https://www.quora.com/Albert-Speer-said-he-did-not-know-about-the-Holocaust-Was-he-lying

https://www.quora.com/Why-isnt-Russia-quickly-sending-enough-forces-to-Kursk-before-Ukraine-digs-in-and-fortifies-the-region

https://www.quora.com/unanswered/What-risks-does-Ukraine-face-by-diverting-forces-to-capture-Russian-territory-in-Kursk

https://www.quora.com/unanswered/How-has-Ukraine-undermined-Russias-myth-of-invincibility-through-its-offensive-in-Kursk-Oblast

https://www.quora.com/Why-is-Putin-struggling-to-force-Ukraine-troops-out-of-Russia

https://www.quora.com/Will-Ukraine-end-its-operation-in-Russias-Kursk-Oblast-soon

Russia is continuing to systematically retake territory from the Ukrainian guerrillas operating in Kursk

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_2024_Kursk_Oblast_incursion I've been saying for weeks that the Ukrainians are not actually occupying or controlling any territory in Kursk, Russia, the Russians are too powerful for this. And, of course, this is quite correct. The Ukrainians are just waging a guerrilla campaign in Russia, they're wandering around in the woods trying to avoid getting killed, and not having very much success at all! The Russians have just retaken one of the bigger villages supposedly "controlled" by the Ukrainians there, although the Western media isn't giving this much "play" of course. It's such a downer for the West, to see how totally useless their Ukrainian ally is, and that President Zelensky is really just an actor, who probably should have stuck to show business. Of course, it could be argued that show business is really all Zelensky is doing anyway! He sure as all Hell ain't no general!

The reason the Ukrainians are "still there" in Kursk, is because this is just guerrilla activity

Much is being made in the Western media of how much territory the Ukrainians have "conquered" in Russia, in Kursk Oblast, and how much difficulty the Russians are having in getting rid of them. And, indeed, there is a grain of truth in this. A grain. Indeed, the Ukrainians are operating over a fairly large area of largely unoccupied dense forest on the border, of perhaps a few hundred square miles, with minimal population. And, indeed, because they are operating in mobile units, and not really exerting any stable control over anything, or even staying anywhere very long, they are fairly hard to kill in large numbers. They are operating in the countryside in small mobile units, and so they are hard to pin down. But, this also means they really can't do anything much, other than engage in some disruptive tactics. They can't build anything much, they can't engage in large scale military confrontations, they can't organize the local population, they can't directly confront organized Russian forces. They are also very vulnerable to air attacks, having no real anti-aircraft capacity. Fact is, and this point isn't being emphasized, I think, the Ukrainian forces really aren't engaging in conventional warfare at all in the Kursk Oblast. This is not conquest of territory, for any functional purpose, since, they don't really have secure control of anything. This is straightforward guerrilla activity. Now, guerrilla warfare can be highly effective, under the right circumstances. If the local population supports a widespread guerrilla war, such activity can, over a very long period of time, thoroughly undermine an established regime, and, potentially, overthrow that regime. We have seen this in Cuba, Vietnam, Afghanistan, etc. However, there is no local support here. The Ukrainians are actually engaging in guerrilla warfare on the enemy's territory, at great cost to themselves in terms of manpower and resources. They are an irritant, and, they have been constrained and confined. True, they would be hard to remove. However, in time, they're likely to simply die out or be bombed out of existence, having no local support, and being on their own. All this really illustrates, is that Ukraine is no longer able to engage in conventional warfare against the Russians, but, has been reduced to disruptive guerrilla tactics, that don't actually take or control any territory, at all. And, that probably signals the beginning of the end of Ukraine as an independent nation, don't you think?

