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***The US military has shot down an "unidentified object" over Lake Huron on the orders of President Joe Biden. This marks the fourth such shooting in the past eight days and continues the chain of military strikes in US airspace. The reason for the increased shootdowns is due to heightened alert following a recent spy balloon from China that appeared over US airspace. Since then, fighter jets have also shot down objects over Canada and Alaska, with Pentagon officials stating they posed no security threat, but so little is known about the objects that they are not ruling out the possibility of extraterrestrial involvement. The downings have raised questions about the use of force and whether they are warranted. However, Pentagon officials are still trying to determine what the objects are.***
LaughingInTheFaceOfDanger
They're not ETs ffs. If there are aliens we've never downed any to date and they've let us shoot down 4 in 4 days now, yeah right.
Onlyhereforthelaughs
"Can you tell when it's Peace time and War time anymore?" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vN8U-TSbfwE
MrCannibal
This advertising for new Bloons TD gettin outta hand
eyemastervideo5
I'm not for war, but I do like that these objects are shot down. They are invasive. Hidden purpose means you don't belong here
JohnBigboote74
Here's some sauce for you: https://apnews.com/article/biden-politics-charles-schumer-jake-sullivan-china-acc1a333326c50ee9649760c569c300f
spinsterdotorg
This is most decidedly not peace time. I have a refugee in my house.
Biker222
Started shaping my mashed potatoes into a mountainous pile tonight. And now have this unstoppable urge to travel to Devil’s Tower, Wyoming.
WeirdPalSpankovich
Funny, my first thought was the movie "Signs" since Mel Gibson eats a bunch of mashed potatoes towards the end. I wonder if that...
WeirdPalSpankovich
was an homage to Close Encounters.
Biker222
I’ll bet it was.
qtRaven
We all know what's coming...
ElroydIsGone
"Mayyyyybeeeee, you'll think of me..." Seeing this intro for the first time was one of the best moments in my 30+ years gaming "career".
Elunar
I dont want to set the world on fire
HeywouldJablowme
Republican reaction. Why is Biden shooting down all these flying objects and antagonizing our enemy. Is he trying to start World War 3?
NM156
Spinfoil Theory: The objects are gathering data on Tik Tok users and location data to map important areas/buildings.
4vie
Well, at least the F-22 and F-35 pilots are getting some kills in....
Vter1
When the pilots go home, do you think they play with their dogs like this?
MapleSyrupMafia
Balloon PTSD could lead to accidents at home.
sjbrooksy7447
Anyone else see that U2 commercial
basicisaac
Said the same thing. No idea what half the ads were for, including the spy balloon ad. Sad they stole the Cisco hold music meme for a Bud ad
sjbrooksy7447
That music slaps. Commercial not so much
[deleted]
[deleted]
sjbrooksy7447
Nah just got 3 teenage kids lol
basicisaac
WeAreNotSmilesTImes
I don't know guys....it's a bit ominous and anomalous. This may not bode well....
KalypsoKirin
I think all this shooting stuff down and alien talk is mostly a cover for how Ohio has just become an even worse place to live.
KalypsoKirin
There should be wall to wall fucking coverage about how Norfolk-Southern literally poisoned the Ohio river after lobbying to keep the shitty
KalypsoKirin
CIVIL WAR-ERA BREAKS that caused it.
PixelSprite64
Full story here https://youtu.be/Fpu5a0Bl8eY
shyriath
So we've got, what, 95 to go?
n3ckr0mantic
When TF has America ever really been in 'peacetime' tho
Ikwilstroopwaffels
1995 was kinda chill.
GrouchyMarx
Since 1776, there's been 17 years during which the U.S. was not a part of a conflict. 228 years of war during the last 246 years.
Valatros
This statistic makes me understand our defense budget. It's horrible, and there are way better uses, but... I get it. Damn.
thealmightywalrus420
Peace time is a weird word because we don't really go to war anymore, we just have conflicts
snoozer
How is the war on drugs doing?
sleix
I seriously suspect China's just blowing up balloons just to whip the MAGA folk into a frenzy now...they're all over there just laughing...
