Recent content by longly

Sorry, friend — you're going to have to show proof of that. I know a little bit about the military, but it's enough that I can’t imagine that being true.

I'm sorry — I’m not trying to be offensive, but that has to be one of the dumbest things someone could say. What does the size of a man's penis have to do with anything? Are we not better than that? Aren’t we better than that?

Would you allow an enemy to attack you and then retreat to hide behind civilians? I think not.

When the 1979 mission to rescue the hostages failed, and the United States chose not to bomb its own embassy to end the crisis, Iranian extremists did not interpret that restraint as humanitarian but as weakness. Since then, they have continued to carry out acts of aggression — including actions...

Do you think it’s likely that the U.S. military had the foresight to recruit Iranian Americans over the last few years to serve as Green Berets, Special Forces, or infantry for such an eventuality? I’m personally not sure. It seems like a logical thing to do.

All of the Gulf states are terrified that Iran will get a nuclear weapon, because they have little doubt Iran would be willing to use it—at least on a limited scale. If Iran were weakened enough, I could see the Gulf states joining in, but not before. I also don’t expect any large‑scale ground...

It seems as though you're saying that the defeat of Iran’s religious fundamentalist government—not the Iranian people—would be disastrous for peace and prosperity. Is that what you mean?

I would appreciate it if you could point out the parts that are BS. I’m always interested in improving my thinking whenever the opportunity presents itself. I realize that I’ve used exaggeration to make a point. For example, once you establish your business and it becomes successful, you can...

SBB can be wealthy if he wants it badly enough, but he can’t do it by being “Good Time Charlie” on Saturday night. In essence, you have to be a miser long enough to save money that can be invested carefully into something that can make more money—and you must be willing to take a loss if it...

FDR did something similar in the 1930s in the Tennessee Valley. Those people couldn’t go back to their homes either. They may have had a community there, but so do the Chinese in the United States. Yet America’s Chinatowns are not sovereign territory of China, and neither is Diego Garcia...

Do you have a problem with Chinese or Russian colonialism?

No one lived on Diego Garcia when the French arrived. The Portuguese discovered the islands, but the French established the first settlements. So if the French were the first people to live on the islands, they were the original inhabitants. But if Europeans aren’t considered the “first people”...

The obvious conclusion is that they haven’t reached that level yet, and given the extent of corruption, they may never reach it. Much of the excess money held by officials never supports the national economy; instead, it ends up in private bank accounts in Switzerland. That benefits Swiss banks...

That is fairly accurate. Before colonialism, housing in Africa was very different from what it is today. But you have to remember that fifteen hundred years ago, you found the same kinds of houses in Britain. And even just in the last few decades, you can still find modern versions of...

The main advantage of Diego Garcia is clear: it’s distant enough to make retaliation difficult for our adversaries, but close enough for us to strike with ease. That combination gives it a strategic value that’s hard to overstate.