# Pitting Der\_Trihs **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 5, 2026, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214 "2026-03-05T01:20:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2026, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/161 "2026-03-19T02:17:06Z")
> [@Leaper](#): > > But it’s pretty clear to me that he doesn’t think they can be beaten. Oftentimes I think exactly the same thing. _More_ than oftentimes, actually. ---
**Author:** ![JackieLikesVariety](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackielikesvariety/32/296_2.png) [@JackieLikesVariety](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JackieLikesVariety)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2026, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/162 "2026-03-19T16:19:49Z")
more and more doomers all the time - I understand, but it’s worrisome, too ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2026, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/163 "2026-03-19T16:23:57Z")
I, too, don’t think anyone’s going to “beat” Trump or MAGA in the next few years, either, but I have no illusion that I am important enough that they are going to come kill me. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2026, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/164 "2026-03-19T16:26:05Z")
I’m not worried they will kill me for being me, I’m worried they will kill me for being Jewish, and hanging out with a lot of queer friends. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2026, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/165 "2026-03-19T16:26:48Z")
I might even be brave enough to stand up for my queer friends… ---
**Author:** ![stretch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a6a055/32.png) [@stretch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stretch)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2026, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/166 "2026-03-20T01:02:42Z")
I think this is unfair. Just because he’s on the doom side doesn’t mean he’s given up. I also think we are fucked, but I still vote, protest, and write to my reps. I haven’t given up, but I’ve met people. We suck. I have low expectations that we’ll do better in the near term, and if we don’t it may be too late to recover important things we’ve lost not. Sorry that makes you want to pull the covers over your head. Maybe spend more time on what you can do to improve things, instead of whining that others don’t say the things that make you feel better about this shitshow. You know how to ignore or scroll past his posts. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2026, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/167 "2026-03-20T01:17:54Z")
> [@stretch](#): > > Sorry that makes you want to pull the covers over your head. Maybe spend more time on what you can do to improve things, instead of whining that others don’t say the things that make you feel better about this shitshow. I love this post so much. I am so sick of people being upset by those of us describing accurately. ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2026, 7:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/168 "2026-03-20T07:45:35Z")
Okay, I think I’ve figured out what the fundamental difference is here. Me, I take statements like “we’re fucked” at face value. Someone says that, I think, oh, they’re saying that there’s nothing we can do, that there’s no hope. I assume that person has given up on resisting, because we’re fucked, right? What does action matter when you’re fucked? What kind of coach tells his team “we’re fucked” and expects anything but a loss? If someone thinks that, and still tries to make a positive difference, I’m pleasantly surprised, because I would have expected differently. When someone says, for example, that he knows that human civilization to be consumed in nuclear hellfire within three years, I’m gonna assume that this person isn’t motivated to try to make a better future. I’d love to be wrong! If Der\_Trihs is engaging in activism or community mutual aid, or even just intends to vote for Dems next year, I’d be absolutely delighted. If someone says “it’s over” again and again on some ancient message board, then turns around and donates money and time to organizations trying to get people out of ICE facilities, then they’re doing God’s work in my book. But all I have on this board is what people say, and I don’t think I’m being unreasonable to draw certain conclusions based on what they say. Hope and morale are important. They’re the main reason why anyone does anything in times like these. If you’re discouraging that in the name of “being realistic about the situation,” I’m gonna judge, and I don’t think I’m wrong to do it. ---
**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:** [March 20, 2026, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/169 "2026-03-20T11:34:02Z")
That’s fair. It can indeed be a fundamental contradiction, but that’s human nature (at its best, one might say). There are many well documented examples of pilots doing anything they can to save a doomed plane, even during the last seconds when it’s 100% certain they will crash, and they surely know it. In our politics-and-humanity (or American society) case, none of us REALLY knows the future with such certainly, but the analogy may be apt. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2026, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/170 "2026-03-20T11:39:52Z")
We’re not done yet, these mid-terms will probably tell us though. If they stop the elections, Democracy in the US is doomed. If the elections proceed, the fight will continue at least and the Republicans will lose the House and maybe the Senate. They’ll still have the Executive and Judicial though. We are teetering on the brink, but we haven’t gone over quite yet. As to repairing the USA’s rep with the world, the will truly be a huge effort, but keep in mind how much Obama repaired out reputation following Bush/Cheney. ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2026, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/171 "2026-03-20T11:57:51Z")
> [@stretch](#): > > Maybe spend more time on what you can do to improve things, instead of whining that others don’t say the things that make you feel better about this shitshow. You know how to ignore or scroll past his posts. Agreed. In the early days of this presidency there were several Dope threads that were critical of Trump but remained optimistic. And anyone that replied with a more pessimistic take was accused of being defeatist or even “part of the problem”. Let’s not go down that road again. I think things are likely to get a lot worse before they get any better _and_ I am trying to do what I can to fight back. > [@stretch](#): > > We suck I’d be careful with that though. If there’s a sentiment that seems to be held by basically all of the MAGA and other far right loonies I meet, it’s the belief that humans are inherently bad and that the world is getting worse. Path to the dark side, yo. ---
**Author:** ![JackieLikesVariety](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackielikesvariety/32/296_2.png) [@JackieLikesVariety](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JackieLikesVariety)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2026, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/172 "2026-03-20T14:04:19Z")
> [@Mijin](#): > > If there’s a sentiment that seems to be held by basically all of the MAGA and other far right loonies I meet, it’s the belief that humans are inherently bad and that the world is getting worse. Path to the dark side, yo. wise words, and I’m glad to be reminded of this. That it’s coming from a little dog somehow helps. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2026, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/173 "2026-03-20T14:20:35Z")
To be somewhat fair, that people are inherently bad and the world is getting worse seems to be DTs take as well. It’s worth noting that lest people abandon hope, that while the general thrust of DTs takes is generally in the correct direction, the magnitude is often quite off. Looking back 20-25 years at Bush era posts, and apparently we would have been in a full on fascist takeover of the US by 2010 and many of us long ago been disappeared or incarcerated. Those kinds of …inaccuracies are no small part of why DTs posts were often dismissed or minimized. Chicken Little is not supposed to be a paragon to emulate. That said, this is still a weak Pitting. DT might not be everybody’s cup of tea and still occasionally toes over the line but over the last decade or so has been immeasurably better behaved in general. Especially compared to the demented trocks and trolls that often get a more spirited defense by many regular posters. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2026, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/174 "2026-03-20T14:32:16Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > keep in mind how much Obama repaired out reputation following Bush/Cheney. Not as much as you might think. Because the USA didn’t stop killing people in foreign countries just because you suddenly had a Black president. Far from it.[Barack Obama is pushing gun control at home, but he's a killer abroad | Gary Younge | The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/feb/10/obama-gun-control-drones-killer) Simple questions - did he close Guantanamo Bay in a year, like he promised and signed off on? What pain did he deliver to Wall Street after the 2008 crisis? What support did he give Palestinians to match the [military aid given to Israel](https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/us-officials-israel-get-38-billion-military-aid)? How high did he prioritize climate change action vs ACA (answer, [not at all](https://www.currentaffairs.org/news/2023/06/we-now-know-the-full-extent-of-obamas-disastrous-apathy-toward-the-climate-crisis)), and which do you think affects the whole world more? We saw all those things and really, while we’re perfectly capable of seeing that Democrats are _better_ than Republicans, we’re also not in the habit of confusing “better than pure evil” with “good”. What would repair America’s reputation would be it actually not being a hegemonic despot that objectively makes the world worse by the day, and that certainly didn’t happen on Obama’s watch. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2026, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/175 "2026-03-20T14:35:14Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > Simple questions - did he close Guantanamo Bay in a year, like he promised and signed off on? I agree with the substance of your post, I just wanted to point out that Obama did try to close Guantanamo and Republicans blocked him. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2026, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/176 "2026-03-20T14:35:38Z")
He was pretty disappointing to some of us at home, too. I really did expect him to close the Guantanamo Bay prison camp, for instance. And to remove cannabis from the list of schedule 1 drugs, to give a domestic example. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2026, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/177 "2026-03-20T14:36:57Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > > [@MrDibble](#): > > > > Simple questions - did he close Guantanamo Bay in a year, like he promised and signed off on? > > I agree with the substance of your post, I just wanted to point out that Obama did try to close Guantanamo and Republicans blocked him. Yes, the Republicans blocked essentially everything he attempted to do. And also, i think the executive could close Guantanamo without congressional permission. Send all the prisoners home, and what’s left? ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2026, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/178 "2026-03-20T14:43:37Z")
I mean, the US government normalizing more and more executive overreach has pretty much landed us where we are today. I don’t know if it would have been overreach for him to close Guantanamo, but Presidents doing whatever they want regardless of what Congress wants is part of the overall problem. And Obama was a part of that problem. I think on the whole I feel fairly neutral about his Presidency. He didn’t do a lot of what he said he would do, but he faced constant opposition so I’m not sure it’s reasonable to expect that he would. Unlike Trump he believed Congressional approval was a good idea for most things. ---
**Author:** ![We\_re\_wolves\_not\_werewolves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/838e76/32.png) [@We\_re\_wolves\_not\_werewolves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/We_re_wolves_not_werewolves)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2026, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/179 "2026-03-20T14:43:56Z")
> [@Thing.Fish](#): > > Der Trihs contributes about 1000% more to this board than the troll who baited him into that warning. so what? The rules still apply to him, just like everyone else ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2026, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214/180 "2026-03-20T14:48:50Z")
I refuse to believe America, the great experiment, is done. If you line countries up 1, 2, 3…we are no where near the worse. What this young(in the scheme of things)country has done in a short 250 years is nothing short of amazing. We have had big big problems over these years. Things have not always been right or smooth. We still have a BIG problem: Trump is doing some damage. I posit he’s doing himself more harm. And I hope our brilliant friends abroad realize the problem _is_ Trump and not your average American. If we see it, I’m sure any thinking person anywhere else can see it. I believe in my heart of hearts we _can_ get thru this time. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-der-trihs/1028214.md?page=10)