this post was submitted on 17 Oct 2024
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chapotraphouse

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[–] Infamousblt@hexbear.net 93 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

This is why we don't have healthcare! So we can indiscriminately kill people only trying to defend themselves on the other side of the planet!

[–] Evilsandwichman@hexbear.net 76 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

Oh no, it's MUCH worse than that; we're killing some of the poorest people on the planet while they're going out on a limb to stop a genocide we're backing.

[–] Frank@hexbear.net 56 points 2 weeks ago (3 children)

It's so... like there aren't adjectives for this. Obama, Trump, Biden, and Harris have spent a decade attempting to exterminate Yemenis, they've killed hundreds of thousands and horribly injured millions, and the Yemenis, far from being cowed, defeated the US Navy in order to stop a genocide. And all we can conceive of is sending more bombs, killing and maiming more people. It's incomprehensible. "Evil" isn't sufficient.

[–] Palacegalleryratio@hexbear.net 31 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (2 children)

It’s incredible isn’t it. If you made a film with a plot as an allegory for Americas actions in Yemen like Star Wars was for Vietnam it would be impossible to get the average American to identify America as their stand in because the actions are so on the nose evil it would break their narrative too much. America is so antithetical to moral, honourable, ethical and just behaviour that it’s a caricature of what it is to be evil.

[–] NPa@hexbear.net 7 points 2 weeks ago

A second, bigger Empire has shown up to shoot down known terrorist Luke Skywalker and a squadron of illegal X-wing fighters. Reportedly the terrorist group was attempting to sabotage the newly built Tactical Defensive Moonlet (only used for defensive planetary disintegration)

  • Coruscant Times

Grand Emperor Bai-Den reportedly 'very displeased' with Emperor Palpatine, urges the Empire to stop blowing up planets within 6-8 years or he'll be 'big mad'.

  • Outer Rim Gazette

The Grand Emperor allocates 800 quintillion credits in military aid to Palpatine.

  • Galaxy Central News Network
[–] CleverOleg@hexbear.net 6 points 2 weeks ago

it would be impossible to get the average American to identify America as their stand in because the actions are so on the nose evil it would break their narrative too much.

It should be pointed out that despite the incredible decades-long popularity of Star Wars, very few Americans know about the connection the movie has to the Vietnam War and fewer still could figure out that America is not the Rebels but Empire.

[–] anarcho_blinkenist@hexbear.net 11 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (1 children)

The Yemenis also had the first communist-led government, the first socialist state in West Asia after they ousted the Brits and then won out over the Nasserists for power. There are still remnants in the regular people and in political actors of both socialist and non-socialist groups who were against reunification with the north just as there are newer trends and groups against foreign domination in general like and including the Houthi movement and other nationalist-islamic groups (over support of whom various left-wing and social democrat groups had their own splits over. A lot of different social trends and also different political factions with differing politics from that history, including some active secessionist groups involved in various sides in the civil-and-proxy-war.

Which all of this certainly doesn't help the region and its peoples which used to be occupied by the anglosphere stay out of the sights of, led by the US, the largest most violent empire in history whose interests shape global politics, as the apex of capitalist-imperialism grown to its highest stage in the form of global neo-colonialism. It's more of a neo-colonial involvement in an otherwise imperialist-driven regional power struggle for exploitation of resources (Southern Yemen was a big British Petroleum hub), inherited from the previous history, rather than a specific extermination plan of Yemenis in general. And in that it makes more cynical-bourgeois sense.

This is also all why the US previously, as always and many times in other countries and regions, sided with the royalists, compradors, jihadist fundamentalist terrorists, western-friendly regional imperialist powers, and general counter-revolutionary and opportunist forces against any and all Yemeni socialists and any and all national-oriented or geopolitical-rival-oriented social-democrats in every political struggle and conflict and civil war eruption they had. Unsurprising for the neo-colonials to target, alongside their regional imperialist allies, that which had previously for a century been a British colony.

You should post even more frequently (not that you asked) o7

[–] Nakoichi@hexbear.net 3 points 2 weeks ago

like there aren't adjectives for this.

Lovecraftian shit

[–] christian@hexbear.net 27 points 2 weeks ago

It's still much worse than what you've written here! You used the word "while" when the word "because" is much more accurate.

