Schadenfreude

Gloating or feeling some kind of glee at the discomfort of others is a reaction I try to limit but sometimes it just isn't possible. One of the very basics of humor is to laugh at the woes of others, including all the banana peel skits and comics making drunk jokes. Unfortunately the schadenfreude we feel now involves the future of our country. While Wolff's book may have some fabulist aspects to it, no one denies that he had unprecedented access to the White House and he has indicated he has multiple tape recordings of interviews. He has to tell people when he makes recordings so unless everyone in the WH is brain damaged or on drugs, they know that he has their voices on tape.

At the very least, and the item that is the most obvious and provable is that Trump does not read. Many people who have worked with him both before and after last November have told multiple news outlets that Trump cannot hold his attention to complete reading a document longer than a 200 character tweet. This is not good news nor is it good for any of us, liberal or conservative, Democrat or Republican, male or female. Small wonder that facts and truth matter very little. If all you listen to is your own voice or the voices of lackeys who fawn over you, then facts don't mean anything. Remember The Emperor's New Clothes?

So while some of the items that are in Wolff's book make me cringe while also chuckling, I am appalled that we the people are in this position. There is no doubt in my mind that Putin already knew all of the disturbing details of Trump's personality and failings. The man was a KGB officer used to getting information and play his assets. Whether Trump acquiesced in this makes very little difference.