I’m sadly aware of that though certainly not to the extent that you have experienced it.
In fact, when the Berlin Wall fell I cringed a bit privately because I was afraid fascism was going to spring back up and it did.
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The locals are much funnier in their support for Trump. The idea that someone could support a woman, or someone like Obama who isn’t tough like a godfather, just makes many of them laugh at my naivete.
@tena You reminded me about my Polish colleague, who definitely believes that France is finished—for sure because of the Muslims, and I suspect because of the blacks too (can’t remember if he has made comments about blacks, specifically).
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I can understand that too but their attitude is the childish one really. They need that strong daddy to keep things in line.
I worry about France. I am hoping beyond hope that the expectation of her losing in the 2d round turns out to be true. If she wins, Europe is upside down.
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Sure, but on the other hand, I feel that the US almost fetishizes democracy and free elections in its foreign policy. Sometimes free elections lead to bloodshed, if the conditions in the country are not mature enough to allow for disagreements. People around here appreciate not starving (as they were 20 years ago), and that the economy is thriving. They do want freer government in the future, but I don’t think they would take a chance on a time machine to make elections free in 1991.
… and Idi Amin Dada. Luckily for Comrade Chaos, Charles Taylor is still with us and available. Maybe Nigel Farange can arrange for a day pass from HM Prison Frankland in County Durham, England and he and Taylor he could be the next famous visitors to Grift-a-Lotto.
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Of course priorities are different with different circumstances and we do make a fetish of our democracy. Makes it difficult for us to recognize and appreciate the different circumstances in other places.
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Side topic, but relevant. I have talked to many scholars of Soviet history, including one who is rather famous for detailed, quantitative analysis of the vital statistics of Russia, and later the Soviet Union. Starting with Russia, there were detailed statistics on population, etc.—among the earliest and best in the world of this type, in fact.
What is really amazing is that if you consider the territory of the Soviet Union, then even with the gulags, the death camps, the famines (but not including WWII), the people were MUCH better off under the Soviets.
It gives one pause to consider how horrendous conditions were before Lenin.
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I’ve never doubted that. It could have been so very much better if the Bolsheviks hadn’t taken over - there were people in positions of power who wanted something more like a democracy. I am not sure however that Russia could have successfully pulled off the revolution if they had gone that way.
The saddest thing that happened was that they didn’t listen to Lenin who told them- Do not let Stalin take over. It would have changed things completely I think if they had kept Stalin from doing that.
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You mean 45’s base?
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yep
Oooo snap! hahahahahahahahaha
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And Mexico. And possibly Canada.
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But “filibuster” is four syllables long. Did he actually use that big word correctly in a sentence? A true sentence with a subject and predicate?
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OMG. Just a couple of minutes ago, I predicted a Trump-Kim bromance.
Now this:
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Am I brave enough to click on that link?
Are you a “smart cookie” like Kim?
Holy fucking shit.
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I’ll co-sign that, and also roflmao!
He and Kim couldn’t stay mad at each other - the love between dictators is just too strong.
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Neither one cares about the rule of law
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Well, at least there will be a real President in the White House for a while, anyhow.
I’m not a Duterte supporter by any means, but I have more respect for the election process in the Philippines that put Duterte into Malakanyang Palace than I do for the “process” that pooped Frankenputz into the Oval Office in the United States.
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