From NJ1015:
Get back to work! NJ lawmakers call for all Motor Vehicle offices to reopen
Lawmakers are trying to force the Motor Vehicle Commission to fully reopen.
State Sen. Kristin Corrado, R-Passaic, said the reason for her proposed legislation is out of frustration on her part and on the part of her constituents.
She said there is no excuse for the government not to be open and not to be providing a full range of services two years after the COVID-19 pandemic began.
“You can go to the mall, you can go to a restaurant, you can shop at any store up and down the entire state of New Jersey, you can go to a football game, you can go to a concert, but you can’t go to Motor Vehicles in a timely fashion to get all your services done and you certainly can’t go to the Department of Labor to get your unemployment resolved,” Corrado said.
…
“Government serves the people. We pay their salaries. There is simply no excuse for them not to be back at work in-person full services throughout the state. As the governor likes to say, period full stop,” Corrado said.
Ukraine and Kyiv still stand, defending the massive Russian onslaught last night.
Russians getting incredibly reckless and sloppy in attempting to make progress, lots of civilian casualties, also resorting to hitting fuel and gas infrastructure with cruise missiles.
News of Kharkiv being taken may be premature, lots of news this morning of Russian troops retreating out of the city, seemingly impossible to hold urban positions. Videos of Ukie soldiers singing and in very high morale. Videos of whole groups of Russian soldiers surrendering.
From Kyiv this morning:
Ukraine estimates Russian military losses so far to include:
4,300 deaths
27 planes
26 helicopters
146 tanks
706 armoured fighting vehicles
49 cannons
1 Buk air defence system
4 Grad multiple rocket launch systems
30 vehicles
60 tankers
2 drones
2 boats
“Making New Jersey more affordable suddenly took center stage.
Murphy has hinted about property taxes in his first two major speeches of 2022, touting his administration’s effort to boost state aid to towns and schools during his State of the State address, and talking about reawakening the American Dream in his inaugural address.
“But I’m not going to be satisfied with just slowing property tax growth,” Murphy said. “I want to get us to a place where we can begin to see them go down.”
His third speech — to introduce a state budget — comes a week from Tuesday. The budget is where the rubber hits the road for a governor’s agenda, and while not providing specifics, the governor is repeating his property tax mantra.
“We are obsessed with making more progress on property taxes,” Murphy said Wednesday night during his regular radio call-in show on WBGO in Newark.”
https://www.nj.com/politics/2022/02/can-nj-property-taxes-actually-go-down-we-may-soon-find-out
In 2016, the government created a new reinsurance company called Flood Re to cover those homes built before 2009 in areas at high risk of flooding. Insurance companies mostly fund it themselves, but we all pay for this via a levy on our home-insurance policy. The number of homes believed to be at risk was a maximum of 250,000 (businesses were not covered by the scheme). Today, the Environment Agency believes more than five million homes and businesses are at risk of flooding. This number could double by 2050 if current planning laws remain unchanged. Developers like flood plains: they are flat, foundations are easier to build and the profit margins are better. Parliament has been angsting about building on flood plains for over a decade, but has done very little, save giving the Environment Agency greater funding for flood prevention.
There are two obvious responses. Building on flood plains is simply very stupid (as are the buyers) and building ever greater flood defences pushes the problem downstream. Flood plains exist to alleviate flooding, not as sites for urban sprawl. This year, many home owners have been genuinely shocked by the increase in their premiums as flood risks are re-assessed. For an increasing number, the cost of flood insurance is becoming unaffordable and their homes less saleable. The same is happening in flood-prone areas worldwide. Once again it is the insurers forcing change, rather than governments. Thus, it does not take a leap of imagination to see that insurance companies will refuse to cover – or demand government subsidies for – a host of increasing environmental problems.
Ask most people the purpose of an insurance company or bank and you will get woolly answers such as paying you for an injury or holding your money safely. Their sole purpose is to make their shareholders money. This is relevant because of rising catastrophe losses, which are bleeding many insurance companies. Between 1970 and 2000, the largest weather-related catastrophe loss year was 1999 at $44bn. Over the last ten years, the average was over $80bn. The number of record years increased in frequency, with 2005, 2011, 2017 and 2021 varying between $101bn and $152bn. The response is therefore predictable. Firms are refusing to insure at any cost in some areas and raising premiums to eye watering levels in others. Slowly, those luxury holiday huts on sun-drenched coral reefs – the environmental equivalent of Conan the Destroyer – will be unable to get cover to operate.
https://apple.news/AYJad4DSwRsClx_PBmyCkaQ
Sounds like the whole of EU will close it’s airspace to Russian planes this evening, including private jets. Canada closing to Russian aircraft as well (blocking many polar route flights to the Americas). Come on Biden, what are you waiting for? Grim called for this two days ago, get on it.
Russian soldiers seen looting for food and clothing, presumably to desert. Interviews with Russian soldiers showing them pretty demoralized, lacking food, fuel, ammo, etc. Lots of kids wearing uniforms crying.
The huge column of armor headed towards Kyiv last night was absolutely decimated north of the city. Russia elite special forces units captured, killed. How much longer until the rest of the world begins to question the military might of Russia? Seems it’s all bullshit. 12,000 tanks, but how many of them still run? How many are crewed by soldiers willing to fight?
Escalation..
Defcon 1?
“Putin orders his nuclear forces to full combat readiness in response to sanctions & “aggressive statements” from NATO countries.”
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russias-putin-puts-nuclear-forces-high-alert-2022-02-27/
Sign of weakness, and that Putin is a madman. Like I said yesterday, the world is going to start talking about removing Putin and demilitarizing Russia. Putin is humiliated around the world, and shortly within Russia as well. Now talks of Belarus joining the fight? That’s a joke, if Putin needs their help, it means he’s either trying to hide the massive losses, or they are done.
Don’t expect ANYTHING to come of recently announced negotiation talks. Ukraine will not capitulate at this point, and has already made it’s intentions to join the EU clear. Given recent European support, this is a lock. Personally, I believe this is a way to buy time for resupply operations, another day to get anti-aircraft and anti-armor in place. Russia will come with absolutely absurd demands, which will drive further global isolation.
You are witnessing the fall of Russia in real time.
Probability of China making a move on Taiwan is now 0%.
Sun is now going down in Kyiv, we shall see tonight how serious Russian forces are. If their losses are to be believed every unit has deaths and injured, with their three material-technical support brigades suffering the most as those are the convoys of young soldiers we see blow up or surrendering. They have the least armor. Their field hospitals must be overflowing.
I do see the reporting a bit one sided they are not showing Ukrainian losses much. There has to be thousands by now.
grim says:
February 27, 2022 at 9:57 am
“Sign of weakness” – agree
“Putin is a madman” – in an echo chamber surrounded by yes-men, that’s true; madman, that’s TBD
“world is going to start talking about removing Putin and demilitarizing Russia” – talk, maybe; action – don’t think so, unfortunately
“Putin is humiliated around the world” – agree
“Ukraine will not capitulate at this point” – not sure, but hope correct
“You are witnessing the fall of Russia in real time” – not sure, but hope correct
Few take-aways for me, so far…
1. Given the grit shown by Ukraine, absolutely shameful that the US didn’t do more beforehand in the way of supplying equipment and logistical support. I’d say the same for EU, but it’s long been clear that our Euro/NATO allies are useless.
2. Despite European anger, I’m still dubious as to how far they’re going to be willing to go in punishing Russia. They’re going to feel a lot of pain if Russia turns off the energy spigot and I just don’t think they have much tolerance for it.
3. Tremendous respect for Ukrainian people!
Germany announced the construction of two new LNG terminals today, specifically to reduce the need for Russian imports.
4. My burnt Orange god is a unpatriotic douche and Faux news looks like complete idiots for backing Putin. I, of course, will never own up my crazy views leading up to this.
Sun is now going down in Kyiv, we shall see tonight how serious Russian forces are.
If the sheer amount of death and destruction levied on that huge convoy last night is any indication, Ukraine will not fall tonight. It’s reported they took out 50 tanks in one defensive action. Lots of videos of Ukrainians blocking roads, building sandbag checkpoints on major highways. Pretty sure every American satellite is now over the region and most certainly providing real-time intelligence on troop and equipment movements.
