General News

[Dunge]

13 minutes ago, Parafox said:

 

But it is significant in that it more or less confirms a non-degenerative mental health issue with Trump.

 

I think we all recognised the decline in Biden's cognitive behaviour and the many faux-pas he increasingly made. 

 

The difference for me is that Trump is not suffering with cognitive decline but is displaying very real traits and behaviours of the typical paranoid narcissist:

 

 Malignant Narcissism and Delusions of Grandeur

"Experts consistently point to Trump’s malignant narcissism, characterized by a grandiose self-perception and complete disregard for truth and honesty.

Dr. Lance Dodes describes Trump’s mental state as dominated by "severe narcissistic, antisocial character disorder," manifesting in an inability to tolerate losses and a propensity for destructive behavior when faced with accountability.

Mary Trump, a clinical psychologist, and Donald Trump’s niece, reinforces this view, noting her uncle's "untreated psychiatric disorders," including delusions of grandeur and extreme narcissism. Mary Trump describes him as having been "reasonably adept at getting his point across" in his younger years but now exhibiting clear signs of "mental confusion" and an "inability to communicate effectively."

Cruel Sadism and Lack of Empathy

Trump’s behaviour has also been characterized by a lack of empathy and a penchant for cruelty. Dr. Justin Frank, a psychiatrist, describes Trump as a "cruel sadist" who takes pleasure in inflicting pain on others. His policies and public statements often reflect a disregard for the suffering of others, consistent with traits of malignant narcissism".

 

However, he is POTUS and that role exactly fits with his personality disorder given the power it bestows upon him to inflict his aberrant will on others.

 

That is a very worrying trait.

Worth adding that I fully believe he’s a narcissist, that he has a personality disorder.

I’m just not convinced he has dementia. I think that’s what people just hope on the basis he wouldn’t be able to continue as president for much longer.

[Parafox]

5 minutes ago, Dunge said:

Worth adding that I fully believe he’s a narcissist, that he has a personality disorder.

I’m just not convinced he has dementia. I think that’s what people just hope on the basis he wouldn’t be able to continue as president for much longer.

 

I agree with that. He's not someone displaying any typical signs of dementia. Far from it. He's fully cognitive but he has a significant personality disorder and that displays in ways that have been attributed to the paranoid narcissist diagnosis in patients exhibiting the same traits as him.  

[urban.spaceman]

1 hour ago, Parafox said:

 

But it is significant in that it more or less confirms a non-degenerative mental health issue with Trump.

 

I think we all recognised the decline in Biden's cognitive behaviour and the many faux-pas he increasingly made. 

 

The difference for me is that Trump is not suffering with cognitive decline but is displaying very real traits and behaviours of the typical paranoid narcissist:

 

 Malignant Narcissism and Delusions of Grandeur

"Experts consistently point to Trump’s malignant narcissism, characterized by a grandiose self-perception and complete disregard for truth and honesty.

Dr. Lance Dodes describes Trump’s mental state as dominated by "severe narcissistic, antisocial character disorder," manifesting in an inability to tolerate losses and a propensity for destructive behavior when faced with accountability.

Mary Trump, a clinical psychologist, and Donald Trump’s niece, reinforces this view, noting her uncle's "untreated psychiatric disorders," including delusions of grandeur and extreme narcissism. Mary Trump describes him as having been "reasonably adept at getting his point across" in his younger years but now exhibiting clear signs of "mental confusion" and an "inability to communicate effectively."

Cruel Sadism and Lack of Empathy

Trump’s behaviour has also been characterized by a lack of empathy and a penchant for cruelty. Dr. Justin Frank, a psychiatrist, describes Trump as a "cruel sadist" who takes pleasure in inflicting pain on others. His policies and public statements often reflect a disregard for the suffering of others, consistent with traits of malignant narcissism".

 

However, he is POTUS and that role exactly fits with his personality disorder given the power it bestows upon him to inflict his aberrant will on others.

