Trump

[Rhett]

I dont claim to be an expert on Trump, but i do have some views and will share them.

Initially, i was almost totally against Trump, and the more i learned the more that view was reinforced. I have seen a documentary about him and his mafia and con man past. I still hold those specific pieces of data to be true of him. I still think he has a heap of faults. However, i currently hold the view that, overall, despite the incredible amount of faults, he is a positive force in the world.

I have seen Fahrenheit 11/9 and a video hosted by Jennifer Lawrence about American political corruption, which suggests to me how much of a shakeup American politics needed.

I believe that preventing illegal and problematic immigration is a positive thing. Excessive immigration increases the supply of labour and hence keeps wages low, which drags down the lower and middle class. Excessive muslim immigration is also a problem, obviously.

I have been watching youtube videos about China, you might want to check out "China Uncensored". I think that if China becomes the dominant superpower the world is in a lot of trouble, like Orwells 1984 type of trouble. I think Trump is the man right now to try to stave that off.

I consider that northern Europeans mostly created the western world, typified by freedom of speech, education, science, law and judicial independence, inclusiveness, tolerance, innovation, democracy, etc, etc, and these kinds of people need to stay in power and keep leading the world forward.

I kind of think Trump is the last alpha in the political world right now.

A lot of the problems we are seeing these days with leftist views is their beta type personality trying to gain power over the remnants of institutionalised alpha. They dont realise that they are already exerting a lot of problematic power, and if and wherever they gain full power they are often killing the goose that lays the golden egg. Leftists have felt empowered in their fight against reason by the challenges the world is facing, as a result of the progress alpha's have created. Yes, the world has economic, wealth distribution, climatic, species depletion, etc, issues, but we need more alpha to solve that, not less.

I know very little about Greta Thunberg, but she appears a very strong alpha type personality, that is doing a lot of good for the world. She reminds me of myself when i was younger, but back then we didnt have a young generation exposed to a lot of data telling them their future is under serious threat, so that kind of platform wasnt as strong or possible.

As someone that is pro environmentalism and pro evolution, i am neither right, left, nor centrist in my political orientation.

[jupiviv]

JFC another 'race realist'!

I believe that preventing illegal and problematic immigration is a positive thing. Excessive immigration increases the supply of labour and hence keeps wages low, which drags down the lower and middle class.

Nothing is inherently a positive thing. Your argument boils down to "more people take up more resources than less people, hence we should have less people", which can be used to banish or keep out any sentient being from any spatial location in the universe. It's totally irrelevant to Trump's racist, intentionally cruel and unreasonable policy towards illegal immigrants in the US.

A lot of the problems we are seeing these days with leftist views is their beta type personality trying to gain power over the remnants of institutionalised alpha.

The fact you think "alpha" and "beta" are concepts that can be used to analyse world-history says more about you than the rest of your post.

Speaking of which, the biggest problem in the world - both now and throughout human history - is the vapid pretense of "balance" and "reasonableness" reeking from the nonsense you've written.

[Rhett]

Jupiviv, Trump's or his advisers methods of reducing illegal immigration may be worthy of serious criticism at times, but if you value wisdom and the best possible statistics around the world, then i think you should support the restoration, maintenance and improvements to the leading organisations and peoples of the world.

I think globalisation has done a lot of great things, but that it has been more to the benefit of developing countries, and has drained developed countries in certain ways. I think the onus should be on developed countries to show leadership and really take things to another level, but its harder for them to do that if they get dragged down by terrorism, enclaves, religion, economic enslavery, fawning to primitive cultures, and a general devolution of ideals.

In Australia, i find that a chunk of left ideology is trying to submit, trying to reduce the power of oneself, to give power and freedom away. If you dont live in Australia there may be no point in me explaining that further.

[jupiviv]

if you value wisdom

Yes I value wisdom. That's why I'm trying to distinguish it from white nationalist agitprop conjured by the diseased brains of déclassé dingoes.

[Rhett]

That just looks like an attempt at a personal attack, bluster, suggesting an inability to hold ground if you engaged with the topic.

[jupiviv]

That just looks like an attempt at a personal attack, bluster, suggesting an inability to hold ground if you engaged with the topic.

There is no ground being combated, at least not of the philosophical variety. You like all other reactionaries have simply decided to project onto a crumbling political/economic status quo your febrile idylls of a world-to-come wherein you shall receive what you're owed. In any case, I have engaged with this topic at length before, on this forum. I see no reason to reiterate my thoughts about it for your sake.

[Diebert van Rhijn]

Hi Rhett, it's been a while since I've seen you post here. How have you been?

As for Trump, my views have developed over the years as well on the topic. Three years ago I started here, before the final election.

the naked, personal ambition coated with a truck load of staggering braggadocio. That hits a note with the people who feel the managed, articulate, unreal world of Washington does not represent anything. Which of course it doesn't and the current economical dominant class operates on the insane notion that something has been already realized instead of having become lost or was never there to begin with. They've lost this sense of bravado and cynicism, both of which you can find back hyper-amplified, near indistinguishable from nonsense within the Trump campaign (but hey, this is not and never was about fact-as-truth).

Which I think still holds true to some degree and maps perhaps already a little bit to your idea of "alpha".

