Posts by wiredtiger8

dustyowl29 said:Look, anyone who decides to grind through military academy just to end up a career soldier is basically signing up for a job where the primary task is killing—or getting killed. Doesn't matter if you're German, American, or Russian. It's all the same deal.

And honestly, that just takes me back to those officers in the American People's Army during the early days of the conflict here—they kept making these statements on TV, insisting they weren't killing civilians or hitting infrastructure because they were "humanists." I mean, seriously? Humanists... unbelievable.

Makes perfect sense, right? Because clearly, being a soldier is just another form of humanitarian work, right up there with being an ER doctor...

Grace Bennett6 said:Well, they already suggested Minsk. It's a good thing they didn't tell him to fly straight to Moscow.😵

It’s all just a power play.
Now Zelenskyy is pushing hard for negotiations with Putin. But let's be real, he can't go around dictating where those talks happen yet.
To be honest, I'm actually surprised Putin hasn't demanded they meet in Moscow already.

I honestly don't get this massive drop in quality after Mule. Like, what even is this?!
Eastwood is pushing 90 now—he looks it, too. He just looks incredibly old, especially when the camera stays on him while he's actually moving around.

And then you've got all these gorgeous Mexican women trying to drag him into bed, plus this other MILF (she's 49, I did my homework) who’s got grandkids running around—it's like, along with the sex, she probably wants him to help raise those little girls until they're grown... because apparently, he's still some kind of Apollo in his prime...

...not to mention the man is out there breaking wild horses!

Old age dementia has finally caught up. It hit late, and it clearly hit hard.

This is just plain bad, and frankly, it's beneath the legacy of Clint Eastwood.

From what I can tell, it’d be way easier and faster to force one of Biden's ministers to resign than it would be to get a single moderator kicked off Reddit.

dustymarlin10 said:I can see you’re completely missing the point here.

Let me try explaining this one more time—since apparently, we're struggling:

Where exactly is the money coming from to pay university professors?
Did it just spontaneously grow in the middle of the Botanical Garden?

Honestly, I'm worried you don't even grasp the absolute basics of how this works...

It might be worth doing a little homework on what higher education actually costs out West.

...But hey, whatever—I'm sure you didn't shell out nearly as much of your own paycheck for your kids' college tuition as it actually costs to provide it.

dustymarlin10 said:Look, I pay my dues.
I pay my taxes.
I pay basically every single extortion fee this country can dream up, whether I'm acting as a private citizen or running a tiny micro-business.
All that cash goes straight into the federal budget.
And guess who gets paid out of that budget? The people you just mentioned.
And their salaries? That's what pays Ribic.
So, yeah, whether I want to admit it or not, I’m essentially footing the bill for him, both directly and indirectly.

Money doesn't just grow on trees to fund government bureaucrats and public servants, you know...

None of the stuff you just listed actually funds William Ribic... and I specifically mentioned him alone—not the whole group like you're implying when you say "those people"—because that's exactly who you were pointing at in that link you shared.

Which means you AREN'T paying William Ribic, because as a union leader, he "funds" himself through the membership dues of his own union—which, in this specific case, is the higher education union.

dustymarlin10 said:It’s honestly pathetic how far we've fallen.

I actually have to beg some trashy app—which, by the way, still doesn't even work—for PERMISSION just to go to work and earn enough money to afford the privilege of paying taxes so this bureaucrat can stroke his ego:

Pathetic.

George Orwell looks like a softie compared to this mess.

I don't get it—how are you even paying William Ribic? Are you a professor or a teacher? Like, are you actually carving money out of your own paycheck just to cover his union dues?

