scoobdog

I'm leaning more towards he didn't, because neither did I and I need the company.

It isn't really that complex, Ghosty. I've never thought of you as a warmonger (literally a war salesman), just a dude that gets too far over his skis more times than not. In this case, the discussion of whether or not China will invade Taiwan hasn't changed - it's still a campaign with too much risk and not enough reward for China. They're fully capable of doing it and the US isn't in a position to stop it from a tactical standpoint, but if it were to happen the consequences for China would be the same, if not worse, than Russia's. Trust me, I get it. In Trump World, the impossible becomes the possible when it comes to our greatest fears because Trump knows how to use them against us. There's not guarantee that someone like Xi Jingping won't do the same thing, either. However, Xi isn't an incompetent boob like Trump. He knows why the guardrails are there and he knows how or when to act in a way that doesn't result in a complete breakdown of his government. The Chinese have every reason to saber rattle about Taiwan, and inaction on their part isn't an indication that they've given up. Just the threat that China could act is enough to freeze military assets in Southeast Asia and keep regional partners and the US at bay while they strengthen their hold on the South China Sea. If they were to commit the soldiers, sailors, and military hardware to capture Taiwan, they become tactically vulnerable in other parts of the area. Moreover, they damage their economic charm campaign at a time when they're already struggling to make inroads in the world market. (Not that you asked, but one of the things Taiwan has to offer China, it's robust industry, would likely be exported to the United States where it already has a foothold well before China could establish control, taking away one of the few valuable assets that might make an invasion worthwhile.) Mind you, Trump's foolishness is a golden opportunity for the Chinese to exploit, and that's all the more reason not to get entangled in a conflict with so little reward.

I did, and I think maybe you misunderstand what he's talking about. This isn't a planning war "game" or a hypothetical run through, it's quite literally a board game with no actual geopolitical ramifications. It's a generic exercise in strategy an logical reasoning, and it does, in fact, represent an evolution in military planning. The same principles as chess apply - each piece has an attack, defense and surveillance function. But, with advances in the understanding of human psychology and behavior as well as scientific breakthroughs in every discipline, the rules have changed for previously set playing pieces. Each piece is expected to do more and react to its environment in a way a chess piece never could. It's interesting in that this disparity in thought has never been more apparent in the reductive and poorly reasoned actions of Trump's DoD. We don't really think about how integrated emotional and intellectual features are to modern warfare until those features are stripped away.

What are we claiming down there? Hopefully not an STD.... Ghosty already has enough trouble with the ladies.

Gets a cut of the action as the racket's muscle, and is worth all the pennies we rake in.

Got on the wrong side of her once, accidentally got the local pastor stuck by lighting while out golfing and had to make up a cover story.

So... does that make you 99% P-stoned?

Happy Birthday, dude who definitely did not deserve this.

Happy birthday Doomer like a week later and with no cool gift.

Uber drivers get with the program if you give them the motivation. Lyft drivers are a lost cause though.

Fantasy Football works because the league is a perennial. Trying to go out and get people to join in a game that literally takes like ten minutes a week is like pulling teeth here.

But... they don't seem to be repulsed by the things we would expect them to be repulsed by...

Nah, I was just saying the same thing happened to me.

Happy Birthday, Clown Prince of the UEMB.

Thanks KN!

Best punchline ever.

Yeah, I have the occasional bad idea that sounds good in my head too.

Drunk drivers.

I've never heard of someone getting pulled over for no insurance, so that's got to be some kind of racial profiling thing. I know that shit happens but its still blood boiling when I hear it happen.

Yeah, not trying to buzzkill, man. "Armor" was a joke reference to the corn husk, not the crawfish. But... since this is an unpopular opinion thread... What's the deal with crawfish anyway? You have to eat like a hundred of them to get anything and, even then you need hot sauce.

You two are probably still picking corn silk out of your teeth.

So... both you and Buddy ate a tamale with the corn husk still on. I'm more fascinated by this than I should be.

I mean, soft shelled crabs are a thing, so I can’t really say much, but you got sone kind of energy if you enjoy eating things with armor.

Well, proper tamales are wrapped in corn husks. It’s easier to tell what you’re not supposed to eat.

Fields is good tho….