this post was submitted on 15 Apr 2025
98 points (95.4% liked)

World News

35517 readers
553 users here now

News from around the world!

Rules:

founded 5 years ago
MODERATORS
 

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/61389483

top 28 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] Quilotoa@lemmy.ca 82 points 6 days ago (3 children)

Rule 1. When you're having political problems at home, create a foreign enemy to distract the population.

[–] barneypiccolo@lemm.ee 23 points 6 days ago

Also, a foreign threat tends to gather the citizens together. Our post-9/11 unity allowed them to create the Homeland Security Gestapo.

[–] umbrella@lemmy.ml 12 points 6 days ago (1 children)
[–] gnuhaut@lemmy.ml 5 points 6 days ago

Also a common liberal tactic.

[–] luce@lemmy.blahaj.zone 6 points 6 days ago

who says the enemy has to be foreign?

[–] Samsuma@lemmy.ml 43 points 6 days ago

The enemy is both weak and strong.

[–] coolusername@lemmy.ml 36 points 6 days ago

anyway, 30 billion more for Israel

[–] bravesilvernest@lemmy.ml 33 points 6 days ago

Lol sounds like he's doing a great job in his role checks notes in charge of US defense.

[–] doubtingtammy@lemmy.ml 31 points 6 days ago (1 children)

This is both believable, and actually makes me feel safer about world security

[–] dessalines@lemmy.ml 19 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

Apparently the crucial moment for the US to attack was a few year ago, when they still had naval superiority. They missed their window luckily for us. Thanks to the PRC the US doesn't get to use SE Asia and Europe as their cannon fodder.

[–] Glitterbomb@lemmy.world 24 points 6 days ago (1 children)

The only thing this pentagon chief can sink in 20 minutes is a fifth of whiskey

[–] dan69@lemmy.world 3 points 6 days ago

That’s too modest of an amount

[–] geneva_convenience@lemmy.ml 26 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago) (1 children)

US can't even beat Ansarallah

[–] PolandIsAStateOfMind@lemmy.ml 29 points 6 days ago

I remember how they bragged that the operation against Yemen was the biggest naval operation since WW2.

And they lost that, against country having no navy and no airforce.

[–] ef9357@lemmy.world 16 points 6 days ago

It’s not like China has to lift a finger, the US government is doing a fine job of destroying the country.

[–] bilb@lem.monster 14 points 6 days ago

I hope that's true, but this is a common refrain with various adversaries used as the boogie-man.

https://citationsneeded.libsyn.com/episode-117-the-always-lagging-us-war-machine

The scam goes something like this: A weapons contractor and military-funded think tank publishes a supposedly neutral "report" or a handful "U.S. officials" run to a media outlet insisting the United States is "lagging behind" in a sector that incidentally coincides with said think tank's funders or government entity's interests. Credulous American media mindlessly repeats the claims, everyone acts panicked, treating the warning like a work of good faith, sober and objective analysis. Congress then reacts and uses media coverage to rationalize even more contracts to the very funders of the think tank that raised the warning, further bloating the Pentagon, State Department and CIA budgets. Rinse and repeat, rinse and repeat, all the while portraying the U.S.'s gargantuan defense expenditures as paltry and insufficient.

[–] Cowbee@lemmy.ml 16 points 6 days ago
[–] LuigiMaoFrance@lemmy.ml 16 points 6 days ago
[–] humanspiral@lemmy.ca 16 points 6 days ago (2 children)

Lots of comments that "this is a false distraction to justify war on Panama". War on Panama is about interdicting Chinese commerce with Brazil and other countries south of US. Including FDI in Panama to boost its cross ocean trade volume through a railway.

This is more of a classified leak exposing US weakness and impotence. This does compromise stupid people's faith in US protections across the world, and their rulers corrupt submission to US under propaganda of US protection.

[–] humanspiral@lemmy.ca 4 points 6 days ago

Someone got fired for unauthorized leak today. https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-850238

[–] umbrella@lemmy.ml 4 points 6 days ago (1 children)

they already forced a 100% tariff on chinese imports in brazil

[–] humanspiral@lemmy.ca 1 points 6 days ago (1 children)

I'm only aware of 30% tariffs on Chinese steel in Brazil, which is same mistake any manufacturing country can make. This was under Biden. They are unpopular, and Brazil still does significant trade with China.

[–] umbrella@lemmy.ml 2 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

a) we are not a manufacturing country. we mostly sell raw materials to china

b) manufactured chinese imports are taxed 100%, not raw materials. think consumer goods. we have a few exceptions, like EVs

[–] shiroininja@lemmy.world 11 points 6 days ago

Good thing we’re busy terrorizing our own populace!

[–] rxbudian@lemmy.ca 11 points 6 days ago

Article's gone. Here's the archive: https://archive.is/WDDOa