IRAN / USA

[Douglas Buckland + 6,308]

33 minutes ago, Rob Plant said:

Douglas you're missing the point, with all those targets in bright red coats the enemy doesn't know who to shoot first, so in their confused state they are easy picking for the British army!!😊

An interesting tactic, to say the least...😂

[Douglas Buckland + 6,308]

Perhaps this led to the inventions like the shotgun and the revolver....🤔

[Rob Plant + 2,756]

Just now, Douglas Buckland said:

Perhaps this led to the inventions like the shotgun and the revolver....🤔

In fairness when the Gatling gun was invented they had to rethink this strategy!😂

[Douglas Buckland + 6,308]

Well, considering that the Gatling Gun wasn’t patented until 1862, I’d say you guys took your time re-thinking this tactic.

Better late than never, I suppose...😂

[Douglas Buckland + 6,308]

Isn’t it about time James enlightens us with his uniquely Scottish insight into this issue?

[Rob Plant + 2,756]

16 minutes ago, Douglas Buckland said:

Isn’t it about time James enlightens us with his uniquely Scottish insight into this issue?

Yeah it is

He's clan are still singing about the battle of Bannockburn before every rugby international, it was only 706 years ago for God's sake!

I think Culloden 431 years later sorted things out, sorry James

[Douglas Buckland + 6,308]

What do you honestly expect from people who throw telephone poles around for sport?

[James Regan + 1,776]

Redcoats is a derogatory term used to slander all the colonial Rulers or military enforcing law in the lawless region of the new lands later called USA . Our main uniforms were blue or green. It was a Scotsman the took Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and most of California from the Mexicans, we kept on going taking most of northern Mexico (as it’s known today) but Mexico decided it was better to stop before the Scottish Irish Brigades  took Mexico City. 
The word Gringo is said to come from the uniforms and songs sand by the troops which used the word Green. Which the locals picked up on and some believe that Gringo means GREEN-GO....

Culodden was a massacre well won by the FEBs , highland clearance earliest signs of ethnic cleansing, they don’t teach the Highland Clearances in English schools, probably most reading this don’t have s clue either, go read and educate yourself and you may know a bit more than what Mel Gibson bulshitted to you. Rob Roy another wanker total footpad horse thief.

[Douglas Buckland + 6,308]

I beg to differ Mr. History Channel. It was not ‘Scotsmen’ who did all that butt kicking on what is now the southern border of the USA (and surrounding regions), but Scottish-AMERICANS.

This is a subtle but distinct difference. Scottish-Americans were those that left the Motherland to escape the shite weather and haggis & neeps.

[Rob Plant + 2,756]

1 hour ago, Douglas Buckland said:

left the Motherland to escape the shite weather and haggis & neeps.

and also the skirt wearing for the men😂

You're right about the weather though, it hasn't stopped raining over here for about a year (or so it feels)

[Otis11 + 551]

14 hours ago, 0R0 said:

Yes, I have looked at it and the supporters are no racist, they are lets call it economic xenophobes. The permits have been there for decades, and the businesses go under when they can't get the workers from Mexico etc. In ag, harvest and planting by hand is reduced and equivalents are imported from Mexico. The difference in my store is 45% higher prices for those veggies. Where you are absolutely correct is in H1B programs, you want the people on them to immigrate into the country and get a competitive wage.. 

I can't say that I am surprised to have been misinformed about the advisory board. Didn't lift the far left media cloth to look under.

Must agree with many of your comments to others. 

Yes, the day-laborer's is a hard issue to be sure. My stance on this is that if no one will take the job for the salary, the salary needs to be raised. If raising the salary to the required minimum to find an adequate work force makes it un-economical, well then maybe that shouldn't be grown in that particular location?

