Watching Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine play out, it seems the Russian president has vastly underestimated and misunderstood Ukrainians and their president.
Putin, a one-time KGB operative who in 2004 said “there is no such thing as a former KGB man,” has made clear that he lives in a world of the past. The world that existed before the end of the Cold War, a world in which the territories of the former Soviet Union, potentially even the countries of the former Warsaw Pact, are run out of Moscow. A world he is trying to rebuild today.
But the USSR is not Russia, and when you live in the past, you lose touch with the present.
Putin has lost touch with ordinary Russians, despite exercising immense control over what they watch, listen to and read. But to an even greater degree, Putin has lost touch with what Ukrainians think.
It’s the classic mistake of every tyrant: Surround yourself only with sycophants, suck-ups and yes-men, and you never get a reality check in your echo chamber. Eliminate dissenting politicians, and you assume that means you’ve eliminated dissent.
The decisive moment that sealed Ukraine’s fate may well have been the U.S.-led withdrawal from Afghanistan — a country closely watched by the Kremlin, given its key role in the downfall of the USSR, after the Soviets attempted to invade in 1979, and spent almost a decade fighting a losing battle.
When the West left Afghanistan last year, the speed and success of the Taliban takeover of the country would have delighted Putin. The capitulation of the U.S., the impotence of Europe, and the relative ease with which the militants took control of the Afghan capital within days of the Western retreat made Ukraine seem a tantalizing prospect.
Perhaps Putin thought he’d roll into Kyiv the way the Taliban rolled into Kabul, meeting scant resistance from Ukrainians. He seems to have expected to be welcomed in by Russian-speaking Ukrainians as nostalgic for the Soviet heydays as he is. It seems Putin expected Ukrainians to lay down their arms, and for their pro-Western and NATO President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to flee, making space for one of Moscow’s allies. The Kremlin could roll its tanks back to Russia, taking a sizeable chunk of Ukraine with them, and Putin could declare his bogus “peacekeeping” mission over after a few days. He would take some limited casualties, some painful but not devastating sanctions, and then it would be back to business as usual.
And perhaps if Putin had tried this maneuver during the Ukrainian presidencies of his ally Viktor Yanukovych, or of “chocolate king” billionaire Petro Poroshenko, he might have been able to roll into Kyiv the way the Taliban took Kabul last year.
But Putin underestimated Ukraine. The country’s troops have resisted hard and have largely held their cities against a Russian attempt at blitzkrieg. Kyiv claims that its experienced, motivated soldiers have killed thousands of Russians, downed enemy planes and destroyed hundreds of armored vehicles and tanks.
Soon, ordinary Russians will start to feel the chilling effect of those Western sanctions.
Russians know how to suffer, of course. They are used to it. Famine, war, death — these are not hypothetical, far-away, historical things. Even those born as recently as in the ’80s remember being cold and hungry, remember empty shelves and petrol pumps. But during those Soviet years, Russians were suffering for what many saw as the great good.
Will Russians suffer for Putin and his cronies? Will they suffer for a man who lives in a golden palace, and who hasn’t been seen for days?
How long will Russians continue buying into this war — a war they know Putin started, despite what their TVs might be telling them? How long will they watch videos of Ukrainian soldiers telling Russian warships to go fuck themselves in their common tongue?
Ukrainians, in the meantime, are suffering for freedom. They are suffering for Zelenskiy, the man who stayed in Kyiv to fight alongside them. A man who rejected a U.S. evacuation offer, reportedly saying: “The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a ride.”
Zoya Sheftalovich is a contributing editor at POLITICO Europe. She was born in Soviet Ukraine, before moving to Australia after the fall of the USSR.
A pathetic and ignorant group of GOP alleged humor.....especially the last one of the fat fucking asshole that Lil Schitty worships as a false idol and thinks Putin is a savvy genius as people die due to hubris....Yeah.....he runs again ensures the demise of America!!!!
Putin expected Afghanistan in 2021. But he got Afghanistan in 1979. Ukrainians aren’t rolling over or welcoming back an old friend. They, and their president, are digging in for war. Their army is fighting hard. Harsh Western sanctions are targeting Putin and all his oligarch buddies, who were content to keep him in power while it filled their coffers, but who now stand to lose billions.
The Kremlin isn’t orchestrating a relatively bloodless coup in Ukraine any more. It is instead attempting to become an occupying force. And that is a much more difficult proposition for a country, even a large and wealthy one — you don’t need to look much further than Afghanistan to see the problem with external forces (who will, eventually, have to go home), trying to impose ideologies or governments on a people who don’t want them. Add to that those crippling sanctions, and you’re staring down the barrel of a protracted battle that isn’t easily won.
Or, to put it another way: How do you control a country of 44 million Ukrainians who suddenly have something to believe in? And how do you keep your own people on board? ------
It's not about Biden and his administration. The bravery of the people of Ukraine and Putin also underestimated Zelenskiy.
It could even turn Russia into a western style parliamentary democracy.
-----
If that happens during the Sleepy Joe Biden administration, he will go down as one of the greatest of all time.
Germany to Raise Defense Spending Above 2% of GDP February 27, 2022 at 7:03 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment
“Germany will boost military spending above 2% of GDP and create a strategic natural-gas reserve, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Sunday, marking a significant shift in the country’s defense and energy policies in reaction to Russia’s war in Ukraine,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“The measures, all of which had long been resisted by successive governments and will now be reflected in this year’s budget, underline how profoundly Russia’s attack on Ukraine is upending European politics after almost eight decades of nearly uninterrupted peace on the continent.”
The root problem of the GOP is fealty to fat assed trump.....his praise of Putin and you slurpers remaining silent is both disturbing and scary as you behold party instead of country. Like trump, all of you prefer what he offers without a second thought and prefer a killer to peace.....
LZ Granderson Sat, February 26, 2022, 6:00 AM·5 min read In this article:
President Trump chats with Russia's President Vladimir Putin in 2017. The other Presidents Club. (Mikhail Klimentyev / AFP/Getty Images) I enjoy reading books about former presidents. One of my favorites is 2012’s “The Presidents Club” by Nancy Gibbs and Michael Duffy. It’s a peek into the world’s most exclusive fraternity — U.S. presidents — and shares what members have accomplished together and why.
Take Harry Truman, a Democrat, and Herbert Hoover, a Republican. After World War II, during the Truman administration, former President Hoover helped persuade Congress to aid 22 European nations facing famine, which saved millions of lives. The effort also salvaged the idea of what it meant to be human, after the world had witnessed six years of inhumanity.
Their pitch to Congress was that America should be, as the book says, “promoting European recovery as a counterweight against Soviet influence.”
You know, that whole communism/Marxism thing. From that era until the 1990s, being “a counterweight against Soviet influence” was the hallmark of U.S. foreign policy. We even called our Russia strategy “containment.”
So why is a former president of the United States rooting for Russia to be uncontained? Yes, as Russian forces surrounded Ukraine on Wednesday, preparing to invade on Thursday, Donald Trump praised the Russian president as being “pretty smart” for “taking over a country — really a vast, vast location, a great piece of land with a lot of people.”
And why are Republican leaders — the same folks who like to throw the word “communist” around like a poisoned dart — remaining silent about this bizarre and stunning endorsement of the Kremlin?
Sure, I get it, they hate President Biden, they want to own the libs, all of that. But what exactly is the endgame here? Which aspect of the American dream does Trump represent when he responds to Russian forces encircling Ukraine with “this is genius”?
Americans have died because they answered when their commander-in-chief called on them to be a “counterweight against Soviet influence.” We lost more than 30,000 in the Korean War. At least 58,220 Americans died in Vietnam. These sacrifices came to mind while listening to Trump praise Russian President Vladimir Putin. Critics of protesting during the national anthem said kneeling was disrespectful to the troops. Well, how about a member of the
If that happens during the Sleepy Joe Biden administration, he will go down as one of the greatest of all time.
Alky, any man who shits his drawers in front of the Holy See has already gone down as one of the greatest of all time, but not for the reasons you'd think.
Anyway, how's the "mostly peaceful protest" going in Ukraine today?
Meanwhile, in just one year we've had 2 MILLION scumbags from 3rd world shitholes invade our southern border, and someone within the Joey Sprinkles brain trust thought THIS was a good idea:
For the second time in a year, the Biden administration is seeking to divert Customs and Border Protection officers from the southern border crisis to an overseas conflict, this time to help process people fleeing the Russian assault on Ukraine.
In a memo sent Thursday morning and obtained by Just the News, CBP's office of field operations sought volunteers willing to deploy immediately to Poland for "Operation Ukraine Support."
Trump again praises Putin as ‘smart’ — says the problem is 'our leaders are so dumb'
John Wright
February 26, 2022
Former president Donald Trump on Saturday again praised Russian President Vladimir Putin as "smart."
But during a speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Orlando, Trump claimed the real problem is that NATO and other world leaders are "dumb."
