Another day, another nickel! I am still feeling a little lost time wise since my mother passed. I know things will right themselves before too long, if no other reason than I have taxes to do for the end of April, and of course I still have my mother's estate to prepare. I am running into a few bumps in the road estate wise, but nothing I can't handle. The rest of the week is busy but I hope to be back with another OT.
Short Takes
YouTube — Last Week Tonight with John Oliver – World War Trump (HBO) March 15, 2017
The Atlantic — As it turns out, this was only a warm-up for the dual press conference the two leaders held later Friday afternoon, during which Merkel stood beside Trump as he ridiculed a German reporter, lied about his statements on his baseless conspiracy theory that President Obama surveilled him, and refused to back down on claims that have set off a diplomatic incident with the United Kingdom.
The fact that it might be a tense conversation was clear from the two leaders’ opening statements. Trump, during his, once again complained about the cost of NATO. “I reiterated to Chancellor Merkel my strong support for NATO as well as the need for our NATO allies to pay their fair share for the cost defense,” he said. “Many nations owe vast sums of money from past years and it is very unfair to the United States. These nations must pay what they owe.”
As for Merkel, she used her own statement to issue a veiled scolding for Trump, who previously said she was “ruining” Germany with a “catastrophic mistake” of an open-door refugee policy. “I've always said it's much, much better to talk to one another and not about one another, and I think our conversation proved this,” Merkel said. …
During the press conference, the American journalist Mark Halperin asked Merkel a question about whether she thought Trump’s “different style” than past president was good for the world. The chancellor gamely tried to answer.
“For Germany I can say, well people are different, people have different abilities, different traits of character, have different origins, have found their way into politics along different pathways,” she said through a translator. “Which, well, that is diversity, which is good! Sometimes it’s difficult to find compromises, but that’s what we’ve been elected for.”
The fact that Merkel had to work hard to say something diplomatic in response to such a softball question said a great deal about the press conference. But give the chancellor credit for effort—Trump didn’t even bother to try diplomacy.
Drumpf knows nothing of diplomacy. He is like the proverbial "bull in a china shop" and it is quite obvious that he doesn't care. The National Post ran an article in which it recorded the following,
President Donald Trump said Saturday that Germany owes "vast sums of money" to NATO and the U.S. "must be paid more" for providing defence, reiterating his stance that European allies need to end their part of the bargain if they are to continue benefiting from the military alliance."
It is quite clear that Drumpf does not know or understand the funding formula that was agreed upon in previous years. The NATO agreement was signed on 4 April 1949 and constitutes a system of collective defence whereby its member states agree to mutual defence in response to an attack by any external party. I probably know more about NATO than Drumpf does, and that can't be good. In the picture, this handshake is the most awkward looking handshake. Drumpf looks like a downright nasty beast.
msn.com (USA Today) — The Pleasant Run Elementary students had just won a robotics challenge at Plainfield High School, and the students — new to bot competition this year — were one step closer to the Vex IQ State Championship.
The team is made up of 9- and 10-year-olds. Two are African American and three are Latino.
As the group, called the Pleasant Run PantherBots, and their parents left the challenge last month in Plainfield, Ind., competing students from other Indianapolis-area schools and their parents were waiting for them in the parking lot.
“Go back to Mexico!” two or three kids screamed at their brown-skin peers and their parents, according to some who were there.
More despicable behaviour as a result of Drumpf's targeting of minorities. What well adjusted young people that are putting the hate behind them and enjoying the learning experience and the competition.
Washington Post — On the 60th day of his presidency came the hardest truth for Donald Trump.
He was wrong.
James B. Comey — the FBI director whom Trump celebrated on the campaign trail as a gutsy and honorable “Crooked Hillary” truth-teller — testified under oath Monday what many Americans had already assumed: Trump had falsely accused his predecessor of wiretapping his headquarters during last year’s campaign.
Trump did not merely allege that former president Barack Obama ordered surveillance on Trump Tower, of course. He asserted it as fact, and then reasserted it, and then insisted that forthcoming evidence would prove him right.
But in Monday’s remarkable, marathon hearing of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, Comey said there was no such evidence. Trump’s claim, first made in a series of tweets on March 4 at a moment when associates said he was feeling under siege and stewing over the struggles of his young presidency, remains unfounded.
Comey did not stop there. He confirmed publicly that the FBI was investigating possible collusion between Trump campaign officials and associates with Russia, part of an extraordinary effort by an adversary to influence the outcome of the 2016 U.S. election in Trump’s favor.
I'll bet that "He was wrong." was hard to swallow for narcissistic Drumpf! . . . or did he really hear and understand it? Will he demand Comey's resignation? Who knows. My bet says he will bring it up again. . . . and again . . . and again. He doesn't know when to quit! After all the Monday drama, in dire need of some adulation to feed his narcissistic soul, Drumpf headed out to Missouri for yet another rally that is nothing more than a love fest so his supporters thinking he is looking after them. Or should I say to fleece his flock?!
YouTube — The Most Telling Thing About the FBI’s Probe into Trump | The Resistance with Keith Olbermann | GQ
Keith hits it out of the park, doesn't he!
