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But nuking is soooo old fashioned. lets just put a mass driver in space. Gets around that "No nukes in spess!" treaty and is cheaper. Nothing says F*** OFF like a 20 ft depleted uranium rod hitting the ground at Mach 10

Well, if the African Union's on the case, we can all rest easy.

Why put a mass driver on there? Just drop a tungsten telephone pole from LEO. Same results, no fall out, no machinery. Just drop and go.

 KalashnikovMarine wrote:
Why put a mass driver on there? Just drop a tungsten telephone pole from LEO. Same results, no fall out, no machinery. Just drop and go.

Well thats kinda what I had in mind. I suppose Mass Driver isn't the proper term for that type of gun.

Nope, I believe the term from the design documents is "Rods from God"

I like to call them orbital middle fingers.



The actual technical term is: Orbital Kinetic Kill Weapon... I think

I am increasingly worried that many 3rd world citizens are starting to really despise and hate hate western society. There is a problem in Yemen and Somalia, I'm afraid it will cause a lot of radical people from both sides to attack each other, leading in wide spread chaos.

 rockerbikie wrote:
I am increasingly worried that many 3rd world citizens are starting to really despise and hate hate western society. There is a problem in Yemen and Somalia, I'm afraid it will cause a lot of radical people from both sides to attack each other, leading in wide spread chaos.

It's the result of failure at a PR campaign.

A few years ago a survey was done among Afghani's. Something to the scale of 90% had no clue why we were in their country. Combine that with the fact that the majority are illiterate, and the only real news of the outside world that they get is from their radical imam that teaches them Jihad... Ignorance is dangerous, and it's our biggest enemy at the moment.

Doubt they actually care, it's just another occupying army, it's been going on in Afghanistan since civilization developed.

 KalashnikovMarine wrote:
Doubt they actually care, it's just another occupying army, it's been going on in Afghanistan since civilization developed.

Indeed, the people living in the middle east and africa really havn't had their culture change for the last 5,000 years. They're still tribal barbarians, except they are armed with AK-47s instead of swords and spears.

LOL

Haven't had their culture change for the last 5,000 years?

Islam was probably one of the great changing factors in the region. It also had an impact on the rest of the world - the astrolabe, for example, helped European navigators discover the Americas.

I live in the UAE. I'd invite you to come over here. Amazingly, we don't live in huts! See this:

"Tribal barbarians" built this. To give you an impression of the scale of this:




These houses are absolutely massive as well - 4 bedroom with ensuite bathrooms and stuff.

It's not just Dubai. There's Doha and its Corniche area, Muscat (enough said, just look at the images of the city - it's beautiful!), Abu Dhabi, Jeddah - Arabia, the heart of the middle east, really is developing and developing well. Hell, even Iran's not that bad!

 ExNoctemNacimur wrote:
LOL

Haven't had their culture change for the last 5,000 years?

Islam was probably one of the great changing factors in the region. It also had an impact on the rest of the world - the astrolabe, for example, helped European navigators discover the Americas.

I live in the UAE. I'd invite you to come over here. Amazingly, we don't live in huts! See this:

"Tribal barbarians" built this. To give you an impression of the scale of this:




These houses are absolutely massive as well - 4 bedroom with ensuite bathrooms and stuff.

It's not just Dubai. There's Doha and its Corniche area, Muscat (enough said, just look at the images of the city - it's beautiful!), Abu Dhabi, Jeddah - Arabia, the heart of the middle east, really is developing and developing well. Hell, even Iran's not that bad!

Hey... question for you... why are they building islands? It's not as if the don't have enough beach front coasts...??

Is it because of some religious reason? Since it's not on mainland, they're not subjected certain tenet of their religions?

They've built completely on the beachfront. To continue to supply sea view houses to the wealthy they've built this island. There are two larger ones in construction plus The World.

Ok, not everyone is a tribal barbarian. Only those who don't have oil money. Which is 99% of the population

 rockerbikie wrote:
I am increasingly worried that many 3rd world citizens are starting to really despise and hate hate western society. There is a problem in Yemen and Somalia, I'm afraid it will cause a lot of radical people from both sides to attack each other, leading in wide spread chaos.

IN other words, situation normal?

 Grey Templar wrote:
Ok, not everyone is a tribal barbarian. Only those who don't have oil money. Which is 99% of the population

You put The Shoveler to shame, and that man shovels well, very well.

 Grey Templar wrote:
Ok, not everyone is a tribal barbarian. Only those who don't have oil money. Which is 99% of the population

Again not really. Dubai no longer has oil, it hasn't for 20 years. In Qatar, the UAE etc. All the arabs are quite wealthy.

 MeanGreenStompa wrote:
Just be ready to welcome the nation back to the table when they've shaken these repulsive bastards off for themselves and decided to throw off this ridiculous dark age religion and it's vile trappings.

Name for me one US President who didn't identify himself as a Christian, then name me one candidate who's campaign went anywhere after outing himself as anything other than Christian.

We'll be eager to welcome the USA back to the table once they've shaken off this ridiculous throwback to the Dark Ages and it's vile trappings.

 dogma wrote:

 Grey Templar wrote:
Ok, not everyone is a tribal barbarian. Only those who don't have oil money. Which is 99% of the population

You put The Shoveler to shame, and that man shovels well, very well.

