President Trump - placing "back to business" over people's lives?

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gama232 said:
This is not the time to question the President who is not an expert on this and who should, himself, rely on expert information.
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As long as he “relies on expert information” and follows it, fine and dandy.

I have to think (or hope it is the case, two different things) that his comments were meant more to boost markets and public morale — not that he deliberately gave bad advice, just that he may have been acting more as a “coach” of sorts, saying in so many words “it would be great if we could do this by Easter — let’s all work together, and stay well, and maybe this can happen, let’s believe and have hope”. That’s precisely the kind of thing a leader should do. You have to give people hope. You can’t be diffident and indecisive, and be a good leader.
 
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Since he has not checked with experts before speaking so far, I don’t view him as a coach or anything like that. I view him as someone who says things, thinks he’s right and then gets corrected. That is the current pattern.
 
gama232 said:
Since he has not checked with experts before speaking so far, I don’t view him as a coach or anything like that. I view him as someone who says things, thinks he’s right and then gets corrected. That is the current pattern.
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What you say sounds reasonable. One thing we do not need a president — or anyone else — doing, is speculating on people committing suicide. That’s one way he disappointed me.
 
Like I wrote, he says things before consulting with experts. He thinks he’s right but I have followed the pattern of - he says it, he gets corrected by someone who is an authority, he says something else and gets corrected again. If I were President, I would allow the authority to speak on every subject where I lacked knowledge, especially about this. This doesn’t mean the authority needs to be in the room with him as long as the President consults him or her.

Suicide is a complex subject and it may not always be clear why someone did this. I have some understanding of this issue.
 
We don’t know how many lives will be saved by these prolonged extreme measures. Current models are fuzzy, political, inconclusive, and subject to constant update. The debunked half million lives projection in Britain is a perfect example. We also dont know how much of an irreversible breakdown the economy may suffer, the level of hyperinflation that may follow as a result of desperate and futile efforts to revive it, nor what kind of a stage would be set by continuing the blatant disregard for constitutional rights and checks on power. A mear “depression” doesnt compare to what we may slip into. It doesnt take an economist to realize that the economy is about more than “just business.” People need resources in order to provide for and take care of their families. Lives are indeed dependent on the economy. Of course, if one is arguing on the assumption that the government will magically just take care of us, well… I guess there’s not much left to talk about.
 
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HomeschoolDad said:
What you say sounds reasonable. One thing we do not need a president — or anyone else — doing, is speculating on people committing suicide. That’s one way he disappointed me.
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gama232 said:
Suicide is a complex subject and it may not always be clear why someone did this. I have some understanding of this issue.
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I just found it off-putting that Trump would speculate on thousands of people committing suicide (his words) if the economy doesn’t get up and running soon. I assume he meant that people would find themselves in impossible financial circumstances and would see no way out. Or perhaps he meant, as well, that people will get depressed because they don’t have close social contact. I wouldn’t know about that — being at home for an extended period doesn’t bother me a bit. I hope it doesn’t come across as boorish and insensitive — I don’t mean it that way — but my entire family is retired and has income that doesn’t require us to “get out”, and my son is homeschooled and has a load of online friends (including one “girlfriend” in another state, and yes, I’ve been able to ascertain that she is a real person and who her parents are). He is as happy as a lark! As long as we can get groceries and medicine, we can live this way indefinitely. I am deeply sorry that not everyone is in our circumstances.
 
The above is a common sense reply. But for those who hate obsessively, no amount of reasoning is going to matter. And that’s the scary thing.
 
gama232 said:
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gama232:
Suicide is a complex subject and it may not always be clear why someone did this. I have some understanding of this issue.
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I just found it off-putting that Trump would speculate on thousands of people committing suicide (his words) if the economy doesn’t get up and running soon. I assume he meant that people would find themselves in impossible financial circumstances and would see no way out. Or perhaps he meant, as well, that people will get depressed because they don’t have close social contact. I wouldn’t know about that — being at home for an extended period doesn’t bother me a bit. I hope it doesn’t come across as boorish and insensitive — I don’t mean it that way — but my entire family is retired and has income that doesn’t require us to “get out”, and my son is homeschooled and has a load of online friends (including one “girlfriend” in another state, and yes, I’ve been able to ascertain that she is a real person and who her parents are). He is as happy as a lark! As long as we can get groceries and medicine, we can live this way indefinitely. I am deeply sorry that not everyone is in our circumstances.
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I need to add something here. I was listening a little bit ago to a local arch-conservative talk show, and they rattled off a whole litany of figures about the increase in suicide cases and attempts. Granted, they were shilling for the “we need to get everybody back to work or else we’re going to have an economic depression” school of thought — boy, were they ever! — but the figures are either true or they’re not, and I don’t think they made them up.

