I got to mercenaries earlier than Counterstrike, which then took over my life for a few years (tho it did eventually lead to brief participation in the highest invite-only league in NA, both a point of pride and, well, not). Red Alert 2 was great, but was more into StarCraft for rts
Stunner: for me the franchise peaked at mechwarrior 2: mercenaries
Also really like your approach to treating Greek hoplites as just another type of heavy infantry, albeit with their own particular strengths/weaknesses
Yeah, I think the social status dynamics play a big role especially among citizen militia (hired professionals fighting abroad, less so probably). And heavy infantry has benefits that cannot easily be replicated by lighter troops, where the same is not true vice versa (by removing armor, e.g.).
Great stuff here (and a great excuse to put off grading this morning, ty). I think you're threading the orthodox v. heterodox needle very well, and would add in support your contentions re: flexibility of role that armor/equipment could be added or removed depending on situational need/context
My own chapter was a last minute replacement for someone who had dropped out. Given the rushed timeline I never saw proofs etc, and now just checked the published version to find many very substantial alterations to my submission. I’ve never seen anything like this. Infuriating.
It’s National Poetry Day.
The greatest poem in the English language.
Appraiser touching a coat. Caption: coat that if touched loses all value $0-$0
Model plane. Caption: plane from when people were smaller $22,000-$30,000 (in big people money)
A mirror in which you can see the photographer. Caption: photographer trapped in mirror. $5,000-$6,000
Appraiser and man both laughing, looking at some weird bowls. Caption: bowls that make you laugh $350-$500
I'm feeling grumpy, so in an attempt to change that I am posting these old fake Antiques Roadshow pictures that make me laugh
The 4th of July is a celebration of rebellion against tyranny. That should be remembered.
The most consequential Speaker in state history.
Nice! The entire volume is great, and re: my chapter I hope you at least find it interesting
You’ll be stunned to find that I disagree with this assessment (!), but I published a brill chapter on achaemenid infantry recently and happy to share proofs w you: brill.com/display/book...
today would be a great day to delete your twitter account completely
THE ASK This week, between Monday and the vote on Vought, we're asking people from all over the country to plan a visit to Senate State Offices to demand Democrats fight and to hold Republicans accountable for their complicity. DEMOCRATS MUST USE EVERY PROCEDURAL TOOL TO SHUT DOWN TRUMP'S AGENDA Yes, we need Democrats to vote no on Vought's nomination, but no is not enough. Democrats have the power to grind Senate business to a halt and force Republicans to feel the political cost of backing Trump's extremist agenda. Here's how: 1. Deny a Quorum: If Republicans don't have 51 votes in the chamber, Democrats can walk out and shut down Senate business entirely. 2. Block Unanimous Consent: Object to every procedural shortcut, forcing Republicans to take the longest possible route for every step of the confirmation process. 3. Max Out Debate Time: Use all 30 hours of debate on Vought to expose Project 2025, Musk's Treasury takeover, and the funding freeze. 4. Delay and Disrupt: Force roll-call votes, quorum calls, and procedural delays to slow everything down. 5. Blanket Opposition: Democrats cannot continue to vote for Trump's other nominees, helping to install more MAGA loyalists into powerful positions in the federal government while this power grab continues. No Business as Usual: This is a constitutional crisis. Democrats must abandon the old rules and fight with everything they have. Bottom line: Senate Democrats must block, delay, and obstruct every step of this process-no cooperation, no easy votes, no fast-tracking Trump's takeover. To learn more about how Senate Democrats can shut down Trump's agenda with procedural hardball, check out our explainer here.
Indivisible is urging people to visit their senators' local offices between now and Thursday to demand that they use every tool—including denying a quorum and blocking unanimous consent—to fight the confirmation of Project 2025 architect Russell Vought for head of OMB docs.google.com/document/d/1...
now that DeepSeek has completed AI, we hope that Silicon Valley will turn its attention to the next best thing: investing in rural history museums
As called by Dan Miller on Lions radio:
If the Yankees winning the World Series was guaranteed to somehow ensure that my kids lived long, happy lives, I’d still want to see them lose three games first.
"Everything looks suspicious when you don’t know how anything works" is a bar
It seems a good time to remind everyone that a billion dollars is the socioeconomic equivalent of a loose nuke, and we should work as diligently and urgently to prevent the acquisition of the former as much as we do the latter.
