BeaverFever

Conservatives Are Having a Meltdown Over Trump and the Epstein List Donald Trump’s biggest supporters are freaking out over the anticipated unveiling. Tori Otten3:21 p.m. ET Several of Donald Trump’s biggest fans seem increasingly frantic about a forthcoming list divulging the names of those who traveled on Epstein’s plane and visited his various international estates. In social media posts and public appearances, several MAGA talking heads have made it clear that Trump’s highly anticipated presence on such a list, which is expected to contain nearly 200 names, is at the front of their minds. On Tuesday, the former president’s son turned fingers toward Bill Clinton, who has also been photographed alongside the serial rapist. “Everyone knows Bill Clinton was on Jeffrey Epstein’s [planes] and island a lot. Literally no one is at all surprised that he’s all over the release,” Don Jr. posted on X. “What we want to know is ALL THE OTHER NAMES that the government has been hiding & running cover for. That will actually be revealing!” InfoWars host and Trump sycophant Alex Jones also made some noise on the issue, apparently having a hard time rationalizing how the known womanizer could have been associated with Epstein. “I will say this, if it turns out Trump ever went to Epstein Island, I will remove any support from him,” Jones said. “But I know Roger Stone very well, and I know people that know Trump well, a lot of people, I’ll leave it at that. I know women that have dated Trump, prominent women.” “He gets devoted to one woman at a time, gets totally obsessed with them, totally nice to them,” Jones continued, apparently ignoring the fact that Trump is due for a criminal trial this year on the basis of paying hush money to a porn star with whom he reportedly had an affair. Other conservatives seemed equally flabbergasted at the anticipated unveiling, attempting to frame a new conspiracy to avoid confronting the reality of Trump’s behavior. “High chance that the Epstein filings will include Donald Trump’s name. Out of context, the legacy media and TDS sufferers will pretend this isn’t because he gave willing testimony against Epstein when queried and will make believe that it makes him a pervert,” postedX user @Styx666Official to much conspiratorial head-nodding. That’s compared to the dozens of instances in which Trump was photographed partying alongside Epstein and Maxwell and recorded on the socialite’s plane, dubbed the “Lolita Express,” while surrounded by crowds of young girls. He also described the pedophile peddler as a “terrific guy.” …. https://newrepublic.com/post/177805/harvard-president-claudine-gay-resigns-far-right-attacks-media-elevated

That’s exactly why we have rule of law, respect for official office holders, expertise and due process, not rule by uninformed populist mobs who know nothing are easily fooled and have no clear organization or plan except to round up a bunch of good ol boys and f-ck sh-t up Furthermore you can make your claim aboanyone. If you put yourself in terrorists headspace where they genuinely believe they are the victims of aggression then they are the heroes

But you clearly wish you were Russian. Riiiiight.

You know all the ISIS-inspired terrorist attacks across the western world weren’t coordinated either, it was just self-radicalized individuals and cells inspired by garbage posted on social media. Similarly, many of the people who stormed the Capitol on Jan 6 legitimately believed internet nonsense asserting that if congress is unable to certify the election on the date of Jan 6 as specified in the constitution FOR ANY REASON then the election is nullified and the president will then need to be elected by the Republican-controlled congress. Some of those ideas were circulating on this very forum by the usual conservative crackpots in the weeks and months after Trump’s election loss leading up to January 6. So yes the Jan 6 attack was an attempt by at least some to nullify the 2020 election and install an alternative president. Similarly, Trump’s fake elector scheme and forged electoral certificates was also an attempt to sow confusion and prevent certification on Jan 6.

1) Better than it’s going been going for Russia 2) Better than it’s been going for Trump 3) Is Hunter in jail yet?

It’s only embarrassing to wanna-be Russians like you. Unsurprisingly the resort is mostly full of sane and happy people not hate-filled lonely crackpots like yourself You can’t even extend well wishes to tour fellow Putin-supporting warmongers? Wow

I don’t have a POTUS, I’m Canadian. Everything else you mention is exaggerated an/or not the work of Joe Biden. I get it, Trump spent his xmas hate-tweeting his toxic little thoughts and lies out to the the world and muppet that you are, you had to imitate. Think for yourself for once instead of just regurgitating what dictators like Putin Trump say.

