4 ms·

Reality TV star? Or are you just cherry picking something that can be made to sound unfit for office? How about American business magnate and billionaire playb

Reality TV star? Or are you just cherry picking something that can be made to sound unfit for office? How about American business magnate and billionaire playboy who even in his 70s was loved enough by the public to become a TV star? Yeah I just played the opposite card but for the sake of balance and honesty, here: https://www.c-span.org/video/?187762-1/united-nations-headquarters-renovation https://www.c-span.org/video/?187762-1/united-nations-headqu... https://youtu.be/CXmXd1xrBUQ https://youtu.be/CXmXd1xrBUQ

tekmate 7y ago
the guy was always a laughingstock
- luxuryballs 7y ago
  He was “presidential” and anti-corruption before it was cool: https://www.c-span.org/video/?187762-1/united-nations-headquarters-renovation https://www.c-span.org/video/?187762-1/united-nations-headqu...
  - tekmate 7y ago
    you're clinging to a fantasy
    - luxuryballs 7y ago
      Which CNN article should I use to light my path instead? Or you more of a Washington Compost guy?
  - shadowgovt 7y ago
    Whatever claims of anti-corruption he may have made in the past kinda fell out the window when he appointed his family to key political positions, one would think.
    - luxuryballs 7y ago
      ...for example?
      - shadowgovt 7y ago
        I don't understand your question. If he is ostensibly anti-corruption, the rampant and obvious nepotism is counter to that goal. Unless he is simply anti-corruption that doesn't benefit him directly, in case rampant and obvious nepotism is not incompatible with his goal (but, I assume, not what voters were actually hoping for when they elected him).
        burfog 7y ago
        Federal jobs, even near the top, pay so little that the nepotism claim is silly. This is a billionaire family, and we're supposed to be concerned with salary that is well below what a software developer can make?
        shadowgovt 7y ago
        Nepotism isn't about only salary, it's also about power and prestige. Because for a billionaire family(1), that's what matters past the dollars and cents. Ivanka Trump can afford to forego her salary, but no amount of money can buy the résumé entry "Former Senior Advisor to the President" and that past will open doors for her the rest of her life. (1) It's also possible that the Trump family isn't actually as wealthy as they claim to be on paper, in which case being in a position to actually directly influence executive regulatory policy can have significant direct financial impact on their enterprises that they have no opportunity to exploit otherwise. For example, they could have a hand in implementing tax programs while owning significant financial interest in companies regulated by those tax programs (https://www.citizensforethics.org/press-release/crew-files-conflict-of-interest-complaint-against-ivanka-trump/ https://www.citizensforethics.org/press-release/crew-files-c...).
        burfog 7y ago
tialaramex 7y ago
> How about American business magnate and billionaire playboy American is redundant. It is _literally_ a requirement of the office that you be an American. You might remember this because Trump spent almost a decade pretending to believe his predecessor wasn't American. Countries which are more confident don't have such a rule but the American Founding Fathers feared a European power might try to seize control. Magnate just means wealthy or powerful man so it is also redundant with your other qualifications. Billionaire is based on Trump's claims, he has gone out of his way to ensure nobody actually knows what he's worth. One of the dirty secrets about "rich lists" is that all the interesting people on them don't have verifiable wealth so the list makers invariably resort to guesswork or fiction. So that leaves "playboy". My dictionary explains that a playboy is single and devotes their life to pleasure, typically sexual pleasure. But Trump is on his third wife and his main pleasure appears to be either golf or soaking up praise from other people.
Moodles 7y ago
You're going to be down-voted to oblivion on hacker news, but I do agree with the general point that, the post you're replying to saying "'reality TV star' vs 'politician subject to decades of effort and millions spent to make said history checkered'" is needlessly political and doesn't belong on hacker news (same as your post).
- shadowgovt 7y ago
  I'm happy to accept criticism of my characterization if it was factually inaccurate.
  - Moodles 7y ago
    It’s not so much the factual inaccuracy as the loaded language. One can factually describe Trump in a positive light and Clinton in a negative light. It’s needlessly emotive and doesn’t belong on HN in my opinion.
    - shadowgovt 7y ago
      I'm not sure I'd classify it as "needlessly" emotive; the topic is very serious and deserves engagement from people, and emotions are one of many ways to engage people. In the spirit of the founder of Y Combinator, I'd suggest that perhaps the emotive response signals that there is a sacred cow worth exploring here. http://www.paulgraham.com/say.html http://www.paulgraham.com/say.html
      - Moodles 7y ago
        I assume you would appreciate the loaded language if it was biased against your side then.
        shadowgovt 7y ago
        Yes.

