Snarling orange 'Trump baby' blimp to mock U.S. president in Britain, protesters say

[webfact]

Snarling orange 'Trump baby' blimp to mock U.S. president in Britain, protesters say

By Guy Faulconbridge and Alex Fraser

 

FILE PHOTO: A blimp resembling U.S. President Donald Trump floats above demonstrators marching to protest against the visit of Trump, in Edinburgh, Scotland July 14, 2018. REUTERS/Andrew Yates

 

LONDON (Reuters) - A blimp depicting Donald Trump as a snarling, nappy-wearing orange baby will fly outside Britain's parliament when the U.S. president makes a state visit next month if protesters can raise 30,000 pounds for advocacy groups.

 

At the invitation of Queen Elizabeth, President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump are due in Britain on June 3-5 for a state visit - a pomp-laden affair involving a carriage trip through London and a banquet at Buckingham Palace.

 

Britain's so called special relationship with the United States is one of the enduring alliances of the past century, but some British voters see Trump as crude, volatile and opposed to their values on issues ranging from global warming to his treatment of women.

 

The blimp greeted Trump when he visited Britain in 2018, in what he described as an attempt to make him feel unwelcome, and the man behind the giant inflatable said he would let it fly again if a crowdfunding campaign can raise 30,000 pounds for groups backing causes from climate action to women's rights.

 

"The blimp will get in the air when Donald Trump is on these shores," Matt Bonner, its designer - who casts himself as a "Trump babysitter" - told Reuters. "The point of this is to mock DonaldTrump, to give him a taste of his medicine."

 

"What we want to do this time is to use the power, the momentum of Trump baby to help support people on the ground who are fighting against Trump policies and Trumpism more generally," Bonner said.

 

London's mayor Sadiq Khan gave permission for the six-metre (20 foot) tall balloon to fly next to the Palace of Westminster in central London during Trump's previous visit, provoking anger from the U.S. president's supporters who said it was an insult to the leader of Britain's closest ally.

 

A spokeswoman for Khan's Greater London Authority (GLA) said any application to fly the blimp on land that the GLA managed would be judged by the same criteria as last time by GLA officials, the police and the Civil Aviation Authority.

 

"A state visit legitimises a very controversial figure who is perpetuating divisions in our society and challenging that is much more important than any special relationship we have with the United States," Bonner said.

 

While the British monarch makes the formal invitation for a state visit, the visit was offered by Prime Minister Theresa May when she became the first foreign leader to visit him after his inauguration in January 2017.

 

During his trip last year, Trump shocked Britain's political establishment by giving a withering assessment of May's Brexit strategy. He said she had failed to follow his advice, such as suing the EU, but later said May was doing a fantastic job.

 

Standing to benefit from the crowdfunding campaign are British groups UK Student Climate Network, Jawaab and Sisters Uncut, as well as U.S. organisations Sunrise Movement, United We Dream and Planned Parenthood.

 

"The baby always had an element of fun, but we're deadly serious about standing in solidarity with those affected by Trump and the politics he represents across the world," said Sheila Menon, one of the team behind the blimp.

 

Queen Elizabeth has hosted U.S. leaders including Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton in her 67-year reign.

 

But Trump is only the third U.S. president to be accorded the honour of a state visit, after George W. Bush in 2003 and Barack Obama in 2011.

 

Last year, as hundreds of thousands protested across Britain, Trump was feted with a lavish dinner at Blenheim Palace, the birthplace of British World War Two leader Winston Churchill. He and Melania also had tea with the queen at Windsor Castle.

 

The president then breached royal protocol by publicly disclosing details of a conversation he had with the monarch about the complexities of Brexit.

 

This year, the visit will include a meeting with May in Downing Street and also a ceremony in Portsmouth on the south English coast to mark the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings in Normandy, France during World War Two.

