That leadership, no matter how cynical, emerged from a culture in which certain points are emphasized so strongly, so often that they become, simply, part of everyday lifecan$ outlook, one's weltanschauung. The Battle of Karbala and martyrdom of Husayn, the coming of the Mahdi, the rewarding of extreme sacrifice, these are baked in to one degree or another, ranging from "Yeah, sure, okay, whatever" to a sincere willingness to die for the cause (as they perceive it). One underestimates the impact and influence of these and other cultural factors at the peril of remaining ignorance about, in this case, the adversary. As Mr. Trump has discovered.

Uh-oh, Senor "90% of Mexicans are Spaniards" is a yippin and a yappin again.

"The pilot programme near Rafah is a far cry from the initial aspirations of the BoP. Launching that scheme with a wildly optimistic slideshow in January, Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner promised that the gates to aid would be thrown open and basic infrastructure " including water, sewage and electric systems, hospitals and bakeries " would be restored across the strip within 100 days."

Jared "A Little Child Shall Lead Them" Kushner - more of the arrogance of the terminal mediocrity you have come to expect from this particular.y overweening scion of the kleptocracy.

Why should he answer?
The Republicans control Congress and they're fine with this.
Not only with the appearance of corruption but totally on board with the real deal itself.
How many of you MAGAts who come here are writing/cashing $100,000,000.000 checks?
Sweeeeeeeeet.

There used to be a little gift shop hawking prisoner-made wallets and such at the KS state pen in Lansing; the Garden of Eden in Lucas is a wonderfully weird relic of a Gilded Age eccentric (yes, the Mormons have a Garden of Eden but you have to go to MO to see it); Lawrence, home of the University of KS, has a strong our-sheet-don-steenk vibe; the small town feel, with all of its positive and negative attributes, runs strong; and there are plenty of good places to raise kids - doesn't mean it's another planet, just if they screw up you will most definitely learn about it at some point and just possibly find a sympathetic ear. As for the people, in general, good folks.

And yet ... that's what Republicans call "The Base."

An independent investigation - announced in March - was separately launched, and interviews were conducted with service members involved with the strike. Sources said that the information gained from interviews, material that could be useful to commanders still launching strikes against Iran to avoid mistakes, has been "locked down" by US Central Command with only a handful of officers permitted access to the details.

In much of America, public transportation lost out long, long ago to the oil and auto interests.

Laurel and Hardy without the expertise.

Doesn't affect me cuz I don't have diarrhea. After 12 visits to Walter Reed, a couple a handfuls of MRIs, and a load of the tests they give loonies, it's been determined that what I have is the common or garden variety affliction medical professionals call "the sh#ts." Thank you for your attention to this matter.
~ Donald "Smells Like ... Heaven?" Trump

Playing the markets? Quelle sooprise.

With negotiations breaking down and hostilities resuming between the U.S. and Iran, the Iranian government does have an incentive to make the Trump administration look worse than usual. Unfortunately, even if this report is false, the White House's track record makes it seem all too plausible.

Market manipulation has become all too common in Trump's second term, particularly during the Iran war, with Trump making carefully timed statements that seem designed to create short-term stock gains. Suspiciously timed bets on prediction markets during the war also raised suspicions that insider trading was taking place within the White House, with the Trump administration even warning staff not to bet on world events.

Trump is hammering away.
#16 | POSTED BY BILLJOHNSON

Using his head to hammer a rusty nail into a concrete slab.

Edit: "who also thought he'd figured out the folks he knew as "Parthians," who sucked him in.."

Bill, I'm attempting to add some perspective to Trump's War of Choice against the detestable Iranian regime. Are you familiar with Crassus, an ancient Roman real estate mogul and pol who also thought the folks he knew as "Parthians" sucked him in, removed his head, and reportedly used it as a prop in a play. If not, it's a tale well worth looking into; if you're already familiar, perhaps some revisiting? Yes, I know, history does not repeat. But it often ripples and sometimes echoes due to circumstances and human behaviors, so there's that. Trump clearly has no idea who he is dealing with.

"If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle."
Sun Tzu, The Art of War

Distraction upon distraction upon distraction.
Anything but ...
JEFFREY EPSTEIN
Trump's version of that spirit may not speak ...
But it sure does haunt.

Pick up a copy of Abbas Araghchi's The Power of Negotiation: Principles and Rules of Political and Diplomatic Negotiations. give it a whirl, and maybe you will perceive how/why Trump lost the war he started and is still losing it. Such a loser.

What did those two wannabe alpha MAGAts do to fill those three golden hours? Lick one another's balls?

Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake: Uh, Jack, Jack, listen... tell me, tell me, Jack. When did you first... become... well, develop this theory?
General Jack D. Ripper: [somewhat embarassed] Well, I, uh... I... I... first became aware of it, Mandrake, during the physical act of love.
Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake: Hmm.
General Jack D. Ripper: Yes, a uh, a profound sense of fatigue... a feeling of emptiness followed. Luckily I... I was able to interpret these feelings correctly. Loss of essence.
Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake: Hmm.
General Jack D. Ripper: I can assure you it has not recurred, Mandrake. Women uh... women sense my power and they seek the life essence. I, uh... I do not avoid women, Mandrake.
Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake: No.
General Jack D. Ripper: But I... I do deny them my essence.

Yeah, TWINPAC, this will eat at his twisted ego long and hard. Kudos to Carroll for going the distance and helping expose Trump for the scum and sexual abuser he is.

By the way, I am *not* saying China is some sort of peace-love-dove operation. It most certainly is not. But what it is *not* doing is moving around the world with a booming voice and sharp elbows, aggressively hurling insults, screwing with economies, and playing Bull in a China Shop for no apparent reason other than the dementia-greed combo eating away at whatever may remain of the cult leader's brain. We are now viewed, far and wide, as an extremely dangerous, kleptocratic, out-of-control nation because we have become an extremely dangerous, kleptocratic, out-of-control nation.

China is pretty judicious about when, where, and why its military travels around the world, blowing stuff up and killing people.

The US? Not so much.

Spreading mayhem is a feature of a nation driven into steep decline by the Trump regime, the reflexive go-to position for people incapable of actually thinking a way through any problem. That's why the regime is murdering people in US streets, bringing it all home.

If we despise them here, imagine how it plays elsewhere.

Thanks, Republicans, you made and enable this.

Does this indiscreetly loquacious leaker's surname happen to be five letters long, starting with a "T" and ending with a "P"?

"The High-T Department of War."

Could a video title scream "guys with insecurity issues" any louder?

You whine about Americans not "coming to terms with its bad behavior".
#27 | POSTED BY ONEIRONAUT

Nope. And you've misquoted me, of course, distorting my words. Which makes you what? Right: just another MAGAt liar.. Jeezus, you people.

By the way, judging from your posts you seem genuinely burdened by crippling "shame" issues of some sort. Come on, pookie, make the crooked, uh, straight. "Daaaaady!"