Intuitively Obvious

Christian Conservative, Retired software engineer, old curmudgeon now, sarcastic wit and ready smile. The photo is me on 1st day of 1st grade. No DMs please...

[Intuitively Obvious @DonAreyJr]

@ChildrensHD I've had chronic migraine since my teenage years but after the Pfizer vaccine in May/June '21, I've had migraines every day. I have not had a pain free day since around September '21.

[Intuitively Obvious @DonAreyJr]

I agree! Follow Rod Martin and @2thepoint!

[Rod D. Martin @RodDMartin]

This is one of the best new accounts on X. Give it a follow.

[Intuitively Obvious @DonAreyJr]

@Agha_shadow_ @EpicGames @FortniteStatus @Fortnite Has there been any acknowledgement from Epic Games at least? I haven't heard that they're working on it...

[Intuitively Obvious @DonAreyJr]

@codepcpy This is not just happening on Windows 10, it's on Windows 11, even on a newly purchased PC! (Yesterday, August 18th!) Fix it!

[Intuitively Obvious @DonAreyJr]

@Axolade_ @iBrews Yes, any word from Epic Games? I'm very frustrated! I can't get even get Epic Games Launcher to download and install a game on a newly purchased PC and there seems to be no work-around.

[Intuitively Obvious @DonAreyJr]

@id3o_n @EpicGames There's an obvious bug in the Epic Games Launcher. I've tried working the problem for a couple days. It won't download and install a game I like even on a newly purchased PC. I think we have to wait on an update from Epic Games for this. Any news?

[Intuitively Obvious @DonAreyJr]

@jk_rowling, when a tiny male with a tiny p*ck*r tries to insult a literary genius and billionaire such as you, I am reminding of a jungle story. An elephant accidentally stepped on the tail of a mouse. The mouse was furious! He climbed up the rear leg of the elephant and grabbed her tail. He used the tail to swing into her rear with his tiny p*ck*r fully engorged. He was screaming , "Take that! And that! And this!!!"

@dean_tony is about as effective...

[Intuitively Obvious @DonAreyJr]

True! Most of the men who sat down and planned Hitler's "Final Solution" had Ph.D's

[Dennis Prager @DennisPrager]

There is nothing about a Ph.D. that guarantees a person will be wiser, kinder, or more ethical than someone with only a high school education.

[Intuitively Obvious @DonAreyJr]

The Democratic Party has lost is mind and soul.

[Byl Holte @SirBylHolte]

Back in the day they used to call me an “Oreo”: black on the outside, white on the inside.

5 decades later I get it.

They mean I’m… normal.

Up until I turned 57, I thought I was a liberal.

I loved and got along with everybody.

I never judged people.

I obeyed the laws, paid my taxes, and just wanted everyone to be safe and happy.

Then Trump came along and the world lost its mind.

Suddenly, I was expected to:

Hate white people
Hate Jewish people
Hate Christians
Hate the unborn
Fear the weather
Fear the flu
Support child sex changes
Want criminals set free
Not want a border
Love illegal immigration

And want every country to get more money and attention than my own.

That’s when I realized I wasn’t the one who changed.

I became a WHITE CONSERVATIVE, not because I fell in love with the Republican Party, but because I love my country.

If that makes me a "TOM," or any of the other racist things the left calls me, so be it.

I wear it proudly.

God Bless the USA🇺🇸

[Intuitively Obvious @DonAreyJr]

I'm certainly on board with your sentiment, Aimee, but I'd tailor your comment a bit more toward that The Left:

- Can't use self-deprecating humor, they're too proud

- Can't use Don Rickles type bashing humor, they actually *believe* their own criticisms, where as Don Rickles had a good heart and loved people.

- Come off as cruel when they lampoon government.

- Come off as cruel when they lampoon personalities.

It takes a great sense of humor and a "heart of gold" to enjoy those kind of jokes. But Lefties just take themselves so seriously, they seem unfunny to me.

"Everyone thinks they have a sense of humor. Even people who don't." - Steve Martin

[Intuitively Obvious @DonAreyJr]

True!

[Nick Freitas @NickJFreitas]

Mamdani demonstrates how socialists balance budgets… mainly through lying and stealing.

[Intuitively Obvious @DonAreyJr]

@MbarkCherguia Bacon

[Dr. Brian L. Cox @BrianCox_RLTW]

Retired Army JAG here. And former infantry soldier & officer. And current law professor.