Later on I posted various extremely negative but also some tantalizing analysis, like when I was reading the highly critical Trump biography "Trump Revealed" by Michael Kranish & Marc Fisher and talked about it here http://theabsolute.net/phpBB/viewtopic. ... 99#p158099 with the most commented on phrase being "Could you call it genius".

Mind you, certain people who once were known, sharp thinkers have lumped me, as well a co-moderator Russell Parr into some "alt-right" category and labeled as such as borderline racists, which was particularly strange as Russell is himself of color and we both banned actual racists from this board, something the same accusers rarely bothered to do. But that's just an aside remark, serving as example how crazy and impossible discussions have become. We're all so primed & triggered now! Losing the sense of perspective, contrast and definition as-we-speak.

I kind of think Trump is the last alpha in the political world right now.

A lot of the problems we are seeing these days with leftist views is their beta type personality trying to gain power over the remnants of institutionalised alpha. They dont realise that they are already exerting a lot of problematic power, and if and wherever they gain full power they are often killing the goose that lays the golden egg. Leftists have felt empowered in their fight against reason by the challenges the world is facing, as a result of the progress alpha's have created. Yes, the world has economic, wealth distribution, climatic, species depletion, etc, issues, but we need more alpha to solve that, not less.

Trump is without doubt an anti-system guy, who rather trusts some instinct than going over any collection of facts determined by committee. Actually I suspect somewhere in his life he has stopped seeing the world as something that would only make sense by continuing employing and deciding on facts. This is why he probably says more or less whatever he feels or remembers to be the case, leaving others to scramble to explain or re-interpret it all. So I'm totally getting the critics who say Trump is lying, making up and confusing facts as he goes along. But I'm wondering how big of a problem it really is. When it comes to nitty gritty details of implementing a policy, the details are important. But when creating a policy, a vision, to form a principle, one cannot just add all facts together. This simply does not work in real life, all it creates is repetition and stagnation.

Does this mean I think Trump will be a good thing in the end? It beats me. The amount of upset it creates in people who don't seem connected to the real world in the first place is something I find pretty valuable. And perhaps there's risk in every good opportunity. And yes, Trump in the White House is the craziest, unheard thing we've seen in a long time in American politics. Buy hey, isn't humanity the most craziest, unheard thing we've seen in a long time, like anywhere? That's the perspective I take on this topic. Worrying about the next war, collapse, mistake or disaster, we always had good reason to do so. Not that much changed in my view in that regard. So best thing is to calm down and understand that only with danger, real hope can grow.

As someone that is pro environmentalism and pro evolution, i am neither right, left, nor centrist in my political orientation.

Yeah, I'm in my own context left of most indicators and in my country "right" is as conservative as middle of the road Liberal in the USA! The only two things I've turned "rightish" on over time is African and Middle-East immigration, the failed integration of people arriving from there over the decades, and the over-complex size and scope of most federal governments which I propose to bring back to local and regional scale. But on all things military, environmental, family values and the "tradition" I'm closer to being extremely left-radical and anti-nationalist if anything. Extremely pro-science, pro-technology and pro-academic (after my whole life working professionally in those areas) and yet still doubtful about a lot of climate modelling & predictions and system thinking in general, highly doubting some forms of ecology and all over-complex modelling of things involving animal and human behavior or purpose.

[jupiviv]

Trump is without doubt an anti-system guy

Well this perspective certainly explains why all of your predictions about his presidency fell flat! If anything he represents the attempt to restore the neoliberal world order by directing white settler-proletariat indignation upon coloured folk with some vague economic populism thrown in. The "genius" of Trump's victory was the fact his opponents were uniquely unpopular and overconfident to boot.

So best thing is to calm down and understand that only with danger, real hope can grow.

Weren't you crying about how everyone's getting called a racist recently?

[Rhett]

That just looks like an attempt at a personal attack, bluster, suggesting an inability to hold ground if you engaged with the topic.

There is no ground being combated, at least not of the philosophical variety. You like all other reactionaries have simply decided to project onto a crumbling political/economic status quo your febrile idylls of a world-to-come wherein you shall receive what you're owed. In any case, I have engaged with this topic at length before, on this forum. I see no reason to reiterate my thoughts about it for your sake.

This section of the forum is called "Worldly Matters".
You are attacking a strawman.
You havent made any suggestions as to how you think critical issues should be dealt with.
I prefaced my comments by saying i dont claim to be an expert on Trump, my views have been evolving, and i have made it clear i do not live in America. I was interested in discussion, i was not lobbying.
If you dont want to share your views in this thread, it begs the question of why you posted in it at all.
I suggest you conduct some self examination.

[Rhett]

Hi Rhett, it's been a while since I've seen you post here. How have you been?

As for Trump, my views have developed over the years as well on the topic. Three years ago I started here, before the final election.

the naked, personal ambition coated with a truck load of staggering braggadocio. That hits a note with the people who feel the managed, articulate, unreal world of Washington does not represent anything. Which of course it doesn't and the current economical dominant class operates on the insane notion that something has been already realized instead of having become lost or was never there to begin with. They've lost this sense of bravado and cynicism, both of which you can find back hyper-amplified, near indistinguishable from nonsense within the Trump campaign (but hey, this is not and never was about fact-as-truth).

Which I think still holds true to some degree and maps perhaps already a little bit to your idea of "alpha".

