Ukraine

PAL
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Re: Ukraine

Post by PAL »

This is why it is important to buy local, especially food from the Valley's producers. We have several groups that are growing grains, have eggs, etc. Massive amounts of compost is available.
It does seem like the minute the media mentions higher prices, the next day, everything is up.
This was coming anyway, this war just sped things up.
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Re: Ukraine

Post by Rideback »

In case people are wondering the relevance of Putin's invasion to what happens here and to global markets
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-60623941
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Re: Ukraine

Post by PAL »

I must admit, I too have trouble reconciling the fact that the Trump supporters like him and know that Trump liked Puti.
So how can that be reconciled? Oh, I could forget about it. I can't forget many of the things Trump said. Character does have something to do with the presidancy and his character was lacking. But he is a character all right. He is not a decent human being.
He called people names, grabbed "things", if Ivanka were my daughter, telling Putin to find Hilary's emails, an endless list of inappropriateness. But he didn't care. That's what the supporters went along with because they were convinced they have been cheated out of the good life. That's what they wanted to say. Here was someone like them.
He showed me how crude he was/is. And he did meddle in Ukraine. And this is where someone will pipe up, but Hunter Biden did, blah, blah, blah.
Just viewed the link. Did he honestly say this? OMG.
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Re: Ukraine

Post by Rideback »

Saturday, YES THIS SATURDAY AS IN YESTERDAY, Trump spoke in front of a room full of Republican donors. His suggestion that the US just put Chinese flags on our F22's and have at it did not go over well.

https://crooksandliars.com/2022/03/mili ... nese-flags

The twitter comments are priceless.
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Re: Ukraine

Post by pasayten »

Board Administrator: Sorry for the outburst. Please don't ban me.
Just added a few new word censorng variations... You are helping to expand the dictionary... It's all good... :-)
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Re: Ukraine

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From Newsweek:
'While a significant majority of Americans agree that Russia's invasion of Ukraine was not justified, Republicans are more likely to hold an unfavorable view of President Joe Biden than they are of Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to a new poll.'
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Re: Ukraine

Post by Gonzo'57 »

Mickey M.,

I've held my piece as long as I can.

You are a di**head, lying, p.o.*, a useful tool of the haters of America and a sufferer of "Trump Derangement Syndrome". Trump is NOT siding with Putin. He merely said Putin was smart for acting when he did. BTW, an opinion I don't agree with. And to say all Trump supporters are backing Putin is complete and total bull***! It's like saying all supporters of Biden are supporters of socialists, communists, little girl fondling sniffing pedophiles.

st*u!

Board Administrator: Sorry for the outburst. Please don't ban me.
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Re: Ukraine

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putin3.jpg
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Re: Ukraine

Post by mister_coffee »

It appears that Russian forces have gotten to the E40 west of Kiev.

If they can manage to hold that highway and effectively block it, a lot of the logistics challenges that the Russians are facing will now begin to plague the Ukrainians as well.
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Re: Ukraine

Post by PAL »

I just said that this morning to a friend about supporting Trump. Trump is supposedly backpedaling on what he said.
Nikki Haley this morning said this would never have happened if Trump had still been president. No invasion. How in the heck can anyone know that? They don't. Just like the way it sounds.
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Re: Ukraine

Post by PAL »

Ken, do you think you need political advice? Perhaps an open mind and knowledge.
I truly hope you do not support someone like Putin.
Last edited by PAL on Sun Mar 06, 2022 9:51 am, edited 1 time in total.
Pearl Cherrington
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Re: Ukraine

Post by dorankj »

You really are Mickey Mouse, I’ll get my political advice elsewhere.
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Re: Ukraine

Post by Rideback »

Fiona Hill is a wealth of information and background on Ukraine, thanks for reminding me.

Just saw that PayPal has joined Visa & Master Card in cutting off Russia and then another piece just popped up that the bank in China that handles their infrastructure loans has announced they will not do business with Russia. China has been a holdout for Russia politically, but this decision is strictly business based on Russia's imminent collapse.
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Re: Ukraine

Post by PAL »

This is a long interview involving Fiona Hill. She's very knowledgeble about Putin. It is well worth reading the whole piece.

https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/ ... e-00012340
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Re: Ukraine

Post by Rideback »

Open source information is remarkable. Here's an article that gives links to the top sources

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/open ... om-ukraine
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Re: Ukraine

Post by Rideback »

Bellingcat is a great resource.
Hopefully the 'corridor' that is being negotiated now will become a reality for provisions for the people.
The Turks have managed to get a good supply of drones to the troops which are being used to attack the Russians.
News that the Russians plan on upping the attacks with the use of higher altitude jets that are out of the range of the Stingers will start over the weekend. Hopefully the US will get some Javelins into Ukrainian hands.

