Trump just lost the election

[LDSGator]

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/rcna167395

 

all seven of RFK Jrs supporters will help Trump tremendously!
 

😉 

[Just_A_Guy]

I’m of two minds on the op.

On the one hand:  the VFW seems to be suggesting that one can never accomplish as much for one’s country in the civilian sphere as one can in the military sphere.  As much as I respect our veterans:  I disagree with this assertion; and would also add that in hindsight—while the motives of our soldiers are entirely honorable—it doesn’t seem like the expeditionary deployments of our fighting forces in the 21st century have accomplished much of anything at all.

On the other hand:  the Presidential Medal of Freedom has a suspicious way of getting awarded to people who have championed the pet social causes of the sitting president’s political party.  In practice, if not in theory, the PMOF is not equal to the CMOH; and while I might disagree with the way the VFW expressed it—it was right for someone to point that out that there is a difference.

With Trump it’s a particularly tender spot, because he already has a history of making (or being alleged to have made, by fairly high-ranking military folks who one presumes wouldn’t make this kind of thing up) some deeply insensitive statements about folks who have been maimed or killed in military service.

After eight years in the public sphere and basically having come down on every side of every issue at some point in that time period, I don’t think there’s much Trump can do to alienate his base at this point.  I’m not heavily into military culture, but I suspect that because it’s so meritocratic Waltz’s issues and Harris’s means of getting her earlier jobs aren’t going to make her terribly appealing.  As for the rest of the country:  I’m not sure the cultural mystique about US military or veterans, continues to be what it was twenty or even ten years ago; and I’m not sure the rising generation is prepared to reject an otherwise-preferable presidential candidate based on that candidate’s having said out loud stuff about military service that everyone else thought, but didn’t dare express, if/whenever they considered entering military service themselves.

Edited August 21, 2024 by Just_A_Guy

[mikbone]

On 8/21/2024 at 6:29 AM, Just_A_Guy said:

the VFW seems to be suggesting that one can never accomplish as much for one’s country in the civilian sphere as one can in the military sphere.  As much as I respect our veterans:

The point wasn’t about respecting veterans.  It was about flippantly disrespecting a Medal of Honor recipient.

Which I find detestable.  Especially from a prior Commander in Chief.

On 8/21/2024 at 6:29 AM, Just_A_Guy said:

it doesn’t seem like the expeditionary deployments of our fighting forces in the 21st century have accomplished much of anything at all.

The following video is the first recorded action of a medal of honor recipient.  The footage took place in Afghanistan 2002.  

This is his story.

I have performed countless hours of pro bono work as a surgeon performing debridement of IV drug abuser abscesses and amputations from diabetic gangrenous wounds, etc.

I would never compare my civilian efforts to those of John Chapman’s. 

Edited August 22, 2024 by mikbone

[LDSGator]

35 minutes ago, mikbone said:

Which I find detestable.  Especially from a prior Commander in Chief.

It’s detestable, but it’s also validating to those of us who thought Trump was an out of control bully. We told you so.  

[NeuroTypical]

46 minutes ago, LDSGator said:

Trump was an out of control bully.

Trump is rarely out of control.  Bombastic narcissists craft careful personas and engage in very specifically chosen behavior.

Dude learned how to turn getting fake-hit by a chair into ratings and cash 30 years ago.  Don't sell him short by thinking the stuff we see from him is somehow out of his control.  Yeah, maybe he blathers and then wishes he had blathered something different, because it didn't get him the reaction he was hoping for.  But more often than not, he's weighing what he'll get from the folks who like his blather, against what he might lose from the folks who don't.

Edited August 22, 2024 by NeuroTypical

[LDSGator]

29 minutes ago, NeuroTypical said:

Trump is rarely out of control.  Bombastic narcissists craft careful personas and engage in very specifically chosen behavior.

Dude learned how to turn getting fake-hit by a chair into ratings and cash 30 years ago.  Don't sell him short by thinking the stuff we see from him is somehow out of his control.  Yeah, maybe he blathers and then wishes he had blathered something different, because it didn't get him the reaction he was hoping for.  But more often than not, he's weighing what he'll get from the folks who like his blather, against what he might lose from the folks who don't.

Excellent points, but then the terrifying conclusion is that he is not only a narcissist, but a fully functional sociopath. Which makes him much worse.  I view him as a keyboard warrior incarnate who never had to experience consequences for his terrible behavior. 

I can not wait for this show to be over and for the republican party to get back on track. 

