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I just saw this thread, and I'll share this for anyone else that bumbles across this. I have what Ratner is suggesting, running True NAS Scale for the OS and then a tailscale application to allow a very simple VPN access from on the road. At the end of the day, I can access the shared drive on my home server from anywhere. I can also route my internet traffic back to the house if I want to avoid sending things over the hotel wifi. It is not terrible to setup, but it's not nearly as turn key as a Synology box as an example. TrueNAS is really a basic server OS rather than just a NAS OS. It has virtualization options and the afore mentioned apps (containers) and a bunch of other stuff. That said, if all you're doing is NAS stuff, you can put together a computer to run it for pretty cheap since it'll run on pretty crappy hardware. All the server stuff will require more horsepower if that's what you're looking for though.

If I'm missing any of your point above, apologies. Nothing is 100%, granted. But an actual war with Russia would be clubbing baby seals level, and an actual existential threat to "the Russian empire". I think the chance Russia tosses nukes is extremely high. Whether we throw them back is another question, but quite frankly irrelevant since Russian nukes are what will kill Americans. You seem convinced of the fourth turning. I am not. Without going into that, I don't think America is in decline let alone circling the drain. The next 10-20 years will see massive growth. But I suspect there is zero chance we'll see eye to eye on this one at all. I am not talking about appeasement at all, sending money and equipment to keep Ukraine armed and killing Russians and breaking their shit is good. Complete economic isolation, not just sanctions. Anyone that trades with them, isolation. Etc. I am saying a military solution now is the jumping to the worst conclusion, one that we have historical precedent at avoiding. The entire cold war was fought via proxy and economics. It was not appeasement.

Not a fighter dude, but my guess is that, even thought you're not above the age-waiver land, Reserve/Guard fighters usually shy away from folks close to that range. They got burned by the oldies in the past bailing out mid-UPT and there are pieces to a fighter track that are tougher as an older person. You're playing a numbers game and betting on the longer shots by narrowing to fighters; more competition for fewer seats. If you really just want to fly anything, you really should start looking at heavies. If you want some autonomy, start rushing heavy Reserve/Guard units. As many before have said, 96.69% of people usually enjoy wherever they end up as long as they embrace it. "Bloom where you're planted." AD has its place...and it's life. If you want life autonomy, (more of) a choice of what you fly (depends where you're hired, obviously), and the ability to get that airline line number started years earlier, you probably are infinitely better off holding off for Guard/Reserves. You might have a "better/faster" chance flying just going AD, but you risk getting pulled by your hammer around the world. As for flying fighters, you're putting WAY more in the hands of the fates than if you get hired by a unit. Your skills, your competition...errr classmates..., available 38 slots, and the needs of the AF all dictate more than you "wanting to fly fighters." You could be a strong above average 5th in a class that gets six 38 slots or you could be a hot shit 3 in a class that gets two slots. You could get that 38 slot and they only have 2 fighters in the drop, so FAIP or bombers for you. All of that is decided by random luck and timing. Then again, some folks are in it to win it and wanna ride or die AD. It's certainly admirable and a guaranteed paycheck for 12-ish years. It really is only something you can decide. Lastly, look into Reserves more. Guard is great and less AD-light, but it's much more disjointed in the hiring due to the inherent state by state nature. Each Guard unit has its own separate hiring apparatus with separate recruiters; Reserves can get you started (MEPS, forms, basic intro stuff) for any airframe (I think they still do Unsponsored...) and you can begin rolling as you're rushing multiple Reserve units. Whichever path you choose, 100% rush multiple times to the units you truly want. They're getting lots of hotdogs tossed their way; be a more memorable hotdog. Be a good human, put in the work to make them want to pick you, and don't stop until you've gotten the last TBNT. it's tough competition and no one is gonna just hand it to you, so don't give up. Good luck! Signed, A happy Reserve heavy driver that started UPT 7 years above the age cutoff ***(DISCLAIMER: during a VERY different hiring environment, so not happening very often anymore)*** and has greatly enjoyed the adventure I've been fortunate enough to experience thus far.

