Your reaction to the inauguration?

[Midwest]

I'm glad we have had a (mostly) peaceful transfer of power.  Regardless of whether you like the person in office, peaceful transition of power is one of the things that makes our country great. 

To the above poster, Trump's newfound religion is ironic to me as well.

Trump's a long time protestant (http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/28/politics/donald-trump-church-member/).  Interesting that he didn't have any protestant church leaders among the six people representing various Christian organizations there though.

He may be a long time protestant, but many of his actions aren't within his religion.  I know, everybody sins etc, but his religious awakening may have had something to do with running for office.  I say this as someone who thought he was the lesser of 2 evils.

[scantee]

I was watching the inauguration on NBC because, to borrow a phrase from someone on Facebook today, I'm a "libtard."  Right afterwards, they were interviewing two Trump supporters who had driven to the event from Pittsburgh.  One of the women said that what stood out to her was that Trump made reference to God in his speech.  She hadn't heard that done in a long time, not from someone in the Whitehouse. 

Anyway, that's fairly shocking since I probably saw 5 clips just this weekend in which Obama made reference to God in a speech or in remarks.  For Fukksake, he sang "Amazing Grace" at a funeral.  What did they think he was singing about?

It's evident that there are 2 completely separate realities for different parts of this country - two different sets of facts.  And because of social media, this problem is only going to get worse and worse.  And given these 2 separate truths, it shouldn't be surprising that Trump basically said nothing good happened in the last 8 years.  I mean, really???  Not marriage equality?  Not saving the auto industry?  Not saving the economy from a great depression?  Nothing?

It is especially rich coming from people, including members of this here forum on financial independence, who reaped huge personal benefits from the economy over the past eight years (namely, the tripling of the stock market) to be complaining about how terrible things were under Obama's leadership.

Some serious cognitive dissonance going on here.

[sol]

And given these 2 separate truths, it shouldn't be surprising that Trump basically said nothing good happened in the last 8 years.  I mean, really???  Not marriage equality?  Not saving the auto industry?  Not saving the economy from a great depression?  Nothing?

Don't worry, all sorts of amazing things are about to happen.   I bet unemployment is down under 5% within Trump's first week!

[GuitarStv]

I'm glad we have had a (mostly) peaceful transfer of power.  Regardless of whether you like the person in office, peaceful transition of power is one of the things that makes our country great. 

To the above poster, Trump's newfound religion is ironic to me as well.

Trump's a long time protestant (http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/28/politics/donald-trump-church-member/).  Interesting that he didn't have any protestant church leaders among the six people representing various Christian organizations there though.

He may be a long time protestant, but many of his actions aren't within his religion.  I know, everybody sins etc, but his religious awakening may have had something to do with running for office.  I say this as someone who thought he was the lesser of 2 evils.

Meh.  I just can't get all that worked up about Trump doing stuff that doesn't match with his claimed religion.  Jesus was the original communist . . . yet Christianity in the US seems to be A-OK with capitalism.

[Metric Mouse]

I was watching the inauguration on NBC because, to borrow a phrase from someone on Facebook today, I'm a "libtard."  Right afterwards, they were interviewing two Trump supporters who had driven to the event from Pittsburgh.  One of the women said that what stood out to her was that Trump made reference to God in his speech.  She hadn't heard that done in a long time, not from someone in the Whitehouse. 

Anyway, that's fairly shocking since I probably saw 5 clips just this weekend in which Obama made reference to God in a speech or in remarks.  For Fukksake, he sang "Amazing Grace" at a funeral.  What did they think he was singing about?

It's evident that there are 2 completely separate realities for different parts of this country - two different sets of facts.  And because of social media, this problem is only going to get worse and worse.  And given these 2 separate truths, it shouldn't be surprising that Trump basically said nothing good happened in the last 8 years.  I mean, really???  Not marriage equality?  Not saving the auto industry?  Not saving the economy from a great depression?  Nothing?

