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Edited by Mrph1 on Nov 30th 2023 at 11:03:59 AM

Fighteer Lost in Space from The Time Vortex (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: TV Tropes ruined my love life
Lost in Space
#112226: Feb 16th 2016 at 5:00:52 AM

News flash: The Cold War is over, and Russia no longer has starry-eyed dreams of the hammer and sickle flying over Europe.

"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
TerminusEst from the Land of Winter and Stars Since: Feb, 2010
#112227: Feb 16th 2016 at 5:02:33 AM

Yet. Stupid comes in all shapes and sizes.

edited 16th Feb '16 5:02:51 AM by TerminusEst

Si Vis Pacem, Para Perkele
JackOLantern1337 Shameful Display from The Most Miserable Province in the Russian Empir Since: Aug, 2014 Relationship Status: 700 wives and 300 concubines
Shameful Display
#112228: Feb 16th 2016 at 5:03:24 AM

[up][up]Nations have threatened each other with force long before the Cold War, and have continued to do so long after. That condescending attitude of "the Cold War is over", will be the death of us if we don't get rid of it.

edited 16th Feb '16 5:03:35 AM by JackOLantern1337

I Bring Doom,and a bit of gloom, but mostly gloom.
LeGarcon Blowout soon fellow Stalker from Skadovsk Since: Aug, 2013 Relationship Status: Gay for Big Boss
Blowout soon fellow Stalker
#112229: Feb 16th 2016 at 5:04:26 AM

Not really, Russia doesn't give a shit about actually harming the West. And they're honestly not that concerned with harming our assets either.

They're kinda doing their own thing now.

Oh really when?
Fighteer Lost in Space from The Time Vortex (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: TV Tropes ruined my love life
Lost in Space
#112230: Feb 16th 2016 at 5:04:48 AM

[up][up] According to people who never got over the Cold War, apparently.

edited 16th Feb '16 5:04:55 AM by Fighteer

"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
JackOLantern1337 Shameful Display from The Most Miserable Province in the Russian Empir Since: Aug, 2014 Relationship Status: 700 wives and 300 concubines
Shameful Display
#112231: Feb 16th 2016 at 5:07:54 AM

[up] Oh for fuck's sake Russia has seized Crimea and has been destabilizing it's neighbors, China has been trying to push us out of the Pacific, and both have been developing advanced weapons systems for high level warfare, all the while the US sat on it's laurels and reconfigured it's forces to fight insurgents because of this dam "the Cold War is over attitude."

Edit: In any case we are veering off topic, this is the US politics thread not the Military thread.

edited 16th Feb '16 5:08:28 AM by JackOLantern1337

I Bring Doom,and a bit of gloom, but mostly gloom.
LeGarcon Blowout soon fellow Stalker from Skadovsk Since: Aug, 2013 Relationship Status: Gay for Big Boss
Blowout soon fellow Stalker
#112232: Feb 16th 2016 at 5:08:48 AM

Crimea means nothing to the West and China can't develop shit. They never could and still can't.

Oh really when?
LMage Since: May, 2011
#112233: Feb 16th 2016 at 5:14:47 AM

re: Canada

I find the irony here after all the demands for Obama's birth certificat very very funny.

re: Scallia

Apparently he and Ruth got along pretty famously which good on them?

JackOLantern1337 Shameful Display from The Most Miserable Province in the Russian Empir Since: Aug, 2014 Relationship Status: 700 wives and 300 concubines
Shameful Display
#112234: Feb 16th 2016 at 5:15:19 AM

[up][up] The have an advanced navy that is second only to our own in both numbers and quality, are developing 5th generation fighters, and have the world's first anti ship Ballistic missile. What do they have to do build a fucking Death Star?

