The Donald J. Trump Presidency

that cop survived, but yes, super fucking disturbing

Spoilered for self-harm content.

I really don't know how we feel about that kind of thing going forward or what but I thought I'd test it out anyway.

Spoiler:

why the fuck is this man still president

Nick wrote:We are like 3 years from a Mad Max society and it is because people like Schumer and Pelosi don’t care and know they’ll be safe. Probably laughing it up with McConnell while the rest of us eat each other!

Ever see the movie Brazil? I think we are moving closer to that than Mad Max. There are no more jobs for the masses, and that's only going to worsen. We are headed towards some kind of universal wage feudal system. If the environment worsens more, it will be something like the movie Brazil with the elitists living in luxury, driving with those signs of paradise on the sides of the road (if you ever saw the movie)... and the masses will be fighting back the best they can. Probably a good real world example would be something like N. Korea: luxury cities where the Intelligensia lives, and the country side where the subjugated masses eek by. California is always ahead of the rest of the country and my town in Joliet is already starting to look like San Francisco. We are looking at a future of burned out shopping malls, huddles homeless masses, and poop and needles strewn across the streets.

The wealthy class won't have to rub elbows with the masses. They will order their luxury items online, order their gourmet food through doordash and basically nice areas are going to become giant gate communities.

The single best thing about this since the election is what we knew from the get go: Trump will always show his incompetent colors. Whether it's his failed clothing lines, failed universities, or now: failing brand: Trump will always fail. He always has and always will. This is our solace. His brand is destroyed. When the dust settles the only people who will outwardly endorse Trump will be the fringe.

John Boy Walton wrote:We are headed towards some kind of universal wage feudal system. If the environment worsens more, it will be something like the movie Brazil

The wealthy class won't have to rub elbows with the masses. They will order their luxury items online, order their gourmet food through doordash and basically nice areas are going to become giant gate communities.

Good post. I've never seen this movie but will have to search it out now. I think the comparison to our feudal ancestors is obviously hyperbolic but it's also really politically instructive and worth considering. It is something that frightens me into political action and because it triggers a lot of my humanistic impulses.

i don't understand why they're moving ahead with an in-person inauguration

the already barely-functional federal government could fully collapse next week

WP64, I am glad that you are going to watch Brazil. Throw all your Monty Python dvds in the bin, this is the real shit.

Bonus points if you pair it with The Boys from Brazil for a true paranoiac's double bill of British films with Brazil in the title

WP64 wrote:

John Boy Walton wrote:We are headed towards some kind of universal wage feudal system. If the environment worsens more, it will be something like the movie Brazil

The wealthy class won't have to rub elbows with the masses. They will order their luxury items online, order their gourmet food through doordash and basically nice areas are going to become giant gate communities.

Good post. I've never seen this movie but will have to search it out now. I think the comparison to our feudal ancestors is obviously hyperbolic but it's also really politically instructive and worth considering. It is something that frightens me into political action and because it triggers a lot of my humanistic impulses.

Oh man such a classic all intellectuals as yourself should see it.

The longer Brazil went the less I liked it. Of course that was the directors cut, but I was excited entering the theater and despondent on the way home.

Duff... wrote:

chrondog wrote:I will also not insist there is no difference between Majority Leader McConnell and Majority Leader Schumer, but it's not a massive change. .

This is just ridiculous. If you think Schumer's not nearly good enough, fine. I agree. But come the fuck on.

It's not. All we're doing is quibbling over what "massive" means.

Working people in this country have had their purchasing power decrease for 3+ decades. Quality of life is going down down down for a majority of Americans. It was under Obama and when Schumer was Majority Leader. McConnell himself isn't the one making Trump's executive and rhetorical decisions that directly hurt people. With Majority Leader Schumer we don't get direct relief, good health care reform, judicial appointments, climate change action, or jack shit.

Democrats are far better than Republicans, but our system is so antiquated and dysfunctional—and the Democrats so feckless and ineffectual—that Democratic leadership will never produce significant economic gains for regular people in this country. That's what I believe.

Nick wrote:We are like 3 years from a Mad Max society and it is because people like Schumer and Pelosi don’t care and know they’ll be safe. Probably laughing it up with McConnell while the rest of us eat each other!

