The Political Thread

[The Legendary Shark]

Are you sure it's entirely wise to taunt a dumb-ass bully with a nuclear football?

[Professor Bear]

Oh Sharky - the guy who carries the nuclear football for Trump is also its guardian.  His job is to put a bullet in Trump's head if he tries anything stupid(er than usual).

See I'm in the 'let's not bother about his visit' camp.  The infantile egomaniac thrives on this sort of attention.

Yes and no: the Donald Trump that was a tv villain liked being hated because he could tell himself that was what he wanted as he was playing a character, but the Donald Trump that expected to be taken seriously hates being ridiculed when everybody tells him he's the most powerful man in the world.

See, Trump has long been a friend to the McMahons - he even appointed Linda McMahon to a position in the Whitehouse - and it was that association and his dabbling with the professional wrestling industry as a manager, a heel and a face that made him look at the world in a way that his sociopathy could comprehend: if people were cheering or booing him, it was all good because he wanted them to.  Whether loved or hated, it was because Donald wanted it that way, and his time as the face of The Apprentice (US) only cemented that idea in his thick tangerine skull.  In the same way that some of the brighter Republicans can understand Randist objectivism as an excuse for their robbing the poor, so too did b-list celebrity gave Don a worldview that essentially let him go on believing in his superiority to the hoi-polloi.
Not anymore.  It is finally sinking in that public opinion and the historical record of who and what Donald Trump is will no longer be written by his biographer or TV Guide reviewers.  He isn't a celebrity anymore, he's a politician and his name will not go down in history as a beloved television villain like JR Ewing, it will go down in history as a hated and divisive political figure like Richard Nixon, and his name will essentially become a shorthand for dumbass egotists in political circles for years to come, meaning he's personally responsible for ruining his family's name.
Trump is not happy where he is right now, and every protest reinforces that.  Make the goon suffer.

[Tjm86]

....  the Donald Trump that expected to be taken seriously hates being ridiculed when everybody tells him he's the most powerful man in the world.

I see your point.  Exposure to contrary views that challenge his perception of himself and his status can have a powerful effect if managed carefully.  I just wonder though if mass protests can feed his ego though.  He is expecting protests.  It reinforces his perception that he is a powerful and important world figure.  As you say, he likes it when they boo on his terms.

This is why I think the stay completely away approach will be the most damaging.  It is akin to saying "Donald Who?"  It says that he is so unimportant in the great scheme of things that we don't even think he's worth protesting about.  We've got more important things to do.  How do you think he's likely to feel when he turns up and finds that fewer protesters turned up than Labour had when they held their antisemitism hearings.  (8 and a slightly arthritic dog if memory serves).  Think about the spat over the size of the crowd for his inauguration.

[JayzusB.Christ]

I think more things like the balloon are the best bet.  It shows very clearly that people think he's ridiculous. THAT'S what seems to get to him most. Which is a great thing, in my book.

[Professor Bear]

This is why I think the stay completely away approach will be the most damaging.

Unless the sycophants stay away too, he's just going to think he's loved in the UK.

[The Legendary Shark]

"They're, um, 'stealth fans,' Your Orangeness."

[JayzusB.Christ]

I read on the BBC website that they were planning to use the extra crowdfunding cash to send the balloon round the world to haunt him wherever he goes.

I really, really hope this happens.

[The Legendary Shark]

And so, the sacred institution of the democratic system is reduced to throwing balloons at buffoons.

I think I can just about rest my case...

[JayzusB.Christ]

Come on, Sharky, the fact that we can protest in a fun way doesn't really support your arguements.

[The Legendary Shark]

I know, JBC - us anarchists can laugh too! (We have to, to be honest.)

[JayzusB.Christ]

Yes, of course. Sorry lad, think my humour circuits were on the blink earlier 😁

[The Legendary Shark]

No harm, no foul.

[sheridan]

"They're, um, 'stealth fans,' Your Orangeness."

Slocombe, remind me to get my eyes checked, I can't seem to see the crowds...

[JayzusB.Christ]

Nice!

[The Legendary Shark]

"They're, um, 'stealth fans,' Your Orangeness."

Slocombe, remind me to get my eyes checked, I can't seem to see the crowds...

Thread winner!