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NYCNYC
9,232 posts
Location: NYC, NY, USA


Posted:
Rather than get into yet another heated debate I'm finding myself getting caught up by little thoughts of the day that I find interesting.

Yesterday I thought: How many 'democracies' are involved in this conflict that have huge anti-war sentiments among their people and what does that say about democracy? (Not the US, we're all for it by opinion polls but so many others.)

My random thought for today was being utterly bothered by the American media using the word 'blitzkrieg' to describe the impending US ground advance. BLITZKRIEG?! Will our tanks be sporting those cool swastika flags as well?! Will we be naming our POW camp 'Auschwitz'? Well, I know there's enough people out there calling Bush "Hitler" so maybe...

So what's your random, Seinfeldian, insignificant observation about this predicament? (No deep political posts, only small insignificant rants please!)

Well, shall we go?
Yes, let's go.
[They do not move.]


LuNcHbOx...(Aka. Nathan)-un-singlemember
536 posts
Location: beneath a cloak of self-torture


Posted:
this thing will proly last about a month...

-LuNcHbOx, Aka. Nathan...Give a man to fish, and that man knows where to come for more fish...Teach a man to fish and you have just destroyed your market base...


DioHoP Mechanical Engineer
729 posts
Location: OK, USA


Posted:
Here's another of my random thoughts.

This war is the single most documented and publicized war in the history of mankind. There are reporters literally everywhere "embedded" in with the troops. Having this sort of coverage, for better or worse, adds a degree of credibility to this war the likes of which we've never seen.

I'm wondering, if the government is supposed to have some kind of hidden agenda here, be it oil or financial gain or whichever, why are they literally videotaping pretty much every step they take and broadcasting it to the world? When you don't want your shady motives known, aren't you supposed to do the exact opposite?

Unless this is an attempt to kill off reporters before the next war we enter so they won't give it attention...

What hits the fan is not evenly distributed.


_Stix_Pooh-Bah
2,419 posts
Location: la-la land


Posted:
I found this on MSN news....

