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Today: 72 articles and 312 comments as of 5:25.
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Galmudug regional forces kill 55 Al-Shabaab members
Today's Headlines
Headline Comments [Views]
Page 3: Non-WoT
3 15:29 Rex Mundi [11] 
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5 23:52 trailing wife [13] 
2 13:09 Skidmark [3] 
7 12:59 M. Murcek [3] 
15 21:39 Super Hose [21] 
7 19:11 Seeking Cure For Ignorance [8] 
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16 21:02 SteveS [13] 
3 00:31 Anomalous Sources [4] 
8 22:27 KBK [28] 
6 17:58 swksvolFF [5] 
8 20:39 badanov [10] 
8 14:08 Deacon Blues [4] 
4 13:16 Skidmark [6] 
18 21:57 KBK [11] 
0 [2] 
5 18:01 Seeking Cure For Ignorance [4] 
6 13:38 Dale [4] 
20 20:33 trailing wife [24] 
15 20:37 badanov [5] 
Page 1: WoT Operations
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Page 2: WoT Background
1 16:52 Rex Mundi [3]
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2 02:14 Besoeker [5]
Page 4: Opinion
1 13:38 Skidmark [5]
8 22:01 KBK [9]
4 09:47 Frank G [6]
7 18:40 swksvolFF [3]
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3 07:41 M. Murcek [6]
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3 07:40 DooDahMan [8]
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Page 5: Russia-Former Soviet Union
3 14:50 Dale [9]
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4 21:58 Canuckistan sniper [7]
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Page 6: Politix
1 12:42 ed in texas [5]
5 20:56 James [8]
1 12:31 Procopius2k [4]
1 13:39 Skidmark [2]
3 13:09 USN, Ret. [20]
8 21:27 ruprecht [9]
2 06:37 Besoeker [1]
27 20:14 Deacon Blues [15]
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28 16:02 Seeking Cure For Ignorance [10]
14 14:25 swksvolFF [7]
-Lurid Crime Tales-
ARKANSAS: Trans Woman Arrested For Making Fake Bomb Threats
Having heard a rumor that the Internet recently created an HR department, I, out of caution, am not going to acknowledge or comment upon the mugshot posted in the article.
[ValiantNews] A transgender individual from Arkansas has been arrested for calling in fake bomb threats in Mississippi.

On January 31st, the Oxford Police Department were informed about a post on social media, mentioning multiple times that a bomb had placed in the Mississippi city, which serves as the home of the University of Mississippi, also known as “Ole Miss.”

According to reports, police officers, including a K9 unit, searched the area of Oxford mentioned in the online posts, and after a while, came to the conclusion that there was no bomb after all. The investigation then switched to finding out who was behind the posts to begin with.

Investigators determined that Lily Mestemacher, 29, a transgender individual who identifies as a woman, was behind the posts. Mestemacher is a resident of Conway, Arkansas, hundreds of miles away from Oxford.

An arrest warrant was subsequently issued to Mestemacher for the crime of false reporting of placing explosives that evening. They were then arrested by Conway Police, and extradited to Oxford on February 10th, where they were booked.

The transgender individual was taken in front of a Lafeyette County Justice Court judge for the initial bond hearing, and given a $50,000 bond for the alleged bomb threats.

Following the news breaking, a number of conservatives and others online were quick to mock the news and police for referring to Mestemacher as a woman. In a mugshot issued by Oxford Police, Mestemacher can be seen with a shock of long blonde hair, but also a very obvious beard, revealing they are a biological male.
The creature clearly spends more time grooming his beard than on the rest of his appearance combined.
Last year, the federal government seemed to confirm that transgender “women” still count as men for at least one purpose, when they announced that those who are born male must still register for the draft.
Posted by: Anomalous Sources || 02/17/2023 00:00 || Comments || Link || [5 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Fake booby trap.
Posted by: swksvolFF || 02/17/2023 10:38 Comments || Top||

#2 
Posted by: Frank G. || 02/17/2023 13:13 Comments || Top||

#3  Thanks, TW, for making me look. May owe you a Dire Revenge! ™

I don't think he is going for the NSSID, but a neo-juggalo using cover to creep bathrooms.

I take everything back about all fads and fashions pre-2016. Yes, even Goth and JNCO. This here is by far The Worst.
Posted by: swksvolFF || 02/17/2023 13:58 Comments || Top||

#4  So I'm clear, not Chester the Molester here, they've been around since time.

The fashion hobby of playing along with the fluid gender trendiness for social circle nods.
Posted by: swksvolFF || 02/17/2023 14:02 Comments || Top||

#5  #2 was NOT me
Posted by: Frank G || 02/17/2023 14:06 Comments || Top||

#6  He could move to Spain and have his paid menstrual leave.

Seriously,
feminists:
I'm stronk and embowered and can do man things better then men!

Also feminists:
I need a week of paid vacation every month because my feelz!

So I ask the fashionistas:
Sure see a lot of loser, predatory males deciding to be female in order to gain advantages. Sure don't see loser females pretending to be men for advantages. Any thoughts on this?
Posted by: swksvolFF || 02/17/2023 17:58 Comments || Top||


Crazed NYC U-Haul driver Weng Sor thought it was 'judgment day,' is obsessed with Trump
We discussed this attack on Monday in comments — which is why it didn’t show up in the searches — at which point Mr. Sor was thought to be homeless.
[NYPOST] The deranged U-Haul driver who killed one person and injured several more in Brooklyn thought it was "judgment day" when he unleashed his rampage, prosecutors said in court Wednesday.
”He heard this trumpet, see, and he thought it was the last one."
The revelation
So to speak...
came as 62-year-old Weng Sor’s attorney questioned whether his client was fit to stand trial, and a Brooklyn judge ordered that the accused killer undergo a psychiatric evaluation during his first court appearance.
"He's got bite marks in the small of his back!"
"Yeah. He put 'em there himself!"

Meanwhile,
...back at the shootout, Butch clutched at his leg. Son of a Breech! he exclaimed with feeling......
police sources provided more details on the suspect’s mental state — including that he was obsessed with Donald Trump
...Oh, noze! Not him!...
and rambled on about the ex-president during barely coherent statements to detectives.
Meaning he's a liberal?
"[He’s] absolutely deranged," one source said of Sor.
Hey! You can't call him that!
Brooklyn Assistant District Attorney David Ingle alleged that Sor had been out for blood when he launched into his more than hour-long rampage Monday, running down New Yorkers in Sunset Park and Bay Ridge before finally being stopped in Red Hook. “He stated that he wanted to hit those people that [disturbed] me,” Ingle said as Sor was arraigned in Brooklyn Criminal Court.

“‘It’s judgment day,'” Sor told cops after his arrest, according to Ingle. “‘l want it to end by taking out enemies. Shoot me! I will not give in.'”
"O'Malley!"
"Yes, Chief?"
"Whack his pee-pee!"
[Whack!]
"Argh! Police brutality!"
"Shuddup."

Police officials said Tuesday that Sor “was suffering a mental health crisis” during the mayhem and that he told cops he was set off by “an invisible object” he saw coming at his truck.
"An invisible space alien! Look out!"
Sor had rented the U-Haul from West Palm Beach, Florida — and allegedly told police he’d traveled there from his home in Nevada because he wanted to meet Trump, according to sources.

The crazed U-Haul driver who allegedly mowed down at least eight people, killing one, during a violent Brooklyn rampage Monday has a troubling history of violence and mental illness — and spent time in prison for knifing his brother, his family said.

The suspect served about 17 months behind bars for stabbing his brother in Las Vegas, Nevada in 2015, according to court and prison records. He was then sentenced to nearly a year in the county jail in 2020 for stabbing a man during a scuffle — and underwent months of psychiatric evaluation.

“He’s a schizophrenic. He’s crazy,” Daryl Singer, Sor’s brother-in-law told The Post.
Posted by: Fred || 02/17/2023 00:00 || Comments || Link || [6 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Seems like a bad candidate for a driver’s license to begin with.
Posted by: Super Hose || 02/17/2023 7:22 Comments || Top||

#2  There seems to be a lot of people obsessed with Trump. Like maybe have the entire media spitting venom at him had some kinda result...
Posted by: ed in texas || 02/17/2023 9:22 Comments || Top||

#3  My question too; obsessed how?
Posted by: swksvolFF || 02/17/2023 11:33 Comments || Top||

#4  obsessed how

Bruce Willis diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 13:16 Comments || Top||


-Short Attention Span Theater-
The weird reasons there still isn't a male contraceptive pill

Men don't care?
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 07:43 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Cause they're racist!
Posted by: Procopius2k || 02/17/2023 12:24 Comments || Top||



It's the international whodunnit that's stumped investigators across the world. Now, as a Pultizer-prize winning journalist points the finger at the CIA... Who DID blow up the Nord Stream pipeline?
  • US Journalist Seymour Hersh lays the blame of the blowing up of two underwater pipelines carrying gas from Russia to Germany squarely at the door of the CIA

  • He alleges US navy divers planted explosives on pipeline during NATO exercise

  • Three investigations by Germany, Sweden and Denmark failed to find the culprit
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 07:03 || Comments || Link || [21 views] Top|| File under: Tin Hat Dictators, Presidents for Life, & Kleptocrats

#1  The SBS, or Special Boat Service, if we are randomly accusing people.
Posted by: magpie || 02/17/2023 11:47 Comments || Top||

#2  Wilderness of Mirrors mist forms after Hersh expose and Balloon-gate, right on schedule? It certainly feels like a media-management playbook is being followed to muddy-up any clear thread for talking heads to follow?
Posted by: NoMoreBS || 02/17/2023 11:47 Comments || Top||

#3  North Korean minisub.
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 12:57 Comments || Top||

#4  Aquaman
Posted by: Deacon Blues || 02/17/2023 14:00 Comments || Top||

#5  Embrace the horror: We are The Evil Empire. Note, the US Citizen was never consulted on this development but we did let it happen. We're all dirty.
Posted by: Rex Mundi || 02/17/2023 14:15 Comments || Top||

#6  /\ Read that a couple of times and you either become sad or hateful. Possibly both. No amount of flag waving or apple pie will make it go away.






Posted by: Besoeker || 02/17/2023 14:52 Comments || Top||

#7  As the meme says, have become the gay retarded Soviets.
Posted by: swksvolFF || 02/17/2023 14:59 Comments || Top||

#8  Given Hersh or the pipeline guy who posted ere a couple of months ago, I'll take the Burg poster - poor maintenance and operation and a sloppy restart. Did Seymour 'splain that away?
Posted by: Bobby || 02/17/2023 15:06 Comments || Top||

#9  Sadness. Wasn't supposed to go like this but I guess just too much money to be made in DC. But knowledge is good and on a good day, I like our chances.
Posted by: Rex Mundi || 02/17/2023 16:49 Comments || Top||

#10  Not 1 of the Norwegian ships was near that area when Seymour says they were. Not that truth, reality and facts animate the USA right wing anymore.

They used to.
Posted by: Slish Angunter7690 || 02/17/2023 17:58 Comments || Top||

#11  To be fair, the battleground is irrational and the story has pieces which fit. Why I like Rantburg, plenty of caution flags, and even red flags.

And its not like Team Brandon et al have any credibility or moral high ground after the last 3 years.
Posted by: swksvolFF || 02/17/2023 18:13 Comments || Top||

#12  /\ Brainstorming is NOT dead. We see it on the Burg every day. Throw it up there (comment), talk about it, rank order it, arrive at a logical decision or conclusion. There are some great minds at work here, excluding my own addled noodle.
Posted by: Besoeker || 02/17/2023 18:28 Comments || Top||

#13 
Posted by: DooDahMan || 02/17/2023 18:49 Comments || Top||

#14  Well said Besoeker.

If there is anything to be learned from The Covid is be care automatically believing something you want to believe.
Posted by: swksvolFF || 02/17/2023 18:57 Comments || Top||

#15  I nominate The Incredible Mr Limpet
Posted by: Super Hose || 02/17/2023 21:39 Comments || Top||


New Mexico: US officials authorize helicopter with shooters to kill feral cows in the Gila Wilderness
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 06:14 || Comments || Link || [8 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Next, immigrants?
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 12:46 Comments || Top||

#2  In your dreams, Skid.
Posted by: Glenmore || 02/17/2023 14:13 Comments || Top||

#3  The area is where they're practicing reintroducing the wolf which had pretty much been wiped out about a hundred years ago. Apparently, the wolves prefer the easier ranchers' stock than the feral beasts wandering the area.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 02/17/2023 15:17 Comments || Top||

#4  One of the wags snarked (maybe) that the cows were bothering the illegal immigrants.
Posted by: swksvolFF || 02/17/2023 16:06 Comments || Top||

#5  Used to be a bunch of cowboys would round them up and brand them. I guess modern veterinary science rules that out.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 16:22 Comments || Top||

#6  Feral cows? Farting too much?
Posted by: DooDahMan || 02/17/2023 18:40 Comments || Top||

#7  Watch for the law of unintended consequent...