Russians are kicking ass on all fronts in the Ukraine War

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FgsHO1miO_I As many predicted, the infiltration of Ukrainian forces into Kursk has not helped Ukraine. Rather, it has led to a bloodbath for the unfortunate Ukrainians in Russia, who are, as the Russian phrase goes, being rapidly "liquidated". Russia reports 400 Ukrainian soldiers killed by Russian bombing in the last 24 hours -- Russian casualties, zero. Hey, this is like shooting fish in a barrel! Very, very much like shooting fish in a barrel. Thankyou President Zelensky, Vladimir Putin loves you! After long months, the drain of Ukrainian forces to the failed Kursk incursion, has made it fairly easy for the Russians to conquer the key town of Chasiv Yar, a key long term objective, which is now under Russian control. Russian forces have moved on key villages in Western Donbas, and are now close to cutting of supply lines completely to the important city of Pokrovsk, and are in its outskirts. Russian successes on the battlefield have progressed rapidly since the foolish decision of the Ukrainians to leave their key and best forces to be utterly exterminated in Russia! The powerful bombing and missile attacks by Russia throughout Ukraine have largely destroyed the Ukrainian energy infrastructure, making it virtually impossible for Ukraine to survive another long hard winter. To add insult to injury, these attacks have largely come from the Russian Black Sea fleet missile cruisers, which, supposedly, according to "Ukrainian Intelligence", had all been destroyed by Ukrainian drone ships! President Zelensky is begging for direct NATO intervention to defend Ukraine from Russian aerial assaults that he is helpless to prevent, but, this would mean WWIII. That's what Zelensky wants, but, unfortunately for him, he's not going to get it! NATO knows better than to get too close to failed state Ukraine. Bye-bye Ukraine!

Ukrainians are rapidly losing their small territory in Kursk

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_2024_Kursk_Oblast_incursion#/media/File:August_2024_Kursk_Oblast_incursion.svg If you're wondering why the Russians didn't bother guarding their borders more carefully to protect themselves against incursions, you can see in the wikipedia maps why. The Russians are rapidly retaking this territory in several areas, and without great difficulty. The Ukrainians are being attacked from all sides, and from the air, and internally within the "Ukrainian occupied" territories themselves. In other words, we just have some heavily armed terrorists in mobile armor running around in the woods, and trying to avoid being wiped out by the Russians. The Russian counterattacks have been highly effective, and, this territory is likely to be completely cleaned up within a few weeks, without significant Russian losses, and with massive losses to the Ukrainians. The Russians were of course well aware that this is exactly what would happen, and, that's precisely why they didn't bother with their borders much. "Hell, if the Ukrainians want to die in Russia, rather quickly, and in large numbers, let them! We Russians don't mind killing Ukrainians in Russia at all! Not at all!" And, that's precisely what the Russians are doing, too! What's going to be fun is seeing how, after all the Ukrainians in Russia have been killed, with minimal Russian losses, the Western Media will tout the "incursion" as an enormous success! They will claim it as proof positive that Russia is falling apart, and the Ukrainians are on the verge of total victory! However, by this time, I think the Ukrainians themselves have had enough. It's not the Russians who are going to overthrow Putin, it's the Ukrainians who are going to overthrow Zelensky, and, probably by the end of the year. Then, we can have peace, at last, in Ukraine.

Is the historical purpose of Russia, to bring decadent empires down?

If we look at Russian history, it's remarkable for the number of powerful empires that have, effectively been destroyed rather completely by the Russians -- the Mongol Golden Horde, the Ottoman Empire, the Swedish Empire, Napoleon's Empire, and Hitler's Nazi Empire. All destroyed by the Russians, primarily anyway, and all to the benefit of the Russians themselves, who gained territory and power by the empires they brought down. Is this what Russia is for, basically? Centrally and vulnerably located in the middle of Eurasia, at the conflux of many great nation states, any of which could become a great empire, and a threat to Russia, the Russians have acquired the ability to defend themselves furiously and brilliantly, and to destroy overweening and powerful empires that presume to challenge her, and attempt to destroy her. It's what they do. Currently, we see NATO claiming that Russia is a threat to the current world order, and must be brought to heel, and must submit to NATO rule and power. Of course, NATO doesn't quite put it this way. Rather, NATO insists that it merely is preserving the peace, and maintaining an ideal world order, in which NATO, perhaps not entirely coincidentally, happens to make the rules, and dictates policy. Naturally, the Russians don't quite see it this way. The Russians will attempt to preserve their own nation's independence and power, by any means necessary, and are perfectly happy to do so. And, actually, most of the world is largely in agreement with them. It's not that Russia is perfect or close to it, or even that Russia is necessarily a better or more generous nation than the NATO nations. But, Russia is an alternative to NATO's overweening pride and power, and, that is a welcome relief to the majority of the citizens of the world. The poorer nations in the world in Africa and South America and the Indian subcontinent, in particular, look to Russia to even the playing field a bit, and give them a slightly bigger share of the pie. And, in all probability, the Russians will do just that, for a while anyway. They have to, to maintain their support. So, what we are seeing currently in the Russo-Ukrainian war, effectively a Russo-NATO war fought by proxy, is a redistribution of wealth and power away from the NATO nations, and to Russia and her allies, like China and India. Russia, as usual, is not allowing herself to be pushed around by the great, traditional empires, no matter how powerful they, or others, may think they are. Russia is intimidated by no one, and will kowtow to no one. And, this is, historically, why Russia is so important to the world. Russia shakes things up, when the traditional empires get complacent. Russia keeps things moving forwards, when the great empires want them to stay the way they are, forever, with themselves on top, forever. Russia will not permit this. And, this is Russia's great contribution to human civilization! Russia makes sure the human species keeps moving forwards, when the great empires, currently NATO, want them to freeze in place, forever, with themselves on top. God Bless Russia!