WeirdPalSpankovich
This actually has massive implications in a couple ways. Don't think that because they're balloons that they're harmless. Fundamentally...
WeirdPalSpankovich
China is sending UAVs here. That's what they are. Which btw, can be equipped with warheads.
TrueNorthernLights
Had to shoot down one over Canada, too.
FishieStardust
TBF... Excluding our brief time since we've quit the war in Afghanistan, we haven't known peacetime for 20 years. Tech has advanced a lot
chjb5772
TBH. prolly or maybe
idrinkcheapbeer
try 30+ We haven't known peacetime since operation Desert Shield. Even that's up for debate.
superpaul79
The US hasn't had peacetime since maybe a little before WW1.
CaldariBob
While it ended in Afghanistan, there's still active operations in Iraq & Syria.
WeirdPalSpankovich
SOF and CIA are always doing operations. There is never really peacetime.
TrueNorthernLights
I have so many questions. Is China sending them all, and if so, why are they flying so low they're getting caught? If they're trying to>
TrueNorthernLights
NewtGinGrinch
The first was definitely a Chinese balloon but I doubt they moved it with purpose, someone else did and they put up the next balloons like a
NewtGinGrinch
bait and switch. This morning China says a US balloon is in THEIR airspace. That's ain't ours. Jets been getting scrambled to track radar-
NewtGinGrinch
abnormalities but not finding nothing. Uruguay and UK are dealing with the same radar issues.
hateanyway
Aliens coming to earth right now: "we come in peac... ohh shit" *missile hits
HipsterCommie
I'm glad the $200m jets are being used to kill balloons
Ghlargh
That might be the plan.
CeterumCenseo
4 down, 95 to go.
AceBandito
The cost difference between their balloons and us shooting them down, I can only imagine, is pretty significant.
HypersonicHero
You know that the jets can be used multiple times right? It's not like they have to scrap them after every balloon.
iphaze
BREAKING “Inter-dimensional aircraft with no visible means of propulsion, capable of unprecedented speeds shot down by weird monkey people”
WhoToldYouLifeWasFair
Exactly WHO is not ruling out the possibility of extraterrestrial involvement?
died0
DidSomebodyStepOnADuck
General Glen VanHerck, the USAF commander of NORAD.
dmTim
Folks who are looking forward to a good anal probing.
ChocolatePizzaMemes
Honestly, if you have the technology to travel the stars, you have the technology to remain undetected while monitoring our planet.
ImplodingPumpkin
Xcom! Bring on the snake titties
IDontKnowWhatToDoAnymoreAndImTired
Awful people who like to write clickbaity headlines.
hushpuppyextraordinaire
ANC
MrOne2
Aliens from the mother-ship: we come in peace! Stop shooting down our balloons ..
CheeseborgarSoop
Don't believe the Psy Op. Ask about the Nord Stream and Ohio.
HasteTheFool
The Doctor?
paragraph
That may be but the world health organization isn’t qualified enough to make that call
MBTerrorKitten
I think a doctor would be pretty good at identifying an extraterrestrial.
ButteryBiscuitBass
My first thought on reading this!
maddcovv
Top men
WhoToldYouLifeWasFair
Top. Men.
SubtleOrc
sleepinggreenidea
She looks like someone just put it in the square hole again.
fantabuloustimewaster
“We have not even discussed extraterrestrial involvement.” “So you HAVEN’T ruled it out?”
WorkSnakes
I guess sasquatch is on the table as well
lalalalsblablabal
Ooooh…. This is so stupidly nasty. I would have never thought of it.
Taalii
Sensationalist media. When interpreting headines assume a jerk genie who moonlights as a lawyer wrote them.
YourmomusesTinder
The balloons definitely not but that Octagon or pentagon one over the lake...Oh boi.
C141Clay
BillHubbard
Way to go, starting a war with extraterrestrials just because they come over for a flyby.
