The future of the US

[normiss 858]

5 hours ago, kallend said:

Doesn't it bother you that a legal US resident can be arrested and possibly deported just for expressing opinions that Trump doesn't like?  To the best of my knowledge he hasn't been convicted of, or even charged with, a crime.

 

Once you start restricting the scope of the 1st Amendment, where do you stop?

History tells us they don't.

[normiss 858]

6 hours ago, wmw999 said:

We can only be individuals. Like that kid picking up starfish on the beach.

Wendy P.

Thank you for that reminder. 

[kallend 2,108]

18 hours ago, normiss said:

History tells us they don't.

An unelected billionaire ordering mass firings of federal employees. The elevation of conspiracy theorists to key government posts in healthcare and security services. The rejection of climate science and dismantling of basic environmental protections. The abrupt abandonment of liberal democratic allies and embrace of authoritarian governments across the world. The targeting of dissenters at home for constitutionally protected speech.

Hard to remain optimistic!

[nigel99 574]

What I find alarming is the rapid descent into warmongering and there is no resistance from within the republican party. 

What we’ve learned is Trump paves the way with the insanity and they follow along. I fear Greenland is these case although the real goal of Trump is Canada. 

The reality is that nobody is going to stand in the way of a military conflict over Greenland. The rest of the world will express disapproval, but they aren’t going to pick up weapons to defend them. 

Time to rebrand the US as enemy of the free world. 

[nigel99 574]

https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/australian-mma-coach-says-he-was-detained-by-us-immigration-officials/jwrd9lhvt

Australia’s head coach for the MMA team was detained for 24 hours due to a mistake on his visa. 

A growing number of countries are updating their travel warnings from green to yellow for the US. It’s incredibly sad as I enjoy visiting the states, but there’s no way I’m risking it anytime soon . 

[nigel99 574]

This is over an hour long but a fascinating talk between Jon Stewart and Pete Buttigieg regarding the future of the US.

It’s largely non partisan as Pete both criticises the democrats and acknowledges the Trump administration on certain things. 

The focus is how the US as it was had major structural problems and that Trump has bulldozed the institutions and the  US’s standing on the world stage and has no coherent plan to replace them. How MAGA is selling the unrealistic dream of returning to the American dream of the 1950’s and not acknowledging the change in the world and how it can never go back. 

Similarly the democrats don’t have a plan on how things should be rebuilt better and more effectively and not just trying to “go back” to the pre Trump era. How the democrats never get things done because they are too afraid of offending people or taking any risk and how they need to change that mindset.

https://youtu.be/4rHKwHQUa78?si=UcjGir-SCHZ_kFZf

[TriGirl 333]

On 4/11/2025 at 9:11 PM, nigel99 said:

This is over an hour long but a fascinating talk between Jon Stewart and Pete Buttigieg regarding the future of the US.

Hey, Nigel,

I have been a fan of Buttigieg since I first heard him speak when he was seeking the nomination for president.  He never disappoints.  He can get his talking points across while having an ACTUAL, on-the-fly conversation.  He can back up his stance and can respond to follow-up questions -- all because he KNOWS what he's talking about.  I really wanted to see a Harris-Buttigieg ticket on the D side in 2016.  Of course, too many voters in my country are still too backward to vote for a woman of color AND an openly gay guy (Buttigieg needed some federal-level experience before jumping to the top of a ticket, IMHO).  I would like to see him as Secretary of State in a future administration.  I can't wait to see what else he does.

Tanya

[wmw999 2,548]

I agree with you pretty much 100%. Unfortunately, people like us, who vote on what someone knows and can learn, don't appear to be in the majority now. I'm really concerned about my country right now. I've lived in what it looks like it's becoming, and it's generally a great place to be privileged, or subservient. But not for the kind of people who actually settled this country.

Wendy P.

[BIGUN 1,424]

14 hours ago, wmw999 said:

I've lived in what it looks like it's becoming

I understand your feelings, Wendy. We can remember to back when Carter was "Destroying" the economy, Reagan was a warmonger (Raygun), Bush was Reagan v.2, Clinton had impregnated all the women in Arkansas, Murderer, Cocaine user, (Whilst being the only president in like 70 years to leave a surplus) etc., etc. 

Point being - the pendulum will swing. The Democrats need to develop more of a strategic plan than a 4 year pity party. 