"Yesterday reporters asked me if I though President Putin was smart," Trump said. "I said, 'Of course he's smart,' to which I was greeted with, 'Oh, that's such a terrible thing to say.' Yes, he's smart. The NATO nations and indeed the world, as he looks over what's happening strategically with no repercussions or threats whatsoever, they're not so smart, they're looking the opposite of smart. 'If you take over Ukraine, we're going to sanction you,' the say. Sanction? Well that's a pretty weak statement."
"Putin is saying, 'Oh, they're going to sanction me? They've sanctioned me for the last 25 years. You mean I can take over a whole country and they're going to sanction me? You mean they're not going to blow us to pieces, at least psychologically?' The problem is not that Putin is smart, which of course he's smart, but the real problem is that our leaders are dumb, dumb, so dumb."
ANTI PUTIN DEMONSTRATORS CARRYING A BANNER: ____________________
Alky, any man who shits his drawers in front of the Holy See
More demented and disturbed by the day rat.......like 1-6.....putin is just exercising legitimate political discourse....God dayum you are the proverbial box of rocks!!!!!!! Maybe you should grab you 7 mm and head south to protect the US from them shit heads.....BWAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!
Trump Backpedals from Praising Putin February 26, 2022 at 10:52 pm EST By Taegan Goddard 689 Comments
“Donald Trump condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and said he was praying for Ukrainians, switching tone from his praise for Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier this week,” Reuters reports BY CALLING HIM A GENIUS.
Said Trump: “The problem is not that Putin is smart, which, of course, he’s smart. The problem is that our leaders are dumb… and so far, allowed him to get away with this travesty and assault on humanity.”
CNN notes he even called Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky “a brave man” amid Russia’s deadly invasion of his country. _______
Putin has underestimated Zelenskiy and Sleepy Joe Biden.
The United Nations’ refugee agency said late Saturday more than 200,000 Ukrainians have arrived in neighboring countries since the invasion started Thursday. The U.N. has estimated the conflict could produce as many as 4 million refugees, depending how long it continues.
Zelenskyy denounced Russia’s offensive as “state terrorism.” He said the attacks on Ukrainian cities should be investigated by an international war crimes tribunal and cost Russia its place as one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council.
“Russia has taken the path of evil, and the world should come to depriving it of its U.N. Security Council seat,” he said.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said a Russian delegation of military officials and diplomats had arrived Sunday in the Belarusian city of Gomel for talks with Ukraine. Zelenskyy on Friday offered to negotiate a key Russian demand: abandoning ambitions of joining NATO.
Ukraine’s president said his country was ready for peace talks but not in Belarus.
“Warsaw, Bratislava, Budapest, Istanbul, Baku, we offered all of them to the Russian side and we will accept any other city in a country that hasn’t been used for launching missiles," Zelenskyy said. "Only then the talks could be honest and put an end to the war.”
Peskov claimed Ukraine had proposed holding talks in Gomel. He added that the Russian military action was going forward pending the talks start.
Zelenskyy adviser Mykhailo Podolyak dismissed Moscow’s offer as “manipulation,” adding that Ukraine hadn't agreed to talks in the Belarusian city.
As Russia pushes ahead with its offensive, the West is working to equip the outnumbered Ukrainian forces with weapons and ammunition while punishing Russia with far-reaching sanctions intended to further isolate Moscow.
The U.S. pledged an additional $350 million in military assistance to Ukraine, including anti-tank weapons, body armor and small arms. Germany said it would send missiles and anti-tank weapons to the besieged country and that it would close its airspace to Russian planes.
The U.S., European Union and United Kingdom agreed to block “selected” Russian banks from the SWIFT global financial messaging system, which moves money around more than 11,000 banks and other financial institutions worldwide, part of a new round of sanctions aiming to impose a severe cost on Moscow for the invasion. They also agreed to impose ”restrictive measures” on Russia’s central bank.
Responding to a request from Ukraine’s minister of digital transformation, tech billionaire Elon Musk said on Twitter that his satellite-based internet system Starlink was now active in Ukraine and that there were “more terminals en route.”
IN 'A MOSTLY PEACEFUL PROTEST,' Ukraine’s Defenders Hold Kyiv February 27, 2022 at 7:38 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment
“Ukraine’s defenders held on to the country’s capital, Kyiv, on the fourth day of Russia’s invasion and engaged in urban combat in its second-largest city, Kharkiv, as Western governments stepped up their sanctions against Moscow,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Russia signaled its openness to talks with Kyiv, saying that it sent Vladimir Medinsky, an aide to President Vladimir Putin, to the Belarusian city of Homel for negotiations with Ukraine.”
“Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky responded by saying that he is ready for talks in any country other than Belarus, one of the launchpads for the Russian invasion.
Said Zelensky: “Of course we want peace, we want talks, we want the end of the war. We accept any city in any country from which rockets are not being fired at us.” _________
The fact that Russia is even considering having peace talks shows they are being stung and stung badly.
BUT ZELENSKY WOULD NEVER FALL FOR SUCH TALKS BEING HELD IN BELARUS. UNLIKE PUTIN, HE'S NOT CRAZY.
Intermittent explosive disorder (IED) is an impulse-control disorder characterized by sudden episodes of unwarranted anger. The disorder is typified by hostility, impulsivity, and recurrent aggressive outbursts. People with IED essentially “explode” into a rage despite a lack of apparent provocation or reason.
The 5th Beatle has the same disorder, who was forced to live here.
Maybe you should grab you 7 mm and head south to protect the US from them shit heads.....
BWAA, Let me assure you that if I could be issued an open season permit with a no limit tag I'd be headed down there TODAY.
Everyone in DC wants to protect Ukraine's "sovereign borders" while not giving a shit about OURS.
That's about as fucked up a set of priorities as I've seen in quite some time, but par for the course thanks to the imbecile you clowns have installed in the white house.
Intermittent explosive disorder (IED) is an impulse-control disorder characterized by sudden episodes of unwarranted anger. The disorder is typified by hostility, impulsivity, and recurrent aggressive outbursts. People with IED essentially “explode” into a rage despite a lack of apparent provocation or reason.
The 5th Beatle has the same disorder, who was forced to live here.
Your family is may have you committed into a mental health facility...
BWAA, Let me assure you that if I could be issued an open season permit with a no limit tag I'd be headed down there TODAY.
BIG FUCKING WORDS FOR AN ANONYMOUS POSTER WHO WOULD RUN LIKE A STUCK PIG IF YOUR TOWN WAS INVADED!!!!!!! As our borders are secure in spite of your inane opinion....keep speaking for others as you post word salad gibberish that makes no sense!!!!!! BWAAAAAAPAAAAAA!!!!
“Ukraine’s defenders held on to the country’s capital, Kyiv, on the fourth day of Russia’s invasion and engaged in urban combat in its second-largest city, Kharkiv, as Western governments stepped up their sanctions against Moscow,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Russia signaled its openness to talks with Kyiv, saying that it sent Vladimir Medinsky, an aide to President Vladimir Putin, to the Belarusian city of Homel for negotiations with Ukraine.”
“Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky responded by saying that he is ready for talks in any country other than Belarus, one of the launchpads for the Russian invasion.”
Said Zelensky: “Of course we want peace, we want talks, we want the end of the war. We accept any city in any country from which rockets are not being fired at us.”
Why did the Russians invade Ukraine? One reason is that they could afford to. Vladimir Putin’s neo-Tsarist empire has piled up an estimated $631 billion in currency reserves. That’s a lot of mad money, or should we say, conquest money.
And a principal reason that Putin has all that wealth is that the Biden administration has been helping him, however inadvertently.
How did Joe Biden help Putin? Biden imposed energy scarcity on this country, thereby opening up more of the world market for the Russians to sell their energy. And because energy is scarcer, it’s more expensive—all good news for Putin and his military.
Yes, sadly, the Trump-era strategy of American energy dominance gave way to Biden’s plan for energy shrinkage. All in the name, of course, of combating “climate change.”
Indeed, the 46th president’s sickly energy strategy brings to mind that of one his predecessors. That would be the 39th president, Democrat Jimmy Carter, who, like Biden, also presided over energy shrinkage, higher prices, and resulting strategic weakness.
From its own stockpile, the German government will send 1,000 anti-tank weapons and 500 Stinger anti-aircraft defense systems to Ukraine. The government has also authorized the Netherlands to send Ukraine 400 rocket-propelled grenade launchers.
“The Russian invasion of Ukraine marks a turning point,” German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in a statement. “It threatens our entire post-war order. In this situation, it is our duty to do our utmost to support Ukraine in defending itself against Vladimir Putin’s invading army. Germany stands closely by Ukraine’s side.”
A government spokesperson said the weapons will be delivered “as soon as possible.”
Russia was kicked out of the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest on Friday with organisers saying its inclusion could “bring the competition into disrepute.”
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) issued a statement following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine explaining its decision.
The EBU, an alliance of public service media organisations that produces the contest – said its executive board made the decision after a recommendation made by the Eurovision song contest’s governing body.