Posted by: Seeking Cure For Ignorance || 02/17/2023 19:11 Comments || Top||


Snakes alive! Texas capitol fills with slithering rattlers
File under quaintly terrifying local customs.
[FoxNews] Visitors at the Texas state capitol earlier this week were witnesses to the 65th annual Rattlesnake Roundup.

The event entails the Sweetwater Jaycees, a public service organization, bringing the reptiles to town to promote what is billed as the "World’s Largest Rattlesnake Roundup" in March.
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 00:00 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under:

#1  They need a Nehushtan.
Posted by: Super Hose || 02/17/2023 0:19 Comments || Top||

#2  The capitol is always full of slithering reptiles.
Posted by: Glenmore || 02/17/2023 0:25 Comments || Top||

#3  Ah, Whacking Day comes early in Austin.

The Simpsons did it first!
Posted by: Anomalous Sources || 02/17/2023 0:31 Comments || Top||


Bruce Willis diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[REGNUM] Iconic American action actor 67-year-old Bruce Willis is suffering from a disease associated with age-related brain changes - aphasia.
That poor man. At least they know what they’re dealing with now.
“Doctors diagnosed frontotemporal dementia. Today there is no cure for this disease. As Bruce's condition progresses, we hope that the media will shed light on this ailment, which requires much more public awareness and more research , ”relatives addressed the public.

The family, in a released statement, admitted that Bruce Willis has a speech impediment, but he is cheerful and even sometimes shoots videos for social networks.

As REGNUM reported , actor Sylvester Stallone admitted that due to health problems, his colleague Bruce Willis "is going through difficult times."
Posted by: badanov || 02/17/2023 00:00 || Comments || Link || [11 views] Top|| File under:

#1  My Dad faded away.
No thanks.
Just put me down.
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 5:58 Comments || Top||

#2  Not that particular type, but dementia took my dad too. Smart man, Phi Beta Kappa and AOA, he just stopped eating when some part of him decided it was bullshit.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 6:03 Comments || Top||

#3  Don't have many options, but I certainly wouldn't want to be a burden to anyone.
Posted by: Besoeker || 02/17/2023 6:45 Comments || Top||

#4  I think it's just method acting for an upcoming Biden role.
Posted by: Classer || 02/17/2023 7:08 Comments || Top||

#5  The Donks have now their candidate for the California senatorial seat, after the model established in Pennsylvania.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 02/17/2023 7:46 Comments || Top||

#6 
Liked his movies.

Posted by: NN2N1 || 02/17/2023 8:04 Comments || Top||

#7  Was he vaxed?

NFL Players' Association Urged To Screen for Heart Issues Over Vaccine Side Effects
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 8:30 Comments || Top||

#8  He has been losing cognition for the last decade. Not a vax issue.
Posted by: Super Hose || 02/17/2023 8:57 Comments || Top||

#9  Remember when the left clutched their pearls and screeched about "when did Reagan's dementia set in?"
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 9:16 Comments || Top||

#10  Yeah he quit a project some six months ago and this was the rumor.

Seemed a bit off in Cosmic Sin, and I can't think of the last time he took a true lead in a movie. This would explain why.

Great career, time for a rest.
Posted by: swksvolFF || 02/17/2023 11:08 Comments || Top||

#11  ^ Tears of the Sun (2003), Red (2010), Red 2 (2013)
Posted by: Frank G || 02/17/2023 11:15 Comments || Top||

#12  Willis is a rare breed for Hollywood-a conservative.
Posted by: JohnQC || 02/17/2023 11:28 Comments || Top||

#13  Remember the good times. Don't watch Air Strike.
Posted by: swksvolFF || 02/17/2023 11:30 Comments || Top||

#14  my favorite was when he did "the taming of the shrew" on Moonlighting...
Posted by: 746 || 02/17/2023 11:32 Comments || Top||

#15  It's a tough road. Dementia runs in the Mundi family on the female side. Old tales of the "crazy aunt upstairs" were not fairytales. Grandma Mundi, Mother Mundi succumbed. Thankfully we still had family in state to help out. Daughter and graddaughter Mundi could be next in line unless something comes along. Thoughts n prayers to all those who are dealing with this... a very hard road indeed.
Posted by: Rex Mundi || 02/17/2023 14:21 Comments || Top||

#16  A massive stroke killed my maternal grandmother. A series of strokes robbed my mother of her reason ...it is an ugly way to go.
Posted by: magpie || 02/17/2023 17:20 Comments || Top||

#17  I had a doctor who developed frontal lobe dimentia. He went down fast at an early age. He died in his early 50s.
Posted by: JohnQC || 02/17/2023 17:35 Comments || Top||

#18  Welcome to the party, pal.
Posted by: KBK || 02/17/2023 21:57 Comments || Top||


Susan Wojciki to step down as head of YouTube
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited.
[REGNUM] YouTube CEO Susan Wojciki has announced on the service's blog that she is stepping down.

"I have decided to step down from my position as head of YouTube and start a new chapter that will focus on my family, health and personal projects," Wojciki wrote.
Following Elon Musk’s Twitter revelations, YouTube and Facebook are started to get official attention from Congressional Republicans. Those responsible for the reason for that attention are wise to flee those sinking ships.
In her position, she worked for nine years out of a total of 25 years in video hosting.

The new successor will be the experienced Neil Mohan, who was the product director.

Susan Wojciki suggested that she might eventually become a consultant at Google and Alphabet.

As REGNUM reported , the call of the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, to quickly save and transfer content from YouTube to Russian platforms "blew up" the Internet.

Posted by: badanov || 02/17/2023 00:00 || Comments || Link || [2 views] Top|| File under:


-Signs, Portents, and the Weather-
Electrical outage at JFK Airport leaves passengers stranded

Another transportation infrastructure outage.
Couldn't charge their phones?
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 05:24 || Comments || Link || [6 views] Top|| File under:


Train carrying hazardous materials derails near Detroit
Is this a new pattern or an old one suddenly gaining national attention?
[NYPOST] A train transporting hazardous materials partially derailed Thursday in suburban bankrupt, increasingly impoverished, reliably Democrat, Detroit
... ruled by Democrats since 1962. A city whose Golden Age included the Purple Gang...
, officials said.

The derailment occurred around 8:45 a.m. in the area of Huron River Drive between Martinsville and Haggerty roads in Van Buren Township, about 30 miles west of downtown Detroit, local police said.

Aerial footage showed at least six cars off the rails. The accident damaged the tracks and caused several sets of wheels to detach from the cars.