[wmw999 2,548]

1 hour ago, BIGUN said:

Point being - the pendulum will swing. The Democrats need to develop more of a strategic plan than a 4 year pity party. 

Oh, I agree it'll swing. The problem with that is that the more it swings in one direction, the more it'll swing in the other, too -- cancelling out any real chance of actual progress. Imagine a battleship being steered by having the wheel turned back and forth -- wastes a whole lot of energy, without actually changing course.

Wendy P.

[nigel99 574]

1 hour ago, BIGUN said:

I understand your feelings, Wendy. We can remember to back when Carter was "Destroying" the economy, Reagan was a warmonger (Raygun), Bush was Reagan v.2, Clinton had impregnated all the women in Arkansas, Murderer, Cocaine user, (Whilst being the only president in like 70 years to leave a surplus) etc., etc. 

Point being - the pendulum will swing. The Democrats need to develop more of a strategic plan than a 4 year pity party. 

I hope you’re right, because internationally the US is viewed very negatively now. It’s going to take a long time to win back trust and respect.

Edited April 18 by nigel99

[BIGUN 1,424]

44 minutes ago, nigel99 said:

I hope you’re right, because internationally the US is viewed very negatively now. It’s going to take a long time to win back trust and respect.

I understand. 

[BIGUN 1,424]

1 hour ago, wmw999 said:

Imagine a battleship being steered by having the wheel turned back and forth -- wastes a whole lot of energy, without actually changing course.

I would like to think that as long as the ship maintains a predominately north direction while turning east and west, there is progress. The current adninstration has no strategic plan either - slash and gash is not a plan and we may wind up only going east and west and not moving forward in the water. i.e., dead in the water.   

[wmw999 2,548]

It's also hard and costly to get a battleship started up when it's stopped or slowed.

Wendy P.

[gowlerk 2,253]

The future is looking a little cloudy for the USA. The national debt is too high and that combined with the madness and wavering in policy is beginning to cause a lessening of confidence in the safety of the dollar. Good leadership and a little willingness to prioritize the things that matter are obviously not in the short term plan and probably not in the longer term either. Hopefully things at least stabilize after the fever breaks when the clown show finally ends. Most likely this marks the end of an era but what the new era brings is a very open question. 

Edited April 18 by gowlerk

[jakee 1,564]

5 hours ago, BIGUN said:

The current adninstration has no strategic plan either - slash and gash is not a plan and we may wind up only going east and west and not moving forward in the water. i.e., dead in the water.   

It's cute that you think 'not moving forward' is what you have to worry about here.

[BIGUN 1,424]

On 4/18/2025 at 6:30 AM, nigel99 said:

I hope you’re right, because internationally the US is viewed very negatively now. It’s going to take a long time to win back trust and respect.

Morning, Nigel.

I've had a chance to ponder and think about this overnight. Over the past 100 years; there's been a lot of countries that have been at their worst and the US was there to help. I hope they remember what we; the American people did to help them and realize the American people are still good folks. 

Yes, he was voted in by a majority, and yes; you kind of reap what you sow . . . but, many are now starting to realize the political promises are/were not what they were promised. Trump is a con man. Always has been and always will be. 

I hope those other countries will remember us for our strengths and forgive us for our weaknesses. This too will pass and our system is still one of the best. Just today a judge ruled against shipping out Venezuelans. There is still a rule of law and the judicial system needs to realize their job is to protect the Constitution.  

[wmw999 2,548]

1 hour ago, BIGUN said:

There is still a rule of law and the judicial system needs to realize their job is to protect the Constitution.  

Thats the problem, Bigun — too many people honestly believe the rule of law should only apply favorably to people they agree with, and that it should be used as a weapon against those they don’t. And the current president is among them, along with the majority of the people he’s selected for his cabinet and staff.

Wendy P. 

[gowlerk 2,253]

1 hour ago, BIGUN said:

I hope they remember what we; the American people did to help them and realize the American people are still good folks. 

Of course they are. The problem is not the people. It turns out there is a flaw in the system. Namely the basics of the Constitution. When it was set up and the power was divided up in a way that all the states could agree on the union was not the mighty powerhouse it is today. Instead of the power going to the people directly it went to the people through the individual states. This ended up concentrating power in the hands of a man called Trump instead of one called Washington as originally envisioned. With no practical way to remove him.  I can see no easy solution at this time. One day, but not soon, there is going to be a second revolution and the nation will become more democratic. Either that or it will break up.

