BruceVC

The outcome of our national elections and the coalition parties that have now been created have worked out really well, its exceeded my expectations on numerous levels We have now a GNU (government of national unity ) which is technically different to a coalition government but it has some similarities But first important outcome was the ANC has been absolutely magnanimous and accepting of its loss from 57% to 40%. I am not anti-ANC, I am generally opposed to there foreign policy decisions and Im opposed to ANC dominance because it has created a culture of impunity around dealing with corruption and public sector inefficiencies But the ANC supports and respects the Constitution and legal outcomes and this election is another example of this. And the concern from some, which I didnt share, was that the ANC being a liberation party wouldnt accept its loss of majority like we have seen in other African countries And that didnt happen So the GNU that now exists is parties that I support and the so called socialist, anti-white, racist,pro-Russian EFF not only lost seats in Parliament but they have been shutout of the GNU and this was primarily because of there populist and unrealistic demands and thats the best news ever Going forward the GNU has lots of work to do around our numerous domestic problems but at least we now have a stable political foundation after the election and thats necessary before you see any real changes...the government has to be stable But in summary, great election results and more important a great outcome around the GNU and which parties are in it

It depends what you mean by online? I generally dont take anything seriously I read on SM around topics like economics or politics. And economic predictions are often notoriously proven to be untrue because of the different ways you can measure an economy But BBC is a good source of information and I consider them generally credible The article seems accurate but there are few considerations, most Russian economic data is classified and then growth is relative to GDP size The UK for example is the 6th strongest economy in the world with nominal GDP of $3.5 trillion and Russia is the 12th strongest with nominal GDP of $2.1 trillion. https://www.forbesindia.com/article/explainers/top-10-largest-economies-in-the-world/86159/1 So growth matters but other metrics are equally important to understand overall economic strength. The entire African economy is a $3 trillion economy, I find this type of data in the link below really interesting when you looking at economic strength and growth. For example if South Africa somehow gets a 20% growth thats $80 billion, which means our economy would become $480 billion. So its possible to think "South Africa is doing better than the UK because of its 20% growth "but the UK is a $3.5 trillion economy " https://www.visualcapitalist.com/breaking-down-african-economy-by-country/ So GDP growth matters but its relevant to the size of the economy

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/putin-pledges-a-cease-fire-in-ukraine-if-kyiv-withdraws-from-occupied-regions-and-drops-nato-bid/ar-BB1odPGs I am not sure how updated this is or accurate but it seems to be? Putin is prepared to end the invasion of Ukraine and has a list of demands that include giving up the Donbas and NATO aspirations and then " demands for peace that the Russian leader listed included Ukraine's non-nuclear status, restrictions on its military force and protecting the interests of the Russian-speaking population in the country. All of these should become part of “fundamental international agreements,” and all Western sanctions against Russia should be lifted, Putin said "

This is something I have been advocating for since the invasion in 2022 when the Russian assets were originally frozen, use the Russian sanctioned resources to fund Ukraine in its defence against the invasion Russia has nationalized Western investments so its not like there isnt precedent The legitimate concern was always " but this might create uncertainty in investing in the West " but thats going to happen or not happen irrespective of this decision and thats fine. Investors will always decide for themselves who offers the lowest risk and best return on investments And Im not concerned its going to have make a major difference if you think the Russian assets were frozen over 2 years ago and the US stock markets still see new records being broken for investment appetite https://www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/dow-jones-hits-record-high-40000-points

Wouldnt killable children mod give you similar satisfaction " This mod enables you to kill any or all of the children in Fallout 3. Along with adding consequences for such actions. Please see full description inside for full details " https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout3/mods/376

I am about to start playing Fallout 3 again and I modded it using Vortex , I have never used Mod Organizer 2 ( MO2 )as my main mod manager but last night I decided to start using MO2 so I configured MO2 and started reinstalling all my mods using MO2 And...its amazing. Its definitely the best mod manager I have ever used. I like how it uses a virtual file system and doesnt change the default files but the way it handles conflicts and allows you to troubleshoot is indisputably superior to any other mod manager You can easily see and fix any conflicts and you can even hide specific meshes and files. Its makes the analysis of troubleshooting much more logical Vortex works but the troubleshooting is not as easy to understand or change when things go wrong I watched some good MO2 troubleshooting videos and I will continue to research how to do advanced things like using xEdit and the most effective way to clean mod files But I will only do this if its necessary but I have now become an instant fan for life of MO2, Im just disappointed it took me so long to use it