88888888888888888888
No Coca-Cola please, we're anti-war
By Erik Kirschbaum BERLIN (Reuters) - No more Coca-Cola or Budweiser, no Marlboro, no American whiskey or even American Express cards -- a growing number of restaurants in Germany are taking everything American off their menus to protest the Iraq war. Although the protests are mainly symbolic, waiters in dozens of bars and restaurants in Hamburg, Berlin, Munich, Bonn and other German cities are telling patrons, "Sorry, Coca-Cola is not available any more due to the current political situation." The boycotts appear to be part of a nascent worldwide movement. One Web site, www.consumers-against-war.de, calls for boycotts of 27 top American firms from Microsoft to Kodak while another, www.adbusters.org, urges the "millions of people against the war" to "Boycott Brand America". Consumer fury seems to be on the rise. Demonstrators in Paris smashed the windows of a McDonald's restaurant last week, forcing police in riot gear to move in to protect staff and customers of the American fast-food outlet. The attackers sprayed obscenities and "boycott" on the windows. In Indonesia, Iraq war opponents have pasted signs on McDonald's and other American food outlets, trying to force them shut by "sealing them" and urging Indonesians to avoid them. In the Swiss city of Basel, 50 students recently staged a sit-down strike in front of a McDonald's to block customers' entry, waved peace signs and urged people to eat pretzels instead of hamburgers. Anti-American sentiment has even reached provinces in Russia, where some rural eateries put up signs telling Americans they were unwelcome, according to an Izvestia newspaper report. A German bicycle manufacturer, Riese und Mueller GmbH, cancelled all business deals with its American suppliers. "Americans only pay attention when money is on the line," director Heiko Mueller told Reuters, whose firm buys $300,000 worth of supplies from half a dozen American firms each year. "We wanted to make a statement against this war and told our American partners that unless they renounce what their government is doing we won't do any business with them anymore." SMALL BUT SYMBOLIC ACTS The German restaurant boycotts of American products started small but spread rapidly after the Iraq war began on Thursday. The conflict has struck a raw nerve in a country that became decidedly anti-war after the devastation of World War Two, which it initiated. "If people all around the world boycott American products it might influence their policies," said Jean-Yves Mabileau, owner of "L'Auberge Francaise" which joined 10 Hamburg restaurants in banning Coke, Marlboro, whiskey and other American goods. "This started as a light-hearted reaction to Americans dumping French wine in the gutter and renaming 'French Fries' as 'Freedom Fries'," he said. "But it feels good to take a stand against this war. It is just a small gesture, but a good one." Diners at the Osteria restaurant in Berlin are finding that "things go better without Coke" and are ordering Germany's long overshadowed imitation of "the real thing" -- the slightly sweeter "Afri-Cola" -- to express their outrage. "We wanted to do something to express our annoyance," Osteria owner Fabio Angile told Reuters. "We want to hit America where it hurts -- in their wallets. None of the customers have complained. On the contrary, most thought it was a great idea." Herve Keroureda, owner of a French restaurant in Hamburg known as "Ti Breizh", said he was astonished by the massive media coverage of their small-scale anti-American protest. "It was only intended as a small gesture but has turned into a gigantic issue," he said. "And the reaction from the patrons has been tremendous. Most have called it a brilliant idea." In Bonn, bartender Bruno Kessler said he was refusing to sell American whiskey or American beer at his "Eifeler Stuben". "I asked myself 'What can I possibly do to show my anger over this barbary?'," he told Germany's N-24 television network. STARBUCKS, BIG MACS AVOIDED Sarah Stolz, a 22-year-old German student majoring in American studies, was headed for a Starbucks coffee shop in central Berlin when her anti-war conscience got the best of her. "I was thinking about going into Starbucks, which I love, when I realised it was wrong," she said. "I'm backing the boycott because the war is totally unjustified." Rita Marschall was avoiding McDonald's and Burger King. "I'm boycotting American products because their policy on Iraq is totally wrong," said Marschall, 26, in front of a Berlin McDonald's. "It's just one of many ways we can take a stand." Some German bakeries have renamed a local cake known as "Amerikaner" -- a disk-shaped pastry with icing on top -- as "Peace-ies", bearing a peace sign piped in chocolate sauce. The boycotts are having only a negligible business impact. Establishments linked to the United States and the American way of life such as Starbucks, Dunkin' Donuts, McDonald's and Coca-Cola reported no major business impact from the protests. "We're really a local business in Germany, the product is made in Germany and they're boycotting German products," said Jonathan Chandler, communications director for Coca-Cola Europe, Eurasia and the Middle East in London. "Boycotts primarily harm the people they're most designed to support. These are bar operators making choices on behalf of their customers." Chandler declined comment on whether it was hurting sales, but an industry source said any impact would not be serious. In the London suburb of Milton Keynes, the Greens party have called on consumers to boycott 330 American products ranging from Mars bars to Gap jeans and American films on DVD and video. In Zurich, travel agents said some clients who usually take holidays in the United States are changing their destinations. "Some of the most loyal customers who have been travelling to the United States for years have changed their plans because they don't like what Bush is doing," Lucia Zeller, director of the Travac travel agency, told the Tages Anzeiger newspaper.
888888888888888888

Ok I don't usually like the idea to global consumerism - but isn't this taking it a little too far? As it says above some of teh goods that they are avoiding are actually made in Germany - so really they are only hurting thier own econmoy - but thats just one example..

Oh well - at least the protestors feel that there are doing something..

What do you guys think?

I honour you as an aspect of myself..

You are never to old to storm a bouncey castle..


DaiTenshimember
104 posts
Location: Stillwater, OK


Posted:
yeah that is ridiculous.

All that stuff is bottled and produced locally, and if those McD's don't make money the citizens that work there are on the screwed side of life.

No one knows me like I do.


NYCNYC
9,232 posts
Location: NYC, NY, USA


Posted:
My Thought of the Day:

If anti-war protesters actually want to be heard they really need to take a look at themselves.

I heard some conservative guy on the radio saying that the "people at the pro-war rallies looked normal and the people at the anti-war rallies looked like freaks." I wouldn't go that far but, havning been to several rallies I must say, he does have a point.

It seems that many people be viewing protests as outdoor parties and purely social events. Others have been diluting the message with their own political message (I saw a "Legalize Marijuana" banner and a "Stop New York City Police Brutality" banner.)

