Gorth

Regarding Ukraine, a diplomatic solution had been worked out but the Minsk Accord was never implemented. Regarding Games Workshop, I'm personally a lot more interested in "Warhammer: The Old World", with a return to the familiar Warhammer world. Talk about screwing up a setting and an existing fan base (i.e. me!) 😠

No, I'm old and wise... 😂 I recognize the subtle signals my nose sends me when my phone keeps falling back down and boinking my nose when I drift off while typing 😛

It’s 2:20am here, so I’ll have to give this thread a break until tomorrow afternoon (Eastern Aussie time) 👍

I don't really see nationalism (patriotism) as a "cause" for atrocities, but a means to commit such. The first war(s) probably started when the first field of arable land was cultivated and people started fighting over it (because the people cultivating it couldn't be picked up and carry it with them). Personally, I see the most significant cause wars as greed. The desire to accumulate as much wealth and resources as possible. Everything else, including nationalism are tools to mobilize as many people as possible to do the dying for you. It struck me as a very abstract and very absurd reason to kill your fellow man, that his home was located on the other side of some line, powerful people drew on a map. No, I'm not necessarily rational. Just thinking if a major tool for mobilizing people in large numbers to kill each other vigorously, faded away over time, maybe the world would be a better place. Edit: I know it wasn't exactly what @Gromnir said, but I guess we can blame the peasants after all....

Nope, not misrepresenting. Sadly Idealism is not a tradable currency, but we all have our flaws... as for national identities, the world did just "fine" without them before the 17th century. People still identified as something, but it seems to have been things less abstract and closer to home. Didn't prevent warlords from rounding up the peasants and equipping them with pitchforks and wooden sticks so they could go out and bash each others brains in for the glory of their clan chief/tribal leader/feudal lord/whatever. Nationalism just doesn't change anything for the better. If anything, it enables the same thing on a larger scale and with more enthusiasm.

How can we not love politicians??? Time to reveal a secret... I sometimes have wet dreams at night, featuring a naked Scott Morrison... his body all covered in glistening syrup... while tied, spread eagled, over a fire ant nest 🥰 Ok, so maybe there isn't much love lost on politicians... I usually grade them a bit though internally. Politicians playing the sad nationalist violin is never to be trusted. They are usually kept up by unthinking masses (yes, there really is something about people getting the government they deserve). Long list... Putin (Russia), Xi (Mainland China), Trump (ex US president), Modi (India), Poroshenko (ex Ukrainian president) Bolsonaro (Brazil), Orban (Hungary) etc. On this list, Putin and Xi are by far the most dangerous, because they possess what appears to be a modicum of intelligence and nukes to back up their policy. Our very own Scott from Marketing has neither brains nor charisma. That being said, there are probably "good" politicians out there. The media just tend to be media and ignore them, for the same reason most news channels sell bad news, disasters and the next new crisis to keep ratings up. That somebody in Canberra decided to put up same sex marriage to be tested by a binding referendum was a nice touch. People just forget something like that two weeks after the referendum. I still remember a conservative government back in Denmark in the 80's that introduced harsh austerity measures (many years before the PIGS countries made it a buzz word) to save an economy in free fall and left a legacy of a nation which has been generally in the black ever since. They got much flak back then, especially from the The Socialist Party, Social Democrats and the Danish Communist Party, but guess what... in the decades after, people enjoyed economic stability without thinking much about why it is so (it was "affectionately" known as the Potato Diet, because people had to leave out the meat and just eat vegetables).

Oh look, I found a Rammstein song. Supposedly with a fan made animation making up the visuals of the video...

I feel sorry for Biden (seriously). It doesn't matter what he does, he's screwed. If he play hardball and the economy suffers as a result, he'll get slaughtered. If he doesn't, he'll hear no end of "weakest president evar!!!" and get slaughtered. It's a lose/lose situation. Edit: He does, not he do.

Russia could sell it to China as the equivalent of China uniting all Chinese under the control of the CCP?

And here I thought the Belgians were only good at making Chocolate and Beer Didn't know Belgium were the power behind the SWIFT system. But yeah, a collapse of the SWIFT system as a global thing could result in a loss of both money and trust in the system. So... better be nice to Belgium, or else! When all is said and done, I think Ukraine still wants to buy a bit of LPG from Russia when winter sets in (not to mention skim a nice profit from transit fees and LPG that mysteriously disappears in large quantities in transit). I don't see Biden arranging an air/truck/train bridge like Berlin post WWII to supply them with gas in enough quantities to keep frostbite away in October (maybe Hunter Biden is more interested in the Ukrainian energy sector than his dad is). Sadly, still lamenting that aforementioned nationalism keeps getting in the way of practical solutions, like actually implementing the signed Minsk Accord (way too late for that now). Putin is nothing if not logical. Like a computer. With all the compassion and empathy of a computer too. Like it or not, he has mostly been reactive rather than active. Sure, a bit of opportunism occasionally, like gaining influence with Shiite Muslims by intervening in Syria or organizing (badly) the odd hit on those guilty of high treason in his eyes.

