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Yeah, it's been fucking incredible for nearly every demographic compared to any other period in history. Seriously.

was the post WW2 pax americana really all that great? korea, vietnam, iran, panama, GW1, bosnia, GWOT etc... seems to me we kept putting our pecker where it didn't belong. not too many great things to show from any of those places. maybe we need to sit some out

100% Not to derail the thread but the post WWII period is one of the "safest" in human history. The video below illustrates the staggering impact of World War. We tend to view things through our "USA" lens, if you take a slightly more worldly view you can see some horrific things that happen when there are world wars. One small example, when Japan invaded China in WWII the Chinese Nationalist opened the dike at the Yellow River hoping it would slow the advance of the Japanese Army. In doing so they knowingly sacrificed 500,000 Chinese civilians. Yes there has been chaos and conflict and the news instantaneously beams it to our homes, but in relation to times past, the post WWII world order has been very favorable to the human race.

Thanks for the gouge. I'm now glad I got my unit to fund a rental car for me next week. Per the ENFP hack this morning it looks like I will be headed to Vance! Still waiting on dates though...

Personally I would like to see some protections instilled to allow more people to do public service while still maintaining moral congruency with their religion. I was a supporter of turbans and beards as well. I don't understand this mentality that you give up constitutional rights when you join the service. The supreme court has repeatedly struck down that argument and said as much. And while I realize the military wants to make arguments in favor of uniformity and esprit de corps, very hard to do that when you make a very public ad campaign that "diversity is our strength."

That has nothing to do with the vaccine and everything to do with obesity rates. It's not strange at all, really.

Good points. There also hasn’t been a WWIII and war casualties worldwide have been relatively minimal post 1945 compared to pre 1945.

Some additional context, what really shot the DoD in the foot on these lawsuits was they did grant medical exemptions. So the law says they have to provide a reasonable accommodation to a religious issue unless no reasonable accommodation exist. The plaintiffs argued before the court that a reasonable accommodation did exist because the DoD didn't have the same concerns about deployment of mobility for medically exempted personal and they could simply accommodate religious members similarly. The DoD by and large never tried to deny a religious exemption based on the sincerity of the belief. In nearly every denial (at least everyone I've seen) the DoD recognized the belief as sincere. In fact the organizations that I've been following who are helping to litigate it have reviewed thousands of denials and in every case the religious convictions were agreed to be sincere. Because of that, it painted the DoD in a corner. Now they can no longer say the belief is not sincere, because they already agreed it was and new evidence hasn't been presented to say it wasn't. The DoD also can no longer say a reasonable accommodation does not exist because they did grant a reasonable accommodation to people who were medically waivered. What the courts are interested in and what the DoD is failing to make a case in is why would a medically exempt service member deserve an accomodation but a religious member doesn't. Unfortunately the only conclusion easy to reach with that is senior leadership in the DoD discriminated against religious members by failing to treat them on equal standing as those unable to take the vaccine for medical reasons.

Too funny not to share!

Can we get involved because all this non-deploying, at home shit is super boring.

I say let Ukraine stand on their own and see what happens. Not our war or our interest.

Then they need to stop being pussies and vote the likes of Maxine Waters, Nancy Pelosi, Gavin Newsome out of office.

‘You are the reason I drink’ — Airmen bid adieu to decrepit aircraft dubbed ‘Lucifer’s Chariot’ “four terrible and terrifying years that aged me well beyond where I should be.” “You are the reason I live to forget.” “582, you’re a real nasty lady,” said Markham. “I had some great memories, but most of them involved getting off the aircraft and sprinting away from you.”