Videos this morning of civilians in cars and trucks firebombing Russian convoys and disabling trucks. More reports coming in that the army has recaptured cities previously claimed by Russia (likely true, since Russia simply doesn’t have the manpower and supply to hold these areas). Photos going around of locals walking around armed with Russian special forces rifles, of locals stripping damaged convoys of all supplies and weapons.
Another day of high tech weaponry being resupplied to the field, old Russian armor standing NO chance at all.
Soviet equipment losses now eclipsing their losses in Afghanistan 1.0. They’ve lost as much equipment in 4 days as they did in 10 years of war in Afghanistan. Read this over and over a few times.
Here you go Bi; I didn’t read the whole article, but maybe there’s something in there about a possible cure — or at least a way to help you cope a bit better with your late stage TDS. All the best in your long, difficult journey back to reason and reality…
The Next Pandemic: Trump Derangement Syndrome – https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-next-pandemic-trump-derangement-syndrome-11594336574
Ukraine ambassador to the US calling for US businesses to cease doing business with Russian companies..
“And I also would like to use this opportunity also to call on American business,” Markarova added. “I think it’s time to think about saving reputations and not cooperating with a regime that will end up in The Hague for everything they’ve done and they’re doing now to Ukraine,” referring to the International Court of Justice where alleged war crimes are heard,” she said.
War crimes are no joke. Just ask the Nazi’s.
I will stop calling your insanity when I see Dumpy not a nominee for Prez or loses primary showing the R party has anything other than dark rotted soul.
They Love Each Other….
https://youtu.be/EBtEMkONTh8
Picked up one of these the other day……love it
Stream your music nearly anywhere with the black & brass Marshall Kilburn II Portable Bluetooth Speaker. It connects to your device via Bluetooth 5.0, enabling you to wirelessly play music through its woofers and two tweeters for a total output of up to 36W.
SGC,
Where was all the love for Ukraine when the $400 million was being withheld? Did you feel the same way about Ukraine then? You are so full of sh#t.
Lib, real estate anecdote for you in play right now. The house behind me sold nearly 2 years ago for $520k. It was the worst house in the neighborhood and needs a lot of work. There’s a ton of wear and tear. The backyard also has an awful lawn and the property has major water issues that is decaying the backside of the property. When they bought it, I thought they overpaid by about $50k. They just got a job offer in Chicago, so they have it listed at $600k, which again, I think is insane.
It’s still the worst house in the neighborhood. That being said, the amount of attention I’ve seen on this home the past 4 days is nothing like I’ve ever seen. They have 40 scheduled showings. The open house yesterday had the entire neighborhood filled with parked cars for the entire day. Right now, there appears to be no inventory on the market (my guess is supply squeeze, especially from no foreclosures for 2 years). If this thing goes for above asking, I’m seriously considering calling up my real estate agent and having him just fish out clients for an obscene price over market value.
Grim: Agreed, no chance China takes Taiwan now. Just shows what the world can do when it comes together. The Chinese government needs to reflect on that going forward.
BRT: That’s crazy. But, in the end it won’t end well. It never does.
I agree. You have a temporary supply squeeze, people are going to pay huge to get in, regret it for the rest of their lives. The only saving grace is, it’s going to be limited to those few. The people in my neighborhood are under the delusion that if this goes for higher than asking, all their homes that they plan to stay in another 15 years keep those gains.
I don’t see a Ukrainian joining the EU, it’s already struggling with the members it has.
Grim, where are you getting your info for the Russian convoy destruction and other similar info like how much equipment has been immobilized, troop desertions, etc? I ask because MSM info is so limited: cable news is circling through same scattering of handful of facts and videos on repeat, online paywalls for news sites, etc. I see some action on reddit and youtube that looks great for Ukraine, but I’m feeling fog of war on what’s really going on.
I’m skeptical that Russia is going down hard. It just seems out-of-touch with years of military and geopolitical orthodoxy (or, at least the info that is widely available to civilians). Part of me keeps waiting for the news to shift on this?
If it is true that Russia is actually unable to easily take Ukraine with its conventional military, then Putin really, really made a strategic error for himself. Even if the Ukraine invasion went well, Putin would be diminishing his power. If Russia’s military is really this weak and they will need to either retreat or settle into facing an insurgency that is worse than an Afghan War, then we just lived through a huge momentous geopolitical change in the last several days.
Hah ex. That is a great version. Know that JGB album well. I was quite bootleg collector 20-25 years ago. Think I have a few LOM and Reconstruction shows unreleased. So many great patch SBDs..
According to Rolling Stone, only fans creators in Russia and Belarus have been blocked from accessing their earnings. Saw a video of a run on Russian ATM’s. Import/export companies in Russia are probably bumping against sanctions-related issues. Captured Russian solider was forced to call his parents and tell them he was captured a few days ago. Seems like word of what is going on in Ukraine is getting around in Russia.
I saw “I don’t know how but they found me” last night at house of blues in Dallas.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=hXzPxBhhmY8
It was great. We were 35-40 feet away from lead singer. They sound like a modern version of Talking Heads.
Opening act was called superet. They were very good too.
Crushed,
They thought Kyiv would go down in one day. Supply chain, specifically refueling logistics has been poor. Fuel trucks not armored, vulnerable.
Check out video Ukrainian jokingly offers to tow Russians and their tank back to boarder and then another tank out of fuel up the road. Read comments section too.
https://taskandpurpose.com/news/russia-invasion-ukraine-kyiv/
Info is out there. Kadyrov Forces destroyed yesterday. These are battle hardened forces they volunteered to take Kyiv too, they were not the 95% conscripts we see driving fuel trucks and light armor.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/ukrainian-forces-destroy-convoy-of-56-chechen-tanks-kill-general-near-kyiv-report/
One point Putin killed several hundred thousand in the Chechnya war. I don’t think he will give up ever.
Videos of Ukie soldiers rubbing bullets in pork fat for the Chechens. They are winning the social media war.
Russian soldiers have their mobile phones, they are on social media. The first day of the Russian stag party in Ukraine had the Russian soldiers blabbing all over TikTok.
Not any more.
BTW it’s been called out by some with military experience. Why are we seeing all these light convoys driving around what seems like aimless without heavy armor protecting them? These columns of supplies usually follow the main battle tanks to resupply fuel, ammo, food etc. The Russians it seems are sending in about 95% conscripts in light armor to act as decoys and have the Ukrainians use up what rockets they have on them. The main battle tanks are being held back, there are still thousands of them not deployed yet.
Unlikely.
Keep in mind one additional bit.
New columns entering Ukraine now need to drive miles of roads littered with hundreds of pieces of destroyed Russian armor. They are also facing dead ends and traps, as Ukraine has selectively destroyed bridges and blocked roads. Road signs have been removed or relabeled with incorrect directions. Seriously doubt every Russian truck has modern GPS. Overhead digital signs on highways have been reprogrammed to deliver fun messages to Russian troops that pass.
Russians have their own GPS satellites they don’t use ours. Ukraine claimed 146 destroyed tanks, the Russians have thousands of tanks. Were are they? Why have they not moved in? There is not much of a threat from the air to take them out. The information warfare is a bit one sided, the airport outside of Kiev for example, seems info was scrubbed on twitter. Hostemel has been taken back by the Russians and they are now in the suburbs of Kyiv.
May of Kyiv Vitali Klitschko just said they are now surrounded and cannot even evacuate.
https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-kyiv-europe-e9cd115540b398be26dfcaf472ec1621
They got balls
https://twitter.com/denebgalaxy/status/1497986197360033796?s=21
It’s goes to reason that if there are over 4,000 dead Russian soldiers they must be thousands of dead Ukrainian troops. There are almost no reports official or otherwise from the UN of troop deaths other than Russians. How can any of this be accurate? The answer is it’s not. We of course want them to win, but reality is different from what we are witnessing on social media and the MSM. The nightly bombing alone must have killed thousands, there has to be several hundred dead just from the front line bombings as well as the battles at the airport near Kyiv. 2oo Russian Helicopter gunships must have killed allot of Ukrainian soldiers.
Yes very brave people to face down tanks.
Here is grandpa fist fighting a Russian soldier.
https://twitter.com/i/status/1497997798179950592
Sweden sending 5,000 anti tank missiles, including the mighty NLAWs we’ve seen.
How many tanks again?
I’m beginning to think that Ukraine wasn’t so ambivalent to the Russian build up on the border. Clearly they didn’t have much situated within the bases when Russia attacked, or were quick to remove equipment.
