I must say, The Donald is absolutely delighting me at present.

[Burney]

I think you're overstating a truth. He does matter but falls more easily into the irritating category than the dangerous category. Unless, of course, you care about the Russian people themselves which I expect few people do.

The problem with Trump is that left to his own devices he could do something really stupid, and not just the infantile posturing which we've seen so far (and that sells really well in the US of A) but something really, really stupid i.e. an all out trade war, that would have a significant impact. So far the intelligent people around him have stopped him doing it but there's always the possibility that at some point they won't be able to or willing to control him.

In fact, two of his recent appointments seem as crazy as he is. We'll laugh at him and enjoy him until it happens, only.

He’s very useful to the status quo merchants because every time electorates do something they don’t like, they can alternately blame Putin or suggest that he’s been made happy by what’s occcurred. It prevents them having to blame themselves and their terrible policies and is intended to scare the public into acquiescence. It doesn’t work.

Trump has many, glaring faults, but millions of people are looking at the mess his more ‘rational’ counterparts are making of pretty much everything and thinking they fancy a bit of that. That ought to give his critics pause for thought.

[Burney]

You've gone all Violet Elizabeth Bott there mate.

Because I don’t want to vote for a party that’s busily fúcking me over? That seems a pretty reasonable position to me.

If our politicians are so keen to make clear to us that there is no point in voting because they’ll just do what they fúcking well like anyway, let them discover the consequences.

[WES]

Wait, the day he was elected all you pansies were pissing your knickers because he was definitely going to start a nuclear war, invade Mexico, destroy the US economy, gas, or at best, deport all muslims and brown people and make homoing illegal. Oddly, none of that seems to have happened. Indeed, the US economy seems to be doing remarkably well, and far from nuclear wars happening, it would appear that North Korea is preparing to give a little.

Why, given the evidence to date, do you think he's going to do something 'really stupid'?

I don't actually know anyone who said any of those things so there's no need for me to reply to your question.

And if you call me a pansy again (NTTAWWI) I shall be forced to physically abuse you. At some point. Maybe.

[Sir C]

I don't actually know anyone who said any of those things so there's no need for me to reply to your question.

And if you call me a pansy again (NTTAWWI) I shall be forced to physically abuse you. At some point. Maybe.

You just want to try to touch my bottom again, don't you?

[WES]

He’s very useful to the status quo merchants because every time electorates do something they don’t like, they can alternately blame Putin or suggest that he’s been made happy by what’s occcurred. It prevents them having to blame themselves and their terrible policies and is intended to scare the public into acquiescence. It doesn’t work.

Trump has many, glaring faults, but millions of people are looking at the mess his more ‘rational’ counterparts are making of pretty much everything and thinking they fancy a bit of that. That ought to give his critics pause for thought.

Some years ago I worked with a very intelligent German chap who tried to convert me to Scientology. He took me through why he became a Scientologist and after a few conversations it became apparent to me what they actually do. They can't 'fix' anything or actually make you any better so what they do is start by making it clear to you what a disaster your life is, how desperately unhappy you really are. If they've managed to do that, they have you. They then do very little other than point out how happy you are now, and you believe it at that point.

Trump does the same thing. He tries to convince everyone how terrible things were i.e. the trade deals that perfectly intelligent, competent people signed that have had positive impacts on many economies, and then claims to have fixed everything by doing very little that anyone else couldn't have or wouldn't have. Did Trump bring NK to the table? Or the fact that their people are starving and they recently blew up their nuclear testing facility? Is Britain really a terrible place? Is the EU really collapsing?

No, of course not. Trump is much like Putin, less dangerous than anyone thinks but always irritating. The difference is that as the owner of the largest economy and strongest military in the world there is always the chance etc etc

It's the people around him that concern me, Burney. That national security adviser has a long record of being borderline psycho and xenophone of the highest order. Trump is fine as long as the people around him are.

[Burney]

Some years ago I worked with a very intelligent German chap who tried to convert me to Scientology. He took me through why he became a Scientologist and after a few conversations it became apparent to me what they actually do. They can't 'fix' anything or actually make you any better so what they do is start by making it clear to you what a disaster your life is, how desperately unhappy you really are. If they've managed to do that, they have you. They then do very little other than point out how happy you are now, and you believe it at that point.

Trump does the same thing. He tries to convince everyone how terrible things were i.e. the trade deals that perfectly intelligent, competent people signed that have had positive impacts on many economies, and then claims to have fixed everything by doing very little that anyone else couldn't have or wouldn't have. Did Trump bring NK to the table? Or the fact that their people are starving and they recently blew up their nuclear testing facility? Is Britain really a terrible place? Is the EU really collapsing?

No, of course not. Trump is much like Putin, less dangerous than anyone thinks but always irritating. The difference is that as the owner of the largest economy and strongest military in the world there is always the chance etc etc

It's the people around him that concern me, Burney. That national security adviser has a long record of being borderline psycho and xenophone of the highest order. Trump is fine as long as the people around him are.

What you've described there is every democratic politician who seeks election ever.

Btw, a 'xenophone'? Someone who refuses to speak a foreign language or a huge fan of 'Anabasis'?

Did you know the film 'The Warriors' was based on Anabasis?

Do you even know what Anabasis is?

[Sir C]

What you've described there is every democratic politician who seeks election ever.

Btw, a 'xenophone'? Someone who refuses to speak a foreign language or a huge fan of 'Anabasis'?

Did you know the film 'The Warriors' was based on Anabasis?

Do you even know what Anabasis is?

It sounds like something that should have been in Lucky's speech. 'divine athambia, divine aphasia, divine apathia, divine anabasia..'

[Peter]

Because I don’t want to vote for a party that’s busily fúcking me over? That seems a pretty reasonable position to me.

If our politicians are so keen to make clear to us that there is no point in voting because they’ll just do what they fúcking well like anyway, let them discover the consequences.

What consequences are these?

[Burney]

What consequences are these?

The destruction of faith in the democratic process.

[Burney]

It sounds like something that should have been in Lucky's speech. 'divine athambia, divine aphasia, divine apathia, divine anabasia..'

No. It was a bunch of Greek mercenaries leaving Persia and battering absolutely everyone in the process.