It is especially rich coming from people, including members of this here forum on financial independence, who reaped huge personal benefits from the economy over the past eight years (namely, the tripling of the stock market) to be complaining about how terrible things were under Obama's leadership.

Some serious cognitive dissonance going on here.

Some of us are concerned sbout the terrible stuff that has happened to other people, irrespective of how much better things have gotten better for rich white people under Obama.

[oldtoyota]

We can tax imports as much as we want, but if I own a business and you tell me I can buy a machine for $100k that does the work of 4 people, there is no way I would pass it up.

This is what I don't understand.  The liberals cry "greater good" about everything.  I should give up my money for redistribution of wealth, I should take lesser health benefits so everyone can have some, I should inject myself with toxic poisons for the safety of everyone else, etc, etc, etc...  Why doesn't keeping people employed even if means you have to be less greedy, fall into the same category?

You lost me at "the liberals." Sounds like FOX News.

[oldtoyota]

I found it darkly funny that Trump, the living embodiment of the seven deadly sins, had an inauguration with so many preachers espousing a viewpoint of morality that the man himself clearly has no interest in.

I didn't watch the inauguration, but I figure if he managed to not grab anybody by the pussy then it was probably considered a success.

I second this. And the speech was bad so we know he didn't plagiarize Obama.

[scantee]

I was watching the inauguration on NBC because, to borrow a phrase from someone on Facebook today, I'm a "libtard."  Right afterwards, they were interviewing two Trump supporters who had driven to the event from Pittsburgh.  One of the women said that what stood out to her was that Trump made reference to God in his speech.  She hadn't heard that done in a long time, not from someone in the Whitehouse. 

Anyway, that's fairly shocking since I probably saw 5 clips just this weekend in which Obama made reference to God in a speech or in remarks.  For Fukksake, he sang "Amazing Grace" at a funeral.  What did they think he was singing about?

It's evident that there are 2 completely separate realities for different parts of this country - two different sets of facts.  And because of social media, this problem is only going to get worse and worse.  And given these 2 separate truths, it shouldn't be surprising that Trump basically said nothing good happened in the last 8 years.  I mean, really???  Not marriage equality?  Not saving the auto industry?  Not saving the economy from a great depression?  Nothing?

It is especially rich coming from people, including members of this here forum on financial independence, who reaped huge personal benefits from the economy over the past eight years (namely, the tripling of the stock market) to be complaining about how terrible things were under Obama's leadership.

Some serious cognitive dissonance going on here.

Some of us are concerned sbout the terrible stuff that has happened to other people, irrespective of how much better things have gotten better for rich white people under Obama.

"Terrible stuff".

Gay people being allowed to marry? Health care for more people? It can't be deindustrialization and loss of working class jobs, since those changes began in the 70's.

But yes, certainly Trump, builder of walls to keep out Mexicans, keeper of lists to kick out Muslims, restrictor of who can use which bathroom, will make things better for the non-white non-
rich...

[KatieSSS]

Disgusted, to say the least.

My bar is set so low for the new Pres that I just have one metric to measure his success: that we don't get nuked. I live in DC.

[marty998]

I was watching the inauguration on NBC because, to borrow a phrase from someone on Facebook today, I'm a "libtard."  Right afterwards, they were interviewing two Trump supporters who had driven to the event from Pittsburgh.  One of the women said that what stood out to her was that Trump made reference to God in his speech.  She hadn't heard that done in a long time, not from someone in the Whitehouse. 

Anyway, that's fairly shocking since I probably saw 5 clips just this weekend in which Obama made reference to God in a speech or in remarks.  For Fukksake, he sang "Amazing Grace" at a funeral.  What did they think he was singing about?

It's evident that there are 2 completely separate realities for different parts of this country - two different sets of facts.  And because of social media, this problem is only going to get worse and worse.  And given these 2 separate truths, it shouldn't be surprising that Trump basically said nothing good happened in the last 8 years.  I mean, really???  Not marriage equality?  Not saving the auto industry?  Not saving the economy from a great depression?  Nothing?

