Comment on I work long hour and make little money

AmericanEconomicThinkTank@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

• mkwt@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

  Ah, yes. As a patriotic American I love our warm water ports like Corpus Christi and Tampa. Don’t you love warm water ports as well?

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  • MTZ@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

    Can someone explain this? I’ve never heard the the term referring to anything other than a port that doesn’t freeze over but it clearly has another meaning that I can’t figure out or even find with a search

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    • mkwt@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

      It’s a real geopolitical problem for Russia. Russia got screwed by geography in terms of natural harbors that don’t freeze over in the winter. It’s why they’ve always had a crap navy, going way back into the imperial days.

      Right now, the Russian Navy is based in Murmansk (brrrr. limited routes to get out into Atlantic) and the Black Sea. The Black Sea is bad for them because Turkey (a NATO member) makes sure to maintain total control of what passes through the Bosphorous.

      Part of what Russia did in Syria during the civil war netted them a lease on a base on the Mediterranean. That could have had some use for power projection, but I think they lost it when a certain opthalmologist was expelled.

      Anyhow, it’s hilarious when the trolls posing as MAGA Americans bring this up, because real Americans just take their total abundance of ports that don’t freeze over completely for granted. That’s why I point out secondary, less busy port cities on the Gulf of Mexico, where the water is actually pretty warm (instead of just not freezing over). Just to highlight how good the US has it. Even if we were forced to give up Norfolk and Coronado, there are plenty of other suitable places we could have naval bases.

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      • vacuumflower@lemmy.sdf.org ⁨13⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

        Right now, the Russian Navy is based in Murmansk (brrrr. limited routes to get out into Atlantic) and the Black Sea. The Black Sea is bad for them because Turkey (a NATO member) makes sure to maintain total control of what passes through the Bosphorous.

        Technically the Baltic fleet was in Soviet times the most respected part of the navy. With Riga and Tallinn being capitals of other nations, that’s a bit less pronounced now, but coast guard and missile cruisers and marines are still important forces to have.

        That could have had some use for power projection, but I think they lost it when a certain opthalmologist was expelled.

        No, they made a deal with his beheading and allahuakbaring successors. Not sure how good a deal, but apparently the other side upholds it for now.

        because real Americans just take their total abundance of ports that don’t freeze over completely for granted.

        Honestly this is not as important as it seems. Russia doesn’t have the kind of ships to use global logistics and network of good ports as a system of power projection. Air carriers, all that. While Bosphorus is not such a big deal, of course it’s leverage, but Turkey does let Russian ships out and back.

        And Vladivostok, despite being for Russia efficiently as if on another continent, is a warm water port with good location, and used as such, including militarily.

        Your judgement in some way shows the same bias as you named.

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      • MTZ@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

        Very interesting! Thank you!

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    • rapchee@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

      is it maybe that americans don’t think in those terms, but it is more relevant to russian strategic thinking, becuase they don’t have those?

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