Why are we worried about Trump's Chief of Staff

[This_person]

When there's so much other news going on right now:

The Pentagon has come up with a plan to arm Ukraine with defensive weapons so that Kiev can better defend against Russian-backed separatists in the Donbas, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The plan, devised by the Joint Chiefs of Staff, includes supplying Ukraine with anti-tank missiles — possibly Javelin missiles — anti-aircraft systems, and other weapons, WSJ and USA Today reported.

TOKYO (Reuters) - Embattled Japanese Defence Minister Tomomi Inada on Friday said she was resigning, after a series of gaffes, missteps and a cover-up at her ministry that have contributed to a sharp plunge in public support for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Inada, 58, an Abe protege who shares his conservative views and had been suggested as a possible future premier, had already expected to be replaced in a likely cabinet reshuffle next week that Abe hopes will help rebuild his ratings.

Support for the prime minister has sunk below 30 percent in some polls, due to scandals over suspected cronyism and a view among many voters that he and his aides took them for granted.

Abe apologized "to the people from my heart", in comments to reporters carried live on national television after Inada announced her resignation.

He said Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida would add the defense portfolio to his duties, to eliminate any gap at a time when Japan faces tough security challenges, such as from a volatile North Korea.

TP comment: Isn't this just moments after the Japanese Prime Minister went saber-rattling against North Korea? WTF is going on over there?

LONDON (Reuters) - Iran has complained to the Joint Commission of the JCPOA (not U.N. Security Council) about sanctions the United States imposed on Iran in July, saying they breached Tehran's nuclear deal with major powers, the speaker of parliament was quoted on Tuesday as saying.

The Joint Commission was created to oversee implementation of the nuclear deal - which is also known by its acronym JCPOA - clinched in 2015 between Iran and six major powers, including the United States. The deal led to the lifting of most sanctions against Tehran in return for curbs on its nuclear programme.

"Iran's JCPOA supervisory body assessed the new U.S. sanctions (on Tehran) and decided that they contradict parts of the nuclear deal," Ali Larijani was quoted by the Tasnim news agency as saying.

In short, who gives a flying #### at a rolling donut what's going on with the Chief of Staff?

 

[vraiblonde]

In short, who gives a flying #### at a rolling donut what's going on with the Chief of Staff?

The press doesn't want to try and explain all that to the mouth breathers in their audience, so they stick with what they think their viewers can understand.

 

[This_person]

The press doesn't want to try and explain all that to the mouth breathers in their audience, so they stick with what they think their viewers can understand.

These are all huge things. We're on here arguing about abortion (which, regardless of how barbaric and hideous it is for mother and doctor to do as an elective, the laws ain't changing) and whether Trump's son-in-law legally met with one guy or six and how many scoops of ice cream Trump eats and whether or not the 0.0000001% of the population that wants a cake baked by someone who doesn't want to bake should be allowed to force the baker to bake it, while the far east is ready to erupt in nuclear war, the middle east is ready to erupt in nuclear war, the Jews are on the verge of being wiped off the face of the earth, and we're in ANOTHER proxy war with Russia - the kind that built al Qaeda in the first place.

I get chatting about horsies, doggies, good music, and all that. Life is more than politics and such. But, ISIS is taking a foothold and has a "capital city", killing Christians for the crime of being Christian while we debate just how many Chiefs of Staff in what timeframe makes a presidential administration "a disaster" or not. We're arguing whether toking on an illegal substance should be a crime. We're worried about whether a cop shoots a dog he's afraid of.

I feel like we have lost sight of the big picture, perhaps permanently.

 

[vraiblonde]

I feel like we have lost sight of the big picture, perhaps permanently.

Of course we have, and we have our "news" reporters to thank for it. Remember a time when you'd watch the evening news and there was so much going on that was so involved that it was difficult to follow it all? Yeah, that was bad for business so networks went for the entertainment model and dumbed down the real news so that your average dumb person could watch and feel like they knew what was going on. Anderson Cooper does not want to have to explain complex situations to you and have you tune out, so he goes with Meatloafgate and Ice Creamgate because it's simple and (hopefully) you can understand it.

