The Trump Presidency, Season 2

[Veritable Quandry]

Of course if that even would be a problem with university students, than God help us all.
It is the huge group with capacities below them, that worries me.

Half of people are below average.

 

[Innula Zenovka]

Of course if that even would be a problem with university students, than God help us all.
It is the huge group with capacities below them, that worries me.

I wonder if the reason so many of them had difficulty with "a quarter of an hour" could be that it's an analogue rather than a digital concept, or at least it's far more intuitive if you're used to looking at analogue clocks and watches, on which it's obvious 15 minutes is a quarter of an hour, than if you're used to digital, numerical, displays. I think so many of them said "25 minutes" because they were thinking of a quarter being 25 percent of something.

 

[Sid]

Half of people are below average.

That has been from all ages of course.

But the group between average and university is worrisome IMHO.
Lot's of them use Internet, Social Media and AI, but don't use their own brainpower enough most of the time to judge what they read, hear and see.

 

[GoblinCampFollower]

I wonder if the reason so many of them had difficulty with "a quarter of an hour" could be that it's an analogue rather than a digital concept, or at least it's far more intuitive if you're used to looking at analogue clocks and watches, on which it's obvious 15 minutes is a quarter of an hour, than if you're used to digital, numerical, displays. I think so many of them said "25 minutes" because they were thinking of a quarter being 25 percent of something.

Also, I'm a lot better at math than most, but if you put a camera in my face when I'm not ready I might not be able to count how many letters are in my name. Combine that with just editing out the people who got it right, and you can make videos like this very easily. ...also, I bet the wisest students often know better than to talk to these people at all.

 

[Casey Pelous]

Half of people are below average.

Half of people will dispute this statement.

 

[Kamilah Hauptmann]

Random reminder the President of the USA is a crypto scammer

 

[Noodles]

Random reminder the President of the USA is a crypto scammer

Also a rapist and a pedo.

 

[Khamon]

I wonder if the reason so many of them had difficulty with "a quarter of an hour" could be that it's an analogue rather than a digital concept, or at least it's far more intuitive if you're used to looking at analogue clocks and watches, on which it's obvious 15 minutes is a quarter of an hour, than if you're used to digital, numerical, displays. I think so many of them said "25 minutes" because they were thinking of a quarter being 25 percent of something.

Yes and this is exactly the issue. Analogue visualization, stepwise planning and analysis, reading comprehension, general critical thinking skills are not being promoted and fostered in the US educational system. We're already to a point that college students look up, or ask for, a final direct answer or action to be taken. There is little, if any, concern with how the answer was derived or that it may be incorrect, even dangerous.

I see it clearly in the networking and programming class. Questions, based on experience and covered material, but meant to promote discussion, estimation, and ZOMGS flat out guessing the next concepts and steps, are met with immediate typing or talking to SIRI looking for the answer rather than participating in the exercise of thinking through the needs and requirements and possibilities of solving the puzzle. I say puzzle because they have the pieces, well most of them, the important ones, they just have to glue it together.

It's a critical moment that occurs several times during those classes. And the majority of students over the past five years have been woefully lacking. For disclosure, these are military prep cadets, from across the country, generally top students pursuing careers. They are good students with excellent habits. But problem solving is not their forte and it has become undeniable. I'm having to wholly revamp teaching around the concept that they will do the job as instructed without caring that it is or isn't functional, efficient, or applicable to any future solution.

 

[Free]

Not sure about that argument -- whatever these women say, it's hardly likely he'll be successfully impeached over it, and unless nature takes a hand Tump will continue to be POTUS until January 2029 at the earliest.

...

So, sadly, I don't see how these women's accounts of his rapes and sexual assaults are going to be any more effective. It would be nice to think we lived in a world where that was the case, but unfortunately we don't.

I guess they should just keep their mouths shut and not talk about what happened to them.

 

[GoblinCampFollower]

I guess they should just keep their mouths shut and not talk about what happened to them.

Of course they should speak out. I don't think that's what Innula meant. Just that Trump's cult won't let republicans impeach him anyway.

