President Trump in Washington on Monday. Credit Doug Mills/The New York Times.
Earlier, PZ had a post up about the latest shite from David Brooks, and now, two child psychologists have written to reprimand him for insulting children. I agree, comparing most children to Trump is doing them one hell of a disservice, there’s no need to malign them. If you must go with such comparisons, at least go with childish behaviours, such as being a brat. More apt. I also agree with making the point that he is not only an adult, whether or not he chooses to act like one, and he is highly dangerous to us all, no matter where we reside. The current move by global leaders to make sure he doesn’t have a tantrum is awful, not only because no one is treating him like an adult, apparently, no one feels they can afford to expect him to behave in an adult manner.
Re “When a Child Is Leading the World” (column, May 16):
Can we all please stop using “child” and “adolescent” as epithets? David Brooks laid out the ways that President Trump is still a child, and therefore deficient.
The three reasons Mr. Brooks gives are that he: 1) can’t sit still; 2) “needs perpetual approval to stabilize his sense of self”; and 3) is unable to “perceive how others are thinking.” Yet none of these flaws are true of children, certainly not the way they apply to Mr. Trump.
Most children have no trouble sitting still by the time they reach first grade. Nor do children need “perpetual approval.” If they did, they would find it wanting. Children are also quite adept at understanding the thoughts of others. Most feel sympathy for the suffering of others and are quick to help someone in need, even as toddlers.
Donald Trump is a dangerous person, and he occupies a position of unparalleled power. That is the reality that faces the country and the world. Stop insulting children and adolescents by comparing him to them, and hold him accountable for his own offenses.
JEFFREY JENSEN ARNETT
LENE ARNETT JENSEN
WORCESTER, MASS.
Via The NYT.
I think the comparison to children is valid to a point.
I think most parents read about how Trump behaves in many interactions and think “OMG, the terrible twos/threes”. The difference is that children are morally innocent. They need to learn, we teach them. Their brains adapt, they get appropriate input and stimuli. We don’t let them get away with bad and selfish behaviour. We set limits.
Trum gets away with everything. He has no limits. He got away with being a greedy selfish asshole for all his life and he knows it.
Oh yes, Trump does behave like a terrible toddler, no question. But I have to wonder just how much of that is reinforced by people caving and treating him that way, rather than as an adult who is expected to act adult.
I mean, in the NYT article, it mentions Merkel calling Trump to ask his ‘advice’ about something she damn well knew how to handle, much better than he would, but did it because he likes personal relationships, and likes giving advice, etc. FFS, everyone tiptoes and kowtows to this asshole. It’s a mistake.
Caine @3: I agree, it’s a mistake. Yet, it happens over and over with NPDs all over. !!!!! I think it’s because people just persistently keep thinking that the behavior is normal and they keep trying to normalize it in their minds. They end up thinking that if they just make the NPD happy, they will start to “come out of the mood” or whatever, and *actually* behave normally which of course is never going to happen. Truth: you can NOT make an NPD happy. Even being president is not enough. Nothing is ever good enough for them, nothing makes them happy. Yet, others persistently try. Hey, it’s worked in the past with others (who actually WERE normal) so they keep hoping.
I watched others really kowtow to our NPD. Unsuccessfully, of course. And the plain truth is… sadly… even IF people call an NPD to account, it does nothing to change their behavior. Ours was called into court, had restraints issued, had the police out many times. Made no difference. Even when they had a massive heart attach and were expected to die at any moment, first words out of the mouth: “I know I’ve cause trouble there (where they lived) and I don’t care, I’m going to keep doing it!”. Because that’s the whole thing: they do not care. They DON’T CARE about others. Not even a little. No empathy whatsoever.
If you do call them to account, they simply deny what just happened and tell you that you are lying, or crazy. There really is no way to deal with these people except to walk away and not deal with them. It just floors me that so many of the Regressive party thought they could control this guy. Well, I guess they are getting experience now, since “experience is what you get, when you don’t get what you wanted”.
Kestrel, yeah, I understand. I don’t think I’m concerned with Trump as such, but by how this is re-shaping other world leaders. In that sense, this is a mistake beyond reckoning. Like most everything else, I expect no one will realize until it’s too bloody late.
Uhm, which NYT article? There are a lot of these ;)
Oh, sorry! This one: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/18/world/middleeast/trump-saudi-arabia-foreign-trip.html?_r=0
Hm, yes, a big mistake for other world leaders to do this. It does make me wonder, however. How much have world leaders done this in the past, because the US as a whole behaves like an NPD? It depresses the shit out of me, but I think the US has always been to some extent a selfish and uncaring nation that everyone else tiptoes around.
Living with an NPD is like walking on eggshells as you never know when they are going to explode, or what tiny thing will set them off. For example it might be you, putting blackberries on your cereal in the morning. How much of this has always been true of the US?
The whole situation is just horrifying.
I think one of the reasons the Obamas were so respected is because they did act like adults who didn’t expect extras.
kestrel
I don’t think it’s ever been this bad.