Tag: Donald Trump

No, the current US is not like Nazi Germany

Anyone who knows me knows that I find that President Trump to be an incompetent disaster; he is easily the worst President of my lifetime. It isn’t even close.

And yes, some things are alarming: hawking private company products, having non-obviously marked branches of federal law enforcement operating and detaining citizens of a city are just a couple of them.

Those are dictator like actions.

But not all dictator like actions are like Hitler and Nazi Germany.

Here are some obvious differences between the two situations:

1. Trump was never nearly as popular as Hitler. Yes, the article I linked to points out that Hitler didn’t have “universal” approval, but he WAS popular, compared to the popularity ratings of US Presidents.

2. Trump obtained power while the country was on an economic upswing. It was completely the opposite for Nazi Germany; the Weinmar Republic had failed to rebound from WW1 and the disastrous global economic depression. Germany was a defeated wreck of a country.

3. Hitler scapegoated an economically and professionally successful class of people. Trump scapegoats the poor and powerless.

4. Detentions: though Germany did have a farm worker program, Trump was mostly about keeping others OUT of the US rather than setting up concentration camps for US citizens. Yes, I am aware of ICE targeting non-white citizens under the mistaken (and racist) impression that they weren’t US citizens.

5. Hitler was about expanding in the world and conquest of other countries. Trump is more about isolationism.

6. Trump was impeached by the House. Not sure that Hitler would have stood for that.

7. I can write things like this that denounce Trump without fear that I’ll be dragged off by the police.

So, I really don’t see the parallels, though, again, Trump is harming the US, IMHO.

One (of many) things liberals don’t get…

I didn’t see the last Democratic debate, but I did see some clips and I listened to what some said about some of the exchanges:

And liberals were all “OMG, Warren just GUTTED Bloomberg…she is sooooo gonna take it to Trump!”

Well, it has been tried before..like in 2015:

And that is what many “bubble” liberals simply do not get.

We live in bubbles. If a woman complains to HR, they are taken seriously. And in a college environment: OMG…they are listened to and administrators at least have to pretend to take their concerns seriously. And such attitudes get carried into Democratic debates.

Republicans don’t play that. Our “firework” debates are pillow-fights by Republican standards.

Trump would just make stuff up, call Warren “Pocahontas” and other names…basically just blow her off and ignore whatever she says. College educated feminists would cheer and exclaim how Trump has been exposed as a “misogynist, sexist pig” etc. Then their heads would explode when they find that Trump’s support hasn’t changed at all.

It is a bit like this old Brexit meme (Godfrey Elfwick)

We never learn.

Why Biden is an anti trump

Yes, I appear to have become more bullish on Biden. I back Klobuchar (also like Booker). But Klobuchar and Booker and not getting traction.

Yes, I have worries about Biden; his age is a factor! Seriously, our creativity diminishes and our energy diminishes as well. If he wins the nomination, I hope he picks a younger, energetic VP candidate (e. g. Klobuchar, Biden, Harris…and please, NO Abrams!!!!)

While he is the clear front runner, it is early and he could well lose the lead.

One of the reasons I like Biden is because he is an anti-Trump in the following sense: Biden has always said that one should assume the best motives of one’s political opponents. They want good things for the American people, but they have different ideas as to how to get there, or a different idea as to what constitutes good things. He touts civility towards one’s political opponents.

Now that does NOT sit well with many liberals; part of our deal is that we like to think that we are better than “them” (smarter, more moral, etc.)

And demonizing “the other” is one of Trump’s main tactics:

Speaking in Orlando, Florida — and mostly reading from prepared remarks rather than improvising — Trump launched attack after attack on familiar hate figures: Democrats, the “fake news,” the Mueller investigators, and, of course, Hillary Clinton.

“Our radical Democrat opponents are driven by hatred, prejudice, and rage and want to destroy you, and they want to destroy our country as we know it,” Trump said.

The speech actually opened on a positive note. Trump thanked his supporters, said he’s restored “government by and for the people,” and bragged about the economy’s performance.

Then, just about five minutes in, things took a turn.

“2016 was not nearly another four-year election. This was a defining moment in American history,” Trump said. Then in a mocking tone, he gestured toward the members of the media present and said: “Ask them, right there.” In case anyone missed his meaning, he added: “By the way, that is a lot of fake news back there.”

I honestly think that the country, as a whole, is tired of this.

Is Twitter good for me?

Workout notes: weights only; rotator cuff, pull ups: 15-15-10-10-5, incline: 10 x 135, 3 x 155 (ran out of gas), decline: 7 x 170, military: 8 x 50 standing, 10 x 45, 10 x 45, rows (machine) 3 sets of 10 x 110. plank, side plank (MUCH easier with shoes), head stand, knee stretches, crow (got 35 seconds at the house), headstand.

That’s enough for today.

Twitter: I wonder if using this social media platform is making me shallow and sloppy. There is this study, as well as our decreasing amount of empathy (the ability to see things from the point of view of someone else) and this video (yes, it is from Templeton)

The desire for “Twitter likes”, “follows” and just general approval sometimes leads one to attempt to make that pithy remark that one’s friends approve of rather than to attempt anything resembling a fair and detailed intellectual analysis. This issue came up during the discussion of Twitter’s “like” button. And there is the dreaded “being ratioed” which means that one gets a lot of comments but few “likes” or “retweets” (“being ratioed” is supposed to be a punishment of sorts)

Personally, I like the access to articles. But I’ve found Facebook to be a better platform from which to discuss things as one has more space to make one’s argument.

A couple of comments:
Evidently Trump is calling “impeachment” a “dirty word”. he didn’t always have such qualms.

Steven Pinker He is one of my favorite public intellectuals. And his intellectual honesty just drives some of the “woke crowd” nuts.

Kentucky BBQ t-shirts: suckers.

A Kentucky BBQ restaurant is selling the above t-shirts. From what I’ve read, there has been some online condemnation of these shirts, but from what the restaurant owner says, people are buying them.

I’ve thought about it some and have a couple of thoughts:

1. This shows the disconnect between a typical academic culture (which would condemn such t-shirts as being insensitive ..at least that..) and the general public at large.
2. And as far as the list: what do these things have to do with each other?

Seriously: I doubt that Trump has ever fired a gun (or at least fired one in over 50 years plus) our would know how to do the basics (e. g. clean one..as even I have done), check to see if there is a round in the chamber, etc. I doubt that Trump reads the Bible..sure he has quoted from it in speeches but anyone can read what was written for them. I’d like to see someone ask him if he could even name the 4 Gospels or which books constitute Torah.

And liberty: nah..he is for liberty for those who agree with him, and that is about it.

Trump is about Trump first and foremost, and he’d throw said people (people who like these shirts) under the bus the first time it benefits him.

And that, IMHO, is modern Republicanism in a nutshell; what Trump and Mitch McConnell have in common. Principles? Nah. It is about self promotion and winning elections, period.

And the shirt: it is merely a list of things to…”own the libs.” That is ALL it is.