Presidential Historian Suggests That Trump Converses 'Only With Himself'"

 

This is a picture of a magnet that was being sold at Strand's Book Store in New York City a few years ago. No, I did not buy it, but I liked it and took a picture, which I am sharing here now. 

Already earlier today, I posted something about how incredibly moronic this Trump administration is and has always been.

You might think that I would end with just one for the day.

But you would be wrong.

Frankly, Trump and his entire administration are just such a source of embarrassment and disgrace to this entire country - and before the entire world, which watches with a mixture of horror, hatred, and amusement - that we need to stress just how incredibly horrible this administration is at every turn. The media clearly is not doing a very good job of it, since Trump is going out of his way towards showing off his blatant corruption, and has hardly hid his dictatorial aspirations or how miserably this administration has failed this country and the world, that it falls on the rest of us to state the case.

Often, as with my earlier post, it simply means publishing the words and actions coming directly from this administration.

At other times, it is reacting to a major news story. And again, the media hardly seems to do their job of holding Trump and his administration accountable, or making a clear case as to why what they are doing is wrong and bad for the country, or even for the entire world.

At other times, it is about insights, such as the one in this particular article by Nick Hilden (see link below).

According to a presidential historian, Trump basically converses "only with himself."

Frankly, that sounds like the truth. Of course, that much might admittedly be more my opinion. But it is based on observing this malignant narcissist for years now. His opinion of himself is so high, that you have to wonder who else he would even bother talking to. After all, as he makes clear himself, nobody knows as much as he does on....well, just about everything.

Trump is a 'psychopath' who converses 'only with himself': biographer Opinion by Nick Hilden • July 17, 2026 • 

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/trump-is-a-psychopath-who-converses-only-with-himself-biographer/ar-AA2883p2?ocid=entnewsntp&pc=U531&cvid=6a5addc8341c437d9e2ce7ad7a6c75ab&ei=14

Trump is a 'psychopath' who converses 'only with himself': biographer

Defense Department Once Again Roasts Itself With Yet Another Highly Visible Public Gaffe

This is a picture of a magnet that was being sold at Strand's Book Store in New York City a few years ago. No, I did not buy it, but I liked it and took a picture, which I am sharing here now. 

There have been so many gaffes and blunders and self-owns done by members of this Trump administration, that you might think that someone inside was deliberately sabotaging them and their credibility. At the very least, you might think that they would be so careful after such humiliations as to make sure that something that casts them in such a compromised, negative light would never, ever happen again.

Yet, these things just keep happening. It really is amazing.

The latest came just yesterday. Once again, it was more symbolic of the attempted tough, brash image which this administration always and forever tries to convey. Also once again, this attempt completely backfired.

Someone noticed fairly quickly and it was taken down just as quickly. But not before someone caught it and took a screenshot. Which, of course, meant that it went viral.

Which, of course, made this administration look just as incompetent and ridiculous as they always seem to manage to do.

There is a semi-blurred image of American troops in desert fatigue. They are running from a cargo plane where a bunch of other soldiers are running out of. Everyone has their guns out.

Behind them is a single word: 

WINNING.

The "Department of War" (which I still think is legally known as the Department of Defense) has the caption: "It's not an option."

People are already comparing it to other disastrous moments, when a presidential administration does something so ill-advised and cringeworthy that you just know it will endure as a symbol of their failure. I saw comparisons to George W. Bush's "Mission Accomplished" fiasco. But at least the Bush administration was on message, even if that was obviously premature and came back to bite them. They at least were clear in their message of declaring huge success.

This one casts doubt right away, and in an obvious manner. Even a young elementary school child could likely have caught the problem here.

Yet somehow, the higher-ups of this particular administration could not.

Of course, the obvious problem is that it seems like a contradictory message. Like they are claiming that winning is simply not an option.

Given how this ill-advised and highly illegal and immoral war with Iran is going, that pretty much seems to sum everything up.

Pretty much sums up this entire administration too, for that matter.

It's been said before, but it bears repeating:

Elect a clown, expect a circus.

Defense Department Roasted After Posting And Then Deleting Tweet About 'Winning' Trump's Iran War That's A Self-Own For The Ages by Alan Herrera Aug 03, 2026:

The official X account for the Under Secretary of War posted a tweet about the U.S. military "winning" the Iran war with a caption that totally undermined the sentiment before later deleting it—but not before the internet pounced. 

https://www.comicsands.com/pentagon-winning-not-option?utm_source=Bluesky&utm_medium=infeed&utm_campaign=linkprogram#Echobox=1785776606

Defense Dept. Roasted Over 'Winning,' 'It's Not An Option' Tweet: PHOTO - Comic Sands

August 4th: This Day in History

 

Once again, it should be reiterated, that this does not pretend to be a very extensive history of what happened on this day (nor is it the most original - the links can be found down below). If you know something that I am missing, by all means, shoot me an email or leave a comment, and let me know!

