He has made it so.
I think it’s not so much the objects themselves, but the way he feels that he is perceived as dominant/important because he’s got these objects. I don’t think there’s much distinction there between physical and abstract assets. He wants it all, because if he’s got it all, he’s the most important guy.
That’s why he was making noise about Canada and Greenland; if he could get either into the US, he’d be the BEST President, save maybe Jefferson, who got the Louisiana Purchase. And I suspect he would twist the logic such that he’s better, because he wrested it from people who wanted to keep it, versus Jefferson, who just bought something that was on offer.
It’s all about insecurity. He’s so concerned with how he’s perceived as strong that he absolutely must be terribly insecure about it. Otherwise he wouldn’t give a damn and would do what he pleases.
I think you’re right, but with a slight tweak. He feels like if you’re powerful, the laws bend or break for you, and if you’re not powerful, they bind you. So the very way the laws treat you is a reflection of your importance and power. Of course, it’s really a reflection of your wealth, which in the US is where power stems from. Things like morals, ethics, etc.. are secondary; I’m sure he feels they’re not something that he should let get in his way if there’s a chance to improve his standing, etc..
No, it’s a reflection of richness, not wealth. Trump is, somehow, rich, despite not being at all wealthy. No, I don’t know what it is that makes someone get to be rich, either.
What is the distinction between being rich and being wealthy?
Shaq is rich but the man who pays him is wealthy. At least that’s how Chris Rock explained it.
Trump is a narcissist and everything has to be about him. He claims the prime minister of Japan, Pope Leo, and others were elected, in part, because of him, when the World Trade Center went down he made it a point on live television to let the world know he now had the tallest building in New York, he claimed in 2024 the economy was doing better because everyone knew he’d win the election, he’s ended, what, eight wars now, etc., etc.
I suppose he didn’t get enough love and affection from his parents when he was a child. I suspect one or both of his parents, or maybe other kids, often referred to him as “low IQ” or otherwise stupid. They man has a hole in him that can never be filled.
That doesn’t help at all. Do you mean like nouveau riche vs old money?
No. It’s just a matter of degree. The dude who can afford to pay Shaw is much, much wealthier. It was a bit funny when Chris Rock said it, but I don’t think most of us make a distinction between rich and wealthy. If you were to tell me Jeff Bezos was rich I wouldn’t correct you by saying he was wealthy.
Here is one definition of the difference.
There’s a BIG difference between being rich vs being wealthy. Most people don’t realize that trying to be rich can prevent you from becoming wealthy.
Yes, being rich means you have a lot of money. But being rich doesn’t necessarily mean you have a high net worth, or that you will always be “rich.” In fact it could mean you are in debt. Why? Most people who “are rich” spend more than they earn. They lavish on fancy cars and latest fashion designs.
Meanwhile wealthy people save as much money as possible and invest it in assets which is why they have a large net worth, spend less than they earn, want to build long-term wealth, and are understated (aka don’t own the flashiest things). They also know that in order to grow their wealth, they need to turn their cash into assets. That’s why wealthy people often diversify their assets through investment in the Stock market , Real estate and any other lucrative business.
The simple difference between a rich person and a wealthy person is that a wealthy person has sustainable wealth. In other words, a wealthy person will always be wealthy, whereas someone who is merely rich will only be so for a short period of time until the money is gone.
Wealth is measured by net worth. Trump just might be the least wealthy person in all of history, with a net worth of negative billions of dollars.
Being rich means that you’re the kind of person whom others are willing (for some unfathomable reason) to lend that much money to.
He feels he’s being maliciously picked on. Targeted— “it’s so unfair”. He’s entitled to get away with stuff and how dare anyone go after him.
As I see it, another Trump belief is that intent is all that matters. It doesn’t matter that his actions ruined the economy, he never intended it to ruin it - he only ever intended to have a red-hot great economy - so either any indicators that the economy sucks are wrong, or he is is being unfairly maligned because his intent was to have a good economy, never a bad one.
