Rant on POTUS 10/5/26 remark on Los Angeles and San Diego

Trump has thrown his toys out of the pram again, because he's not got the Nobel Peace Prize again!

He's also just signed a deal with Russia to buy diesil from them to bring down domestic fuel prices. I always thought he was way to friendly with Putin and I'm still not certain that Russia dosen't have some dirt on him, even if he's not a Russian asset. So much for international support for Ukraine, well, lets say the rest of us still support Ukraine and I'm sure many ordinary Americans do too and are worried about Trumps relationship with Russia, for so long their enemy.

TheCatWoman said:

Aren't Libertarians in favour of very few restrainsts on behaviour and small government? At least thats what I understood Libertarianism to be?

That’s how I understand it, as well! I think the easiest way - at least for me - to understand it is that Libertarians believe whatever you do on your own property should be no one’s business unless it directly harms someone else. Should your neighbor care that you are gay? No. Should your neighbor care if you have guns? No. Should your neighborhood have any say on your buildings, sheds, or yard work? Absolutely not. Should your neighbors care about you being a serial killer and burying the bodies in your backyard? Okay, that’s where they draw the line.

Also, taxation is a huge concern for them, which I don’t fully understand but I think they are focused on people only getting taxed for services that directly impacts them. For example, you only get taxes for the local school district if you currently have a child attending there.

I may be way off on that, but that’s part of why I haven’t been as keen on Libertarians is that I don’t really understand their fixation on taxation. I’m not as concerned about where my taxes go so long as schools are funded and police get paid enough to care about us.

TheCatWoman said:

Who knows, by the next general election here, I might actually be able to vote in national politics for a party who's aims I actually agree with, rather than voting for the one who's least worst, or the one that takes the p1ss out of the whole process.

I hope so for you. I mean, I’ve been there. That’s a big part of why I was drawn to Libertarians. They fulfilled my single button issue (LGBTQ+ rights) and spit in the face of the main parties, but it is so much better to vote for both a party that fully supports your beliefs AND has a valuable candidate that fills you with confidence. That’s the dream, right?

I was surprised it still existed in this country too when I got a leaflet through the door at election time. Communists always fight among themselves, cats in a sack have nothing on Communists for infighting and many are the sort of people who could start an argument in an empty room.

Aren't Libertarians in favour of very few restrainsts on behaviour and small government? At least thats what I understood Libertarianism to be?

When it was mostly Labout or the Conservatives here battling over scraps in the middle ground, it did feel like you were wasting your vote by voting for any of them, I got so fed up with it all I frequently voted for The Monster Raving Loony Party, nobody ever expects them to get in, but it's a place for the disenfranchised and politically homeless to give the middle finger to the rest of the political establishment, everyone else who was fed up voted Lib Dem or Green. I was frequently told that I HAD to vote for either of the big two, or it would be a wasted vote, but to me thats an argument for the status quo that was serving the very few.

Who knows, by the next general election here, I might actually be able to vote in national politics for a party who's aims I actually agree with, rather than voting for the one who's least worst, or the one that takes the p1ss out of the whole process.

TheCatWoman said:

Do you think America would benefit from more political parties?

Yes, yes, YES. Absolutely. We have other political parties, but they have zero influence because:

A) They have significantly less monetary backing than the Democrats and Republicans
B) Both of the main parties actively campaign that voting on a third party is wasting a vote, or being an indirect vote for the opposing side.

I went through a few years of voting Libertarian (generally considered right-wing, though I don’t think they officially identify as being anywhere on the right/left spectrum) primarily because they support gay rights (their last presidential candidate for 2024 was an out homosexual man) and they were not one of the two giants. However, their views don’t line up with mine as well as Democrats’ do and it’s a losing battle trying to convince others to abandon the idiocy of our two-party system, so I’m more likely to vote Democrat now.

From my limited experience, it feels like Libertarians are the strongest independent party, but there is also the Green Party (left, focuses primarily on environmental concerns), which is sometimes seen as an alternative to Democrats. I’ve also heard of the Communism Party and even met a guy who claimed to have been a former important member of the party, but of course that party’s always getting flak from everybody due to McCarthyism. That guy claimed the American communists are rife with internal conflict, too. It’s surprising it even still exists, tbh.