David Brooks' opinion piece in today's New York Times is worth a read. "Today, across left and right, millions of Americans see U.S. efforts abroad as little more than imperialism, “endless wars” and domination. They don’t believe in the postwar project and refuse to provide popular support for it. The real problem is in the seedbeds of democracy, the institutions that are supposed to mold a citizenry and make us qualified to practice democracy. To restore those seedbeds, we first have to relearn the wisdom of the founders: We are not as virtuous as we think we are. Americans are no better than anyone else. Democracy is not natural; it is an artificial accomplishment that takes enormous work." https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/17/opinion/liberalism-democracy-russia-ukraine.html

TMDD 5210.01 20220211.pdf

US power has always flowed from our economic power, including our military power/leadership, especially post-WWII. We are broke-ity-broke. Russia has a genetic fear of being invaded from Europe due to the successive devastating invasions from Europe. It has always wanted/needed buffer room from that and had it post-WWII. The break-up of the USSR took that warm fuzzy away. NATO expansion eastward to Russia-bordering nations was steps too far for Russia (not just Putin). Putin wants his blankie back and has the means, and more importantly, the will to get it. Both economically via gas withholding and by brute force. Old Europe does not. If they don't give a sh1t, why should we? Not our fight, not worth our blood and treasure. Did I mention we are broke and literally can't afford to be global cop anymore? Let someone else be the bad guy and we return to repairing our economy and institutions of liberty in order to become that beacon of hope as we were before. Now, we are largely loathed and/or taken for granted. I say again, not our problem.

It's interesting that you think I give our country too much credit yet literally every single example you give originated here. We are an exceptional society in human history, even with our many faults. Don't sell your country short.

Really digging the new cars & some of the rather stark differences between them. It’s going to be an interesting season & I think could see a lot of good competition. I’m guessing the disparity between the designs will mean certain cars will be better suited to certain circuits which should mix things up a bit. I like this guy’s channel for simple explanations & some interesting racing history:

Maybe they need to look up what concealed carry means.

This is what happens when we have generations of people who have experienced nothing but a long period of relative peace, which is historically not the MO of the human race. The U.S. is certainly far from perfect, but under our post WWII leadership, the world has most certainly become a better place. Abdicating our position will give countries like China and Russia far greater influence worldwide. Do you think a world order led by China would be better or worse for the world than a U.S. led one? Not trying to pick on you personally & I understand the point you’re trying to make, but this kind of attitude is part of what I’m talking about when I argue that our education system is failing.

Insane live stream from LHR with hilarious commentary as Storm Eunice hits the UK and the London area.

Vegas was with me wasn't it?

Another Air Force legend has gone west!

That we are unworthy of being the leader of the supposedly free and advanced world. Not sure there is one if we do nothing if an invasion occurs and we navel gaze. Goodbye post WW2 world order, goodbye Pax Americana world order. That's not a call to aggression or trying to humiliate Russia in this situation, I think the public comments for years on Ukraine joining NATO have been unhelpful but we have stupidly over decades painted ourselves into a corner by setting ourselves up for an inevitable conflict with Russia as they feel threatened (the "they" being the authoritarian government in power at whatever time in Moscow) by the expansion of security, political and economic organizations that would undermine said authoritarian government in Moscow. Unless you are willing to risk disaster in poking the bear, then don't poke the bear. Our "leaders" want to chastise Russia, expand alliances to their near abroad and former/current client states but then balk and dismiss at actually risking and sacrificing to execute this strategy. If the Neo-cons and Interventionists were real about this they would look back at what we did after WW2 to prevent a fait accompli of the Soviets/Communists taking over Europe. We put 5% of our GDP into the Marshall Plan to rebuild Europe and get the democracies back on their feet, we spent the money, kept West Berlin from falling and here's the line no further and we will bear any burden and pay any cost. That's 180 out from where we are now. FWIW I've argued here for supporting Ukraine to resist Russia if she invades them, I hope that doesn't happen but what I really want is for us to get our shit together and realize this is a new Cold War, we can't trade with our enemies and let them economically prosper because that funds their aggression against us and our allies and that engagement really doesn't change them but isolation can weaken or topple them. Rant complete.

