True ... but that's not just a Trump issue. Presidents put people in key positions who are likely to be "sympathetic" to their policies. And even if Trump's more bizarre decisions don't get overturned now, they may down the line. Reversibility, whilst sometimes a problem in politics in that it works against long-term thinking/planning, may be a bonus here. He can't be labelled a paedophile on the basis he socialised with Epstein, IMV. It is a BIG accusation to make.
The problem with Trump is that he is unpredictable. He'll make an announcement today and then change it completely in a few weeks. I'm convinced that the announcement of high tariffs was to spook the stock market and get share prices down. Shares then bought at knock down prices followed by announcement that the tariffs either wouldn't be applied at all, or would be at much lower levels. Shares bounce back, stock sold at a very nice profit. Also look at the way he's been over Ukraine. One minute he blames Putin, next he blames Ukraine for starting the war. One minute big buddies with Putin, next Putin is a very nasty man.
I have no doubt Trump is in it for Trump but I think the majority of top people are. He's a bit more blatant than most but I don't think much different in that respect. Yes he flip flops depending on who he is talking to at the time, but then even our Mr Starmer has done a pretty good crawl around him, even embarrassing at times, when I'm pretty sure he hates his guts. If you want to stop a war you have to talk to both sides, if you just take one side you might as well not bother. I think his patience is running out with Putin, but we will see.
Apparently, GPS rail tickets are being trialled. You scan something or other on arrival at a station and then GPS tracks you on every millimetre of your journey. How is this more convenient to customers than digital ticketing systems currently in use? How long is the data being kept? Who is it being shared with, legitimately or accidentally? What about those without smart phones? Etc!
@ViewAhead - 28 women have gone on record and accused him of rape or sexual assault. There are more, including 2 13 year olds who feature in the Epstein files which are currently being blocked from publication. As for speaking his mind @pete, as opposed to politican speak, he hasn't told the truth about anything in living memory. Increasingly he does rambling, incoherent downloads to microphone of whatevr comes into his head. Compare any speech of his to any by Obama, his pet hate, and you can assess his levels of sanity and intellect and make an obvious deduction. As for his losing the next election, he cannot currently stand again but will no doubt try and change that. He's been talking aloud about how people want him to stand again and be a dictator. He's also got all the red states tinkering with voting constituency boundaries to eliminate future democrat majorities for the mid term elections in 2026 so he can keep the senate and congress red. It's called gerrymandering and has been widely reported, even on mainstream UK news.
That would be reliant on you letting the app use you location on the phone, you usually get the option of only while using the app. To me, a person who hasn't been on a train since they got rid of slam doors, it would make my life easier, buying a rail ticket these days looks like a total nightmare, I wouldn't even know how to do it or what to buy. I guess there will always be people without smart phones and there will always be problems with no signal, like there is with the parking apps. I guess those people would have to figure out an automated ticket maching in much the same way as car parking, those machines seem to need a degree in computing to work out as well, never found two the same.
@Obelix-Vendée, I don't think anyone is comparing the intellects of Trump and Obama, but there is nothing to stop parties putting forward candidates who are not top quality in that dept. Take Biden, for instance! Then there's sexual deviance and lying. Well, Clinton had quite a record, before, during and after holding the presidency. So Trump is not unique there either. And it's not like the rest of the world is awash with squeaky clean, morally compassed individuals. There's a fair few whose past behaviour and current decisions may not bear the sort of scrutiny Trump gets. And what it boils down to is this - he was on the ballot paper and he was voted in. No point bucking against those facts. He'll do whatever he does. Some of it won't have much impact, some of it will linger beyond his time in office. No different to Liz Truss or Boris. These less than ideal occupants of top jobs come and go.
@Obelix-Vendée have the allegations of those 28 women been published by the European press? I'm not looking to read about it but I know we have different laws here for what can and can't be published. We havent had much detail beyond speculation of whats in the epstein flies. I seem to remember that Princes Kate could appear topless in the French press when it was banned here.
I don't have a smart phone (or any mobile phone) but have not much of a problem getting things at the moment. There is always a way around it. A couple of the National Trust car parks have signs on their machines that there is no signal therefore you have to pay by cash (or use a membership card). I have often seen people that don't have cash on them unable to use the car park.
@ViewAhead it doesn't matter if the European press doesn't or can't report it. The fact is that all the shady and illegal goings on in the USA are happening and should not be ignored by anyone who cares about human rights and the world's climate and ecological security. What happened in Auschwitz and Dachau wasn't widely reported either but it still happened and was abhorrent and not to be hidden. trump is using similar 'lock 'em up and treat them like vermin' towards a lot of brown people in the USA at the mo, including children but that's OK if you haven't read about it over here? Clinton was oversexed not deviant as far as I know. Biden was a well respected politician with some moral scruples. Trump is only 4 or 5 years younger and showing clear signs of mental and physical failure. The USA certainly needs an overhaul of a system that can lead to a man like Trump being the only one on the red ballot because it suits greedy oligarch billionaires and wannabes. As for presidents who have no political experience but are good leaders, I give you Zelensky, a former actoor and comedian whose ambitions for his country were to look west to improve their lives, health and economy. he's being roundly punished for daring to stand up to Putin but he's held his place and not abandoned it as others would and as he was invited to do.
I didn't mention the European press. And if it's "shady" you're worried about, our much loved (apparently, though I fail to understand why) Royal family can provide plenty of that. And I don't mean Andrew. Look at how "the firm" accumulates wealth. Oh wait, you can't ... as it is all obscured so accountability never rears its ugly head. A life of service? Donnez moi un break, as our dear Boris once said. Clinton got an underaged girl pregnant, by all accounts, in his pre-White House days, though money hushes these things up when need be, of course. There were a whole bunch of sexual skeletons in the sainted JFK's cupboard too. Powerful men have a lot of sex. Always have, always will. It's a given. No, what Trump is doing is NOT like Auschwitz or Dachau. That was mass scale torture and murder. I'm not saying there are zero good leaders, though the history of Ukraine and corruption is a very complex one.
I'm also one of those Non People who own neither a Smart phone nor a Mobile phone. I suppose at some point I will have to indulge in one of them if I need to step out of the front door. This is a "horsey" area so not only people walking about eyes glued to their devices but even the horses are often on their phones too Meanwhile, I am waiting for Donald Trump's autobiography. He's sure to produce one before too long and I imagine there are plenty of Ghost Writers waiting in the wings. It may not have the same impact as that of Obama ( Dreams from my Father ) but I suspect it will cause a lot of debate re truth and fantasy. Whatever we may think, if enough US citizens vote for him, Trump is their elected President. How much fiddling goes on election wise is down to the Congress and Senate and the individual states. The UK's Royal Family could give up a lot more wealth to this country if they were so inclined - involvement in charities is simple and an easy get out. Parliament restricts them in some ways but their priviledged lifestyle remains unaltered even in this day and age.
I have a smartphone (not that clever really) and I'm still a non-person. That explains a lot about my lack of a love life, I'm powerless.
