On March 28th, Eurasia Net, reported that Turkmenistan launched large unannounced exercises “in the dead of night”.
These movements consisted of: Land, Air, Naval, Air Defense, and Special Operations forces.
But what the heck were they doing with all of that firepower?
The Turkmen Military is largely a land based force based on the Soviet Model, as evidenced by utilization of the “Motor Rifle Division”, of which there are four, as well as breaking aid defense into its own branch.
As such, training and morale tend to be low, but utilization of massive amounts of artillery, T-72s, the infamous ZSU-23-4 “Shilka, and other highlights of the 1980s make up for the doctrinal rut Turkmenistan finds itself in.
After all, a country that has a holiday to celebrate its neutrality is not likely to pick a fight.
One can rule out a show of force to intimidate a state actor.
Turkmenistan, unlike Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, is largely devoid of conflict with its neighbors. It has friendly ties with both Russia and China, and provides the United States with an air corridor to Afghanistan, which makes deterring one of these actors unlikely.
The move could possibly be an attempt to reassert claims over the Caspian Sea, the dispute over these maritime borders with Azerbaijan, Iran, and Kazakhstan have been largely diplomatic in nature. It seems unlikely this is a shift to more bellicose policy regarding control of the Caspian Sea, as the Turkmen navy is composed of a few coastal defense craft.
It is conceivable that this exercise is not a demonstration of power against a state aggressor, but rather a demonstration to both Turkmen and Turkmenistan’s concerned neighbors, of Ashgabat’s border defense capacity.
Recent skirmishes have occurred along Turkmenistan’s Afghan border, including several Taliban militants being stuck being Turkmen and Afghan forces.
This is not an isolated incident, and Ashgabat has responded with the construction of fixed fortifications along the border.
Of perhaps greater concern than Turkmenistan’s formerly cordial neighbors, is the developing Islamic State (IS) affiliate in Afghanistan.
While there are only 1-3,000 IS fighters in Afghanistan, the appearance of weakness along the border may draw the attention of Moscow, who would understandably be concerned.
Thus, it seems likely that this show of force by Turkmenistan is a message to Moscow of Ashgabat’s ability to rapidly mobilize against a Iraq/Syria style IS takeover.
Is is not clear if Moscow will be convinced by this display, who has historically assisted Ashgabat in border control.
In any event, we should pay attention to what happens in Turkmenistan in the coming months.
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Photo Credit: Gilad Rom/Flickr (CC by 2.0)
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New Jersey Girl Lacey Caroline Tries To Break Into Country Music Scene
Lacey Caroline is a Nashville transplant, originally hailing from Sussex County, New Jersey. She says that she lived “a very country lifestyle” growing up, despite being from up North.
Sussex County hosts an annual Farm and Horse Show, and Lacey’s first job at the age of 14 was helping to take care of the horses on a nearby farm.
“I will say the biggest difference from New Jersey to Nashville is that I find Southerners have a greater restraint when it comes to ‘telling what you really feel,’” Caroline said. “I’m not sure if it’s a flaw or a gift, but Jerseyians are known for not holding back their feelings about situations. With that aside, I always try my hardest to be extra polite. Oh, and the food! Man, is the food good. The biscuits and gravy, fried chicken. The only one who isn’t a fan of the food down here is my bathroom scale.”
Caroline loves the country lifestyle, which is what brought her to Nashville.
“I knew the only way to get better at the art of songwriting and crafting those lyrics would be to live in the thick of it all. I wanted to be able to go out any night of the week and hear great songs, and have the opportunity to write and learn from the people in this town.”
She found a great support system in Nashville in a 24-hour space on Music Row called The Workshop.
Read More: Aaron Parker Is The Next Big Thing in Country Music
“I have the most amazing group of friends, and every day, they motivate me to not only work harder at music, but work harder at being a better person,” Caroline said. They’re all amazing songwriters, artists, and singers. They’ve taught me so much about music, writing, crafting songs and digging deeper.”
Despite being a country singer, she attributes much of her understanding of music to growing up listening to emo music.
She said that she grew up as a kind of loner in school, “because I was quiet didn’t mean I didn’t have feelings or emotions, and I felt like even though kids in my school picked on me, the emo songs I listened to made me feel like I was accepted, like I wasn’t alone. It gave me hope, and in that, happiness.”
She wants to evoke that same hope and happiness in other people who may be quiet but still feel strong emotions.
Lacey’s EP,“Songbird” was released in October 2013, and it helped her find some great opportunities, such as playing the famous Bluebird Café in Nashville.
“It was a great introduction to the country music community as an arist,” Caroline said. “And it also gave me a great starting point to grow from in terms of songwriting.”
“It’s better than a dream to me; in fact, sometimes I feel like I’m dreaming.”
Caroline said that she pulls inspiration and influences for her songs from musicians like Will Hoge, Brandi Carlisle, Eric Paslay, David Nail, and The Milk Carton Kids. She says that she always looks for “inspirational triggers in words, melodies, and structures,” and she also pulls inspirations from real life events.
Her song “Mason Jar,” which she thinks is one of her best, was written after a conversation at a bar.
“I was eating dinner at a bar by my house, coming up with song titles, when a very old Alabama man leaned over and asked what I was writing. The conversation turned into him telling me stories about his life, including a particular story about his wife and mason jars.“
WATCH: Caroline perform “Mason Jar”
“You have two minutes to tell a story,” says Lacey. “So every word has to count.If I don’t “feel” what I’m singing or writing, then I need to rewrite and rethink it; if the listeners don’t feel anything, then I need to do a better job at relating what I’m personally feeling.”