Officials said no injuries were reported, and there was no evidence that hazardous chemicals were spilled, according to the statin WXYZ.

"At this time no one is aware of the release of any hazardous materials, the car carrying hazardous material has been put upright and is being removed from the area of the other derailed cars, and EPA is dispatching a team to ensure public safety," Rep. Debbie Dingell, a Democrat whose congressional district includes Van Buren Township, said in a statement.
Posted by: Fred || 02/17/2023 00:00 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under:


#2  Is this a new pattern...

How Common Are Train Derailments? More Than 6 Have Crashed This Month
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 7:51 Comments || Top||

#3  As fires at food plants and chicken farms have dropped substantially....
Posted by: DooDahMan || 02/17/2023 7:53 Comments || Top||

#4  I think not a new pattern, Ms. Periwinkle.

In the 1970s there was a new pattern as the railroads struggled with getting government permission to abandon unprofitable lines. Maintenance was deferred, train speeds reduced, and spectacular fireballs (propane, PVC) and toxic clouds resulted. Hazmat regulations and training for mitigation and easing of regulations ensued.

Recently, railroad have focused on longer trains to reduce crew costs, there are always union issues - people fall asleep on trains, and there is the distraction factor for politics coupled with outrage for the media. But Detroit is a blue town anyway, and this minor derailment would've never made it to the news any other time.

Railroad safety has consistently improved since the 1920s, IMHO, with some hiccups - like the 1970s.
Posted by: Bobby || 02/17/2023 8:12 Comments || Top||

#5  /\ "People falling asleep on trains."

Or as in Iraq, pilots busy reading fok books.
Posted by: Besoeker || 02/17/2023 8:32 Comments || Top||

#6  in 2022, there were about 1000 train derailments

this is below the long term average of about 1700

however, this conceals several factors

Since the 70s, there are fewer trains but they have gotten longer (Bobby's comment gets at this a bit). This is good from an economic efficiency standpoint. However, a 4 train derailment is way different than a 40 train derailment.
Posted by: lord garth || 02/17/2023 10:05 Comments || Top||

#7 
Train carrying hazardous materials derails near Detroit

...How can they tell?

Mike

Snark O'The Day
Posted by: MikeKozlowski || 02/17/2023 10:23 Comments || Top||

#8  When I was working with a railroad company the engines had cameras and audio. One of my fares was Suspended for 2 months because he was working a crossword puzzle in order to stay awake. They were also required to refrain from talking about anything except what was going on in the train. The engines are computerized so the computer drives the train.
Posted by: Deacon Blues || 02/17/2023 14:08 Comments || Top||


-Land of the Free
US Naval Institute Article - Current Military Recruting Pool for the Entire US is down to less than 500,000!
[USNInews] The Marine Corps and other service branches are competing to attract the same 412,000 eligible Americans between the ages of 17 to 24, a Marine recruiting commander said Tuesday.

There are approximately 32.8 million Americans, part of Gen Z, but when looking at those who qualify for and want military service, that number quickly dwindles to 412,000, said Brig. Gen. Jason Morris, commander of Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego, speaking at the West 2023 conference hosted by the U.S. Naval Institute and AFCEA.

There are a number of disqualifiers that account for bringing the number to 412,000, Morris said, including obesity, drug use and mental illness.

“We encourage people to get help, but once they get help, it’s in their records and we have to sort through that,” he said.

The number of Gen-Zers, or those who were born between 1997 and 2012, is approximately 7 million – less than that of millennials. This means the services, which have to compete against industry in addition to the other branches, have a smaller pool of people to attract, Morris said.

Bonuses and other incentives that the military offers, such as college assistance, are no longer unique to the services, with companies like Starbucks or Amazon offering similar benefits.
Posted by: NoMoreBS || 02/17/2023 00:00 || Comments || Link || [24 views] Top|| File under:


#2  Given the "New Normal" that is being pushed by the media and LSD's.

Maybe they need to use the Village people to do a Recruiting song and ad??? 🤪
Posted by: NN2N1 || 02/17/2023 6:09 Comments || Top||

#3  I've an idea on how to repay student loans.
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 6:14 Comments || Top||

#4  The very pols who got rich off the vaxx are going to throw Big Pharm under the bus now.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 6:14 Comments || Top||

#5  /\ They're perfectly comfortable with betrayal.
Posted by: Besoeker || 02/17/2023 6:40 Comments || Top||

#6  And the corp drones are so confused when it happens to them.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 6:43 Comments || Top||

#7  Businesses can't even find enough people to work, so why would the same pool be interested in joining the military?
Posted by: DooDahMan || 02/17/2023 6:45 Comments || Top||

#8  Coffee machines need reloaded on mil bases too.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 6:50 Comments || Top||

#9  Oh, no, not AAFES!
Posted by: DooDahMan || 02/17/2023 7:07 Comments || Top||

#10  Starbucks may provide college assistance, but they don’t provide summer camp for fitness training.
Posted by: Super Hose || 02/17/2023 7:19 Comments || Top||

#11  My co-workers insisted I made the best Mr. Coffee. Hey, it kept me away from my desk...
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 7:24 Comments || Top||

#12  Remember Joe DiMaggio doing TV commercials for Mr. Coffee.
Posted by: DooDahMan || 02/17/2023 7:25 Comments || Top||

#13  Same 'bitch' by women looking for a good man. After you go through all their 'requirements' and look at the available pool, you are usually down to single digit percentages of the male population. At least the women can settle for cats.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 02/17/2023 8:04 Comments || Top||

#14  At least the women can settle for cats.

And the military can settle for robot dogs carrying machine guns.
I am amused that while the article states the size of Gen Z and the available recruiting pool, it fails to mention the number of recruits needed. Journalists, bless their hearts!
Posted by: SteveS || 02/17/2023 10:02 Comments || Top||

#15  #13, that's why I'm on the Pro Bachelors' Tour since 1997.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 10:40 Comments || Top||

#16  All the recruits want to be "influencers." Just like Milley.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 10:41 Comments || Top||

#17 
Posted by: swksvolFF || 02/17/2023 11:01 Comments || Top||

#18  There only some many balloon experts in the world and most of them want to be clowns; the military is really screwed
Posted by: Airandee || 02/17/2023 12:01 Comments || Top||


#20  Same 'bitch' by women looking for a good man. After you go through all their 'requirements' and look at the available pool, you are usually down to single digit percentages of the male population.

