Alternate Wikipedia Infoboxes II

[Makemakean]

Ahh, of course. I get the terms mixed up quite a bit.

Yeah, it's easier to remember if you realize that the term works the same way as standard Russian patronymics. A man has a forename [father's forename]-evich surname, and a woman has forename [mother's forename]-evna surname. Czarevich essentially means "Czar's son" and Czarevna "Czar's daughter".

Also in Russian, weirdly enough, it's considered more polite to call someone by their forename and patronymic than to call them by their surname.

I don't speak a word of Russian, but I like to read translations of Dostoyevsky novels.

 

[Utgard96]

I actually didn't know that. As far as I knew both were acceptable transliterations (wiki says that the letter is supposed to be pronounced like the zz in pizza).

Yeah - I don't know why Russian has a separate latter for the "ts" digraph, but they do. Probably something to do with Greek, as usual for these cases.

Remember how last time Sweden screwed over Poland, the event was so cataclysmic that it's still referred to as the Deluge?

Yeah, and remember that old hymn?

♪ God gave Noah the rainbow sign,
No more water,
But fire next time... ♪

I am really, really sorry, Poland. I really am.

I do find it a bit peculiar that this event killed a full third of Poland's population, has a place in their history that basically treats it as a cataclysm of literally Biblical proportions, and yet in Sweden... we don't talk about it. At all. It doesn't even get a passing mention in the school history books, despite the fact that the Danish campaign that followed it does get talked about quite extensively, and all the maps show the Swedish army starting out in Poland without giving any explanation.

Yeah, it's easier to remember if you realize that the term works the same way as standard Russian patronymics. A man has a forename [father's forename]-evich surname, and a woman has forename [mother's forename]-evna surname. Czarevich essentially means "Czar's son" and Czarevna "Czar's daughter".

Also in Russian, weirdly enough, it's considered more polite to call someone by their forename and patronymic than to call them by their surname.

I don't speak a word of Russian, but I like to read translations of Dostoyevsky novels.

I've studied Russian for two years, but I think I learned almost as much about the language and culture from reading a book by a Finnish reporter living in Moscow as I did from school. I don't think the forename+patronymic is actually more polite than the surname per se, it's just that using the surname as a style of address is a bit unusual.

 

[Makemakean]

I do find it a bit peculiar that this event killed a full third of Poland's population, has a place in their history that basically treats it as a cataclysm of literally Biblical proportions, and yet in Sweden... we don't talk about it. At all. It doesn't even get a passing mention in the school history books, despite the fact that the Danish campaign that followed it does, and all the maps show the Swedish army starting out in Poland without giving any explanation.

I think it has something to do with how we Swedes wish to look at ourselves. We like to think of ourselves as being this ultranice, neutral, friendly little country, and then it sort of hurts our self image if someone brings up the fact that "Hey, remember that time when we slaughtered a third of Poland's population? Like, it's a fucking huge thing over there. They actually even sing about it in their national song, because the whole thing was a really defining moment of utter despair in their national history. Yeah, maybe you wanna think about that the next time you complain about Polish immigrants coming over just humbly wanting low-paying job, yeah? Think about that?" But, nope, no, definitely not. We're taught that there was this one time we and Poland had a common king and how we overthrew him because he was slimy enough to convert to Catholicism, but that time we killed a third of all Poles... meh.

I've studied Russian for two years, but I think I learned almost as much about the language and culture from reading a book by a Finnish reporter living in Moscow as I did from school. I don't think the forename+patronymic is actually more polite than the surname per se, it's just that using the surname as a style of address is a bit unusual.

An Indian friend of mine said that I should translate Russian science textbooks because he just assumed I knew Russian. When I told him I didn't, he was a bit flabbergasted because "Sweden and Russia are so close together". I made some comment to the effect that I thought that was a bit stupid to think that, only to find out that he personally spoke five languages, English, his native Bengali, Hindi and two other languages they spoke in nearby states in India, that basically all Indians are multilingual and he just assumed that we Europeans were basically the same.

That was a bit humbling. I usually go around and think "I can't believe that English-speakers cannot bother learning a single foreign language when all the rest of us manage to learn English just fine", but in India, the situation is apparently that it's expected of you to know a handful of languages...

