The developments in CT that were rejected will almost certainly end up being built.
Towns will often deny 8-30g projects, but then state courts force them to approve them. The 8-30g statute has existed since the 1990s, so the courts know how to handle these cases.
Towns will often deny projects that they know a court will eventually force them approve because they want to show their NIMBY constituents that they are fighting these projects. They also want to increase costs for the developer by keeping them in court. One of the sections of the vetoed 5002 was meant to discourage this by allowing courts to award attorney fees to developers when towns denied a project in bad faith.
Why does no one on the left seem to understand how impossible meaningful gun control in the US would be even if the 2nd amendment were repealed and Congress passed a gun version of the Volstead act.
With every school shooting we get two different flavors of drop dead.
Adding Halina’s essays has been a huge increase in the value of slow boring for me. I already pay and am happy about it, but this makes me even happier about subscribing
College football is unironically my favorite sport. I’ve been an Oregon Ducks fan since I was a kid—I didn’t go there, but both my parents did, and my grandpa’s in the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame. Going to my first game in 15 years tomorrow!
The Ganz book is excellent. I grew up with some of that stuff, listening to Rush Limbaugh in my dad's car as a kid. You can trace much of today back to that era.
I started reading When the Clock Broke but I lived through that period and felt like it was just a rehash of what I already know. I preferred The Nineties by Chuck Klosterman because it talked about random bad TV shows that reliably pulled 20 million viewers every week.
A lot of posters are not ready for how big the Taylor Wedding is going to be for Millennials. It's like, a Royal Wedding, but for Millennials
I'll be standing there with Lisa C. who has calluses built up from years of admin law, but still just wants hug her wife while watching. I'll look at Ben while Taylor is walking down the aisle in the heavenly dress "it's a love story baby just say yes" and say "Shut up Ben you're the one who's crying, I'm not crying!": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xg3vE8Ie_E&list=RD8xg3vE8Ie_E&start_radio=1
I've heard tell of this a few times and while that song was the song that made me a Swiftie to a large extent and made me enjoy digging deep into her song writing the idea of playing a song about a horrible breakup at a wedding seems like an awful case of tempting fate.
I think college football has become pretty whack since the advent of the transfer portal and NIL, but I expect you’ll have a pretty awesome time at Michigan-Purdue. Being around that many people who care is a lot of fun.
The current NCAA landscape is akin to an idealized revolt by serfs against their feudal overlords. There were many places along the way where the NCAA aristocracy could have compromised with their underlings, but they were so adamant in their opposition to any freedom that they managed to lose almost all control over them. College athletes today are near pure free agents. They sign no contract binding them for more than the current season, and can every year freely sign with the highest bidder. They’re not even subject to a binding initial draft or the kind of salary cap that unionized professional sports players have to submit to.
The NCAA deserves every bad thing that happens to them now as a result of their unmitigated greed and power lust.
Big if true (also, one of the only reasons I still visit Twitter):
"Shaiel Ben-Ephraim: An IDF source has confirmed to me that the army has lost contact with an unknown number of soldiers. Probably fewer than ten. IDF protocol to prevent hostage taking is being undertaken right now. Rescue attempts have come under extreme fire. The IDF has put a gag order on this operation, so do not expect to see it in the Israeli media until morning there.
One soldier said: A missing officer was contacted on his radio — but a Hamas fighter answered. My God, this is what Netanyahu’s policies have led us to."
"Everyone is asking me about the Hannibal Directive in these cases. Officially, Israel cancelled that in 2016 due to controversy over it. However, it remains unofficial policy to kill IDF soldiers rather than allow them to be captured, but only when it has been determined that the possibility of preventing the capture otherwise is entirely impossible. Usually, by that time, the whereabouts of the soldiers are unknown, so Hannibal is unlikely to be enacted directly. Having said that, the amount of bombing occurring in Zeitoun right now could easily kill missing IDF soldiers through friendly fire."
To be clear, I think the most likely outcome is that any captured Israeli soldiers are killed by the de-facto implementation of the Hannibal Directive.
I'm also interested to see if Western and/or Israeli media continue to use the term hostage to describe soldiers captured in combat (personally, I would be insulted if that term was ever applied me in the event I was captured while in uniform).
ETA: I confess that IDF leaders like MG Avi Bluth who openly advocate for and direct the ethnic cleansing and murder of Palestinians (in the West Bank, specifically) make me less than sympathetic to the actions of Israeli soldiers in general, even though I have no love for Hamas:
"Avi Bluth, the head of the army's Central Command...ordered "redesign operations" to be implemented so that "[Palestinians] will be deterred, any village that dares to raise a hand against any of the [settlers]." And of course he's talking about settlers who are regularly murdering Palestinian civilians (which is not surprising, because Bluth is one himself, and thus comfortable with the particularly violent and racist culture incubated there).
