Countdown to Extinction: The 2016 Presidential Election

[Purusha]

As opposed to this sense of fairness?



Hey everybody, let's all wonder why Trump is popular. What could possibly drive reasonable people to support such a clown? Ho right, must be the inner bigotry all whites carry within their genes. Fear not however, for science has finally found a way to cure racism out of white babies:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3209554/Is-baby-racist-Scientists-discover-way-reverse-racial-bias-young-children.html

Why would anyone support Trump.

[Purusha]

Trump 1, Press 0
I didn't watch it all, but watch the first few minutes and then, after Ramos is back in, a few starting at the 18:00 mark.  http://youtu.be/d2Z7k75SnN4
This is a seriously impressive display. He seems genuine, sharp, and most importantly honest. (I am not saying he is; I am pointing out how unlike a scripted panderer he seems.)
(He also seems egotistical of course).

My current favored Trump moment:

http://www.breitbart.com/video/2015/08/19/trump-reporter-spar-over-term-anchor-baby/

[North Star]

Trump 1, Press 0
I didn't watch it all, but watch the first few minutes and then, after Ramos is back in, a few starting at the 18:00 mark.  http://youtube.com/v/d2Z7k75SnN4
This is a seriously impressive display. He seems genuine, sharp, and most importantly honest. (I am not saying he is; I am pointing out how unlike a scripted panderer he seems.)
(He also seems egotistical of course).

.

[Karl Henning]

I saw a condensed version of the exchange;  I should have said he seems sharp, decisive, and most importantly, he deflects questions with strawman counter-questions ("Yes, or no, do you agree that gangs are bad?") — it isn't addressing the point, but it's seizing the mic and driving the carriage.

[Brian]

Trump does have one thing in common with Obama - that his answers, while they always sound good and honest, are vague and insubstantial enough to appeal to a wide audience. For example, he appeals to evangelicals despite his three divorces and lack of clear faith; he appeals to ultra-right-wingers despite being a Democrat for most of his adult life; he appeals to moderates because of "truth-telling" no matter what truth he may be telling; and white supremacists have enthusiastically endorsed his candidacy even though he has never said he is a white supremacist.

[Ken B]

Trump does have one thing in common with Obama - that his answers, while they always sound good and honest, are vague and insubstantial enough to appeal to a wide audience. For example, he appeals to evangelicals despite his three divorces and lack of clear faith; he appeals to ultra-right-wingers despite being a Democrat for most of his adult life; he appeals to moderates because of "truth-telling" no matter what truth he may be telling; and white supremacists have enthusiastically endorsed his candidacy even though he has never said he is a white supremacist.

I agree. Gore Vidal said the most profound thing about American politics (it isn't true the way he actually meant it, but it's true in a way he didn't): "Presidents are the men we hire to make the commercials." Trump, like Obama, regardless of facts or substance projects an image of what people want to see in their country.

[Todd]

Trump does have one thing in common with Obama - that his answers, while they always sound good and honest, are vague and insubstantial enough to appeal to a wide audience.

Obama's answers didn't always sound good.  Trump's almost never do.  He's a showman, and for now, he's playing a right wing nationalist.  He's barking out nativist drivel on immigration, and economic nationalism on economic matters - eg, high tariffs targeted at Mexico and China will somehow generate lots of jobs here in the States.  He's recycling late 19th Century policies with 21st Century media savvy.  Some people are falling for it, and some, who presumably should know better, are rushing to his defense.

[Sergeant Rock]

For example, he appeals to evangelicals despite his three divorces and lack of clear faith...

Sarge

[Todd]

I do fully support Trump's First Lady policy.

[Ken B]

I saw a condensed version of the exchange;  I should have said he seems sharp, decisive, and most importantly, he deflects questions with strawman counter-questions ("Yes, or no, do you agree that gangs are bad?") — it isn't addressing the point, but it's seizing the mic and driving the carriage.

In this case -- Ramos is a very biased guy -- not such a strawman. But that's by the by. He's rejecting the premise implicit in the question. That's appealing when you can see the PC-tendentious-agenda loaded into the question. People of tired of the dreary you-must-assent political correctness of politics in the big media, and Trump is catching that.

[Ken B]

Sarge

Oh Christ, now I want to vote for him!

[(poco) Sforzando]

Trump, like Obama, regardless of facts or substance projects an image of what people want to see in their country.

Speak for yourself. I posted the following just now at the New York Times website:

Trump is a sociopath, pure and simple. He has no respect for the rights or feelings of others (once he even rejected a fleet of custom-based limousines because they measured 1/4 inch too short), and his endless indifference to other human beings (unless of course they "love HIM") resonates with all the disenchanted voters who fantasize being able to say whatever they want to whomever they want so long as it is mercilessly insulting, and who thus feel this endlessly self-congratulatory plutocrat is actually "one of them." But behind every bully is a cry-baby, and confronted with Megyn Kelly's entirely on-point questions about his misogyny, Trump can only whine "unfair! unfair!"

[Archaic Torso of Apollo]

This is a seriously impressive display. He seems genuine, sharp, and most importantly honest. (I am not saying he is; I am pointing out how unlike a scripted panderer he seems.)
(He also seems egotistical of course).

Scott Adams (creator of Dilbert) has been blogging about the Trump campaign, analyzing his marketing/business mastery. Here's his take on this:

http://blog.dilbert.com/post/127604348746/trump-makes-univision-do-the-perp-walk

[Ken B]

Speak for yourself.

Reading impairment alert.

Update. I'm going to expand on this as this sort of thing irks me greatly.
Debate involves trying to actually understand what other people say and think. It should involve the ability to try to express the thoughts of others, even those you don't agree with, fairly and accurately. So it follows that misrepresenting attempts to do that are in fact just a rejection of rational debate in toto.

[Ken B]

Scott Adams (creator of Dilbert) has been blogging about the Trump campaign, analyzing his marketing/business mastery. Here's his take on this:

http://blog.dilbert.com/post/127604348746/trump-makes-univision-do-the-perp-walk

Yes exactly.
NOTE to the reading impaired: I do not support Trump for president.

[(poco) Sforzando]

Reading impairment alert.

Update. I'm going to expand on this as this sort of thing irks me greatly.
Debate involves trying to actually understand what other people say and think. It should involve the ability to try to express the thoughts of others, even those you don't agree with, fairly and accurately. So it follows that misrepresenting attempts to do that are in fact just a rejection of rational debate in toto.

Well, harrumph!

[Ken B]

Well, harrumph!

I bet Trump doesn't acknowledge when he misrepresents people either.

[Karl Henning]

Sarge

Considering the percentage of porn traffic which is from the Bible Belt, Trump's appeal on these lines is perfectly understandable.

[Karl Henning]

Yes exactly.
NOTE to the reading impaired: I do not support Trump for president.

Oh Christ, now I want to vote for him!

You're evolving on this issue, and we should give you the space . . . .

[Ken B]

You're evolving on this issue, and we should give you the space . . . .

Hehehe.

Actually, I am. I still say Trump won't win and won't run an independent campaign, because I think he's more motivated by ego, and actually losing in the vote is not what he wants. But I'm less confident of that now than I was. I posted something a while ago about Trump's indisputable competence in his past. We are seeing that on display now. Mixed in with the petulance, the egotism, the thin skin. It's certainly interesting.