[up]I'm sure some would argue that proves RGB is not a "true progressive."

edited 16th Feb '16 5:16:28 AM by JackOLantern1337

I Bring Doom,and a bit of gloom, but mostly gloom.
LeGarcon Blowout soon fellow Stalker from Skadovsk Since: Aug, 2013 Relationship Status: Gay for Big Boss
Blowout soon fellow Stalker
#112235: Feb 16th 2016 at 5:17:31 AM

No they don't. They claim they do but literally everything they make is a hunk of shit and doesn't work.

Stop swallowing their propaganda and stop swallowing the rhetoric people use to try and make China seem scary.

The only reason they're in the news is because America needs a new unified baddie and they're vaguely communist and yellow.

edited 16th Feb '16 5:17:50 AM by LeGarcon

Oh really when?
Deadbeatloser22 from Disappeared by Space Magic (Great Old One) Relationship Status: Tsundere'ing
#112236: Feb 16th 2016 at 5:24:29 AM

And then you have rhetoric like this.

"Yup. That tasted purple."
TheWanderer Student of Story from Somewhere in New England (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: Wishfully thinking
Student of Story
#112237: Feb 16th 2016 at 6:21:08 AM

While China is almost certainly a Paper Tiger at this point, it is being a problem with it's behavior, territorial grabs, and violations of international waters in the South and East China Seas. That may not be any threat to the US, but it is a potential issue for the Philippines, Japan, and others. Building those artificial islands, claiming it as Chinese territory, and then threatening to shoot down any plane that comes anywhere near them is stupid dick wagging, but it's also got a fair bit of potential for trouble.

Russia... I honestly think Putin doesn't care about anything except building up his approval at home, and making Russia more insular and independent from the world. I've heard it said that Crimea was largely over the Russian Navy base in Sevastopol, since the ones on the Pacific regularly freeze over in the winter. I think the rest is a bit of dick wagging to get everyone in Russia behind Glorious Mother Russia and such, but the billion dollar question is how far does it go? I've heard people say that Putin seems to be at that stage where a dictator becomes so sure that he's always right and accustomed to deference that everyone is afraid to tell him when he's wrong about anything or doesn't get something, and one wonders if he'll reach that hubris tipping point where he makes completely batshit decisions but no one will dare to say so or stop him, and there will be disastrous repercussions afterwards.

edited 16th Feb '16 9:32:14 AM by TheWanderer

| Wandering, but not lost. | If people bring so much courage to this world...◊ |
Aszur A nice butterfly from Pagliacci's Since: Apr, 2014 Relationship Status: Don't hug me; I'm scared
A nice butterfly
#112238: Feb 16th 2016 at 6:29:59 AM

yes, as ridiculous oversized armies costing untold billions is more important than education, health care and things that actually do good

I think this is funny because it comes from someone with "Field Marshal" in its username :P

It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothes
NativeJovian Jupiterian Local from Orlando, FL Since: Mar, 2014 Relationship Status: Maxing my social links
Jupiterian Local
#112239: Feb 16th 2016 at 7:29:47 AM

China and Russia have legitimate military presences that we can't afford to simply ignore. They're not existential threats to the United States, no, but they are dominant powers in their respective regions and pose significant threats to our interests and those of our allies. While there are undoubtedly problems with our military budget, saying "the Cold War is over, slash all military spending!" is overly simplistic wishful thinking. Even if we don't intend to go to war in Europe or the Pacific (and on a personal level, I certainly hope that we don't), simply having the ability to dramatically changes the balance of power in the relationship and opens additional diplomatic avenues.

Basically, even if we never actually using it, having a powerful military is incredibly useful for threatening people with. If you want peace, prepare for war.

Really from Jupiter, but not an alien.
FieldMarshalFry Field Marshal of Cracked from World Internet War 1 Since: Oct, 2015 Relationship Status: THIS CONCEPT OF 'WUV' CONFUSES AND INFURIATES US!
Field Marshal of Cracked
#112240: Feb 16th 2016 at 7:51:08 AM

[up][up]well this whole thing did start as a parody account over on Cracked that gained a life of its own

advancing the front into TV Tropes
SciFiSlasher from Absolutely none of your business. Since: Dec, 2011 Relationship Status: YOU'RE TEARING ME APART LISA
#112241: Feb 16th 2016 at 8:06:04 AM

[up][up]

If you want peace, prepare for war.