 

That is a very worrying trait.

Related to the enlarged segment at the end:

 

 

 

[fox_favourite]

So he's now pausing intelligence sharing with Ukraine. Are we sure he isn't a Russian bot at this point? If he's doing this because someone stood up to him and its a temper tantrum, then he's even more pathetic person than originally feared. But it doesn't surprise me in the slightest. 

 

To him, it's not real and seems to treat everything as a tv reality show or a game. 

 

Edited 6 March by fox_favourite

[LCFCJohn]

10 hours ago, Trav Le Bleu said:

It's a tiny sacrifice.

 

The world would be a much better place without Amazon.

 

There's a place for online stores, but the utter reliance on them (often because the likes of Amazon have steamrollered the little guys) is killing the economy.

 

So much money channeled towards so few people.

The problem is, high street stores and local businesses need to step up.

 

We try and buy stuff locally where we can but sometimes you have to give in.

 

We were putting two dress up word book week costumes together for our daughter for nursery. For one, we just needed literally a plan red, long sleeved t-shirt for a 2 year old and the other a white doctors coat, again 2 year old. Not completely out there and bizarre things.

 

We went in numerous shops both in the Meadowhall centre near us and the local retail park (so like Smyths toys looking for the doctors coat), as well as a couple Of supermarkets thinking they would have plain red t-shirts. We could not find either and had to order them online, in which Amazon would get them to us the quickest. 
 

Maybe there was alternatives, like online click and collect from one of the supermarkets but sometimes you just try and do the right thing and put money directly into local stores, get fed up, go home and ‘Amazon’ it as much as you don’t want to.

[Trav Le Bleu]

1 hour ago, LCFCJohn said:

The problem is, high street stores and local businesses need to step up.

 

We try and buy stuff locally where we can but sometimes you have to give in.

 

We were putting two dress up word book week costumes together for our daughter for nursery. For one, we just needed literally a plan red, long sleeved t-shirt for a 2 year old and the other a white doctors coat, again 2 year old. Not completely out there and bizarre things.

 

We went in numerous shops both in the Meadowhall centre near us and the local retail park (so like Smyths toys looking for the doctors coat), as well as a couple Of supermarkets thinking they would have plain red t-shirts. We could not find either and had to order them online, in which Amazon would get them to us the quickest. 
 

Maybe there was alternatives, like online click and collect from one of the supermarkets but sometimes you just try and do the right thing and put money directly into local stores, get fed up, go home and ‘Amazon’ it as much as you don’t want to.

Indeed, and we shouldn't have reached this point. What does the Mergers and Monopolies Commission actually do?

[st albans fox]

12 minutes ago, Trav Le Bleu said:

Indeed, and we shouldn't have reached this point. What does the Mergers and Monopolies Commission actually do?

That the issue - there’s only one of them ………………

[leicsmac]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cp3yew446k5o

 

New Zealand has fired its most senior envoy to the United Kingdom over remarks that questioned US President Donald Trump's grasp of history.

At an event in London on Tuesday, High Commissioner to the UK Phil Goff compared efforts to end the war between Russia and Ukraine to the Munich Agreement of 1938, which allowed Adolf Hitler to annex Czechoslovakia.

Goff recalled how Sir Winston Churchill had criticised the agreement, then said of the US leader: "President Trump has restored the bust of Churchill to the Oval Office. But do you think he really understands history?"

 

Apparently the diplomatic corps is no place to tell the truth, if a little bluntly.

[Trav Le Bleu]

25 minutes ago, leicsmac said:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cp3yew446k5o

 

New Zealand has fired its most senior envoy to the United Kingdom over remarks that questioned US President Donald Trump's grasp of history.

At an event in London on Tuesday, High Commissioner to the UK Phil Goff compared efforts to end the war between Russia and Ukraine to the Munich Agreement of 1938, which allowed Adolf Hitler to annex Czechoslovakia.

