Richard Simonson

This is very bad. Although entirely predictable. Once more the humanities are being cut back to prop up STEM and, increasingly, AI investment (including at the expense of bench science). In the past, cuts to humanities were promoted on two separate logic streams that do not hold true: /1

My big defense of campaign histories (at least a dose of them) is that they illustrate the contingency of history. Someone might have said it before, but there’s a lot of luck involved in war so looking closely at it makes it clear that past events were not inevitable.

With Lee Kuan Yew having just passed away, an old quote of his has resurfaced: Question: Anything else besides multicultural tolerance that enabled Singapore's success? Answer: Air conditioning. Air conditioning was a most important invention for us, perhaps one of the signal inventions of history. It changed the nature of civilization by making development possible in the tropics. Without air conditioning you can work only in the cool early-morning hours or at dusk. The first thing I did upon becoming prime minister was to install air conditioners in buildings where the civil service worked. This was key to public efficiency

From the steppes of central Asia

'If Welsh, Polish and Bengali all derive from an extinct Proto- Indo-European, then who spoke it, where and when?'

James Clackson on the global reach of the Indo-European mother tongue

Here is what a UAF BC stated to me a while back for a piece, I am fairly certain he is not the only one (even tho his battalion uses a lot of drones)

Why am I so unimpressed by these strikes? Israel and the US have failed to target significant elements of Iran's nuclear materials and production infrastructure. RISING LION and MIDNIGHT HAMMER are tactically brilliant, but may turn out to be strategic failures. 🧵 1/17

Opening lines: 1987: The Australian people expect that Australia shall be able to defend itself. 1994: Government has a fundamental responsibility to ensure Australia's defence. 2000: This Defence White Paper announces and explains the Government’s decisions about Australia’s strategic policy over the next decade. 2009: This new Defence White Paper explains how the Government plans to strengthen the foundations of Australia's defence so that we are ready to meet the challenges of an uncertain strategic future. 2013: We live in a part of the world that continues to undergo extraordinary economic and social change. 2017: This Defence White Paper explains how the Government is strengthening Australia’s defence capabilities to meet the challenges of the more complex strategic environment Australia is likely to face in the years ahead

There have been 6 Defence White Papers over the past 40 years, and it is hard not to see that something got lost along the way (and also the destruction of language into bureaucratese)

Please pardon my language, but what the fuck (at the headline, not the OP)?

Cyrus II, the founder of the Achaemenids (the first Persian Empire) gets *really good* press in Jewish scripture, because he allowed the exiles to return and rebuild the temple; they benefited from Achaemenid tolerance.

Instructing soldiers not to hoot and clap like they are at a political rally when a president gives a speech is civil-military relations 101.

Any officer should know this without even thinking about it.

The problem of the air defence of Australia, c. 1957... #airpowerhistory

The Silence of the Generals As President Donald Trump crossed a dangerous line at Fort Bragg, the Army’s brass failed to speak out in its defense.

At Fort Bragg, Donald Trump crossed a dangerous line. Where are the generals who should be speaking up in defense of the military's rules and traditions, asks @RadioFreeTom?

This land is their land: Trump is selling out the US’s beloved wilderness During the McCarthy era’s darkest days, public lands came under attack. History now repeats itself – and this may be the last chance to defend what’s ours

This is an excellent article, tying in history with what’s happening now.
@altnps.bsky.social
@altusfs.altgov.info
@hcrichardson.bsky.social

www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...

