doppelganglander 9/30/2022 5:55:15 AM

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From last night:

In #17 Occasional Reader said: With few exceptions (The Duchy of Grand Fenwick comes to mind), they don't do this with Europe, they don't just make up new countries.

How could you forget Freedonia?

The Princess Diaries with Anne Hathaway takes place in the imaginary nation of Genovia. I know this because I have daughters.

vxbush 9/30/2022 6:02:56 AM

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In #1 doppelganglander said: How could you forget Freedonia? The Princess Diaries with Anne Hathaway takes place in the imaginary nation of Genovia. I know this because I have daughters.

And there are many many others. In Marvel movies alone, the Marvel Universe has used numerous fake countries (scroll down to the end for a list). 

vxbush 9/30/2022 6:03:35 AM

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Reply to vxbush in 2:

Not to mention that several romance stories (don't ask me how I know this) place all sorts of princes in random. made-up European countries. 

vxbush 9/30/2022 6:12:18 AM

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The official narrative regarding Nordstreams 1 and 2 has been relased.

vxbush 9/30/2022 6:14:01 AM

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Reply to vxbush in 4:

buzzsawmonkey 9/30/2022 6:57:28 AM

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Reply to doppelganglander in 1:

The WC Fields/Jack Oakie film "Million Dollar Legs," one of the funniest bad films ever made, takes place in the imaginary country of Klopstockia ("principal exports, goats and nuts; principal imports, goats and nuts; principal inhabitants, goats and nuts").

Small-country comedies were a minor sub-genre in the early 30s; in addition to "Duck Soup" and "Million Dollar Legs," there's also Wheeler & Woolsey's "Diplomaniacs," and, I think, "The Student Prince."

buzzsawmonkey 9/30/2022 8:37:11 AM

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Occasional Reader 9/30/2022 9:47:58 AM

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Reply to vxbush in 4:

Yeah, not so fast. 

The idea that one Polish pol's tweet proves anything is silly, IMHO (and yes, I've seen that point endlessly repeated at Instapundit).

I do think US/NATO sabotage is very much on the table, don't get me wrong.  But "lousy maintenance" is also a strong possibility; as is "rogue Russian military action to box in Putin" (less likely); and "Putin ordered the attack, in order to 'burn the boats like Cortez' as a distant fourth, IMHO.  (And some others.)  

Short answer right now; We don't know. 

vxbush 9/30/2022 9:58:13 AM

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In #8 Occasional Reader said: Yeah, not so fast.  The idea that one Polish pol's tweet proves anything is silly, IMHO (and yes, I've seen that point endlessly repeated at Instapundit). I do think US/NATO sabotage is very much on the table, don't get me wrong.  But "lousy maintenance" is also a strong possibility; as is "rogue Russian military action to box in Putin" (less likely); and "Putin ordered the attack, in order to 'burn the boats like Cortez' as a distant fourth, IMHO.  (And some others.)   Short answer right now; We don't know. 

No disagreement with anything you've said. What was fascinating was the coordination of tweets with the exact same language. That often means bots, but it was still interesting given how quickly the situation is being updated.

Occasional Reader 9/30/2022 10:12:56 AM

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Reply to vxbush in 9:

Well, “coordination of tweets“ can also just be explained as “the same news story being the subject of multiple tweets“. And that could be said for all kinds of news stories.

Occasional Reader 9/30/2022 10:24:11 AM

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vxbush 9/30/2022 10:50:31 AM

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In #11 Occasional Reader said: What the hell is wrong with these people?

Wow. A giant F you to the rest of the US. How quickly can this be pulled into court, I wonder?

doppelganglander 9/30/2022 11:29:52 AM

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Reply to vxbush in 12:

Someone with standing would have to bring suit. That might be the parent of a runaway who went to California for surgery, or a parent in a custody dispute where one parent wants the surgery and the other doesn't. In the latter case, courts have ruled against the parents who object - that poor little boy in Texas whose father tried to save him from his mentally ill pediatrician mother, for example. I don't know how that turned out because the father was threatened with jail and termination of parental rights for speaking out. That's what parents are up against.

Occasional Reader 9/30/2022 11:34:33 AM

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doppelganglander 9/30/2022 12:12:15 PM

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Reply to Occasional Reader in 14:

Happy to hear it. The pictures I've seen are unbelievable.

vxbush 9/30/2022 12:42:09 PM

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In #13 doppelganglander said: Someone with standing would have to bring suit. That might be the parent of a runaway who went to California for surgery, or a parent in a custody dispute where one parent wants the surgery and the other doesn't. In the latter case, courts have ruled against the parents who object - that poor little boy in Texas whose father tried to save him from his mentally ill pediatrician mother, for example. I don't know how that turned out because the father was threatened with jail and termination of parental rights for speaking out. That's what parents are up against.

Is that the only recourse? Because of the nullity of the Full Faith and Credit Clause, it would seem that any state could bring a lawsuit at the federal level. 

Kosh's Shadow 9/30/2022 4:19:35 PM

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Reply to doppelganglander in 1:

Don't forget the mean little country, Pottsylvania, from Rocky and Bullwinkle.

Kosh's Shadow 9/30/2022 5:51:26 PM

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Kosh's Shadow 9/30/2022 5:56:12 PM

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Reply to Kosh's Shadow in 18:

In space, no one can hear you go "Beep! Beep!"

Occasional Reader 9/30/2022 7:11:06 PM

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Reply to Kosh's Shadow in 19:

“Beep, beep, Ritchie.”

-Pennywise

Kosh's Shadow 9/30/2022 7:40:43 PM

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Reply to Occasional Reader in 20:

Never watched those.