I always view things like rallies and protests as forums to influence those people on the fence. If I was on the fence in this issue, I think I'd be scared off by the anti-war protesters.

Well, shall we go?
Yes, let's go.
[They do not move.]


_Stix_Pooh-Bah
2,419 posts
Location: la-la land


Posted:
Ok when checking my emails on hotmail this morning, there was a mail from someone call Aqbar(then lots of numbers)@hotmail.com -
I get quite a few requests to add me to peoples messenger from my profile, so I opened it..

it read - I curse you English scum, you are killing children in Iraq. How can you stand in the country that you are in... blah blah..

I wish I hadn't deleted it so quickly - I think I would have like to chat to this person to find out why...

Wilst I do sympathise, what rite has this person got cursing me?? I don't support the war at all - but can't think of an alternative - so therefor I am keeping silent..

I wonder how many other people this bitter person spammed last night

Anyone else had hate spam? Or is it just me?

I honour you as an aspect of myself..

You are never to old to storm a bouncey castle..


DeepSoulSheepGOLD Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
2,617 posts
Location: Berlin, Ireland


Posted:
Tis a good point NYC. I would point out that the vast vast majority of protester, round here anyway, are perfectly normal looking. People just tend to notice the idiots. I'd even say I look normal besides possibly a drum and at stages poi. Someone who knows no better might call me a freak for swinging poi but . Point taken though...

Misstix, wow, that's a bit and uneccessary but there is lot of anger with perhaps no where to point it. I'm sorry this happened to you.

Dio, I think that's why the allied forces took the news companies on board, in the first place.

My thought for the day is how come public opinion changes? Surely reasons for the war haven't changed from the start and therefore whether it is right or wrong shouldn't have changed, yet amazingly the number of people supporting the grows by the day. Is it because they are believing the propaganda or because they are supporting their governments once the decision is made. I remember when over 70% of the uk wouldn't support a war without the UN (before the UN said no).

I live in a world of infinite possibilities.


DioHoP Mechanical Engineer
729 posts
Location: OK, USA


Posted:
Here's a Seinfeldian thought: If Bush were to spontaneously legalize pot today, would it influence any protestors' opinions?

It seems like the peace protestor today is a total anachronism (object out of its time). There's no originality to the "hippy." It's simply someone from our generation acting like someone from the previous generation. I think the peace movement would gain credibility if they were more contemporary and less of a bastardized version of their elders.

What hits the fan is not evenly distributed.


NYCNYC
9,232 posts
Location: NYC, NY, USA


Posted:
Hey, don't go giving undue credit to old school hippies just cuz they're old school. The 60's and 70's had plenty of "flavor of the month" hippies and "just in it for the social scene" liberals.

My thought for today was:
Why is the media reporting casualties as if they are unexpected? Did the media not realize that many people would have to die? The errant missile attack on the marketplace which killed 15 was described by a journalist as "the apocalypse". I don't know my bible all that much but didn't the apocalypse imply a few more than 15 deaths?

Well, shall we go?
Yes, let's go.
[They do not move.]


.Morph.SILVER Member
addict
669 posts
Location: Lancashire, UK


Posted:
My thought/quote for the day:
"One hundered victories in one hundred battles is not the most skillful.
Subduing the other's military without battle is the most skillful." Sun Tzu


i8beefy2GOLD Member
addict
674 posts
Location: Ohio, USA


Posted:
Haha wow, Chinese Philosophy. Kind wierd, this is the same phrase I pull out with people when trying to explain why we lost Vietnam and why we must be very careful here not to lose the hearts and minds of the people again. As Bush Sr. said last time, "The spector of Vietnam has been buried". Bush Jr's got a pretty big shovel, but what he does with it is yet to be discerned. There is a reason why the Art of War is just as applicable today and just as studied today as it was thousands of years ago.

My thought comes from a WWII bomber. After he came back, and realized what he had done in the name of a "just war" (Which cleared the way for America's dominance in the economy of the world, *Cough* Saudi Arabia), he dedicated his life to speeking out against war, and uncovering some of the other historical reasons why we do these terrible things. Howard Zinn (if you ever have the extreme pleasure of talking to him) is an extremely open minded man, but he also has a way with history that I found impossible to argue with. Try reading the People's History of the US. Or any of his short books on war or bombs.

