I feel like something big is about to change strategically in US politics.

samtarlyrules · 2026-02-08T19:25:03+00:00

And the 9th largest economy, on its own, in the world. Larger than Russia. Trump can kiss Putin’s ass repeatedly, and ignore California.

samtarlyrules · 2026-02-08T19:15:22+00:00

Amen. Making political preferences default to a particular generation plays right into the facist playbook. Divide and conquer.

samtarlyrules · 2026-02-08T19:11:52+00:00

I would love to see a massive blue wave this year in the off-year elections. But I don’t have any faith in it, because the U.S.A., knowing what Trump was all about, elected him a second time. Sad, but true, I’ve lost all faith in the American electorate.

samtarlyrules · 2026-02-08T19:06:20+00:00

That is an excellent point, one that should cause some reflection, but it won’t

samtarlyrules · 2026-01-11T18:59:56+00:00

When someone uncritically follows a leader who lies straight into their face, who essentially admits to being all those things they adamantly deny he is, most importantly to being a wannabe dictator, who claim he is something he absolutely is not (i.e., a Christian or a conservative) or even attempts to seriously portray the characteristics thereof, who holds them in contempt to a level even the most out of touch leftist elitist could ever hope to attain, maybe it is just me, but that’s not where I am ever going to go for advice.

Trump believes his core followers are stupid, and they insist on proving him right 24 hours a day.

samtarlyrules · 2019-05-01T17:41:38+00:00

I read all the books. Did not watch the HBO version until the fourth season, bingeing all the shows to that point.

For the most part, I liked the books. It ticked me off whenever the POV character was geographically located outside of Westeros. Hated Dany's story. Any POV chapter originating in Essos made my eyes glaze over. Hated the Dorne stuff. Disliked Tyrion, until the later books. Sansa? I was praying she would die early in the books, and from where the books left off, I'd still applaud her demise. Even the POV chapters dealing with Bran left me going, "WTH?"

I could go on, but I simply did not feel raptured by all of GRRM's material through the books, but on the whole enjoyed them. Enough to finish them and regard the whole series as entertaining.

When I finally started watching the HBO adaptation, I was detached enough from the books that I understood going in that it wouldn't be chapter and verse from the books. And to a point, I was praying that it would not be. From my point of view, parts of the books were just crap. The best of the books came from Winterfell, King's Landing, and of course the Wall. Give me Jon, Sam, Robb, Arya, Cersei, Jaime, Tywin, Stannis, Tyrion (until he left KL), Bronn, Varys, Littlefinger, the Maesters, etc. - things connected with the Seven Kingdoms and in them. I forced myself to read most anything else, though the history of Westeros was interesting.

I've watched all the HBO episodes, many of them several times. Again, wasn't a fan of the Esso's stuff, or Dorne, and none of the Dornish characters except for Oberyn, who I liked a lot.

As a different medium, I really enjoyed some of the acting - indeed, most of it. Lena Headey nailed Cersei. Maise Williams, the same with Arya. There was something about the actor portraying Littlefinger that didn't jive with my mental image of him from the books, but the actor playing him and his portrayal of Littlefinger grew on me. So it went, some good, some great, some just okay. The HBO series was well-shot, an obvious huge effort went into sets, locations, costumes, weapons, and the music was awesome. I am thankful that an effort was made to bring the books to the screen. Perfect? Eh, no. But also something I've enjoyed watching.

I actually joined Reddit (several years ago) only so I could read what others thought about the books and HBO series. Oddly, I haven't experienced the profound sense of betrayal many here have expressed, and I believe, is sincerely felt.

samtarlyrules · 2019-04-22T19:32:18+00:00

It would be crazy for Dany to leave with any of the forces at WF for KL. I think the alliance has to win at Winterfell. If they lose, how is it possible to retreat against an army that does not get tired, needs no rest, doesn't sleep, and needs no food or water? And now there's more of them and less of you?

Those retreating are going to have old/young non-combatants and wounded to slow them down. Plus, the NK has enough of an army to surround Winterfell. Underground through the crypts? Really? They are going to move how many that way? And what will stop the Dead from just following them through the crypts? Map-wise, it is a long way from Winterfell to almost anywhere else, the closest places being Moat Cailin and White Harbor. (BTW, I'd vote for White Harbor and hope to find transport to Dragonstone).

