ttbn,

Iran's theocracy is an enabler of anti-Israel protests around the world, perhaps even the one where Albo was filmed on the horn. It might be on the other side of the world, but what happens there has relevance for Australia.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZ3ZX3n-iPk

Full of ideas and well aware that “international law” does not exist, Donald Trump is now thinking of paying Greenlandlanders up to $150,000 each to secede from Greenland and become part of the U.S.

Despite “authorities” saying that Greenland is not ‘up for sale’, 57,000 people are being given the chance to prove these “authorities” wrong and decide their own future.

Hi Fester,
Iran may very well fall, I think that's a distinct possibility atm.
But I don't think the Venezuelans are going to go along with their situation.
The U.S. may end up leaving with their tails between their legs.

I think Iran is probably strategically more important to Russia and China, but the U.S. taking Venezuelan oil and resources will definitely be a serious concern to them as the path to destroying the empire is economic.

"Apparently only about 20% of Iranians are Muslim."
- I didn't know that.

Russia's not failing in Ukraine, they're making steady progress.
I still watch military updates on the Military Summary channel every day.
It's a war of attrition, so long as they produce more weapons and have more manpower they'll continue to grind the Ukrainians down.
Remember that traditionally speaking an attacking force needs a 3:1 numerical superiority over a defending force.
This is a long-standing military rule of thumb.

Meloni came out yesterday and said it was time for Europe to begin dialogue with the Russians.

"Even Russia's ability to conduct the war depends on a large amount of support from China and other nations."
- Yes that's true, and Russians want him to take the gloves off and get it over with.
He might get more leeway with President Lula of Brazil (who openly opposes the war in Ukraine) with recent U.S. actions in Venezuela.

"The US intervention in Venezuela is a big contrast to Ukraine."
Get the gringo...
I will not be surprised to see guerilla warfare into the occupied greenzone, with the Chavistas attacking and retreating back into the jungle, and the U.S. paying off some groups to fight other groups...

Trump will be seen as no better than the others when the bodies start being repatriated, and U.S. allies aren't particularly pleased with Trumps actions there.

Europe needs to make a show of defending the 'Rule-based-order' because they like to portray themselves as being principled (when they're not) but they're not going to do anything about it.

Hi AC

"Russia's not failing in Ukraine, they're making steady progress."

About 20% of Ukraine after nearly four years with a great deal of military assistance from their allies. It's cost them over half a million lives and most of their stockpiles of mechanised hardware. Compare this with the two and a half hours it took the US to capture Maduro unaided and without losses. Now they are grouping forces to aid the Iranian protestors, So clearly Trump is taking advantage of Russia's self inflicted weakness by invading Ukraine.

The 20% has cost Russia two vassal states (Venezuela and Syria), with Iran a possible third. That is a disaster for Putin, and I've been reading claims that Russian losses in Ukraine are reaching unsustainable levels.

"I will not be surprised to see guerilla warfare into the occupied greenzone, with the Chavistas attacking and retreating back into the jungle"

Maybe, but that will depend on the guerillas getting supplies and on how much prosperity Trump can deliver to Venezuelans. Remember that Venezuelans know what life under Chavez and his cronies was like. My guess is that they will be hanging out for a second chance at democracy.

Hi ttbn,

"Full of ideas and well aware that 'international law' does not exist, Donald Trump is now thinking of paying Greenlandlanders up to $150,000 each to secede from Greenland and become part of the U.S.

Despite 'authorities' saying that Greenland is not ‘up for sale’, 57,000 people are being given the chance to prove these 'authorities' wrong and decide their own future."

- I seriously don't even know what to make of this.

What happens if China makes a counter offer?
And then others bid and we have a bidding war, to buy Greenland?

What happens if Trump makes a cash offer to all Tasmanians?

"not about whether Thucydides endorsed that logic as exhaustive or wise."

Why is this so hard for you to fathom. Thukydides doesn't endorse "that logic" and anyone who had the slightest understanding of his work would know that.

Look, I'll give you an inkling of how much of this you don't understand. Thukydides, in Book 1, talks about his aims and methodology for his proposed work. He wants to record events as unbiasedly as possible and as close to true as his own resources and informants would allow. He says that the speeches he records are based on him specifically being there (eg The Funeral Oration) or what others told him was said. He wasn't putting words in people's mouths to push a specific position.

One of the reasons his work is so renowned is the efforts at being unbiased. Even when he cover things like Kleon, who he hated with a passion, he was still unbiased enough to allow us to recognise his, Kleon's, genius.

Thukydides' book wasn't pushing a particular barrow as much as you'd want it to be otherwise. That's why its so renowned and so vital to anyone pretending to understand world history to be fully cognoscente of it.