BruceVC

Have you watched any of the Godfathers? They classics and there is 4th one that was released long after the first 3 which is really a directors cut of the third one but it provides closure You might find them a little a slow compared to modern day mob movies but they iconic and they set the standard for most mob movies that came after them

https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/russia-says-israels-attack-iran-was-unprovoked-illegal-2025-06-13/ Putins comments on Israel attacking Iran "We strongly condemn the use of force by the state of Israel in violation of the Charter of the United Nations and international law," the ministry said. Unprovoked military strikes against a sovereign U.N. member state, its citizens, peaceful cities, and nuclear energy infrastructure are categorically unacceptable. The international community cannot afford to be indifferent to such atrocities, which destroy peace and damage regional and international security," it said. The statement called on both sides "to exercise restraint in order to prevent a further escalation of tensions and the descent of the region into full-scale war". This type of constant hypocrisy and delusion from Putin when he is doing in Ukraine everything that he is criticizing Israel of doing never ceases to both amaze me and make me laugh Its yet another example of the ubiquitous false outrage that is common nowadays " wars and invasions are wrong unless my team is doing it and then its based and fine " But at least he mentions the importance of the UN and international law .....that must count for something

Im not sure about that , Iran has been anti-Israel and anti-US for decades and only its nuclear program has led to this military campaign?

Two things can be true at the same time I do think Netanyahu uses certain events to distract from his own political shortfalls but then Israel was attacked on 7 October and Iran is trying to get nukes which is threat to the stability of the region So its not just about Israel, I dont know a single country in the region who wants Iran to get nukes except for Iran and its proxies

Remember a couple of months ago Israel was able to successfully attack Iran and it was apparent that Irans anti-aircraft defenses is lacking Irans military prowess was also exaggerated, I thought they were more effective than what was revealed or assumed and clearly sanctions have had an overall negative impact But they do have lots of missiles and drones they can launch against Israel but I dont see them stopping the Israeli airstrikes that are imminent The sooner Iran abandons its nuclear program the better for them

I doubt it, Trumps trying to save face and suggest it was his decision because he wants to do what he always does. Project an image that he is in control Some of his comments on Truth about this are rants. The US was busy with negotiations and they were meeting Iran on Sunday so why would he plan an attack on Iran? Besides the US doesnt have the influence on Israel where it can decide when Israel launches any military campaign This was an Israeli decision and Israel has explained why which I understand, its about ending the Iran nuclear program

Mossad has a very effective intelligence network and footprint in many places in the ME and Iran would be no different https://www.euronews.com/2025/06/13/israels-mossad-mounts-high-tech-covert-operation-to-strike-targets-deep-inside-iran-source " The Israeli Mossad intelligence agency mounted a multi-pronged covert operation deep inside Iran, using advanced systems and explosive drones to strike multiple targets overnight on Friday, sources told Euronews. The Mossad managed to place systems with “precision-guided weaponry" deep in Tehran's territory, a source from the Israeli intelligence told Euronews on condition of anonymity. They were positioned in open areas near Iranian surface-to-air missile systems,” the source added." Im sure the Israelis would have more intelligence on Iran than the US

That was the closest the Israel and Palestinian conflict came to ending and a real sustainable peaceful solution agreed on The era of Rabin and Arafat during that time and the main difference was leaders on both sides were prepared to compromise Its such a pity Rabin was assassinated so we will never know what could have been

Which parts of those links do you think is misinformation or fake news, its the same information that all news media houses are talking but you welcome to post something different and I will read it And to summarize the main points Israel has attacked Iran because of its nuclear program The US is not directly involved Trump says the US was aware of this and they will defend Israel if attacked

Yes but there has to be a military objective and this strike is about Iran not developing nukes which has been around for years. It was predictable considering how close Iran is to getting nukes , what was not a given was if the US would be involved in the actual attack https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/409917 " The President also expressed hope that Iran would still negotiate with the US. Iran cannot have a nuclear bomb and we are hoping to get back to the negotiating table. We will see. There are several people in leadership that will not be coming back," he said. Asked about possible retaliation by Iran, Trump said, "We will defend Israel if necessary."

https://www.ynetnews.com/article/skf5t1yxel#autoplay This pre-emptive strike from Israel has started. The US is not involved but it will defend Israel as normal Trump says they were aware of this attack But the Israeli objective is what has been raised many times, Iran cant be allowed to get nukes so I assume this military campaign will continue until Iran agrees to a nuclear deal ?

