Conservative David Brooks, NYTimes:
What happens when people lose the ability to reason or render good judgments? Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you Donald Trump’s tariff policy. I’ve covered a lot of policies over the decades, some of which I supported and some of which I opposed. But I have never seen a policy as stupid as this one. It is based on false assumptions. It rests on no coherent argument in its favor. It relies on no empirical evidence. It has almost no experts on its side — from left, right or center. It is jumble-headedness exemplified. Trump himself personifies stupidity’s essential feature — self-satisfaction, an inability to recognize the flaws in your thinking. And of course when the approach led to absolutely predictable mayhem, Trump, lacking any coherent plan, backtracked, flip-flopped, responding impulsively to the pressures of the moment as his team struggled to keep up.
Producing something this stupid is not the work of a day; it is the achievement of a lifetime — relying on decades of incuriosity, decades of not cracking a book, decades of being impervious to evidence.
Back in Homer’s day, people lived within an oral culture, then humans slowly developed a literate culture. Now we seem to be moving to a screen culture. Civilization was fun while it lasted.
12 comments:
I read that Op-Ed this morning. At the top of it Brooks writes of the problem we have in the US where people are unable to read.
In it he quotes retired general Jim Mattis and Bing West... “If you haven’t read hundreds of books, you are functionally illiterate, and you will be incompetent, because your personal experiences alone aren’t broad enough to sustain you.”
Does anyone think Trump spends his days reading books to learn more? Heck, does anyone think most of the Mothership sailors spend their days reading to improve their lives?
Of course not. For many, it's a lack of curiosity. Others lack the time. But others have just decided they know enough now or reading is not worth their time.
But either way, as Brooks points out, lack of reading leads to stupidity.
And Trump seems to be living evidence of that reality.
The we hate trump message is being lost in the corruption of the biden presidency. The books are coming out that shows that biden's inner circle who said in public how he was still capable have been exposed. Chris Whipple has published a book that shows how incapable of coherent thoughts biden had and how everyone covered it up. I guess in your mind the deceit from the democrats to the American people was fine but if they don't come out and say they lied it will haunt them.
Tough to believe anything the leftist media says anymore.
Only in America, could a man who has bankrupted 6 companies be seen as a stable genius and a smart business leader. The amassing of a personal fortune, on the backs of unpaid workers, contractors and other employees while not paying your bills and leveraging debt does not a smart business leader make. Greedy? Yes, but smart and effective? Not at all.
And yet here we are, in a world where none of that makes a bit of difference.
I fear as Brooks does that Donald Trump has broke America, suckered his followers and will personally laugh all the way to the bank.
Sadly many folks won't even see it coming.
Ancient Eastern wisdom from Asia has become my trusted companion. It serves well in these insane times that the Felon has forced on America and the entire world.
On Biden’s worst day, he was a better human being than Trump was on his best day. At this point, nothing you post here to denigrate Biden and his administration can compare with the corruption, incompetence, and sheer stupidity that is Trump.
And skud, have you nothing better to occupy your time than to denigrate a decent man who gave years of service to the country that he loves? While saying almost nothing about a malignant narcissist and Felon that cares nothing about anyone but himself and how effectively he can screw anyone that his ignorant mind believes will result in enriching himself.
Your views skud are enough to make decent thinking people want to vomit.
skud, that's one way to look at it. And at the time of my writing this the First Amendment is still in effect although it's boundaries are being trampled something fierce.
Your rhetoric is so over the top I wonder who is questioning your loyalty? LOL Good luck with that.
Skud... have you read the book? Have you heard any interviews with Whipple?
He has claimed throughout, and in his book, that yes, Biden was slipping. But that the people around Biden were unable to see it. That is, he does not believe they saw Biden as slipping.
I admit I was mad as all get out when I read the first publicity of his book. I am sure that's what you read too, or heard on some news station. But Whipple has pushed back on that line of reporting in short and long form, over 30 minutes, interviews.
Regardless, there's a big difference between "we hate trump" and many of us Never Trumpers". I don't hate the guy and hope most of his doubters don't either. But we do hate what he has done and continues to do to America.
