General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsDan Rather: "They wont be satisfied until the previous world order is up in flames."
If all the worlds a stage, and Donald Trump is in the role as President, he is playing the part unlike anyone before him. And the reviews, not only from many here in the United States, but from other countries around the world, are bad. (Russia excepted). For many Americans, in the two weeks since the inauguration, we have whipsawed from tragedy, to farce, to the theater of the absurd.
It may be too much to say that, so far, the Trump Presidency owes much to the work of the early Marx Brothers--but, if so, not by much. There have been back aways, back downs and turn-arounds, mixed with rash decisions, insults, falsehoods and chaos.
Headlines worthy of Saturday Night Live tell of Mr. Trump threatening and berating foreign heads of state, such as those of Mexico and Australia. (Lets repeat for emphasis, Mexico and Australia!) These are two countries that long have been good friends and strong allies, vital to defense of our country. When it comes to dangerous adversaries like Iran or complicated emerging powers like China, Mr. Trump seems to be blowing up American foreign policy based on the impulse control (or lack thereof) of his Twitter finger. This is not only chaotic and confusing; it is dangerous.
Ban refugees. Provide propaganda fodder for ISIS. Demonize journalists. Mock members of Congress, including many from your own party. All the while, the President says thats what you need to do to fix things. His base believes in his ability to get the job done because, after all, wasnt he a successful business CEO? Nevermind Mr. Trumps own complicated business history, an experienced and wise businessman, as with an experienced and wise political leader, knows that success requires statesmanship and diplomacy as well as naked strength.
The President and his chief strategist Steve Bannon arent just charting a go-it-alone path. It seems they wont be satisfied until the previous world order is up in flames. Theyre hell-bent on destroying trade deals, and Bannon was just quoted to the effect that he was itching for a fight against China and in the Middle East. There was a time where the world felt it could count on American stability -economic, social, and political. All that is changing. A recent Washington Post headline read Shock. Outrage. Resistance. Repeat. Is this the new normal in Trumps America?
The Trump Administration is staging something much grander than you average political theater; Trumps presidency is starting to feel more like reality television. That is to say, the episodes are staged and the plot twists are scripted to shape a narrative that involves plenty of conflict. We hear this is the new normal but this is not a normal Americans should want to get used to accepting.
https://www.facebook.com/theDanRather/
KittyWampus
(55,894 posts)Damage them enough so Republicans are damaged too.
angstlessk
(11,862 posts)Let's not pretend
delisen
(6,044 posts)PeopleAgainstHate
(22 posts)The pro-Trump alt-right vicious tabloid headlines that we are a captive audience to when we stand in line at the grocery store have helped tremendously to get the radical right elected. We need to get these fake-news tabloids out of the stores that we support with our dollars if we want to get decent people in office and have a world worth living in. Please sign our petition and send it to your friends!
http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/stop-selling-hate-filled?source=c.fwd&r_by=17478167
And here is a link to an article from Politico that lays it all out about the damage the tabloids do. If you don't want to read the whole article, please at least read this one paragraph from it:
Its easy to imagine that tabloids dont matter; the Enquirer is a relatively small voice in the media kingdom, with a weekly circulation of only 342,071, down from the 5.9 million it commanded in the 1970s. But that misses the importance of the constant cultural background noise it adds to American life: There are 37,000 supermarkets in America, with an average of about 10 checkout stands each, and many stands feature a wire rack displaying the Enquirer, the Globe, often the companys other tab, the National Examiner, and celebrity magazines. According to an industry study, American households make an average of 1.5 trips to the supermarket each week. Every customer passes by the checkout stand, which means that even people who never purchase a tabloid still absorb the ambient headlines, and those headlines can shape their view of the world.
http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/01/tabloid-newspapers-trump-media-propaganda-214627
calimary
(81,323 posts)What a great point to bring up! VERY IMPORTANT, too! You're standing in the checkout line and scanning the front pages of all the trashy magazines in the racks. Yep, you better believe it. You ARE being reached. Even if you don't buy any of 'em.
Good to know. GOOD to keep in mind - they're trying to manipulate you even if you don't even pick them up to glance at them more closely.
The more you know... (the less likely you'll get played.)
CousinIT
(9,247 posts)kimbutgar
(21,164 posts)democrank
(11,096 posts)from long-standing U.S. relationships with allies, to freedom of the press, to rules governing cabinet nominees, and so much more. I keep searching for the right word to describe what's happening. "Frightening" doesn't quite do it.
hatrack
(59,587 posts)That's their goal, plain and simple.
rurallib
(62,426 posts)can reprise his role nearly 50 years later with the bizarro Nixon on meth.
Hoping Dan can have a big hand in taking him down.
MontanaMama
(23,322 posts)When he doesn't have to, while comfy in retirement. Maybe he's still got some government/media connections? Maybe he can lead these cable news "reporters" to actually do some real reporting. I'd love to see him bust dump's tiny orange balls. That'd be awesome.