SUNDAY FUNNY: ANOTHER BITING EXPOSE OF THE PREPOSTEROUS TRUMP REGIME
BOOK: ONE DAMN THING AFTER ANOTHER by William Barr
William Barr Urges GOP to Move On From Trump
Former Attorney General William Barr writes in a new book that former President Donald Trump has “shown he has neither the temperament nor persuasive powers to provide the kind of positive leadership that is needed,” and that it is time for Republicans to focus on rising new leaders in the party, the Wall Street Journal reports. ____
Unchecked autocrats Democracy has also declined globally because democratic leaders have done too little to stand up for themselves, the Freedom House report argued.
As is now clear, the world’s response to Russia’s annexation of the Crimean Peninsula was not enough to deter Putin from going further. Even the sanctions imposed on Russia after its full assault on Ukraine this week stopped short of maximum punishment, sparing much of the Russian energy sector that Europe’s economy still relies on.
At the same time, autocratic governments have increasingly worked together, using their collective economic and political power to create a cushion against punishments from other governments. China approved Russian wheat imports this past week, effectively softening the impact of the West’s new sanctions.
Authoritarians have also abandoned pretenses of democratic norms. Putin, as well as rulers in Nicaragua, Venezuela and elsewhere, once tried to at least maintain the appearance of free and fair elections. But now they regularly jail political opponents, denying the opposition the ability to campaign.
All of these moves have shown other leaders with authoritarian aspirations what they can do as the liberal democratic order loses its sway.
In that context, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is part of a broader test: whether the global erosion of democracy will continue unchecked.
Biden Says Allies Are Completely Unified February 27, 2022 at 8:11 am EST By Taegan Goddard 0 Comments
President Joe Biden said his goal “from the very beginning” was to keep America’s allies on the same page, as Russian leader Vladimir Putin believed he could “split NATO” and proceed with his invasion of Ukraine without encountering much in the way of international resolve or resistance, Politico reports.
Instead, Putin is “producing the exact opposite effect that he intended.”
Blogger Commonsense said... I've never in my life have seen such a mean spirted man cloaked in the vestments
BWAAAAAAAAA!!!!! WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU KIDDING CRAMPS? As you a holy roller cultist support a fat assed lying idiot who thinks he won and Putin is a genius......!!!!!!
Former Attorney General William Barr writes in a new book that former President Donald Trump has “shown he has neither the temperament nor persuasive powers to provide the kind of positive leadership that is needed,” and that it is time for Republicans to focus on rising new leaders in the party, the Wall Street Journal reports.
I am all for turning to the new, rising leaders...in both parties. I would love to turn the page on Biden, Trump, Pence, Harris, Pelosi, McConnell, Schumer, durbin, Hillary. The Republicans do have a decent bench. Not sure the democrats do. In fact, I asked here, who are the next group of leaders in the dem party. No one answered me. Other than AOC, who?
And aside from all of his drama, Trump did have some effective policies. Too bad Biden started reversing them right on day one.
I've never in my life have seen such a mean spirted man cloaked in the vestments of God as the Reverend.
According to the pederast, Jesus Christ himself would be seeking the execution of Tucker Carlson because a heart consumed with hatred is a very Christian thing, you know.
I wonder... would Jesus be seeking a crucifixion, or just a good old beheading a la John The Baptist?
No, Putin Isn't a Defender of 'Christian Values' The country is one of the most egregious violators of religious liberty on the planet. by Billy Binion Feb 25, 2022
Russia's invasion of Ukraine has pitted much of the world into two teams, as war tends to do. The prevailing sentiment in the West appears to be pro-Ukraine. But among certain corners of the chattering classes, there's somewhat of a third team: one that isn't anti-Ukraine, per se, but also isn't anti-Russia. There is one foe, and it is America.
Its loudest adherents, ironically, are arguably U.S. nationalists—who to varying degrees admire Russian President Vladimir Putin's attempt at cultivating what they say is a more moral nation. "I actually support Putin's right to protect his people and always put his people first but also protect their Christian values," said Lauren Witzke, the Delaware GOP candidate for U.S. Senate in 2020. "I identify more with…Putin's Christian values than I do with Joe Biden's."
Though Witzke took the fringiest route, she is not alone in her overall approach. Steve Bannon, once an adviser to former President Donald Trump, noted approvingly on his podcast this week that at least "Putin ain't woke."
Fox News host Tucker Carlson similarly admonished his audience: "It might be worth asking yourself…what is this really about? Why do I hate Putin so much?" he probed as he pushed back on the idea that the U.S. should intervene. "Is he teaching my children to embrace racial discrimination? Is he making fentanyl? Is he trying to snuff out Christianity?" (The monologue was later recycled by RT, Russia's government-controlled television network.)
It may be true that Putin isn't "making fentanyl." But to defend an isolationist position, one need not make light of the Russian president's moral atrocities—which have less to do with critical race theory and more to do with allegedly jailing and murdering dissidents.
Perhaps most ironic about Carlson's last question—and also per Witzke's comments—is that Putin, while a self-avowed adherent to Russian Orthodoxy, has been no friend to religious expression. In 2016, he passed a law criminalizing evangelical efforts outside of church walls—a measure that hamstrings religious life in public, in the home, and online, and thus targets many Christians for displays of faith. Those displays don't have to be overt: In 2019, a Baptist pastor was charged with illegal missionary activity for having the audacity to lead a Baptist worship service, and two members of the same sect found themselves in hot water after handing out religious literature at a bus stop. Jehovah's Witnesses are often at the center of such prosecutions as well and can face up to 10 years in prison.
The restrictions also likely impact the Orthodox community, as the government requires that anyone sharing a faith have a permit to do so and constrain those efforts to religious sites. In 2017, a year after the law's passage, Russia earned an unenviable distinction on the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom's list of countries most hostile to the expression of faith. As of last year, it still sits atop that list, along with Syria, India, and Vietnam—places that perpetuate "systematic, ongoing, and egregious" violations of religious liberty.
Conservative expressions of affection for Putin's supposed moral clarity are perhaps louder than usual. That doesn't mean they're new. "While privacy and freedom of thought, religion and speech are cherished rights, to equate traditional marriage and same-sex marriage is to equate good with evil," wrote former White House Communications Director Pat Buchanan in 2013, as he approvingly summarized Putin's opposition to the latter. "No moral confusion here, this is moral clarity."
But once again, Buchanan et. al need not align themselves with a murderous despot in order to take a principled stand for traditional marriage—particularly when considering that the Russian president's positioning may be rooted more in strategy than in faith.
"Putin is seeking to tighten his grip on Ukraine and Belarus, as well as expand Russian influence further into Eastern and Central Europe," wrote Alexis Mrachek and Shane McCrum for the conservative Heritage Foundation in 2019. That feels a bit prophetic now: "He will undoubtedly continue to promote Orthodoxy in the process. This is simply an attempt to seduce former Soviet republics back under the sway of Russia."
The Soviet Union of Putin's younger days was staunchly atheistic and used secularism as a tool to secure state worship. That ultimately failed. In some sense, Putin has subverted the approach to religion—leaning heavily on it as opposed to eschewing it—to arrive at the same end goal: state worship.
"The reality is that Russia is not the most religious nation in the world as far as…American evangelicals would recognize," says David French, a senior editor at The Dispatch who writes extensively on religion and U.S. conservatism. "I think it's much more a 'the enemy of an enemy is my friend.'…
[Putin's] opposition to some of the international forces that some folks on the right in the United States despise the most creates a dynamic where there's a strange new respect for Putin, or sort of perceived understanding of Putin, or a perception that Putin can represent a welcome rebuke to an international order that they dislike." The things they take issue with may range from the United Nations to pronouns in bio.
In that regard, Putin has been waging a different war for years—a cultural one, where he has strategically placed himself at the front of the battlefield and succeeded in wooing some high-profile figures on the American right. That's not because the Christian values he espouses are necessarily important to him; I doubt many religious adherents would describe killing and poisoning critics as fruits of the Spirit. He's tried to obscure those cruelties by erecting himself as a moral bulwark against deviance. It's a tall order—and yet, somehow, in certain corners, he's succeeded.
YOU GOTTA REALLY WONDER ABOUT THE MENTAL MINDSET OF EVANGELICALS AND FUNDAMENTALISTS WHO FALL FOR THIS!
Obama administration retreads are following the same playbook as the original Obama administration: “We’re going to keep at it to ensure the American people are paying their fair share for gas,” is the perfect Kinsley Gaffe for an Obama administration retread like Biden: As Steven Chu, Obama’s then-incoming energy secretary, told the Wall Street Journal in the fall of 2008: “Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe.”
So is it fair to ask if Biden is on the payroll of Putin? As Walter Russell Mead wrote in 2017:
If Trump were the Manchurian candidate that people keep wanting to believe that he is, here are some of the things he’d be doing:
Limiting fracking as much as he possibly could Blocking oil and gas pipelines Opening negotiations for major nuclear arms reductions Cutting U.S. military spending Trying to tamp down tensions with Russia’s ally Iran.
“Yep,” Glenn added in late 2019. “You know who did do these things? Obama. You know who supports these things now? Democrats.”
