In case anyone is curious. It’s the Terradyne Gurkha Armored Vehicle. Based off of a modified Ford-550 Chassis. It’s got several variants for both Military, Law Enforcement and Civilian models that are available as well.
People get used to certain things and see nothing wrong with it. Even if there technically is. As it’s just what they’re accustomed to.
Most of the world has been used to a very different America. Something different or new generally provokes fear and uncertainty. And knee jerk attempts to cling to the familiar
Though a lot of this will also generally depend where in the country they sampled from. Is it a Hotbed for a local party critical of America. What time of day it’s done at. As over sampling people with nothing better to do than stand around can tilt results. Whether they’re sampling from the wealthy, middle, or lower class. Or the local equivalent. A plethora of factors can shift results.
Actors and Artists seem to be the 2 professions most likely to have shit opinions. The self-confidence to Voice those opinions out loud. Then the balls to play victim when their opinions get shit on or they ruin their Business.
But tattoo parlors are one of those places where each one is essentially just going to attract certain clientele groups over others. You’ll have ones that attract Right-Wing some that do left-wing. Some that do fringes of the fringe of either wing. Others that are normie adjacent etc.
Even if his shop goes under. It’s liable he’ll find employment at one of the other shops that specialize in clientele more aligned with his politics. Which judging by the rhetoric is either going to be some flavor of left-wing and or anarchist.
Both of which are ironic considering their historic track records with war crimes in the various conflicts they’ve been represented in.
Man must have been cut loose if he got nabbed on charges that so many people in D.C get away with. Let alone actually pled guilty to them.
If I remember correctly the guy in that particular incident was part of a tour and snuck away. All the Security in the world doesn’t do much when you roll out the red carpet and invite people into the perimeter.
Especially in the massive older buildings like the palace where there’s a billion and a half doorways, nooks crannies and seldom use entrances in different wings people can sneak through.
Ironically something in the Whitehouses favor is both the smaller size and the fact it’s been renovated by the paranoid enough times. That anything outside the guarded entrances and doors between wings is effectively cut off.
I mean considering the problems Ford had when the Human Engineers were designing things. Is the end user or your average mechanic going to notice if it was an AI or a Human Engineer whenever they’re cursing out whoever designed it?
An impressive number. But has it actually lead to an increase in capabilities?
Not particularly surprising. The Owner and Operator should if there was any true justice to be had be in the hole right alongside the animals. But they’ll probably end up with a few years in a cell before getting released. No lessons will be learned and no examples set. Then the cycle will repeat.
Ironically we went from a country that tried people in the morning and hung them in the afternoon. To everything being bogged down in so much legal proceduralism it can take months if not years to prosecute even on simple cases.
Shelters though are often overburdened. With far too many animals and not enough space. Not enough people to adopt the animals. And a portion of the people who can and do adopt animals probably shouldn’t be anywhere near animals let alone other people.
Fly by night breeding operations, hoarders, and the multitude of other similar less than reputable operations. Only further add to the problem of too many animals which only further enables more shit like this to occur.
Diversity.
They’re already having problems with Diversity smashing delivery robots and stealing the food they were carrying.
TBH. There’s a not insignificant portion of the American population that doesn’t know the Geneva Convention exists. Let alone are able to spell it. And there’s entire sections of gun YouTube devoted to the manufacture of custom bullets that most certainly would end up adding new sections to that document were they ever used in conflict.
We’re also a country that could raise adhoc Artillery and Armored Units based off hardware that is just privately owned and operated. Hell there are Security Companies in this country operating private Airforces of Jet Fighters. Old granted. But an old Jet Fighter is still capable of bombing and strafing a position. And that’s not even considering the airshow pieces that could be remilitarized.
Drones are becoming exceedingly common. With the Drone based delivery companies often unintentionally training Drone pilots in skills that could easily transfer over to dropping explosives.
Any Civil War spawned will most certainly be vicious and brutal. Likely not like anything seen before. In part due to the rather diametrically opposed nature of many of the Militia groups in this country. The amount of foreign nations who would undoubtedly seek to influence the outcome. As well as our values facing their first major test in well over a century.
But would it destroy America? Not likely. Irreversibly scar and change the country and force multiple long overdue reckonings and grapplings with ideals and political ideology versus common sense and reality. Most definitely. But destroy? Likely not.
The success of the German Frei-Korps was in part due to the fact they didn’t waste time with the Democratic or Republican Niceties we in the U.S have made central to our national identity. As well as the all or nothing takes on various things like the 2nd amendment. Which would naturally carry over to any such similar American variant of the Frei-Korps and make any such conflict far more difficult here. They also often didn’t waste time with legal trials for communist leaders. They were frequently either assassinated or used as target practice for machine guns.
They also had far more unity of purpose. Meanwhile much of the American Militias groups that would serve as the core of any theoretical American Frei-Korps run the gamut from Extreme Libertarian/borderline Anarchists to the Austrian Painters number 1 fan club.
Most of what it can and can’t do. As far as what’s publicly available at any rate Is still largely theoretical. As the field itself is still in its comparative infancy. For all we know we could end up with Quantum computers capable of replacing laptops eventually. We just don’t know enough about it with any true degree of certainty yet.