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history

George Washington became a Master Mason on this day in 1753. Feudalism was officially abolished in France on this day in 1789, during the early days of the French Revolution. Plans for the present-day city of Chicago were laid out on this day in 1830. In 1892 on this day, Sunday school teacher Lizzie Borden was arrested and acquitted after her father and stepmother were killed with an axe in  Fall River, Massachusetts. On this day in 1914 during World War I, Germany declared war on Belgium and, in turn, Britain then declared war on Germany, while the United States maintained it's neutrality. Anne Frank was captured in Amsterdam on this day in 1944, during World War II. The bodies of three civil rights workers were discovered on this day in 1964, and on that same day, the United States falsely claimed that there was a second Gulf of Tonkin attack, which helped to escalate American involvement in Vietnam. Jimmy Carter signed the Department of Energy into existence on this day in 1977. A revolution broke out in Upper Volta on this day in 1983 and, once year later, that country was renamed Burkina Faso. OPEC reduced oil production by 20% on this day in 1986. In 1996, the South Africa got it's first ever gold medal won by a black man, and twelve years later for South Africa, Oscar Pistorius became the first amputee to compete in the Olympics.

Here's a more detailed look at events that transpired on this date throughout history:

 

Here's a more detailed look at events that transpired on this date throughout history:

• On this day in 1181, a Supernova was seen in Cassiopia. 

• The Battle at Evesham was fought on this day in 1265, in which English Prince Edward defeated Simon de Montfort the Younger. In 1347 on this day, English troops conquered Ft Calais. 

On this day in 1351, there was a sea battle at Zwartewaal, when Willem V defeated Hoeksen & the English. 

In 1558 on this day, the first printing of Zohar (Jewish Kabbalah). 

• The Battle of Alcazarquivir was fought on this day in 1578, when the Moroccans defeated the Portuguese, with 10,000 killed. 

London's head office of Hanze closed on this day in 1598. 

Johan Mauritius was appointed Governor of Dutch Brazil on this day in 1636, 

A massive hurricane struck Guadeloupe, Martinique & St Christopher on this day in 1666, with thousands killed. 

A sea battle between Netherlands & England was fought on this day in 1666. 

This is the date in 1693 traditionally ascribed to Dom Perignon's invention of Champagne. 

The French garrison surrendered to Willem III on this day in 1695. 

• On this day in 1704 during the War of Spanish Succession, English & Dutch troops occupied Gibraltar. Crown Prince Frederick of Prussia escaped to England on this day in 1730. 

• Freedom of the press was established on this day in 1735 in the colonies after a jury acquittal of John Peter Zenger, who had been defended by Andrew Hamilton. The writer of the New York Weekly Journal had been charged with seditious libel by the royal governor of New York. The jury said that "the truth is not libelous." 

Statue of George Washington in Morristown, New Jersey

• George Washington became a Master Mason on this day in 1753. 

• Retired British cavalry officer Philip Astley established the first circus on this day in 1777. 

 Declaration of the Rights of the Man and of the Citizen of 1789/ La Déclaration des droits de l'homme et du citoyen de 1789

• During the early days of the French Revolution, the Assemblée nationale officially ended feudal system on this day in 1789. 

• The Revenue Cutter Service was formed on this day in 1790. This U.S. naval task force was the beginning of the U.S. Coast Guard. 

The Treaty of Sistova was signed on this day in 1791, ending the Ottoman-Habsburg wars. 

"The Saturday Evening Post" was published for the first time as a weekly on this day in 1821. It would run until 1969. 

The Battle of Kos was fought on this day in 1824 between the Ottomans and the Greeks. 

Plans for the city of Chicago were laid out on this day in 1830. 

• The Hinomaru was established as the official flag to be flown from Japanese ships on this day in 1854. John Bartlett published "Familiar Quotations" on this day in 1855. 

On this day in 1862, the US government collected its first income tax. 

A statue in Flemington, New Jersey, honoring veterans of the American Civil War.

• There was land & naval action during the American Civil War at Brazos Santiago, Texas, on this day in 1864. 

On this day in 1870, the British Red Cross Society was formed. 

In 1873 on this day during the Indian Wars. whilst protecting a railroad survey party in Montana, the United States 7th Cavalry, under Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer, clashed for the first time with the Sioux (near the Tongue River; only one man on each side is killed). Pope Leo XIII published encyclical Aeterni Patris on this day in 1879. It was 50°C (122°F) in Seville, Spain, on this day in 1881, marking a European record. 

On this day in 1884, Thomas Stevens became the first person to bicycle across the United States. He later bicycled around the world.  

Colombia adopted a constitution on this day in 1886. 

• Queen Wilhelmina & Emma opened the Merwede Canal between Amsterdam-Rhine on this day in 1892. 

In 1892 on this day, Sunday school teacher Lizzie Borden was arrested and acquitted after her father and stepmother were killed with an axe in  Fall River, Massachusetts. 

Henry A Rucker was appointed Collector of Internal Revenue for Georgia on this day in 1897. 

The Greenwich foot tunnel under the River Thames opened on this day in 1902. 

Cardinal Giuseppe Sarto of Venice was elected Pope Pius X omn this day in 1903. 

• This was another busy day back in 1914 during the very early stages of World War I, as Germany invaded Belgium and, in response, Britain declared war on Germany. Also on this day in 1914, the German army shot Belgian priests and burned down the village of Battice, while the German fleet under Admiral Souchon fired on the Algerian coast. Also on this day in 1914, the U.S. proclaimed its neutrality in the emerging "Great War".  Finally in  1914 on this day, King Albert I became Supreme Commander of Belgian army, and Lord Kitchener became British Minister of War. 

• Denmark ceded the Danish West Indies, including the Danish Virgin Islands, to the United States for $25 million on this day in 1916. The Pravda calls for killing all capitalists, priests & officers on this day in 1917. 

