Miscellaneous News

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iewgnem

Captain
Registered Member
plawolf said:
This is actually a somewhat worrying development to me.

Rare earth minerals are not actually all that rare in terms of global distribution. It’s just in found in ultra low concentrations in the soil, so you need really advanced refining and processing tech to make it economical viable.

But the thing is, if you throw economic viability out the window and just spend what it takes to make it, it’s entirely possible to set up an industry to make enough for military needs within a few years.

You will get increasing pressure on US weapons manufacturers for maybe 1-2 years as they run down existing stocks until you reach peak disruption where it might get so bad that they start to struggle to meet normal production demands. But eventually as few rare earth processing facilities start to produce products, that pressure will start to ease, and in 10-20 years time the west will be self sufficient for their rare earth needs.

That means China thinks war is very likely to break out within the next few years that enacting sanctions now will yield maximum damage and disruption to the U.S. MIC in those years before their alternative rare earth production can come on stream.

There are so many other cards China can play, that making this move as its first more looks like war prep to me. And it’s not a subtle message either. So I think this is Beijing sending Trump a not so veiled warning that this time around, China is ready for both a trade war and a hot war.

The biggest question mark is whether Trump and his sycophants are smart enough to get the message.
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It's easy to forget that when China control >90% of global production and processing, it also means China >90% of global know-how in how to do so.

Even if the US is willing to pay any price to build their own production, and even if there are no confidential technologies that only China have, it'll still take them years to train enough people to make it work

If there are trade secrets, then it becomes similar to lithography, except US don't even have the education system to produce talents to figure it out

Another way to look at this is, China has already put gallium and others on export control for more than a year, during that time US companies can and has applied for permits to import, and China has been granting them.
So the decision to enact this ban was made after gathering data on how much ability US had in finding alternatives, which is evidently not much.

I agree China is preparing for a hot war, there are plenty of other indicators, but in this case it's more a indication that China is switch from defensive to offensive posture in the trade and tech war.
Historically, when China switches from defending against barbarian raids to going on the offensive, China goes for annihilation.
 
FriedButter

FriedButter

Brigadier
Registered Member
Turns out Yoon is going to survive. Conservatives have rejected the impeachment of Yoon, which sounds like they supported it. The coup leaders had issued arrest warrants on the opposition parties and leaders. It seems that something went very wrong which forced them to call it off. I guess it must have been the inability to stop the vote as they failed to breach parliament.

People Power Party: “‘Oppose President Yoon’s Impeachment’ Party Principle”… Democratic Party: “Aiding the Crime of Rebellion, Unacceptable”​


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[Breaking News] Minjoo: "CCTV confirms movement of arrest team for Lee Jae-myung, Han Dong-hoon, and Woo Won-sik"​

[Breaking News] Democratic Party: "Military invades Lee Jae-myung's office... Attempt to arrest and detain confirmed"​

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FriedButter

FriedButter

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Trump floats DeSantis as potential defense secretary replacement if Pete Hegseth falters​

President-elect Trump is considering nominating Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida as defense secretary to replace Pete Hegseth, Trump's embattled current pick to steer the Pentagon, multiple sources confirm to Fox News.

DeSantis, a bitter Trump rival last year and early this year during the GOP presidential nomination battle, made peace with Trump after the primaries and helped raise funds for Trump during the general election.

The popular conservative governor, a Navy veteran who served in the Iraq War, was re-elected in a landslide in 2022 but is term-limited and cannot run for re-election in 2026.

DeSantis is "very much" in contention to replace Hegseth, multiple sources told Fox News.

One source added that it was the president-elect himself who floated the governor's name, and that Trump and DeSantis discussed the idea as they met Tuesday while appearing together in Florida at a memorial service for fallen law enforcement officers in Palm Beach County.

The reporting from Fox News and other organizations comes as Hegseth on Wednesday returns to Capitol Hill to continue meeting with Republican senators as he makes his case for confirmation as defense secretary.

Hegseth, an Army National Guard officer who deployed to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and who previously was a Fox News host, is facing a series of drinking and sexual misconduct allegations.

"I spoke with the President-elect this morning. He said keep going, keep fighting," Hegseth told reporters as he arrived on Capitol Hill.

"Why would I back down? I have always been a fighter," he added.

Hegseth also made his case in a social media post on Wednesday morning, writing, "I'm doing this for the warfighters, not the warmongers."

But a top Trump ally in the Senate is concerned.

"He obviously has a chance to defend himself here. But some of this stuff is — it’s going to be difficult," Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a longtime military veteran, told reporters on Tuesday.

Among the senators Hegseth was meeting with on Wednesday is Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, a military veteran and sexual-assault victim whose support would be crucial to his Senate confirmation.

Ernst told reporters on the eve of the meeting that she would likely have a "frank and thorough conversation" with Hegseth.

Hegseth's mother, Penelope Hegseth, appeared Wednesday on "FOX and Friends" to defend her son and "set the record straight."

"I am here to tell the truth. To tell the truth to the American people and tell the truth to senators on the Hill, especially female senators. I really hope that you will not listen to the media and you will listen to Pete," she added.

If Trump moves ahead and nominates DeSantis and the governor is confirmed by the GOP-controlled Senate next year, it would lead to the ascension of Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez. She would make history as Florida's first female governor — and the first of Cuban descent.
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Hegseth, an Army National Guard officer who deployed to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and who previously was a Fox News host, is facing a series of drinking and sexual misconduct allegations.
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One source added that it was the president-elect himself who floated the governor's name, and that Trump and DeSantis discussed the idea as they met Tuesday while appearing together in Florida at a memorial service for fallen law enforcement officers in Palm Beach County.
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Apparently, Pete is an alcoholic and congress doesn’t trust him about the alcohol.
 
J

jiajia99

Senior Member
Registered Member
FriedButter said:
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Apparently, Pete is an alcoholic and congress doesn’t trust him about the alcohol.
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So Trump is a flip flopper that cannot make up his bloody mind. He thinks he is doctor evil with all the plans but ultimately his does resemble him only in terms of his success rate which is why nothing seems to ever truly succeed when he is at the helm in the long run. I swear these elite freaks need to be dealt with in order for there to be world peace because none of these talking heads in Washington have anything resembling a brain or any empathy in all seriousness
 
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