Why is this flagged? WSJ is not some obscure blog.
My guess is that the discussions lead nowhere except to predictable rants about America = bad. There is no discourse here, no rational conversations, just the same ranting we see over and over.
Trump made more than $1B on crypto deals, part of 2025 windfall
51–60 of 62 posts
Re: Trump made more than $1B on crypto deals, part of 2025 windfall
#52Corruption is what kills countries. Our inability to stop this is a very bad sign about our future.
Corruption is ever present. No counter to it is what kills countries. The US has been security by obscurity in so many ways, this latest abuse is just further evidence that counting on it would only ever delay abuse for [checks calendar] about 250 years. And really is has been in free fall for decades, the fact that so many recent examples are so flagrant (along with this) is what is upsetting (mainly because no one…
In some countries (e.g. Uruguay) it’s possible to ingrain anticorruption ideals into the fabric of society. This lowers the overall level of corruption as citizens are more likely to feel it’s wrong and they’re raised to call out corruption when they see it. I guess we’d call this “social responsibility”. Of course, the social aspect must be coupled with governmental and legislative changes aimed directly at increasing transparency and reducing corruption—this is what was done in Uruguay, at least.
Corruption isn’t eliminated entirely but is drastically reduced. Taxes then get spent on society instead of corrupt politicians. The result is more bureaucracy but it also placed the country lower than the US on the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI)[0]. CPI has its own measurement issues but is the best we’ve got.
[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corruption_Perceptions_Index
Re: Trump made more than $1B on crypto deals, part of 2025 windfall
#53Why is this flagged? WSJ is not some obscure blog.
There is a sustained censorship campaign on HN to suppress everything that make the current administration looks bad.
SV billionaires, including YC related folks, paid lots of money to buy the presidency for Trump.
Re: Trump made more than $1B on crypto deals, part of 2025 windfall
#54Why is this flagged? WSJ is not some obscure blog.
My guess is that the discussions lead nowhere except to predictable rants about America = bad. There is no discourse here, no rational conversations, just the same ranting we see over and over.
Welp, might as well accept the status quo and go back to consuming our soma.
Re: Trump made more than $1B on crypto deals, part of 2025 windfall
#55Earlier quoted context omitted.
Sadly I think not. They had their opportunity in 2020.
Biden ran on a platform of Back to Normal. That’s what voters wanted after four years of crazy. I think the zeitgeist today is different. Because Trump has dialed the crazy up to eleven in his second term and a lot of Dems are now pissed . That’s why democratic socialism/leftism is having a resurgence. And, based on what I’m seeing on the ground, there’s now a strong appetite for justice and retribution.
> I think the zeitgeist today is different. Because Trump has dialed the crazy up to eleven in his second term and a lot of Dems are now pissed. That’s why democratic socialism/leftism is having a resurgence. And, based on what I’m seeing on the ground, there’s now a strong appetite for justice and retribution.
Does it really matter how much the minority party is pissed though? The American public knew how corrupt this guy was, shrugged, and voted him back into office.
If Democrats do win back the house and senate it will only be by the thinnest of margins. There seems to be little appetite to fix any of these structural problems outside of the "Democratic base."
Re: Trump made more than $1B on crypto deals, part of 2025 windfall
#56Earlier quoted context omitted.
Sadly I think not. They had their opportunity in 2020.
Biden ran on a platform of Back to Normal. That’s what voters wanted after four years of crazy. I think the zeitgeist today is different. Because Trump has dialed the crazy up to eleven in his second term and a lot of Dems are now pissed . That’s why democratic socialism/leftism is having a resurgence. And, based on what I’m seeing on the ground, there’s now a strong appetite for justice and retribution.
Nothing's going to happen. Nothing ever happens.
Re: Trump made more than $1B on crypto deals, part of 2025 windfall
#57Why is this flagged? WSJ is not some obscure blog.
>Off-Topic: Most stories about politics
Re: Trump made more than $1B on crypto deals, part of 2025 windfall
#58Earlier quoted context omitted.
the system is such that the only incentive career politicians (and we don't have other kind anymore) is the campaign. they make the same money if they lose. why would they win? its a lot more work! they just have to keep it at a minimum to be considered for next campaigns.
You don't get up the ranks over years and decades by not caring. Politics is not foremost about money, but about power. You can make a lot of money, obviously, but the driver is power.
alternatively you don't get on the bigger tickets actually fighting for change. so?
Re: Trump made more than $1B on crypto deals, part of 2025 windfall
#59Earlier quoted context omitted.
Corruption is ever present. No counter to it is what kills countries. The US has been security by obscurity in so many ways, this latest abuse is just further evidence that counting on it would only ever delay abuse for [checks calendar] about 250 years. And really is has been in free fall for decades, the fact that so many recent examples are so flagrant (along with this) is what is upsetting (mainly because no one…
In some countries (e.g. Uruguay) it’s possible to ingrain anticorruption ideals into the fabric of society. This lowers the overall level of corruption as citizens are more likely to feel it’s wrong and they’re raised to call out corruption when they see it. I guess we’d call this “social responsibility”. Of course, the social aspect must be coupled with governmental and legislative changes aimed directly at increasi…
Well said! I guess I’d overlooked that aspect of corruption.
Especially poignant in my home where leaders make corruption===outwitting laws===smart. Perception can lead to widespread adoption.
But I guess if our laws actually held up corruption wouldn’t outwit the laws in the first place.
Re: Trump made more than $1B on crypto deals, part of 2025 windfall
#60And a few decades ago, Carter put his family peanut farm into a blind trust to avoid the mere suspicion of a conflict of interest.
Great onion article about this if you haven't read it: https://theonion.com/you-people-made-me-give-up-my-peanut-fa...
That article was written in January 2017. I think that even the article writer would be shocked by how bad the reality of it actually is.