I just finished Ravenloft Strahds Possession after 45 hours, it was fun and I love the whole Ravenloft setting. The last 5 games I have played are all Gold Box games that include EOB1-3, Dungeon Hack and Ravenloft so Im going to have a break from these types of games now I preferred the EOB games to Ravenloft or rather EOB 1 is still my favourite game of the 5 I have played. But Ravenloft had a better narrative and a good " open world design" around navigating maps , I did find it had some frustrating design mechanics like no way to restore level draining and then Treants that spawn in one map so you end up using lots of save scumming But its still worth playing, 58/100 on the " BruceVC game rating system" I have now decided Im going to play Fallout 3 again but this time Im going to use mods and I have installed numerous performance fixes, gameplay and graphic mods. But Im using Vortex as my mod manager but I also have Mod Organizer 2, I just have never used MO2 before So if FO3 starts to crash or is unreasonably unstable then Im going to switch to MO2. I will have to reinstall all my mods again but thats fine because at least I will learn how MO2 works

Sure thats true but nothing like the exaggerated and fake news around the collapse of the US economy, thats been going on for much longer than views on the imminent collapse of the Russian or Chinese economies There is basically trenchant and well established weekly examples of "de-dollarization " and " BRICS Currency " and its driven by anti-Capitalist\West institutions and Russian propaganda troll farms. I met someone on Codex who works for a Russian troll farm and its fascinating how the datamining works and how they propagate Russian propaganda. Its very crude but still interesting But all this interpretation of any economy data is more or less the same, some of it is true and some of it is misrepresented or not relevant compared to something else Russia does classify much economic data so its almost impossible to get the accurate economic picture

I assume he is talking about imperialism tied to a particular leader and not the hundreds of years of European Colonialism or Imperialism Which is why he used WW2 Germany and Japan as an example And Russians imperialism is inextricably tied to Putins aspirations to recreate the old Soviet borders and Russian empire and under Putin specifically Russia has become more undemocratic and authoritarian Would it be the same if Putin died tomorrow, we dont know because there are other Russian nationalists but Russia now is definitely a reality of Putins political and geopolitical views He is huge factor in the political direction Russia is taking

Its an interesting question " what does it take for a nation with imperialist ambitions to give them up" And as you mentioned its very hard because its also tied into political survival and the legacy of the person and government , its very seldom about whats best for country in the long-term so they will continue to the bitter end in many cases like WW2 Germany and Japan Its similar to Netanyahu and what matters the most to him, his own political survival is more important to him than what is in the best interests of Israel and how people think of Israel around the globe

But also a major difference between any Western country and Russia is Putin has the advantage of no political consequence in elections for a war objective that has failed to reach its primary objectives after 2 years and body bags piling up and being sent home If this was a Western country I can guarantee you the anti-war candidate would have gained huge support in any normal free and fair election Autocratic governments dont have to worry about public sentiment in any election. Putin will never lose any election so the meatgrinder and cannon fodder Russian strategy is considered fine and has seen success on the battlefield

Done

Im not sure what examples of military coups you referring to but if its recent coups of the 6-7 African countries the problems in these countries is no reason to justify a military coup or believe corruption is going to end because the military is in charge These African governments were elected in free and fair elections as far as they can in the context of new Democracies in Africa. They failed to maintain security effectively against Jihadist groups and so did the French military intervention but the security situation hasnt changed since the military took power and in some of these countries the military has been in power for years We also have rampant corruption and security problems in South Africa but that doesnt mean the military should take over our Parliament And predictably the military leadership in Burkina Faso said " we will restore Democratic rule 1 July 2024 " and Mali was suppose to be February 2024 https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5117d8kz16o And guess what? They have ignored this pledge and they staying power because these coups are about that Its about taking power in an undemocratic way and staying in power irrespective of the future for the country and its citizens. When has a military coup in Africa ever actually benefited the majority of its citizens?

