@michele-b I know a few front line workers and my heart aches for them. They are truly heros, light workers and pure angels from heaven. What they must bear, day in and out, is truly devastating and of course must have an effect. We can all help sending light, prayers and love to them. But also to those we see each and every day. Michele-B, you're correct. A smile doesn't cost a thing and means so much. Even with a mask you can see the smile in the eyes. I pray for them all. I can't imagine the burden they carry.
@lynnventura
I've come back to your post again and again, thinking about the uncanny power of the Teflon Don. It seems to defy logic that he's gotten away with his dishonesty and egregious behavior. Remember his bragging during his first campaign about being able to shoot someone on 5th Avenue and not lose any supporters? Isn't that the oddest, oddest thing? Yet, he has gotten away with so many outrageous acts during his tenure. While it seems obvious that he is the most corrupt of presidents, he's still in office.
I wonder if his ability to manifest energy and protect himself has grown out of his malignant narcissism. He is completely enthralled with himself and I just wonder if that unhealthy obsession creates an unnatural energy. I'm just spitballing here. Although he is an especially loathsome human being, he still manages to project a brute, thug-like charisma and control over the members of his cult. Even now as his faculties are clearly diminishing and he rambles and bumbles around during his rallies, people are drawn to him and risk their lives, standing shoulder to shoulder during a virulent pandemic. It's interesting in an "I can't stop watching this train wreck" kind of way.
If his energy is a type of psychic ability, he's managed to pervert that gift into an obscene version of an innate intuitive skill.
@bluebelle, and his energy is slowly consuming him from the inside out.
Yes, that could be true, and his misuse of social media is now backfiring , like the K-pop and tiktok thing with Tulsa. If I were Biden I would not attack Trump anymore, but tell the people what really needs to be done to get the US back on track.
Does anyone in the US knows Karlsson on the Roof, I often think about him when I see a speech from Trump.
I am a bit afraid that he will not accept when he lost the election, but rather start a civil war, I really hope bot...
gr
Helge
@bluebelle I posted a few weeks ago that I didn't think people could use psychic abilities to harm others, but I think someone responded and wrote that trump's power was using energy to persuade others. Perhaps he accomplishes this by manipulating energy, even if he doesn't know that he's doing it. It could be that he's such a narcissist that he believes his own spin, and his belief is so strong that he wills things into reality. Don't we all know people -- good, bad or somewhere in between -- who manage to pull rabbits out of hats in ways that are astounding? People who always manage to land on their feet, or toxic coworkers who can cause chaos in otherwise functional work environments?
Sometimes I post my opinions but other times I read others' posts and I just respond as if someone else is doing the writing for me. That's how I felt when I wrote about trump's energy manipulation, and I could feel him doing it.
Now I'm seeing him running out of runway space.
The Cheeto is a narcissist, through and through. Narcissists are master manipulators. They slide between charisma and abuse with mind-boggling ease. In a single sentence they can crush souls while (falsely) lifting others up. That's the only ability Cheeto has. Sadly there are people who resonate with his BS and are blind to how cruel and abusive of a person he really is, because through their filters, they're being lifted up ... until, of course, Cheeto has no use for them.
@grace @bluebelle @jeanne-mayell I've wondered about two things: 1. Mental health experts in THE DANGEROUS CASE OF DONALD J. TRUMP said that T would become increasingly more dangerous, but I never found a description of stages of decline for dangerous Narcissists. Does anyone know if there are any?
2. His supporters are a puzzle. John Dean's book (CONSERVATIVES WITHOUT CONSCIENCE) describes authoritarians (which they are) as blindly following a leader and as people who cannot embrace evidence even when it's right under their nose. It always sounded like a condition of sorts. But I wonder whether or not they are immoral? lacking in intelligence? (Yes to some extent)? feel like they are part of a gang where Trump is the bully-leader and they feel secure? The ones I know personally are not dumb although not brilliant either, but they buy the propaganda hook, line, and sinker (Fox Fiction is "according to them" the only outlet telling the truth), but they also won't check. In other words, as best I can understand, they embrace only what they ALREADY want to hear--not what they need to hear. As a researcher, I know it's hard to discover that you've been wrong about something, (although it's also a bit exciting to discover a new TRUTH). But, under no circumstances, do they seem able to embrace anything but what they already believe. Any thoughts?
In response to your first question, there is good information in the article below by Tony Schwartz. (I hope you can access it.) I personally think Trump got “stuck” in his developmental process as a young child, and is acting out (literally) of his severely limited functional capabilities. Add to this a mean and vindictive nature. Why do people follow him? Rebellious natures, orneriness, similar developmental deficits, flawed belief systems...so many reasons. It seems that nothing ever ends well for Trump or those around him. The accidental President, which has been a near-fatal accident for our country.
Excellent questions.
Regarding narcissists as they age, here's a short and, in my dealings with narcissists, accurate article about what to expect from them as they age, and why:
https://narcissistfamilyfiles.com/2017/09/26/big-sissies-how-and-why-narcissists-get-worse-with-age/
Narcissists are energy vampires in the sense that their own energies are unpleasant, because they are unpleasant people, so they suck the energies of those around them to lift themselves up. They belittle those they deem weak and inferior, and this gives them a sense of superiority. They are intelligent and conniving; they bully who they can, but they charm those they think they can get something out of who won't put up with bullying. This crazy-making creates confusion, with those charmed by the narcissist never seeing what those bullied by him/her/them see and experience.
Aging narcissists lose their power over people and thus become more and more unpleasant, since what once worked for them doesn't work for them anymore, at least not to the same degree. Aging narcissists let their defenses down, which means more people become privy to their uglier, bullying sides.
@seeker4. Agree to all. My neighbors are just like that. Intelligent, friendly yet following the Pied Piper with childish obstinance. And always bringing politics up out of nowhere. BUT ... yesterday they admitted they don't like Trump anymore and their focus is on Biden's supposed faults. But, hey, that's a start in the right direction.