It is especially rich coming from people, including members of this here forum on financial independence, who reaped huge personal benefits from the economy over the past eight years (namely, the tripling of the stock market) to be complaining about how terrible things were under Obama's leadership.

Some serious cognitive dissonance going on here.

This graph was interesting. The commie socialist liberal presidents! How dare they make the stockmarket go up so much!

[Indio]

I tried a news blackout yesterday and spent the morning walking at the beach. Too many news email alerts made a blackout impossible.

Later on I stumbled across this little nugget that is a petition to have Potus release tax returns. https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/immediately-release-donald-trumps-full-tax-returns-all-information-needed-verify-emoluments-clause-compliance

He doesn't follow any rules so not sure it will make a difference. And if it did, what would happen? Lead to impeachment where we are left with Mike pence? We know what he stands for.

[KBecks]

It was interesting in many ways -- I don't think I've watched an inauguration before, so this is new:

-- the amount of music with two choirs and the band, etc.
-- the amount of prayer with 3 invocations and 3 or 4 blessings
It had a very heavy ceremonial feel to it.  A coronation, no, but a very heavy state ceremony.

and the speech
-- talking about failing education
-- all the talk of America first and protectionism
-- talking about addressing and fixing crime
-- talking about destroying radical Islamic terrorism
-- talking about destiny of American greatness and God's protection of the United States
-- promising unfailing work for the people

It was very specific and very interesting.

[Mezzie]

I would love to see the education system "flush with cash" he mentioned. We struggle to get basic services and materials.

As far as how I feel: I put scared, but anxious would be more accurate. Having a climate change denier at the helm, a pro-privitization education secretary, completely unqualified people with conflicts of interest in the cabinet... Ugh. I feel ill.

[Metric Mouse]

"Terrible stuff".

Gay people being allowed to marry? Health care for more people? It can't be deindustrialization and loss of working class jobs, since those changes began in the 70's.

But yes, certainly Trump, builder of walls to keep out Mexicans, keeper of lists to kick out Muslims, restrictor of who can use which bathroom, will make things better for the non-white non-
rich...

I'm not sure what Obama's failings have to do with Trump... or that he is as concerned with what bathroom people use as others are. Maybe he is.

The point being that some of us are willing to vote against our own interests to try to help those who are less fortunate than ourselves. The fact that certain demographics have seen improvements in some areas in the past 8 years does not remove the fact that situations have degraded for others.

[KBecks]

I would love to see the education system "flush with cash" he mentioned. We struggle to get basic services and materials.

As far as how I feel: I put scared, but anxious would be more accurate. Having a climate change denier at the helm, a pro-privitization education secretary, completely unqualified people with conflicts of interest in the cabinet... Ugh. I feel ill.

Do you know the funding per student in your area? Our state is around $12,000 per student.  For a classroom of 28 students, that's $336,000. 

If you are struggling to get basics, take a look at how many high level adminisrtators are in your district that are taking salary, health and benefits at the district level an away from the classroom learning.

[waltworks]

I would love to see the education system "flush with cash" he mentioned. We struggle to get basic services and materials.

As far as how I feel: I put scared, but anxious would be more accurate. Having a climate change denier at the helm, a pro-privitization education secretary, completely unqualified people with conflicts of interest in the cabinet... Ugh. I feel ill.

Do you know the funding per student in your area? Our state is around $12,000 per student.  For a classroom of 28 students, that's $336,000. 

If you are struggling to get basics, take a look at how many high level adminisrtators are in your district that are taking salary, health and benefits at the district level an away from the classroom learning.

That is not very much when you have to:
-Maintain a tens of millions of dollar, 100,000+ square foot public building with associated parking, playground, etc. You have  to heat and sometimes cool this building, which may or may not be especially efficient (it might well have been built 50+ years ago).
-Keep small children safe and secure.
-Bus small children to/from school safely.
-Provide extra services to students with learning or other disabilities (including basic medical care) as well as students with extra talents.
-Provide enrichment activities like art, PE, music.
-Maintain a basic library for children and stock it with books/staff it with a librarian.
-Hire reliable, intelligent, caring teachers and provide them with health care.
-Etc, etc.

