Why Donald Trump is Really Running for President: The 6% Solution

Take whatever amount of money you think Donald Trump has in the bank and subtract 6% from that number. You can do the math.  That is the amount of money he thinks he would lose if a Democrat returns to the White House.  He is convinced that if a Democrat wins the election, there will be a tax increase for the extremely wealthy.  How much of a tax increase?  6%.

So, what about the math?  Is that a lot of money?

That is the amount of his money Donald Trump is trying to protect by leading the GOP to victory.   That is also the amount of money other extremely wealthy people think they can save by voting for Trump.

Nevertheless, you might have wondered from time to time:  Why would a liberal-leaning, Democratic shoulder-rubbing businessman from New York suddenly seek the GOP Presidential nomination?  It's just good business.

You see, Donald Trump is a salesman.  Despite what he says and the name of his best-selling book, The Art of the Deal, he is a salesman.  He doesn't do deals.  Deals are a win-win.  Donald sells you on his product and you receive a faulty product.

There are basically 3 types of salesmen.  (Maybe this is what they should have taught at Trump University.  Maybe they did, but I doubt it.)

1.  They know and love their product.  (Nope, not Donald.  Donald loves Donald.)

2.  They know and love their customers. (Nope, again, not Donald.  Remember how stupid he thought people from Iowa were.)

3.  They love the lifestyle that their sales and customers provide them.  (Yup).

Make no mistake, Donald Trump is Type 3.  This type of sales person thinks he can, and often does, sell you anything,  The product is really irrelevant.  He makes money by selling you a product or a service.  It could be a hotel, wine, a book, an education, a TV show.  As you have seen by his other products, they typically aren't very good and many of his customers are not very satisfied, but by the time your realize that, he already has your money.  So, what does he care?

So, what is he selling you now?

Salesmen of this type understand what you are afraid of and use it to persuade.  He's not telling you what he is afraid of.  He is afraid of losing money and afraid of not making money.  He wants you to believe that he is concerned about you. He is trying to convince you of a need, a fear.  You need this product, to squelch your fear, calm your anxiety.  He convinces you that he is also afraid.

He doesn't really think anyone is going to take your guns away from you.  I would be surprised if Donald packs any heat (his sons might be packing).  He is not really that scared that drug-dealing, raping, criminally-minded Mexicans will run amok.  He really not that concerned about ISIS (mostly because he is confused about what they are).  He doesn't really think other countries are winning.

But he knows you might be or could be convinced to be scared.  If he can convince you that there is something to fear right outside your door, he can sell you his product.  It won't work very well.  He has never governed.  Most of his businesses have tanked (think Trump Towers, Trump University, USFL, etc.).

By becoming President, he can save himself 6%.  By convincing you that criminals, gays, women, immigrants, people of color, and Democrats are running amok and are ready taking things away from you or kill you, you will vote for him.  So, he saves 6%.  Actually, he saves 6% of his father's money. Donald has never been able to make any money off of his father's inheritance (if you account for inflation).  He has, alas, simply broken even.  As far as we can tell, anyway.  Where are those tax returns anyway?

By the way, the reason you saw Donald's wife and children up there on the podium at the RNC in Cleveland is that they are as concerned about the 6% as he is.  And, why shouldn't they be?  A 6% tax hike is a boatload of cash.

But even if he loses (or drops out, or resigns), he wins. Because somebody can always be entertained or sold to.  It's just good business.

Suspended Disbelief: Nightmarish Dytopian Future Closer to Reality Than I Thought

When I was a kid, I didn't really like science fiction much.  I couldn't successfully suspend my disbelief.  The scenarios presented seems too far fetched.  I didn't buy it.

That has all changed.  I now get Star Wars, Mad Max, The Hunger Games, Harry Potter, even.  All of them.  Why?  The 2016 presidential election campaign has made a believer out of me.

We've got it all here.  Coming soon to a neighborhood near you.

The misogynistic, evil demagogue who has and bullied his way into  power.  Got 'em.  More than one candidate, actually.

One legitimate religion.  Non-followers, non-believers are identified, vilified, beaten, imprisoned or exiled.  Got that.

Uneasy, polarized coalitions formed to combat common enemies.  Yes, sir.

Mistrust of media, news and communication.  Yup.    

The caste system in place. The haves and have nots.  The threatened upper class.  The easily identified, evil lower classes. We got them, too.

A proliferation of weapons and easy access.  Everyone has a gun.   Shot them before they shoot you.

Vigilantes.  "Good guys" shooting "bad guys."  Remember, if in doubt, the white ones with guns are OK.  

Desert wasteland.  Yup.  Did you see that, globally, last year and this year are the two warmest on record?

Dwindling resources.  Environmental disasters.  Uncontrollable diseases.  Flint, Michigan?  Brazil? Zika?   Check.

Humanoid Robots.  Well, we have the killer military drones and the toy commercial ones, too.

By the way, Samsung is coming out with a new smartphone with a virtual reality viewer attachment! Don't bother to pre-order.  You won't need it.   The show outside your doorstep will be entertaining enough.  Or, stay online.  The Apocalypse is streaming live.