What's up @Negatory. I guess it's a perception error, but you honestly came across like that. So, no, I'm not trying to misrepresent you. In our discussion (back then) it was pretty clear to me that what was being implied was that there was going to be mass death right around the corner. I stated that I did not buy that BS for a variety of reasons. Also, you could have, you know, responded with what you actually meant four days ago if I "misrepresented" you. Instead you waited until now to figure out that's not what you meant back then??? You can see how I'm (still) confused. How about you explain what you meant by 15% (or 30% as you quoted), and what this other pretext was. In any case, I'm not arguing fallaciously, and you are welcome to clarify. If you had been context switching between Omicron infecting a million people a day and then back to vanilla COVID morting 5-15%, then I missed the fact that there were two separate and distinct points being made - so yeah, that's my perception problem. But I will admit that I went back and read the stuff from just prior to Christmas, and it is not clear that you were talking about two different bugs. That said, you did recognize that the data showed Omicron was highly infectious, but not as deadly - so I'll take that one. Anyway, here's the big picture I take away from our previous conversation after having been removed from it for a while: There is one group (you, et al) who are willing to give the benefit of the doubt to the PTB re: COVID measures. There's another group (includes me) who is done with the charade and all things "unserious." I mean you have people that are fine with measures being taken that were known (or thought) to be ineffective simply as a means to "do" something (I'm one who thinks masks have a limited personal effect; zero societal effect). Many people, including me, think forcing people to do things for show is anti-American. That's where I'm coming from. And besides that philosophical point, I'll say it's worth a moment's consideration to think about the implication of having the perception that something works, even though it actually doesn't, and then implementing it as policy. Do you think those types of misconceptions will lead people to take more or less appropriate risks? What will then be the actual real-world outcome of that policy? More or less infection? Seems clear to me what the answer is, but yet... Others accept at face value that "COVID" is "killing" 20x more Americans than in other nations. Apparently you need to be some kind of "expert" to notice that is an odd thing and to raise it as a question. Or perhaps this, the fact that in California (of all places) they held the Super Bowl mostly mask-less (https://www.pennlive.com/nation-world/2022/02/face-masks-were-handed-out-at-the-super-bowl-but-few-fans-wore-them.html). Where was the enforcement? Why was this acceptable? My bet is that it was cool because there was a lot of money involved in it for CA. I would like to be a fly on the wall during some of the conversations between NFL executives and the CA government (https://www.wtok.com/2022/01/05/nfl-looks-contingency-sites-super-bowl-amid-covid-19/). Anyway, it was these sorts of arguments that were (and still are) being made. My point now is the same as what it was then: This is now mostly about signaling/control, Omicron wasn't (isn't) going to kill everyone, and it's time to stop panicking and go back to (actual) normal. Stop the fear-based arguments and justifications for normalizing restrictions, lack of freedom, and unquestioned acceptance of authority. We are creating a generation of young children who are scared shitless of COVID though they are not at risk whatsoever, and are going to grow up more neurotic than they already were going to be.

When the government gets to decide what is a “sincerely held religious belief” and what is not, and who can have them/not have them…then we have problems. I am anti-religious exemptions for anything when it comes to the government, and this includes vaccines. If an atheist doesn’t want a vaccine then that should hold no more/no less sway vs someone who doesn’t want one for personal religious reasons.

Coming up on a decade old but.... https://www.duffelblog.com/p/ukraine-invades-russia?utm_source=url

There are 2 parts to a religious accommodation. The first is do you have a sincerely held belief, which actually has been yes more than people think. The second is can the service accommodate it without risking others or negatively impacting service. With the vaccine that part is what is getting denied. Not having it risks those around you and makes you non deployable from big AF perspective. The few approved are mostly people on terminal or teleworking prior to terminal. Not saying it’s right or wrong but for SA.

