BruceVC

I hear you but its not a big deal to spend 5 seconds confirming your pronouns I have been updating my CV and job interests and I noticed all the applications had pronoun options around my personal title. It was first to me because 4 years ago I dont remember having these choices But its literally a 5 second change and it exists outside of gaming I do agree its not helpful to call people bigots or groomers who object to this because this is about a broader debate which has legitimate concerns especially around sport Its nots a big deal to me in gaming but it has other resonance that does matter

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c75lpzq0re1o Ceasefire effective between Israel and Hezbollah from yesterday "Under the deal announced on Tuesday and brokered by the US, there will be a 60-day period during which Israel will gradually withdraw its troops from Lebanon's south as Lebanese government forces regain control of an area currently held by Hezbollah. It is expected that Hezbollah fighters and weapons will be removed from the area south of the Litani River, a boundary established at the end of the last Israel-Hezbollah war in 2006." Hopefully it will stand and Hezbollah will not fire rockers into Israel, no change to the military conflict in Gaza but considering the huge military and resource losses that Hezbollah has suffered its understandable this was no longer a demand

Dont joke but our latest " socialist\progressive " political party is called MK which is a stolen name from ANC military wing during Apartheid which is called MK (uMkhonto weSizwe ) And its leader is the former SA president Jacob Zuma who was deeply complicit in the worst corruption we have ever seen from 2011-2017 which was called the " Stare Capture " era Anyway MK has this confusing political manifesto thats a combination of openly anti-Constitutional objectives and bringing back tribal laws because according to them " Democracy has failed black people " And 2 of the things they want to do is change the Constitution so we end up with a Parliamentary sovereignty system which to them means Parliament and politicians arent accountable to the Constitution because "the Constitution is responsible for inequality " and then they want tribal chiefs to be able to create there own customary laws that surpass our own normal laws Can you imagine the state South Africa would be in if we abandoned the checks and balances that the Constitution provides for politicians and we no longer maintained our society through laws like how the judicial system works The good news is they only got 14% in the last national election and there political growth remains to be seen as future elections unfold

Yes, its possible but then those countries that dont enforce an ICC warrant must leave the ICC because whats the point if you dont enforce its warrants We went through that embarrassing reality in 2016 when South Africa refused to enforce the warrant for AL-Bashir from Sudan and then the ANC decided to leave the ICC because at the time they considered the ICC " an instrument of regime change " But this decision was blocked by our high courts which ruled the ANC cant unilaterally decide to leave the ICC without Parliamentary approval Now we love the ICC and all countries must respect its decisions, amazing how much you can change your views in 8 years

Thats a positive review, good to know @majestic its got our favourite and preferred themes in it, Colonialism ..YES !!!!! " You can immediately grasp the themes at hand. You’re a representative of an empire, a colonizing force bringing “civilization” to people who may not want it "

Im sure Putin has attended UNGA or similar international meetings since his warrant was issued? Anyone with an ICC warrant just avoids countries that are part of the ICC

https://www.cnbc.com/2024/11/21/trump-ag-pick-matt-gaetz-says-hes-withdrawing.html Gaetz is withdrawing from the AG position, its probably the right thing to do considering the sexual misconduct scandal and much of the GOP Senate werent happy with his nomination anyway "I had excellent meetings with Senators yesterday. I appreciate their thoughtful feedback - and the incredible support of so many,” Gaetz said in a statement posted on his X account. “While the momentum was strong, it is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition,” said the former Republican congressman from Florida. "

Why would an EU troop deployment force the EU to buy Russian gas and stuff again? Im not getting the connection but as I mentioned it should be UNSC deployment and not a EU specific deployment because then its funded by the UN budget But why would either mission mean you have to buy anything from Russia?

Yes but you have lots of examples of UNSC military missions that get involved in peace keeping roles in massive countries and they have had mixed success like in Africa examples like the DRC Because it depends on the factions involved but if both Ukraine and Russia agree to the peace deal then its more likely to succeed Here is a list of the 62 UNSC peacekeeping missions that have implemented and some have succeeded and some have failed. They dont need troops in every geographical part of the country or border https://main.un.org/securitycouncil/en/content/repertoire/peacekeeping-missions " Peacekeeping operations have had mandates ranging from traditional methods of resolving disputes peacefully under Chapter VI, such as promoting reconciliation, assisting with the implementation of a peace agreement, or performing mediation and good offices, and more forceful action as authorized under Chapter VII which can authorize a range of measures including the use of force under Article 42 of the Charter. Below is a list of all sixty-two peacekeeping operations as well as three advance or observer missions established by the Security Council, with a short description on the basis of the content of the Repertoire as well as links to the sections covering them in the Repertoire. They are organized by region, and then under relevant areas or subregions, placed chronologically starting with those established most recently "

But the idea of EU troops being deployed to enforce a border within Ukraine and the new regions has been raised before. Trumps view is it shouldnt be US troops that do this peacekeeping role. Is it such a bad idea to have EU forces that maintain the agreed on peace deal? Its not confirmed thats what Trump thinks but its been speculated? It could also be a UNSC military mission and then any country could contribute troops

Comrade !!!! Long time no hear from Where you been, I was worried you had enlisted to fight for Russia and Communism and you had ended up in the meatgrinder