Later on I posted various extremely negative but also some tantalizing analysis, like when I was reading the highly critical Trump biography "Trump Revealed" by Michael Kranish & Marc Fisher and talked about it here http://theabsolute.net/phpBB/viewtopic. ... 99#p158099 with the most commented on phrase being "Could you call it genius".

Mind you, certain people who once were known, sharp thinkers have lumped me, as well a co-moderator Russell Parr into some "alt-right" category and labeled as such as borderline racists, which was particularly strange as Russell is himself of color and we both banned actual racists from this board, something the same accusers rarely bothered to do. But that's just an aside remark, serving as example how crazy and impossible discussions have become. We're all so primed & triggered now! Losing the sense of perspective, contrast and definition as-we-speak.

I kind of think Trump is the last alpha in the political world right now.

A lot of the problems we are seeing these days with leftist views is their beta type personality trying to gain power over the remnants of institutionalised alpha. They dont realise that they are already exerting a lot of problematic power, and if and wherever they gain full power they are often killing the goose that lays the golden egg. Leftists have felt empowered in their fight against reason by the challenges the world is facing, as a result of the progress alpha's have created. Yes, the world has economic, wealth distribution, climatic, species depletion, etc, issues, but we need more alpha to solve that, not less.

Trump is without doubt an anti-system guy, who rather trusts some instinct than going over any collection of facts determined by committee. Actually I suspect somewhere in his life he has stopped seeing the world as something that would only make sense by continuing employing and deciding on facts. This is why he probably says more or less whatever he feels or remembers to be the case, leaving others to scramble to explain or re-interpret it all. So I'm totally getting the critics who say Trump is lying, making up and confusing facts as he goes along. But I'm wondering how big of a problem it really is. When it comes to nitty gritty details of implementing a policy, the details are important. But when creating a policy, a vision, to form a principle, one cannot just add all facts together. This simply does not work in real life, all it creates is repetition and stagnation.

Does this mean I think Trump will be a good thing in the end? It beats me. The amount of upset it creates in people who don't seem connected to the real world in the first place is something I find pretty valuable. And perhaps there's risk in every good opportunity. And yes, Trump in the White House is the craziest, unheard thing we've seen in a long time in American politics. Buy hey, isn't humanity the most craziest, unheard thing we've seen in a long time, like anywhere? That's the perspective I take on this topic. Worrying about the next war, collapse, mistake or disaster, we always had good reason to do so. Not that much changed in my view in that regard. So best thing is to calm down and understand that only with danger, real hope can grow.

As someone that is pro environmentalism and pro evolution, i am neither right, left, nor centrist in my political orientation.

Yeah, I'm in my own context left of most indicators and in my country "right" is as conservative as middle of the road Liberal in the USA! The only two things I've turned "rightish" on over time is African and Middle-East immigration, the failed integration of people arriving from there over the decades, and the over-complex size and scope of most federal governments which I propose to bring back to local and regional scale. But on all things military, environmental, family values and the "tradition" I'm closer to being extremely left-radical and anti-nationalist if anything. Extremely pro-science, pro-technology and pro-academic (after my whole life working professionally in those areas) and yet still doubtful about a lot of climate modelling & predictions and system thinking in general, highly doubting some forms of ecology and all over-complex modelling of things involving animal and human behavior or purpose.

Hi Diebert, nice to catch up again.

Since last posting here i have probably accumulated enough life events for two more autobiographies, taking the total to three or even maybe four books?! If only i could write riveting novels or find someone to work with because a lot of the material might be better off somewhat distanced from realism, so people can handle it, like Orwells 1984.

Regarding Trump, quite some time ago i came up with the term "Lock trap mind", which may not be the best way to describe what i mean by it, but what i mean is that there are people primarily of very high intelligence that see such a high proportion of untruth in the world that they prefer to work with raw data and see their own patterns and make their own inferences. So they are very cautious about accepting new information into their world view, it goes into an 'in tray' and gets processed over time. They tend to have a very good working memory, which ties in with making their own inferences from stored data. This is one perspective on how my brain works, and i wonder if Trump is a bit like that. Trump has had ideas like becoming president and tackling China and has pursued them over a long period of time, if you look deeply he isnt all stream of consciousness.

Its interesting to consider that some of the people here, as well as Trump and Greta Thunberg, probably have more in common with each other when you look deeply into character traits than they do with mainstream people. Something we can be very sure of is that anyone that stands for a contentious cause and exerts power in some way in relation to that cause will attract decriers, i am seeing just as much hatred towards Greta as towards Trump. It isnt what should shape anyone's views about a person.

On the topic of racism, i think unfettered intellectual discussion and freedom of speech are more important than protecting sensibilities and being politically correct. If we are to make the world a better place we need to think and talk about DNA, culture, religion, and superstition. Like scientists and policymakers. Its how we can develop strategies towards making the world a better place for everyone. Its not about eugenics, ethnic cleansing or genocide, unless someone is thinking along those lines, in which case its better to let them express themself and be condemned rather than bottle it up and maybe act on it one day.

