[Oldmanmatt]

Hell in a hand cart:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2017/02/20/oil-price-recovery-vulnerable-us-shale-confounds-opec/

Something's going on in the world today, either by coincidence or design and it  is dancing along the edge of the catastrophe curve...


All posts either sarcastic, tongue-in-cheek or mildly mocking-in-a-friendly-way unless otherwise stated. I always forget to put those smiley things...

[Fultonius]

For a minute I thought the link implied the oil price was up...  I know Trump wants to "bring production home" but if U. S. shale oil costs $70/bbl to produce, and the worldwide oil price is <$50/bbl, how does Trump plan to square that? That amounts to huge state subsidy. Surely he isn't going to advocate banning imports?

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[Oldmanmatt]

This is quite amusing...

http://www.thepoke.co.uk/2017/02/23/slow-donald-trump-bit-real-old-drunk-man-ranting-bar-3am-feel/


All posts either sarcastic, tongue-in-cheek or mildly mocking-in-a-friendly-way unless otherwise stated. I always forget to put those smiley things...

[Andy F]

Someone has been handing out Russian flags with Trumps name on a the CPAC. Most of the delegates happily waved them not realising what they were... 

[fried]

Ol, give us a link!

[Andy F]

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/donald-trump-cpac-russian-flags-speech-republicans-support-president-latest-a7598276.html

[fried]

  Small mercies

[Oldmanmatt]

Dark.
Very dark:

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/white-house-blocks-news-outlets-from-media-briefing-a7598641.html


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[mrjonathanr]

I think the WH thinks the media are easily distracted by their favourite topic- themselves.

Surely it's an attempt to drag the news away from this:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/feb/25/trump-russia-fbi-white-house-priebus

[Oldmanmatt]

Even his own party are turning against him now.

Mainly because he's talking about spending money, but still...

http://www.theamericanconservative.com/larison/throwing-more-money-at-the-military-is-a-waste/


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[remus]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-39167110

Baby throws his toys out of the pram again.

[Oldmanmatt]

Yes, with the most incredible part being that by admitting he was under investigation (which cannot be instigated by a sitting POTUS); he is admitting that a Federal Judge found probable cause to issue the warrant based on evidence that criminal activity was likely...


All posts either sarcastic, tongue-in-cheek or mildly mocking-in-a-friendly-way unless otherwise stated. I always forget to put those smiley things...

[andy popp]

Yes, with the most incredible part being that by admitting he was under investigation (which cannot be instigated by a sitting POTUS); he is admitting that a Federal Judge found probable cause to issue the warrant based on evidence that criminal activity was likely...

That's assuming he understands the implications as you lay them out (correctly). The reality is that the President of the United States was lying awake in bed at 5am, reading Breitbart and fiddling with his phone.

[Oldmanmatt]

Yes, with the most incredible part being that by admitting he was under investigation (which cannot be instigated by a sitting POTUS); he is admitting that a Federal Judge found probable cause to issue the warrant based on evidence that criminal activity was likely...

That's assuming he understands the implications as you lay them out (correctly). The reality is that the President of the United States was lying awake in bed at 5am, reading Breitbart and fiddling with his phone.

With one hand.

I think we can all guess what the other hand was doing...

[tomtom]

 Small hand...

[moose]

What amazes and saddens me is how we're becoming gradually innured to the stupidity and recklessness Trump's behaviour.  I had faint hope (which seems ridicuous now) that his more vulgar aspects were more "persona" than actual personality, and that he would be more dignified once in office - or at least be cautious enough to exercise some restraint, or be held in check by his advisers. 

Instead, if anything, the rate at which he makes unfounded accusations and issues patent lies has accelerated.  And, the worrying thing, is that the prevailing mood seems to be resignation, rather than outrage.

A minor example - he took a break from ruling the most powerful nation on Earth to troll Arnold Schwarzenegger on twitter about his poor ratings for The Apprentice.  It's triffling compared to some of his other recent statements (e.g. accusing Obama of wire-tapping) but when you think about it, it's insanely unPresidential behaviour.  It's like finding out that Abe Lincoln had a row with Mark Twain and then self-publicised that he put a dog turd through his letterbox.

[Oldmanmatt]

What amazes and saddens me is how we're becoming gradually innured to the stupidity and recklessness Trump's behaviour.  I had faint hope (which seems ridicuous now) that his more vulgar aspects were more "persona" than actual personality, and that he would be more dignified once in office - or at least be cautious enough to exercise some restraint, or be held in check by his advisers. 

Instead, if anything, the rate at which he makes unfounded accusations and issues patent lies has accelerated.  And, the worrying thing, is that the prevailing mood seems to be resignation, rather than outrage.

A minor example - he took a break from ruling the most powerful nation on Earth to troll Arnold Schwarzenegger on twitter about his poor ratings for The Apprentice.  It's triffling compared to some of his other recent statements (e.g. accusing Obama of wire-tapping) but when you think about it, it's insanely unPresidential behaviour.  It's like finding out that Abe Lincoln had a row with Mark Twain and then self-publicised that he put a dog turd through his letterbox.