• This day in 1922 marked the death of Alexander Graham Bell. Two days earlier, Bell had been recognized by AT&T and the Bell Systems by shutting down all of its switchboards and switching stations. The shutdown affected 13 million phones. 

• On this day in 1925, US marines left Nicaragua after a 13-year occupation. 60,000 SA'ers/SS'ers marched in Munich on this day in 1929. 

Jones Beach in New York opened on this day in 1929. 

Child labor laws were established in Belgium on this day in 1930. 

On this day in 1936, Ioannis Metaxas named himself Dictator of Greece. 

Statue of soldier, author and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill in Parliament Square, London

• Winston Churchill departed on the Prince of Wales to the US on this day in 1941. 

Auschwitz

• The first train with Jews departed Mechele, Belgium, and headed to the Auschwitz death camp on this day in 1942. 

British Prime Minister Winston Churchill arrived in Cairo, Egypt, on this day in 1942. 

In 1942 on this day, Col-Gen Jeremenko arrived in Stalingrad, and was welcomed by Nikita Khrushchev. 

In Netherlands on this day in 1942, the German occupiers ordered all Dutch homing pigeons killed. 

On this day in 1943, British Prime Minister Churchill traveled on the Queen Mary to Canada. Russian units reached the suburbs of Orel on this day in 1943. Also on this day in 1943, the USAF bombed Germans in Troina. 

Anne Frank arrested in Amsterdam on this day in 1944 by German Security Police (Grüne Polizei) following a tip-off from an informer who was never identified. Eight people were arrested. Anne Frank, who was just a teenager at the time, was one of the people arrested. Her diary would be published after her death.  Also on this day in 1944, the British 8th Army reached the suburbs of Florence, Italy. 

On this day in 1946, an earthquake of magnitude 8.0 hit the northern Dominican Republic. 100 are killed and 20,000 are left homeless. 

The Supreme Court of Japan was established on this day in 1947.

1948 - 5 day Southern States filibuster succeeds in maintaining America's poll tax

1949 - NBL & NBAA merge into National Basketball Association

1953 - Black families move into Trumbull Park housing project in Chicago

1953 - Vic Raschi sets pitcher record by driving in 7 runs & wins 15-0

1954 - Boscombe Down 1st flight of supersonic P-1 Lightning

1954 - The Government of Pakistan approves the National Anthem, written by Hafeez Jullundhry and composed by Ahmed G. Chagla.

1954 - The uranium rush began in Saskatchewan, Canada.    

General Dwight Eisenhower, 34th President of the United States

1955 - Eisenhower authorizes $46 million for construction of CIA headquarters

1956 - 1st motorcycle rode over 200 mph (Wilhelm Herz-210 mph/338 kph)

1956 - Elvis Presley releases "Hound Dog"

1956 - Indonesia says it will not pay debts to the Netherlands

1956 - William Herz became the first person to race a motorcycle over 200 miles per hour. He was clocked at 210 mph.    

1957 - Florence Chadwick set a world record by swimming the English Channel in 6 hours and 7 minutes.   1957 - Juan Fangio won his final auto race and captured the world auto driving championship. It was his the fifth consecutive year to win.    

1958 - The first potato flake plant was completed in Grand Forks, ND.    

1958 - Billboard Magazine introduced its "Hot 100" chart, which was part popularity and a barometer of the movement of potential hits. The first number one song was Ricky Nelson's "Poor Little Fool."     

1958 - Dumont TV Network crumbles

1959 - "Billy Barnes Revue" opens at John Golden Theater NYC for 87 perfs

1960 - Rocket propelled USAAF research aircraft sets record at 2,150 MPH

1961 - 108°F, Spokane, WA

1961 - 28th NFL Chicago All-Star Game: Philadelphia 28, All-Stars 14 (66,000)

Flag of South Africa during the apartheid era

Statue of Nelson Mandela in State Parliament Square, London, UK

1962 - Nelson Mandela captured by South African police

1963 - Kathy Whitworth wins LPGA Milwaukee Jaycee Golf Open

1964 - The bodies of three civil-rights workers were found six weeks into a federal investigation backed by President Johnson   The bodies of Michael Schwerner, Andrew Goodman & James E Chaney, were discovered in an earthen Mississippi dam

1964 - North Vietnamese torpedos US ships Gulf of Tonkin

1965 - Cook Islands enters into free association with New Zealand

1967 - 34th NFL Chicago All-Star Game: Green Bay 27, All-Stars 0 (70,934)

1967 - British pirate radio station Radio 355 resigns air

1967 - Shortwave group ANARC's 1st convention (Chicago)

1967 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site

1967 - USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR

1968 - 100,000 attend Newport Pop Festival, Costa Mesa, Calif

1968 - Kathy Whitworth wins LPGA Gino Paoli Golf Open

1968 - WXTV TV channel 41 in New York-Paterson, NY (UNI) begins broadcasting

1969 - Willie Stargell is 1st to hit a HR outside of Dodger Stadium

1970 - Jim Morrison arrested for drunkenness

1971 - US launches 1st satellite into lunar orbit from manned spacecraft

1972 - Arthur Bremer was found guilty of shooting George Wallace, the governor of Alabama. Bremer was sentenced to 63 years in prison.    