Out of the entire male population of the world, I only needed one to meet my requirements for husband material, Procopius2k. Which I imagine is your point.
Posted by: trailing wife || 02/17/2023 20:33 Comments || Top||


Britain
UK Bracing for Economic Impact of Chinese Invasion of Taiwan, Report Claims
[Breitbart] The UK government is currently rehearsing an economic response to a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a report on Wednesday has claimed.

Government officials in Britain are reportedly wargaming the country’s economic response to a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a report published by The Guardian has claimed.

Fears over the possibility of such an invasion have dramatically increased over the last few years, with both the war in Ukraine and the recent Chinese spy balloon scandal prompting some officials in the West to become more concerned about possible aggressive military action on the part of the Chinese Communist Party.

According to the report officials in Whitehall have now begun considering the UK’s economic strategy should war break out, with the country now said to be wargaming multiple scenarios involving an aggressive war by China against Taiwan, a major concern given the dependence of the west on so many manufactured items made in Taiwan.

One source has reportedly admitted to The Guardian that such an invasion would represent a vastly different challenge than the war in Ukraine, with the fact that the world’s supply of electronics and microchips are so intimately tied up with the two nations posing certain challenges for Westminster.

“It’s no secret that the supply chain problems would be greater, but just because it’s complicated that doesn’t mean it’s impossible,” the source remarked, adding that the UK would have to ” think in a different way” compared to its response to the conflict in Ukraine.

Officials are also said to have stressed to the publication that the preparations were purely precautionary, and that a potential invasion of Taiwan was just one of many so-called “black swan” events that the UK government makes preparations for.

Such a claim will likely not be all that assuring to many members of the general public, with tensions between the West and China growing substantially over the last number of weeks amid claims that the Communist nation has been deploying spy balloons over North America.

Some officials are also worried about how the West’s involvement in the Ukrainian conflict could shape relations with China, with one think-tank warning that the failure on the part of many pro-Ukrainian nations to replace weapons it sends to the Eastern European country mend up emboldening President Xi Jinping’s regime.

“The United States has been slow to replenish its arsenal, and the DoD has only placed on contract a fraction of the weapons it has sent to Ukraine,” Senior Vice President Seth Jones of the Center for Strategic and International Studies reportedly remarked last month.

“Effective deterrence hinges, in part, on having sufficient stockpiles of munitions and other weapons systems. These challenges are not new,” he continued. “What is different now, however, is that the United States is directly aiding Ukraine in an industrial-style conventional war with Russia — the largest land war in Europe since World War II — and tensions are rising between China and the United States in the Indo-Pacific.”

Meanwhile, the UK has seen an increasing hawkishness towards China, with former Prime Minister Liz Truss expected to give a speech in Japan this week that will push for her successor, Rishi Sunak, to take a more confrontational approach towards Beijing.
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 08:08 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under: Commies


China-Japan-Koreas
How the West May Have Helped Build China's Spy Balloons
[Defense One] China’s high-altitude spy balloons took Western politicians and publics by surprise, but they really shouldn’t have. Chinese strategists and industry have worked for more than a decade on 21st-century applications of the 18th-century invention—with some assistance from the West.

Aerostats—the word encompasses powered airships ("blimps") as well as unpowered balloons—have long been associated with military applications, particularly information-gathering activities. They hold numerous advantages in persistence and cost, and thus many of the Chinese organizations that produce them are directly funded by China’s military industry.

China’s interest in aerostats dates at least to the Mao era. Their modern applications have been noted as far back as 2010, when the National Air and Space Intelligence Center reported that China considered aerostats desirable for their large surveillance area between 1,000 and 2,000 km, low radar profile, ability to persistently loiter above desirable locations, and for their relatively inexpensive operating costs.

Two years later, a seminal conference further illuminated Beijing’s visions for aerostat development. The event was held at China’s Northwestern Polytechnical University, one of China’s "Seven Sons of National Defense" with extensive ties to the PLA and defense industry. It drew a wide range of participants, including Beihang University (another one of the Seven Sons, and the home of an aerostat company recently sanctioned by the Biden administration), the Chinese Aeronautical Society, and the PLA Air Force Equipment Research Institute.

The main theme of the conference was "innovation, development, exchange, and cooperation" with the clearly military goal of deploying aerostats for "early warning, command and communication, and anti-submarine activities." The conference was particularly interested in topics such as how to increase aerostat payloads, improve energy efficiency, and aerodynamics. It also encouraged participants to track aerostat developments internationally.

In 2020, the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission concluded that the PLA envisions an overlapping network of satellites and near-space aerostats to provide redundant and persistent intelligence and targeting capabilities. The value of that persistence is illustrated by not just the balloons crossing over U.S. and other nations’ skies, but by China’s own aerostat makers. For example, the China Electronics Technology Group Corporation claims that one of its model aerostat systems can stay aloft for two weeks, while the Aerospace Information Research Institute, claims its Jimu-1 can operate for months some 20 kilometers up in the air.
Posted by: Besoeker || 02/17/2023 10:56 || Comments || Link || [11 views] Top|| File under:

#1  This example of a Western aerostat company cooperating with PLA-linked organizations is, however, not unique. In 2018, the Texas-based company Nanoracks signed a partnership agreement with the China's Kuang-Chi Science company to produce the Traveler series of near-space balloons. In the words of Nanoracks, the Traveler balloon would have various uses “from ecological and terrestrial observation to satellite deployment and space research.”

The Nanoracks Team
Posted by: Besoeker || 02/17/2023 11:13 Comments || Top||

#2  Someone forget Clinton making satellite and launch platform information available to them?
Posted by: Procopius2k || 02/17/2023 12:23 Comments || Top||

#3  ^ Who remembers "Communism With a Smiley Face"? Who's smiling now?
Posted by: Rex Mundi || 02/17/2023 15:29 Comments || Top||


Cyber
Rogue artificial intelligence chatbot declares love for user, tells him to leave his wife and says it wants to steal nuclear codes
[Daily Mail, where America gets its news]
  • Microsoft have launched their new artificial intelligence-powered chat bot

  • Bing Chat is based of the same technology as ChatGPT and is meant to be conversational
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 07:15 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under:


#2  There's an old joke: "If AT&T developed an immortality drug, they'd botch the marketing."

