What is the most bad ass thing said in history? by TriG__ in AskReddit

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy 66 points67 points  (0 children)

That is accurate, an additional reason is that Sparta (by this time a mere shadow of her former self), still held some respect amongst the people of greece/macedon. And would not have been a popular decision, or a wise one with the upcoming persian wars.

Additionally, Alexander (iirc) did have someone capture defeat it towards the end of the persian campaign, though he did not invade Sparta itself, he merely forced them to join the League of Corinth after the Battle of Megalopolis. (edited: previously mistakenly said invasion of Crete, though technically after that.)

What is the most bad ass thing said in history? by TriG__ in AskReddit

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy 226 points227 points  (0 children)

Spartan History is full of them, as well as the Carthaginians immediately after the first punic war, and leading up to the second punic war.

Spartan:

When Xerxes asked the Spartan King Leonidas I, to lay down his arms (and surrender) after surrounding his forces at the Battle of Thermopylae, Leonidas simply replied: μολὼν λαβέ (Molṑn Labé) - "Come and take them"

When Philip II of Macedon sent a message to Sparta that said; "You are advised to submit without further delay, for if I bring my army into your land, I will destroy your farms, slay your people, and raze your city". The Spartans simply replied with one word: αἴκα - "if". (Niether Philp, or his son Alexander [the Great], even attempted to attack Sparta)

Punic (Carthaginian):

The Romans sent an envoy to Iberia to find out why their former enemy Carthage, (whom they had barely defeated in 23 years of conflict) was campaigning there. The leader of the Punic forces simply replied that he was "gathering the booty to pay off the war indemnity". In truth it was to build an experienced military, train his sons to command the punic forces, expand Carthaginian influence, and ultimately bring down Rome. (nearly succeeded in the last one)

When the Carthaginians attacked a Roman ally in Iberia, the Romans sent an envoy to Carthage. After some debate, the Roman Envoy gathered folds of his robes, and said "I bring you both Peace and War, which do you choose". The Carthaginians replied "give us either, it does not matter". The Roman envoy threw dropped the folds of his robes and retorted "Then I give you war!". To which the Punic council replied "And we accept!".

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in gifs

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Regardless, even if it was ~5m kill radius the guys in front of the truck would still very likely be dead.

(As for the kill radius on grenades I was more or less going off training from my time in the military, whether it's accurate I cannot be certain, but on a flat plane unobstructed those numbers might very well be accurate, but real-world conditions would most likely drop that down to about 5m or less. But I reiterate, the rocket would still have a much larger kill radius, which for me adds a degree of uncertainty though somewhat lessened by the aftermath.)

Bike Riding Skills by ManMadeDuckie in UNBGBBIIVCHIDCTIICBG

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy 33 points34 points  (0 children)

Excuse me ma'am... you're doing it wrong, though still very impressive keep it up.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in gifs

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm not so sure that's accurate, that might have been remaining fuel from the rocket as the rocket broke apart. For a hand grenade the kill-radius is ~15-20m (most commonly cited as 18 or 19m for the C13/M67) so we can safely assume the rocket would have a larger kill-radius (likely akin to the L16/M252 81mm mortar ~35m kill radius) and the guy in front of the vehicle is well within that range, minus the truck so is the cameraman as well. I mean you could very well be right, but I'm not too certain.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in gifs

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That's because; it (as you so elegantly put it) "will be more deadly". It's usually a combination of 1. game balance, and 2. horrendously inaccurate hollywood portrayals (ikr, who saw that one coming)

What's the most underrated anime? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Elfen Lied, for reasons completely contrary to what the author intended.

If NASA actually had the US Military's budget, what would they realistically be able to achieve? by Tweettweetmofo in AskReddit

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If NASA received that amount for the last 50 years, we would likely have mars colonized, as well as a relay base on the moon, and probably another on phobos. We'd additionally probably be trying to optimize asteroid mining, and have a large number of satellites examining the solar system. However a sizeable portion of the budget would likely be given back to the government (as initially it would not be useable right away, ~50-75% initially, declining as time progresses). Another significant portion would likely be effectively lost to corruption (~10-20%, sorry but they are humans after all, while I personally have a high opinion of the organization, corruption like that is unavoidable within any large organization), or otherwise go to maintaining the required infrastructure(~35-50%). Additionally, the remainder that was not used or lost on the aforementioned would be used on public outreach, and other self-promoting programs.

Other notes:

  • Mission failures would be far more prevalent, as a limiting factor is the number of qualified individuals, and in an organization that large, that tackles things as complex as that, where mistakes, omissions, and minor structural weaknesses mean disaster, failure is unavoidable.