Goff recalled how Sir Winston Churchill had criticised the agreement, then said of the US leader: "President Trump has restored the bust of Churchill to the Oval Office. But do you think he really understands history?"

 

Apparently the diplomatic corps is no place to tell the truth, if a little bluntly.

Article should probably add, "following a sternly worded phone call from JD Vance to Christopher Luxon..."

[st albans fox]

1 hour ago, leicsmac said:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cp3yew446k5o

 

Apparently the diplomatic corps is no place to tell the truth, if a little bluntly.

Au contraire - as long as you’re in trump’s admin !  (And the bluntness is primary rather than any attempt or at truth ) 

[Bilo]

8 hours ago, Dunge said:

Worth adding that I fully believe he’s a narcissist, that he has a personality disorder.

I’m just not convinced he has dementia. I think that’s what people just hope on the basis he wouldn’t be able to continue as president for much longer.

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

 

Cornell University expert says differently. He'll get worse before he gets better, and this is before he became POTUS and managed to forget repeatedly calling Zelenskyy a dictator. 

[Lionator]

1 hour ago, leicsmac said:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cp3yew446k5o

 

New Zealand has fired its most senior envoy to the United Kingdom over remarks that questioned US President Donald Trump's grasp of history.

At an event in London on Tuesday, High Commissioner to the UK Phil Goff compared efforts to end the war between Russia and Ukraine to the Munich Agreement of 1938, which allowed Adolf Hitler to annex Czechoslovakia.

Goff recalled how Sir Winston Churchill had criticised the agreement, then said of the US leader: "President Trump has restored the bust of Churchill to the Oval Office. But do you think he really understands history?"

 

Apparently the diplomatic corps is no place to tell the truth, if a little bluntly.

New Zealand has a choice though, keep America onside or become a Chinese vassal state. It’s not that difficult and I’m certain the NZ PM doesn’t want to be getting the mandarin language book out quite yet. 

[surrifox]

9 hours ago, Parafox said:

 

But it is significant in that it more or less confirms a non-degenerative mental health issue with Trump.

 

I think we all recognised the decline in Biden's cognitive behaviour and the many faux-pas he increasingly made. 

 

The difference for me is that Trump is not suffering with cognitive decline but is displaying very real traits and behaviours of the typical paranoid narcissist:

 

 Malignant Narcissism and Delusions of Grandeur

"Experts consistently point to Trump’s malignant narcissism, characterized by a grandiose self-perception and complete disregard for truth and honesty.

Dr. Lance Dodes describes Trump’s mental state as dominated by "severe narcissistic, antisocial character disorder," manifesting in an inability to tolerate losses and a propensity for destructive behavior when faced with accountability.

Mary Trump, a clinical psychologist, and Donald Trump’s niece, reinforces this view, noting her uncle's "untreated psychiatric disorders," including delusions of grandeur and extreme narcissism. Mary Trump describes him as having been "reasonably adept at getting his point across" in his younger years but now exhibiting clear signs of "mental confusion" and an "inability to communicate effectively."

Cruel Sadism and Lack of Empathy

Trump’s behaviour has also been characterized by a lack of empathy and a penchant for cruelty. Dr. Justin Frank, a psychiatrist, describes Trump as a "cruel sadist" who takes pleasure in inflicting pain on others. His policies and public statements often reflect a disregard for the suffering of others, consistent with traits of malignant narcissism".

 

However, he is POTUS and that role exactly fits with his personality disorder given the power it bestows upon him to inflict his aberrant will on others.

 

That is a very worrying trait.

Doesn’t explain why half the country think he is the messiah and the answer to their prayers . What’s the story with their mentality ?

[Lionator]

3 minutes ago, surrifox said:

Doesn’t explain why half the country think he is the messiah and the answer to their prayers . What’s the story with their mentality ?

