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one of MbS's dogs wrote an article, it's only fair we read some of the propaganda MbS is making GBS threads out for balances' sake:- https://www.wsj.com/articles/riyadh-is-delivering-on-vision-2030-1510521284 quote:
Sure thing, Buddy. 
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Nov 14, 2017 17:23
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To lighten the mood a little I thought this was pretty funny: Russia's 'irrefutable evidence' of US help for Isis appears to be video game still.
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Nov 14, 2017 17:55
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https://twitter.com/phildstewart/status/930476416872976385 Nice
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Nov 14, 2017 18:17
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Here's the images the Russian MoD claim they really meant to share: https://twitter.com/mod_russia/status/930472894454517760 https://twitter.com/SovietSergey/status/930474709640253440 https://twitter.com/gametreeapp/status/930473312832184322 https://twitter.com/JimmyRushmore/status/930481994080931840
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Nov 14, 2017 19:41
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Brown Moses posted:Here's the images the Russian MoD claim they really meant to share: Are these really from a video game? Bad compression/resolution, but bad resolution is not unreasonable for IR cameras. Wouldn't be surprised either way: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQuglSbXeVo&t=36s e: ok I saw your tweet https://twitter.com/EliotHiggins/status/930382903787343872/photo/1 guidoanselmi fucked around with this message at 21:21 on Nov 14, 2017 |
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Nov 14, 2017 21:17
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Al-Saqr posted:one of MbS's dogs wrote an article, it's only fair we read some of the propaganda MbS is making GBS threads out for balances' sake:- I like that his talking points are all about business-friendliness.
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Nov 15, 2017 00:32
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GreyjoyBastard posted:I like that his talking points are all about business-friendliness. I'm starting to think words like "reform" and "modernization" might not actually mean anything.
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Nov 15, 2017 00:42
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Saudi arabia and the gulf in general have this very warped view of what development is, they want to have the tall buildings and capitalist economy and shiny streets without any sort of human or civil development at all. that's why there is never going to be any large innovation or art-based culture no matter how many buzzwords and poo poo they throw money at, because a scared and censored population are too busy being alienated than actually bother with producing artistic works that they mught end up punished for or make innovative products they lack any vision or non-royal capital to produce. Kuwait is different and I would argue they are the most advanced civil-society wise of all the gulf countries, which is why they dont do any hare-brained development poo poo, because they actually have to account for it in their semi-parliament so the money is better managed.
Al-Saqr fucked around with this message at 04:02 on Nov 15, 2017 |
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Nov 15, 2017 03:57
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khwarezm posted:To lighten the mood a little I thought this was pretty funny: the thing i'm trying to figure out is if they hosed up intentionally as part of their post facts strategy to convince people that nothing is real
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Nov 15, 2017 06:41
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GhostofJohnMuir posted:the thing i'm trying to figure out is if they hosed up intentionally as part of their post facts strategy to convince people that nothing is real They actually apologized and said it was a mistake, surprisingly. They've used the same video game screenshot in articles before tho.
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Nov 15, 2017 08:10
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Libya's doing great. https://twitter.com/CNNAfrica/status/930368723818606593
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Nov 15, 2017 15:42
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ISIS is dead. Syria and Russia are demanding full US withdrawal from Syria. Guess what'll happen to all those Kurds everyone's been cheering on the for the past few years. Sergg fucked around with this message at 16:06 on Nov 15, 2017 |
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Nov 15, 2017 16:02
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Sergg posted:ISIS is dead. Syria and Russia are demanding full US withdrawal from Syria. Turkey and Iraq will have to demand it and enforce a blockade on US forces using their territory to get there too before it's really a crisis, since Russia and Assad aren't likely to start bombing US forces. I do think the long term logistical issues limit the extent to which we can credibly back the Kurds as a de facto independent faction indefinitely though, sure. We'll just have to see how realistic the Kurds are about that, which they may well be since they've shown a willingness to work with the regime in the past before the US presence became so large, and Afrin still relies on Russia to keep Turkey from invading.
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Nov 15, 2017 16:09
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SDF spokesman defected to Turkish backed FSA, says SDF will collapse.
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Nov 15, 2017 16:17
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GhostofJohnMuir posted:the thing i'm trying to figure out is if they hosed up intentionally as part of their post facts strategy to convince people that nothing is real Here's what I'm wondering, even if it wasn't a video game screenshot why would it be conclusive proof that the US was working with ISIS?
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Nov 15, 2017 16:28
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Which is the least worst group that are operating in the area?
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Nov 15, 2017 16:30
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Josef bugman posted:Which is the least worst group that are operating in the area? The United States of America. 
