Michael J. Taylor

And we are scandalously low on munitions!

The sort of thing you are allowed to after Congress has declared war, which it hasn't.

Nothing to see here. Just blundering into a massive bloody ground war against 90 million people on terrain far, far less favorable to US operations than Southern Iraq.

Happy ἐξελαύνω Day to those who celebrate.

One of Biden's political strengths had been his ability to shift deftly with the Democratic base (i.e. gay marriage). But that dexterity was totally gone by 2024.

It's fair to say that one insidious way Biden's age manifested is he lost the ability to hold his own coalition together, in terms of both messaging and policy dexterity (especially misjudging the extent the entire coalition was shifting on Palestine) with disastrous results.

This is the sort of thing a SecDef should be spending every waking hour worrying about.

Instead we have a preening self-proclaimed "SecWar" who makes fitness influencer reels and picks culture-war fights with the Scouts.

This is why you have Congress declares war! It communicates to other states that the situation has changed.

Notable that the self-proclaimed "SecWar" was minimally involved in war-planning.

Suspect this is because he is a useless ninny even by the low standards of the Trump administration--yesterday seems proof he's been sidelined.

So he fills his ample free time punching down on trans scouts.

A mid-career degree from a prestigious school was always advertised as a perk of service, and a way to retain talented officers.

Stay on CPT, and we'll send you to Harvard!

Most officers retire in their 40s and a high-powered degree helps with the transition to a civilian career.

Insane.

Seems like a lot is about to go wrong.

Hard to think of someone more antithetical to the values of Scouting than Pete Hegseth.

Polybius 10.20 reports that Scipio Africanus made his troops run 30 stades, presumably in armor (5.4 km/ 3.4 miles), and that was their exercise for the day, if you want a shorter and more realistic legionary workout.

Also, all of the weight training at the end is bogus--the hybrid workout takes a miscalculated Roman march, and then adds modern strength training to simulate digging a camp!

US Army standard forced march is 12 miles in 3 hours (4mph).

So the Vegetian march is plenty brisk, but not as brutal as the article suggests.

Vegetius specifies recruits should be able to do 20/24 miles in five hours *in the summer*, when each hour was about 75 minutes long.

So they had six hours and 15 minutes.

The Roman mile is about .92 of an English mile: so 18/22 miles

Averaging about 2.9-3.5 mph.

Gotta love the totally b.s. brain rot AI generated Roman soldier, which probably tells you that you are not getting a genuine Roman workout.

Also, author got paid to not do the reading.

www.thelatinlibrary.com/vegetius1.html

Oh FFS. "I don't know the answer to that."

YES YOU DO, you damned, unpatriotic coward. You are the Senate majority leader!

The Constitution says your house (and the other one) has to vote yes. So if you think the answer should be no, THE ANSWER IS NO.

Yeah, we need to arrest some people on this side of the pond, but belated public humiliation and professional consequences are better than nothing.

Although if you have a geothermal heat pump this is not an issue (nor do you have to worry about digging out a gas vent).

This is the most incredible footage of blue whales I’ve ever seen

Just a total loser.

bsky.app/profile/drmi...

222 BC:
Aratus: Help! The Spartans have sarissas!

Philip V: Wait....Aratus the Elder? I'm in a polycule with your son! My uncle will help!

*Battle of Sellasia*

Cleomenes III (updating resume in exile): winning, lethality, MS Word, war fighting...

Ptolemy III: Golly, a forged-in-fire operator!

195 BC:
Nabis: ROME vs. SPARTA
Clash of Titans.
League of Legends.
Frank Miller Fodder
WHO WILL WIN?

Flamininus: At my signal unleash hell.

Nabis: I surrender.

Flamininus: I am levying a small fine for your minor misbehavior.

Nabis: No fair, our constitution is no longer in its prime.

241 BC
Agis IV: I've figured out how to revive Spartan power.

Spartans: Hooray! We are strong now.

Agis IV: We just have to cancel debts and distribute land so we can raise more infantry.

Spartans: Kill the socialist!

Agis IV (dies horribly)

Spartans: We are not strong. We are not smart.

338 BC :
Athens: All hands on deck! Macedonians sighted at Elateia!

Thebes: Old enemies unite to defend Hellas!
Where are the Spartan wArRIors?

Sparta (mumbling) Carneia...oliganthropia...Messenia...mother says step closer.

Thebes: Are you coming?

Sparta. No. Because woke liberated the helots.

371 BC:
Spartans: You'll never beat us Spartan wArRioRS. There are dozens of us! Dozens of us!

Aristotle: True. There are fewer than 1000 Spartans total (Pol. 1270a).

Theban Sacred Band (staring into each others' eyes tenderly) GET SOME GET SOME.

Aristotle: Update, fewer than 600 Spartans total.

480 BC:
The Coalition: We're going all in boys. Hoplites block the warm gates. The Athenian fleet in the straights....wait, where are the Spartans?

Spartans: Whoopsie, Carneia...

The Coalition: Are you fucking kidding me? Again!?

Spartans: Its cool, slight loophole, we brought 300 guys.

490 BC:
Athens: HELP! The Persians just landed at Marathon. We need reinforcements!

Sparta: Sorry, can't. Religious taboo.

Athens: You have a taboo against warfare in late summer? At the height of the war season?

Sparta: Respect the Carneia.

Athens: FUCK IT *runs a mile* GET SOME GET SOME