Is this really surprising in the least?
A retired four-star general recently stated that he felt that President Donald Trump poses a "serious threat" to national security.
Of course, Trump fans and supporters will dismiss it,, as they quickly dismiss any and all criticisms of their beloved leader. Despite a long and extensive history of lying and deceiving to get whatever he wants, his loyal supporters are so brainwashed, that they find absolutely no fault in this man who is truly defined by faults. The devout, Evangelical Christians who almost seem to mistake this buffoon as almost a savior of sorts sorts, seem to neglect the fact that this man clearly more embodies the Seven Deadly Sins than he does anyone who truly serves, or even respects, God, or the principles that Christianity is supposed to be based on. Not only is he guilty of the worst sins, but he seems to outright take pride in them, boasting about them. In his own words, he is "selfish, selfish, selfish." They forgive him, because ultimately, they are, too.
For the rest of us, however, this is just common sense. A man who goes before the United Nations right around International Peace Day, then mocks another leader and literally calls him names, like a child might, and then threatens to wipe a whole nation off the map, is indeed a threat to his own nation, and to world peace more generally.
Trump always seems to be addicted to perceptions of strength. And his version of strength is to play the role of a bully. That is easy to do now, as an elected world leader, the leader of the most powerful nation on Earth. He does not hide the fact that he much enjoys being in the position to press the nuclear button, and wipe another nation off the map entirely.
Almost anyone with even an ounce of objectivity and perspective, however, realizes that this is a very dangerous mindset for a man is such a position. Trump reminds me of a real-life Greg Stillson, that crooked politician from Stephen King's "The Dead Zone." Stillson sarcastically described as a "man of the people"in the movie by someone who saw how dangerous he really was, and ultimately, the reluctant psychic of the movie, Johnny, sees a dire future when he shakes Stillson's hand. We catch a glimpse in the movie of an obviously unhinged and insane Stillson launching a nuclear strike against some unknown enemy just before his advisers inform him that a diplomatic solution has basically been worked out. Stillson does not seem overly concerned, as he clearly feels that this third world war is and always has been his destiny.
The thing with the fictional Stillson that most reminds me, personally, of Trump, is his tendency to make everyone dismiss what he is actually saying and doing, because he comes across like he is joking, like he is just playing around, when he actually is deadly serious. Numerous times, Trump has done or said something completely arrogant or irresponsible, and then backs off from this, saying that "everyone" knows that he is joking. He did that recently after comments suggesting that he thought being "President for life" might be a good idea for the United States. The thing is, when you look at someone who is as blatantly power hungry as Trump, it is hard for most of us to completely dismiss this as a joke, and impossible for us to laugh along with him when he "jokes" like this. For many of us, our feeling is that he is joking, until he informs us that he is not. Besides, when are we supposed to take him seriously, when he "jokes" around so much about grabbing more power, either by constantly. incessantly attacking the free press, or by scapegoating minorities, or by threatening another country.
Inevitably, some people are going to stand up and say enough is enough. Even prominent Republicans have leveled serious criticisms at Trump, more than any other Republican we have ever seen (at least since Nixon, which was before my time). Perhaps all of that joking by President Trump has gone too far for many, and that includes one of the generals who Trump assured us he knew more than, at least about ISIS.
Indeed, Trump always assumes that he is the expert on all matters. In keeping with his tradition of discarding the superior knowledge of experts, he simply assumes that he always possesses superior knowledge, that he always knows better. Unfortunately, now tens of millions of people believe him, and take his ridiculous word as the truth. And this, of course, is dangerous as well.
So, any wonder that a general will look at all of this and suggest that Trump is actually a true threat to the nation that he now leads? He has the power, he has the arrogance and influence, and he has the instability factor that makes it a dangerous mix.
Frankly, I think that this kind of warning is true patriotism, because it is indeed still brave for a man in this position to criticize the sitting President of the United States, let alone to blast him as a serious threat to the nation's security and best interests.
Here is the link to the article about the general who called Trump out, and suggests that he is every bit as dangerous as our worst fears:
Indeed, Trump always assumes that he is the expert on all matters. In keeping with his tradition of discarding the superior knowledge of experts, he simply assumes that he always possesses superior knowledge, that he always knows better. Unfortunately, now tens of millions of people believe him, and take his ridiculous word as the truth. And this, of course, is dangerous as well.
So, any wonder that a general will look at all of this and suggest that Trump is actually a true threat to the nation that he now leads? He has the power, he has the arrogance and influence, and he has the instability factor that makes it a dangerous mix.
Frankly, I think that this kind of warning is true patriotism, because it is indeed still brave for a man in this position to criticize the sitting President of the United States, let alone to blast him as a serious threat to the nation's security and best interests.
Here is the link to the article about the general who called Trump out, and suggests that he is every bit as dangerous as our worst fears:
Retired four-star Army general: Trump ‘serious threat to US national security’ The Hill Jacqueline Thomsen, March, 2018:
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