Tag: trump

Why Incompetent People Think They Are Amazing

RJ Walters

I know the title of this post will get quite a bit of attention because it mirrors someone we all know.  It is known as the Dunning-Kruger Effect. Here is a quote from an article about it:

“When psychologists Dunning and [Justin] Kruger first described the effect in 1999, they argued that people lacking knowledge and skill in particular areas suffer a double curse. First, they make mistakes and reach poor decisions. But second, those same knowledge gaps also prevent them from catching their errors. In other words, poor performers lack the very expertise needed to recognize how badly they’re doing.”

Source: Vox.com

Of course, this phenomenon is not limited to the obvious example of the current Oval Office occupant. In fact, there are probably millions of incompetent people across America and the world who think they are great simply because they have not taken the time to learn more about the subject at hand.  But maybe the biggest problem with thinking you are smarter than you are is that you then go on to make horrible decisions based on your incompetence.

In closing one of my favorite sayings that I learned many years ago in college is  “You don’t have to know what you are saying, as long as you say it with authority”. Little did I know that someday those words would become the modus-operandi of a supposed world leader!

Benefit Of The Doubt… Wrong!!

RJ Walters

There are many people who I have come across in my life that I give the benefit of the doubt to what they say.  For those who might be a little fuzzy on that term, here is an explanation:

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Even though I am a skeptic at heart I trust them to be telling me the truth. For the most part, they have earned my respect by their previous actions. One person who has had the exact opposite effect on me is the current Oval Office occupant (#CO3).  My modus operandi for him is to take whatever he says as being false until it is proven to be true.  I have been critical of past presidents but never to the degree of this one.

Part of my distrust and maybe even animosity toward #CO3 is my personal association with another extreme narcissist who was for limited times in my life my mother. Even at a young age, I realized that she often said things that I knew to be not true.  Most of her lies, like #CO3’s, centered around making herself the center of attention. I also came to realize later in life that she probably believed the lies she was telling.  I also came to realize that much of this was due to an inferiority complex.  She claimed she was a nurse even though she never likely graduated from high school.  Later in life being a nurse was not enough, she then claimed to be a doctor.

From these experiences, I have come to have a deep distrust of anything #CO3 says. I realize that when the attention is taken away from him he will do anything to get it back.  Absolutely everything HAS to be about him.  How we ever allowed such a person to occupy the highest office in the land is totally shocking to me!

I only pray that the coming election stifles any further damage he is doing to our democracy. Let him rule during his last two years if he is not impeached before then with strong checks and balances from the legislative branch.

 

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Proud Beta Male, MeToo…

RJ Walters

I have to give you a quote from one of my most recent regular reads in the blogsphere. It is from John Pavlovitz.  He is a North Carolina pastor who speaks to my heart.  Here is the snippet for discussion in Today’s post. It is about a Trumpster who tried to insult him by calling him a beta-male (as opposed to an alpha-male I suppose):

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Source: Confessions of a Proud Beta Male

Evidentally #CO3 has been using this term in his rallies/self-adoration sessions. He intends it to be an insult/putdown but it seems that many are now proudly taking up that mantle.  I am one of them, I now call myself a Beta-Male.

I guess to him and his base it means that you are not an alpha-male:

  • You are not a take-charge guy who has to dominate every situation.
  • You are not a  guy who proudly boasts of his conquest over others, especially females, and proudly proclaim the things you can do to them with complete immunity.
  • You are not a guy who strikes back in anger when you feel even a slight bit challenged.
  • You are not a guy thumping your chest and proclaiming yourself superior and vastly more intelligent than others.
  • You are not a guy who berates and mocks those you have decided are your enemies.
  • You are not a guy who primarily makes decisions with gut feelings as opposed to studying the situation to make an informed choice.

I, like Pastor Pavlovitz, proudly proclaim that I am a beta-male. Thank you #CO3 for painting me as very different from you and so many of your base.  I will proudly wear the mantle you perceive as a smear.