Agreed. But Dod's near blanket denial of any religious exceptions was yet another own goal to this bad, possibly illegal IMO, order. DoD took/is taking nearly 10,000 casualty equivalents over a policy, not hard science. In a time when the percentage of eligibles to join is ever decreasing. How many of those 10,000 would recommend joining? How many people that know those 10,000 would recommend or consider joining themselves? Many of us here are 2, 3, or more generations of serving. I wouldn't recommend anyone to enlist or commission. Would you?

“It’s just theater”… unlike the thousands of people who suddenly had a Paul on the road to Damascus moment with this vaccine. Quite the religious awakening. I think this whole vaccination thing is BS but people trying the religious route when it’s total crap really pisses me off. Totally undermines folks that have legitimate religious beliefs.

Court: Pilot, attendant will suffer under vaccine mandate (msn.com) Air Force can’t compel Christian officer to get Covid shot, judge rules (msn.com)

I am not saying I disagree with you but what does that say overall about the United States. When the FSU fell apart we convinced Ukraine to give up their nukes (which most certainly would have deterred Putin), in hopes of providing more stability. In convincing them to give up the nukes we made assurances with regard to their security. A few months ago we sent a strong message to the world about our resolve when we left Afghanistan and screwed all those who helped us for so many years. If we stand by and watch Russia take Ukraine what does that say about us? Horrible game to be playing.

We wasted time on diplomatic solutions that were never gunna happen. He already took part of the country a few years ago, how can anybody not see that he ain't leaving without more of it? What people fail to understand, is that there is no reasoning/logic when it comes to dealing with individuals who mentally have departed orbit and are hell bent on their own narcissistic self-fulfillment. War IS bad and should ALWAYS be avoided, but as civilized as humanity may become, underneath it we're all still animals. And every once in awhile you get an animal with killer predator instincts (Putin) who ends up in charge of a metric f*ck ton of tanks, artillery and surface to air missiles, and who wants to go bully the shit out of a little democracy and crush it because it feels good. Ukraine should have been flooded with defensive weapons, instead he's got Europe by the balls with his natural gas so they're to puss to do anything. And we sent 200 million of weapons, when it should have been 2 billion. It's like trying to reason with the serial killer as he tapes your hands to put you in the trunk of a car. You don't reason, you bite his damn ear off first chance you get. I'm with you. I am an incredibly empathetic person, think war is terrible, but if this goes down I hope Russian casualties are high enough that maybe somebody turns on him/the Russian people say WTF. This is another free world vs non free world battle. Hard for me to have empathy for the other side when it comes to the principle that is being fought over.

I would agree with most of what you wrote above with the following exception. If the Russian Federation (really Putin) decides to go high order with an invasion of the Ukraine, I sincerely hope that the Ukrainians stack up as many Russian bodies as they possibly can before they're either overrun or are forced into some shitty settlement. And I don't care if some Russian private inhales radioactive dust and gets cancer 20 years from now due to a completely avoidable nuclear disaster and war of their own choosing.

I thought white smoke meant they had chosen a new pope?

I think the following has been posted elsewhere on BO, but I will repost. The audio and visual are out-of-synch.

The pilot flying the first flight of the X-59 is a friend and former U-2 pilot. I plan to go down there for that first flight. "First flights" are pretty rare these days, compared to 70 years ago. From what he can tell me about the aircraft and the research leading up to it, it's very interesting. NASA also used a YO-3A and TG-14 for a lot of the data gathering. It's neat stuff.