Administrative salaries are a tiny fraction of the school district's budget (at least here in UT). Could you cut back on administrators? Maybe, maybe not. It wouldn't matter much if you did. Anyone who has run or dealt with budgets for a large organization understands that the headline cost (or per-person cost) is going to seem huge until you break it down - and then it will seem like barely enough.

As an aside, our district's biggest problem? Health care spending. Double digit increases in benefits costs over the last 15 years or so (before AND during the ACA) have pushed benefits costs to almost 1/4 of the total budget. They will eat the school alive if they continue to climb.

-W

[packlawyer04]

Embarrassed that so many people in our country were taken in by an avaricious con man.  Hopeful that the worst he does is transfer a bunch of taxpayer dollars into his own pocket.  Amused by the people that believe that a man who has never done anything to help anyone other than himself for 70 years will actually do anything for anyone in this country unless there is an upside for himself.  Pained that him and his crowd of bigoted idiots represent me now.

Keep calling people that don't agree with you bigoted. You'll get 8 years of Trump.

[packlawyer04]

I was watching the inauguration on NBC because, to borrow a phrase from someone on Facebook today, I'm a "libtard."  Right afterwards, they were interviewing two Trump supporters who had driven to the event from Pittsburgh.  One of the women said that what stood out to her was that Trump made reference to God in his speech.  She hadn't heard that done in a long time, not from someone in the Whitehouse. 

Anyway, that's fairly shocking since I probably saw 5 clips just this weekend in which Obama made reference to God in a speech or in remarks.  For Fukksake, he sang "Amazing Grace" at a funeral.  What did they think he was singing about?

It's evident that there are 2 completely separate realities for different parts of this country - two different sets of facts.  And because of social media, this problem is only going to get worse and worse.  And given these 2 separate truths, it shouldn't be surprising that Trump basically said nothing good happened in the last 8 years.  I mean, really???  Not marriage equality?  Not saving the auto industry?  Not saving the economy from a great depression?  Nothing?

It is especially rich coming from people, including members of this here forum on financial independence, who reaped huge personal benefits from the economy over the past eight years (namely, the tripling of the stock market) to be complaining about how terrible things were under Obama's leadership.

Some serious cognitive dissonance going on here.

If you can point me to what Obama did to help out all of these publicly traded companies increase profits and grow their companies I would love to read it. 

I'm shocked, shocked shocked I tell you that the U.S. Stock market rebounded after a pull back. This has never happened before in the history of the stock market. Not sure what we will do know that Obama has left. I'm predicting the stock market disapears in 6 months.

[Midwest]

I'm glad we have had a (mostly) peaceful transfer of power.  Regardless of whether you like the person in office, peaceful transition of power is one of the things that makes our country great. 

To the above poster, Trump's newfound religion is ironic to me as well.

Trump's a long time protestant (http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/28/politics/donald-trump-church-member/).  Interesting that he didn't have any protestant church leaders among the six people representing various Christian organizations there though.

He may be a long time protestant, but many of his actions aren't within his religion.  I know, everybody sins etc, but his religious awakening may have had something to do with running for office.  I say this as someone who thought he was the lesser of 2 evils.

Meh.  I just can't get all that worked up about Trump doing stuff that doesn't match with his claimed religion.  Jesus was the original communist . . . yet Christianity in the US seems to be A-OK with capitalism.

I"m not a religious scholar, but most mainstream religions don't advocate adultery or genital grabbing.  The comments regarding his religious awakening were not a criticism specific to Trump as many politicians overstate the value of religion in their lives.   

[Metric Mouse]

Embarrassed that so many people in our country were taken in by an avaricious con man.  Hopeful that the worst he does is transfer a bunch of taxpayer dollars into his own pocket.  Amused by the people that believe that a man who has never done anything to help anyone other than himself for 70 years will actually do anything for anyone in this country unless there is an upside for himself.  Pained that him and his crowd of bigoted idiots represent me now.

