We’ve always been at war with Eastasia.
5 Likes
This is bad news, but not surprising.
How Dubai Could Undermine Sanctions on Russian Oligarchs - The New York Times
1 Like
Spoiler to those not paying attention: writ large, the Middle East is not our friends. When there’s money to be made somewhere, they’re really not our friends.
2 Likes
Two weeks ago, somebody posted that “Putin has gone mad”. I disagreed, I figured he was cold, calculating, and immoral, not mad.
I’m getting more worried about that. Condoleezza Rice said that he isn’t acting like the person she dealt with back in the day. I’ve seen other speculation.
Here’s a take from the “he’s going off the deep end” perspective. It’s from someone who claims contacts with upper level Russians. This is very worrisome.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/10/opinion/putin-russia-ukraine.html
King George III all over again?
Blackrock reportedly doubles down on Russian investments right before the invasion, loses $17 billion.
The only shame in this is that it’s not $17 trillion, or even $1.7 trillion.
Seems that Putin has called a UN meeting to discuss the US conspiring with the Ukrainians to create chemical weapons in Ukraine. Based on the Donald Trump Authoritarian playbook that tells me he is in fact about to use chemical weapons in the Ukraine.
2 Likes
I think you’re right.
the DTAP will become the shorthand
Really wish we weren’t using terms like that so often we needed an acronym for them.
Unfortunately, I agree.
Now the destruction of the Ukraine begins,and the casualty figures rise.
This whole thing is like a replay of Chechnya. Putin, desperate to reconstitute the imperial Russian borders, assumes the Chechnya population wants him to liberate their state and overthrow a hated government. He finds his military unable to do this quickly. Paratroopers fail. A quick advance by armored columns fails and Putin is between a rock and a hard place.he MUST win. So, he levels the capital with missiles and claims total victory. Lotsa people die. The world watches.it’s a regional thing, after all
Here we go again but on a much larger scale.
2 Likes
Sadly, this seems spot on.
I don’t think he assumes this, and I don’t think he cares if they want this.
1 Like
In terms of military planning, it seems that they may indeed have been thinking exactly that, at least in terms of Ukraine. Not sure about Chechnya.
Sadly, she may spend the next 15 years in jail as a result.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/anti-war-protester-disrupts-russia-state-tv-1.6384534
Maybe not 15 years. It’s possible that Putin’s leadership doesn’t survive this and the next leader may be more sane.
Or worse. Who knows, I just hope change comes from within Russia to force him out.
I am betting it will be shorter than 15 years.
As in 15 to life 
What about Russia makes them unable to build a democratic government with a high-growth economy like the rest of Eastern Europe has?