Though I also wouldn’t discount something being locked up in a Black Project or Off the Books program Government or Corporate. The list of shit they’ve declassified and willingly acknowledged was at one time a program or product of theirs could fill multiple books all on its own. Lord knows what they still have locked away or actively working on.
Fiction at the very least has to be believable. Reality is under no such limitations.
It’s worth pointing out. International law and the Geneva Suggestion only specifically mentions Humans.
Extraterrestrials, Demons, Lab grown Science projects for Blue Beam or whatever Aliens actually are aren’t mentioned.
Ironically part of why I find the freakouts over spending hilarious. We’ve long passed the point any amount of belt tightening, cutting spending, and ‘Sound Fiscal Responsibility’ will actually change anything. The arguments are largely political at this stage and cutting off or funding one party’s policy goals.
Hell most of the metrics for economic health are ultimately pointless numbers that can be massaged to mean whatever they want.
At this stage of the game. Either they (Trump and Co) pull off a miracle. Or everything is going to inevitably blow up anyway. Regardless of what we do or don’t do. The math stopped mathing years ago.
They’ve been issuing similar warnings for years long before AI. I imagine they’ve switched to warning about AI. Because AI is the boogeyman that seems to actually motivate people to actually do something.
But the backend’s of many Governments and Corporations are Frankenstein monstrosities ranging from absolute ancient tech to cutting edge modern. Held together by IT departments operating off of Caffeine, Stress, Spite, adhoc patch jobs, duct tape and IT black magic.
I mean it might also be because people were actually looking at the breakdown of who was getting measles and mumps and discovering the overwhelming majority were imports. Or people with regular close contact with them.
There’s still a lot of companies with influence in the administration and vested financial interests in importing labor. And naturally given the surging Anti-immigration sentiments. They’ll naturally begin targeting anything that supports such sentiments and gives them credibility. Like the reappearance of diseases almost unheard of here exclusively in immigrant groups.
Much like how all the chatter surrounding Monkey Pox died abruptly when it began showing up in children and animals and people naturally started making connections.
There’s still other interests at play. And there are significant sections of the right with their own sacred cows, agendas, and goals. That don’t necessarily align with everyone else’s. A Significant cohort of that is the corporations and Businesses who want the cheap labor.
Likely it might dissuade the Anti-Authority casual who doesn’t really believe in anything beyond a general dislike for anything they view as authority. They just want an excuse to riot, steal shit, and fight whatever they view as authority. While using the NGO networks to avoid consequences.
Any true dyed in the wool believer of the crap they peddle. Likely won’t be dissuaded.
The only groups that can probably legitimately be considered decentralized with no real structure or leadership are the online meme groups that burn out after it stops being funny.
Any group that has any sort of political goals. Is funded and directed by someone. There might multiple layers of middlemen in between the group and the people calling the shots. But someone is inevitably in charge.
It’s not always a Government power funding it either. Often enough Corporations and Wealthy Individuals will fund various groups to their own ends as well.
Are they able to recover the funds? Or at the very least seize property purchased with the funds?
If they’ve seized property. Then we should probably see some cool stuff start turning up at Federal Auctions.
She looks exactly like what I expected she’d look like.
TBH it should at the very least be a rule you should be born here and lived here the majority of your life. Before you can hold office or be employed as a Judge.
At least then we can take some measure of comfort that it’s homegrown stupidity.
Other disgruntled populations are watching with interest. Scotland has a strong independence movement. As does Wales. Then there’s Spain’s Catalonia region. And the United States’ own California.
The Scottish Party has failed everytime it’s gotten a vote put in front of the people. And the SNP often ends up making the Labor Party look conservative in comparison. That’s probably not going anywhere. Regardless of the breathless rhetoric online.
Wales? The Welsh are a group in active decline. Even if they manage it. They likely aren’t going to be the ones calling the shots given the imports numbers. Catalonia probably has the best shot out of all the groups listed.
California. It’s mostly pissy liberals that quiet down when Conservatives aren’t in Office. I likely wouldn’t seriously consider it a legitimate threat. The California political establishment will smother it in the crib if at actually tries to go anywhere. They know better than anyone the house of cards they built is reliant on the rest of the country to remain functional.
Technically though under some strict interpretations of the relevant laws even entertaining it at all could be considered sedition and grounds to arrest the organizers.
As to the rest of the article. Even if Alberta doesn’t opt for annexation. It will effectively end up a U.S outpost by virtue of proximity, resources we need, and American Security and Defensive Concerns.
Prolonged amounts of Humidity can overtime with other factors lead to the eventual formation of rain and storms. And affect air pressure.
But you’d need massive quantities. To cause any significant change.
Considering some Federal Agencies switching to Windows 10 was considered massive news a couple years ago. Switching to Quantum computing by 2031 will be an interesting endeavor. Especially since it’s now 2026 and Quantum Computing and what it can and can’t do is still largely theoretical. And tech companies are buying up every scrap of computer parts they can get their hands on for AI and other gadgets and gizmos.
I feel like it’s just the set up to start releasing classified DARPA/Contractor tech. As the timescale seems exceptionally rushed for it to be stuff they don’t already have waiting in the wings.
So then what exactly is the point of Space Force if the Army was just going to do its own branch of MOS tasks anyway?
Unless this is a Space Force man’s fixed installations and this new Army Command sets up and Man’s temporary installations on an as needed basis.