# A Perfectly Reasonable Amount of Schadenfreude about Things Happening to Trump & His Enablers (Part 1) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 14, 2020, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537 "2020-11-14T00:09:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 439
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8767 "2023-02-02T18:30:11Z")
> [@Horatius](#): > > I’m kind of okay with elected officials reciting a pledge every now and then, in hopes that it will remind them that they have duties to the nation beyond those of regular citizens, In theory. But there is no evidence to support it. For example, I’m sure Trump pledged allegiance many times. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/D208aA5Pn3g/hqdefault.jpg "Trump's Pledge of Allegiance goes viral") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D208aA5Pn3g) ---
**Author:** ![gnarator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gnarator/32/8266_2.png) [@gnarator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnarator)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8768 "2023-02-02T18:33:40Z")
> [@wguy123](#): > > > [@Procrustus](#): > > > > The National Anthem at a ball game just feels out of place. > > I agree. Why don’t we sing it before the opera starts? Why don’t we sing it before Old Faithful erupts? I went to the symphony once at their first performance of the season. They led off with “The Star Spangled Banner.” I liked it. Baseball used to just play the national anthem on opening day, too. I’m not sure when it turned into every game. It’s still better than that Lee Greenwood “God Bless the USA” song they insist on playing. ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8769 "2023-02-02T18:35:42Z")
> [@Procrustus](#): > > For example, I’m sure Trump pledged allegiance many times. Well, yeah, every pledge is a promise, but so is every contract, and we know what Trump thinks of _those._ And that’s ultimately the problem with pledges and oaths and the like: those who need them the most are the most likely to disregard them. A person of good character doesn’t need a pledge to get them to do the right thing, and no pledge will compel a person of bad character to do the right thing. I suppose there’s a few people in the squishy middle that might be influenced, though. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8770 "2023-02-02T18:36:31Z")
> [@gnarator](#): > > It’s still better than that Lee Greenwood “God Bless the USA” song they insist on playing. And on Sundays they sing God Bless America at the MLB games during hte 7th inning sketch. And the idiots act like it’s some kind of National Anthem and take off their hats and stand up. ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8771 "2023-02-02T18:40:44Z")
> [@commasense](#): > > I keep clicking here hoping to get some more schadenfreude, and all I’m getting is hijacks about the pledge, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8772 "2023-02-02T18:45:21Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > Sure, there’s a communal experience, but that can be had by singing “Take me out to the ball game.” That’s nice too! > [@k9bfriender](#): > > What does football have to do with patriotism? I think of patriotism - and again, distinctly from nationalism et al - as a general sense of national community. If you get a huge group of Americans together, singing\* the Anthem is just a way of acknowledging that community. But I’ll admit that I need to enforce a specific frame of mind to differentiate patriotism from nationalism in our current sociopolitical climate. I’m no less soured on this stuff than anybody else and I don’t blame anybody who wants to completely excise patriotic displays from public life. \*don’t get me started on what a shit song the anthem is to sing for most people. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8773 "2023-02-02T18:46:43Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > It was also a pledge that you chose to take. Not a pledge you were required to take. Yes and no. If someone refused to make the pledge they wouldn’t be accepted in class. My sifu took that sort of thing seriously. But they could just not be in class anymore if they didn’t want to make the pledge. > [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Did you ever say, ‘I will use my King Fu only for niceness, instead of evil’? No, but evil people can be nice also. The people who are really good at being evil often are. Everyone loved Ted Bundy until they found out he was a serial killer. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8774 "2023-02-02T18:49:48Z")
> [@Horatius](#): > > This pledge just lets people get away with the easy part of flag-waving, while ignoring the hard part of actually living up to the principles the US was founded upon. Kind of like how self-professed “Christians” often have trouble living up to Christ’s teachings. Hmm… I’m sensing a pattern here… ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8775 "2023-02-02T18:51:00Z")
> [@Horatius](#): > > A person of good character doesn’t need a pledge to get them to do the right thing, and no pledge will compel a person of bad character to do the right thing. It sounds stupid but there have been a couple of occasions where someone wanted to get into a physical fight with me and I remembered I promised not to do it. It shouldn’t have mattered because violence is wrong anyway unless it’s a last resort. But when convincing myself to walk away, it was another thing that I was able to draw on when making that decision. Sometimes it really is helpful. Psychology can be weird, brains are weird. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8776 "2023-02-02T19:09:56Z")