RawVenus
It's not aliens. Because if you can travel the stars a sidewinder with no explosives on it won't even scuff the paint of your ship. 1/2
tangent
Well, if you think about it our craft would be better suited to travel in our atmosphere than an alien craft would.
backrideup9
And to reiterate, if an alien can travel the cosmos to visit us, they know whether or not they have a vessel that can handle our atmosphere.
RawVenus
2/2 someone is doing some(china/russia) penetration testing. Trying to see where our weak spots are.
narniasreal
Well, obviously those are just some small unprotected drones sent from the mothership.
hamstaman
iwanttobelieve.com
Grimmrog
some moron
senseicombs
Thats actually pretty scary. Maybe Russia and China have been making plans?
n0n53n53
Pretty sure we're gonna find out later that this isn't "in peacetime"
shawiz
Maybe just throw a big net over it???
WeirdPalSpankovich
I vote for balloon-seeking attack balloons. Balloon on balloon action.
WeAreNotSmilesTImes
BillHubbard
So, if they are unidentified, how does one know they should be shot down?
eronth
Permitted flying objects need to identify themselves.
BillHubbard
Ah, so the same reason as people getting shot when being pulled over for a broken taillight.
Isosyn
weather balloons are usually permitted, but are required to meet size specifications. These exceed the maximums by a huge margin.
Isosyn
Legal Eagle did a whole video on the topic if you want to understand the rough legal framework for these actions.
BillHubbard
Thanks, but actually I don't care.
GravyEducation
Over Lake Huron? That's a little Erie. Hope no one's feeling Superior. Ontari-oh no! Michigan.
Kakeukh
Colbert, that you?
GravyEducation
zmanz
Lake Minnetonka? Oh Prince...
GravyEducation
Sometimes it snows in April...
Silkyninja1
GravyEducation
Harder
hersmokeroseupforeverandever8
OK that was pretty good
GravyEducation
WeAreNotSmilesTImes
railgrinder
Hits close to a lot of homes.
CatsDogsFoodandNature
Good stuff, HOMES
WizzoTheWizzard
I'm gonna banish you to Quebec if u keep up this tomfoolery
murderhobbit
Huron a roll!
Aimlockbelch
Great takes
JohnnyWalkerTexas
Michigan? No they hit all four of them!
FuzzyX
Seems a good time to me to troll the US military. Buy many party balloons, tie together, wrap in foil, write "spy balloon" then release...
FuzzyX
In the hope the US military would waste over $100,000 just to shoot down party balloons!
somerandomusernamething
99 red balloons you say?
HonestCommentFarmer
Latex balloons can't go high enough where they're shooting these objects.
FuzzyX
You can get foil balloons but see this as a project of how cheaply you can make your own fake spy balloon. Also latest shot was at 20,000ft.
TicoMachi
Kind of started running out of ideas at the end there, eh?
IceWeaselX
Like most pun strings, it was kind of hit-or-mish again.
HonestCommentFarmer
You try to putting Michigan naturally into a conversation.
BlueWater321
Michigan is.
bighuntowski
This one time, I visited Michigan.
mikeatike
Bullshit, nobody visits Michigan willingly.
HonestCommentFarmer
See, it's totally impossible.
ForRohan
Ok, we're in a panic. China has been using low-tech methods to spy on us, ones that get through our defenses which were designed to detect 1
lastmanonearthbutidroppedmyglasses
More likely they’re just making everyone waste their time to show how stupid and ineffective the US military is.
mikeatike
Maybe you're in a panic. I frankly can't give a shit. Use them for target practice, wave huge foam middle fingers at them, ignore them.
MrSnuffleupagus172
Like TicTok
CaptainBlacklung
China is spying on me through TikTok? Oh what a travesty. I hope they get a kick out of door dash orders.
Etereo
No. Media is pushing for a strong response to the status quo that has been valido since the end of the cold war. Both side have spies.
