America's Golden Age of Stupidity

[mahatmakanejeeves]

America’s Golden Age of Stupidity

By David Rothkopf July 25

David Rothkopf is the author of “The Great Questions of Tomorrow.” He is a visiting professor of international and public affairs at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs and a visiting scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

“Hello, you have reached the United States of America. We’re sorry no one is here to take your call right now. We have taken leave of our senses and are unsure when they’ll return. Please try again in three-and-a-half years.”

If America had a voice-mail message to the world, this would be it. We are running an experiment in exploring the consequences of suddenly having the world’s most important power go absent without leave on the world stage.
....

George W. Bush had the War on Terror. Donald Trump has the War on Truth.

In the past month, the last few scientists have exited the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy’s (OSTP) Science Division. The OSTP is staffed at approximately a third of the level it was during the Obama administration; President Trump has yet to name a head of the office. Last week, the State Department’s top science and technology adviser, Vaughan Turekian, resigned amid a swirl of rumors that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was planning on shuttering his entire science and tech operation. There have been a number of non-scientist appointments in posts with major scientific elements, including the appointment of Samuel Clovis to be undersecretary in charge of the Agriculture Department’s research, education and economic efforts. Clovis, who has virtually no science background, will oversee efforts on vital issues ranging from the spread of diseases to the effects of pesticides.
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David Rothkopf is the author of the forthcoming “Great Questions of Tomorrow” (TED Books/Simon & Schuster, 2017). He is a visiting professor of international and public affairs at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs and a visiting scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Follow @djrothkopf

[RKP5637]

1. America, now bottom of the barrel. The rest of the world will have to lead. Can't trust anything

out of America these days, far too many WH lies and deceptions with Loser in Chief!

[procon]

2. No industrialized country can survive without a tremendous effort to boost

science and math. From early education, to R&D, and the bleeding edge advanced technologies that will frame the future and secure our standing in a highly competitive world, we can't afford to lose pace and relinquish our leadership role to our foreign opponents.

[weydowner]

3. one damned thing after another

The 'rest of the world' - a concept quite a lot bigger than the USA - is still trying to recover from the stupidity and ignorance of Bush Jnr and that was a generation ago. Admittedly he somehow lasted for 8 years. Ultimately he was a sane member of the human race, and he was not malign.
The current occupant has been there for 6 months and seems to get worse as the days go by. Already his actions have been very negative both in and beyond the US.
Does anybody think that in 30 years time he will be a mere footnote in history as the younger Bush and his cronies seem to have become. Sometimes I wish I had 50 years ahead of me (which, DV, I might have, actually) if only to see the effects of this monster reverberating through history, and the resulting downfall of the United States f America.

No longer an ISIS dream, unfortunately.
Even Watergate would be a Wednesday-night furore which would be swept away by new antics and scandals on Thursday. It is pretty useless to warn a whole nation in comments, like some bargain-basement Cassandra, but the 'other' Superpower imploded/exploded in 5 years or so, and didn't have as angry and discontent populace or an inept and partisan a Government. Not to mention an unhinged and bat-sh-t crazy leader.

[Igel]

5. That was 8 1/2 years ago.

Unless we expect 9 year olds to have children who have children at 9 years of age, that's not a generation.

And so much apocalyptic talk.

[ThoughtCriminal]

4. What if there was a "War On Smart", and smart lost

Welcome to our reality.