# Question for Democrats - Restaurant exclusion sign **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [March 19, 2017, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543 "2017-03-19T14:47:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 14
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2017, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/261 "2017-03-21T20:56:00Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > If a Chinese restaurant serves stray dogs, and someone writes about it as such, it’s factual, unless you’re saying facts are racist. FYI there are still some people in Taiwan that as of recent were eating dog meat, although it is indeed an increasingly discouraged activity. [Consider the pleasure and delight of joining us where the conversation continues.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=20083277&postcount=95) ---
**Author:** ![El\_DeLuxo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_deluxo/32/9043_2.png) [@El\_DeLuxo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_DeLuxo)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2017, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/262 "2017-03-21T21:30:22Z")
[QUOTE=Beren Erchamion] No one with a functioning moral compass thought that, just like no one with a functioning moral compass finds Nixon to be worse than Pol Pot. [/QUOTE] Oh for goodness’ sake. You really are quite the little authoritarian arbiter of righteousness, aren’t you? I’m sure you’d have no problem enforcing your opinion on the world if you had the means, too. After all, you’re _in the right_, right? Which naturally mandates coercion. > [@](#): > > The only people who had a problem with Clinton were people who had a problem with the fact that she has a vagina. Now that is just flat out bullshit. You’re either trying to insult a huge segment of the population for not doing what you wanted them to, in the voice of a snotnose teenager --or else you really _do_ believe you’re some sort of moral authority. > [@](#): > > …Orange Hitler… > > …wouldn’t have been evil as well. You just forfeited any right that you may have had to be taken seriously in this conversation, child. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2017, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/263 "2017-03-21T21:39:32Z")
That’ll earn you a warning, DLuxN8R-13. Please don’t insult other posters outside the BBQ Pit. That’s what it’s there for. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6bbea6/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ace)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2017, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/264 "2017-03-21T22:27:33Z")
Trump is a dictator. Luckily, we live in a country where checks and balances generally limit the power of such people, regardless of the delusional minority whining about how _unfair_ and ‘disgraceful’ it is. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2017, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/265 "2017-03-21T22:35:39Z")
> [@Johnny\_Ace](#): > > Trump is a dictator. Luckily, we live in a country where checks and balances generally limit the power of such people, regardless of the delusional minority whining about how _unfair_ and ‘disgraceful’ it is. No. It’s possible he may wish he were a dictator, but in fact, in objective, verifiable fact, he is not. Spend a month living under Trujillo, or Ceaușescu, or Papa Doc. Those were dictators – they exercised totalitarian authority. Stop, please, with the absurd hyperbole. Trump is a mess; he’s an outlier on the range of political behavior, but he’s not a dictator. And you know that he isn’t. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2017, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/266 "2017-03-21T22:45:47Z")
Really. So far he hasn’t been able to get 2 different travel bans past the Ones Who Look. What kind of a dictator is that? ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6bbea6/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ace)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2017, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/267 "2017-03-21T22:59:23Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > No. It’s possible he may wish he were a dictator, but in fact, in objective, verifiable fact, he is not. > > Spend a month living under Trujillo, or Ceaușescu, or Papa Doc. Those were dictators – they exercised totalitarian authority. > > Stop, please, with the absurd hyperbole. Trump is a mess; he’s an outlier on the range of political behavior, but he’s not a dictator. And you know that he isn’t. Trump comes from an environment where his word was law, and he expects that it will be now as well. But he’s finding out that it’s not. Not absurd, not hyperbole in the slightest. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2017, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/268 "2017-03-21T23:02:12Z")
So, he’s NOT a dictator. Got it. ---
**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2017, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/269 "2017-03-21T23:17:46Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > You never responded to this post, **octopus**. No big deal, but I’m curious. It’s because the hijack got moderated so I dropped that line of conversation. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2017, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/270 "2017-03-21T23:23:52Z")
> [@octopus](#): > > It’s because the hijack got moderated so I dropped that line of conversation. Good move – I must have missed it. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2017, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/271 "2017-03-22T14:16:39Z")
> [@Johnny\_Ace](#): > > Trump comes from an environment where his word was law, and he expects that it will be now as well. But **he’s finding out that it’s not.** > > Not absurd, not hyperbole in the slightest. I have added emphasizing color and bold to the words that highlight the point I am making. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6bbea6/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ace)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2017, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/272 "2017-03-22T15:40:35Z")
I didn’t say that the country is a dictatorship; as a matter of fact, as you have bolded, I made clear that it’s not. I said that Trump is a dictator. And a petty one at that, in just about every sense of the word. ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2017, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/273 "2017-03-22T15:49:51Z")
How can the leader of a non-dictatorship be a dictator? Isn’t that kind of the point of being a dictator? ---
**Author:** ![Airbeck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/airbeck/32/6574_2.png) [@Airbeck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airbeck)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2017, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/274 "2017-03-22T16:24:43Z")
Would you guys prefer “Wannabe Dictator”? He seems to very much want that power, and appears to be very frustrated that he currently does not. His attacks on the judiciary for daring to block an EO of his speaks to that. ---
