Dead Man Walking
Dead Man Walking
The end isn't close, it is here. Trump cannot recover from his current position, nor can he hope to wield meaningful power in whatever time remains to him as President. He has caused many of the senior bureaucrats essential to governance to resign and cannot find suitable candidates to take their place, while his irrational behaviour and inconsistent policies have lost him the support of many in his own party. He has become isolated from the leaders of other major powers and can have no influence on their decision making. He is an increasingly ghost like presence, haunting the halls of power, but so disembodied as to produce no physical consequence.
Even worse, the hounds of justice are on his trail. It is only a matter of time until his probably traitorous connections to Putin are fully revealed. Until then, his fate is ever greater public humiliation. He is viciously mocked daily in every form of media. The respect for his position, that once held some back, is gone. Complete disrespect is now standard. The satire is vicious, yet probably less damaging than the factual reporting.
Power not only corrupts, but more importantly, as Robert Caro stated in his great biography of Lyndon Johnson, it reveals. Few survive that scrutiny unscarred. The spotlight reveals every weakness, while journalists uncover every historical misstep and lapse in judgement. In purely pragmatic terms, good intentions count for little, character for a lot. Trump has no trace of either. His unrestrained self-interest denies him the first, his entire life history, the second. So he stands psychologically naked, revealed as a profoundly dysfunctional personality lacking even common decency. It is hard to imagine a personality less suited to his position. Politicians, when they assume power, must also be diplomats. Trump cannot even be polite, diplomacy is far beyond his grasp.
The other side of such personalities is always profound insecurity. The bloated ego is fed by an unstable high self esteem. Like an over-inflated balloon it is always on the edge of a self-destructive explosion. To survive it needs constant reassurance, and since this rarely comes from others, it comes from the kind of delusional self-talk for which Trump is famous. Everything he does is "great". Self-referential hyperbole is his constant style. This is the mental health equivalent of cancer or heart disease; a degenerative condition slowly destroying essential organs. This raises the very real possibility that what will bring him down is not impeachment but a nervous breakdown.
Beyond that he is an old man who appears to be in poor physical health. The strain of maintaining his delusional self-image is also a physical strain, so a physical collapse seems just as likely as a mental one. Most people can let go of their delusions when they are under a strain because, on some level, they are in touch with reality through family, friends or colleagues. Since this is clearly not the case with Trump, he may cling so tightly to his delusions that they cause a physical collapse.
The great sadness in all this is not for Trump personally, he is beyond all sympathy, but that his worst aspects represent so accurately the worst aspects of the country he has been elected to lead. He is the dopppleganger of the corroded spirit of the United States. It is almost as sick and degenerate as Trump himself. It too is a loud mouthed bully who gets its way through intimidation and force. It too has no regard for its health as opioid addiction, gun violence, resurgent racism and misogyny, tear apart its social structure. It too is driven by shallow self-interest. And in this rests the great danger, that when Trump fails he will be replaced by someone more subtle and capable, but no wiser, more ethical or empathetic.
Blind boy,
Let it go. He has been elected and for once they actually have a leader that wants to look after American's. Can we get a priminister that actually cares about his country , just not trying to be popular to stay in the top job.
Just for the record Blindboy what have you done/ achieved or helped someone in life.
I see a person that wants to feel like they are a somebody by looking like they are important on amongst a small handful of people on Swellnet. In the real world you don't even rate because are a nobody and never helped anyone or achieved anything
Should I seriously consider a comment from a semi-literate pain in the arse who I do not know yet who asserts insight into my character? Nah, not for a millisecond.
As unpalatable as it may be , gun violence , racism and misogyny have been present in America since its inception and on a much grander scale than witnessed today.
Maybe you should search for a more accurate marker of it's societal collapse.
Fair comment Blowin' but most developed nations have moved on and have managed to reduce their incidence, so I stand by them as measures of relative, if not absolute, decline.
Southern Poverty Law Center has some eye-popping stats about hate crimes since Trump stepped up. Hard to ignore the link between the two.
A bit like throwing the baby out with the bath water to me
Old Orange head's current approval rating is 36%
Let's put that into context.
Turnbull's current approval rating is 44%
Shorten's is 31%.
Does that make Shorten a dead man walking?
How different the world would be today if Sanders were president?
What is disappointing, disturbing in these chats is that most here, wish for FAILURE, wish for HATE, wish for DISAGREEMENT. There was certainly no such thoughts of 'let's give him a go'. Add to this, that we are not in the US, we are know little of Trump, very few media 'experts' have understood the character. Now, look at th latest. The US pulls out of Paris Agreement. The US is prepared to renegotiate. The Europeans not. I'm sure if we wish for failure we will get it.