Commonsense, if you actually think the Russian Orthodox Church has been "standing up to Putin," you really are deficient in understanding basic historical realities.
Regulation of private firearms in Ukraine is ranked as permissive, rather than restrictive. Rifles and shotguns are allowed for hunting, target shooting, collection, protection of person or property and private security.
Now those guns are being used to kill the Sons of Bitches Ruskies.
Fuck it kill all the invades, and let God Sort them out.
Much as it was in the time of the Czars, the present day Russian Orthodox church is corrupt, having sold out to supporting the wealthy cronies who surround Putin and, like him, are robbing the country blind.
I guess someone here has overlooked the fact that the government of Ukraine recently HANDED OUT assault weapons to Ukrainian civilians willing to defend the country.
I guess someone here has overlooked the fact that the government of Ukraine recently HANDED OUT assault weapons to Ukrainian civilians willing to defend the country.
They did NOT already have them.
Whereas WE here in the US DO already have them, thanks to our 2nd Amendment.
If this is how you choose to promote the failures of leftism pederast, you're definitely on the right track.
Hundreds of MILLIONS of Americans are sitting on hundreds of MILLIONS of firearms and perhaps a TRILLION rounds of ammunition specifically for the reasons we are seeing play out in Ukraine.
In other words, we've overlooked exactly NOTHING.
You assholes on the other hand...
If leftism ever delivers a situation similar to Ukraine to our doors, we won't need a time out to distribute arms. We'll have them at the ready.
Much as it was in the time of the Czars, the present day Russian Orthodox church is corrupt, having sold out to supporting the wealthy cronies who surround Putin and, like him, are robbing the country blind.
And that is exactly what is wrong with much of the religious right in America: evangelicals and fundamentalists who fool their people into believing their rightwing lies and make them think they are defending America while in reality the wealthy Republican oligarchy are all the time robbing our middle classes blind.
Reality check for Commonsense: Putin is no communist.
Is there still a communist party in Russia?
Russia does have opposition parties to Putin's United Russia, but they are neutered and are in support of his invasion of Ukraine.
Update: 25 February 2022 08:42 EST
Is there still a communist party in Russia?
Russia is a dictatorship in all but name, controlled at the top by President Vladimir Putin with his cronies and oligarch friends below him. His party, United Russia, dominates both the legislative and executive arms of government, giving him an effective free reign to run the country. As seen days ago his cabinet fears him, stumbling and trembling through a scripted attack on Ukraine while Putin basked in the array of subservience before him.
People would be remiss to compare this government with the Soviet Union. Putin's government is not communist nor even socialist. It is a reactionary and right-wing government. Remnants of Russia's soviet past exist in the form of the Russian communists, who have a not inconsiderbale amount of support inside the state.
Why are the communists popular?
The Soviet Union still holds a place in the heart of many Russians. It was a time where they were one of two superpowers in the world, and despite how hard Putin wants Russia to be in that state again, Russia is not. Many Russians grew up during the time of the Soviet Union too.
Much has been made of Putin's comments in support of Josef Stalin. Despite the numerous horrendous acts under his regime, Stalin was the leader of Russia when they defeated the Nazi's almost single-handedly in the Great Patriotic War, known the the west as the Second World War. Each year there are massive celebrations in Moscow for this.
Like much support for changes to the status quo, it is also based around economic troubles. Since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, the population rate in Russia has been in constant decline. After small but consistent growth during the 1970s through 1990s, the population decreased for 20 years straight before a small rebound, thoguh is now falling again. Russia is not a happy place to live.
This is further reflected in graphs for living standards. In 2020, the average Russian had 11 percent less money to spend than in 2013. The poverty rate has also been rising consistently since 2014, increasing by 8.5 percentage points in seven years. This breeds dissatisfaction, which could be a pointer towards renewed support for the communists in the last elections in September 2021.
In the latest round of Russian elections, the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF), the successor to the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, won 57 out of 450 seats in the State Duma. It is the second largest party in the lower parliamentary house, behind President Putin's United Russia party.
Despite being the main opposition, they have next to no power and are enthusiastic supports of Russia's current invasion. In a recent opinion article, leader Gennardy Zyuganov decried the Ukranian government as 'vassals' of the United States. He added that his party was prepared to support Putin's government in defending the two breakaway states in Ukraine, and echoed the Russian propaganda line that Ukraine was committing genocide against Russians.
Russia is a deeply authoritarian state, and none of the small parties in the Duma have any power.
IT'S TIME TO GET REAL ABOUT THE REAL SITUATION. ________
Honest, decent, truthful Rev. said... JUST KEEP PUTTING UP SUNDAY FUNNIES PROPAGANDA NONSENSE
MEANWHILE,
Putin Orders Nuclear Deterrent Forces on Alert February 27, 2022 at 8:27 am EST By Taegan Goddard 139 Comments
Russian President Vladimir Putin has put Russian nuclear deterrent forces on alert, as he continues his unprovoked assault and invasion of Ukraine, Axios reports.
I guess someone here has overlooked the fact that the government of Ukraine recently HANDED OUT assault weapons to Ukrainian civilians willing to defend the country." Jamie
Nope, we day that .
Did you see this : Regulation of private firearms in Ukraine is ranked as permissive, rather than restrictive. Rifles and shotguns are allowed for hunting, target shooting, collection, protection of person or property and private security.
Now those guns are being used to kill the Sons of Bitches Ruskies.
Fuck it kill all the invades, and let God Sort them out.
75 comments:
Watching Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine play out, it seems the Russian president has vastly underestimated and misunderstood Ukrainians and their president.
Putin, a one-time KGB operative who in 2004 said “there is no such thing as a former KGB man,” has made clear that he lives in a world of the past. The world that existed before the end of the Cold War, a world in which the territories of the former Soviet Union, potentially even the countries of the former Warsaw Pact, are run out of Moscow. A world he is trying to rebuild today.
But the USSR is not Russia, and when you live in the past, you lose touch with the present.
Putin has lost touch with ordinary Russians, despite exercising immense control over what they watch, listen to and read. But to an even greater degree, Putin has lost touch with what Ukrainians think.
It’s the classic mistake of every tyrant: Surround yourself only with sycophants, suck-ups and yes-men, and you never get a reality check in your echo chamber. Eliminate dissenting politicians, and you assume that means you’ve eliminated dissent.
The decisive moment that sealed Ukraine’s fate may well have been the U.S.-led withdrawal from Afghanistan — a country closely watched by the Kremlin, given its key role in the downfall of the USSR, after the Soviets attempted to invade in 1979, and spent almost a decade fighting a losing battle.
When the West left Afghanistan last year, the speed and success of the Taliban takeover of the country would have delighted Putin. The capitulation of the U.S., the impotence of Europe, and the relative ease with which the militants took control of the Afghan capital within days of the Western retreat made Ukraine seem a tantalizing prospect.
Perhaps Putin thought he’d roll into Kyiv the way the Taliban rolled into Kabul, meeting scant resistance from Ukrainians. He seems to have expected to be welcomed in by Russian-speaking Ukrainians as nostalgic for the Soviet heydays as he is. It seems Putin expected Ukrainians to lay down their arms, and for their pro-Western and NATO President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to flee, making space for one of Moscow’s allies. The Kremlin could roll its tanks back to Russia, taking a sizeable chunk of Ukraine with them, and Putin could declare his bogus “peacekeeping” mission over after a few days. He would take some limited casualties, some painful but not devastating sanctions, and then it would be back to business as usual.
And perhaps if Putin had tried this maneuver during the Ukrainian presidencies of his ally Viktor Yanukovych, or of “chocolate king” billionaire Petro Poroshenko, he might have been able to roll into Kyiv the way the Taliban took Kabul last year.
But Putin underestimated Ukraine. The country’s troops have resisted hard and have largely held their cities against a Russian attempt at blitzkrieg. Kyiv claims that its experienced, motivated soldiers have killed thousands of Russians, downed enemy planes and destroyed hundreds of armored vehicles and tanks.
Putin also underestimated Zelenskiy.
Soon, ordinary Russians will start to feel the chilling effect of those Western sanctions.
Russians know how to suffer, of course. They are used to it. Famine, war, death — these are not hypothetical, far-away, historical things. Even those born as recently as in the ’80s remember being cold and hungry, remember empty shelves and petrol pumps. But during those Soviet years, Russians were suffering for what many saw as the great good.
Will Russians suffer for Putin and his cronies? Will they suffer for a man who lives in a golden palace, and who hasn’t been seen for days?
How long will Russians continue buying into this war — a war they know Putin started, despite what their TVs might be telling them? How long will they watch videos of Ukrainian soldiers telling Russian warships to go fuck themselves in their common tongue?
Ukrainians, in the meantime, are suffering for freedom. They are suffering for Zelenskiy, the man who stayed in Kyiv to fight alongside them. A man who rejected a U.S. evacuation offer, reportedly saying: “The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a ride.”
Zoya Sheftalovich is a contributing editor at POLITICO Europe. She was born in Soviet Ukraine, before moving to Australia after the fall of the USSR.