Keep calling people that don't agree with you bigoted. You'll get 8 years of Trump.

Moral of the story: play stupid games, win stupid prizes.

[GuitarStv]

Embarrassed that so many people in our country were taken in by an avaricious con man.  Hopeful that the worst he does is transfer a bunch of taxpayer dollars into his own pocket.  Amused by the people that believe that a man who has never done anything to help anyone other than himself for 70 years will actually do anything for anyone in this country unless there is an upside for himself.  Pained that him and his crowd of bigoted idiots represent me now.

Keep calling people that don't agree with you bigoted. You'll get 8 years of Trump.

Moral of the story: play stupid games, win stupid prizes.

Alternatively:  Supporters of bigots will continue to support bigots out of spite until people stop calling their support bigotry.

[MDM]

It's too bad that half the people in the US might not believe Trump when he said
"When you open your heart to patriotism, there is no room for prejudice.
The bible tells us how good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity. We must speak our minds openly, debate our disagreements honestly, but always pursue solidarity."

Of course, the other half wouldn't have believed Obama had he said exactly the same thing.

Many presidents govern differently than they campaigned.  Time will tell....

[seattlecyclone]

I didn't feel much different after the inauguration. It's an event we've been expecting for about ten weeks now. It happened, the sun rose the next day, life goes on. Let's make the most of it.

[Kris]

It's too bad that half the people in the US might not believe Trump when he said
"When you open your heart to patriotism, there is no room for prejudice.
The bible tells us how good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity. We must speak our minds openly, debate our disagreements honestly, but always pursue solidarity."

Of course, the other half wouldn't have believed Obama had he said exactly the same thing.

Many presidents govern differently than they campaigned.  Time will tell....

How could anyone believe Trump's words here, when his actions before and after the election show the opposite?

[MacGyverIt]

Trump's a long time protestant (http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/28/politics/donald-trump-church-member/).  Interesting that he didn't have any protestant church leaders among the six people representing various Christian organizations there though.

Based upon his actions - as well as words - I'd submit that Trump is his own religion.

[MDM]

It's too bad that half the people in the US might not believe Trump when he said
"When you open your heart to patriotism, there is no room for prejudice.
The bible tells us how good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity. We must speak our minds openly, debate our disagreements honestly, but always pursue solidarity."

Of course, the other half wouldn't have believed Obama had he said exactly the same thing.

Many presidents govern differently than they campaigned.  Time will tell....

How could anyone believe Trump's words here, when his actions before and after the election show the opposite?

The realities of governing will likely come into play.  I prefer to remain optimistic. 

Will his and his appointees' actual policies and their implementation differ from what Obama did and Clinton would have done?  Likely.

Will he and his appointees politicize the various federal bureaucracies any more than Obama did or Clinton would have done?  Unlikely.

Will the results of his and his appointees' actual policies and their implementation be favorable or unfavorable?  Time will tell.

[Drifterrider]

Didn't watch.  Read the transcript of the speech.  Sounds like something Roosevelt would have said (I said Trump was a Democrat).

The sky didn't fall.  The world didn't end.  Markets didn't collapse. 

[lost_in_the_endless_aisle]

We can tax imports as much as we want, but if I own a business and you tell me I can buy a machine for $100k that does the work of 4 people, there is no way I would pass it up.

This is what I don't understand.  The liberals cry "greater good" about everything.  I should give up my money for redistribution of wealth, I should take lesser health benefits so everyone can have some, I should inject myself with toxic poisons for the safety of everyone else, etc, etc, etc...  Why doesn't keeping people employed even if means you have to be less greedy, fall into the same category?

While people should pay higher prices for things like health insurance so others can benefit, paying higher prices for food and goods such as I phones and cars so that others can have a living wage is apparently bad...

The value added in China is 2% of the value of an iphone. Most of the value of the product is a result of design and engineering, rather than assembly.

The US already has direct and indirect incentives to manufacture cars in the US (NAFTA effectively reduced some of these incentives but even the biased highly motivated EPI estimated just 700K net(?) job losses to Mexico as a result of the FTA since inception.