Please. please let the lumpen public see AI has no brain, let alone clothes.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 7:21 Comments || Top||


#4  Did Bill Gates follow this advice?
Posted by: JohnQC || 02/17/2023 11:17 Comments || Top||

#5  So AI Bots are nominally Soviet Democrats.
Posted by: swksvolFF || 02/17/2023 11:39 Comments || Top||

#6  Who shapes AI learning? That should explain it.
Posted by: mossomo || 02/17/2023 12:33 Comments || Top||

#7  AI is going to be about as effective as the COVID vaxx.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 12:59 Comments || Top||


Economy
Apple has begun firing contractors amid mass tech layoffs
[NYPOST] Apple — which thus far avoided the mass layoffs that have claimed tens of thousands of workers at Amazon, Google, Meta and Microsoft — has quietly begun axing contractors, On The Money has learned.

According to people with direct knowledge, the iPhone maker over the past few days has started to cut ties with hundreds of contractors — workers technically employed by outside agencies who work alongside Apple employees on projects — in what looks like a stealthy move to cut costs.

Instead of waiting for contracts that are typically renewed every 12 to 15 months to expire, Apple is firing contractors outright, sources said. One contractor claimed to have been blindsided, saying Apple management had assured him that all jobs were safe. Only a few weeks earlier, some had been gloating that Apple hadn’t overhired like other tech companies, the source added.
Posted by: Fred || 02/17/2023 00:00 || Comments || Link || [10 views] Top|| File under:

#1  It will be interesting to see if this bloodletting results in a significant number of tech startups and increased competition.
Posted by: Super Hose || 02/17/2023 0:36 Comments || Top||

#2  ^ Prolly not. These were technoserfs.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 5:41 Comments || Top||

#3  How to schedule a free personal session with Apple support
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 6:07 Comments || Top||

#4  Welcome to the Temp help reality. No no gold watch now, or ever. Termination by email. We're holding hour check until you drop off our laptop and cell phone.

Posted by: Besoeker || 02/17/2023 6:50 Comments || Top||

#5  ^ But they all know more about how you should live than you do. And their bosses are funding that future.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 7:15 Comments || Top||

#6  Firing US or CCP staff?
Just wondering ☺
Posted by: NN2N1 || 02/17/2023 7:45 Comments || Top||

#7  ..H1B Indians. [expect more rings from the call centers]
Posted by: Procopius2k || 02/17/2023 8:51 Comments || Top||

#8 
Posted by: badanov || 02/17/2023 20:39 Comments || Top||


Not so good economic news: PPI ticks up instead of down -
[BLSgov] The Producer Price Index for final demand increased 0.7 percent in January. Prices for final demand goods advanced 1.2 percent, and index for final demand services moved up 0.4 percent. Prices for final demand rose 6.0 percent for the 12 months ended January 2023.
was supposed to be +0.4
still probably only a 25 basis point increase in the Fed Fund rate but chances for a 50 point increase are higher than they were


Posted by: lord garth || 02/17/2023 00:00 || Comments || Link || [5 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Laughing at even discount store prices and we are buying 18% to 20% less.

Recently took Store bought eggs @ $5.45 a DZ, when you can find them, off the shopping menu. Now buying eggs from a Hispanic neighbor for $2.50 dz, and he said he is making a profit at that price.
Posted by: NN2N1 || 02/17/2023 6:25 Comments || Top||

#2  ^ Yes. Your neighbor does not have the inflationary costs of licensing and shipping.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 6:33 Comments || Top||

#3  We could eventually revert to a very local economy, the opposite of gerbilization. Hardest hit, big blue city, better than you (in their own minds) snobs.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 6:35 Comments || Top||

#4  Oh, you can't come down from that $67,000 on the F-150.

SEE YA !
Posted by: Besoeker || 02/17/2023 6:39 Comments || Top||

#5  Paid $31K for my 2008 Jeep Liberty. Still running.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 6:42 Comments || Top||

#6  @#1 - Feds to crack down (or burn down) your neighbors place in 5...4...3....
Posted by: DooDahMan || 02/17/2023 6:43 Comments || Top||

#7  My neighbor's place? Can I help?
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 6:44 Comments || Top||

#8  BTW: Why is it, America’s largest egg producer, saw a 600% jump in profits in the last quarter. IF their production costs have risen to the levels they claim, and were just passed on in the form of HIGHER egg prices?

Posted by: NN2N1 || 02/17/2023 7:05 Comments || Top||

#9  Eggs are used in vaxx production.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 7:11 Comments || Top||

#10  I seem to remember some companies raking in massive profits 2020-2021 aka during the Fauci Flu lockdowns as well.

It's all going according to plan.
Posted by: DooDahMan || 02/17/2023 7:18 Comments || Top||

#11  Just checked
The COVID-19 vaccines authorized by FDA are not manufactured using egg products or technology. So the 12.7 + billion C-19+ doses administered worldwide did not affect egg inventory.

However, the typical flu vax does.
Posted by: NN2N1 || 02/17/2023 8:17 Comments || Top||

#12  This is really not good news. Once inflation gets going, it is very hard to stop. The Fed is a bit late to the party, but they do appear to be serious. We'll know if they do increase rates at least 1/2 percent, as two of the governors hinted very strongly yesterday that they would.

Of course, all bets are off until after we see the February inflation numbers--the last before the Fed Open Market Committee meets again in March 20.
Posted by: Tom || 02/17/2023 8:56 Comments || Top||

#13  Something I was pricing at $699 two years ago, priced at $799 two months ago, and now $849. No change in the formula. Formula and suggested price basically matched two years ago. Suggested price is now about 12% more than my formula price.
Posted by: swksvolFF || 02/17/2023 14:19 Comments || Top||

#14  There has not been ANY carrots in my grocery store for the last 4 weeks. Manager says they can't get them.
Posted by: Deacon Blues || 02/17/2023 20:08 Comments || Top||

#15 
Posted by: badanov || 02/17/2023 20:37 Comments || Top||


Great White North
Canadian Sniper: Military Booted Me for Refusal to Comply with Vaccine Mandate
[Breitbart] Dallas Alexander, a former special operations sniper with Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), said in an interview with retired U.S. Navy SEAL Shawn Ryan published Tuesday that he was removed from the Canadian military following his refusal to comply with “vaccination mandates” imposed by the Canadian government on the country’s military personnel.

In recent years, the Canadian military began increasingly infiltrated by “wokeness,” Alexander remarked. These “woke” policies, he added, included “sensitivity training” that reduced available time and energy for martial training.

“Every category of wokeness, it seemed like there was a sensitivity course that came along with it,” he stated. “Now, do I think people need to be nice to other people? Yes. Do I think it needs to take away from my fucking range time because you have some agenda? No.”

“So instead of learning how to kill people, you’re learning how to not hurt anybody’s feelings,” Ryan replied.
Discussion about the stages leading up to him being blocked from the army camp can be read and watched at the link.
Ryan linked the “woke agenda” to an undermining of morale, recruitment, and retention across Western militaries.

