Donald Trump

The Epitome of Narcissism

Fandango14 Comments

56645EE2-4746-473B-978A-CB3EF6841CF0When I saw that “narcissism” was today’s one-word prompt, I was going to write a post about the narcissism of Donald Trump. After all, narcissists don’t easily accept any criticism or blame; they consider themselves infallible. And that is so Trumpian.

Trump’s behavior and way of dealing with others by dividing the world into good and evil is a typical sign of narcissism. Any criticism of him is met with anger as it is associated with shame and humiliation, neither of which he seems capable of feeling. He constantly expects attention, admiration, and loyalty. And he lacks empathy and compassion.

But is our president a narcissist? We know that he’s ill-informed, erratic, self-destructive, self-absorbed, abusive, bigoted, misogynistic, paranoid, insecure, and spiteful. We also know that he believes he’s better, smarter, and richer than others and that he exaggerates his achievements, blames other for his failures, and is in need of constant praise.

Trump has the tendency to live in the moment without considering consequences, seeking to bolster his self-esteem no matter the risk, making him a classic hedonist. He has no moral code and is totally unfit to be president.

So to me it is clear that Donald Trump is the epitome of narcissism. But this is merely my opinion. I’m not a psychologist or a psychiatrist. I have no training or expertise when it comes to diagnosing narcissism. I am just a layperson who sees the way our president acts and, based upon his behavior, I have drawn some conclusions.

Thus, I’ve decided that there’s not much point in my posting about the narcissism of Donald Trump. It is what it is and my opinion means nothing in the grand scheme of things.

Now I just have to figure out how to respond to today’s one-word prompt or if I should just skip it and spend more time with my wife and family.

What do you think?

One-Liner Wednesday — Chicken Plucker

Fandango14 Comments

0C51A53B-8FFA-4914-8410-9A91E5F5BF33

“If you pluck a chicken one feather at a time, then people won’t notice.”

Benito Mussolini
Italian politician and journalist,
Leader of the National Fascist Party.

While creating the appearance of chaos through widely-reported distractions and diversions, Donald Trump is quietly reconstructing the American judicial system.

As of May 15th, the United States Senate has confirmed 39 federal judges nominated by President Trump, including one Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, 21 judges for the U.S. Courts of Appeals, and 17 judges for the U.S. District Courts.

During his first year in office, Trump set a record for the most ever federal appeals judges confirmed during the first year of a presidency. And he is continuing at his fast pace. The vast majority of his appointees have been white and male. And all have been pretty far to the right on the political spectrum.

So while we have all been watching the clown car that is the Trump presidency, Trump has been plucking away at the American judicial system one feather at a time and hardly anyone has noticed.

Written for Linda G. Hill’s One-Liner Wednesday prompt.

Our Reality Show President

Fandango19 Comments

8082C722-ECCC-4A58-BD17-850E65C609BADid you see, hear, or read about when Donald Trump met the three American prisoners just released by North Korea when they arrived at Andrews Air Force Base early Thursday morning? These three men had been held captive in an authoritarian regime for months and, in some cases, years. And yet, Trump inexplicably said, “We want to thank Kim Jong-un, who really was excellent to these three incredible people.”

Seriously? Kim was excellent to these three men? I wonder if they thought they were receiving excellent treatment while in those North Korean labor camps.

But what really amazed me about that early morning meeting at Andrews AFB was when Trump was addressing the media and said:

“I want to thank you all. It’s very early in the morning. I think you probably broke the all time in history television rating for three o’clock in the morning. That I would say.”

It’s three in the morning and Trump is standing with the three released captives and he talks about how many people must be watching on TV.

So there it is. If you’ve ever wondered where our president’s priorities lie, just take a look at what he focused when on he was there, allegedly, to personally greet the three former captives. It’s all about ratings.

I saw presidential historian and author Jon Meacham in one of the late night talk shows last week and he said something that resonated with me. He said, “Donald Trump thinks of us not as citizens of a country but as a reality show audience.”

Trump is so sure that the most important thing about his presidency is ratings that he’s convinced that ratings are the key to his being re-elected in 2020.

He said, “The reason that I’m going to win another four years is because newspapers, television, all forms of media will tank if I’m not there because without me, their ratings are going down the tubes.”

Trump added, “And eventually, probably six months before the election, they’ll be loving me because they’re saying, ‘Please, please, don’t lose Donald Trump.’ Okay?”

So, America, we have a man in the Oval Office who really doesn’t want to be president. He just wants to be the host of the world’s greatest reality show, not the world’s greatest nation.

Yes, I know. This is my second consecutive rant about Donald Trump. Sorry, but that’s the mood I’m in.

One-Liner Wednesday — Happily Ever After

Fandango12 Comments

5C992C14-C039-41C5-A1E8-9027E2683E74“There was never a ‘once upon a time’ and there will never be a ‘happily ever after.’”

Jon Meacham,
Presidential historian and author

Last time I checked, I was living in the real world and not inside a fairytale. That said, I do believe that we’ve each had our own personal “once upon a time” experience. It’s something in our lives that caused us to go through a metamorphosis from who we were once upon a time to who we’ve become today.

For example, once upon a time I was 6 feet 1 inch tall. Now I’m only 5 feet 11 and 1/2 inches tall.

On the other hand, when it comes to “happily ever after,” I have to go with Jon Meacham. That really is fairytale fodder.

That doesn’t necessarily mean that you can’t be living a relatively content, even a happy, life. But happily ever after? Come on, really? Shit happens, people. Real life has its ups and downs, its highs and lows. And just how long is “ever after”?

You may think I’m jaded or cynical. But I’m simply a realist, a pragmatist. Can you honestly say that you believe in “happily ever after”?

If so, let me introduce you to one Donald J. Trump. That should bring you back to reality real fast.

Written for today’s One-Liner Wednesday prompt from Linda G. Hill.