You were pretty strong on the Biden is "losing it" train. I get that, and I always felt the criticism was well placed, even if over the top. It's why I said numerous times I felt Biden should have ridden off into the sunset after the mid term wins by the Dems.
But none of that excuses Trump, the GOP or voters like you who are enabling what we are seeing now. Cabinet Secretaries advocating for sending unadjudicated citizens to foreign prisons? Not just immigrants, citizens Skud.
An administration that has no clue crashing the US economy and reputation world wide? How is this good for America Skud? An administration that has told veterans that when they have telehealth appointments, a necessity for many, that thier providers must tell them they no longer have a right to provacy or confidentiality for those appointments? Our vets Skud don't have a right to confidentiality? How is that good for America Skud? It's against the law.
But Trump and the GOP you and 78 million others voted in is okay with all that.
Was Biden a sleep at the wheel some? Yes, according to Whipple, he was. But also in the same book, Whipple says those same aides also walked in and saw literally on the phone with multiple world leaders at the same time, fully in command and aware of even the smallest details they were discussing.
I'll take that any day over Trump.
So David anyone who says biden was incompetent has to be wrong. I assume you are discrediting robert hur as well as all the other democrats who have stated biden was not capable of running the country.
As a country we are far better off letting the criminals roam the streets until their hearing comes, just ask Laken Riley's family. As to crashing the economy so it can be rebuilt and the administration can take credit for all those jobs, precedent has been set in 2021so at least we have an example to follow.
Leslie, how was Tibet?
Oh my stars you are dumb skud. Like full blown dyed in the cult dumb. Why do I call you dumb? Because you ignore everything that doesn't fit into your preconceived ideas of how the world works. You've been so bamboozled that you just can't face the fact so you ignore it. Your cognitive dissonance bill must be huge!
So, according to your comment to Dave Miller, you blame President Biden for the economy when he first took office, even though he had this punch list to clear thanks to the FOTUS:
1. Afghanistan withdrawal negotiated with a poison pill by the former POTUS to ensure limited friendly forces and empowered enemy who declared holy war on WeThePeople. (added note - yes, military folk died under Biden's watch and he was there to greet EVERY body returned. Where was FOTUS when the 4 killed in a training exercise were returned? AT A FREAKING GOLF DINNER WITH THE SAUDI'S - I'm yelling because I can already hear your whataboutism)
2. COVID response where there was a vaccine but no methods to get it to the people (coulda/woulda/shoulda not closed down the Pandemic response team when they first got into office, huh you FOTUS?)
3. Get the country opened up again after the FOTUS regime just willy nilly shut down everything
4. Address an economy that was in freefall due to the FOTUS crazy ideas of what makes an economy successful.
5. Respond to a country torn apart due to an insurrection led by an aspiring dictator
I know there is more items but my point is he dealt with all that, sleepy as you y'all called him and still stuck the landing, handing the FOTUS a fragile but stable economy (including lowering inflation) when he left office.
I know none of Biden's policies made you specifically rich beyond your wildest dreams but that's because you are greedy skud, a human who already has enough but still craves/demands the foods/monies meant for another.
I could put it another way but you get fussy.
As Shaw has said, we get it, you suffer from Biden Derangement Syndrome. Acknowledging you have a problem is the first step to recovery, just saying...
skudszy, How are your delusions?
Skud... once again, you've taken liberties with my statements and mistakenly imputed your views on them. My words are my words and they stand by themselves. There is no way anyone can look at what I wrote and get to what you wrote. At this point you are no better the Z at Geeez who calls ppl nasty and ugly when they quote facts she does not like, or disagrees with.
A more reasoned response would have been to ask for some clarification if what I wrote was not clear. But you've never done that. Because you're not here, nor apparently do you really care to read to learn, better yourself or to understand others.
For about the 20th time, I've said Biden had issues, was slipping and should not have run. My response was towards the Whipple book you referenced and cited, incorrectly, at least according to the writer himself.
Again, my question... Have you actually read the book or heard any long term interviews with the author?
Until you have, you're not qualified to cogently comment on it. Because you don't know his views, nor what is in the book.
Uninformed opinions are just that. Uninformed. And that is the best way to sum up the majority of what your comments are. Fact free, data free and uninformed.
I wish it were not so, we could use an informed conservative voice here.
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