It's infinitely harder to control a hostile, occupied population than a friendly population that welcomes you as "liberator". Doesn't mean it's impossible, just less likely. Biden probably guessed the same thing way back when he talked about degrees of punitive sanctions for "limited Russian invasion" vs. full scale invasion. Edit: Which upset the government in Kiev a lot

I.e. the ones with the most and biggest guns dictates where borders go... if the borders are good for "us" and bad for "them", they are good borders, regardless everything else. That kind of neo-colonialist attitude makes you part of the problem, not the solution. Me, I believe in self determination and often side with the "underdogs", whether the were the people of Donbass living under Ukrainian occupation or the people of Tibet living under Chinese occupation. Both are trying to stamp out the existing culture and replace it with there own. My preferred solution will always be let the people who live in an area have a say first. I'll concede the eradication of Aztec culture was not necessarily a bad thing, because the whole human sacrifice thing was a bit disturbing...

Partially correct, they were not Russian for 400 years, because for 80 years they were "Soviets" (not a big difference really, as the Soviet Union was de facto the old Zarist Russia). The area was originally known as Zaporizhian Sich until it was conquered by Russia (from The Ottoman Empire) in the 18th Century and the demographic slowly changed from Turkic people to Russians... Turkey has more of a legitimate claim on Donbass and Lugansk than Ukraine ever had. Just don't tell Erdogan.

Yeah, the same way they respected the borders of Tibet 😛

Your language betrays your bias. Those people were never Ukrainians. They were Russians (ethnically, culturally and nationally) for 400 years before Ukraine existed. Did I mention nation states and nationalism being a bad thing?

It’s called “life”… more important than correcting people who are wrong on the internet (insert appropriate meme here) 😝

Why would I do that? It would be much better if people could bury the antiquated and outdated construct of "nation states" and by the same token get rid of nationalism for good. I know it's an excellent tool for convincing the not too bright masses to go out and die happily for their lords and masters, but seriously... some day, in the case of Ukraine, somebody will realize that internal Soviet administrative borders does not make for good nation boundaries. Especially when it creates large, ethnic minorities whose rights are the first to get trampled on in the name of nationalism and national unity (and other drivel like that). Either find a working solution like Denmark and Germany did, or wholesale genocide like Sweden did with Danish population of Scania. There hasn't been any Danish rebellion there for a few centuries (although Sweden was very apprehensive when the bridge was built, connecting Malmo and Copenhagen)

Russia always seemed to get better along with the GOP and having had a mutual hostility with the Dem's.... maybe Putin just wants to make sure no Democrat wins the next election?

Argh.... I'm no gym god, that's for sure, but laughing out loud at this while this much abused old body is aching all over from gym visits didn't help 😂

I won't even know what "woke" means 😂 Sure, I've seen it thrown around on the internet and I can probably infer a few things from how it's used. It's just not one of those things that catches my eye and get my adrenaline pumping 🤔

Sorry @BruceVC but my favourite topics in politics threads are 1 politicians (as individuals) 2 realpolitik and the futility of trying to establish some kind of legal framework to justify or criminalize what is "might makes right" 3 collective and individual hypocrisy (politically, individually and collectively as societies) It's not an exclusive list by any means, just the topics that interests me the most. Bigotry, harassment and racism usually falls in category 3

Ah, didn't know that second meaning of her calling her 'ATM' when greeting her 😂 It does show what happens when mortals accidentally sees her without the paper bag on her head 😁

@majestic I actually have a few Apocalyptica cd's somewhere.... I guess my teenage years were the late 70's and early 80's Just too much good music from that period to really pick a good representation. Most of it heard over the radio. Some bought on vinyl when I could afford it (trying to catch your favourite songs from the radio and record on a tape recorder being too cumbersome)

??? She is a bit of a snake though...

I'm at episode 9. I do like it very much. Quite funny. But as you said, also repetitive in a Vile E. Coyote vs. Road Runner kind of way. I.e. predictable. Still, the many ways Jashin-chan can end up displeasing Yurine (and being ground to sushi, filleted, impaled etc.) 😂 Somehow I just image a Drop Kick on my Devil beach episode being Jashin-chan ending up as bait on a fishing hook and thrown into the water...