RUSSIA IS A SNAKE THAT HAS SWALLOWED A PORCUPINE.
IT TAKE A WHILE,
BUT THE SNAKE DIES.
PUTIN SAYS
THE UKRAINIAN RESISTORS
ARE "NAZIS."
TRUMP SAYS PUTIN
IS A "GENIUS."
A pathetic and ignorant group of GOP alleged humor.....especially the last one of the fat fucking asshole that Lil Schitty worships as a false idol and thinks Putin is a savvy genius as people die due to hubris....Yeah.....he runs again ensures the demise of America!!!!
ANTI PUTIN DEMONSTRATORS CARRYING A BANNER:
____________________
"UKRAINE -- PEACE"
"RUSSIA -- FREEDOM"
_____________________
Putin expected Afghanistan in 2021. But he got Afghanistan in 1979. Ukrainians aren’t rolling over or welcoming back an old friend. They, and their president, are digging in for war. Their army is fighting hard. Harsh Western sanctions are targeting Putin and all his oligarch buddies, who were content to keep him in power while it filled their coffers, but who now stand to lose billions.
The Kremlin isn’t orchestrating a relatively bloodless coup in Ukraine any more. It is instead attempting to become an occupying force. And that is a much more difficult proposition for a country, even a large and wealthy one — you don’t need to look much further than Afghanistan to see the problem with external forces (who will, eventually, have to go home), trying to impose ideologies or governments on a people who don’t want them. Add to that those crippling sanctions, and you’re staring down the barrel of a protracted battle that isn’t easily won.
Or, to put it another way: How do you control a country of 44 million Ukrainians who suddenly have something to believe in? And how do you keep your own people on board?
------
It's not about Biden and his administration. The bravery of the people of Ukraine and Putin also underestimated Zelenskiy.
It could even turn Russia into a western style parliamentary democracy.
-----
If that happens during the Sleepy Joe Biden administration, he will go down as one of the greatest of all time.
Have a nice day cheering for Putin.
https://www.politico.eu/article/ukraine-war-russia-vladimir-putin-miscalculation/
Germany to Raise Defense Spending Above 2% of GDP
February 27, 2022 at 7:03 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment
“Germany will boost military spending above 2% of GDP and create a strategic natural-gas reserve, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Sunday, marking a significant shift in the country’s defense and energy policies in reaction to Russia’s war in Ukraine,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“The measures, all of which had long been resisted by successive governments and will now be reflected in this year’s budget, underline how profoundly Russia’s attack on Ukraine is upending European politics after almost eight decades of nearly uninterrupted peace on the continent.”
The root problem of the GOP is fealty to fat assed trump.....his praise of Putin and you slurpers remaining silent is both disturbing and scary as you behold party instead of country. Like trump, all of you prefer what he offers without a second thought and prefer a killer to peace.....
LZ Granderson
Sat, February 26, 2022, 6:00 AM·5 min read
In this article:
President Trump chats with Russia's President Vladimir Putin in 2017.
The other Presidents Club. (Mikhail Klimentyev / AFP/Getty Images)
I enjoy reading books about former presidents. One of my favorites is 2012’s “The Presidents Club” by Nancy Gibbs and Michael Duffy. It’s a peek into the world’s most exclusive fraternity — U.S. presidents — and shares what members have accomplished together and why.
Take Harry Truman, a Democrat, and Herbert Hoover, a Republican. After World War II, during the Truman administration, former President Hoover helped persuade Congress to aid 22 European nations facing famine, which saved millions of lives. The effort also salvaged the idea of what it meant to be human, after the world had witnessed six years of inhumanity.
Their pitch to Congress was that America should be, as the book says, “promoting European recovery as a counterweight against Soviet influence.”
You know, that whole communism/Marxism thing. From that era until the 1990s, being “a counterweight against Soviet influence” was the hallmark of U.S. foreign policy. We even called our Russia strategy “containment.”
So why is a former president of the United States rooting for Russia to be uncontained? Yes, as Russian forces surrounded Ukraine on Wednesday, preparing to invade on Thursday, Donald Trump praised the Russian president as being “pretty smart” for “taking over a country — really a vast, vast location, a great piece of land with a lot of people.”
And why are Republican leaders — the same folks who like to throw the word “communist” around like a poisoned dart — remaining silent about this bizarre and stunning endorsement of the Kremlin?
Sure, I get it, they hate President Biden, they want to own the libs, all of that. But what exactly is the endgame here? Which aspect of the American dream does Trump represent when he responds to Russian forces encircling Ukraine with “this is genius”?
Americans have died because they answered when their commander-in-chief called on them to be a “counterweight against Soviet influence.” We lost more than 30,000 in the Korean War. At least 58,220 Americans died in Vietnam. These sacrifices came to mind while listening to Trump praise Russian President Vladimir Putin. Critics of protesting during the national anthem said kneeling was disrespectful to the troops. Well, how about a member of the
If that happens during the Sleepy Joe Biden administration, he will go down as one of the greatest of all time.
Alky, any man who shits his drawers in front of the Holy See has already gone down as one of the greatest of all time, but not for the reasons you'd think.
Anyway, how's the "mostly peaceful protest" going in Ukraine today?
Meanwhile, in just one year we've had 2 MILLION scumbags from 3rd world shitholes invade our southern border, and someone within the Joey Sprinkles brain trust thought THIS was a good idea:
For the second time in a year, the Biden administration is seeking to divert Customs and Border Protection officers from the southern border crisis to an overseas conflict, this time to help process people fleeing the Russian assault on Ukraine.
In a memo sent Thursday morning and obtained by Just the News, CBP's office of field operations sought volunteers willing to deploy immediately to Poland for "Operation Ukraine Support."
https://justthenews.com/government/security/exclusive-despite-southern-border-crisis-cbp-agents-asked-deploy-europe-ukraine?utm_source=breaking&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletter
Might as well send them since they're not doing a fucking thing on our southern border anyway...
As the worst President ever
Trump again praises Putin as ‘smart’ — says the problem is 'our leaders are so dumb'
John Wright
February 26, 2022
Former president Donald Trump on Saturday again praised Russian President Vladimir Putin as "smart."
But during a speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Orlando, Trump claimed the real problem is that NATO and other world leaders are "dumb."
"Yesterday reporters asked me if I though President Putin was smart," Trump said. "I said, 'Of course he's smart,' to which I was greeted with, 'Oh, that's such a terrible thing to say.' Yes, he's smart. The NATO nations and indeed the world, as he looks over what's happening strategically with no repercussions or threats whatsoever, they're not so smart, they're looking the opposite of smart. 'If you take over Ukraine, we're going to sanction you,' the say. Sanction? Well that's a pretty weak statement."
"Putin is saying, 'Oh, they're going to sanction me? They've sanctioned me for the last 25 years. You mean I can take over a whole country and they're going to sanction me? You mean they're not going to blow us to pieces, at least psychologically?' The problem is not that Putin is smart, which of course he's smart, but the real problem is that our leaders are dumb, dumb, so dumb."
ANTI PUTIN DEMONSTRATORS CARRYING A BANNER:
____________________
"UKRAINE -- PEACE"
"RUSSIA -- FREEDOM"
As usual the racist rodent bastard complains about beaners and the at the border.
Alky, any man who shits his drawers in front of the Holy See
More demented and disturbed by the day rat.......like 1-6.....putin is just exercising legitimate political discourse....God dayum you are the proverbial box of rocks!!!!!!! Maybe you should grab you 7 mm and head south to protect the US from them shit heads.....BWAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!
Trump Backpedals from Praising Putin
February 26, 2022 at 10:52 pm EST By Taegan Goddard 689 Comments
“Donald Trump condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and said he was praying for Ukrainians, switching tone from his praise for Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier this week,” Reuters reports BY CALLING HIM A GENIUS.
Said Trump:
“The problem is not that Putin is smart, which, of course, he’s smart. The problem is that our leaders are dumb… and so far, allowed him to get away with this travesty and assault on humanity.”
CNN notes he even called Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky “a brave man” amid Russia’s deadly invasion of his country.
_______
"The problem is that our leaders are dumb…"
DURING YOUR ADMINISTRATION, YES.
lol RACIST RAT CALLS WHAT IS HAPPENING IN UKRAINE A "MOSTLY PEACEFUL PROTEST."
NEEDS A BRAIN TRANSPLANT.
Putin has underestimated Zelenskiy and Sleepy Joe Biden.
The United Nations’ refugee agency said late Saturday more than 200,000 Ukrainians have arrived in neighboring countries since the invasion started Thursday. The U.N. has estimated the conflict could produce as many as 4 million refugees, depending how long it continues.
Zelenskyy denounced Russia’s offensive as “state terrorism.” He said the attacks on Ukrainian cities should be investigated by an international war crimes tribunal and cost Russia its place as one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council.
“Russia has taken the path of evil, and the world should come to depriving it of its U.N. Security Council seat,” he said.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said a Russian delegation of military officials and diplomats had arrived Sunday in the Belarusian city of Gomel for talks with Ukraine. Zelenskyy on Friday offered to negotiate a key Russian demand: abandoning ambitions of joining NATO.