Regarding moderation, the big problem i am seeing is that haters are controlling the internet. Haters are forming into lynch mobs where they lobby moderators and moderators act on it. Its about emotions and prejudice, and nasty politics. Most people that are moderators, its a relatively new thing in society, people arent trained for it, and i am seeing critical problems of mismanagement. I have been banned a few times from places that have nothing to do with politics or religion or philosophy, its just garden variety interest topics, where i have at times been a staunch advocate for what my research and experience and reason tells me is right, and where the sheep are flocking together still thinking the world is flat and i am committing blasphemy. I am in control of a number of spaces myself and pretty much have a no banning policy.

Talking about political orientations and left vs right, etc, something that has helped shape my views is a number of years of being deeply exposed to a very low calibre culture, within Australia actually. I have seen how dark some cultures are, some people are not well meaning, they pretty much worship exploitation, corruption and oppression. It helped me understand many parts of the world, and how we evolve from tribal cultures where the individual is often controlled and sacrificed for the group and the maintenance of its power structure, to systems that are somewhere along the spectrum from that towards democracy. Tribes are typically hierarchical dictatorships, and selfishness tends to dominate over benevolence.

[jupiviv]

There is no ground being combated, at least not of the philosophical variety. You like all other reactionaries have simply decided to project onto a crumbling political/economic status quo your febrile idylls of a world-to-come wherein you shall receive what you're owed. In any case, I have engaged with this topic at length before, on this forum. I see no reason to reiterate my thoughts about it for your sake.

This section of the forum is called "Worldly Matters".
You are attacking a strawman.

I was stating that as a fact, not arguing with you. Actually I did refute one of your points quite soundly and since you haven't responded to that I can safely assume you aren't capable of doing so.

You havent made any suggestions as to how you think critical issues should be dealt with.

Because you haven't brought up any. So far you've only tried (and miserably failed) to make racist/'race realist' bullshit sound wise.

I prefaced my comments by saying i dont claim to be an expert on Trump, my views have been evolving, and i have made it clear i do not live in America. I was interested in discussion, i was not lobbying.

I don't care about how reasonable you think your opinions are, just the opinions themselves. There is no way someone who is just an uninformed impartial observer of Trump can endorse his presidency let alone view him as a great reformer. Additionally, proclaiming support - real or fake - for "lefty" views like climate change and evolution won't convince anyone who isn't a reactionary themselves that your politics are very objective and "centrist". Doesn't work that way my dude.

[Rhett]

Jupiviv, you come across as having so many interactive flaws that i dont think its worth my time to engage with you on this topic.

[Diebert van Rhijn]

Well this perspective certainly explains why all of your predictions about his presidency fell flat! If anything he represents the attempt to restore the neoliberal world order by directing white settler-proletariat indignation upon coloured folk with some vague economic populism thrown in.

Actually so far all my predictions continue to win. Unlike some of yours.... My new bet is that you don't even remember what I wrote.

The "genius" of Trump's victory was the fact his opponents were uniquely unpopular and overconfident to boot.

I prefer your earlier analysis of the "genius" term:

"However, what endears Trump - as a person if not anything else - to me is the boldness with which he upholds the *pretense* that it can work. This is the unsuspecting boldness of a doddering old codger telling a ridiculous story about his youth to his grandson. If spirit is what we really are, and genius the expression of spirit, then there is indeed genius in that". --source: Jupiviv 2017

So best thing is to calm down and understand that only with danger, real hope can grow.

Weren't you crying about how everyone's getting called a racist recently?

Yes and my hope is that people start realizing increasingly how rapidly much of the discourse is turning into mostly noise without any consequence. That would be a great starting point for self-reflection and conversion: the opening of new pathways. On a larger scale only possible if the current paths are seen, without much doubt left, as leading into the abyss. Seeing so many like lemmings falling into those, will surely help some get it!

[Diebert van Rhijn]

If only i could write riveting novels or find someone to work with because a lot of the material might be better off somewhat distanced from realism, so people can handle it, like Orwells 1984.

First become sufficiently famous or notorious, then publishers will cue for your biography and offer ghost writing services with it!

Regarding Trump, quite some time ago i came up with the term "Lock trap mind", which may not be the best way to describe what i mean by it, but what i mean is that there are people primarily of very high intelligence that see such a high proportion of untruth in the world that they prefer to work with raw data and see their own patterns and make their own inferences. So they are very cautious about accepting new information into their world view, it goes into an 'in tray' and gets processed over time. They tend to have a very good working memory, which ties in with making their own inferences from stored data. This is one perspective on how my brain works, and i wonder if Trump is a bit like that. Trump has had ideas like becoming president and tackling China and has pursued them over a long period of time, if you look deeply he isnt all stream of consciousness.

Interesting. It's a fact that Trump has referred to the world as sufficiently unreal and facts (like statistics, research reports) malleable to need, context and interpretation to justify some of this cartoonish imagery and language. There's some nihilism and cynicism in all of that but nothing really offensive from a philosophical point of view. In any case, it's tricky to argue with someone who defeated the odds and predictions so many times. Actually if Trump would have one defined tactic in his doings, it's the introduction of in-predictability and uncertainty in a system controlled and locked into one predictable orbit (which does not seem to go anywhere). On a higher level this might actually be a really powerful thing. But then again, is it being imagined? When looking at the Russian collusion conspiracy theory, I think from that one can derive some of the answer. From the insanity and unhinged opposition one can learn sometimes more than studying the subject himself. Which doesn't mean by the way that Trump is not really dangerous in some aspects. But perhaps in more ways than people have been able to verbalize in the media.

