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Culture War Roundup for the week of September 9, 2024

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You blew up their natural gas pipeline.

Ukrainians did that. But I advocate the US government destroying Russian pipelines. Not all of them all at once, but little by little to help wean Europeans off if Russian fuel. The pipelines are impossible to defend. Every now and then a bomb could go off or the pressure could be set wrong causing an explosion and the US could deny responsibility.

This happened back in the Cold War. Every now and then misfortune would strike an oil pipe. Turns out it was the CIA.

Allow me to be skeptical about that. The explosions were very powerful, on the order of useful load for a yacht that size. It smells of a cover story, really.

Not all of them all at once, but little by little to help wean Europeans off if Russian fuel.

Don't you think it's up to Europeans to decide who they're going to buy fuel from ?

Are you not worried this kind of thing could result in drones randomly blowing up US nat-gas liquefaction facilities. Attacks on infrastructure are not a good idea, not against people with means.

Especially seeing as US border is pretty much unsecured, US has hugely long coasts and there's a lot of ship traffic and all that.

Attacks on infrastructure are not a good idea

Russia endlessly attacks Ukrainian infrastructure. It appears to be a great idea and in fact key to winning wars.

Don't you think it's up to Europeans to decide who they're going to buy fuel from ?

Pipelines are entirely undefesible. So let's say any nation with the desire has a veto on this decision.

And yes, Europe is the most feckless and counterproductive allies the US could have. A parasite society hiding under our defense umbrella, using our hard-found pharmaceuticals without paying to support them and endlessly funding our enemies.

Who would be drone bombing American LNG plants? Not Europe for sure. We've seen their complete inability and extreme passivity in this conflict. You think Russia would do it? I suppose it is possible. But the US has historically been extremely shielded from direct counterattack like that. 9/11 being the one exception.

Ukraine is a poor corrupt country with very little means of retaliating. Russia provides up to 10% of world's material inputs in most cases. I don't even mention that it has a steel and chemicals industry with output on par with WW2 US. And that it's currently apparently outproducing NATO as Ukraine is .. not doing very well on the artillery front, and NATO has little reason to hold back artillery and shell production seeing as the next war is a naval and air war against China,where artillery is of little to no use.

endlessly attacks Ukrainian infrastructure It really doesn't. Russia has had the means to drop every bridge over the Dniepr since day 1. They could have taken out the entire electric grid with cruise missiles on day 1. Or day 90, or 180. Yes you can defend against such if you've got enough air defense, but salvo attacks defeat that, and crude ballistic hypersonics like Kinzhal make it even more complicated. Ukraine, of course, doesn't have enough air defense., especially not after two years of war.

It appears to be a great idea and in fact key to winning wars.

Wars. Do you understand what a 'war' is? Attacking infrastructure, outside of a war situation, risks that it becomes a war.

And yes, Europe is the most feckless and counterproductive allies the US could have. A parasite society hiding under our defense umbrella, using our hard-found pharmaceuticals without paying to support them and endlessly funding our enemies.

Nice trolling, but the biggest trade partner of China is the United States. Also Europe isn't funding Iran or North Korea - Iran is mainly funding itself with its oil revenue.

9/11 being the one exception.

You forgot that WTC was bombed, that Muslim terrorists almost blew up a dozen airliners, the LA bomb plot. And then of course, 9/11 itself. A massive strategic victory for Al-Qaeda, in that it gave Americans a blank cheque to waste all their power through sheer stupidity.

And all of these plots were far harder than bribing a particular crewman on a cargo ship to open a particular container, input a code and push a button, watch a dozen drones zoom off and then dump the packing materials off board.