We may have to import these (at higher cost - though if high enough cost, the farmers might find ways to farm it again!), or we may have some enteprenuing person come find a way to reduce the labor required! (We're already seeing this! https://gizmodo.com/13-fascinating-farming-robots-that-will-feed-our-future-1683489468)

Importing this labor is a significant reason why wages are still stuck around minimum wage for so many...

Agreed on the H1B program - I think we actually need this, but we need to restructure it so that it's used for it's purpose (getting skillsets we don't have adequate number of in the US) and not simply for depressing wages of trained professionals.

Advisory boards - not suprising. I actually don't know anywhere in the media it's been reported, nor where you'd be able to find who is still on them. But I can say there are a number of business leaders still fulfilling this same function in quiet.

 

Not quite on topic though... ha!

 

So how's Iran doing @Tom Kirkman

[Papillon + 485]

1 minute ago, Otis11 said:

Not quite on topic though... ha!

That's rare here sir. Most threads stay on topic for weeks at a time     /sarc

[footeab@yahoo.com + 2,190]

7 hours ago, James Regan said:

 took Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and most of California from the Mexicans, we kept on going taking most of northern Mexico (as it’s known today) but Mexico decided it was better to stop before the Scottish Irish Brigades  took Mexico City.

History Lesson... Mexico took it from Spain literally a breath earlier, who took it from the Aztecs who took it from... with nearly zero troops in all three cases, so arguing that they "owned it" is absurd any more than the French "owned the Louisiana Territory, or the British owned Western Canada.  Pretty hard to own something when there are 1) zero of your people are there and 2) almost no other prior mostly nomadic people either.  Just ask the Comanche/Apache.

[SERWIN + 749]

13 hours ago, remake it said:

You just do not get it do you that there is not even evidence that it was Soleimani that was responsible for the civilian death amid all the killings go on and to this day since Soleimani's assassination Trump and the White House have no basis for what they did - again how absolutely pathetic!

Yet, who is dead now? 

[SERWIN + 749]

3 hours ago, Papillon said:

That's rare here sir. Most threads stay on topic for weeks at a time     /sarc

You misspelled minutes sir Papillon....

[Papillon + 485]

2 minutes ago, SERWIN said:

sir Papillon

Finally, some recognition      /sarc

[SERWIN + 749]

Just now, Papillon said:

Finally, some recognition      /sarc

Believe it or not, a lot of us southerners were raised to use those terms, yes sir, no sir, yes ma'am, no ma'am. It is a basic show of respect towards another human being that has noticeably been neglected in the last couple of generations

[Papillon + 485]

Tell me about it sir, I have received abuse here for saying it. Think of that. ''Don't be polite please.''

However I meant it in the UK sense, as in ''rise, Sir Papillon.''  That's why I sarcastically said about recognition. 

Edited January 16, 2020 by Papillon

[remake it + 288]

23 minutes ago, SERWIN said:

Yet, who is dead now? 

Documented civilian deaths from violence

184,776 – 207,645

Total violent deaths including combatants

288,000

[Marcin2 + 726]

On 1/16/2020 at 6:32 AM, 0R0 said:

Russia is being sanctioned.

The US is not reacting militarily because it doesn't care, as per Peter Zeihan. At least not enough to fight back, or even to provide timely support in arms that were promised. The Black Sea is a writeoff anyway, since Turkey turned towards Russia. . 

China is doing what it will and Japan got a year's exemption. It is too big to care what the US thinks since sanctioning it is still off the table because of how intertwined the economies still are, and because retreating back inwards is considered a perfectly fine solution for the Chinese so long as they have an oil and gas supply, which they can get from Russia, to a point.

I just observed that world has changed.

Peter Zeihan (I just googled him, not aware of his presence before) is the guy preaching the break up of China. I think this is not probable as China has very strong central power and total control over society through censorship and lack of access to independent information (they do not have normal, unrestricted internet)

Edited May 15, 2020 by Marcin2
typo

[Marcin2 + 726]

I think that for each of the countries trade conflict is not in top 3 of their problems, try to think what IS at the top 3 problems list in each country.