You think a Russian invasion of NATO is so likely that you’re willing to start war preemptively? What evidence do you have that: 1. Russia would invade a NATO ally 2. US people support preemptive war, including a possible nuclear exchange, because of something that might happen 3. We could win Asserting the uncertain as inevitable is the logical fallacy which led us into Iraq circa 2003. In that case, our grasp of the facts and read on Saddam himself was completely wrong; it turned out we were fed BS by liars with an agenda (Curveball among others). If we could do that over again knowing what we now know, none of us would choose to have invaded Iraq. You’re smart, you see where I’m going with the comparison. And the potential for a nuclear exchange should absolutely change the calculus, holy shit we’re talking about the possibility our cities get incinerated! We need convincing answers to my 3 questions above or it would be wildly irresponsible to escalate preemptively.

He is there because WEF, Blackrock and Vanguard want him in that chair.

Ballsy move Sent from my iPhone using Baseops Network mobile app

Thanks for the input. I do understand all of those things, and you're correct, I am just getting started in the grand scheme. My main concern is aging out - a waiver is all but a death sentence looking to go Guard/USAFR from what I can tell. While I am lamenting my lack of progress, I am also improving my application by getting more hours/certs, reaching out to more units, bolstering my resume, and reaching out to folks who may have some contacts on the inside. Thanks for the advice. -DD

I like my air and aerial achievement medals. Those matter to me. Also, my unit got a V for the beginning of OIF. Im proud of that. The others, except for the AFCAM, are not important to me.

Terramaster F4-423 with 4 x 4TB harddrives. The user interface is solid but I am have some issues getting it set up on my network. Initially it worked but knocked my network printer offline. My son needed the printer, he is doing all his end of year AP exams and projects and I have been traveling like crazy for work so I have not had a chance to sit down and sort the IP addresses and ports.

That video was wild.

Lol, we had an AD patch on loan for a deployment and the dude got himself a Bronze Star for showing up...total joke. I've read AAR's that warranted DFC's (or higher), but we're never received for whatever reason. I remember when our base got an AD WG/CC, and the dude REALLY cared about medals. Apparently, he wasn't happy with the fact that, as a Major, I had two MSM's, but no AFCM. Guess what I got within a few months... One of the reasons I had a second MSM's is becuase we had a staff weenie get sent down to be an OG (box checking...now a 1 star), who was passed over on his first O-6 board due in part becuase he lacked an MSM...or so his bro network told him. Guess what the squadron got a few months later.... Our medals are a fucking joke, which is why I've never cared for them. When we expect that you get X medal as a Lt and X medal as Capt, etc.... we're fucked. Hell, I'm missing an Air Medal that I never bothered to track down because I didn't care to waste my time. If you have a SS, AFC, MOH...I'll raise an eyebrow. Even then, I know there are plenty of actions that probably warranted those medals, that were never recognized.

Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but a year and a half of rushing is just getting started. I know it seems like an eternity, while in your 20’s, but if you’re a gov employee, as you stated, then you certainly should understand the glacial pace the system moves in. Have you interviewed anywhere more than once? You do realize that guard units typically select pilots only once per year? So in a year and a half you haven’t even been through the cycle more than once. Other than that, the advice offered to all the others on similar threads still holds true: -Widen your net (Heavies, Reserves, USAF, USN, USMC) -Enlist in the unit -Practice your interview skills -Get more flt time -Polish up your resume -Network

Another area we disagree. The longer we wait, the weaker we will be for the actual fight. As our weak governance racks up increasingly absurd debt, the pressure to divert military spending to welfare programs will only grow. The longer we wait, the fewer war fighting experts we will have coupled with less and less modern military equipment to fight with. I still think we win based on geography and natural resources, but it'll cost more lives and treasure to wait. Whether or not there is a nuclear exchange, which is not nearly as certain as you propose, does not change the calculus. Will we be better capable of fighting Russia today, or after another 10-20 years of peaceful decline? I'll be honest. I don't care about you. Or me. I want what is best for my kids. I am not interested in adding WWIII to the list of hardships we are pushing off to the future. Appeasement does not work. History is clear on this point, and that's exactly what you are proposing.

I think you may be correct here, eventually. But starting the war that will result in a nuclear exchange just to get it over with is dumb. Next after Ukraine is Moldova, also a non NATO country. Which means the rest of us have two countries to figure out what is actually required. Which means we have a chance to avoid a nuclear war. All of this is how the cold war was fought. The various proxy wars, two segregated economic spheres, etc. The cold war won't look the same the second time around (Putin also learned from glasnost and perestroika) but first step is understanding what is actually happening. Most American pundits are still stuck in main character syndrome, they only disagree on whether it's a hero or anti-hero story. I don't disagree with your primary thought, just the best way to fight this.