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Nov 15, 2017 16:33
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Randarkman posted:Here's what I'm wondering, even if it wasn't a video game screenshot why would it be conclusive proof that the US was working with ISIS? I came to this thread hoping to see someone answer that question. I've seen a million places posting the 'lol Russia' thing, but even if it had not been a video game screenshot, I'm not sure what an aerial photo of a convoy of vehicles is supposed to mean? Even if they could somehow be proven to be Daesh vehicles and also proven to be somewhere to the east of the Euphrates, what does that have to do with the United States? Maybe they should have photoshopped a bunch of Abrams escorting the Daesh convoy, and some US army guys giving out slices of Thanksgiving Turkey in Abukamal.
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Nov 15, 2017 16:46
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If the rebels weren't willing to win a Syria without Rojava, they weren't willing to win in the first place.
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Nov 16, 2017 02:43
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American bombing campaigns have dramatically increased in scope since 2016 outside of Syria and Iraq.  Good thing Obama declared an end to the war on terror. Whew, another quagmire averted!
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Nov 16, 2017 03:12
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It's confirmed* Hariri and his family will be in France in the next few days. Macron insisted it "wasn't political exile but a friendship pact". It's totally political exile. *by Macron, but let's be honest it still need to happen.
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Nov 16, 2017 06:59
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rear end struggle posted:The US needs to learn how to admit it has won a conflict and go to the peace table. 
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Nov 16, 2017 07:18
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Squalid posted:American bombing campaigns have dramatically increased in scope since 2016 outside of Syria and Iraq. For context, from the midway point of 2016 to now, there's been 14,000 strikes in Syria and Iraq. We're talking fractions of a percent of that in Yemen and Somalia, so I would hardly throw around the word quagmire when it comes to them.
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Nov 16, 2017 09:22
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The political environment in Egypt is healthy as ever. https://twitter.com/OzKaterji/status/930881166713991173
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Nov 16, 2017 10:19
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Volkerball posted:For context, from the midway point of 2016 to now, there's been 14,000 strikes in Syria and Iraq. We're talking fractions of a percent of that in Yemen and Somalia, so I would hardly throw around the word quagmire when it comes to them. I disagree. These are conflicts the United States has been stuck in for over a decade and for which there is no conceivable exit plan or even realistic end goal. The small size just makes them easier for the public to forget.
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Nov 16, 2017 15:17
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Beyond airstrikes, we have troops on the ground in both countries. The forever war may be only high intensity in some theatres but that doesn't mean it isn't global. Also the fact we in assisting in ensuring one of the most serious humanitarian crises of recent history is also a bit of an issue.
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Nov 16, 2017 17:34
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Squalid posted:I disagree. These are conflicts the United States has been stuck in for over a decade and for which there is no conceivable exit plan or even realistic end goal. The small size just makes them easier for the public to forget. They could just stop bombing things. Seems like a very conceivable exit plan.
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Nov 16, 2017 17:37
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Interesting, the plot thickens: https://twitter.com/vvanwilgenburg/status/931154011750879233 quote:SDF says they have high respect for Brig General Talal Silo, but he has 'been under subject to a lot of pressure and extortion by the Turkish state and in some stage has threatened his children in Turkey' https://twitter.com/vvanwilgenburg/status/931165431003516928 quote:English translation of the SDF General Command statement on the disappearance of SDF spokesperson Brig General Talal Silo. Investigation will follow, and results to be announced later. Saladin Rising fucked around with this message at 17:50 on Nov 16, 2017 |
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Nov 16, 2017 17:45
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Josef bugman posted:Which is the least worst group that are operating in the area? SDF/PYD/USA.
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Nov 16, 2017 18:11
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Volkerball posted:The political environment in Egypt is healthy as ever. but drinking(unfiltered) from any major water way/river/body of water) can lead to illness. it wasn't even a veiled insult toward the government, it was a open loving health warning. christ, my mother would be arrested in half hour thats a crime now.
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Nov 16, 2017 18:37
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I don't know how significant the 'Elaph' newspaper in Saudi Arabia is, but well, Israel 's chief of staff has had an interview with it, which feels a significant step in the coming out of the Israeli-Saudi alliance. http://elaph.com/Web/News/2017/11/1177142.html (via google translate) quote:In this matter there is complete agreement between us and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which was never one of our enemies or fought or fought, and I think there is a complete consensus between us and them regarding the Iranian axis, I was at the meeting of the chiefs of staff in Washington and when I heard what the Saudi representative found It is exactly identical to what I think about Iran and the need to confront it in the region and the need to stop its expansionist programs.
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Nov 16, 2017 18:57
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Dapper_Swindler posted:but drinking(unfiltered) from any major water way/river/body of water) can lead to illness. it wasn't even a veiled insult toward the government, it was a open loving health warning. christ, my mother would be arrested in half hour thats a crime now. making GBS threads my rear end off from giardia to own the libs.
