Thoughts on the Trump presidency

[GusB]

I wouldn't read too much into the specific police forces.

The Forth Road Bridge was closed on Friday/Saturday due to some Greenpeace protesters, and a lot of the vans around weren't Police Scotland. At Grangemouth we've had loads of Heddlu vans and mostly people are just spotting the officers taking photos of the Kelpies.

Police Scotland is a weird one because it covers a monumentally large geographic area. I mean we have 1 police force covering the whole country compared to Wales which is less than a third of our size and has 4 police forces. The Police Scotland car you see in Edinburgh may have come from Wick or Stornoway.

By "local" I actually meant "from Scotland", rather than being from the immediate locality; I understand that for such an event there will be a significant influx of officers from elsewhere in Scotland, as well as from the UK as a whole.

Either way, it's costing us a bloody fortune!

The police union is certainly none too happy about it.

Scottish Police Federation seek legal advice ahead of Trump visit

The group, which represents rank-and-file officers, says workforce agreements have been breached.

www.bbc.co.uk

The organisation that represents rank-and-file police officers has expressed concerns about excessive working hours during President Donald Trump's visit to Scotland later this week.
The Scottish Police Federation (SPF) said workforce agreements - designed to protect officers and provide minimum health and safety - have been breached.
The federation is now seeking advice over the possibility of legal action against Police Scotland.
Assistant Chief Constable Emma Bond said: "We are working closely with the Scottish Police Federation to address any concerns they may have."
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cr5v93y90n0o
David Kennedy, general secretary of the SPF, earlier said there were concerns over how many days in a row officers would have to work and notice periods.
He told BBC Scotland News his members were governed by workforce agreements as opposed to employment law.
Mr Kennedy said: "There are breaches taking place within those workforce agreements which we are really deeply concerned about.
"We are now having to seek whether or not we are going to have to take action against the service because of it."
He added some officers were currently scheduled to work "12 hour plus days" and as many as 10 days in a row.

Sorry about that. I meant to pop in.

If I knew, I'd have baked a cake!

 

[styles]

By "local" I actually meant "from Scotland", rather than being from the immediate locality; I understand that for such an event there will be a significant influx of officers from elsewhere in Scotland, as well as from the UK as a whole.

Sure but my point is kinda that 'from Scotland' doesn't mean a huge deal given the unique nature of our policing landscape.

Either way, it's costing us a bloody fortune!

Pennies per person, and that ignores the potential for inward investment from e.g. securing trade deals.

I don't like the man, but he is the head of state of one of the most powerful nations in the world and one of our strongest allies. Obama or Biden wouldn't spend so much time playing golf but they'd still cost us millions to host.

The police union is certainly none too happy about it.

If the Fed can produce figures showing a significant uptake in serious crime not being dealt with over the 4 days, that may be interesting, but I suspect they won't.

 

[Cloud Strife]

Police Scotland is a weird one because it covers a monumentally large geographic area. I mean we have 1 police force covering the whole country compared to Wales which is less than a third of our size and has 4 police forces. The Police Scotland car you see in Edinburgh may have come from Wick or Stornoway.

I'd actually say that England and Wales are strange for not having a single national police force. It's always seemed odd to me that the UK stuck with these small police forces rather than having a national police force and municipal police forces to back them up.

Having said that, Police Scotland are really just Strathclyde Police under a new name anyway.

 

[brad465]

Anyone else getting "Cuban Missile crisis II" vibes?

Trump moves nuclear submarines after ex-Russian president's comments

US President Donald Trump says two nuclear submarines are being deployed in the "appropriate regions".

www.bbc.co.uk

US President Donald Trump says he has ordered two nuclear submarines to "be positioned in the appropriate regions" in response to "highly provocative" comments by former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.
In a post on social media, Trump said he acted "just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that. Words are very important, and can often lead to unintended consequences, I hope this will not be one of those instances".
He did not say where the two submarines were being deployed.
Medvedev has posted several comments in recent days threatening the US in response to Trump's ultimatum to Moscow to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine, or face tough sanctions.

