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[bladeofdarkness]

Originally Posted by ganbaru

Given the number of refugees they got from the conflict, I would say than they are already involved.

"Involved", as in, actively at war with Syria.

[ganbaru]

Originally Posted by bladeofdarkness

"Involved", as in, actively at war with Syria.

''Involved'' might be the wrong choice of word, I should probably had used ''Implicated'' .

[Tom Bombadil]

Baby Step for the Chinese carrier.



More pictures.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/mil/2012-1..._123998037.htm

[mangamuscle]

Originally Posted by kyp275

yikes.... that's a lot of pennies.

Now imagine having one of those (or stronger) every decade hitting the same area. Say hello to climate change.

[mangamuscle]

Our govermentbought some unmaned drones from Israel to check on drug cartels and sent a pair for repairs via non militar channels. Why can't remove this stupid grin off my face?

[ganbaru]

Originally Posted by Tom Bombadil

Baby Step for the Chinese carrier.



More pictures.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/mil/2012-1..._123998037.htm

Is that a russian-made plane or one than the chineses build under licence ?

[Tom Bombadil]

Originally Posted by ganbaru

Is that a russian-made plane or one than the chineses build under licence ?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shenyang_J-15

Basically, a derived version of su33. Bought a prototype from Ukraine to study the folding wing structure, etc. The engine is still imported from Russia, everything else should be indigenous.

[Ridwan]

Uncovering the hidden bodies in Saudi art

For hundreds of years, popular perceptions of Arab culture have been dominated by Islam. But recent excavations in what is now modern-day Saudi Arabia are revealing evidence of sophisticated and ancient civilizations that are redefining the pre-Islamic era.

A lucrative trade in spices - particularly incense - created a network of caravan trails that stretched from the Horn of Africa to Iran and the Mediterranean. At its centre was the Arabian Peninsula, a cosmopolitan hub of commerce and culture.

"What we see is a Saudi Arabia that was not a closed peninsula. It was actually vitally connected to the rest of the ancient world," says Dr Julian Raby, director of the Sackler and Freer Galleries of Asian Art in Washington.

"And that's an incredibly important lesson because we have begun to imagine Saudi Arabia as always closed, always desert, isolated - almost as a backwater. This gives the lie to that."

"For many people, what happens before Islam is of little or no relevance at all. But the Orientalist tradition in Europe and the States also condemned anything before Islam as being of no material cultural importance at all - because they didn't know what existed."

I wouldn't say this is surprising though. But this isn't going to end their centuries-old contract with Iblis.

Nevertheless, I won't mind the spills.

[Ithekro]

All that tells me is that the trade routes moved south from Babylon and Jeruselem into the region and out of the region. Most older ideas has the trade routes avoid the desert and instead go from Egypt out east and north with some to the West like Cathage or South to Ethiopia. Though that trade might have gone via the Red Sea across the Arabia as well.

Even Bibilcal text has mention of various spices in the trade routes (what was considered valuable is usually mentioned). As December comes, I am reminded of the tale of the Three Wise Men and their gifts. It does not say were they were from, just "The East" (if I recall). They could have easily been from Arabia to the south, or across the peninsula, but south of old Babylon and Pathia.

[RRW]

YouTube

https://youtu.be/xY_A1LP-ZOc

Sorry; dynamic content not loaded. Reload?

[ganbaru]

Two news than are kind of about human stupidity:
Bangladesh's worst-ever factory blaze kills over 100
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...8AN0CG20121125

Working conditions at Bangladeshi factories are notoriously poor, with little enforcement of safety laws, and overcrowding and locked fire doors are common. The cause of this fire was not immediately known.
Witnesses said the workers, mostly women, ran for safety as the fire engulfed the plant but were unable to get through narrow exits.

British Islamists to issue fatwa against shot Pakistani girl
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...8AJ0LH20121120

A new British-based Islamist group plans to meet in Islamabad to issue a religious decree against a Pakistani schoolgirl shot by the Taliban, accusing her of supporting "occupying" U.S. forces.
"There will be a fatwa issued regarding Malala Yousufzai taking into account the full story of her injury including her public statements in support of the occupying U.S. army in the region and mocking of key symbols of Islam such as hijab and jihad," said Abu Baraa, a senior member of Shariah4Pakistan.

[Ridwan]

Originally Posted by Ithekro

All that tells me is that the trade routes moved south from Babylon and Jeruselem into the region and out of the region. Most older ideas has the trade routes avoid the desert and instead go from Egypt out east and north with some to the West like Cathage or South to Ethiopia. Though that trade might have gone via the Red Sea across the Arabia as well.

Even Bibilcal text has mention of various spices in the trade routes (what was considered valuable is usually mentioned). As December comes, I am reminded of the tale of the Three Wise Men and their gifts. It does not say were they were from, just "The East" (if I recall). They could have easily been from Arabia to the south, or across the peninsula, but south of old Babylon and Pathia.