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Nov 16, 2017 22:40
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Bates posted:They could just stop bombing things. Seems like a very conceivable exit plan. Involvement is much deeper than just the bombing campaign, especially in Somalia. Anyway, asking why doesn't the US just stop bombing Yemen is like asking why doesn't the US pull out of Afghanistan. It's not that the US couldn't, but if it did, the immediate result would make US politicians look really bad. Likewise doing anything that might change the situation favorably for the US would be so expensive it would also be an incredible political liability, as well as the opportunity cost probably vastly exceeding the benefits. Much easier political to contribute the minimum bombs/guns/soldiers necessary to just keep chaos continuing indefinitely. Anyway in other news the Afghan opium crop had another record busting year. http://www.businessinsider.com/opium-production-afghanistan-sets-record-2017-11 quote:Afghanistan's area under opium-poppy cultivation has increased 63% since 2016, rising to 810,505 acres, while its potential opium production increased 87% to an estimated 9,000 tons — both records for the country despite years of anti-narcotics efforts. When trying to understand a civil war like Afghanistan I try to identify factors that can function as feedback loops that positively or negatively effect the course of a conflict. The Afghan government has conceded control of the country side, and coalition allies have even drawn up strategic plans based around the principle of securing urban populations. However in Afghanistan wealth much of the wealth is still derived from the land-the more rural territory the Taliban occupy, the more heroin they can sell, and the more money they have to hire more men to seize more land and sell more heroin, etc. This is a virtuous cycle that strengthens the Taliban and weakens the government. Record smashing opium crops are terrible news for the government any way you slice it.
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Nov 17, 2017 01:19
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Fallen Hamprince posted:making GBS threads my rear end off from giardia to own the libs. See, those are Egyptian parasites so not being infested with them is unpatriotic. Seriously though, someone is engaging in social engineering here. A harmless comment made a year ago as a joke doesn't suddenly become a national scandal without a serious push.
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Nov 17, 2017 01:23
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mediadave posted:I don't know how significant the 'Elaph' newspaper in Saudi Arabia is, but well, Israel 's chief of staff has had an interview with it, which feels a significant step in the coming out of the Israeli-Saudi alliance. can't wait for full-tilt pro-Saudi positions to be the new normal among centrist libs in the united states
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Nov 17, 2017 07:18
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icantfindaname posted:can't wait for full-tilt pro-Saudi positions to be the new normal among centrist libs in the united states "He's a reformer, women can drive now, it's been about time some one changed things there."
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Nov 17, 2017 07:23
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Squalid posted:Involvement is much deeper than just the bombing campaign, especially in Somalia. Anyway, asking why doesn't the US just stop bombing Yemen is like asking why doesn't the US pull out of Afghanistan. It's not that the US couldn't, but if it did, the immediate result would make US politicians look really bad. Likewise doing anything that might change the situation favorably for the US would be so expensive it would also be an incredible political liability, as well as the opportunity cost probably vastly exceeding the benefits. Much easier political to contribute the minimum bombs/guns/soldiers necessary to just keep chaos continuing indefinitely. Pretty sure they could just stop bombing Somalia tomorrow without saying a word to anyone and like two people would notice. They can afford to be patient, and make opportunistic strikes while waiting to see what the future holds for the political environment there. I've not seen many reports of civilian casualties from these strikes, al-Shabaab has massacred God knows how many people, and the strikes and raids seem to be hitting their target. So what makes this issue so pressing to deal with? Do you have a better idea for how to fight jihadists in MENA? Is it just an ideological pillar of yours that says bombing terrorists only empowers chaos? If so, how does Rojava and the intervention against ISIS fit into your view?
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Nov 17, 2017 07:53
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guidoanselmi posted:"He's a reformer, women can drive now, it's been about time some one changed things there." I'm more worried about the coded-genocidal rhetoric about how The Shia are Putinist traitors and agents of disinformation
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Nov 17, 2017 08:07
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icantfindaname posted:I'm more worried about the coded-genocidal rhetoric about how The Shia are Putinist traitors and agents of disinformation
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Nov 17, 2017 08:15
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Toplowtech posted:Also do you remember when there was that Muslim country in the 70s with a "progressive" dictator who was westernizing his country? I can't remember the country name. Ira- something. Whatever happened to them? Well this time there isnt the perfidious pinko to half justify a cassus belli or 'freedom fighter' funding. Id get uncertain about the future if it was a socialist/actually progressive coup. Rather than a slight tilt along the winds of inevitable loving change. Rigged Death Trap fucked around with this message at 11:05 on Nov 17, 2017 |
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Nov 17, 2017 11:00
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