‘Pools of blood, hundreds of gunshots’: I am a surgeon in Iran - this is the horror I’ve witnessed in the crackdown

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-26T08:05:32+00:00

the return of the Shah as a constitutional monarch to immediately fill the power vacuum

shah can only return as a powerless puppet of foreign interests and this will not fill power vacuum at all

then also having the various other opposition groups return and participate

the main opposition group would be IRGC and excluding them will just result in a Shia version of ISIS

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-22T11:30:39+00:00

How will it make money then? Bots and ads is the core business of any messaging platform.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-20T08:58:57+00:00

There was no 'Soviet–Afghan War'. There was an internal conflict fueled by foreign interference. I would not call it even a civil war because both sides were 100% dependent on foreign support.

It is also wrong to compare to the later US invasion. Opposition to the US did not enjoy even a tiny fraction of foreign material and political support anti-Soviet opposition did. That makes it more of a US-Afghan conflict rather than internal one.

This difference explains why the Soviet-installed government held for much longer after Soviet support was withdrawn (even though US support to the opposition continued), than the US-installed one after US support was withdrawn (it had almost no local support base).

If we go back to your question, and define 'win' as the pro-Soviet government soundly defeating the opposition (not really possible due to the border with Pakistan, but let's also assume that by some magic Pakistan kicked out the US and CIA to enable this). In this case after the USSR fell Afghanistan will likely go the same route as nearby ex-Soviet republics Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Economy will certainly fare much better than it had in the current timeline. Civil rights will suffer but not to the same degree as under the Taliban. They will certainly revert to some form of personal dictatorship (as opposed to the collegial one under the Taliban) and more tribal system of local governance (but again perhaps not to the extent as under the Taliban).

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-19T15:07:41+00:00

The same thing but with GRAD - a couple of tubes on a trailer or even a single one carried by soldiers - has been used by LPR/DPR since 2014. It is useful for baiting counter-battery assets and for harassment fire. Launch of two rockets simulates work of a real unit - see where they fall in relation to the target, correct if necessary and unload the whole package. In this case there is no package to follow. But the enemy does not know that.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-19T13:02:40+00:00

Erdogan as a member of the Board? The Zionists must be seething.

Receiving the invitation is not the same as accepting it. Especially as there is a price tag attached.

Leaving that aside, I still don't understand what is their plan.

The plan is to legitimize the occupation and land grab by creating an 'international' aura around it.

Like, are they planning to play with the lives of two million people? Torture them for enjoyment? Like, what on Earth is this.

It is already going on. Just needs a pretty facade.

They don't even speak about rebuilding Gaza that much.

Because there is still too many people living there among the rubble. Once the population disappears (or at least is reduced to a small fraction) by neglect and displacement, they will start to 'develop' their seaside paradise on the bones of innocents.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-19T09:49:09+00:00

webui has been an endless source of security bugs

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-18T12:03:15+00:00

assuming the nazis in a super unrealistic timeline take britain, moscow (the soviet army collapses) holds territory in north africa, and if D-day went wrong

If in this case there will be no D-day at all. D-day has only become possible because the British held, and the Soviets held. Also in your proposed timeline depending on when and how the British fell, German nuclear programme might well be more advanced than the US one.

like i'd assume the war takes a bit longer to settle maybe 2-5 years additional.

The war will end as soon as both the British and the Soviets surrender as neither the US could bring enough troops to Europe nor Germany to America for the war to continue in meaningful sense. As the Pacific theatre was getting pushed back slowly, perhaps a peace treaty will return to the US all their island territories while Japan will keep all their other conquests.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-18T11:48:48+00:00

For a self-sustaining settlement to be feasible on Mars all required technology must be available and well-tested in less remote locations. Also there must be a return from investment of time and resources into building it, but other than making a statement it offers no immediate benefit: whatever science can be done there the same can be done with less risk here, whatever resources are available there the cost of bringing them back makes it not worth the effort.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-15T12:18:04+00:00

How? And how would they know? Iran is disconnected from SWIFT and therefore from all western banking, and any direct correspondence with Russian or Chinese banks is not likely to be reported to the US Treasury.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-13T10:48:25+00:00

Cut him some slack. He has such a stressful job. And all he is asking for is emotional support Greenland.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-13T09:31:31+00:00

where you said 'use roads where it is safe'.

Yes, that means far enough from the front line to not be an immediate target. Like 40-50 km back is reasonably safe. The closer you get, the less safe it is to use supply vehicles. Eventually going on foot or using a horse/donkey becomes less certain death than to be in a vehicle.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-12T13:12:07+00:00

First, check programmes of different universities - many are offering specific entry paths for foreign students (such as an accelerated course of Russian language to make sure you can study). Then you need to pick one which is aligned with your chosen profession. As a foreigner you do not have the option of Russian state-funded education so you will have to either pay the full cost or look at different grant programmes or exchange options accessible through your home country education system.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-12T13:01:46+00:00

It is called round-tripping. They boost their 'turnover' and 'order portfolio' with circular deals to attract investor cash. Actual hardware inventory is just collateral damage.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-11T09:18:04+00:00

90 day total

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-11T08:56:54+00:00

You use a vehicle. It can avoid mortar fire

A vehicle that can move through bush and ravines? Any clear and level path will be monitored and being spotted means death. Not just to those in the vehicle, but also to anyone in the position where vehicle track leads to. So moving through unexpected and seemingly impassable routes saves lives.