I’ll answer: We let it fall. We have no treaty obligations, and although I’m opposed to Russian aggression I do not believe WW3 is the best option for our interests. If they start some shit with a NATO ally then fights on.

So, I'm glad you are at least honest about this. Thank you. The reason I am against allowing Ukraine to be taken, under your logic, is because I believe that *if* they truly want to take Ukraine, they will not stop at non-NATO countries. Wouldn't make much sense strategically. We're better off just starting the damn war now if that's the case. Unless of course the plan is to let them weaken their military by taking Ukraine and Moldova, at which point we immediately go in an crush them. But I'm positive that's not the plan. And to be clear, my primary reason for supporting Ukraine hasn't changed. Sovereignty matters, and a stable world order is not possible if it is not enforced. And here we are. I agree, the right answer is money and equipment, which we are somehow screwing up. And if we are willing to fund the perpetual Ukrainian insurgency, maybe it stays that way after Kiev falls. But it seems like Republicans have forgotten why the world needs police, and why it's better to be the ones in charge.

Really thin on specifics, but seems to be vaguely in line with the 353 drama https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2024/04/highly-toxic-lethal-command-culture-kadena-air-base/ Sent from my SM-G781U1 using Tapatalk

Was discussing this topic with a coworker; flabbergasted that Biden is still a viable contender for reelection following this once in a century type of failure/embarrassment. He keenly pointed out that most Americans do not give a shit about what happened in Afghanistan one way or another; much like they couldn’t care less about what happens in Ukraine. We obviously care about it on this board but we are not a representation of the general populace. The election will come down to the economy, border, and social issues.

Fixed it for you my man!

True. The Navy/Marine peeps on Airwarriors are so much happier for whatever reason.

At the end of the day, yes. They aren't NATO. This was always about making Russia bleed to take Ukraine, and destroy as much of their shit as possible in the process. This is the spark that will re-arm Europe, and the wall will go back up. This war will be fought economically. Hopefully. I really really hope. Because all the politicians are in fact stupid children. EDIT: Just to clarify, I'm saying sending western troops to fight for Ukraine is dumb. Sending more money/equipment is par for the course. Also Moldovia is fucked too.

The current "AI" iterations are not AGI, however they are closer to functioning like a human brain than we have ever gotten before. The irony here is that we didn't accomplish this by figuring out how the brain works, quite the opposite, we created an array of associations that is as mysterious to us as the individual neural pathways of a human brain is. We know that the brain has a combination of biologically-arranged pathways (e.g. for walking, breathing, visual identification of faces, eye position, etc.) and experience-formed pathways (math, music, flying a plane). Right now the AI models crunch tons of mostly-unfiltered data into a model that we do not have the ability to directly adjust because of the sheer volume of parameters, then an overlay is used to do things like prevent swearing, giving directions for bomb making, etc. But this is in it's infancy. Once you can pre-program certain behaviors into the actual model, then leave the rest of the model to continuously adapt the weights based on new data, we will take another big step to AGI. But since we have precisely 0% knowledge on what is or what causes consciousness, it is entirely possible that we reach a point where AGI is achieved simply by running the models with enough horsepower that we stumble into the solution. That is, incidentally, remarkably similar to how evolution works. Are humans the only animals that are conscious? What about dolphins, octopi, crows, or chimps? If not, does that mean there is no intelligence other than human intelligence? That seems like an arbitrary definition. Where is the line, and how smart does a computer need to be before it is considered intelligent? Smarter than all humans, or just smarter than any human? Do people born with Down Syndrome have consciousness? What if an AI surpasses the intellectual ability of someone with DS? Calling even the current models an "abacus" is like calling the human brain a glutamate sensor. Sure, it's kind of true, but it's the scale of the apparatus that makes it interesting.

What? There are ten parked on our ramp right now. ESSS has been around since the 80s and was a pretty standard phenomenon. You didn’t see it in COIN Iraq/Stan because of either the weight penalty, the lack of requirement due to availability of FARPs, or some combination there of. In the 90s it was pretty much normal, same as Apaches flying with a single tank inboard. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

You want at least 2 drives for redundancy. Tons of 2-bay options. No need for separate systems. Backup and storage are mostly-idle processes, so adding security recording won't tax the system. If you start running multiple services that simultaneously access the hard drives, that's where you start getting into more advanced requirements.