 

(Writing by Guy Faulconbridge; Editing by Mark Potter)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2019-05-20

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[geoffbezoz]

Just hope Trump gets to see it, but there again, he would not grasp what it was portraying, beyond him

[thaibeachlovers]

What a bunch of losers. He knows what they think of him and I doubt he cares a jot. None of them can vote against him.

 

What they should be protesting, along the lines of the yellow vests, is the appalling fiasco that is the present British government.

 

However, I guess Trump owns their brains .

[xylophone]

3 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

He knows what they think of him and I doubt he cares a jot.

Have to disagree with your statement, because Trump absolutely abhors displays like this, that show he is not liked and it has become quite evident in his tweets in the past – – reason being because it hurts his inflated ego and his narcissistic persona.

[Basil B]

18 minutes ago, webfact said:

A spokeswoman for Khan's Greater London Authority (GLA) said any application to fly the blimp on land that the GLA managed would be judged by the same criteria as last time by GLA officials, the police and the Civil Aviation Authority.

 

They are welcome to fly it from the Chinese Embassy...

[lupin]

time to pull this out again?

 

[Chomper Higgot]

58 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

What a bunch of losers. He knows what they think of him and I doubt he cares a jot. None of them can vote against him.

 

What they should be protesting, along the lines of the yellow vests, is the appalling fiasco that is the present British government.

 

However, I guess Trump owns their brains .

You seem to have a problem with the people of the U.K. exercising their democratic right to peacefully protest.

 

You also seem to have missed the demonstrations with a million plus attendees demonstrating against the UK Government’s current course of action re Brexit.

 

(Admittedly you probably spotted the  10,000 pro-Brexit demonstrators while ignoring the 1,000,000 pro-Remain demonstrators).

 

Peaceful, democratic protest is alive and well in the U.K.

 

Those who protest are not losers, they are participating in democracy.

[rudi49jr]

2 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

He knows what they think of him and I doubt he cares a jot.

You’re kidding, right? Because Trump already flies off the handle and throws a hissyfit when someone looks at him funny. The man simply can not accept any form of criticism, or the idea that even one person in the world does not love and adore him. Trump is the biggest narcissist that ever lived and you’re saying he’s ok with the way people think about him and doesn’t care about that a lot? Maybe you should try reading a few of his tweets, or watch a few of his speeches (cheered on by thousands of adoring fans who eat up everything he says) to see what he’s really like.

[watcharacters]

2 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

What a bunch of losers. He knows what they think of him and I doubt he cares a jot. 

 

Like Hell he doesn't care.    Haven't you read any reporting about his vindictive Tweets?

 

He takes any negative things, of which there's a lot, very personally.

[DoctorG]

Let the children have their fun I say. It's meaningless.

[Justgrazing]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

The blimp greeted Trump when he visited Britain in 2018,

Will it have grown up a bit over the last 12 mth .. 

Seriously I don't have a lot of time for the Trump but this is unbecoming on a state visit and not very original 2nd time 'round .. I'm sure he's aware of what some folk think of him but Trump being Trump likely as not accepts it goes with the turf whilst giving the trusty twatter acct a daily airing firing off the sort of chaff responses and proclamations a 14 yr old could author .. 

[Boon Mee]

Sad

Trump Derangement Syndrome manifests itself in some strange ways. 

[sammieuk1]

Looks like that future trade deal with the Caymans is back on ????

[johnnybangkok]

3 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

What a bunch of losers. He knows what they think of him and I doubt he cares a jot. None of them can vote against him.

 

What they should be protesting, along the lines of the yellow vests, is the appalling fiasco that is the present British government.

 

However, I guess Trump owns their brains .

Someone asked "Why do some 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, complexity, 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 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:

* Americans are supposed to be nicer than us, and mostly are.

* 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 shit. 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 <deleted> was a TV show, Trump would be the boxed set."

[chilli42]

The idea is inspired.  The media in the US will play it over and over. The only issue I have is that it does not say or stand for anything obvious.  I am not sure what their intended message is but I suspect it’s somewhat less flattering than a baby Trump.

