Discussion » Questions » Politics » Al Pacino old movie, The Devil's Advocate? Everyone in league with the Devil looks gorgeous until (read on, dear friends)
WM BARR . =ABSOLUTE TRASH

Al Pacino old movie, The Devil's Advocate? Everyone in league with the Devil looks gorgeous until (read on, dear friends)

Everyone looks gorgeous.  The meek have been let out amongst the wolves. 

This is a total allegory of this present day.   I actually see people this way and it hits my gut.   

I do not see Trump as a person.  I see him as a demon.  I see him possessed by ego and without any moral compass save his own glory.  I see all those around him as just as lost and dangerous.  I see this movie come to life.   We have many movies that subconsciously predicted this day. 

Posted - November 11, 2016
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Responses


  • 1002
    I recall the first time I really saw someone like this. It was Tim Geithner and at the moment, I was certain he was the inspiration behind Griphook. He looked like a goblin behind the counter at* Gringotts. This post was edited by ForkNdaRoad at November 11, 2016 7:00 PM MST
      November 11, 2016 1:07 PM MST
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  • 46117
    You know what, Fork?   I don't know who you mean, but I do know exactly what you mean anyway.  YES.  Like that.  Oh I just GOT it.  The Goblins that worked at the bank in Harry Potter.  VERY NICE. I am betting JK based her characters on men such as you speak.  Thanks, that was great. 
      November 11, 2016 1:33 PM MST
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  • 1002
    It was a strange experience. I just glanced at the TV and saw him on the news looking like some freakishly
    gnarly looking demon and it kinda freaked me out to be honest.

    I suspect many of the people in power in our country are possessed by one thing or another, I totally get
    where you're coming from on that.

    Most welcome, figured I was the only crazy person who thought about stuff like this. lol Nice to know
    I'm not alone :)
      November 11, 2016 5:16 PM MST
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  • 3934
    I feel your pain, but we have to keep some perspective.

    It's interesting to look at the popular vote numbers from the last few elections

    2008:  Dems 69 million,  GOP about 60 milllion

    2012: Dems 65 million, GOP about 60 million

    2016 Dems 60 million, GOP about 60 million

    There was not great GOP groundswell which swept Trump into office. Instead, he got about the same vote that McCain and Romney did.

    What changed was the Democratic party FAILED to provide a POSITIVE reason for people to vote Democratic, so a lot of them stayed home.

    Yes, about 1.2 million voted for Jill Stein, but progressive third-party voting was about 500k-800k in the earlier elections, so the half-million or so vote increase for Stein is dwarfed by the nine million vote decrease in Democratic turnout.

    It does look like we're in for a rough few years, but the numbers and demographics suggest this is the dying gasp (almost literally, Trump fared much better with older voters than younger) of an outmoded worldview in our political system. Of course, it won't go quietly into the night, but it IS on the wrong side of history.
      November 11, 2016 1:22 PM MST
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  • 46117
    Very nicely put.   You remind me of the anesthesiologist soothingly injecting anesthetic whilst getting ready to amputate something.  I wake up, (I never can REALLY awaken again) to what is now my life but it is assuaged with all the great dope I get to inject in order to stand my life and accept my life and wonder just how long is the process of this dark side of history and who will be around to see it happen?  It could end badly and it could end totally and it could NEVER end.  Maybe we are raising little robots?  Do you think Bromide is that far from the truth about the little millennials?   They probably like Trump.  Maybe it will never end.  Maybe people like US, maybe we are the real ones on our way out.   Maybe Trump is the new person and we are being discontinued.  We both know that he is not the only only one that thinks like he does.   He has a rather large constituency after all.

    Happy Thursday, there, kiddo! This post was edited by WM BARR . =ABSOLUTE TRASH at November 11, 2016 1:42 PM MST
      November 11, 2016 1:41 PM MST
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  • 3934
    @Shar -- As long as we're on depressing topics...

    I think on a grand scale, humanity is in for a real s**t-storm of problems. We have a LOT of built-in unquestioned axioms/assumptions in our societal structures, and as those assumptions run ever-harder into non-matching modern realities (e.g. work hard = economic success. Not applicable in a world where the value of human labor is approaching zero), the reckoning will become VERY ugly.

    Maybe the Trump presidency is a significant bellweather in that process? Maybe, but I doubt it. I'm sure his adminstration will produce its own pains, but I don't think they are the Big Picture pains we all face.

      November 11, 2016 1:52 PM MST
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  • 46117
    Old while I hear and certainly respect your take?  Just so we are clear on how I mostly do not agree, although you have a solid thought process going on here.   I read in the tone of your answer the pragmatic viewpoint of, "well he is awful, but probably will not be all that much worse than really bad presidents that came before him".  

    To that, I must cry NO.  OLD SCHOOL.  NO. THIS IS REALLY going to be a corker.  That is what I think. 

    You do not.  So, I hope and pray that you are right.   I want you to be right so badly.  But, my gut says, "Nah.  Hang on it's going to get extremely bumpy".  

    I've been very wrong before. 
      November 11, 2016 2:11 PM MST
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  • 3934
    @Sharonna -- You may be right as well. My "gut" is currently telling me some of the institutional barricades will limit the damage Trump can do, but that might be wishful thinking as well.

    When Bush the Boy Emperor was elected, the indications were he'd be a right-wing moderate (remember "compassionate conservatism") where most of the damage he was going to do was more from neglect ("People don't really need health care. Let's have some more tax cuts.") than from active harm-seeking. Little did I know that the events of 9/11 would unleash a round of depostic authoritarianism I didn't think possible.

    Upon further reflection, this round MAY be even worse. Do you remember when The Boy Emperor prosposed nominating his advisor Harriet Meiers (sp?) to be a Supreme Court justice. She was dramatically unqualified for the position, and the Washington establishment quickly pushed back against the idea. I'm not sure the same thing will happen with Trump's Bigly Dumb ideas. I think this time the Washington Establishment either won't care, will be too fearful of voter backlash from The Base not to go along, or will view such proposals as an opportunity to pitch their own pet projects (e.g. Paul Ryan goes along with Sarah Palin for Energy Secretary in exchange for his pet idea to voucherize Medicare).

    Let's hope it doesn't get that bad...:-P....
      November 11, 2016 3:39 PM MST
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  • 46117
    Trump is terrific at playing institutional barricades.  You are very spot on about the fear of the voter backlash from the base.  That is Trumps "trump" card in all this.  Hillary wins popular vote but Trump wins electoral vote.  I bring that up because maybe, just maybe when Trump does nothing (and he will do NOTHING) these fans of his will wither and die on the vine.  But I doubt it highly.  I think they are more like the "Elvis is still alive and in hiding" type mentality.   They want to pretend they have a great life now that Trump is in power.  They will always call it this way no matter what.  They are already forming memories of how great their lives are now that Obama is gone. 

    Oh, there is one small hope.  I hope it ages him 10 years for every year he makes it through this term.  Most presidents look like they have been through the war.  But true sociopaths usually do not feel stress the way most normal people with a heart and a conscience do.  The only thing that stresses this maniac out is being ignored.



      November 11, 2016 3:51 PM MST
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  • That was a good movie.  The dressing room scene with the demons was creepy!
      November 11, 2016 4:14 PM MST
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