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Politics : The Trump Presidency -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: i-node who wrote (329942)	4/6/2025 6:37:06 PM
From: Wharf Rat	1 Recommendation Recommended By rdkflorida2 Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 356544

"China controls the biggest reserves of Rare Earth minerals, to which we sorely need" We don't need their resources. What we need are processors. Cowboy State Daily: Rare Earths Discovery Near Wheatland So Big It Could Be World Leader – American Rare Earths U.S. Begins Forging Rare Earth Supply Chain (nationaldefensemagazine.org) MOUNTAIN PASS, California — From the smartphone in your pocket to magnets powering a growing number of electric vehicles on the road, rare earth elements are the foundational components for some of the most commonly used technologies today. But over the last three decades, Beijing has held an iron grip on the world’s supply chain for rare earth elements such that nearly all materials — no matter where in the world they are mined — travel to China for refinement before they can be used in technologies.

To: i-node who wrote (329942)	4/6/2025 6:52:18 PM
From: Lane3	2 Recommendations Recommended By bentway Wharf Rat Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 356544

There is surely a continuum from bullying to negotiation. A negotiation does have some inherent power element. Where something sits on the continuum would be a matter of how coercive vs collaborative it is overall. Here's what my AI has to say about it: Bullying: Definition: Using power, fear, or intimidation to control or coerce someone into compliance. Characteristics: Aggression, threats, humiliation, and often one-sided decision-making. Goal: To dominate and impose one's will without consideration for the other party’s needs or feelings. Impact: Bullying damages relationships, creates resentment, and often leaves the targeted individual feeling powerless or hurt. Negotiation: Definition: A collaborative process where parties communicate to reach a mutually beneficial agreement. Characteristics: Dialogue, compromise, understanding, and respect for the other party's interests and concerns. Goal: To find common ground and achieve outcomes that are acceptable to all involved. There is nothing in Trump's approach that fits that description of negotiation; it's virtually all bullying. You choose to characterize his bullying as negotiation. Your doing so does not make it so. You're just putting lipstick on a pig. Unless, of course, you don't consider a bully a pig.

To: i-node who wrote (329942)	4/6/2025 8:01:08 PM
From: combjelly	Respond to of 356544

Before you can leverage power, one must understand what you do and don't have. Especially what the limits are. Trump doesn't hold all the cards. He is pretending he does, but that isn't reality. Which is fine, as long as his opponents don't know that. Maybe he figures that there is enough uncertainty that everyone will just fold. But the fact of the matter is that they know he is just FOS. Maybe, just maybe, the world would pause and let Trump negotiate with each country, individually and in isolation, while making sure that nothing actually changes until he is ready to press the "Next Turn" button he could actually do what you claim he is doing. Maybe not, though. Regardless, that isn't how reality actually works. He can[t deal with countries, individually and in isolation like that. They are free to, and perfectly capable of, forming trading groups and coalitions that excludes the US. And, because in the real world people remember when you deliberately screw them over and start responding accordingly, and suddenly your opportunities for screwing over others comes to an abrupt halt. And then the cold, clammy regrets set in. You wake up and find you have pissed the bed.