[Hong Wu]

Sad watching people develop excuses to try and justify egging someone onto punching someone else, even as old men they don't always get beyond stuff like this.

[jimjam]

https://twitter.com/OffGuardian0/status/1016599931556126721

Faux profundity from Mr. Savage?

All I am attempting to do here, Sweetheart, is to predict the next 10 days or so.

There are too many coincidences here for this all to be a coincidence .

[jimjam]

"Russiagate" is only partly concerned about whether Trump & Co. conspired with Russia to influence the election. I have stated a few times that even if this were the case, I cannot imagine it would stick to Donald. He has been an "honest crook" for so long that dodging this rap would be pretty much easy. He has had a lot of practice.

Another, and I think much more interesting aspect of Russiagate involves Donald's personal business interests in Russia. I have to conclude that the quasi hysterical posters here who rail against the Trump/Russia soap opera are of the opinion that Donald has no personal interests in Russia. None, zero. That is, of course ill informed to the point of being delusional. Donald has had serious interests of doing business in Russia for quite some time. Anyone who thinks that he checked these interests at the door upon becoming POTUS is …… delusional. He obviously would love to see the Trump "brand" slapped right on top of Saint Basil's Cathedral. One of many obvious clues to this man's rather predictable thinking can be found in an tweet to the account of Aras Agalarov's (according to Donald, the richest man in Russia which, as usual, is not true but …. Aras DOES have a lot of wood.) Don's tweet: "I had a great weekend with you and your family. You have done a FANTASTIC job. TRUMP TOWER MOSCOW IS NEXT." This Trump Tower would be the tallest building in the world at around 120 stories. (contrary to his claims, I have to wonder if Donald has penis size issues )

The point of this ramble is that Donald clearly has a conflict of interest between what's good for Donald and what's good for America. Treason? Most likely. But for the greatest con artist of all time, kid stuff to bullshit his way out of.

ps one of jimjam's more prized photos is one of him standing in front of Saint Basil's Cathedral sporting a "Dan's Cycle Shop" T shirt with an American flag on it. This was REAL stupid as I WAS being watched by Russian under cover police. Cross that one off to the dumbness of youth.

[skinster]

[Beren]

Putin thought anybody would be better for him than Hillary as president, so I'm sure he supported Bernie too (and still does). But Bernie couldn't beat Hillary unfortunately, so he had to bet on Trump finally. However, Trump has to pay off others too, not just Putin, I wonder whether what algorithm he uses to sort it out. I don't think he has a general system, I'd rather believe he does it on a case-by-case basis.

[jimjam]

Putin thought anybody would be better for him than Hillary as president, so I'm sure he supported Bernie too (and still does). But Bernie couldn't beat Hillary unfortunately, so he had to bet on Trump finally. However, Trump has to pay off others too, not just Putin, I wonder whether what algorithm he uses to sort it out. I don't think he has a general system, I'd rather believe he does it on a case-by-case basis.

Donald undoubtedly has a number of chits that need to be paid. Putin's is the largest and most controversial. He cannot be obvious and he knows it.

Donald is first and foremost the consummate con artist and, when dealing with a con artist, words are simply tools of the trade used to dupe the marks. Far more important are actions and their results. We shall see.

Donald wants NATO members to spend more on military stuff. Could it be that this would help American weapons manufacturers ?

He chides Germany for purchasing natural gas from Russia. Could it be that the American LP industry needs a boost?

If they say it's not about money ….. it's about money.

[blackjack21]

"Russiagate" is only partly concerned about whether Trump & Co. conspired with Russia to influence the election. I have stated a few times that even if this were the case, I cannot imagine it would stick to Donald. He has been an "honest crook" for so long that dodging this rap would be pretty much easy. He has had a lot of practice.

I find it sort of bewildering that people are so freaked out about Russia. Bill Clinton and China is where the biggest interference in the US elections and economy have taken place. Hell, China is trying to target its tariffs to states that Trump carried. They are clearly trying to influence US elections. There is no question about it. Yet, there isn't a peep from the media about this. The Trump/Russia story was always purely political and about the Democrats losing power. It has never been about anything else.

I have to conclude that the quasi hysterical posters here who rail against the Trump/Russia soap opera are of the opinion that Donald has no personal interests in Russia. None, zero. That is, of course ill informed to the point of being delusional. Donald has had serious interests of doing business in Russia for quite some time. Anyone who thinks that he checked these interests at the door upon becoming POTUS is …… delusional.

Who is the chief operating officer of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline? Gerhard Schroeder. That's right. The former chancellor of Germany makes a fortune selling Russian gas to Germany. I find the whole Sherlock/Inspector Clouseau routine with Mueller running around with a magnifying glass quite humorous. They come up with nothing, but clear cases of influence are completely ignored--e.g., Hillary Clinton sitting on the board of WalMart while the neoconservative/neoliberal cabal her husband was a part of provided Most Favored Nation trading status to China and admitted them to the WTO. Putin may be democratically elected in name only, but Xi Jinping is a dictator and makes no bones about it. Russian interests also donated tons of money to the Clinton Foundation to curry favor with a Hillary Clinton run state department. We're not talking small change either--tens of millions of dollars that go into the hands of Clinton cronies. There is simply nothing Trump could do that would be anything close to Bill and Hillary Clinton or Gerhard Schroeder. If nobody cares about them with the "offense" so glaring, what makes you think that people will be upset with Trump when they can't even produce any evidence worthy of consideration in a US court of law?

