All Posts by baff

If you want to call it a client state instead of a colony. Go right ahead. Whatever floats your boat.

Changing the name doesn't change the relationship.

Similarly we can call invasion liberation. War, intervention. Murder, Euthanasia.

Killing our pets would upset the kids so instead we just put them down.

 So yeah, if you think colonisation is evil, by all means call it something else when you do it. There's nothing wrong with a little propaganda amongst friends or a harmless white lie for children.

They have always been ready to go toe to toe with the west.

A few morons thought that when they won the Cold War it meant that the Russians had lost.

That is pretty much correct.

The technical name for a colony such as ours is a client kingdom.

Every Empire has them.

To gice you some idea, we are dependant on the U.S. for our national security. You sell us our nukes.

Our PM asks your President for permission before going to war.

Your citzens have more rights in my country than our own citizens.

America has militry bases in Britain, Britain has none in America.

Our citizens can be arrested for breaking American laws, even when they do so in England and have not commited a crime under English  law.

American citizens are not subject to British law.

That's the way the power lies.

Originally posted by Enigma

To Baff:

You need to know what Colonizing means before using such a term lol. When a country becomes a democratic  nation they are not colonized under the US Government.

Come on, you're from England. You should know what Colonization means. It means when a foreign piece of territory becomes a soverign piece of land that is owned by the nation that declares it theirs. They have their laws, their armies, their officials, etc.

When a country becomes a nation of democracy they are not owned by the US.

 Yes mate, I'm from England. I know what colonies are and the U.S. has plenty of them.

"Colony" isn't a dirty word here. 

Colonies traditionally have independant governments. Some don't. Each colony is different. (Almost all of the British colonies were democratic). All colonies are encouraged to have their own armies, their own officials, their own laws.

I think you mistake your own experience as British colony for those of all colonies. No two are the same. You don't come from an adolescent nation any more. You are a fully fledged colonial power. A superpower. Just the same as every other superpower in history. You have colonies in all the countries you have defeated and all those you were invited into to protect. You also have trade colonies. Just like Rome did. Just like Britian did. Just like Spain and Germany and France.

You are an old enough nation now to deal with name. Your little rebellion was along time ago. Things have changed.

What makes them a colony is when your citizens start living there in enclaves. Historically most colonies are military. An airbase, a naval base, an Army barracks.

When your military presence props up their government, they are your colony. A dependant.

Originally posted by Tuor7

I just keep getting a kick out of how they're calling a Coast Guard cutter a "warship".

So they sent a cutter to bring "humanitarian supplies" to Georgia, but then back out of their original plan of sending them to the northern port (where some of our land vehicles were captured by the Russians). Considering they were sending only one Coastie in there, I can understand why they changed their minds: if you're going to go into a possible hostile situation in a foreign land, you should send in the Navy.

 

USS McFaul (DDG-74) is an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer.

It's mission is "To conduct prompt and sustained combat operations at sea in support of national intrests."

Coastguard you say?

Seems to have got a little lost.

America thought it could colonise Georgia.

The Russians have put the knockers on that

The Yanks are all crying and Russians are all laughing.

It's over. Not much newsworthy going on there now.

Gerogia will have a new government soon.

There's still Ukraine, Moldovia and Lithuania left to play for, but I think the outcome is now pretty much a given.

Just like with the invasion of Iraq the global community will all cry foul until something new comes along for them all to cry about. But crying is all they are going to do.

It's over. Soon to be forgotten.

Russia has recognised South Ossetia and Azbackia. Game over NATO. Game over EU.

I buy mail order.

The shop posts the games to me.

Not that many.

Teaching is an inspirational vocation.

MacDonalds money doesn't inspire me.

It's a question of self-esteem.

I was a teacher for 15 years.

In the end it just wasn't financially viable to continue with it.

People kept offering me jobs and if they caught me off guard I would find myself laughing in their faces when they told me the pay.

The problem with working for too little money was that it started to affect my work.

On the way to school in the morning I would be thinking about how crap my wages are and how they hadn't bothered to inflation adjust them for 10 years, so that despite my becoming a more experienced teacher with greater responsabilities, my effective take home had noticeably shrunk.