Her latest single, “Girl Like You” is based off of her personal experiences, and was a very quick write.
Read More: Could Abi Ann Be The Next Breakout Country Music Star?
“This girl was in love with my then boyfriend and doing everything to get him to dump me for her. I went to my mom asking what to do, and her advice to me was not to do anything,” Caroline said. “I was pretty dumbfounded, but she went on to explain that the issue wasn’t between me and her, it was between my boyfriend and her, and she said ‘If he’s not willing to stand up for you, and show respect for you and your relationship with him, then he’s not someone you should waste time on at all.’”
LISTEN: Lacey Caroline’s “Girl Like You”
Caroline said that she loves every part of the songwriting and recording process, but that her favorite part is performing live.
“I still get butterflies sometimes when I sing, but there is no feeling that compares to losing myself in a song, reliving the moment I’m singing about, and creating that moment for the audience,” Caroline said. “It’s better than a dream to me; in fact, sometimes I feel like I’m dreaming.”
You can check out Lacey Caroline’s music on her Youtube channel or on iTunes, or you can keep up with Lacey herself on Facebook and Twitter.
Like this piece? Rise News just launched a few weeks ago and is only getting started. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date with global news. Have a news tip? (No matter how big or small!) Send it to us- [email protected]
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This Website Shows You What It’s Like To Have Dyslexia
Can you read this passage?:
Of course you can’t.
And that’s what this website about the difficulty of having dyslexia is trying to demonstrate.
Upwards of 7% of the population has dyslexia, making it one of the most common learning disabilities in the world and yet many people don’t really understand it.
While this site may be a bit of an exaggeration, it also does a good job of driving the point home.
Let us know in the comments below if the site is a good representation of your experience with dyslexia.
H/T: Gizmodo
Cover Photo Credit: Eye to Eye National/ Flickr (CC By 2.0)
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What The Rise Of Women In Comedy Really Means About Society
By Kelsey D’Auben
This past Saturday night millions of Americans tuned into the second episode of Saturday Night Live’s 41st season with host Amy Schumer, whose performance included a number of hilarious sketches such as “Porn Teacher,” “Hands Free Selfie Stick,” and an opening monologue where she showcased her roots in stand-up comedy.
Schumer was made an overnight sensation this past summer with the premier of Trainwreck, a film she wrote and starred in. She also won an Emmy award for the third season of her sketch comedy show Inside Amy Schumer.
While hosting on SNL, she also promoted her upcoming HBO special, Amy Schumer: Live at the Apollo, which will be available Saturday. It’s safe to say that just over the past few months Schumer has risen up to the top of the comedic world and has become one of the biggest names in comedy today.
For most of history, men have run the comedy scene. From the early days of Charlie Chaplin, to Monty Python in the 70’s, and even into the early 2000s when Jim Carrey, Adam Sandler, and Will Ferrell dominated the genre.
But recently things seem to be changing.
Schumer, along with others such as Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Mindy Kaling, Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, or any of the very female heavy cast of Saturday Night Live are just a few of the big names you think of when you talk about comedy today. All of these women are constantly gaining success and popularity, especially among the newer and younger audiences of today.
These women have the numbers to back their success too. Some of the most popular comedies at the box office this summer were films featuring female leads. Trainwreck starring Amy Schumer grossed over $130 million, Spy starring Melissa McCarthy over $236 million, and the all female cast of Pitch Perfect earned a whooping $285 million at the box office.
“To a degree, everyone’s going to be offended by something, so you can’t just decide on your material based on not offending anyone”- Sarah Silverman
While on the other end, some comedies with a male lead were not nearly as successful at the box office, including an under whelming performance by the Ed Helms helmed flick- Vacation and Ted 2, a macho soaked comedy about a talking bear.
Female comedies have also been popular with critics. Trainwreck scored an 86% on Rotten Tomatoes, and Spy a very impressive 93%. Meanwhile, Get Hard starring Will Ferrell and Kevin Hart, was expected to be a huge hit only scored a 29% on the popular movie rating website.
So why is it that this type of female driven comedy has gained so much popularity over the past few years? It could well be because comedy is now being aimed at a younger, more socially aware audience. Previous generations were much less conscious of political correctness so comedians of the time felt much less inclined to avoid offensive material, and most of these comics were men.
But this is not the case today. Younger audiences now are much more sensitized and much less comfortable with hearing offensive jokes. They just don’t find it funny anymore. Some older comedians, like Jerry Seinfeld and Chris Rock who were very popular in the 90’s, have even gone so far as to say that they will no longer perform at college campuses because the audiences are “too politically correct.”
However, this old school way of thinking isn’t as popular amongst female comics. Sarah Silverman, whose career also began in the early 90’s and was known for being edgy and not-so-politically correct, has spoken out against comedians like Seinfeld and Rock who believe political correctness is ruining comedy.
“To a degree, everyone’s going to be offended by something, so you can’t just decide on your material based on not offending anyone,” Silverman said in a recent interview. “But, I do think it’s important, as a comedian, as a human, to change with the times. To change with new information.”
Because female comics have only started to be taken seriously within the past few years their style tends to be more progressive and more politically correct to accommodate to the taste of today’s audiences. They are reaching out towards younger demographics that the older male comics just don’t understand. Not only does this progressive female comedy make them more popular amongst younger crowds, but they are also generally more accepted by minorities and other diverse groups because their type of comedy is less likely to exclude people by making them the butt of a joke.
Like this piece? Rise News just launched a few weeks ago and is only getting started. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date with global news. Have a news tip? Send it to us- [email protected]
Cover Photo Credit: Jeffrey Zeldman/ Flickr (CC By 2.0)
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