Tonybarber, on your Paris comment; if you agreed to buy say a house or car and negotiated a price and signed a contract but the vendor came back to you before you took procession to "renegotiate" the terms what would your view be?
From the media reports I have heard the Paris agreement was watered down to appease the Americans so now that they have left I don't think there will be any further discussion. I'm sensing people in the know don't think its all bad that Americans has left; Tillison is no longer in the tent and corporate America have largely determined the future is low carbon. California as the 6th biggest economy in the world is most certainly looking forward not back.
So long as Agent Orange doesn't start any wars I now see him as mostly (and increasingly) irrelevant, the world is moving away from this base form popularism (UK election polls, France election result) and the Trumpster is likely to be a shiny example on what not to vote for. I do feel for the rust belt and bayou thou; they will feel very cheated when the jobs don't come back and the health care is removed all the while tax is slashed for the wealthy.
why such a focus on his mental and physical health BB? im not sure we can accurately say that he is 'sick' as opposed to him being just a plain narcissistic tosser. do you really know anything about what conditions he may have?
that aside, pulling the US out of Paris is really sad. CC action stands little opportunity when the goal posts keep shifting. traditional energy companies have profitable opportunities with renewables, however never when the choice of investment is too risky and govt persuasion is nil. even major energy companies vote for Paris, not because they 'want' coal to die but because they want to be able to influence the shape of the future of renewables in a fashion that is still profitable. take US companies 'out' of such international agreements only serves to maintain the status quo.
though agree BB in as much as him being 'old'. 70 plus years old is too old for that type of leadership in my opinion.
And yes, there is a reality outside the media bubble of insane US politics.
Can Beijing step up or will they prove our prejudices, and reinforce the propaganda that China is merely a "totalitarian communist state that has grand ambitions of world dominance"?
https://theconversation.com/trumps-paris-retreat-is-beijings-opportunity...
Trumps president of USA.
Blindboy what have you achieved even close to that??
You are right I don't know anything about you so please enlighten me and I will apologise for judging you wrongly .
"Just for the record Blindboy what have you done/ achieved or helped someone in life."
Nick3, what's this got to do with expressing an opinion on what is primarily a surfing website??
Irrelevant.
nick, Swellnet is a very small part of my world, beyond that I have no obligation to justify myself to you. You want to insult people? Guess what? Sometimes they bite back.
No. I am asking for you let me know how great you are . The only insult will be on your answer.
How about start with how great you rip on a short board because a lot of people on this site think that is the greatest achievement you can have in life. Also what is semi-literate have to do with anything. If you want to go down that path I am happy to have a who has the biggest cock competition ( I don't me literally). Most of the people who have succeeded and made a mark in life never finished their HSC.
nick your first comment was an insult and filled with either typos or illiteracies. If I can't be arsed answering you again, please feel free to carry on without me.
Get real BB. Your constant carping about Trump is increasingly trivial in terms of the major concern facing us today - Islamic terrorism. Why don't you say something about the number 1 issue threatening our way of life - or won't that sit well with your leftie buddies?
Agent Orange's stance on the Paris Accord now openly ridiculed by Emmanuel Macron.
http://www.theage.com.au/world/the-french-disliked-a-white-house-video-o...
ha ha ha ...theween, grab a book on modern economics/polotics. That is a deadbeat argument. Turn off your TV and don't believe the hype.
ween, please feel free to ignore my posts. Sounds like a win-win to me.
News reports this morning that American cities, states and corporations are forming an alliance to submit a climate change action plan directly with the UN and thereby side stepping Agent Orange.
http://www.theage.com.au/world/bucking-trump-us-cities-states-and-compan...
It's interesting that people can feel so strongly about a person/political party/cause despite probably being worse off as a result or not personally knowing anything about the people they direct this vitriol against. And I say that after reading both the comments and the thread topic. After reading some of the comments you'd think BB was ripping on scientology.
Having said that, BB I don't know where you find those rose tinted glasses for everyone in the US administration but Trump & his evil henchmen. I think his diplomacy is embarrassing but lets face it the man is likely old and tired and has done whatever he wants for his entire life. Power certainly corrupts but he already had it. He barely has time now to enjoy any of the benefits of his newfound power that he once had. He can be a diplomatic cock if he wants because at the end of the day every player who benefits from the existing world order knows that its the military fist of the USA that maintains it.
A nervous breakdown? Come on you don't think he cares that much about any of this do you? He's on this third wife and second round of kids and has a multi billion dollar worldwide business network despite being previously bankrupt. It would have happened long ago I doubt he cares about anything enough to have a breakdown.
