It is also fair to say that he egged on the Iranian protestors, promising support that never came. My country has a fair history of sawing off branches this way.
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The Iran protestors had no chance. But Trump told them: I will help you. I will provide you assistence. That’s the crude reality for the people of Iran. There was no Donald Trump helping with something. At the end many people had to face this situation. The regime kills who ever says too much against them. And they are not stopping this.
The center problem is: the American president lies. And that problem makes it not so easy for the people and for evrybody else he has to deal with. And this will not end up until he will leave white house.
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Actually, Trump stopping health programs, stopping poor countries from getting cheaper medicines, destroying Army food rations and medicines about to expire rather than donate them to those who can’t afford them, etc etc etc is estimated to cause at least 21 Million preventable deaths.
The comparison with Hitler’s early years are justified, especially as Trump’s administration has put actual Neo-Nazis in leading positions, and the Project 2025 is a blueprint of turning a democracy into a totalitarian state.
If you want to know in how poor a state American democracy is then don’t concentrate on Trump - look at how brazenly those he put in positions of power lie for and enable him (Noem, Bondi, Vance, HIS supreme court judges, etc) in a complete dereliction of duty.
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I wouldn’t bet on big business stopping Trump. For one thing they got HUMONGOUS tax breaks, for another look at Russia - that is the scenario developing in the US.
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Dan Bennett said it very well:
I am writing this as a United States military veteran who took an oath seriously and believed in what that oath represented. I did not serve out of blind loyalty to a political party, a president, or a flag waved without meaning. I served because I believed in constitutional limits, civilian oversight, due process, and the idea that government power must always be restrained by law and accountability. Watching what is happening now feels like witnessing that oath being hollowed out and mocked by the very institutions that once demanded it of me.
I am struggling to process the statements made by the DHS secretary following the killing that occurred during the St. Paul protests, because what was said and how quickly it was said represents a complete abandonment of due process. Within minutes of the shooting, definitive public declarations were made assigning guilt and justification, before any transparent investigation could reasonably have taken place. That is not how justice works in a functioning democracy, and it is not how law enforcement maintains legitimacy. You cannot announce conclusions before evidence is gathered and still expect public trust to survive.
What makes this so infuriating is the open contradiction between official statements and what the evidence clearly shows. Multiple videos, filmed from multiple angles, depict the same reality. The man who was killed was holding a cellphone and filming. He was not holding a weapon, and he was not posing an imminent threat. The footage does not require interpretation or spin. Being told to ignore what is plainly visible feels like deliberate institutional gaslighting, and it is deeply destabilizing to experience that from the federal government itself.
The decision to label a VA ICU nurse as a terrorist under these circumstances is staggering in its cruelty and recklessness. This was a healthcare professional who worked with veterans, now posthumously branded as an enemy without evidence, without restraint, and without shame. This is no longer about a single tragic incident. This is about a pattern of escalating force followed by immediate narrative control, all designed to shield power from accountability. That pattern destroys legitimacy far faster than any protest ever could.
As a veteran, this feels like a profound betrayal that cuts deeper than anger alone. I served believing that my country, while flawed, was anchored to principles stronger than any one administration or ideology. I was trained to respect facts, chain of command, and accountability. Watching those principles discarded in real time by people who claim to represent the law is nauseating. The lawlessness of those who insist they are the law is so blatant that it leaves me struggling to even articulate the rage and disbelief I feel.
What makes this even harder to stomach is watching how eagerly some people accept the lies. Seeing fellow Americans cheer the deaths of civilians, dismiss clear evidence, and parrot propaganda while calling themselves patriots is sickening. Patriotism is not obedience. Patriotism is not cruelty. Patriotism is not celebrating unchecked state violence. What we are seeing instead is authoritarian loyalty masquerading as love of country.
This is moral injury. It is the realization that the country I served, or at least the version of it I believed in, is being hollowed out from within by a fanatical ideology that embraces cruelty, glorifies violence, and lies without hesitation. It is watching the justice system reduced to a performance where conclusions are announced before facts are gathered, and where truth is treated as disposable when it becomes inconvenient.