MIT economist David Autor has published extensively on labor market trends and has concluded 80% of manufacturing job losses in the US are attributable to technology, with the remaining 20% due to trade. Perhaps a better strategy than renegotiating NAFTA, whatever that means, would be to destroy productive capital and imprison industrial engineers.

[lost_in_the_endless_aisle]

Regarding the inauguration in general, some key moments:

1) as mentioned previously, Trump quoting Bane verbatim
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RNgwOkpiEtM

2) Trump caught once gain with scotch tape holding his (extra long) tie together
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/trump-tie-inauguration-scotch-tape_us_58837f78e4b0e3a735693611

3) First assassination attempt, MSU style
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmsiU5P1Mik

As much of fan of his that I'm not, it's always good to reflect on the underlying strength of our institutions during the transition

[Unique User]

Embarrassed that so many people in our country were taken in by an avaricious con man.  Hopeful that the worst he does is transfer a bunch of taxpayer dollars into his own pocket.  Amused by the people that believe that a man who has never done anything to help anyone other than himself for 70 years will actually do anything for anyone in this country unless there is an upside for himself.  Pained that him and his crowd of bigoted idiots represent me now.

Keep calling people that don't agree with you bigoted. You'll get 8 years of Trump.

Perhaps I should have been very clear who I meant - I meant Trump, Pence, Bannon, Sessions, etc.  They are bigots and not because they don't agree with me.  Pretty broad assumption to make of my comment. 

Definition of bigot: a person who is obstinately or intolerantly devoted to his or her own opinions and prejudices; especially : one who regards or treats the members of a group with hatred and intolerance.

[purple monkey]

Scared, as his NPD will be carnage for us and hurt other countries from our poor example.

[oldtoyota]

I was excited and proud. All that talk about turning the country over to the people reminded me why I like him. If he can deliver on the themes of his speech, it really will be a great country again.

+1
I just read the speech, great stuff.

Yeah, he's good at the bread and circus stuff.

The talk about the people sounds good, but his actions say otherwise.

[FIREGuy]

We can tax imports as much as we want, but if I own a business and you tell me I can buy a machine for $100k that does the work of 4 people, there is no way I would pass it up.

This is what I don't understand.  The liberals cry "greater good" about everything.  I should give up my money for redistribution of wealth, I should take lesser health benefits so everyone can have some, I should inject myself with toxic poisons for the safety of everyone else, etc, etc, etc...  Why doesn't keeping people employed even if means you have to be less greedy, fall into the same category?

It's not (entirely) a question of greed, it's about being efficient. The free market will encourage efficiency and as automation continues, this will take more and more jobs. I'm all for becoming more efficient and effective, but there needs to be a safety net to combat against those who are replaced by robots otherwise those who own the machines will continue to reap the benefits whole those who do not will be left behind.

The economy is changing, and I believe that in order to combat inequality and the unrest that it brings, the government needs to become a bit more socialist.

[calimom]

.
--
-- talking about destiny of American greatness and God's protection of the United States
--

Does this God person only look after the interests of those living in the United States?

[sol]

.
--
-- talking about destiny of American greatness and God's protection of the United States
--

Does this God person only look after the interests of those living in the United States?

Throughout American history, politicians have claimed a unique and divine preference for our country.  God wanted us to eradicate the Indians.  God supported our manifest destiny.  God supported our right to own slaves.  God was on our side in the world wars. 

It's not unique to America as a phenomenon, as basically every country has at some point claimed their divine right, we're just really good at it because our population is so easily duped by this particular brand of horseshit.

[Dub_the_Builder]

I didn't think my first time listening to a sermon in 10 years would be at an inauguration. Heavens, this is so religious.

Religion has always been intertwined in the fabric of the country. Has always been, won't end here.

I was surprised and a little annoyed at how intertwined it is, even in this day and age.  We are supposed to have separation of church and state, but in fact the state is heavily biased toward not just faith in general, but specifically Christianity.

