President* Trump

[neoplacebo]

Earlier today I was reading an old collection of Hunter S. Thompson's writings and came across this article he wrote for the New York Times. It was dated January 1,1974 and is Hunter's musings about Nixon and his administration. I felt the shock of recognition as I read it and wanted to relate some of it to you here. I have inserted names in parentheses to denote a current context.

"Nixon (trump) at least was blessed with a mixture of arrogance and stupidity that caused him to blow the boilers almost immediately after taking command. By bringing in hundreds of thugs, fixers and fascists to run the government, he was able to crank almost every problem he touched into a mindbending crisis. About the only disaster he hasn't brought down on us yet is a nuclear war with either Russia or China or both....but he still has time, and the odds on his actually doing it are not all that long.......For now, we should make every effort to look at the bright side of the Nixon (trump) administration. It has been a failure of such monumental proportions that political apathy is no longer considered fashionable, or even safe, among millions of people who only two years ago thought that anybody who disagreed openly with "The Government" was either paranoid or subversive. Political candidates in 1974 (2020), at least, are going to have to deal with an angry, disillusioned electorate that is not likely to settle for flag waving and pompous bullshit.......Given all this, it is hard to shed anything but crocodile tears over White House speechwriter Patrick Buchanan's (Stephen Miller's) tragic analysis of the Nixon (trump) debacle. 'It's like Sisyphus', he said. 'We rolled the rock all the way up the mountain and it rolled right back down on us.' Well, shucks. It makes a man's eyes damp, for sure. But I have a lot of confidence in Pat (Stephen), and I suspect he won't have much trouble finding other rocks to roll. I have not read "The Myth of Sisyphus" for a while, but if memory serves there is nothing in that story to indicate that the poor bugger ever gave any thought to the real nature or specific gravity of that rock that would eventually roll back on him - which is understandable, perhaps, because when you're locked into that kind of do or die gig, you keep pushing and ask questions later. If any of those six hundred valiant fools who rode in The Charge of the Light Brigade had any doubts about what they were doing, they kept it to themselves. There is no room in Crusades, especially at the command level, for people who ask "Why?"......They were Good Soldiers, True Believers, and when the orders came down from above they did what had to be done; Execute. Which is admirable in a queer kind of way, except that Sisyphus got mashed, the Light Brigade slaughtered, and Pat Buchanan (Stephen Miller) will survive in the footnotes of history as a kind of half mad Davy Crockett on the walls of Nixon's (trump's) Alamo - a martyr to the bitter end, to a flawed cause and a narrow, atavistic concept of conservative politics that has done more damage to itself and the country in less than six years than its liberal enemies could have done in two or three decades. When the cold eye of history looks back on Richard Nixon's (donald trump's) five years of unrestrained power in the White House, it will show that he had the same effect on conservative/Republican politics as Charles Manson and the Hell's Angels had on hippies and flower power, and the ultimate damage, on both fronts, will prove out to be just about equal."

Hunter is no longer with us but these words struck me as quite prescient some 45 years after they were written.
And let's all hope that Hunter's "less than six years" will not apply in our current case.

[O Really]

Yeah, perfect fit, except for that "6 years" part. I was never a Nixon fan, but his work as a President was nowhere near as bad in any way - even including Watergate - as Trump. Other than his promising to get out of Vietnam and then waiting 3 years (right before election) to actually do something similar to that, he was pretty much a garden-variety Republican president, with a decent flair for foreign affairs (excluding Vietnam, of course).

And here's what ought to be mind-boggling but everyone's just gone brain-numb: From CBS news - "in response to the announcement of formal impeachment inquiry, the President tweeted... Think about that a moment. The fucking President* of the United States, in response to - not a threat, not an opinion letter - but an announcement of formal inquiry, Tweeted. The President* chose a social media platform to respond to a legal communication that - no matter how it turns out - will have enormous impact on his ummm "presidency*". If he had any real lawyers, they'd be jumping out windows.

[neoplacebo]

Yeah, perfect fit, except for that "6 years" part. I was never a Nixon fan, but his work as a President was nowhere near as bad in any way - even including Watergate - as Trump. Other than his promising to get out of Vietnam and then waiting 3 years (right before election) to actually do something similar to that, he was pretty much a garden-variety Republican president, with a decent flair for foreign affairs (excluding Vietnam, of course).

And here's what ought to be mind-boggling but everyone's just gone brain-numb: From CBS news - "in response to the announcement of formal impeachment inquiry, the President tweeted... Think about that a moment. The fucking President* of the United States, in response to - not a threat, not an opinion letter - but an announcement of formal inquiry, Tweeted. The President* chose a social media platform to respond to a legal communication that - no matter how it turns out - will have enormous impact on his ummm "presidency*". If he had any real lawyers, they'd be jumping out windows.

