline will be covered up and denied by his supine, servile cabinet of brown noses, crooks and grifters. 

 

The first step is that Vance and a majority of his Cabinet would have to declare him unfit of discharging his duties. Unlikely given the obedient reprobates he's put in place, at least until he's pissing in his shoes and starts thinking his name is Steven the Wonder Horse.

 

Even then, Trump is narcissistic enough to object. At which point, Vance and the Cabinet would have four days to reaffirm their declaration. Not sure where they download that set.

 

If Trump still argues, and he probably will, then there has to be a two-thirds majority of both the House of Representatives and Senate agreeing that he's unfit to be president within three weeks or the dementia patient finishes his term not even knowing what day it is.

99% sure he doesn’t, he’s just old and silly.  If Biden survived four years with actual cognitive impairment then Trump will be fine.