[chilli42]

46 minutes ago, johnnybangkok said:

Someone asked "Why do some 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, complexity, 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 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:

* Americans are supposed to be nicer than us, and mostly are.

* 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 shit. 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 <deleted> was a TV show, Trump would be the boxed set."

 

A correction if you don’t mind.  Americans are friendlier than the British but certainly not nicer.  BTW I am none of the 4, American, British, nice or friendly.

[Srikcir]

5 hours ago, webfact said:

a ceremony in Portsmouth on the south English coast to mark the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings in Normandy

Better have Trump's golf cart ready for him to storm Normandy.

Or was that Stormy Daniels that he breached?

[cbtstorm]

5 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

What a bunch of losers. He knows what they think of him and I doubt he cares a jot. None of them can vote against him.

 

What they should be protesting, along the lines of the yellow vests, is the appalling fiasco that is the present British government.

 

However, I guess Trump owns their brains .

didnt they raise money for this already? now they need 30k again!

they should have sold key chain size baby trump to raise the funds but that would be too entrepreneurial for leftist community organizers.

 

 

[Thingamabob]

Pathetic, childish, unfunny. Time for TDS patients to grow up.

[watcharacters]

2 hours ago, DoctorG said:

Let the children have their fun I say. It's meaningless.

 

Your post is silly beyond description.

 

Of course social protest  can bring about changes.      It's happened all across the planet.

 

Didn't you ever notice? 

[Becker]

5 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

What a bunch of losers. He knows what they think of him and I doubt he cares a jot.

Wait, what??? Are you talking about the clown who under no circumstance can let ANY slight go unanswered?

Hold on........is this one of those "alternate reality" things you base man-child supporters are so into?

Sweeeeeet!

 

[Jonnapat]

5 hours ago, xylophone said:

Have to disagree with your statement, because Trump absolutely abhors displays like this, that show he is not liked and it has become quite evident in his tweets in the past – – reason being because it hurts his inflated ego and his narcissistic persona.

You got that spot on

[Jonnapat]

1 hour ago, johnnybangkok said:

Someone asked "Why do some 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, complexity, 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 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:

* Americans are supposed to be nicer than us, and mostly are.

* 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 shit. 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 <deleted> was a TV show, Trump would be the boxed set."

By far the best description of Trump that I've ever read. Many thanks for posting this wittiest of articles . I'm sure Her Majesty can't wait for the visit.

Actually it's just a bit of sucking up should the Brexit no deal come about.

This smacks of the current clueless UK government. 

[PingRoundTheWorld]

Pretty funny considering no American cares what Brits think, and British politics are a total mess currently. They should start by cleaning up their own house first....

[Baerboxer]

5 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

What a bunch of losers. He knows what they think of him and I doubt he cares a jot. None of them can vote against him.

 

What they should be protesting, along the lines of the yellow vests, is the appalling fiasco that is the present British government.

 

However, I guess Trump owns their brains .

 

Usual left wing rabble protesting because they don't like Trump but keep quite when the Chinese dictator, or Saudi rules are invited. 

 

Khan is an absolute disgrace but then so are most of the current Labour Party leadership.

 

There is an unfortunate swing in Britain towards the nationalist Brexit party and fringe far right parties. Most of that is due to the disgust with the main parties in Westminster but also a reaction to the bully boy street aggressive politics of the left and enforce political correctness. 

 

 

[Patriot1066]

5 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

What a bunch of losers. He knows what they think of him and I doubt he cares a jot. None of them can vote against him.

 

What they should be protesting, along the lines of the yellow vests, is the appalling fiasco that is the present British government.

 

However, I guess Trump owns their brains .

The balloon was a let down as so small and could hardly get off the ground just like the anti Trump protestors.