Juice,
Ukraine said something to the effect of removing age limits to fight. That’s not something I would expect from a side that’s winning. The news from everywhere is completely unreliable to draw meaningful conclusions.
BRT – Yup 18 -60 year old males are expected to fight and are being prevented from leaving to Poland etc, in addition Ukraine emptied it’s prisons armed them too and sent them to the front lines. Then there are the grandmas with rifles and molotov cocktails who will firebomb and shoot if they have too.
Putin has gone scorched earth before, and I don’t see anyone saying on the MSM that he will back down for one second. BTW their shared history against the Nazis seems to all but be has forgotten. Over 2 million died fighting the German invasion, they are hardly Nazis.
Sorry, but what you describe is the precursor to WW3.
Europe will not idly watch Putin go scorched earth on Ukraine.
Ruble will crash tomorrow, runs on banks will commence. Europe appears dead set on squeezing Russia. State department issued a statement calling for all Americans in Russia to leave immediately.
They towed a bunch of junk to the border….
A CNN team south of Belgorod, Russia, near the Ukrainian border has observed Russian vehicles that are broken down or inoperable, as US and Western officials say that a portion of the Russian forces amassed on the border with Ukraine were unusable.
The team has seen several broken-down armored personnel carriers, an armored vehicle being towed, a howitzer that was being repaired on the side of the road when its track had come off, and more.
On the eve of the invasion, US officials said approximately 80% of Russia’s military force amassed on Ukraine’s borders was in forward positions.
A US official said the US believes a portion of the remaining force was inoperable. At the same time, a European official said that Russia’s fictional pullback in the days before the invasion was actually an attempt to remove broken vehicles from the field.
A senior defense official said Sunday morning that Russia still has a significant capacity of forces that have not yet been deployed into Ukraine.
Ukrainian farmer with tractor steals Russian APC today
https://twitter.com/JohnnyMercerUK/status/1498027274683174913
Self sabotage so they don’t have to fight, happened during the Chechnya war too. There are reports thousand of Russian mercs rioted because invading Ukraine is not in their contract.
Breaking News – 3 mile long convoy leaves Belarus for Kiev
Full of spare parts and mechanics.
Kadyrov’s Chechens again, not in heavy armor either. There is footage on twitter, vehicles seems to match the satellite pics.
https://twitter.com/hashtag/Chechens?src=hashtag_click&f=live
Here is what he said earlier.
“The time has come to make a concrete decision and start a large-scale operation in all directions and territories of Ukraine,” Kadyrov said in a statement on his Telegram account. “I myself have repeatedly developed tactics and strategies against terrorists, participated in battles. In my understanding, the tactics chosen in Ukraine are too slow. It lasts a long time and, in my view, are not effective,” he said.
Added Kadyrov: “Full coordination of the actions of the military, competent alignment of forces and a decisive assault. That’s it! Nothing else is needed.”
Perfect time for some Reapers…
We had been sending RQ-4 drones from Crete, but no armed Reapers.
Always a good read:
https://www.nj.com/education/2022/02/nj-property-owners-paid-166b-in-school-taxes-last-year-heres-the-bill-in-every-town.html
Phoenix “hot sauce” special.
“7 Reasons To Avoid Going Rural to Work From Home
Living in the hinterlands costs less than in the city, but there are some downsides to consider
1. Guns.
There’s nothing like sitting in the sun on a deck in comfortable house in the middle of the woods with a gentle breeze carrying the sound of constant gunfire. I’m not talking the occasional shot from a hunting rifle; I’m talking neighbors exercising their right to turn their property into informal shooting ranges. For hours on end: pistols then assault rifles back to pistols. And of course if you complain, you might find yourself staring down the barrel of a gun. Complain to the local police? Hahahahahahaha.
2. Trucks.
Covalent with rural gun culture is rural pickup culture. Truck drivers in rural America drive with their brights on, constantly tailgate, and honk long and hard should you do something that inconveniences them, like waiting until it’s safe to pull into traffic. Pickup truckers were a**holes before the pandemic; since 2020, they’ve become intolerant and intolerable. Don’t even think of honking at them or, God forbid, giving them the finger. A woman I met last week did that and got purposely sideswiped into oncoming traffic, hit and run. She was in the hospital for weeks.”
https://apple.news/AaAreicFFSPCD0UGmHJt_xA
3. Food.
You know you’re in rural America when you order Chinese food and the first thing that hits the table is a basket of bread rolls. Depending upon where you live, you may be able to find, for example, a barely acceptable sushi bar within a half-hour drive, if you’re used to the variety and quality of food available in a big city, you’re about to be sadly disappointed. Not to worry though; you can probably find a Red Lobster or Olive Garden somewhere nearby.
4. Nightlife.
There’s probably a local bar that has a live performer on weekend nights. Of course, the bartender will give you a blank stare if you order anything more complicated than an Old Fashioned and when the singing stops, the TVs over the bar will either be playing sports or Fox News. Strike up a conversation with the guy next to you if you’re curious about how a MAGA nut perceives the world. Then order a double because by that point you’ll want to be anesthetized.
5. Culture.
There’s an art show at the town hall if you ever feel compelled to reassure yourself that the Bob Ross school of painting is still as influential as it was in the 1970s.
6. Education.
Suffice it to say that my wife, who teaches in a typically rural elementary school, found a bullet shell casing on the floor yesterday. It caused a bit of a ruckus, but occasioned no great surprise since everyone is fully aware that many of these children live in households where it’s considered completely normal to have loaded firearms within quick reach. Also see #1 above.
7. Bugs.
Sure, city building have cockroaches, but you don’t know creepy crawlies until you’ve picked up a towel in your downstairs bathroom and found 25 garden spiders ranging from half-an-inch across to the size of your toddler’s palm, all them scurrying for cover, including under your bare feet. Or suddenly come upon a black widow as large as a golf ball, looking like it belongs in a horror movie rather than the kitchen counter. Or opening your front door to find a 6″ albino walking stick with bright blue eyes staring at you. (Needless to say, these are all true stories.)
I’m not saying there aren’t some compensating advantages to living in the hinterlands, only that if you’re considering the migration, you might want to think about what you’ll be losing.
Sure, city building have cockroaches, but you don’t know creepy crawlies until you’ve picked up a towel in your downstairs bathroom and found 25 garden spiders ranging from half-an-inch across to the size of your toddler’s palm, all them scurrying for cover, including under your bare feet. Or suddenly come upon a black widow as large as a golf ball, looking like it belongs in a horror movie rather than the kitchen counter. Or opening your front door to find a 6″ albino walking stick with bright blue eyes staring at you. (Needless to say, these are all true stories.)
I just don’t see how the man who poses shirtless for PR stunts doesn’t go all scorched earth on everyone. Unless, what we are seeing from the front lines is UA isn’t the whole picture. I fear his ego is getting more bruised with each passing day and that will be the real issue going forward.
Can you imagine threatening the world with nuclear annihilation, getting flipped a bird and losing to a bunch of ukes? That’s a hard L to swallow.
Jokes on Putin, the oligarchs robbed Russia blind, and that includes their military.
Decades of yes men and an army held together with duct tape and bullshit.
Ukraine being invited to join the EU this evening.
Geez. Just fried my 2nd router in 3 years. They just stop working. First they start turning on and off intermittently. Then more frequently. Then they don’t turn on at all. Very frustrating. All hail 5G hotspots as a temporary replacement though.
Need a tri-band. Last two were Linksys and then Asus. Is there a more reliable brand? These things only seem to last two years at best!
Ruble down 40% as morning hits eastern Russia.
I just looked it up. Got a little under 3 years with my Asus. Two years with my last one.
I like Ubiquiti – I am running AmpliFi routers and APs
Love Ubiquiti. Great company. Thanks for reminding me.
I had an old Asus Google On-Hub router that worked for 6+ years. I recently picked up two Google Nest routers and set them up as a mesh which serves 27 devices. My household averages 20GB day day in day out, 500-800G per month! Eye opening.
I signed up for TMO’s 5G internet plan last month. Despite being line of sight of what I thought was the correct band antenna, it didn’t work out. I got 70MB max and didn’t want to tape my router to a window to get better.
Goooood Morrrrrning Moscow!
UK/EU sanctions Russia’s central bank.