Ukraine’s president said his country was ready for peace talks but not in Belarus.
“Warsaw, Bratislava, Budapest, Istanbul, Baku, we offered all of them to the Russian side and we will accept any other city in a country that hasn’t been used for launching missiles," Zelenskyy said. "Only then the talks could be honest and put an end to the war.”
Peskov claimed Ukraine had proposed holding talks in Gomel. He added that the Russian military action was going forward pending the talks start.
Zelenskyy adviser Mykhailo Podolyak dismissed Moscow’s offer as “manipulation,” adding that Ukraine hadn't agreed to talks in the Belarusian city.
As Russia pushes ahead with its offensive, the West is working to equip the outnumbered Ukrainian forces with weapons and ammunition while punishing Russia with far-reaching sanctions intended to further isolate Moscow.
The U.S. pledged an additional $350 million in military assistance to Ukraine, including anti-tank weapons, body armor and small arms. Germany said it would send missiles and anti-tank weapons to the besieged country and that it would close its airspace to Russian planes.
The U.S., European Union and United Kingdom agreed to block “selected” Russian banks from the SWIFT global financial messaging system, which moves money around more than 11,000 banks and other financial institutions worldwide, part of a new round of sanctions aiming to impose a severe cost on Moscow for the invasion. They also agreed to impose ”restrictive measures” on Russia’s central bank.
Responding to a request from Ukraine’s minister of digital transformation, tech billionaire Elon Musk said on Twitter that his satellite-based internet system Starlink was now active in Ukraine and that there were “more terminals en route.”
Well pederast, if burning Minneapolis to the fucking ground was a mostly peaceful protest, then so is Ukraine.
For some reason you don't like it when we use the tortured logic of the left against you and to mock you.
Oh well...
LOL.
Mostly peaceful protest it is.
IN 'A MOSTLY PEACEFUL PROTEST,'
Ukraine’s Defenders Hold Kyiv
February 27, 2022 at 7:38 am EST By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment
“Ukraine’s defenders held on to the country’s capital, Kyiv, on the fourth day of Russia’s invasion and engaged in urban combat in its second-largest city, Kharkiv, as Western governments stepped up their sanctions against Moscow,”
the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Russia signaled its openness to talks with Kyiv, saying that it sent Vladimir Medinsky, an aide to President Vladimir Putin, to the Belarusian city of Homel for negotiations with Ukraine.”
“Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky responded by saying that he is ready for talks in any country other than Belarus, one of the launchpads for the Russian invasion.
Said Zelensky:
“Of course we want peace, we want talks, we want the end of the war. We accept any city in any country from which rockets are not being fired at us.”
_________
The fact that Russia is even considering having peace talks shows they are being stung and stung badly.
BUT ZELENSKY WOULD NEVER FALL FOR SUCH TALKS BEING HELD IN BELARUS.
UNLIKE PUTIN, HE'S NOT CRAZY.
He's a victim of
Intermittent explosive disorder (IED) is an impulse-control disorder characterized by sudden episodes of unwarranted anger. The disorder is typified by hostility, impulsivity, and recurrent aggressive outbursts. People with IED essentially “explode” into a rage despite a lack of apparent provocation or reason.
The 5th Beatle has the same disorder, who was forced to live here.
His family may have to intervene...
was a mostly peaceful protest, then so is Ukraine.
BWAAAAAAAA!!!! And you are mentally deranged and should seek help!!!!! Your hatred of the US is sickening and troubled!!!
Maybe you should grab you 7 mm and head south to protect the US from them shit heads.....
BWAA, Let me assure you that if I could be issued an open season permit with a no limit tag I'd be headed down there TODAY.
Everyone in DC wants to protect Ukraine's "sovereign borders" while not giving a shit about OURS.
That's about as fucked up a set of priorities as I've seen in quite some time, but par for the course thanks to the imbecile you clowns have installed in the white house.
DEAR POOTY POOT,
IN CASE YOU HAVE NOT YET GOTTEN THE MESSAGE:
EVEN WITH A FORCE OF 200,000 SOLDIERS, YOU CANNOT HOLD A COUNTRY OF FOUR MILLION PEPOLE WHO ARE DEAD SET AGAINST YOU.
PEOPLE
The British learned something like that in our revolution.
You are a victim of
Intermittent explosive disorder (IED) is an impulse-control disorder characterized by sudden episodes of unwarranted anger. The disorder is typified by hostility, impulsivity, and recurrent aggressive outbursts. People with IED essentially “explode” into a rage despite a lack of apparent provocation or reason.
The 5th Beatle has the same disorder, who was forced to live here.
Your family is may have you committed into a mental health facility...
BWAA, Let me assure you that if I could be issued an open season permit with a no limit tag I'd be headed down there TODAY.
BIG FUCKING WORDS FOR AN ANONYMOUS POSTER WHO WOULD RUN LIKE A STUCK PIG IF YOUR TOWN WAS INVADED!!!!!!! As our borders are secure in spite of your inane opinion....keep speaking for others as you post word salad gibberish that makes no sense!!!!!! BWAAAAAAPAAAAAA!!!!
Ukraine’s Defenders Hold Kyiv
“Ukraine’s defenders held on to the country’s capital, Kyiv, on the fourth day of Russia’s invasion and engaged in urban combat in its second-largest city, Kharkiv, as Western governments stepped up their sanctions against Moscow,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Russia signaled its openness to talks with Kyiv, saying that it sent Vladimir Medinsky, an aide to President Vladimir Putin, to the Belarusian city of Homel for negotiations with Ukraine.”
“Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky responded by saying that he is ready for talks in any country other than Belarus, one of the launchpads for the Russian invasion.”
Said Zelensky: “Of course we want peace, we want talks, we want the end of the war. We accept any city in any country from which rockets are not being fired at us.”
Losses of Russia in three days of the war are many
27 February, 2022
ODESSA REGION
SBU (Ukrainian Secret Service) releases secret documents of Russian invaders
MEDICINE
Ukraine asks the Red Cross to repatriate thousands of bodies to Russia, as Russia remains silent about their losses.
(The Russians have crematoria vehicles with them designed to turn bodies to ashes. Russian Orthodox religion forbids cremation.)
https://politicalwire.com/2022/02/27/ukraines-defenders-hold-kyiv/
Carter 2.0
Why did the Russians invade Ukraine? One reason is that they could afford to. Vladimir Putin’s neo-Tsarist empire has piled up an estimated $631 billion in currency reserves. That’s a lot of mad money, or should we say, conquest money.
And a principal reason that Putin has all that wealth is that the Biden administration has been helping him, however inadvertently.
How did Joe Biden help Putin? Biden imposed energy scarcity on this country, thereby opening up more of the world market for the Russians to sell their energy. And because energy is scarcer, it’s more expensive—all good news for Putin and his military.
Yes, sadly, the Trump-era strategy of American energy dominance gave way to Biden’s plan for energy shrinkage. All in the name, of course, of combating “climate change.”
Indeed, the 46th president’s sickly energy strategy brings to mind that of one his predecessors. That would be the 39th president, Democrat Jimmy Carter, who, like Biden, also presided over energy shrinkage, higher prices, and resulting strategic weakness.
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2022/02/26/pinkerton-like-jimmy-carter-joe-biden-lost-the-energy-war-with-russia/
Even Redstate etc
From its own stockpile, the German government will send 1,000 anti-tank weapons and 500 Stinger anti-aircraft defense systems to Ukraine. The government has also authorized the Netherlands to send Ukraine 400 rocket-propelled grenade launchers.
“The Russian invasion of Ukraine marks a turning point,” German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in a statement. “It threatens our entire post-war order. In this situation, it is our duty to do our utmost to support Ukraine in defending itself against Vladimir Putin’s invading army. Germany stands closely by Ukraine’s side.”
A government spokesperson said the weapons will be delivered “as soon as possible.”
Russia has bitten off more than they thought.
Oh NO! Not This! Anything But This!"
Russia was kicked out of the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest on Friday with organisers saying its inclusion could “bring the competition into disrepute.”
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) issued a statement following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine explaining its decision.
The EBU, an alliance of public service media organisations that produces the contest – said its executive board made the decision after a recommendation made by the Eurovision song contest’s governing body.
https://www.breitbart.com/entertainment/2022/02/25/sanctions-russia-booted-from-eurovision-song-contest/
LOL.
SUNDAY FUNNY:
ANOTHER BITING EXPOSE OF THE PREPOSTEROUS TRUMP REGIME
BOOK:
ONE DAMN THING AFTER ANOTHER
by William Barr
William Barr Urges GOP to Move On From Trump
Former Attorney General William Barr writes in a new book that former President Donald Trump has “shown he has neither the temperament nor persuasive powers to provide the kind of positive leadership that is needed,” and that it is time for Republicans to focus on rising new leaders in the party, the Wall Street Journal reports.
____
BUT DONALD WON'T LET YOU!
If the Ukrainian President succeeds...
Unchecked autocrats
Democracy has also declined globally because democratic leaders have done too little to stand up for themselves, the Freedom House report argued.