And feeling under appreciated I would walk into the classroom with a "just do what I get paid for and no more" attitude. That's not good enough for me. I like to be at the top of game, and it's not the students fault but it's them who suffer my mood.

I got paid more than the other teachers, worked the best schools with the most motivated students, but I've always made my money elsewhere. I didn't need the money, and they didn't need me enough to pay reasonable contributions to my expenses (I worked 60 miles from home and travel expenses are not what they were 20 years ago).

So no more teaching.

Mrs Baff is very cross with me that I gave it up. For her it's a calling and a high status job. A civic responsability perhaps. But if you don't feel valued it's very hard to maintain a healthy attitude in the work place.

Great job though. 19 year old girls all writing you love letters every day. Always the centre of attention in every room. That over protective feeling being in charge of kids brings.

Knowing best.

Police men and customs officials the world over instantly treat you nicely the moment you give them your profession.

Lunches with the mayor. The little boxes of presents the kids still send decades after you taught them.

The look on the dumb kids face when he got something right. 

It's not all about the money.

Originally posted by olddaddy

Yes, it's true!

Dinosaurs provide the architectural and mathmatical skill necessary for those hordes of human labors to haul those obscenely heavy blocks into the correct place. Without the dinosaurs management and organization skills, it is doubtful that humans could have ever accomplished building the pyramids correctly.

Edit: While visiting the pyramids on a taxpayer paid junket, one member of the US Congress was heard to remark, "Just think of the political favors and kickbacks that went into this thing".

 

Dragged?

I thought they stuck grains of sand together with glue until they had a big enough block.

I have Logic for the PC.

Some of my friends use Mac's on their studio's, some use PC's. 

The ones with professional studio's all use Mac's.

The same is true of all the video editing suites I've seen. Mac is the dominant computer in this field.

Either will do, it's what you learnt on that you will feel most comfortable using.

When it all started Mac was the market leader for audio software. So that's what a lot of engineers have learnt on.

Mac's cost more but look nicer. They have status symbol appeal. 

A new Mac is made from identical components to a new PC, it just uses a different Operating System.

For noise, keep your PC/Mac box in a different room. Just run the keyboard and screen in your recording area.

Irradiating food to sterilise it is a time honoured practise.

In England we still have Chernobyl irradiated sheep which no one is allowed to eat.

(The fallout is on the grazing lands).

20 year old american tourists in England, behave in the exact same manner as 17 year olds here.

You are going to have to learn to behave yourself with alcohol at some stage in your life.

Binge drinking is fun.

I enjoy it.

The trick is not to pass out. 

Passing out and being sick is what you do when you are a noob. It's a rites of passage that everyone has to go through. That isn't the purpose of the exercise.

For a young man it is far more important to make new friends, bond closer with existing friends and get into womens underwear than it is to look after your physical health.

Open a delicatessen.

Originally posted by Zindaihas

Originally posted by zipit

      Lol, the yanks crack me up everytime. An absurd mixture of sligthly looking forward to a possible Apocalypse so they can show off their bunker/survival research and an intoxicating lack of understanding other countries' motives through culture, diplomacy and household philosophy.

     Understanding the Russian mentality and military history makes both Georgia and the Polish issue logical from a Russian point of view. It's all about feeling secure and it's all about the in-bred fear of being attacked.

      This is not "the end", but rather a "burp" in the ongoing EU-Russia process. What happened to "speak softly, but carry a bick stick"? The Bush doctrine seems to be "provoke, lie, let the Supreme Court rather than the people elect me, lie to the UN about WMD, set up torture/breach of human rights shop in Guantanamo". Hold your tongue White House and let our EU diplomats soothe this Russian bear.

 

Ok, I was not going to turn this into an America vs Europe thing, but since you did first, I guess I have no choice.  You know, maybe if the Western European nations had any balls, Russia might be more likely to back down.  As it is, it feels to me like America is about the only Western nation standing with Georgia and the other Eastern bloc countries.  I fear the spectre of Adolf Hitler has turned the Western Europeans into a bunch of cream puffs.  Speak softly but carry a big stick?  You guys aren't even carrying twigs.  Come on Western Europe, step up to the plate and stare down Mother Russia.  You are even closer to trouble than America.