I am a proud beta-male

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#CO3 = Current Oval Office Occupant

 

 

I Don’t Want To…

RJ Walters

I don’t want to be united with people who think Trump is a good person

2018-07-08_09-23-38.pngThe words above came from a comment to the Facebook posting that centered around the picture here.  It got me to thinking about my personal attitude about those who think Trump is a good person.  I just returned from a uRV trip to see the Madison Regatta in southern Indiana. On my route there I stopped at a small town restaurant for lunch. When I opened the door I was greeted with a large screen TV with Fox News glaring at me! To make matters worse several of the patrons were wearing the now familiar red hats with the MAGA logo. I was very tempted to just turn around and walk out but I realized this was probably the only dining option available in the area.

I’m sure by many other standards most of these folks are good people, but does that ameliorate their political and moral stands? Can I look past that to see their goodness? The short answer to that is “I don’t know?” That stand just seems to tarnish everything else.  I know fear is what drives many of them. They see “their way of life” changing and are willing to grab on to ANYTHING to prevent that from happening. Morality and Truth are two of those causalities.

This is one of those times when I kinda wished I could hear again.  I would love to have heard some of the stories at the tables around me. I could only imagine that some of those stories are about all those people who are invading their world. But then again, maybe they were just chitchatting about their daily lives.

Infatuation With Dictators??

RJ Walters

I have said here many times that #CO3 is driven totally by his self-image. Being an extreme narcissist everything simply has to be about him. Keeping that in mind read below what Politico says about some of his latest insanities.

President Donald Trump reliably tells the truth on one thing: He likes the way dictators do business.

“He speaks, and his people sit up at attention,” Trump said on Friday morning of North Korean despot Kim Jong Un in an interview with Fox News — a network where he receives no shortage of praise. “I want my people to do the same.”…

Vladimir Putin’s also a tough guy whom Trump praises for running his country well. So is Rodrigo Duterte, whose executions of drug dealers without trial in the Philippines is something Trump has said he’s looking into.

Source: Donald dreams of dictators – POLITICO

As I see it he is becoming a very dangerous person if no one will stand up to him.  His own party, well at least is adopted party for convenience, seems to be totally afraid to call him to task on any of his many abusive blunders. When our government of three separate branches ceases to function, our democracy could be in serious trouble.

It appears that #CO3 is starting to get comfortable in his new job and kinda thinks he wants to make it permanent.  Will the other two branches continue to cower under his insanity or not?  We can only pray that they somehow find the fortitude to make him eventually accountable for his actions and constant lies.

It is very troubling how he praises the world’s dictators and accosts our allies with his usual stinging words.  I pray the mid-term elections will cause some level of balance to be restored in our three branch system.

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#CO3 =  Current Oval Office Occupant

 

I Get All The News I Need From The Weather Report…

RJ Walters

2018-05-10_10-25-12.pngI didn’t realize how freeing it could be to disentangle myself from the political world. It used to be that I spent a good half hour every morning browsing my internet feeds for political stories.  That process now takes about five minutes or less. The PBS Newshour that I watch the morning after now takes about 10 -15 minutes of my time. The rest goes by at “super fast-forward”. Especially when #CO3’s picture shows up.

The title of this post is from the album by Simon & Garfunkel entitled “Bridge over troubled waters”.  I gotta do a post on that song soon. Getting back to the topic at hand, keeping today’s politics beyond arm’s length certainly is less stressful. I used to scan the daily news to get the latest Trump screw-up but I don’t do that anymore.   I’m sure they will continue to come with increased intensity as each day passes but I just won’t be reading them anymore. There is simply no use in getting upset about things that I have no control over.

For some, speculating what Meuller has uncovered is a way of life. For some, dissing Meuller and everything he finds is a way of life. At this point, it is not likely that any minds will change on this topic. Just tell me when the Special Counsel issues his report and when the impeachment starts and I might get engaged at least at some level again. But, until then I get all the news I need from the weather report.

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#CO3 = Current Oval Office Occupant