FTF's so-called "the most basic argument", that there is no record of any nation paying tribute to the Babylonians, is easily debunked with Babylonian Chronicle nr. 4, describing the last few years of Nabopallassars reign. A picture of the chronicle is below.
It reads:
1 The eighteenth year of Nabopolassar(608/607): In the month Ulûlu the king of Akkad (Akkad=Babylon) mustered his army and
2 following the bank of the Tigris to the mountains of Bit-Hanunya
3 in the district of Urartu, he went up. He set fire to the cities and
4 plundered them extensively. In the month Tebêtu the king of Akkad went home.
5 The nineteenth year(607/606): In the month Simanu the king of Akkad mustered his army and
6 Nebuchadnezzar, his eldest son, the crown prince,
7 mustered his army. They marched to the mountains of Za[...].
8 The king of Akkad left the prince and his army there while he returned to Babylon in the month of Du'ûzu.
9 After his departure, Nebuchadnezzar did battle at Biranati, situated in the mountains,
10 captured Biranati, set it on fire, and took many prisoners.
11 He conquered all of the mountains as far as the district of Urartu.
12 In the month Ulûlu the prince returned to Babylon. In the month Tašrîtu the king of Akkad mustered his army and
13 marched to Kimuhu, which is on the bank of the Euphrates.
14 He crossed the river, did battle against the city, and in the month Kislîmu he captured the city.
15 He sacked it and stationed a garrison of his in it. In the month Šabatu he went home.
16 The twentieth year(606/605): The army of Egypt marched [17] against the garrison of Kimuhu
17 which the king of Akkad had stationed inside. For four months,
18 they laid siege to the city, captured it, and defeated the garrison of the king of Akkad.
19 In the month Tašrîtu, the king of Akkad mustered his army, marched along the bank of the Euphrates, and
20 pitched camp in Quramatu, which is on the bank of the Euphrates.
21 He had his army cross the Euphrates and they captured [22] Šunadiri, Elammu,
22 and Dahammu, cities of Syria,
23 and plundered them. In the month Šabatu the king of Akkad went home.
24 The army of Egypt, which was in Karchemiš, crossed the Euphrates and
25 against the army of Akkad, which was camped in Quramatu,
26 it marched. They pushed the army of Akkad back so that they withdrew.
27 The twenty-first year(605/604): The king of Akkad stayed home while Nebuchadnezzar, his eldest son
28 and crown prince, mustered the army of Akkad.
Babylonian Chronicle nr. 4 clearly demonstrates that Babylon (or Akkad in the Chronicle) took the spoil of a lot of cities in the period between 609 and 605 BCE, and that during the reign of Nabopalassar, prior to battle of Carcemish and Nebuchadnezzar ascension on the throne in 605. It can also be added that Nabopalassar had already made alliances with quite a few other nations to defeat the many Assyrian strongholds, Cyaxares, the Median King, and the Scythians are specifically mentioned. It is beyond any doubt that Babylon was the dominating partner in all these alliances.
FTF's so-called "the most basic argument", is proven to hold no ground whatsoever, and FTF dishonest reasonings are again exposed.
Hoffnung