This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version.

 

[Cowley]

Anyone else getting "Cuban Missile crisis II" vibes?

Trump moves nuclear submarines after ex-Russian president's comments

US President Donald Trump says two nuclear submarines are being deployed in the "appropriate regions".

www.bbc.co.uk

Call me cynical but this should keep the worlds press occupied while he quietly gets on with dealing with the Epstein situation:

Ghislaine Maxwell quietly moved from Florida to Texas prison camp: report

New lockup is an all-female prison camp that has limited perimeter fencing and is home to fraudster Elizabeth Holmes and reality star Jen Shah

www.independent.co.uk

Jeffrey Epstein’s long-time associate Ghislaine Maxwell has reportedly been moved from her prison in Florida to another institution in Texas, The New York Sun reports.
Maxwell is currently serving a 20-year sentence for her role in helping Epstein recruit, groom and abuse young girls. She was being held at a federal prison in Tallahassee. Now, she’s at the Federal Prison Camp Bryan in southeast Texas, a Bureau of Prisons spokesperson told the Sun.

Has Medvedev said anything more serious than his usual bonkers rhetoric here? At least that’s worth sending nuclear submarines out on a mission?

 

[Peter C]

Call me cynical but this should keep the worlds press occupied while he quietly gets on with dealing with the Epstein situation:

Ghislaine Maxwell quietly moved from Florida to Texas prison camp: report

New lockup is an all-female prison camp that has limited perimeter fencing and is home to fraudster Elizabeth Holmes and reality star Jen Shah

www.independent.co.uk

I'll join you in your cynicism @Cowley by suggesting that if anything were (heaven forfend) to happen as a result of Trump's order, it would be just a bit embarrassing (for want of a better word) for the world to take such action because he wanted to cover up the Epstein story... Not even the Rt. Hon. Jim Hacker quite got to that level!

-Peter

 

[Cowley]

I'll join you in your cynicism @Cowley by suggesting that if anything were (heaven forfend) to happen as a result of Trump's order, it would be just a bit embarrassing (for want of a better word) for the world to take such action because he wanted to cover up the Epstein story... Not even the Rt. Hon. Jim Hacker quite got to that level!

-Peter

I don’t know? It just feels like the ultimate in shiny dead cattery to me.

I don’t think the Epstein stuff is going to go away and I solidly believe that he’s implicated in the whole sordid affair. The more he says about it, the more he seems to be digging himself deeper into a hole.

 

[jon0844]

I guess Trump might consider launching some nukes at Russia as a good way to divert attention from the Epstein list...

 

[Peter C]

I don’t know? It just feels like the ultimate in shiny dead cattery to me.

I don’t think the Epstein stuff is going to go away and I solidly believe that he’s implicated in the whole sordid affair. The more he says about it, the more he seems to be digging himself deeper into a hole.

Yes I think you're right re. the Epstein situation. I've been listening to various bits and bobs on the news over the past week or two and it's clear that the story isn't going to disappear any time soon. I don't think it will see Trump's 'MAGA' base fall apart entirely, but from the bits I've heard it certainly seems to have revealed a few fault-lines.

I guess Trump might consider launching some nukes at Russia as a good way to divert attention from the Epstein list...

The thought did occur to me that the press is reporting that these two submarines have been deployed to the 'appropriate regions', so given Trump's shaky-at-best encounters with that annoying thing called the real world, it's quite possible that the subs have been sent to the wrong places and are currently sitting outside Plymouth or Aberdeen with some very confused crews wondering what on earth is going on...

-Peter

 

[Cowley]

it's quite possible that the subs have been sent to the wrong places and are currently sitting outside Plymouth or Aberdeen with some very confused crews wondering what on earth is going on...

-Peter

Ah, the old “Reverse Mayflower” manoeuvre. Nobody was expecting that!

 

[Gloster]

It’s Wag the Dog 2.

