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One of the more peculiar stances is an ad hominem where the news media of most of the developed world is partially or completely disregarded. Here's an example:
[Pav:] You don't seem to want to realise no mainstream source will ever give you a reason to believe anything that would make you less willing to pay taxes to defence companies. Perhaps you own some shares, or feel you benefit in some other way? I suppose it IS within the realm of possibility, though only by cosmic accident. It IS strangely fascinating and amusing talking to someone who is a true believer in the broken window fallacy (probably in the form of post WWII parables).
If you look at Pav's other postings on this, it's a remarkable dysfunctional chain of this crap. Even when he cites links, not a one supports his claims. For example:
[Pav:] Right.
This post contains Pav's defective arguments in a nutshell. It's just a story about the Ukrainian Prime Minister whining about his allies' statements with counterwhining from sources associated with the allies. What we actually had been speaking about at that point in the thread was violence, psychopaths, and corrupt oligarchs, none of which found their way into Pav's source.
Here's another example. MSNBC gets photobombed (they showed uncritically neo-nazi symbols on the uniforms of the soldiers involved in the video) by the Azov Battallion, which a genuine neo-nazi military unit in the Ukrainian military. So what? This is far from the first time covert product placement has been a thing in military news.
Another example is a blogger link from this post. It's just a few pages of pulling stuff out of the author's ass confidently. For example:
Ukraine’s President Zelensky told visiting US Senators in early June that the country’s military defense against Russia and the completion of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline are inextricably intertwined.
Once the project is completed, Ukraine will be deprived of the funds required to fund defense spending and defend Europe’s eastern border.
“Nord Stream 2 will cut Ukraine off from gas supplies, which will cost us at least USD 3 billion per year.”
Zelensky, always the joker, wants Russia to pay $3 billion per year so he personally can defend Europe from Russia who is paying him.
Notice how the author smoothly transitions from a fact - that Zelensky stated that closing a particular pipeline would cost the Ukraine a lot of money - to the unsubstantiated claim that Zelensky then wants Russia to pay for it. This is then further logically mangled into the idea that it somehow explains the Ukraine-Russian friction we're seeing now.
Zelensky’s Ukraine is shuffling Europe, NATO, and the US closer and closer to the line where one mistake in diplomacy, one stupid move by any of Ukraine’s infamous Neanderthal nationalist volunteers, and bang!
Let us further note that such infamy is only on the Russian supporters side. Somehow everyone else has come to grips with the reality that there's a small number of fascists/neo-nazis in the Ukraine military. My favorite quote of this batch:
In response to this, Ukraine mobilized over ½ its army or over 170,000 troops to the frontline with all the heavy weapons at its disposal accompanying them.
This force was a supposed counter to the Russian invasion army, which again, was just over the border.
In reality, the Russian army staged planned war games near the city of Yelnya, 160 miles (257 kilometers) from the Ukrainian border. You read that right, the Russian army was160 miles away from the Ukrainian border even though every major western publication made it sound like they were already in Kiev.
As I noted at the time, now those "war games" are inside the borders of the Ukraine. Looks like the Ukraine was right on that one!
While I didn't say it at the time, if the author is so horribly wrong about the "war games" and the infamy of Ukrainian troops what else is he horribly wrong about? This isn't the alternate media source I'm looking for.
Then there's the king of one liner putdowns:
[fustakrakich:] "Your" take is just mass media propaganda. Nobody wants war but the US
And yet we see Russia making those aggressive moves towards war. It also furthers the propaganda narrative that this is merely a showdown between Russia and US with Ukraine interests being completely irrelevant.
Also that Runaway journal was about some academic blaming the US or possibly the Western world for the conflict. At one point Runaway claimed:
[Runaway1956:] You didn't listen to the man, did ya? The "west" engineered that coup. Mearsheimer doesn't say so, but I'm aware that the Koch brothers were prime movers in the coup. We quite literally backed fascists and neo-Nazis in the coup.
In other words, there was no support for Runaway's assertion there from his source. In fact, I've googled this subject a bit and never found Runaway linking to a source for the Koch brothers accusation - though if he had, I would have stated that it shows good taste in revolutions on their part.
Anyway, I think this illustrates some of the weirder failures of the pro-Russian side in this conflict. Namely, obsessing over sources of evidence rather than the evidence itself. But given how unflattering that evidence is, maybe this is the best they can do?
All I can say is that it's probably a lot safer to complain about media bias than to defend Putin only to have him stab you in the back a few weeks later. But it begs the question: why is imaginary CIA/MIC involvement enough to completely torpedo a media source, but not being horribly wrong and/or irrelevant?
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday February 23 2022, @06:02PM (43 children)
We're doing a wonderful job of driving Russia and China closer together!
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/china/china-accuses-us-of-raising-tensions-on-ukraine-issue/articleshow/89770627.cms [indiatimes.com]
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 23 2022, @08:06PM (35 children)
And they can test us again and again, ramping up their competitive collections, each time we fail to do anything but embarrass ourselves. Collect all 195! And then they turn on each other.
A good example of sources being more important than facts, is that I've had west coast dynamic IP addresses banned again and again by a handful of local prehensile asses, for posts like this. This is the first I've bothered for weeks. And likely — when this one hits -1 — I'll fade back out. Boy howdy, there's a big world out there!
(Score: 2, Flamebait) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday February 23 2022, @10:25PM (34 children)
If you make infinite bad posts, you can get infinite IP addresses "banned". Keep up the good work.
As for Russia, or China, or Russia and China testing us? Yeah, what did you expect? This is life, shit changes all the time, and life is challenging. But, you seem to have missed the point of my post. Let me spell it out for you: WTF are we working so hard to isolate Russia from the West, and thereby putting pressure on Russia to ally with China?
Did I mention that life is challenging? Did you figure out yet that we are intentionally making life even more challenging for ourselves? We started this shit, and Russia may well finish it for us, all while our impotent leadership naps away the remaining months of his life.
