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Edited by Mrph1 on Nov 30th 2023 at 11:03:59 AM
Yes because Berlusconi was bad but he also didn't lead the nation to a goddamn world war.
Not to toot my horn because a lot of people were saying the same, but Trump is turning out to be more and more like the kind of president I predicted he would be after the primaries. Less President Fascist, more weak-willed president idiot who's more bark than his bite because he lets himself be played by the people around him, and whatever actual independent-minded policies he intends to pull off are to embezzle into his own personal bank accounts.
Still dangerous, because you're still essentially leaving a malleable child at the helm, but he doesn't do or say many things with enough intentionality to achieve full fascism, at least not without the Republicans backing it.
edited 11th Nov '16 9:20:56 PM by AlleyOop
As much as I hope you're right, I think it's way too early to start making calls about how things will unfold. He isn't even president yet. And we have yet to see how much influence his new cabinet and Pence will be able to exert over him.
Even if he does turn out to be nothing but an emptyheaded figurehead, that's not necessarily better. We've still got the GOP running the country for the foreseeable future, and that's a terrifying prospect.
"We'll take the next chance, and the next, until we win, or the chances are spent."I can only hope Obama's Magnificent Bastard enough and Trump's gullible enough to play him long-term against his Republican viziers.
edited 11th Nov '16 9:23:37 PM by AlleyOop
It is a sorry state of affairs where our best hope relies on the POTUS being a figurehead manipulated by the "right" people.
Also, I just found a bullshit hoax article claiming that HRC was going to divorce Bill, dated the tenth. Geez people, she lost. There's no need to keep hounding her and her family!
edited 11th Nov '16 9:26:58 PM by M84
Disgusted, but not surprisedSaid viziers won't take that lying down, though. The best case scenario we've got there is a massive tug-of-war between Obama and the GOP, and the GOP is holding all of the cards. Not to mention, if his base starts to suspect he's under Obama's thumb then they'll start to cry foul, putting the pressure on him to show his independence. Probably in a way that brings untold suffering to the general populace.
I mean, do we actually have any evidence whatsoever that Obama will be able to manipulate him, or is it all pure hope and speculation that we're basing off one photo?
"We'll take the next chance, and the next, until we win, or the chances are spent."At this point, any idea that Obama would manipulate Trump in that way is just speculation I've seen here based on Trump yet again flip flopping. We've no evidence that Obama will have regular access to him (though it's not at all uncommon for presidents to consult previous presidents in this modern era) or that Obama is interested in trying to do so in the fashion people here have suggested.
Forgive me for breaking Godwin's Law, but that reminds me of the theory that the reason why the Allies didn't make or scrapped plans to assassinate Hitler was because they realized that killing him would likely lead to an even more capable replacement.
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Would be better for them to focus on retaking Congress at this point, because idiot or not it's easier letting them fill the Cabinet.
if you're citing actual specific historic incidents then I think you get a pass on Godwin's Law.
edited 11th Nov '16 9:58:26 PM by AlleyOop
Speaking of Godwin's Law, I saw an excerpt from a newspaper article from the early 20th century posted up today, where it insisted that surely Hitler's viciously anti-Semitic rhetoric was employed purely for the sake of amassing power and appealing to the masses, and surely nothing would ever come of it.
Alarmist or not, some of the parallels here are chilling.
"We'll take the next chance, and the next, until we win, or the chances are spent."Yes, that is rather worrisome. Vigilance will be necessary here.
Of course, unlike Hitler, I think it's questionable whether Trump actually wanted the position in the first place.
edited 11th Nov '16 10:11:16 PM by KarkatTheDalek
Oh God! Natural light!December 19th. But the petition that's been going around, about telling electoral college voters to change their vote to Clinton, probably won't work, and even if it did work, would most likely incite a civil war of some sort. Only do that as an extreme last resort.
edited 11th Nov '16 10:35:05 PM by dysphere
Where you have to figure out whether the scapegoating demagogue is bluffing.
The trouble is, it doesn't actually help that much if he's bluffing in this case. The worst damage is already done: by winning the election on a platform of bald-faced racism, sexism, homophobia, religious intolerance, and endorsement of violence against those groups, Trump and Pence have politically mainstreamed bigotry and violence again. Even if they never actually pass a bill, we've already been seeing increases in racial bullying since the primaries, and there have been several cases of violence and even death against minorities and Muslims in the less than a week since they won. The hateful, the ignorant, and the violent without our society are already taking action without Trump or Pence lifting a finger.
Even if Trump becomes a puppet, even if he gets impeached, even if the electoral college doesn't elect him, that fire is lit, and it threatens to run out of control. We're going to be fighting that for years, with or without Trump.
Don't forget the candidates who come after Trump. He just sent a message to everyone in America, loud and clear - "want to rise to power? Spout vile racist rhetoric, brag about sexual assault, mock disabled people, and encourage your supporters to commit acts of despicable violence! It works!"
And it does. And it will. Even if Trump turns out to not do as much damage as we all fear, there'll be another Trump down the line, who'll learn from his example. And they might mean what they say.
"We'll take the next chance, and the next, until we win, or the chances are spent."

So, instad of being cheeto Mussolini, he will be cheeto Berlusconi?
Well...is that better?
"My Name is Bolt, Bolt Crank and I dont care if you believe or not"