Russia bans all foreigners from selling Russian stock this morning.
Central bank raises interest rates 10.5% to a whopping 20%
Ruble crashes.
Bank runs begin, videos and photos of blocks-long lines outside of banks and ATMs (though this really started 2-3 days ago).
Russian economy on precipice of financial collapse.
Grim,
How far are you from NYC?
You know, just in case he is not bluffing……..
About 20 miles even.
It may not be him that underestimated you.
It may be you that underestimate him.
Well, at least if it happens it will end the fight between me and my ex once and for all.
hahahaha.
Grim,
Your effing dead.
When the fear of life outweighs the fear of death, one will take their life.
Might take yours too…..
Ex, be careful as you load your bus full of homeless up shipping them to Tacoma.
One might have a shank.
At the end, as the missile flies from Moscow,
Some Americans might think, yeah, should have let him have stupid Ukraine.
Could have worked a deal with him later.
Maybe shouldn’t have pushed so hard. Maybe taken our knee off his neck to breathe for just a few minutes….
Nevermind, Moscow Stock Exchange simply won’t open today, that fixes that problem.
At what point are the Russian people going to suspect something is up? That the story they are being fed doesn’t necessarily line up with the reality?
If Russia doesn’t accept the ceasefire demands, expect further new sanctions throughout the day.
IDK,
Just for the record, I have no Russian in me, nor do I even understand Communism enough to want to support it.
I’m just not interested in getting a sunburn this morning. I haven’t even brushed my teeth let alone but on Suntan lotion.
hahahahaha
Ukraine and Kiev survive another night. Ukraine reporting huge Russian losses last night, and puts their estimated death toll for the Soviet Army at 5,300. Reports yesterday of Kiev being completely surrounded were later reported as being inaccurate. US estimating Russian forces are still being held off more than 30km north of Kiev.
Lots of reports of desertions today. Perfectly good armor completely abandoned in the middle of towns/roads.
Zelensky makes an announcement this morning before the start of talks in Belarus. Tells the Russian Army to surrender.
Twitter now completely overrun with fake accounts spewing Russian propaganda.
If Russia doesn’t accept the ceasefire demands, expect further new sanctions throughout the day.
Somehow, I don’t think he cares.
What I believe is that you are incapable of thinking the things he does.
I guess you have never rotated through a psych ward have you.
Go sanction some of them, but hand them a knife first (he has nukes)
How do you like your beef shredded?
Hahahaha.
In other news, Putin was diagnosed with a Malignant Glioblastoma. He had no recollection of pushing the big red button. Hahahaha.
And a senior White House official described it as ‘yet another escalatory and totally unnecessary step’.
They said in a statement: ‘At every step of this conflict, Putin has manufactured threats to justify more aggressive actions.
‘He was never under threat from Ukraine or from Nato, which is a defensive alliance that will not fight in Ukraine.
‘The only reason his forces face a threat today is because they invaded a sovereign country, and one without nuclear weapons.’
Max Bergmann, a former State Department official, called Putin’s talk predictable but dangerous sabre-rattling. ‘Things could spiral out of control,’ he warned.
I have some military connections.
You ain’t shooting down his missiles if he launches them.
That’s for the movies. Real life is different.
Good thing is the mommies will finally be happy to get a can of peas from ShopRite when there is no Whole Foods to go to.
Hahaha.
How do you like your beef shredded?
Prefer the Chicken Kiev.
In other news, Putin was diagnosed with a Malignant Glioblastoma. He had no recollection of pushing the big red button. Hahahaha.
Could be the reason he penned that essay a few years back indicating that Ukraine being part of Russia was ordained by god.
Not sure who wrote this, but..
“From the perspective of a cornered psychopath with only one bullet left, Putin’s behaviour is completely rational.
Remember that a psychopath is unable to feel empathy. Putin doesn’t care for Russia or the Russians, he cares even less for the fate of humankind. If the whole world burns up in radioactive firestorms, he’ll have long retreated 600 feet under the surface, maybe with his inner circle and some covid-free hookers, where he can survive two years or more. Not exactly a palace, but still better than being dragged out of the Kremlin, tried and executed by a couple of very angry oligarchs, or his own people.”
Could be the reason he penned that essay a few years back indicating that Ukraine being part of Russia was ordained by god.
Could be.
If I were a man of the faith I’d take a trip to my local God watering hole and have a drink, a dip, or some body of Christ. Maybe hang out in that booth and confess some of my sins.
I might reconsider my faith if you make sure this blog is up and running in Heaven.
Hahahahaha.
There is some logic in this statement:
‘Why do we need the world, if Russia won’t be in it?’ Putin’s ‘propagandist-in-chief’ threatens the West with nuclear destruction as he boasts Moscow’s subs ‘can shoot more than 500 warheads’
Dmitry Kiselyov said Russia has the capability to destroy all NATO countries
He told viewers on state TV Russian submarines have 500 nuclear warheads
Boomer talk:
‘Nato pushed us into this war,’ said Vladimir Butyrkin, 61, a retired trucker.
‘We are a peaceful people. Nobody in Russia wanted this. The Ukrainians are our brothers – but sometimes you need to correct your brothers when they get stupid ideas in their heads.’
I wonder how many could pass a driving test, let alone should be running any country.
Vladimir Putin/Age
69 years
Joe Biden/Age
79 years
Donald Trump/Age
75 years
Hillary Clinton/Age
74 years
Nancy Pelosi/Age
81 years
Mitch McConnell/Age
80 years
From Kyiv this morning.
Ukraine estimates Russian military losses so far to include
5,300 troops (up from 4,300)
29 planes (up from 27)
29 helicopters (up from 26)
191 tanks (up from 146)
816 armoured fighting vehicles (up from 706)
74 cannons (up from 49)
1 Buk air defence system
21 Grad multiple rocket launch systems (up from 4)
291 vehicles (Up from 30)
60 tankers
5 anti-aircraft systems
3 drones (Up from 2)
2 boats
In other news Phoenix, Dumpy wins CPAC straw poll for 2024 nomination. Shows cult is still strong . I am sure the ‘ his accomplishments’ txt file saved to cult members desktop will grow.
AG Bill Barr says:
-2020 presidential election was not stolen: ‘Trump lost it’
-Barr Rebukes Trump as ‘Off the Rails’
-Barr calls prospect of Trump running for president again ‘dismaying,’ says GOP should ‘look forward’ to others
-Bill Barr says Trump ‘has neither the temperament nor persuasive powers’ of a leader
Oh, and from the ‘liberals are crazy and making racism up’ file. MTG speaks at white nationalists event. You know – event run by Nick Fuentes, young man who attended Charlottesville rally praising white identity and called holocaust lies, maybe the ovens produced a ‘couple of hundred thousand cookies.’ But tell me more how AOC chased Amazon away and she is the bigger problem.
Bystander,
I didn’t pay too much attention to it, as I am not for either side.
From my searches or things I have watched, the only name that came up for me was Tulsi Gabbard, I watched the few things that popped up in a feed.
IDK, she seems rational to me. A coherent and intelligent thought process as well.
America is fixed in it’s ways. Election will probably be Trump vs Hillary again, or some other clown.
At least that frees voting day to allow me to do something else. I’m not wasting an ounce of hydrocarbons voting for either one of those two, or Biden.
I’d rather see the Russians nuke us and put us out of our misery. It’s actually humane at this point.
How many times did this happen under George Bush, with his fake “Weapons of Mass Destruction.” Or Trump, or Biden, or Obama…
Upsetting pictures chart the fight to save the life of a little girl wearing pink unicorn pyjamas who was fatally injured in a Mariupol apartment block yesterday. Clutching her blood-covered hand to her mouth and carrying the child’s slippers, pompom scarf and bobble hat, one woman, who could be her mother, was photographed as attempts were made to resuscitate her in the back of an ambulance (main picture). A team of doctors then tenderly carries the child, who is still wearing her blood-stained unicorn pyjamas, into the hospital in the coastal city.
Tulsi is simply an opportunist who is looking for a move-up. She does not care which party. She is a one hit wonder who beat up Kamala, which right loves. Sing it, Tulsi “if you like Pina Coladas”
Bystander,
Out of this group of losers who do you like? Have you met any politician that wasn’t an opportunist?
Anyway, there was a post of places to nuke and not nuke. This was funny.