Want a good solution to the current problem? We just STFU, give Russia free reign in those mini-republics they have carved out, and make some assurances that we WILL NOT admit Ukraine into NATO. We concede that Russia has legitimate security concerns, and we promise to NOT move any missiles, airbases, or major weapons into eastern Europe former socialist republics. In a nutshell, we just stand down.
Who really gives a shit about a couple small provinces that don't even WANT to be part of Ukraine? Why does it matter? Fek 'em, let them go their own way.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 0, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 23 2022, @11:02PM (4 children)
It doesn't take many posts to get banned; just say something patriotic, and the anti-somethin's will knock it back down, every time and American mods it up. A few downs and a few ups, a couple of times, and you're outa here.
As I said a few weeks ago, I'm concerned about Russia only at the North Pole. I'm worried about China from every pore.
(Score: 2, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 23 2022, @11:24PM (2 children)
Do you mean something Russia patriotic, or China patriotic? You did not specify!
(Score: 2, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @12:00AM
Vlad1956 is doing a wonderful job.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @02:08AM
The kind that's unpopular in these here parts. The kind that's leaving here because it doesn't want to be doxxed by bozos.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 25 2022, @04:15AM
Taiwan Enjoys Free Sneak Peek At What Will Happen To Them In Just A Few Weeks [babylonbee.com]
(Score: 2, Insightful) by khallow on Thursday February 24 2022, @02:05AM
Or we can refuse to appease tyranny and aggression because that really did turn out disastrous in the past.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @04:01AM (8 children)
At some point — specifically this one, right here — I'm tired of us being Team America: World Police (2004) [imdb.com]. Especially now that we haven't a chance to pull the puppet (let alone purse) strings.
I feel bad for the Ukraine, but like us, they are chumps, and only pawns in game of life [imdb.com]. Holy underwear! Sheriff murdered! Innocent women and children blown to bits! We have to protect our phoney-baloney jobs here, gentlemen!
Ain't we got fun... yet another game of Wag The Dog (1997) [imdb.com], Elites have squandered our Lives, our Fortunes and our Sacred Honor, promising us a perfectly level playing field of colorless, flavorless lollypops.
America! Fuck Yeah! ... Leave us alone! Yeah, they'll do that, after the fruited plain's been picked clean.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @04:27PM (7 children)
On the one hand, Sleepy Joe won't do anything except throw money — and our Sacred Honor — down a hole. On the other hand, if we had an honest election, Trump would have continued his rational policies, and none of this would ever have happened.
(Score: 3, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @08:12PM (2 children)
Trump would have helped Putin invade.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @09:24PM (1 child)
Sleepy Joe couldn't invade a Baskin-Robins.
(There's also Special Council John Durham... but we'll leave that as an exercise for the non-CNN impaired.)
(Score: 3, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 25 2022, @06:04PM
Traitor Trump couldn't even find a Baskin-Robins much less fit through the door to invade.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 25 2022, @09:55AM (3 children)
Silly! Trump would grab your Sacred Honor by the naughty bits, and help Putin invade. In fact, he is doing so right now!
(Score: 0, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 26 2022, @02:10AM (2 children)
You know, that "Republicans are on the side of Putin" meme never flew, no matter how much CNN and the rest (including the much-rested Hillary) kept flinging it.
Of course Biden's family is still on the Ukraine payroll... and what'd they get for that? Ask Hunter. Of course the left is on the CCP payroll, too, as evidenced by... just about everything they've done in the last few years.
The non-secret you guys ignore is that Republicans truly believe in America First. That one pays off for us all, not just the Elites&friends.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 26 2022, @03:47PM (1 child)
Haha yes it did, most people just said "duh" and tried to move on with their lives. Republicans are so busy being gaslit by lies, and so desperate to not admit they were scammed by a NYC elitist grifter, that they will die on their hill of lies. The only reason anyone debated such stupidity was for the possibility of waking up some conservatives so we can move forward helping our own citizens and working to fix the ecological damage threatening our very existence.
Republicans do not belueve in America first. They have always been at war with their fellow cirizens, and recently they popularized variations of "better Russian than democrat", sentiment we see here in SN quite frequently while none of the conservative users push back. How do you expect anyone to believe your narrative when reality directly contradicts it?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 26 2022, @04:34PM
And I give a flower to the big fat cop
He takes his club and he beats me up
I give a flower to the garbage man
He stuffs my girl in the garbage can
And I give it to the landlord when the rent comes 'round
He throws it in the toilet and he flush it down
It goes into the sewer
With the yuck runnin' through 'er
And it runs into the river that we drink
Hey, world, YOU STINK! Ugh!
Man it's later than you think!
Girl you got just one more chance
Come on baby while I dance!
You don't think 'bout no little flowers! Oh no, all you think about is guns. If everybody in the world today had a flower instead of a gun, there would be no wars. There would be one big smell-in. Just the flowers...!
Hey, man, my flower... My flower. What'd you do to my flower, man? You hurt it, like everything else... Everything else... flowers.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @06:14AM (11 children)
Oh look, Vladimir Putin has new cock holster.
If Russia was just taking out air defenses in Ukraine and invading two small provinces, they wouldn't be sending tanks into Ukraine from Belarus. Troops entering northern Ukraine from Belarus aren't going to those two provinces in eastern Ukraine. Kyiv is very close to the Belarusian border, however. Sending ground troops in from Belarus is exactly what you would do if you're planning to invade Kyiv.
Don't insult everyone's intelligence with this bullshit. Stop making excuses for Putin's war of aggression. It was wrong when the US invaded Iraq under false pretenses. It's wrong when Putin pulls this same shit with Ukraine. It's blatantly obvious that Putin has zero intent of stopping after invading a small portion of Ukraine. He clearly intends to invade the entirety of Ukraine and take out the legitimate government, particularly after falsely accusing the Ukrainian government of being Nazis. How many tens of thousands of people have to die to satisfy Putin's aggression?
Stop repeating the Russian propaganda you get from RT and think for yourself. This isn't about attacking the source because of who the source is, but about attacking the source because its claims just aren't supported by the evidence. Again, if Russia was only invading two provinces, they wouldn't be sending troops in from Belarus. There's also the issue of Russia interfering with the election in Belarus to ensure they would be friendly to Russia, which violated the sovereignty of Belarus.