As is now clear, the world’s response to Russia’s annexation of the Crimean Peninsula was not enough to deter Putin from going further. Even the sanctions imposed on Russia after its full assault on Ukraine this week stopped short of maximum punishment, sparing much of the Russian energy sector that Europe’s economy still relies on.
At the same time, autocratic governments have increasingly worked together, using their collective economic and political power to create a cushion against punishments from other governments. China approved Russian wheat imports this past week, effectively softening the impact of the West’s new sanctions.
Authoritarians have also abandoned pretenses of democratic norms. Putin, as well as rulers in Nicaragua, Venezuela and elsewhere, once tried to at least maintain the appearance of free and fair elections. But now they regularly jail political opponents, denying the opposition the ability to campaign.
All of these moves have shown other leaders with authoritarian aspirations what they can do as the liberal democratic order loses its sway.
In that context, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is part of a broader test: whether the global erosion of democracy will continue unchecked.
Fortunately for all of us, the American left has their priorities in order -
Putin, the Taliban and the Ayatollah all still have active twitter accounts. Talk amongst yourselves...
https://twitter.com/johnrich/status/1497589871829037061?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1497589871829037061%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fdirectorblue.blogspot.com%2F
The British learned something like that in our revolution
Actually they learn from the Afghans fighting the British. There are limits to Empire.
I've never in my life have seen such a mean spirted man cloaked in the vestments of God as the Reverend.
Putin, the Taliban and the Ayatollah all still have active twitter accounts. Talk amongst yourselves...
BWWAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!! WHO GIVES A FUCK!!!!!!! KEEP POSTING BULLSHIT....IT IS WHAT YOU DO BEST DUMB FUCK!!!!
Biden Says Allies Are Completely Unified
February 27, 2022 at 8:11 am EST By Taegan Goddard 0 Comments
President Joe Biden said his goal “from the very beginning” was to keep America’s allies on the same page, as Russian leader Vladimir Putin believed he could “split NATO” and proceed with his invasion of Ukraine without encountering much in the way of international resolve or resistance,
Politico reports.
Instead, Putin is “producing the exact opposite effect that he intended.”
Blogger Commonsense said...
I've never in my life have seen such a mean spirted man cloaked in the vestments
BWAAAAAAAAA!!!!! WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU KIDDING CRAMPS? As you a holy roller cultist support a fat assed lying idiot who thinks he won and Putin is a genius......!!!!!!
Former Attorney General William Barr writes in a new book that former President Donald Trump has “shown he has neither the temperament nor persuasive powers to provide the kind of positive leadership that is needed,” and that it is time for Republicans to focus on rising new leaders in the party, the Wall Street Journal reports.
BUT DONALD WON'T LET YOU!.
DeSantis, Ron. Remember the name.
I've never in my life have seen such a mean spirted man cloaked in the vestments of God as the Reverend.
Oh really? Because I'm opposed to the Russian invasion of Ukraine?
Do we have a black vagina update?
While it's 'all Ukraine all the time' for some, there are some folks out there with bigger affirmative action fish to fry.
I am all for turning to the new, rising leaders...in both parties. I would love to turn the page on Biden, Trump, Pence, Harris, Pelosi, McConnell, Schumer, durbin, Hillary. The Republicans do have a decent bench. Not sure the democrats do. In fact, I asked here, who are the next group of leaders in the dem party. No one answered me. Other than AOC, who?
And aside from all of his drama, Trump did have some effective policies. Too bad Biden started reversing them right on day one.
Blogger Commonsense said...
I've never in my life have seen such a mean spirted man cloaked in the vestments of God as the Reverend.
According to the pederast, Jesus Christ himself would be seeking the execution of Tucker Carlson because a heart consumed with hatred is a very Christian thing, you know.
I wonder... would Jesus be seeking a crucifixion, or just a good old beheading a la John The Baptist?
I've never in my life have seen such a mean spirted man cloaked in the vestments of God as the Reverend.
Because I don't think Putin is a "genius"?
I've never in my life have seen such a mean spirted man cloaked in the vestments of God as the Reverend.
Because I don't think the present day Russian Orthodox church should have let itself become a puppet for Putin?
drama, Trump did have some effective policies
BWAAAAAAAAAAA!!!! Like running up trillion dollar deficits.....dismantling NATO, pushing snake oil covid treatments?????????
LMAO:
At NATO, our diversity is our strength.
https://youtu.be/CXY7_IlgIWM
Meanwhile...
https://youtu.be/aqek78JXckw
Maybe it's because you go out of your way to antagonize in every post?
I've never in my life have seen such a mean spirted man cloaked in the vestments of God as the Reverend.
Oh really? Because I'm opposed to the Russian invasion of Ukraine?
No mean-spirited. I've never seen such schadenfreude in a man of the cloth.
Tucker Carlson MUST be executed because his opinion does not align with the opinion of the pederast.
The Russian Orthodox Church is anything but Putin's puppet.
If they can stand up to the communist, they can stand up to anybody.
No, Putin Isn't a Defender of 'Christian Values'
The country is one of the most egregious violators of religious liberty on the planet.
by Billy Binion Feb 25, 2022
Russia's invasion of Ukraine has pitted much of the world into two teams, as war tends to do. The prevailing sentiment in the West appears to be pro-Ukraine. But among certain corners of the chattering classes, there's somewhat of a third team: one that isn't anti-Ukraine, per se, but also isn't anti-Russia. There is one foe, and it is America.
Its loudest adherents, ironically, are arguably U.S. nationalists—who to varying degrees admire Russian President Vladimir Putin's attempt at cultivating what they say is a more moral nation. "I actually support Putin's right to protect his people and always put his people first but also protect their Christian values," said Lauren Witzke, the Delaware GOP candidate for U.S. Senate in 2020. "I identify more with…Putin's Christian values than I do with Joe Biden's."
Though Witzke took the fringiest route, she is not alone in her overall approach. Steve Bannon, once an adviser to former President Donald Trump, noted approvingly on his podcast this week that at least "Putin ain't woke."
Fox News host Tucker Carlson similarly admonished his audience: "It might be worth asking yourself…what is this really about? Why do I hate Putin so much?" he probed as he pushed back on the idea that the U.S. should intervene. "Is he teaching my children to embrace racial discrimination? Is he making fentanyl? Is he trying to snuff out Christianity?" (The monologue was later recycled by RT, Russia's government-controlled television network.)
It may be true that Putin isn't "making fentanyl." But to defend an isolationist position, one need not make light of the Russian president's moral atrocities—which have less to do with critical race theory and more to do with allegedly jailing and murdering dissidents.
Perhaps most ironic about Carlson's last question—and also per Witzke's comments—is that Putin, while a self-avowed adherent to Russian Orthodoxy, has been no friend to religious expression. In 2016, he passed a law criminalizing evangelical efforts outside of church walls—a measure that hamstrings religious life in public, in the home, and online, and thus targets many Christians for displays of faith. Those displays don't have to be overt: In 2019, a Baptist pastor was charged with illegal missionary activity for having the audacity to lead a Baptist worship service, and two members of the same sect found themselves in hot water after handing out religious literature at a bus stop. Jehovah's Witnesses are often at the center of such prosecutions as well and can face up to 10 years in prison.
The restrictions also likely impact the Orthodox community, as the government requires that anyone sharing a faith have a permit to do so and constrain those efforts to religious sites. In 2017, a year after the law's passage, Russia earned an unenviable distinction on the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom's list of countries most hostile to the expression of faith. As of last year, it still sits atop that list, along with Syria, India, and Vietnam—places that perpetuate "systematic, ongoing, and egregious" violations of religious liberty.
Conservative expressions of affection for Putin's supposed moral clarity are perhaps louder than usual. That doesn't mean they're new. "While privacy and freedom of thought, religion and speech are cherished rights, to equate traditional marriage and same-sex marriage is to equate good with evil," wrote former White House Communications Director Pat Buchanan in 2013, as he approvingly summarized Putin's opposition to the latter. "No moral confusion here, this is moral clarity."
But once again, Buchanan et. al need not align themselves with a murderous despot in order to take a principled stand for traditional marriage—particularly when considering that the Russian president's positioning may be rooted more in strategy than in faith.
"Putin is seeking to tighten his grip on Ukraine and Belarus, as well as expand Russian influence further into Eastern and Central Europe," wrote Alexis Mrachek and Shane McCrum for the conservative Heritage Foundation in 2019. That feels a bit prophetic now: "He will undoubtedly continue to promote Orthodoxy in the process. This is simply an attempt to seduce former Soviet republics back under the sway of Russia."
The Soviet Union of Putin's younger days was staunchly atheistic and used secularism as a tool to secure state worship. That ultimately failed. In some sense, Putin has subverted the approach to religion—leaning heavily on it as opposed to eschewing it—to arrive at the same end goal: state worship.
