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| Operation Rochambeau | |
| Name | Operation Rochambeau |
| Description | A cooperative initiative mainly by r/Neoliberal and r/NCD |
| Location | (846,114) |
| Atlas ID | twlj1s |
| Creator | r/NonCredibleDefense, r/NeoLiberal |
Operation Rochambeau was a cooperative initiative brought forwards mostly by members of the subreddits r/Neoliberal and r/NonCredibleDefense, under the initial common goal to put a NATO flag on the r/place canvas. It was the second artwork to be fully completed on r/place, after the OSU logo, which can mostly be attributed to the high level or planning and preparation ahead of the launch of the canvas.
The initiative quickly gathered more support from smaller communities, such as r/GlobalTribe, r/Enough_Sanders_Spam, r/Georgism, .gg/TGF, and to a certain extent r/CLTV and the TNO mod community. These smaller communities were keen to add their contributions mostly around the main artwork.
Due to the relatively small size of the communities running the artwork, there were no attempts at offensive actions on territory outside the artwork itself, and most users remained defensive. As a result, the area remained mostly peaceful and was able to live through the entirety of the 4 days for the most part.
r/place 2022
Creation
The main artwork consists of the central area, held by the Neoliberals on the left and NCD on the right. The Neoliberal globe can be seen on the left side, in a dark red tint wearing sunglasses. This is a reference to the Neoliberal globe meme.
On the left side there is F-35 Chan, mascot and icon of the subreddit r/NonCredibleDefense. The F-35 Lightning II is a fifth-generation stealth fighter jet produced by Lockheed-Martin in the USA, currently operated by multiple NATO members. The artwork is a pixel version of the de facto protagonist of the manga comic series "Flight Highschool" by Anyan. The colour roundel on the wing was subject to debate, as some wanted it to remain blue as initially planned, while others preferred a JSDAF-inspired red roundel on the wing. On both sides of the rectangle, there is pride flags for the Queer and Transgender communities. On the far right side the word "VARK" is spelled out. The word VARK is a recurring joke in the r/NonCredibleDefense subreddit. It is a reference to the F-111 Aardvark multirole aircraft, built by General Dynamics for the US and Australian Air Forces. VARK is a shortened down version of the plane's full name, Aardvark. Stan posting about the Vark (otherwise known as "VARK-posting") is often done in a block repeating the word in all caps (e.g., VARK VARK VARK...).
In the background there is a NATO flag. The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation is a military alliance that encompasses the US, Canada, and a large portion of Europe. NATO and its importance to European security has been reaffirmed after the 2022 Russian Invasion of Ukraine. The artwork of the flag was the project that initially bonded NCD and the Neoliberals to work together.
On top of the main artwork, r/Georgism formed a banner to briefly sum up the ideology. The right banner states "Just Tax Land LOL" while the right banner states "LVT", meaning Land Value Tax. Land Value Taxation is a method of raising public revenue by means of an annual charge on the rental value of land.
Below the main artwork, r/Enough_Sanders_Spam built a small banner. The banner includes two features, the word "BLESS" and the NLAW. The NLAW, meaning Next Generation Light Anti Tank Weapon, is an antitank short-range guided missile system built in the UK and Sweden. It has been notably been provided to and employed by Ukrainian Forces during the 2022 Russian invasion. The NLAW, similarly to the Javelin, has appeared in popular and social media as a symbol of Ukrainian resistance, similarly to the "St. Javelin" meme. The word BLESS is a word play which represents the phrase "Bless the NLAW" and the letters ESS for Enough Sanders Spam. r/ESS is devoted to complaining about left-populism from a generally left-wing or left-leaning perspective.
Below the ESS artwork, the International Flag of Planet Earth can be spotted. The IFOPE-O is a non-profit non-partisan organization representing the proposal of the International Flag of Planet Earth. YWF stands for Young World Federalists and is a global movement to unite humanity under a democratic world federation. In the same rectangle, there is the OFN torch. OFN is the main democratic faction in the The New Order mod for the strategy game Hearts of Iron 4.