Miscellaneous And Off Topic Subjects

[Mike]

I believe consumer demand shifted the focus away from cars. People want utility and the automakers gave it to them. Instead of "would you like a car, SUV, or truck?". It's "which size SUV do you want?".

[Tom W]

People you want what they, themselves, want. Not everybody wants an SUV. It's like going to order a beer at a bar and all they have is IPAs.

It would be kinda nice to have choices.

[Dr. Strangelove]

The US automakers basically gave up trying to compete with Japan & Korea on mid-sized sedans.

[CGVT]

Sedans have lost market share because people want SUVs, not because they have no choice. Resale value of sedans is much lower than that of SUVs. If you are looking for a good price on a used car, a sedan is the way to go.

[Dr. Strangelove]

US intel agencies all agree: Havana syndrome not real.

[Tom W]

Sedans don't have ANY market share right now- because there aren't any - at least from the Big 3. Screw them.

[Hannibal]

Just because I didn't include the full parade of bullshit associated with EVs, doesn't mean I'm too optimistic. I was trying to keep it higher level considerations. It gets even worse the digger you deep.

Quit being a lazy bum. What would Woody Hayes say if he were alive today?

[Mike]

What would Woody Hayes say if he were alive today?

OMG, YOU PEOPLE BURRIED ME ALIVE!!

[Hannibal]

Heh heh. Bottom surgery regret.

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[Jeff Buchanan]

Putin's army is losing badly on the battlefield but, never mind, he appeared today to open a new metro line in Moscow and will be hosting China's Xi and a bunch of transportation dudes in the coming weeks to talk about building high speed rail throughout Russia. Business as usual for Russia's version of Baghdad Bob - Russian spokesman Dmitry Peskov. No mention that they'll talk about Ukraine - in public - but I suspect Putin is going to get an earful from Xi for Putin's troubled MOD and their failures in Ukraine.

There's a bunch of underlying stories unfavorable to Russia floating around but the headlines today talk about Ukraine's withdrawal from Bakhmut is imminent. It's not but that's the titillating headline news along with Xi's visit to Moscow. Stories emerged this morning about a group of Russian soldiers who videotaped a plea to be allowed to join Wagner PMC because their commanders had abandoned them and they were trying to fight with a competent army. Also, there are rumors of a Naval Infantry unit that was moved from Sevastopol (Crimea) to the eastern front that is refusing to fight.

In more bad news for Putin, Moscow and it's surrounds along with Crimea were attacked by drones over the last two nights. Reports coming from Russia say the drones, part of a "massive drone strike" - per Russian media, allegedly carried about by Ukraine, all got shot down and didn't do any damage. Sure. Plenty of suspicious fires have been videoed and made it to social media.The drones have been identified as Ukrainian made failing to give a boost to allegations that the west is arming Ukraine with long rage weapons to strike Russian territory. The west is not; the Ukrainians have had these long range drones for a while.

The biggest tank battle since WWII occurred south of Bakhmut 5d ago, targeting the city of Vuldahar, south of Bakhmut and part of the southern Russian pincer element intended to surround Bakhmut and cut if off. It involved lots of Ukrainian tanks v. lots of Russian tanks - classic tank battle over open plains. Perfect for a Russian offense optimizing terrain and maneuver warfare. Too bad. The Russians lost 130 military vehicles and self propelled artillery, mostly tanks, in the failed attempt to seize Vuldahar ..... ONE HUNDRED THIRTY! - confirmed by public overhead satellite imagery. Same stupid tactics employed by the Russians - columns of tanks/tracked vehicles, one after the other, rumbling down roads. When one gets disabled, they all stop; some turn off the road into well placed mined fields with ambush in mind, hit one that disables the tank and it's finished off by anti tank rounds fired by the Ukrainians hidden in the tree lines. Captured Russian tank drivers were new recruits, in the field for less than a month with minimal training on how to operate the Russian T72s/80s and without any training in how Ukraine defends against these kinds of Russian tank tactics. IOW, no evidence that Russian intel - lessons learned - from the defeat of Russian tank forces in and around Kiev in February, '22, filtered down to the battalion and company level for this operation. Same mistakes. Same outcome - defeat.

Good last couple of days for the Ukrainians and its no surprise that Putin isn't talking about it. But, he's opening a new subway under Moscow today.

[Hannibal]

Wow. Unreal

[Tom W]

The US automakers basically gave up trying to compete with Japan & Korea on mid-sized sedans.

Surrendered is the proper term- and they did the same thing with small, entry-level cars too.

It's not a good thing- especially since they actually made a few decent ones. I loved our Taurus and my Focus.

[Dr. Strangelove]

Yo, anybody know this dude? Pure Michigan.

*****************

Feds arrest Michigan man who plotted to kill Jewish elected officials in the state - Jewish Telegraphic Agency (jta.org)

(JTA) – The FBI coordinated with local authorities in mid-February to arrest a heavily armed man who had threatened to kill all Jewish elected officials in Michigan on social media, according to a recently unsealed criminal case.

The man appears to have been a former employee of the University of Michigan.

Jack Eugene Carpenter III, a resident of Tipton, Michigan, had tweeted on Feb. 17 that he was “heading back to Michigan now threatening to carry out the punishment of death to anyone that is jewish in the Michigan govt if they don’t leave, or confess,” according to the FBI’s affidavit. There are several prominent Jewish elected officials in the state, including Attorney General Dana Nessel, U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin and a handful of state senators and representatives.

Carpenter has been charged with transmitting an interstate threat, for which he could receive up to five years in federal prison, and is being held without bail in a federal court in Detroit, according to local reports. He was in Texas when he made the tweets, the FBI said.

On a Twitter account the FBI linked to Carpenter, he claimed to be a former employee of the University of Michigan who “was fired for refusing to take experimental medication,” apparently referring to the COVID-19 vaccine. The University of Michigan has more than 6,500 Jewish students, according to Hillel International.

In multiple paranoid manifestos posted to his Twitter, Carpenter also declared himself “the King of Israel” and declared that he was forming a new state on his property, one the FBI said he had declared “New Israel.” He also tweeted that, should he be arrested, he planned to “get the lawyer removed due to conflict of interest because they are Jewish.” Carpenter mentions some public figures by name in his manifestos, including Whitmer; Anthony Fauci; Chris Cuomo; and multiple University of Michigan personnel, all of whom he planned to target for “crimes against humanity”; the only Jewish figure he mentions is Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla.

Carpenter also made references to several prominent right-wing conspiracy theories, including the QAnon movement and the belief that President Joe Biden was not lawfully elected. In one tweet, Carpenter threatened to have Twitter CEO Elon Musk “publicly hanged.”

Carpenter further said he would “grant a brief reprieve to any Zionist Christian or Zionist Jew” who wished “to return to the country to which you actually owe allegiance.”

[THE_WIZARD_]

Geezer?

[THE_WIZARD_]

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