1974 - Crawford-Butler Act allows Puerto Ricans to elect own governor

1974 - Sandra Haynie wins LPGA George Washington Golf Classic

1975 - Robert Plant is involved in a car crash in Rhodes

1976 - USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR

American President Jimmy Carter

1977 - U.S. President Jimmy Carter signed a Congressional measure that established the Department of Energy.    

1977 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site

1979 - Italian government of Cossiga begins

1979 - USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR

1980 - -11] Hurricane Aline, kills 272 in Texas & Caribbean

1980 - John & Yoko begin recording "Double Fantasy"

1980 - Seattle Mariners replace manager Darrell Johnson with Maury Wills

1981 - Columbia mated with SRBs & external tank for STS-2 mission

1981 - Oliver North is assigned to White House duty

1982 - NY Met Joel Youngblood singles in Chicago day game, he is traded, then singles for Expos in Philadelphia night game

1983 - Bettino Craxi sworn in as premier of Italy

1983 - France performs nuclear test

1983 - Revolution in Burkina Faso

1983 - While warming up before 5th inning Yankee Dave Winfield accidentally kills a seagull 

1983 - New York Yankee outfielder Dave Winfield threw a baseball during warm-ups and accidentally killed a seagull. After the game, Toronto police arrested him for "causing unnecessary suffering to an animal." 

1984 - Carl Lewis won a gold medal in the 100-metre dash at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.    

1984 - Upper Volta, an African republic, changed its name to Burkina Faso.    

1984 - Cliff Johnson sets a record with his 19th pinch hit HR

1984 - Prince's "Purple Rain," album goes to #1 & stays #1 for 24 weeks

1984 - Republic of Upper Volta becomes Burkina Faso (National Day)

1985 - "Dreamgirls" closes at Imperial Theater NYC after 1522 performances

1985 - Penny Hammel wins LPGA Jamie Farr Toledo Golf Classic

1985 - Phil Rizzuto Day, Yanks retire #10

1985 - Rod Carew, is 16th to get 3,000 hits

1985 - Tom Seaver of the Chicago White Soxbecame the 17th player to earn his 300th victory, beating the Yankees to do it.    

1985 - Rod Carew of the California angels got his 3,000th major league hit.   

 

1986 - The United States Football League called off its 1986 season. This was after winning only token damages in its antitrust lawsuit against the National Football League.    

1986 - OPEC lowers oil production 20%

1987 - At the Kingdome, Ruppert Jones hits a foul ball that sticks in speaker

1987 - FCC vote 4-0 to rescind fairness doctrine for broadcasters

1987 - The Fairness Doctrine was rescinded by the Federal Communications Commission. The doctrine had required that radio and TV stations present controversial issues in a balanced fashion. 

   

On this day in 1987, the United States Postal Services released a new 22-cent stamp honoring noted author William Faulkner. The stamp went for sale in Oxford, Mississippi, Faulkner's home town. Faulkner had been fired as postmaster of that same post office in 1924.    

1988 - Congress votes $20,000 to each Japanese-American interned in WW II

1988 - Hertz car rental will pay out $23 million in consumer fraud case

1989 - Iranian President Hashemi Rafsanjani offered to assist end the hostage crisis in Lebanon.   

1989 - Blue Jays Dave Steib's perfect game broken up in 9th with 2 outs by NY Yankee Roberto Kelly

1990 - 95.5°F (35.3°C) in De Bilt Neth (highest Aug temp in Neth)

Flag of the European Union (EU)

1990 - The European Community imposed an embargo on oil from Iraq and Kuwait. This was done to protest the Iraqi invasion of the oil-rich Kuwait.    

1991 - The Oceanos, a Greek luxury liner, sank off of South Africa's southeast coast. All of the 402 passengers and 179 crewmembers survived.    

1991 - 1st time Seattle Mariners are 9 games over .500

1991 - Deb Richard wins LPGA Phar-Mor in Youngstown Golf Tournament

1993 - Angolese air force bombs Huambo

1993 - Rwandian Hutu's & Tutsi's sign peace treaty in Arusha

1993 - Tony Gwynn gets 6 hits, 4th time in 1993 a Padre gets 5 or more hits

1994 - Dwingeloo 1, near milky way system, discovered

1994 - Howard Stern drops out of NY gubernatorial race

1994 - Truck carrying millions of bees overturns on NY parkway

1994 - Yugoslavia withdrew its support for Bosnian Serbs. The border between Yugoslavia and Serb-held Bosnia was sealed.    

1995 - Darryl Strawberry joins the NY Yankees

1995 - Operation Storm begins in Croatia.

1996 - 24th du Maurier Golf Classic: Laura Davies

1996 - 26th Olympic games close at Atlanta, Georgia (sched)

1996 - J Bunning, E Weaver, B Foster, & N Hanlon inducted in Hall of Fame

This was a picture (which I have since cropped) of the new South Africa flag of the post-apartheid era. I actually took this one at the apartheid museum, as this was the final display, if you will, of the museum, the symbol of the emergence of a "new South Africa."

1996 - Josia Thugwane won a gold medal after finishing first in the marathon. He became the first black South African to win a gold medal.    

1997 - Teamsters began a 15-day strike against UPS (United Parcel Service). The strikers eventually won an increase in full-time positions and defeated a proposed reorganization of the company's pension plan.   

1997 - "Keenan Ivory Wayan Show," premieres on Fox TV

1997 - 185,000 Teamsters union United Parcel Service drivers walk off the job.

