Image is from this article in the New York Times.

A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck Morocco on September 8th, with the epicenter 73 kilometers away from Marrakesh.

At least 2500 people have died as of September 11th, most outside Marrakesh, with more people being pulled out of the rubble every day, making it the deadliest earthquake in Morocco since 1960, and the second-deadliest earthquake this year (first being, of course, the one in Turkiye-Syria in February, which killed nearly 60,000 people). While the deaths are the most horrific part, damage to historic sites has also been very significant - including buildings dating back to the 1000s.

Morocco is situated close to the Eurasian-African plate boundary, where the two plates are colliding. The rock comprising the Atlas Mountains, situated along the northwestern coast of Africa separating the Sahara from the Mediterranean Sea, are being pushed together at a rate of 1 millimeter per year, and thus the mountains are slowly growing. As they collide, energy is stored up over time and then released, and faults develop. The earthquake this month originated on one such fault, as did the earthquake in 1960. The earthquake hypocenter was 20-25 kilometers underground, with 1.7 meters (or 5 and a half feet) of rock suddenly shifting along a fault ~30 kilometers (19 miles) long.

Earthquake prediction is still deeply imprecise at best, and obtaining decent knowledge and forewarning of earthquakes is highly dependent on dense seismometer arrays that constantly monitor seismic activity, such as in Japan, and detailed understanding of the local and regional tectonic environment. The best way to prevent damage is to build earthquake-resistant infrastructure and establish routines for escaping buildings and reaching safety. All of these, of course, are underdeveloped to nonexistent in developing countries, particularly in poorer communities inside those countries.

The Country of the Week, in honour of Allende's death 50 years ago (the only bad geopolitical event that has occurred on September 11th, of course), is Chile. Feel free to chime in with books, essays, longform articles, even stories and anecdotes or rants. More detail here.

Here is the map of the Ukraine conflict, courtesy of Wikipedia.

The weekly update is here!

Links and Stuff

The bulletins site is down.

Examples of Ukrainian Nazis and fascists

Examples of racism/euro-centrism during the Russia-Ukraine conflict

Add to the above list if you can.

Resources For Understanding The War

Defense Politics Asia's youtube channel and their map. Their youtube channel has substantially diminished in quality but the map is still useful.

Moon of Alabama, which tends to have interesting analysis. Avoid the comment section.

Understanding War and the Saker: reactionary sources that have occasional insights on the war.

Alexander Mercouris, who does daily videos on the conflict. While he is a reactionary and surrounds himself with likeminded people, his daily update videos are relatively brainworm-free and good if you don't want to follow Russian telegram channels to get news. He also co-hosts The Duran, which is more explicitly conservative, racist, sexist, transphobic, anti-communist, etc when guests are invited on, but is just about tolerable when it's just the two of them if you want a little more analysis.

On the ground: Patrick Lancaster, an independent and very good journalist reporting in the warzone on the separatists' side.

Unedited videos of Russian/Ukrainian press conferences and speeches.

Telegram Channels

Again, CW for anti-LGBT and racist, sexist, etc speech, as well as combat footage.

Pro-Russian

https://t.me/aleksandr_skif ~ DPR's former Defense Minister and Colonel in the DPR's forces. Russian language.

https://t.me/Slavyangrad ~ A few different pro-Russian people gather frequent content for this channel (~100 posts per day), some socialist, but all socially reactionary. If you can only tolerate using one Russian telegram channel, I would recommend this one.

https://t.me/s/levigodman ~ Does daily update posts.

https://t.me/patricklancasternewstoday ~ Patrick Lancaster's telegram channel.

https://t.me/gonzowarr ~ A big Russian commentator.

https://t.me/rybar ~ One of, if not the, biggest Russian telegram channels focussing on the war out there. Actually quite balanced, maybe even pessimistic about Russia. Produces interesting and useful maps.

https://t.me/epoddubny ~ Russian language.

https://t.me/boris_rozhin ~ Russian language.

https://t.me/mod_russia_en ~ Russian Ministry of Defense. Does daily, if rather bland updates on the number of Ukrainians killed, etc. The figures appear to be approximately accurate; if you want, reduce all numbers by 25% as a 'propaganda tax', if you don't believe them. Does not cover everything, for obvious reasons, and virtually never details Russian losses.

https://t.me/UkraineHumanRightsAbuses ~ Pro-Russian, documents abuses that Ukraine commits.

