I recently noticed this exchange on Facebook about the above graphic. (Yes, it’s old news. JPMorgan expects US GDP to slow to 2.8% in the fourth quarter and then shrink by 1% during the first three months of 2021.)
Comment: The country that started the pandemic has the least effect on GDP. Mmmmh…
Response: Sad that the country which caused such pain and misery in 2020 has suffered the least.
I don’t respond to this idiocy because I have no desire to get into a digital pissing contest with people live who in an alternate reality. Life is short, after all. Consider this my response.
Trumpies are amazing. The ultimate example of cognitive dissonance. While it’s true that a lot of the MAGA faithful are functionally illiterate, e.g., non-college educated white males, the individual who expressed his “sadness” that “the country which (sic) caused such pain and misery in 2020 has suffered the least” is well-educated and has at least average intelligence (an IQ between 85 and 115. Yet, it doesn’t occur to him that what’s really sad is that his home country’s cruel, incompetent, and corrupt federal government, i.e., the Trump administration, did virtually nothing to contain COVID-19, conduct that amounts to negligent homicide.
That’s how Trumpies think, perverse logic and all. Rather than giving credit where credit’s due, they follow the party line and engage in China bashing even though China, like Viet Nam, reacted quickly and competently to contain what became a global pandemic. At the risk of pointing out the obvious, the fact that COVID-19 originated in China is irrelevant. It’s as if they have some wires crossed and are driven purely by emotion. They remind me of anti-China, anti-Viet Nam, pro-Western armchair journalists who criticize Viet Nam for its success. Where’s the beef?!?
Let’s look at the latest stats (11.12.20), shall we? I’ve graded each country for its handling of the pandemic.
China: 86,701 total cases and 4,634 total deaths. Global ranking: 79/220 (Population: 1.4 billion) My grade: B+ (The only reason it’s not higher it because of the government’s initial attempt to keep a lid on the bad news.)
USA (“We’re #1 in COVID-19 infections and deaths!”): 16,295,458 total cases and 302,750 total deaths. Global ranking: 1/220 (Population: 331 million) My grade: F
Viet Nam: 1,391 total cases and 35 total deaths. Global ranking: 169/220 (Population: 97+ million) My grade: A+
Here are some of very stable genius-in-chief’s sage comments about COVID-19 while Rome was burning:
February 2020
This is a flu. This is like a flu.
It’s a little like a regular flu that we have flu shots for, and we’ll essentially have a flu shot for this in a fairly quick manner.
It’s going to disappear one day, it’s like a miracle, it will disappear.
A lot of people think that goes away in April, with the heat, as the heat comes in, typically that will go away in April.
April 2020
I see the disinfectant, where it knocks it out in a minute, one minute, and is there a way we can do something like that by injection inside, or almost a cleaning?
Because you see it gets in the lungs and it does a tremendous number on the lungs, so it’d be interesting to check that.
(MAA: My personal favorite.)
September 2020
Now we know it. It affects elderly people. Elderly people with heart problems and other problems. But they have other problems, that’s what it really affects, that’s it. But it affects virtually nobody. It’s an amazing thing.
Fall 2020
The moron-in-chief has repeatedly stated that the US is “rounding a corner” on coronavirus, or a variation on that theme.
It’s tragically clear that the country that has caused the most “pain and misery,” at least to its own citizens, is the United States of America. Those countries able to successfully contain COVID-19 through timely and effective government measures and the cooperation of their people, e.g., China and Viet Nam, are well-positioned for a swift economy recovery. According to one source, Viet Nam is expected to end the year with a 2.3% GDP growth rate, the highest in the region, and a forecast as high as 10.9% in 2021. It’s not rocket science, folks.
Who’s your Daddy, USA?
Shalom (שלום), MAA
An International Educator in Viet Nam 
“What she fears most is that ‘cult-like’ quality of Trump supporters. ‘That makes the entire experience more disturbing because you know there is no logic or sense of reality that will dissuade or deter these folks.’
“‘It’s surreal’: the US officials facing violent threats as Trump claims voter fraud” (10.12.20)
You can’t reason or argue with Trumpies. The only choices are to ignore them or oppose them at every turn, non-violently, unless self-defense comes into play.
A spot-on analysis of Dear Leader:
Q: In your book, “Dangerous Charisma,” you describe Donald Trump as a malignant narcissist.
Post: He’s almost a caricature of the narcissistic personality, in particular, malignant narcissism. He’s consumed with self-adoration. Certainly he is, without any shred of empathy for others. Consider the way he dealt with John McCain, mocking him as he was on his deathbed with malignant brain cancer. Or consider him mocking the reporter who had a congenital disability, which gave him a tremor. Recall his remarkably unempathetic response to the Pakistani American who was a Gold Star father, having lost his heroic son in Afghanistan. In each of these cases he, in a rather cruel way, mocked these individuals.
This is an extremely unattractive characteristic, but he also led his followers to mount their feelings in opposition to these individuals. So that’s one striking quality. He’s very sensitive to slight, which is one of the characteristics of the narcissist. And he can then retaliate angrily for a minor offense. So that this is one of the makings of a sycophantic leadership, because to criticize constructively [will] lead to his angry response.
https://www.spytalk.co/p/why-a-cia-psychologist-called-trump
Trump is part of a global trend in authoritarianism. The United States can learn a great deal from other countries where democracies fell victim to the authoritarian playbook. https://theconversation.com/president-trumps-use-of-the-authoritarian-playbook-will-have-lasting-consequences-150895
Something else to ponder in the post-Trump era, a clear indication that the malignant narcissist-in-chief is a symptom not a cause of much of what ails the US.
:Most of the 74,222,957 Americans who voted to re-elect Donald Trump – 46.8%of the votes cast in the 2020 presidential election – don’t hold Trump accountable for what he’s done to America.”
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/dec/26/americans-acceptance-of-trumps-behavior-will-be-his-vilest-legacy
More on #DiaperDon as a symptom: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/dec/27/trump-fed-our-worst-instincts-his-global-legacy-is-toxic-and-immoral