 

[ainsworth74]

Anyone else getting "Cuban Missile crisis II" vibes?

Trump moves nuclear submarines after ex-Russian president's comments

US President Donald Trump says two nuclear submarines are being deployed in the "appropriate regions".

www.bbc.co.uk

Nah, needs to get a lot more serious before then! Though I'm enjoying someone finally clapping back at Medvedev and his constant whining. Even if it is Trump.

Now as a distraction from domestic concerns however for Trump it is excellent timing....

 

[Cowley]

Nah, needs to get a lot more serious before then! Though I'm enjoying someone finally clapping back at Medvedev and his constant whining. Even if it is Trump.

Now as a distraction from domestic concerns however for Trump it is excellent timing....

Medvedev certainly does need a bit of a slap down.

I wonder what Vlad the Invader is making of this?

 

[Annetts key]

Has Medvedev said anything more serious than his usual bonkers rhetoric here? At least that’s worth sending nuclear submarines out on a mission?

There is quite a difference between what Trump says and what is actually happening in the real world. It's very likely that these submarines were already on a existing planned mission. No point having "boomers" if at least some are not always on duty out at sea...

 

[brad465]

I suspect Jerome Powell will not sleep easy tonight after this news - if Trump will fire the head of the agency that just gave out poor US jobs' data, then the prospect of him firing the Fed Chair after an interest rate decision he doesn't like is uncomfortably high:

Trump fires lead official on economic data as tariffs cause market drop

The move comes as a weaker-than-expected jobs report stoked fears about tariffs.

www.bbc.co.uk

US President Donald Trump said he would fire the head of the agency charged with publishing some of America's most closely watched economic data, after a weaker-than-expected jobs report stoked further alarm about his tariff policies.
In a post on social media, Trump - without evidence - accused the commissioner, Erika McEntarfer, of manipulating jobs figures for political reasons.
The decision shocked Wall Street and raised alarm about White House interference in economic data at a time when many forecasters are predicting Trump's tariffs will hurt the economy.
It came as global stock markets shuddered, after Trump moved forward with plans to sharply raise tariffs on goods around the world.
In the US, the three major indexes dropped, with the S&P closing 1.6% lower, following earlier sell-offs in Europe and Asia.
Ryan Sweet, chief US economist at Oxford Economics, said the decision to fire the commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) was concerning, noting that high-quality economic data is essential to businesses and not easily replicated with private sources.
"Clearly, this is a step in a very bad direction," he said. "If there are any questions around the integrity of the data ... it's going to create a lot of problems."

 

[Harpo]

Now as a distraction from domestic concerns however for Trump it is excellent timing....

The Falklands manoeuvre but with invisible assets.

 

[Tracked]

I guess Trump might consider launching some nukes at Russia as a good way to divert attention from the Epstein list...

The War Game and Threads were repeated the other night, neither of them got this bit right ...

 

[martin butler]

Both, are in trumps mind linked because they make him look weak, and he, or more accurately, his EGO, can't handle that, so he, to look strong, sacks the messenger, throws a few toy boats out of his playpen, Whilst in the background, Someone who has real dirt on him, and he knows it, is quietly moved from a max security prison, to what is in effect an open prison, most likely she has said, pardon me, and I will say, you're not a pervert, who shared Epstein's passion for umm, young girls, she will then be given a pardon, leave the US, go somewhere and disappear, until Trump dies, then, a publishing house will tell her story, and it will be damming, to him.

 

[Gloster]

Both, are in trumps mind linked because they make him look weak, and he, or more accurately, his EGO, can't handle that, so he, to look strong, sacks the messenger, throws a few toy boats out of his playpen, Whilst in the background, Someone who has real dirt on him, and he knows it, is quietly moved from a max security prison, to what is in effect an open prison, most likely she has said, pardon me, and I will say, you're not a pervert, who shared Epstein's passion for umm, young girls, she will then be given a pardon, leave the US, go somewhere and disappear, until Trump dies, then, a publishing house will tell her story, and it will be damming, to him.

