Rand Paul's ACA Replacement

[Girtron]

I know he inherited a business that is now worth less than the inheritance would be if it had just been in the bank this entire time (or at least based on projected net worth from Fortune, not his own inflated claims for which there is no substantiation since he refuses to release his tax records). I know this Salon article claims he had lost 55 million $ (adjusted) before he was 33. I know he's had 4 big bankruptcies. I know he used campaign funds to pay his own businesses for campaigning. I know a great many people think the reason he refuses to release his tax returns is because they will show he has lied about how much money he has and that he's actually managed to squandered far more than he wants us to believe.

The one thing Trump is truly good at is bullshitting, and I personally believe he's managed to bullshit the American public into thinking he's a good business man based on the current result of his huge inheritence, and that it's one gigantic lie.

I know I have little substantiation for claiming all this about his net worth, but all you have is his worth, and as much as you guys talk about Hillary being a liar (which she obviously is), fact checkers show that the number of lies this guy told consistently far exceeded Hillary, so thinking he's a good business man is beyond naive. You've fallen for his bullshit then.

Even a bad business man with 45 years of experience would surely understand negotiating in the real world better than a community organizing, college professor. President Obama had his lunch eaten on a regular basis when negotiating "deals", Salon's fact checking notwithstanding. His delivery, however, was undeniably polished.

[Bill Been]

I know he inherited a business that is now worth less than the inheritance would be if it had just been in the bank this entire time (or at least based on projected net worth from Fortune, not his own inflated claims for which there is no substantiation since he refuses to release his tax records). I know this Salon article claims he had lost 55 million $ (adjusted) before he was 33. I know he's had 4 big bankruptcies. I know he used campaign funds to pay his own businesses for campaigning. I know a great many people think the reason he refuses to release his tax returns is because they will show he has lied about how much money he has and that he's actually managed to squandered far more than he wants us to believe.

The one thing Trump is truly good at is bullshitting, and I personally believe he's managed to bullshit the American public into thinking he's a good business man based on the current result of his huge inheritence, and that it's one gigantic lie.

I know I have little substantiation for claiming all this about his net worth, but all you have is his worth, and as much as you guys talk about Hillary being a liar (which she obviously is), fact checkers show that the number of lies this guy told consistently far exceeded Hillary, so thinking he's a good business man is beyond naive. You've fallen for his bullshit then.

A long-winded but equally clueless version of "you didn't build that".

[Ericreichelt81]

Do you not know about his businesses? His real estate holdings and the buildings and golf courses and 10 of thousands of employees? It's difficult to have a productive discussion with an unprepared discussor.



The mainstream media has absolutely abdicated their role in providing unbiased information. So, you read it with your filter switched on, read the crazy shit from the far left and the far right with your filter switched on, and you draw your own conclusions, which may be as close as 75% to the actual objective truth. This is the downside on the modern information-exchange format -- too much shit to sort through. It was much easier 50 years ago.

My only filter is best practices for my kids . Trump is a sad example of the fact that some individuals feel 50 years ago was somehow better than today. You are a smart person, evidenced by your contributions to the strength world. I can't understand the other side because frankly I don't believe in statements. I have 2 young daughters and 50 years ago might not change your world much, but it would for them. Trump has failed forward his whole life, don't confuse this with actual success. You've said your success in part is on the shoulders of those before you, that's humility, which you posses. Trump is God in his eyes, a bring without fault. And for fuck sake, tell me you'll grab a girl by the pussy and I'll show you how soft I am, by being an actual man and doing without talking. Like it was 50 years ago.

Frankly, this nacho yap from most is just that. Most people are push overs when it gets down to it. He's never been put in his place, why I just can't figure.

Like all other bad leaders, he'll go out like a coward probably on some hole. So alpha.

[Mark Rippetoe]

And for fuck sake, tell me you'll grab a girl by the pussy and I'll show you how soft I am, by being an actual man and doing without talking. Like it was 50 years ago.

What are you babbling about? I was talking about the fact that 50 years ago there were only newspapers and 3 networks as the source for information.

[perman]

I'm no fan of Trump, but if you want to build your castle on that sand dune, what does that say of Nobel and all that ensued from that eeeevil chemical improvement in explosive weapons of mass destruction?

Just askin'.

Ehm, I don't understand the relevance... I'm discussing Trump's competency, not the morality of his business.

A long-winded but equally clueless version of "you didn't build that".

So instead of rebutting what I said you're just gonna call it clueless? What of my post was inaccurate/misleading/wrong?

Maybe I as a 32-years old finishing my teaching degree am indeed underestimating the difficulty in getting ahead in business, but Trump didn't get ahead, he was already ahead and has fallen multiple times before bouncing back. And it's not as if Trump has been making money in insanely complicated markets, he did real estate first and foremost, where the challenge is mostly to get that initial wealth (which he already had), after that your properties grow, and then you buy new properties in areas/markets that will grow.