What frightens me most is how quickly this violence is being normalized. This did not happen in some distant or abstract place. It happened in an American community that looks like countless others across this country. If it can happen there, it can happen anywhere, including where I live and where you live. I did not serve so my fellow citizens would live in fear of their own government.
I am beyond disappointment at this point. I am deeply disillusioned, morally exhausted, and sickened by what I am witnessing from those in power and those who cheer them on. Being told to reject reality, abandon empathy, and excuse state violence against civilians is something I will never accept. Silence in moments like this feels like complicity.
I am not writing this because I want chaos or escalation. I am writing this because I still believe that oaths mean something, and that abandoning them without resistance is how democracies fail. I served this country with honor. I did not expect to watch it be dismantled from within by cruelty, lies, and lawlessness wearing the costume of authority. That betrayal is something I will never stop naming for what it is.
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And if the previous post showed how a US Veteran sees the US, then here is pretty much everyone else’s take:
To the American people.
If one follows the public debate in Denmark, a clear picture emerges: the Danish population has had enough.
After decades of close cooperation, loyalty and shared military engagement, patience is wearing thin. Donald Trump’s repeated statements claiming that Denmark and other European nations have not been good allies have pushed the matter beyond what can be brushed aside as rhetoric.
For many Danes, these remarks were not merely incorrect. They were deeply insulting. They dismiss real sacrifices, real losses and real responsibility. They reduce twenty years of war, trauma and death to a talking point detached from reality.
Denmark stood by the United States in Afghanistan long after others left. France and Spain withdrew around 2011. Denmark did not. We stayed committed to a mission that, in hindsight, was fundamentally flawed — not because of Danish soldiers, but because of American leadership and strategic decisions.
The United States chose to divert focus to Iraq, undermining the mission in Afghanistan. Both wars ended as military and political failures under American command. Afghanistan collapsed. Iraq destabilized an entire region. These are not interpretations. They are outcomes.
This pattern is not new. Korea ended without victory. Vietnam cost the lives of 58,000 American soldiers and achieved no meaningful result. Again and again, U.S.-led military interventions leave behind instability, destruction and unresolved conflict.
The same pattern applies to political and covert interventions: the overthrow of Mossadegh in Iran, Allende in Chile, and numerous others. Democratic leaders replaced by dictators and despots. The driving force was rarely freedom. It was power and money.
From a Danish — and European — perspective, this contradiction can no longer be ignored.
The United States presents itself as a guardian of values, yet remains a society marked by deep structural corruption: recurring school shootings, mass incarceration unmatched in the Western world, the continued use of the death penalty, and a foreign policy characterized more by coercion than cooperation.
Donald Trump did not create this reality. He exposes it. Brutally and without restraint.
Europe still holds on to values that matter: dignity, responsibility, proportionality and respect. Money is not everything. Conduct matters. How allies are treated matters.
And this is where the line is crossed
Disparaging Danish soldiers — men and women who fought and died alongside American forces — is not politics. It is a violation of basic respect. It is an insult to those who served and to the families who lost loved ones.
That demands a response.
Denmark must demand a formal apology. From the Pentagon. And from Donald Trump himself. If such an apology is not given, there is no basis for further discussion about expanded cooperation — including strategic cooperation regarding Greenland.
We do not deepen cooperation with actors who show contempt for our veterans and their families. That is a red line. And it is non-negotiable.
If this position carries economic or strategic consequences, so be it. In our part of the world, values still outweigh money. And if those values are not respected, we are prepared to walk away.
Let Donald Trump speak. Let him rant. If the United States has something serious to say, it can put it in writing — and say it with respect.
Until then, Denmark — and Europe — should distance itself clearly and decisively.
Because dignity is not for sale.
And respect is not optional.
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It seems US is heading for Dictatorial rule.
Just like Germany was under Hitler.
And the way he is handling the Greenland issue it will pave way for any militarily strong nation to attack and takeover any weaker nation. And this indirectly gives a signal to Russia to continue what it is already doing with Ukraine!
And if US does take over Greenland, it want me be surprising to see China do similar takeovers in may parts of the world.
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The problem with the Greenland takeover is: Taiwan is in big danger, Ukraine, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania and many more states will be in a big danger from the same reasons. This will build up an international situation which we had before second world war and a bit also in cold war.