Or she is being moved to a prison where it is much easier for her to be shot while attempting to escape.

 

[martin butler]

Or she is being moved to a prison where it is much easier for her to be shot while attempting to escape.

She isn't stupid, she will have left instructions and with someone to release something she has left with them, in the case of her being killed, and it would be far too obvious

 

[Gloster]

She isn't stupid, she will have left instructions and with someone to release something she has left with them, in the case of her being killed, and it would be far too obvious

She may not be stupid, but can we be sure that Trump and some of those behind him are not even more stupid or desperate? And what is obvious to you or me may not be obvious to many of Trump’s supporters, as we have seen.

 

[DelW]

I suspect Jerome Powell will not sleep easy tonight after this news - if Trump will fire the head of the agency that just gave out poor US jobs' data, then the prospect of him firing the Fed Chair after an interest rate decision he doesn't like is uncomfortably high:

Some worrying quotes in the BBC article on the firing of the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics:

Trump defended the decision and said her departure was needed to ensure there were "people that we can trust" in these posts.

"Why should anybody trust numbers?" the president told reporters when leaving the White House on Friday.

"I believe the numbers were phony, just like they were before the election, and there were other times - so you know what I did? I fired her, and you know what I did? The right thing."

Taken from:

Trump fires lead official on economic data as tariffs cause market drop

The move comes as a weaker-than-expected jobs report stoked fears about tariffs.

www.bbc.co.uk

Which probably means that Trump will put some economically illiterate MAGA loyalist in her place, and demand that they pump out whatever invented numbers Trump thinks will make him look good. In future the employment statistics will be every bit as reliable and trustworthy as Trump's golf scores are.

 

[SuspectUsual]

Some worrying quotes in the BBC article on the firing of the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics:

Taken from:

Trump fires lead official on economic data as tariffs cause market drop

The move comes as a weaker-than-expected jobs report stoked fears about tariffs.

www.bbc.co.uk

Which probably means that Trump will put some economically illiterate MAGA loyalist in her place, and demand that they pump out whatever invented numbers Trump thinks will make him look good. In future the employment statistics will be every bit as reliable and trustworthy as Trump's golf scores are.

Whoa! careful!! Golf scores - going down is good. Employment numbers - going up is good. Don’t mix them up!

 

[johnnychips]

I don’t know? It just feels like the ultimate in shiny dead cattery to me.

Sorry, a bit late on this @Cowley but what is ‘shiny dead cattery’?

Is this an intellectual joke I’m too thick to understand?

Or some south-western expression?

 

[Cowley]

Sorry, a bit late on this @Cowley but what is ‘shiny dead cattery’?

Is this an intellectual joke I’m too thick to understand?

It’s a bit of a mixed metaphor @johnnychips.

The Dead Cat Strategy being a part of it.

the political strategy of deliberately making a shocking announcement to divert media attention away from problems or failures in other areas.

And similarly that Trump likes to throw the shiny thing (as in an exciting news story) across the room so that the press go chasing off after it instead of doing what they were doing and putting two and two together, vis a vis why is he desperate that people don’t dig further into his relationship with Epstein and also, what he’s probably going to try and get away with in regards to Maxwell.

My feelings are that there’s things he really doesn’t want to come out about this, I also think Putin has damaging (and possibly related) information on him as well.

It feels to me that he’s starting to lose his ability to keep a lid on all of it…

Hopefully.

 

[Gloster]

It feels to me that he’s starting to lose his ability to keep a lid on all of it…

Hopefully.

But the problem is that if Trump were to either be pushed out or pushed too far, what do we get instead? In the first we get Vance, who I think is much more straightforwardly nasty than Trump. In the second case, do we have any confidence that Trump wouldn’t go to extremes for purely selfish reasons?

Be careful what you wish for.

 

[johnnychips]

It’s a bit of a mixed metaphor @johnnychips.

The Dead Cat Strategy being a part of it.