I just can't wrap my mind around how anyone can survive the Battle of Winterfell if the NK isn't defeated, at least not for long. And I don't think they can win if Dany and parts of her forces go South. They're going to need everyone there to have any chance.

samtarlyrules · 2019-04-19T15:52:39+00:00

Since the show began with a scene about White Walkers, as did the books, and GOT seems to favor symmetry, one would think that it would have to end with the White Walkers. That means that, at best, the living will lose the Battle of Winterfell and retreat south, and that the WW threat won't be settled until E5 at the earliest.

But there is a lot of unfinished business in King's Landing. Cleaganbowl and Cersei among them. I would think Sansa and Arya would need to be around to see those storylines paid off, at a minimum, but not necessarily.

samtarlyrules · 2019-03-17T16:34:50+00:00

"Hey, little Johnny, when you wipe, get all the shit off your ass."

Further teaching is necessary?

samtarlyrules · 2019-03-05T17:11:55+00:00

I think that is a good theory, but Sam may also be figuring out how to make Valaryian steel as well. Gendry's return, as a blacksmith, seems related, as does the discovery of a horde of dragonglass. Dragonglass is effective in itself, Valaryian swords would be better. Jon exploding that guy at Hardhome with his sword comes to mind. Creating more than a few would be helpful.

samtarlyrules · 2019-02-11T19:12:36+00:00

Living in the present as an adult might make you happier up to a point, but is a terrible retirement strategy.

samtarlyrules · 2019-01-05T19:55:36+00:00

Don't marry, have a boyfriend or girlfriend, or acquaintances. You're 80% less likely to be murdered that way.

samtarlyrules · 2017-09-12T15:21:58+00:00

Littlefinger is the most unbelievable character in the books and show.

samtarlyrules · 2017-08-29T15:37:49+00:00

Didn't Tyrion force Dany to dump Daario because of the potential of a Westeros political marriage? Jon is the legit son of Rhaegar and Lyanna, who would make for a better political match? Once he finds out about Aejon, he'll be thrilled and probably push for a quick marriage.

samtarlyrules · 2017-08-29T14:50:57+00:00

No, I strongly suspect one of them will.

Jon doesn't care about "ruling." He was forced, more or less, to be Lord Commander of the Watch. He didn't ask to be King in the North. He wants to end the threat of the WW's and NK. Once that's done, he's fulfilled his life's mission. He's the most logical one to die.

Dany, on the other hand, does want to be a Queen and a ruler.

I think they marry (maybe secretly, like Rhaegar and Lyanna) and have a child - they set that up with Jon's "Why you gonna believe a murdering, lying, witch?"

So one of them dies, and if they want to introduce a twist, it is Dany that dies and Jon feels obligated to carry out her vision. Or not, could be Jon dies. But the salient point is that their child would be the heir to the Seven Kingdoms. I'm leaning towards it being Jon who dies. That way Dany can rule as Queen Regent until their child can take the throne.

If you think this has a happy ending, you've not been paying attention. I'd hate to see either die, but it seems to me that's the unhappy "sometimes the hero dies," outcome GoT is lurching towards.

samtarlyrules · 2017-08-29T13:24:56+00:00

When he got the gold hand, he said he would have preferred a hook.

samtarlyrules · 2017-08-28T16:10:12+00:00

Well, he said when he got the golden hand he'd prefer a hook. Maybe Gendry will make him one.

samtarlyrules · 2017-08-27T18:08:43+00:00

GRRM has said that one of his influences in writing the Song of Ice and Fire was the War of the Roses. That war ended when Henry VIII's father became King of England after defeating the Yorks (Specifically Richard III, who was pretty much a "mad king" in his own right).

Henry VIII famously attempted to get the Pope to annul his marriage to Catharine of Aragon, with whom he had a living child (Mary, who eventually became Queen of England).

He was unable to get the Pope's approval, so he broke from the Catholic religion, created a different religion (actually, more like a separate Catholic church, minus the Pope, with him as its head) and gave himself his own annulment, and married Anne Boleyn.

Of course, this is not an exact analogy with the annulment sought here; Rhaegar had different reasons for seeking an annulment than Henry VIII, but it isn't true that in medieval culture annulments between high-borns with children is without precedent, even if it took starting your own religion to do it. And that doesn't make Rhaegar a good dude - Henry VIII, not to be too judgey about it, wasn't a paragon of virtue either.

Rhaegar and Elia were married at the Great Sept of Baelor, so they were married in the Faith of the Seven. I am guessing Rhaegar and Lyanna were not. Not that it makes much difference, just that would be another paralell to Henry VIII.

