The problem with DJT - an analogy.

Good morning, ATS!

I was driving to work on the beltway this morning where at 0530 there are a ton of vehicles, but they are are traveling at 70 m.p.h. (so it works out fine). There are some weird shifts in the traffic flow at certain points, so that if you don't know where they are you can end up making a doozy of a wrong turn. However at 0500-0630, most of us are seasoned and daily commuters. Therefore, it's only the sleepy that tend to get in the wrong lanes, thereby necessitating a quick change or merge. So anyway, I'm on the road with a fairly large pick-up in front of me, whilst driving my MKT (a decent sized station wagon/suv hybrid mostly sold for livery), when I spot this tiny little Kia tailgating the truck in the center lane. Being in the fast lane, I've learned to recognize the pattern and therefore gave even more cushion to the truck in front of me (I may be the only person in the D.C. area who follows the time-honored 2 second rule). Suddenly (as I expected), the Kia yanks into my lane, dangerously close to the truck in front of me (I thought he was going to take out the truck's rear bumper) and proceeds to tailgate him/her for the next 5 miles.

I mean, ON THEIR LITERAL BUMPER.

I started thinking, this is the President in a nutshell, right?

Traffic is going great. We all know there will be hiccups when too many people get on the road. Some people are poor drivers. Some people don't know where they are going. Some people insist on being traffic regulators and slowing everyone down. Some people are distracted drivers. Some people aren't legally allowed on the road, but are there anyways. Some people are putting on make-up who shouldn't be. (I mean, these are all great parallels for life)

But right now, traffic was moving just as it should, and that damn Kia just had to start acting like a jerk. I thought, what if that was actually the highway superintendent? (forgive me, but I don't know what the title is) If he gets pulled over, he gets to pull rank and avoid a ticket. If he causes an accident, he will blame other's for their driving. If you mock his tiny Kia, he will inform you that it is actually a high-performance engine under the hood.

And he has to drive like an a-hole while the traffic is going smoothly.

Look Mr. Highway-czar- most of us think that you are doing a good job. You raised some speed limits, lowered tolls, and fixed the lines on the road. I get to work faster, have more time at home, and feel safer. But now, instead of letting your road crews and highway patrol do their job, you are out there riding peoples butts, seemingly trying to cause an accident. Why?

This is my impression of DJT. I'll probably vote for him, as the alternative is some jerk telling me that I have to ride the bus or a bike to work. But man, I really wish he would just sit in the back seat and ride quietly until he's needed.

And just to clarify- I get the yelling in traffic, etc. We all know how that is. It's the aggressiveness when everything is going smoothly that breaks my brain.

originally posted by: ThouArtGod
And he has to drive like an a-hole while the traffic is going smoothly.

It was pretty obvious why Trump won in 2016, even if you are not very much into politics, it was basically a giant FU to the state of our countries politics (the traffic), which, sorry to break it to you, has never run smoothly.

The people that voted for him want him to tailgate. Hell, they want him to run that other car off the road and then roll some coal on them while they try to wave for help. If you aren't getting this after four to five years of Trump you never will.

What a unique,
"orange man bad"
story

Trump is not cruising in traffic, this is a bar brawl and you don't play nice in a bar brawl.
The Dems keep trying to back him into a corner and he keeps punching his way out and they still haven't realized they're about to get their ass kicked.

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus

Not accusing you, just stating- I was expecting some posts accusing me of not getting it, being a liberal, etc. (again, not saying you are saying that)

I lost a friend a few years back. It was during the last election, when I predicted that DJT would get elected. This was early, early in the process. Coming from a family that was associated with the Bush (Jeb!) campaign, this drew the ire of my kin, but especially pissed off my liberal friends where I was stationed in CA. But I knew that he had tapped into some counter-culture anti-swamp zeitgeist that would carry him to victory. And even though I was a Ted Cruz supporter, I supported him and knew he was going to win after the primary.

All of that said, I believe there is a time and a place to act the way he does (in my analogy, the traffic jam is that place). But being in the disaster response field, this is not one of those times. Let your experts, the people YOU hired, handle this. Does that make sense?

a reply to: acackohfcc

Man. You caught me. I'm an "orange man bad" guy. Can't just be someone who supports his policies but wishes he would just get off twitter from time to time, can I?