 

[Utgard96]

I think it has something to do with how we Swedes wish to look at ourselves. We like to think of ourselves as being this ultranice, neutral, friendly little country, and then it sort of hurts our self image if someone brings up the fact that "Hey, remember that time when we slaughtered a third of Poland's population? Like, it's a fucking huge thing over there. They actually even sing about it in their national song, because the whole thing was a really defining moment of utter despair in their national history. Yeah, maybe you wanna think about that the next time you complain about Polish immigrants coming over just humbly wanting low-paying job, yeah? Think about that?" But, nope, no, definitely not. We're taught that there was this one time we and Poland had a common king and how we overthrew him because he was slimy enough to convert to Catholicism, but that time we killed a third of all Poles... meh.

Not only that, the battle in which we overthrew said king became such an iconic moment that about half our slang derives from it. For example, Sigismund had a prominent element of Hajduks (stateless Balkan mercenaries) in his army, so we still use the word "hejduk" to mean "henchman".

Also, the fact that the Polish national song is the only one that mentions Sweden by name says a lot of things about both Poland and Sweden.

 

[Makemakean]

Also, the fact that the Polish national song is the only one that mentions Sweden by name says a lot of things about both Poland and Sweden.

Well I believe you have read and listened to me enough on this forum and in real life to know that I'm not one to deny that many of our national symbols and heroes are either massively misunderstood (Charles XII) or quite frankly either tyrants (Gustav Vasa) or warmongers (Gustavus Adolphus, Charles X Gustav) or both (Charles XI). In fact, I'm usually one who takes gleeful pride in calling them out, but the Swedish national anthem is one of those symbols of our country I cannot help but have a special fondness for for two reasons. It's actually not a song about Sweden, it's a song about Scandinavia, hence why the chorus is "Yes I want to live, I want to die in the North" because it was written by a fellow who was a pan-Scandinavian. I'm against political union with our brethren and sisters to the east, west and south of course, but I still deeply believe in a certain sense of community our nations share with one another. And I love the inclusiveness of that final line! It's not one of praising the Swedish or Nordic peoples, it's about saying this is a place worth living in. This is a good land. That's an inclusive line. A line that every Swede regardless of race or religious creed can join in and sing.

Yes, I want to live, I want to die in the North!

 

[Utgard96]

Yes, I like it too - I've noticed that a lot of nationalist imagery up here tends to be about the land rather than the people. Finland's national anthem is similar, of course (and ironically may be the only national anthem that's written about Sweden, even though I don't believe the country that's fighting the Russians in Runeberg's work is ever named). Norway has a slightly more standoffish anthem that mentions historical kings and things, but their nationalism is still clearly intertwined with a love of nature. Denmark is somewhat unique in the sense that their nationalism is indeed based on an idea of a Danish people rather than a love of Denmark itself, but then again, look what they had to work with.

 

[Nanwe]

An Indian friend of mine said that I should translate Russian science textbooks because he just assumed I knew Russian. When I told him I didn't, he was a bit flabbergasted because "Sweden and Russia are so close together". I made some comment to the effect that I thought that was a bit stupid to think that, only to find out that he personally spoke five languages, English, his native Bengali, Hindi and two other languages they spoke in nearby states in India, that basically all Indians are multilingual and he just assumed that we Europeans were basically the same.

That was a bit humbling. I usually go around and think "I can't believe that English-speakers cannot bother learning a single foreign language when all the rest of us manage to learn English just fine", but in India, the situation is apparently that it's expected of you to know a handful of languages...

Well, honestly it helps that most Northern Indian languages are mutually intelligible and part of of a language continuum. So for instance, my former India minor professor was Gujarati, so he besides English, he spoke Gujarati and Hindi and could also understand some of the neighbouring languages, but if he took up Bengali he would understand far less because it's on the other end of the language continuum.

However, if the languages your friend speaks include a Dravidian and an Indo-Aryan language besides Bengali and Hindi I'd be most amazed and I'd bow to him.

 

[Makemakean]

Well, honestly it helps that most Northern Indian languages are mutually intelligible and part of of a language continuum. So for instance, my former India minor professor was Gujarati, so he besides English, he spoke Gujarati and Hindi and could also understand some of the neighbouring languages, but if he took up Bengali he would understand far less because it's on the other end of the language continuum.

However, if the languages your friend speaks include a Dravidian and an Indo-Aryan language besides Bengali and Hindi I'd be most amazed and I'd bow to him.

That's illuminating. I cannot recall what the other two languages were. I'll have to ask him again and come back.

 

[Utgard96]

It's probably a bit like how I claim to speak Norwegian on my CV, Wikipedia profile and a bunch of other places - I don't, of course, but I understand the language perfectly well and can communicate with people who speak it by using Swedish.

