A Commentary on the Passing Scene by
Robert Paul Wolff
rwolff@afroam.umass.edu
Friday, June 21, 2019
THIS IS SCARY
My son, Patrick, sent me this link to a column I had missed. This is genuinely frightening. Hardly peculiar to Trump, of course. There has not been a president in my lifetime save Carter whose hands are clean in this matter.
Woah. I read something about "Trump is the reason we are not already at war with Iran." Something about all his aides wanting war, but he doesn't. And that quote today seemed actually reasonable. This changes all of that. Also makes me feel weird for thinking for a second that Trump might not be the worst thing ever and that maybe I'm just ideologically compromised in my utter hatred of him. Got me again, Don.
Trump's onion (as in the The Bothers Karamazov) If there is anything that is going to get Trump into heaven given his despicable life it is his reported decision NOT to sanction a military strike involving 150 deaths. It seems he is not totally dead to human (and indeed humane) feeling after all.
Every war-averse politico & commentator should be praising him for this, not only to give credit where credit is due but because it will hopefully reinforce such behaviour, making him less prone to reckless military strikes in future. Given his avidity for praise this might actually have an effect. (They should also point out that Bolton's moustache hasn't gotten any less stupid-looking over the years.)
Even God got some things right. To use D & D jargon, the man when not chaotic evil, is chaotic neutral, but no sane person will let him getaway with chaotic good- everything he does is either deranged or for the greater glory of Trump and the Trump brand- don't feed his ego for Pete's sake, it will backfire- it is enough of a fiery shell as it is- and even granted the point he did something good it is not on principle and it will last as long as his attention span
I'm persuaded by David Ignatius's column--don't credit Trump with being a humanitarian who worries about 150 foreign (Muslim to boot) lives. He doesn't worry about foreigners dying; see, e.g., the Southern border. This is a strategic game he's playing and apparently is playing it very well.
He may be doing the same thing with regard to tomorrow's once-planned ICE raids. Now he says he's putting them off. He may be lying, just to get people to relax and stay at home rather than go somewhere else tomorrow so they wouldn't be home when ICE arrived. Or maybe he's just tormenting them and will crank ICE up again when the mood strikes him. No matter what, I don't think there's a kind, human, humanitarian bone in his body. He is, by any measure I can think of, a despicable human being.
Woah. I read something about "Trump is the reason we are not already at war with Iran." Something about all his aides wanting war, but he doesn't. And that quote today seemed actually reasonable. This changes all of that. Also makes me feel weird for thinking for a second that Trump might not be the worst thing ever and that maybe I'm just ideologically compromised in my utter hatred of him. Got me again, Don.
ReplyDeleteSonic, did you read this?
ReplyDeletehttps://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/21/us/politics/trump-iran-attack.html
Trump has been anti interventionist for decades, so it wouldn't surprise me if for once he's the only RELATIVELY sane person in an insane war room.
(he's still cognitively impaired...)
Trump's onion (as in the The Bothers Karamazov)
ReplyDeleteIf there is anything that is going to get Trump into heaven given his despicable life it is his reported decision NOT to sanction a military strike involving 150 deaths. It seems he is not totally dead to human (and indeed humane) feeling after all.
Every war-averse politico & commentator should be praising him for this, not only to give credit where credit is due but because it will hopefully reinforce such behaviour, making him less prone to reckless military strikes in future. Given his avidity for praise this might actually have an effect. (They should also point out that Bolton's moustache hasn't gotten any less stupid-looking over the years.)
Even God got some things right. To use D & D jargon, the man when not chaotic evil, is chaotic neutral, but no sane person will let him getaway with chaotic good- everything he does is either deranged or for the greater glory of Trump and the Trump brand- don't feed his ego for Pete's sake, it will backfire- it is enough of a fiery shell as it is- and even granted the point he did something good it is not on principle and it will last as long as his attention span
ReplyDeleteI'm persuaded by David Ignatius's column--don't credit Trump with being a humanitarian who worries about 150 foreign (Muslim to boot) lives. He doesn't worry about foreigners dying; see, e.g., the Southern border. This is a strategic game he's playing and apparently is playing it very well.
ReplyDeleteHe may be doing the same thing with regard to tomorrow's once-planned ICE raids. Now he says he's putting them off. He may be lying, just to get people to relax and stay at home rather than go somewhere else tomorrow so they wouldn't be home when ICE arrived. Or maybe he's just tormenting them and will crank ICE up again when the mood strikes him. No matter what, I don't think there's a kind, human, humanitarian bone in his body. He is, by any measure I can think of, a despicable human being.
Seems I was wrong. Trump was lying his head off as usual.
ReplyDelete