YouTube — The Only True Surprise? Trump’s an Idiot | The Resistance with Keith Olbermann | GQ
Another fine piece by Keith. "These people are idiots!" Truer words have not been spoken!
Resist and Persist!!!
My Universe — This gives new meaning to going postal!
5 Responses to “Squatch’s Open Thread 21 March 2017”
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Good luck with preparing your mother's estate and doing your taxes before April, Lynn. I had to do both about 3 years ago and it takes ages to get it all sorted. Something akin to the dreaded task, I suppose, only longer. The silver lining is that you didn't have to sell her house and clear a whole house out now too; you probably did all that when she went into a home a decade or more ago.
I couldn't view John Oliver's video.
TA & TNP: Why do people still expect "diplomacy" from Drumpf while it has been clear he has a very serious personality disorder which renders him incapable of an normal social discourse without making himself the center of it let alone relate to anyone on a diplomatic level. Drumpf is a sociopath, and while some sociopaths can seem diplomatic because they have mastered "life imitating charm" to the highest degree, Drumpf isn't even capable of being charming because of his overbearing egocentricity and his need to dominate. He couldn't dominate Merkel the way he did Abe – remember that handshake? – so he couldn't even be bothered to try and make eye contact with her or actually talk to her instead of at her.
His approach to NATO stems from that same warped view of the world. In his mind NATO isn't there to collectively provide the mutual defense of all its members, but to have America dictate what defense NATO should have and where, and for which 'the US "must be paid more" for providing defence'. To Drumpf NATO is just an extension of America's military and is to follow America, i.e. Drumpf, wherever he wants to go. And that easily could be into WW III if NATO was to comply.
MSN.Com: Despicable indeed, but also the aftermath of competitiveness and the need to win at all costs taken way too far. Bullying, intimidation, cheating, racism…anything is acceptable to win these days, and Drumpfism has taken it beyond the limits.
WP: Apparently what Comey had to say on the Trump Tower surveillance and on the investigation of possible collusion between Trump campaign officials and associates with Russia of it wasn't only hard to hear for Drumpf – who kept twittering his own "version" of what Comey said, i.e. his "truth". It was also hard for the Republicans in the Committee to hear, so the chose to ignore it as much as possible and kept hammering on "the dangerous leaks". There is no doubt in my mind that in the end report Comey's statements will have been either deleted or downplayed as not relevant to the case. And Drumpf: he already turned Comey's words into his altered reality and will now tell his followers that Comey has found proof of him being tapped by Obama. And they will believe him.
Keith Olbermann #48: Full House for Keith. But Keith is also right when he has Citizen Cane replaying in his head over and over again; Drumpf will need more than one lesson to learn from it. And in the meantime he will do everything to destroy Comey and Clapper, out of pettiness, not because that would make the outcome of the investigation any different. So everyone that knows himself linked to the Russians, including the GOP leaders, will do his utmost to bring the FBI and its investigation to a halt and try to bury the findings and the evidence as deep as they possibly can. I hope all investigative journalist are prepared to look into this too. Because at this point in time, Republicans can not afford to impeach Drumpf. Only an independent committee can and will do so.
RESIST & PERSIST!
My Universe: Those poor kitties – and doggies too – they're going to get really bored with the internet taking over and mail going obsolete soon.
Merkel Ruled!
Loved her reproving side-eye at their joint press conference when Twitler tried to rope her in to his "tapped wires" lie …
And another great facial when she was seated next to Ivanka at some meetikng:
You can just see Merkel's "Thought Bubble":
"What's a handbag designer doing at this meeting?"
(It was from a Tweet – but they don't display in Comments)
I was fortunate that my Mom's final taxes turned out to be extremely simple. The estate – yes, that took longer. I was named executor in the will, but I still needed to get an appointment document from the probate court in my county. I made a gazillion copies, and probably still have some. I never knew when I was going to need one. Otherwise it wasn't too bad.
YouTube – Sorry, it's gone already.
Atlantic – Frankly, that doesn't even look like Trump in the picture so much as it looks like Alec Baldwin. Who TRIES to look obnoxious (and succeeds).
USAToday – If those MFing "white" people were so GD superior, they would have won the contest. Proving my point that it's only inferior people who have the desperate need to feel "superior." (I'll go get a forklift now to pick up the foam from my mouth.)
WaPo – If he were capable of hearing that he was wrong, he wouldn't be making things up as if he were on LSD.
Keith #48 – "He would flee the country." What he needs to flee is the earth, or maybe the universe, and technology isn't quite there yet (and, if it were, he would likely be followed.) http://www.dailykos.com/story/2017/03/16/1640769/-Why-Trump-won-t-quit-He-can-t
Keith #49 – I can't imagine why Keith thinks that "Trump is an idiot" is a "surprise." Well, he probably knows it's no surprise, except to the Salmon Stalin's supporters, and not really to them either, because they don't really believe it yet.
Thanks Squatch. There's that ditch again. Why don't you wait until Keith's are 2-3 days old so we can stop doing this, OK?
Normally I would, but with you sick, I wasn't sure if you were going to post or not so I took a chance. I lost that bet. Sorry.