The point Im making is not about the reality of how permanent members veto UNSC resolutions when its suits them or there allies, that happens in certain cases but the " outrage " about this is typically when the US uses its veto but here is another example of Russia doing it and yet we dont get the same attention from the same people who would complain when the US does it But even thats not the main point Im making. The South African government has claimed that Sudan is the " forgotten war " and the world doesnt act to do anything about it Yet the UNSC is the best way for the world to at least start to do something about it and Russia decides to veto this resolution because they involved So in other words its not true that world doesnt care about Sudan but you wont achieve any meaningful global action if UNSC resolutions get vetoed And since its South Africa that keeps raising Sudan on the global stage SA should summon the Russian ambassador and ask why they vetoed something that every other UNSC member agreed to But there is no point as South Africa complaining about a lack of global response to the Sudan war when its Russia that vetoed the ceasefire. And Russia is a fellow BRICS member and we have good diplomatic ties with Russia so its not like we cant take this up directly with them

Mamie thats why you can only trust and have faith in one global game rating score and we all know what that one is When has the " BruceVC game rating system " ever let you down

I just started watching Shogun, its excellent. I have never really been that interested in Asian shows and movies outside of movies like the The Last Samurai which I enjoyed But Shogun captures historical Japanese culture in such an interesting way, really worthwhile series And then From, this has become my favourite supernatural\horror series of all time. You havent experienced true supernatural\horror entertainment until you have watched this series It is like nothing I have ever seen and its HIGHLY recommended https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/From_(TV_series) Here is the trailer

https://apnews.com/article/un-sudan-russia-ceasefire-resolution-85e2b7bb49edc8ca104cf3b9a887c859 Really disappointing behaviour from Russia at the UNSC with it being the only member to veto the UNSC resolution on the Sudan war for an immediate ceasefire " Russia’s deputy U.N. Ambassador Dmitry Polyansky told the Security Council that Moscow vetoed the resolution because “it should be solely the government of Sudan” that should be responsible for what happens in the country." Russia is involved in this civil war and its another example of Russian neo-Colonialism in Africa Even China supported this resolution " China’s U.N. Ambassador Fu Cong cited the war’s increasing casualties and “increasingly dire” humanitarian situation, and said: “China stands for the realization of immediate cease-fire and de-escalation of the situation for the sake of protecting civilians. Therefore, we voted in favour of the draft resolution.” BRICS global unity at its finest, I wish BRICS did really believe in " helping the Global South" but of course thats just grandstanding and rhetoric and this Russian veto is another example of this.

I know this is a legitimate post but you way you explain it made me laugh Children's Capitalism Simulator and " You then start helping people and saving the place with the power of friendship" It sounds really cute, incredibly naïve and unconvincing but really cute

Why you so butthurt Its not my fault you keep believing and repeating Russian propaganda like " guys, of course there are no NK troops being deployed into the Ukraine conflict. You cant trust anything Western media sources say " Just change your sources of information, problem solved ?

https://edition.cnn.com/2024/11/17/politics/biden-authorizes-ukraine-missiles-russian-targets/index.html This was long overdue, the Ruskies have been getting missiles from Iran and NK for ages and firing them indiscriminately into Ukraine for ages It looks like the deployment of NK troops was an influence in this decision, another Russian " red line " broken ?

Yes I don't think publicly criticising Harris is helpful or relevant which is why I said blaming Harris is unnecessary The real question and required analysis is where the Dems as a party have gone wrong around strategy, where they acknowledge this and how they fix it But to be fair they need time to reflect on things so Im expecting something meaningful in the next 4-6 months?

I dont dislike Fetterman but some of these comments dont help the Dems at all or rather they need some honesty. At the end he says " NBC NEWS: Could Kamala Harris have done anything different that you think might have changed the results? FETTERMAN: I’ll never be in that place. I mean, it’s been a pleasure to campaign with her across my state. And I’m not going to be part of like the piling on or the “you should’ves.” I’m not going to shoot on anybody at this point." I realize he is a politician but if the Dems want to ever win again they need a reset, you cant blame Harris for most of the overall election failure but established Dem politicians like Fetterman need to understand and acknowledge the necessary paradigm shift that his party needs to make

https://edition.cnn.com/2024/11/16/politics/video/smr-elites-had-it-coming Here is the actual interview, he explains his view in more detail and it also raises things you mention He doesnt come across as a MAGA cultist which I prefer and he uses history and some relevant examples to make the point around how the Dems have "abandoned the working class " Its only 8 minutes and also I would recommend that anyone interested in a Centralist and objective analysis of the political reality of the US to watch the Smerconish show, its an hour once a week on CNN and he has really interesting guests who have a wide range of different views Here is the website for those that dont have CNN https://www.smerconish.com/

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/09/opinion/democrats-trump-elites-centrism.html This link is a " BruceVC must read " It may be behind a paywall but hopefully you can access it I just watched an interview with the author on CNN and its basically about why the Dems lost and how they have lost touch with there core base and supporter @Pidesco @rjshae @Hurlshort will find it particularly interesting but its applicable to everyone

I dont think its accurate or realistic to compare events in history from hundreds of years ago and try to find resonance in our modern age Yes the Crusades were brutal and about religious fervor but so were the Muslims that the Crusaders fought against The worlds changed a lot over the last 800 years, I dont think this tattoo means we have to worry that history will repeat itself?

Yes but why didnt you like it? What specifically is bad about it Too much Capitalism and not enough socialism

Sure but as usual there is normally a difference between a politician grandstanding about " Corona conspiracy theories " and then banning normal vaccines that have been used for decades in the US Its similar to what I keep saying about Project 2025, try to separate the fearmongering and hyperbole from what Trump can or cannot do and what he will do Its much better for any unnecessary anxiety and blood pressure getting raised Best way to not stress out too much is remember we have already had 4 years of Trump and he didnt destroy the US or the world ....so we should be okay this time?