Wow, it turns out “Really convincing-sounding chatbot” isn’t as all-purpose as was hoped.

I mean, legit, it’s impressive how detailed and precise (and often wrong) it can get, but impressive isn’t the same as useful.

I guess AI image generation probably has made concept art mockups quicker for some.

Don’t know how proud I am, but I am an American, and I am absolutely on the side of Canada

Not American so not very familiar with MLK quotes but if that 1 is true it probes that even then inaction was just as bad has it is today.

“Bad men need nothing more to compass their ends, than that good men should look on and do nothing,” - John Stuart Mill, 1867

Unfortunately, the problem is ancient. Probably as old as humanity itself. People often want to think if they just keep their heads down and wait it out it’ll get better, but that only ever happens because a large number of OTHER people are fighting to make it better.

If we were discussing this from a purely military perspective, sure, but neither side particularly wants a proper shooting war, Syria having just emerged from one of those. The most likely result, both before and after this, is some form of negotiated integration - and now Rojava’s bargaining position is greatly reduced, and the previous compromise agreement is unlikely to be offered again.

Explanation: Fuck me, strap in, this is a wild ride.

Alright, shortest possible version of events: Rojava is an ethnically Kurdish dominated polity in northeast Syria that formed during the war against the Assad regime. Despite being Kurdish, it officially proclaimed, and to at least some degree provided, ethnic equality with Arabs and other Syrian minorities. On top of that, it was a radical and decentralized leftist initiative with significant success, both military and economic.

Nonetheless, it is a relatively small part of Syria, and many of the outlaying regions, dominated by Syrian Arabs, were not particular partisans of Rojava so much as reluctant to return under the Assad regime. When the Assad regime fell, many in Rojava were shocked that many of these people were happy to return to the more ‘traditional’ central government instead of keeping with the great project which had provided security and economic survival in a period of chaos.

After a period of tension, an agreement was reached between the central government, itself unsteady and exercising only loose control over the various militias that made up the Syrian Civil War, and Rojava. In it, Rojava was guaranteed a certain level of autonomy, and would have Rojava officers placed in high spots in the new national Syrian army. In addition, Rojava would be given control over several mid-sized military units to staff and organize as they saw fit. It was less than Rojava originally aimed for, but for a time it seemed like a compromise both sides could live with.

After a series of attacks by local militias on Rojava, Rojava accused the central government of manipulating local militias to attack them, and demanded more robust security guarantees from the central government. The central government responded with denials and accusations that Rojava was just seeking to escalate its claims during a period of instability, with Israel bombing Syria and using Druze militias in the south to attack the central Syrian government. There have been constant skirmishes since, with neither side looking particularly interested in restarting any kind of civil war so much as attempting to bluster the other side into backing down.

With the new Syrian government interested in good relations with the US, it’s likely that Rojava, which previously enjoyed US support, would be in a stronger position… only the Trump regime came out and said that it has no interest in Rojava. Which is unsurprising, since Trump pushed hard to abandon the Kurds in Syria during his first term too.

Over the past few days, Arab militias in many outlying Arab majority areas of Rojava have risen up and, in the course of fighting with Rojava’s forces, caused them to withdraw, primarily by the rapid and unexpected positioning of militia fighters rather than prolonged combat. The forces of Rojava have withdrawn primarily to consolidate and form a plan that doesn’t involve entire units of their’s being surrounded by hostile militias, which is a very bad position to be in, rather than being battered or beaten back. The central government took the withdrawal of Rojava as an opportunity to take large amounts of those outlying areas without firing a shot.

Whether the central government was always fucking with Rojava and stalling for time and the militias are legitimately catspaws of the government, or Rojava overplayed its hand in rejecting implementing the compromise it originally agreed to is largely a matter of opinion.

Forgive me for such a ‘neutral’ position, but I’m of the opinion that both sides had entirely justified mistrust towards one another. The central government is probably enthusiastically taking this opportunistically to ‘reclaim’ the territory for central government control instead of ‘giving up’ autonomy to the region. However, they also may not have instigated local militias, many of which had previously quarreled with Rojava, the original cause of nonimplementation of the compromise agreement, as their ‘control’ over the country is nominal at best, and doubly so when regarding the many local militia forces who have loosely reaffiliated themselves with the successful central government after Assad’s fall.

What looks certain at this point is that Rojava’s bargaining position is much reduced, and the government may feel its own hand is strong enough now to not bother trying to negotiate a second compromise. This is an extremely sad day for leftist hopes and dreams. Rojava was extremely successful and built on high ideals, which it largely lived up to. At best, its influence will be greatly reduced compared to what it was looking like before. At worst, the Syrian central government will dismantle it entirely.

Just like mama used to make

They are awfully close, though. Both in scale of insanity and in affection for each other.

Insha’Allah, I shall see you when the dates are on the trees

Insha’Allah, till then only in my dreams, habibti

I shall see you if He wills it and, Insha’Allah, He brings us peace

If He wills it, Insha’Allah

Insha’Allah, I shall see you when the fighting finally ceases

Insha’Allah, till then only in my dreams, habibti

I shall see you if He wills it and, Insha’Allah, we are made free

And peace upon him be

If He wills it, Insha’Allah

How I long to make the trek back home across the arid desert to my son

For now he must be old enough to ride and read and fire the British gun

But will he know his father when he sees in me the things that I have done?

Insha’Allah, I shall see you when from service we’re released

Insha’Allah, till then only in my dreams, habibti

I shall see you if He wills it and when the Turk, he tastes defeat

If He wills it, Insha’Allah

I could help you carry water and to start an honest business we could run

I could worry about the olives as I worked the presses, healthy in the sun

But then who would fight the Ottoman and win the freedom Lawrence says will come?

Insha’Allah, I shall see you when dates are on the trees

Insha’Allah, till then only in my dreams, habibti

I shall see you if He wills it

Till then our desert ponies leap

And peace upon him be

If He wills it, Insha’Allah

Honestly? I’m ready to let them have a shot at it. We ain’t done so hot, what’s the worst that could happen?

Fuck, when I said I was going to die in the US this isn’t what I wanted it to mean

what good doge

Title Explanation: Germany has a history of naming its tanks after ‘big cats’. Panther, Tiger, Leopard, etc. This here’s a little cat tank.

Mark Antony was considered something of an crude boor, yet he managed to snag the incredibly intelligent, cultured, powerful, and beautiful Queen Cleopatra in what was an apparently happy marriage.

So I must assume yes, his thighs were incredible

Explanation: Romans wore tunics, which generally did not reach the knees. Flexible and breathable! This includes the Roman Legions. Trousers were denigrated as ‘barbarian’, though Legions in northern areas and the later Empire would begin to wear them regularly.

Julius Caesar’s right-hand man, Mark Antony, was noted as wearing scandalously short tunics to show off his muscular legs. Ooh la la!

“Your children, sell me your children!”

Also more economically productive. But the ultra-wealthy are aristocrats cosplaying as managers, and reducing the workweek of the filthy poors reduces how entertaining their cosplay is to them.

God, if only we were as based as South Korea on this matter

Well, I said the ratio improves, not that you avoid them entirely.

“Kids knowing the truth makes them hate America”

… or maybe just the version of America peddled wherein all of its sins must be worshipped instead of repudiated?

Of course, theft and bigotry are the highest of all values to cretins like Musk

lmao, good riddance