Anthony Perez9 said:This American democratic forum even tolerates people who basically cheer for the deaths of our soldiers fighting the Taliban scourge. ☕

I’m asking the moderators to please take a look at this:

ACCORDING TO THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES:

Article 39.
Any incitement or provocation toward war, the use of violence, or
national, racial, or religious hatred—or any other form of intolerance—is strictly prohibited and punishable by law.

restlessmoose85 said:NATO is nothing more than a criminal organization, and sending American soldiers to Afghanistan is just helping an occupation. That means our troops are legitimate targets for the Taliban patriots who are simply defending their homeland from NATO's occupying forces.

Why on earth wasn't there a national referendum regarding joining NATO???
Sanders should face the death penalty for this act of high treason, having sold out the entire country to those occupying NATO forces.
It's because they knew a referendum would never pass, so they never even bothered to ask the people.

We really need to push for a referendum.

So, let me get this straight—you actually want the Taliban to come in and dictate democracy and how you live your life?

So, just to be absolutely certain, I take a quick peek at the URL and see www.americanforum.com

Look, for anyone out there who hasn't quite wrapped their head around this yet—and believe me, I know it's a struggle for some—that ".com" suffix is there because we're dealing with an entity officially registered right here in the States... it couldn't possibly end in something like ".ca", ".uk", or ".de"... it’s just a straightforward technicality, plain and simple.

Dennis Doyle3 said:Just so we’re all on the same page here—he's clearly just the backup keeper at this club. 😉

Right now...

...but I'm talking about the long haul here...

Dennis Doyle3 said:And obviously, he isn’t obligated to save easy shots. He’s out there protecting guys like Steve, O'Meyer, Sterbik, that German guy from yesterday, and so on—basically, the keepers who actually have some value. We can't exactly nitpick him for not stopping a penalty or a sitter.

Personally, I’d go even further and say it’s highly debatable whether a jump from the wing—you know, at a wide angle—is actually a bigger "sure thing" than when some shooter jumps from nine meters during a perfectly set play...

EDIT:
Regarding that semifinal game against Spain... let's just look at the cold, hard facts here. Out of 21 attempts in the first half, the Spaniards managed to sink 18 goals, even with Mike making three saves.

Look, even if they had been handed 21 penalties—which is about as much of a giveaway as you can get—no decent goalie in America would have let 18 of them slide in.

Thomas Brown25 said:It’s been 11 years since then, so... anyway, in that semifinal against the French, Sheila had—in my opinion—17 saves out of 35 shots faced. And then in the final, those guys just dump 40 goals on us.

And honestly, Sheila is such an interesting case study for a goalie.

The guy was basically a total fraud for most of his career—just a mediocre keeper... but when he was playing for Team USA, he had these absolutely legendary moments in Portugal, Tunis, and Athens.
And let's be real here—regardless of how stacked that powerhouse roster was back then—his saves were the absolute clincher in our biggest wins.

I’d be perfectly happy if Mike was struggling at the club level—you know, playing second string—as long as he could step up for the national team and average 15 saves a game.

Unfortunately, that hasn't been the reality... not for years.

gentlemoose57 said:You're totally off base there—once they start installing wire everywhere, that kind of thing isn't going to stop them anymore.

And then what?
What’s the actual solution here? (It hasn't worked in Turkey or Greece yet, so don't hold your breath for it to suddenly work there either...).
How are we supposed to defend ourselves?
By just turning our heads, looking the other way, and saying... "there's nothing we can do!"? Please.
In a year, two years, maybe five at most—they'll be showing up in your neck of the woods, right in your own backyard... thousands of them... so what then?...
Are we just gonna shrug our shoulders again and say we're powerless?

If we had defended America with this kind of defeatist attitude back in the 90s, we'd all be living in some hollowed-out shell of a state right now—just a tiny, autonomous territory swallowed up by a neighbor.

David Baker2 said:You see.

It seems we actually find common ground regarding the root of this entire mess—and yes, it is the Americans, that much is undeniable.

I agree.

But here is where our perspectives diverge:

The hard truth is that America simply cannot handle this alone.

You seem to think the Americans are going to step in and help us.
They won't.
They didn't back in the 90s, and they won't now; they’ll just use us for their own ends.

