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The fact that the "We the People" of the United States just sit back and shrug as this idiot fucks one thing after another up is fucking nuts.
I've tried to embrace existentialism in most parts of my life, but when it comes to American politics, the very best I can do is absurdism. The whole system of capitalist republican oligarchy has proven to be joke.
Go tell the families of Renee and Alex that all Americans "sit back and shrug".
The ignorance of people saying things like this is astonishing. You all need to be more embarrassed both by how wrong this is, and you're lack of entry-level understanding of what's going on right now in the United States.
Sadly, 1/3 of the country continues to actually support the current administration and at least another 1/3 seems to be completely uncaring and ambivalent about the fact that we are allowing a literal detained lunatic to sleepwalk us into fasism, corporate oligarchy, economic uncertainty, war and global chaos.
There are people out there protesting and doing the right thing, but there are still far too many people who don't seem to give a damn and nobody in any position of even remote power seems willing to do anything meaningful to correct course.
So we wait for the next election in November to see what, if anything, happens next. But we're still being ruled by the unchecked whims of a madman.
And the other 1/3's best solution is to elect the blue team who did little to nothing to avoid this very obvious outcome. Even helped here and there. Though the rigged popularity contest doesn't offer alternatives.
And the people protesting are doing it American style, where it looks more like a weekend festival at the park. This is, of course, how they were taught to do it. The people in charge can tune that out entirely.
Face it, we need changes bigger than most people understand and harder than practically anyone wants to do to alter course now. Maybe, big maybe, when Trump dies the MAGA spell will be broken on the most moronic 1/3 and they'll fragment back to religious infighting, cousin banging, wrastlin', and whatever else was keeping them disjoined before. Otherwise, outlook grim.
You're not wrong. We need to get together as a united front and... well, there's the problem. Look at any protest or effort, big or small, and you'll see how it's snuffed out in various ways because the system is designed to prevent that, and to keep people from being focused on a single cause together. It's our fault. No doubt there. But it's also a situation that prevents anything from changing without full solidarity.
Note: this is not an excuse. It's a reason.
All the not-Republicans need to pick a leader. Now not later.
What a fucking clown show
Blowzo’s Circus is on the air!
Hope everyone is ready for tens of millions of people to starve to death next year.
Modern agriculture needs fertilizer.
Something like 1/4 of the world's fertilizer currently isn't moving through the Strait.
Trump and Bibi are going for all time mass murder high scores.
Honestly, I don't see how this outcome can be avoided without Trump dying, one way or another... he is literally too much of a demented, senile, petulant man baby to do anything other than throw temper tantrums and demand praise.
He's predictably unable to admit an actual mistake, allow an insult to his ego.
JD on the other hand is proving to be an actually more competent fascist, and is currently laying the groundwork for media-spinning Israel as an out of control, ungrateful ally, to the MAGA base.
You know, basically the same shit he's done with Ukraine, NATO, etc.
If Trump can be prevented from publically existing, saying things... President Vance at least probably could figure out how to reorient the situation into...
'yep uh sure we uh, yep, mission accomplished, god rest Trump's soul, his final amazing plan was in fact awesome, so awesome that its done now, now its time to come home. but! israel is not satisfied with the glorious victory of dear leader trump, and now threatens to undermine the hard fought and well won new foundations of peace and stability in the region, so we must now ask ourselves, as Americans... of what benefit is continued conflict?'
Something like that. He's slimy enough and well composed enough that he could sell something like that.
But its almost certainly impossible to do this if Trump is still alive / allowed to make basically any decisions and also say things outloud.
Like really, this is pretty much Soviet era inner party politics around the time of Stalin's death.
EDIT:
And, seemingly on cue, to help further my argument...
Some hours after I made this comment originally, Vance and Kushner are in Switzerland, at the 'peace summit'... and Trump makes some comments about how the Iranian delegation better 'shape up', or they 'won't even fucking making it back home'.
Yep, international peace summit in the world famous neutral zone of Switerzland, and Trump is threatening to assasinate the Iranian delegation.
In response to this, the Iranian delegation reportedly left the premises of the building the negoations were taking place at, in protest.
So uh yeah... yep... pretty sure Trump needs to die, as a prerequisite for any possible actual end to this entire situation.
Well he doesn't have to die. He just has to be removed from power. I think we're not too far from that.
At the very latest a month after the midterm elections unless he can successfully pull off his coup, he'll be done. If he doesn't retire then his current supporters will force him out because as a lame deck president, he'll be the worst possible thing for the Republican party.
But Iran close the strait, not the US.
Iran close strait because Israel+US launch massive, persistent, unprovoked assault.
Unprovoked assault kills many civillians, much civillian infrastructure, much war crime.
