Another reason to thank President Trump

[Mhan7]

Most leaders that actually accomplish something tend to have a streak of narcissism.

Agreed, with a period at the end of the sentence. This equally applies to leaders who are ideologically opposed. Narcissists are master manipulators, and as such, are able to tap into every human emotion. Fear, love, anger, contentment, etc. The best of them know how to run the gamut, and not just hone in on any one, specifically. If I were a leader, I'd identify my core constituent, appease them, while building either a concensus with the opposition, or completely running concensus off the rails. Whatever the horde thought they were clamoring for, at the time.

I think Trump harnesses what a lot of people think and believe, but have been conditioned to not say because....reasons. He has a peculiar insight into that from decades of interacting with wide samples of people, as he prefers mingling with laborers, managers, and the people that do the nuts and bolts of a project. Combined with his access to actual ratings on largely-viewed networks over many years, he knows the electorate better than any previous Presidential candidate.

Again, agreed, but from a different perspective. In America, we tend to vote less for the candidate that we actually want, and more against the candidate that we don't. As someone with no affiliation, I sat back and observed this man tapping into the collective defiance. He did it well. He stepped up, and projected an air of strength - real or perceived - to a whole lot of pissed off people. Even if he was lying through his teeth, he made angry people believe, by manipulating those emotions. In America, we run back and forth, between perception of control by the weak/disaffected, to the unstable/aggressive. (read: perception) We all recognize this as POLARIZATION.

There was a senior Secret Service agent assigned to candidate and former Governor Ronald Reagan in 1980 who asked him one day, “Do you really think you can pull this off?” Reagan looked at him with an overly-confident grin and immediately spit back, “Of course. I’m the only candidate that knows what he looks like from the all the camera angles.” This was of course a reference to his over 100 films and TV shows he had acted in.

There's no comparing Trump to Reagan. Even if you disagreed with his politics, if you couldn't get along with Reagan, you have a personality disorder. He was affable, sensible, and 10 times the statesman.

Trump takes that do a different level because not only does he know what his appearance looks like to others, he knows from massive amounts of entertainment and financial industry data covering decades how people respond to his brand, message, and product.

The only credit that I give the man, is that he doesn't give a shit what others think. This is my own key trait. I don't care what you think of me - I'm going to keep being me, and I'll own it, even if it hurts. I can relate in that sense - but I still think a critical personality flaw is in the way for The Donald. Mild narcissism is probably a leadership trait, but severe narcissism is a handicap.

This forum isn’t about politics as a focus. It’s about helping people with questions about the 6.5 Grendel cartridge. It’s always been about a friendly environment where people can share their experiences and not be subjected to the typical personal attacks and juvenile behavior found on most other forums, which is what attracted me to it. I logged in one day and saw a new title under my name, which I didn’t ask for nor turn down. It isn’t my forum, but I’m happy to continue the good treatment and respect that I was shown when I first came here in 2009.

Understood. I have not latched onto anything that brands me. My passion in life, is in forcing those who are able, to ask fundamental questions about themselves. Who they think they are, what their vision of the present world is, etc, etc. Typically, when people are intelligent enough to keep a conversation going for awhile, without it devolving into a slugfest, they end up appreciating others as actual human beings (it's really a lost art). The same people who they wouldn't give the time of day, were they limited to soundbites.

I know you’re capable of this on your own because you already pointed out very astutely and without bias the death rate per capita statistics that don’t support the narrative that Trump is responsible for COVID-19 deaths in the US. You were able to employ accuracy, relevance, clarity, and logic while also using brevity-something everyone can see that I struggle with.

I'm not here to test your BS meter. There's a real person behind this keyboard, who thinks real thoughts, and is hasn't made up their mind that their journey in life has concluded, and this is as good as it gets. Further, I'm the same person, all the time. I believe in recognizing what's sensible, and what's not, CONTEXTUALLY. I'm happy to be true to myself - but be warned that it's sure to annoy you, at some point.