Edited May 15, 2020 by Marcin2
typo

[PE Scott + 563]

58 minutes ago, Papillon said:

Tell me about it sir, I have received abuse here for saying it. Think of that. ''Don't be polite please.''

However I meant it in the UK sense, as in ''rise, Sir Papillon.''  That's why I sarcastically said about recognition. 

I was born in TX and raised to use 'sir" and "ma'am" accordingly. So, I never said don't be polite. I said that when you use it multiple times in a sentence it could be misconstrued as condescending. We agreed that wasn't your intent and carried on. 

So, I knight thee, sir papillon, protector of good manners!

 

[Papillon + 485]

I didn't mean you at all sir. When you mentioned it and we chatted it was politely and I appreciated your reply. Some here have said I am 'overly polite' or that it is fake or attacked my language generally. I will not put up with this and will crush them like a bug accordingly     /sarc

[0R0 + 6,251]

28 minutes ago, Marcin2 said:

I just observed that world has changed.

Peter Zeihan (I just googled him, not aware of his presence before) is the guy preaching the break up of China. China loves Peter Zeihan for this analysis targeted for US audience. Chinese Ministry of Propaganda would love to fund a great grant, scholarship, pay him a lot of money for his job for China and COmmunist Party.

Anybody that presents views that China will collapse etc. in the United States is the great friend of China, some are, I am sure Chinese agents of influence. China needs to bide a few years maybe 10 of time to grow strong enough. Anybody buying this time for them is their greatest friend and backer.

That is why China loves so much President Donald Trump. His numerous tweets and interviews and speeches that China is in the great crisis because of the trade war, near economic collapse etc. is music for Chinese ears.

China is only afraid of 3 things: 1 its technological gap and about access to 2.  crude oil and 3. natural gas.

2018 was a Sputnik moment for China. Huge domestic forces were unleashed.

The top goal is technological and military self sufficiency. 1.4 billion people, 18% of planet is united in this goal.

These pursuit of technological development was present earlier, but without the sense of urgency. China doubles down on their goals.

There is nothing that can stop this forces until the goal in accomplished, China will tell US anything if they would need more time, but in 2018 US became the hostile power for ruling classes and in 2019 (after Huawei ban) for all Chinese society,  like British during opium war.

 

I do understand where you are coming from and had thought the same in one way or another for years. However, there is a need for them to be able to finance the technology leap they have in mind. The same point you were making elsewhere that the Chinese tech workers are generating more economic value, also applies to the cost of diverting them to the duplication or run forward of existing technology and the entire framework of materials and equipment makers for chips that have not made even the tiniest step into China. This also works on the US/West to have their sputnik moment and freak out that sends resources the way DARPA and DOE etc. did their large R&D pushes from which we are still making a living. That is an arms race in which China is outnumbered, because the Tech industries are global. It is not enough to have a large cohort of engineers and scientists, it is also a matter of having MORE than anywhere else put together and have some Darwinist management structure that can be driven centrally - as opposed to their wild private economy, which is very competitive and broadly distributed - even more so than Western economic actors, and just as Darwinist. 

China's techies cost $40-60k at the junior level, but cost >$200k at senior level. Just a tad cheaper than they do in the US and elsewhere. Many US companies had tried to recruit these people even to work within China, but few have gone in these past 5 years because the cost was not that different from doing it in the West or other SE Asian countries and India. 

What I am saying is that they can't afford it given the hole they have sunk a generation's savings into, and continue doing so. Furthermore, diverting those resources would mean abandoning their 9% of the economy that is supported by multilevel government deficit spending. That would be economically and financially dangerous at their level of leverage. 

[remake it + 288]

36 minutes ago, 0R0 said:

What I am saying is that they can't afford it given the hole they have sunk a generation's savings into

China has half the debt:GDP ratio of the USA so maybe you have your ideas back to front.