2002 - Soham murders: 10 year old school girls Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells go missing from the town of Soham, Cambridgeshire.

2005 - Prime Minister Paul Martin announces that Michaëlle Jean will be Canada's 27th — and first black — Governor General.

2006 - Dame Silvia Cartwright steps down as the Governor-General of New Zealand and is replaced by The Honourable Anand Satyanand, who is sworn in on 23 August.

2007 - NASA's Phoenix spaceship is launched.

2009 - North Korean leader Kim Jong-il pardoned two American journalists, who had been arrested and imprisoned for illegal entry earlier in the year. 

2010 - California's Proposition 8, the ballot initiative prohibiting same-sex marriage passed by the state's voters in 2008, was overturned by Judge Vaughn Walker in the case Perry v. Schwarzenegger.

2012 - 45 people are killed by a suicide bombing in Abyan, Yemen

2012 - South African Oscar Pistorius becomes first amputee to compete at the Olympics

The following links are to web sites that were used to complete this blog entry:

http://www.historyorb.com/today/events.php

http://on-this-day.com/onthisday/thedays/alldays/aug04.htm

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history

http://www.infoplease.com/dayinhistory

More Reflections By Carl Sagan

 

Bust of Carl Sagan

Not long ago, I posted some quotes from Carl Sagan which seemed to me thought-provoking.

Below are some more which seemed worth sharing here.

Enjoy:

“History is full of people who out of fear or ignorance or the lust for power have destroyed treasures of immeasurable value which truly belong to all of us. We must not let it happen again.” 

― Carl Sagan

“Those who are ignorant and fearful of science create a new generation of people ignorant and fearful of science  

― Carl Sagan

"There is much that science doesn't understand, many mysteries still to be resolved. In a Universe tens of billions of light years across and some ten or fifteen billion years old, this may be the case forever. We are constantly stumbling on surprises. Yet some New Age and religious writers assert that scientists believe that 'what they find is all there is'. Scientists may reject mystic revelations for which there is no evidence except somebody's say-so, but they hardly believe their knowledge of Nature to be complete. Science is far from a perfect instrument of knowledge. It's just the best we have. In this respect, as in many others, it's like democracy. Science by itself cannot advocate courses of human action, but it can certainly illuminate the possible consequences of alternative courses of action." 

~ Carl Sagan ; The Demon-Haunted World "An Instrument of Knowledge" 

"In exchange for freedom of inquiry, scientists are obliged to explain their work. If science is considered too difficult for the average person to understand, the dangers of abuse are greater. But if science is a topic of general interest and concern if both its delights and its social consequences are discussed regularly and competently in the schools, the press, and at the dinner table we have greatly improved our prospects for learning how the world really is and for improving both it and us." 

~ Carl Sagan ; Broca's Brain

“The secrets of evolution are death and time – the deaths of enormous numbers of lifeforms that were imperfectly adapted to the environment; and time for a long succession of small mutations that were by accident adaptive, time for the slow accumulation of patterns of favorable mutations.  Part of the resistance to Darwin and Wallace derives from our difficulty in imagining the passage of the millennia, much less the aeons. What does seventy million years mean to beings who live only one-millionth as long? We are like butterflies who flutter for a day and think it is forever.” 

~Carl Sagan ; Cosmos 

"It's disheartening to discover government corruption and incompetence, for example; but is it better not to know about it? Whose interest does ignorance serve? If we humans bear, say, hereditary propensities toward the hatred of strangers, isn't self-knowledge the only antidote? If we long to believe that the stars rise and set for us, that we are the reason there is a Universe, does science do us a disservice in deflating our conceits?" 

~ Carl Sagan "Does Truth Matter?" (March/April 1996 Skeptical Inquirer) 

"We are set irrevocably, I believe, on a path that will take us to the star sunless in some monstrous capitulation to stupidity and greed, we destroy ourselves first. And out there in the depths of space, it seems very likely that, sooner or later, we will find other intelligent beings. Some of them will be less advanced than we; some, probably most, will be more. Will all the spacefaring beings, I wonder, be creatures whose births are painful? The beings more advanced than we will have capabilities far beyond our understanding. In some very real sense they will appear to us as godlike.  There will be a great deal of growing up required of the infant human species. Perhaps our descendants in those remote times will look back on us, on the long and wandering journey the human race will have taken from its dimly remembered origins on the distant planet Earth, and recollect our personal and collective histories, our romance with science and religion, with clarity and understanding and love." 

~ Carl Sagan ; Broca's Brain : Reflections on the Romance of Science

Rick Wilson of The Lincoln Project Believes That There Is a 90% Chance That Trump Will Receive a Third Term

This is a picture of a magnet that was being sold at Strand's Book Store in New York City a few years ago. No, I did not buy it, but I liked it and took a picture, which I am sharing here now. 

Not long ago, I posted something about how Trump took the opportunity at the White House Correspondents Dinner to put on a Trump 2028 hat. It was a tease indicating that he was going to run again in 2028 for a third term.

A lot of people dismissed it as a joke.

The thing is, I don't actually think he is joking. It seems to me that he is serious. That he fully intends to run again for another term. In fact, it seems to me that his enormous, truly staggering ego will not allow him to be sidelined. He is always and forever about himself, about "me, me, me." And so he will not allow any other Republican to effectively take over his dominant leadership position within the party.

Well apparently, I am not alone in assuming this. While I do not always (or perhaps even often) agree with Rick Wilson, he painted a scenario which seemed to me quite likely. The more I thought about it, the more likely it felt.

