warsofasoiaf

[warsofasoiaf]

why didn’t cersei as queen of westros feel like she was a higher status of Tywin when she was? He would’ve had to bow to her and he needed her to have private access to the king that only the queen could have as they would be alone in the bedroom and talk.

Not necessarily. Tywin is Hand of the King and has the political clout to seize the regency from Cersei. Plus, Cersei has lived under the shadow of Tywin and his toxic expressions of power all her life. While she assumes some of it due to her role as Queen Regent, Tywin, the man, still looms large over her psyche.

Thanks for the question, Anon.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[warsofasoiaf]

“I think the best Robert would have done would have been to not reward Tywin, which probably would have not reconciled House Martell and probably made Tywin suspicious of Robert. So that's a true example of where doing the right thing leaves you worse off. Unsurprising then, that Robert took the easy way”

I guess that’s what’s interesting about the “what if Robert died of his wounds on the Trident and Stannis was crowned” AU, right? You’ve got a hypothetical young king who, for all his faults, likely would have punished Gregor Clegane and Amory Lorch (probably with execution), and bare minimum would not have rewarded Tywin.

You have a valid point there. House Baratheon under Stannis would have a weaker starting position than under Robert. Stannis is much less personable and has weaker relationships than Robert does with Jon Arryn and Eddard Stark, who would absolutely be key vassals to secure himself. With the dual marriages into the Tullys, the Baratheons maintain a plurality of power, but with the Lannisters on the outs, it would be a lot more sketchy in the aftermath of the Rebellion.

Thanks for the contribution, Anon.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[warsofasoiaf]

Why do you think the Boltons survived their Rebellion again House Stark and House Greystark didn't? For that matter given that they are proven to be historically disloyal why didn't House Stark seek to curtail their power so they weren't as much of a threat that they could rebel again?

No clue. It could have been a House Gardener situation where the male members of the House died on the field. They could have all joined the Night's Watch as penalty for taking arms against their distant cousins. The Lord Stark who waged that war may have come down harder on House Greystark because they were distant familial relations. Without any greater details, all we can do is make a guess.

As to why House Bolton wasn't curtailed more, perhaps the Boltons were able to find the Starks to a standstill and secure a more equitable treaty for the cessation of hostilities. Again, we'd need details to even begin to make educated guesses.

Thanks for the question, Anon.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[warsofasoiaf]

Did the new Baratheon regime have the ability to give Doran the heads of Tywin, Gregor and Amory?

So, there's a couple of questions that go into this. Could we theoretically say that Tywin was acting on Robert's behalf when he sacked King's Landing? Or was he only acting as a vassal after he swore fealty to Robert, since neither Robert nor Eddard (Robert's representative to KL due to Robert's injury) were able to accept his oath of service? Moreover, conventional legal protections for noncombatants in Westeros are poor, and laughably unenforceable during a sack. So while Robert could easily order deaths, it would likely be seen as unusual to seek them out, particularly with Queen Rhaella vowing to continue the war.

Then, from a practical point of view, would Robert see it as beneficial to seek out retribution for Elia to reconcile the Martells, especially after the Martells were willing to march out to support his own unjust execution?

I think the best Robert would have done would have been to not reward Tywin, which probably would have not reconciled House Martell and probably made Tywin suspicious of Robert. So that's a true example of where doing the right thing leaves you worse off. Unsurprising then, that Robert took the easy way.

Thanks for the question, Anon.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[warsofasoiaf]

You have spoken in detail about the incompetence and inefficiencies of the fascist states during WWII. Would you say one of the factors that really hindered Japan was the rivalry between the imperial Army and the imperial Navy?

I would say that their lack of coordination hampered them significantly. It is not hyperbolic to say that this lack of coordination ruined the Japanese defense at Midway. I don't think it contributed more than Japan's lack of materiel and industrial capacity, but the rivalry left Japan unable to coordinate its military behind a single coherent strategy, and causes them to waste sparse resources.

Thanks for the question, Anon.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[warsofasoiaf]

So does trump calling for 90 day hold on most of his Tarriff’s indicates there was a huge backlash? Like when he tried to halt all the federal benefit programs?

I have no special insights into Trump's mind or insider knowledge, but this has the classic hallmark of Trump trying to pivot after being challenged. What probably happened is some combination of business backers threatening to withdraw support and GOP House members threatening to tank his budget due to the impact these tariffs had on the market.

Look at the defenses at the presser that was just held today. The Treasury secretary touts an LNG deal with three allies of East Asia - Japan, South Korea, Taiwan - but these are energy importing countries. They already want to buy energy from the US and Trump has explicitly said he wants to increase US energy exports to these countries. This was a deal that everyone involved *already* wanted. So why do tariffs to bring them to a negotiation...they were already ready to negotiate!

Yet another clown show by a gaggle of incompetents.

Thanks for the question, Anon.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[warsofasoiaf]

what would be the biggest concession and personal act the new Baratheon rule could’ve given to the martells after Ella’s brutal death without effecting their rule or allies (like prosecuting or admiring to what Tywin did and killing the moutain)?

The issue I see is that there's no real concessions that Robert could make to Doran that would get him to accept the new regime as long as he believes he can work to overthrow it via the secret marriage pact. Robert could return Elia's remains, offer tax forgiveness, even offer more autonomy; none of that would mollify Doran. To Doran, the Baratheon regime is irrevocably tainted with Elia's blood and he would never accept it as legitimate.

