And they don’t even have the excuse of lead pipes contaminating their drinking water.

The last 8 years, on top of the prior 8, layered over the preceding decade or so, has given me a new appreciation of the “decline and fall” histories of ancient, and not so ancient, civilizations/nations.

Once the social elites and political leaders openly take moral probity off the table, promote acquiring personal wealth and power as the summum bonum, and celebrate hypocrisy as a strategy, they are greasing the skids for their trip to the bottom.
Sadly, they take everyone else along with them.
Or try to!
https://accordingtohoyt.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/img.jpg?w=1024

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Oddly, the science on lead poisoning in the Roman era is no longer as settled as we once believed.

https://arstechnica.com/science/2017/08/plumbing-discovery-reveals-the-rise-and-fall-of-the-roman-empire/

https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/07/did-lead-poisoning-cause-downfall-of-roman-empire-the-jury-is-still-out/

https://history.rigev.com/lead-pipes-in-ancient-rome/

CNN and PBS are accusing Elon Musk of conducting a Nazi salute on stage, and Democrats are calling for Trump to be impeached for the “crimes” he committed **during the oath of office.**

They really are brain damaged, aren’t they?

A good leader should be able to recover from being unprepared, since it is not possible to prepare for everything.

It’s hard to judge how prepared Trump should have been his first term, since so many things happened that were completely unprecedented.

Of course being unprepared can be considered a lack of leadership. It depends on the circumstances. Under ordinary circumstances – for example, a promotion in a company a person has worked at for quite some time – it can be evidence of lack of leadership.

But Trump was in extraordinary circumstances. He’d never had a government job before. He knew little about DC. He was surrounded by enemies, even in his own party. He had to learn almost everything. It wasn’t lack of leadership that caused his initial problems.

And now he’s showing more of the leadership abilities he always had, because (a) he knows a lot more about what he faces, and (b) he’s gained more allies over the years.

https://i.etsystatic.com/49016302/r/il/2e2c88/6457886407/il_794xN.6457886407_kf93.jpg

It shows Trump standing in front of the White House with outspread arms. Caption:
______________

DADDY’S HOME
______________

Such a difference to have a mentally sharp, battle-tested, alpha male running the show.

I suspect a fair number of Democrats secretly feel the same.

Yes, generally speaking, being unprepared can be considered a significant lack of leadership, as it demonstrates a failure to plan, anticipate challenges, and take necessary actions to guide a team effectively…

You said several things in that sentence. One was that Trump “looked like an unprepared Apprentice.” That’s the one I said everyone agreed with at first. At first, he was a relatively unprepared Apprentice. However, most people on the right disagreed with the claim that he ultimately lacked leadership ability and/or that his first term was some sort of disaster.

I don’t recall anyone disagreeing with your contention that Trump was initially unprepared in his first term.

Here’s what I wrote:

Took a lot of heat in the lead up to Election Day for saying Trump lacked Leadership Ability—he looked like an unprepared Apprentice and/or Second Louie fresh outta R.O.T.C., and that was reflected throughout his First Term.

His lack of “Leadership Ability” was what I was talking about. Was that sentence not structured right?

I’ve put up a new post about the fashions of the day, particularly Melania’s.

I don’t recall anyone disagreeing with your contention that Trump was initially unprepared in his first term. That’s widely, widely accepted on the right. The disagreement was with your contention that his first term was bad. Most people on the right think it was pretty darn good. Not perfect by any means, and marred by some of his initial personnel choices, but good.