I will be surprised if Israel acts without the US backing because without the US air support its limited what damage Israel can do and what message they sending?

Interesting reality is Trump ran his campaign around openly saying how he was going to implement many things that he has now done or mostly tried to do. Grandstanding and populist rhetoric often doesnt translate to policies that will be successful like the DOGE and tariffs failures And yet he won overwhelmingly, which tells you just how unpopular the Dems and there policies, track record and campaign strategy was So I dont think you should underestimate how relevant " different stupid, but just as stupid " really is in the USA at least when it comes to actual voting decisions Wait till midterms, that will be the accurate benchmark. The entire concept of SM analysis and outrage I dont consider convincing as a way to gauge how people will end up voting in the US

But it is a 250 year celebration of the US military Trump cant hijack that historical landmark and its significance

https://america250.org/news/the-united-states-of-america-to-honor-the-250th-anniversary-of-the-u-s-army-with-a-grand-military-parade-and-celebration-in-washington-d-c/ Huge and important US military parade on Saturday, 250 years to celebrate I except its going to be very well supported and it will be interesting to see the US military on display. Last time was in 1991 This is not about politics but rather the sacrifice and duty that the military and its personnel have made towards the country and its history. @rjshae @Gfted1 @kanisatha @ShadySands I imagine you will be watching parts of it?

Im 130 hours in WoRT and its still going great I have reached the Midnight Fane I use the whole Crusader mini-RTS components to have breaks from the RPG progress, I like being in charge of the commander choices and my choices have results like additional army units I am really enjoying all my companion side-quests and potential Romance arcs with Camellia and Arueshalae. It took a while before Sosiel accepted we were just going to be friends but it really took a while around numerous dialogue options Its also the first RPG where I have made certain "evil " choices because my main objective is to defeat the demons and close the Worldwound so the end justifies the means, so for example I have undead units in my army, I aligned with Jerribeth at the Ivory Sanctum and Im prepared to work with most groups who are opposed to Deskari. I also didnt kill the Succubus who gave me the key in the Midnight Fane The game really delivers on a myriad of narrative choices that makes me constantly think what is the overall best path I should follow And Im not suffering from the demon killing fatigue that many people have raised as a legitimate criticism of the design in parts of the game

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/anti-ice-protests-held-coast-coast-l-unrest-national-movement-grows-rcna211980 ICE protests are spreading across the country including GOP states, is the national guard going to be deployed in these states? I doubt it but lets see if Trump is consistent

I dont think this makes a very convincing argument about " federal waste being non-existent " because he was deployed to only one department as part of DOGE and that was Department of Veterans Affairs according to the link? Its amazing that any news media source can make such a generalized statement based on the experience of DOGE in a single department Saying all that Musks initial opinion of the Federal government being rampant with inefficiency and corruption was clearly exaggerated and the task of easily restructuring the Federal government to " save $2 trillion " was both underestimated and inaccurate But we know this because of the overall cost cutting and how the initial DOGE outcome kept dropping and it ended on $150 billion And thats the data and the facts and its believable. But this article doesn't make a very convincing headline point

You have had Democrat presidents for several terms since illegal migration became a global problem over the last 20 years and I dont recall them coming up with anything different to alleviate the crisis in the US? I hear the same thing in South Africa, activists and human rights lawyers say our entire migration system needs to change but they never come anything realistic except for completely unrealistic ideas like " give illegal migrants papers so they can work legally and contribute towards the tax base " You might as well just give them citizenship And thats a terrible idea for us because we have such high unemployment and very few jobs for South Africans as it is The global migration crisis faces the exact same problem, every country has limited resources and no country can just absorb millions of people from other countries, the entire migration process needs to be managed and controlled And the only real solution is to reduce the reasons why people are leaving any country and that applies specifically to failed states or very impoverished countries where you find mass illegal migration But how does any government fix another countries problems, thats the conundrum I am interested in what suggestions you or anyone else has to solve the migration crisis that several countries grapple with?