I don’t think that’s entirely accurate The last time an Israeli PM entertained even a step towards a 2-state solution was Yitzhak Rabin who was then. assassinated by rightwing anti-peace Israelis. Soon afterwards the hardline anti -peace Likud party came to power and has pretty much been in power ever since. Netanyahu has been a regular feature of that party dating back to before Rabin’s assassination. Netanyahu and Likud have never expressed any openness to a 2-state solution that I can recall amd their coalition governments court extremist groups who not only refuse a Palestinian state, but want full annexation of the occupied Palestinian territories (without granting Palestinians citizenship of course). The Hamas takeover of Gaza from the moderate and secular Palestinian Authority is widely believed to have been supported by anti-peace Israelis in order to divide the 2 Palestinian territories between 2 competing factions, while using the militant and Islamist Hamas as an excuse to stall peace talks. The anti-peace Israelis believed that Palestinians could be contained in their respective territories without having to make any peace deals through occasional military incursions and bombing campaigns which they referred to as “mowing the grass”. In fact Netanyahu has long been publicly blamed for Rabin’s assassination due to his inflammatory rhetoric about Rabin leading up to the assassination. And by some strange coincidence just 2 weeks before the October 7 attacks Netanyahu publicly announced he would boycott the annual national memorial of Rabin’s assassination (which also occurs every October) with some vague claim claim that it was too political. It was the first time any PM has not attended the event since the 1995 assassination. It’s almost as if he had some premonition that by October it would be “time to be cruel” and not time to honour an Israeli leader assassinated for his peacemaking achievements. I’m not saying there was any conspiracy behind Oct7 but at the very least it sure was an excellent opportunity for the most extreme hard-right anti-peace government Israel has ever seen, the same way 9-11 was an excellent opportunity for the war hawks in the Bush admin to execute their plan to invade Iraq, which they had been publicly promoting for many years by then As further evidence of Israel’s lack of interest in peace, consider Netanyahu’s current Minister of National Security. Itamar Ben Gvir is a lifelong settler,Jewish Supremacist extremist, provocateur, and leader of a fringe party literally called “Jewish Power”. He had a long track record of violent anti-Arab hate speech, promoting anti-Arab terrorism and he even kept a poster in his office of an Israeli settler terrorist gunman who killed and wounded ~150 Muslim worshippers in a single attack. He has been described by Israelis as what a Jewish fascist would actually look like. More than once In fact many times. Netanyahu allowed his extremist party to join his coalition and made him Minister of National Security- an obviously top job that speaks to how much Netanyahu supports him and also the worst job anyone could possibly give to a hardline pro-violence bigoted extremist It was surely another strange coincidence that Israel’s national security under Gvir massively failed on Oct 7, not only failing to detect and prevent the attack plot but also failing to effectively respond in a timely manner. Israel is known for many things but poor national security is not one of them. The opposite in fact. Again I’m not saying conspiracy it could be the guy is just an unqualified boob who never should have been in charge of anything so important but as the say “never let a good tragedy go to waste”

Lol the Putin supporter speaks up. Tooany afternoons watching Sputnik. Putin may be the cruelest dictator alive, Israel can’t hold a candle to his record of atrocities. And he supports Hamas to boot.

As already said nobody who supports a just war describes themselves as being cruel. Nobody thinks someone defending themselves from an attacker is cruel. Nobody thinks D-Day was cruel except maybe anti-war activists. The word cruel has a meaning and it doesn’t means strong or brave or fierce or. And it sure as hell taking every precaution to minimize unavoidable civilian casualties, in fact it means the opposite of that b.

Nice try. Which war are you thinking of where a political leader called for cruelty or described their aide as being deliberately cruel or said cruelty was a good thing? NOBODY who supports a war describes it as cruel or unavoidable civilian casualties as cruel.