Had you been alive at the time, you would have also denied that the events of September 1, 1939 were a big deal.
(Score: 0, Troll) by Runaway1956 on Thursday February 24 2022, @06:36AM (10 children)
Wow, ari. I didn't realize that you're also a military genius.
Tanks coming in from Belarus? Citations needed. I've been watching the news for hours now, and there hasn't been any mention of ground forces coming in from Belarus. When I see something that resembles a credible citation, I'll take it into account.
Right back at you. Military depots around Kiev seem to have been targeted with missiles, and maybe by Russian air. If you're invading, are you going to leave the enemy's depots intact, to be used against you later?
Maybe. On the other hand, Putin probably learned some lessons from Afghanistan. Lessons that we failed to learn . . .
That's not bad advice. You might take your own advice. Stop repeating US propaganda, and think for yourself. Russia can probably take most all of Ukraine. Russia can't keep much of Ukraine, outside of those areas that are predominantly Russian. The Donbass region, basically. I expect that Russia is going to take everything from Odessa up to Kharkiv, then negotiate terms. After action negotiations will give about half of that territory back, because Russia won't want to occupy all of that hostile territory.
How's that for thinking for myself? You want to try it now?
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @07:01AM (9 children)
You lost credibility when you accused me of being aristarchus. Yes, he's posting lots of spam and he ran lots of sock puppets. I've condemned him plenty of times for his sock puppets and his harassment. Lots of people think you're a jackass, not just aristarchus/ Let's be clear here; aristarchus is delusional and has a dangerous obsession with this site.
Do you know much about European history? No two situations are identical, but I think there are legitimate parallels to the events preceding WWII. Yes, my comment about September 1, 1939 was somewhat hyperbolic. It's probably more accurate to compare this to Germany annexing the Sudetenland. Hitler claimed that he was supporting the rights of Germans in the Sudetenland region of Czechoslovakia, that they were being oppressed, and that the Sudetenland should be returned to Germany. At the time, Czechoslovakia was allied with France and the Soviet Union, so the relationships were stronger than the more informal support of Ukraine by NATO. But the general sentiment was that France had no interest in risking war, so Hitler assumed they wouldn't use force. Hitler was right, that he would get away with annexing the Sudetenland because the other European powers wanted to avoid direct war with Germany.
Russia rigged the 2020 election in Belarus, so Belarus is effectively a puppet for Russia at this point. Russia annexed Crimea and is now intent on annexing at least part of Ukraine. Like I said, your statement about Putin stopping at the two provinces in eastern Ukraine isn't supported by the tanks crossing into Ukraine from Belarus. More likely, those tanks are headed for Kyiv, probably with more Russian ground forces.
There are never perfect analogues to historical events, but my point is that appeasement doesn't work against aggressive expansionism. It's also the same thing khallow told you, and he's right.
Those two provinces in eastern Ukraine sound a lot like the Sudetenland. But we'd be fools to assume that Putin has any intention of stopping there.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday February 24 2022, @07:23AM (8 children)
Maybe. All you ACs look alike, how can I tell you apart?
As for appeasement, yeah, Russia has figured out that appeasing NATO won't get them anywhere.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @07:53AM (4 children)
Report his ass to the police. Seriously, aristarchus seems to have an obsession with this site, and specifically with you. If he was going to back down and chill out, I expect he'd have done so long ago. As I see it, he's stalking and harassing you. You should report him to the police and get it over with. I'm sick and tired of his spam and his harassment, but I think the only way he's going to stop is if the police get involved.
NATO has its issues, sure. But that doesn't justify Russia's actions. You've not addressed most of what I've said, somewhat dismissing it with a one-line response. NATO isn't stealing elections in eastern Europe, nor are they invading other countries. Russia is the aggressor here.
The US invaded Iraq under false pretenses in 2003. It was wrong when the US did it. Putin is doing the same thing here, invading Ukraine under false pretenses. The US had no business invading Iraq back in 2003, and Russia has zero business invading Ukraine 19 years later. Two wrongs don't make a right. The US was the aggressor in Iraq when they invaded in 2003, and there was zero justification for the invasion. They fabricated evidence and lied, a massive stain on the legacy of the late Colin Powell. Russia is doing exactly the same thing here, and it's no more justified than when the US did it.
My issue with you is that you seem to be inconsistent. You rightly criticize the US for its expansionism, but I don't see you criticizing Putin for doing the same thing in Russia.
(Score: 1, Flamebait) by Runaway1956 on Thursday February 24 2022, @08:02AM (3 children)
OK, you're definitely not ari - you're sounding far too reasonable.
Hmmmm. At the core of Russia's complaints, is the fact that NATO moves closer an closer to Moscow. That isn't a false pretense, NATO is getting closer and closer. Ukraine is already in possession of NATO weapons. Ukraine wants to be part of NATO. Ukraine is actually, for real, persecuting Russian ethnic people in Ukraine, has been for years. Russia feels threatened. That's not a false pretense.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: -1, Spam) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @08:36AM
Finally, a rational discussion about aristarchus, and how somebody ought to report a 2400 year old Greek astronomer and philosopher to the police, for suggesting that Runaway is a real person, and a clear and present danger to the US, with his radical right wing nuttery, and traitorious support of the Putin dictatorship in the Former Soviet Union. But, you know, as much as aristarchus may annoy you, or the ignorant moron, Runaway1956, he as his facts straight, and he knows his history, having lived through much of it. So I suggest you just shut the fuck up, and submit to your superiors in matters of knowledge. Or, you can be friends with Redneck Hillbilly ignoranmouses like Runaway1956.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by khallow on Thursday February 24 2022, @10:11AM (1 child)
So what? Russia waived its right to care. This invasion is precisely why NATO is getting closer and closer. Russia's neighbors are looking for protection from the beast.