Something we can be very sure of is that anyone that stands for a contentious cause and exerts power in some way in relation to that cause will attract decriers, i am seeing just as much hatred towards Greta as towards Trump. It isnt what should shape anyone's views about a person.

Many philosophers have written about the nature of power and resistance from two camps: competing powers and the powerless classes.

On the topic of racism, i think unfettered intellectual discussion and freedom of speech are more important than protecting sensibilities and being politically correct.

Hate and fear is one thing, all the hate & fear towards hate & fear itself another. A lot of things can be understood better through that lense.

I am in control of a number of spaces myself and pretty much have a no banning policy.

Let me be clear, people wouldn't be banned at this forum because of some racial ideas but only because of specific repetitive personal attacks based on the race of the person talking to as it possibly against the law but certainly against normal conduct rules. That said, the title of this forum attracted some very strange characters over time who insist on discussing arcane ideas like for example the magical amount of letters in their posts in relation to the date. If that's the only thing they bring I think it's better not to give platforms to such minds, also because the posts are without exception very long and flood a dead silent forum with hourly updates on their magic. It's entertaining or educative only to some point, and better on a busier forum.

It helped me understand many parts of the world, and how we evolve from tribal cultures where the individual is often controlled and sacrificed for the group and the maintenance of its power structure, to systems that are somewhere along the spectrum from that towards democracy. Tribes are typically hierarchical dictatorships, and selfishness tends to dominate over benevolence.

How would you see the relation to the development of consciousness, knowledge, outward connections and communication? With modern democracies I wonder at times if the system of control is really so far away, as if we've just became better at hiding the power structures. This ties in with theories on civilization as expression of repression.

[jupiviv]

Actually so far all my predictions continue to win.

You were saying the (exact) same political chaos stuff as now.

The "genius" of Trump's victory was the fact his opponents were uniquely unpopular and overconfident to boot.

I prefer your earlier analysis of the "genius" term:

"However, what endears Trump - as a person if not anything else - to me is the boldness with which he upholds the *pretense* that it can work. This is the unsuspecting boldness of a doddering old codger telling a ridiculous story about his youth to his grandson. If spirit is what we really are, and genius the expression of spirit, then there is indeed genius in that". --source: Jupiviv 2017

In other words, Trump is great at being who he really is - a bitchy NY fancy lad pitted against a criminally incompetent Dem establishment. I mentioned 'genius' for reasons that became apparent immediately after I posted it.

Yes and my hope is that people start realizing increasingly how rapidly much of the discourse is turning into mostly noise without any consequence.

Thank you for admitting your opinions on race don't matter. Or were you excluding those for some reason?

[jupiviv]

Jupiviv, you come across as having so many interactive flaws that i dont think its worth my time to engage with you on this topic.

Identifying the gaping hole in your point about immigration was more than sufficient to discredit everything you wrote. To quote myself recently describing Diebert's hysterical ramblings on racism, your arguments - boil down to If [STRAWMAN] then why not also [RED HERRING]? Could it be that [NON-SEQUITUR]?

[Diebert van Rhijn]

Yes and my hope is that people start realizing increasingly how rapidly much of the discourse is turning into mostly noise without any consequence.

Thank you for admitting your opinions on race don't matter. Or were you excluding those for some reason?

Since when did I have opinions on race? I started to have the views you refer to only after people started campaigning for more awareness of the issue, some time back. And now we're nearing the rather absurd ending, this culmination of a completely self-contradicting and divisive undertaking. In the end it has all surprisingly little to with historical and actual racism. It's almost more like invoking a kind of mythology on both sides, as I explored here including some references to published work from others on the topic.

[Rhett]

Diebert,

Trump realises that whether he is right or wrong, most people dont fact check and rely on certain cues. If you make sure you are the last man standing, you win. Whether people think the last man standing is right or not, they see him as the strongest, the one in control, and the one that will write the history. Might is right.

On the topic of banning, if someone writes stuff that is so unsavoury it should be deleted, and is of no value, then i delete it. So far i havent had anyone keep posting if i keep deleting, i know myself how 'annoyed' i get if a moderator deletes my post(s). In one instance where that happenned to me i told the group i could no longer post due to the deletions of my work and its political impact on threads, and i then stopped posting, so they banned me. If you think the death penalty is a bad idea, then for similar reasons you could see banning in a similar light.

I see three critical issues with modern democracy. The culture of corruption, political donations, both on the record and off. Secondly, the way that in Australia we have ministers with no expertise in their portfolio with the power to override longstanding department experts, which can be massively innefficient and corrupt. The best outcome to politicians is votes, not real outcomes. Thirdly, the critical lack of visionary leadership.

[David Quinn]

Hey Rhett,

Good to see you’re still alive. What has happened to Kelly Jones, do you know? I haven’t heard a peep from her in a long time.

I know very little about Greta Thunberg, but she appears a very strong alpha type personality, that is doing a lot of good for the world.

Yep, Greta is great. I really like her. Her recent speech to the UN was very impressive, particularly the way she spoke the truth to world leaders in an uncompromising manner. Her words were simple, pure and direct. Such a breath of fresh air.