There are more thoughts for the day in there then I could ever type out here.

DaiTenshimember
104 posts
Location: Stillwater, OK


Posted:
My thoughts for the day.

1. What's with people asking "how long is this going to take" and being surprised when they're not given a deffinite time table. Seriously, it's a war not a damned convention. The enemy is a changing, thinking, and- believe it or nt- dangerous entity and thus it is impossible to say "we'll deffintly be done by 8:00PM thursday".

Sheesh.

2. Reporters perfectly happy of acussing our government of cruelty to prisoners without so much as a nod for our men and women who've been taken and apparently abused. The worst was a female reporter actually asking Auri Fleischer (can't remember his name, press secretary), rather pointedly I might add, whether America was following the rules with the AQ prisoners in guantanamo..... actually, a few of those guys have been released and returned to Afghanistan, each was interviewed and they said things like "we were allowed to wash, if we could not they would help us", "we had entertainment even video games", "we were provided with a library of books in our own language", "we were allowed to pray 5 times a day and were fed 3 meals without fail. In fact I ate better there than I ever did in training". Following their release each man was given a fresh set of clothes and a sports bag to carry his Koran in and returned home.

For some reason I seriously doubt our troops will be/have been treated nearly so well.

I love the ubber liberal "blame America" attitude whereby it's perfectly acceptable four our citizens/troops to suffer and they don't ask anyone anything, but they instantly assume that we're mistreating our POWs..... and they really have absolutly nothing to lead them to that conclusion. The double standard is obvious and disgusting.

No one knows me like I do.


i8beefy2GOLD Member
addict
674 posts
Location: Ohio, USA


Posted:
Double standard? America is the king of double standards! We preach might does not make right, and then we drop thousands of pounds of munitions of people who can barely afford rifles. We tell everyone to abide by the Geneva convention when we ourselves break it. Guantanamo Bay prisoners and Military Tribunals are excelent examples. There is a reason why a third party is supposed to judge these people and not US who will have, undoubtedly, a lot of emotional insights into their cases. We tell everyone to abide by UN regulations, but as soon as it doesn't go our way, we flip the bird and do it anyway. I couldn't believe there wasn't more outcry over Afghanistan when it happened. Legitimate "in our eyes" or not, does not matter. As the ruling party, and one which abided by international law (in terms of this anyway) and asked for proof, we had an obligation to show our proof. Of course we didn't. Iraq, again, we were told to show our proof, and this time we had virtually nothing.

Does this mean that if we decide to take over some other country just because we don't recognize their government as legitimate that that is right? Legitimate for the US means someone who is Pro-US in power. It always has. Didn't want Russians in Afghanistan, so we trained Osama. Didn't want Europian powers in control of Saudi oil so we installed troops after WWII while we had the chance. Didn't want China to be communist so we held out on THEIR legitimacy for over 40 years, instead recognizing the government of Taiwan as the legitimate "democratic" government of China. Our record get's even worse when you start looking at Central American and South American countries, where we exchange dictators like two dollar hookers. Venezuela. I'd have to go look at more history books to pull out the others and the names involved.

Arg, sorry, I didn't mean to make this post of examples so long. One last point though, don't for a second think that I am not praying that the men and women our leaders have duped into thinking it is right to murder. They are among the greatest victims of war. At what point though do you question your government though? When your son or daughter comes home in a body bag? I don't question my government's actions because I have no respect for our troops. Indeed, quite the opposite, I ask BECAUSE of our troops. I have friends in the Army and Airforce.

Without people being able to dissent, and say "not in my name", democracy is pointless. Saying "get in line" is totalitarian. Bush has made it clear where he stands on that. "Get in line" is federal policy now, I mean after all Cointellpro was reinacted right before all this happened, and the Patriot Act has some very interesting infringments on rights as well that has resulted in a lot of arrests... a lot of drug arrests. A lot of non-violent criminal arrests. Lot's of arrests having nothing to do with what the Patriot Act was meant to provide for.

Where do you draw the line? Mine came and went a long time ago.

DaiTenshimember
104 posts
Location: Stillwater, OK


Posted:
So, was that your thought for the day?