Options are limited. Until they're not.
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Re: Ukraine

Post by mister_coffee »

It seems that the truth and even reality are the first casualties of war.

Chances are the "Ghost of Kiev" is fiction.

Western aid is starting to reach Ukraine. Currently the E40 (the westbound highway out of Kiev) is still open so presumably supplies will likely make it to Kiev without too much trouble.

At the same time, there are unconfirmed results that Ukrainian regular army forces have taken substantial losses and are at a small fraction of their effectiveness a week ago.

Reports from Bellingcat investigator Christo Grozev is claiming that Russia has resources to continue operations for approximately ten more days.
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Re: Ukraine

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:arrow: David Bonn :idea:
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Re: Ukraine

Post by Rideback »

Trump & Fox news have both now switched sides. Trump calling invasion 'a terrible thing' and Fox asking for Putin to be assassinated.
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Re: Ukraine

Post by Rideback »

Switzerland, famous for its take no sides stance has condemned the invasion and is in the midst of sending aid.
The 80 soldiers on Ukraine's Snake Island that notoriously told the capt of the Russian war ship to go f**k themselves when it approached the island demanding for the soldiers to surrender are now cautiously being called 'alive and well'. May it be so.

Putin sent in a mercinary group, 400 strong with specific instructions to go after Ukraine's president, cabinet & family and destroy them. Every hour that Ukraine holds on, their president still standing is a huge testament to their courage.

Ukraine's president asked the EU this morning for consideration of immediate membership to EU. It won't be surprising if that is granted.

Putin's goals included damaging beyond repair a fledgling democracy with the hope that it would lead to further fracturing of western democracies. Instead, for the moment, the demise of authoritarian rulers looks more promising.
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Re: Ukraine

Post by mister_coffee »

Oh, on gas.

One other huge mistake Putin made was launching this in late February. Western Europe has enough gas stockpiled to keep the heat on for the rest of the winter. Launching this war in November or December would make things tougher for Germany and other countries dependent on Russian gas.

Russia is losing. The questions are whether Ukraine survives and how badly Russia will lose.

Another straw in the wind: Finland's parliament is considering NATO membership: https://yle.fi/news/3-12335563 .
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Re: Ukraine

Post by mister_coffee »

This is the morning of the fifth day of the war. It is obviously a long time from being over, but it isn't too early to draw at least some conclusions.

The Russians committed most of their army, and arguably the best-equipped parts of that army, to invading Ukraine. In the first four days they have managed to accomplish none of the strategic objectives they expected to accomplish in the first 24 hours. It is now obvious from an operational and a logistics standpoint they just couldn't make it all work.

If this Russian army got in a fight with NATO, they'd get ripped to very tiny bits.

If the Ukrainians manage to hold out for a couple more days, they might actually win this thing. I say that not because they can outgun the Russian army (though they have certainly outfought them so far), but because the Russian army probably won't be able to supply adequate fuel and ammunition to the forces they already have in-country. An army that can't maneuver and can't shoot is a dead army. The logistics situation for the Russian army now looks very bad, and it is likely to get much, much worse before it gets any better.

If you look at a map of Ukraine, you will notice a lot of very large rivers and not very many bridges. The Ukrainians have done a very good job of blowing their own bridges up. And the Russians did a very poor job of securing those same bridges. Yes, the Russians have bridging equipment. But it is unlikely they have enough. And bridging equipment bridges have very limited carrying capacity. I doubt they will be able to move enough fuel and ammunition forward to keep their forces in the fight.

The build-up of this thing was ridiculously slow and ponderous. It is obvious to me that the Ukrainians made superb use of the time they had. You have to admire the ingenuity, bravery, stubbornness, and vicious sneakiness that the Ukrainians have shown in this fight.

The Ukrainians have shown a remarkable ability to be in the right place at the right time. Enough said about that.
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Re: Ukraine

Post by Rideback »

If you've been thinking the sanctions are weak against Ukraine, think again. The west has left Putin with zero cards to play. This is extreme.

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archi ... Lh1xTqr9L4
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Ukraine

Post by Rideback »

Heather Cox Richardson is a history professor with a huge following of her newsletter each day. She manages to lay out current events in a straight forward manner with context that makes for a good read.