This sort of statement goes back to my complaints about elevating sources over facts. Nobody, including Russia, has ever bothered to show that there is genuine persecution of Russian ethnic people, much less to a degree that warrants invasion. It's just a grab for land, which may well end up with all of Ukraine under Russian control.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 25 2022, @06:13PM
Are they persecuting them like Putin is doing to the Russian protesters?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @08:28PM
All you Quislings think alike.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @08:42PM
Quisling1956 is channeling Neville Chamberlain.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 25 2022, @10:00AM
Admit it, Runsaway, all AC's look like Ari to you now, and you are afraid, very afraid. And you have no more credibility (not that you ever had much!).
(Score: -1, Spam) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @08:29AM (2 children)
While Runaway's VPN in Russia is protected by FatPhil, in his forward postion in Estonia, and janrinok's SIGINT postion in France remains operational. Do you people think you are fooling anyone?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 26 2022, @03:51PM (1 child)
Am I missing this post made elsewhere, or just continued abuse of the spam mod while staff do not care? Really thought they cared more than this, but looks like the alt-right took over and are allowing rightwing abuse while cracking down on the left. Must be a Murrican website, fits the pattern of deceptive righteousness.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 26 2022, @05:09PM
It's something about misguided freedom fighters who've forgotten their chant, but still demand a platform. And this itsy-bitsy corner of this tiny platform is a virtual square where they're taking their final stand, waiting for the phantasy tanks they can tilt at.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday February 24 2022, @12:19PM
What's the better alternative? Russia just invaded another country without cause. Even if we just roll over and let Russia do whatever, it wouldn't prevent them from allying with China anyway.
OTOH, an alliance between Russia and China can have its advantages - like being yet another resource sink for China. And well, that's the rub. Russia isn't that valuable as an ally. It has some of the best resources in the world, but it has a lot of problems to go with that.
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @10:50PM (2 children)
- Are You Willing to Die for Ukraine? [thegatewaypundit.com]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 25 2022, @03:52AM (1 child)
Would Ukraine die for you?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 25 2022, @06:09PM
Remember the TRUMP! or is it Dismember the TRUMP?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 25 2022, @06:41PM (5 children)
https://twitter.com/Balshone/status/1497178406617759745 [twitter.com]
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Friday February 25 2022, @07:08PM (4 children)
Got any idea what that video depicts? I don't.
scenario 1 - an idiot Russian spilled a hot cup of coffee on his pecker, ran out of control, and ran over a motorist
scenario 2 - the idiot Russian driver just felt like running over a random car to see if he could do it
scenario 3 - the car refused to stop at a check point, and the armored vehicle was ordered to stop the car
scenario 4 - the car was engaged in a running battle with Russian troops
scenario 5 - the car was wanted in an Amber Alert, and somehow got all the way from Texas to Ukraine, and Texas officials authorized the Russians to take whatever action necessary to stop the suspect. https://www.khou.com/article/news/local/texas/texas-amber-alert-issued-for-11-month-old-harmony-rodriguez-fort-worth-police-say/287-fb3cc964-7099-4c40-806e-6f45ec67f85a [khou.com]
A few seconds of video with no explanation isn't news, really.
I did see a few seconds of video somewhere else, of a man being cut out of a car that had been "run over". Could have been this very same car. There was no real story with that short video either.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Friday February 25 2022, @07:17PM (3 children)
How about an alternative scenario?
The truck was stolen by Russian infiltrators, for some nefarious purpose. The truck was being pursued, and shot at, by Ukraine soldiers. The driver was wounded, and veered out of control, running over a passing motorist. Apparently, very soon after, the Russians were both shot dead.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10550975/Russian-TANK-crushes-civilian-car-Kyiv-suburb-elderly-driver-miraculously-rescued.html [dailymail.co.uk]
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 25 2022, @07:35PM (2 children)
Runaway you are an evil son-of-a-bitch. May God have mercy on your soul.
(Score: 1, Flamebait) by Runaway1956 on Friday February 25 2022, @10:30PM (1 child)
I didn't steal the truck. I didn't shoot the people who stole the truck. I didn't run over any cars. I just reported the news. Maybe you're too stupid to understand the words you use.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 26 2022, @03:31AM
I'm smart enough to know you're an ignorant fucking asshole.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 26 2022, @04:31AM
All acriss the web conservatives are learning that they are surrounded by Russian bots and shills. Even a dinky little site like SN has their own dedicated shill Russkieway1956! Well I'm not psychic, but if he is freely betraying his own country for some imperialistic asshole like Putin then that is sadder than sad.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 23 2022, @06:52PM
I'm neither pro war, nor pro Russia, nor particularly good at chess but what is the endgame here?
Sanctions aren't going to work, they only hurt the little people. The pipeline will hurt in the medium term but Vlad couldn't give a shit if Europe and the 5 eyes stop trading as there's a new iron curtain consisting of fellow 'pariahs' of China, Iran, Cuba, Bolivarian Madurozuela and Syria plus Belt-and-Road countries in Eurasia and Africa that will work around any blockade.
And while I had a healthy cynicism about stories of Russian trolls influencing US elections and Brexit, it will be interesting to see to what lengths Vlad will go to keep Bolsonaro in power. The chap seems peculiarly nationalistic and easily manipulable if it means pursuing a policy of non-alignment.
I guess we'll find out how important the territory of 'Donbas' is to the EU and NATO - Ukraine had been a frontier state between 'the west' and the Russian federation but no more.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday February 23 2022, @08:05PM (5 children)
Only now, at the end, does the khallow realize how badly he has been used. It's a problem when you try to suck up to richies.
And,
Oh, dear [begthequestion.info]. No, it does not. [txstate.edu] We have been over this many times. [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday February 23 2022, @09:21PM (4 children)
So a mostly factual report that describes a huge fascist coalition in the Ukraine getting 2% of the vote is CIA/MIC while a blogger babbling about the imaginary notoriety of the Ukrainian armed forces while simultaneously claiming that a Russian military build up was merely "war games" is purest truth because it doesn't have those CIA/MIC cooties.