Do you think he's actually living with all of this permanent imaginary heat? I doubt its anymore than hes lived with previously. And when its too much he'd just go check in to one of his golf resorts and think about some other issue over 18 holes. If he doesn't get impeached he'll last the distance, the biggest risk will be that he just gets sick of it. At the moment he's locked in for 4 years whilst the world attacks the foundations of him & his family as he simultaneously attacks the rest of the world in the same fashion! He would care more about not making money than the attacks I reckon. Honestly I doubt he even wants to be there anymore.
One things for sure, the next president will look soft against Trumps direct approach.
"Having said that, BB I don't know where you find those rose tinted glasses for everyone in the US administration but Trump & his evil henchmen."
Gaz this is the thing that amazes and concerns me.
You would both probably be less amazed if you read more carefully. I have made it clear through all my posts on Trump that he is the end product of a degenerate political process and national culture. Rose coloured glasses? Find something that I said that is positive about any US politician, other than they might oppose Trump.
I must have missed something Blindboy because for the past few months your main communication has been that Trump the individual will bring about the end of the world while Obama and the Democrats are progressive, righteous and beyond reproach.
Why would I have been repeating myself for months, asking for a broader perspective if you'd already included it in your essays?
Don't make no sense does it?
Regardless, it's good to see what you've said with the last few sentences of your opening post here.
Andy I suggest you re-read more carefully. I highlighted risks, most of which have been reduced by Trump's impotence, but still exist.
Depending on how nationalist you are, impotence might actually be more appropriately used to describe his predecessor. Whilst Trump may be diplomatically handicapped and not possessing even a shred of the poise required for the job, you have to admit that his presidency has been galvanizing if nothing else.
To suggest that his ego or self esteem are at risk largely ignores the audacity of almost every politician I've ever heard of. They're not big on admitting fault and taking responsibility if you catch my drift.
As far as his health goes he's a decrepit 70 year old man. Likewise Hillary & Bernie are decrepit 70-75 year olds. Compared against the comparatively young healthy President Obama they were all going to look over the hill. Perhaps this is the real issue with American politics?
Would you have still posted a 600 word essay on the personal qualities of Hillary Clinton, her poor moral fiber and deteriorating health?
Hilary would have represented continuity; a democrat President hamstrung by Congress. Trump represented a discontinuity, a disruption of business as usual, and so is intrinsically more interesting. More to the point, Clinton would never have been stupid enough to find herself in the position Trump does now. To say that she has demonstrated greater empathy and greater adherence to basic moral values than Trump is not, in any sense, to praise her. It is simply self-evident. So would I be writing about Hilary Clinton if she had been elected? Who's to say, but probably not.
Blindboy - why wouldn't you have encouraged disruption of the USA from business as usual ?
You hate the USA as it stands ( stood).
God fuck Amerika !!!!....... remember ?
All disruption is not equal Blowin'. As Trump is proving, being bad is no defence against becoming worse.
Blind'boy - How is the USA materially worse ?
Acting on the assumption that any gains in the combating of climate change are were arising from the volition of private practice anyway ?
Foreign policy - no better / no worse .
Actually , I'd say better foreign policy.
China was being brought to task by Trump....since forgotten.
North Korea has been handballed to China as is appropriate.
Russia and the Cold War ? Haven't you heard ? Trump and Putin are snuggle buddies....it's over.
PS Notice that you've reinstated the apostrophe in Blowin after you'd decided to rein it in.
Is that dementia creeping in ?
"acting on the assumption....."
sounds like an assumption that conveniently glosses over probably the most important forgotten matter of direct relevance to Australia.
Sorry about the apostrophe, it may have been auto-correct 'cos I wrote it that way before. How is the US worse off? Trumpcare will leave around 20 million more people without health care. That sounds worse to me but you might be able to find a spin on it. Then there is the slight problem of about $4 trillion dollars missing in his budget, you know the one delivering massive tax cuts to the wealthy and huge increases in military spending. Oh and death from drug overdose is soaring (now the leading cause of death for men under 50). Not to mention a dramatic increase in hate crimes since the election.....but yeh it's all good, no worries there!
Blowin I see a guy who has pissed everyone off he's met with, and I see world leaders (and Mayors) are starting to overlook him as a credible representative of America. I don't think China has accepted the North Korea handball either unfortunately, they don't play american footy.
I wasn't sure what good would come out of Trump but if this is a sign, then it seems like a good start...
http://time.com/4806118/michael-bloomberg-states-climate-change/
It could be that America's founding fathers were very wise in going for a federalist political model.