One of the things thats become clear in UK politics this autumn, is that all 5 main parties are distinct and that voters have a real choice between how left, right or centre they want a government to be. For to long all the parties seemed to be offering pretty much the same things and it came down to both a personality contest and who you disliked the least. Do you think America would benefit from more political parties?

Weve got widening racial divisions too, with some politicians saying certain places aren't safe for white people, when asked people that actually live iin these places don't recognise whats been said and hate being used as an example for dog whistle politics.

Age is difficult, unemployment amoung the young is high, so the answer all politicians seem to come up with is making it cheaper to employ those under 24. At 25 full adult rate minimum wage comes in, so I imagine we'll go back to there being good employment for 18-24 year old, and at the point they reach 25 an excuse will be made to sack them as they will become to expensive.

TheCatWoman said:

As far as I'm concerned you're welcome here if you need refuge, but I hope you never do.

That is incredibly sweet of you and I very much appreciate that. Don’t worry about me, though. I think I’ve said it before, but I‘m in the safest demographic possible and can fake being a pious Christian naturally. Even if worst case scenarios were to occur, I’m am very safe.

TheCatWoman said:

it was also very much a young against old situation too. Do you have that in the states too?

Oh yes, particularly because generally younger generations are more likely Democrat while older are more likely Republican, though that’s certainly not 100% the issue (ex. Charlie Kirk was initially famous for recruiting young men into the Republican Party before he became a martyr). I think the primary issue is increasingly widening chasms socially and culturally between generations. Cultural dissonance, even within similar racial or religious groups, seems immense right now.

TheCatWoman said:

Another big gap in understanding between Brits and Americans is what constitutes right and left politically

I’ve come to realize that’s a thing. While Democrats are in actuality mostly center-left, it really feels as though everything is black and white here. Either you’re far-left or far-right. Nobody is proud to be centrist.

TheCatWoman said:

An urban/rural split, thats always hard, we had quite a bit of that aorund brexit, it was really horrible and divisive

Yeah, sounds very comparable to what it is like around here. I live in suburbs to a large city, so it’s much less predictable what your neighbors believe in. I have to be a little more careful in the town I work in though, since it’s a little further out into the country. Oddly, my employer feels as though it’s an outlier, since everybody employed here has to care about others in some capacity lol. I know one of my bosses is a Democrat and I suspect my other boss is at least left-leaning.

I can imagine that having to move a family everyone one have to want to go, I might be a bit easier if it was for work, but even then it would be hard for those who are happy where they are. Wider family can be even worse, my unlce had a fit when my Dad told him they were moving to the south coast, my uncle didn't think it was right for people to leave thier home town.

An urban/rural split, thats always hard, we had quite a bit of that aorund brexit, it was really horrible and divisive, I was called a traitor for wanting to remain and not because I was a particular fan of the EU, but because I thought we'd be worse off out of it. It actually got quite scary for a while, people were just shouting at each other and not listening, it was also very much a young against old situation too. Do you have that in the states too?

We have a few Raise the Flag types round here, trouble is half of them want Welsh Independence and the others want to remain an English outpost, I don't know if I'd be vulnerable bcause I'm English or not, my neighbours say I'm a "local", which is a compliment, it often takes 3 or more generations before you're considered local. I can just see our street being defended by pensioners with pitchforks, lol. I'm glad we don't have guns here, like you do, the opinion of many Brits is that, yes your constitution allows you to be sleeveless any time you like, but why do you need military grade weapons? I know it's a chasm of not understanding, I think most of us agree that if you have dangerous animals like bears then you do need a gun to defend yourself, but an RPG?

Another big gap in understanding between Brits and Americans is what constitutes right and left politically, many Americans seem to call people who we would think of as conservatives or centre right, as the far left. It leaves many of us Brits scratching our heads thinking, Eh?,

As far as I'm concerned you're welcome here if you need refuge, but I hope you never do.

TheCatWoman said:

Prof, I often feel like asking you why you don't emigrate

Totally fair question. Yes, you are mostly right that the main reason is that this is home and it’s hard to imagine living elsewhere. There’s also an element of not having a choice due to family. Even if I could convince my wife and daughters (that’s a stretch), our extended families would throw such an epic fit about it. I have a friend in an even worse situation, since he is Canadian-American and far-left, but he has a choice between returning to Canada or spending time with his sons. He shares custody with his ex-wife.

