Politics seems to go in cycles and I like to think we will return to some degree of sanity sooner or later. I've been wrong about Trump almost every step of the way, but I think I'm right about this. Of course, we may very well be in a war before Trump's first term is up. He almost has to start a war just to deflect from his own glaring incompetence.

Chris OConnor wrote:Anyone interested in the next fiction book discussion?

geo wrote: I hope Shermer is right. And, indeed, we have survived populist presidents before. It has been observed that some of the things Trump has said, both while campaigning and while serving as president, would have sunk almost any other candidate. Trump is Mr. Teflon in that respect. Does that mean that the game has changed permanently and from now on candidates will be able to say whatever they want without consequences? Or is what happening now in politics an anomaly, as Shermer says?