It this works out, keep it in mind when someone here in Oz says the'd like to abolish the states - dispersion of power through federalism is a good concept in my books.
Andy, one of the other benefits that has flowed from Trump's pull out is that the role of the Koch brothers in funding the political opposition to policies designed to limit climate change has been dragged into the open for the first time. There is a piece on The New Yorker web site that reveals the extent to which the Republicans sold their souls on this issue.
David H. Koch used to comment on this site!!
(I think it was him)
Swellnet has its own Kathy Griffin.
Fake news disputing fake news about fake news.
This is getting really complicated
Believe whatever brand aligns with your perspective, but watching the videos, CNN sure seem to be doing a lot more than just "waving protestors through"
Then sadly BBC get in on the act, amongst others.
Do these reporters really think they are winning anything with such deception?
Your trust is done. You should be trying to redeem yourselves reporting some truth for a change rather than doubling down on dodgyness
https://medium.com/@JasonTLouis/left-leaning-fact-checking-site-snopes-l...
The notion of objective reporting is out of fashion and out of date. Fine in theory, but in the real world it is either impossible to achieve or 'too bloody dull'. The days of "objective" reporting – cool, factual, impartial, unemotional, devoid of adjectives, or personality, or any trace of personal opinion – are well and truly over.
Yeah BB it's good to bring this sort of stuff into the full light of day.
http://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/in-the-withdrawal-from-the-paris...
I disagree reality is too bloody dull
Yes objectivity is dead and opinion is king
But there's opinion, and then there's contrived costructed reality
Pretty sure that's not the role of the 'journalist'
Sippy, Sippy, Sippy. There's still hope for ya.
The world according to John Fiske.
ISAs. Ideological State Apparatuses.
Corporate Media.
The clues in the 'corporate' bit.
As for under-the-pump and increasingly 'corporatised' State media?
Round & round & round we go...
Wanna have a laugh, check out The Guardian in the UKs absolute U-turn in the last coupla weeks - weeks! After years! - regarding Corbyn and his Labor party. Embarrassing.
http://johnhilley.blogspot.com.au/2017/06/corbyn-soars-high-above-weathe...
As for the Dacre/Murdoch rags, they've gone into meltdown. Sweaty & desperate.
https://twitter.com/SimonNRicketts/status/872214917432193026
BBC not far behind them either.
http://www.jonathan-cook.net/blog/2017-05-10/media-cant-hide-that-theyre...
And here in the wonderful land of Oz, we've got the LNPs media 'reforms' to look forward to...
https://independentaustralia.net/life/life-display/new-media-rules-will-...
Stop the merry-go round?
Yeah, nah.
GET THE FUCK OFF?
Hmmm
Bahahahaha
Looks like May has done a turdball
A big brown turdball in her own face.
The guardian is embarrassing! Freedland and jones are morons, void of competence or conviction
'The guardian view' is irrelevant
It's barely relevant but I had to share this.
The Guardian goes full retard.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/jun/08/weep-watching-wond...
The other possibility about the Trumpster ,having been a Robert Ludlum reader in my earlier years ,is the conclusion the Trumpster , is in fact,a Russian sleeper ......... !
Planted and maintained by the KGB ,now the FSB of which Putin was head of in the late 90's.....Ivanka is the handler sent over to keep him in line along the way .Now they have succeeded in placing their own man as the POTUS the plot becomes a bit more complex ...
The scenario that faces Putin is that old Don and the big Iv have become accustomed to running things their own way.....and have become rogue sleepers .... and that they never really planned what to do once they got control of the free world, nor for a moment thought that Don would develop an attitude .....!
Plausible as any of the other opinions expressed here ...and slightly more entertaining ....!
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Oh its relevant andym
It shows their priorities and agenda...full retard
Full retard pettyness that clearly doesn't resonate with the majority of people.
Probably because its more of the same fron the identity politics journal
More clintonesque corporate feminism. Lots of name calling with a double helping of nothing substantial.
Thankfully many women see through their smoke screen of poo gas
"...About that, though: Even though I grew up before seeing the supposedly life-changing new Wonder Woman movie, I always believed I could pursue whatever career I wanted, as long as it wasn’t professional bowling. (Trust me. You do not want me on your bowling team.) I had both male and female role models as a child, and no one told me I had to see my exact facsimile in a job before I could pursue it. When I heard about the new Wonder Woman movie, I thought, “Hooray! It looks like a fun and well-executed summer blockbuster, rather than a giant, manufactured angst magnet!” This is because I’m a fairly normal and well-adjusted person who hasn’t yet let modern feminism melt my brain.
http://www.nationalreview.com/article/448352/wonder-woman-modern-feminis...
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