Why Brits Don't Like Trump

[_Maksutov]

From a friend

Someone on Quora asked "Why do many British people not like Donald Trump?"

Nate White, an articulate and witty writer from England wrote this magnificent response:

A few things spring to mind.

Trump lacks certain qualities which the British traditionally esteem.

For instance, he has no class, no charm, no coolness, no credibility, no compassion, no wit, no warmth, no wisdom, no subtlety, no sensitivity, no self-awareness, no humility, no honour, and no grace – all qualities, funnily enough, with which his predecessor Mr. Obama was generously blessed.

So for us, the stark contrast does rather throw Trump’s limitations into embarrassingly sharp relief.

Plus, we like a laugh. And while Trump may be laughable, he has never once said anything wry, witty or even faintly amusing – not once, ever.

I don’t say that rhetorically, I mean it quite literally: not once, not ever. And that fact is particularly disturbing to the British sensibility – for us, to lack humour is almost inhuman.

But with Trump, it’s a fact. He doesn’t even seem to understand what a joke is – his idea of a joke is a crass comment, an illiterate insult, a casual act of cruelty.

Trump is a troll. And like all trolls, he is never funny and he never laughs; he only crows or jeers.

And scarily, he doesn’t just talk in crude, witless insults – he actually thinks in them. His mind is a simple bot-like algorithm of petty prejudices and knee-jerk nastiness.

There is never any under-layer of irony, nuance or depth. It’s all surface.

Some Americans might see this as refreshingly upfront.

Well, we don’t. We see it as having no inner world, no soul.

And in Britain we traditionally side with David, not Goliath. All our heroes are plucky underdogs: Robin Hood, Dick Whittington, Oliver Twist.

Trump is neither plucky, nor an underdog. He is the exact opposite of that.

He’s not even a spoiled rich-boy, or a greedy fat-cat.

He’s more a fat white slug. A Jabba the Hutt of privilege.

And worse, he is that most unforgivable of all things to the British: a bully.

That is, except when he is among bullies; then he suddenly transforms into a bully's sniveling sidekick instead.

There are unspoken rules to this stuff – the Queensberry rules of basic decency – and he breaks them all. He punches downwards – which a gentleman should, would, could never do – and every blow he aims is below the belt. He particularly likes to kick the vulnerable or voiceless – and he kicks them when they are down.

So the fact that a significant minority – perhaps a third – of Americans look at what he does, listen to what he says, and then think 'Yeah, he seems like my kind of guy’ is a matter of some confusion and no little distress to British people, given that:
1. Americans are supposed to be nicer than us, and mostly are.
2. You don't need a particularly keen eye for detail to spot a few flaws in the man.

This last point is what especially confuses and dismays British people, and many other people too; his faults seem pretty bloody hard to miss.

After all, it’s impossible to read a single tweet, or hear him speak a sentence or two, without staring deep into the abyss. He turns being artless into an art form; he is a Picasso of pettiness; a Shakespeare of crap. His faults are fractal: even his flaws have flaws, and so on ad infinitum.

God knows there have always been stupid people in the world, and plenty of nasty people too. But rarely has stupidity been so nasty, or nastiness so stupid.

He makes Nixon look trustworthy and George W look smart.

In fact, if Frankenstein decided to make a monster assembled entirely from human flaws – he would make a Trump.

And a remorseful Doctor Frankenstein would clutch out big clumpfuls of hair and scream in anguish:

'My God… what… have… I… created?’

If being a twat was a TV show, Trump would be the boxed set.

[_DarkHelmet]

Wow. That pretty much sums it up. When people ask me why I don't like Trump, I typically just respond that he's a bully, and I dislike bullies. But this post gives a much more comprehensive list of the things that make Trump so deplorable. I can understand voting for Trump for practical reasons - you like his policies better than Hillary's - so you vote for him regardless of what an a-hole he is. What I don't get are the people who genuinely like him as a human being, who believe he was chosen by God to be our president. That's like rooting for Biff to score with Lorraine in the car at the Enchantment Under the Sea Dance. It makes no sense to me.

I love this explanation of Trump and plan to borrow it for the next time someone asks me why I hate Trump. It illustrates the problems perfectly.

[_Chap]

So the fact that a significant minority – perhaps a third – of Americans look at what he does, listen to what he says, and then think 'Yeah, he seems like my kind of guy’ is a matter of some confusion and no little distress to British people, given that:
1. Americans are supposed to be nicer than us, and mostly are.

I'd like to underline that bolded bit, which is a perception of Americans widely shared in the UK, including, I must confess, by myself.

That's why it's nice to know that most Americans who voted did not vote for Trump.

[_Dr Exiled]

My guess is that he will lose in a landslide if someone with half a brain and who is seen as an outsider goes up against him.

[_subgenius]

My guess is that he will lose in a landslide if someone with half a brain and who is seen as an outsider goes up against him.

So, based on current challengers, your current prediction is Trump easily wins 2020.

[_Dr Exiled]

My guess is that he will lose in a landslide if someone with half a brain and who is seen as an outsider goes up against him.

So, based on current challengers, your current prediction is Trump easily wins 2020.

No. Nice try though.

[_schreech]

From a friend

...Trump lacks certain qualities which the British traditionally esteem.

For instance, he has no class, no charm, no coolness, no credibility, no compassion, no wit, no warmth, no wisdom, no subtlety, no sensitivity, no self-awareness, no humility, no honour, and no grace ...

...Trump is a troll. And like all trolls, he is never funny and he never laughs; he only crows or jeers.

And scarily, he doesn’t just talk in crude, witless insults – he actually thinks in them. His mind is a simple bot-like algorithm of petty prejudices and knee-jerk nastiness.

There is never any under-layer of irony, nuance or depth. It’s all surface...

...God knows there have always been stupid people in the world, and plenty of nasty people too. But rarely has stupidity been so nasty, or nastiness so stupid...

What a great description of Trump and a pretty accurate assessment of his dwindling pack of blind supporters. I mean, what a perfect depiction of Trump sycophants on this site. Lack of creativity, self-awareness, class, humility and anything resembling wit or charm seem to be requirements for online Trump support but are especially obvious among his supporters here. I can't think of anything more pathetic than having so few redeeming qualities that your self-worth is tied to the election of a particular candidate to the point that you feel you need to gloat about it on a small, Mormon themed message board. I mean, I get that we arent interacting with the best and the brightest but, dang, its eye opening to see how pitiful some peoples lives are.

I typically spend about 2-3 months a year outside the US and the above assessment seems to be pretty universal as i am constantly being asked about the cheeto benito and what type of person would vote for such an obvious tool.

[_MeDotOrg]

For some reason, this made me think of my favorite meeting between and Englishwoman and an American man in A Fish Called Wanda.

[_moksha]

And worse, he is that most unforgivable of all things to the British: a bully.

Makes sense, his actions did cause one of the BBC cameramen to get beat up at one of Trump's red hat rallies. That claim that he just got hit with one of the errant Sieg Heils seems fishy. Those red hatters are a rough bunch!

[_Gunnar]

That description of Trump is so obviously right on that it is amazing to me how anyone other than thugs and half-wits can fail to see it.