Information-processing limitations that are actually learning disabilities are not (or should not be) a barrier to legitimately graduating from an Ivy-league or any other university.
True, but if Trump is impaired now he is very unlikely to have been unimpaired in college. (Nor did he have any kind of “reading assistant,” the other path to success for those afflicted with reading or learning disabilities. Not that we know of.)
It can’t be both, is what I mean.
I was wondering is the birther movement could be topped but literacy truthers might take the cake.
I firmly believe he is suffering from dementia. My dad started out just like the way Trump is behaving. Flip-flopping opinions in the same conversation. Frequent topic changes. Difficulty comprehending forms and other written materials. This was about three years ago. Now what comes out of his mouth is mostly gibberish, he cannot hold any kind of conversation, and the ability to comprehend anything he reads is mostly gone.
I know for a fact that you can bribe your way into Wharton. My cousin did it. All it took was a $10,000 (in 1950 dollars, though) donation to get him in. To get him out probably took a lot of tutoring. Maybe some cheating, although I cannot attest to that.
I don’t actually think Trump is illiterate, but I think his reading skills have deteriorated badly in nearly 50 years since he graduated. The surprise is that he could concentrate enough for the tutoring to help.
I met a rich guy’s kid once (the rich guy isn’t as rich as Trump but he’s got plen-ty) who at age 19 did not know things put in the mail must have postage. He thought mail service was free. I didn’t quite believe this when he was confused about it so I asked him didn’t he ever notice those little square things on, like, envelopes or the labels on the corners of packages. First he said he never really noticed, then when I pointed it out to him on actual mail he said something like “I don’t know, I guess I’d figure it was just for decoration.” This is a 100% true story! :smack: There were probably lots of other things this kid was completely ignorant about because of never “needing” to know. We probably all have heard of or even know someone who, say, doesn’t know how to write a check “these days” but this kid’s bafflement over needing to stamp a letter really blew my mind for some reason.
It made me think of a time I asked a former boyfriend the last time he went shopping (he frequented restaurants ALL THE TIME). He couldn’t remember. I asked how much he thought a pound of chicken costs. He said, “Let’s see, about $30?” :eek: Or how about the infamous photo op of one of the Bushes in a grocery store not knowing how to scan an item at the checkout. I get it, you have servants, but don’t any of these people ever watch tv or movies?!! :dubious:
Some people I know were speculating about him having some kind of dementia, if not necessarily Alzheimer’s, for a very specific reason having nothing to do with his reading (or nonreading) ability. They were saying how when you see him on stairs or even an escalator he always has a firm grip on a handrail, and how there are articles/profiles even from before this election season that mentioned him not liking stairs, going out of his way to avoid them, and so on. I think one magazine feature was about one of his new restaurants or hotels or something. At some point one of the handlers mentioned that Trump had never been in certain rooms because they’re up a stairway. (Guess no elevator access?)
Ok, so one of my acquaintances works extensively with dementia patients and was saying that fear of stairs is quite common in some people even with early dementia. She went so far as to say that in order to prevent people with dementia from wandering off or going into places where they should not be, special dark colored floor mats could be used that the person will not walk on because of their visual/spatial cognitive difficulties, the same ones that make them afraid of stairs. I hadn’t known that before, but I’ll admit I’ve been watching to see how Trump behaves around stairs ever since.
ETA: Of course, it’s also perfectly reasonable that any older person, or even not so older!, might be cautious with stairs and always use the handrail. Fear of falling for reasons not dementia related.
Just a quick note on his tweets – in some interview before he was elected, he said he doesn’t type them out himself, there’s someone whose job is to do that. He literally just yells out what he wants her (I distinctly recall this was a “her”) to tweet. Presumably he only yells when she’s not in the immediate vicinity, but I took from how he said it to mean this person is always nearby. No idea what this means for those 3 and 4 a.m. tweets, as I really doubt Melania is “her”! 
I guess we can take that to mean Melania never gets him to yell.
We can keep it simple. He can read us “Fox in Socks” just like Jesse Jackson once did.
I know this will be painful for many of you, but listen to Trump’s acceptance speech and then come back here and tell me you think he’s illiterate. You don’t have to listen to the whole thing. Just listen to the first 4 or 5 minutes.
Can you give some examples of what you see as intelligent behavior on his part? I certainly don’t detect much complexity in his spoken or written language and his propensity to lie suggests he doesn’t consider long-term consequences of his statements. He also resorts to playground level insults, reflecting a lack of mental maturity.
His “success” can be explained by his inherited life of privilege, hubris, and bullying.
I see Trump as a classic narcissist, but am interested in other points of view, because it is clear other people I respect IRL have a completely different view of him.
Are you sure you elected him, or did the Illuminati select him at Scalia’s funeral?
I completely agree. Pakman made some decent videos during the campaign and made some good points. But, since the election, he’s really been grasping at straws trying to discredit Trump.
The Drudge effect.
Not really. It’s just an overall judgment that he couldn’t have reached the goals he has without at least something above average in intelligence. I don’t mean much - maybe 110-115 IQ at most. He certainly hasn’t used it hard, but a truly stupid person wouldn’t be able to do some of the things he has even with billions to burn. He’s one of those “intelligent” people in which the advantage expresses itself entirely as cleverness rather than actual talent or ability.
That was Green Eggs and Ham.
I don’t think Trump is illiterate; I just think he’s disinclined to read. Reading requires having an interest in what the author is saying. Trump already thinks he knows everything he needs to know, so why read?
Have you ever read “Fox in Socks” out loud? That sucker is hard - an entire book of tongue twisters.
I regularly run into college students who read at a “Sally, Dick, and Jane” level. Though I now teach at community college, my experience has been the same at universities - including a Tier One institution.
I think the guy has a 4th-5th grade reading and comprehension level, and I don’t think it’s particularly rare amongst adult Americans. Our culture doesn’t put a lot of value on literacy; the average adult reads fewer than six books a year (and my wild guess is the Bible and Woodchipping for Dummies" are the standard fare, not Flaubert).
And, yes, (some) legacy and elite students get their hands held throughout college; the best exploration of this is in Tom Wolfe’s “I am Charlotte Simmons.”
I knew that. :smack: