Comments by "Grenade Tennis" (@hughjass1044) on "VisualPolitik EN" channel.

  1. Total respect and support for Poland, its troops and its people from your NATO partner and friends in Canada!
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  2. I expect there will be a steady stream of countries looking to cut their ties to Russia in the years ahead. No one wants to be tied to a sinking ship.
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  3. I've wondered often in the last many years if there's even a single person within the liberal elite, the journalistic profession, academia or anywhere else who realizes and grasps the fact that the more frequently and casually the term "fascist" is tossed around, the less meaning it has. I've now concluded with certainty that the answer is an emphatic NO!
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  4. Good God, Josh!! Corps is not pronounced "corpse", it's pronounced "core."
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  5. Another big difference between 1917 and today is that the state security apparatus is many, many orders of magnitude larger and more omnipotent today than it was in the Czar's time.... and it was pretty big then too. The problem with Putin is that he has such a vast and varied array of rich and powerful people whose fortunes are tied to him so if Putin falls, they fall so they will do whatever it takes to keep him in power. These are what you could call his multiple and overlapping layers of defense. If you can somehow get to them and drive a wedge between them and Putin.... by starting to seize their fortunes held in foreign banks, let's say, as opposed to just freezing them.... they may turn on him to save themselves. Even that wouldn't be without risk as there's no way to predict who or what would replace him.
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  6. Many set ridiculously high prerequisite requirements well beyond what is actually needed. My friend's daughter once applied for a part time job at a major car rental agency. She was told she needed at least an under grad degree.... this was to be a counter clerk serving people renting cars mind you, not an executive. She was in fact, attending university in her third year but all they would offer her was a job cleaning the cars. I've since heard that this same company now expects their prospects to come armed with a graduate degree.... to be a goddam rental clerk!!! And it's these very same companies who'll bellyache to the government unendingly that there's a worker shortage.
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  7. Any video about George Soros will never be as entertaining as the comments which follow.
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  8. Excellent news! Huge respect to South Korea!
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  9. This video might have aged better six months ago. Since he's launched his campaign, he's been decidedly underwhelming and doesn't seem to have much in the way of appeal. He's to me, a lot like Scott Walker and Rick Perry; two other Republican governors who were seen as "rock stars" and the "next big thing" in the party and would have a clear road to the White House. That is until each actually launched their campaigns and proceeded to flop spectacularly. DeSantis just doesn't come across as genuine to me at all. He's got his finger up to gauge where the political winds are blowing but every position he takes and everything he says seems contrived and meant to grab headlines or out-do someone else. And he's trying way too hard to be Trump which will fail miserably because why would anyone choose a Trump wannabe when the genuine article is still on offer? Maybe he'll turn it around; there's still time but he's way, WAY behind and there's already a "Trump or I stay home" movement growing. I think he'd have been better advised to sit this cycle out and have a go when the Orange Man has finally flamed out.
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  10. This is what comes from not decisively dealing with your enemies the first time out. 40 years ago, both Hamas and Hezbollah were nothing more than a few rag-tag militants with little money or organization. But thanks to Iranian help, they're now both a rival to many of the world's organized militaries and in co-operation with one another, could give Israel and even the US a very hard time. Speaking of Iran, 50 years of sanctioning them into the ground hasn't accomplished much, has it? Again; this is what comes from pretending your enemies are something other than what they are to say nothing of shipping them pallets of cash for absolutely nothing in return.
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  11. As always, the easiest war to win is the one which doesn't happen; the one you prevent. So to prevent this one, the US and its allies must drive up the cost to China to such a degree that it will not even consider such a thing. You do this three ways - 1) By building military capacity in the region to an unprecedented level, 2) de-coupling from China as much as possible, as quickly as possible and 3) carving away their allies, one by one. You out-gun it militarily, starve it economically and isolate it diplomatically. Wars cost a lot of money and China's economic position is already precarious enough and it also has a well earned reputation as a regional and global diplomatic bully; two areas which the west can exploit. They've so far not been especially good at it; dear old Uncle Sam has not always been known for his own soft touch either but they can do it if they put the effort in.
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  12. "If Putin really wanted to invade Ukraine, he'd have done it already." Indeed. In fact, he could have done so at any point during 2014 or since when the Ukrainian military was significantly weaker than they are now but didn't. Why? During the Georgian war of 2008, he could've taken the entire country and been home in time for supper but didn't. Why? The answers are that A) he really has no interest in either and B) all of the reasons laid out in this video. If NATO has thought of all this stuff, you can bet Putin has too. He might be a lot of things but dumb isn't one of them.
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  13.  @mesh01550  Oh really.... would you care to elaborate on that?
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  14. That's possible but I wouldn't sell the Israelis short. Whatever you may think of them, they're among the smartest in the world and being the first to come up with something like this would not be out of character for them at all.
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  15. Delighted for Singapore!