In many ways, the science of climate change has come to assume the role of the spiritual philosopher. It proclaims harsh truths and makes demands on people’s lives, and has to endure widespread condemnation as a result. Greta provides a perfect example of this. The way she is mocked, vilified, dehumanized and abused by large segments of society - simply for urging people to take science seriously - echoes the treatment that the likes of Jesus and Socrates had to endure in the past.

Unlike the fraudulent Trumpian movement, she actually represents a genuine threat to the status quo. Her message and her movement are in direct opposition to the elites and their swamp, and they clearly do not like it.

Incidentally, if any of you think that Greta might be over-reacting, here is an interesting read: Facing Extinction

I dont claim to be an expert on Trump, but i do have some views and will share them.

Initially, i was almost totally against Trump, and the more i learned the more that view was reinforced. I have seen a documentary about him and his mafia and con man past. I still hold those specific pieces of data to be true of him. I still think he has a heap of faults. However, i currently hold the view that, overall, despite the incredible amount of faults, he is a positive force in the world.

I have seen Fahrenheit 11/9 and a video hosted by Jennifer Lawrence about American political corruption, which suggests to me how much of a shakeup American politics needed.

I believe that preventing illegal and problematic immigration is a positive thing. Excessive immigration increases the supply of labour and hence keeps wages low, which drags down the lower and middle class. Excessive muslim immigration is also a problem, obviously.

I have been watching youtube videos about China, you might want to check out "China Uncensored". I think that if China becomes the dominant superpower the world is in a lot of trouble, like Orwells 1984 type of trouble. I think Trump is the man right now to try to stave that off.

Okay, I can see what has happened here. If Trump has one skill, it is that he knows how to manipulate and exploit weak-minded people to his advantage, particularly their fears. You watched a video about what’s happening China which (understandably) frightened you and this triggered a desire for the man who loudly proclaims in his vaudeville act that "he alone can fix everything" to do something about it.

It is essentially the same process that animates the MAGA crowd. Fear makes them look for a Saviour and so they readily turn to a larger-than-life character like Trump, despite the fact that he is clearly an incompetent buffoon.

Don't misunderstand me. I’m not necessarily saying that you are weak-minded in an overall sense. I’m just saying that fear tends to make people weak-minded. In a bid to assuage their fear, all reason and sense is jettisoned out the window, and that's what I am getting from you here.

I agree that the direction that China is going in with its hi-tech totalitarianism and social merit system is truly horrific. But it’s not just China. This is happening all around the world. Things like increasing camera surveillance, facial-recognition technology and and social merit schemes are already springing up all over the Western World. It is the future.

Here in Australia, for example, the government is increasingly ramping up its aggressive attacks on those who engage in climate protests, with increased fines and jail terms, and even talk of punishing those on Centrelink who participate. What's next? Are they going to have people sacked from their jobs for expressing dissenting views? The social merit system is already well-entrenched in this country.

Trump won’t be standing up to any of this. On the contrary, his fascist mentality will only serve to accelerate it. He would like nothing better than to be a full-blown dictator and have the ability to spy on everyone.

I consider that northern Europeans mostly created the western world, typified by freedom of speech, education, science, law and judicial independence, inclusiveness, tolerance, innovation, democracy, etc, etc, and these kinds of people need to stay in power and keep leading the world forward.

I kind of think Trump is the last alpha in the political world right now.

A lot of the problems we are seeing these days with leftist views is their beta type personality trying to gain power over the remnants of institutionalised alpha. They dont realise that they are already exerting a lot of problematic power, and if and wherever they gain full power they are often killing the goose that lays the golden egg. Leftists have felt empowered in their fight against reason by the challenges the world is facing, as a result of the progress alpha's have created. Yes, the world has economic, wealth distribution, climatic, species depletion, etc, issues, but we need more alpha to solve that, not less.

I detect a lot of cognitive dissonance in your words, and these three paragraphs, taken together, represent one example of it.

As someone that is pro environmentalism and pro evolution, i am neither right, left, nor centrist in my political orientation.

Given that the entire right is in denial about the state of the environment and obstructs all attempts by the human race to deal with it, you would have to be anti-right at the very least. Wouldn’t you?

Trump's or his advisers methods of reducing illegal immigration may be worthy of serious criticism at times, but if you value wisdom and the best possible statistics around the world, then i think you should support the restoration, maintenance and improvements to the leading organisations and peoples of the world.

It sounds like you have spent far too much time on social media. You've been turned.

[Rhett]

Hi David,

Nice to catch up.

I havent had contact with Kelly for years, unfortunately. She tried to impose her own agenda, this webspaces agenda, into my personal sphere at a time when i had repeatedly expressed to her that i had other things i needed/wanted to focus on. She seemingly overreacted to my response to her, or, it seems, i was no longer giving her, or likely to give her, what she wanted from me.

People like us should be like family to each other, generally we should try not to break ties.

[Rhett]

On the topic of Greta, she seems an incredible person.

Unfortunately, she has been misguided by others on the topic of veganism, and is going against science, and risking her physical and mental development.

Its interesting that she is criticising many people that follow nutritional science but not climate science, while she herself is following climate science but not nutritional science. Greta is simultaneously pro and anti science. She is being an unintentional hypocrite.

[Rhett]

On the topic of China, the first step is to have a solid look at what China represents.

China is much more against freedom of speech than the west. One example, i know someone that moved to China, and i thought great, i can get his first hand impressions of the place. Well, he immediately responded that he is unable to talk about anything controversial or political without use of a vpn. That is clearly a very different culture to Australia.