What would have happened if Stalin had not come to power in the USSR? Could the country have become more democratic?

Probably not, they had no tradition of democracy in Russia. More likely, a right-wing White Russian military dictatorship would have emerged, if the Communists hadn’t won the Russian Civil War. Probably something like Franco’s military dictatorship in Spain, following the Spanish Civil War against the communists — very brutal, but effective, and good for the Russian economy and the rich. Actually, after Stalin died, that’s likely what Lavrentiy Beria would have arranged for the USSR, if Khrushchev hadn’t staged a coup to bring him down, and executed him. One of the major accusations against Beria was that he wasn’t really a communist, just an opportunist, who sought power for himself, and wanted a military dictatorship in Russia under his rule. https://www.quora.com/unanswered/What-would-have-happened-if-Stalin-had-not-come-to-power-in-the-USSR-Could-the-country-have-become-more-democratic

Why is there so much historical evidence about religion? Does this suggest thousands of years from now the things history remembers will still be religious?

This is, actually, a very interesting question, that brings home a very interesting point. What, exactly, is religion? How does it differ from politics, science, education, social services, or any other aspect of human existence, exactly? The fact is, it doesn’t! What we call “religion” these days is simply the kernel of traditional practices from older knowledge and social practices, some of it very ancient indeed, perhaps thousands of years old, or more. Joseph Campbell, the famous mid-twentieth century specialist in world mythology, pointed out that there is no real conflict between the Bible and science, as Campell said, “the Bible is simply Sumerian science.” For example, I can quite confidently assure you, that in the future, and perhaps the not too distant future, Einstein’s Theory of Relativity will be relegated to the status of a primitive religious cult, very much the way “flat-earthers” are today! It won’t be considered “science” at all, but simply a kind of religious superstition that physicists were brainwashed into believing with religious fervor in their worthless institutions of higher learning. So, the reason there is so much historical evidence about religion, is simply that “religion” is what we call science and education as it was practiced long ago. Religion is how societies were run and controlled long ago, and religion is how they are controlled now, but, we don’t use that term for them, because it would tend to undermine contemporary political authority. https://www.quora.com/Why-is-there-so-much-historical-evidence-about-religion-Does-this-suggest-thousands-of-years-from-now-the-things-history-remembers-will-still-be-religious

Zelensky is being "rope a doped" in Kursk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYN9WB5x8yM I've been saying since it began that there's no way for the Ukrainians to fully control territory in Russia, and, it's still true. So, why are they still there? Why haven't the Russians succeeded in kicking them out? Well, sure, the Ukrainians have taken a bit of territory in Kursk, and seem to be holding onto it for the moment, although they are being carpet bombed, and suffering casualties. The Russians haven't sent in heavy forces to take them out. Why not? Don't they have them? The thing is, if you look carefully at the maps, you can see that Russia has been advancing much more rapidly all across the front in Ukraine since this Ukrainian incursion into Russia began. This is precisely the opposite of what Zelensky had intended with his incursion. It was intended to take pressure off the front, by forcing the Russians to divert forces from the front, back to Russia, to control the Ukrainian incursion into Russia. Putin has not done this. He's simply controlled and hurt the Ukrainians with aerial bombing in Kursk, and, the Ukrainians have to continue resupplying their besieged forces with ammunition men and material, thus diverting supplies that are badly needed by Ukrainians in Ukraine. So, Zelensky in being hurt in Russia at minimal cost to the Russians, and the Ukrainian forces are being starved for ammunition, men and material in Ukraine, allowing the Russians to rapidly advance, which is what they are doing. It's win-win for Russia! Zelensky and Ukraine are being rope-a-doped by the Russians, in Russia itself. This is brilliant work by Vladimir Putin!

