The Confidence Man -- A Tale as Old as Time [View all]
Last edited Sun May 25, 2025, 06:39 AM - Edit history (1)
How do unprincipled people like Trump flourish while principled men such as the late President Jimmy Carter are considered "failures" by many?
CONfidence men such as Trump have the advantage. They project absolute certainty while exploiting people's weaknesses, desires, and fears and telling them what they want to hear. Ethical considerations are not concerns to such men. President Reagan told everyone how special they were to be Americans, Jimmy Carter told them the truth -- things were hard and sacrifice was needed. Reagan won.
A confidence man counts on and uses the selfishness and greed of his marks. Something for nothing, a quick pay off. This can be a desire for "a chicken in every pot" or a brown person on every gallows.
An unprincipled assertion of CERTAINTY and CONfidence -- with no ethical concerns -- are the hallmark of a confidence man.
But they are only HALF of the equation. The other half are those who follow them for narcissistic reasons and who abdicate their own ethical responsibilities to get what they want or, at least, be told they are going to get it.
To us, Trump is an unethical buffoon: to them he is SUGAR DADDY who tells them how special they are and how he's going to get them what they want.
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