ETA2: It looks like these reports were incorrect, but I'm still curious what exactly happened. Hamas may have been attempting a capture, given that there were three separate and simultaneous attacks in Zeitoun.
Ah, yeah I looked it up. I can see some dire circumstances, like for humane reasons if you expect the captive to be tortured and killed anyway, or if they have critical strategic information that would lead to catastrophe, where it would make sense to do that, but it’s wild as a general policy
Not necessarily, but since that does suggest reciprocal rights and obligations, I think it would probably be most appropriate to just use the word captured, captive, etc which is almost universally how Bowe Bergdahl was described, both from my memory at the time as well as a quick Google search, despite our lack of recognition of the Taliban's legitimacy.
I certainly don't claim that SBE is a moral exemplar of any kind (and FWIW I started following him in Oct 2023 before I ever learned of the allegations you mention, and when his political orientation was very much a standard pro-Israel liberal Zionist), but he does seem to be a useful way to survey Hebrew media for this sort of breaking news, plus he monitors some of the most racist and bloodthirsty corners of Zionist Twitter, which I have neither the inclination nor (in some cases, i.e. Hebrew language) the ability to do myself. I'm open to suggestions for comparable accounts, or indeed for your recommendations about where to find above average I/P news and analysis.
Also, interestingly, it appears that part of why he's remained on Twitter is because he was hounded for those allegations on Bluesky.
ETA: I think a much more recent and concerning case involving Israeli Americans and sexual assault is the senior cyber official caught in a Las Vegas pedophile sting and then allowed to flee the country, likely to never return: https://archive.ph/kNYUo (Haaretz)
Go Blue!
The developments in CT that were rejected will almost certainly end up being built.
Towns will often deny 8-30g projects, but then state courts force them to approve them. The 8-30g statute has existed since the 1990s, so the courts know how to handle these cases.
Towns will often deny projects that they know a court will eventually force them approve because they want to show their NIMBY constituents that they are fighting these projects. They also want to increase costs for the developer by keeping them in court. One of the sections of the vetoed 5002 was meant to discourage this by allowing courts to award attorney fees to developers when towns denied a project in bad faith.
Why does no one on the left seem to understand how impossible meaningful gun control in the US would be even if the 2nd amendment were repealed and Congress passed a gun version of the Volstead act.
With every school shooting we get two different flavors of drop dead.
Speaking of sports, does anyone here watch UFC?
Adding Halina’s essays has been a huge increase in the value of slow boring for me. I already pay and am happy about it, but this makes me even happier about subscribing
Welcome to DC! I moved from upstate NY in 1994, and I plan on dying in the DMV (DC, Maryland, Virginia for you outsiders).
Shouldn't Halina be a fan of Coach Prime and the Buffaloes?
College football is unironically my favorite sport. I’ve been an Oregon Ducks fan since I was a kid—I didn’t go there, but both my parents did, and my grandpa’s in the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame. Going to my first game in 15 years tomorrow!
The Ganz book is excellent. I grew up with some of that stuff, listening to Rush Limbaugh in my dad's car as a kid. You can trace much of today back to that era.
College Football is the great Chesterton’s Fence of the American education system.
Slow boring fantasy football league anyone??
I started reading When the Clock Broke but I lived through that period and felt like it was just a rehash of what I already know. I preferred The Nineties by Chuck Klosterman because it talked about random bad TV shows that reliably pulled 20 million viewers every week.
A lot of posters are not ready for how big the Taylor Wedding is going to be for Millennials. It's like, a Royal Wedding, but for Millennials
I'll be standing there with Lisa C. who has calluses built up from years of admin law, but still just wants hug her wife while watching. I'll look at Ben while Taylor is walking down the aisle in the heavenly dress "it's a love story baby just say yes" and say "Shut up Ben you're the one who's crying, I'm not crying!": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xg3vE8Ie_E&list=RD8xg3vE8Ie_E&start_radio=1
Is it a faux pas to play your own music at your wedding?
I'm ready for this. Just went to a wedding where they played love story before the ceremony.
I just went to one where they played All Too Well (?!) as people walked down the aisle (not the couple)
I've heard tell of this a few times and while that song was the song that made me a Swiftie to a large extent and made me enjoy digging deep into her song writing the idea of playing a song about a horrible breakup at a wedding seems like an awful case of tempting fate.
In which me and Maya sing a duet at Ben's wedding: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztzfr1PjFCY&list=RDztzfr1PjFCY&start_radio=1
Bellichick era at UNC begins Monday. Probably better grist for CHH than SB.