The only time the Left (and portions of the Right) cares about what's going on in a foreign country is if we're having a war or something. That's why they're always so surprised - "OMG George Bush just bombed Iraq for no reason!!! Right out of the blue!!!! No blood for oil!!!!" Right now they think Russia is the boogeyman because that's what Anderson Cooper tells them to think. He can't tell them *why* Russia is the boogeyman because they'd all fall asleep in their Cheeto bag. So he tells them that Russia is bad, m'kay, because they hacked our election and made Donald Trump president.

As far as people who'd rather talk about doggies and gardens and restaurants, I get that. There's not a lot they can do about international affairs anyway, so why lay awake worrying about it? Why not enjoy what you have right in front of you that you can control?

 

[This_person]

Of course we have, and we have our "news" reporters to thank for it. Remember a time when you'd watch the evening news and there was so much going on that was so involved that it was difficult to follow it all? Yeah, that was bad for business so networks went for the entertainment model and dumbed down the real news so that your average dumb person could watch and feel like they knew what was going on. Anderson Cooper does not want to have to explain complex situations to you and have you tune out, so he goes with Meatloafgate and Ice Creamgate because it's simple and (hopefully) you can understand it.

The only time the Left (and portions of the Right) cares about what's going on in a foreign country is if we're having a war or something. That's why they're always so surprised - "OMG George Bush just bombed Iraq for no reason!!! Right out of the blue!!!! No blood for oil!!!!" Right now they think Russia is the boogeyman because that's what Anderson Cooper tells them to think. He can't tell them *why* Russia is the boogeyman because they'd all fall asleep in their Cheeto bag. So he tells them that Russia is bad, m'kay, because they hacked our election and made Donald Trump president.

I think I'm worried about turning into a conservative version of Sappy who thinks the population is too selfish and stupid, so only people who think like him are good enough to make decisions for everyone else. I think we are ALL responsible for what's going on. The media is complicit, but not fully responsible, because WE, THE PEOPLE don't demand a change (with our dollars, letters, etc.).

I truly don't think the people are stupid. Ignorant, maybe, but not stupid. Uninformed is far different from not being able to understand the information.

How do we FIX this? It needs fixed.

As far as people who'd rather talk about doggies and gardens and restaurants, I get that. There's not a lot they can do about international affairs anyway, so why lay awake worrying about it? Why not enjoy what you have right in front of you that you can control?

Definitely. I post in some of those some of the time, and fully get why people don't come into these forums where people are even more mean and belittling. But, my thought was, "why are we belittling each other's opinion over Trump's tweeting when he's arming people in the Ukraine against Russia!!??!!"

 

[vraiblonde]

I truly don't think the people are stupid. Ignorant, maybe, but not stupid. Uninformed is far different from not being able to understand the information.

No, people *are* stupid. Ever try to explain something to a progbot? How about a religious zealot? They don't want to hear it. They are ignorant because they choose to be ignorant, not because the information isn't out there or is too hard to understand. That makes them stupid. Anyone who willfully cocoons themselves in hivemind groupthink is stupid.

Fortunately this time we had more stupids on our side, otherwise Hillary Clinton would be president right now because her supporters are some of the stupidest ####ing people I've ever even heard of. And not only are they stupid, they are violent and mean (as stupid people are wont to be). Right now, this minute, almost a year later, they are still trying to fight a war they already lost BIGLY, and in doing so are losing a lot of their cult members. What's more, they know it and don't care because they are so wrapped around their own axle that they can't comprehend anything else.

That's some stupid #### right there. And they're ignorant as well, but mostly they're stupid.

 

[vraiblonde]

But, my thought was, "why are we belittling each other's opinion over Trump's tweeting when he's arming people in the Ukraine against Russia!!??!!"

Start a thread. There are a number of smart peeps on here who would gladly jump into a discussion of whether or not Trump is right to do help out the Ukrainians. I haven't solidified how I think about this yet - on one hand, I like it; on the other hand, I'd like us to stay out of this crap, which is naive and probably not in our best interest to allow the Soviet Union to reform.

 

[GURPS]

They are ignorant because they choose to be ignorant, not because the information isn't out there or is too hard to understand. That makes them stupid. Anyone who willfully cocoons themselves in hivemind groupthink is stupid.

12 Cognitive Biases Explained

 

[GURPS]

I haven't solidified how I think about this yet - on one hand, I like it; on the other hand, I'd like us to stay out of this crap, which is naive and probably not in our best interest to allow the Soviet Union to reform.

not really in our 'sphere' of influence ......

As Far As I Am Concerned - Let The Eurocrats deal with Ukraine