Miami. Congratulations, comrade. You’ve nuked Miami. You just killed 50,000 spray-tanned college students on spring break and 487,000 wrinkly old American retirees, and the air now smells like suntan lotion and prune juice. You have also completely hamstrung the USA’s Caribbean cruise industry. Big whoop. Unless your intention was to curtail the cocaine smuggling business (or you just really, really hate Cubans and Haitians), there’s no point to nuking Miami.
Anonymous doing an absolutely bang up job hacking Russian websites today.
Numerous prominent websites displaying anti-Putin, anti-War messaging this morning. This includes Russian versions of western websites like Forbes.
Believe we can say we have firm confirmation that this group includes a fair number of Russian hackers as well.
Wolverines!!!!!
hahahahaaaaa
Watch the Mathew Chance report from Kiev on CNN this morning.
Phoenix,
I don’t like any of them..clear the list. The left needs to exit Biden in 2024, distance from Harris (also missing right temperament) and let HRC sail off into sunset…but circling the drain of hell starts with right’s TDS reelection obsession with someone that entertains them but mentally unstable. Their crazy fragile egos are tied up with this guy. Also a legitimate democratic candidate does not speak at CPAC then come back to other side. Not in this political environment anyway. We need more liberals on Fox and more conservatives on MSNBC…I do think that is issue. The right’s favorite political comedian, Bill Maher agrees.
Do we still have to wear our face diapers and practice soc1al distancing after the nuclear blast?
Do we still have to wear our face diapers and practice soc1al distancing after the nuclear blast?
No.
At that point the mask is permanently implanted on your face forever.
Just in from the ODC: “You will only need to stay in your bunkers for a few days until the rad1ation curve is flattened.”
So where is the cash for trash program? Wall St must be sitting on a trillion dollars of worthless paper by now.
ECB, Bank of England, FED, Bank of Japan are going to coordinate this? Their member banks are sitting on perhaps a 700 Billion in Russian reserves denominated in the local currency. Putin’s way of avoiding sanctions he developed since 2014. Are they going to sieze those assets and bail out the bad wall st investors? China so far is mum on what they are doing…
Sounds like talks aren’t going well…
The US is taking immediate action on Monday to prohibit US dollar transactions with the Russian central bank and fully block the Russian direct investment fund, senior administration officials said, taking aim at some of Russia’s most powerful means of mitigating the effect of sanctions.
The steps are meant to prevent Russia from accessing a “rainy day fund” that officials said Moscow had been expecting to rely upon during the invasion of Ukraine. Instead of using the reserves to buffer a plummeting Ruble, Russia will no longer be able to access the funds it keeps in US dollars.
Phoenix
is nuclear fallout more effective than wide local excision for melanoma?”
Russia sending its minister of culture to the peace talks with Ukraine sending its foreign and defense ministers. Does not sound like Putin is serious.
If it’s Trump and Hillary in 2024 we are finished!
Elected Republicans attending a conference hosted by a right wing nationalist is absolutely disgraceful! Romney is right they are morons! He can’t use a harsher word than that because he is a Mormon, and they don’t like cursing.
Of course the political climate abroad is factored even concurring foreign policy and anti military plans. Implying otherwise is delusional.
I’m sure Putin is very familiar with Bidens agenda. He was special envoy to Ukraine where he looted the place. He knows Biden has spent the first year searching for white story and systemic racism while our social declines.
Putin has no love for Biden or his woke brigade. Invading with him in office and throwing the works into chaos is a direct rebuke. It’s spitting right in his face.
One of Russia’s $13m anti-aircraft systems.
Ooops, got stuck in the mud.
https://twitter.com/ukrainewarnews3/status/1498290122609025030?s=21
Someone please set these videos to the Benny Hill song and run them at 2x speed.
Confusing foreign policy
Farmers all over Ukraine are towing trophy’s for fun, even listing them for sale on the internet.
Let’s try again, considering foreign policy
Stats say Russian companies have something like 350 billion U.S. dollars in foreign debt.
There has to be some teeth gnashing this morning. Were are our bond and commercial paper experts..I heard on Tom Kean this morning the insurance/swaps etc on the debt went sky high.
Do I hear a Federal Reserve Helicopter?
Lots of lawyers combing through contracts this morning
“He knows Biden has spent the first year searching for white story and systemic racism’
True, he did not have to search very far. See above. That smelly foul rac*st sh*t is out in the open with Rs. Loved and rubbed in face. Here is clip from event.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9XLOoxEUpCs
Bystander,
WTF did I just watch?
I bet these guys haven’t seen action like this since the housing crisis.
“Credit-default swaps insuring $10 million of the country’s bonds for five years were quoted at about $4 million upfront and $100,000 annually on Monday, signaling around 56% likelihood of default, according to ICE Data Services. ICE is the main clearing house for European CDS.”
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-02-28/russian-swaps-signal-record-56-chance-of-default-on-sanctions
Lib,
Router info from Michael Horowitz. May be over the top, I am not a techie.
https://www.routersecurity.org/consumerrouters.php
He does a bunch of other tech stuff:
https://www.defensivecomputingchecklist.com/
Crypto still open to the Russians. Binance, Kracken etc refuse to freeze Russian accounts.
I gather Sleepy Joe better get on it and make the announcement that they are required by US law to freeze the accounts OR ELSE.
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/28/binance-will-not-block-russian-accounts-after-ukraine-request.html
JP Morgan lol…
“Equity investors should avoid panic selling” meanwhile saying this is going to to cause a recession.
BTW the big banks are on record they did not want Russia cut off financially.
Either we are not getting the truth from what is happening in Ukraine (i.e., the Russian military HAS BEEN very effective to date) or Putin committed one of the greatest military blunders in history. That’s the biggest question in this situation.
Second question I have on my mind – if the US had attacked Ukraine and President Zelensky was staying in Kiev and still releasing periodic social media videos, I believe that the US could determine his location via paid informants or other espionage/interlligence means and send a missile to strike within 2 meters of him. So, effective intelligence and effective air military. Is it that Russia is incapable of doing that or does Russia not want to do it?
Poroshenko was on CNN this morning. He claimed 5,000+ Russian soldiers dead and 3-4,000 Ukrainians dead.
BTW the big banks are on record they did not want Russia cut off financially.
If the world is in a state of perpetual night because of nuclear fallout, I guess it won’t really matter.
Putin sent in assassins, who were unsuccessful.
Zelensky is no longer posting videos, suspect this is now being handled by others in the cabinet (no phone, he’s being hidden now).
Rumors that his family has been evacuated.
Putin committed one of the greatest military blunders in history.
I don’t think he has any idea of the state of his military. There are rumors he fired the heads of the military over the weekend.
Watch this one a few times, this is probably the single best interview on the topic:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9BIS442PM8
Really, watch it, and then watch it over. THIS IS THE SINGLE BEST INTERVIEW ON UKRAINE.
KPMG and Amstel Light beer have ended their endorsement partnerships with PGA Tour veteran
Multiple sponsors have cut ties with golfer Phil Mickelson after comments he made about the Saudis and a potential golf superleague were shared by golf writer Alan Shipnuck.
Accounting giant KPMG and Amstel Light beer have ended endorsement partnerships with Mickelson.
“KPMG U.S. and Phil Mickelson have mutually agreed to end our sponsorship effective immediately,” said KPMG’s company-issued statement. “We wish him the best.”
Similarly, Amstel brewer Heineken HEINY, +3.07% HEIA, -2.92% told Sportico on Tuesday, “we made the decision to go our separate ways and end Amstel Light’s partnership with Phil Mickelson. We wish him all the best.”
See also: NYC Mayor Eric Adams says he ‘can’t wait’ to get rid of the vaccine mandate
The brands were seen as taking issue with comments Mickelson made to Shipnuck in a discussion about the Saudis financing a proposed breakaway golf league. He called them “scary mother [expletives].” He also told Shipnuck, who is writing a biography on Mickelson due out in May, that it was worth getting in bed with the Saudis, despite their history of human-rights abuses, if it meant a chance to change the PGA Tour.
“We know they killed [Washington Post columnist Jamal] Khashoggi and have a horrible record on human rights. They execute people over there for being gay,” he said. “Knowing all of this, why would I even consider it? Because this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape how the PGA Tour operates.”
Phil Mickelson apologized Tuesday and said his comments, which he did not deny making, had off the record and not meant to be shared publicly.
