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David B. Larter Profile picture
David B. Larter
@DavidLarter
Navy vet. Tweets on Navy, space, watches, scotch, history & other random unserious musings. All opinions mine, not employer's. Formerly Defense News, Navy Times
2 subscribers
Aug 31 • 7 tweets • 1 min read
It should be made clear to everyone that the United States does not exist without the Constitution. We immediately turn into the Balkans without it.

But, go on... The mechanisms for "saving yourself" from the Constitution are enshrined in the Constitution.
May 19, 2023 • 8 tweets • 2 min read
If only SOMEONE had warned them that this was the most likely outcome Image Article linked here fortune.com/2023/05/18/chi… Image
May 19, 2023 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
I've actually read Noam Chomsky and listened to him speak. And

A) This thread is correct and "vatnik" isn't entirely unfair.

B) In places his philosophy is almost indistinguishable from Tucker Carlson's famed "speech" on globalism. Carlson ripped whole tropes from Chomsky. Because I make time to read & understand all kinds of political philosophies, I recognized it instantly. But Chomsky isn't exactly the first source folks on the right run to for their analysis. However, the similarities explain certainly elements of the far left's Carlson-crush.
May 17, 2023 • 6 tweets • 1 min read
The High Water Mark of the Confederacy was Chancellorsville, not Gettysburg: Discuss If you look at the hour by hour maps of the Union and Confederate positions in Chancellorsville's visitor center, you will be appalled by how clear Lee's intentions were in hindsight, and even contemporaneously with half decent intelligence and a non-concussed commander.
Feb 4, 2023 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
Anyone who covers weapons procurement should read the book Six Frigates. There is nothing new under the sun. Every single meta issue we have today on current programs are the same issues we faced in the late 18th Century.
Feb 4, 2023 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
Relevant I am absolutely dying to see an F-22 with a f***ing balloon decal on the side.
Feb 4, 2023 • 8 tweets • 2 min read
There's lots going on here but the military isn't just about fighting and defeating foreign enemies, and it never has been. There's always been a jobs element, always will be.

The Navy needs to wrap its head around this and start thinking about how to solve political problems. Yes, but who funds this combat credible force? Politicians who have political problems. Those are the problems you need to solve. They ain't trying to hear "because it's the right thing to do." For who? Certainly not for the jobs in their district.
Feb 4, 2023 • 6 tweets • 1 min read
BREAKING: Missile Defense Agency disestablished, reorganized as Balloon Defense Agency. I think the major question facing the BDA are:

1) Sensors: Just CONUS coverage or do we need coverage of the entire mid-latitudes? Do we need to cover the poles? Are we really ok relying on just ground sensors or do we need to discuss some kind of GEO/pLEO constellation?
Feb 4, 2023 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
Corbyn's geopolitical takes remain as sharp as a soccer ball "The war in the Donbas ... was going on before the Russian invasion."
Feb 4, 2023 • 5 tweets • 1 min read
Listening to a book about the 1st Millennium in Europe that argues that nationalism is essentially a 19th and 20th Century phenomenon. That's true... ish. Feudalism had no place for nationalism. But you can find Nationalism all over the place if you look for it. Robert Bruce drafted what was for all intents and purposes the Scottish Constitution that tied his legitimacy to the consent of the Scottish people. And if that's not nationalism, it's something close.
Feb 3, 2023 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
The LEM Descent Engine was built in Redondo Beach, at my site. At some point I'm going to convince myself that since Apollo 13 was saved by an engine built at my workplace and an Omega Speedmaster, that clearly I need to buy an Omega Speedmaster. It would be inappropriate not to, to be quite honest with you. How else can I honor the heritage that I've proudly inherited?
Feb 3, 2023 • 5 tweets • 2 min read
I realize that it's ridiculous to scramble F-22s to go look at a balloon and not do anything about it but:

1) Raptor pilots need flight hours, too.

2) It really highlights the criticality of an F-22 restart. My good friend @AaronMehta is at Breaking Defense now but when we were at Defense News together he did some amazing reporting on this.
Feb 2, 2023 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
I'm a little disappointed that it's over Montana and my countrymen have not found a way to shoot it down with a .22 yet We used to be a country
Feb 2, 2023 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
This is a truism but the people who really stalk the watch blogs and Instagram feeds are not wealthy, even if they own an expensive watch. Part of the justification is always "well if I need that $6,000 in the future I can sell it." The calculus for most watch buyers in the sub-$10-$12k (*cough* GMT Master *cough*) market is that it's emergency savings you can wear. And you really don't want it to lose too much value.
Feb 2, 2023 • 4 tweets • 2 min read
For my money this is probably the Omega I'd put down cash money on right now if I was hired and immediately fired by Disney as head of corporate communications ImageImage This is what I'm referring to:
amp.cnn.com/cnn/2023/01/23…
Feb 2, 2023 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
Netflix Spinoff Series: shaken by the loss of one of his best customers, James Bond's London Omega Authorized dealer looks to recover lost sales by attracting other MI6 agents. And puts himself in the middle of a terrifyingly global conspiracy Image "I remember the first time I met James. It was in the early 90s, I sold him an Omega Seamaster 300. I remember thinking it strange that he wanted the quartz version but he said he wanted it because it had a grappling hook. But it was the 90s and a lot of things were different."
Oct 1, 2022 • 9 tweets • 2 min read
Here's the problem: It's an open and shut case. There is no handling it: For any other American "handling it" would be a plea deal. Image Here's the thing: Govt finds classified material improperly removed from secure facilities with clear instructions for handling on the folder ("Return to Military Aide"). Govt determines materials are indeed classified. Person who removed the materials charged with crime.
Oct 1, 2022 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
This account from the translation in the thread at least seems dubious. I'm no expert on small unit tactics (more of a boat man myself) but running directly toward a machine gun in groups of 30 seems unsound. When I was a teenager I went with a group of kids our age to a paintball course with a guy from my church was was an infantryman. I was in his squad and he took this very, very seriously. 1/2
Sep 30, 2022 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
I'm begging Honda, with tears in my eyes, drop a turbo V6 into the accord. motortrend.com/news/2023-hond… Porsche built the 918 Spyder as a hybrid supercar and it absolutely slapped. I need the regular people car companies to start embracing hybrid technology as a joyful thing: Where I can get to and from work on electric power, but I have my V6 or, inshallah, V8 when I want it.
Sep 30, 2022 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
Andrew Roberts is a fantastic writer and his Napoleon biography was no exception. Essential reading. But this assertion sticks with me and every so often I think about it when people say Putin was forced to invade Ukraine. Why might it be that more people declared war on Napoleon than Napoleon declared war on? Could it be that he was a threat to general peace and stability?
Sep 30, 2022 • 7 tweets • 2 min read
There are those who hear Putin's words here and suggest it's really still all about realpolitik. I'd suggest thats 180-degrees wrong.

nytimes.com/live/2022/09/3… You know, maybe he is this cold-eyed, calculating statesman who is all about power politics and realpolitik. But at this point there's no practical difference between his actions and the ideology he espouses so it's just not a particularly useful frame.