Now, Trump want quit, go home, maybe, because strait closed mean world economy die, and US is part of world.
Trump try make Israel stop attacking place Iran not want Israel attack. Israel not listen, get big mad.
Trump get big mad that Israel big mad.
Trump now say 'strait closed by ME, actually.'
Trump maybe change mind in 24, 48 hrs, who know, he very erratic, not have plan.
The whole world is saying fuck it, we buy electric cars.
Its like have in a trade war over horses in 1950
The whole world is buying cheap Chinese electric cars.
American Automakers will be needing another bailout in less than 5 years.
It's time to let American auto makers go bankrupt. If they can't make what people want at an affordable price, it needs to be a goodbye from us.
They'll spend the bailout money lobbying against any incentives or regulations that try to force them to become competitive, too. So they'll need another bailout next decade.
Anyone feel like it's Groundhog Day?
What a complete dumbfuck. We didn't have any tolls a few months ago. Now we are talking about Iran and Oman and the United States exacting tolls?
The Shart of the Deal.
This is like W's Katrina multiplied by W's Iraq dumbassery to the power of the 2008 economic crash. You'd have to be a complete dumbass to support this asshat.
And the idiots that are wishcasting the stock market into the stratosphere and gas prices lower are total fools to listen to this bumbling old moron when he acts like it's all going to snap back to normal in one day, based on signing a MOU.
Trump keeps yapping about how Iran better comply with his demands, or he'll go back to bombing them, so they're showing the world that they're in control, not him.
If I were them, I'd make him twist for a full month before making ANY new contact, and if he runs his mouth again, I'd wait ANOTHER month. Maybe in a year or two he'll learn to shut the fuck up.
Those tolls are gonna find their way into his pocket. It's how he works....
He said once before before he liked the idea of a toll and would work out his cut. He just really doesnt want to lose even if that means robbing the people he "saved"
I know it's getting old at this point to raise this point, but can you imagine the conservatives if Obama or Biden or Clinton could be credibly accused of doing even 1/100th what this asshole is obviously doing?
They would have stroked out by now. They were having conniptions over feet on desk and tan suits and having ice cream cones, FFS.
If Obama, Biden or Clinton had this going for a week, the reds would be calling for their impeachment and all the right-wing russian-back propaganda outlets would be running it 24/7.
Instead we have a dementia-ridden convicted felon pants-shitting child molester openly embezzling money proving on a daily basis how corrupt and incompetent he is embarrassing this country on a world stage.
Why limit it to the strait? Let's just embrace piracy and extortion worldwide! If were going to be self-defeating pariah dumbfucks, let's get some return on all that military spending. Why the hell not? On a serious note, why would Iran care that much if every ship pays multiple tolls as long as they get their share and keep all their power?
Murica handing out etters of marque was not something I could believe 2 years ago but now the bar can just go lower.
Bruh, bluffs aren't going to work anymore. Trump indirectly proved to Iran that we truly don't have a back up plan for when the strait is closed during the American-Iranian War. All this is going to do is make the current deal we have even worse
I'd 100% agree but I can't quite tell how it could be worse. USA didn't get anything important
Reparation demands can always increase.
Pretty hard to charge a toll when Iran controls the strait and shuts it down you dipshit
Isn't that a bit like threatening to convert to Islam?
Iran charging a toll surprised the idiots running America. Now they want their extortion money too.
The Art Of The ~~Bad~~ Deal. WTAF
"Ha! Face to foot style, how'd ya like it?"
"I'm sure, on some planet, your style is impressive, but your weak link is: this is Earth."
Friggin love Kung Pow.
"We demand that you accept our complete and total surrender!"
I want Somalia to enter this chat to see that they will do
You gotta pay the troll toll ...
If you wanna get in this boy's hole...
Why can't everyone involved charge a toll? One for entry a different for exit. Put up some big signs with QR codes so they can use venmo or cash app... /s
Charge ships trying to pass through,
NOT charging Netanyahu's "Israel" who keeps bombing the ceasefires/agreements out of existence, right??
Clownshow is exactly right.
🙏
Iran is just the beginning. The imperial aristocracy will not abandon this war, no matter how it effects the citizens in western countries. They do not care. Hell, the most wealthy and powerful are clearly planning for a collapse anyway. The United States is currently fomenting color revolution in Indonesia with the intention of controlling the Straight on Malacca. They have turned the Marine Corps into an interdiction force for seizing oil tankers heading to China. They are also deliberately inflaming the conflict between Cambodia and Thailand. This is all part of the “Pivot to Asia” strategy, aimed at isolating China and choking off its resources with the ultimate goal of direct confrontation.