I completed Dungeon Hack after about 50 hours, its similar to EOB and is a Gold Box game but simpler than EOB because all keys are on the same levels and there arent any complicated puzzles Its just a fun D&D dungeon crawl with all the same rule mechanics as EOB I did have to use a cheat twice to progress on certain levels because doors were closed with no keys and on one level I couldnt find the steps down and I think it was a bug which certain Dungeon Hack forums confirm can happen so I had to '' cheat " just to progress The game gets a well deserved 62\100 on the globally respected "BruceVC game rating system " and is a recommended CPRG to play from a more light-hearted perspective

Classic and hilarious Juice Media and its what they do well. There videos always the same, some truth or accurate observations and then humour and exaggeration I love the US view " we prepared to defend our Democracy against terrorists , Commies and even aliens " Once point that is valid and I have raised this concern is we tend to take the principles and foundation of Democracy for granted and you can have this being undermined and eroded because of government policy in any country because of a change in policy from a more extreme left or right wing government. But it generally requires Constitutional change in all our countries but its still something that should concern all of us So just being able to vote in a free and fair election is something we should appreciate and realize it needs to be protected So when you hear about Democratically elected governments in Africa being overthrown by military coups this should concern us all. But many people dont really care because they think its about " French Colonialism being ended "

No we havent had a active right-wing movement like the AWB for decades.They still exist but you never hear from them Afrikaners rights are protected the same way as all minorities, in the Constitution But there is also a more Afrikaans party called Freedom Front Plus but they represent more farmers rights and they got 1.4% of total votes Most Afrikaners would have voted for the DA

https://www.politico.eu/article/georgia-european-union-candidacy-protest-nana-malashkhia-georgian-dream-party/ Whats worse is 80% of Georgians want to join the EU and this latest legislation is your typical Russian style underhanded attempt to prevent that Its very clear what the overall Russian\Putin strategy is to recreate the old Soviet borders and Russian influence. You cannot leave it up to citizens to decide their own future in almost all former Soviet states because given a choice the majority of people will want to align with the EU\West You make sure you support fellow Autocracies and keep them in power, you invade and occupy or you actively interfere in the domestic policies of the country so that it makes joining the EU harder But you dont ever let citizens decide their own future because sovereignty is the enemy

Im ecstatic with the final South African voting results my party the DA, Democratic alliance, maintained control of the Western Cape and gained in the National vote. We on 22.7%. We the anti-Russian,anti-BRICS, pro-West party and the Western Cape is the only province that passes the auditor-general report around municipalities and service delivery the ANC for the first time in 30 years got less than 50% of the national vote and they on 41% and the best news is the racist, anti-white, socialist pro-Russian party the EFF lost national votes and they down to 9.3 %. It doesnt matter about coalitions because no radical left\socialist party has the support to change the Constitution which is always my greatest concern, you need 66% to do this The ANC will need a party with 9% to govern to get to 50% majority but its irrelevant who they choose because they cant make any permanent and destructive Constitutional changes. So the ANC will predictably continue to govern but with no more majority. And Im very happy with that, Im not anti-ANC on certain things. Im just anti-ANC dominance because it has created a culture around political impunity around dealing with corruption and ensuring governance and accountability But Im very happy with the final results, the ANC getting way less than 50% and the EFF becoming even more irrelevant and the DA increasing its support And before this election some political commentators were grandstanding and " predicting " the DA would lose support because we not " pro-Palestinian" and because of the so called flag burning incident. And neither of those allegations was true or accurate But most South Africans voted on the expected domestic issues like the economy, crime and failure service delivery. And 65% of the DA vote is people of colour which is critical for political success in a country where white people are only 6.5% of the total population

