The Glass House: Method in the Madness

[Neon Ignition]

As was laid out in the Blast Processing thread, the shift away from a slew of poll based threads led to the creation of a single thread that would cover different topics and debates on the matter of gaming. If that thread covers one side of the coin then here we find the other side, a thread dedictated so the other areas of life that we all experience and observe as we attempt to navigate our way through the trials and tribulations of simple existence.

Covering political, social and moral discussions - these areas of debate can often lead to exploration, learning or theb gripping of entrenched verbal argument stones in your clenched fist ready to throw them out into the debate within the thread we will be calling in this instance:





As with the gaming thread, new topics will be put forward to explore different areas of discussion and to often place take a deeper dive into what is going on in the issues of the world around us. No polls, just a place of conversation on the ever changing or in some cases never changing matters we all face.

Also, similarly, this is also an open arena for anyone to put forward their own discussion points.

[Neon Ignition]

The Aims of Trump
The current tariff's situation is causing financial devastation globally which is only expected to get much worse in the coming weeks, possibly to a scale never before seen under a US President. There has already been a whole host of theories around what the intentions are behind Trump's approach. It's not a new plan to him, he's pushed the theory that tariff's are the key to rebalancing the US economy since the 1980's but it never seriously came to the fore during his first term. This time however America is only a few weeks into his term and the walls are already collapsing down around its people.

Theories on his plan come in various forms. Some believe it's a planted idea from the minds behind the Project 2025 playbook that he has followed so far, some believe that it's matter of revenge, tearing down the rich states that defied him in his first term to level them with the poorer ones that offer him greater levels of support. Others think that's its a financial scam; freed from repurcussions by a biased Supreme Court he and Elon are looking to crash the markets to buy stocks up on the cheap and then profit from a boom that follows, whilst the theory also exists that it's an egotistical move - something massive that isn't popular but cements his name in infamy within the halls of Presidential history.

The result is that there are already trillions of dollars lost in just several days and even some ardent Republicans are starting to get twitchy.

What do you feel is at the heart of Trumps intentions and how do you envisage the effects of this move panning out not just for America and the Globe but also for Trump himself and the future of the role of President?

[Asura]

What do you feel is at the heart of Trumps intentions and how do you envisage the effects of this move panning out not just for America and the Globe but also for Trump himself and the future of the role of President?

I feel, and have always felt, that Trump's political intentions are the same now as they were decades ago, and most other things come from that. Trump has come from a place of being nouveau riche, and wealthy (even if much of his wealth is a sham, yeah, yeah, bankrupt 10 times or whatever but he still has buildings in his name, he's a grifter in the same sense the stock market is a pyramid scheme).

Trump wants to be seen as an aristocrat, and saw political power as a means to that end once he fully realised that there was no way to reach that goal purely via business. He's trying to imitiate the oligarchy of Russia because they seem to have an air of aristrocracy that the newly-wealthy of America lack.

I genuinely feel most of the other stuff relates to Project 2025 or other groups who have manipulated him, because he's easy to manipulate as his goal is such a childish thing.

I also believe him to be some form of sociopath, though then again they say most CEOs are.

[Neon Ignition]

I think part of what throws me off is the pace at which he's moved on things. He's been so quick to tear things down that it's he himself that is going to have to deal with the ramifications of his actions. It's also hard to swallow the idea that he would willingly go with anything he believed would negatively impact his net worth either which narrows down the theories.

There's a very notable silence around his own personal wealth amidst all the losses other Billionaire's are suffering so I'm fully expecting it to emerge he's effectively inside trading on this for his own benefit. He doesn't need his voters anymore but I can also believe that he genuinely harbours hopes of staying in power which at least means keeping his party on side and currently he's harming them too.

I think what makes it difficult to judge is that he's also clearly quite stupid in many ways, like Musk is. Common sense is effectively absent and so it's just as easy to believe there's an alternate aim that he's unable to accurately read the outcome on.

He's blitzing through the Project 2025 playbook as well which they will think is amazing but he's going to get to the end of that list way before his term ends. He's going to get tired of being directed by their interests, he's then going to start making decisions that go against their intentions - we saw it in his first term, he maintains a revolving door of people coming in and being bounced right out again in short order.

