Jace, Extat

Calling them pirates or terrorists allows for use of military force without getting the congress involved, at least in America.

Bolding added. That sounds to me like they're suggesting it's not "random" at all.

Yeah, I know that. But @polishgenius and @Conflicting Thought make it sound like there's conspiracy afoot. Spill! Spill! Spill!

Gimme a day to set up a new account. It tastes sweeter to know I'm taking it from Ty.

Wait, what's the emphasis on "random" ???

*GASP* The Prince of Thieves has come again!

I have on no less than 4 occassions reinstalled DA:I, got a few hours in, and then uninstalled. It's just so fucking... Man DA:O was the best. I'll never forget my first playthrough as a mage, realizing that I was getting a Dune ending because I'd romanced that derp Alistair. He married Anora, but I owned that D. Of course in all subsequent playthroughs I was of correct stature to become the Queen and hero of Ferelden

At least until a new doctrine is developed. As-is combined arms is no longer viable. Tanks are deathtraps, too easily vulnerable to handheld anti-tank weapons. And even the most (almost) modern planes are no match for modern anti-air. Add to the fact that the whole battlefield is visible from drones... This one is tough. I worry about Trump taking office and leaning on Zelensky to make peace under hard terms a year from now. The Ukrainians are not going to be able to mount any kind of summer offensive that achieves a breakthrough in 2024.

He's Trump, dawg. He'll loom over her at a podium and shout "Look at my Indian American!" And that'll be that. I'm graspin' at straws, sister The hour grows late.

You're not wrong, but at this point I'm just desperate that there be someone with access to him who isn't utterly deranged or sycophantic.

So do we think Haley is Trump's VP? There might actually be an argument that she should take the gig if he offers it to eventually protect the republic from him. Pence didn't save the country or anything on Jan. 6th, but he did the right things and helped facilitate the transfer of power as was his duty.

I love you too, commie.

@Kalbear Extat! It matters when that group demonstrates follow-through and capacity of action. Hamas did that. Deterrence only works when potential aggressors believe that there will be consequences for their actions that actually threaten them. Ukraine, right now, is proof of this. Well, I suppose the greatest crime of Hamas then was exposing the post-WW2 world order as a polite fiction. I don't even mean to be glib by saying that. I thought everybody else knew. Maybe it bears repeating, but I don't mean to argue that Israel is morally unimpeachable or obeying international law... I'm arguing that they are behaving exactly the same as any other power would behave. Better, actually. At least better than America.

That rebuttal might fly if Hamas were not a jihadist organization. They don't care about taking care of Palestinians, they care about killing Jews.

What? I'm dealing with some imagined colonizer out-grouping of Jews to justify sensless slaughter and you're gonna pretend I'm making up the fact that Israel didn't want war? Dawg, if they wanted a war there have been hundreds of missiles they could use as justification. Really, you think Israel wanted this war???? They were attacked Well, from the bottom of the hill here... Am I incorrect? "This is a description of a mechanical phenomenon..." I mean this is just ass-over-teakettle wrong, man. I mean, when an enemy attacks you, you destroy them and whatever apparatus that enabled them to attack. That is called war, specifically a defensive war. Which is what Israel is doing. It is not Israel's fault that Hamas treats its own citizens as hostages and hides among non-combatants.

I'd rather be governed by a glass of water than by Michele Obama. But then, I'd rather be governed by a bowl of shit than Donald Trump... Who's to say what's decent these days?

Sure, but Israel wanted to avoid all-out war until Hamas forced their hand. While I don't doubt that your heart is in the right place trying to paint Hamas as oppressed liberators, I'm going to literally take their word on this one.

Well family is its own reward, eh?

If so, then at least Israel failed as the last possible option. They didn't want to invade Gaza, they don't want to occupy it. Hamas does want to kill Jews as a matter of course. The logical conclusion is that Hamas cannot remain empowered. Everything else is secondary to that goal, including international law. Because international law doesn't further the safety of a state's citizens. You don't see a difference between Putin's Russia invading Ukraine and Israel defending itself from Hamas? Fascinating.

But they are attacked for their identity. Have you heard that phonecall one of the Hamas, ahem, liberators made to his parents. He's cheering and shouting "I killed ten Jews!" He ain't talkin' about colonizers.

Israel pulled out of Gaza, held to a ceasefire for over a decade, and for their trouble their people were butchered and carried away. You're citing things half-a-century gone to excuse terror. Bad actors can reach logical conclusions. Just because Donald Trump might admit that the sky is blue doesn't mean I need to start reinterpreting the color spectrum. Saying "but a badguy might say that" is a pretty naieve way to look at anything. Of course there's a difference between Russia saying they have no choice but to attack Ukraine, and Israel defending itself from Hamas. C'mon now! Eta: improper word use

No, Israel is defending itself from Hamas. That is why their actions are defensible and Hamas' are not. Hamas started this war.

M'fucker had to sell his goddamn peanut farm! Sell it! And he only got one disgraced term for his trouble...

War is not about equity. It is not about fairness or proportional responses. It is about concentrating violence to achieve a political effect. I mean for God's sake what would you have them do? You have an enemy polity that just marauded your citizenry, right next door. You cannot do nothing or else you're betraying your people in the face of invasion and kidnapping. War means civillian casualties, that is an ugly fact. I think the civillian body count from Iraq is at about 200,000. This is just what happens when these weapons are used.

What I want is irrelevant to the facts of the matter. What I see is a military solution to a military problem. That is the fault of Hamas, this was not policy until Hamas broke the ceasefire with an invasion and slaughter. Nah, just wishmaking about how they'll maybe go away on their own. That doesn't fly when they're your neighbor.