Also, yeah, a 3rd party did interview those prisoners released and that was my point, THEY said they were treated just fine there and yet people still feel compelled to claim that we're treating them like animals..... is their own word not good enough?

Also, there are no lines, only circles.

No one knows me like I do.


i8beefy2GOLD Member
addict
674 posts
Location: Ohio, USA


Posted:
Haha oh yeah, it was a thought for the day thread... oops. Sorry for hijacking it there.

The Guantanamo Bay prisoners were bound and gagged for the flight over. Ok, makes sense, don't want trained terrorists loose in a plane. But military tribunals do not make sense. Why? Because you are dealing with an international event which, as I recall from the Geneva convention, requires a third party judicial system. Further, Military Tribunals deny all rights which we hold so dear to our own ability to protect ourselves in this country. No news coverage. No innocent until proven guilty. My statement had little to do with treatment and everything to do with international law.

Man, now I gotta go brush up on my international law stuff so I can adequately explain the US violations. Luckily I have a friend who is majoring in it. I'll ask him for a list, he's usually up on this stuff.

DioHoP Mechanical Engineer
729 posts
Location: OK, USA


Posted:
quote:
Posted in an article from National Review Online:

Both Afghanistan and the United States ratified the third Geneva Convention of 1949, which sets out basic protections for POWs, but they must be "lawful combatants" for the treaty to apply.

The Geneva Convention sets out four key preconditions. First, the soldiers must be part of an organized command structure, so that leaders can be held responsible. Second, the soldiers must wear fixed distinctive emblems visible from afar — so that the other side can avoid killing civilians without fearing attack from disguised fighters. Third, the soldiers must carry arms openly. Fourth, the other side must respect for the laws of war, for example, by not taking hostages.

Al Qaeda repeatedly violated these preconditions before, after, and during the Sept. 11 attacks. The al Qaeda terrorists target civilians; they do not wear uniforms; they do not carry arms openly; they take hostages (such as the hostages they took when they hijacked the four airplanes on Sept. 11). The Taliban leadership harbored, aided, and abetted Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda in their violations of the laws of war, and al Qaeda, in return, financed the Taliban. The Taliban soldiers, or many of them, committed war crimes, such as hiding weapons in mosques, and using their own people as human shields.

The Geneva Protocol allows non-state belligerents to secure protected treatment under the protocol. They just have to file a declaration with the Swiss government accepting the obligations of the protocol. When al Qaeda does that, then it will receive the benefits of POW status.

Call down the thunder, you gonna reap the whirlwind

What hits the fan is not evenly distributed.


DeepSoulSheepGOLD Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
2,617 posts
Location: Berlin, Ireland


Posted:
Er, I kinda liked this thread when it was just a thought for the day.

I live in a world of infinite possibilities.


DaiTenshimember
104 posts
Location: Stillwater, OK


Posted:
Fine thought for the day;

What exactly do the anti-war folks think we should do about Hussein? I mean they can't possibly think he should be allowed to continue to run the country seeing as they're so concerned with human rights.

And if I hear so much as a whimper of "let international law work" I'm gonna just snap and go take crazy pictures of trees that will for some reason sell for millions to rich idiots who pay way too much for art that actually means nothing.

Anywho.... uh yeah, citing "international law" is no kind of answer cause then we got "alright, how exactly do we enforce this law if we're not gonna use military force?" and really there's no way. Economic sanctions and blockades would only starve out the civies in Iraq further.

Hmmm perhaps I should have jsut created a new thread for this thought, anywho, yeah, whatever

No one knows me like I do.


DioHoP Mechanical Engineer
729 posts
Location: OK, USA


Posted:
Random Thought for Today:

If a large military superpower, large enough to kick America's ass, were to come out and give George Bush 48 hours to leave the American Government so a new, better system could be put in place for the American people, what would he do? Would he hold fast in his position and go down with the ship? Or would he vacate for the good of the American people?

In my opinion, a legitimate leader cares about the people he represents and not his own power.

What hits the fan is not evenly distributed.


FlyntSILVER Member
Intrepid Penguin
5,635 posts
Location: Australia


Posted:
Flynts thought for the day:

If someone gave the USA 2 weeks to disarm, would they?
once Iraq is disarmed and all the other little countries, is Bush/America going to come after some non third world countries? Bring him on! we'll fight him with our kamikazi kangeroos!

