Mr. Trump Goes to Washington

[Askold]

Someone had to ask "what would have Trump done" if he had been the president when Asbestos was discovered to be dangerous?

https://np.reddit.com/r/worldnews/comments/6espsc/trump_misunderstood_mit_climate_research/dicsyr6/

AAAAAAGH!!

    I believe that the movement against asbestos was led by the mob, because it was often mob-related companies that would do the asbestos removal. Great pressure was put on politicians, and as usual, the politicians relented. Millions of truckloads of this incredible fire-proofing material were taken to special "dump sites" and asbestos was replaced by materials that were supposedly safe but couldn't hold a candle to asbestos in limiting the ravages of fire.

The Art of the Comeback (1997)

If we didn't remove incredibly powerful fire retardant asbestos & replace it with junk that doesn't work, the World Trade Center would never have burned down. [Twitter 17 Oct 2012]

EDIT:

I have come to the conclusion that declaring that USA will leave the Paris treaty is the sinlge most damaging thing that Trump has done to USA so far.

Like, the Muslim bans were unconstitutional, Sessions has been busy making USA worse for minorities and several of Trump's cabinet members may be involved in illegal activity and treason... But for people outside USA those are just things that make is feel intellectually superiour and possibly laugh at and/or feel pity for your people.

Trying to harm a treaty that is so far the best attempt at making nations fight against climate change (no matter how much the treaty needs improvement) is something that is going to actually make most countries on the planet angry at USA.

[ironbite]

Considering before now the only countries who didn't sign on were a country that really couldn't due to being involved in a bloody civil war and a country who thinks the treaty didn't go far enough and is on track to being 90% dependent on renewable energies, there's no reason to leave the accords.  EXCEPT FOR ONE THING!

No money for the Orange Piss Pot.

Ironbite-so OUT IT GOES!

[dpareja]

There's two factors that I can see:

1. Trump thinks every deal has "winners" and "losers." Since other countries clearly see the Paris agreement as a "win" for them, that means that they must think it's a "loss" for the US. Hence, the US is pulling out so that they don't "lose."

2. Trump hates deals that he doesn't think of. There was one bankruptcy he was involved in where an arrangement was reached that was good for him, good for his creditors, and allowed the workers at the affected business to keep their jobs. He nixed it because it wasn't his idea.

[Askold]

He also seems to think that he can negotiate a better deal.

...Except that by leaving (or announcing that USA will leave. Actually the treaty has rules and it will take 2 years before USA can legally be out. In the meantime violating the treaty will have consequences.) USA has lost any leverage it had. Why should others negotiate as USA is already going? The only way to start negotiations now is if USA comes crawling back and that is a sign of weakness that will not give the country a good negotiation position against THE REST OF THE FUCKING PLANET!

[dpareja]

It is debatable whether the US is bound even by the 2-year rule.

The treaty was never ratified as such by the Senate, as the Constitution requires. It was instead treated as an "executive agreement" which Obama hoped his successor would continue to hold to. (And, for all that she did shit like promote fracking, Clinton wouldn't have done what Trump did.)

[Svata]

https://twitter.com/eemanabbasi/status/871400917995839488




Fuck.

[pyro]

That is fucked up on so many levels.

Internationally-banned chemical weapons? Why?! Are quick, painless deaths not evil enough for you?

A hospital? That's basically sacred ground in every society that has hospitals! If 9/11 had been a hospital, the resulting war would have been even less controversial, because fuck anyone who bombs a place of healing!

And then we wonder where the anti-US hate comes from.

[Askold]

Who the heck uses White phosphorus on a civilian target?

...Apart from Israel of course.

...And Finland classifies it as thermal smoke ammo (it makes a really good white cloud that prevents visibility and even blocks thermal cameras. Also kills people in horrible ways.)

EDIT: And I must ask: What was the point?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Mosul_(2016%E2%80%93present)#/media/File:Battle_of_Mosul_(2016%E2%80%932017).svg

Mosul has basically been taken over already. This is like shooting a guy in the head after his head has been cut off. Except with civilian casualties, so the metaphor doesn't quite work.

[Svata]

I expect dire consequences for the US. Such as our own despicable tactics being used against us. I am afraid for my life.

[dpareja]

Going by the logic the US uses when they see other countries (except Israel) do this sort of despicable action, it's time for regime change in the US.

[The_Queen]

I expect dire consequences for the US. Such as our own despicable tactics being used against us. I am afraid for my life.

Eh, one of the small benefits of having nuclear arsenal like ours is that we aren't usually attacked. If that wasn't enough of a deterrent, have you met our thin-skinned, luddite president?

So, really the only thing we lose from using white phosphorous is the moral high-ground.

[RavynousHunter]

Let's be frank, we lost that around the Vietnam era.

[The_Queen]

Let's be frank, we lost that around the Vietnam era.

True, Nixon is famous for saying "By God, we're going to hit the marijuana thing, and I want to hit it right square in the puss." It's really not that different from "Grab 'em by the pussy."

[pyro]

Doesn't "puss" (without the "y") mean "mouth"? As in "sour puss" for a pout?

[Svata]

That was my thought as well. ESPECIALLY considering that it was the 70s