Yes you sure are, you fake news sucker! Meanwhile back in rhe real world your supposed champion of freedom Putin just transferred his most vocal critic (whom he previously tried to poison) to a penal colony in the arctic circle. His crime was daring to run for election a few years ago. Also happening in reality: Russia's economy is paralyzed, and Putin's war machine survives on cannibalizing state-owned firms, Yale researchers say Russia's economy is paralyzed, and its war machine survives on cannibalizing state-owned firms, according to two Yale researchers. In an op-ed in Foreign Policy on Friday, Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and Steven Tian sought to push back on recent commentary that cast President Vladimir Putin as one of 2023's big winners amid signs of economic resilience. But Western sanctions and the mass exodus of multinational companies from Russia that followed have inflicted huge costs on the nation's economy, they argued. "We cannot fall into the trap of thinking that all is good for Putin, and we cannot jettison effective measures to pressure him," Sonnenfeld and Tian wrote, noting that transferring "worthless" expropriated assets from Western firms to Putin's cronies doesn't make Russia wealthier. They also listed several other signs that Russia's economy has been reeling. Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in early 2022, at least 1 million Russians have fled to other other countries, including top tech talent. That's contributed to a labor shortage that's nearing 5 million workersand has stoked high inflation. Meanwhile, $253 billion in private capital left Russia between February 2022 and June 2023, Sonnenfeld and Tian said, citing the Russian central bank's own data. In addition, Russia has lost access to Western technology and expertise that its companies relied on, while foreign direct investment has nearly completely dried up. Making matters worse are strict capital controls that have rendered Russian assets valued in rubles virtually worthless on global markets. And sanctions that cut off Moscow from much of international finance have prevented Russian companies from issuing any new stock or any new bonds in a Western market. "Russia, which never supplied any finished goods—industrial or consumer—to the global economy, is paralyzed," Sonnenfeld and Tian said. "It is not remotely an economic superpower, with virtually all of its raw materials easily substituted from elsewhere. The war machine is driven only by the cannibalization of now state-controlled enterprises." Even the Kremlin is bracing for more pain ahead. On Monday, Russian central bank governor Elvira Nabiullina said she is expecting more sanctions in the future. https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-economy-vladimir-putin-war-machine-ruble-ukraine-sanctions-oil-2023-12

Nobody has ever described a just war as cruel. You’ve never heard Churchill or FDR or any other modern leader call for cruelty except may Bush-Cheney republicans after 9-11. War is callous but callousness is not cruelty as callousness is simply disregarding others’ feelings in favour of other considerations. Brutality is not even cruelty as brutality can be fully justified such as self-defence.. Cruelty is deliberately inflicting pain and suffering for the sole purpose of deriving pleasure and satisfaction from the other person’s suffering, it is sadism The Americans who used agent orange in Vietnam didn’t do it to be cruel. No US President said “let’s spray those people with AO because it’s time to be cruel!” Even though individual soldiers w local officers conduct cruelty such as the My Lai massacre in Vietnam or the Haditha massacre in Iraq, those actions were denounced by political leaders as counter to their objectives. No president ever called for a campaign of cruelty or a mass child of civilians. It was the opposite they claimed to be following the rules, to NOT being cruel and that acts of cruelty were the isolated exceptions that are against their values.

What Lol I haven’t “torn at the fabric of society” or shown “disdain for tradition, reason and order.” That would be your endless lies and attempts to end democracy for a fascist right wing dictatorship. Biden didn’t inflict anything on anyone, your hate-filled mind is simply too poisoned to understand that the world’s ups and downs and global economic events aren’t controlled by the US president. YOU are the one living in a fog of lies, half-baked conspiracies and Kremlin propaganda bathing in information that is not only false but completely implausible, illogical and non-sensical. You don’t need to wish me well because I’m already doing well

I am getting what I deserve, I have a great life surrounded by great friends and family, having celebrated our first xmas in our awesome new house. In a few days I will be enjoying a tropical vacation where my family and I will ring in the start of yet another awesome year! Meanwhile you’re angry and alone on Christmas wishing hatred and misery on a long list of your fellow human beings. All because you obsessively nurse imaginary grudges and poisonous conspiracies, many of which were fed to you by the brutal Russian dictator Putin and the wanna-be American dictator Trump. Those are the only lies here and your toxic miserableness shows you’re already getting what you deserve.

Yeah, your hatred. Your hate-filled heart has led you to believe in a range of wild and implausible conspiracies and to support Putin, the world’s most sinister and ruthless dictator. You sadistically pine for the misery and suffering and even death of entire groups of human beings who are the subjects and scapegoats of your various imagined conspiracies and political grudges. And even on Christmas you’re only able to wish for pain and vengeance on the many groups of people you hate for their imagined misdeeds. You embody the absolute worst elements of human nature.

