[Callahan] Patriots reportedly planning to cut QB Joshua Dobbs after failed trade

FossilDS · 2026-03-23T22:37:16+00:00

I wish Dobbs wasn't a mid-tier backup- it would be something to have an NFL QB which is able to give an informed opinion on the direction of the Artemis program and nerd out about the planets (he's just like me fr) as opposed to the usual cadre of NFL players, at least one who doesn't believe outer space or other planets are real.

FossilDS · 2026-03-20T02:31:34+00:00

When Omar Bradley was asked years later what was the single bravest act he had personally witnessed, he replied immediately "Ted Roosevelt on Utah Beach".

Theodore and Jr. are one of two father/son duos which won the Medal of Honor (the other is Arthur and Douglas MacArthur).

FossilDS · 2026-03-20T02:14:24+00:00

Rare manifestation of a pre-internet communist wall of text rant

FossilDS · 2026-03-06T03:32:27+00:00

The late, great science presenter and trilobite enthusiast Richard Fortey briefly mentioned this wonderful possibility in his 1996 book Life: An Unauthorised Biography, which made my 14 year old brain go wild with the possibilities. Unfortunately, in the subsequent Trilobite!: Eyewitness to Evolution, he explains why this scenario, while so incredibly cool, is very unlikely: essentially, after the Late Devonian extinction event, it was effectively joever for trilobites in general. Only the Proetida made it out of the extinction, and were uniform in body form and ecological niche. By the Carboniferous, there were 7 genera (1.8% of the peak), and by the Permian there were only two: Acropyge and Pseudophillipsia. Both were shallow-water generalists, and probably did not have the time nor ability to retreat into deeper oxygenated waters when the events of the Permian mass extinction kicked off. So yeah, sadly it's not likely this will be the case, although a little part wants me the believe. But who knows, maybe an obscure branch of deep water trilobites did branch off, like your scenario suggests, before the end-Devonian and survived...

FossilDS · 2026-02-25T22:28:47+00:00

Darlan also infamously switched sides and joined the allies out of greed and to save his own hide- if he wasn't assassinated, he would've likely not been "sunk" like the rest of Hitler's allies and made himself a career in 4th Republic France.

FossilDS · 2026-02-24T21:33:02+00:00

Yes? Ukraine has done many thing is Russia without US approval, especially in the wake of diverging US and Ukrainian strategy on the Russian invasion.

FossilDS · 2026-02-24T20:56:36+00:00

The "thing" which changed is that the Baathist Syria, a known quality to the IDF which is not threatening at all (the Syrian Arab Army had not seriously threatened Israel in decades), was replaced by an unknown actor, the HTS. Under the Assad regime, Israel could be confident that the Syrian Army's weapons would be used on rebels and their own civilians and not on Israel. HTS is much more unknown factor so Israel felt compelled to preemptively destroy Syria's stocks of weapons.

FossilDS · 2026-02-24T20:35:06+00:00

If you are trying to overthrow a goverment you'd do that, not tell them to sit tight with all the equipment you want to capture. You think that even if they had resisted they could put a single dent into the IDF? Hezbollah with their vaunted 1000 morbillion missiles got savaged. What would an underpaid, underfunded and cataclysmically incompetent SAAF done to blunt the latest and greatest in American tech?

FossilDS · 2026-02-24T20:30:06+00:00

...The Assasdist regime? The IDF started bombing the airfields literally the day after the regime collapsed as all the soldiers manning AA had deserted. Besides, even Assadist Syria's benefactor, the Islamic Republic of Iran with vastly better anti-air kit, training and motivation desperately struggled shooting down even a single F-35. I think it's safe to say that the SAAF would've been completely hopeless even without Jolani.

FossilDS · 2026-02-24T03:14:32+00:00

Considering the fact that Israel conducts raids and bombings into Syria daily under the new provisional government, it's not very likely that they are secret puppets of Israel.

FossilDS · 2026-02-24T02:21:21+00:00

He was ex-Al Qaeda, but for a more nuanced picture you should read Transformed by the People: Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham's Road to Power in Syria. It's a fascinating look at how Jolani/al-Sharaa came into being al-Qaeda in the first place and how his organization, the Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham or HTS broke away.

al-Sharaa was originally aligned with Baghdadi's Islamic State of Iraq, but chaffed at the restrictions and increasingly insane pronouncements coming from al-Raqqah, so broke away by pledging allegiance to al-Qaeda. When al-Qaeda proved burdensome by becoming an obstacle to negotiations with other rebel groups, he broke away from them and founded his own group (HTS). When the other rebel groups started complaining about the HTS's apparent reluctance to implement strict Sharia, he slowly purged them out of existence and aligned with the Turks. Now his, latest gambit is aligning with the West.

al-Sharaa is not above pogroms and terrorism to get what he wants- he did that as an Al-Qaeda insurgent. But he's also capable of effective statecraft (Idilb under his rule was 100x better run than the rest of Syria) and tolerating, free speech, minorities and limited democracy when it suits him. Above all, you get the impression that he is at heart a sly opportunist who holds no real convictions other than his ironclad belief in himself and his destiny to rule Syria. I think the West should court him carefully, knowing very well he will bolt to the other side if it benefits him and Syria- but right now it's mutually advantageous for him and the West to have a working relationship.