I think you should find a way of sharing those few words with a much wider audience.
It sums up all the dangers and the sneaking terror of this "man" and his potential to (quite literally) destroy the world.

https://www.indy100.com/article/twitter-anecdote-donald-trump-7612076


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[andy popp]

And, the worrying thing, is that the prevailing mood seems to be resignation, rather than outrage.

This is n'tthe case, at least from where I'm standing - in a mid-size city in south-east Pennsylvania that voted Clinton but is surrounded by rural counties that voted Trump (as did the state, narrowly). All our friends are liberal but its impossible not to interact with people who aren't (like our cab driver the other night) - in other words we probably live in a bit of a bubble but are far from completely insulated.

Certainly there are plenty who through ignorance, ideology or desperation are happy with him. We spent a couple of hours yesterday afternoon in a small town about 25 miles and a whole world away: many signs of abject poverty and of Trump support. These people are not going to be outraged, they don't care. But in a bar nearer home later on the table next door (a father and two adult sons) were having a passionate discussion that we got sucked into - the father was Polish-American (generally a very conservative group) and owned a well-known local construction company, the sons both educated to Masters level - in other words, immigrants made good: they described themselves variously as distraught, outraged, angry. Likewise the blue collar union organiser father of my stepdaughter's best friend. The outrage remains palpable, possibly even getting stronger these last few days.

What I think we've seen happening the last few days is the press really beginning to do its job. They (and the security services) are royally pissed off and I think they scent blood. That would describe the mood I'm sensing right now. I don't expect that to slacken any time soon.

[remus]

What I think we've seen happening the last few days is the press really beginning to do its job. They (and the security services) are royally pissed off and I think they scent blood. That would describe the mood I'm sensing right now. I don't expect that to slacken any time soon.

I am quite enjoying this part of the whole charade. You'd have thought someone in Trump's position would have been a little more tactful (i.e. tried to make a few friends before making too many enemies), but now he's pissed off a big chunk of the press and security services Im interested to watch them retaliate.

[Oldmanmatt]

And there's the problem...

His base already think the Security Services and the Media are the enemy. A large number of them actively wish for civil war, they parade around in Cammo and form Militias.
Many of the others sit in their mothers basement, inventing conspiracies and publishing their delusions far and wide.
Some of the later are quite wealthy and distressingly powerful.

Now add to that the religious dicks.

If the population were "normal" this would be over already. The sheer number of total fruitloops, infesting the US; is staggering and they've found a hero.

[andy popp]

It is important not to over estimate that which you describe as his base. Trump claims to have built a movement the like of which has never been seen before - this is simply not true (he lost the popular vote on a very low turnout). In Pennsylvania, and many other states, he won, in essence, because of people not voting for Hillary. Some prior democrats did turn out to vote for him, as they did for Reagan in the 1980s, but many more stayed home (why is another debate). Those who did vote for him did so for a very wide range of reasons - the white nationalists etc. are a minority. The cab driver we had a conversation with last week voted Trump because he sincerely felt things needed "shaking up" (a point I'd concede), others, like those we saw in the town of Wind Gap yesterday, are simply desperate (understandably - there are many losers in modern America), a friend's aged father voted Trump, despite being disgusted with the man, because he views voting as a civic duty and is a life-long, tribal Republican. He is not being kept in power by overwhelming popular support (100 turned out at a pro-Trump rally in NYC yesterday, we got at least 400 out in a small local town at very short notice after the travel ban executive order). He was elected not by a movement but by a coalition that is disparate and riddled with contradictions and conflicts of interest. It is potentially weak. Similarly, his administration is not a coherent unit; it comprises at least three potentially warring elements: Trump himself; a small cadre of ideologues around him (Bannon, Miller etc.), and the GOP. This coalition too is under some stress currently.

[dave]

Small hand...

Might explain why he thinks he's got a big dick.

[Oldmanmatt]

https://www.indy100.com/article/pro-donald-trump-rally-america-obama-wiretap-supporters-steve-bannon-7612081

Corroboration of your point.

It's the potential of those I mentioned to be disproportionately loud (and by loud I mean violent), that would worry me.

Oklahoma repeat?
It only takes one.

[Oldmanmatt]

JFCOAB The bloke is a penis:

http://abcnews.go.com/US/tweetstorm-trump-exercised-exclusive-declassification-authority/story?id=45912824

[andy popp]

https://www.indy100.com/article/pro-donald-trump-rally-america-obama-wiretap-supporters-steve-bannon-7612081

Corroboration of your point.

It's the potential of those I mentioned to be disproportionately loud (and by loud I mean violent), that would worry me.

Certainly they are loud, which is why it is so important to resist these narratives about there being a "movement."