My response to seperation of church and state is to show me where it exactly says that in the constitution. 1st amendment states thats the government cannot make any laws mandating the religion of an individual. The government shall not force one set of beliefs on its citizens. It does not say that an elected official cannot be influenced by their belief system. I respect the choice each individual makes with regards to their belief system. If I were to ever run for office my beliefs would heavily influence my decision making, but so would the constitution and bill of rights.

[WootWoot]

Quite frankly, I cried. I was in a doctor's waiting room on Friday, when Obama spoke as President for the last time. I just burst out sobbing. Dried my eyes, blew my nose, and started all over again.

[sol]

Quite frankly, I cried. I was in a doctor's waiting room on Friday, when Obama spoke as President for the last time. I just burst out sobbing. Dried my eyes, blew my nose, and started all over again.

If it makes you feel any better, about 40% of the country is absolutely delighted that you're upset.  They're positively gleeful about it. 

[Johnez]

I mostly agree.

I found it darkly funny that Trump, the living embodiment of the seven deadly sins, had an inauguration with so many preachers espousing a viewpoint of morality that the man himself clearly has no interest in.

It's almost like he's overcompensating. Kinda like how he appointed half the military in positions.

Regarding the inaugural address, his usual campaign lines were boring as usual, the Bible talk was interesting. I honestly don't get it, even when I was a pretty hardcore Christian I would have voted against this fake.

[seattlecyclone]

I didn't think my first time listening to a sermon in 10 years would be at an inauguration. Heavens, this is so religious.

Religion has always been intertwined in the fabric of the country. Has always been, won't end here.

I was surprised and a little annoyed at how intertwined it is, even in this day and age.  We are supposed to have separation of church and state, but in fact the state is heavily biased toward not just faith in general, but specifically Christianity.

My response to seperation of church and state is to show me where it exactly says that in the constitution. 1st amendment states thats the government cannot make any laws mandating the religion of an individual. The government shall not force one set of beliefs on its citizens. It does not say that an elected official cannot be influenced by their belief system. I respect the choice each individual makes with regards to their belief system. If I were to ever run for office my beliefs would heavily influence my decision making, but so would the constitution and bill of rights.

I really don't want to derail this thread too much, but I just want to say that if the government is not going to support one religion over another, the only plausible way to do that is to separate church and state completely. Note I'm not calling for elected officials to stop believing in their own religion or to avoid relying on its teachings when making decisions. That's all perfectly fine. We're all individuals with our own circumstances that inform our opinions and our actions. What I do object to is things like inviting preachers of only one particular religion to speak at an official event like an inauguration. As someone who doesn't belong to that religion, it's impossible for me to see that as anything other than an official endorsement of that religion above all others. To avoid this perception, you either need to invite leaders of every religion to speak, or invite none of them. I'd prefer none, myself.

[marty998]

Was there a really a White House Spokeswoman out there debating with the media, when presented with the facts and photographs showing the reduced number who turned out for Trump as opposed to Obama she exclaimed "here is an alternative set of facts"???

Post truth world indeed.

[seattlecyclone]

Was there a really a White House Spokeswoman out there debating with the media, when presented with the facts and photographs showing the reduced number who turned out for Trump as opposed to Obama she exclaimed "here is an alternative set of facts"???

Post truth world indeed.

Basically, yes. She was being interviewed about the press secretary's lies about the inauguration attendance, and said those lies were simply "alternative facts."

[lost_in_the_endless_aisle]

And then there's the story of the cake:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/food/wp/2017/01/21/trump-had-a-huge-luxurious-inauguration-cake-was-it-plagiarized/

Plagiarized from Obama's cake, and mostly made of styrofoam, it seems an apt metaphor for Trump's candidacy. Style over substance, and his style leaves much to be desired (gold curtains already installed at WH). With Goldman Sachs's alumni executive team being placed in various key appointed positions, the motto going forward will be "let them eat styrofoam".