What he predicted was that when it came time for the primaries, Trump would reveal exactly why he has not made official his endorsement of any GOP candidate for 2028 to take over. Simply, he would run and make clear that it would be, once again, all about him.

Of course, he legally does not have the right to run again. There is a Constitutional amendment preventing him from running again, right?

Seriously, when has the law ever stopped this guy from doing what he wants?

Wilson predicted that Trump would enter his hat into the race. Then he would let his legal team employ all of the delaying tactics that they are so well known for in the face of the inevitable challenges. These cases would drag on and on, until the race (which truly will be fixed in Trump's favor) is won.

By then, it might be too late.

Wilson seems to think that there is a 90% chance that Trump will get a third term in office.

While I would likely not place those odds quite that high - Trump is very unpopular right now to the point where it would not be believed that he would win another election - I still feel that there is a likelihood that Trump will indeed run again in 2028, that he would receive the GOP nomination for a record fourth straight time, and that he would have a fair chance, at least, to come out on top in the general election in November.

Another thing that Wilson said is that both Republicans and Democrats tend to dismiss him whenever he said this. But it was mostly because they don't want to believe it, and don't want to face the very real prospect that Trump will simply refuse to step down. On a much more limited basis, this is the same reaction I have also gotten to the few people I have revealed this prediction that Trump will be our forever president. And while I understand not wanting to face it, not wanting to even think about Trump running yet again, it is better (I think) to be clear sighted about this and face it rather than give in to escapism and wishful thinking. 

Do you really believe that Trump, who orchestrated January 6th the last time he was forced to leave office, will simply allow himself to be replaced?

Personally, I don't think so. 

Trump will be the next three term president, I’m 90% sure | Rick Wilson   The Trump Report and The Lincoln Project, July 31, 20206:

https://youtu.be/xCsUlNFxj6s?si=sTJQfxorjTtj_Cno

Trump will be the next three term president, I’m 90% sure | Rick Wilson

August 3rd - This Day in History

 

Once again, it should be reiterated, that this does not pretend to be a very extensive history of what happened on this day (nor is it the most original - the links can be found down below). If you know something that I am missing, by all means, shoot me an email or leave a comment, and let me know!

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history

 

On this day in the year 8, the Roman Empire General Tiberius defeated Dalmatians on the river Bathinus. In 435 on this day, deposed Patriarch of Constantinople Nestorius, who is considered the originator of Nestorianism, was exiled by Byzantine Emperor Theodosius II to a monastery in Egypt.  The Battle at Saucourt was fought on this day in 881, when French King Louis III defeated the Vikings. Louis VI,  who would charmingly come to be known as "the Fat One," was crowned King of France on this day in 1108. All Jews were expelled from Spain on this day in 1492. On this day in 1492, Christopher Columbus left Palos, Spain, with three ships, headed for the "Indies". The voyage would lead him to what is now known as the Americas. On this day in 1635, the third of the Tokugawa shoguns, Iemitsu, established the system of alternate attendance (sankin kotai) by which the feudal daimyō are required to spend one year at Edo Castle in Tokyo and one year back home at their feudal manor, while their families remained in Tokyo as virtual political hostages. (Traditional Japanese Date: June 21, 1635). In 1704 on this day, the English and Dutch fleet under Rooke and Callenburgh occupied Gibraltar. In 1750, on this day, Christopher Dock completed the first book of teaching methods. It was titled "A Simple and Thoroughly Prepared School Management." On this day in 1833, the HMS Beagle, with British botanist Charles Darwin aboard, reached the mouth of the Rio Negro River. On this day in 1860, the Second Maori War started in New Zealand. In what is now present day South Africa on this day in 1881, Boers signed the Convention of Pretoria: which recognized the Boer Republic of Transvaal a semi-autonomous status. British journalist Francis Younghusband visited the forbidden city of Lhasa, Tibet, on this day in 1904. On this day in 1944 at the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp, 4,000 gypsies were gassed. On this day in 1966, the white minority apartheid government in South African banned Beatle records. 45,000 US soldiers were sent to Vietnam on this day in 1967. Poland & West Germany reached an accord about returning ethnic Germans on this day in 1975. The Iran-Contra hearings ended on this day in 1988. No official ties were made between U.S. President Reagan and the Nicaraguan Rebels. Bolivia became the first South American country to declare the right of indigenous people to govern themselves on this day in 2009. 

Here's a more detailed look at events that transpired on this date throughout history:

• On this day in the year 8, the Roman Empire General Tiberius defeated Dalmatians on the river Bathinus. 

In 435 on this day, deposed Patriarch of Constantinople Nestorius, who is considered the originator of Nestorianism, was exiled by Byzantine Emperor Theodosius II to a monastery in Egypt. 

The Battle at Saucourt was fought on this day in 881, when French King Louis III defeated the Vikings. 

Royal France

• Louis VI,  who would charmingly come to be known as "the Fat One," was crowned King of France on this day in 1108. 

On this day in 1312, Power of Luik Patriarch murdered over 200. 

All Jews were expelled from Spain on this day in 1492. 

On this day in 1492, Christopher Columbus left Palos, Spain, with three ships, headed for the "Indies". The voyage would lead him to what is now known as the Americas. He reached the island which he would call San Salvador, which is now part of the Bahamas, on October 12.   