And YOU are full of shit.

No quarter ORDERS do violate #LOAC. Giving that order is a war crime even if it's not carried out.

But that is NOT an order @SecWar @PeteHegseth gave. And that is why you are full of shit.

See, I've also trained hundreds of soldiers on LOAC in the applied context. Thousands, actually. And I've advised commanders & decision makers on LOAC in combat, in Afghanistan as Chief of International & Operational Law for CJTF-101/RC-E (OEF XIV).

That's why I know the difference between what SECWAR said in a press briefing yesterday & a war crime. Apparently you don't - so I'll do you a favor & spell it out for you step by step, in simple language that you'll hopefully understand.

Let's start off with what Hegseth ACTUALLY said:

"It's a mess for them. Who's in charge? Iran may not even know. With every passing hour, we know and we know they know, that the military capabilities of their evil regime are crumbling. They can barely communicate, let alone coordinate; they're confused and we know it.

Our response? We will keep pressing. We will keep pushing, keep advancing, no quarter, no mercy for our enemies."

(https://t.co/5DSRnR9sM2)

Alright, if we consider this "no quarter" observation in context, we see Hegseth's intent is to convey that @DeptofWar is going to exert max pressure on our adversary. We know their military capabilities "are crumbling" & we're not going to back off. Keep pushing, keep advancing.

"No quarter. No mercy."

See, content & intent are important. This is how we differentiate political rhetoric from war crime. Reality from...bullshit.

If we go all the way back to Hague, II (1899) & Hague, IV (1907), the Regulations annexed to both Conventions make it forbidden, "To declare that no quarter will be given" (pic 1, from Hague, IV).

Seems legit, right? Isn't that what SECWAR just "declared"? Well, if LOAC development stopped at 1907, maybe you could make that argument.

But, it didn't. In negotiations for later treaties, delegates decided to be more clear about what exactly that prohibition should entail.

So, next we'll consider 2 later treaties 🇺🇸 hasn't ratified but we were deeply involved in shaping - Additional Protocol I (1977) to 1949 Geneva Conventions & Rome Statute @IntlCrimCourt (1998).

As we'll see below, these sources confirm Hegseth's political rhetoric is NOT a LOAC violation or war crime...and US DoW doctrine is consistent with relevant text of these treaties.

Let's start with AP I. As we see from art. 40, this treaty clarifies (7 decades after Hague IV), "It is prohibited to ORDER that there shall be no survivors, to THREATEN an adversary therewith or to CONDUCT hostilities on this basis" (pic 2).

So, 3 specific verbs to highlight + 1 condition. No ordering, threatening, or conducting (verbs) armed hostilities under condition(s) of NO SURVIVORS.

Now, reach all the way back in your memory - like 2 minutes ago - when you read actual text of Hegseth's remarks.

Do you genuinely believe SECWAR just ordered or threatened there will be no survivors, even if an enemy IRGC member tries to surrender - or that we are now as a result conducting hostilities on that basis? Be honest.

Of course not. And no one in the military is going to hear/read his remarks and think, "SECWAR just ordered me to take no prisoners." Seriously.

Moving on from AP I, art. 8(2)(b)(xii) of Rome Statute essentially copies text of Hague IV, art. 23(d) to make "declaring no quarter will be given" a war crime (not pictured). BUT the elements of crimes follows AP I (pic 3), as does DoD Law of War Manual (pic 4).

Yes, actual no quarter ORDERS do violate LOAC. Just the order alone is a war crime.

But max pressure political rhetoric is not the same as an ORDER "that there shall be no survivors."

Which means Sec Hegseth's comments are neither LOAC violation nor war crime. Which also means Rep Vindman is full of 💩.

[Maine Wire Jon @MaineWireJon]

Editorial: What Happened to Maine?
By Jon Fetherston

There was a time when Maine knew exactly who it was.

It was a place where hard work mattered, neighbors looked out for one another, and people took pride in their towns, businesses, and way of life. Maine was built by fishermen, farmers, mill workers, small business owners, veterans, and families who believed that if you worked hard and played by the rules, you could build a good life here.

So what happened?

How did we go from “The Way Life Should Be” to a state where so many people now wonder whether the system itself is broken?

Somewhere along the way, Maine lost its balance.

We stopped asking the most basic question government should answer: Who are we protecting?

