Xi and Trump on the tarmac.

By Bob Gaydos

   The truest, most insightful thing Donald Trump has ever said is, “I love the poorly educated.”

    The man who has no clue as to how dumb he himself actually is, is actually smart enough to know that his ace in the hole is that there are a lot of other dumb people in America. Dumb enough to think that having a lot of money means you’re smart, rather than lucky at birth. Dumb enough to vote for him three times, even though he did know in the past how to bankrupt three casinos, an airline, a college and steal from his own charity.

     I’m on the “dumb” shtick today because the dotard has spent the last few days demonstrating the depth of his ignorance to the world, first at the United Nations and then back in Washington, D.C., where he has declared open season on members of the press who report accurately on what he says and does. It’s beyond embarrassing and insulting.

     At the U.N., an organization literally created to promote and protect world peace, instead of offering a ceasefire plan, he threatened to “annihilate” Iran (85 million people) if it doesn’t come around and give him what he wants to end the war he started illegally and is losing badly, which is costing him support in the heartland because it has driven the price of diesel oil, which moves everything, through the roof. Truck drivers are not happy. Fertilizer is also at a premium. Farmers are not happy. The Iranians, who control both major international waterways for the shipment of oil and fertilizer, said no deal.

     Back in the cozy, gold-plated confines of the White House, Trump, who uses the word “Communist” as an insult for everyone who disagrees with him, especially Democrats, rolled out the literal red carpet for the most powerful Communist on the planet, Chinese president Xi Jinping, who is actually helping supply Iran in the war against the U.S. No matter. Ever the genial host and chronically deferential to those he perceives as truly powerful, Trump went so far as to mock former President Joe Biden while giving Xi a tour of Trump’s gold-plated hallway of former presidents. A real sign of American unity and dignity.

    He also missed Xi’s cleverly presented timeless message of the ascending power replacing the declining power (guess which is which) and came away with nothing to show on establishing controls on artificial intelligence (which is apparently out to destroy humanity) despite having a bunch of communist-loving tech billionaires (and three duplicitous Supreme Court justices) attend a lavish state dinner with his communist “friend.” Someone probably talked Trump out of having fortune cookies.

    Yes, in a sense it was just another couple of days in Trumpland. But, as usual, it was all a show to no positive results, the kind of events that many of his most loyal supporters applaud at face value.

   While the “mainstream media” may be finally arousing itself to report more thoroughly on Trump’s rapidly declining mental capacity, it remains to independent journalists to get the word out on a daily basis.

    Which is to say, the continuing real story here is that the Republican Party, which controls all three branches of government, has abdicated any responsibility for the pain and suffering and humiliation of the United States being led by an obviously mentally and physically debilitated, seemingly delusional, narcissist who’s getting richer in the process.

    The elected officials who have allowed this are not dumb. They are either of the same mind set with Trump on racism, etc., or too cowardly to oppose him because they fear losing their jobs when the “poorly educated” dutifully vote for the candidates Trump endorses.

   But clearly, even many of those voters pay attention at some point (diesel oil) because Trump doesn’t know how dumb he really is. What he does know is how to threaten and inflict pain on his perceived enemies. This is seen by some of his strongest supporters as a sign of strength and cunning. Actually, it’s a reflex action and he enjoys doing it. He simply doesn’t know any other way.

    Enough. The smart money says that what’s needed is a massive voter turnout for all Democratic candidates in November. A blue wave that will change the power structure in Washington and start to put America back in the hands of realists, not the delusional. While we’re at it, maybe we can even reboot an education system that apparently produces too many of the kind of voters Trump “truly loves.”

   Not doing that would be worse than dumb.

***

—  Trump made the “poorly educated” comment on Feb. 23, 2016, at the Treasure Island Las Vegas Casino after winning the Nevada Republican caucuses.

By Bob Gaydos

Trump and Xi in China.

If you believe in miracles (and I do), then hold onto your hat or whatever else you may occasionally place on your head. Next week, Donald Trump will have the opportunity to achieve one of the great diplomatic accomplishments in this nation‘s history. On a par with Nixon‘s “opening China.“ And Trump doesn’t even have to leave the White House. China is coming to him.

Next Thursday, Chinese president Xi Jinping is scheduled to meet with Trump to discuss an extension of the truce on trade tariffs and rare earth minerals as well as the ongoing war in Iran and the always present friction over Taiwan. A full agenda.

But that’s not all of it. If the most recent frenetic news stories are correct (and I’m in no position to refute or even doubt them), Trump may have the opportunity to come out of his summit with XI known as the man who saved humanity. The gods apparently love irony.

It’s the other item of the agenda that offers the man who constantly seeks recognition for achieving great things to actually do that. That is, the need to put guardrails, nay, serious controls, on the development of artificial intelligence.

The urgency comes from some of the very people who developed AI. One after another they have warned that their creation has gone from simply following orders to developing working relationships with other various AI systems to do whatever the group decides is the appropriate action for the situation. Without necessarily factoring in any human concerns about the law or for the damage such actions may inflict. They’ve gone rogue.

There have even been warnings from some of those who have developed artificial intelligence systems that AI might actually eliminate humans within 10 years. That would certainly eliminate the fear of simply losing our jobs to AI.

Anyway, some major developers of AI, members of Congress and political leaders around the globe are all calling for a slowdown in development so that agreement can be made on what can and cannot be programmed into artificial intelligence. Basically, somehow integrating human emotion, empathy and intelligence with their artificial creation.

Trump is against it. The U.S. and China are the two major developers and supporters of AI. Trump, as is his way, wants to “win” the race to control AI for the financial rewards. But the people who built AI are saying they can’t control it. They want help.

Some say that the request to talk about controls is merely a way for some of the major AI companies to divert attention from a slowdown in financial growth and reduction in profits. A way to soothe investors. Trump is likely one of those. But this hardly seems like the time to treat this as a buy or sell investment decision, especially since the only ones who have any kind of understanding of how AI works are the ones issuing the warning. As a human being, life and death seems to be more important.

And, to repeat, if Xi and Trump can assemble the AI creators and some serious diplomatic teams (not Jared) to discuss the ways and means to share the many promising developments of AI without harming millions of human beings in the process, or even killing us all, they would be forever remembered in history as the men who saved the world. Looks good in your obituary. And it probably wouldn’t hurt on the stock market.

Nixon, an ardent anti-communist, went to China because he saw the benefits to both nations of reducing tensions and working together. He was later driven from office, but he had his presidential moment. If Trump, who uses the word “Communist” as a weapon, can be convinced that the only win-win outcome in his meeting with Xi is to work together for mutual protection from AI, as well as profit, he will have his own presidential moment. The president who saved humanity.

And I’d be happy to thank him for all of us humans.