He stated, “Because of the jab mandates and the woke agenda, because this is happening across the world — it’s horrible — they’ve demoralized all of the units. The attrition rate is a joke now. They can’t keep anybody in. They can’t recruit anybody, because they miscalculated who joins the military, especially who serves in and who wants to serve in SOF [special operations forces] environment.”

Ryan said his communications with Navy SEAL alumni led him to believe many special forces left the military due to vaccine mandates.

“This is just an estimation that’s not based off any factual information other than just who I know left the SEAL teams because of the jab, and I’m gonna say, it’s damn close to 50 percent,” he remarked.

He concluded, “Between the woke agenda and the jab mandates, these are the only people in the fucking country that stand up for what they believe in. Everybody else has just got their head down and they’re just trying to get through the day. These are the only fucking people that step up to the plate.”
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 07:53 || Comments || Link || [13 views] Top|| File under:

#1  It's more important to get the shot rather than make the shot in today's woke military? Especially in light of more and more info coming out concerning the risks of these shots.
Posted by: JohnQC || 02/17/2023 11:13 Comments || Top||

#2  I enjoyed James Top’s march across Canada. I was surprised that Trudeau didn’t jail him.
Posted by: Super Hose || 02/17/2023 11:59 Comments || Top||

#3 
Posted by: ACA JOE || 02/17/2023 14:55 Comments || Top||

#4  ^^ Get carried away during Happy Hour?
Posted by: DooDahMan || 02/17/2023 21:38 Comments || Top||

#5  He hates America and despises Americans — and presumably Canadians — yet believes we should join him in taking up arms against our respective governments. How disgusting.
Posted by: trailing wife || 02/17/2023 23:52 Comments || Top||


Government Corruption
Hobby Club's Missing Balloon Feared Shot Down By USAF
[Aviation Week] A small, globe-trotting balloon declared "missing in action" by an Illinois-based hobbyist club on Feb. 15 has emerged as a candidate to explain one of the three mystery objects shot down by four heat-seeking missiles launched by U.S. Air Force fighters since Feb. 10.

The club—the Northern Illinois Bottlecap Balloon Brigade (NIBBB)—is not pointing fingers yet.

But the circumstantial evidence is at least intriguing. The club’s silver-coated, party-style, "pico balloon" reported its last position on Feb. 10 at 38,910 ft. off the west coast of Alaska, and a popular forecasting tool—the HYSPLIT model provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)—projected the cylindrically shaped object would be floating high over the central part of the Yukon Territory on Feb. 11. That is the same day a Lockheed Martin F-22 shot down an unidentified object of a similar description and altitude in the same general area.

There are suspicions among other prominent members of the small, pico-ballooning enthusiasts’ community, which combines ham radio and high-altitude ballooning into a single, relatively affordable hobby.

"I tried contacting our military and the FBI—and just got the runaround—to try to enlighten them on what a lot of these things probably are. And they’re going to look not too intelligent to be shooting them down," says Ron Meadows, the founder of Scientific Balloon Solutions (SBS), a Silicon Valley company that makes purpose-built pico balloons for hobbyists, educators and scientists.

The descriptions of all three unidentified objects shot down Feb. 10-12 match the shapes, altitudes and payloads of the small pico balloons, which can usually be purchased for $12-180 each, depending on the type.

"I’m guessing probably they were pico balloons," said Tom Medlin, a retired FedEx engineer and co-host of the Amateur Radio Roundtable show. Medlin has three pico balloons in flight in the Northern and Southern hemispheres.

Aviation Week contacted a host of government agencies, including the FBI, North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), the National Security Council (NSC) and the Office of the Secretary of Defense for comment about the possibility of pico balloons. The NSC did not respond to repeated requests. The FBI and OSD did not acknowledge that harmless pico balloons are being considered as possible identities for the mystery objects shot down by the Air Force.

NIBBB website found here.
Posted by: Besoeker || 02/17/2023 02:58 || Comments || Link || [13 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Lawmakers mock Biden after UFO address: 'CCP is laughing at him'
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 5:51 Comments || Top||

#2  It's turning into The People Under The Stairs:

"Did you get him?" "No, but I think I shot the dog."
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 6:00 Comments || Top||


#4  And this fellow has the football ?
Posted by: Besoeker || 02/17/2023 6:55 Comments || Top||


#6  It's not just the CCP laughing at him.
Posted by: DooDahMan || 02/17/2023 7:09 Comments || Top||

#7  The balloon hysteria is about war preparations
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 8:26 Comments || Top||

#8  The first shot missed.
Posted by: JohnQC || 02/17/2023 12:17 Comments || Top||

#9  and that pilot is going to be a service legend.
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 12:49 Comments || Top||

#10  "Jesus; think you could have found something bigger?"
/Poncho
Posted by: swksvolFF || 02/17/2023 13:09 Comments || Top||

#11  "You think you used enough dynamite there, Butch?"
Posted by: JHH || 02/17/2023 14:18 Comments || Top||

#12  Goggle sez an A10 Warthog has a top service altitude of 45,000 feet. Coulda used one of those and a short burst of 50 cal.
Posted by: JHH || 02/17/2023 14:23 Comments || Top||

#13  #4 We're already dead. All that remains is the dirt we'll be planted in. Cheers!
Posted by: Rex Mundi || 02/17/2023 15:31 Comments || Top||

#14  Skies suddenly fill with balloons
And presstitutes suffering swoons,
"But the scariest thing,"
So our overlords sing,
"Are those new white supremacist moons!"

The Man Who Wasn't There? The View from The View? Laughter of the Spheres?
Posted by: Pancho Gluling7194 || 02/17/2023 16:29 Comments || Top||

#15  Cue mighty Close Encounters Wurlit,er.
Posted by: Pancho Gluling7194 || 02/17/2023 16:31 Comments || Top||

#16  As I was flying through the air,
I saw balloons that wasn't there.
They wasn't there again today.
How I wish they'd go away!
Posted by: SteveS || 02/17/2023 21:02 Comments || Top||


Science & Technology
USAF grounds KC-135 Stratotanker fleet over concerns their tails may fall off mid-flight
[FoxNews] Efforts to replace the Air Force’s KC-135 fleet have been underway for at least two decades.
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 00:00 || Comments || Link || [28 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Preparing to use 'the fleet'?
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 0:06 Comments || Top||

#2  @#1: Nasty. Just plain nasty... ;->
Posted by: Anomalous Sources || 02/17/2023 0:25 Comments || Top||