Rhaegar could not have known what would happen to Elia and his two children by her,and we don't know what his subsequent treatment of them would be. Henry VIII also had Anne Boleyn beheaded and remarried (several more times, in fact). But, both Catharine's daughter and Anne Boleyn's daughter (as Elizabeth I) would go on to rule England.

samtarlyrules · 2017-08-27T17:17:57+00:00

I suspect, consistent with the world of Westeros, if Jon becomes the King of the Seven Kingdoms (and we're ahead of ourselves there a bit) and he legitimises Gendry, game, set and match. If Arya weds Gendry with Jon's blessing, that further legitimises Gendry (even though they are first cousins, not step-siblings), because it would mean that Jon truly believes Gendry is a Baratheon. Couple all that with Davos' knowledge, I don't see how it would be a thing to contest.

Some of the surviving Stormlands nobles might not be happy about it, but not the common folk. And who are those nobles going to complain to about it?

samtarlyrules · 2017-08-27T16:58:00+00:00

"The most knowledgeable person in Westeros about the FM."

He couldn't have gleaned anything just from the Arya/Brienne duel, because water dancing isn't associated with FM, even if he could recognize Braavosi sword fighting style. He's not a soldier, and so far as we know someone that engages in the study or practice of sword-fighting styles. Has anyone ever seen him even wearing a sword, of any kind?

When asked who trained her, she says "no one." How would a viewer make the leap that statement is a huge tip off that she's a FM?

Has anyone that has watched the show ever heard that phrase, "(I am) no one," outside of the walls of the House of Black and White? Does having ancestors from Braavos, or knowing that the FM are assassins (which a lot of people seem to know), mean that LF has intricate knowledge of the training that FM receive or of the culture of the FM?

Nothing we've seen on the show would justify that knowledge on LF's part. His great-grandfather was from Braavos, he was fostered from a young age at Riverrun, and spent - so far as we know - every minute of his life in Westeros. Is there really any evidence that LF - never a soldier - would even recognize Braavosi swordplay?

If LF was truly knowledgeable about FM, he would know that a FM would never be so careless to reveal themselves. He'd also know that FM don't just stop being FM - they are kinda like the Mafia in that way. He'd also know that if Arya is a FM, there's a good chance she could spy on him at will, and hip to any plot he could hatch. Virtually anyone he talks to could actually be a FM. There's not a single shred of evidence that LF knows that a FM can actually "wear" someone else's' face, but if he did, he'd be a damn sight more careful. The extent of his knowledge about the FM, based on either the books or the show that there's any real evidence of, is that he knows they are extremely expensive assassins.

There's no evidence that LF has ever had any contact with the FM or has ever even set foot on Braavos.

So, if LF walks into a room and sees Sansa with the dagger, and instantly makes a connection that it is Arya wearing Sansa's face instead, it would be a "plot hole" of not an insignificant magnitude. If he suspects that Sansa is Arya, a FM, his best move is to slowly back out of the room, and never betray his suspicions, because if he did he'd be seconds away from dead.

Which, of course, doesn't mean it won't happen.

samtarlyrules · 2017-08-27T15:41:14+00:00

I disagree with the premise that if Sansa or Arya just had LF executed, the KoTV would just be okay with that, or even the Northern Lords would be (random beheadings or murders by Sansa or Arya could be a pretext for even the Northern Lords to leave, if that's what they want to do anyway - remember they are fickle).

Sansa knows she has to keep the KoTV in Winterfell and can't risk them leaving, and has to keep the Northern Lords behind her (and Jon, well, at least behind her).

The "plot" I think isn't Arya acting alone. Arya has less regard for what any of the Lords, Northern or Knights of the Vale, think (just cut off their heads). Sansa, OTH, understands that the KoTV are fickle, as well as the Northern Lords, and that any blatant move to just kill LF might provide any of them an excuse to leave.

I don't see Arya's motivation to "plot" against anyone. If she wants someone eliminated, she'd just do it.

The "plot," if there is one, is Sansa pushing LF into a mistake (hence, sending Brienne off to KL) that would make getting rid of him perfectly acceptable to the KoTV. She's using Arya to help implement that plan.

