Russia

I have seen several different pieces on Russia's possible use of "thermobaric" weapons in the Ukraine. Each piece either hints at or says outright that this is horrible and a possible war crime. 

Thermobaric weapons  

This is the type of dishonest rubbish we are hearing across the West. Thank God we are not in the U.K. where it is even worse than here. Then again, the Brits have a long history of spewing out unmitigated propaganda on an industrial scale. 

Before anyone gets too excited about the above, have a look at the link below. To quote Gomer Pyle, "Surprise, surprise, surprise." The USA has regularly used thermobaric weapons. 

War is hell  

There is even a thermobaric version of the much-used "Hellfire" missle. 

Hellfire

The link is to what is, in my opinion, one of the few reasonably honest commentaries on the actual situation in the Ukraine. 

Putin is not losing

Listen, I know you guys aren't on the same page as me regarding Russia and Putin. But I was somewhat outraged to read this recent blather by Rod Dreher. My response (still waiting for their slow system to approve it) to his article was:

Rod, get a grip. We ought to denounce everything Russian and challenge the Russian people to protest against Putin's organized murder of Ukrainians. In the case of Obama's ambassador to Russia, even a stopped clock is right twice a day.

It's not hysteria to get riled up. It's the kind of social push-back that, short of picking up a rifle and joining the Ukrainians, that the average person can do.

If you can't come out with a healthy "Eff Mother Russia" at this point, then it's time to retire the moral soap box that you're standing on.

Interesting article on Zelensky and the WEF.

Volodymyr and Klaus

Honestly, I couldn't tell you what Brandon is. If you told me he was one of Satan's minions, that would make some sense.

We ought to be building every pipeline and opening every spigot. I think outrage against Russia's organized murder in Ukraine is healthy and should be universal. Such outrage may soften as energy bills climb. But one of the best quotes I heard was that apparently the environmental wackos in Germany were willing to live with nuclear energy if it meant cutting off buying oil and gas from Russia.

A very small corner of Hell just froze over. But it's something.

Germany is in that situation of "I'm shocked, shocked to hear that Putin is a monster." They depend on Russia for much of their energy. One could say that Putin's Hitleresque moves are a wake-up call for a lot of people.

In simple terms of power and will, Putin will get what he wants in the short term. But it's hard to imagine that the Russian military hasn't walked into another Afghanistan. The appropriate response by all nations who wish to put these Hitlerian characters behind us is to support any and all opposition to Putin. And I think this will happen.

I read yesterday that some billionaire offered a one million dollar bounty on Putin's head. That's the kind of "social justice" action I believe in, although probably only a high military leader or one of the oligarchs has a shot at taking him out. But I can't see the Russian people feeling proud of what is going on. There ultimately is going to be very little in it for them. It's like, "Thanks, Putin, for making the Russian people the pariahs of the world."

A friend told me yesterday that Turkey had given Ukraine a whole bunch of drones and that these have been effective. If so, one can foresee how easy it would be (if the West and others have the will) to make life for the Russians hell in Ukraine.

The ace in the hole (war can make strange bedfellows) is that the media hates Putin so I don't see them turning a blind eye to the atrocities committed by Putin's army. But as we know, marching orders can come down on high and it could suddenly be a case of "Well, Ukraine wasn't a very nice place to begin with, so big deal." That seems to be the attitude around here.

It was interesting to see that Apple has banned selling products in Russia. That's a good move. But as an article I read noted, what they hell will they do if China invades Taiwan? Apple sells but a handful of products in Russia but is heavily dependent upon China for both sales and manufacturing. Virtue signaling will cost Apple a hell of a lot more regarding China. The smart move (which apparently they have taken steps to do) is to diversify their manufacturing base. But that doesn't change the fact that at some point they will face either boycotting China or selling out Taiwan. I think they would sell out Taiwan in a heartbeat.

Why did they close three nuclear-power plants in December? Idiots are closing the barn door after the horse has bolted. 

Unfortunately, there is a significant number of Neo-Nazis in the Ukraine. They have their own "Azov Battalion" which has been fighting in the Donbas region for years. It appears that the Battalion is now holed up in the surrounded Mariupol. Many expect them to fight to the death. Who knows what will happen. 

Stepan Bandera is our hero   

As some might recall from an earlier post, the Ukrainian Nazis/Ultra Right Wing were too much for even the Waffen SS. 

Twenty years back, David Brooks was a reasonable man. Today he is either a lunatic or liar. One does not preclude the other. 

The country has regained faith in Biden

I noticed him spinning off into outer space in 2008. I wondered what had happened to him. Perhaps he was always a nutter or perhaps, getting gigs at the New York Times and PBS corrupted him. But today he is less than a hologram of a man.