“I’m beyond disappointed and will make every effort to self-reflect and learn from this,” he said.
Mickelson was the 29th highest paid athlete of any gender in any sport in 2021, with total earnings of $41 million, according to Forbes.
Google joins the war.
“Google has temporarily disabled some Google Maps tools in Ukraine which provide live traffic data and how busy different places are in a bid to protect Ukrainians from the Russian military.
The company has globally disabled the Google Maps traffic layer and live information on how busy places like shops and restaurants are in Ukraine for the safety of local communities in the country amid fears Moscow could target the crowded areas.
Google’s announcement came just days after the Ukrainian government ordered road signs to be removed across the country in order to confuse invading Russian forces and make it harder for them to find their way around. “
Really – watch the McMaster interview.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9BIS442PM8
Just got called from work.
They are cancelling the Covid 19 vaccinations.
That’s the good news. Bad new is they are replacing them with the Uranium 238 vaccine and the Polonium 666 vaccine.
Demanding we take both and report to work regardless of mushroom cloud status.
hahahahaha
What’s the probability the Russians accidentally detonate a nuke on their own soil? Given what I’m seeing, it doesn’t inspire much confidence in their handling of this equipment.
“is nuclear fallout more effective than wide local excision for melanoma?”
Don’t bring the Trump’s into this.
Phoenix,
Be careful what you wish for. If what you are saying is true, your ex-wife might just become a permanent part of your nuclear family.
“Hey Google ( In Ruskie Accent)
Wvhere is Ukrane Capitol Building?
Take me to Ukraine Capitol Building. Shortest distance, no tolls.
Lib,
I’m more concerned that I didn’t get to sit at the table for last supper with you.
I was looking forward to that steak.
You are a good guy Lib. Really.
I will probably use my last respirations trying to find my child. At that point I don’t care where she is, I’m going there. Maybe die at home after all. Hahaha.
re” “accidentally detonate???”
You mean like accidently load the wrong warhead on a cruise missile, that would be the end of whatever Ukrainian city it landed in.
The big stuff the exoatmospheric ballistic missile payloads or MIRVs have to fly up and release the individual warheads. Less of a chance of an error there. Launch I assume is similar command and control layers that we have to prevent an accidental launch.
So fema gives advice on nuclear sheltering and says, make sure you maintain a 6 ft distance. Who actually writes this crap? Even if Covid were still an issue, 6 ft was entirely made up and this was acknowledged by the government. The public agencies are a complete joke.
Hah, Ed..South Park. It is Tsst episode which is a play on dog whisperer craze 15 years ago. One of their best. Have you not watched South Park? Man, you would love it. Blasts liberals apart in many episodes (both parties get equal treatment). Go watch Smug Alert.
At least I got to see Twice last week in Fort Worth. One. Of the biggest womens groups ever. I think only the spice girls have sold more albums.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=QERG8nmdAuI
By,
I tried watching South Park a few times, was never into their humor. I’ll look up Smug Alert.
You mean like accidently load the wrong warhead on a cruise missile, that would be the end of whatever Ukrainian city it landed in.
No I mean more like dropping it while towing with great soviet tractor, refueling accident, etc.
I was thinking of going to see Dylan next month. Then I listened to a few recent clips of him singing live. Will pass.
132 posts by 10:45AM?
Mid 2008 levels
Ukies didn’t bother getting dressed up to meet with the Russians.
Suits on one side of the table, t-shirts and hats on the other.
I was thinking of going to see Dylan next month. Then I listened to a few recent clips of him singing live. Will pass.
I said the same about Gordon Lightfoot. He’s playing Westchester in a few months. His voice is gone.
Here Ed. Just watch this clip. The episode is brilliant overall but perhaps one of funniest moments ever on series. Gross and childish but so is most of our country and our politicians.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awzr0aErOQw
Let this sink in for a minute.
Biden, a borderline octogenarian could possibly be the last president on the Earth.
He might be the one guy to end Musk’s dreams once and for all.
I was thinking of going to see Dylan next month. Then I listened to a few recent clips of him singing live. Will pass.
I said the same about Gordon Lightfoot. He’s playing Westchester in a few months. His voice is gone.
Either one of them going to run for President. They certainly are old enough, and they are celebrities. We haven’t voted in a singer yet, that would be new.
Hahahaha.
Fast
Dylan would have been in a good venue. Was in a place in Irving like at Holmdel whatever it’s called. Mix of indoor pavilion with a few thousand seats plus lawn seats.
Those smaller places are a lot of fun to see a show.
How this Russian dude can keep a straight face presenting to the UN is beyond me.
Grim,
He is from the Metaverse.
Hahahaha.
Dylan…
Certain Dylan albums are near and dear to my heart. Brilliant artist. Seen him twice. Never again! Just can’t listen to him. Sad!
Bystander,
Holy shit! LOL!
Love Dylan:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZgBhyU4IvQ
Dylan For President 2024
I saw Tool this weekend at Prudential. The guys checking vaccine cards look at it for a millisecond. There are signs all over and announcements over the speakers saying to keep your mask on. The staff and cops were all chin diapered.
I’d take Bon Jovi at this point. Plus, you wouldn’t have to rename a rest area afterwards.
Mis-labeled old videos circulating in media and social media captioned as being from the Russo-Ukraine invastion:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98cXig0hOVw
^I’d be happy if the Ukrainians are winning, but this kind of stuff is why I am reserved about fully believing that the Russians are performing at a “2 out of 10” militarily, which is the perception you get from msm.
I’d take Bon Jovi at this point.
A few years ago, Bon Jovi mentioned that he found Al Gore to be one of the smartest guys he’s ever met. That’s when I knew his judgement s.ucked as much as his music.
Phoenix,
Future headline – stocks mixed as nuclear warheads ignited.
Libturd:
Geez. Just fried my 2nd router in 3 years. They just stop working. First they start turning on and off intermittently. Then more frequently. Then they don’t turn on at all.
Do you have a spare power plug that will fit it hanging around to try? Had similar problems with external hard drives. Drove me nuts, thought they were failing. For the heck of it pulled a power adapter from some other device with same voltage and tip, haven’t had a problem since.
Breakdown of positions of relevant battle lines (at least purportedly). I wish cable news would run content like this sometimes:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyCFY2DKamA
Hobo. Crazy if that’s it, but I’ll give it a try. I dabble in electronic, so I can always fashion a transformer that’s close enough to make it work. Thanks.
I found some old footage of leftwing when he was MD in advisory, and went out to the analyst pool at 9PM to make sure the deck would be read for the 7AM equity capital markets desk walk through for the pricing…..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTB6K1kEPgs
By,
Let me fix that for you.
Future headline – stocks mixed as nuclear warheads ignited. Crypto rallies.
I’ll take this……..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5h5Wa_9694M
Fast Eddie says:
February 28, 2022 at 11:31 am
Love Dylan:
I think it’s a good time for us to invade the Canucks while everybody’s distracted! Wadda ya think? I hear crossing the Southern Border of another country is all the rage!
Spoke to a coworker just now. She’s from Russia. Very distraught. Relatives in Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus. She basically says, there’s not much support for this. She’s really worried about her parents as she’s worked here and sent money to them periodically for years. She currently has no way of sending them aid due to the financial freeze.
On power supplies, I miss the days of radio shack. You could fix just about anything. I replaced many power supplies there.
Sanctions On Russia (jj Edition):
https://nypost.com/2022/02/28/russian-porn-stars-banned-from-onlyfans-amid-war-with-ukraine/
BRT it’s a bad situation over there. No one in Russia wants to fight this fight, everyone has friends and relatives in Ukraine, the average Russian certainly does not want to kill Ukrainians. Nor do the Russians want to send their kids to be killed over this. Then there is the specter of the sanctions which bear down on the most vulnerable over there, life won’t change for the ruling class.
I think Zelenskyy is a problem, he is inflaming the situation by continuing to push EU and NATO membership. They need to make peace with the Russians, I don’t think we’ve seen what the Russians are capable of yet, I think they’ve been restraining themselves, this seems like a hill Putin is willing to die on. What Zelenskyy should aim for is a guarantee of Ukrainian sovereignty in exchange for neutrality, no NATO, no EU. That is really the best case scenario for Ukraine. In retrospect the mistake we made was not extending NATO membership to the Russians way back when were somewhat friendly, it is entirely plausible that we could have made Russia into a very different country if we were not so intent on isolating them. History will look back at how we approached the collapse of the Soviet Union the same way they look at the treaty of Versailles.
