I stand corrected, forgot about that detail!

Holy balls.

Really hoping the Americans realise they need to rise up like yesterday. The world is so screwed. The US is far, FAR more militarily powerful than Nazi Germany ever was.

:(

This whole comment is strawmanning me.

Do you understand the difference between De Jure and De Facto?

Yes.

Taiwan is de jure a part of China but it is a de facto an independent country. China has an authoritarian government that gets butt hurt over every little thing. So the One China policy is all about them “saving face”.

Yes, but more accurately, the official government position in Taiwan, that there is one China and they’re the legitimate government, is a historical hangover. The One China policy from the mainland is also a historical hangover, difference is that because they have the bigger stick now, they reckon they can take over, by force or political/economic coercion.

I don’t disagree with you that the mainland government is authoritarian.

Maybe read up on strategic ambiguity as well if you want to be more knowledgeable about the subject.

You’re really just reading what you want to read to be able to call me an idiot. I am aware of what this is, and didn’t mention it in my comment because the original comment was specifically about Taiwanese claims on mainland China. Not writing a holistic comment on everything.

TLDR, Taiwan is a country. A lot of diplomacy is about piling on layers upon layers of bullshit, because bullshit is preferable to war. But unless you’re working for a country as a diplomat, there’s no need for bullshit… Taiwan is a country

This is the reason you’ve strawmanned me, because you’re ready to fight with anyone who says it’s not a country which I never said. I tend to agree that Taiwan is a country. It’s got its own government, and its own territory and existed that way for decades. But that’s just my opinion, and because of history the status IS UNDETERMINED because part of the current definition of being a country is that other COUNTRIES recognise you as a country. Again, I also believe it functions de facto as it’s own country - don’t get triggered.

The people in Taiwan have far more democratic freedom than in the mainland (in my view) - well, with the caveat is that capitalism is inherently undemocratic.

All I originally said was that the official ROC government position is that there is one China, and Taiwan is part of China, that the government in Taiwan claims to be the legitimate government of. This is a statement of fact, not my opinion…

That, and that OPINIONS OF THE PEOPLE THERE VARY. Trying to paint them as a monolith is propaganda.

Yikes… Please chill before you decide to strawman someone who isn’t even arguing against you.

Oh, but haven’t you considered the shareholders of the refineries previously set up to refine the type of oil found in Venezuelan reserves?

The poor share holders want to make more money.

What? Could you link me the quote for that. 100 million? Surely this can’t be a number they said.

There is no way 1/3 of the population are there illegally (their justification for removing them), right?

May the multiverse gods have mercy on our timeline…

I think you’re showing your lack of knowledge on the subject with this comment.

It’s well-known that both governments claim sovereignty over all of China, and both include Taiwan as part of that. Just this is claimed less strongly when the KMT aren’t in power.

Many people on the island want the status quo, or independence, but others also want some form of reunification. Opinions are varied.

The official position still is that there is one China. (The government in Taiwan even claims the 9 dash line in the south China sea lol)

Just wait, unless the US public drastically ramp up resistance.

You can bet your ass foreign spy agencies are laughing their arses off about this as they track whatever targets they like

What’s worse, is this was the plan all along

I didn’t choose it (not my video).

I’d encourage you to watch it anyway, if you can get past the trauma…

No, it’s not my video, and it’s not like I chose the thumbnail.

I’ll just say folks, this has left me with a “people just like to complain” vibes.

The video is excellent, and exposing how the internet is the wild west of companies lying, cheating and stealing.

Maybe you could engage with that, rather than the creator having to make a stupid thumbnail to keep the algorithm happy.

Literally any device plugged into a dumb screen is better than a smart TV.

The hardware on a smart TV is typically absolute trash. It’s why they’re so slow.

Edit: This includes laptops, which is what I’d use, why do people even consider extra devices?

The implicit song here goes hard

Personally I’d make an exception to my moral stance that work as punishment is slavery, and would prefer to keep him around forcing him to work 70 hours a week, in addition to doing all the other chores required so that he can live - in prison - for the rest of his life.

Maybe we’ll make it 84 hours a week just for good measure, can’t be giving him a day off.

Seems more poetic

As much as not protecting endangered species sucks and is stupid, what you’re talking about is the MUCH more concerning part.

Annoucement by annoucement, the US accepts rule by decree.

How, in the ever-loving-fuck, are people not marching in the streets (I am aware people are, but as a percentage of the population it’s really not enough given what’s happening)

Sadly, only sort of: https://youtube.com/watch?v=TwPLqGkYnBA

Does it really cost what Kagi is charging? I would love to see some research on this if people happen to know where to find such articles.

Like, in theory to pay for Kagi or a similar service but it’s just extrotionately expensive.

I pay for other service which are offered for free (like email hosting), but those are reasonably priced.

Your “left wing” democrats are further right wing than our mainstream conservative party coalition. (The Liberals, and probably the Nationals too, to be honest)

And that’s with an extremely right-wing owned press (Murdoch & Nine Fairfax, Australia).

Let that sink in.

And please, for the love of God, actually riot. I don’t enjoy the notion of being under the thumb of the US with the fuckwits at the helm.

It was bad enough with vaugely competent imperialists in charge.

The No Kings marches are piss-weak given people are ALREADY DYING and more will die because of the Dems capitulation.

I’m not a revolutionary, but I damned well would be in your country.

Seriously, and kind regards from the provinces.

If it makes you feel better, this may be a mistranslation from German where saying “eine Software” is appropriate.

I’m sorry, but the rules for how your government works are so confusing.

And requiring budget bills to pass every year or you entire government shuts down is a bug most other democracies patched out last century. (You just make everything roll over by default if you can’t pass a budget). The US Government seems to be constantly in shut down. It’s kinda dumb folks, it doesn’t need to be this way.

I could have sworn I heard that the 100 person US senate only needs 51 members to pass a bill, but I vaguely heard they don’t want to do that because it overrides the option to filibuster?

What???

Very lost over here