In other words, something is correct or wrong merely by initial assumption. Notice none of the arguments tried to reason their way to the conclusions made. That's classic begging the question.
(Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Wednesday February 23 2022, @09:43PM
:-) Yeah... ain't it the truth...
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @12:06AM (2 children)
Nice attempt at a save, but still incorrect. You need to do something about your cooties, khallow!
See? you are begging for a question, not "begging the question". Just when I thought the aversion therapy had worked, and we would never have to suffer another "obvious rebuttal" from khallow!
(Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday February 24 2022, @01:27AM (1 child)
I do see. You have it wrong here and I already explained why. Just because a question mark is involved doesn't mean I suddenly lost my senses.
I'll note this is not the first time I've used the phrase "begging the question" (and its variants) correctly (here [soylentnews.org], here [soylentnews.org], here [soylentnews.org], and here [soylentnews.org]). In fact, the only time in recent years that I did not use the phrase correctly (though only using part of the phrase) was in response to a post where the poster didn't use the phrase correctly (here [soylentnews.org]).
Seems like you probably ought to figure out what I'm saying before continuing.
(Score: -1, Flamebait) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @01:54AM
Nope. There's nothing sudden about it.
(Score: 0, Interesting) by DECbot on Wednesday February 23 2022, @11:35PM (15 children)
The Bidens, the US energy producers, and Ukrainian energy brokers all have an interest in Europe not getting cheap energy directly from Russia.
cats~$ sudo chown -R us /home/base
(Score: 2) by DECbot on Thursday February 24 2022, @12:42AM (9 children)
Not sure troll is the correct mod:
Routers, Europe is top destination for US LNG exports [reuters.com]
Wikipedia, Burisma Holdings [wikipedia.org], a Ukrainian energy producer and broker
Hunter Biden, Senate investigation regarding H. Biden & Burisma [senate.gov]
This is in addition to the links in the journal that propose Ukraine disapproves of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline because it bypasses the Ukrainian energy markets. Perhaps I make a mistake in possibly insinuating that H. Biden is corrupt for being a board member in a known corrupt Ukrainian corporation during his father's time as the VP. It's just happenstance that US foreign policy aligns with Ukrainian energy interests.
cats~$ sudo chown -R us /home/base
(Score: 0, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @12:50AM (8 children)
You are taunting the democrats, they do not like that. They have a mod squad patrolling the site for negative PR
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @01:12AM (3 children)
How's that identity politics going? Looks like Dear Leader has turned you all Russian! Poor Republicans, if only Reagan could see you now.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @08:49AM (2 children)
Documented pursuant to the writings of his own daughter the democrats achieved another LGBTP+ milestone in electing Biden president. [nationalfile.com] #BelieveWomen
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @05:16PM (1 child)
So your response is to try and generate a whataboutism style identity politics response? Fuck Biden that douchey creep corporate sellout. Didn't want him, but current systems screwed the people's chouce so it was creepy douche versus the white supremacist traitor. Losers like you are why we got stuck with Biden.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday February 28 2022, @07:40AM
Unlike race or gender a political party falls squarely under the category of politics, no identity qualifier required. Conflating the criticism of people who sow division based on immutable characteristics to criticism of a political party is a false equivalence and disingenuous.
This GP post, parent of the one you replied to, also criticizes political party. Let me guess... It's okay when you do it amirite.
(Score: 2) by DECbot on Thursday February 24 2022, @01:31AM (2 children)
Yeah, I expected flamebait mods for that offence.
cats~$ sudo chown -R us /home/base
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @02:30PM (1 child)
Troll: "The moon is made of macaroni and cheese! Why isn't the lib'rul media reporting this?"
Soylent news reader: Mods troll down
Troll: "Oh gawd you modded me down! CAN'T YOU SEE THAT I AM THE REAL VICTIM HERE??? Stop the steal! Trump 2020!!!!"
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @08:46PM
They really try to become victims. Sadly they don't understand that victims of prejudice have real claims, fragile white Republicans have whining about mere inconveniences and blatant falsehoods. Only their own tribe is going to swallow those loads.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday February 28 2022, @01:12AM
See? Look at that! Democrat mod squad all over this thread. They are extremely sensitive
(Score: 2, Insightful) by khallow on Thursday February 24 2022, @01:50AM
How did they get Russia to go along with this scheme? Because the present Russian games are ideal for furthering this agenda.
(Score: 2) by DeathMonkey on Thursday February 24 2022, @04:28PM (3 children)
Yeah, if there's one thing energy companies HATE it's a lot of easily available cheap gas for them to resell!
(Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Thursday February 24 2022, @04:41PM
They make much better profits when the product is made scarce
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: -1, Troll) by DECbot on Thursday February 24 2022, @08:45PM (1 child)
My point was, Ukraine energy brokers don't like Nord Stream 2 because it bypasses Ukrainian energy markets. Gas gets cheaper cause there are less middlemen between the Russian producers and the German market. US State department doesn't like Nord Stream 2 because it makes NATO allies more dependent on Russia for energy. Additionally, H. Biden was a board executive for a Ukraine energy broker during the Obama/Biden presidency, which may appear to be a conflict of interest for the President--we can't say what promises were exchanged during that time, but as the Senate report states, it doesn't give a good appearance.
cats~$ sudo chown -R us /home/base
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 26 2022, @03:57PM
I don't recall you making any complaints during the Donnie Dumbass years, but suddenly you care about nepotism and corruption?
Partisan traitor willing to sell out your country for party loyalty /barf
(Score: 3, Informative) by Runaway1956 on Thursday February 24 2022, @12:11AM (24 children)
But, when the source is on target, you use it despite it's communist/Marxist affiliation.
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2022/01/25/pers-j25.html [wsws.org]
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @01:16AM (3 children)
Hey cowardly traitor, still being stupid? Awesome bro, keep up the bad work!
(Score: 0, Troll) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @01:23AM
Maybe people stick with Trump for so long because the Democratic Party is just that disgusting.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @01:38AM (1 child)
Kamala still hasn't taken away his guns but he'll still post anything to discredit the Democrats.