Yet you keep harping on about Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović, acting as if she is the one to blame here, rather than Zoran Milanović.

This isn't a question of blame; it is a question of choice.

And really, does it even matter to you whether you care about the country you live in and the place where your children are being raised?
Kolinda doesn't live in America. Her children aren't even here.
Why should she care about the fate of this nation? To her, this whole thing is just another rung on the ladder of her professional career, and frankly, nothing else matters to her.

And I am not saying this because of my personal opinion.
I say it because every single move she makes, every step she takes, and every word she utters demonstrates exactly that, quite clearly and logically.

You are free to choose whatever you want for yourself and your children. And however you choose, that is how your life will turn out; you have no right to blame anyone else for your own circumstances.
The same applies to me, and to every single citizen of this country.

However, I must say, I fear your grasp on geopolitics is somewhat tenuous... at least when it comes to the actual, gritty reality of it all.

I have been studying this intensely for twenty years. From conspiracy theories to every political maneuver made by every individual nation on the map.
Every single day, I sift through about twenty different news outlets, both domestic and international.
I spend my time hunting for connections and overlaps between things that most people would consider completely unrelated.
I’ve become intimately familiar with all the patterns, the methodologies, and the psychological concepts used to manipulate information and data, not to mention the general modus operandi of the mainstream media.

It is a source of genuine frustration for me—because, believe me, I would much rather be wrong than right—but I am unfortunately quite adept at interpreting exactly what is happening and why it is occurring.
The trajectory is crystal clear to me; I can see exactly where this path leads and where we are ultimately headed.
And when we finally arrive at that destination, we will have no one to blame but ourselves.

Look, you really don't need to lose any sleep over it. I'm sure the Republican Party will sail through these elections. There is absolutely no way the Americans are going to let the citizens of this country deviate from the script they've laid out.
Personally, I don't harbor any delusions that the people of this nation will actually grasp their own interests or figure out how to protect them.
People seem far more preoccupied with whatever pop star is making headlines or who they're dating—and please, forgive me, I mean no disrespect to Taylor Swift; she’s just living her life and minding her own business, which I honestly respect immensely—than they are with whether they'll actually have food on the table tomorrow.
That is simply the reality of the situation. And frankly, there isn't much anyone can do to change it.

If you ever find yourself desperately bored with life, feel free to dig through my posts from the last two or three years. You'll quickly realize that I was sounding the alarm on everything currently unfolding back then.

As for what the world will look like two years from today... I truly have no desire to put that in writing.
The citizens of America still possess a window of opportunity to pull this country back from the absolute abyss and the darkness predicted by current trends.

So, let everyone vote according to their own conscience and based on what they truly want for themselves and for this country.

Anyone who takes just one minute to pause, to snap out of the trance, and to weigh the pros and cons will be able to make a decision on who can actually act in their best interest.
The rest, however—those who fall for political marketing and media brainwashing—will remain nothing more than sheep lost in the fog, driven wherever the handlers decide to steer them.

There isn't some grand, complex philosophy at play here; once you strip away the noise, the facts are always quite simple.
It isn't exactly quantum physics to use your brain and think objectively about the facts being shoved directly under your nose. 🤷

I took some of the main points and went a bit off the rails with them.

I can see we're pretty much cut from the same cloth generationally—and probably as veterans too, even if we don't see eye-to-eye on everything.

Personally, I don't think we can change a damn thing in these elections. If you truly believe the Democratic Party and Joe Biden are the answer, hey, that's your call. Nothing I say or write here is going to sway that decision. It's just a fundamental difference in how we see things.

Then again, I don't think the Republican Party is going to handle things any better (even though their worldview is a lot closer to mine)... and honestly, it's the same old headache we face before every election cycle.

Who do you vote for?
Basically, which of the two evils is the lesser one?