That is a common enough issue that it has name and a Wikipedia page: Fundamental Attribution Error
Semantic nonsense. In the examples they are just comparing a dude with $50 million vs $10 billion.
First of all there are only like 3000+ billionaires on the planet and less than 200 worth over ten billion.
But I think the point they are trying to make is a “rich” person comes into a large sum of money (either through inheritance or some other windfall or even a lucrative job) and they are just as quick to blow through it on clothes and cars and other extravagancies to show how “rich” they are.
A “wealthy” person buys revenue producing assets - businesses, rental properties, etc that create multiple income streams. They can still buy fancy cars and whatnot, but they purchase it using the income from their investments, not the principal.
IOW Rich man and Wealthy man come into $1 million.
Rich man buys a brand new $200,000 Porsche, paying cash
Wealthy man invests the money (lets say an S&P index fund with an average 10% return). Maybe he buys the same car borrowing against his holdings at a 7%-14% interest rate. He might even decide to get a used version of the same car because he’s not looking to impress anyone.
Wealth manager types differ on opinion, but generally having a high net worth isn’t as important as having steady income streams. I’ll give you an example. If you take out a $10 million mortgage on an apartment complex that generates $1 million a year profit for you, you might be in debt if real estate prices fall. But you’re still receiving income regardless.
I think the key is that he is a malignant narcissist who actually believes he is truly great, and that fuels his megalomania. I honestly believe he thought he was going to crush Iran in a week and be a conquering hero, and that’s why he did what he’s doing. It’s also a sign that he is an uneducated man because, if he knew any history at all, he would know that nothing happens easily or quickly in the Middle East.
So, now, he has to find a way to extricate us from HIS war and look like a winner doing it. His problem is that, throughout his presidency, he has been able to lie, do something different from what he said, and get away with it. In fact, he has prospered doing it. This isn’t working with Iran.
I volunteer with a woman who is a retired psychiatric hospital nurse and I asked her to give me her professional opinion on how he thinks and she said: “you could work on him for years and never figure it all out, some people are just fucking nuts.” So there is a professional, if somewhat jaded, opinion.
I think a more fundamental problem is that Trump sees himself as a leader. He doesn’t see doing the actual work as his role.
So he raises tariffs and commands the country to have a great economy. The economy crashes.
Trump doesn’t see this as a case where he made a bad decision. He sees it as he made a great decision but other people failed to do their job. It’s everyone else’s fault that the economy crashed despite his great leadership. They did a poor job in following.
Well I think Trump’s belief is that he is smarter and knows more than anyone else. So if he intends something and it goes wrong, someone must have fucked him over.
Trump is like Daniel Plainview in There Will Be Blood. I suspect Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary is and Steve Jobs was much the same.
There’s just something about them that regardless of how successful they are or how much money they have, not only can they not be happy, they can’t seem to tolerate anyone else experiencing success or happiness or even being right in any sort of dissenting opinion. Certainly not at their expense. It would maybe explain why Trump says inexplicably shitty things about the military or other groups and people.
Like his ego can’t handle the existence of any praise that isn’t directed at him.
That sort of thing seems common in authoritarian personalities. A symbol or ritual validates what they want, no matter how clearly false it is to everyone. So you have obviously fake elections and show trials, unearned medals and monuments they award to themselves, they strongarm themselves into being the winner of various competitions and so on, and unlike a normal person they seem to get some feeling of validation and satisfaction from it.
Even frauds normally care very much that other people believe they they’ve accomplished what they claim, but the authoritarian personality seems to only care about the trappings.
He’s the one who during the campaign told the parable of a maiden who clasped a venomous serpent to save it from freezing only to get bitten and die. “You knew what I was when you picked me up.”
I can only assume he didn’t believe a word of it.
Trump told that? If he did, he didn’t understand it at all.