A Political Thread pt. 2

[dirty harry]

I work in private practice law in investment funds and it is quiet aa anything right now. I would guess the fund managers are scrambling and a freeze on new projects amd products has been implemented across the board.

Funds by their nature are global and we regularly have EMEA, US, Asian and Australian products established in Ireland so this isn't isolated to the EU.

A superpower never goes down without a fight and in trying to find a reasoning for this I think Trump and co are trying to get ahead of this fight. Whether it's an underestimation of the rest of the world's ability to diversify or an overestimation of themselves I really don't see how this works for them, they're playing into China's hands.

I was surprised to see the strength of China's response, they tend to plan in centuries and not short terms, with an inward approach first but I imagine it's quite calculated.

I have always wanted to go in house in any case but might expedite this if I can. Ireland isn't currently a great jurisdiction for Chinese products, hard to tell if it ever could be either, so getting into a shop with exposure to the UK, Lux and/or Switzerland would be timely in the next few years.

That's a great point about China being reactionary. It's hard to believe they hadn't pre planned for this, Trump tried it with them in term 1, and Biden then failed to out manoeuvre them. To see them sat at the poker table screaming 'raise you 50%' is very unlike them...

 

[Welsh Exile]

This has been my point from the very start, MAGA cultists and those with TDS are both sides of the same coin.

Both use falsehoods, manipulated facts and lies to win for their team, as proved here on numerous occasions.

Maybe if we all recognise this we can be a bit more rational?

But TDS is a load of old cobblers bud. TDS are the cultists, they project their own craziness onto people that have the audacity to point out the unhinged stuff Trump says and does.

 

[Leonormous Boozer]

That's a great point about China being reactionary. It's hard to believe they hadn't pre planned for this, Trump tried it with them in term 1, and Biden then failed to out manoeuvre them. To see them sat at the poker table screaming 'raise you 50%' is very unlike them...

China are far closer to self suficiency than the US, they can take the hit from this. I think it's just them being opportunistic.

Trump has misidentified the EU as a major issue and his hate has blinded him I think. It's an ally he should want. He's getting pally with Putin who's in Xi's pocket which is mindblowingly stupid. He's actively pushing a major economy which the US benefits from massively towards China.

The aggressive military approach made semse to me, this just strikes me as stupid and petty.

 

[dirty harry]

But TDS is a load of old cobblers bud. TDS are the cultists, they project their own craziness onto people that have the audacity to point out the unhinged stuff Trump says and does.

So do you believe Alrums constant barrage daily, of anti Trump links a sane and rational action? Some of them are legit, sadly some are laughably biased, but every day, without fail, over and over...

I use TDS tongue in cheek lol, but the fact you guys believe any of this constant drone of 'Trump bad' is anything other than obsessive is beyond me.

There have been categorical lies and mistruths pointed out, but a refusal to acknowledge that...

Let's look at a specific, the idea Trump is a moron.

The stance by this thread is that Trump is a moron who inherited, bullied or failed his way to billions of dollars in net worth, a number of successful companies, and being elected to the office of president of the USA twice. So let's say a what 70 IQ? Below average but not debilitating.

My stance is that Trump cannot be a moronic low IQ buffoon, based on the achievements above, his education level, his abilities in business, politics, the media and culturally. I'm not claiming he's a genius like he does, I'm not claiming he is better than you guys, I'm just claiming that he can't be what you claim.

At least MAGA nuts acknowledge some of his failings, they just don't care about them lol

 

[Bada-Bing!]

lol I saw TDS and couldn't figure out what it stood for. Googled it and it came up with Tax Deducted at source. Me with my tax brain on went oh right . Still it didn't make sense so googled it again. This time it twigged.

 

[dirty harry]

China are far closer to self suficiency than the US, they can take the hit from this. I think it's just them being opportunistic.

Trump has misidentified the EU as a major issue and his hate has blinded him I think. It's an ally he should want. He's getting pally with Putin who's in Xi's pocket which is mindblowingly stupid. He's actively pushing a major economy which the US benefits from massively towards China.

The aggressive military approach made semse to me, this just strikes me as stupid and petty.

It's interesting, I read an article recently about the production potential of China and how they have surpassed the USA, so even though the US has the military might currently, if war broke out the longer it went on for the better for China.