Pro-Ukraine

Almost every Western media outlet.

https://discord.gg/projectowl ~ Pro-Ukrainian OSINT Discord.

https://t.me/ice_inii ~ Alleged Ukrainian account with a rather cynical take on the entire thing.

Last week's discussion post.

  • SeventyTwoTrillion [he/him]M
    ·
    10 months ago

    Courtesy of the failing New York Times:

    Russia Overcomes Sanctions to Expand Missile Production, Officials Say

    As a result of the sanctions, American officials estimate that Russia was forced to dramatically slow its production of missiles and other weaponry at the start of the war in February 2022 for at least six months. But by the end of 2022, Moscow’s military industrial manufacturing began to pick up speed again, American officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to disclose the sensitive assessment now concede.

    ...

    In October 2022, the United States gathered international officials in Washington in an effort to strengthen sanctions on the Russian economy. At the time, American officials said they believed the sanctions and export controls were working in part because they deterred countries from sending microchips, circuit boards, computer processors and other components needed for precision guided weaponry as well as necessary components for diesel engines, helicopters and tanks.

    But Russia adapted quickly with its own efforts to secure supplies of the needed parts. Today, Russian officials have remade their economy to focus on defense production. With revenue from high energy prices, Russia’s security services and ministry of defense have been able to smuggle in the microelectronics and other Western materials required for cruise missiles and other precision guided weaponry. As a result, military production has not only recovered but surged.

    Before the war, one senior Western defense official said, Russia could make 100 tanks a year; now they are producing 200.

    Western officials also believe Russia is on track to manufacture two million artillery shells a year — double the amount Western intelligence services had initially estimated Russia could manufacture before the war.

    As a result of the push, Russia is now producing more ammunition than the United States and Europe. Overall, Kusti Salm, a senior Estonian defense ministry official, estimated that Russia’s current ammunition production is seven times greater than that of the West.

    putin-wink

    Russia’s production costs are also far lower than the West’s, in part because Moscow is sacrificing safety and quality in its effort to build weapons more cheaply, Mr. Salm said. For instance, it costs a Western country $5,000 to $6,000 to make a 155-millimeter artillery round, whereas it costs Russia about $600 to produce a comparable 152-millimeter artillery shell, he said.

    michael-laugh

    • ProxyTheAwesome [comrade/them]
      ·
      10 months ago

      Russia’s production costs are also far lower than the West’s, in part because Moscow is sacrificing safety and quality in its effort to build weapons more cheaply, Mr. Salm said. For instance, it costs a Western country $5,000 to $6,000 to make a 155-millimeter artillery round, whereas it costs Russia about $600 to produce a comparable 152-millimeter artillery shell, he said.

      Western MIC when it costs them 6 billion dollars to make a jeep: These Russians are cutting corners!!!

        • buckykat [none/use name]
          ·
          10 months ago

          An artillery shell that explodes at the wrong time is a problem, but does it really need to cost 10x as much to make it not do that?

          • flan [they/them]
            ·
            10 months ago

            is there any evidence that the more expensive shell is more reliable, or is it just more expensive?

            the MIC has had a couple generations' worth of unsupervised fleecing of the american people, I wouldn't be surprised if it's both more expensive and less reliable at this point. Now that they're not just bombing farmers with AK's and schoolchildren anymore the waste is coming to light.

          • zephyreks [none/use name]
            ·
            10 months ago

            I mean, then it just boils down to how many artillery shells can you build for the cost of one artillery barrel?

    • Teekeeus [comrade/them]
      ·
      10 months ago

      it costs a Western country $5,000 to $6,000 to make a 155-millimeter artillery round

      how much of this will eventually make its way to MIC shareholders via dividends or buybacks?

      • SoyViking [he/him]
        ·
        10 months ago

        Don't think about it! It's all because Slavic orc industry makes unsafe and low quality products.

