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Old 12-31-2019, 03:08 PM
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The crusades were a sham. The pope and the Roman empire were headquartered in Constantinople and they (Byzantines) were at war with the Seljuk Turks and were being attacked from other sides as well. They had a long history of hiring mercenaries to fight for them. They found a new source of willing mercenaries in nobles of Europe that were promised riches and plunder if they would drive out the Seljuks and others. The rank-and-file were promised a share of the riches and pardon for their sins. The whole thing was about shoring up the Byzantine Empire and the Pope against enemies.
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Old 12-31-2019, 03:40 PM
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Most wars are over resources.... In the modern era, yes.

This discussion loops back on itself. Scarcity of resources is directly tied to population growth. Population growth is directly related to keeping young people alive long enough to reproduce. More population equals more bodies to field a standing army, which lets you enter a war, which results in deaths, which affects not only the immediate population, but all of those young people who won't be having kids. There are entire fields of study about how the world has been shaped following a war that kills off the "able-bodied men". Wars also tend to produce great leaps in all manner of technology, especially medicine, which keeps younger people alive longer. Wars also tend to be followed by long periods of peace, which allows societies to focus on living.

However, people tend to throw around numbers without context. During the Civil War, over 1million people died from various things related to the war... 99% Americans. Only about 300,000 of those were combat deaths on the battlefield. A full 600,000 soldiers died of disease. At the time, 1 million people, both soldiers and civilian (about 3% of the population) was a significant amount.

However, consider that in WWII, the USA lost "only" about 420,000 TOTAL in the War... at the time, that amounted to around 0.32% of the population of the country. I think people tend to assume that number is far greater than it actually is.

Consider that the Soviet Union lost almost 30 million in WW2..

Last edited by samnavy; 12-31-2019 at 05:51 PM.
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Old 01-01-2020, 09:39 AM
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democrats love their constituents.

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Old 01-01-2020, 10:12 AM
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Joe do you find it weird that Andy McCabe admitted to lying to FBI witch hunt investigators, was.confronted about it, but never faced an indictment or serving jailtime like others who did the same; some unintentionally?
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Old 01-01-2020, 10:25 AM
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Originally Posted by Braineack
Joe do you find it weird that Andy McCabe admitted to lying to FBI witch hunt investigators, was.confronted about it, but never faced an indictment or serving jailtime like others who did the same; some unintentionally?
No.
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Old 01-01-2020, 10:29 AM
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Originally Posted by Braineack
democrats love their constituents.

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Old 01-01-2020, 12:45 PM
  #16607  
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Originally Posted by Joe Perez
No.
cool just checking.
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Old 01-03-2020, 01:27 AM
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Old 01-03-2020, 11:22 AM
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Old 01-03-2020, 11:37 AM
  #16610  
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He was wrong at the front. Obama was in bed with Iran and liked to hand the over billions of dollars so they could then attack Trump later in his Presidency, so you could find and post this tweet years late.

Remember, Trump fired Bolton. Bolton's life-long dream was war with Iran.



you forgot about this tweet too:

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Old 01-03-2020, 11:40 AM
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Originally Posted by Braineack
Obama was in bed with Iran and liked to hand the over billions of dollars so they could then attack Trump later in his Presidency, so you could find and post this tweet years late.


(To be clear, the piece of toast is laughing at you, not with you.)
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Old 01-03-2020, 11:45 AM
  #16612  
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You don't think Obama was Pro-Iran?
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Old 01-03-2020, 12:26 PM
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Originally Posted by Braineack
You don't think Obama was Pro-Iran?
I think that the majority of elected / appointed public officials are pro "whatever provides the greatest benefit to myself and my supporters at any given time."
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Old 01-03-2020, 12:42 PM
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If there really are sleeper cells in the US that shed blood here, do you still think people will call trump racist for calling to end mass unchecked immigration into the US from enemy states?


Here's a really good read on
Obama's Iran policy Obama's Iran policy
.



Seems the sleeper cells in Iran are pretty happy about the airstrike:

Facebook Post

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Old 01-03-2020, 01:43 PM
  #16615  
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Originally Posted by Braineack
If there really are sleeper cells in the US that shed blood here, do you still think people will call trump racist for calling to end mass unchecked immigration into the US from enemy states?
Yes.


More specifically:

A: If Donald Trump personally developed a means to end world hunger without employing GMOs, cured all diseases without vaccinations or "big pharma," and ushered in an era of global peace and prosperity among all nations, races and religions, a certain segment of people would still find some reason to complain about how that is not only racist, but also misogynistic, paternalistic, homophobic, discriminatory against the mentally handicapped, discriminatory against low-income households, and also a form of rape.

Because, after all, Orange Man Bad.



B: By the same token, if Barack Obama had done the same thing, then people like Braineack would be trying to explain how it was all a part of some deep-state conspiracy and / or part of a false-flag operation.

Because, after all, Liberals Bad.
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Old 01-03-2020, 02:38 PM
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Old 01-03-2020, 07:26 PM
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Originally Posted by Joe Perez
Yes.


More specifically:

A: If Donald Trump personally developed a means to end world hunger without employing GMOs, cured all diseases without vaccinations or "big pharma," and ushered in an era of global peace and prosperity among all nations, races and religions, a certain segment of people would still find some reason to complain about how that is not only racist, but also misogynistic, paternalistic, homophobic, discriminatory against the mentally handicapped, discriminatory against low-income households, and also a form of rape.

Because, after all, Orange Man Bad.



B: By the same token, if Barack Obama had done the same thing, then people like Braineack would be trying to explain how it was all a part of some deep-state conspiracy and / or part of a false-flag operation.

Because, after all, Liberals Bad.
Of course I'm somewhat biased, but I take a view similar to those of Milton Friedman (Reality vs Theory) and Dennis Prager (Left = feel good, Right = do good) which leads me to believe that your option A is much more likely than your option B. The two groups do not respond in the same manner.

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Old 01-04-2020, 11:59 AM
  #16618  
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This seems familiar:




Not a forgery. Here's the original: https://www.nytimes.com/1998/12/17/w...-iraq-air.html

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Old 01-06-2020, 08:24 AM
  #16619  
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Familiar, but nothing close to the same.

May 2019 - Iran attacks oil tankers in the Gulf.

June 2019 - Iran shoots down US drone.

July 2019 - Iran seizes British oil tanker.

Sept 2019 - Iran attacks Saudi state run oil co.

Dec 2019 - Iran attacks US military bases in Iraq.

Dec 2019 - Iran storms the US Embassy in Baghdad.

Jan 2020 - US air strikes Baghdad, killing an Iran commander.

Jan 2020 - people say TrUmP oNLy sTaRtEd tHiS wAr
...................bEcAuSe of tHe uPcOmINg eLEcTIoN / ImPEAPcaHeMENT
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Old 01-06-2020, 08:44 AM
  #16620  
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Originally Posted by Braineack
Iran Iran Iran Iran Iran Iran Iran




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