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Member Title:
God
Age:
46 years old
Birthday:
January 22, 1979

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Website URL  http://thewertzone.blogspot.com/

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  1. In Topic: Discworld by Terry Pratchett

    Yesterday, 12:08 PM

    Discworld #34: Thud!

    Quote

    The anniversary of the Battle of Koom Valley is looming. Everyone knows this was the great battle where the dwarfs ambushed the trolls. Or the trolls ambushed the dwarfs. Tensions between Ankh-Morpork's dwarf and troll communities are rising, so this would be the worst time for a prominent city dwarf to be murdered by a troll. When this duly happens, it gives Commander Sam Vimes of the City Watch a major headache he could do without. Civil war, rioting, protests, urban unrest and delicate political intrigue are distractions for Vimes from his greatest obligation: getting home every night to read his infant son from that tome of great wisdom, Where's My Cow?

    Urban centres divided by racial (well, species-al) tensions; demonstrations that some call protests, others riots; cynical demagogues riding the coattails of popularism into positions of power. If there's one thing that Terry Pratchett is, it's timely and topical. Although in this case, Thud! (the thirty-fourth novel in the Discworld sequence) was published twenty years ago, and Sir Terry himself passed away nine years ago. That just goes to show how formidable a student of history and human nature Pratchett was, and how depressingly cyclical human nature is. A joyous escape from the modern world, this book very much is not.

    What it is is a formidably well-written, brilliantly-characterised piece of fantasy fiction. By this point Ankh-Morpork's claim to be the greatest fantasy city of all time, convincing in its depiction and detail from top to bottom, had been well-established and Pratchett furthers that here as he surveys the tensions in the city from the lowest rungs of the ladder (via Brick, a confused troll) to the highest (the Patrician himself). I often feel that Pratchett was a writer divided between cynicism and optimism, and that internal war can be felt in these pages. Pratchett has a city divided by class, species, income and politics, but where media is (more or less) responsible and the police mostly free from corruption (though not for want of some trying), although it is amusing that the plot partially resolves because of a copper helping himself to some loot he shouldn't have been touching.

    It's also a brilliant bit of worldbuilding, as Pratchett delves into the history, legends and culture of the dwarfs ("dwarves" being an affront to Pratchett's grammatical perfectionism, despite his unabashed love of Tolkien, but "elfs" is an unacceptable step too far for him), with a bit of troll history thrown in as well. In fantasy settings where the traditional species are depicted, dwarfs usually get the short end of the stick (so to speak) but Pratchett fleshes them out here with details of their spirituality, faith, politics and culture.

    There are laughs, such as Colon and Nobby's unexpectedly effective side-investigation of an art theft (a bit like asking the Keystone Kops to solve the Great Train Robbery) and Vimes' increasingly convoluted trips home to read to his son before bedtime, but these are held in check by Pratchett's anger at the stupidity of the world. Pratchett motivated by anger can result in terrific art, such as in Small Gods and Night Watch, and though Thud! doesn't quite rise to those heights, it's not a million miles away.

    Despite being on the longer side for a Discworld book (at 430 pages, nothing too outrageous), the plot unfolds with verve, Pratchett again demonstrating a mastery of pacing. The resolution gets a bit too metaphysical at times (not Pratchett's strongest suit) but the epilogue section which goes into more detail than normal about the fallout from the latest shenanigans is quite amusing, as well as setting up some ideas which are about to carry the Discworld setting across the technological divide into proto-steampunk. Thirty-four volumes in and Pratchett is still freshening things up and changing gears to try new ideas. It's quite impressive.

    Thud! (****½) is one of the strongest Discworld novels, exploring its world and characters with skill and depth (literally, in this case). Remarkably, this is also a Discworld novel with its own dedicated spin-off children's book, Where's My Cow? (not part of the core series, but an interesting curiosity).
  2. In Topic: The USA Politics Thread

    21 October 2025 - 06:45 PM

    The US military buildup in the Caribbean is starting to reach significant levels, with F-35Bs forward-deployed to Puerto Rico, and a Marine ready task force with over 4,000 troops apparently in a higher state of readiness. Three refuelling ships have entered the theatre to enable faster refuelling of US military vessels in the immediate area.

    Apparently the Qatar-mediated negotiations have been shut down after Maduro refused to consider any scenario where he resigns before 2031, with the US delegates saying that Maduro is not a legitimate head of state.

    There appears to be growing concern in multiple American and South American circles that the US position is that direct American military invention could be imminent, either a decapitation strike on Caracas to take down Maduro (these famously always work with a minimum of collateral damage, of course) or strikes on claimed drug processing facilities on Venezuelan soil which, even if they were not directed against the state, would still be hugely destabilising.

    If you want to stop immigrants fleeing from Venezuela, I would submit bombing it back to the stone age might be counter-productive. Tipping Venezuela into the US sphere of influence would allow US forces to be stationed on the border with Colombia, where a lot of drug production takes place (of course). An increase in a US presence in the region would also put forces close to the Panama Canal, which Trump has taken an interest in (though not from a ground attack POV, due to the extreme hostility of terrain in the Darian Gap).

    Whomever taught Trump to play Risk really needs to take his board away from him.
  3. In Topic: The Russia Politics and War in Ukraine Thread

    21 October 2025 - 05:54 PM

    Poland has said that if Putin's aircraft tries to enter Polish airspace, it will have to land.