 

the Sadiq Khan balloon was much better. Plus the democratically elected president Trump will always come out on top! The left always have to try to divert attention from the real issues by these stupid pranks as they have no real answers to difficult questions 

[Patriot1066]

50 minutes ago, Srikcir said:

Better have Trump's golf cart ready for him to storm Normandy.

Or was that Stormy Daniels that he breached?

Better if people had respect for those that gave their lives on D Day so they had freedom to post items like yours.

[yogi100]

1 hour ago, chilli42 said:

The idea is inspired.  The media in the US will play it over and over. The only issue I have is that it does not say or stand for anything obvious.  I am not sure what their intended message is but I suspect it’s somewhat less flattering than a baby Trump.

 

It shows the depths to which Britain has plummeted.

 

A level at which a US president is allowed to be mocked by a Muslim mayor of a city which used to be one of the greatest in the world and which is now the crime capital of Europe and one that has more fatal stabbing incidents than New York, Chicago and Detroit combined.

 

And it shows the quality of a weak, pathetic government who can't even get us out of the EU along with a totally ineffective police force that allow it if not actively encourage it to happen.

 

These left wing creeps do not speak for any Britons I know. Many of us wish we had a leader just like Trump and we'd welcome him to our country if only the liberal MSM such as the BBC gave us half a chance.

 

That excuse for a mayor along with the creeps who support him are a major embarrassment to all decent British people.

 

He only got elected because internationalist liberal politicians have allowed the native population of London to be ethnically cleansed and replaced by third worlders who have come to expect everything to be handed to them on a plate by socialist Labour councils who now run the vast majority of London's boroughs.

 

Truth be known the Home Secretary who is also a Muslim and the most powerful politician in the country after the Prime Minister probably supports this so called mayor lock, stock and barrel.

 

If I was Trump I would not even consider visiting London. It's bad enough having to live there.

[anterian]

I get the impression that there are more anti Trump Americans on Thaivisa than pro Brexit Brits. 

[Patriot1066]

1 minute ago, yogi100 said:

 

It shows the depths to which Britain has plummeted.

 

A level at which a US president is allowed to be mocked by a Muslim mayor of a city which used to be one of the greatest in the world and which is now the crime capital of Europe and one that has more fatal stabbing incidents than New York, Chicago and Detroit combined.

 

And it shows the quality of a weak, pathetic government who can't even get us out of the EU along with a totally ineffective police force that allow it if not actively encourage it to happen.

 

These left wing creeps do not speak for any Britons I know. Many of us wish we had a leader just like Trump and we'd welcome him to our country if only the liberal MSM such as the BBC gave us half a chance.

 

That excuse for a mayor along with the creeps who support him are a major embarrassment to all decent British people.

 

He only got elected because internationalist liberal politicians have allowed the native population of London to be ethnically cleansed and replaced by third worlders who have come to expect everything to be handed to them on a plate by socialist Labour councils who now run the vast majority of London's boroughs.

 

Truth be known the Home Secretary who is also a Muslim and the most powerful politician in the country after the Prime Minister probably supports this so called mayor lock, stock and barrel.

 

If I was Trump I would not even consider visiting London. It's bad enough having to live there.

Yes your post is extremely accurate everyone outside the political left I know fully supports Elected President Trump, and it does feel that London has been ethnically cleansed by millions of immigrants both Europeans and ‘ New Europeans’. 

 

We need strong leaders like Trump not the Lilly liveried political class we have now!

 

in my area we are the only white (non Europeans) in or entire street, most new arrivals are on benefits and the area is now much more delapidated with Roma beggars on the main road into town. Unfortunately, it feels like we have been invaded, most shops are in Polish, Romanian Or Arab script there is zero English spoken at all in town even some of the shop workers don’t speak it. On the tube ride or bus it is rare to hear English spoken at all. However, the left shouldn’t think all immigrants suport them as many I know like Trump particularly from Poland, Hungary Romania where they are more used to strong leaders.