I do genuinely think that he thinks the tariffs will work, likely due to napkin math because he doesn't understand the economy anywhere near as well as he thinks he does. I think he's panicked by the direction of things also but is such an egomaniac that he won't allow himself to back down and look like he made a monumental error or folded in the face of the likes of China etc so is now locked in on a hellish road of his own making.

He's going to become much more highly unhinged, a poisonous mixture of desperately trying to gaslight his voter base into blaming the world for what comes but that increasingly struggling to land as they become the hardest hit by what will undoubtedly be called the Trumpcession. The Republicans will become jittery as well with Democrats increasingly becoming the Labour style protest vote. Trumps paranoia after 2026 is going to spiral and everything will become a full time focus on retaining power in one form or another and that's where the real breaking point.

For America... honestly, I don't think there's a road back within the next 30+ years. The Republican Party is going to be a shell with him gone and the Democrats just come across as a dinosaur from a dead age. America's international standing is destroyed, no matter what happens now there will be zero trust in a nation that can spin on a dime every four years. It's going to be a poorer country and they brought it on themselves.

[fishbowlhead]

Trumps a raging psychopath that just wants to burn the world and make out good like he always has done, because he’s a platinum spooned spoilt lunatic and there’s never been any consequences to a single action he’s taken.

He should have been killed before the elections even started, all this could have been avoided.

[QualityChimp]

I'm not quite at the level fishbowlhead seems to be at!

My main concern is not all the awful things about Trump you've all already mentioned, it's that the vast majority of American voters can look past any them and vote for him anyway.

I hope the rest of the world takes the opportunity to reassess the importance of America.
We're not so reliant on their trade, NATO is reinvigorated by further funding by other nations, the UK investigates strengthening EU relations knowing that the US deals are off the table and the dollar stops being the world's currency.

If people can start seeing that working together gets better results than looking after yourself, we all benefit.

[Neon Ignition]

The main trouble the UK will face is that we're increasingly getting into a situation where increased ties with the EU seem like the best way forward and then possibly questions start to seriously come up about how close those ties need to be. But even if things get dire no-one will touch the option because of fear it will re-ignite the ardent Leave vote.

[Golgo]

The 'ardent' leave vote was only a fraction more than remain, so I'd say it's worth the political risk of reigniting it. Just explain to the leavers that they are objectively racist thickos who were duped and are demonstrably poorer and more inconvenienced now, and I'm sure they'll come good.

[Anpanman]

I can see us back in within the next fifteen years or at least with a lighter version of being on the outside than where we are now. Main reason is Trump and Ukraine, we Europeans want to help Ukraine and want closer military ties against Pootin but Trump and the current US government seem to want to help less which is pushing us in Europe closer together.

Of course all Trump wants is the minerals deal.

Plus, we all know why he wants Greenland but he's not getting a US entry into Eurovision.

[Neon Ignition]

I wonder if a Democratic nominee can successfully campaign on a position of being willing to impose full restrictions on future Presidents and Governments to prevent any of this happening again? I know the checks and balance etc system usually means not but until they impose new laws and systems governing the role of President, the Supreme Court has given future Democrat Presidents unparalleled power too (which is why the move for Trump never made sense).

[QualityChimp]

I think implementing extra checks falls into the "drain the swamp" ethos of Trump and "getting stuff done" appeals to many voters, oblivious that it leads to his current style of ruling where he acts first.

[Asura]

I wonder if a Democratic nominee can successfully campaign on a position of being willing to impose full restrictions on future Presidents and Governments to prevent any of this happening again? I know the checks and balance etc system usually means not but until they impose new laws and systems governing the role of President, the Supreme Court has given future Democrat Presidents unparalleled power too (which is why the move for Trump never made sense).

The problem is that US politics has historically shown this won't happen.

JFK, for instance, campaigned strongly as a Democrat on revising the Electoral College system. He didn't do this once in power... After winning the election due to the EC system. Admittedly he didn't serve his full tenure due to assassination but there was no sign he was fixing it.

No, there are definitely Democrat elements that are rubbing their hands in glee here. They're going to watch Trump crash the economy, then try to storm in, take the Whitehouse for the next election, then use Trump's example to push everything they want because the Republicans have just shown the power of the president is basically absolute.

[Neon Ignition]

Which is just nuts because as certain as day passes to night, a future Democratic President will inevitably eventually give way to another Republican one and without guards put in place the escalation of where Trump leaves things is inevitable. It's a game that eventually the Democrats are locked in to lose.