Currently on the right side up of the world.


Masonmember
13 posts
Location: Sydney & Brisbane


Posted:
I wonder what Osama thinks about this war? is he pissed off that the Afghanistani theocratical regime fell and now Iraq is on its knees?
Whats his next move? or is everyone to busy with that strange man Saddam to remember what wheels he has put in motion.

Remember last time we were here? The mud,the blood,I ended it that day.And 87 years later Im back. What goes around, really goes around.


.Morph.SILVER Member
addict
669 posts
Location: Lancashire, UK


Posted:
Random thought:

What things are the US & UK governments doing under the cover of war that would not be accepted in any other circumstances? Eg. The US declaring that they have this new huge bomb - The UK army using cluster bombs and thinking that because we at war we need to use them, even tho they go against all human rights agreements - they kill our own soldiers!!

DaiTenshimember
104 posts
Location: Stillwater, OK


Posted:
Firemorph: My father's a colonel in artillery so I got the word from him.

Cluster bombs don't kill our own troops any more than normal bombs do. If you pull the pin in a grenade and drop it at your feet, of course it's going to kill you. Throw the grenade though and you don't die. Basically the same thing, you simply do not drop the bomb where your troops are, cluster bombs are not an exacting air support weapon, never have been used as such or touted as such. We've been using cluster bombs for years with no ill effects to our own troops.

As for the MOAB (Mother of All Bombs), chances are we won't use it this time seeing as we really are- whether you want to believe it or not- going well out of our way to avoid civies. Also, MOAB is so damn large that there are only a few bombers that can carry the damn thing, it's just kinda there.

No one knows me like I do.


MikeGinnyGOLD Member
HOP Mad Doctor
13,925 posts
Location: San Francisco, CA, USA


Posted:
I feel like MOAB is more of a toy than anything else. It's not really going to be useful in any forseeable military conflict (unless we decide to blow up the Airbus factory at Tolouse).

I think that there is an element in ordinance design that likes to blow shit up (well, you HAVE to like to blow shit up if you're into ordinance design. Liking to blow shit up isn't necessarily a bad thing, just like liking setting things on fire isn't necessarily a bad thing), but I feel like the MOAB is so impractical that it's more a "gee-wiz" weapon than a practical tactical weapon.

-Mike

Certified Mad Doctor and HoP High Priest of Nutella



A buckuht n a hooze! -Valura


MikeGinnyGOLD Member
HOP Mad Doctor
13,925 posts
Location: San Francisco, CA, USA


Posted:
quote:
Originally posted by Dio:
Random Thought for Today:

If a large military superpower, large enough to kick America's ass, were to come out and give George Bush 48 hours to leave the American Government so a new, better system could be put in place for the American people, what would he do? Would he hold fast in his position and go down with the ship? Or would he vacate for the good of the American people?

In my opinion, a legitimate leader cares about the people he represents and not his own power.

Interesting thought, Dio. Do you think GW is there for his own power or because he genuinely thinks he's helping the American people?

In spite of everything else, I believe his deepest motivations are honorable.

-Mike

Certified Mad Doctor and HoP High Priest of Nutella



A buckuht n a hooze! -Valura


SickpuPpyNinja Rockstar!
1,100 posts
Location: Denver, Co. U.S.A.


Posted:
Interesting thought indeed. I also wonder what would happen should, lets say for arguements sake, Canada (assuming they had the political and military force to do so) came into the US and said "Hey, we think that you are getting out of hand with your chemical weapons program, and your nuke program, not to mention your biowarfare progam and your hard on for the nuclear "Star Wars" program (which could conceivably kill every living thing on the planet by accident). We think that you need to be stopped for the good of the world, turn over all your weapons of mass distruction or suffer the pain of a new, Canadian installed government."

The American people would never accept that, and as Americans (civiallians, I mean) we would probobly be using much shady and devious tactics than these civilian suicide bombers attacking the Coalition troops right now. As Americans we would use any tactic possible to destroy an invading army. Just imagine what kind of anti personell mine you could build out of one of those huge Ford Excursion SUVs. The thing is big enough to house three Indonisian families after all.