When people tell or show you who they are, believe them. The appearance was positively giddy about 10,000 self-inflicted subtractions from our military forces

I DO think that big tech censoring people and deplatforming folks is a part of what I'm talking about. And I think it's bad we've surrendered so much of our discourse to these giant companies. I think it's insane that Trudeau is seizing bank accounts and trucks from protesters who did nothing more than park their rigs. I think it's crazy there are still schools that are closed. I was on board with the mask mandates at the time because they don't cost much, don't harm anyone, and the data we had said they helped (no, not a 100% elimination of Covid, but a reduction). We have new data that says masks are useless...so I've changed my stance, with new data, and I think we should start getting rid of the mandates. I already thought it was silly to walk into a restaurant with a mask, only to take it off once seated. I still maintain that the masks and vaccines were lawful orders, and I've been ordered to do dumber things for worse reasons. The fact that you immediately thought I was on the other side of that issue, because I was on the other side of a completely different issue, is exactly what I mean. We probably have more in common than we disagree on. But because we disagreed on vaccine mandates for the military, you assume I'm going to disagree with you on every topic.

Bullshit, Putin asked for an ITS on his troops and those guys were red for SAPR & LOAC, expect them back after they file a voucher and get their next DTS travel request thru

holyfuckballs I deeply admire your honesty and trust. Welcome to the Thunderdome. We have some expectations to readjust. I've recently gone through it, so I'll gladly help. PM me, we can sort this out for you. Short answer: Yes you need a Flying Class 1 (FC1) and a FCC radio operators permit. Schedule a flying class one with a civilian AME in your local area ASAP to find out if you've got any hang-ups. If you have major medical issues such as PTSD, Heart murmer, etc...I don't recommend trying to hide...other opinions may differ. If you're comfortable and it's major, bring it up with the AME. If it requires a waiver, expect 8-12 months to get an waivered FAA FC1...so extra time is good. The FCC permit can be completely done online. Google it. Longer answer: Congratulations, you are a USAF pilot. That entitles you to be...a USAF pilot. If you're a Colonel or higher, I highly recommend re-learning how to do things for yourself again. I say that only half-joking, as I've seen how those ranks get treated. In the civilian world: no-one cares who you were. FAA has a COMPLETELY different grid of evaluating pilots. Respect that fact, as they are the ones who issue the license. Example: My instructor for the next week had over 10,000 flying hours BEFORE he was 26 and then hired by my current employer. Think about that for a minute. You're in a whole new world. You are now a UPT graduate again who needs to figure out all the new rules of the road. At core, yes, you've got what it takes. The USAF and the FAA do not like each other. Get over it right now. FAA says you need FCC Radio permit. Go get it. (seriously it took 2 minutes of googling and something like 65 bucks, online don't be that guy) FAA says you need FC1. Go get it. The worst thing you can do is foster the mental habit of "but in the air force I..." Just don't. The background you came from has remarkably thin impact on your aviation future beyond how well it prepared you to be evaluated on your ability to fly airplanes...which will rapidly become self evident if you get hired. Seriously. PM me. I've current on the hiring world right now. We'll get you sorted.

At least the trucker's pets will be well cared for: ottawa-threatens-to-take-away-animals-of-freedom-convoy-protestors

Mkay. I'm glad you never said it directly. I suppose you're unfamiliar with the concepts of implication or multiplication. You did strongly suggest those numbers, however, with the 5-15% death rate you quoted numerous times. Sooooo, 5-15% of 1.0M people per week is 50K - 150K. Since approx 16% of people in the US are over 70 yrs old, that means we should have seen approx 8K - 24K people (only those older than 70!) dying every week. We didn't see that. And many of us knew we weren't going to see that. And the actions our government took during those early weeks of January reflect their knowledge that we weren't going to see that, either. Some on this board are overly disturbed by others' lack of faith. Your numbers were and are wrong. So sure, you can state under oath that you didn't say it, but you said it. Anyway. The point is some of us knew this wasn't going to be as big a problem. Many others were running around freaking out and imploring everyone to share in their panic. I just felt like it was worth invalidating some of the previous BS on this thread a little bit more neatly now that we do know for sure.

Nope. Just trying to have a reasoned debate/discussion using fact, reason, and logic to best understand and orient myself in this new world we find ourselves in. All while navigating heaps of disinformation spread by those who know better and those who are equipped to know better.