Edited April 19 by gowlerk

[billvon 3,080]

1 hour ago, BIGUN said:

Morning, Nigel.

I've had a chance to ponder and think about this overnight. Over the past 100 years; there's been a lot of countries that have been at their worst and the US was there to help.

Yep.   And after 9/11, dozens of countries were there to help us.

But Trump is now doing his best to end all of that.  The next disaster another country has will not see US help, and the next disaster that the US has will not see foreign allies backing us up.  And he has been largely successful with that.  And that will continue for the forseeable future.

[BIGUN 1,424]

31 minutes ago, wmw999 said:

Thats the problem, Bigun

No Argument. 

30 minutes ago, gowlerk said:

 I can see no easy solution at this time. One day, but not soon, there is going to be a second revolution

Me neither. Waiting game. 

16 minutes ago, billvon said:

But Trump is now doing his best to end all of that.

No argument. 

[JoeWeber 2,839]

2 hours ago, BIGUN said:

Morning, Nigel.

I've had a chance to ponder and think about this overnight. Over the past 100 years; there's been a lot of countries that have been at their worst and the US was there to help. I hope they remember what we; the American people did to help them and realize the American people are still good folks. 

Yes, he was voted in by a majority, and yes; you kind of reap what you sow . . . but, many are now starting to realize the political promises are/were not what they were promised. Trump is a con man. Always has been and always will be. 

I hope those other countries will remember us for our strengths and forgive us for our weaknesses. This too will pass and our system is still one of the best. Just today a judge ruled against shipping out Venezuelans. There is still a rule of law and the judicial system needs to realize their job is to protect the Constitution.  

It's nice to have a positive attitude and stay hopeful but what many are starting to realize is less than any help. You state this: "There is still a rule of law and the judicial system needs to realize their job is to protect the Constitution." but the sad truth is that our problem now is owing to the fact that the rule of law in America is highly politicized all the way up to the Supreme Court where John Roberts and his fellow conservatives decided Trump could be trusted with absolute immunity. That is the polar opposite of the rule of law and no one with clear eyes thought for a single second Trump would use it otherwise than he has already. Looking at things in these first 100 days you are well ahead of yourself to suggest there is still a rule of law in America. 

Edited to add: https://www.gsa.gov/real-estate/historic-preservation/explore-historic-buildings/find-a-building/gus-j-solomon-us-courthouse-portland-or

Please take note of property for sale #3. Maybe I need to be more open minded but selling Federal Courthouses seems counter to the idea of furthering the rule of law. 

Edited April 19 by JoeWeber

[JerryBaumchen 1,446]

2 hours ago, BIGUN said:

Morning, Nigel.

I've had a chance to ponder and think about this overnight. Over the past 100 years; there's been a lot of countries that have been at their worst and the US was there to help. I hope they remember what we; the American people did to help them and realize the American people are still good folks. 

Yes, he was voted in by a majority, and yes; you kind of reap what you sow . . . but, many are now starting to realize the political promises are/were not what they were promised. Trump is a con man. Always has been and always will be. 

I hope those other countries will remember us for our strengths and forgive us for our weaknesses. This too will pass and our system is still one of the best. Just today a judge ruled against shipping out Venezuelans. There is still a rule of law and the judicial system needs to realize their job is to protect the Constitution.  

Hi Keith, 

Well written - Thank You

IMO it is absolutely imperative that we elect non-GOP types next yr; both the House & the Senate [ where we can ].

I truly believe that this is the only way to stop Trump & his cronies.

Well, there are a couple of other ways; but, let's not go there.

Jerry Baumchen

[JoeWeber 2,839]

3 minutes ago, JerryBaumchen said:

Hi Keith, 

Well written - Thank You

IMO it is absolutely imperative that we elect non-GOP types next yr; both the House & the Senate [ where we can ].

I truly believe that this is the only way to stop Trump & his cronies.

Well, there are a couple of other ways; but, let's not go there.

Jerry Baumchen

That's right, Jerry, and whether anyone wants another reminder or not the only way that can happen is if a non-GOP type who has a chance to be elected gets your vote.

[BIGUN 1,424]

2 hours ago, JoeWeber said:

Please take note of property for sale #3. Maybe I need to be more open minded but selling Federal Courthouses seems counter to the idea of furthering the rule of law. 

The government always has a GSA list of non-performing assets such as this courthouse and the decision for it to be on the list was probably made long before Trump.