As a Putin supporter, can you explain why Putin become close with Hamas and openly allies itself with Iran, the state sponsor of Hamas?

Ok I’ve been relatively silent on this topic because it’s pretty much pointless to discuss its one of those highly polarized emotionally charged topics where people hold extreme positions, never modify their views, and therefore facts don’t matter. That said Here are some facts: Oct 7 was a horrendous large scale terrorist attack but that’s not genocide. At the time people pointed out that proportionate to Israel’s population the death was the equivalent of 15 9/11 attacks. Well the Gaza death tolll which is now more than 20.000 is the proportional equivalent of 1,000 9/11 attacks. Fully 1% of Gaza’s population has been killed, many of them children, and 100% of the 2.3 million inhabitants have been displaced. To say that Hamas’s attack was genocide but that Israel’s response is entirely appropriate is a joke. A key concept of the rules of warnis proportionality amd by amy measure nobody can argue that the civilian death toll in n Gaza has become proportional Furthermore half the ordinance Israel has dropped in Gaza has been unguided and some of the places they have attacked have been places that they said would be safe fo civilians such as locations in the south and the routes to get there. Recently Israel was forced to admit that their soldiers shot dead 3 Israeli hostages who had managed to escape their Hamas captors and who were only partially clothed and waving a white flag at Israeli troops. Not killed in crossfire, or any other such thing but rather misidentified as Palestinians and killed deliberately despite being unarmed and surrendering, evidence that Israeli soldiers are shooting unarmed civilians indiscriminately. Israel’s claim that they take the utmost care to safeguard Palestinian civilian lives is dubious at best. Lastly some of Israel’s goals and “legitimate military targets” are questionable. Remember under the Geneva Conventions civilian casualties must be proportionate and incidental to attacking legitimate targets. In other words you can not deliberately target civilians you can only be excused for deliberately killing civilians if you have a valid military target and even then you will judged according to proportionality. Intentionally killing a thousand civilians just to kill one enemy foot soldier would not be proportionate for example. October 7 doesn’t give Israel a blank cheque to indiscriminately kill as many civilians as they please without good reason. It’s one thing to bomb finite material such as rockets or mortar emplacements but any bombing of terrorists simply out of revenge for Oct 7 is less clear. Furthermore unlike rockets or mortars which are finite and can be destroyed, terrorism is an ideology that cannot be bombed out of existence. In fact civilian casualties only encourage terrorism. So any Israeli claim that this death toll is justified because it will end terrorism is a joke. The attack on Gaza is probably the most effective terrorist recruiting tool anyone could think of. Im not saying that none of Israel’s response is justified limited targeting airstrikes and special forces even some ground force invasion would be justified in eliminating Hamas but they’ve gone way too far and are victimizing the civilian population at large while Israeli officials make public statements like “It’s time to be cruel” that make clear their true intent. Fighting a legitimate war is not cruel. Nobody has ever described D-Day or Battle of Britain as “cruel”. We all know what politicians REALLY mean when they make statements like that. Collective punishment of the civilian population is a war crime, period.

Even so it doesn’t prove anything. Could be Ukrainian police arresting a common criminal for all you know, you simple-minded sucker. You’ve been saying that for almost two years now, this great Russian victory you keep promising will he here any day now just isn’t coming

You know when I saw the thread title and the person who started it in them forum index for a second there I naively actually thought ”wow the spirit of Christmas can make even that person take a moment to just offer some kind well wishes to forum members!” But then I was like “yeahhh probably not ” and clicked on it out of curiosity to find the usual fare. Happy holidays anyways! Here’s hoping your heart finally grows 3 sizes this season

Well I note at the link provided the Brits say their version will be able to slinging missiles AND guided bombs (presumably not together at the same time). My best guess is they’re using the manufacturer’s best possible number (ie naked) while CAF is using the number when it’s loaded with camera sensors etc. Other ways to improve include lighter-weight materials and systems, more efficient engines/propulsion , improved geometry and aerodynamics, etc. For many designs there are features and improvements are technologically feasible but not economically feasible due to cost but eventually the cost comes down. For example for a long time now the standard for flight controls on most systems is “fly by wire” meaning the aircraft control inputs are transmitted to control surfaces electronically rather than hydraulically. But new aircraft like Japan’s Kawasaki P1 maritime patrol aircraft are fly-by-fibre optics, which is not only faster but immune to electronic attacks I don’t know if this is part of MQ-Next or currently feasible for new drone designs but considering that electronic warfare is one of the key anti-drone defences being explored developed it wouldn’t surprise me in the latest.