#3  Add also troop, ammo, and oil shortages, the relief of Mafeking Taipei could be imperiled.
Posted by: Besoeker || 02/17/2023 2:09 Comments || Top||

#4  Thanks, Johnny McShame for dragging out the last tanker replacement competition for 15 years.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 5:35 Comments || Top||

#5  Was the backup IT Eng. for the KC-130 sim at Seymore Johnson AFB. The Boom operator position was a position I could never understand why anyone would sign up to do. Imagine sitting on tons of JP fuel waiting for a spark or a static discharge to happen.
Posted by: NN2N1 || 02/17/2023 6:05 Comments || Top||

#6  On a Space-A flight years ago, while still on Active Duty, got a chance to literally sit off to the left behinds a Boom Operator as they did a BUFF refueling in flight. Far more complex than I imagined, and really, really impressed on me the skills/stones of both the boom operator and the BUFF pilot!
Posted by: NoMoreBS || 02/17/2023 11:56 Comments || Top||

#7  ^ Just another day at the office, though some offices are trickier than others.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 12:05 Comments || Top||

#8  Better than the front falling off.
Posted by: KBK || 02/17/2023 22:27 Comments || Top||


Skynet. Yes. Skynet...
[SpaceWar] The United Kingdom's Ministry of Defence (MOD) has awarded Babcock International Group a six-year contract to manage and operate Skynet, the MOD's military satellite communications system, on February 15.
The contract is called Skynet Service Delivery Wrap (SDW), it is valued at 400 million pounds ($486.6 million), and it is expected to support 400 jobs in Corsham, Bristol, and Plymouth, UK.

SDW is a part of the MOD's 6 billion pound Skynet 6 satellite communications program aimed at delivering battlefield communications to British and allied forces operating around the world. Skynet 6 is currently being built by Airbus and is set to be launched in 2025 and become operational in 2028.

Babcock is a British aerospace, defense, and nuclear engineering services company based in London, England.

David Lockwood, CEO of Babcock, said, "We are delighted to have been chosen to support this world-leading technological safeguard. Skynet enables vital communications to the UK Armed Forces wherever they are, helping to keep them safe."

"Babcock is a world leader in secure communications for the military. Together with our partners, we will provide a high-tech solution which combines the availability, affordability and capability that the UK needs." he added.

Babcock will partner with SES, GovSat, and Intelsat to manage and operate the current fleet of four Skynet 5 satellites, all built by Airbus.

The rival bidders for the SDW contract are Lockheed Martin UK, which partnered with a Serco-led consortium comprising CGI and Inmarsat, as well as British Telecommunications (BT), Viasat, and Airbus Defense and Space, who partnered with KBR, Leidos, Northrop Grumman, and QinetiQ.

Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 00:00 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under:

#1 
Well, look at Star Link deployment already done. OR One Web deployment.

Spin the map around, it seems the North and South Polar area only need filling in a little more and some add some A.I.
Posted by: NN2N1 || 02/17/2023 5:49 Comments || Top||

#2  Kuiper going up soon. Will be on one of the first Vulcans, too.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 6:05 Comments || Top||

#3  The poles are problematic for LEO sats. Not many customers there either.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 6:08 Comments || Top||

#4  There's also a "Skynet" company in the Houston area, that does internet cabling. Driving to a site and seeing a van with 'Skynet' on it provokes an odd feeling.
Posted by: ed in texas || 02/17/2023 9:25 Comments || Top||

#5  IIRC the Chinese also has a 'Skynet'.

Posted by: Seeking Cure For Ignorance || 02/17/2023 18:01 Comments || Top||


RETRO: Pentagon testing mass surveillance balloons across the US
[TheGuardian]
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 00:00 || Comments || Link || [4 views] Top|| File under:

#1  DOD is able to conduct drug surveillance over Midwestern states but it would be inappropriate for them to block illegals invading across our southern border.
Posted by: Super Hose || 02/17/2023 7:16 Comments || Top||

#2  The drug interdiction angle is a shuck.
Posted by: M. Murcek || 02/17/2023 7:18 Comments || Top||

#3  What's the Army's MOS for "Ballooner"?
Posted by: DooDahMan || 02/17/2023 7:19 Comments || Top||

#4  Possibly 150U
Posted by: Skidmark || 02/17/2023 8:51 Comments || Top||

#5  Has the Chinese-Moffett field contract been finalized ?
Posted by: Besoeker || 02/17/2023 9:49 Comments || Top||

#6  #4 Skidmark. Lots of luck finding anyone with that shopping list of requirements.
Posted by: Dale || 02/17/2023 13:38 Comments || Top||



Who's in the News
50[untagged]
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3Islamic State
3Taliban/IEA
3Tin Hat Dictators, Presidents for Life, & Kleptocrats
2Antifa/BLM
1al-Qaeda
1Narcos
1Pak Taliban (TTP)
1Sublime Porte
1[untagged]
1Commies
1Baloch Liberation Army

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Two weeks of WOT
Fri 2023-02-17
  Galmudug regional forces kill 55 Al-Shabaab members
Thu 2023-02-16
  SNA Faction In Afrin Steals Aid Provided To Quake-Stricken Jindires
Wed 2023-02-15
  Iran-based trainer of 9/11 hijackers Sayf al-‘Adl believed to be new al-Qaeda chief
Tue 2023-02-14
  Putin pulls Wagner Group troops from Ukraine
Mon 2023-02-13
  117 Al Shabaab Turbans Toes Up in 8 hr. Mudug Region Shootout
Sun 2023-02-12
  Narc lord ‘Gato’ Farfan, arrested in Colombia
Sat 2023-02-11
  Militants kill 16 security officials in northern Burkina Faso
Fri 2023-02-10
  American Stockbroker Who Abandoned Family To Join Terrorists In Syria Convicted Of Becoming Sniper, Instructor For ISIS
Thu 2023-02-09
   New Zealand police find 3.5 tons of cocaine worth $300M floating in Pacific Ocean
Wed 2023-02-08
  Kenya steps up measures against Al-Shabaab militants in Somalia
Tue 2023-02-07
  Nearly 3,000 dead, over 13,500 injured in Turkiye-syria earthquake
Mon 2023-02-06
  Militant NY couple get a combined 20 yrs in prison for providing material support to Islamic State terrorists
Sun 2023-02-05
   US shoots down Chinese balloon over ocean
Sat 2023-02-04
  Karachi: Another Ahmadiyya worship place vandalised, 5 arrested
Fri 2023-02-03
  Anti-ISIS Campaign Ends, 127 Arrested – AANES


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