Another example, i know an Australian woman that married a chinese guy in Australia. They bought a house together in Sydney. His parents came over from China to visit, then stayed. They took control of the son, which placed the wife on the outer, in her own house. After much torment they divorced, sold the house, split the proceeds, and she spent the money trying to get happy again.

I also know a guy that married a chinese girl, had a child, moved to China, and now he has cut his ties with both parents.

I have spent time studying primitive rural white cultures in Australia, they had this same strong desire to dominate, control and exploit, using threats, often linked to finances. It is mafia like behaviour.

When i linked you to "China Uncensored", i linked you to hundreds of videos. I havent watched them all, but i have watched enough for now. I could link you to other, even more intellectual material on the topic of China.

Have you looked into China's 'judicial' process, where almost everyone is found guilty? Would you submit yourself to it?

Have you looked at how China treats Tibet, Hong Kong and Taiwan?

How do you explain why so many chinese millionaires move to the west?

You need to address all this and more if you are going to argue that China is not a major problem.

[Rhett]

David wrote: I detect a lot of cognitive dissonance in your words, and these three paragraphs, taken together, represent one example of it.

I dont see that, and you havent explained your position, so i have nothing to respond to.

Rhett wrote: As someone that is pro environmentalism and pro evolution, i am neither right, left, nor centrist in my political orientation.

David wrote: Given that the entire right is in denial about the state of the environment and obstructs all attempts by the human race to deal with it, you would have to be anti-right at the very least. Wouldn’t you?

My views are my views, they land where my research points, they derive from my scientific approach to understanding phenomena. As someone that is pro environmentalism and pro evolution, there are aspects of the left and the right that i am for and against.

Rhett wrote: ↑Trump's or his advisers methods of reducing illegal immigration may be worthy of serious criticism at times, but if you value wisdom and the best possible statistics around the world, then i think you should support the restoration, maintenance and improvements to the leading organisations and peoples of the world.

David wrote: It sounds like you have spent far too much time on social media. You've been turned.

I wonder if you are guilty of a long standing criticism of the left, by members of the left;
https://youtu.be/GLG9g7BcjKs

[David Quinn]

On the topic of Greta, she seems an incredible person.

Unfortunately, she has been misguided by others on the topic of veganism, and is going against science, and risking her physical and mental development.

I think she’s fine. If other 16-year-olds can get by on a diet of McDonalds, KFC, chips and chocolate, then veganism won’t present too much of a problem for Greta. I’m sure she has done the research to identify what she has to eat in order to maintain her nutritional levels.

And I doubt very much that she has been “misguided by others”. Her minds looks to be very independent to me. It is part of what makes her remarkable.

I consider that northern Europeans mostly created the western world, typified by freedom of speech, education, science, law and judicial independence, inclusiveness, tolerance, innovation, democracy, etc, etc, and these kinds of people need to stay in power and keep leading the world forward.

I kind of think Trump is the last alpha in the political world right now.

A lot of the problems we are seeing these days with leftist views is their beta type personality trying to gain power over the remnants of institutionalised alpha. They dont realise that they are already exerting a lot of problematic power, and if and wherever they gain full power they are often killing the goose that lays the golden egg. Leftists have felt empowered in their fight against reason by the challenges the world is facing, as a result of the progress alpha's have created. Yes, the world has economic, wealth distribution, climatic, species depletion, etc, issues, but we need more alpha to solve that, not less.

David wrote: I detect a lot of cognitive dissonance in your words, and these three paragraphs, taken together, represent one example of it.

I dont see that, and you havent explained your position, so i have nothing to respond to.

The various cultures of Northern Europeans are essentially “socialist” in nature - particularly Scandinavia, but also places like Germany and Britain. By “socialist”, I mean they are far removed from the Wild West style of capitalism that infests America. There is a stronger sense of cooperation and collectivism, which is what leads to the flourishing of science, inclusiveness, tolerance, democracy, etc. The role played by “alpha males”, as you put it (or “narcissistic arseholes”, as I call them), is minimized.

Narcissistic arseholes like Trump are the opposite. Instead of promoting inclusiveness and tolerance, they impose fear and division. Instead of promoting truth and science, they erode the value of facts and sneer at expertise. Instead of promoting democracy, they seek to impose totalitarianism.

To pretend that these opposing value systems are aligned is to enter into cognitive dissonance.

You need to address all this and more if you are going to argue that China is not a major problem.

I’ve already said that the direction that China is going in is horrifying. I just don’t believe that a flippy-floppy character like Trump has the ability, or even the desire, to stand up to it.

Why do you think Trump blurted out on national TV last week that he wanted China to dig up dirt on Biden, an extraordinary statement that severely undermines his political prospects? Because China, behind the scenes, forced his hand. He was outplayed. As usual.

David wrote: It sounds like you have spent far too much time on social media. You've been turned.
I wonder if you are guilty of a long standing criticism of the left, by members of the left;
https://youtu.be/GLG9g7BcjKs

Maybe, I don’t know. Maybe you are guilty of it too.

I normally like Jonathon Pie, but I don’t buy the message he spouts in that video. In this instance at least, he is being populist and delusional.