"The reality is that Russia is not the most religious nation in the world as far as…American evangelicals would recognize," says David French, a senior editor at The Dispatch who writes extensively on religion and U.S. conservatism. "I think it's much more a 'the enemy of an enemy is my friend.'…
[Putin's] opposition to some of the international forces that some folks on the right in the United States despise the most creates a dynamic where there's a strange new respect for Putin, or sort of perceived understanding of Putin, or a perception that Putin can represent a welcome rebuke to an international order that they dislike." The things they take issue with may range from the United Nations to pronouns in bio.
In that regard, Putin has been waging a different war for years—a cultural one, where he has strategically placed himself at the front of the battlefield and succeeded in wooing some high-profile figures on the American right. That's not because the Christian values he espouses are necessarily important to him; I doubt many religious adherents would describe killing and poisoning critics as fruits of the Spirit. He's tried to obscure those cruelties by erecting himself as a moral bulwark against deviance. It's a tall order—and yet, somehow, in certain corners, he's succeeded.
YOU GOTTA REALLY WONDER ABOUT THE MENTAL MINDSET OF EVANGELICALS AND FUNDAMENTALISTS WHO FALL FOR THIS!
Obama administration retreads are following the same playbook as the original Obama administration: “We’re going to keep at it to ensure the American people are paying their fair share for gas,” is the perfect Kinsley Gaffe for an Obama administration retread like Biden: As Steven Chu, Obama’s then-incoming energy secretary, told the Wall Street Journal in the fall of 2008: “Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe.”
So is it fair to ask if Biden is on the payroll of Putin? As Walter Russell Mead wrote in 2017:
If Trump were the Manchurian candidate that people keep wanting to believe that he is, here are some of the things he’d be doing:
Limiting fracking as much as he possibly could
Blocking oil and gas pipelines
Opening negotiations for major nuclear arms reductions
Cutting U.S. military spending
Trying to tamp down tensions with Russia’s ally Iran.
“Yep,” Glenn added in late 2019. “You know who did do these things? Obama. You know who supports these things now? Democrats.”
https://instapundit.com/505987/
Commonsense, if you actually think the Russian Orthodox Church has been "standing up to Putin," you really are deficient in understanding basic historical realities.
Regulation of private firearms in Ukraine is ranked as permissive, rather than restrictive. Rifles and shotguns are allowed for hunting, target shooting, collection, protection of person or property and private security.
Now those guns are being used to kill the Sons of Bitches Ruskies.
Fuck it kill all the invades, and let God Sort them out.
Are the leftist here still anti-gun?
Much as it was in the time of the Czars, the present day Russian Orthodox church is corrupt, having sold out to supporting the wealthy cronies who surround Putin and, like him, are robbing the country blind.
I guess someone here has overlooked the fact that the government of Ukraine recently HANDED OUT assault weapons to Ukrainian civilians willing to defend the country.
They did NOT already have them.
‘I’m Still Here’ – Ukraine President Zelensky Defies Biden Admin’s Call for Him to Flee Kyiv
https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2022/02/26/im-still-here-ukraine-president-zelensky-defies-biden-admins-call-for-him-to-flee-kyiv/
Compare and contrast this to the PM of Canada who fled to a secret hiding place because someone honked their horn at him.
Weak men bring hard times, indeed.
The pussification of the western world continues apace thanks to the wonders of modern leftism.
Blogger Honest, decent, truthful Rev. said...
I guess someone here has overlooked the fact that the government of Ukraine recently HANDED OUT assault weapons to Ukrainian civilians willing to defend the country.
They did NOT already have them.
Whereas WE here in the US DO already have them, thanks to our 2nd Amendment.
If this is how you choose to promote the failures of leftism pederast, you're definitely on the right track.
Hundreds of MILLIONS of Americans are sitting on hundreds of MILLIONS of firearms and perhaps a TRILLION rounds of ammunition specifically for the reasons we are seeing play out in Ukraine.
In other words, we've overlooked exactly NOTHING.
You assholes on the other hand...
If leftism ever delivers a situation similar to Ukraine to our doors, we won't need a time out to distribute arms. We'll have them at the ready.
Make note of that pederast.
The Ukraine Orthodox Church split from the Russian Patriarch ether way both churches stood up to the communist.
And you Reverend are a bigot.
Much as it was in the time of the Czars, the present day Russian Orthodox church is corrupt, having sold out to supporting the wealthy cronies who surround Putin and, like him, are robbing the country blind.
And that is exactly what is wrong with much of the religious right in America: evangelicals and fundamentalists who fool their people into believing their rightwing lies and make them think they are defending America while in reality the wealthy Republican oligarchy are all the time robbing our middle classes blind.
And you Reverend are a bigot.
I must be a strange bigot then, for I strongly support racial, gender, and economic justice.
Of course that is to be expected with a cult leader.
No idea why Putin felt emboldened when Biden admin took power -- greatest mystery of our era
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FMdWEbFWUAMr8Gj?format=jpg&name=900x900
from the next thread up:
Reality check for Commonsense:
Putin is no communist.
Is there still a communist party in Russia?
Russia does have opposition parties to Putin's United Russia, but they are neutered and are in support of his invasion of Ukraine.
Update: 25 February 2022 08:42 EST
Is there still a communist party in Russia?
Russia is a dictatorship in all but name, controlled at the top by President Vladimir Putin with his cronies and oligarch friends below him. His party, United Russia, dominates both the legislative and executive arms of government, giving him an effective free reign to run the country. As seen days ago his cabinet fears him, stumbling and trembling through a scripted attack on Ukraine while Putin basked in the array of subservience before him.
People would be remiss to compare this government with the Soviet Union. Putin's government is not communist nor even socialist. It is a reactionary and right-wing government. Remnants of Russia's soviet past exist in the form of the Russian communists, who have a not inconsiderbale amount of support inside the state.
Why are the communists popular?
The Soviet Union still holds a place in the heart of many Russians. It was a time where they were one of two superpowers in the world, and despite how hard Putin wants Russia to be in that state again, Russia is not. Many Russians grew up during the time of the Soviet Union too.
Much has been made of Putin's comments in support of Josef Stalin. Despite the numerous horrendous acts under his regime, Stalin was the leader of Russia when they defeated the Nazi's almost single-handedly in the Great Patriotic War, known the the west as the Second World War. Each year there are massive celebrations in Moscow for this.
Like much support for changes to the status quo, it is also based around economic troubles. Since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, the population rate in Russia has been in constant decline. After small but consistent growth during the 1970s through 1990s, the population decreased for 20 years straight before a small rebound, thoguh is now falling again. Russia is not a happy place to live.
This is further reflected in graphs for living standards. In 2020, the average Russian had 11 percent less money to spend than in 2013. The poverty rate has also been rising consistently since 2014, increasing by 8.5 percentage points in seven years. This breeds dissatisfaction, which could be a pointer towards renewed support for the communists in the last elections in September 2021.
How much political power do the communists have?
In the latest round of Russian elections, the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF), the successor to the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, won 57 out of 450 seats in the State Duma. It is the second largest party in the lower parliamentary house, behind President Putin's United Russia party.
Despite being the main opposition, they have next to no power and are enthusiastic supports of Russia's current invasion. In a recent opinion article, leader Gennardy Zyuganov decried the Ukranian government as 'vassals' of the United States. He added that his party was prepared to support Putin's government in defending the two breakaway states in Ukraine, and echoed the Russian propaganda line that Ukraine was committing genocide against Russians.
Russia is a deeply authoritarian state, and none of the small parties in the Duma have any power.
IT'S TIME TO GET REAL ABOUT THE REAL SITUATION.
________
Honest, decent, truthful Rev. said...
JUST KEEP PUTTING UP SUNDAY FUNNIES PROPAGANDA NONSENSE
MEANWHILE,
Putin Orders Nuclear Deterrent Forces on Alert
February 27, 2022 at 8:27 am EST By Taegan Goddard 139 Comments
Russian President Vladimir Putin has put Russian nuclear deterrent forces on alert, as he continues his unprovoked assault and invasion of Ukraine, Axios reports.
Don't let Ch get away with this, folks.
He dislikes what was said in the last thread so much that he fills up this page with this cartoonish propaganda.
Don't let Ch obscure what is in the next thread down. Go there and read the valuable informative articles there he doesn't want you to see.
Anonymous Myballs said...
Maybe it's because you go out of your way to antagonize in every post?
It’s mainly a pathetic old man needing attention. Who isn’t very bright
And you Reverend are a bigot.
I must be a strange bigot then, for I strongly support racial, gender, and economic justice.
You're all about power. And your bigotry is religious not economic.
Don't let Ch obscure what is in the next thread down. Go
To hell James Boswell.
I guess someone here has overlooked the fact that the government of Ukraine recently HANDED OUT assault weapons to Ukrainian civilians willing to defend the country." Jamie
Nope, we day that .
Did you see this :
Regulation of private firearms in Ukraine is ranked as permissive, rather than restrictive. Rifles and shotguns are allowed for hunting, target shooting, collection, protection of person or property and private security.
Now those guns are being used to kill the Sons of Bitches Ruskies.
Fuck it kill all the invades, and let God Sort them out.
Are the leftist here still anti-gun?
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