Yeah, in retrospect, Nixon wasn't that bad in comparison to what we have now. His manipulation of the Vietnam peace process to his own advantage was pretty horrendous when you consider hundreds of American soldiers died because of it and when you consider that what he ultimately did (leave South Vietnam hanging and just pulling out and declaring "peace with honor") could have been done five years earlier with the exact same result other than the additional deaths of our soldiers. And of course, he "opened" China, which began the massive shift of American industrial production and the process of the hollowing out of the American middle class.

[Vrede too]

It's an interesting question. Viscerally, I want to say that 45SHOLE is the worst and historians very well may consider him the worst POTUS we've ever had.

His style is so bizarre as to generate both wonder and revulsion.
He's set a new standard for corruption, one we won't match until we elect another fat cat, and maybe not even then.
His environmental policies are horrendous, doing major damage that it will take years to recover from.
His economic policies are bad, but so far no worse than any other Repug, and he hasn't caused a Shrubcession, yet.
His foreign policy is a mess, sucking up to foes and alienating friends. And there's the treason.
His social policies are hateful, but no more so than other Repugs in intent even if he's had a bit more success.
His white supremacy, racism and xenophobia, are unprecedented in the last 55 years, but akin to before that.

However, he has yet to kill large numbers of Americans and others.

Nixon did have the continuation of Vietnam for pointless years, moderated a little by what LBJ had stuck him with. But, his Cambodian escalation was inexcusable, contributing heavily to the Cambodian Civil War and the subsequent Khmer Rouge Killing Fields.

I don't really blame Shrub for the invasion of Afghanistan. I knew that it wouldn't turn out well before it happened, but considered it inevitable on 9/12/01 and think that Gore would have done something similar. However, I do blame him for mucking up the occupation and for the invasion of Iraq based on hundreds of lies.

Much of the damage POSPOTUS has done can start to be reversed on 1/21/21, but there's no taking back the Nixon/Shrub body counts, nor the generations of harm they and the policy underlying them caused. So, what yardstick do we use?

One measure would be sheer incompetence and chaos, regardless of specific policy, intent or ultimate outcomes. On that 45SHOLE triumphs.

[GoCubsGo]

The shitshow is just beginning.


Donald Trump Calls Out CNN For Missing Punctuation Mark An impeachment inquiry is looming, and the revelations in the whistleblower scandal pop up hour by hour, but President Donald Trump took CNN to task on Friday over the use of the world “liddle.”

Trump used, as he frequently does, the colloquialism “liddle” (for “little) to describe Schiff following Thursday’s hearing of the House Intelligence Committee, which Schiff chairs. This time he used an apostrophe at the end of the word (not a hyphen), but did not clarify the exact relevance or meaning of the mark, nor did he fully explain how its use (or absence on CNN) changed the word.

[Vrede too]

The shitshow is just beginning.

Donald Trump Calls Out CNN For Missing Punctuation Mark An impeachment inquiry is looming, and the revelations in the whistleblower scandal pop up hour by hour, but President Donald Trump took CNN to task on Friday over the use of the world “liddle.”

Trump used, as he frequently does, the colloquialism “liddle” (for “little) to describe Schiff following Thursday’s hearing of the House Intelligence Committee, which Schiff chairs. This time he used an apostrophe at the end of the word (not a hyphen), but did not clarify the exact relevance or meaning of the mark, nor did he fully explain how its use (or absence on CNN) changed the word.

That's hilarious, CNN apparently does POSPOTUS the favor of correcting his bizarre punctuation and the CiC - Crybaby in Chief - whines about that and then manages to royally screw up his whine.

You're about to be impeached in the House and maybe even removed by the Senate and THIS is what you're focused on?

First of all, it's not a hyphen after "Liddle".
It's an apostrophe.
Secondly, it's "describing", not "discribing"

Enjoy prison, Trump.

The actual CNN tweet is not linked, but if CNN did gripe about misspelling when it's likely intentional 'baby talk' dialect, that's also kind of lame. Fwiw, though, proper 'baby talk' dialect is 'widdle'.

[GoCubsGo]

It's really unbelievable......just batcrap nuts.

[neoplacebo]

It's really unbelievable......just batcrap nuts.

I wish the fucking moron WOULD shoot somebody on 5th Avenue, preferably Rudy, and then turn the gun on himself, threaten to pull the trigger unless his acolytes come to the rescue, and then watch his raccoon eyes and anus mouth as no one steps up to assist him. No way would he pull the trigger; people with low intellectual function never kill themselves.

[GoCubsGo]

Well this is fun, POSPOTUS is incompetent. Who knew?