What would Donald do (WWDD)?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @01:52AM
WWSJD?
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @01:20AM
Fraternal greetings, comrade! The rest of the socialist news:
CWI: European capitalism’s insoluble problems and the state of the workers’ movement [socialistworld.net] - Putin recognises ‘independence’ of Donetsk and Luhansk [socialistworld.net]
TFFI: Recognizing Two “Independent Republics” in Eastern Ukraine: What Does Putin’s Declaration Mean? [leftvoice.org] - Putin, Lenin, and Ukrainian Self-Determination [leftvoice.org]
ISA/Sotsialisticheskaya Alternativa: What Now for Ukrainian Conflict? [socialistalternative.org]
IMT/Socialist Appeal: Ukraine: Putin ups the ante [socialist.net]
(Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday February 24 2022, @02:01AM
Then where are these neo-nazis, if they're so common? Last I checked, there's an identifiable military unit, the Azov Battallion that's neo-nazi and some weak fascist/far right political parties that can pull microscopic support from voters. None of that was responsible for the 2014 coup/putsch. Half a million or more Ukrainians going out on the streets did that.
This narrative is long past its expiration date.
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @04:16PM
- Chinese State Media Accidentally Releases Censorship Rules On Russia–Ukraine Coverage [zerohedge.com]
(Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday February 24 2022, @04:50PM (16 children)
Just remember when you're hyping this, that Russia shot first. Again.
(Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Thursday February 24 2022, @06:46PM (15 children)
Oh? And you know this how exactly?
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday February 24 2022, @07:24PM (14 children)
(Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Thursday February 24 2022, @07:26PM (13 children)
Uh huh... and? You still haven't told me how you know they drew first blood
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday February 24 2022, @08:11PM (10 children)
(Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Thursday February 24 2022, @08:43PM (9 children)
:-) Your "facts" come from questionable sources.
And now you lie. I guess you need to the strawman
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday February 24 2022, @10:20PM (8 children)
(Score: 0, Troll) by fustakrakich on Thursday February 24 2022, @11:00PM (7 children)
To argue the facts, you have to provide some. For now your "facts" remain in question. You do not know who drew first blood. You only have hearsay. And your claim of an unprovoked attack is clearly in dispute.
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: 1) by khallow on Friday February 25 2022, @03:24PM (6 children)
Again thank you for showing the fundamental dishonesty of your position. It's not about whether my argument was accurate, but casting shade in a feeble attempt to discredit the argument. At no point have you actually claimed it is wrong.
(Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Friday February 25 2022, @06:40PM (5 children)
:-) From highly biased questionable sources, that puts the accuracy of your "facts" into question also. Get your facts right and maybe you might have something worth arguing.
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: 1) by khallow on Friday February 25 2022, @07:38PM (4 children)
Are you going to question these alleged sources or merely claim that you are? I find it bizarre how little questioning you actually do on questionable sources.
Similarly, you claim my facts are wrong, but don't actually present an alternate set of facts to back your claim.
Saying someone is wrong isn't disagreement. Saying that they're wrong, and then arguing why with evidence and reason is disagreement.
(Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Friday February 25 2022, @07:52PM (3 children)
:-) Not worth the repeated effort when you don't read the links and just blow off the ones you do allegedly read. Come back when you're prepared...
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: 2, Funny) by khallow on Friday February 25 2022, @08:20PM
(Score: 1) by khallow on Friday February 25 2022, @10:06PM (1 child)
(Score: 1) by khallow on Friday February 25 2022, @11:45PM
(Score: 1) by khallow on Thursday February 24 2022, @08:14PM (1 child)
(Score: -1, Offtopic) by Anonymous Coward on Friday February 25 2022, @10:03AM
No, it isn't. It's only a flesh wound.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday February 24 2022, @05:53AM (46 children)
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/44437/russias-major-military-operation-against-ukraine-has-begun [thedrive.com]
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/putin-russia-ukraine-military-invade-b2022046.html [independent.co.uk]
https://www.rt.com/russia/550411-us-biden-putin-donbass-operation/ [rt.com]
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/ukraine-war-kiev-russia-invasion-b2022048.html [independent.co.uk]
Offhand impressions of reports coming in show that Russia plans to take all of the Donbass, and to draw a line on down to Odessa.
Some explosions around Kiev, but no indication of troops in the area, meaning, the Russians have probably targeted military depots for destruction.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @06:25AM (45 children)
Again, how do you explain the tanks crossing into Ukraine from Belarus? That's nowhere near eastern Ukraine, but it is near Kyiv.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday February 24 2022, @06:39AM (44 children)
Citations. I've still not seen tanks in or near Kyiv. Kharkiv, maybe, not anywhere on the Belarussian border.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @07:04AM (20 children)
Here is video of tanks crossing the border from Belarus into Ukraine: https://www.cnn.com/videos/world/2022/02/24/ukraine-video-tanks-belarus-border-pleitgen-vpx.cnn [cnn.com].
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday February 24 2022, @07:27AM (1 child)
Thank you for the citation - strange, though, that only CNN seems to see tanks along that portion of the border. I'll keep it in mind . . .
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @08:34PM
OK Baghdad Bob.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday February 24 2022, @07:46AM (17 children)
OK, I had a little bit of a brain fart. Neither you nor CNN has shown that tanks have entered Ukraine from Belarus. Senkika is right at the junction of the three nations. In fact, a blurb states that the Three Sister Monument is still standing in Senkika. Those tanks may have come from Belarus, or they may have come directly from Russia. Either way, Senkika is north by north-east of Kiev. So, no tanks bearing down on Kiev, that we can tell, yet. Maybe they will, but you haven't shown it yet.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @08:06AM (16 children)
Kyiv isn't right on the border. However, Senkika is far closer to Kyiv than it is to either of the provinces in eastern Ukraine whose independence Putin recognized a few days ago. Yes, I'm speculating that those tanks would be headed for Kyiv. But why send ground forces into Ukraine there if you only intend to occupy those two provinces in eastern Ukraine? It doesn't make sense, particularly when Russia has ground forces ready much closer to those areas.