In the same article it discussed self reliance, the down side of this big industrial push is the massive food issues it has created. China used to be 90% self sufficient for food in 2000, but has dropped to 68% in 2020 and still dropping (not exact figures obviously).

This is a huge issue for China, and one they can't compete with the US on... unless they develop new stronger relations, like Latin America and Africa.

The EU could very well use this as a tool, and of course this does rely on a population being able to pressure its government to act, and if the PRC actually cares about feeding the entire population.

I find the self reliance issue interesting, and the jostling it creates between trade regions. With this in mind I think it's not as easy to say China is closer to self reliance than the USA, but they certainly hold certain materials to their advantage, and they have the potential to leverage others in their favour, like opening food negotiations with the EU. Especially as Von der leven recently said she wanted to negotiate with Trump but we're making contingencies, I mean the strength of her negotiation with Trump will depend on the contingency she has.

I'm not sure if it's Trump blindly following the economists advising him, over playing his hand, or whether this tarriff armageddon will reestablish the dollar as the global currency, I'm not an economist or mystic, but it's becoming more clear that if globalisation wants to continue, a lot of nations are going to have to hold his feet to the flames and say 'what now?'

This is why I was disappointed in the weak leaders scrambling to get to him first.

 

[Welsh Exile]

So do you believe Alrums constant barrage daily, of anti Trump links a sane and rational action? Some of them are legit, sadly some are laughably biased, but every day, without fail, over and over...

I use TDS tongue in cheek lol, but the fact you guys believe any of this constant drone of 'Trump bad' is anything other than obsessive is beyond me.

There have been categorical lies and mistruths pointed out, but a refusal to acknowledge that...

Let's look at a specific, the idea Trump is a moron.

The stance by this thread is that Trump is a moron who inherited, bullied or failed his way to billions of dollars in net worth, a number of successful companies, and being elected to the office of president of the USA twice. So let's say a what 70 IQ? Below average but not debilitating.

My stance is that Trump cannot be a moronic low IQ buffoon, based on the achievements above, his education level, his abilities in business, politics, the media and culturally. I'm not claiming he's a genius like he does, I'm not claiming he is better than you guys, I'm just claiming that he can't be what you claim.

At least MAGA nuts acknowledge some of his failings, they just don't care about them lol

Look, whether Trump is a moron or not really isn't important. It ultimately comes down to how you define moron which is subjective really so pretty pointless. Id maintain, when looking at the wider context that this guy is POTUS, that he is a moron. My evidence would be listen to him speak every time he opens his mouth. For example, I don't think he actually knows what a tariff is if you asked him. I think he probably has a reading age of a 10 year old and his comprehension skills are pretty basic too. But as I say, this isn't important.

TDS is a term created, and used, by the cultists to shoot down any valid criticism of Trump. He is a uniquely bad individual (by presidential terms) who warrants the extensive and thorough criticism he sometimes, but nowhere near enough, receives. He literally engaged in a fake elector plot and instigated an insurrection to overturn an election. He calls for political opponents and people in the media who criticise him to be prosecuted. He trashes long standing global partnerships and commits acts of war against its neighbours all the while cosying up to our enemies. He's a compulsive liar and an authoritarian. That's the important stuff, not whether he meets anyone's criteria for moron or not.

As Sam Harris said in a video I posted on this thread, the goal of these lies he tells isn't to get people to believe the falsehoods as they're so transparent. It's to get people, kind of like you actually, to believe in nothing. Claim epistemological bankruptcy and keep your head down and don't question things seriously coz, you know, who knows what's going on, right? WelI I say **** that **** and call out and fight against the unhinged stiff we're seeing as much as possible.

 

[ChicagoKid]

L

Look, whether Trump is a moron or not really isn't important. It ultimately comes down to how you define moron which is subjective really so pretty pointless. Id maintain, when looking at the wider context that this guy is POTUS, that he is a moron. My evidence would be listen to him speak every time he opens his mouth. For example, I don't think he actually knows what a tariff is if you asked him. I think he probably has a reading age of a 10 year old and his comprehension skills are pretty basic too. But as I say, this isn't important.