    Ukraine has launched a significant cruise missile attack on Bryansk and Belgorod Oblasts, with multiple missiles engaged by Russian air defences. Some reports of additional cruise missile and drone strikes on Crimea.

    Ukraine has finally retaken Kucheriv Yar, at the tip of the Dobropillia salient. In the final engagement, over fifty Russian soldiers agreed to finally surrender having been cut off from supplies and reinforcements for over a month. Some Russians tried to break out to the east, but it appears they were unable to penetrate Ukrainian lines. The final casualty toll here is expected to be very heavy for the Russians. It also frees up the Ukrainian units grinding them down for deployment elsewhere.

    Meanwhile, Kyrgyzstan and Mongolia are reporting fuel shortages after expected deliveries from Russia failed to arrive. Apparently both countries, and others, have been asking Russia for a while on the reliability of supplies and if they should be taking precautions, and Russia told them everything was fine. Not so much. Kyrgyzstan is supposed to have a month's fuel supply in storage at any one time, which has turned out to be...incorrect.

    Kyrgyzstan is still sore at Russia after Russia failed to answer its CSTO obligations to help defend Kyrgyzstan when it was attacked by Tajikistan in 2022 (though Tajikistan maintains it was attacked first, though that's not hugely believed), and had expressed some displeasure with Russia for this.
  4. In Topic: The Russia Politics and War in Ukraine Thread

    20 October 2025 - 01:48 PM

    Reporting that Trump told Zelensky to give up on the Donbas region and got angry when he said no, but Trump indignantly denied that, saying a ceasefire on the current front line was his suggestion. Zelensky then apparently agreed, but said it was Witkoff who brought up Putin's talking points and then seemed confused and irritated when Zelensky contradicted them.

    Other reporting that Putin agreed on the telephone call to withdraw from Zaporizhzhia and Kherson in return for Ukraine handing over all of Donetsk, but Russian reporting seems to contradict that, suggesting instead the idea is to halt the front line in Zaporizhzhia and Kherson where they are now and get all of Donetsk in return. Other occupied areas could be ceded, such as in Sumy and Kharkiv.

    In other words, absolutely no forwards movement from Russia since Alaska, and one phone call from Putin is all it takes to stop the Tomahawk discussion.
  5. In Topic: The Russia Politics and War in Ukraine Thread

    17 October 2025 - 08:55 PM

    As usual, Putin has tugged Trump's strings and he has responded: a Trump-Putin summit in Budapest in the next two weeks, where likely nothing will happen, and in the meantime Tomahawks are off the table. 

    The Hvardiis'ke oil depot in Crimea has been hit and hit hard, with two fuel tanks ablaze. The current assessment at the Feodosia terminal is that eight tanks have been destroyed there, with huge infrastructure damage to the rest of the facility.

    A Russian Su-30SM was lost last night over occupied Crimea. It appears to have been shot down in a friendly fire incident.

    The EU is preparing to tap between €140 and €165 billion in frozen Russian assets as a loan to Ukraine.

    A Russian conscript snapped during training in the Moscow region, killing two fellow soldiers and injuring another before being subdued.

    The Vladimirskaya substation in Vladimir was hit by drones. This is a crucial node in Russia's electrical supply system.

    The Avangard chemical plant in Russian Sterlitamak has been hit by a huge explosion. Unclear if it was sabotage, drone or accident.

    Ukranian medics from the 3rd Army Corps undertook a rescue mission in...London? The medics were in London to discuss battlefield medical procedures learned from the war with British counterparts and unveil a film when they spotted a road traffic nearby, with a man significantly injured by a car. They stabilised his condition before an ambulance arrived.

    A Russian human rights activist residing in Paris was saved by French security forces. Vladimir Osechkin was targeted for assassination by three Russian Dagestanis, possibly FSB agents. They were arrested by French police.

    Girkin has issued a new missive, claiming that Russia is further from victory than in 2022, has lost too much personnel, and both the meat and the money is "running out."

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Comments

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  1. Photo

    Tsundoku 

    22 Jan 2025 - 13:13
    happy #46 Wert, and many more
  2. Photo

    Tsundoku 

    21 Jan 2024 - 21:23
    happy #45 old chap
  3. Photo

    Tsundoku 

    21 Jan 2023 - 14:29
    geez Wert, getting old son. Have a good one.
  4. Photo

    ArchieVist 

    28 Jul 2022 - 16:57
    Wert, Sorry you didn't get your map question answered in Erikson's AMA. I had my fingers crossed. But check out the last 30 seconds of this new Critical Dragon interview. Erikson pulls out a sheaf of maps! So something still exists. Maybe something ICE needs for future PtA books.
    https://youtu.be/xb0UZ5e1Sw4?t=4230
  5. Photo

    Tsundoku 

    21 Jan 2022 - 14:32
    Happy birthday Wert
  6. Photo

    Tsundoku 

    22 Jan 2021 - 09:19
    Whoa ... meaning of life. Happy birthday
  7. Photo

    Tsundoku 

    05 Mar 2020 - 09:29
    Sorry, missed your birthday this year. Hope it was a good one.
  8. Photo

    Tsundoku 

    22 Jan 2019 - 11:51
    Dun dun dunnnnn ...
    Forty! YAAAAAHHHHHH!
    Have a good one.
  9. Photo

    Tsundoku 

    22 Jan 2018 - 08:24
    Same as below. Better make it a good one because it's 40 next year.
  10. Photo

    Tsundoku 

    22 Jan 2010 - 15:32
    Happy Birthday, now go out and get wrecked :)
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