Brits ordered in 2015, and it will enter service in 2024 ) perhaps order was increased recently?). Interestingly the Brits claim 40H endurance. Somehow we canucks are losing 12 hours! https://www.raf.mod.uk/aircraft/protector-rg-mk-1-mq-9b/

I have a feeling that will be solved by 2033 either with these platforms or with others identified under the MQ-Next program. I promise that if the MQ-9 is a relevant combat platform against a near-peer state adversary in 2033 I will owe you a coke!

Yeah I hear that about advantages of buying proven vs new, but that would make more sense in this case if we were buying a proven platform for immediate use, not full use 10 years from now when many of the existing users will have already retired it from service in favour of more advanced platforms, and at any rate would likely be selling used models at a steep discount As for what could potentially replace MQ-9, here are some apparent top candidates in USAF’s program which have stealth features, greater and more varied payloads, air-air capability and AI-powered autonomous/semi-autonomous capability. Note that Australia has significantly contracts for a model still in development and testing that is STILL expected to be delivered years before our MQ-9s Valkyrie, Avenger, and Ghost Bat An MQ-20 Avenger over California in June 2021. General Atomics Air Force officials have indicated that because of the array of missions CCAs are expected to conduct, there likely won't be a single model. At least three UCAVs in development could be candidates for the Air Force's program: the XQ-58 Valkyrie from Kratos Defense, the MQ-20 Avenger from General Atomics, and the MQ-28 Ghost Bat from Boeing. The XQ-58A has a maximum launch weight of 6,000 pounds and can cruise at 550 mph. Its operational altitude is 45,000 feet and it has a range of 3,000 nautical miles. Since first flying in 2019, it has done multiple test flights for the Air Force, including being used as a datalink for F-22s and F-35s and work with the Skyborgprogram. The Valkyrie's unique rocket-assisted takeoff system also gives it what Kratos and the Air Force call "runway independence." It uses parachutes and airbag cushions to land. The MQ-20 Avenger first flew in 2009 and an upgraded version with increased fuel capacity flew in 2016. It has a top speed of about 460 mph and a 20-hour flight endurance and can reach altitudes over 50,000 feet. It can carry 6,500 pounds of ordnance, including missiles and precision-guided bombs. The MQ-20 can also be fitted with sensors and cameras, making it suitable for intelligence-gathering and electronic warfare. An MQ-28 Ghost Bat at the Australian International Airshow in February. REUTERS/Jamie Freed The Avenger's angular shape and internal weapons bay give it stealth properties. Only a few have been built, but it has been heavily involved in the Skyborg program. The MQ-28 was developed by Boeing Australia for the Royal Australian Air Force and was originally known as the Airpower Teaming System, a nod to its intended role as a "loyal wingman" to manned aircraft. Boeing has been very secretive about the Ghost Bat, which first flew in 2021. The company has said the drone can fly more than 2,000 nautical miles and carry sensor packages for intelligence-gathering and early-warning missions. Australia has signed contracts for 10 MQ-28s, which are expected to enter service between 2024 and 2025. The US Air Force has acquired at least one MQ-28 for testing….. https://www.businessinsider.com/us-air-force-collaborative-combat-aircraft-drones-fighter-jets-2023-5?amp

At least the C-17 and the new Sig pistols remain relevant and capable today and remain “best in class” (Sig-haters and critics notwithstanding). I doubt the same will be said of the MQ-9 in 2033. Even the Latvia mission might have ended by then. For domestic duties, while it may still be adequate for routine surveillance tasks, surely by then better options will be available, with better performance, battery power/zero emission etc. Usually the rationale for buying old tech is that it is available for immediate use, but for the life of me I just can’t get over deliberately buying old tech with a plan to implement it ten years from now.