It also comes down to just being lazy. It’s super inconvenient to emigrate unless you have a legitimate NEED to do it (like the migrants and refugees fleeing to Europe). Mostly though, I’m from America, so America - the home of the free - should be just as accessible for me and I’m not willing to let that go.

TheCatWoman said:

Sadly I do think the USA is on the point of civil war, I'm amazed it's not happened yet if I'm honest.

The good news is that geographically a civil war would be horribly inconvenient. Democrats rule nearly every major city while Republicans rule practically the entirety of rural America. For example, if civil war broke out you would see Chicago at war with the rest of Illinois, Gary with the rest of Indiana, Austin with the rest of Texas, etc. Logistically, that doesn’t make as much sense as the north/south divide over slavery during the American Civil War.

The bad news is that if civil war happened regardless, nowhere would be safe. Democrats and Republicans are so well blended with each other that it would lead to insane amounts of unrest. In fact, I’d probably be in danger since my neighborhood is likely mostly Republican, or at the least mixed. To make matters worse: Republicans are famously pro-firearms and you can bet on most Republican homes at least having a sidearm if not military grade weaponry for no damn reason. Thankfully, guns are gradually becoming a little more well-accepted in left-leaning circles, likely due to how insanely dangerous a potential civil war would be, honestly.

TheCatWoman said:

I wonder if theres a difference between education and wisdom?

Education is the structured process of acquiring knowledge and skills, while wisdom is the ability to apply that knowledge with insight and understanding in real-life situations

Prof, I often feel like asking you why you don't emigrate, but I don't because the idea of leaving the UK is horrible to me, and I'm guessing it would be equally hard for you to leave the US.

I'm a witch, and to quote the late lamented Sir Terry pratchet, ' witches believe in their gods like they believe in the postman', so it's not a matter of belief in the way many people or relgions understand it, certainly the Abrahamic ones.

Sadly I do think the USA is on the point of civil war, I'm amazed it's not happened yet if I'm honest.

My Dad brought me up to be a critical thinker and not to take anything anyone said at face value, to always question thngs, he didn't realise that like all children the first person I practiced on was him, which led to an immence amount of conflict.

I wonder if theres a difference between education and wisdom? We seem to have many seemingly well educated people, who outside of their professional lives barely seem to have two brain cells to bang together. I think maybe its a bit like AI, it has lots of knowlege, but no wisdom about how or when to apply that knowlege?

Iain said:

It is probably also why the Republican party are pushing to hard to make the education system much less effective. Less critical thinkers = less chance of being doubted.

100% agree.

Iain said:

Look at how many people believe in a god in spite of a complete lack of evidence.

I agree, though I think another huge reason is hope. Fear of the unknown has to be a huge contributing factor to people clutching so hard to religions with forgiving afterlife proposals, since atheism offers only a bleak perspective (although, absolute nothingness is pretty appealing to me, tbh)

I do agree though that indoctrination is a much bigger reason for that.

Fantastic question! I wondered the same when I first saw this conspiracy, since if I vote I really don’t care if an I.C.E. officer is watching me, I’m going to vote for the LGBTQ+ community regardless. However, I’m very confident in what I believe in. Not everyone is.

We have a rule that no one is allowed to wear political attire to poll stations (ex. MAGA hats or even Pride shirts), since there is a fear that could potentially lead to other people being intimidated into voting one way or another. I mean, let’s say you are a tiny Hispanic lady wanting to vote for Kamala Harris (Democrat), but the tall, imposing guy behind you has a MAGA hat on. Even though he isn’t supposed to see your vote, you may vote Republican just to feel safer in case he finds out and wishes to retaliate.

Yes, the votes are supposed to be done in private in booths. We also have a rule not to have National Guardsmen at poll stations. If that rule is broken, who is to say they can’t intervene in the voting process? Okay, that issue is a slippery slope fallacy, and I know it. However there’s a bigger issue:

National Guardsmen and I.C.E. officers can remove people from the premises for any reason they deem necessary.  You look like you’re not a citizen? Gone. You look threatening? Gone.

My brother was a cop, and I remember him telling me something terrifying that stuck with me for decades: If a cop wants to arrest you - even if you are completely innocent - they can find a way to get you. There’s a ton of laws out there, and all it takes is to say that you looked at them funny to slap cuffs on your wrists. Same applies to this situation.

