Blather, Waffle and Poppycock!

[John Cook]

Reposition Wagner troops in Belarus to start a new front against Ukraine? 

Well, in anaysis of competing hypotheses none should be excluded.  But, have not the Wagner fighters been absorbed into the Russian army now, and only their former boss has gone to Belarus? 

[Leon]

But, have not the Wagner fighters been absorbed into the Russian army now, and only their former boss has gone to Belarus? 

I've not seen anything confirmed yet, but it seems that Putin has offered them a few options:
- exile to Belarus with Proghozin
- demobilisation, but it doesn't say whether the ex-cons would be sent back to the gulags
- absorption into the Russian army

[Gwydion]

I'm beginning to see the value of Baudrillard's approach - The Prigozhin Coup did not take place.

It is however still being fought to the death in cyber space by all parties involved and many who weren't.

[fsn]

Gosh!

Just been looking at my October 22 Wish List and so much has happened!

1. Swedish Army, Napoleonic Wars As likely as next week's lottery numbers, but I have a proxy. (No, that's not a social disease.)
2. British Vehicles 1980s Any time now ... any time now ...
3. Harnessed horses Please. I never have enough harnessed horses. 
4. Chariot Armies Indians first. Excellent. They have chariots. 
5. Soviet 1980s Done. Loving the BTRs!
6. Swedish 1980s Some day, maybe.
7. Instructions Even a diagram would be helpful in some cases.
8. Valkyries Amazonian perhaps?
9. Slingers Possibly with the Macedonians 

I remember when I created that list I was rather jaundiced about the number of projects I had left in me. Since then, things have changed somewhat.

Currently, I am in a painting phase with the WSS and the Ottoman Napoleonics.

My current research/purchase project is the Bishops' Wars; particularly the Battle of Newburn. I'm planning Covenanter and Royalist armies, with perhaps a Parliamentarian one to follow. There's a good few months purchasing in the plan. The only thing I would like adding to the Pendraken range would be mounted Scottish officers in bonnet.

Planned projects are (in no particular order):

• Swedish Napoleonics
• Spanish Napoleonics
• Russo-Japanese War
• Ancient Indians  (when released)
• Amazons (when released)
• SF range  (when released)
• WWII Western Desert. This is a remote possibility, and to be honest it's just 'cos I want some Grant tanks. I could just buy a couple, add some Australians and pitch them against the Japanese.

So my July 2023 wish list (leaving aside the "not gonna happen, not eva", the proxies and the promised) is somewhat reduced. 

1. Harnessed horses
2. Mounted Scottish officers in Bonnet for the English Civil War range. 

[Leon]

2. British Vehicles 1980s Any time now ... any time now ...

Should be mid-August I think, they've all been printed so I need to check them over before we put them into master moulds.  I need to schedule them in/around the Sci-Fi moulds too.

2. Mounted Scottish officers in Bonnet for the English Civil War range. 

That's a bit of a gap there, I'll make a note to sort that out.

[fsn]

My wallet and I thank you.

[Last Hussar]

Apparently I'm on Telly again.

[fsn]

Apparently I'm on Telly again.

Do you mean
a) You're participating in a factual/quiz programme as a knowledgeable chap/player
b) Your Kojak rug has arrived?
c) There's a new series of Crimewatch?

[Last Hussar]

Yes.

But mostly (1)

[fsn]

[Last Hussar]

I was on Eggheads a couple of years ago, and every so often it gets repeated. I always get the same question wrong, you would have thought I'd learned it by now.

[Steve J]

We watched the latest version of 'Dune' on Amazon at the weekend. Now I know I'm getting old, but even our daughter complained about barely being able to hear the dialogue, to the point that we ended up putting the subtitles on . I'm not sure why they make some stuff barely audible, then suddenly the music kicks in and double the volume !

Whilst visually excellent, we just did not feel engaged at all with the story nor was it easy to follow what they were trying to convey. Anyone else feels the same?

[Matt J]

Saw it at the cinema last year and thought it good (no issues with sound there!).

However because I've seen the 1984 version many times and the new film is essentially the same story it kind've ruined it for me because, well, you know what's going to happen next and exactly how it ends...

[Duke Speedy of Leighton]

We watched the latest version of 'Dune' on Amazon at the weekend. Now I know I'm getting old, but even our daughter complained about barely being able to hear the dialogue, to the point that we ended up putting the subtitles on . I'm not sure why they make some stuff barely audible, then suddenly the music kicks in and double the volume !

Whilst visually excellent, we just did not feel engaged at all with the story nor was it easy to follow what they were trying to convey. Anyone else feels the same?

Try resetting Amazon to not 5:1 surround sound, it automatically assumes you have the full set up.

[Ithoriel]

Read the book and sequels, the first more than once.

Saw the 1984 version and thought it tosh, but enjoyable tosh. I can forgive it much for the "It is by will alone I set my mind in motion ..." lines that Lynch is said to have come up with.

The 2000 TV version was insipid, IMHO.

The latest one seemed to me to be closest by far to the books and I had no problem with the sound levels. I liked it.

Despite a career in IT, the more intrusive computers become in my life the more I yearn for the Bulterian Jihad :-)