It's not a scenario but an analogy. Did the risk increase or not?

It’s not analogous, though. But no a crosshairs in a logo did not increase the risk.
Can you name one case of anyone being incited to violence by an image of a crosshairs?

When President Trump ticks off his accomplishments since taking office, he frequently mentions his aggressive makeover of a key sector of the federal judiciary — the circuit courts of appeal, where he has appointed 51 judges to lifetime jobs in three years.

In few places has the effect been felt more powerfully than in the sprawling 9th Circuit, which covers California and eight other states. Because of Trump’s success in filling vacancies, the San Francisco-based circuit, long dominated by Democratic appointees, has suddenly shifted to the right, with an even more pronounced tilt expected in the years ahead.

Trump has flipped the 9th Circuit — and some new judges are causing a ‘shock wave’

Wow, what a crowd.

Reminds me of Billy Graham rallies. The US is having trouble ripping off India in trade talks, so they wheel out the populism to twist the arms of the negotiators.

Since the blocking by Congress of Obama's appointment I've had a closer look at the US system. Since then I've been advising clients not to apply US law and jurisdictions any more. It was then compounded with the Kavanaugh appointment. Now this.

The law doesn't change based on the judge sitting the case and the principles of interpretation and construction have been so often discussed that this is relatively well documented (in fact, the UK Supreme Court is fed up with them and is not likely to accept a case about construction and interpretation any time soon). The fact people nowadays find it so important means there's an issue with US courts that goes beyond the correct application of law, e.g. judges beholden to political interests because they have to "thank" their position to politicians.

In the beginning of Trump’s administration a number of activist judges blocked Trump’s policies with nation-wide injunctions. In other words some Obama-appointed judge in California could override the policies of the elected president of the country, at least until the issue was taken to the Supreme Court. So hopefully with the new appointments that kind of judicial activism and political interest is excised from the system altogether.

Reminds me of Billy Graham rallies. The US is having trouble ripping off India in trade talks, so they wheel out the populism to twist the arms of the negotiators.

They played Macho Man by the Village People when Trump entered the stadium. That doesn’t ring “Billy Graham” to me.

The absolute kindest thing to say about Trump is that he is a soul-less liar. And you a person that leaps about to try to put your mouth wherever you think (think?) Trump might have a use for it. My dog has a use for it, but is too discerning (the dog, that is) to actually use it.

I believe your judgement of character is lacking in exactly the places you lack character. Personally I don’t look to politicians for moral guidance. I don’t want a pope, I just want an elected official to do his job.

They played Macho Man by the Village People when Trump entered the stadium. That doesn’t ring “Billy Graham” to me. — NOS4A2

Someone who whines about bone spurs, being treated unfairly by the fake news media, etc etc, doesn’t ring macho to me.

In more Trump news, it appears the claims of Russian interference were “overstated”.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/02/23/politics/intelligence-briefer-russian-interference-trump-sanders/index.html

The US intelligence community's top election security official appears to have overstated the intelligence community's formal assessment of Russian interference in the 2020 election, omitting important nuance during a briefing with lawmakers earlier this month, three national security officials told CNN.

The official, Shelby Pierson, told lawmakers on the House Intelligence Committee that Russia is interfering in the 2020 election with the goal of helping President Donald Trump get reelected.
The US intelligence community has assessed that Russia is interfering in the 2020 election and has separately assessed that Russia views Trump as a leader they can work with. But the US does not have evidence that Russia's interference this cycle is aimed at reelecting Trump, the officials said.

"The intelligence doesn't say that," one senior national security official told CNN. "A more reasonable interpretation of the intelligence is not that they have a preference, it's a step short of that. It's more that they understand the President is someone they can work with, he's a dealmaker."

What national security adviser Robert O'Brien is saying about Russia briefing 'conflicts' with what lawmakers were told Pierson's characterization of Russian interference led to pointed questions from lawmakers, which officials said caused Pierson to overstep and assert that Russia has a preference for Trump to be reelected.

One intelligence official said that Pierson's characterization of the intelligence was "misleading" and a national security official said Pierson failed to provide the "nuance" needed to accurately convey the US intelligence conclusions.

I doubt true believers such as John Brennan and the DNC will walk back their statements.

Someone who whines about bone spurs, the fake news media, etc etc, doesn’t ring macho to me.

I don’t even want to know what you think is macho.

Does Trump ever actually appointment someone suitable, or is it just useless yes-men, donors, and family? — Michael

It's an axiom of mine that consistent behaviour makes sense. Maybe not, and sometimes certainly not, good sense. And sometimes horrific sense. Given the sum appropriateness of all of Trump's appointments, plus the significance of the people he's got rid of and apparently is planning to get rid of, harming in the process, plus his various denials of intelligence and his spectacular lies, and assuming there's an underlying sense, what can one suppose that ties it all together into some kind of sense?

A Russian tool? Madman? Someone who reads "Government of the people by the people for the people," as Rule of, by, and for me first and then the loyal rich, and fuck, fuck, fuck everyone else as much as possible? I think all three. What is much more disturbing are the people he finds and attaches to himself. They can only be damaged to the point of dangerousness,

Trump the corrupted is also the corrupter.