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  16.  @gogs8166  For the most part, that's true but I don't think you even need to go that deep to understand what's going on. It's not merely a question of ideology though that's certainly part of it but it's really more a matter of cultural resentment. Modern liberals... as opposed to classical liberals who are more in line with what we call conservatives today.... view themselves as an anointed class of people who are above everyone else and thus entitled to hold all the positions and levers of political, social and cultural power. As a result, they feel they deserve to be, and indeed expect to be, revered and respected without reservation or question. When they don't get the reverence they feel is their birthright, they get VERY annoyed and begin to lash out. When someone who is not of their class and clique gets a little too noisy or "uppity"... forgetting their place in the pecking order, you might say... the daggers and vitriol come out. "How DARE they??!!" This is why you don't hear that much difference in how they talk about doctrinaire or moderate conservatives. To them, there really isn't that much difference. They are not "like" them so that, in and of itself, is sufficient justification for the vitriolic, class based hatred that is the essence of their existence. They put on this grand show of concern about all things race and gender but the truth is they don't give a damn about any of it. All of it is just a set of tools with which to beat the "inferiors." They are in a particularly acute stage of apoplexy at the moment because the PM of Italy is a woman and the PM of the UK is a "brown" person.... two cohorts they feel they have the exclusive right of ownership over.
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  17. It's because of my "always expect and plan for the worst possible scenario" military training and background that I'm forced to always be the one to temper expectations and throw cold water on everyone's hopes but it needs to be said as many times as necessary until people get the message..... Regardless of everything you've seen and heard, regardless of everything that's happened and regardless of what anyone tells you, this war is STILL very much Russia's to lose. People need to understand that Putin or anyone who might replace him, simply does not think like someone in the west would think. He does NOT care about casualties. He does NOT care about equipment. He does NOT care about costs and most of all, he certainly does NOT care about public perception at home, largely because he's got everyone propagandized six ways from Sunday or in jail or driven from the country. Another thing - his capacity to produce/acquire "equipment" and "armaments" is without limits. Yes, it's all garbage and yes, it'll not last two days in combat but if nothing else, it'll use up some sort of western supplied weapon to destroy it and possibly a few Ukrainian soldiers as well and since he can keep this cycle going indefinitely, the west WILL tire of supporting Ukraine at which point, Putin wins. Ukraine needs to defeat Putin on the battlefield, fully, completely and permanently while Russia... or at least Putin, only needs to survive to be able to declare victory. If we in the west want to see an end to this war; an end that is final and not just one which will last a few years until Putin re-arms and re-equips, we're going to have to get a hell of a lot more serious about doing so than we have been.
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  18. I served in the armed forces from 1979 until 2010 and often worked with troops who served in Europe in the 60s and 70s. This was when the old Soviet army was supposedly at its finest but my colleagues told me often about many of the same issues that are at issue today. It was and remains an army of conscripts and a conscript army will never be an effective fighting force unless there is some extreme motivating factor like fighting to protect a homeland.
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  19.  @badluck5647  That's a very standard but also very lame excuse. There's a very easy way around that. It's called a contract and they too are quite common. I've signed several of them myself.
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  20. It's always the same argument every time this topic gets discussed. It's either - "OMG! The US is pulling out of NATO altogether.... GASP!!" or it's the unchanged status quo. NO!!! There is a middle ground in there more vast than the ocean that divides us and that's where the answer lies. NATO was formed as a way to defend Europe against Soviet aggression and it was decided that the US would assume the lead role because at the time, it was the only nation that could do so. Europe was in ruins. But no one said that Europe; which has a combined GDP larger than the US, has to be America's dependent forever. The war has been over for eighty years, it's time for Europe to grow the f*ck up and start pulling its weight! And since it's never going to do that unless it's forced to do so, a bit of less than subtle coercion from America is in order. Cough up, Europe! We're not your f*cking sugar daddy!
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  21. He did explain that they were still far behind the US despite their numbers.
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  22. Let's see - USA falling apart, Brexit in Britain, Europe; well, being Europe, Russia, being Russia, a belligerent Iran, ISIS, Afghanistan, an ascendant China, turmoil in Latin America, North Korea, Saudi Arabia in trouble, opioid crisis, worldwide pandemic and pending economic collapse...... and COMPLETE lack of even a suggestion of leadership, anywhere...... Anyone know how to get to Gilligan's Island?
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  23.  @octapc  Every country with the ability to do so, spies on its allies, my friend; every single one of them. Always has, always will. That's just all part and parcel of how the espionage game works.
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  24. Because there are too many vested interests with too much stake in keeping things the way they are. The college industry on one side, unions on the other.
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  25. International pressure must be broad based, sustained and unflinching to be effective. People look for instant and favorable results. That's not the way it works. You don't drive a nail in one blow and you don't change behaviors overnight. Just because one thing you do doesn't give you immediate results is not a reason to quit.
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  26. Hate speech = speech I hate. The powerful care about nothing except protecting their power. This type of thing has never once led to a good place and it won't this time.
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  27. Been to Singapore and loved it. Can't wait to visit Dubai.
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  28. Absolutely fantastic news! Delighted to hear it.
