Don't know how this will play in other countries, but the arc is the last bit of this minute and a half video

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/videos/ce8pp9r03z7o

The sign of a modest president

Hopefully, once he leaves, or is forced out, of office, he'll be spending the rest of his life in the D J Trump Correctional Facility.

We thought none of this was possible, that surely our presidents went through psychological testing, and that they were required to divest themselves so they couldn't profit from the position. We thought laws were already in place that would prevent a sitting president from being able to abuse the system the way he has, that surely the SCOTUS would protect the constitutional rights they're charged with interpreting, and that the checks and balances we have in place would continue to serve us well.

We were wrong because most of us were counting on the free press to keep us informed, to ask the right questions, to dig into corruption and unconstitutional actions. They're a joke, all of them, since you end up with more coverage of actual events from social media (which has very little journalistic process, so it's hard to trust). I'm old enough to remember pre-Clinton journalism, where reporters asked the tough questions and nobody walked out of interviews with the press for fear of looking shady.

I'm hoping the next version of the USA corrects the mistakes made, provides the provisions we left out for some reason, and moves ahead keeping all the good stuff while discarding this MAGA trash. It's been over a decade now, and we're heartily tired of how slow the wheels are moving.

Watching formerly solid media outlets bend the knee has been hard. The spouse and I now read a lot of national news in UK media which seem less smoochy at the Arse de Turnip. Glad some US sources like NPR are not caving. If Turnip calls a news company "failing" or "lamestream" or "radical Left" that's usually a good sign they're doing their job as journalists.

2 hours ago, Phi for All said:

I'm hoping the next version of the USA corrects the mistakes made

The national mistakes made by this administration might be fixable.
The international mistakes not so much; too many 'alliance bridges' have been burned, and no one will be willing to take those risks again.

4 hours ago, MigL said:

Hopefully, once he leaves, or is forced out, of office, he'll be spending the rest of his life in the D J Trump Correctional Facility.

Well, but then President Vance under direction of Supreme Leader Thiel can just pardon him, together with the tech insurrectionists of 2028.

3 hours ago, Phi for All said:

We thought none of this was possible, that surely our presidents went through psychological testing, and that they were required to divest themselves so they couldn't profit from the position. We thought laws were already in place that would prevent a sitting president from being able to abuse the system the way he has, that surely the SCOTUS would protect the constitutional rights they're charged with interpreting, and that the checks and balances we have in place would continue to serve us well.

We were wrong because most of us were counting on the free press to keep us informed, to ask the right questions, to dig into corruption and unconstitutional actions. They're a joke, all of them, since you end up with more coverage of actual events from social media (which has very little journalistic process, so it's hard to trust). I'm old enough to remember pre-Clinton journalism, where reporters asked the tough questions and nobody walked out of interviews with the press for fear of looking shady.

I'm hoping the next version of the USA corrects the mistakes made, provides the provisions we left out for some reason, and moves ahead keeping all the good stuff while discarding this MAGA trash. It's been over a decade now, and we're heartily tired of how slow the wheels are moving.

I am not even sure what to fix. Much of what you describe are, in my mind the result of systemic societal changes. The US is not even the sole exception, just a particularly inept one that also managed to offend almost everyone internationally. However, most issues also pop up elsewhere. Journalism is degrading, in large part due to the fact that they are not economically viable anymore. Education is more slowly starting to go a similar route. Anti-establishment resentments are everywhere, some fueled by good reasons, others by utterly crazy stuff. Mechanistically one can add checks, but fundamentally the ultimate check are the voters. And it does seem that their ability to make reasonable decisions is being eroded. And I do not see a quick fix for that on the horizon.

Further to the international damage done by this Administration, here is a commentary on P Hegseth's visit to the American cemetary in Colleville-sur-Mere in Normandy, for the D-day anniversary.

Those dead and buried soldiers would be severely disappointed to have given their lives so that idiots like P Hegseth, and the rest of the Administration, could dishonor them.
They have no idea what those soldiers fought, and died, for.

1 hour ago, MigL said:

Further to the international damage done by this Administration, here is a commentary on P Hegseth's visit to the American cemetary in Colleville-sur-Mere in Normandy, for the D-day anniversary.

Those dead and buried soldiers would be severely disappointed to have given their lives so that idiots like P Hegseth, and the rest of the Administration, could dishonor them.
They have no idea what those soldiers fought, and died, for.

To be fair, Hegseth and his ilk were cheering for the other side to win.

On 6/9/2026 at 2:33 PM, CharonY said:

I am not even sure what to fix. Much of what you describe are, in my mind the result of systemic societal changes. The US is not even the sole exception, just a particularly inept one that also managed to offend almost everyone internationally. However, most issues also pop up elsewhere. Journalism is degrading, in large part due to the fact that they are not economically viable anymore. Education is more slowly starting to go a similar route. Anti-establishment resentments are everywhere, some fueled by good reasons, others by utterly crazy stuff. Mechanistically one can add checks, but fundamentally the ultimate check are the voters. And it does seem that their ability to make reasonable decisions is being eroded. And I do not see a quick fix for that on the horizon.

I'd start with how corporations are taxed. No more sitting on piles of cash, we have to tax wealth over a certain amount to force investment. Set a standard for living wages that allows people to participate in their own economy, and only give tax breaks to corporations who meet that standard. Something needs to be done to stop turning American workers into crude labor units that are ultimately replaceable; we have value beyond that, and employers need to start recognizing it.

I'm not sure what to do with journalism, honestly. I don't know anyone who trusts what they hear from news shows. Raw data/just the facts may seem fair and without prejudice, but not everyone can form a perspective from that. We have a great local reporter in my area named Kyle Clark who's been moderating some gubernatorial debates recently, and I love his style of asking very hard-hitting questions based on things politicians have said in the past. It's amazing how many, Republican and Democrat, have a hard time defending something they said just a few weeks ago. Lying is like breathing to so many of these folks. Do we bring back the Fairness Doctrine, where broadcasters are required to air opposing views? Would people appreciate this with all the choices available today?

Sooner or later even the corporations are going to feel the pain. The average car in the US is 13 years old now, up from 9.1 years in 2000. When enough people can't afford to buy your products, can you afford to keep raising your prices and lowering your quality? I think many corporations might welcome the right kinds of regulation, something that at least slows down this mad race to keep gobbling up more for your stockholders as your own people suffer working full time PLUS several side gigs to make ends meet. It's my thought that they wouldn't mind treating their people more humanely if everyone was required to do it, so the competition is even.

These Billionaires make their money from investments.
That's why D Trump keeps insisting the 'economy' is good; the stock market keeps going up.
Their economy is doing great.

The rest of us are subject to a different economy, where we have to work, at low wages, to buy food, housing and gasoline at the inflated prices that are fueling the stock market.

The rich get richer, and the poor get screwed ... again.