I don’t want a pope, I just want an elected official to do his job. — NOS4A2

Your unrelenting defense of Trump proves this to be false.

Excellent point!

Your unrelenting defense of Trump proves this to be false.

Not a strand of chewing gum can connect that premise to your conclusion.

Someone who whines about bone spurs, the fake news media, etc etc, doesn’t ring macho to me.

I don’t even want to know what you think is macho. — NOS4A2

For starters, someone who’s willing to fight for their country rather than whine about bone spurs. Someone who is actually self-made and didn’t inherit almost half a billion.

Your unrelenting defense of Trump proves this to be false.

Not a strand of chewing gum can connect that premise to your conclusion. — NOS4A2

You defend him as though he’s your cult leader.

For starters, someone who’s willing to fight for their country rather than whine about bone spurs. Someone who is actually self-made and didn’t inherit almost half a billion.

Bone spurs. That’s all you got, eh? We used to call this grasping at straws, but given the element of hatred impelling it, it’s little more than the bluster of a hater.

We have to give nos4 credit for being an accomplished fencer, always ready with parry and riposte. But that's a sport, and our topic is not altogether sport. It would be appropriate and correct, then, to bring a gun to this knife fight. Let nos4 have his sideshow of a sport; for the rest of us it grows tedious. And there are within matters of substance, hard enough to touch on a forum like this, but that are parried away by this lunatic fencer-in-the-shadows.

Your reply has no bearing on the point I was making except as to serve as an example why the US legal system cannot be trusted to judge based on law.

In the beginning of Trump’s administration a number of activist judges blocked Trump’s policies with nation-wide injunctions. In other words some Obama-appointed judge in California could override the policies of the elected president of the country, at least until the issue was taken to the Supreme Court. So hopefully with the new appointments that kind of judicial activism and political interest is excised from the system altogether. — NOS4A2

Or perhaps the Obama-appointed judges were judging the law correctly and any Trump-appointees who judge differently are being activists.

Bone spurs. That’s all you got, eh? — NOS4A2

No, I said just for starters. Here's Trump curtseying like a bitch...



Or how about his 'fire and fury' moment. Look at the body language, the folded arms are a form of 'self-comforting', literally hugging himself. To Trump culties it may look like a tough posture, but to those who can read body language, the anxiety is evident and not at all macho.

The sheer plausibility of Russian interference is becoming increasingly more evident - and inconceivable of support by any American, unless they are themselves utterly corrupted. Which in Trump's case is already made completely obvious by his life and business history.

When the Iranians took the hostages in late '79, Wm. F. Buckley cogently if at the time seemingly outrageously argued that the correct American response should be an immediate declaration of war. Not, he said, so that we - or anyone - might start shooting or taking territory, but to make presently and completely clear the nature of the relationship between Iran and the US that the Iranian actions had brought about.

The Russian nee Soviet government is manifestly and murderously corrupt, an enemy to all. To be sure, there are areas of mutual cooperation and trust, the space station, for example, and other joint endeavors, but these are exercises in pure self-interest. Given Russian interference and what must be penetration into our government, I'm thinking it's time for the US to declare war on Russia. And at the least that would give our home-grown Quislings pause for thought. The possibility of being hanged or imprisoned for treason in time of war ought to slow down any truly self-interested weasel, of the sort that I think now infests the higher reaches of the US gov't. And ignorant tools like Betsy Devos and Ben Carson, et al, might go back into the holes they came out of.

I've had a bit of an epiphany about Trump, brought about by reporting on his and the Russians' relationship with Deutsche Bank. In short, it's about the money, a whole great river of it, being the life blood and product of Russia itself being bled out of that state by its corrupt oligarchy, and Trump is just a small part of it.

As to his management style, it's destroy institutional competence wherever found because that's always a danger, and replace it with the weak, the vile, the venal, the gutless and spineless, the toady, the fond, the stupid - anyone, in short, that is even more disposable than used Kleenex.

Which makes Trump about as simple as can be. No mystery, just the scale of the corruption and where it is that's hard to grasp.

Trumps financial ties to Deutsche Bank are currently being investigated. Some of them look like he is a participant in money laundering....

Two welcome changes have occurred over the last couple weeks. Trump appointed Richard Grenell as Acting Director of National Intelligence, and Kash Patel as advisor to Grenell. According to CBS, a source told them that their mandate was to “clean house” in the ODNI, which in a matter of decades has become a sclerotic and bureaucratic tumor in government.

These changes are welcome because the recent fibs regarding Russian meddling has become de rigueur in the intelligence community. Maybe those who are not spellbound by russiaphobia can course-correct.

I think any fall-out shelter worth the name is going to have a massive stash of dried gourmet mushrooms.

Trump doctor hid cauliflower in mashed potatoes to improve diet

Former White House physician Ronny Jackson told The New York Times that he regretted leaving his position before he could implement the diet and exercise regimen planned for Trump.

“The exercise stuff never took off as much as I wanted it to,” he said. “But we were working on his diet. We were making the ice cream less accessible, we were putting cauliflower into the mashed potatoes.”

:rofl:

Your toddler-in-Chief.

Although the headline doesn't quite match what Jackson said.

B...B...But he can build things!