Pakistan shoots down two Indian fighter Jets

What are you mumbling on about?

I meant…besides you…:sunglasses:

I’m a believer in the Pandora’s Box theory.

Once the monopoly on atomic weaponry was broken it meant two things.

  1. Inevitably they would be used again. Even with MAD as long as the number of nuclear nations is above zero or at the least one they will be used at some point. It’s unavoidable. It will most likely not even be an intentional act. We’ve came close to the nuclear precipice dozens of times purely by accident.

  2. Once they are used there is absolutely no guarantee that other nations will not use theirs out of paranoia and rabid fear. The greatest fear of any nuclear power is the harrowing thought of the majority of your arsenal being destroyed by a counterforce strike. All ICBMs and a significant portion of SLBMs have predetermined sets of targets and in the case of ICBMs are on a hair trigger alert. Mistakes can and will be made in the rush to get your arsenal airborne. Because nuclear powers can not fathom the thought of losing even a third of their triad.

It’s a use it or lose it situation when the war breaks out. It’s not logical but then again when is war ever truly logical? Thus Pandora’s Box can never be opened. Because who’s going to turn the damn thing off once the decision is made to launch?

From the NBC News report:

The U.S. and China have helped tamp down tensions between Islamabad and New Delhi in previous crises, but it was unclear if Washington and Beijing would be able to exert similar influence this time. The Trump administration only recently named a nominee for the top State Department position overseeing diplomacy in South Asia, and it has not appointed an ambassador to Pakistan.

Who knew that putting the State Department into chaos and understaffing it might lead to global issues?

You can’t possibly show any connection between the two.

Yeah. This is spooky. Hot heads with nukes.

I can’t show any connection between not having proper diplomatic boots on the ground and the US having muted influence in the region because of it?

Um…I think I can…

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It’s a bad dent in history that India hasn’t been a natural ally of the United States of America since 1950.

You can’t show any connection between our staffing in PK and what’s going on between PK and India right now.

None.

We haven’t cut any diplomatic staff or any of the intel staff in either country nor was a lack of a permanent head at the South Asia Desk limiting the flow of info.

I should have been clearer.

Who knew that causing chaos at the State Department and then understaffing it might cause issues for us?

Before we have been able to expert our influence to put the genie back in the bottle when those two countries misbehave.

Now- it becomes more difficult.

This is where disdain for “career bureaucrats” has consequences.

Horse Hockey, DOS is not and hasn’t been "in chaos. This is a situation where the SoS or D SoS would be sent in to mediate anyway.

There’s no shortage of diplomatic staff in either Embassy in India or PK. Those are the professionals who have the actual “Feel” for the countries, the gov’ts and the key players involved and it is they who will be briefing whoever we send into the region to help cool things down.

Appointed Ambassadors are nothing more than figure heads, they are not typically professional/career diplomats.

Is this one of the times that the government is all knowing and unquestioningly competent? Hard to keep track with you guys, your sudden confidence in career government employees is fascinating.

Or maybe it just suits you here to make a petty point.

The gov’t is only perfect and omnipotent when democrats are in charge. The rest of the time it’s a horror.

So it was just to make a petty point, thanks.

Most likely.

This always cracks me up. Hey, I’m a strident critic if the competence of government, but at least I’m consistent about it. For others it seems like it depends on the issue, the topic or who’s team is in charge at the time.

The Soviets offered a better deal for military assistance than we did.

Well that and we basically built the Pakistani military from scratch. That definitely hurt our relationship in the long run.

Its like basic logic

Perfect? No, far from it. But right now, with republicans in charge, government isn’t even sane.

No the State Department worked just fine under George W. Bush and George H.W. Bush and Ronald Reagan.

Only under Trump has it been a horror.

And lol that you think mediation of a potential conflict between nuclear powers can be handled at the lower levels (where we are still understaffed to boot).