Has she written on that yet? It would be excellent grist for her.
I think college football has become pretty whack since the advent of the transfer portal and NIL, but I expect you’ll have a pretty awesome time at Michigan-Purdue. Being around that many people who care is a lot of fun.
The current NCAA landscape is akin to an idealized revolt by serfs against their feudal overlords. There were many places along the way where the NCAA aristocracy could have compromised with their underlings, but they were so adamant in their opposition to any freedom that they managed to lose almost all control over them. College athletes today are near pure free agents. They sign no contract binding them for more than the current season, and can every year freely sign with the highest bidder. They’re not even subject to a binding initial draft or the kind of salary cap that unionized professional sports players have to submit to.
The NCAA deserves every bad thing that happens to them now as a result of their unmitigated greed and power lust.
Big if true (also, one of the only reasons I still visit Twitter):
"Shaiel Ben-Ephraim: An IDF source has confirmed to me that the army has lost contact with an unknown number of soldiers. Probably fewer than ten. IDF protocol to prevent hostage taking is being undertaken right now. Rescue attempts have come under extreme fire. The IDF has put a gag order on this operation, so do not expect to see it in the Israeli media until morning there.
One soldier said: A missing officer was contacted on his radio — but a Hamas fighter answered. My God, this is what Netanyahu’s policies have led us to."
https://twitter.com/academic_la/status/1961570563346108914
"Everyone is asking me about the Hannibal Directive in these cases. Officially, Israel cancelled that in 2016 due to controversy over it. However, it remains unofficial policy to kill IDF soldiers rather than allow them to be captured, but only when it has been determined that the possibility of preventing the capture otherwise is entirely impossible. Usually, by that time, the whereabouts of the soldiers are unknown, so Hannibal is unlikely to be enacted directly. Having said that, the amount of bombing occurring in Zeitoun right now could easily kill missing IDF soldiers through friendly fire."
https://twitter.com/academic_la/status/1961573226192191738
**********
To be clear, I think the most likely outcome is that any captured Israeli soldiers are killed by the de-facto implementation of the Hannibal Directive.
I'm also interested to see if Western and/or Israeli media continue to use the term hostage to describe soldiers captured in combat (personally, I would be insulted if that term was ever applied me in the event I was captured while in uniform).
ETA: I confess that IDF leaders like MG Avi Bluth who openly advocate for and direct the ethnic cleansing and murder of Palestinians (in the West Bank, specifically) make me less than sympathetic to the actions of Israeli soldiers in general, even though I have no love for Hamas:
"Avi Bluth, the head of the army's Central Command...ordered "redesign operations" to be implemented so that "[Palestinians] will be deterred, any village that dares to raise a hand against any of the [settlers]." And of course he's talking about settlers who are regularly murdering Palestinian civilians (which is not surprising, because Bluth is one himself, and thus comfortable with the particularly violent and racist culture incubated there).
https://archive.ph/bfxWR (Haaretz)
ETA2: It looks like these reports were incorrect, but I'm still curious what exactly happened. Hamas may have been attempting a capture, given that there were three separate and simultaneous attacks in Zeitoun.
What is the Hannibal Directive?
Operational version of "shoot the hostage"
Ah, yeah I looked it up. I can see some dire circumstances, like for humane reasons if you expect the captive to be tortured and killed anyway, or if they have critical strategic information that would lead to catastrophe, where it would make sense to do that, but it’s wild as a general policy
Interesting question, would calling you a Prisoner of War validate the existence of the enemy as a legitimate combatant?
Not necessarily, but since that does suggest reciprocal rights and obligations, I think it would probably be most appropriate to just use the word captured, captive, etc which is almost universally how Bowe Bergdahl was described, both from my memory at the time as well as a quick Google search, despite our lack of recognition of the Taliban's legitimacy.
I certainly don't claim that SBE is a moral exemplar of any kind (and FWIW I started following him in Oct 2023 before I ever learned of the allegations you mention, and when his political orientation was very much a standard pro-Israel liberal Zionist), but he does seem to be a useful way to survey Hebrew media for this sort of breaking news, plus he monitors some of the most racist and bloodthirsty corners of Zionist Twitter, which I have neither the inclination nor (in some cases, i.e. Hebrew language) the ability to do myself. I'm open to suggestions for comparable accounts, or indeed for your recommendations about where to find above average I/P news and analysis.
Also, interestingly, it appears that part of why he's remained on Twitter is because he was hounded for those allegations on Bluesky.
ETA: I think a much more recent and concerning case involving Israeli Americans and sexual assault is the senior cyber official caught in a Las Vegas pedophile sting and then allowed to flee the country, likely to never return: https://archive.ph/kNYUo (Haaretz)