And similarly that Trump likes to throw the shiny thing (as in an exciting news story) across the room so that the press go chasing off after it instead of doing what they were doing and putting two and two together, vis a vis why is he desperate that people don’t dig further into his relationship with Epstein and also, what he’s probably going to try and get away with in regards to Maxwell.

My feelings are that there’s things he really doesn’t want to come out about this, I also think Putin has damaging (and possibly related) information on him as well.

It feels to me that he’s starting to lose his ability to keep a lid on all of it…

Hopefully.

Thank you so much for your explanation and subsequent analysis of the situation. I know the strategy but had never heard it called that before.

Cheers!

 

[Cowley]

But the problem is that if Trump were to either be pushed out or pushed too far, what do we get instead? In the first we get Vance, who I think is much more straightforwardly nasty than Trump. In the second case, do we have any confidence that Trump wouldn’t go to extremes for purely selfish reasons?

Be careful what you wish for.

True. I’m not sure that there’s a likely good outcome either way to be honest.

I think regarding whatever is known about Epstein, Bill Clinton (and who knows who else) may well be implicated too which might be why nobody on either side wants to go near it?

Vance is either going to be ground to a pulp and spat out in all of this or he’s going to come up smelling of roses. I wouldn’t underestimate him though and if he does work his way to the top Europe probably needs to worry even more than it is doing now.

 

[brad465]

Some worrying quotes in the BBC article on the firing of the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics:

Taken from:

Trump fires lead official on economic data as tariffs cause market drop

The move comes as a weaker-than-expected jobs report stoked fears about tariffs.

www.bbc.co.uk

Which probably means that Trump will put some economically illiterate MAGA loyalist in her place, and demand that they pump out whatever invented numbers Trump thinks will make him look good. In future the employment statistics will be every bit as reliable and trustworthy as Trump's golf scores are.

What's amazing is how the markets haven't crashed significantly over all this, probably due to a combination of the US having the reserve currency and Trump chickening out a lot. If he does decide to appoint a sycophant to run The Fed though, this is where things will get spicy.

 

[The Ham]

What's amazing is how the markets haven't crashed significantly over all this, probably due to a combination of the US having the reserve currency and Trump chickening out a lot. If he does decide to appoint a sycophant to run The Fed though, this is where things will get spicy.

If the markets drop, who can he fire for putting out fake numbers?

I think regarding whatever is known about Epstein, Bill Clinton (and who knows who else) may well be implicated too which might be why nobody on either side wants to go near it?

I was listening to something about 1st century Greek culture the other day were they were saying that men renewed but to get married until later. Part of the reason being was that is they were wealthy (which generally also meant powerful) they could do what they wanted with basically anyone beneath them.

Effectively, any slaves they had were fair game. This changed as the Christians grew in influence where they were saying that people were to be treated equally, were to be treated with respect and had value.

It went on to say how Western culture has altered sex significantly in the last 100 years. First by removing the link between sex and producing children (birth control). Then by down playing the intimacy of sex and tolerating (almost) anything goes as long as it's between consenting adults. Whilst few are going to argue at first those things are bad (as there's certainly benefits to things like birth control), it's entirely possible that it makes it easier for powerful people to start to move back towards an attitude of the first century Greeks.

They illustrated this by talking about Mary Whitehouse who several at the BBC didn't like due to her highlighting the reduction in standards in what was being shown. However, at the time there were individuals employed by the BBC (i.e. Jimmy Savile) who were doing what they wanted because they were powerful.

The thing with conspiracy theories, is there often a grain of truth (QAnon - the world is being run by the elite who are Satan-worshipping pedophiles) The issue with aligning with them, is either you have to be sure that you are nothing to do with them or you are entirely sure that your skeletons can not come out.

It's looking like Trump potentially falls into the second camp but isn't doing too well at keeping under wraps that he may well have had links to those who have been involved in such things (at least the under age sex element).

The issue is how far is he willing to go to keep those wraps in place?