I notice a lot of snark back at me, but does someone want to take the challenge of trying to make Trump seem a competent business man? Or are you just reflexively rebutting me without doing that because you know Trump really isn't very impressive?

[MattBraunstein]

Even a bad business man with 45 years of experience would surely understand negotiating in the real world better than a community organizing, college professor. President Obama had his lunch eaten on a regular basis when negotiating "deals", Salon's fact checking notwithstanding. His delivery, however, was undeniably polished.

Obama was never a college professor. He was the equivalent of a substitute teacher for college. The faculty at the university were very concerned about bringing him on, because they didn't want him as part of the faculty. But they were told that he was just there padding his resume for a run in the state senate. This was why they allowed him to teach the class. Please don't give him that credit. He doesn't deserve it.

[George Christiansen]

Nah, I would acknowledge that, in fact I would claim it's the exact opposite that's the problem, people seem to fall for him even though he has never actually demonstrated any competency outside bullshitting. Tell me, what has Trump done that is clever outside his rhetorical tricks/strategies? I mean substantively, not vacuously. And I don't consider the Apprentice a valid answer...

Yes. People who voted for him fell for him, but people like you made rational educated decisions when doing otherwise. Us ignorant fools are just all broke up about him doing exactly what he claimed would do when we voted for him.

I have never seen more than a minute or two of 'The Apprentice', but the fact that that is your reference point for him shows your level of ignorance in regards to his achievements.

Framing winning an election where virtually everyone who had a microphone available claimed he had a snowball's chance in hell as bullshitting is a nice attempt to put it in a way that a person who made his fortunes and whose every success was had largely by "bullshitting" deals with other "bullshitters" invalid is a nice try, but for better or worse it is quite a bit more similar to the duties of being the President than you are apparently aware of, which is ironic after 8 years of Barry's bullshitting us every time him opened his pie hole.

We live in a society exquisitely dependent on information and the interpretation of that information, in which hardly anyone knows anything about information and the interpretation of that information. I mean, scientific knowledge is important, too, but separating the wheat from the chaff is a more a fundamental skill set and base of knowledge. Everyone should just study language.

This is a good summation of the situation we seem to find ourselves. That is why a lot of people are using the phrase "post-truth".

It is really driving everyone towards tribalism because there is so much to sift through that you must narrow the field before you even examine the various sources. Most people wouldn't even know how to parse two opposing views even if there were only two sources anyway, but we unfortunately find ourselves not being able to even narrow down the legitimate opposing views in the first place. So much of this is the obvious screwing of the pooch that the press has done, which got bumped up to a super power over the most recent election.

The "cure" to the situation is character and building personal trust with the people we disagree with, so that even if we cannot agree with what facts are actually facts, we can at least trust the character of the other person to know they are not simply trying to fuck us over. I have little hope of this happening though, as I have already had people choose to disassociate with me, whose entire interpersonal experience with me has been nothing but positive, because they decided that I must have been some kind of closet monster the whole time because I currently disagree with some of their views. I can only imagine that this will lead to even more violence than we have seen thus far.

My own motto for 2017 is "Keep and open heart and one in the chamber." I really want to be civil and as accommodating as possible, but I have no tolerance for the current bullying.

He's never been put in his place, why I just can't figure.

Go try and open and run a few large scale businesses in NYC and Chiraq and then report back about how any ole pushover could do it.

Being an Uber driver doesn't count.

[Mark Rippetoe]

Maybe I as a 32-years old finishing my teaching degree (in NORWAY, having never done business in the United States and being completely unfamiliar with either the real estate market in NYC, the regulatory environment in NYC, and the labor market in NYC) am indeed underestimating the difficulty in getting ahead in business, but Trump didn't get ahead, he was already ahead and has fallen multiple times before bouncing back. And it's not as if Trump has been making money in insanely complicated markets, he did real estate first and foremost, where the challenge is mostly to get that initial wealth (which he already had), after that your properties grow, and then you buy new properties in areas/markets that will grow.

Gawd, son, STOP!!! You don't know how little you understand.

[perman]

Gawd, son, STOP!!! You don't know how little you understand.

True. I'm just looking at it from a macro-sense, if you grow a business with capital, and the business itself makes less money then the capital would in the bank, doesn't that reflect on how competently the business is driven?

Still, I notice the arguments are against me as a person, not against what I say, meaning they are authority fallacies...

[Mark Rippetoe]

True. I'm just looking at it from a macro-sense, if you grow a business with capital, and the business itself makes less money then the capital would in the bank, doesn't that reflect on how competently the business is driven?

Still, I notice the arguments are against me as a person, not against what I say, meaning they are authority fallacies...

I think you should take the opportunity to educate yourself before you share an uninformed opinion. It's not our job to do this for you.