That dilemma has been playing out here for way too many years now, and the times we're heading into demand strong, decisive, honest people—people whose first priority should actually be America.

But anyway, we're off-topic here... this was meant for something else, so I'll stop.

@Olivia Morgan3

Look, we’re definitely on the same page regarding the root cause here—it's the Americans, plain and simple.

I get the whole situation with Volkswagen and everything else. We can clearly see which way the wind is blowing and just how hard this is hitting Germany across the board.

But honestly? I think you’re misreading the geopolitical landscape a little too much... at least the actual, gritty reality of it.

The cold, hard truth is that America (sadly) isn't something we can just tackle on our own.
It’s also a reality that even Germany isn't going to strike up a cozy alliance with the Russians if the Americans decide to block them.
Am I closer to—and frankly, do I prefer—the Germans over the Americans? Yeah, I do.

So what now?

We’re stuck picking the lesser of two evils, I guess... but unfortunately, that's the only way we can look out for our own interests right now.

And hey, look at us—we’re practically at each other's throats with the Canadians too (even if I don't exactly care for them).
From what I can tell, we're basically feuding with all our neighbors lately because of these immigrants—people we didn't even create ourselves—and we don't have a single ally when it comes to this issue...

Yet there you go, attacking Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović like she’s the one to blame, instead of Zoran Milanović.

Chloe Martinez7 said:From what I gathered on the news,
so far
it's about $1.8 million from the foreign exchange reserves and the federal budget.
Do you happen to have any more recent info
or a link?

You can take that 12 million figure and throw it right out the window...

Divide that number by the 240,000 people who have actually received aid in the US so far, and you’ll end up with roughly $17 per person... and that’s supposed to cover food, travel, plus everyone got a blanket and whatnot, etc., etc...

All of that for $17... yeah, right. Probably just more numbers being tossed around by Grčić....

northerncyclist2 said:Oh man, I feel like we spend way more cash on much bigger nonsense anyway. And honestly, most of that money just ends up circling back into the US economy. Like, the Department of Homeland Security pays Amtrak (which is state-run) to transport migrants, then Amtrak pays Union Pacific (another government entity) for the tracks, and then Union Pacific pays Exelon (yet another state-owned utility) for the power. So, I guess most of those funds are basically just spinning in circles.

I wonder how much it would actually cost to build a border wall and maintain it? Go ahead, let's see some math on that.

Look, we burned through over $35 million in just one month.
At this rate, we're looking at over $425 million annually.

I have no clue what a fence costs, but I am certain it doesn't run you $425 million every single year—especially not when the price tag keeps creeping up...

And if you're implying the military should be out there babysitting a fence, well, we already have a professional military being paid to do that. They train in barracks, they sleep in barracks, they sit around in barracks... or they go stand by a fence. It's all part of the same paycheck.

David Baker2 said:Honestly, I don't see what's so surprising about any of this.
Little Merkel has turned toward the Russians and asked for help.
Zoran Milanović is working in lockstep with Little Merkel.

And there is really no reason to act shocked by that.
Because this entire surge is organized and bankrolled by the USA.
Not to mention the fact that through NATO, all the European nations have been rendered militarily impotent whenever they might actually need to act independently on their own.

Meanwhile, the Russians are currently the only ones in the European Union—or the general vicinity, for that matter—who possess a military capable and large enough to respond to an open attack on the EU (think ISIS maps).

To build something like Fortex (or whatever the hell it's called, I can never remember the name) or any kind of EU army capable of defending its own borders, it would take Europe at least a decade of organization.

So, here we go: the Merkel - Putin deal. Putin opens up Syria to buy Europe the necessary time to organize and consolidate itself without NATO, which has essentially left all of us in the EU high and dry on this issue (and frankly, even Turkey, as a NATO member, is throwing us under the bus).

Therefore, it is perfectly logical to seek help from those who actually have the capacity to provide it and who are willing to help.

