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If a commentator or pundit is accomplished enough to do the job on their merits I don't care their age, race, gender or favorite ice cream.

What's been said here in this thread to make you think that? You're the one that said there isn't even an argument

It actually infuriates me every time I see that he has spouted some shit on X or online now. Like literally makes me boil inside at how misogynistic, sexist and utterly rude he's been/being. The worrying thing is that you'll get some right thundercunts fully in his corner giving him encouragement.

I'd rather have female commentators and pundits in football than Joey Barton. He's just an asshole crying for attention. Absolute bellend.

The military alliance with the US and UK is also a very strong deterrent, if they have a signed alliance it means an attack on Guyana will be responded to by all 3 nations. The huge increase in troops was probably a concession they need to make because the US and UK most likely don't want the optics of sending in troops to fight for oil companies and want to be able to point to the fact that they're strengthening Guyana so that it can defend itself if need be.

Wanting a military alliance with the UK/US and buying US weapon systems is absolutely them feeling the support of the US and UK. This is the kind of support Saudi Arabia gets. Guyana will get US aid, that is then going to be turned around and spent on US weapon systems. In return, Guyana is armed to the teeth with advance military equipment as a deterrent to Venezuelan aggression. The US gets to feed its military industry complex, so they'll see it as tax dollars well spent.

IMO The whole "Essequibo is venezuelan" is a diversion by Maduro. In order to the US lift its sanctions against Venezuela, Maduro promissed fair and free elections. The problem is, if that happened he would inevitably lose those elections. The chavistas are trying to create the poison and at the same time sell the antidote. The goal is to destabilize America's backyard with the intention of getting the Biden administration to make concessions on that promisse of free and fair elections. I don't believe guyanan oil reserves are the main aspect of this conflict. I mean, even if Venezuela got hold of them, they wouldn't able to do much. Chavez and Maduro turned PDVSA, the state-run oil company, into a shadow of its former self. It's incredibly corrupt and inefficient, I don't see how they would be able to increase production.

Honestly? What a fucking stupid thing to say. What progress has happened in Qatar? Pretty sure rights for the migrant workers (the people who are virtually slaves) didn't change at all. They're still an absolute monarchy that supports suppression of human rights in Iran. They're still a state sponsor of terrorism. The thing is now if mention Qatar to people, for a lot of people their mind goes to "omg that was the best world cup ever" or "I like their F1 track" - does it work for everyone? No, and I don't think anyone claimed it would work for everyone. Just because the term "sports washing" is fairly new, doesn't mean it's a new concept. Did China and Russia host the Olympics just for fun? Did China use their opening ceremony to try to highlight their military might to demonstrate their love of athletics? No. They hosted the Olympics for the same reason everyone hosts the Olympics or why everyone who hosts the World Cup wants to host it: partially as propaganda & partially to boost tourism. You don't need to use the words "sports washing" or have the media tell you what countries you're meant to like and dislike for the concept to be fundamentally the same. FFS the Nazis famously used the Olympics as an international propaganda event - what makes you think authoritarian governments would suddenly stop seeing it as a fantastic propaganda opportunity. I would say all Saudi Arabia or Qatar have to do is avoid starting any wars to see the good work of their sports washing go to waste... but I think Azerbaijan's proven that even that doesn't matter.

Texas has got enough petitions to put secession as an option for the primary elections next year It's happening

Would you prefer black balls?

Yeah. It's twice now too people have tried to equate the suffering of Palestinians with the suffering of the people of Iran in this thread as well. And I think that's pretty ironic considering the point of view of many Iranians, all over the world, but especially those in Iran. So many Iranians, especially in Iran, view Palestinians as one of their oppressors. They pay their taxes and they see a government completely neglect their needs and spend a huge amount of money on backing groups like Hamas, as well as spending money to improve the lives of Palestinians rather than focusing on their own citizens. That resentment grew a lot last year when loads of Palestinians and Lebanese in the west expressed support for the Iranian government against the citizens demanding basic human rights. And nowadays, when you see an Iranian that comes out as super pro-Palestinian, it's usually someone that is very much pro-IR and against the people of Iran. Like the guy who commit the terror attack in France recently. I do my best to not harbour the same sort of resentment to all Palestinians. I know that most Palestinians are born into oppression that comes at them from basically every angle, external and internal. They're fed loads of propaganda from a young age and especially for those within places like Gaza. They're not allowed to have dissenting political opinions. Like Iranians, they face constant oppression from the same group of people that claim to be their protectors. They're basically groomed from a young age to either fight until they are martyred or to become unwilling cannon fodder for the sake of Palestinian propaganda. But Hamas, like the IR & Israel, are oppressing the people of Gaza. To quote the wise @Spike: "Just because the person holding the chains is the same colour as the slave, doesn't make it more ethical." And saying that doesn't excuse or justify Israel's own war crimes and human rights violations. That is categorically untrue. The Nakba was a violent and forced removal of Palestinian Arabs from their homes. The history of this conflict is tinged with loads of human rights abuses. Hamas's crimes decades later don't suddenly absolve Israel's crimes. For there to be meaningful and lasting peace, Israelis and Palestinians need to recognise and reconcile that the horrific mistakes of their current and past leadership that have led the conflict to this point. Wiping out Hamas and leaving a group of shellshocked civilians behind left to their own devices in the aftermath is not going to do much in the way of fighting the extremism that keeps the cycle of violence going. I think people on both sides of pro-Palestine/pro-Israel have done a lot to sort of whitewash and rewrite their histories. It's not helpful to anyone who wants to see Israelis and Palestinians living normal lives where they don't have to worry about getting killed.

Yeah I heard that the disc is going to smell like human flesh.

Don't mean to bring the mood down but found my brother's cat dead outside today. Laying in a small pool of blood. We couldn't see what could've caused it. Didn't seem like a cut or a bite or anything. Thinking he might've bled from his mouth. At first thought he was just lying down outside, sleeping. Stroked his back, didn't move a muscle. Feel sad. Think I'll feel even sadder later. RIP Apollo