What does a TRUMP presidency look like?

[Valmy]

Riiiight.

Well theoretically an ineffecient private sector entity should fail.

However the problem is what a private sector entity is motivated to be efficient at.

[viper37]

We never wanted this but went along with it because the safety and security of the world supposedly depended on us.

You went in it post coldwar because it promised to pay a lot, and it did, not just for you.
A stable, democratic europe was better for everyone than what happenned behind the iron curtain.

America made a ton of money, so did the European countries and it prevented the risk of a really challenging super power that would run unchecked everywhere.  After Berlin, Stalin's ambitions were put on hold.

Of course, the US did a lot of "mistakes" during the Cold War, in the name of fighting for freedom, inconvenient democracies were toppled, or help was given to those that wanted to topple it, because they looked like they weren't going to fall squarely into the Western camp.

Same for South Korea.  By protecting it from North Korea, the US gained a viable ally in the area and it enriched the US as well as the South Koreans with trade.  Even Vietnam was leaning toward the US now, rather than China.

Now, it's all lost.  America's shares of international commerce will dwindle in the face of Russian and Chinese expansion.  China is not going to sit by idly and let itsefl be insulted by the US President.  The drone theft was just a simple way for them to show the US what was at risk if they decide it's good business to piss them off: the US is much more vulnerable than it wants to think.

[viper37]

Your President could have taken actions against Syria long before Russia was there

But what would that have gotten us? We had no reason to support Assad and there was nobody else we really could support.

It was about that red line that shouldn't be crossed... you don't say something like that and then do nothing.

Immediatly when the conflict started and then Assad started bombing civilians, a no fly zone should have been established.  No matter what the UN security council said.

[Valmy]

I highly doubt the "World's Opinion" had ever that much of an impact upon American isolationism or the public at large.

You would be wrong. We care a great deal.

It simply reinforced the tacit sentiment that "The World is Jealous of our Greatness / Freedom".

Yeah....no. We are a pretty self-loathing lot these days.

Vietnam showed America is perfectly capable of creating its own anti-imperialists, and quite frankly, I am also quite in the current context of anxiety about declension, sure some huge swath of the American public would also be happy with American imperialism if it was expressed with guns and carriers and the tough guy language of bully diplomacy.

I am very much unsure of this. Even in our bursts of Imperialism it has never lasted long, at least from a public opinion perspective. Because we are not fucking evil and actually do care about Democracy and all that. The public is not going to be super happy about spending up our tax dollars in exchange for our leader's delusions of grandeur. We did it because we thought we were a force for good in the world. We didn't go into Vietnam because we were eager for another province in our endless empire but because we were trying to stop the march of Communism.

Much more pervasive, to me, is the constant, tacit understanding that the world outside of the US is a terrible place that can never be fixed and that it's not worth concerning oneself with the world anyway.

Or that we are not capable of fixing it. Or that our government is incompetent.

I just do not get you. We right now have a huge populist uprising, both left and right, condemning the current state of the country and our leaders yet you seem to think we are convinced about our infallibility.

[viper37]

the private sphere is supposed to be more efficient

This is, of course, bullshit.

Riiiight.

A private monopoly will be just as inefficient as a government monopoly.

[viper37]

Personally, I think he failed on Syria, but he's not the only one holding the Guilty sign, either.

I didn't say he was.  The Europeans could and should have done more.  I mean, instead of lamenting on Facebook.

[MadImmortalMan]

I actually think the economy may improve under Trump. 

I know you don't like your words to be dissected, but this is a factual prediction.
It doesn't see likely to happen for the simple reason that the economy is already doing about as well as it possible could.  GDP growth has been solid to excellent since early 2014 and was on the upswing last couple of quarters. 

I'd even say it's done even better than could be reasonably expected, since a huge portion of the recent bump in GDP growth was due to the South American drought spiking US soybean exports.

[viper37]

Well theoretically an ineffecient private sector entity should fail.

Too big to fail.

[Valmy]

Too big to fail.

Hence the "theoretically"

[Oexmelin]

I just do not get you. We right now have a huge populist uprising, both left and right, condemning the current state of the country and our leaders yet you seem to think we are convinced about our infallibility.

It has nothing to do with infallibility, but rather to do with the perception of America as a country vs The World. It's just a different conversation. The left and the right can both be convinced that the other side is leading America to its doom (hence the need to "take America back") but the tone of foreign news in the US hasn't changed much, seen mostly from the perspective of a place of corruption. The World is to the US what DC is to the heartland.

[Solmyr]

the private sphere is supposed to be more efficient

This is, of course, bullshit.

Riiiight.

A private monopoly will be just as inefficient as a government monopoly.

And if anything, there's probably going to be more corruption there.

[Tamas]

I would just like to jump in, maybe not perfectly timed, that the non stop grilling of derspiess here is getting old.

[Eddie Teach]

I bet derspiess put you up to saying that.

[Admiral Yi]

I bet derspiess put you up to saying that.

I propose we grill The Forehead Fiend to find out.  Time to take the gloves off.

[Razgovory]

Hopefully the government will be run as efficiently as the Taj.