Perhaps an environmental saving grace?

https://news.yahoo.com/private-oil-indu ... 00179.html

[Vrede too]

... people with low intellectual function never kill themselves.

They do it by accident all the time, hence the Darwin Awards . It goes with the low intellectual function territory.

Well this is fun, POSPOTUS is incompetent. Who knew?

Perhaps an environmental saving grace?

https://news.yahoo.com/private-oil-indu ... 00179.html

Among many other saving graces due to incompetence, probably.

[neoplacebo]

... people with low intellectual function never kill themselves.

They do it by accident all the time, hence the Darwin Awards . It goes with the low intellectual function territory.

Well this is fun, POSPOTUS is incompetent. Who knew?

Perhaps an environmental saving grace?

https://news.yahoo.com/private-oil-indu ... 00179.html

Among many other saving graces due to incompetence, probably.

Yeah, well, I didn't count the inevitable ones; just meant intentional suicide. trump will never kill himself but I wouldn't put it past Ivanka or Jared. Rudy will never kill himself, either. Sigh

[neoplacebo]

This story is the first thing I read this morning and I find it to be quite shocking and a very bad sign. trump intends to reduce the staff of the entire National Security Coucil. This man is apparently going to shoot for the moon. He really does need to be stopped before it's too late.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-orders ... 00350.html

I figure he's going to call each one of them in one by one and give them the Comey lecture about loyalty and how he has to have it. What an asshole.

[Vrede too]

This story is the first thing I read this morning and I find it to be quite shocking and a very bad sign. trump intends to reduce the staff of the entire National Security Coucil. This man is apparently going to shoot for the moon. He really does need to be stopped before it's too late.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-orders ... 00350.html

I figure he's going to call each one of them in one by one and give them the Comey lecture about loyalty and how he has to have it. What an asshole.

There are big savings to be had by outsourcing such things to Russia.

[billy.pilgrim]

This story is the first thing I read this morning and I find it to be quite shocking and a very bad sign. trump intends to reduce the staff of the entire National Security Coucil. This man is apparently going to shoot for the moon. He really does need to be stopped before it's too late.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-orders ... 00350.html

I figure he's going to call each one of them in one by one and give them the Comey lecture about loyalty and how he has to have it. What an asshole.

There are big savings to be had by outsourcing such things to Russia.

I imagine it's more about the big profits

[GoCubsGo]

Apparently the omnipotent one waived his magic wand and poof!!

https://mobile.twitter.com/realDonaldTr ... 3092980737


Your WTF of the day.

[neoplacebo]

Apparently the omnipotent one waived his magic wand and poof!!

https://mobile.twitter.com/realDonaldTr ... 3092980737


Your WTF of the day.

A distraction from what's on his mind as it were. Since he says the border is SECURE I suppose it would be a good time to cross later tonight.

[neoplacebo]

I was thinking earlier today, and increasingly more early this evening, if the Joint Chiefs of Staff would at this point recognize an illegal order from dear leader. I'm sure the Secretary of Defense would order whatever trump told him to but I have my doubts that the chiefs would comply at this point. Martial law in certain areas and other nefarious stuff is what i was brooding on. Not to mention immediate strike orders on N Korea and or Iran and or China.

[GoCubsGo]

Apparently the omnipotent one waived his magic wand and poof!!

https://mobile.twitter.com/realDonaldTr ... 3092980737


Your WTF of the day.

A distraction from what's on his mind as it were. Since he says the border is SECURE I suppose it would be a good time to cross later tonight.

Hey, wait. Does this mean we don't have to build any more wall?

[GoCubsGo]

I was thinking earlier today, and increasingly more early this evening, if the Joint Chiefs of Staff would at this point recognize an illegal order from dear leader. I'm sure the Secretary of Defense would order whatever trump told him to but I have my doubts that the chiefs would comply at this point. Martial law in certain areas and other nefarious stuff is what i was brooding on. Not to mention immediate strike orders on N Korea and or Iran and or China.

Scary thought. It's about all that's separating us from dictatorship. He's already trampled parts of the constitution.

[Vrede too]

I was thinking earlier today, and increasingly more early this evening, if the Joint Chiefs of Staff would at this point recognize an illegal order from dear leader. I'm sure the Secretary of Defense would order whatever trump told him to but I have my doubts that the chiefs would comply at this point. Martial law in certain areas and other nefarious stuff is what i was brooding on. Not to mention immediate strike orders on N Korea and or Iran and or China.

Scary thought. It's about all that's separating us from dictatorship. He's already trampled parts of the constitution.

Not the same thing, but the Joint Chiefs of Staff have shamefully complied with throwing our longtime allies the Kurds under the bus in favor of Turkish dictator Erdogan. Genocide in progress.