If we apply Occam's razor on the origin of life, consciousness, and singularity of the Big Bang, does it essentially support God, as the idea of God creating them would have fewer assumptions?

It might. It’s largely a matter of perspective. Of course, the physicists will disagree, because, God is not their thing! This gets into the broader point that scientific methods don’t really work very well, including the concept of Occam’s Razor. I would argue, actually, that there is no real scientific method, and that the concept of a scientific method is merely a method of rationalizing the bureaucratic incompetence of professional scientists by saying what their doing is good, no matter how useless it is, because they’re using the “scientific method”. https://www.quora.com/Throughout-history-real-progress-in-science-and-technology-has-always-been-unpredictable-and-haphazard-with-no-rhyme-reason-or-method-at-all-Therefore-there-is-no-scientific-method-Is-that-really-so-hard-tohttps://www.quora.com/Isnt-the-only-reason-that-scientists-are-so-adamant-about-the-existence-of-a-scientific-method-simply-that-if-there-is-no-scientific-method-then-their-training-is-totally-useless-and-so-are-they https://www.quora.com/If-we-apply-Occams-razor-on-the-origin-of-life-consciousness-and-singularity-of-the-Big-Bang-does-it-essentially-support-God-as-the-idea-of-God-creating-them-would-have-fewer-assumptions

Even the Brits are acknowledging that it's "unclear" whether Ukraine controls any territory at all in Kursk Oblast -- in other words, they don't!!

https://www.yahoo.com/news/ukraine-foray-russia-border-region-040015689.html

Why NATO and Ukraine are repeatedly staging "Dieppe" like raids on Russia

The 1942 Dieppe raid on Nazi Germany was a disastrous raid on Nazi Germany's "Fortress Europe" mounted in 1942, in which thousands of allied lives were lost, and thousands taken prisoner. The raid was undertaken under pressure from Josef Stalin and the USSR for a second front. It was not repeated. Having seen the disastrous results of this raid, the allies realized that they would have to build up their forces massively to effectively confront Nazi Germany. Millions of American troops were imported into Britain for this purpose. In addition, the Russians were destroying most of the German war machine in Russia. After another two years, the allies were ready to mount an effective landing. So, the question is, why are NATO and Ukraine mounting repeated, disastrous incursions into Russia, none of which are even remotely successful, and all of which sacrifice thousands of troops and billions of dollars in equipment, basically for nothing? It's not the Russians suffering casualties here, it's the Ukrainians. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2023_Belgorod_Oblast_incursions https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_2024_Kursk_Oblast_incursion Just today, Zelensky has begun claiming to control 1000 sq km. of Russia. Since there are no indications that more than 1000 Ukrainians terrorists are actually in Russia, and since tens of thousands, at least, would be required to control this much territory, we can quite confidently dismiss these ridiculous claims. Nevertheless, they are being reported in the Russian media, probably just to get the Russian people angry. It isn't breaking their morale. Volunteers are pouring in to join the Russian military, as a direct result of Zelensky's ridiculous claims. Thankyou President Zelensky! All that's happening, is that the Russians are mopping up, and using this as a rationale to expand their operations in Ukraine, which haven't lightened up a bit. So, why, exactly are NATO and Ukraine repeatedly staging these ridiculous incursions, that are only weakening Ukraine and NATO, and are making Russia stronger. Why didn't they learn their lesson the first time, like the allies learned at Dieppe, in 1942? Well, I think the reason is, quite simply, that while the allies had the option of building up their forces in 1942, and did so, the fact is, NATO is spending just about as much, if not more than it can afford, as it is, on this war. And, the Ukrainians are basically out of manpower to do anything much more, either. And, there's no other Russian enemy about to attack them and weaken them either, despite Western fantasies of China invading Russia! So, despite the utter futility of these incursions into Russia, indeed, despite their purely self-destructive nature, it's all that NATO and Ukraine can do. They're stuck in a vicious circle of purely self-destructive attacks, because they have no other option, and they're just hoping that if they talk enough about "light at the end of the tunnel", these tactics will somehow, rather magically, work. The situation for the U.S. and NATO in Ukraine is rather like the situation of the U.S. in South Vietnam. They had no business being there, the nation they were trying to support didn't really exist, and there were powerful regional forces opposing them. So, no matter how much money they threw into the problem, it didn't get them anywhere. Again, an endless series of Dieppe raids, with no light at the end of the tunnel, anywhere. An endless, pointless morass, while the Russian enemy steadily advanced. Just like Ukraine!