Are we protecting children who deserve safe schools and stable communities?
Are we protecting the vulnerable who truly need help?
Are we protecting taxpayers who fund everything government does?

Or are we protecting a system that too often rewards chaos, waste, fraud, and failure?

Across Maine, people are seeing things that would have seemed unthinkable a generation ago.

Small businesses are struggling under rising costs, taxes, and regulations. Fishermen are fighting to survive against decisions made far from the coast. Veterans struggle to find housing and services while others seem to move to the front of the line. Cities like Portland, Lewiston, Bangor, and Biddeford are dealing with open drug use, homelessness, and public safety concerns that once felt foreign to this state.

At the same time, story after story raises serious questions about waste, fraud, and misuse of taxpayer dollars.

And yet the outrage often never comes.

Why?

Maybe it was COVID and the expansion of government bureaucracy. Maybe it was a culture that replaced accountability with excuses. Maybe it was politics becoming so toxic that people stopped asking honest questions because they feared being attacked or dismissed.

Some blame wokeness. Some blame Washington. Some blame Augusta. Some blame Trump Derangement Syndrome.

But the deeper truth is simpler:

Leadership matters.

And for too long, leadership has been missing.

Maine has always been strongest when leaders put the state first. Leaders who believed in law and order. Leaders who understood that compassion and accountability are not opposites.

Helping the vulnerable and upholding the rule of law are not competing values. They are part of the same value system.

But somewhere along the way, that balance was lost.

Today, many Mainers feel like they are watching their state change into something they barely recognize. They see government growing larger but less effective. They see fraud allegations pile up with few consequences. They see policies that feel disconnected from the lives of working families.

And they ask: Where are the leaders willing to fix it?

But Maine’s story is not over.

This state is still full of people who care. People who believe in hard work, fairness, accountability, and common sense. People who believe small businesses, fishermen, veterans, and working families still matter.

Those people are still here.

And they are starting to speak up again.

Maine’s future will not be decided by politicians alone. It will be decided by whether the people of this state believe Maine is still worth fighting for.

It is.

Maine is still worth fighting for.

The question is whether enough people are ready to stand up, demand better, and rebuild the values that once made this state strong.

Because the fight for Maine is far from over.

And some of us are not going anywhere.

We never stop.
We never give up.

Now let’s get to work.
@TheMaineWire

[Intuitively Obvious @DonAreyJr]

Wine, women and song...

I learned this in high school Latin classes... Rome had the "outskirts" and as you moved from the center, you were in the vintner district. A bit further out was the prostitute area. Further out was the theater district. Then... the grave yards.

So the expression that is not usually expressed is:
"Wine, women and song... and the consequences."

[Intuitively Obvious @DonAreyJr]

Just for fun...

I was having a "cubicle conversation" with a fellow engineer at the computer manufacturing company where I was employed. I felt a fistful of change in my pocket.

I took all the change and threw it in the trash can in front of my fellow employee.

He was aghast! "You can't do that! That's government property!"

I said, "No, it's my money, I can do with it what I want!"

I've done this several times and always got the same reaction. In fact, a couple people retrieved the change from the trash and tried to give it back to me. I just said, "No, keep it. You earned it!"

Ain't people funny?!

[Intuitively Obvious @DonAreyJr]

Just for fun...

I was working for a computer manufacturing company. I walked past a couple engineers in the hallway. They were embroiled in technical conversation and "illustrating" their ideas by "drawing" on the wall with their fingers.

I walked up and with my palm, "erased" their imaginary drawings. The looked very startled, tried to get back to their discussion but couldn't. They walked off in digust.

Try it, you'll like it!

[Intuitively Obvious @DonAreyJr]

@mattvanswol The driver, a black female, what released on $3,000 bail bond.
https://t.co/lcDgFcuaoj

[Intuitively Obvious @DonAreyJr]

This is a difficult issue. Many parents would not want their children away from home without their cellphones. Cellphones have become a potent safety device in today's world. And also a nuisance and hindrance to education...

There definitely should be a ban on cellphone USE in the classroom. There are many creative ways this could be accomplished.

Rather than an outright draconian ban on cellphones at school, I would like to see that the kids are taught responsibility in their use. Creating incentives for good behavior and penalties for infractions will go a long way toward creating better-prepared young citizens.

[Intuitively Obvious @DonAreyJr]

@Ithurts42 Those words are so much rarer.