Edited August 22, 2024 by LDSGator

[NeuroTypical]

35 minutes ago, LDSGator said:

the terrifying conclusion is that he is not only a narcissist, but a fully functional sociopath. Which makes him much worse.

Oh, the sociopaths all tend to self-destruct eventually.  Trump has been Trump since the '70's at least.  If anything, he's mellowed out in recent decades.  Whatever he is, writing him off as a sociopath is also selling him short.

Bombastic narcissist.  I think that's the right way to think of him.  

[LDSGator]

2 minutes ago, NeuroTypical said:

sociopaths all tend to self-destruct eventually

Agree there. Hate always turns on itself. 

[Vort]

3 hours ago, NeuroTypical said:

Oh, the sociopaths all tend to self-destruct eventually.  Trump has been Trump since the '70's at least.  If anything, he's mellowed out in recent decades.  Whatever he is, writing him off as a sociopath is also selling him short.

Bombastic narcissist.  I think that's the right way to think of him.  

Yep. Narcissistic, but definitely not sociopathic.

[askandanswer]

16 hours ago, mikbone said:

The point wasn’t about respecting veterans.  It was about flippantly disrespecting a Medal of Honor recipient.

Which I find detestable.  Especially from a prior Commander in Chief.

The following video is the first recorded action of a medal of honor recipient.  The footage took place in Afghanistan 2002.  

This is his story.

I have performed countless hours of pro bono work as a surgeon performing debridement of IV drug abuser abscesses and amputations from diabetic gangrenous wounds, etc.

I would never compare my civilian efforts to those of John Chapman’s. 

That would make for an interesting comparison - the guy who causes injuries compared to the guy who fixes them. 

[mikbone]

8 hours ago, askandanswer said:

That would make for an interesting comparison - the guy who causes injuries compared to the guy who fixes them. 

Sometimes the motivation and intent is just as important as the action and/or outcome.

John 15:13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

If Donald Trump witnessed the atonement his opinion would probably be that Jesus littered and polluted a garden with blood and dishonorably allowed himself to be captured by the enemy and died like woman crying out while being tortured.

The John Chapman book is worth the read or audiobook listen.  He was an Air Force Combat Controller embedded within a Navy Seal team.  The Navy tried to prevent him from getting the medal of honor.  Likely because they mistakenly abandoned an injured not dead comrade in the field.  

Hacksaw Ridge was a pretty good flick about a conscience objector’s efforts as a combat medic in WWII - also a medal of Honor Recipient.  See below

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desmond_Doss

I also appreciated this piece about a Hungarian Jew receiving the Medal of Honor.

 

Edited August 23, 2024 by mikbone

[Suzie]

Trump was completely unhinged during and after Kamala's speech. 70% of Americans living in poverty? Someone has to take away the mic/phone/laptop from this man. Please.

[LDSGator]

1 hour ago, Suzie said:

Trump was completely unhinged during and after Kamala's speech. 70% of Americans living in poverty? Someone has to take away the mic/phone/laptop from this man. Please.

If I was voting for Harris I’d demand he keep it up. In fact, I’d pay his mobile phone bill. 

I’m serious-it energizes the democratic base every time he does that. Keep em’ mad-elections aren’t won by who you want to win, it’s who you want to lose. 

[Carborendum]

1 hour ago, Suzie said:

Trump was completely unhinged during and after Kamala's speech. 70% of Americans living in poverty?

Source?

[mikbone]

2 hours ago, Suzie said:

Trump was completely unhinged during and after Kamala's speech. 70% of Americans living in poverty? Someone has to take away the mic/phone/laptop from this man. Please.

I may have to watch the debate.

For entertainment purposes of course.

[Phoenix_person]

1 hour ago, Carborendum said:

Source?

https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump

I can't find the 70% quote, but he incorrectly claimed that there are 60 million Americans in poverty (real number is roughly 38M). His crappy website won't link the exact post, but it's on his Truth Social feed, along with several dozen other posts railing against Kamala's speech, including one defending his decision to kill Biden's border bill, which was endorsed by Border Patrol. The Harris campaign needs to keep hammering that point, because it puts a pretty big hole in the GOP narrative that Kamala did nothing as border czar. She and Joe tried to secure the border. The GOP balked because it's an election year. Dems aren't going to let them forget that.