Thanks for the question, Anon.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[warsofasoiaf]

Do you think Trump will be impeached in 2027

I wouldn't bet on it.

-SLAL

[warsofasoiaf]

I really hate to play the fun killer, but they didn t bring the dire wolf back. They transferred some of his genes to wolves. The real dire "wolf" wasn t even a wolf, and wasn t bigger than one. Think "chickenosaurus", it s a bit of the same exagerated hype. Still an amazing technology of course, especially if it helps to save the red wolf.

Yeah, I was looking into it a little bit today and the science is a lot less grandiose than the clickbait statements of the CEO.

Thanks for the correction, Rig.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[warsofasoiaf]

How did we get Direwolves back?

They sequenced the genome from a dire wolf tooth, and used that sequence to edit that sequence into a gray wolf genome. It was viable because the gray wolf, genetically speaking, shares 99.5% of the dire wolf's genome, so the alterations would not impair the viability of the cell. They've also cloned the red wolf, a critically endangered species, showing the strength of their technology.

Thanks for the question, Cannoli.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[warsofasoiaf]

I just realized we got Direwolves back before Winds of Winter....

Maybe that will be the thing that shocks GRRM enough that he wills the books into being.

-SLAL

[warsofasoiaf]

Did the U.S. have a diplomatic advantage in the past where countries wanted to work with us because we were seen as a stable, steady and trustworthy partner? Or is reliability an overrated virtue in geopolitics?

Reliability is very useful in geopolitics and trade. Entering into a security agreement with a reliable partner increases the deterrent value of the agreement. Trade agreements with reliable partners have value since securing facilities and equipment for production takes years and you don't want the trade environment altered on whim to make the entire project financially unviable.

Arguably that was one of the largest assets of the US-led trade and security agreements, that it led to a safer and more prosperous world. The erosion of the U.S.'s deterrent value (not simply attributable to Trump, but also to the 2nd Iraq War, Obama's weakness in dealing with Syria gassing its civilians and the Russian annexation of Crimea) has led to a less safe world.

That will be a hard asset to reclaim, even if Trump is impeached in 2027.

Thanks for the question, Cle-Guy.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[warsofasoiaf]

Where do nobles without land of their own live?

What's the context of why they don't have land?

Nobles that lost their land (such as rival claimants to the throne) might be guested in another land in the hopes that said country or kingdom could eventually reinstate that claimant. That was very common for the losers of succession wars where the claimant didn't die.

If you mean supernumerary sons that stand to inherit nothing, usually the goal was to either earn lands of their own via conquest (finding a new home), enter the clergy or other political institution to advance house interests that way (in which they'd live in residences owned by the institution in question), become a subinfeudated vassal under their older brother (useful if a border county needed a firm and reliable hand at the tiller due to lack of central capacity), join the tournament circuit and win prizes that way (where they'd live in a pavilion near the tournament grounds), or become a courtier in the court of the king (and live in royal apartments).

Thanks for the question, Anon.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[warsofasoiaf]

Do you think that both the suppression of Dagon Greyjoy and Lyonel Baratheon, in recent memory, by the iron throne, played some part in Maron’s decision not to rebel after Robert’s rebellion?

Were Dagon and Lyonel suppressed? Dagon and Lyonel are both mentioned in A World of Ice and Fire, which is presented as an in-character tome. I think the better theory for Dagon and Lyonel not being mentioned in AGOT is that GRRM hadn't developed that part of the worldbuilding, not that the memory of them was being suppressed.

Also, Maron wasn't in charge of Dorne, that was Doran. I think Doran's decision not to rebel had less to do with Lyonel or Dagon and more to do with the fact that Doran was very unlikely to secure anything. Chances are good that if Doran tried, vassals of his would defect in the hopes of being named the new Princes of Dorne.

Thanks for the question, Ekendall.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[warsofasoiaf]

Not the stormlnders annon but how do I find out the wealth of the kingdoms? I was sure someone did an estimation of them but cannot find it.

The answer to that question is that it was the work of the sadly-departed @racefortheironthrone. You can find it here.

Thanks for the question, Anon.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[warsofasoiaf]

do you think renly being the kings brother and very flamboyant would have a very large routine? Especially with cersei having 500

I think the bigger consideration here is that Renly is already planning on supplanting the Lannisters with the Tyrells - he already knows about the incest and he's trying to foist Margaery on Robert. His backers need to know that when push comes to shove, Renly has the loyalty and command needed to secure himself and Margaery against the Lannisters. So Renly absolutely has to show that he has plenty of loyal retainers and so would have a significant amount of swords under guard.

Renly is also keenly aware of the political imagery of having people see him able to finance such a large staff, with people wearing his livery, and so he wants people to know that Renly has people, because he has the strength and wealth to have them.

Thanks for the question, Anon.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[warsofasoiaf]

The act was supposed to make it so the President broad authority to counteract injurious and unfair foreign trade practices, not so he could cause them.

And? Trump honestly believes trade's natural state is equilibrium and if there's a deficit it means that the country is fleecing the US. The proof for that is based in the "formula" he used to calculate the tariff rate, where he measured the trade deficit rather than any actual appreciable export controls.

This is what I tell folks that push for a strong executive to get rid of the things that they dislike - when you give power to be used for your benefit, that power can be used against you. The consensus on trade in the 1970's, when the law was enacted, believed (largely correctly) that trade would support American prosperity and power, but the power to create trade is the power to restrict it should an irrational ideologue come to power, as is the case right now.

Thanks for the question, Anon.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King