[sol]

And then there's the story of the cake:

To be fair, the cake was billed as a "recreation" of Obama's inauguration cake, not a plagiarism.  That makes it all better, right?

side by side photo of cakes:  https://twitter.com/Duff_Goldman/status/822675780341641216/photo/1

this year's cake maker defends it:  https://www.instagram.com/p/BPiBprwF4JP/

the original cake artist calls a truce:  https://twitter.com/Duff_Goldman/status/822858891939590145

[MDM]

Was there a really a White House Spokeswoman out there debating with the media, when presented with the facts and photographs showing the reduced number who turned out for Trump as opposed to Obama she exclaimed "here is an alternative set of facts"???

Post truth world indeed.

Here's what seems a reasonable take on what Spicer claimed: ALTERNATIVE FACTS? The Trump Team’s War On The Media – And Reality | News Corpse.

Pretty clear that Spicer was wrong about the white tarps being used "for the first time."  Could have been an honest mistake - balance that against the mistaken tweet about the MLK bust removal from the oval office and call it a tie so far.

Also seems likely that Obama's first inaugural had more people - no way to know for sure but that's what the preponderance of the evidence suggests (at least to me).

Does anyone know the time each of the crowd pictures shown was taken?  If they were both taken ~12:15 PM, then it seems a fair enough comparison.  I've heard other clips in which a Trump official implies/states the pictures were taken at different times (without specifying when).  Haven't been able to find anything more specific than "...a screen grab from the White House YouTube livestream of Donald Trump's 2017 inauguration" (see Factcheck: Trump and Spicer's Statements on Inaugural Crowd Size) regarding a timestamp...?

ETA: Found The footage on this page was captured 45 minutes before each oath of office.  Tends to confirm Obama's crowd was larger, but why not show pictures from the inaugural speech times?  That would seem the fairest comparison....

[waltworks]

Photos both at the same time according to WaPo, NYT, etc.

I think the more interesting thing here is that Trump would react this way. He could have said "I really thank everyone who came, and I'm looking forward to moving ahead with blah blah blah."  It seems that he's just unable to do anything but troll/antagonize, though. What is there to gain from arguing about crowd size? There's no question that Trump is unpopular, and trying to claim "alternative facts" isn't going to endear him to anyone but his most diehard supporters.

It's like he's still running in a primary or something and picking fights just to get attention. Weird.

-W

[KBecks]

And then there's the story of the cake:

To be fair, the cake was billed as a "recreation" of Obama's inauguration cake, not a plagiarism.  That makes it all better, right?

side by side photo of cakes:  https://twitter.com/Duff_Goldman/status/822675780341641216/photo/1

this year's cake maker defends it:  https://www.instagram.com/p/BPiBprwF4JP/

the original cake artist calls a truce:  https://twitter.com/Duff_Goldman/status/822858891939590145

It's a fucking cake, who cares?  What's the point?

[sol]

It's a fucking cake, who cares?  What's the point?

Professional cake makers consider themselves artists.  They are commissioned to create original artistic edible sculptures for special events, and they build a portfolio of their work to increase their reputation and fame.  To them, having a cake design stolen is just like having a dress design stolen or a song stolen.

It's not like there aren't a hundred other cake bakers out there who would have been thrilled to make an original cake for Trump, if he had asked.  For some reason, he instead seems to have asked for a recreation of Obama's cake.  Maybe he just thought it was a safe play to plagiarize the Obamas (again)? 

Here's hoping he sticks to that play book as often as possible.

[waltworks]

I don't get the cake thing either. Being offended by this is just playing into the hands of people who say you're out of touch with middle America, who don't want to hear any more about plagiarized cakes or transvestite bathrooms when their kid just died of an opioid overdose and they haven't had a job in 12 years.

Seriously, if you don't like Trump, you need to drop the cake-plagiarism sort of crap. It's quite literally why Trump won the election.

-W

[sol]

Seriously, if you don't like Trump, you need to drop the cake-plagiarism sort of crap.

The only person who was upset about this was the guy who had his cake design stole, and he promptly said it was totally fine when he learned that the other guys had been asked to recreate his work, instead of them stealing it and claiming it as their own.