[–] Cummunism@hexbear.net 16 points 2 weeks ago

that's one reason. The other reason is that the healthcare industry is for profit, and profits are good. If we don't profit off healthcare, the economy will suffer! what a stronk economy.

[–] Weedian@hexbear.net 75 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

Yemen has only been being bombed for a decade, but this should do it

[–] TerminalEncounter@hexbear.net 51 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

The one thing keeping the genociders from killing off quite heroic Yemeni resistance was the stealth capabilities of the bombers

[–] Pentacat@hexbear.net 38 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Yemen is known for its radar and sophisticated antiaircraft defense.

[–] Findom_DeLuise@hexbear.net 9 points 2 weeks ago

As long it's not some ancient Soviet radar, there's a fair chance that they can detect the B-2 and B-21. They're big, they're slow, and they're potentially easy targets if you can spot them. Here's hoping for a repeat of the F-117 debacle from back in Kosovo.

[–] miz@hexbear.net 17 points 2 weeks ago

they used these to intimidate Iran moreso than because it was required against Yemen

[–] merthyr1831@lemmy.ml 3 points 2 weeks ago

one more bombing mission bro!!!

[–] Nakoichi@hexbear.net 62 points 2 weeks ago (4 children)

Wish someone would knock one of these things out of the sky as highly unlikely as that would be.

Each B-2 Spirit bomber costs ~$2 Billion dollars

[–] SupFBI@hexbear.net 30 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

Fascist country makes Nazi Luftwaffe looking jet.

[–] TomBombadil@hexbear.net 17 points 2 weeks ago

It can be done. These sorts of planes are invisible totally and completely. Until they aren't.

[–] m532@hexbear.net 17 points 2 weeks ago

So that's why they are called b2

[–] merthyr1831@lemmy.ml 2 points 2 weeks ago

There's a reason these things are only ever fielded against inferior air defence networks.

All stealth aircraft have small radar signatures, not invisible, and an enemy with an active air defence network and enough time and knowledge can use ambush tactics to destroy them. This is exactly how the F-117 was downed by Yugoslavian Serbs:

  1. They observed the area where the bomber was regularly approaching from for bombing missions. NATO complacency assumed using different aerial routes wasn't necessary.

  2. Yugoslav missile systems were modified for quick redeployment, allowing them to operate despite heavy NATO air cover.

  3. They explicitly calibrated early warning radars to detect the incoming stealth aircraft, reducing its range from 200km to just 24km. This gave an express warning of when to activate more precise tracking radars.

  4. The ambush tactics, alongside the express warning given by the early warning radar, meant they were tracking the F-117 in question at the moment it was opening its bomb bay doors, allowing for a precise targeting lock by the S-125 radars.

  5. Luck would have it that electronic warfare planes were grounded due to poor weather. This was known by Yugoslav commanders who had penetrated NATO communications and had sympathetic civilians revealing info on sorties. This helped the S-125 targeting radars to work more effectively and for longer (knowing they were unlikely to be detected) which ensured the kill.

An enemy that is complacent, gives up operational intelligence, and otherwise ignores basic operational procedures will never be totally invisible to the right combination of luck, planning, and cunning.

[–] culpritus@hexbear.net 54 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Spending 10s of billions trying to break a blockade that probably has cost less than 10 million. Ansar Allah and Iran are ~1000x more cost effective and still winning.

[–] SevenSkalls@hexbear.net 41 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

God I wish this country would rebel about the fact our money is spent on these things instead of Healthcare.

[–] UlyssesT@hexbear.net 38 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Many Burgerlanders prefer the military industrial complex and its tacticool theater on corpo news over the scarier thought of social safety nets for those who don't "deserve" them.

[–] Palacegalleryratio@hexbear.net 20 points 2 weeks ago

us-foreign-policy both at home and abroad.

[–] hypercracker@hexbear.net 36 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

The Creator was a dogshit movie but the USS Nomad floating around blowing up the global south was an incredible vibe read

[–] pastalicious@hexbear.net 32 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Aww I enjoyed the movie. Yes it was telegraphing its morals so hard it came off like a kid movie at times and some of the internal logic is incredibly silly, but they got a bunch of dumb American meat heads to watch a movie where America was unequivocally the bad guy and they showed what these horrifying conflicts look like from the perspective of regular people just trying to survive

[–] JoeByeThen@hexbear.net 5 points 2 weeks ago

Agreed. Its "Fuck USA!" energy made up for its shortcomings.