**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:** [March 22, 2017, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/275 "2017-03-22T16:34:36Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > How can the leader of a non-dictatorship be a dictator? Isn’t that kind of the point of being a dictator? A dictator is someone who makes pronouncements, and expects them to be acted upon without question. That is Trump. Now the fact that our country has protections and checks and balances to prevent the president from exercising the powers of a dictator does not in any way make Trump less of one. He has been a dictator in his companies, in his shows, in his Miss USA pageants, and in his business dealings. He has tried to be a dictator as president, and has thrown a hissy fit every time he finds that there are limits to his power. So yes, Trump = dictator. USA != dictatorship. (Yet, and hopefully never.) ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2017, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/276 "2017-03-22T16:39:58Z")
> [@Airbeck](#): > > Would you guys prefer “Wannabe Dictator”? > > He seems to very much want that power, and appears to be very frustrated that he currently does not. His attacks on the judiciary for daring to block an EO of his speaks to that. Meh, Obama had a pretty colorful history of attacking the judiciary too. Gorsuch said in his hearing that the job of a judge includes taking slings and arrows under bright lights, or something to that effect. And Obama was frustrated that he couldn’t do everything he wanted too. We survived him and I’m confident we’ll survive Trump. ---
**Author:** ![Bone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bone/32/407_2.png) [@Bone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bone)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2017, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/277 "2017-03-22T16:42:45Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > A dictator is someone who makes pronouncements, and expects them to be acted upon without question. That is Trump. And here you’ve redefined a word in a non-standard way to push a message. By that definition, I’m a dictator in my house. I’m a dictator at work. And…gasp…on this message board. But that’s not what a dictator is and the criticism is just as hollow as saying Trump is a fascist. It’s a silly criticism. ---
**Author:** ![HurricaneDitka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HurricaneDitka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HurricaneDitka)\ **Post date:** [March 22, 2017, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/278 "2017-03-22T16:52:54Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > A dictator is someone who makes pronouncements, and expects them to be acted upon without question. That is Trump. I don’t think that’s quite right. Here’s the first definition of ‘dictator’ Google gave me: > [@](#): > > a person exercising absolute power, especially a ruler who has absolute, unrestricted control in a government without hereditary succession. I don’t believe the definition of ‘dictator’ includes this element of ‘expects them to be acted upon’ that you’ve injected here. I like Airbeck’s “wannabe dictator” better, but I’m not even sure that’s correct. For example, on Roe v Wade, he doesn’t want the power to decide whether women can have abortions or not, he wants to see that power returned to the various state governments. ---
**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:** [March 22, 2017, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/279 "2017-03-22T16:59:56Z")
> [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > I don’t think that’s quite right. Here’s the first definition of ‘dictator’ Google gave me: > > I don’t believe the definition of ‘dictator’ includes this element of ‘expects them to be acted upon’ that you’ve injected here. I like Airbeck’s “wannabe dictator” better, but I’m not even sure that’s correct. For example, on Roe v Wade, he doesn’t want the power to decide whether women can have abortions or not, he wants to see that power returned to the various state governments. Poor example, as Trump is probably seriously pro-choice and is only pandering to the right wing on the abortion issue. As far as federalism concerns, I see no evidence that Trump has much interest in political philosophy. ---
**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:** [March 22, 2017, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543/280 "2017-03-22T17:30:31Z")
> [@Bone](#): > > And here you’ve redefined a word in a non-standard way to push a message. By that definition, I’m a dictator in my house. I’m a dictator at work. And…gasp…on this message board. But that’s not what a dictator is and the criticism is just as hollow as saying Trump is a fascist. It’s a silly criticism. No message being pushed. And yes, I would consider you to be a dictator in your home, and at work, if you are the boss, (I certainly am a dictator at my business, suggestions are welcome, but don’t for a second think it’s a democracy.) Not on this message board, as you are not the only mod, and you have a boss, that boss, however, is a dictator. > [@HurricaneDitka](#): > > I don’t think that’s quite right. Here’s the first definition of ‘dictator’ Google gave me: > > I don’t believe the definition of ‘dictator’ includes this element of ‘expects them to be acted upon’ that you’ve injected here. I like Airbeck’s “wannabe dictator” better, but I’m not even sure that’s correct. For example, on Roe v Wade, he doesn’t want the power to decide whether women can have abortions or not, he wants to see that power returned to the various state governments. You definition is “a person exercising absolute power”, with the caveat that it is especially when “has absolute, unrestricted control in a government without hereditary succession.” So, by the definition that you have chosen to use, a dictator does not have to have control over a government, it’s just what people generally think of when they think of a dictator. By pointing out that he is a dictator, I warn you that he will take advantage of any and all powers that he is able to, not to point out that he will somehow magically get powers that are explicitly not allowed to the government. If you want to call him a wannabe dictator, that’s fine too. But I feel the label fits without qualifiers, as it points more to personalty and motivation, and to his past as having absolute power over most of his dealings, than to the current circumstances of his employment. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543.md?page=13) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-for-democrats-restaurant-exclusion-sign/782543.md?page=15)