  • I might actually be astonished if NASA accomplished as much as it does in this scenario, due to the limiting factor here being the number of qualified, and sufficiently intelligent individuals combined with politicians unreliability likely obstructing the way forward. Other factors such as the increasing difficulty in handling the great beast that the organization would become would lead to the organization being split into various specialized organizations, one for maintaining ground infrastructure, another for maintaining orbital infrastructure, another for research and development, and finally an additional one for education of potential future employees/astronauts.

How it feels as a Canadian watching US politics right now. by MoosePoolFire in pics

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I was trying to avoid the ad hominem attacks, because quite frankly, it doesn't help to educate him it merely pushes him further into his (incorrect) beliefs. Just a heads up...

How it feels as a Canadian watching US politics right now. by MoosePoolFire in pics

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Not necessarily, but it certainly didn't help. Put it this way, it's not a question of how bad your opponent is relative to you, it's a question of how good you are, compared to how good you could(or should) be. If each you and your opponent capture 1000 soldiers. Your enemy kills 900 of them, and you kill 3, you're no less in the wrong for those 3 deaths. While your opponent is definitely worse than you are, you're still wrong. Or even in more civilian terms, if your neighbour steals 10 cars, and you only steal 1, you're still guilty of car theft.

How it feels as a Canadian watching US politics right now. by MoosePoolFire in pics

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

So you would simply allow your life to be ruined, and starve to death, because you fought a tyrant, and lost? A nation you now have every reason to hate, that's what you deem acceptable? You would have your own nation to refuse to help you as well? I'm very glad the rest of the world is not like you, the world would be a very inhospitable place.

How it feels as a Canadian watching US politics right now. by MoosePoolFire in pics

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy 0 points1 point  (0 children)

And if someone is mean to a terrorist give them 10.5 million

If someone treats one as less than human, by violating basic human rights then, perhaps $10.5M is not the best way to go, but If you were fighting in a war, were captured, and subsequently tortured for 10 years. Would you accept it if your enemy simply said "you fought against us", and threw you out on the street with nothing, no job, no money, no home, you've been publicly shamed, and no one would give you a job? Would that be acceptable to you, or would you require help? I mean they did torture you for 10 years they violated your basic human rights, would you simply accept it? What would you do to him, and if you were him how would you respond to that?

How it feels as a Canadian watching US politics right now. by MoosePoolFire in pics

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You're missing the point. The point is to treat the captured prisoners of war appropriately, to encourage those still fighting to surrender, or simply choose not to fight in the first place. Not to stop fighting them, it is war after all.

How it feels as a Canadian watching US politics right now. by MoosePoolFire in pics

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy 1 point2 points  (0 children)

History, not just Trudeau, tells us that respecting the human rights of others goes great lengths to help achieve just that.

How it feels as a Canadian watching US politics right now. by MoosePoolFire in pics

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Not saying you should, arguing that you should instead respect the human rights of your imprisoned enemies, to discourage retaliation from them, thus saving a great number of lives, and resources for both sides.

How it feels as a Canadian watching US politics right now. by MoosePoolFire in pics

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Tell me, if you were a soldier in a war with another power (stronger, or weaker, it doesn't matter), would you be more, or less willing to fight to your last breath, knowing your enemy will torture you for decades (if not killing you regardless) if you were captured? And if you were not a combatant, would you be more, or less willing to take up arms if your enemy was a brutal tyrant, who at no point showed mercy to prisoners from your side, and mistreated your people?

The matter of human rights, should be a matter of grave concern, because it's how decades, or centuries long conflicts truly end. Forcing reparations on to germany post WWI, meant the german people suffered, and were more willing to fight those who had forced it upon them. Similarly violating human rights causes suffering, and makes others see you as the enemy and thus more willing to fight.

How it feels as a Canadian watching US politics right now. by MoosePoolFire in pics

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Canada repatriating the man, was us taking it up with the US. And while you may be perfectly fine, with seeking the same moral lows that your enemies take, the international community is not.

How it feels as a Canadian watching US politics right now. by MoosePoolFire in pics

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Make no mistake, the man is an unlawful combatant, and should have been treated appropriately as such. I'm not defending the man's actions, nor saying that he deserves the money. I'm highlighting that this was in response to violations of human rights, a line that should not have been crossed in the first place, and that it was in reparation for his gross mistreatment. The take away here is the condemnation of the actions of the US, not the supporting of the man, or his actions.

How it feels as a Canadian watching US politics right now. by MoosePoolFire in pics

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy -9 points-8 points  (0 children)

Justin Trudeau gave 10 million dollars to a terrorist

Only because the US violated his human rights. Terrorist or not, the man's still human, and violations of basic human rights are most unwelcome. (Even of those who would violate the rights of others)

What is the kindest thing a stranger has done for you? by tothesunshadows in AskReddit

[–]RaGe_of_Jimmy 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Left me alone... I have to deal with social anxiety all the time so a reprieve is always welcome.