Putin thought anybody would be better for him than Hillary as president, so I'm sure he supported Bernie too (and still does). But Bernie couldn't beat Hillary unfortunately, so he had to bet on Trump finally. However, Trump has to pay off others too, not just Putin, I wonder whether what algorithm he uses to sort it out. I don't think he has a general system, I'd rather believe he does it on a case-by-case basis.

Merkel has hated Trump from the get-go, so he's just upbraiding her at every opportunity.

Donald wants NATO members to spend more on military stuff. Could it be that this would help American weapons manufacturers ?

He chides Germany for purchasing natural gas from Russia. Could it be that the American LP industry needs a boost?

If they say it's not about money ….. it's about money.

There's no question this is what it's about. Germany runs a massive trade surplus: 50% of their GDP. The US would have to export $10 trillion worth of goods per year to match that. In other words, to have our economy configured to export the way Germany does, we would have to export two Japanese economies or three German economies worth of goods every single year. Just for good measure, that would be about 6 times the size of the Russian economy--every year. In effect, Germany exports the size of the entire Russian economy every year.

So do you see why I think the whole Russia collusion thing is bewilderingly funny? Canada has a bigger GDP with just 30M people or so. The Russians are frigging retard. Retards with nuclear weapons, yes. But they are retards.

[Igor Antunov]

Just checking in to ask if drumpf is finished yet. Surely he's done for? Any second now right guys?

[One Degree]

Russiagate=globalists outraged over globalism. The acceptance of such ignorance and hypocrisy is mind blowing.

[Beren]

Merkel has hated Trump from the get-go, so he's just upbraiding her at every opportunity.

He's just upbraiding her at every opportunity because they're neither "partners" nor has she bribed him, and she's usually straightforward, decisive, and not even kind to him that much. Trump also has personal (family) issues with Germany, so anytime he makes a case-by-case decision Germany, Merkel, and the EU are always treated by him accordingly. I also believe Trump is full of hate rather than Merkel, although Merkel obviously doesn't prefer people like him and favoured Hillary.

[jimjam]

He's just upbraiding her at every opportunity because they're neither "partners" nor has she bribed him, and she's usually straightforward, decisive, and not even kind to him that much. Trump also has personal (family) issues with Germany, so anytime he makes a case-by-case decision Germany, Merkel, and the EU are always treated by him accordingly. I also believe Trump is full of hate rather than Merkel, although Merkel obviously doesn't prefer people like him and favoured Hillary.

Trump's M.O. uses, almost exclusively, monologues. This fits his character as, essentially, a bully and he has had much practice with it as a N.Y.C. con artist. He will engage in a dialogue only when it is obvious, even to him, that he is backed into a corner or if the dialogue serves to praise him. I observed an interesting antidote a couple of weeks ago. As Merkel was leaving the White House after a meeting with Donald she was asked by reporters how did it go, She said simply, "Ask him." Please excuse my pettiness but I seriously doubt that Merkel serves Donald's sex fantasies well .

Trump’s swipes at Berlin are further straining ties between the Trump administration and Europe — to the certain delight of Moscow, which has long sought to divide the United States and Europe. Berlin is realizing that we have to think about how Germany gets on with its future without the United States as a strong partner for the remainder of the Trump presidency. Trump is being isolated by European leaders like the cancer that he is, as was apparent by the optics of the NATO Summit. Seems to me that what was accomplished was an avoidance of the ultimate failure of NATO. Europeans are obviously slow learners but they are starting to get the drift that Trump's America is utterly undependable and that they must carry on with a strictly adversarial relationship.

What makes you think that people will be upset with Trump when they can't even produce any evidence worthy of consideration in a US court of law?

I haven't noticed where a U.S. court of law has any bearing on the court of world opinion regarding Donald's blundering about the globe. His simple minded shit that plays well with his so called "base" isn't of much use in cultures that do not operate in tune with the etiquette that prevails in the N.Y.C. real estate market.
Our government has turned into a right-wing corporatocracy. But on international matters, despite most of Western Europe embracing neoliberalism, ideology is not enough.

Xi Jinping is a dictator and makes no bones about it.

I suspect that dreams of adding a 120 story Trump Tower Beijing monstrosity to the collection of Trump Family Jewels would radically alter the chemistry.

Enough of this for now. I must go jogging next to the North Atlantic.

[Beren]

Europeans are obviously slow learners but they are starting to get the drift that Trump's America is utterly undependable and that they must carry on with a strictly adversarial relationship.

I think they rather consider him their closest enemy and just try to get over with meetings with him anytime it's necessary. Merkel and British PM Theresa May, two women surprisingly whose appearance and company Trump can hardly bear I guess, have to suffer the most from him, which makes them lean towards each other even more probably.