What was Napoleon's reasoning for not engaging the British after his victory at Austerlitz?

The English Channel, and the Royal Navy. He’d just had his navy destroyed by the British at the Battle of Trafalgar, by Lord Nelson, in his final battle. https://www.quora.com/What-was-Napoleons-reasoning-for-not-engaging-the-British-after-his-victory-at-Austerlitz

The Western media is misreading why Russia is playing up the terrorist incursion at Kursk

https://rtvi.com/news/v-sudzhe-aktivny-tanki-protivnika-chto-izvestno-o-situaczii-v-kurskoj-oblasti/?utm_source=smi2 The last time the Ukrainians launched an incursion into Russian territory of this size, the Russians just laughed it off: "On 17 December 2023, pro-Ukrainian partisans launched another raid into Belgorod. According to a Russian official and other Russian as well as Ukrainian sources, the insurgents targeted the Morozovsk airbase with "mass drone strikes", while clashing with security forces at the village of Terebreno." This time, a comparable terrorist incursion is causing a massive reaction in the Russian media. Why exactly? If anything, Russia is in a much stronger position in Ukraine than it was then, having taken considerably more territory, having demonstrated that it can continue to do so, despite virtually unlimited military funding to the Ukrainians rebels. So, what's the big fuss, here? Sure, the Ukrainians are shooting things up a bit, and some forces will have to be called in to liquidate them, but, that's precisely what happened back in December 2023. Why exactly is the Russian media, and Vladimir Putin in particular, making such a big deal out of this, when they played down a comparable incident, just over six months ago? The Western media is choosing to interpret this as a sign that Russia is on the run, and terrified, perhaps ready to give up. Actually, it's just the opposite. The real reason Russia is playing up this particular incident, is that President Zelensky has made a mistake, and has fallen into a trap. It's not that Russia is frightened. Russia is very angry, and very confident. The continual successes of Russian arms have made them confident they can take the whole of Ukraine, if they wish it. And, President Zelensky has given the Russian government a pretext for justifying not just annexing part of Ukraine, but all of it! And, that's now precisely the case that is being made to the Russian people as a whole, who overwhelmingly support their duly elected leader, Vladimir Putin. «Это уже не просто операция по возврату наших официальных территорий и наказанию нацистов. Можно и нужно идти на земли пока ещё существующей Украины. До Одессы, до Харькова, до Днепропетровска, до Николаева. До Киева и дальше», — написал Медведев в своем телеграм-канале. "This is no longer just a special operation to obtain the return of Russia's official territory, and to punish the Ukrainian Nazis. Now, it appears that it will be necessary to wipe Ukraine off the face of the planet! From Odessa, to Charkov, to Dnepropetrovsk, to Mykolaiv. To Kiev, and beyond." - wrote Medvedev on his telegram-channel. This is actually a new position, and Zelensky has fallen into a trap as the victorious Russian armies continue to advance. His foolish sacrifice of a couple of thousand Ukrainian troops to get attention has indeed gotten him attention. He's provided a rationale and justification for the Russian people to totally exterminate his entire nation!

Real Clear Politics Betting Odds are now favoring Kamela Harris to win the Presidency, for the first time

https://www.realclearpolitics.com/ For the first time, RCP betting odds are now favoring Kamela Harris to win the Presidency. In addition, she has taken the lead in the critical battleground states of Michigan and Wisconsin, is ahead nationally, and is viewed more favorably than Donald Trump. How do Republican supporters of Donald Trump account for this? What will they do about it? Does Tim Walz guarantee the Democrats victory in the Midwest, and, hence, in the nation as a whole?