Finance ultimately. The inequality gap is ever expanding and they blame the ‘establishment’. Now obviously you’d think that electing a hyper capitalist billionaires like Trump and Musk would be insane, and you’d be correct. But the system is not working and when you only have two options, it’s easy to see why Trump won. 
 

You also have to consider, the average American does not give a crap about what’s going on in Luhansk or the West Bank. It has no material impact on their lives. 

Edited 6 March by Lionator

[Dunge]

I feel I can understand a lot of Americans’ positions even where I don’t agree with them - eg felt wealthier under Trump, concerned about immigration, hate woke, etc. I even understand where they believe he’s been unfairly targeted by law-enforcement and Democrats.

 

What I cannot understand is why they could accept voting for someone who’s on record trying to rig the last election by trying to “find” votes in Georgia, is obviously lying about losing and incited an insurrectionist riot that almost got lawmakers killed.

[Bilo]

9 minutes ago, Lionator said:

Finance ultimately. The inequality gap is ever expanding and they blame the ‘establishment’. Now obviously you’d think that electing a hyper capitalist billionaires like Trump and Musk would be insane, and you’d be correct. But the system is not working and when you only have two options, it’s easy to see why Trump won. 
 

You also have to consider, the average American does not give a crap about what’s going on in Luhansk or the West Bank. It has no material impact on their lives. 

The reality is that the Democrats need a kind of Trump of the Left in these circumstances. Their last three presidential nominees have been firmly establishment figures (two VPs and a former Secretary of State/First Lady), whereas I do think that Sanders could have killed Trumpism stone dead in 2016 with many working-class Americans in the Rust Belt. 

 

If anything, they may have done better this time round if Biden had stepped down 12 months earlier and Walz had been nominee instead of running mate. I liked Harris, but she was placed in an unwinnable fight. She did better than anyone could have expected under the circumstances. 

[leicsmac]

18 minutes ago, Lionator said:

New Zealand has a choice though, keep America onside or become a Chinese vassal state. It’s not that difficult and I’m certain the NZ PM doesn’t want to be getting the mandarin language book out quite yet. 

Well, yes, but pardon me for thinking there might be a third option rather than relying on realpolitik that causes nothing but suffering, Mr Kissinger.

 

 

5 minutes ago, Dunge said:

I feel I can understand a lot of Americans’ positions even where I don’t agree with them - eg felt wealthier under Trump, concerned about immigration, hate woke, etc. I even understand where they believe he’s been unfairly targeted by law-enforcement and Democrats.

 

What I cannot understand is why they could accept voting for someone who’s on record trying to rig the last election by trying to “find” votes in Georgia, is obviously lying about losing and incited an insurrectionist riot that almost got lawmakers killed.

... because, ultimately, they don't care about the democratic process if it doesn't serve their own self interest.

[Robo61]

4 hours ago, LCFCJohn said:

The problem is, high street stores and local businesses need to step up.

 

We try and buy stuff locally where we can but sometimes you have to give in.

 

We were putting two dress up word book week costumes together for our daughter for nursery. For one, we just needed literally a plan red, long sleeved t-shirt for a 2 year old and the other a white doctors coat, again 2 year old. Not completely out there and bizarre things.

 

We went in numerous shops both in the Meadowhall centre near us and the local retail park (so like Smyths toys looking for the doctors coat), as well as a couple Of supermarkets thinking they would have plain red t-shirts. We could not find either and had to order them online, in which Amazon would get them to us the quickest. 
 

Maybe there was alternatives, like online click and collect from one of the supermarkets but sometimes you just try and do the right thing and put money directly into local stores, get fed up, go home and ‘Amazon’ it as much as you don’t want to.

Really how many two year old doctors have you met.  That is exactly the problem,  people now expect after years of being able to get anything their heart desires from one place,  that has never beenand never wil be possible by going to your local store.

[Lionator]

22 minutes ago, leicsmac said:

Well, yes, but pardon me for thinking there might be a third option rather than relying on realpolitik that causes nothing but suffering, Mr Kissinger.