Dogma I think this one is beneath you. Unless I bomb horribly.

Hey Grey Templar what was that whole thing about wealth distribution in America? What were the numbers again? Oh yeah. You're a tribal barbarian. In America.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

MarsNZ wrote:

 MeanGreenStompa wrote:
Just be ready to welcome the nation back to the table when they've shaken these repulsive bastards off for themselves and decided to throw off this ridiculous dark age religion and it's vile trappings.

Name for me one US President who didn't identify himself as a Christian, then name me one candidate who's campaign went anywhere after outing himself as anything other than Christian.

We'll be eager to welcome the USA back to the table once they've shaken off this ridiculous throwback to the Dark Ages and it's vile trappings.

Never realized Oceania is a haven for atheist diplomats.

 DutchKillsRambo wrote:

Dogma I think this one is beneath you. Unless I bomb horribly.

 DutchKillsRambo wrote:


Never realized Oceania is a haven for atheist diplomats.

Kudos, you're one of maybe 20% of your fellow countrymen that actually know NZ isn't in Europe or the Middle East.

And religion has nothing to do with politics here, unlike in the USA or the Middle East

THE MORE YOU KNOW

 DutchKillsRambo wrote:
Never realized Oceania is a haven for atheist diplomats.

It's why they're such diplomatic heavyweights.

Well our most recent PM is now the director of the United Nations Develpment Program, and another former PM of ours was the Director of the World Trade Organisation. I'm sure you all knew that though.

 Grey Templar wrote:
Ok, not everyone is a tribal barbarian. Only those who don't have oil money. Which is 99% of the population

Nope. Dubai, the place with the artificial islands, no longer has any oil and it hasn't for more than 20 years. The development of the city only began in earnest about 12 years ago. The natives in Saudi, the UAE and Qatar are generally extremely wealthy even if they have no connections to oil at all.

If you look at a map of global HDIs like this one:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d9/2011_UN_Human_Development_Report_Quartiles.svg
Then you'll see that actually a lot of countries in the middle east have a high HDI rating. The UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Occupied Palestine and Cyprus have, in fact, very high HDIs. Libya also had one too before Gadaffi.

Honestly? Most of the Middle East are not tribal barbarians. Most Middle Easterns will not join an Islamist terrorist group or even think of joining one. Islam does not equal extremism. Islam does not equal backward-ness more than any other religion does. Please.

MarsNZ wrote:

 MeanGreenStompa wrote:
Just be ready to welcome the nation back to the table when they've shaken these repulsive bastards off for themselves and decided to throw off this ridiculous dark age religion and it's vile trappings.

Name for me one US President who didn't identify himself as a Christian, then name me one candidate who's campaign went anywhere after outing himself as anything other than Christian.

We'll be eager to welcome the USA back to the table once they've shaken off this ridiculous throwback to the Dark Ages and it's vile trappings.

To make your argument work you have to note viable candidates who ran and were then blown out for not being Christian.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 ExNoctemNacimur wrote:
They've built completely on the beachfront. To continue to supply sea view houses to the wealthy they've built this island. There are two larger ones in construction plus The World.

I see that, and my Gulf Coast Spidey Sense sees something thats underwater from just a mild tropical storm.
My old school Commie sense, sees a region thats goes against the wall when the revolution comes. Workers of the World unite!

 Grey Templar wrote:
Ok, not everyone is a tribal barbarian. Only those who don't have oil money. Which is 99% of the population

Psst... I think your ignorance is showing. You might want to do somethign about that.

 Frazzled wrote:

Automatically Appended Next Post:

 ExNoctemNacimur wrote:
They've built completely on the beachfront. To continue to supply sea view houses to the wealthy they've built this island. There are two larger ones in construction plus The World.

I see that, and my Gulf Coast Spidey Sense sees something thats underwater from just a mild tropical storm.
My old school Commie sense, sees a region thats goes against the wall when the revolution comes. Workers of the World unite!

Well, there are no tropical storms in Dubai, so thank god for that!

 ExNoctemNacimur wrote:

 Frazzled wrote:

Automatically Appended Next Post:

 ExNoctemNacimur wrote:
They've built completely on the beachfront. To continue to supply sea view houses to the wealthy they've built this island. There are two larger ones in construction plus The World.

I see that, and my Gulf Coast Spidey Sense sees something thats underwater from just a mild tropical storm.
My old school Commie sense, sees a region thats goes against the wall when the revolution comes. Workers of the World unite!

Well, there are no tropical storms in Dubai, so thank god for that!

Yea, I know that, which is good. Anything like that however makes me antsy.

Well, it's come to this. The French are on the case with air strikes and soldiers.

The surrender of Mali, Senegal, and most of mainland France is expected by the end of the month.

 Easy E wrote:

 Grey Templar wrote:
Ok, not everyone is a tribal barbarian. Only those who don't have oil money. Which is 99% of the population

Psst... I think your ignorance is showing. You might want to do somethign about that.

Do you really really think I was 100% serious?

Two dead soldiers and a dead hostage? Should have called the SAS.


In seriousness, the French have been carrying out operations against Somali militants (trying to cover pirates, clans, and various criminal groups there) for some years but very little reaches the main media, and they have been having some successes I believe. But there seem to be plenty more willing to replace those pirates and other bandits being killed. This one only seems to have made the news because they haven't made a good job of this last operation.