Neutrality?
Russia has made it clear it’s intention is to demilitarize Ukraine, and remove the government, no, sorry, murder the government.
Bystander,
South Park is my all time favorite series, I’ve watched every episode ever, plus played the two console video games. But I have to admit that over the past 5 years or so I’ve mostly been disappointed in the show. Parker & Stone have probably changed, finally “went hollywood” eventually, and they seem to outsource a lot of the writing now, to people who are clearly more left than their writers used to be. Ever since the character “PC Principal” showed up, which I interpret to mean the influence of the increasingly left wing Comedy Central bosses, the show has become more wishy washy. I’d say they finally sold out, or maybe they stopped enjoying demolishing leftist BS. In the past 5 years the far left has given them tons of material they would have crushed 20 years ago, but they are increasingly pulling their punches, playing it safe. They just aren’t hardcore anymore, possibly frightened of alienating an increasingly left wing comedy central audience as well.
I’d say the only brave & funny episodes they’ve made in recent years were the ones criticizing the entertainment industry selling out to Chinese censorship.
BRT – re: “She currently has no way of sending them aid due to the financial freeze”
Crypto still works fine.
Re: murder the government.
I still remember when our troops killed Saddam’s kids and 14 year old nephew. How many Iraqis were on our hit list back then, a few hundred? They’re were even playing cards with their pictures etc.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Most-wanted_Iraqi_playing_cards
Is it a fair comparison? Depends on who to believe. Since the Ukraine conflict in the began eight years ago, more than 13,000 people have been killed, including over 3,000 civilians. Many more have been injured, with 1.5 million people fled that region. BOTH SIDES stand accused of war crimes.
https://scheerpost.com/2022/02/27/hedges-the-greatest-evil-is-war/
Grim, this is all about the Volgograd Gap and Black Sea access. No Russia leader will stand for Ukraine as a NATO member, unless Russia itself is a NATO member. Why do you think this invasion happened now? The Zelenskyy government has been very hostile to Putin, much more so than the prior government, I personally think cutting off fresh water supplies to Crimea might have been the straw that broke the proverbial camels back, the final insult so to speak.
If Putin wanted Zelenskyy dead he wouldn’t need to fight a war to do so, as a Pole you should realize he very likely had the Polish president taken care of in 2010. The west was propping Zelenskyy up(I don’t think he wins in a free election, prior to the start of this war he had like a 22% approval rating), the Russians likely know that regardless of who is the titular power is, at the moment the US CIA is calling the policy shots over there. Removing the current leader would just result in another “company” man taking his place.
“Demilitarize” makes sense from the Russian perspective a western backed military on their doorstep IS the concern, their inability to lay siege effectively shows how weak they are, frankly an Army with the tactical capabilities of Poland parked in eastern Ukraine like could close the Volgograd gap and cut Russia’s access to oil leaving them very vulnerable to invasion. This is a risk they are not going to take.
Lib,
You got it right. That is the headline..plus “Bezos/Musk whereabouts unknown, last seen gathering two of every kind..brunette, blonde, redhead”
No one,
I can’t argue. I gave up on show about same time as writing became more formulaic. Just appeared to me that started to rely on Randy becoming their Homer Simpson and went downhill.
Re: continue to push EU and NATO membership.
Has the EU especially Germany really changed their stance? It’s been a firm NO for over 20 years. Ukraine must change all their laws and internal processes to act like an EU nation first and are audited along the way. It took more than 10 years for other countries to do just that, before they acted more like an EU member internally and could pass what is a rigorous process to join.
Ukraine is a basket case of a country, it’s hard to fathom the EU or NATO wanting it “in”. Someone from the West is pushing this and basically goaded Putin into war, many years ago Gorbachev made mention of a western aligned Ukraine being a line in the sand for NATO expansion. A neutral independent Ukraine really serves everyone’s interests, a buffer between Russia and Poland. Obviously both sides are vying for control. Next thing we know Finland is going to want into NATO and Russia will go apoplectic.
This is just like the kind of war America would have if it splits Red and Blue. Outside countries would supply each side until we killed all of each other.
No one,
Good to see Futurama getting 20 new episodes from Hulu. Love that show. I really hope they work it out with guy who provides Bender voice. That would suck without him.
Juice: What they are talking about is the EU officially being invited into the EU and then the process starts which will take years.
Ukraine needs some kind of currency to negotiate with.
A week ago, they had absolutely nothing.
A neutral independent Belarus is a better idea.
Let’s get going on that.
Grim I don’t possibly see the EU can afford to take Ukraine in now 44 million people, massive infrastructure needs, and so much more. Additionally, they are already having issues with the Polish and Hungarian government not following EU laws, claiming it infringes on their sovereignty.
Still a Political NOPE from the EU, they don’t make it easy. It takes them years to decide if you are even allowed to be considered a “Candidate Country”. It’s all about the negotiations upon endless negotiations to create what they call the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA).
Bosnia and and Kosovo etc still have not gotten that after many many years. Turkey has been a candidate for 23 years and no progress. The list goes on Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia decades of waiting for changes in their internal processes to move forward.
You can bet if the United States wanted to join they would say no because well we are not on the metric system or our cars are not diesel. All kinds of obscure laws and rules they want well in advance.
While we are at it think about Brexit while you are at it. The Brits did not want any more immigration from the poorer EU nations. There is a tendency for the poorer members to leave and live in any of the other richer EU nations, economic migrants. A good salary in Kiev is 700 US dollars a month. If you have a portable skill say doctor, or programmer well you might want to move to Ireland or Germany where you will be paid allot more.
For all of their intentions the EU is not going to make it easy for them. It will take Ukraine perhaps several decades even if they are somehow all of a sudden made a “candidate” do this war and politics surrounding it.
Grim, I don’t disagree but good luck changing that now, Russia “fixed” their elections much in the same way the west did in Ukraine.
The EU already has Romania, Bulgaria and the well known PIGS, why would they want another corrupt, bankrupt country?
Switzerland jumps to west. Who woulda thunk it? What happens when the Nordic countries start doing the same? Oh God. Maybe the horrors of WWII were/are enough of a deterrent. Perhaps, the modern age of soc1al media and desires for a global democracy is too strong, too.
I should say Scandinavian and Nordic countries. Basically Finland first, though.
It would be nice if the Russians decided to swing in the other direction again. They really did make huge progress since opening up in the 1990s even with the last three decades of oligarchs and corruption it has to be a better place than what was before closed off behind the iron curtain. Maybe when their boomers like Putin die off in the next decade the last remnants of the soviet ways will be gone forever.
Client up in Boston area wants us to confirm receipt of their tax preparation information through USPS. Here is the reason why….
https://twitter.com/MSPTroopers/status/1498040932989554695?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1498040932989554695%7Ctwgr%5Ehb_0_8%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.boston.com%2Fnews%2Flocal-news%2F2022%2F02%2F27%2Ftruck-crash-charles-river-hundreds-us-mail-packages%2F
Ed – Finland joined the European Union in 1995..Sweden did too. You might be thinking of Norway. They are not a full member, they don’t want it.
As far as NATO might be a bridge too far again to have US troops on the Russian western borders.
Juice, maybe I’m thinking of Norway. Either way, where the fuck does Russia think they’re going? Do they think China’s in love with them? Putin’s isolated. The world hates him and the Russians will suffer for it.
JCer says:
February 28, 2022 at 2:54 pm
“Finland is going to want into NATO and Russia will go apoplectic.”
Putin will go apoplectic, but I’m not sure Russians would. In fact, I suspect most Russians want the same things that Ukrainians, Finns, Poles, etc want — personal freedoms, free markets and other ‘freedoms’ that largely align with western values. I sense that the Ukies are fighting much more fiercely than the Russians not just because they don’t want to give up the freedoms they’ve known for the past 30 years, but because Russians (ex Putin and his cronies) want exactly the same thing.
In any case, I feel terrible for the Baltics and Finland that the west is led by a bunch of sclerotic weaklings. Just as Obama abandoned the Syria people to the Russians and their murderous puppet Assad, and Joe and the effete Euros failed to give Ukraine the equipment and support they needed to have a fighting chance, I have no doubt these useless western ‘leaders’ would abandon the Baltics and Finland as well.