Why is it that we should expect Iraq to disarm willingly? We would never dream of it.

Sadly though, it seems that our president has taken the opinion that only a complete disregaurd of UN resolutions and the Geneiva conventions will stop Saddam Hussien's complete disregaurd of UN resolutions and the Geneiva conventions.

Jesus helps me trick people.


DaiTenshimember
104 posts
Location: Stillwater, OK


Posted:
quote:
Originally posted by Lightning...:
I feel like MOAB is more of a toy than anything else. It's not really going to be useful in any forseeable military conflict (unless we decide to blow up the Airbus factory at Tolouse)

[...]

but I feel like the MOAB is so impractical that it's more a "gee-wiz" weapon than a practical tactical weapon.

I agree with that one. Really a waste of money considering we've already got mroe than enough.

Even in a situation where MOAB might come in handy, the thing is we probably couldn't get where it needed to be right when we needed it.... I mean come on 21,000lbs.....

Side note: The abandoned Star Wars project was actually a missile defense program built around destroying inbound ICBM's before they ever had a chance to reach their targets, not firing nukes at other countries from orbit. Star Wars was skrapped for a considerably more cost effective land based theater missile defense system which is well under way and should be solid in a few years.

Though, now that you bring it up, an orbital weapons system utillizing.... oh damn, what are they called. Well basically it's an orbital weapon that's jsut a huge cylinder of super dense metal with a guidance system, essentially a guided meteor. Serious city destroying power without the worry of fallout and ecological long term ickeeness....... but that would probably cost way too much, worth it though in my opinion.

Thought for the day:

Humanity needs an extraterrestrial enemy. The only way our species will ever unite is in conflict against an entirely sepperate species. We need some klingons or grays or xenomorphs to unite us as one war like species capable of wreaking interstellar havoc ^_______^

Come on, imagine it.....

"I'm joining up with the Earth force damnit! no longer will I stand by and let destroy my Pakistany brothers!" jim bob's mom comes out of the kentucky farm house "you go get 'em jim bob, avenge our fallen brothers and sisters!"

Brings a tear to my eye.

[ 06. April 2003, 21:54: Message edited by: DaiTenshi ]

No one knows me like I do.


NYCNYC
9,232 posts
Location: NYC, NY, USA


Posted:
Thought for the day:

"The Iraqi citizens love us and welcome us!"
"The Iraqi soldiers are dressing up like civilians and shooting at us!"

Maybe the civilians don't really love us so much. Maybe they hate us so much they're shooting at us. It seems that everyone who welcomes us is considered a civilian and everyone who opposes us is considered a soldier.

"Thousands of Iraqi troops offering stiff resistance are killed by armored divisions in Bagdad as Iraqi citizens welcome the U.S."

Well, shall we go?
Yes, let's go.
[They do not move.]


MikeGinnyGOLD Member
HOP Mad Doctor
13,925 posts
Location: San Francisco, CA, USA


Posted:
Yeah. The Iraqi government has been telling bald-faced lies (the U.S. forces were repelled from Baghdad Airport, etc.). However, our own military seems to have made a number of "errors" in their favor that have been graciously corrected by news correspondents in various cities. Like...claiming to have taken cities while news correspondents in those same cities say "I haven't seen a single American."

I really am confused as to what the heck is going on.

-Mike

Certified Mad Doctor and HoP High Priest of Nutella



A buckuht n a hooze! -Valura


DioHoP Mechanical Engineer
729 posts
Location: OK, USA


Posted:
Today's random thought -

With the media showing protests regularly, could it be possible the news is trying to lay blame for this war (and the animosities those who dislike America would have) solely on George Bush?

My philosophy class today discussed the duties of a nation-state to its citizens, and an interesting subject popped up - "A state represents its citizens." Now, if the state of America is representing its citizens in this war (presumably the unspoken majority), and the media portrays the situation as if those opposing the war and favoring peace are in the majority, could that mean the media's trying to displace the blame towards our political leaders and take it away from the general public? That way, if John Q. Terrorist decides to exact some vengeance, he'll aim it more towards Bush than at a bunch of unknowing civilians?

Food for thought

What hits the fan is not evenly distributed.


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