TheCatWoman said:

so many educated people believe them!

You’re right, that’s alarming. My wife’s best friend became an anti-vaxxer, despite being a pharmacist. That’s more terrifying than uneducated masses swarming around cult personalities, I agree.

TheCatWoman said:

maybe its about the way people are educated

This is quickly becoming an alarming issue in my eyes (possibly because I am a father now?). I think I’ve mentioned it before, but Texas is an educational battleground right now, where they are requiring teaching certain Biblical passages (without mentioning other religious texts), potentially requiring more discussion of US wars in the Middle East (which paints Islam as antagonistic), downplaying the role of slavery in the Civil War, and I‘m not sure where they stand with this right now, but historically they have attempted to replace all certified school counselors with Christian clerics.

On the other hand, Republicans decry colleges as institutions of liberal ideals. To be fair, I think they are right, but that’s because I think colleges inspire people to actually care about one another in spite of differences and hey, maybe liberals are just smarter people overall?

But yes you are absolutely right, THE WAY you are being educated is very important. Fox News AND CNN should both be shut down for that reason.

profdanger said:

that’s still enough to intimidate voters into voting Republican in fear of retaliation.

I'm curious as to why you think this. Are the votes themselves not done in privacy and kept private?

profdanger said:

Even if National Guards are deployed and do absolutely nothing at poll stations, that’s still enough to intimidate voters into voting Republican in fear of retaliation.

Why does that remind me of Putin's Russia?

TheCatWoman said:

You'd hope that being educated would make this sort of thing less likely

Never underestimate the willingness for people to believe what they want in the face of facts.

Look at how many people believe in a god in spite of a complete lack of evidence. For most it is because they were raised to believe (ie indoctrinated) rather than they have done their own research to conclude that the deity of choice exists and should be followed according to a particular religions doctrine.

It is probably also why the Republican party are pushing to hard to make the education system much less effective. Less critical thinkers = less chance of being doubted.

Iain said:

I do have an unpleasant suspicion that he will either declare a state of emergency over some false flag operation to delay the elections indefinitely

I’m guessing you’ve been reading the conspiracies that are buzzing around American news outlets right now, then. Yes, there is a palpable threat that Trump is going to declare a state of emergency. Basically, the White House has done everything not to deny it as a possibility. Even if National Guards are deployed and do absolutely nothing at poll stations, that’s still enough to intimidate voters into voting Republican in fear of retaliation.

In my opinion, there is no chance that the votes won’t be tampered with, even if just for a few swing states. Yes, I am also afraid that there will be a state of emergency, but honestly? He doesn’t have to declare one. Their success is already ensured whether Trump and his administration is fully aware of it or not. There are so many extreme MAGA fanatics out there and Trump has often declared that this is the most important midterm election in all American history, so someone behind the scenes is going to tamper with the votes. It’s practically guaranteed at this point, imo.

I think one of the interesting things about cults like MAGA and the leaders of them like Trump, is that so many educated people believe them! You'd hope that being educated would make this sort of thing less likely, but maybe its about the way people are educated, or because theyhave a narrow focus and want everything else to be simple?

TheCatWoman said:

not just the fact that Trump can say such a thing with no censure, but that hundreds of people agreed with him.

Yeah, honestly reading what he said didn’t bother me too much (I’m pretty sure the article I was reading was left-leaning, so I take stuff I glean from those articles carefully), but when I watched a video to confirm that is what he said, that’s when I heard the cheering. Bottom line, that’s the most terrifying part about this whole debacle.

I remember back when I was a politically-unaware professor (I was a single issue voter on LGBTQ+ rights), I had a student make a disturbing and unwarranted comment that if he had a time machine, he’d prioritize dropping a t-rex on a Democratic convention. Like, violent political comments coming from a powerless student is alarming enough, but a world leader? And that was just one example of the potentially hundreds of thousands of uneducated Americans that would relish a chance to physically hurt the opposition on either side.

I doubt if Iran could attack America, but if anything should happen it will give conspiracy theorists a field day. I think most of us in the UK know it's a sick attempt at humour, but there will be people who believe it.

I'm not surprised you're worried, I wish I could say you're overreacting, but I don't think you are, not just the fact that Trump can say such a thing with no censure, but that hundreds of people agreed with him.