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I think I've had enough fun. Its quite enjoyable, but gets boring when predictable

You may call them gangs, but the vast majority of Burmese do not - and certainly do not consider themselves as gangs. They are fighting for freedom, first and foremost, from a succession of military juntas. A small handful, perhaps, see control of natural resources as a secondary aim - but the numbers are tiny compared to the total in the militias. If anyone, it is the Chinese in the Shan State who have for years been after the country's raw materials and other resources - and that has not stopped. I absolutely cannot agree. The situation in Myanmar is hugely complicated and that is not merely the view of your so-called "experts". I would certainly trust a small number of Myanmar historians like Thant Mint-U to provide a very detailed and accurate picture. It seems you are suggesting that the situation in Myanmar is not as complex as I and others have suggested. With respect, perhaps you might therefore tell us more about your own detailed and extensive research that brings you to that view. As far as engaging in discussion with those Burmese outside the country, the fact is that almost no-one has much clue about what is going on within, and this is made more difficult by the day-to-day changes we hear little about. As I have written before, there are about 300 Myanmar journalists camped out near Mae Sot who manfully bring to the world as much news as they can from inside the country. Trump's slashing of USAID means that many now work for either penuts or nothing at all. I have written a book about a boy born in the Shan State in the year 2000. He is now in Switzerland. Three of his siblings have managed to flee to Thailand but his oldest sister and father are still in the country. Typical of the average Myanmar citizens, they have little clue about what is going on within the country as a whole - merely their own small district. That is just not true! The military conscription law covers all males between 18 and 35 - and is likely to have the upper age limit further extended. If Burmese live officially overseas, they can only get new passports if they show certificates either proving their service in the military or a specific reason for not serving. Those merely renewing work papers will have to pay a new tax to the junta government. Some 3 million Burmese work legally in Thailand. If they are illegals in non-essential work, they better hope they are not caught because the Thai government has not been slow in deporting Burmese back to Myanmar. As Roisai Wongsuban, a policy advocate for a Thai NGO said in January, "While all nationalities face similar risks, Myanmar nationals face dual risks - both political opposition groups and ordinary workers uninvolved in politics. If deported, they might be drafted into military service, risking their lives."  https://www.benarnews.org/english/news/thai/myanmar-refugees-thailand-migrants-01252025163854.html I agree with the point you make in your last sentence. But even to suggest "it is misleading that colonialism is the sole or even the primary cause of the current predicament" is absolutely untrue! It is the primary truth! Do you really know anything about Myanmar before and during the British colonial era? Are you aware that the British tore the country apart in terms of governance, economics and religion - all for profit of the British. Are you aware of King Mindon's major reforms for the country which effectively made it the most powerful monarchy in South-East Asia? Are you aware that in the three wars against the British, Mindon's successor Thibaw in the capital Mandalay was so concerned about the British bringing vast numbers of Indians into the lower part of the country they then controlled, that he asked the French for help in getting the British out? Are you aware that Randolph Churchill, Winston's father and at that time Britain's Secretary of State for India, was so infuriated by this he ordered 10,000 British troops to sail up the Irrawaddy and dethrone Thibaw who became Burma's last king? Are you aware that the British terminated the millennia-old alliance between Buddhism and governance of the country? Are you aware that the British destroyed the hitherto self-sufficient economy of  Burma? Are you aware that the British uprooted the extensive mangrove forests in the irrawaddy Delta to make way for a vast increase in rice farms? The opening of the Suez Canal had created new markets for rice and these the British intended to and did exploit making Burma the largest rice exporter in the world. Are you aware that this resulted in soaring land values and major inflation? Are you aware that the British allowed ndian and Chinese merchants to control the rice trade? Cheaper labour from India was then imported resulting in massive unemployment amongst the native Burmese? Are you aware at the beginning of the 20th century, more than 250,000 Indians each year were flocking to Myanmar to work? Are you aware that the governance of the country was in the hands of the British and Indians, without any native Burmese? One who witnessed the destruction of Burma by the British was one of their own. Eric Blair had been born to a poor family in Bengal. Thanks to a scholarship he was educated in England at Eton before returning to work in the Burma colonial police force. Blair took the trouble to learn Burmese, but he hated his time there. He hated the corruption. He was devastated at how Britain was destroying the country. After five years Blair left Bruma and became a writer. In his most famous novel, he wrote, "“Power is tearing human minds to pieces and putting them together again in new shapes of your own choosing.” He learned that from his time in Burma. His name as a writer is George Orwell and that novel is "1984". That is another wholly inaccurate statement. The Chinese Civil War started in 1927 and continued with a short WWII break until the communists won in 1949. Communism in China was a fact 13 years before the 1962 military coup. Communism or fear of it had virtually no role whatever in the Burma coup. As in many countries, it was student uprisings that started that ball rolling. But it was another colonial act which spurred events. Prior to departing the country, under the Panglong Agreement the British colonial government had promised the huge Shan State (almost four times the size of Switzerland) independence within a united Burma ten years after the country's independence. The army was against the agreement and determined that it be torn up. The army feared any form of outside influence if any State broke away. After rebellions in the Shan State, the Panglong Agreement was shredded. I could go on and on. I spent much of last year researching Myanmar and its long history. I am no expert, but I believe I now know vastly more than I  did before I started. I am happy to argue further on specific issues, but generalisations are rather a waste of time in my view.

once again, reading comprehension is key. I said the forming of the “country” not the land. If you’re gonna be one of those caddy-miserable gays at least have some wit and something to say. now, i’ve got a pretty great life to get back to, pls continue to be miserable away from me. perhaps trump will enact a law that’ll get you to truly love yourself, maybe something like, “miserable old racist gays get one free hug per day.” lol take care. 🤷🏾‍♂️

I thought the American continent was formed a few hundred million years when Gondwanaland separated? Anyway glad to hear that your ancestors  were in the building trade. 

yeah… i knew you were an idiot but had to make sure. So the US is millions of years old? Reading comprehension - learn it. White gays who voted for trump yet don’t believe they are the “other” like everyone else are so funny. Good luck.