Agreed. The Democrats have proven themselves to truly be the party of liberal oligarchs. As long as Hollywood, financiers, lawyers, and corporate health care are preserved, everyone else can get fucked.

I'll never vote for anyone else, but we absolutely have to stop looking to these people as the solution. They have nothing for us.

Duff... wrote:Trumpism, on the other hand, is synonymous with the republican party at this point.

They'll emerge unscathed in 6 months.

It was so obvious this was the outcome of Trumpism. We'd been saying it on this board since 2015. But American society is willfully obtuse and doesn't seek to ever solve or prevent problems, only react (poorly) to them.

For a political and media system that couldn't see this coming, there isn't hope. And it's because corporate money controls all of it. CNN is loving the Capitol Riots. Lots of profit for them while they "cover" it.

2021 for me is about getting over it. "Don't get mad, get even." Trying to be less pointlessly angry and frustrated by the deficiencies in our system and instead seek any alternative for real action.

They just impeached him for the second time. First time had a significant impact so very curious to see what this means.

Everyone needs to stand up collectively and create new political parties. Its really that simple. Until that happens, nothing will change.

Start with Illinois. This is the only way to change the entrenched blue power structure.

We need to shake up the system!

I just read up on these stop the steal court cases. Guys, this is fucking crazy. They were just presenting piles of junk and saying to the court "figure this out". Being a lawyer Guiliani knew exactly what he was doing. In other words, this was not "adversarial law", but "inquisitorial law" - used in some parts of the world. This was entirely a con, a sham, and I believe designed to cause a coup. This was nothing short of an assault on our very system of law brought all the way to the Supreme Court.

Folks, this shit is real. Guiliani and Trump have to face charges.

Our Republic has been shaken. The national threat is real. They are wrapping capitals in razor wire today. I don't think people realize how serious this is. Our hallmark, the peaceful transfer of power is trashed. Short of a nuclear strike by Russia this is probably the worst thing that could have ever happened to our country. At least, the gravest threat since 1939.

Are you talking to someone outside of this board? To think that none of us understand the threat is pretty silly. I think most of the people who still post here have degrees, own houses/condos, and have solidly middle class jobs. I would call this board ‘up above it’ not ‘down in it’

Remember when they kept telling us working class people who voted for Trump had economic concerns? What a load of shit that was, huh?

Just want to say that Brazil is a catastrophically bad film.

chrondog wrote:

Duff... wrote:Trumpism, on the other hand, is synonymous with the republican party at this point.

They'll emerge unscathed in 6 months.

It was so obvious this was the outcome of Trumpism. We'd been saying it on this board since 2015. But American society is willfully obtuse and doesn't seek to ever solve or prevent problems, only react (poorly) to them.

For a political and media system that couldn't see this coming, there isn't hope. And it's because corporate money controls all of it. CNN is loving the Capitol Riots. Lots of profit for them while they "cover" it.

2021 for me is about getting over it. "Don't get mad, get even." Trying to be less pointlessly angry and frustrated by the deficiencies in our system and instead seek any alternative for real action.

"Trumpism" has always been (synonymous with) the Republican party.  The only changes have been the tone of voice, figuratively speaking, and the "luck" of being able to get a lot of their shit done without as much meaningful pushback.

I would slightly disagree with that but I think the commonalities are much more significant than the differences. I do think some of the populist appeals and the rhetoric of economic nationalism (tariffs to protect domestic manufacturing) represent a significant enough departure from the Republican Party of yesteryear. Crucially, the donor base is basically unchanged and they are the ones who end up really influencing the legislative agenda and policy framework of the Party. So yeah, in that way it is fundamentally unchanged from the Reagan and Bush years.

But more importantly, nice to hear from you, Zappo. Hope you and your grandma are doing well.

I think you may have misread.  Trumpism (rather new, in and of itself) has always been; not republicanism has always been.  Important difference!  And for what it's worth, republicanism isn't even what it was 30-40 years ago in the iterations thereof which you mention, either.  But don't worry, we clearly still agree.

And thanks!  Very glad, myself,  to learn that Chrono's alive!

Alive, kicking, still dead inside.

Today feels weird! Tomorrow I’ll still be full of anxiety but in a different way if that makes sense?