scoobdog

… so you told me to cut your dick off?

cut ur hair, freak.

Oh.... Got it. Thnx

A firehall?

Here's a primer for you, sport. Yes, I know it's CNN, but it's just a collection of the relevant data. The key takeaway from this is that the United States is in a position where it can legislate not purchasing Russian oil on its own with no appreciable affect, but it risks crashing the entire market if it start sanctioning that oil. The key difference is that once sanctions are in place, other countries will have to avoid purchasing Russian oil so as to not somehow run afoul of those sanctions (either by the US or by any of its allies that follows suit) and there isn't enough oil in the global markets to offset the loss of Russia. As the article points out, we are still the world leader in oil production and the two biggest sources we import from are our North American neighbors - we are already "energy independent" in the sense that our source of oil isn't dependent on major overseas suppliers. Conversely, sanctions would also most likely disproportionately affect our European friends because, while the cost would skyrocket for us, we wouldn't be dealing with a supply crunch.

I think the mistake is thinking he had a lot of power at the start. He would not have engaged in such a reckless and poorly managed invasion (and essentially planted himself in the command center demanding updates) if he had the kind of power he projects. The downside is that he doesn't have as much power to lose. His military is exposed, and he isn't going to get another shot at an invasion even if he survives this one, which is why the invasion is so relentless, merciless, and, frankly, inhumane.

LIterally everyone who got a high school degree?

As opposed to wars that are not taught for generations to come?

Well, there are better ways to protect yourself in the event of an earthquake. But, that's not the point: we're talking about how earthquake drills were just rebadged nuclear attack drills.

Well you are.

Anyone who's ever been in an earthquake knows you ain't eating snacks if you're stuck under rubble. Also, school desks don't offer much protection from rubble either.

That has "fallout shelter rations" all over it.

Earthquake bags? Never hear of that before.

You don't feel like you're one of us?

The point is the same. The drills never went away no matter where they were, and it was obvious what they were actually for because they didn't really address the catastrophe they were purported to be responding to.

I get you. I'm really just annoyed that a perfectly valid reason to be wary of the MIC is being shoehorned into an issue that doesn't apply. But, yes, at least it does avoid giving Putin any validity while making its critical assessment and that isn't particularly easy.

It was mostly converted to "earthquake drills" by the '70s. The purpose changed as the Cold War fizzled out, but the drill itself never really changed.

The context is somewhat problematic, though. It's predicated on somewhat unsubstantiated and imprecise declarations about how much our defense contractors are making while ignoring how little the former Eastern Bloc countries that gained membership are actually spending compared to either the United States or even Russia. Making a casual connection can't be divorced from the results of that spending, which was mostly very underwhelming prior to the start of the conflict, and doing so has no direct bearing on the bigger issue of MIC spending, which is very much a problem for the US and an easy excuse if nonetheless valid for anyone interested in demonizing us.

I don't think they need to go that far. The army they have now is already poorly trained and under supported.

Yeah, I can't remember his alts either from that era.

Stupid autocorrect.

I always knew you were fancy.

I wish to hear more about your thought process behind creating that peculiar mashup.

Of course Nabs would latch on to the one dink who thinks America baited Russia into an invasion.

Well, getting out of Berkley or even California is fine. That being said, there are plenty of places in state where you can go without meeting people and that aren't on the PCT. Pretty much anything east of the Sierras is a no-man's land.