"One of the primary characteristics of narcissists is their exaggerated sense of entitlement. It's hardly surprising then that so many politicians somehow think they 'deserve' to game the system. After all, from their self-interested perspective, isn't that what the system is for? In their heavily self-biased opinion, if they want something, by rights it should be theirs. So, nothing if not opportunistic, they take from public and private coffers alike whatever they think they can get away with. And given their grandiose sense of self, they're inclined to believe they can get away with most anything.
Exploiting their privileged position in such a manner hardly leaves them plagued with guilt. In general, guilt isn't an emotion they're prone to. How could they be if they feel entitled to the objects of their desire? In their minds their very ability to attain something must certainly mean it was merited."
Leon F. Seltzer, Narcissism: Why It's So Rampant in Politics, December 21, 2011
"The truth is that the European Union entered the Russia/NATO/Ukrainian war recklessly, based on flawed calculations and with a misguided strategy, and I attribute this to the actions of European Union President [Ursala Von der Leyen]. If we want to win, the current failed strategy must be changed."
Viktor Orbán, Prime Minister of Hungary, Speech to European Commission, 13 October 2024
"The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the dedicated communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction, true and false, no longer exists. The sad truth is that most evil is done by people who never make up their minds to be good or evil."
Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism, 1951
"The more power a government has the more it can act arbitrarily according to the whims and desires of the elite, and the more it will make war on others and murder its foreign and domestic subjects. It simply waits for an excuse, an event of some sort, an assassination, a massacre in a neighboring country, an attempted coup, a famine, or a natural disaster, to justify the beginning of murder en masse."
R. J. Rummel, Genocide and Mass Murder Since 1900, 1994
"Hatred can be nurtured anywhere, idealism can be perverted into sadism anywhere. The inferno could erupt anew anywhere. The history of man is the history of crimes, and history can repeat. So information is a defense. Through this we can build, we must build, a defense against repetition.
There is no denying that Hitler and Stalin are waiting for us to forget, because this is what makes possible the resurrection of these two monsters."
Simon Wiesenthal
Stocks fell decidedly today, as part of the endless wash and rinse.
VIX rose.
The Dollar chopped around.
Gold and silver rallied.
And where they make a desert, they call it peace.
Have a pleasant evening.