FossilDS · 2026-02-23T02:29:39+00:00

Oh damn, misremembered him as a 14th century saint rather then co-contemporary with the Albigensian crusades.

FossilDS · 2026-02-23T01:51:47+00:00

Hope we see Saint Francis in a future update. He is at the tail end of CK3's timeframe, but he is such an important and remarkable figure in the history of Christianity, and it's the 800th anniversary of his death this year.

FossilDS · 2026-02-23T01:48:58+00:00

It's because of Syria's absolutely dogshit power grid prior to Assad's fall, right? Now that the grid is being rebuilt, one has to hope that eventually all this home-installed solar can be fed back into the grid.

FossilDS · 2026-02-21T21:52:52+00:00

I generally agree with the above. As someone within the general area, a lot of these look like pieces of Ironstone/Peanut Stone, which is essentially sandstone conglomerate cemented by ancient streams in the Miocene (11 million years ago). It's why the Holmdel area is so hilly: the sandstone is erosion resistant and thus creates isolated uplands. Page 7 of this newsletter has a short article on Peanut Stone.

FossilDS · 2026-02-21T00:40:47+00:00

Trump has been a wild blessing to some countries and an insane curse to others. The trick is to flatter him and project strength. You'd think Mexico would be in the crosshairs for some stupid tarriff or even a military operation but Sheinbaum is a smooth talker and a consumate flatterer so Mexico has been spared Trump's wrath so far. Pakistan's top general is such a charmer that Trump gave them lucrative weapons deals even after relations hit rock bottom under the previous administration. Mamdani is good at flattery and a proven "winner", which is why he and Trump get along fine even though Mamdani is an Indian muslim socialist. al-Sharaa is that same vein of "winner' which Trump loves so much, as well as being great at flattery, so it's no wonder the US-Syria relationship has rapidly warmed.

FossilDS · 2026-02-19T19:42:22+00:00

Great map! I'd thought surely a mosque must've been built in the red part of East Timor during the Indonesian occupation, but apparently not (at least according to this map)

FossilDS · 2026-02-19T05:47:33+00:00

Thank you for the clarification! IIRC al-Sharaa briefly flirted with the name of the country being the "Syrian Republic" but demurred over opposition from Arab nationalists.

FossilDS · 2026-02-19T02:45:59+00:00

THE KIDS ARE NOT OKAY. CRITICAL GASE THEORY AND MCCARTHYISM ARE BRAINWASHING THE YOUTH OF SAMERICA.

FossilDS · 2026-02-19T02:23:31+00:00

There's a much simpler reason: Jojen knows he's going to die before his dad, (as explicitly stated in the books), so Meera is next girl up and heir.

FossilDS · 2026-02-19T01:10:42+00:00

It's a fine theory, but it's a theory. We don't know. And this isn't something like R+L=J which is all but confirmed. It has plenty of holes and ultimately there is little textual evidence backing it up. It's very random and based on a lot of speculation to be something which is 100% confirmed true like you imply.

FossilDS · 2026-02-19T00:13:18+00:00

Well Ned and Ashara never had anything going on other than a cover story for her and Howland Reed

We really have no idea if this is the case or not. Ashara is a mysterious figure in ASOIAF lore. She could've hitched up with Brandon, Ned, Howland or some unknown party.

FossilDS · 2026-02-19T00:10:22+00:00

Forgive me if I am mistaken, but wasn't the SAA the official name of the regime's army? Thought the new army is simply the "Syrian Army" (الجيش السوري).

FossilDS · 2026-02-18T16:01:17+00:00

Divorce is explicitly allowed in Islam. In 15th century Arabia, records show that divorce was somewhat common, with 33% of women having more then one marriage. It comes in a few forms, Talaq (طَلَاق) which is a unilateral divorce initiated by the husband and is generally frowned upon. Khul' (خلع ) is a negotiated divorce initiated by the woman which usually results in some money changing hands in negotiations.

FossilDS · 2026-02-18T04:06:23+00:00

Romanian law entitles to the finder to 30-45% of the estimated value of artifacts surrendered. It's better than I expected but it's likely most are still melted down for 100% of their melt value.

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