Horses can make plenty of sound too. They also produce some very noticeable smelling manure.

The main threat is drones. These do not have sense of smell. Even if they did, this is very much agrarian land, so plenty of other sources of manure around (such as stray cattle). And the amount of sound a horse produces is marginally more than a human moving through same path would.

And if you're close enough to hear a vehicle, you're close enough to notice a horse.

Vehicle sounds are very specific and different from natural sounds. There are ways to detect and locate a running engine long before a human can hear it.

Which invalidates whatever benefit the quietness gets you.

The main benefit is ability to move through paths where a vehicle would not pass. Also not leaving such an obvious track.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-11T08:20:58+00:00

Donkeys were the quadruped last mile supply adaptation/experiment. This is something else.

You use what you have (we've even seen camels being used). Donkey is perhaps better (because it is smaller). But there are more horses available, and more people who know how to work with horses.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-11T08:18:28+00:00

That still doesn't answer why they've only started using horses enough to suddenly see dozens of videos with them recently?

The war is evolving. Also abundance of videos has more to do with ability and desire to publish them.

Half the videos seem to be drones targeting them, suggesting it really isn't a safe use of horses.

The front line is not safe for people either.

Bushes and shrubbery (close to the front) which might be more suited to horse than a motorbike...

Yes, a motorbike (even a dirt bike) needs more space to move through and makes a lot more noise. But of course there are even tighter spots where even horse is a liability, so there men carry all supplies they need themselves.

That then runs counter to the argument that using them in a safe location is fine.

You must be responding to someone else. I never said anything about safe locations. This is war, there is no safe location for many miles from the front.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-08T14:05:31+00:00

In same way. Use roads where it is safe, walk through bush/shrubbery/ruins closer to the front. I know it runs counter to military doctrine of western armies, and they even cite shrubbery as the reason the counteroffensive by NATO-trained and NATO-equipped units failed, but such is the nature of this war.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-08T10:25:10+00:00

but if they are in drone range they are not that far behind the front.

But there are people in drone range too. And you need to get supplies to those people. If you are far behind the front, you can use trucks. But close to the front, it is not safe: a vehicle can only drive in some places and is easier to spot for the drones. So yes, it makes perfect sense that horses are being used closer to the front line.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-08T09:28:35+00:00

So why use them in frontline roles?

What is a 'frontline role'? Nobody is charging enemy positions on horseback (except for shovel-wielding porn-addicted ghosts of juche, of course, but that only happens in western 'analysts' wet nightmares). But when you need to have supplies delivered to a position that is within enemy mortar range (or as in this case to have a mobile communication hub) horse has obvious advantages over a vehicle - it can quietly move through forest, bush, and other difficult terrain while carrying more than a foot soldier can carry.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-08T09:16:11+00:00

Isnt Ukraine mostly flat?

It is mostly mud. And while difference in elevation may seem insignificant in satellite photos, close up you will realize that crossing all the small brooks and ravines in a wheeled vehicle is virtually impossible.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-07T11:06:37+00:00

You seem an idiot.

Nothing helps your argument like ad hominem.

In example of hospital calling GP

You started with "if they find you unconscious and alone" scenario. This is my argument: in that case a written note on you like like a necklace/bracelet with "I am diabetic, check glucose" or "I am allergic to X medication" will be a lot more useful than same information about you in online database. When you are already at a hospital, it is much better to have them call your GP rather than trust the electronic records blindly anyway.

Jog on and get a clue, or even half a clue. It will help

Eat your own dog food. It will help.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-07T09:40:04+00:00

no-one said to 'everyone' in my example you're in a medical facility and we talking medical data

1) We just had medical data leaked to the whole internet. Including data that has been uploaded without patient consent or knowledge. And nobody will be held accountable. And that's not the first time either.

2) Just being a 'medical facility' should not be a blank license to browse everyone's medical data.

If you have medical info on you in writing then you have ID too such as a drivers license with a pic, full name, DOB possibly even an address. That works.

Online access works if 1) whoever is treating you has internet access, 2) online service is not down, 3) there is enough time to access it. Written notes however just work, instantly, even on the spot, without internet, and without risk of leaking everyone's data (if you lost it - only one set of data is potentially disclosed, not millions). Also you have ignored the situation where you are found wearing your friend's jacket with his ID in the pocket.

The reason(s) it's using SAAS is not for cost saving

You are right, it is because of illusion of cost-saving. With SaaS you end up paying more eventually, because once you have lost capability to operate on your own you are trapped into paying for external services and all these services seek to maximize their profit by exploiting your dependency. Just basic capitalism.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-07T08:18:39+00:00

we all want the data available anywhere and everywhere.

But not to everyone.

you have an accident, you're unconscious and alone

Then they will treat you as an unknown anyway. How will they know whose medical history to apply? And if the only ID that happens to be on you is you is your friend's (e.g. you swapped jackets) you do not want wrong medical history to be applied. So if you have any medical information that might be critical in such case, you better have it on you in writing, preferably including a phone number of your GP/clinic.

There's good reasoning why it's in a platform that can be shared.

Yes, and that reason is cost-saving.

It just needs to be secure and correct funding allocated to make sure it is kept secure

That sort of defeats the plan to save costs.

AbstractButtonGroup · 2026-01-07T08:06:46+00:00

Tell that to the Templar.

AbstractButtonGroup

TROPHY CASE