On the other hand, the article suggests an attempt by Saudi Kingdom to start replacing Wahabism with Arab Nationalism. Respecting "Jahiliyah Culture" isn't a typical Islamic behavior, but OTOH venerating ancient roots has been the staple way to build up nationalist pride.

Originally Posted by RRW

YouTube

https://youtu.be/xY_A1LP-ZOc

Sorry; dynamic content not loaded. Reload?

I really LOL'd hard when the comparison with a cheesy Bollywood movie came, one which is possibily the very one my mother dragged me to watch with her

[ganbaru]

Election Spurred a Move to Codify U.S. Drone Policy
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/25/wo...book.html?_r=0

WASHINGTON — Facing the possibility that President Obama might not win a second term, his administration accelerated work in the weeks before the election to develop explicit rules for the targeted killing of terrorists by unmanned drones, so that a new president would inherit clear standards and procedures, according to two administration officials.
The matter may have lost some urgency after Nov. 6. But with more than 300 drone strikes and some 2,500 people killed by the Central Intelligence Agency and the military since Mr. Obama first took office, the administration is still pushing to make the rules formal and resolve internal uncertainty and disagreement about exactly when lethal action is justified.
Mr. Obama and his advisers are still debating whether remote-control killing should be a measure of last resort against imminent threats to the United States, or a more flexible tool, available to help allied governments attack their enemies or to prevent militants from controlling territory.

[sa547]

Originally Posted by ganbaru

Two news than are kind of about human stupidity:
Bangladesh's worst-ever factory blaze kills over 100
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...8AN0CG20121125


British Islamists to issue fatwa against shot Pakistani girl
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...8AJ0LH20121120

The first isn't surprising because as it's in a third-world nation, management cut corners for profit at the cost of safety (and thus such industries are frowned upon).

The second, well, as we're all aware, old medievalist habits die hard.

[KiraYamatoFan]

Originally Posted by sa547

The second, well, as we're all aware, old medievalist habits die hard.

Well, an old-fashioned street brawl taken to teach such idiots how pain is felt wouldn't be a bad idea for beginners.

I'm among the people who believe that the ones who use violence against weaker people (i.e. women, children, and the old) ought to feel for once how it feels to be beaten really bad by the fists of someone of their own size.

[ganbaru]

Originally Posted by KiraYamatoFan

I'm among the people who believe that the ones who use violence against weaker people (i.e. women, children, and the old) ought to feel for once how it feels to be beaten really bad by the fists of someone of their own size.

Migh work better if it was from someone bigger than them, the equivalence would be closer this way.

[andyjay729]

Originally Posted by sa547

The first isn't surprising because as it's in a third-world nation, management cut corners for profit at the cost of safety (and thus such industries are frowned upon).

The second, well, as we're all aware, old medievalist habits die hard.

One of the saddest elements of the fire in Bangladesh is that I can't help but wonder if some of my own clothes were made in that very factory.

Hopefully it might lead the way to improvements in their industry, like the Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire a century ago.

[konart]

Cossacks to Patrol Central Moscow

“In concert with law enforcement officials, the Cossacks will uphold law and order and prevent illegal parking and unlicensed business activity" on the streets of central Moscow, the statement said.
...
Backed by the government and Russian Orthodox Church officials, the Cossack movement has recently experienced a growing revival.

http://en.ria.ru/russia/20121126/177748573.html

[SeijiSensei]

Cautiously, Japan Raises Military Profile as China Rises

After years of watching its international influence eroded by a slow-motion economic decline, pacifist Japan is trying to raise its profile in a new way, offering military aid for the first time in decades and displaying its own armed forces in an effort to build regional alliances and shore up other countries’ defenses to counter a rising China.

Already this year, Japan crossed a little-noted threshold by providing its first military aid abroad since the end of World War II, approving a $2 million package for its military engineers to train troops in Cambodia and East Timor in disaster-relief and skills like road building. Japanese warships have not only conducted joint exercises with a growing number of military forces in the Pacific and Asia, they have also begun making regular port visits to countries long fearful of a resurgence of Japan’s military.

And after stepping up civilian aid programs to train and equip the coast guards of other nations, Japanese defense officials and analysts say, Japan could soon reach another milestone: beginning sales in the region of military hardware like seaplanes, and perhaps eventually the stealthy diesel-powered submarines considered well suited to the shallow waters where China is making increasingly assertive territorial claims.

[KiraYamatoFan]

Originally Posted by SeijiSensei

Cautiously, Japan Raises Military Profile as China Rises

Very interesting. Anyway, the ties made during RIMPAC exercises are probably helping a lot in having such new alliances with the countries that were mentioned.

Speaking of, why is the change only starting to see some light at the end of tunnel now? After the Cold War, Japan was in a perfect position to change the purpose of their armed forces a little bit, just as Germany managed to change its position about how to use the Bundeswehr from Bosnia to Afghanistan.