 

 

... because, ultimately, they don't care about the democratic process if it doesn't serve their own self interest.

The current status quo is hardly working now though?

[LCFCJohn]

13 minutes ago, Robo61 said:

Really how many two year old doctors have you met.  That is exactly the problem,  people now expect after years of being able to get anything their heart desires from one place,  that has never beenand never wil be possible by going to your local store.

Dress up costumes? I’d be pretty concerned if my 2 year old was performing medical treatment on me 

 

But shops like Smyths have a variety of kids dress up but if you can’t find what you want, you gravitate online.

 

And if you go round a large shopping centre and a number of supermarkets, you’d expect to find a plain red t-shirt for a 2 year old right? Or is that an entitled expectation I have?

[surrifox]

43 minutes ago, Lionator said:

New Zealand has a choice though, keep America onside or become a Chinese vassal state. It’s not that difficult and I’m certain the NZ PM doesn’t want to be getting the mandarin language book out quite yet. 

I just don’t buy the “ China is the biggest threat to us all “ canard which is really more Trumpian bollocks in the main . 
The Chinese leadership are definitely deeply controlling and by not falling over in the face of Trumps threats and hostility they are clearly on collision course with him . What I see from China’s foreign policy is a soft power approach to getting security of supply of the raw materials they need to power their economy they haven’t threatened to invade or expropriate other countries like Trump has . 
also China hasn’t stolen American jobs. The US lost the traditional heavy industry markets because they became less competitive 

[leicsmac]

12 minutes ago, Lionator said:

The current status quo is hardly working now though?

It certainly isn't, which is why, in terms of foreign policy, it would be nice to have less of the same "might makes right" excuses for "diplomacy".

[Dahnsouff]

41 minutes ago, Dunge said:

I feel I can understand a lot of Americans’ positions even where I don’t agree with them - eg felt wealthier under Trump, concerned about immigration, hate woke, etc. I even understand where they believe he’s been unfairly targeted by law-enforcement and Democrats.

 

What I cannot understand is why they could accept voting for someone who’s on record trying to rig the last election by trying to “find” votes in Georgia, is obviously lying about losing and incited an insurrectionist riot that almost got lawmakers killed.

Speak repeatedly, speak loud, and in this cult of personality what you say barely matters. People hear what they want to hear, Brexit being the perfect example of this process brought to its natural conclusion.

[bovril]

54 minutes ago, Lionator said:

Finance ultimately. The inequality gap is ever expanding and they blame the ‘establishment’. Now obviously you’d think that electing a hyper capitalist billionaires like Trump and Musk would be insane, and you’d be correct. But the system is not working and when you only have two options, it’s easy to see why Trump won. 

Did people with lower income lean towards Trump in 2024? Because from what I remember it was pretty evenly split and in fact I believe Democrats did slightly better with that demographic. The inequality argument doesn't really seem to stack up to me. 

[Detroit Blues]

2 hours ago, bovril said:

Did people with lower income lean towards Trump in 2024? Because from what I remember it was pretty evenly split and in fact I believe Democrats did slightly better with that demographic. The inequality argument doesn't really seem to stack up to me. 

The two big dividing lines for trump supporters are 1) Race and 2) Education Level. Trump's base is white, non-college educated people. In fact, the same group was a big member of Bernie Sanders supporters. For too long, traditional politicians have ignored the plight of the working class that have gotten poorer and more desperate. Unfortunately, rather than electing a politician like Bernie Sanders that would do something about that wealth inequality, America elected a fascist that appeals to the worst characteristics of Americans - Racial Hate, Xenophobia, Homophobia, etc. 

 

The other thing to think about is, who didn't vote in 2024 that voted in 2020? Voter turnout was lower in 2024 than it was in 2020 by several million eligible voters. A lot of those people who sat out were young people, dissatisfied with the Biden administration over things like Gaza. Unfortunately, if they did vote, perhaps we'd have a different outcome.