[Zamuel]

Europeans are obviously slow learners but they are starting to get the drift that Trump's America is utterly undependable and that they must carry on with a strictly adversarial relationship.

Trump seems to like the French though … That's never good sign.

Zam

[blackjack21]

He's just upbraiding her at every opportunity because they're neither "partners" nor has she bribed him, and she's usually straightforward, decisive, and not even kind to him that much. Trump also has personal (family) issues with Germany, so anytime he makes a case-by-case decision Germany, Merkel, and the EU are always treated by him accordingly. I also believe Trump is full of hate rather than Merkel, although Merkel obviously doesn't prefer people like him and favoured Hillary.

I've never really subscribed to the personality theories of politics. Politicians come and go. Policies remain. It's policy that matters.

I haven't noticed where a U.S. court of law has any bearing on the court of world opinion regarding Donald's blundering about the globe.

I never suggested it did. I also wouldn't suggest "world opinion" matters one hoot either.

His simple minded shit that plays well with his so called "base" isn't of much use in cultures that do not operate in tune with the etiquette that prevails in the N.Y.C. real estate market.

Yes, but he asks the right questions. For example, for everyone claiming Russia is an enemy, why would Germany build a sea-based pipeline bypassing Eastern Europe to buy gas directly from Russia--giving them hundreds of billions in business if they are the enemy, and Germany doesn't have the requisite military to defend itself from Russia. That's a question worth asking.

Our government has turned into a right-wing corporatocracy. But on international matters, despite most of Western Europe embracing neoliberalism, ideology is not enough.

Europe is even more of a corporatocracy. There is no meaningful democracy in the EU. The EU parliament's decisions are as meaningful as the UN's General Assembly...worthless.

[jimjam]

"world opinion" matters one hoot either.

Be real! I suspect it means a lot if the rest of the world tells you to go fuck yourself and you experience economic degradation. It has also been a factor in wars that ended up with millions of dead.

Yes, but he asks the right questions.

Bill Gates says that Donald Trump asked him not once, but twice, what the difference between HIV and HPV is.

Europe is even more of a corporatocracy. There is no meaningful democracy in the EU. The EU parliament's decisions are as meaningful as the UN's General Assembly...worthless.

Hmmmmm ….. Does this mean that America has not in fact degenerated into a nation of corporations .. not humans?

Your friend DrLee would call your comment a false equivalency ……..

[jimjam]

America tried to create an international system reflecting our own ideals, one that subjected powerful countries — ourselves included — to rule of law, while protecting weaker nations from bullies. Small countries can and do win W.T.O. cases against big countries; small members of NATO receive the same unconditional security guarantees as major powers.

And what Trump is trying to do is undermine that system, making bullying great again.

What’s his motivation? Part of the answer is that anything that weakens the Western alliance helps Vladimir Putin; if Trump isn’t literally a Russian agent, he certainly behaves like one on every possible occasion

Trump won’t take yes for an answer. He doesn’t want negotiations with our allies and trading partners to succeed; he wants them to fail. And by the time everyone realizes this, the damage may be irreversible.

[Beren]

I've never really subscribed to the personality theories of politics. Politicians come and go. Policies remain. It's policy that matters.

It's not a personality theory, it's just Trump being a corrupt person and being nice to those corrupting him while being mean to those who are not, his personal differences with Merkel are secondary indeed. However, in the good old days no one could have imagined Mao bribing Nixon into summiting with Kim Il-sung, praising him and giving him concessions for nothing.

[Zamuel]

Trump won’t take yes for an answer. He doesn’t want negotiations with our allies and trading partners to succeed; he wants them to fail. And by the time everyone realizes this, the damage may be irreversible.

I don't see irreversible ? But I think he wants them desperate and begging. Like Churchill trying to get FDR to save Britain.

Zam

[jimjam]

On June 29, Facebook revealed to congressional investigators that it granted Mail.ru, a Russian internet company with close ties to the Kremlin, a special extension of the Facebook policy that allowed thousands of application developers access to massive amounts of user data.

The Russian company was founded by Yuri Milner, a businessman who was a major investor in Facebook. Mr. Milner sold his shares in Facebook in 2013 and left Mail.ru years earlier. The Paradise Papers, a collection of secret documents showing how the wealthy hide their money, showed that Mr. Milner had received hundreds of millions of dollars from the Russian government, which he invested in Facebook and Twitter. He has also invested in a development run by Jared Kushner.

[Zamuel]

The Paradise Papers, a collection of secret documents showing how the wealthy hide their money, showed that Mr. Milner had received hundreds of millions of dollars from the Russian government, which he invested in Facebook and Twitter.

Pretty smart, build up social media you can then both extract and distribute information from. Combine both psy-war and cy-war. Wasn't pofo started by a bunch of dilettante commies? And it predates a lot of that social media doesn't it? I wonder how much $$$ the Ruskies have invested here? Decky was probably their heavy … no wonder he hates and fears Mossad.

Zam