 

[Innula Zenovka]

I guess they should just keep their mouths shut and not talk about what happened to them.

No. But I think Jack Hopkins, the author of the article, is being wildly over-optimistic when he writes

All it takes is one credible…documented survivor account naming Trump directly… with dates…places…corroborating details…to detonate a scandal no “witch hunt” narrative can contain.

First, I don't think there's any credible route to remove Trump from power this side of the next presidential elections, no matter what documented survivor accounts materialise.

Second, even if there were, I don't think that the Republicans in the House of Representatives or the Senate would take it, no matter what new evidence about Trump's wrongdoings might emerge.

Do you disagree?

 

[Free]

Do you disagree?

I'm neutral on the writer's central thesis, but I don't want any effort that adds to Trump's political grief and (hopefully) eventual demise to get shit upon.

 

[Free]

Some decent news on the Epstein files lawsuit.

Judge who presided over Trump’s federal election interference case takes charge of Epstein files lawsuit

The lawsuit from DFF demands the DOJ release Jeffrey Epstein-related files, including the alleged client list, under FOIA requests

news.meaww.com

A high-stakes lawsuit demanding the release of secret government records related to Jeffrey Epstein has been assigned to US District Judge Tanya Chutkan, known for her tough rulings against President Donald Trump.

The Democracy Forward Foundation (DFF), a nonprofit watchdog group, is pressing the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the FBI to disclose any communications involving Trump officials about Epstein, as well as any interactions between Trump and Epstein himself.

Judge Chutkan is no stranger to cases involving Trump. She famously presided over his federal election interference trial and has ruled against him in several high-profile legal battles.

At the very least, I can expect any ruling that comes down from her to be fair.

 

[Bartholomew Gallacher]

Twitler put the police of Washington, D.C., under federal control today. Also he deployed 800 men of the National Guard.

As reason why he's claming out of control crime problems in the city.

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/08/11/trump-washington-crime-fed-national-guard-homeless.html

 

[Casey Pelous]

Twitler put the police of Washington, D.C., under federal control today. Also he deployed 800 men of the National Guard.

As reason why he's claming out of control crime problems in the city.

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/08/11/trump-washington-crime-fed-national-guard-homeless.html

Test run for what they'll want to implement in blue cities, and he says the police can "do whatever the hell they want." It is not hard to imagine that includes "discouraging" anyone from reporting any excesses, much less giving a good ol' fashioned beatdown to anyone getting "sassy" or "uppity." (I mean, come on, we know who "crime" is in these bastards' so-called minds.)

Any foreigner seriously contemplating coming to this shithole country is exhibiting poor judgment, but going to DC now is just plain insane.

That this is happening at all, and then that it is happening in the city filled with truly breathtaking monuments to democracy and freedom is literally making me nauseous.

 

[Casey Pelous]

It occurs to me that FIFA is well and truly screwed for the World Cup. 12 of the 16 venues are in the US and FIFA requires a minimum of 40,000 seating capacity. There aren't a lot of those 40,000 seaters in Canada and those that exist are already booked for the Cup.

I think I'll just take a moment here to contemplate how glad I am that I'm not FIFA. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh ........................

 

[GoblinCampFollower]

Half of people will dispute this statement.

Well.... as a math geek, I can tell you this is NOT necessarily, always true. The idea half are above and half are below assumes a good normal distribution. Not all statistical distributions are half and half so evenly like the normal curve. We think intelligence is pretty close to a perfect bell curve, but income actually is not, despite popular belief. Average income in the USA is around 80K a year, but median is closer to 50k. So, MOST people are actually below average income. Not a simple 50/50 like many think.

It's kind of a topic among statisticians that many other disciplines will just assume everything is a normal distribution without testing that out.

 

[Veritable Quandry]

 

[Casey Pelous]

As someone who once wrote a book that was, essentially, "How to Understand This Particular Statistical Process if You're Not A Math Person" ......

Spoiler

 

[GoblinCampFollower]

As someone who once wrote a book that was, essentially, "How to Understand This Particular Statistical Process if You're Not A Math Person" ......

Spoiler

I KNOW! I was just sharing a fun fact!