Relative Armor at the start of Operation Barbarossa

To not clutter up the thread on the war in Ukraine, I moved it here.

Yes the soviet union had more and better tanks than the germans at the start of the german invasion. At least they had more and better tanks in existence even if absurd rates of them were not operable.

German successes were generally not based on superiority of their tanks in either the battle of france or the invasion of the soviet union(well having over 70% inoperable due to needing repair shifts things around a bit) but superior doctrine and air power.

[yt]gh7mt2OS770[/yt]

Speculation: Putin is dying

I was already thinking it was a possibility even before seeing these comments in another thread:

Quote:

Originally Posted by shemp (Post 13752721) No. I have a feeling that Putin is not going to survive much longer, maybe due to his health. Try to wait him out until he's gone.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jack by the hedge (Post 13752759) I sure wouldn't want to be the doctor who goes to tell him the good news that they mixed up his test results and he's not dying after all. Not now.

Assume he knows he's got only a short time to live. Just says "**** it" and destroys both Ukraine and his own country's economy, because he's got nothing to lose and might as well go out with a bang.

Then again, maybe he's just crazy. Or crazy AND dying.

'Don't Say Gay' bill passes Florida Senate

'Don't Say Gay' bill passes Florida Senate

Quote:

The Parental Rights in Education bill, dubbed the "Don't Say Gay" bill by LGBTQ activists, has now been passed by both the Florida Senate and House. The bill would limit what classrooms can teach about sexual orientation and gender identity. Under this legislation, these lessons "may not occur in kindergarten through grade 3 or in a manner that is not age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards."

I don't live in Florida, but I've had two kids who've gone to kindergarten through 3rd grade in the last decade or so. Of their classmates, at least one transitioned during that time frame, maybe more. (COVID limited my social interaction with the kids and their parents. My daughter's 5th grade class has several non-binary kids, but I don't know when they transitioned in before 4th grade.) There have been many crushes, one involving my son starting in kindergarten. The idea that sexual orientation and gender identity are not issues in elementary school is out of touch with reality.

I have a ex-coworker who has very much embraced the culture warrior worldview. He is the most vocal about these issues in my social media feeds, even though he has no kids of his own and, I would guess, is not familiar with how childhood works. His take on the issue is that people who support teaching kids about what they are going through emotionally could only do so because they want to groom kids for sexual assault.

*deep breath, slow exhale*

Should Ukraine give up?

There are reports in the Jerusalem Post that Russia and Ukraine are negotiating a path to peace, and its a hard one.

-Ukraine will have to give up Donbass region.

-Pledge that Ukraine will not join NATO.

-Military of Ukraine must be reduced in size.


Zelensky knows that he has tons of support. Financial, sanctions and weapons. But no country will defend Ukraine. They will have to do all the fighting.

The word is if Ukraine rejects this offer, Russia will go full Bear and crush Ukraine, quick and painful.

If Zelensky says no, he will look like a massive Ukrainian patriot. But possibly a dead one or be President of a non-existent nation.

If Zelensky says yes, he may look like a coward to some, but a pragmatic realist to others. NATO will not save Ukraine, maybe its not worth losing the nation in the name of pride and honor. I dont know.


https://www.jpost.com/international/...arch+9%2C+2022

Rent a car from Hertz and get a free arrest warrant

What do you get when you cross the police state with corporate incompetence? A nationwide rental car company mass reporting false theft reports because they lose records of their cars, resulting in innocent people being arrested for car theft.

Quote:

HUNDREDS of people are suing Hertz over alleged false arrests in regards to rental cars. In recent court documents, Hertz reportedly acknowledged that it files 3,365 police reports about stolen cars involving its customers on average every year. ... A total of 230 customers are now suing Hertz for false arrest – with some claiming false prosecution. One of them is a grandmother who goes by Paula Murray, who was arrested in January 2021 for allegedly stealing a car. However, she did in fact return the car five years before her arrest and had her charges dismissed on March 30, according to USA Today. It added that false theft cases regarding Hertz’s rental units have been known to occur, but that the exact number of innocent customers is unclear. The court documents show the group suing Hertz has spent a cumulative 2,742 days behind bars.

One example includes a man who ended up being convicted of car theft, despite having a valid contract from Hertz:

Quote:

Moreover, there was another case where Larry Wilcoxson had to end his campaign to serve as a state representative for Florida The man, who was in his mid-30s at the time, had police officers show up at his door in regards to an alleged stolen car in his driveway that he rented from Hertz. Despite him having a rental agreement and bank statement regarding the rental charges, he was sentenced to two years of probation just a few weeks ahead of his election results. This was because Hertz claimed in the trial it had no record of Larry's rental “I had to kill all my dreams of being a state representative,” he said. To make matters worse, he got arrested for a probation violation that sent him to jail for 180 days. ... The suits claim that Hertz has a “pattern of missing inventory” and immediately files police reports rather than conducting an internal investigation to ensure records are correct.

https://www.the-sun.com/motors/48175...t-rental-cars/

Yes, we have no bananas

Dear fellow speakers of English.

I was asked by a Japanese colleague about the meaning of the following question and answer:

Q: Is there no exclusive relationship?
A: Yes.

In this case, given only the above information, does the answer mean

"Yes, there is no exclusive relationship"
or
"Yes, there is an exclusive relationship"

Likewise if the answer were simply "No."

And this reminded me of the famous song "Yes, we have no bananas."

If a customer at a grocery store were to ask "Do you have no bananas?" presumably "Yes" means "Yes, we have no bananas." Right?

I'm a little confused.

Silent Drone Uses Ion Propulsion

Next Generation Silent Drone Achieves Major Milestone

I can imagine it working with water vapor. But I cannot imagine it working
with ions in the air because, air being electrically neutral, the ions it attracts
counterbalance the ions it repels. Another possibility, ionize the air in contact
with the top grid, attract it with a changing polarity on the middle grid, then
neutralize the ions with the bottom grid, perhaps.