Sure but if you watch the video its honest and critical, I dont consider it effective Russian propaganda because she is making assumptions about what are the reality of sanctions around things like food in supermarkets. There isnt food and agriculture sanctions on Russia so why would any supermarket not have food or EU food choices. This is just one example During Apartheid we had sanctions for decades but we always had food on the shelves in supermarkets and we werent getting unrestricted economic trade from the likes of China. We traded with Western countries around some things but there were definitely some things we couldnt get. But South Africa became very independant around productivity. And they justified it outside of the enforcement of flawed Apartheid laws due to the real threat of Communism and the reality of the Cold War, we became a smaller version of the Russian "war economy " reality within Russia. The Apartheid government ran the country for decades under sanctions but its not sustainable and sanctions had a slow but real economic impact But I dont think she is FSB because the whole video is too simplistic and obviously the views of a young person who is clearly not political but is well meaning. Like I mentioned in a previous post when she said " I thought how can people survive without FB or Youtube " , my best comment in the whole video. She is so cute

Photos, we need to see lots of photos You must know the vicarious thrill photos provide around ComicCon and DONT forget the Cosplay people and ladies

Great video, thanks for posting. I watched the whole video but Gorthfuscious she is DEFINITELY an FSB agent and Im surprised you would post such outrageous propaganda Im joking obviously, she is not a FSB agent . I think she is exactly what she says she is and the whole video is a well meaning video from a young person about her life in Russia and she objectively discusses what she thinks matters and what is important since sanctions after the invasion of Ukraine And I believe everything she says But the real criticism towards Russia is the politics and the reality of freedom in Russia under Putins autocracy. Its not about SM hyperbole around " no food on supermarkets" or " I cant access FB anymore " and its interesting at the end where she says "I always wondered how people in China could survive without FB or Youtube " like that really is a big deal, " OMG I cant access FB anymore " But she is your average young person and thats a big deal to them and she means well But going back to the real issues within Russia, she openly admits politics doesn't concern her and thats expected unless you support the authoritarian reality of Russia. How would she feel if she was member of the LGBT community? We have just had an election in SA as you know and the belief that people have in free and fair elections was the winner, it doesnt matter who wins because its the will of the people through the ballet box that is the most important thing We had weeks of opposition parties campaigning, townhall meetings, candidates coming onto talk shows and news networks and openly and freely criticizing the ANC and its policies with both fair and unfair comments. Our state owned media station provided the same platform because we allow and encourage those basic political freedoms and that matters to me and always will None of that exists in Russia, there is no free media and no real criticism allowed of the state or its policies and they dont have free and fair elections And thats not a concern to many people in Russia because there is nothing they can do about it like this young lady which is why she specifically mentions her video is not about politics So her is video is honest and truthful but what she talks about is not the real criticism I have towards Putin or his system of government. Its what his interpretation and implementation of a government means And I will always believe governments must support basic freedoms like human rights, freedom of speech and leadership change being determined through free and fair elections But if you ignore this you can absolutely be happy in Russia or have a normal life like she explained in the video

Yes normally they are for mod purists but Steam offers financial incentives so it create a reality where some people are considered "sell-outs " because they list only on Steam But I find almost all my mods exist on Steam and Nexus or smaller mod sites that are still active like moddb.com https://www.moddb.com/

Yes if you take games like BG1&2 there is a recommended order and by not following that order you can crash the game or create problems and that happened to me For this type of game there is mod order document you need to use which is categorized into mod types like "all NPCs at the end " So yes thats true but I include that in the 4-5 hours of prepping that I mentioned around watching videos Its 4-5 hours of inclusive research. But end of the day Steam Workshop does generally work but always read the specific comments from members around each Steam mod because they will normally say "install this mod manually " or " dont use Steam automatic install for this mod " I also think you dont install lots of mods so automatic mod installation will be fine for you But imagine installing the 2000 Nolvus mods manually

Onion is also brilliant

Voting is over, I have never seen such lines and participation in an election and its a sign of the belief in people wanting to see political change and have there voice heard I ended up voting at 8:40pm and I still waited 40 minutes. You can join the line up to 9pm but not after that Whatever the outcome is this is entire election is an example of the belief that most South Africans have in the principle and foundation of Democracy which is about the right to vote in a free and fair election and for citizens to influence leadership change through the ballot box This is something that doesnt exist in countries like Russia and it never existed in South Africa until 1994 and the right to vote freely should never be taken for granted