As the American people voted for Trump we will have this government until it’s end. When ever this wil be cause I don’t believe that “King” Trump will leave the white house after. And another thing is making me nervous. Trumps peace council. This also shows what he is thinking about democracy. The should be only one person deciding anything: He. For lifetime. That’s what he claimed for this organization. Instead of UNO which is doing this job.
And to speak truths: Mr. Trump wants to be the lifetime leader cause he can say what this organization will do. He decides what is good or bad. Not Europe, Asia, Africa, South America. HE. Donlad Trump. The one which deserves the nobel price when he is looking in the mirror. Dangerous at all.
He feels as “Donald Allmighty” and places himself as “GOD”. As the last instance for decisions for war, peace and ownership of countries. HE will decide what this peace council will say. For a billion $$$ you can be a member. Did he said to which accound this billion is to pay? I guess his own one.
Same like Xi Jinping.
Yes but worse. I doubt that Xi can do what he wants to. There is a good chance that he will not stay alife. He knows that. And he is doing a giid job. From the chineese perspective. What Trump is doing differs. America is was a democracy and people still want to have this back. That makes more problems than th post maho china for XI
Trumps remarks about NATO allies staying off the front lines are not only factually incorrect they are insulting
Article 5 has been invoked once
By the USA after 9/11
And NATO rallied
Some took up horrific positions in Afghanistan on the front lines
To suggest otherwise is truly an affront
Carney’s speech at Davos said exactly how I feel
The US is no longer a reliable partner so we have to pivot to others who are
I may not like Chinas government but as a trading partner they stick to their word and do not try to ruin their partners economies (as Trump has threatened to do)
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There is still a big difference there. Over in Iran people get shot just for protesting, often from far away with sniper rifles. Over in the US people get shot because they stick their noses into places they don’t belong. Don’t get me wrong: I’m not at all defending ICE and it’s actions, it’s horrific, but I’ve seen footage on both cases and both events start with the victim either harassing the ICE cops by sticking a phone in their faces or literally getting in their way. First case: the victims wife is filming ICE and calling them out and then the victim herself tries to drive off when an ICE cop is telling her to get out of the car, almost hitting the guy. Second case: ICE is trying to arrest a woman and the victim jumps right in, pulling the cops off of her. Why cross these guys when you KNOW that half of the ICE department are trigger happy ex military with exactly two weeks of training before they became ICE? Do these people have a death wish or are they just plain stupid?
I agree on Taiwan and Ukraine, but in which danger are Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania? People tend to believe that Putin wants to take back the complete old USSR and in his dreams that might be the case, but that’s not why he started the war against Ukraine. He wants to take back the part of Ukraine that for a long time belonged to Russia. This part of Ukraine still has a lot of pro-Russian people too, so he sees it as a stolen part of his country (which on some levels is even true, just read up on the history of eastern Ukraine). It also has lots of minerals and fertile lands, so Ukraine doesn’t want to part from it besides the fact that it has been Ukrainian territory for a long time now, acknowledged by almost every country on our planet.
The war on Ukraine is not as black and white as you might think.
Protesting ICE removing people without warrants & such is “where they dont belong” ?
Lets just say “Boston Tea party”
its part of American culture to protest
getting shot for that is just not suitable police action
under ANY scenario
The riots after George Floyd was killed didnt result in police shooting protestors
It wasnt ok then its not ok now
And that when the USSR broke up & Ukraine gave up its nuclear stockpile the US, or its president at least, assured the world that the USA would help guarantee Ukraines safety
Unfortunately
- the US president CANNOT commit the USA to any such thing (as we all see now) unless Congress ratifies such a treaty
- even WITH a treat, like NATO, the USA can be capricious and unreliable
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When he spoke in 2003 he told exactly what he will do as first steps: Ukraine and the three countries behind suvalki line. And I doubt that we really can protect them. Europe has to build up the ability to have a chance of defense in a case like this.
Over in the US people get shot because they stick their noses into places they don’t belong.