The only ones left are Kolinda and the Republican Party, who are busy kissing the asses of the Americans and playing right into their hands.
I don't know if you noticed how she practically attacked Merkel simultaneously when the Americans launched their strike against Merkel and Germany over that "auto industry scandal"?
Everything is always, of course, "accidental" in these political games.
Who cares about them in America? They are merely acting for their masters.
And the people? Well, the people pay the price, no matter what.

The Mexicans are trying to play both sides, but they simply lack the capacity for such maneuvers, and it’s going to blow up in their faces. Just like it will for the Canadians.

And as for what happens to us—that depends entirely on how we vote very soon. 🤷

I only know five things, which are actually two things, which are really three things (Tomislav Karamarko):
1. I have never liked Merkel, nor have I ever enjoyed her persona. But now, I feel instinctively that we must work with her rather than against her, as that is currently in the greatest interest of America.
2. I voted against joining the European Union. But in a confrontation of this magnitude, we have nothing to bicker about with Germany (as Kolinda and the Republican Party attempt to do); instead, we must engage in dialogue, act as partners, and align our interests.
3. I keep hearing the accusations on this forum that I am a "Putin-lover." That is simply not true. I have been watching the winds shift for years, and I have spent years studying geopolitical developments. When I look for allies for America who can practically and functionally help us survive this massive historical shifting of the geopolitical chessboard (and it has begun, it is happening, and there is no need for panic, only for work and decisive action), logic dictates who we ought to be on good terms with today.

Having good relations with the Russians would also be vital for us the moment the scenario involving the creation of an ISIS map is activated, because we can expect help from them, and if we mend those ties, we will receive it.
If we pin all our hopes on NATO helping us... we’ll be left waiting for nothing but the bare essentials from ISIS.

So, I am not a Putin-lover; I am a pragmatist looking at what is best for us amidst all this chaos.

Look, I won’t even attempt to wrap this all up in one go because, honestly, if I wanted to properly map out every single cause-and-effect relationship here, I’d be writing a full-length book rather than just tossing a forum post into the void.
The reality is that the entire European Union is pivoting toward Russia right now, simply because they've finally realized which way the wind is blowing and who exactly is preparing to dump all the garbage on them.

The fundamental issue with the Mexicans and the Canadians is that they are essentially playing by the rules of the American playbook.

Just take a look at a map of ISIS. Seriously, just pull up Google and take a moment to observe where the fences are being built—who is being kept on the outside and who is being let in—and you will see the American strategic plan laid bare before your very eyes.
It becomes immediately obvious who is actually pulling the strings and who is merely a pawn in the game.

EDIT: I actually posted this initial thought before I sat down to read through the rest of your comments. Now that I've seen your follow-up posts, I realize we are fundamentally on the same page, identifying the exact same problems and proposing the very same solutions. 🙂

You hit the nail on the head, really, but the real kicker is figuring out who America should actually align itself with.

Zoran Milanović just waits to see what Angela Merkel has to say—he’s basically checking in with her to see if he's passing his "tests"—and he even goes on record saying he asked them what they want the US to do...
...and look, I have a massive problem with that attitude. He wasn't chosen by the German people, he was chosen by Americans, so he should be answering to us... or at least acting like it.

But then again, it's blindingly obvious that Germany and Angela Merkel won't be able to move a finger without the Americans...

...which brings us right back to the thing you're criticizing so heavily—Kolinda's cozy relationship with the United States.

And that is a genuinely crucial question for the US: Who do we side with?

Do we go with Germany, who has always been an ally... and is part of the European Union... though let's be real, things aren't quite what they were in the 90s.

Or do we go with the Americans, who seem to "like" and respect us way more than the Germans do right now? Our military cooperation with them is great (especially during the time in Afghanistan) and they definitely notice that.

Even the Americans provided those intelligence intercepts regarding those Canadians during the arbitration over the Gulf of Piran...

