cubsfan

There is enormous value in ambiguity in regards to Trump words. FAFO. His enemies know he is totally unpredictable - just ask the Iranian generals, the Russian generals in Syria, the Taliban who tested him and earned the MOAB. When he says "don't", unlike flunky Biden or Obama - Trump means it. That Zelensky played games with his best chance to end this war - was an enormous gamble. He just threw away his Trump card.

Indeed. A valiant effort by a US President to bring peace into an obvious Verdun situation. The President was given an overwhelming mandate to do so by the American voters. But the rest prefer war - so the unwinnable war, death and destruction shall continue. The Europeans can own it now and settle it later.

The perfect summary. The quagmire will continue - Europe can own it now.

Absolutely. He tried to strong-arm the United States at the last minute. Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.

The cult is trying to end the war. The fools want it to continue.

He certainly did if he can win the war or convince the Europeans to carry the war burden of men and materials. We wish him luck with a high stakes gamble.

Yeah, he took a risk. He thought he could strong-arm the President and Vice President. Mission failed. Not a good move when your country desperately needs the help. He spoke to the President like he ran the show - and unfortunately got a well deserved beatdown for his total lack of gratitude and grace. Because of his failure here, a lot more Ukrainians are going to die, while he comes to his senses that he has little leverage to dictate terms to the United States.

That is a great question. Answer: Because they can come together as fast as they fell apart. Zelensky has a nation to save. Europe has a continent to save. These allies are not stupid. They know they are more powerful united than separate. That's totally obvious. If they do not realize this - then they have the wrong leaders in place. Nothing will get them focused like conflict.

It's really good for the whole world to see this live. Everyone knows what they are up against. Nothing gets lost in translation, those that want to dig in - can dig in. Those that wish to settle, now they evalute there respective positions. Nothing gets filtered to the Ukrainians - who do not have a free press - so no bullshiting from Zelensky is going to work. It's very good for the Europeans to see this - now they can figure out how they would like to proceed. All this open public display did was 2 things: 1- Speed up the process to settle or not settle 2- Demonstrate to the American people that Trump is going to keep his promise to his citizens.

Thank you. You have one of the best minds on this conflict. You were right on with the artillery advantages and failed offensive 2 years ago. Personally, I don't think Trump has yet to show his teeth to Putin. It may come to that. And that's when things get really ugly. Regardless, the Europeans need to quite fucking around and get serious about this guy

I think with reduced government spending that you are sure to see - it will be difficult to have inflation. I'm almost more prepared for a recession, as there are so many crosscurrents in motion. With all these cuts and dislocations, where is the inflation going to come from. Like the man said, you are young, smart and passionate. Always bring your best arguments and you'll do just fine here. None of us are right all the time - learning is the objective (as well as making money of course) You said - Smart people can be just as wrong as they are smart. - Correct. The goal is to keep learning. Good luck Blake.

I always like hearing your opinion - and you were very early right about the Ukraine war and why Ukraine could not win against an entrenched Russia. You called it 2 years ago. However, I do not understand your conclusion. Is the USA out or in on continuing this war? Does this war need to be settled or ramped up?

+1 - Bingo - Europe is more than capable of defending itself, conducting the Ukraine war or settling the war. The MAGA movement elected Trump with the mantra - end the wars in Israel & Ukraine. Promises made, promises kept. The USA will have it's hands full with China and Mexico.

The devil is always in the details. Like I said before - the GREATEST RISK for any negotiation is when the parties need to sign an agreement and all the happy talk is behind you. Now commitments need to be made. So the deal blew up - and they will take another run at it. There is no guarantee that a deal will every come to fruition. But the Europeans have a golden opportunity to propose their own deal now to Zelenksy. Zelensky will be all ears. Then Europe will be negotiating with Ukraine, Russia, the USA and their Eurozone. I'm sure they will conduct their negotiations in a very polite manner. And I'd wish them the best of luck. End this war

You're right. You win. Go celebrate and have a great weekend!

Then war it is. Europe should just tell Trump to go fuck himself.

It's time for Europe to step up and do it. The world is waiting.

That is indeed the million dollar question. Thanks for your honesty. We all see it differently. My opinion: Trust but verify.

It's very easy for you to say that now because this negotiation may not be over. It's only over, if there is no deal to be made and no one wants to compromise. The Europeans can and should certainly step in and settle it. It would be very EASY for them to throw Trump under the bus, blame the USA for EVERYTHING and take credit for the deal. Your leaders should absolutely do that if they have any moral courage at all. They will be heroes - and Trump will knocked down a few pegs. So get it done.

State your alternative. More war?

That is what was said John. And speck posted his wonderful video about Tulsi Gabbard being a Russian asset and traitor to the US. You have a problem with that - take it up with the posters, not me.

@John Hjorth Why in the world would you be overly concerned about etiquette and manners when thousands of lives are at stake? That's incredible. This is not some tea party. I can only tell you this: I've negotiated hundreds of contracts in my career. Things get ugly. Things get tense. People yell at each other - accuse each other. Lose their cool. It happens over and over. They walk on deals. The bigger the deal, the longer it takes. My general rule: The higher the stakes and the more important the outcome - the LONGER and more difficult the negotiation will be. Negotiations will blow up, people will reassess, and if there is a deal to be made - they will try again. Time is ALWAYS on your side, as it gives the parties a chance to cool down and reassess. There is NO negotiation as high stakes as this one, because the alternative is WAR where thousands die and a country is lost forever. I'm genuinely shocked that you think this is like a polite little tea party. There is far too much at stake for this to be easy - otherwise it would have already happened. You are totally unrealistic.

So are you saying that Europe should continue the war or settle the war? Serious question.

The limits were very clear during the Trump campaign. But the allies have a vote - they can continue the killing as long as they like. Their attitude may change when Ukraine runs out of men.

Pretty much nailed it. I don't Hunter's paintings are worth much these days, but he sure knows how to sell daddy's influence for shit art.