Cliched statement is cliched.

"Somehow the hated have to walk a tightrope, while those who hate do not."
AngelusNox Warder of the damned from The guard of the gates of oblivion Since: Dec, 2014 Relationship Status: Married to the job
Warder of the damned
#112242: Feb 16th 2016 at 8:09:02 AM

[up]Doesn't make it any less true though.

Inter arma enim silent leges
Kayeka (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#112243: Feb 16th 2016 at 8:11:52 AM

There's a point of diminishing returns, though. The US spend a lot of money on military, but not all that efficiently.

LeGarcon Blowout soon fellow Stalker from Skadovsk Since: Aug, 2013 Relationship Status: Gay for Big Boss
Blowout soon fellow Stalker
#112244: Feb 16th 2016 at 8:13:28 AM

A huge deal of that is due to corruption though.

Oh really when?
Aszur A nice butterfly from Pagliacci's Since: Apr, 2014 Relationship Status: Don't hug me; I'm scared
A nice butterfly
#112245: Feb 16th 2016 at 8:14:13 AM

Doesn't make it any less true though.

Not...really...

If that held true statistically, the higher the expenditures in military arrangements, especially compared to its raw income, the more peace there would be.

Now, I don't know about you but...

edited 16th Feb '16 8:14:41 AM by Aszur

It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothes
FFShinra Since: Jan, 2001
#112246: Feb 16th 2016 at 8:17:22 AM

That the US's expenditures have diminishing returns due to the way its organized is true. Doesn't mean you just cut the spending, it means you reform how its spent. Gutting the military or trying to be insular in today's world is a fool's errand.

Aszur A nice butterfly from Pagliacci's Since: Apr, 2014 Relationship Status: Don't hug me; I'm scared
A nice butterfly
#112247: Feb 16th 2016 at 8:24:41 AM

I don't think anyone is advocating for the U.S to completely get rid of or gut its military spending or anything. Just that at least for the purpose of making things peaceful, it isn't working.

I mean. Who the fuck quotes the roman empire as one of the exemplaries of peace with its neighbors?

edited 16th Feb '16 8:24:55 AM by Aszur

It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothes
Kayeka (4 Score & 7 Years Ago)
#112248: Feb 16th 2016 at 8:25:23 AM

[up][up]Yes. You reform how it's spend so you can cut the spending without a drop in performance.

edited 16th Feb '16 8:25:32 AM by Kayeka

Greenmantle V from Greater Wessex, Britannia Since: Feb, 2010 Relationship Status: Hiding
V
#112249: Feb 16th 2016 at 9:04:28 AM

@ Wanderer:

Russia... I honestly think Putin doesn't care about anything except building up his approval at home, and making Russia more insular and independent from the world. I've heard it said that Crimea was largely over the Russian Navy base in Sevastopol, since the ones on the Pacific regularly freeze over in the winter.

True. Russian ports in the Baltic and Arctic also freeze over during the Winter, which is why Crimea, was, and is important. Crimea was a long-time Russian possession until Khrushchev transferred it to Ukraine during the 1960's.

@ Garcon:

Crimea means nothing to the West and China can't develop shit. They never could and still can't.

Crimea once meant a lot to the West. And do you want me to list Chinese Inventions?

edited 16th Feb '16 9:06:18 AM by Greenmantle

Keep Rolling On
Aszur A nice butterfly from Pagliacci's Since: Apr, 2014 Relationship Status: Don't hug me; I'm scared
A nice butterfly
#112250: Feb 16th 2016 at 9:08:23 AM

And do you want me to list Chinese Inventions?

What Have You Done for Me Lately?

I mean the last thing to come from China I actually appreciated was Jackie Chan tongue

It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothes

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