I hate to think anybody would ever get to that point, but as I alluded to above, it is easy for me to sit back in my ivory tower and talk about how good my circumstances are. The virus doesn’t distinguish between marginated people and people who, by Divine Providence, aren’t so marginated. My grocer just called me and told me their online shopping system has collapsed, so they can’t fulfill my order. This could get much worse.

Prayers, sacrifices, and penances for all who are in a bad way these days. And if anyone needs help, for God’s sake, call someone.
 
You should widen your sources of information. I am unconcerned about labels like arch-conservative. But I know some who are obsessed with politics. Politics do not matter, just good, clear, credible information.

The United States government and health care professionals are getting good information but the mainstream media, in order to make money by charging more for ads, has preferred death and destruction for many years now. That as opposed to: “Reports of fewer cases” or about progress here or there.

That said, various companies, on their own initiative, will begin to restart operations. It doesn’t matter what any politician says. Wall Street and the Federal Reserve run the country. They got their 3.2 trillion dollars and they can’t make money if all of the big corporations are shut down.
 
gama232 said:
You should widen your sources of information. I am unconcerned about labels like arch-conservative. But I know some who are obsessed with politics. Politics do not matter, just good, clear, credible information.
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Be assured that I get my information from all across the spectrum, and my gleanings are quite wide indeed. This was just a low-rent, throwaway weekend show on a station that airs Rush, Hannity, Glenn Beck, Mark Levin, et al. A lot of times, they just talk to hear their heads rattle, and this may have been one of those times. But death and destruction does sell, and sells well. So does running in contrary mode, which gets people talking about such shows, as we are doing right this very minute.
 
I make it a point to avoid such shows. They are designed to stir the pot - that’s all. Only credible sources for me. I would never accept a job where I talk and talk to rile people up. Larry King. There was a man who understood what balanced interviews meant, balanced reporting.
 
gama232 said:
I make it a point to avoid such shows. They are designed to stir the pot - that’s all. Only credible sources for me. I would never accept a job where I talk and talk to rile people up. Larry King. There was a man who understood what balanced interviews meant, balanced reporting.
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I take Hannity, Beck, Rush — especially Rush (prayers for his good health) — for what they are. I agree that balanced commentary and journalism are the best. CNN often degenerates into a Trump piñata party, while Fox News… I don’t know, there’s just something too glossy, too overdone, kind of gaudy and tarted-up about it. I can’t quite describe it. I have heard many good things about One America News Network, but our cable (Spectrum) doesn’t carry it and I don’t wish to pay for streaming online.
 
This pandemic is a surprise social experiment we never wanted.

And it’s an excellent opportunity for us to grow beyond black-and-White thinking.

In my own life…

A close relative is living off her rapidly dwindling savings because she’s self-employed and her profession is non-essential. She’s scared to death.

OTOH

A co-worker I had personal and physical contact with in the past week developed Covid19-suspicious symptoms two days after I last saw her and as we speak is awaiting test results. She’s scared to death.

So, you tell me.
 
Rush to excellence… I tried to listen to Rush a few times but that was it. I have a list of TV news programs I will not watch: CNN and Fox News are at the top of the list.
 
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HomeschoolDad said:
I was taken a bit aback this evening to learn that President Trump is wanting to loosen up the restrictions on social activity by Easter Sunday. I have a real concern that this is too soon, especially if statistics closer to the time show that the “curve” has not “flattened”. I understand that he wants to get people back to work, and that is a sentiment not without merit, but I am just concerned that the economy is being placed above people’s lives and health.

I am thinking that if he does make good on this, perhaps some of his advisers might want to break ranks with him, and speak out against restoring social activity, for the good of the country. If they are on the government’s payroll, they might get immediately fired, but might this be a sacrifice worth making, to save lives? These people are paid very well, and should have enough assets that they could afford to lose their jobs, if it came to that. And Trump couldn’t keep them off the news and talk shows.

Thoughts from the forum?
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This is a good thing because we have a goal to when we’re going to get the economy on track. He’s doing everything he can right now, I can promise you that. We can’t stay like this forever with everything locked down.
 
0Scarlett_nidiyilii said:
This pandemic is a surprise social experiment we never wanted.

And it’s an excellent opportunity for us to grow beyond black-and-White thinking.

In my own life…

A close relative is living off her rapidly dwindling savings because she’s self-employed and her profession is non-essential. She’s scared to death.

OTOH

A co-worker I had personal and physical contact with in the past week developed Covid19-suspicious symptoms two days after I last saw her and as we speak is awaiting test results. She’s scared to death.

So, you tell me.
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It is definitely all of the trains coming to the station at once.

We are all going to have to trust more and more in Divine Providence.
 
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