[–] Frank@hexbear.net 36 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Are the B-2s even stealth anymore?

[–] buckykat@hexbear.net 49 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

To Yemen? Probably. To China? Probably not.

[–] ButtBidet@hexbear.net 40 points 2 weeks ago (3 children)

Amerika can only fight broken countries.

[–] Palacegalleryratio@hexbear.net 13 points 2 weeks ago

Don’t worry though, it keeps breaking more countries so there is a steady supply.

[–] ZWQbpkzl@hexbear.net 1 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Are you calling Yemen broken?

[–] ButtBidet@hexbear.net 6 points 2 weeks ago

It's in the middle of a civil war. My meaning is that the US can't fight a real war. Even Iraq was devastated by decades of sanctions and bombings before the US invaded.

[–] Evil_Shrubbery@lemm.ee 1 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

In China they prob stream it on a Twitch-like platform, with pilots being like the game & HQ like the player.

[–] merthyr1831@lemmy.ml 2 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

f-35 barrelling towards the earth [mandarin] chat is this real?

[–] Evil_Shrubbery@lemm.ee 1 points 2 weeks ago

No, it's a blind playthough, no spoilers for the brand new eas war that just dripped!

[–] ZWQbpkzl@hexbear.net 31 points 2 weeks ago (4 children)

Does Yemen even have a radar system or AA missiles? Are they worried about Yemeni's taking cover before the bombs drop?

[–] Frank@hexbear.net 35 points 2 weeks ago

Ansar-Allah has killed like a dozen MQ-9 predator drone bomber planes in the last year. The fash are likely sending B-2 Spirits partially to curb losses of MQ-9s.

[–] miz@hexbear.net 18 points 2 weeks ago

this strike is a message to Iran as much as it is to Yemen.

[–] TechnoUnionTypeBeat@hexbear.net 18 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

The B-2 is one of the last remaining "carpet bomb" style bombers left in the US arsenal. If you imagine bombing in your head as just a plane dropping a massive torrent of bombs over a large area, that's the B-2. The US still has the B-52 of course, but it's ancient in comparison, so that leaves this. One of them can drop 80 500kg bombs on a civilian population in a single pass

They're using it not for the stealth value, but the pure terror value of carpet bombing civilians. It being stealthy is just ensuring they can't be reprised against

[–] ZWQbpkzl@hexbear.net 7 points 2 weeks ago (2 children)

I was under the impression that the b-2 had a smallish payload due to it stealth constraints but maybe that was just in comparison to the B-52.

Jesus this is grim they're resorting to tactics they haven't used since Vietnam.

[–] FunkYankkkees@hexbear.net 6 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

b2 can carry 40,000lb payload, b-52 is 70,000lb

[–] Findom_DeLuise@hexbear.net 5 points 2 weeks ago

And everyone forgets about the B-1, which can carry even more 500 pound bombs than the B-52.

[–] TechnoUnionTypeBeat@hexbear.net 3 points 2 weeks ago

Jesus this is grim they're resorting to tactics they haven't used since Vietnam.

I can't say for sure how they're using it - a bomber that big can carry fewer, larger weapons, after all - but it's more to say that the B-2 isn't a small tactical bomber, like an Su-34 or something. It can absolutely be used to level an entire neighbourhood in a single pass, if the US willed it

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[–] StinkySocialist@lemmy.ml 21 points 2 weeks ago
[–] Tofu_Lewis@hexbear.net 9 points 2 weeks ago

The success of the 9/11 attacks cannot be understated (see Jean Baudrillard's The Spirit of Terrorism).

After a supposed victory over an ideological opponent (USSR), the US engaged in building the "rules based international order" and, after a frenzy of neoliberal export (Bosnia), began to show rot. The cultural angst of the late 90's - unintentionally enunciated in Fukiyama's "End of History" - reflected the hollow promise of the capitalist vision.

The 9/11 attacks forced the contradictions of this aimless and self-destructive impulse into overdrive and spawned an unfocused frenzy of jingoism which served to mask the profound disquiet festering at the core of the American psyche.

That ideological bankruptcy has forced into focus the fundamental inability of capitalism to build a resonant faith in structural stability and justice.

[–] Evil_Shrubbery@lemm.ee 6 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

Yemen GDP:
$21.890 billion - wiki

B-2 cost:
$2.13 billion (~$4.04 billion in 2023) - wiki