It is interesting that Musk said that the USA should be concentrating on drones rather than developing billion dollar fighter jets like the F-47. If he is right, the US is wasting billions of dollars on impressive but not the most efficient military craft. Trump though loves the F-47 for other reasons such as its name and “it is so fast, so stealthy; other countries won’t know what hit them”.
Thats the irony here.
With Trump, you are going to have more spending that is inefficient simply because it appeals to his vanity.
For Musk, its all about re-directing taxpayer money towards his own companies and products.
Thats his grift at this point. Buttering up Trump as much as he does just keeps him onside.
If we haven’t figured out the importance of drones from the Ukraine war then heaven help us for all the wasted money
I am hoping that Canada looks closely at drones as it ups its military spending dramatically rather than just buy shiny, expensive items that are less practical.
It has been pointed out that while 47 is clearly a reference to the Dear Leader, it is pronounced, “eff 47”.
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Thinking about the meat of this comment…
While I think a strong argument could be made against the US’s level of military spending, I think Elmo’s skipped a key step in his reasoning.
The question the US should be asking is: what does it want its military to be able to respond to.
For most potential threats, drone technology is clearly superior.
However, for projection of power / for potentially going toe-to-toe against Russia or China, at the moment the US has a slight edge over China with its fifth-gen fighters, and a clear edge over Russia, in those countries’ neighborhoods.
As regards China specifically, while the F-35 is reportedly slightly more capable than the J-35, China’s reportedly about to pass the US in capabilities of what can be loaded on to those respective fighters.
The rate that China is improving its technology…the US would be hard-pressed to intervene in Taiwan if China had sixth-gen capabilities and the US did not.
China’s “J-36” has been seen in the air. I don’t think the F-47 has been noticed in the air in civilian press.
FWIW, I think it’s assumed that sixth-gen fighters will be, in part, platforms to control drone swarms…so at least Elmo will get a bit of his wish.
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Current state of Twitter. The red / blue ratio is not surprising given the exodus to Bluesky, but seriously, libsoftitktok is 2nd? (Don’t know if that is combining both of her accounts). And people actually follow catturd2?
Didnt Musk make every twitter account follow him?
“This is an enterprise. This is not your grandmother’s Easter Egg Roll where people lined up outside the gate and go and roll an egg and get a little gift bag and walk out,” said a former official involved in planning the event
“Sponsors of WHEER [White House Easter Egg Roll] provide financial support, activities, and giveaways to enhance the event while gaining valuable brand visibility and national recognition,” reads the document. Among the offerings for prospective sponsors: “Naming rights for key areas or elements,” “Sponsor logos featured on event signage,” “Custom-branded baskets, snacks/beverages, or souvenirs,” “Mentions in official event communications and social media posts,” “Acknowledgment in printed or digital event programs,” and “Inclusion in press releases and media interviews.” Sponsors can also gain access to an “invite-only brunch hosted inside the White House by FLOTUS,” tickets to the event, and a private White House tour.
Well, he showed up. Whether this will be aired on PBS some time in the future doesn’t seem to have been decided. No word on whether tRump showed up, but I’m guessing he didn’t.
ETA: It will be streamed on Netflix. Last year’s was released in May.
**A Vancouver Island author’s picture book about a puppy at a Pride parade is among several works at the centre of a U.S. Supreme Court challenge over whether parents have the constitutional right to opt their children out of lessons involving books with LGBTQ characters.
Robin Stevenson’s Pride Puppy!, a rhyming alphabet book, features a dog that goes to a parade with its family and breaks loose. Colourful illustrations by Julie McLaughlin depict the puppy bounding through celebratory scenes that include rainbow and transgender pride flags and characters featuring a range of ages, races, abilities and gender identities.
The U.S. Supreme Court agreed in January to hear an appeal from a group of parents in Maryland who want to pull their children from lessons or reading time involving the book in preschool and prekindergarten classes, along with a number of other titles taught from kindergarten through Grade 5. Oral arguments are set to begin on April 22.**
The act of pulling your kid out of story time seems far more socially/educationally disruptive than anything else
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NPR and PBS may cease to receive federal funding. I assume that enough Americans would step up and make contributions to keep them going? I have made contributions to PBS in the past and would do so again to keep their programming going.
1% of NPR’s budget is from federal funding.
PBS’s is around 15%
I don’t know the extent to which local stations get federal grants.
The elimination of the 15% funding for PBS from the Feds would produce some belt tightening but should not be hard for donors to make up. Especially if some liberal billionaire stepped up.
Brazil’s judiciary showing the US how you deal with an insurrectionist
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