 

Edited August 23, 2024 by Phoenix_person

[LDSGator]

This was also posted on his truth social site. So he’s pro choice now. I guess

[Carborendum]

52 minutes ago, Phoenix_person said:

https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump

I can't find the 70% quote, but he incorrectly claimed that there are 60 million Americans in poverty (real number is roughly 38M). 

I'm afraid I can't access truthsocial from here.  So, I have no idea what the context is.  I have no idea the tone he was using when he said it.  I have no idea to whom he ws saying it, what question or issue was being discussed...

But given what you've said (I'll take your word for it for the moment) I'd point out the following:

• 70% is a far cry from 60 million. 
• And if you're just throwing a SWAG at it 60M vs 38M amounts to an exaggeration rather than misinformation.
• As exaggerations go, the 60 v 38 is closer than 70% v 60M

For example, whenever my wife wants to say "a big number" she simply throws out the number 73M.  I asked her why 73 million.  She said "because 70 is too small and 80 is too big."

Edited August 23, 2024 by Carborendum

[mikbone]

41 minutes ago, Carborendum said:

For example, whenever my wife wants to say "a big number" she simply throws out the number 73M.  I asked her why 73 million.  She said "because 70 is too small and 80 is too big."

Elevendy Billion is my big number.

 

From Urban Dictionary

elevendy - a number that is greater than, less than, and equal to zero.

The elongated synonym of eleven, used by small children still in the juveniles instead of eleven due to a underdeveloped brain, or lack thereof. It may be applied with other numbers, for example, "elevendy four", to further confuse people. The actual code of "elevendy" is yet to be discovered, though scientists are working on it at this very point in time.

"I have elevendy cents"

"I paid you elevendy three cents"

 

Edited August 23, 2024 by mikbone

[NeuroTypical]

1 hour ago, mikbone said:

2 hours ago, Carborendum said:

For example, whenever my wife wants to say "a big number" she simply throws out the number 73M.

Elevendy Billion is my big number.

Whitehouse briefing guy: "Mr President, there was a natural disaster in south America, and 70 Brazilians have died."

Biden [turns white and needs to sit down at the news]: "That's horrible.  (whispers to aide) How many is a brazillion again?"

Harris: "I just released a statement about how I'm a Brazilian now."

 

BaDoomBOOM!

(If anyone's ticked off at the joke, you should know it was ripped off from a joke originally told about Dubya.)

[LDSGator]

https://babylonbee.com/news/trump-adds-a-kennedy-in-hopes-he-will-draw-all-the-sniper-fire
 

I love the bee. 

Edited August 23, 2024 by LDSGator

[Phoenix_person]

4 hours ago, Carborendum said:

I'm afraid I can't access truthsocial from here.  So, I have no idea what the context is.  I have no idea the tone he was using when he said it.  I have no idea to whom he ws saying it, what question or issue was being discussed...

But given what you've said (I'll take your word for it for the moment) I'd point out the following:

• 70% is a far cry from 60 million. 
• And if you're just throwing a SWAG at it 60M vs 38M amounts to an exaggeration rather than misinformation.
• As exaggerations go, the 60 v 38 is closer than 70% v 60M

For example, whenever my wife wants to say "a big number" she simply throws out the number 73M.  I asked her why 73 million.  She said "because 70 is too small and 80 is too big."

Here's the full reaction from Kamala's speech, if you're interested. His campaign has been posting from his Twitter account ever since Biden dropped out. I'd bet real money that they changed the password and won't give him the new one. They don't want his late night tantrums to leave containment.

 

4 hours ago, LDSGator said:

This was also posted on his truth social site. So he’s pro choice now. I guess

He also said (it's in the clip above) that there was broad bipartisan support for getting rid of Roe. Suuuuure, buddy.

Edited August 23, 2024 by Phoenix_person

[LDSGator]

3 minutes ago, Phoenix_person said:

He also said (it's in the clip above) that there was broad bipartisan support for getting rid of Roe. Suuuuure, buddy.

Agree totally, and your side should open champagne because of Roe was reversed. It’ll bring your side out in droves. 

Edited August 23, 2024 by LDSGator

[The Folk Prophet]

On 8/22/2024 at 9:13 AM, LDSGator said:

the republican party to get back on track. 

Please...never!

I'm not saying that in relationship to Trump. Just....no.

[LDSGator]

1 minute ago, The Folk Prophet said:

Please...never!

I'm not saying that in relationship to Trump. Just....no.

We’ll see. Eventually if the GOP gets shellacked in 2024 there will be no other choice. Or they can continue to lose. Whatever works.