Were the people of Ancient Rome aware of advanced devices like the Antikythera mechanism?

No. How could they have been? There was no printing available, all information had to be written by hand, and transcribed by hand. Very few people were literate. And it was extremely expensive and labor intensive to produce even a single copy of a book, it had to be entirely transcribed by hand. Given there weren’t any advanced devices in standard use, how could the people of Ancient Rome have possibly known about them? They couldn’t have. One of the main reasons science and technology have developed more rapidly since the development of printing and printed books, is simply that they allow for the dissemination of information more rapidly and efficiently, so people can observe and analyze information and ideas much more easily. There is no real “scientific method” that has been developed. Progress comes by random chance and trial and error, just like in the past. It’s simply that, with increased ease of communication, people can acquire and analyze information much more easily than in the distant past. When someone stumbles on a new idea, people learn about it much more quickly than they did thousands of years ago. But, it’s still just “tinkering”, no method involved. https://www.quora.com/unanswered/Were-the-people-of-Ancient-Rome-aware-of-advanced-devices-like-the-Antikythera-mechanism

What factors contributed to the advanced nature of ancient Chinese civilization? Why was it not able to spread its culture and influence beyond its borders?

China was an unusually stable empire for 2000 years because of its physical isolation from the rest of the world. This allowed it to develop in ways that empires constantly disrupted by foreign invasion could not. So, a number of technologies such as paper, gunpowder, the stirrup, printing, crop rotation were developed first in China, because the stable government there was in a better position to foster them than in more unstable parts of the world. These inventions were indeed spread to the rest of the world, over the course of centuries. However, China’s physical isolation also limited its ability to directly influence the world, in other ways. https://www.quora.com/What-factors-contributed-to-the-advanced-nature-of-ancient-Chinese-civilization-Why-was-it-not-able-to-spread-its-culture-and-influence-beyond-its-borders

How breaking the rules of mathematics will give us an edge over AI

https://gizmodo.com/mathematical-intelligence-junaid-mubeen-excerpt-1849689127

What if the Supreme Court overturns a Harris victory in November?

https://www.yahoo.com/news/charlamagne-tha-god-predicts-corrupt-144546955.html Charlagmagne the God predicts that the Supreme Court will overturn a Harris victory in November. I think one of the obstacles to this, is that Joe Biden is commander in Chief, and, I suspect he might actually call in the military if the Supreme Court attempted a step of this type, and simply remove the Justices by force. Or, he might simply order the House to ignore the Supreme Court and certify her anyway, and, if the House failed to cooperate, he'd order the military to intervene there. Frankly, I doubt it will come to that. Sure, Trump will try to get the Supreme Court to give him whatever he wants, but, I think they're aware they can only go so far without getting in over their heads, and their loyalty to Trump will only go so far. Anyone disagree?

Harris is demolishing Donald Trump in the Opinion Polls. Republicans are headed for a total disaster in November! They have to dump Trump, now!

https://www.newsweek.com/kamala-harris-donald-trump-leger-poll-1932951 As Donald Trump's obvious Alzheimer's Dementia is becoming apparent to everyone, it's also becoming apparent to everyone, that not only will Harris defeat Trump by 10 to 15 points in November. Democrats will also retake the House, and may well hold the Senate, as well. Is there nothing the Republicans can do to save themselves? Harris has already, in just a week or two, risen from a five point deficit to Trump, to a seven point lead! This is going to be a total blowout! And, it's not that Harris is really that terrific a candidate. It's that Trump is so obviously totally insane! This is very late in the game, of course, but, wouldn't it be possible for the Republicans to remove their candidate, dementia sufferer Donald Trump, on the basis of his obvious mental incompetence? Couldn't they get a couple of psychiatrists to certify Trump as not being mentally competent? Wouldn't that be sufficient grounds to put up another candidate. Even his wacky, crazy VP choice, J.D. Vance, probably would do better than Trump, at this stage. He's a young idiot, sure, with really weird views on most things, but, he doesn't have senile dementia, anyway. Not so far. So, that's an improvement over Trump, isn't it? Isn't it worth a try? Otherwise, the Republicans can kiss Washington D.C. goodbye, for the next eight years or so!