TDS is a term created, and used, by the cultists to shoot down any valid criticism of Trump. He is a uniquely bad individual (by presidential terms) who warrants the extensive and thorough criticism he sometimes, but nowhere near enough, receives. He literally engaged in a fake elector plot and instigated an insurrection to overturn an election. He calls for political opponents and people in the media who criticise him to be prosecuted. He trashes long standing global partnerships and commits acts of war against its neighbours all the while cosying up to our enemies. He's a compulsive liar and an authoritarian. That's the important stuff, not whether he meets anyone's criteria for moron or not.

As Sam Harris said in a video I posted on this thread, the goal of these lies he tells isn't to get people to believe the falsehoods as they're so transparent. It's to get people, kind of like you actually, to believe in nothing. Claim epistemological bankruptcy and keep your head down and don't question things seriously coz, you know, who knows what's going on right? We'll I say **** that **** and call out and fight against the unhinged stiff we're seeing as much as possible.

Sam Harris is not a serious thinker, particularly in the realm of politics. His inability to articulate his belief system against Jordan Peterson proved he is no Christopher Hitchens.

On a broader point, this board is like a time machine to America circa 2019-2022. These discussions have been had, and we have collectively moved on to bigger topics.

There are so many interesting thinkers on the left and right arguing about today's problems, and all I see here is click-bait noise from irrelevant sources. All the interesting voices have migrated to Substack, yet I never seen a Substack post linked here. There are like 10 new independent voices that have emerged in the last 5 years, and I have never seen them posted a single time.

Again, y'all are years behind what's happening on the ground. You are fighting the last war.

 

[Welsh Exile]

L

Sam Harris is not a serious thinker, particularly in the realm of politics. His inability to articulate his belief system against Jordan Peterson proved he is no Christopher Hitchens.

On a broader point, this board is like a time machine to America circa 2019-2022. These discussions have been had, and we have collectively moved on to bigger topics.

There are so many interesting thinkers on the left and right arguing about today's problems, and all I see here is click-bait noise from irrelevant sources. All the interesting voices have migrated to Substack, yet I never seen a Substack post linked here. There are like 10 new independent voices that have emerged in the last 5 years, and I have never seen them posted a single time.

Again, y'all are years behind what's happening on the ground. You are fighting the last war.

Jordan Peterson the grifter you mean? Ok.

 

[ChicagoKid]

Jordan Peterson the grifter you mean? Ok.

If Peterson is a grifter, what does that make Harris?

 

[ChicagoKid]

Here's an interesting discussion on the current crisis facing the Democratic Party:

https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2025/03/26/trende_do_democrats_need_to_choose_between_identity_and_class.html

Great piece from America's foremost right-wing writer on the institutional problems Republicans face:

Opinion | Amy Coney Barrett and the Right’s Elite-Building Problem

MAGA can’t run a regime change on its own.

www.nytimes.com

A thought-provoking piece on meaning and conscious consumption from a longtime cultural observer:

Turns Out That People Care More About Job Security and Purpose Than They Care About Great Deals at Walmart

you can't buy off people's desire for economic stability with iPads

freddiedeboer.substack.com

The meaning of place & masculinity in an increasingly feminine society.

The Hero and other Cultural Characters

We all need a valued role to play, but men really need it.

walkingtheworld.substack.com

 

[McTallshort]

L

Sam Harris is not a serious thinker, particularly in the realm of politics. His inability to articulate his belief system against Jordan Peterson proved he is no Christopher Hitchens.

On a broader point, this board is like a time machine to America circa 2019-2022. These discussions have been had, and we have collectively moved on to bigger topics.

There are so many interesting thinkers on the left and right arguing about today's problems, and all I see here is click-bait noise from irrelevant sources. All the interesting voices have migrated to Substack, yet I never seen a Substack post linked here. There are like 10 new independent voices that have emerged in the last 5 years, and I have never seen them posted a single time.

Again, y'all are years behind what's happening on the ground. You are fighting the last war.

Yeah, if you disagree attack the source.

 

[Welsh Exile]

If Peterson is a grifter, what does that make Harris?

I've only seen one 2 hour debate with Harris and Peterson and it was pretty embarrassing for Peterson to be fair but I don't think he believes half the **** he says to be honest. I don't have those doubts about Harris even when I disagree with him.

 

[ChicagoKid]

Yeah, if you disagree attack the source.

Again, Sam Harris, The Guardian, 538, Economist, James O'Brien, The View, WSJ Editorial board, these people/sources have been wildly wrong for a decade, and yet people act like they have credibility. They do not.

