Dalai Lama says Donald Trump has a 'lack of moral principle'

[DonViejo]

Source: The Guardian


Tibetan spiritual leader also reiterates that his female successor must be ‘attractive’

Kate Lyons
@MsKateLyons

Thu 27 Jun 2019 03.32 EDT Last modified on Thu 27 Jun 2019 04.05 EDT

The Dalai Lama has said Donald Trump lacks moral principle and that he is open to the next spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists being a woman, but only if she is “attractive”.

In an interview with the BBC, the Dalai Lama also said that while he was a supporter of the EU and thought it would be better for the UK to remain part of it, he did not want to see Europe become “Muslim” or “African”.

Asked about the US president, whom the Tibetan spiritual leader has previously unflatteringly impersonated, he said: “His emotions [are] also a little bit,” and made a gesture waggling his finger near his temple. “One day he says something, another day he says something. But I think [there is a] lack of moral principle. When he became president, he expressed America first. That is wrong. America, they should take the global responsibility.”

The interviewer, the BBC’s Rajini Vaidyanathan, pointed out the campaign for Britain to leave the EU used one of the Dalai Lama’s quotes about migration to Europe as part of its campaign. “The goal should be that migrants return and help rebuild their countries. You have to be practical. It’s impossible for everyone to come,” he had said.


Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jun/27/dalai-lama-says-donald-trump-has-a-lack-of-moral-principle

[Thomas Hurt]

1. He is a malignant narcissist and a fascist wannabe dictator.

[underpants]

2. I thought this was a satire piece, then I read it

I’m guessing (the article sort of hints at it) that the comment about the female Dalai Lama was a joke, right?

The comments about Europe surprised me quite a bit.

[Achilleaze]

3. Every honest, decent person in the world agrees

Every last one of them.

[B Stieg]

4. Hello, Dalai?

What the heck does he mean by attractive? Or is he just being sarcastic?
And he also sounds a tad xenophobic when it comes to Europe!
Did not know these things. Disappointing, actually. But I guess we all carry bias...

[bullwinkle428]

5. Here come da Tweet..."DOLLY LLAMA IS OVERRATED!!1!"

[yerop]

6. Read the whole article before judging the Dalai Lama

Remember that his English is very basic.

About culture and peoples, he is simply saying that the general culture of continents and lands (all of them) should be respected. Remember that he is coming from a place that was occupied and repressed by Communist China, where Tibetan Buddhists are murdered, put into gulags and tortured.

And his comment about attractiveness of a female Dalai Lama was obviously an intent at humor -- he clarified that he was joking that he hopes she wouldn't look like him.

Full quote re cultures and places:
“But [for the] whole [of] Europe [to] eventually become [a] Muslim country? Impossible. Or [an] African country, also impossible,” he said while laughing, adding: “Keep Europe for Europeans.”

Re "attractiveness" of a female Dalai Lama:
“If [a] female Dalai Lama comes then she should be more attractive. If [a] female Dalai Lama,” before pulling a face, “I think, [people would] prefer not [to] see her, that face.”

What I think he meant in the first sentence is “If [a] female Dalai Lama comes then she should be more attractive [than me]." (Yuk yuk.)

[mr_lebowski]

7. If I'm giving benefit of the doubt to ANYONE IN THE FREAKING WORLD ...

It's our current Dalai Lama.

I don't personally know of a 'better person' ... on the entire planet.

He's in his 80's, and been through shit none of us could possible imagine. He's got leeway to poorly conveyed jokes, delivered in his non-native language for freaking DAYS afaic.

[Jake Stern]

8. Considering how he watched as his country was occupied by a foreign population

I find his view on Europe to be quite understandable.