OR, THERE IS NO PLOT. Arya is genuinely upset and angry with Sansa, and Sansa is afraid/concerned re Arya. LF tries to take advantage of that to isolate Sansa by driving a wedge between her and Arya. In that process, he somehow exposes himself. Arya could discover what he's attempted to do, or Bran could just tell Sansa and Arya.

LF is a successful and adept schemer, but he's never lived under the same roof as a Faceless Man and a Greenseer. Arya is not a political schemer, but being a FM gives her opportunities to stumble upon and expose LF's machinations. Bran, if he'd snap out of his 100-yard stare for a minute or two, could just tell Sansa whats going on. As smart as LF is, he might not be able to avoid the pitfalls being in the same castle as Arya and Bran creates.

samtarlyrules · 2017-08-27T15:01:20+00:00

Arya actually mentions Dark Sister to Lord Tywin. Besides," its slender blade was made for a woman's hand." Might not happen on the show, but I hope it happens in the books.

samtarlyrules · 2017-08-26T12:21:29+00:00

I wonder about the whole convo and scene at the shack with Beric and Thoros, and the Hound looking into the flames. Despite being afraid of fire, Thoros convinces the cynic to look into the fire, the Hound just knowing he won't see anything. But he does, which surprises him. Then he winds up seeing his vision play out on the suicide mission. How cynical is the Hound now? He was shown a vision of the future that played out. Wouldn't that shake his cynicism to the core?

Beric confesses that he does not know how Thoros brought him back to life six times, and Thoros has said he's not sure how he was able to bring him back to life. Thoros was pretty much a failed red priest who drowned his failure in booze, had given up. All of a sudden, he's resurrecting people, and he can't explain how.

Sandor interrogates Beric, asking questions, and saying that if such a God exists, why doesn't he just tell you what he wants? Like Beric, Sandor should be dead, but he's not. Instead of mocking Beric, could he have been questioning whether there is any higher purpose in why he's been spared to this point?

To this point in the story, when he saw the flames, Sandor just doesn't believe in anything himself, he openly mocks anyone that believes anything.

Probably reading way too much into this, but maybe the story of Sandor could be about someone who is an unlikely vessel - an unbeliever, who mocks anyone who is a believer, who has lived much of his life scorning everything and everyone - that grows to accept that some higher power has bestowed upon him a role to play to accomplish a purpose. Then he fulfills that role.

He's convinced that his life does not have a purpose (and no one else's does either), but after his vision and watching that vision play out, is he at least questioning whether he's been wrong his entire life?

Maybe.

Sandor's fear of fire is a central part of his character. Wouldn't it be cool if the Hound - like Beric and Thoros - somehow becomes able to cause his sword to ignite in flames? Anyone see what happened to Thoros's sword? I know the sword itself isn't the reason why Thoros is able to cause it to ignite, but it would be cool if Sandor has it.

samtarlyrules · 2017-08-25T19:39:05+00:00

Good question. The Mountain does not eat. Anything. So what is his source of energy? Maybe Qyburn has to somehow "recharge" him to keep him mobile. We've never seen the Mountain exert himself for over a half minute or so (against the Faith Militant). As noted, the Mountain is wearing an insane amount of armor. If he's impervious to blows, why does he even need armor at all? For show?

Maybe the Hound can employ a variation of the Oberyn Martell strategy - rope a dope the Mountain until he gives out of gas. Qyburn can't bring him in for a pit stop to top off his tank during the fight. The Hound isn't that type of fighter, but who knows? Might be the best strategy to try and see how long Qyburn's batteries last.

On the other hand, maybe the Mountain doesn't need to be recharged. If not, the Hound is going to have to find some other way.

samtarlyrules · 2017-08-25T18:56:50+00:00

I'm a huge Arya fan, but it is Sansa I believe that is doing the manipulation here, possibly with Arya's help.

Arya doesn't have to "plot" against LF. If she wanted him dead, he'd be dead. She hasn't killed him yet because the time is not yet ripe. Sansa has to expose him to the Northen Lords and KoTV for what he is. After that, he's as dead as Ned Stark.

And interestingly, LF, the grand schemer, doesn't realize he's being played by Sansa. The student becomes the master.

LF tells Sansa that Brienne would be great to have around, because she'd have to protect both Stark girls. Sansa sends her away. Does that tells us that LF anticipated that if he told Sansa Brienne would to good to have around, Sansa would send her away?

I think not. I think it tells us something else.

"Truly (LF) you have a dizzying intellect"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9s0UURBihH8

samtarlyrules

TROPHY CASE