China’s J-10 ‘Dragon’ shows teeth in India-Pakistan combat debut Skirmish is first test of Beijing’s military hardware against advanced western technology

“As evidence mounted, while remaining inconclusive, that a Pakistani pilot in the latest variant of the Vigorous Dragon may have shot down India’s French-made Rafale jet, Chengdu’s share price leapt more than 40% in just two days”

on.ft.com/4ka8ocB

‘We tend to innovate first. But the Russians quickly come up with a response’ Oleksandr Yakovenko, one of Ukraine’s top drone manufacturers, on the challenges of the high-tech war and of keeping one step ahead of the Russians

The insight from every RMA…

“Right now [the battlefield] is not about new technology,” Yakovenko told the Financial Times in his headquarters in the Black Sea port of Odesa. “It’s about how to adapt to new strategies.”

on.ft.com/4jUroME

How the Houthis Outlasted America Washington needed an off-ramp, but the group can still imperil the global economy.

"In pulling the plug on its Yemen campaign, the Trump administration faced a hard reality: continuing to strike the Houthis at this rate could soon become both unsustainable and aimless, even as it was harming U.S. military needs elsewhere." www.foreignaffairs.com/united-state...

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My lecture at the Leon Levy Center about writing modern biographies of ancient people (and the perils of that) is now online: tinyurl.com/596phdvy

Russian combat jet downed by Ukrainian drone boat Russian military-affiliated sources have acknowledged the loss of a combat jet following a Ukrainian sea drone attack near the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk. The pro-Russian Telegram channel Rybar re...

Ukrainian #drone boat/naval drone carrying a surface-to-air missile has shot down a Russian combat jet.

defence-blog.com/russian-comb...

Well that theme song is now playing on a loop in my mind for the next hour or so.

An update on the war following a recent trip. The situation has improved compared with Fall 2024. Russian offensive momentum slowed significantly over the winter, though it is premature to claim that the front has stabilized, especially following AFU withdrawal in Kursk. /1

New Drone Tactics Sealed Russian Victory In Kursk According to a Russian military blogger, mass use of fiber optic FPV drones to target Ukrainian logistics forced them to retreat so the territory could be easily retaken.

Very good @forbes.com piece on the rapid pace of adaption in the UAS counter-measure, counter-counter-measure race between Russia and Ukraine. I

n this instance, describes the adoption of fibre optic drones by the Russians in recapturing territory in Kursk.

www.forbes.com/sites/davidh...

Some Ukrainian drivers refer to these as life tunnels.
FPVs will force soldiers to live in covered trenches and vehicles to drive in net tunnels, but these defenses work.

Important thread on leadership from @ctreese2.bsky.social

Quick as a quoll!
⚫️⚪️⚫️⚪️⚫️⚪️ 💨💨💨

A small drop in an ocean of suck, but for the past few weeks friends have let me know that my book (Divided Armies), along w/ related articles + briefings, was removed from DoD reading lists & curricula for being "too woke"

Now JFQ has literally "unpublished" its review & any mention of the book ⬇️

Yep. It stays with you.

Seeking justice for my history teacher The lessons Rick Morton was taught by his Year 11 and 12 modern history teacher stood him in good stead as a journalist seeking justice amid the intricacies of social policy and government bureaucracy...

My modern history teacher, the NDIS and me. More than two decades (!!) after our final class, the one where she taught us the art of critical thinking, I'm trying to help her against the bureaucratic machine following her husband's death. www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/2025/03...

Similarities with another highly successful WWII commander, Field Marshall Slim. Novels, walks, rest, and use of staff. Emphasis on rested and reasoned judgement.

www.armyupress.army.mil/Portals/7/mi...

reading Ian Toll's series on the Pacific war and was struck by the portrait of Admiral Spruance. dude delegated as much work as possible, read paperbacks during long voyages, was fanatical about lots of exercise & 8-9 hours of sleep a night, and prob the best naval commander of the war

what my kids need to understand is that the unwatchable trash from my childhood is precious, while the unwatchable trash they love is the killer of minds

“Worse Than Fentanyl”: Trump to Impose 2,000% Tariff on Canadian Imports of Nickelback and Justin Bieber — The Shovel “How many families have been torn apart because of one family member’s addiction to shit Canadian music?"

“How many families have been torn apart because of one family member’s addiction to shit Canadian music?”