tekmate 7y ago

the guy was always a laughingstock

luxuryballs 7y ago
He was “presidential” and anti-corruption before it was cool: https://www.c-span.org/video/?187762-1/united-nations-headquarters-renovation https://www.c-span.org/video/?187762-1/united-nations-headqu...
- tekmate 7y ago
  you're clinging to a fantasy
  - luxuryballs 7y ago
    Which CNN article should I use to light my path instead? Or you more of a Washington Compost guy?
- shadowgovt 7y ago
  Whatever claims of anti-corruption he may have made in the past kinda fell out the window when he appointed his family to key political positions, one would think.
  - luxuryballs 7y ago
    ...for example?
    - shadowgovt 7y ago
      I don't understand your question. If he is ostensibly anti-corruption, the rampant and obvious nepotism is counter to that goal. Unless he is simply anti-corruption that doesn't benefit him directly, in case rampant and obvious nepotism is not incompatible with his goal (but, I assume, not what voters were actually hoping for when they elected him).
      - burfog 7y ago
        Federal jobs, even near the top, pay so little that the nepotism claim is silly. This is a billionaire family, and we're supposed to be concerned with salary that is well below what a software developer can make?
        shadowgovt 7y ago
        Nepotism isn't about only salary, it's also about power and prestige. Because for a billionaire family(1), that's what matters past the dollars and cents. Ivanka Trump can afford to forego her salary, but no amount of money can buy the résumé entry "Former Senior Advisor to the President" and that past will open doors for her the rest of her life. (1) It's also possible that the Trump family isn't actually as wealthy as they claim to be on paper, in which case being in a position to actually directly influence executive regulatory policy can have significant direct financial impact on their enterprises that they have no opportunity to exploit otherwise. For example, they could have a hand in implementing tax programs while owning significant financial interest in companies regulated by those tax programs (https://www.citizensforethics.org/press-release/crew-files-conflict-of-interest-complaint-against-ivanka-trump/ https://www.citizensforethics.org/press-release/crew-files-c...).
        burfog 7y ago

tialaramex 7y ago

> How about American business magnate and billionaire playboy American is redundant. It is _literally_ a requirement of the office that you be an American. You might remember this because Trump spent almost a decade pretending to believe his predecessor wasn't American. Countries which are more confident don't have such a rule but the American Founding Fathers feared a European power might try to seize control. Magnate just means wealthy or powerful man so it is also redundant with your other qualifications. Billionaire is based on Trump's claims, he has gone out of his way to ensure nobody actually knows what he's worth. One of the dirty secrets about "rich lists" is that all the interesting people on them don't have verifiable wealth so the list makers invariably resort to guesswork or fiction. So that leaves "playboy". My dictionary explains that a playboy is single and devotes their life to pleasure, typically sexual pleasure. But Trump is on his third wife and his main pleasure appears to be either golf or soaking up praise from other people.

Moodles 7y ago

You're going to be down-voted to oblivion on hacker news, but I do agree with the general point that, the post you're replying to saying "'reality TV star' vs 'politician subject to decades of effort and millions spent to make said history checkered'" is needlessly political and doesn't belong on hacker news (same as your post).

shadowgovt 7y ago
I'm happy to accept criticism of my characterization if it was factually inaccurate.
- Moodles 7y ago
  It’s not so much the factual inaccuracy as the loaded language. One can factually describe Trump in a positive light and Clinton in a negative light. It’s needlessly emotive and doesn’t belong on HN in my opinion.
  - shadowgovt 7y ago
    I'm not sure I'd classify it as "needlessly" emotive; the topic is very serious and deserves engagement from people, and emotions are one of many ways to engage people. In the spirit of the founder of Y Combinator, I'd suggest that perhaps the emotive response signals that there is a sacred cow worth exploring here. http://www.paulgraham.com/say.html http://www.paulgraham.com/say.html
    - Moodles 7y ago
      I assume you would appreciate the loaded language if it was biased against your side then.
      - shadowgovt 7y ago
        Yes.