    • mkultrawide [any]
      ·
      10 months ago

      Russia’s production costs are also far lower than the West’s, in part because Moscow is sacrificing safety and quality in its effort to build weapons more cheaply, Mr. Salm said. For instance, it costs a Western country $5,000 to $6,000 to make a 155-millimeter artillery round, whereas it costs Russia about $600 to produce a comparable 152-millimeter artillery shell, he said.

      I wonder how much of this is being produced by leftover giant Soviet industrial machinery that is getting pulled out of mothballs and put back into operation. Lenin bails out Putin, once again.

    • RyanGosling [none/use name]
      ·
      10 months ago

      American officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to disclose the sensitive assessment now concede.

      So is this a “don’t let the enemy know what you know about their capacity” strategy or are they just scared of being unable to spin it if it becomes official? What are the chances they’re lying to Ukraine and having them think Russia is still producing one missile a month lol

      As a result of the push, Russia is now producing more ammunition than the United States and Europe. Overall, Kusti Salm, a senior Estonian defense ministry official, estimated that Russia’s current ammunition production is seven times greater than that of the West.

      Ok… but this has to be a psyop by the west right? How in the hell are they failing this bad that an isolated and sanctioned country is producing more ammo than a military alliance that encompasses nearly an entire continent? I always took those “the US is running out of ammo” articles with a grain of salt, but this is just odd.

      Russia’s production costs are also far lower than the West’s, in part because Moscow is sacrificing safety and quality in its effort to build weapons more cheaply

      Safety for workers I can believe. Quite a few explosions at military plants in Russia. But quality? I’ve heard more horror stories from American branded ammo than Russian steel ammo. Granted they’re also doing artillery shells, but it’s all the same quality I imagine.

      • mkultrawide [any]
        ·
        10 months ago

        So is this a “don’t let the enemy know what you know about their capacity” strategy or are they just scared of being unable to spin it if it becomes official?

        The Pentagon itself released a report that the Chinese have 200x the ship building capacity of the US. I'm not in the know or connected to the blob in any way, but it seems like there are starting to be rumblings in a the blob about how having a defense industry that is primarily incentived to maximize profit instead of strengthen national security might actually not be a good thing for US foreign policy interests. I can't tell you how strong got is, but it seems to be starting tl bubble up in the subtext of some think tank and media pieces. Is suspect it is part of the reason why congress is doing that China war simulation with Wall Street bankers, but that's pure speculation on my part.

    • nat_turner_overdrive [he/him]
      ·
      10 months ago

      so russia is producing artillery at a rate seven times higher... even if four rounds out of seven are duds, that's still 3x the ammunition the west can produce

    • keepcarrot [she/her]
      ·
      10 months ago

      Every time I see these, I do wonder how much is true and how much is about eeking out more defence spending

    • Dull_Juice [he/him]
      ·
      10 months ago

      With revenue from high energy prices, Russia’s security services and ministry of defense have been able to smuggle in the microelectronics and other Western materials required for cruise missiles and other precision guided weaponry.

      This line caught my eye. How crazy do the electronics/ microchips have be? Isn't there a pretty good chance between Russia and China they can just make this stuff? I'd be really shocked if they're smuggling anything.

      • PorkrollPosadist [he/him, they/them]
        ·
        10 months ago

        Of all the subdomains of embedded systems, avionics is famously averse to using experimental bleeding edge silicon. They are almost certainly using chips which are dumb, cheap, and reliable.

    • Fishroot [none/use name]
      ·
      10 months ago

      Russia’s production costs are also far lower than the West’s, in part because Moscow is sacrificing safety and quality in its effort to build weapons more cheaply, Mr. Salm said. For instance, it costs a Western country $5,000 to $6,000 to make a 155-millimeter artillery round, whereas it costs Russia about $600 to produce a comparable 152-millimeter artillery shell, he said.

      Russian cold war era guns are also cheaper, and you can use them to slam the wall of a house until it collapses and the guns would still work. What kind of cope is it to say that an artillery round needs to be expensive to produce, the technology is so old that it exists since song dynasty China

    • Eldungeon2 [he/him]
      ·
      10 months ago

      It'd be funny if Russia turns it negative demographic growth by returning to a slightly more productive economy and a slightly less financialized economy. I know it's wartime economics but would be nice to see materialist dialectics working in real time.