Armistice Day and Trump's disgrace

Appearing on MSNBC’s AM Joy, [authoritarian state expert Sarah] Kendzior explained Trump’s actions in Paris that have drawn scorn from pundits and the military alike.

“It is strangely predictable,” Kendzior began. “I think we have two things going on. One is Trump’s fear of sacrifice. His lack of ability to understand sacrifice for a cause greater than yourself.”

“He has contempt for veterans. this is something that is consistent,” she elaborated. “He was cruel to [Republican Senator John] McCain, our troops — he has them stationed in Texas to put off an alleged horde of migrants coming toward Tijuana, and it makes no sense.”

“Then you have his consistent love of dictatorships, his worship of raw power. That is something he understands, that is something he sought to emulate,” Kendzior continued. “You saw this especially with Putin, but with Kim Jong-un and with anybody who is able to abuse power in an open and flagrant way with no regard for any actual representative body.”

“That’s an alarming thing because in this visit to France you see him once again moving away from a Western democratic alliance and towards an access of autocrats. That is his goal and objective,” she concluded.

  Raw Story

For all his macho posturing and exhortations about his beloved generals, Trump–a draft dodger who referred to avoiding STDs as “my personal Vietnam”–has long treated veterans and their loved ones with contempt. This contempt is not rooted in an aversion to the military as an institution–Trump bloated the military budget and has been striking the Middle East while threatening North Korea and other states–but an aversion to the concept of service to one’s nation itself.

Serving one’s country is a sacrifice, and sacrifice terrifies Trump. The idea that one would risk oneself–out of love, loyalty, or duty–is alien to him. Sacrifice, to Trump, is a sucker’s bet, a gamble beyond his comprehension–but one he is all too willing to let other Americans make.

[...]

Trump’s brand is risk–the high-stakes deal, the bold venture. But for most of his life, Trump has only taken a risk when the reward is guaranteed by others.

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Trump followed his father into the family business to become richer, and remained in his hometown his whole life. His inner circle has been tightly controlled and contained, consisting mainly of his family and his lawyers–who serve not only to salvage his businesses by exploiting loopholes and requiring NDAs–but by threatening perceived enemies.

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With [lawyer Michael] Cohen sidelined, Trump is more exposed than ever–and more out of control. Trump has always functioned best in scripted reality ––supplying his own tabloid fodder, playing a successful version of himself on The Apprentice. He demands attention but shuns scrutiny.

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As a businessman, Trump paid no mind to the victims of his disaster capitalism, an indifference to suffering that prevailed even [...] when a Trump Tower tenant burned to death due to Trump’s refusal to install a sprinkler system. Trump offered no condolences. He epitomizes this casual disregard for human life as commander-in-chief. About nukes, Trump has said, “If we have them, why can’t we use them?” When told last week that the CIA waited until a target left his family before dropping a drone, Trump asked, “Why did you wait?” His apathy toward the death of others is broad and all-encompassing, extending from military targets to civilians to the dead U.S. troops whose names he can’t remember and whose families he insults.

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Trump’s obsession with “winning” is infamous. But the winning is always more about Trump more than it is about the United States–and at times the concepts are mutually exclusive. Trump’s definition of an attack on the U.S. is when his lawyer’s home is raided by the FBI, not when Russia attacks our elections and infrastructure. As president, his main goals have been building a kleptocracy and dodging criminal prosecution, and any war– particularly when it involves Russia–will be enacted with those twin aims in mind. If Trump distracts the public from his own misdeeds, and financially benefits and consolidates power through war, it will not matter to him how many lives are lost–including the lives of U.S. servicemen and servicewomen. His callousness toward U.S. troops places him in stark contrast to any predecessor.

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Trump has shown that human beings have little inherent value to him. If Trump senses he may have to make a personal sacrifice, he will sacrifice the world instead.

  Sarah Kendzior

...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.