the serpent and gravity's rainbow

Finally got Schattenfroh but I don’t know where the hell I’m gonna put it on my shelf

@rlpage_insp @AkilahObviously And now you see why it was wise to negotiate with Iran rather than go to war with them, because *dated* Brent hit $144 today, the highest ever, due to Trump giving into Israel's demands and promises, with further economic shocks that are already materializing, you unserious clown

@AkilahObviously Iran has been poking the bear for 50 years - President Obama gave Cash - President Biden said “Don’t” - Trump said “Enough”

So… so two weeks til we are back here in this exact position?

The Sanderson-GRRM thing is literally the coughing baby vs hydrogen bomb comparison, and I say that as a fan of The Stormlight Archive.

@ReaderPhx @KobeissiLetter Kharg Island is way up the gulf, past the strait. The strait is still closed. On top of that it's a terminal, not a refinery and has valves on the mainland that can turn it off. So, this doesn't change anything but lead to more fuel shortages you absolute clown of an ape.

@KobeissiLetter Trump will take Kharg island soon and the problem will change fast.

BREAKING: Dated Brent crude oil prices officially surge to their highest level on record, at $144.42 per barrel.

@DaleBetterton @tshugart3 Like, JY14s? That radar from like the 90s? Electronic components are weapons systems now? What other numerous systems? Maybe a JY27 but this is modern air missions, and there's no conclusive evidence they have anything close to modern AD/Rad. They can hit F15s and A10s, that's it

@icronically @tshugart3 Are you unaware of air defense systems? Or the (not domestically produced) electronics for UAV targeting systems? Or the numerous other systems China has provided?

Counterpoint: no, it isn't. None of those operations in any way demonstrate U.S. capabilities in a high-end peer-on-peer conflict in a largely maritime theater. If anything, it demonstrates the U.S. expending scarce readiness and resources against someone other than China.

@DaleBetterton @tshugart3 The vast majority of weapons systems in Iran are domestically made? Are you an idiot on purpose or just don't know this?

@tshugart3 Putting aside the 'we are wasting ammo' argument (we are rapidly increasing production rates)... Do you think the CCP has been pleased by the performance of its weapon systems in Iran? Do you think they are more or less confident now in their ability to overwhelm Taiwan?

I wonder if I should get the latest CIA World Factbook since it'll be the last release

Can't believe we finally got the original RE1, 2 and 3 on Steam after all this time

@Innovocaine @mrssmith2018 @JosephPolitano @oren_cass You're an idiot because even back during the original tariffs in 2018-2019 this is what happened. Tariffing inputs is idiotic policy. A blanket tariff is even more moronic, but thankfully the market reacted enough to make him reconsider how stupid his original Apr 2025 plan was

@mrssmith2018 @JosephPolitano @oren_cass What are federal jobs

The problem with economists asking for a takesy-backsy on their predictions of tariff doom is that it implies they would have had favorable predictions about the tariffs had they known the full trajectory. Who thinks that, if you had told economists a year ago what was going to happen with tariffs, they would have said "sounds reasonable, growth will probably tick up and inflation down, manufacturing demand and productivity will rise and sentiment will improve"? Did I miss all of the economists who have been saying since June that now the tariff level looks OK? The reality is they missed even on the basic mechanisms: the dollar didn't appreciate; the retaliation didn't occur; the administration successfully leveraged tariffs into favorable deals and commitments. Of course the models spit out the wrong answer. Yes, it's embarrassing for a field when confident predictions fail. But it's way more embarrassing when the reaction of practitioners to the failure is to deny a problem exists.

@Daily_SWGames where's the sullustan and mon calamari option

In Star Wars Zero Company, you can customise your squad members to be different species: Human Togruta Twi'lek Zabrak Mirialan Devaronian Weequay Rodian Ovissian Neimoidian There are also R4, R2, R3 & BR-1 astromech options. BR-1's were made for this game. They're all unique.

Finally finished The Morning Star by Knausgård today and it was pretty damn fun to read. Every day life can be beautiful, complicated and at times scary, confusing and uncanny.

@g0DySsEy Is it really a flaw? Pynchon, one of (if not) the best postmodern authors is similar in that regard. I feel like there’s an innateness of pulp to postmodernism.

The most interesting and consistent flaw I find with Fujimoto is that he clearly wants to be a much less interesting writer than he ends up being. He loves pulp much more than post-modernist art yet he ceaselessly gravitates towards the latter

I think "The Morning Star" by Knausgaard is all about finding the beauty in every day life. It also reminds me of a quote from Synecdoche, New York: "There are billions of people in the world, and not one of those people is an extra; they're all leads in their own stories."

@javonta_la99515 @vcdgf555 This entire thread has been you having no idea and vastly overestimating US capability and Iranian resolve and outright denying a reality that even military experts say is an awful, risky idea. You don't believe Iran has a massive stockpile of its own successful drone?

@icronically @vcdgf555 So don't speak on how much they have if you have no idea.

How does capturing Kharg Island (regardless of how intact it is taken) force the Iranians to open the SoH? How is the US forced to take Kharg Island at all?

@javonta_la99515 @vcdgf555 How are you so uninformed yourself? Iraq was at >70% approval whereas Iran is only around 1/3rd. Boots on the ground even less.

@icronically @vcdgf555 I don't believe because the war is unpopular that it's unjustified people are naturally anti war and uniformed.

@UESP_net Amaranth!

In the next few days for the anniversaries for The Elder Scrolls we want to do a bunch of giveaways. We have some more coins, posters, and calendars to give out, and we may have a few extra things in the days ahead as well. For this announcement, we're going to do a few instant giveaways. Respond to this post with the "worlding of the words", and the first few we'll see will get these things from us.

@javonta_la99515 @vcdgf555 They definitely have beyond 2000, man. Some sources say between 60-80k in stockpile. Nobody has an exact number except the Iranians.

@icronically @vcdgf555 If they were so easy to make why wouldn't they have beyond 2 Thousand?

@javonta_la99515 @vcdgf555 Amphibious landings are more than just ships, man. I'm sorry I touched a nerve but it's true that this is a stupid plan. There's no outright reward. We'd be risking hundreds and thousands of lives just to further erode global oil production for an already unpopular war.

Yes the marines will land on the beach via hovercrafts and armored vehicles retard. Do you know how amphibious invasions work retard? We don't have a single ship in the gulf because there is no need for our ships to be in the gulf right now the invasion plan isn't finalized and it hasn't even been decided on.

@javonta_la99515 @vcdgf555 No, 2000+ drones have been launched from Iran. That's not even a massive dip in their likely large stockpile.

@icronically @vcdgf555 and have used about 700 according to military assessments

@javonta_la99515 @vcdgf555 Around 2000 so far. Because it's as easy as manufacturing a speedboat. Shaheds only cost around $35,000 to manufacture. Iran actually has/had a strong industrial base. Car factories, bike factories, boat factories. All of it can be used to manufacture Shaheds.

@icronically @vcdgf555 How many drones have they launched since the start of the war? How do you think they'll be able to make more?

@javonta_la99515 @vcdgf555 Wait, do you think we would land the marines via ship? It would be done via air insertion. E.g. helicopters. We don't have a single ship in the gulf and no US warship has entered through the strait. Where do you think Kharg is?

@icronically @vcdgf555 How do you think the marines are going to get to Kharg?