Oh yes, I forgot what a great job the EU has been doing placating Russia, with it's Eastern European expansionism*, and it's creation of an independant Kosovo, setting the precedent for Ossetian an Azbjacian independence.

(*) Remember what happened to Russia last time Western Europe was allowed to expand unchecked? Oh did I say last time, I meant to say the last 4 times).

 You can't soothe the Russian Bear. It's a bear.

The only thing between the EU and Russia is the U.S.

The Russians don't do diplomacy. They don't care about it. They lie. They change their minds.

The only thing they respect is muscle and you would be wise to respect theirs.

The EU is pathetic at diplomacy. They are toothless and divided. A trade consortium trying to be something it's not. A paper tiger.

Look at all the political wannabe's all taking the opportunity to talk tough on Russia.  All of them impotent. Talking a big fight they know they won't have to have.

Posing for their adoring publics. Strutting around acting the big men while the real big men all duck for cover.

You may not respect Russian culture. You may not respect Russia politics or Russia foreign policy. But if you respect nothing else at all in life, you would be wise to respect Russian power.

Don't stare down bears.

Don't provoke bears.

Stay away from bears.

Europe is closer to Russia than America. You will live 10 minutes longer than us.

Originally posted by Gorair

Originally posted by Flem

Why does the USA always stick their noses into other people's business.  And obviously im talking about the government here not the citizens.

Can't for once they let two nations fight it out without butting in.  Their involvement will only escalate the situation.

 

 

because every single time we did that in our history, is has cost us more and been harder to correct. I would almost think Chamberlain(sp?) was back and getting suport.

To tho be honest in this case, i see no threat to the US until the reality of the problems Europe will face after Russia re-absorbs Georgia. But i also say we stay out even then after they come to us for help in 5 years.

 

Right becuase Georgia under Russian rule has been such a big problem for Europe in the past.

Originally posted by Sarcazmo

Originally posted by Darcknyght

just shows you how the government controls everything in this country and we are not free. This is utterly retarded and we should have not grudge with iran other then they just want us out of the middle east where we do not belong.

 

 

 

You've obviously never set foot in a country that has an oppressive government.  You think our government has eliminated our freedoms?  Have a conversation with the people of Eastern Europe sometime, or an immigrant who escaped the brutality of central Africa. 

lmao  I love lay Americans.  Their insight is always so profound and well informed.

 

So er... what countries with oppressive governments have you set foot in?

How many Eastern Europeans have you spoken to this week?  Judging by your comments on oppression alone, none.

WoW, a tax cut on his tax rise.

Bonus.

Originally posted by Gorair

i say fine lets do solar and wind , and anything else we can get our hands on , we wont really know until we try it.

 

In the U.S. large scale solar and wind power production has been online for almost half a century.
 

We do know. We have tried it.

This isn't new technology.

Originally posted by HYPERI0N

Wind power is a good idea, if America could put up enough to make a difference then that would mean less oil would be needed not only from abroad but from American soil too. Also i have to say that wind turbines look quite striking in the Fens here in the UK. And it has been proven that such technology can provide enough energy to cut down on oil and gas dependancy by a large margin. Of course it takes a few but it CAN be done [10 billion i think for the UK].

 

The excuse that Nanci is giving sounds at best ill informed.

Bah another Fenlander.

Me too. (Hobein is another local).

The first girl I ever snogged was my sister. How about you?

I like Windmills, old and new.

On my horizon, the view from this room, there is a working 19th centrury windmill standing next to a giant BT telecoms tower. A modern windmill built next to that would hardly spoil my view, but would in fact improve it I think. Although more than one would likely upset me, as would the noise.

I like those offshore wind farms better.

Energy diversity aside, I think that the whole point of renewable energy is to save the enviroment. Nanci has a point. If you are damaging the enviroment to save the enviroment, it strikes me as an own goal.

We all want to live somewhere nice, if a giant powerplant in your backyard ruins your personal enviroment, no amount of hippies crying "save the enviroment" is going to impress you.

There are other aspects to enviromentalism than just carbon dioxide reduction, (although trees are well known for being the worlds greatest carbon dioxide sink).

Saving the enviroment starts at home, if you save your little patch of it, and I save mine, and everyone else saves theirs, we've got the whole world covered right there.

What I don't want is a complete moron who lives in the city trying to save my enviroment.