Im trying to have an opinion based on accurate timelines and yes the link does say 4pm but then the ICE centre was attacked that night So the protests were dealt with correctly by local law enforcement from 4pm but then the ICE centre specifically was attacked in the evening and that triggered the Trump response and the DHS comments which I posted But just to be clear I think Trump deployed the National Guard largely for political reasons, to undermine the Dems and to show he is serious about the deportations but he also rushed it. He didnt have to act so quickly if you think of the timelines, give state authorities the chance to address the violence. Its almost impossible to believe he would have used the NG in a GOP controlled state so soon Thats one issue but the main issue for me is ICE has to be able to do there job so the real question is "what happens in the future in a state like California where ICE is very unpopular but they have large numbers of illegal migrants " ? Will we see these protests again and how does the state and Federal government work together?

I want to have this debate because you make your points without all the grandstanding and political rhetoric that is common with these types of developments. I also dont want to defend Trumps comments because thats part of the whole political rhetoric common on both sides, I want to debate the facts around events in California I want to list some points and then tell me if you agree or disagree with them ( Im going to summarize things but then the link provides more details ) All the violence we seeing in California started because of ICE trying to do there legally mandated job, we can discuss the response later. If you look at the timelines in this link you can see how started and then how it escalated https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025/06/09/la-protests-timeline-ice/84106969007/ ICE started arresting illegal migrants from Friday in raids and some small protests started California did commit to arresting violent protestors and people were arrested and by Saturday daytime the protests had subsided more or less But then on Saturday night the ICE centre was surrounded and violence resurfaced again and California state response was slow and thats why Trump deployed the national guard https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/06/07/dhs-releases-statement-violent-rioters-assaulting-ice-officers-los-angeles-ca-and " According to Homeland Security, on Saturday night, rioters surrounded the immigration services building and detention center, "assaulted ICE law enforcement officers, slashed tires, defaced buildings, and taxpayer-funded property. In response, Trump signed a presidential memorandum deploying "at least" 2,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles." And then Sunday the protests continued again with more violence and anarchy But all of this started because of ICE doing there job and my main question is " do you support ICE doing there job and arresting and deporting illegal migrants " And if you do support that is your concern more about how the National Guard was deployed by the Federal government and not the Governor of California And finally if any federal building is attacked when should the National Guard be deployed if the state security doesn't act quick enough?

It must be such a disappointment for you to see all these issues going on in the US because you always had such respect and admiration for the US until Trump became president Its terrible when that happens, I hope you going to be okay

I dont buy or believe for a second that using a heavy security presence when you have rampant anarchy or violent protests is '' going exacerbate the situation ", that sounds exactly like what a human rights lawyer who isnt interested in the violence ending would say What ends violence and criminality around this type of protest is when the protestors know there is consequences and law enforcement will do its job In South Africa in 2021 when we experienced the infamous "Zuma protests " where hundreds of people were killed it was only when the army was deployed to help the police that the violence and looting ended , over 5000 people were arrested but it absolutely required a heavy security presence before the violence ended https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/7/12/south-africa-deploys-army-to-quell-protests-in-two-provinces No need to overcomplicate something that is easy to understand Gromnir

Its not the first time the national guard has been deployed, there were several examples during the worst violence in BLM protests https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/6/1/george-floyd-mapping-us-national-guard-deployments Sometimes its necessary to restore law and order " “As of Sunday, National Guard Soldiers and Airmen were activated in 24 states and the District of Columbia in response to civil disturbances, bringing the total number of Guard members on duty in support of their governors to nearly 62,000,” the guard announced in a statement. "

The end of the bromance between Trump and Musk has real potential political consequences for the GOP\Trump and this will be realized in the midterms Musk will echo and elevate anti-Trump sentiment and criticize the controversial real things like the " big, beautiful bill " and then the SM drama conspiracy theories like the Epstein files, its pity the latter gets more attention And then you will have less funding for the GOP because Musk was a big donor Share prices recover and Im sure Musks business entities will be fine because political sentiment has limited influence when investors want to make money