I should note that it's not 100% certain whose tanks those are crossing the border, whether they're Russian or Belarusian tanks entering Ukraine.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday February 24 2022, @08:18AM (15 children)
I think that Putin wants all of Donbass region. He needs to roll back Ukraine forces from the region, so he encircles the region, pulverizes everything inside it, occupies much more than he actually wants. THEN, he negotiates, "surrendering" those portions that he doesn't actually want. That is, you negotiate from a position of strength.
We'll see what actually happens, but that's my bet.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @08:43AM (8 children)
Um, Runaway, aren't you at work right now? Shouldn't you be attending to the vacuum mold injectors, to make those leaf-blowers everyone loves? You would not want your employer to know what you use their broadband connection for, at night, when you are all alone in the plant, given your hatred of everything they stand for, and your support of Anders Behring Breivik, would you? Not a threat. just a suggestion.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday February 24 2022, @08:49AM (7 children)
ari, ari, ari - do you not understand that Runaway does whatever the hell he wants to do? When do you figure that out? Not only at work, but out in the countryside, or whichever city I want to go to. I just do what I want to do, and no one can do anything about it.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @05:18PM
Poor sad russian shill, the world is tired of you and even khallow is seeing through your bullshit.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @10:35PM
Whataya expect, he's a stalker getting 25¢ per post from the CCP, not an FBI agent. Of course you shouldn't expect much good from either of 'em.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 26 2022, @03:36AM (4 children)
Runaway is too busy dealing with the vacuum between his ears.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 26 2022, @03:48AM (3 children)
Surely you can do better. That was not even worth that 25¢.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 26 2022, @04:34AM (2 children)
Way worse to respond to your own post as AC to pretend you have kkkomrades!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday February 26 2022, @09:22PM (1 child)
I know you are but what am I?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 08 2022, @12:55AM
A moron
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday February 24 2022, @09:04PM (5 children)
I'm the AC you replied to last night. I see that aristarchus took the opportunity to reply and say nothing of value.
As I see it, you're a fool. You're essentially taking Putin at his word. He's already shown he can't be trusted. In the preceding weeks, he claimed that all the troops near Ukraine's border and in Belarus were just military exercises. He claimed that the military exercises were ending and that the troops were returning home. That's totally not what happened, and many of those troops are now attacking Ukraine. If Putin had told the truth, those troops would not be invading Ukraine right now.
Russia annexed Crimea in 2014. They interfered in Belarus' election in 2020 to keep pro-Russian leaders in power, effectively making Belarus a puppet country for Putin. Even if Putin were to stop at the Donbass region right now, why would you trust he's going to be satisfied? What makes you think he won't decide to just invade the rest of Ukraine a bit later?
As I've said in other posts, the Sudetenland is a pretty good historical precedent for what's happening here. Hitler had already annexed Austria. He then annexed the Sudetenland in 1938. Czechoslovakia wasn't welcome to participate in the conference that produced the Munich Agreement, but they were pressured by their allies into accepting the agreement. The Munich Agreement effectively forced Czechoslovakia to give the Sudetenland to Germany, in exchange for a promise that Hitler would stop seizing territory. In Czechoslovakia, the agreement was referred to as the Munich Betrayal, because they were sacrificed to Germany to appease Hitler. The agreement lasted until March of 1939, when Hitler ordered the invasion of the rest of Czechoslovakia.
Assuming Putin will stop at the Donbass region is like trusting Hitler to stop with the Sudetenland. Even if he stops for now with Donbass, what makes you think he won't take the rest of Ukraine later? If he gets away with that, what makes you think he won't decide to attack Poland, or Lithuania later to directly connect Kaliningrad with the rest of Russia? For that matter, what makes you think he wouldn't try to annex Latvia and Estonia as well? Maybe you think Putin wouldn't attack the Baltic States because they are NATO members, but NATO has shown weakness in responding to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. That might embolden him to try directly attacking NATO members. Can the Baltic States really trust that NATO will aid them if Russia attacks?
I say that you're a fool because you're ignoring history. Sure, it would be nice if Putin honored his agreements, but history shows that appeasement doesn't work. Putin already thinks he's in a position of strength because NATO isn't directly engaging Russia in combat, and he believes the risk of a Russian nuclear strike is sufficient deterrent.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday February 24 2022, @09:43PM (4 children)
You may be right. Putin may be repeating history. I don't think so. Russia has been advancing the same concerns for years now - they don't want NATO with all their arms sitting on their very doorstep, less than 500 miles from Moscow. I believe that when Russia has the Donbass for a buffer, they'll calm down. If/when Ukraine applies for membership in NATO, they may get riled up again - but probably not invade again.
Time will tell. But I think it a mistake to confuse Putin with Hitler. Putin isn't advancing the theory of a master race. He hasn't organized a Putin Youth movement, nor has he directed the women in his nation to only marry Russian Supermen. There is no Nietzsche publishing fairy tales about the origins of the Ubermenschen, and all the lesser races.
Meanwhile, most of the other states that Putin might want to annex are already members of NATO. If he should attack any of them, then our response seems to be pretty clear - we attack to defend them. Putin knows that as well as you or I.
Ukraine is unique among eastern Russian nations, at this moment in time. Ukraine played their cards, and they don't have a winning hand. It sucks, but they chose to play the game. Now, they'll take their lumps.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Magic Oddball on Thursday February 24 2022, @11:08PM (3 children)
There's an interesting article on the "it's all about NATO" theory that you might want to read:
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2022/02/putin-war-is-not-about-nato.html [slate.com]
Reportedly, Russia did little more than grumble a bit during the waves of NATO expansion, including when Ukraine first started asking to join in the late 90s; it didn't react with anti-Western rhetoric, threats, or invasions of its neighbors. There's also that NATO members' refusal to accept countries with territorial disputes means that there was virtually no chance of the Ukraine being allowed in after Russia began targeting it back in 2014, so that doesn't really make sense as a reason to invade.
