4 ms·

I might not have been clear then. The story is implying the Trump administration used the "beatings" story line to his advantage despite not having really made

I might not have been clear then. The story is implying the Trump administration used the "beatings" story line to his advantage despite not having really made that claim. It appears that the media reported it from intelligence sources. It faults him, and even accuses him of exploiting the situation, for not correcting the story line which is an outrageous standard to hold presidents accountable to. My further but more convoluted point is it isn't unreasonable to speculate that some form of torture that is not beatings caused the injury. ok? I see your point about Iraq and the importance of story lines. Yes, I am hiding my name.

tptacek 8y ago
The story quotes Trump directly as making that claim.
- b22GcijhI9 8y ago
  https://www.cnn.com/2017/11/20/politics/president-donald-trump-north-korea-terrorism/index.html https://www.cnn.com/2017/11/20/politics/president-donald-tru... Yes, of saying they "tortured" him, not that they beat him. Like I said, is that totally unreasonable to say? What else would have caused a severe cardiopulmonary event to an otherwise healthy person? There isn't any solid evidence of a suicide attempt. North Korea's official explanation is almost certainly a lie and I don't know what else one can conclude besides coming to a tortured conclusion that North Korea somehow didn't directly cause this man's death under duress in order to assert that Trump must have known this and it was all an elaborate political game of showmanship he was playing. edit: not trying to be snarky.
  - tptacek 8y ago
    No. The same Trump tweet refers directly to the Fox & Friends interview the Warmbiers gave where they said he was physically abused, and that "it looked as if someone had taken a pair of pliers and rearranged his bottom teeth." There is no uncertainty about what Trump meant by "torture"; he was explicitly confirming the Warmbier's claim, made minutes earlier, that Otto Warmbier was physically tortured.
    - b22GcijhI9 8y ago
      That is a claim the Warmbier's made, not Trump. That may sound like a meaningless assertion but don't you think it's a stretch to say that he exploited the situation for political gain because he did not correct their story(from a live interview I might add) esp. on Twitter? Even using the word 'torture' at that time doesn't seem unreasonable or part of a conspiracy. What is the proper motive? To get people to label DPRK a terror sponsoring nation? It seems like a very high expectation to place on a president to correct any false narrative being perpetuated or else be party to promoting them for political gain.
  - deleted 8y ago
    [deleted]

tptacek 8y ago

The story quotes Trump directly as making that claim.

b22GcijhI9 8y ago
https://www.cnn.com/2017/11/20/politics/president-donald-trump-north-korea-terrorism/index.html https://www.cnn.com/2017/11/20/politics/president-donald-tru... Yes, of saying they "tortured" him, not that they beat him. Like I said, is that totally unreasonable to say? What else would have caused a severe cardiopulmonary event to an otherwise healthy person? There isn't any solid evidence of a suicide attempt. North Korea's official explanation is almost certainly a lie and I don't know what else one can conclude besides coming to a tortured conclusion that North Korea somehow didn't directly cause this man's death under duress in order to assert that Trump must have known this and it was all an elaborate political game of showmanship he was playing. edit: not trying to be snarky.
- tptacek 8y ago
  No. The same Trump tweet refers directly to the Fox & Friends interview the Warmbiers gave where they said he was physically abused, and that "it looked as if someone had taken a pair of pliers and rearranged his bottom teeth." There is no uncertainty about what Trump meant by "torture"; he was explicitly confirming the Warmbier's claim, made minutes earlier, that Otto Warmbier was physically tortured.
  - b22GcijhI9 8y ago
    That is a claim the Warmbier's made, not Trump. That may sound like a meaningless assertion but don't you think it's a stretch to say that he exploited the situation for political gain because he did not correct their story(from a live interview I might add) esp. on Twitter? Even using the word 'torture' at that time doesn't seem unreasonable or part of a conspiracy. What is the proper motive? To get people to label DPRK a terror sponsoring nation? It seems like a very high expectation to place on a president to correct any false narrative being perpetuated or else be party to promoting them for political gain.
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]