I guess I'll have to try a different tact to sneak one past you, huh?

a reply to: DAVID64

I disagree. I think they know they are getting their butts kicked, and I also think that the media is so in the corner of the Dems that it is nigh impossible to even have a conversation with real facts anymore (like with my MSNBC loving in-laws).

I know it's a knock-down brawl. I know that it's a swamp in need of draining. But not EVERYTHING requires tailgating. (example- we all can agree foreign films aren't supposed to win the Academy Award for best film. And I think the class warfare message of Parasite was crap. But do I need my President commenting on that? really?)

a reply to: ThouArtGod

it gets to a point where people become immune and simply dismiss what you have to say because it's been said over & over ad nauseam. We get it. You don't like him. Hell, I don't like him. What we do know is that people who complain without offering a solution are called WHINERS, and after 3 years of your whining, nobody cares.

a reply to: ThouArtGod

You voting for Biden or Bernie?

Just curious.

a reply to: acackohfcc

Color me confused.

Seeing as I have been defending policies for years, and have never posted a complaint about the president until now, what are you talking about? And I believe I did offer a solution. A very, very clear solution.

I always laugh when I see liberals eat their own. It is amusing to me, and it validates my inner voice. I feel the same way whenever a self-identifying conservative tries to do the same to me. Ummmm... please read carefully- I am on your side. I am also not a sheep, so I can believe things outside any mainstream. Like, our President needs to stop tweeting about certain things, at certain times. Not EVERYTHING requires a wrecking ball.

a reply to: DBCowboy

Well- My vote for President, Congress, Senate, Governor, etc., NEVER count. I am a military resident of Santa Barbara, stationed in D.C.
My vote hasn't counted in nearly two decades, what with the change to the voting system that eliminates many Republicans from the ballot. And due to the liberal policies of many republican candidates in CA, I changed to independent 10 years ago. ( I will prolly switch back when I retire to a purple or red state)

Please, seriously, don't ever, EVER associate me with a Commie or a gun grabber ever again. I know you don't know me, so let's just set the record straight right now and move on.

ETA that I was not raised in CA- I am a product of a military family, and grew up everywhere. My family actually hails from LA... as in, lower Alabama.

a reply to: ThouArtGod

So a non answer, fair enough I suppose. You have no obligation to answer.

Our options are going to be Trump and either Biden or Bernie though.

a reply to: DBCowboy

C'mon, DB, you're better than that! I prefer not to publicly state who I am voting for, but if it is required, will let you know that I would support anyone over the commie and the gun grabber.

So yes, that is a clear "vote" for our President.

a reply to: ThouArtGod

Fair enough. Plenty I don’t like about Trump but he’s better than anything else going.

a reply to: ThouArtGod
I basically see Trump leading a convoy he's got the pedal to the metal running over or knocking any obstetrical out of his way. The smokiest are the deep state trying to stop the convoy. The convoy keeps getting bigger, longer, and more powerful as more vehicles join in.

originally posted by: DAVID64
Trump is not cruising in traffic, this is a bar brawl and you don't play nice in a bar brawl.
The Dems keep trying to back him into a corner and he keeps punching his way out and they still haven't realized they're about to get their ass kicked.

Best analogy I've heard yet. I think Trump just picked up a bar stool and is lining up a shot.

a reply to: JON666

Look- I am not arguing that the President shouldn't employ his style of politics and such to win deep state or swamp arguments. I am arguing that such a tactic DOESN'T need to be employed with every damn issue. Seriously, a real question- do you think this style of leadership is great for everything?

I argued that his cozying to the NK and RUS was necessary because that style of play is needed, whilst also arguing we needed to play tougher with NATO. I get it. But on every issue?

Same could be said for Democrats. My city has a problem with illegal aliens driving with fake or stolen identities. They never passed a driving test and can't read road signs by and large so what we get is a consistent level of daily mayhem on the highway. Illegal towing, not strapping down work equipment, no car inspection and forget about insurance. Just do whatever you want.

a reply to: DBCowboy

I guess I pissed off both sides... I don't do this for flags and stars, but I've never posted anything that got this much response without a single flag or OP star.

Does this mean I am doing something right, DB?

a reply to: ThouArtGod
Trump is a NY realesate developer so his Style is such. Just like Bush was a Cowboy, Obama as community organizer, and Clinton as a gfifter con man. They all have their own styles. America didn't elect a Jimmy Carter in 2016