I think that's a euphemism for "hapless christian pawn who should get used to Turkish prison food."Scooter wrote:... He has thrown up his hands and is calling on Brunson to be a "great patriot hostage", whatever the fuck that is supposed to be.
NATO and the dictator....
NATO and the dictator...

“In a world whose absurdity appears to be so impenetrable, we simply must reach a greater degree of understanding among us, a greater sincerity.”
Re: NATO and the dictator....
One would think the "great negotiator" could have persuaded an ally to release this guy, but no, he has to attack them and make sure the guy is kept imprisoned on principle. I'd bet he'd be free if Hillary (or even Bernie) was president. So yes, I think he will have to get used to his situation.
Re: NATO and the dictator....
I felt, (and still feel) that Barack Obama sucked out loud as a negociator...One would think the "great negotiator"
Whether it was Putin, or Assad, or the Iranians, or the Cubans, they all seemed to see him coming...(In my view just about the only good deal he negociated in eight years was the TPP)
He also managed to achieve the dubious distinction of becoming the first American President since WW II to get turned down by the Brits when he requested them to join us in a military operation...
But all that having been said, ol' Barack was a "he could sell ice to an Eskimo" kinda guy compared to the current Moron-In-Chief...Il Boobce couldn't negociate a three point turn...
The US really needed to follow up Obama with somebody who would have some genuine skills in this regard, (I definitely felt this was one area where Hillary would be an improvement) but instead we we went out of the frying pan and into the core of the sun....
When it comes to international negociating, the only thing Trumpty knows how to do is blow shit up...
ETA:
I'll tell you how bad the situation is...
Jimmy Carter had the wily deal making cunning of a Mid-Eastern rug merchant compared to The Orange One...
ETA II:
While I definitely consider the Iran Nuclear Agreement to have been a crap deal and would never have voted for it (No inspections on military facilities? Really?) I also don't support ripping it up at this point so it can be replaced by a guy who probably thinks Shia and Sunni are the names of a couple of the Guido Girls on Jersey Shore....



Re: NATO and the dictator....
Well, I don't want to derail this thread by commenting on the negotiating skills of the previous occupants of the oval office you mentioned, but I agree that Trump appears to have no concept whatsoever as to how to negotiate, or even any understanding as to what negotiation encompasses. I imagine in business dealings he had handlers who kept him far away from the discussions at the adult table, but here he appears to have lost those handlers and undercuts any real negotiators he had working for him (and there may have been none since the man seems to want to hire people who know less than him about everything--making it tough to find anyone).
Re: NATO and the dictator....
Trump clearly does not possess the kind of patience, steadfastness, or mental discipline required to truly be a skillful negociator...
Being a good negociator requires having an attention span longer than a fruit fly's...
When it comes to "negociating" Trump only seems to have two tools in his toolbox...
"Threaten and bully" or "cave in"....
Being an effective negociator requires a much broader skill set than that...
ETA:
Being a good negociator requires having an attention span longer than a fruit fly's...
When it comes to "negociating" Trump only seems to have two tools in his toolbox...
"Threaten and bully" or "cave in"....
Being an effective negociator requires a much broader skill set than that...
ETA:
That, plus the difference in degree of difficulty and complexity in negociating a deal to finance a casino versus negociating an international arms or trade agreement is about the same as the difference in degree of difficulty and complexity between checkers and Three Dimensional Chess...I imagine in business dealings he had handlers who kept him far away from the discussions at the adult table



Re: NATO and the dictator....
True, but I don't think he has the intelligence to understand either; like I said before, he is like Fredo Correleone--the embarrassment that everyone keeps away from anything of consequence while letting him think he's a big shot. I don't think this guy could negotiate a car lease, or even understand what a lease is..
Re: NATO and the dictator....
I din’t Think you give him enough credit. No doubt he’s out of his depth but I think that’s because he has no idea of negotiating beyond the simple transaction that can be enforced or got out of by teams of lawyers. The ideas of mutual understanding and benefit are beyond him
Okay... There's all kinds of things wrong with what you just said.