> [@Johnny\_Bravo](#): > > But I’ll admit that I need to enforce a specific frame of mind to differentiate patriotism from nationalism in our current sociopolitical climate. I’m no less soured on this stuff than anybody else and I don’t blame anybody who wants to completely excise patriotic displays from public life. I don’t want it removed completely from public life, I just don’t want it in _all_ aspects of public life. Fourth of July, sure, try to hit those high notes. At the Memorial Day parade, have the local high school marching band play it. But before _every single time_ that a sports competition is about to take place starts getting into jingoism territory, IMO. > [@Atamasama](#): > > Yes and no. If someone refused to make the pledge they wouldn’t be accepted in class. If I give someone a gun, it’s reasonable for me to ask them to pledge to use it responsibly, and if they refuse, I don’t give them the gun. They were teaching you techniques you could use to hurt people, and required you pledge that you wouldn’t use them negligently. For whatever good a pledge does, I have no problem with that. It’s a whole different matter that someone won’t be accepted in society if they don’t make their daily show of forced patriotism. > [@Atamasama](#): > > It sounds stupid but there have been a couple of occasions where someone wanted to get into a physical fight with me and I remembered I promised not to do it. But, that’s because the promise you made means something to you. If you just mouthed meaningless words along with the rest of the class, then the promise would be just as meaningless. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8777 "2023-02-02T19:28:34Z")
> [@bobot](#): > > Well it says that one is patriotic without one having to actually demonstrate patriotic ideals. I believe the Republicans call it “virtue signalling” and place a great value on it. Terrific post. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8778 "2023-02-02T19:28:35Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > But, that’s because the promise you made means something to you. If you just mouthed meaningless words along with the rest of the class, then the promise would be just as meaningless. Absolutely. I’m certain there were people in the class who later beat the shit out of people. Get any large group of people together and statistically speaking you’re going to have sone assholes. Even if they aren’t being a problem in class. It’s just a promise you’re making, it’s not a behavioral chip. ---
**Author:** ![Roderick\_Femm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roderick_femm/32/14875_2.png) [@Roderick\_Femm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roderick_Femm)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8779 "2023-02-02T20:00:12Z")
Enough already. I call this a hijack – 46 posts and no schadenfreude. Here’s a little one from earlier today: > **[FBI is expected to search Mike Pence's home and office for classified...](https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/fbi-is-expected-to-search-mike-pences-home-and-office-for-classified-materials-soon/ar-AA172wES)** > > The FBI is expected to search former Vice President Mike Pence's house in Indiana and office in Washington for additional classified materials soon, sources familiar with the matter tell CNN. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8780 "2023-02-02T20:11:37Z")
To be fair, the overwhelming abundance of schadenfreude given by Pence absolutely bursting the Right’s bubble re: Biden’s documents allowed for a bit of a threadjack. But you’re right- onward and schadenfreudely-ward! ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8781 "2023-02-02T20:22:00Z")
> [@Roderick\_Femm](#): > > Enough already. I call this a hijack – 46 posts and no schadenfreude. Thank you. I have no problem with the odd hijack, but when I see a large number of new posts in the Schadenfreude thread and think something big has happened, and then find that it’s bickering about pledges and anthems, it’s just … cruel! ---
**Author:** ![74westy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/74westy/32/3950_2.png) [@74westy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/74westy)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8782 "2023-02-02T20:59:52Z")
If this thread had a skilled chair like the House Judiciary Committee, none of this would have happened. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8783 "2023-02-02T22:01:08Z")
> [@bobot](#): > > Well it says that one is patriotic without one having to actually demonstrate patriotic ideals. I believe the Republicans call it “virtue signalling” and place a great value on it. Way back in 2020, I posted [this](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-you-surprised-by-the-backlash-from-kaepernick-other-athletes-kneeling-vs-the-public/842146/195), in which I coined the term _comfort patriotism_. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8784 "2023-02-02T23:08:41Z")
Capitol rioter breaks down crying in court — gets hit with 68-month prison sentence: > **[Capitol rioter breaks down crying in court — gets hit with 68-month prison...](https://www.rawstory.com/capitol-rioter-daniel-caldwell-2659346191/)** > > A Marine Corps veteran who participated in the January 6 insurrection just received 68 months in prison — one of the longest sentences of anyone involved in the attack to date — shortly after giving a tearful speech to the judge trying to beg for... ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8785 "2023-02-02T23:25:28Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > Way back in 2020, I posted [this](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-you-surprised-by-the-backlash-from-kaepernick-other-athletes-kneeling-vs-the-public/842146/195), in which I coined the term _comfort patriotism_. Love it. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2023, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537/8786 "2023-02-02T23:26:27Z")
I heard the voices crying in the wilderness and have brought emergency, late-breaking Schadenfreude for The People: > [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537.md?page=438) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-perfectly-reasonable-amount-of-schadenfreude-about-things-happening-to-trump-his-enablers-part-1/925537.md?page=440)