The roblem is: the people having their constitutional right to do exactly that. Demonstrate against something they can’t or won’t accept.
both events start with the victim either harassing the ICE cops by sticking a phone in their faces or literally getting in their way.
Holding a phone and filming brutal acivities isn’t forbidden in US so why should that be the reason for a police activity like this?
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Apparently you do not understand the right of citizens in the US… we do have a right to monitor government abuses and protest them. It is the Ice/Border patrol that are breaking the law and defying the constitution in how they are interacting with protesters.
What this administration is attempting is ethnic cleansing and nothing in service of that is out of bounds for them.
That should be obvious to any thinking person by now.
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They obstruct, arrest & detain members of congress who EXPLICITLY have the right to visit sites unannounced
ICE DHS blatantly breaks the law
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Ah…but you are defending ICE. Americans have Constitutional Rights. The 1st Amendment includes filming any/all law enforcement. The 4th Amendment is the right of a person (not just a citizen) for privacy which means that government can’t search you, or your stuff, whenever it wants - they need judicial sign-off on said activities. ICE has zero rights to stop you from filming them. They have zero rights to enter a home without a judicial warrant (note the difference between judicial and administrative). They have zero rights to stop a vehicle and detain a person unless that person is wanted for an immigration violation.
Meanwhile, the latest person murdered by ICE had a permit for his holstered weapon. 2nd amendment right. He was not holding said weapon and from the videos I’ve seen not threatening the ICE agents with said weapon. He was subdued when he was shot - not just once - but at least nine times.
So ‘sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong’ is the right of every American. It’s practically how the country was founded. And this violence was pretty much guaranteed by the Administration because this is what they want, the types of people they are hiring, the lack of training, and the guarantee of immunity from prosecution but the Administration.
”Doing their job” is what the good Germans did as they worked in the death camps.
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It’s not only the right of American people. With this government it becomes a duty!!! Cause somebody has to stop this government from rebuilding the USA from a democracy to an autocracy. To insure that USA is a place which grants really constitutional rights. And Mr. Trump is doing exavtly the opposite. When ICE agents or BORDER PATROL agents starting to do all this stuffs against the US constitution it becomes really dangerous. So people are on the street. Trump is acting, I only can repeat, like Hitler with his Gestapo. Cleansing the population from the hispanic people, cleansing the country. If he could he would try to kick out even US citizens. I guess that will be happened.
The Constitution is the only thing which can rescue the USA. And the partys would do a good job when - after this government - they would restrict the rights of the president. Allmighty Trump isn’t a good Idea and even the dumpest Republican should recognize that.
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Well, I doubt after the fiasco Ukraine is for Putin he will try to invade those countries now. Because let’s face it: not only did this war cost him a lot of casualties, it also cost him a big chunk of his support.
I’m obviously not from the US. When we went there on a vacation to the west coast (beautiful by the way!) we rented a car and our travel agency told us: “when you get pulled over, don’t get out of the car like you can over here in Europe, just stay seated and keep your hands on the wheel”. Why would anybody with some common sense of mind jump out of the car then, jumping around with hands in and out of your pockets? I know about the rights people have (or supposed to have) over in the US, but I also know you don’t mess around with US cops (no matter what division they are). They’re not supposed to just shoot you for not following their commands, but your second amendment makes them more cautious then any other law enforcement agency on the planet and I can understand that.
So no: I’m certainly not defending ICE’s actions and I understand the rights people have over there, but there is a BIG difference between having those rights and (mis?)using them to risk your own life. This guy tries to “save a woman” from ICE by physically engaging ICE cops (while carrying a conceiled weapon) from which he knows they’ve killed a woman just a few days ago! That’s not couragious in any world, that’s just plain STUPID, sticking your nose where is doesn’t belong in current circumstances.
And talking about that second amendment: I guess US citizens shouldn’t complain that much about somebody getting shot every now and then, it’s mostly the result of that amendment. Every nutcase can carry a gun and law enforcement becomes more trigger happy because of it…
I could never understand that part of US government… The president has too much power AND it’s also the only government position that one can have while you have a criminal record. In most countries with this government structure, the president only has a small amount of power, the chosen people rule the country. In the US it’s basically a tyrrany now with the president always having the power of veto.
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