ONT Leo XIV

Welcome to Thursday night! How about we open with some feel-good content?

A Smart Military Blog

Army secretary says US tanks will have to hang back to avoid getting killed by cheap drones

The heavy losses have led to assessments that tanks may be obsolete in wars dominated by drones. However, Driscoll recently told BI that the role of US tanks will change rather than disappear. Instead of combined-arms assaults led by armor, where tanks are the first to hit the front lines and lead breaching operations, uncrewed systems may spearhead the charge instead.

Driscoll said that tanks will stay in safe, defended positions until there is a clear path that allows them to move forward. This is a break from the traditional role of tanks, but it is seen by military planners as necessary in a world where armored vehicles worth millions can be easily picked off by drones worth as little as a few hundred bucks.

Using cheap drones to destroy expensive armored vehicles has proven to be an effective asymmetrical warfare tactic. US forces have enjoyed air superiority in recent conflicts, not needing to be constantly looking up for enemy airpower. That's changing with drones.

It seems to me, armchair general that I am, that we may be at an inflection point in warfare, much as WWI was an inflection point. Drones change everything. Or do they? I think we may be close to being able to deploy mobile, Iron Dome type defensive vehicles, armed with lasers, that completely nullify or severely mitigate, the drone threat. What do y'all think?

Useless

What Is The Point Of Having A GOP Congress?

But now that they’ve been given the reins of power, many congressional Republicans have shown little interest in actually governing in accordance with the pitch they made to voters just a few short months ago.

On Wednesday, reporting surfaced that a cabal of House Republicans is fighting efforts to end the flow of federal taxpayer funds to Planned Parenthood, the nation’s largest abortion provider, which also offers harmful chemical and surgical castration procedures. According to NOTUS, this group of lawmakers — which reportedly included Republican Reps. Mike Lawler, Brian Fitzpatrick, and Jen Kiggans — “made it clear to House GOP leadership that they oppose adding a measure to cut federal funding to Planned Parenthood” to the House’s reconciliation package.

So, if slashing the taxpayer subsidization of entities that terminate unborn babies isn’t on the budget chopping block for Republicans, then what is?

It’s apparently not fully repealing Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act or making significant reforms and reductions to Medicaid. Congressional GOPers have come out opposing both options over the course of the party’s reconciliation negotiations.

We've made progress, but it's plain that we need a long march through our own institutions to rid our ranks of GOPe scum. I just don't know if we have time.

Interlude: Tool Time!

First An American Pope, Now This

American tourist becomes the first man in over 1,500 years to be impaled at the Colosseum

But at 5 p.m. on Friday, when the 47-year-old tourist (who has American citizenship but is a "resident of Taiwan") climbed the fence at the Piazza del Colosseo, impaled himself, screamed until he passed out, and nearly bled to death, the crowds had a different reaction: Visitors looked on in horror, according to Italian news outlets. ‘It was terrible,' commented one tourist, an eyewitness of the tragedy. ‘I saw that man skewered on a railing, and he couldn't free himself on his own.'

Speaking of the pope, since he is now an elected official from Chicago, does that mean that it's inevitable that he'll be arrested on federal corruption charges? We'll see how he does, but I'm not a big fan. He's one of the guys that was behind removing the wonderful Bishop Strickland from his post for publicly stating that the church should, I dunno, maybe follow the teachings of Christ.

Liberal Women: A Theory

Why so many woman get manipulated into being liberals

George Orwell once wrote women are always and inevitably on the side of the state. He wasn't being misogynistic, he was making a psychological observation. In his view, women, particularly in their role as caregivers and moral enforcers, tend to prioritize safety and compassion over risk and freedom, and that instinct, while natural, is easily weaponized by totalitarian systems. When conformity is marketed as compassion, control is rebranded as care, the state taps into the feminine psyche to enforce ideological obedience.

More at the link, what do you think?

I Like Trains

Sir Rod Stewart reveals his epic model railway city

He told Railway Modeller he worked on the skyscrapers and other scenery while on tour, requesting an extra room for his constructions in his hotels.

"We would tell them in advance and they were really accommodating, taking out the beds and providing fans to improve air circulation and ventilation," he said.

The scenery and structures are his forte, rather than the locomotives and tracks. "I find beauty in what everyone else sees as ugly - rugged skyscrapers, beaten-up warehouses, things that are very run down."

Photos of the layout show dozens of highly detailed buildings plus bridges, ships, vegetation and streets teeming with vintage cars and taxis.

"When I take on something creative like this, I have to give it 110%," he said. "For me it's addictive. I started, so I just had to finish. I'm lucky I had the room. If I'd have realised at the start it would have taken so long, I'd have probably said, 'No! No! Nah!'"

Pictures at the link, it's pretty epic.

Road Rage

This road-rage incident is seriously one of the worst things I've ever seen (don't worry, he survived)

Video at link. I make it a point not to antagonize other drivers when I'm on four wheels, much less when I'm on two.

Tonight's ONT has been brought to you by scenic San'aa:

Background, if you don't get the reference.

posted by WeirdDave at 10:00 PM

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