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  29.  @scratchy996  Anywhere, really. Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, The Baltics, Georgia, Serbia, even some day maybe, Ukraine. Every one of them represents a huge opportunity for foreign investment and growth. It'll take drive and determination on their parts as well; it's a two-way street, after all, but it could pay huge dividends for all sides. It would also have the side benefit of prying them loose from Russian influence. Win - win all around.
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  30. And results are still pending.
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  31.  @Visit_Tangier  I did nearly 25 years in the military and met, served with, worked with and crossed paths with, literally hundreds of British, Australian and New Zealand military personnel on multiple occasions including in their own countries embedded inside their own units and I didn't encounter a single one who pronounced that word as "corpse." I can't say for sure but I really don't think they changed their speech habits just because I was there.
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  32. Bolsonaro, Lula,..... what's the difference? Brazil, like nearly all of Latin America, is a slow moving train wreck on auto-replay. Wild swings right followed by wild swings left but the results never change.
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  33. Even the vaunted AK 47 is not really a Russian invention. It's basically a low cost copy of the German StG 44 made with stamped parts to keep costs down and increase production.
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  34. True but America is not unique in that respect. China and many other nations, have the exact same problems.
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  35. It may not be a case of fighting and winning independence. I could see the possibility of it coming down to Moscow having neither the will nor them means to hold them.
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  36.  @badluck5647  It's a good thing he's a frail 91 year old man otherwise Chuck Norris would be finished.
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  37. No.
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  38. So the moral of the story for SA, UAE & Egypt would seem to be - don't attempt to wield more power than you actually have.
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  39. Well, if nothing else, this may be one more incentive for these companies to finally wake up and smell the coffee and fully and permanently de-couple from China.
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  40. Well said and absolutely correct!
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  41. I was already seeking to avoid air travel any way I could. Now I'll try even harder.
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  42. Headline - "Vast oil and gas reserves discovered in Antarctica." Penguins - "Welp, it's been a great neighborhood but thing's is 'bout to get mighty interestin' 'round here."
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  43. I don't find it particularly surprising that some people, or even most people, in Bulgaria and elsewhere in Eastern Europe have a kind of fondness for Russia. After all, they lived under the umbrella, influence and shadow of the Russian / Soviet Empire for centuries. You don't erase that in 30 years; especially when you're as poor as Bulgaria is and they perceive that Russia has done at least something for them in recent memory. And it's not as though Western Europe is exactly doing very much to win their affections. If you want to shove Russia out of the picture, then start demonstrating what you have to offer that's better. If the EU (and the USA, for that matter) were smart they'd be investing heavily in places like Bulgaria and Hungary and bettering their economic prospects so they wouldn't continue to be tempted by, and look favorably upon, despots like Putin who only ever meant to exploit them. Instead of buying everything from China and feeding cash to the PRC war machine, why not build factories in Bulgaria? Shorter and much more stable supply lines, you'd be keeping the wealth in Europe and you'd be dealing with allies instead of enemies - win/win.
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  44. Ungovernable? Latin America? Well, the two go pretty much hand in hand. Hard swings left followed by hard swings right and what ever changes? Theme song of Latin America ought to be "The Song Remains the Same."
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  45. I don't think it's nearly as hard as has been portrayed here. Obviously you can't decouple yourself overnight or the chaos mentioned here would become a reality but a slow, methodical approach would not result in very much upheaval at all. But we have to start NOW. It starts by cutting deals with China's main adversaries like Vietnam, India and The Philippines and moving your business there. Interestingly, this is already happening in many sectors and without much or even any coercion from the US government. As more and more companies start to see China for what it really is, and realize the risks of tying up a lot of money in the country, they're already taking steps to separate themselves. Furthermore, China is no longer the bargain basement manufacturer of choice. Mexican labor for example, is now cheaper than Chinese labor as well as being just better overall and much more reliable. And I'll mention again what a glorious opportunity Latin America represents to the US and Eastern Europe does to Western Europe. Making some serious investments in those areas would pay huge dividends in a relatively short time and as a bonus, go a LONG way in solving the migrant crisis.
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  46. I've met and worked with a LOT of Iranians over my lifetime and there wasn't a single one I didn't like and respect. Super smart, super motivated and super nice.... IF you respect them and their culture. If there was a way to get rid of the stone age zealots who run that country, and those people could really show what they could do,.... watch out!!
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  47. China's going to mess with Vietnam, eh? Well, good luck with that. You'll frickin' well need it.
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  48.  @rickfool1452  You clowns must be so relieved you don't have to show your faces on these threads.
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  49. Any wonder Trump tried to "buy" Greenland?
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  50. Cannot express how immensely proud I am of Poland! Worked with Polish troops in 1992 and again in 2006 and all these years later, I still can't believe how profound the change in just a few years. I look forward with hope to a Europe led by Poland and its eastern brothers. These are the nations who KNOW what freedom means and how easily it's lost through weakness. The old block of Germany, France and increasingly Britain has totally lost its way and has become weak, soft and fearful. Don't let Brussels push you around, Poland. YOU are the rising power in Europe, not them. YOU have made yourself strong and proud and free while they have declined in both power and importance. You are rising, they are faltering. All power and glory to my Polish friends from a (retired) NATO brother in Canada. I salute you!!
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