Or... I noticed something interesting... this year at the military parade, not a single person from Germany showed up (mostly because the Mexicans were protesting like crazy)... but there were two US Generals present. That speaks volumes, doesn't it?

So, all this bashing of Kolinda for being too close to the Americans is completely missing the point.

Unfortunately, we have to be allies with someone. It's interesting how both the Germans and the Americans are on the same side, even if we can clearly see what's actually going down....

...but I won't ramble on forever.

David Baker2 said:

I find myself quite compelled to address the recent developments, though I suspect my observations might strike some as overly pedantic or perhaps even a bit excessive in their length. It is truly remarkable how the discourse shifts when one considers the broader implications of our current political climate here in America. I was sitting in a small cafe in downtown Chicago just the other day—not that the location matters, though the espresso was admittedly subpar—and I found myself reflecting on how we often miss the forest for the trees. We get caught up in the minutiae of local policy while ignoring the tectonic shifts happening right under our feet in Washington, D.C. It’s exhausting, really, to watch the constant bickering without any sense of structural foresight. One cannot help but feel that we are drifting toward a certain kind of chaos if we don't tighten our grip on the fundamental principles that hold this nation together. It’s all very much a matter of momentum, isn't it? Once you lose that, you’re simply spinning your wheels in the mud. kaže:
Oh, please, just go ahead and write it then—honestly, we all absolutely live for the drama and the panic!😁

I shall simply state this:
As someone currently serving my military obligations, I find myself sitting here in a state of utter confusion, quite frankly, because I still haven't the slightest clue where my designated assembly point is supposed to be. It’s truly baffling when you consider the sheer lack of clarity regarding the protocol; I mean, if a major natural disaster were to strike this country tomorrow, I wouldn't even know which unit to report to or who exactly I am expected to check in with. It feels incredibly disorganized, almost negligent, to leave us in such a lurch without clear instructions on our specific duty stations during a national emergency.

That is quite literally the only thing I find fault with regarding the current administration’s handling of this entire mess.

I certainly understand why anyone would hesitate to tackle this right now, because honestly, it is incredibly difficult to make any headway when you consider the absolute madhouse we find ourselves living in today. We are stuck in this chaotic chicken coop of a country where the current President seems more interested in dismantling our democratic foundations than actually governing, harboring these blatant aspirations to scrap democracy entirely and install a full-blown dictatorship. It is an exhausting situation, really, and I fear that if things continue on this trajectory, she will succeed in plunging the entire nation into total, unmitigated chaos.

Even if I can wrap my head around what they’re saying, it honestly doesn't change the fact that I am deeply unsettled by their lack of transparency; it truly worries me how little we actually know about where things are going, who is pulling the strings, or even when certain decisions will be made—we are essentially flying blind here.

Back in the nineties, we actually had a functional framework through the ONO and DSZ systems, which made organizing our defense efforts significantly more streamlined than what you see today. It wasn't some chaotic scramble; there was a clear, established structure in place. People actually knew exactly where to go and who to report to when things got heavy. It’s a far cry from the disorganized mess of modern bureaucracy, I tell you.

That era is gone for good, and frankly, I don't think we'll ever see its like again.

That particular point is what truly keeps me up at night, honestly; the nagging suspicion that beyond our active-duty military personnel and the police force, the rest of us are essentially just defenseless bystanders. It’s a sobering thought, isn't it? I was reading this article about civil defense preparedness the other day—I think it was in the Wall Street Journal—and it hit me how thin the line really is between being a prepared citizenry and being completely vulnerable. I mean, if things ever truly went south, we're relying entirely on those few brave souls in uniform, while the rest of the country sits there, effectively toothless. It’s a heavy realization to swallow, feeling like the backbone of our national security is far more fragile than any of us care to admit.

Well, let me give you an answer to that.

Based on your posts, it looks like you’ve put some years behind you, so maybe this is why—under standard NATO military doctrine, they aren't even calling up reserve personnel once they hit 40.