Stop acting like you understand America. You do not. I gave you 4 interesting thinkers on the left & right. I haven't seen a single Substack post linked here. How is that possible?!

This board is worse than wrong, it's boring. It's the equivalent of this board debating the nuances of Breaking Bad or The Sopranos. Collectively, our culture has moved on. Watch Severance. Get up to speed. Stop fighting old wars.

 

[Welsh Exile]

Again, Sam Harris, The Guardian, 538, Economist, James O'Brien, The View, WSJ Editorial board, these people/sources have been wildly wrong for a decade, and yet people act like they have credibility. They do not.

Stop acting like you understand America. You do not. I gave you 4 interesting thinkers on the left & right. I haven't seen a single Substack post linked here. How is that possible?!

This board is worse than wrong, it's boring. It's the equivalent of this board debating the nuances of Breaking Bad or The Sopranos. Collectively, our culture has moved on. Watch Severance. Get up to speed. Stop fighting old wars.

Anyone that even dared to put Breaking Bad in the same universe as Sopranos needs shooting.

 

[ChicagoKid]

@Sour Patch Kid Do you feel the same way?

Anyone that even dared to put Breaking Bad in the same universe as Sopranos needs shooting.

Breaking Bad has better supporting actors. Gandolfini carried the Sopranos.

 

[ChicagoKid]

Here's an interesting discussion on the current crisis facing the Democratic Party:

https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2025/03/26/trende_do_democrats_need_to_choose_between_identity_and_class.html

Great piece from America's foremost right-wing writer on the institutional problems Republicans face:

Opinion | Amy Coney Barrett and the Right’s Elite-Building Problem

MAGA can’t run a regime change on its own.

www.nytimes.com

A thought-provoking piece on meaning and conscious consumption from a longtime cultural observer:

Turns Out That People Care More About Job Security and Purpose Than They Care About Great Deals at Walmart

you can't buy off people's desire for economic stability with iPads

freddiedeboer.substack.com

The meaning of place & masculinity in an increasingly feminine society.

The Hero and other Cultural Characters

We all need a valued role to play, but men really need it.

walkingtheworld.substack.com

I want thoughts on these pieces from this board. I do not empty calories from @AlRums.

What are your thoughts? What do you think about yesterday's 5-4 Supreme Court ruling on the Aliens & Sedition Act? What do you think of Republicans finally copying the Left's playbook to use top-down executive power to influence culture, instead of bottom-up?

 

[ncurd]

James O'Brien wildly wrong?

One of the few voices in British media they constantly and consistently pointed out the many documented failings of Brexit?

I get he's not people cup of tea but her guy has been constantly vindicated for his views.

 

[Welsh Exile]

@Sour Patch Kid Do you feel the same way?

Breaking Bad has better supporting actors. Gandolfini carried the Sopranos.

This is an outrageous comment. Worse than any of you MAGA ones.

 

[McTallshort]

Again, Sam Harris, The Guardian, 538, Economist, James O'Brien, The View, WSJ Editorial board, these people/sources have been wildly wrong for a decade, and yet people act like they have credibility. They do not.

Stop acting like you understand America. You do not. I gave you 4 interesting thinkers on the left & right. I haven't seen a single Substack post linked here. How is that possible?!

This board is worse than wrong, it's boring. It's the equivalent of this board debating the nuances of Breaking Bad or The Sopranos. Collectively, our culture has moved on. Watch Severance. Get up to speed. Stop fighting old wars.

I never said I understand America. How is it a population gloats because it's president is trying to crash it's economy is beyond my understanding. How people in the richest country in the world can play the victim is also beyond my understanding. I don't get it and to be honest I think you are grabbing at things to justify your vote. This has nothing to do with left and right. What is happening now isn't what any other republican president had done since the 2nd world war. You voted in a president who under the guise of fentanyl has used emergency powers to undermine your constitution but also crash your (and the worlds) economy. Listening to people you agree with on substack or posting articles about the democrats is not going to change that. The democrats are not crashing your economy, Sam Harris isn't undermining your legal system, James O'Brien isn't threatening to annex Canada and Greenland, the Guardian isn't failing to get a cease fire in Israel and Ukraine that's all on Trump. The person you want as your leader.