ElroydIsGone
Eh, you might discuss, if this is an overreaction, but it is most likely only power play, China or maybe Russia testing the US reactions >
ElroydIsGone
and the Pentagon is sending them a clear message. The official "unidentified" could mean, that they know darn well whom to suspect, or >
ElroydIsGone
they might even know already, but don't want to honor them with a big reaction. Especially when it is Russia, with which they don't need >
ElroydIsGone
any useless escalation at the moment. And finally, the "can't rule out E.T." is just some bait for all the nutcracks out there, so that >
ElroydIsGone
they run off chasing phantomes instead of accidentially drawing too much attention to some real culprit when they spin their stories.
QuisquiliarumHistoria
These arent the disruptive events the media/speculation is making it out to be. We aren't in a panic, your reaction & analysis is oversized.
Any1EyeWant
This, this Right Here.
QuisquiliarumHistoria
These arent gaping holes/blind spots. China doesnt need these to spy. Speculation & implying panic is silly. This is odd but not concerning.
chjb5772
You’re Wrong! We need to go to DEFCON ULTRA immediately!!! U must be a spy or alien trying to disarm our alarm and slip thru our defenses
WagglyGerm
Let's just nuke everything from orbit
ElroydIsGone
Yeah, I think it's just testing the US reactions and the US showed them. Shoot down and don't honor the culprit with a reaction on the >
ElroydIsGone
international stage. "Uh, kinda unidentified, but it's gone, whatever..."
MapleSyrupMafia
"ALIENS!" Now if someone acts outraged, you know who sent it.
EndofDaisies
1/ OR, we have competent administration now, we’ve got China doing some shit they briefly got away with & now can easily spot their “weather
EndofDaisies
2/ balloons” so now we’re sending China a message to cut this petty shit out. Get another hobby besides collecting cool “weather” facts.
ForRohan
Large, fast moving objects. They found a blind spot. They exploited that blind spot. We just realized it. Now we're panicking. 2
whatpassesforclever
You have no idea what you’re talking about, lol. What’s happening is the opposite of panic. The balloons aren’t a threat, just an 1/
whatpassesforclever
2/ opportunity to see what the Chinese are worried about. We jam their comm signals, analyze what each balloon is trying to do, then shoot
whatpassesforclever
3/ them down to examine their tech. Jet fighters aren’t being scrambled to intercept in a panic, as we know that sort of thing is exactly
whatpassesforclever
4/ the type of response China is looking for. They want to invade Taiwan and are desperate for info on how well we will defend Taiwan. They
ForRohan
We're overreacting. We're "shooting down" anything that's moving in the sky now. This is a momentary overreaction. 3
EvilEmperorXurg
A Momentary Lapse of Reason?
TerriblePokemon
This isn't panic, this isn't an overreaction. The pentagon knows what they are, they're just not telling you.
ForRohan
We're shooting at stuff that we cannot ID immediately. It could be civilian, it could be for research, it could be foreign spy craft. 4
GravyEducation
I got one of those toy planes made out of balsa wood, next thing I know a rocket just went BOOM
mieper3
I was just having a BBQ which released a bit too much smoke, all of a sudden an F16 is shooting at my smoke cloud!
ForRohan
What it isn't is E.T. so everyone just calm the fuck down and let the dust settle and the analysts so their God damn jobs. fin.
WilliamWeird
The worst part is, downing these does little to address their wholistic approach, such as numerous international secret police offices
bloodyconstipatednippledrip
Sounds like something an E.T would say
HypersonicHero
The only think in this ramble that's remotely correct is that it's not ET. Everything else is 100 fucking percent wrong.
newsguycraigevans
That sums it up pretty well
Ohyesireallydidthat
So you're saying it's aliens? Holy shit that's crazy!
GravyEducation
I like your username
understandable
Exactly, if you're flying shit into restricted airspace they should shoot em down and ask questions later.
TemporaryJesusSauce
Can't fool us G man
narniasreal
How do you know it's not an alien?
kc2syk
So definitely little green men, or the greys. Got it.