 

[Archangel Michael]

XXIV Corps (Riverine) was originally formed as the Mobile Riverine Fleet, and it is the largest concentration of boats and naval assets within the Minutemen. The corps has a long history stretching back to the late 2080s, and it was disbanded and reorganized several times over the past 50 years, as units larger than brigades tend to be formed on an ad hoc basis. It participated in the First Whaling War on Europa, and later during the Ionian Mutiny, participating in Operation GATOR DAWN and later Operations GATOR STORM I and II to outflank rebel forces on the east Mycenaen coastal plains (the famous 442nd Expeditionary Brigade was attached to XXIV Corps at the time). After the mutiny, the corps was disbanded once more but then quickly reformed, initially on Tethys and then on Titan, where it participated in Operation CONSTANT RESOLVE in support of a pro-American coup against a native government.

Presently, XXIV Corps (Riverine) is stationed in Ariel and it is comprised of five Riverine Brigade Combat Teams (all of them formerly Expeditionary BCTs) and support units, including an air division of strike aircraft (a mix of Cobra helicopters, Scimitar turbo-prop fighter-bombers and Dauntless II gunships). Each brigade is centered around a mobile barracks ships and a small flotilla of boats including river monitors and armored troop transports derived from Mark X patrol boats and fast patrol craft (PFCs). XXIV Corps (Riverine) operates on the Trepada River Delta, forming a key component of the Army of the Trepada Delta. The corps's commander, Lieutenant General Sean Bonner, is also the commanding officer of the Army of the Trepada Delta and holds the title Commander of Police of the Trepada Delta, giving him broad operational and political authority. As the insurgency intensifies, combat losses have mounted and political leaders have begun to grow patient. Full-scale settlement of the region has ground to a halt as aboriginal attacks increase, and the dense jungle growth has made it difficult to ferret them out.

 

[Admiral Halsey]

Something i've wondered. Does the AJND United States Navy have battleships?

 

[Archangel Michael]

Something i've wondered. Does the AJND United States Navy have battleships?

They have arsenal ships, which are mostly armed with VLS missiles but also modern rail guns, but they do carry the BBGN designation and operate on Earth and Venus. The seas on Luna and Mars are generally too small.

 

[Admiral Halsey]

They have arsenal ships, which are mostly armed with VLS missiles but also modern rail guns, but they do carry the BBGN designation.

You know i'd thought that given the AJND USN tendency to like spending money they'd have brought proper ones back. With the armor on them the only real threats would be subs and nuclear tipped missiles.

 

[Archangel Michael]

You know i'd thought that given the AJND USN tendency to like spending money they'd have brought proper ones back. With the armor on them the only real threats would be subs and nuclear tipped missiles.

The technocrats like their missiles. They like cramming as many missiles as they can into as many nooks and crannies as they can find. There's even been movements over the past century to completely do away with surface fleets because the proliferation of nuclear weapons (of all different varieties, since any power worth its salt has a nuclear quartet). But that's not to say that modern arsenal ships don't also have extensive armor.

 

[Admiral Halsey]

The technocrats like their missiles. They like cramming as many missiles as they can into as many nooks and crannies as they can find. There's even been movements over the past century to completely do away with surface fleets because the proliferation of nuclear weapons (of all different varieties, since any power worth its salt has a nuclear quartet). But that's not to say that modern arsenal ships don't also have extensive armor.

Fair enough.

 

[krinsbez]

The technocrats like their missiles. They like cramming as many missiles as they can into as many nooks and crannies as they can find.

Wait, so naval design in AJND is done by David Weber?

 

[Archangel Michael]

Wait, so naval design in AJND is done by David Weber?

In the 50s, there was a phase where the military thought guns would be obsolete and everything would be fought with rockets and missiles.

 

[Admiral Halsey]

In the 50s, there was a phase where the military thought guns would be obsolete and everything would be fought with rockets and missiles.

That kinda sounds like what the USAF thought once planes that had supersonic speed started getting into the inventory.

 

[Archangel Michael]

That kinda sounds like what the USAF thought once planes that had supersonic speed started getting into the inventory.

That's basically it. Guns are still useful and have their place, but missiles are shiny and cool and the king.

 

[Admiral Halsey]

That's basically it. Guns are still useful and have their place, but missiles are shiny and cool and the king.

Will it come back and bite them in the ass like it did to the USAF?