The flag of Newfoundland.

• This day in 1527, the fiirst known letter was sent from North America by John Rut while at St. John's, Newfoundland. 

On this day in 1529, the "Ladies' Peace" (Treaty of Cambrai) was signed between Emperor Charles V & King French I.  

The Dutch States-General met at Valenciennes on this day in 1557. 

David Fabricius discovered light variation of Mira (the first variable star) on this day in 1596. 

On this day in 1635, the third of the Tokugawa shoguns, Iemitsu, established the system of alternate attendance (sankin kotai) by which the feudal daimyō are required to spend one year at Edo Castle in Tokyo and one year back home at their feudal manor, while their families remained in Tokyo as virtual political hostages. (Traditional Japanese Date: June 21, 1635). 

On this day in 1640, 2,000 men VOC-Army surrounded the city of Malakka. In 1640,  Zorilla's "Bire el Ojo," premieres in Toledo. 

• The Battle of Allersheim was fought on this day in 1645, when the French defeated the Bavarians. Viceroy Willem II & Amsterdam reached accord about a standing army on this day in 1650. 

Nathaniel Bacon published the "Declaration of People of Virginia" on this day in 1676. 

On this day in 1678, Robert LaSalle built the first ship in America, Griffon. 

The Battle at Steenkerke was fought on this day in 1692, when the French defeated the English and the Dutch armies.

In 1704 on this day, the English and Dutch fleet under Rooke and Callenburgh occupied Gibraltar. 

The Battle at Trencsén was fought on this day in 1708, which saw Austria defeat the Hungarian rebellion army. 

Bonnie Prince Charlie landed on Eriskay, Hebrides, on this day in 1745. 

In 1750, on this day, Christopher Dock completed the first book of teaching methods. It was titled "A Simple and Thoroughly Prepared School Management." 

In 1778 on this day, the Teatro alla Scala opened in Milan, Italy. 

Emperor Francis I permitted Jews who served in military in "Countries of Bohemian Crown" to marry non-Jews on this day in 1797. 

• Gioacchino Rossini's "William Tell," premiered in Paris on this day in 1829. 

British Botanist Charles Darwin

• On this day in 1833, the HMS Beagle, with British botanist Charles Darwin aboard, reached the mouth of the Rio Negro River.  

The flag of New Zealand

• On this day in 1860, the Second Maori War started in New Zealand. 

• On this day in 1861, during the American Civil War, the Federal fleet bombed Galveston, Texas. 

A statue in Flemington, New Jersey, honoring veterans of the American Civil War.

• Governor Seymour asked President Lincoln to suspend the draft in New York on this day in 1863. 

The Battle of Mobile,  Alabama, was fought on this day in 1864. 

The Voortrekker Monument in Pretoria, South Africa.

• In what is now present day South Africa on this day in 1881, Boers signed the Convention of Pretoria: which recognized the Boer Republic of Transvaal a semi-autonomous status. 

• Congress passed the first law restricting immigration on this day in 1882. 

British journalist Francis Younghusband visited the forbidden city of Lhasa, Tibet, on this day in 1904. 

The Wheatland Hop Riot occurred on this day in 1913. This day in history in 1914 proved to be a busy day in the earliest stages of World War I, as Germany declared war on France and invaded Belgium, after Belgium rejected German demands to allow the crossing of the German Army across Belgium. Britain responded to all of this by declaring war on Germany.  The Ottoman Empire signed a military pact with Germany on this day in 1914. On this same day in 1914, the French fleet sailed to North-Africa, while the German battle cruiser Goeben left Messina. Also on this day in 1914, the first seaworthy ship passed through the Panama Canal. Finally on this historically busy day in 1914, the World Alliance for Promoting International Friendship through Churches formed, ironically enough. The first aerial cropdusting took place on this day in 1921 in Troy, Ohio, with the intent of killing caterpillars. Also on this day in 1921, eight members of the Chicago White Sox accused in the Black Sox scandal were acquitted due to a technicality. However, Landis threw them out of baseball. 

Calvin Coolidge was sworn in as the 30th president of the U.S. after the sudden death of President Harding on this day in 1923. 

The last US troops leave Nicaragua (there since 1912) on this day in 1925. On this day in 1936, the U.S. State Department advised Americans to leave Spain due to the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War. Jesse Owens won the first of four Olympic gold medals in Berlin on this day in 1936, while Hitler was in attendance. On this day in 1940, German occupiers forbid ritual slaughters & English & French movies. Italian troops invaded British Somalia on this day in 1940. The Lithuanian SSR was absorbed into the USSR on this day in 1940. Benzine and gas sales were limited in the US on this day in 1941. German troops conquered Roslavl, USSR, on tis day in 1941. 

On this day in 1943, Nazi occupiers attacked the city Orel, then left it afire. 

In 1943 on this day during World War II, Gen. George S. Patton verbally abused and slapped a private in a hospital, accusing him of cowardice. 

• Later, Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower ordered him to apologize for the incident. Allied troops under the command of Lt-Gen Stilwells conquered Myitkyina, Burma, on this day in 1944. Also on this day in 1944, General Montgomery visited General Dempsey's headquarters. 

Auschwitz

• Finally on this day in 1944 at the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp, 4,000 gypsies were gassed. 

• In 1946 on this day, the Belgian government of Huysmans formed. 

