Riggo-toni

And he's hated by the other Siloviki, but he is who Putler has named as his successor. Putin has essentially wiped out any genuine potential rivals, and Patrushev controls the security forces, which he would be sure to exploit if Putler croaks.

Free rein rather than free reign was the only one I had wrong, other than a few (presumably British) sayings I never heard of. Most people call Jerusalem Artichokes Sunchokes nowadays. Also, it's "champing at the bit" (and "old stamping grounds.") I thought maybe he started off with"chomping" as part of his illustration but he never corrected it.

An important PSA:

I wish Progozhin had stayed in Rostov on Don, even if just for a week. It would have meant a bigger disruption to supplies getting into Ukraine. I don't believe all the wishful thinking that this is the beginning of the end for Putler. Saddam survived a much bigger military loss and subsequent uprising, but would probably still be in power or passed it on to his son if the US hadn't invaded. Erdogan escaped a coup attempt and despite near hyperinflation is still in power. Vlad isn't going anywhere, and his successor Patrushev is even more anti-western.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/Ct491Sbgy3I/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== So my wife's dumbass cat went about 50+ feet up a tree and wouldn't come down. Contrary to popular myth, firemen don't get cats out of trees. After waiting a few days, I started contacting tree companies, but none responded. Neighbors posted complaints on the community msg board because of the constant crying. Finally one of my friends found a volunteer one man service called CatManDo who came out for free. I got the last 20 seconds recorded on my phone. The results may surprise you...

I liked it, though it's been savaged by critics.

The owners were afraid their involvement in the Nordstream pipelines would be exposed, so they collected money from.gullible billionaires and then gassed the passengers once they submerged. They then stole any valuables on their persons, navigated the vessel to an escape vehicle, and sent the capsule to the bottom of the ocean to hide their crime. They're now living in relative comfort under assumed identities in Dubai. This wouldn't have happened if Bruce Willis still had all his faculties.

I still don't know who the hell this guy is...

I didn't think the S2E1 was nearly as good as most of season 1 episodes. Also, it will be a real letdown if Carol Kane's character becomes the new chief engineer. I quite liked the blind Andorrian who was the engineer in S1, and figured they killed him off and got rid of Number One to make room for Scotty and Kirk. Personally I think that's weak fan servicing - both SNW characters were engaging in their own right. Just not feeling it with the Carole Kane centuries old alien. Also, while the scene homage to Raiders of the Lost Ark was fine, I am not at all happy with the green juice fight scene that seems lifted straight out of comic books. Please don't repeat that in future episodes.

So, I was at my annual skin cancer screening on Wednesday and the Doctor said "You've got a lot of scratches on your shoulders?"....

Good riddance!

The US spends far too much on military hardware it doesn't need, like tanks rotting in desert storerooms and B2 bombers...things the military no longer asks for but Congress puts back into the budget; BUT, it doesn't spend nearly enough on things like artillery, cyber warfare development, research, personnel protection, etc. because fewer jobs are dependent on it, and it's not as sexy. So, build a fleet of $2billion "stealth" bombers that are actually detected by old radar systems and can be brought down by a $40k manpad, while soldiers go out in personnel vehicles that didn't get protective plating against mines.

BMWs are like hemorrhoids... every asshole gets one sooner or later.

The most upsetting thing about this thread - finding out that George Michael is in the RnR HoF.... Where's that puke smiley face we used to have on this site?

I don't think it's a false flag. Given the minimal explosive charges, I am guessing Ukraine/Russian partisan groups did this with Ukraine's blessing to force the Russians to move some of their anti-aircraft systems away from the front lines and back into Russia proper. There were reports months ago that S-300 and other systems defending Russian cities were relocated to Ukraine after HIMARS started depleting Russian systems near the front lines, including repurposing surface to air systems as surface to surface missiles. Russia assumed its territory was safe, since Ukraine pledged not to attack across the border with western supplied weapons. These attacks may embarrass/worry Moscow enough that they have to retrieve that equipment to protect their own elite.

4 - Missing You by John Waite 8 - Bang a Gong by T-Rex, later remade by Powerstation 18 - Go All the Way by The Raspberries

Black don't crack I guess....

Wife sent me a couple pics of my girl Layla while I am away.