Putin's aggression instead has reliably been in response to nearby countries ditching authoritarian corrupt pro-Russian governments in favor of democracy:
I think that considering how aggressive Putin has been about silencing criticism of the Russian government within his own country, the above theory makes a lot of sense.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday February 24 2022, @11:16PM (2 children)
I thought that Ukraine officially asked for membership in NATO in 2008, but NATO didn't act on the request. I have little idea why no action was taken at that time, the disputed border problem came later, right?
The color revolutions - do you mean they weren't instigated by the West? We certainly gave them a lot of tacit approval and support, if not explicit.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Friday February 25 2022, @03:18AM
Sounds like there might be something wrong with that narrative! I think the key is the delusion that the West somehow has a magical talent in instigating a large number [wikipedia.org] of such successful revolutions with considerable public turnout and support.
It's like the British Empire blaming the US revolution on the machinations of the French. Clearly it wouldn't have happened if the French hadn't instigated the whole thing! I guess it's better than acknowledging that someone elsewhere in the world doesn't prefer your government!
(Score: 1) by khallow on Friday February 25 2022, @03:26AM
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday March 02 2022, @03:14AM (22 children)
It's official:
"Putin May Circle Kiev with Tanks, But He’ll Never Gain the Hearts and Souls of the Iranian People"
- Sleepy Joe
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday March 02 2022, @03:18AM (21 children)
Yeah, a lot has changed in the last 6 days. Belarus is most definitely part of the invasion now. I can't/won't retract what I said above, but now Belarus figures into everything.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday March 02 2022, @04:12AM (7 children)
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday March 02 2022, @04:22AM (6 children)
There will never be any walking back on the other side, will there? You still think the Azov Battalion never did anything to provoke Russia, or to provoke Russians.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday March 02 2022, @03:34PM (5 children)
Indeed. By your own words. If there was any actual provocation, you would have mentioned that instead of this pathetic whining about nazis. You can barely find nazis in the Ukraine, much less find a legitimate provocation.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday March 02 2022, @03:39PM (4 children)
You've dismissed the battalion, you've dismissed it's part in your precious Maidan, you claim it has no influence on Ukraine politics, and more.
You can excuse and dismiss anything and everything, so long as it supports your "side".
Once again, I invite you to watch Mearsheimer's presentation, which more or less predicts the current situation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrMiSQAGOS4 [youtube.com]
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday March 02 2022, @03:52PM (3 children)
Indeed. How big is it, Runaway?
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Wednesday March 02 2022, @04:33PM (2 children)
https://military-history.fandom.com/wiki/Azov_Battalion [fandom.com]
https://jewishunpacked.com/the-azov-movement-lets-talk-about-ukraines-nazi-problem/ [jewishunpacked.com]
Not that I approve of anything Facebook, but:
Oddly - Facebook makes an about-face on the Azov movement last week:
If we were to ask a Ukrainian, we would probably be told that Ukies aren't prejudiced, of course.
https://vnexplorer.net/?#indian-and-african-students-fleeing-ukraine-say-they-face-racism-at-border-ec20225326967.html [vnexplorer.net]
Can we stop pretending that Ukrainians are innocents, who have done nothing to provoke the situation? 2% of the vote doesn't amount to much, but it's the Azov battallion that has been sent into Donbass for the past 8 years, to keep the shit stirred. Government doesn't want to openly associate with the Azov, but government is happy to use them to suppress people that government doesn't like.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday March 02 2022, @04:40PM
What provocation? You listed nothing that was a provocation. Try again.
There is no pretending here. The Ukrainians really are the innocent party here who have not done anything to provoke the situation.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday March 02 2022, @04:42PM
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday March 03 2022, @09:47PM (12 children)
Putin obviously calculated feeble-minded Joe correctly. But he apparently didn't realize that everyone else also knows that Joe is a useless figurehead, and everyone else isn't simply going to cave, just because this country is ineffectual right now. Regardless of the hearts and souls of the Iranian people.
I wonder if Xi is slowing his cakewalk through Taiwan.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday March 03 2022, @09:54PM (11 children)
To be fair, no one could have predicted Germany's response to this shitshow. They've done little more at this point than hand-wringing and complaining, but they've done it more forcefully than anyone might have imagined.
Abortion is the number one killed of children in the United States.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday March 03 2022, @10:22PM (10 children)
Random response is better than nothing. I truly didn't expect megacorps to go after Putin like they did Trump. It shows how close they are to China. It would be so nice if this country weren't financing Putin with oil purchases. Strange bedfellows, all.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Friday March 04 2022, @04:08AM
Ever consider that megacorps aren't close to any of these leaders? The kind of toady that wants to get bossed around by these authoritarian leaders doesn't run successful megacorps.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 04 2022, @04:34AM (8 children)
- These Are All The Companies That Have Cut Ties With Russia [zerohedge.com]
(Score: 1) by khallow on Friday March 04 2022, @04:39PM (7 children)
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 04 2022, @05:58PM (6 children)
But mega-abusers like Apple — who live and breathe Yuan — wouldn't punish their partner in crime. The rapacious, bestial megacorps are the message; the pseudonymous-Durden is just another messenger.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Friday March 04 2022, @06:17PM (5 children)
"Sure, Russia is being really evil right now, but whatabout Apple?"
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 04 2022, @07:38PM (4 children)
The day the last real American-based business is shuttered, and all those proud American factory towns are left for the next generation of American Pickers to dig through the deserted and forgotten remains of our heritage for rusty gold. Apple's absolutely nothin' unique in this regard... it's just so easy with this example for the common [ex-]consumer to see how they're all doin' it.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Friday March 04 2022, @07:41PM (3 children)
I bet we'll ignore this bullshit long before we get to that point. I notice, for a glaring example, that no one has actually stated what Apple supposedly did wrong. They're just a mean ol' megacorp that deals with Yuan.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 04 2022, @07:43PM (2 children)
Supposedly? See my previous post.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Friday March 04 2022, @07:52PM (1 child)
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 04 2022, @10:41PM
Sigh. We'll leave that as an exercise for the reader.