On this day in 1948, former FDR advisor Alger Hiss was accused of being a "communist." The new Republic of Indonesia proclaimed a cease-fire on this day in 1949. Also on this day in 1949, the National Basketball Association (NBA) was formed. The league was formed by the merger between the Basketball Association of America and the National Basketball League. 

William H Jackson, ended his term as Deputy Director of the CIA on this day in 1951. In 1952 on this day, the XV (15th) Olympic games closed in Helsinki, Finland. On this day in 1956, Bedloe's Island had its name changed to Liberty Island. The British offensive against Imam Galeb Ben Ali of Oman began on this day in 1957. The nuclear-powered submarine Nautilus became the first vessel to cross the North Pole underwater on this day in 1958. The mission was known as "Operation Sunshine." The Billboard Hot 100 was founded on this day in 1958. 50 were killed in an uprising in Guinea-Bissau on this day in 1959. Niger gained independence from France on this day in 1960. 

      

• This day in 1963 saw the Beatles give their final performance at the Cavern Club in Liverpool. 

Flag of South Africa during the apartheid era

• Also on this day in 1966, the white minority apartheid government in South African banned Beatle records. 

• 45,000 US soldiers were sent to Vietnam on this day in 1967. 

Hurricane "Celia" became the most expensive Gulf storm in history on this day in 1970. 

Paul McCartney announced the formation of his new group Wings on this day in 1971.

British Premier Heath proclaimed an emergency crisis due to Harbor strike on this day in 1972. 

The U.S. Senate ratified the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty on this day in 1972. 

In 1973 in this day, the National People's Party scored a victory in the national elections in the Dutch Antilles. 

On this day in 1975, 500 drowned when 2 river boats collided & sank in China's West River. 

•  The Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans was dedicated on this day in 1975. 

• Poland & West Germany reached an accord about returning ethnic Germans on this day in 1975. 

On this day in 1977, Radio Shack issued a press release introducing the TRS-80 computer 25 existed. Within weeks, thousands were ordered. 

Flag of the Olympics

• In 1980 on this day, the XXII (22nd) Olympic games closed at Moscow, USSR. 

On this day in 1981, 13,000 U.S. traffic controllers with PATCO, the Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization (PATCO), went on strike, and were fired.  U.S. President Reagan had warned them of their fate. The interpretation of this incident has proven controversial since. 

In 1981 on this day, Senegalese opposition parties, under the leadership of Mamadou Dia, launched the Antiimperialist Action Front-Suxxali Reew Mi.  

There was a bomb attack on Madras Airport in India on this day in 1984, with 32 killed. 

On this day in 1985, there was a train crash at Flaujac, France, with 35 killed. 

A 22-cent stamp honoring author William Faulkner was issued on this day in 1987. Its first-day cancellation was held in Oxford, Miss., where Faulkner had served as postmaster from 1921 until his resignation in 1924 following accusations of negligence. 

On this day in 1987, Discovery in Orbital Processing Facility was powered up for STS-26. 

The Iran-Contra hearings ended on this day in 1988. No official ties were made between U.S. President Reagan and the Nicaraguan Rebels. 

Also on this day in 1988, the Soviet Union released Mathias Rust. He had been taken into custody on May 28, 1987 for landing a plane in Moscow's Red Square. 

Hashemi Rafsanjani was sworn in as the president of Iran on this day in 1989. 

Thousands of Iraqi troops pushed within a few miles of the border of Saudi Arabia on this day in 1990. This heightened world concerns that the invasion of Kuwait could spread. On that same day in 1990, the US announced it's commitment of Naval forces to Gulf regions. The U.S. Senate voted to restrict and eventually end the testing of nuclear weapons on this day in 1992. Russia and Ukraine agreed to put the Black Sea Fleet under joint command on this day in 1992. The agreement was to last for three years. 

On this day in1994, the first Jordanian plane to fly over Israeli airspace (King Hussein pilot). 

On this day in 1995, Eyad Ismoil was flown from Jordan to the U.S. to face charges that he had driven the van that had attempted to destroy New York's World Trade Center in a terrorist attack in early 1993. 

On this day in 1996, General William F. Garrison accepted responsibility for the outcome of the 1993 raid in Somalia, and he retired from military service. 

On this day in 1997, Garth Brooks performed a free concert in Central Park NY for HBO, which I attended. 

In 1997 on this day, Oued El-Had and Mezouara massacre in Algeria, when somewhere between 40-76 villagers were killed. In 2001 on this day, the Real IRA detonated a car bomb in Ealing, London, U.K, injuring seven people. (See 3 August 2001 Ealing bombing). 

In 2004 on this day in New York, the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty re-opened to the public. The site had been closed since the terrorist attacks on the U.S. on September 11, 2001. 

NASA launched the spacecraft Messenger on this day in 2004. The 6 1/2 year journey was planned to arrive at the planet Mercury in March 2011. President Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya of Mauritania was overthrown in a military coup while attending the funeral of King Fahd in Saudi Arabia on this day in 2005. 

Bolivia became the first South American country to declare the right of indigenous people to govern themselves on this day in 2009. 

Finally, on this day in 2012, the United Nations General Assembly reproaches the United Nations Security Council over its lack of action in Syria.

       

The following links are to web sites that were used to complete this blog entry:

http://www.historyorb.com/today/events.php

http://on-this-day.com/onthisday/thedays/alldays/aug03.htm

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history

http://www.infoplease.com/dayinhistory