Today's newsletter:

'February 26, 2022 (Saturday)
We are in what feels like a moment of paradigm shift.
On this, the third day of Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, it appears the invasion is not going the way Russian president Vladimir Putin hoped. The Russians do not control the airspace over the country, and, as of tonight, despite fierce fighting that has taken at least 198 Ukrainian lives, all major Ukrainian cities remain in Ukrainian hands. Now it appears that Russia’s plan for a quick win has made supply lines vulnerable because military planners did not anticipate needing to resupply fuel and ammunition. In a sign that Putin recognizes how unpopular this war is at home, the government is restricting access to information about it.
Russia needed to win before other countries had time to protest or organize and impose the severe economic repercussions they had threatened; the delay has given the world community time to put those repercussions into place.
Today, the U.S. and European allies announced they would block Russia’s access to its foreign currency reserves in the West, about $640 billion, essentially freezing its assets. They will also bar certain Russian banks from the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication system, known as SWIFT, which essentially means they will not be able to participate in the international financial system. Lawmakers expect these measures to wreak havoc on Russia’s economy.
The Ukrainian people have done far more than hold off Putin’s horrific attack on their country. Their refusal to permit a corrupt oligarch to take over their homeland and replace their democracy with authoritarianism has inspired the people of democracies around the world.
The colors of the Ukrainian flag are lighting up buildings across North America and Europe and musical performances are beginning with the Ukrainian anthem. Protesters are marching and holding vigils for Ukraine. The answer of the soldier on Ukraine’s Snake Island to the Russian warship when it demanded that he and his 12 compatriots lay down their weapons became instantly iconic. He answered: “Russian warship: Go f**k yourself.”
That defiance against what seemed initially to be an overwhelming military assault has given Ukraine a psychological edge over the Russians, some of whom seem bewildered at what they are doing in Ukraine. It has also offered hope that the rising authoritarianism in the world is not destined to destroy democracy, that authoritarians are not as strong as they have projected.
President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine has stepped into this moment as the hero of his nation and an answer to the bullying authoritarianism that in America has lately been mistaken for strength. Zelensky was an actor, after all, and clearly understands how to perform a role, especially such a vital one as fate has thrust on him.
Zelensky is the man former president Donald Trump tried in July 2019 to bully into helping him rig the 2020 U.S. election. Then, Trump threatened to withhold the money Congress had appropriated to help Ukraine resist Russian expansion until Zelensky announced an investigation of Joe Biden’s son Hunter.
Since the invasion, Zelensky has rallied his people by fighting for Kyiv both literally and metaphorically. He is releasing videos from the streets of Kyiv alongside his government officers, and has been photographed in military garb on the streets. Offered evacuation out of the country by the U.S., he answered, “I need ammunition, not a ride.” His courage and determination have boosted the morale of those defending their country against invaders and, in turn, captured the imagination of people around the world hoping to stem the recent growth of authoritarianism, who are now making him—and Ukraine—an icon of courage and principle.
In a sign of which way the wind is blowing, today Czech president Miloš Zeman and Hungary’s prime minister Viktor Orbán, both of whom have nurtured friendly relations with Putin, came out against the invasion. Zeman called for Russia to be thrown out of SWIFT; Orbán said he would not oppose sanctions. Even Fox News Channel personality Tucker Carlson has begun to backpedal on his enthusiasm for Russia’s side in this war.
Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani, who was part of the scheme to get Zelensky to announce an investigation of Hunter Biden, today got in on the act of defending Ukraine. He tweeted: “The Ukrainian People are fighting for freedom from tyranny. Whether you realize or not, they are fighting for you and me.” But then he continued: “And our current administration is doing the minimum to support them, even though Biden’s colossal weakness and ineptitude helped to embolden Putin to do it.”
The right-wing talking point that Biden is weak and inept and therefore emboldened Putin to invade Ukraine is belied by the united front the western world is presenting. After the former president tried to weaken NATO and even discussed withdrawing from the treaty, Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken have managed to strengthen the alliance again. They have brought the G7 (the seven wealthiest liberal democracies), the European Union, and other partners and allies behind extraordinary economic sanctions, acting in concert to make those sanctions much stronger than any one country could impose.
They have managed to get Germany behind stopping the certification of Nord Stream 2, the gas pipeline from Russia to Germany that would have tied Europe more closely to Russia, and in what Marcel Dirsus, a German political scientist and fellow at the Institute for Security Policy at Kiel University, told the Washington Post was possibly “one of the biggest shifts in German foreign policy since World War II,” Germany is now sending weapons to Ukraine and has agreed to impose economic sanctions.
Biden has facilitated this extraordinary international cooperation quietly, letting European leaders take credit for the measures his own administration has advocated. It is a major shift from the U.S.’s previous periods of unilateralism and militarism, and appears to be far more effective.
Asked tonight what he would do differently than Biden in Ukraine, former president Trump answered: ​​“Well, I tell you what, I would do things, but the last thing I want to do is say it right now.”
For all the changes in the air, there is still a long way to go to restore democracy.
There is also a long way to go to restore Ukraine. Tonight the Russians are storming Kyiv.
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