[Rhett]

Rhett wrote: On the topic of Greta, she seems an incredible person.

Unfortunately, she has been misguided by others on the topic of veganism, and is going against science, and risking her physical and mental development.

David wrote: I think she’s fine. If other 16-year-olds can get by on a diet of McDonalds, KFC, chips and chocolate, then veganism won’t present too much of a problem for Greta. I’m sure she has done the research to identify what she has to eat in order to maintain her nutritional levels.

And I doubt very much that she has been “misguided by others”. Her minds looks to be very independent to me. It is part of what makes her remarkable.

Greta likely thinks that because science says veganism is better for the planet, because vegans (innaccurately) say it is better for people, and because science tries to make it work for people nutritionally, she has bought into it. When in fact if you look at what science recommends as the best diet, it is very different from veganism.

As individuals, we start out feeding off blood, then milk, and then historically, for a very long time during our evolution we have eaten animal products. Science only knows so much, there are heaps of question marks about veganism, whether it provides adequate nutrition for the brain, etc. It is not recommended for pregnant women, by my impression. Has Greta had a ______ yet?

Greta may not have been vegan long enough to have suffered effects, and yet, she looks 13 while being 16. Thats very interesting, and from a couple of things i have seen her parents are not small?

Malnourishment is much more of a problem than overnutrition. I have seen a young teenager that was put on a vegan diet as a baby, she has permanent substantial brain damage.

I dont hold it against Greta, she hasnt been around long enough to work her way through all the false information out there. Shs is a victim.

I consider that northern Europeans mostly created the western world, typified by freedom of speech, education, science, law and judicial independence, inclusiveness, tolerance, innovation, democracy, etc, etc, and these kinds of people need to stay in power and keep leading the world forward.

I kind of think Trump is the last alpha in the political world right now.

A lot of the problems we are seeing these days with leftist views is their beta type personality trying to gain power over the remnants of institutionalised alpha. They dont realise that they are already exerting a lot of problematic power, and if and wherever they gain full power they are often killing the goose that lays the golden egg. Leftists have felt empowered in their fight against reason by the challenges the world is facing, as a result of the progress alpha's have created. Yes, the world has economic, wealth distribution, climatic, species depletion, etc, issues, but we need more alpha to solve that, not less.

David: I detect a lot of cognitive dissonance in your words, and these three paragraphs, taken together, represent one example of it.

Rhett: I dont see that, and you havent explained your position, so i have nothing to respond to.

David: The various cultures of Northern Europeans are essentially “socialist” in nature - particularly Scandinavia, but also places like Germany and Britain. By “socialist”, I mean they are far removed from the Wild West style of capitalism that infests America. There is a stronger sense of cooperation and collectivism, which is what leads to the flourishing of science, inclusiveness, tolerance, democracy, etc. The role played by “alpha males”, as you put it (or “narcissistic arseholes”, as I call them), is minimized.

Narcissistic arseholes like Trump are the opposite. Instead of promoting inclusiveness and tolerance, they impose fear and division. Instead of promoting truth and science, they erode the value of facts and sneer at expertise. Instead of promoting democracy, they seek to impose totalitarianism.

To pretend that these opposing value systems are aligned is to enter into cognitive dissonance.

America, although a fair way from what i would consider an ideal place, nevertheless was settled by northern Europeans, and is the leader in science, innovation, fighting for democracy, and is also a very tolerant and inclusive society. I think it still plays a critical role in the world.

Regarding Trump himself, if we start talking about his faults we will be going for weeks, but he also has strengths, and as bad as his faults are, i think we need his strengths right now. Can you tell me some people from the left that you think would deal with China's aggression and the risks associated with China becoming the dominant superpower?

Almost all of the influential people throughout history have been Type A personalities, including Socrates, Jesus, Siddartha, Kierkegaard, Einstein, Greta. In a similar way that a woman must become a man to become enlightened, a Type B personality must become a Type A personality to become enlightened. Properly enlightened that is.

You need to address all this and more if you are going to argue that China is not a major problem.

David: I’ve already said that the direction that China is going in is horrifying. I just don’t believe that a flippy-floppy character like Trump has the ability, or even the desire, to stand up to it.

Why do you think Trump blurted out on national TV last week that he wanted China to dig up dirt on Biden, an extraordinary statement that severely undermines his political prospects? Because China, behind the scenes, forced his hand. He was outplayed. As usual.

Trump has been fighting back hard against the trade war that China started against the world, and it is all unquestionably a war, its not about trade per se. Trump has been on about this for a long time, and his behaviour has been consistent. There has been an increase in manufacturing jobs in America as a result. He has also made statements about Hong Kong, where pissweak, sheepish Australia has not. You praise diplomacy, but China shrugs diplomacy off, strategic steps need to be taken, and from what i have seen, the rest of the world is doing nothing, and Trump is doing a lot.

David wrote: It sounds like you have spent far too much time on social media. You've been turned.
I wonder if you are guilty of a long standing criticism of the left, by members of the left;
https://youtu.be/GLG9g7BcjKs

David: Maybe, I don’t know. Maybe you are guilty of it too.

I normally like Jonathon Pie, but I don’t buy the message he spouts in that video. In this instance at least, he is being populist and delusional.

For anyone to neatly fit into the left or the right, is either a massive coincidence given the breadth of issues, or they are a sheep.