Nato’s a joke. What the Ukranian Army really needs is one of these.
https://tinyurl.com/forget-nukes
The Brits did not want any more immigration from the poorer EU nations.
It’s not this at all, it’s that the Brits didn’t want to be subservient to another global leader.
Suspect the shift to Lviv as the seat of power of Ukraine will happen in the next two days.
SGC,
Trump’s a huge fan of foreigners. I forget how he offered all non-citizens an olive branch in his first campaign video.
https://www.cbsnews.com/video/donald-trumps-first-campaign-ad/
Yeah, Trump was some master of foreign policy. He spent 15 billion on the border wall, only to see the largest number of illegal immigrants cross the U.S.-Mexico border illegally (in fiscal year 2021), ever.
Ed – Has he ever cared? He enriched himself and now is an isolated 70 year old man, without even a woman around to care about him. He wants the adoration of his people, that is all he craves and well has a bubble he has crafted for himself. It’s kind of like a celebrity bubble that you would see a famous and rich musician or actor create for themselves. They immediately cut off anyone who shows any criticism or is even wavering a bit. Putin has even had botox and face lift and fillers etc, and from all things written about him takes pleasure in embarrassing and or bully people.
His UN rep made a big mistake today and called it a war. When is that guy goin to be sent out into the cold. Larov won’t leave town and travel to the EU, he is probably afraid something bad could happen if he slips up in speaking.
I wonder how dangerous he might become especially if his inner circle starts to slip up more.
Grim – I have dozens of relatives living in England, and have heard it from them directly. The truth is they no longer wanted the immigration from poorer EU nations, the other reasons work fine too, self determination is just a wrapper of it all. Just take a look at the online rantings of Neil Farage who lead the BREXIT party, every other word our his mouth is immigration.
Lib says:
Yeah, Trump was some master of foreign policy. He spent 15 billion on the border wall, only to see the largest number of illegal immigrants cross the U.S.-Mexico border illegally (in fiscal year 2021), ever.
Do you mean after Sleepy Joe and Kamala let every country know our borders were open for all Illegals ? Am I missing something here?
Grim There was a lot of resentment against Poles in Britain, I know that from Polish people I know who live in Ireland and are friends with family members of mine there. They have integrated well in Ireland, and have set up various cultural organizations including groups playing traditional music from both countries.
I thought I saw a few day ago that Sweden and Finland governments have expressed interest in joining NATO.
Jim,
Did Trump think he would be POTUS till the end of time? Wait. Don’t make me answer that. 15 billion wasted on symbolism. Money well spent I suppose. Just think how many military parades and flyovers that would have purchased if not spent on the wall.
Reading that Ukraine’s success has been through the use of Turkish drones which are having a field day with Russian tanks. Plus the drones are cheap at 2-5$m a pop.
Next two days are going to be brutal for Ukraine.
Russia will take out all of it’s global frustrations on them.
“I thought I saw a few day ago that Sweden and Finland governments have expressed interest in joining NATO.”
Finland was part of Russia until 1919; Stalin invaded and tried to retake it in 1939.
I am sure the Finns are thinking that they might be next on Putin’s list as he tries to re-establish a Russian empire.
Lib,
Not a supporter of Trump, nor Biden. Biden opened up the floodgates for illegals then sent them all over the country that is fact. We need a real president in three years who can bring this country back together. The last two clowns have made it awful, and we are almost at war with each other now. We need a president like Eisenhower , Kennedy or even Lincoln, and Washington to put this country back on top. The horizon right now is awful.
OC Finland was part of Sweden before losing it to Russia, and then became independent again after WW 1. They lost one third of their national territory and the Finns who lived there were either expelled by the Russians or left.
As for Russia re establishing its empire I am skeptical of that, and even more skeptical thats what they want now after seeing the fierce resistance in Ukraine. They do want their sphere of influence which of course would include Ukraine. Empire is s are very expensive to hold once you build them. It’s one of the reasons the Soviet Union collapsed.
Re Ukraine’s claims of Russian losses:
The number of wounded can be expected to be 3, 4, 5 or more times the number killed (in Iraq, US wounded were about 7 times the number killed).
If Ukr’s estimate of 5300 Russians killed is even close to accurate, that would put total Russian casualties (dead, wounded, captured, missing) at 20,000+.
With a total Russian force of 150,000, that’s a casualty rate of 14+% in less than a week.
That’s “Battle of Stalingrad” levels of casualties- unsustainable.
3b- yes, sensible people like you and I do think that Putin recreating a Russian empire is irrational. Sensible people thought the same thing about Germany declaring war on Europe, and the Soviet Union, and the US.
Putin’s thought process is not the same as ours.
Russian yachts scurrying like rats.
Lighten up Francis….
Libturd says:
February 28, 2022 at 3:42 pm
Nato’s a joke. What the Ukranian Army really needs is one of these.
Just saw Sally Kellerman passed other day. Altman’s MASH is one of best comedies of all time. Who could forget her (ahem) ‘shower’ scene? Great as the original Hot Lips. She was very attractive lady with great smile. Also loved her in Back to School with Rodney. RIP
I appreciate the coverage by msm on the horrors faced by the Ukrainians, but where is this coverage regarding the Yemenis and others suffering from war around the world?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ob9YXUe6GdM
https://www.reuters.com/world/us-orders-12-russian-un-diplomats-leave-by-march-7-russian-envoy-2022-02-28/
Cold war
Does Putin muscle through and seize everything east of the Dnieper (and, thus a river defense against NATO and control of water for Crimea)? Does he muscle through and seize the whole Ukraine (and, push his line of control all the way to NATO’s borders in Poland, Slovakia and Hungary)?
Or, does it go the other way – what does a post-Putin Russia look like if his inner circle kills him in the next few days? Does Russia have break-off territories that go independent in the Caucusus or other areas?
If we’re going to negotiate away Ukraine’s sovereign statehood, we should consider adding Belarus to the discussion as well.
Europe deserves an equally neutral neighbor as well, thus Belarus needs to have it’s government replaced, and Lukashenko needs to be assassinated.
This is the exact same logic Russia is using, so it should be no problem to implement. This is perfectly rational.
I’ll phone up NATO and have them start rolling tanks into Minsk, we can threaten nuclear annihilation too.
Walking,
Turkish drones?
Finally a reason for not throwing Turkey out of everything years ago. At least they still help out militarily sometimes. And ship us some figs.
Ukraine needs 50 more of them.
Congrats to your son Lib. I’ll try to come by Thurs.
chi, lol…yeah, but I did have hair back then.
Looks like they sent everyone.
Satellite images taken on Monday show a Russian military convoy north of Kyiv that stretches for about 40 miles, substantially longer than the 17 miles reported earlier in the day, Maxar Technologies said https://reut.rs/3MeHlNs
Wheels on the truck go found and round.
There may not be enough missiles and shoulders for that…
Shame, its a traffic jam, sitting ducks.
No one, I don’t think there is any lost love between them. Especially after that fighter pilot incident from years back. The Turkish drones had lots of success in Syria as well against the Russians.
Let’s not even stir the pot that Russian women prefer Turks
South Park, can’t find it for free to post but many services seem to carry it…”just like your eyes are kinda far apart…”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It%27s_a_Jersey_Thing
Re: Ukraine, don’t have the time to get mired down but I’ll contribute this thought understanding that not being “go Ukies” right now is like rooting against Miracle on Ice….
Do we really believe the Russians can’t level these guys, relatively easily? If they can why hasn’t it happened yet?
I agree some of the soft factors – conscript age and compensation, ethnic intertwining – matter. One off pictures of stranded or burning tanks and equipment are singular datapoints only…if the victor is going to suffer 30% casualties there will be a stream of these photos and that does not make them dispositive of what is happening on the ground.
My guess is Putin expected Ukraine to roll, giving up the East and agreeing to a puppet government west of the Dnieper. They didn’t and with the war being fought on social media he especially wants to avoid a drawn out battle with a bloody, urban toll.
Which thought if continued gets you to a question….is there a scenario where Putin backs down or does he finish what he started? And how does the tightening of sanctions on Russia shift his tactics on the decision?
Right now, I can’t see anything in Putin – past or present – that has him backing down. I also would think that the more pressure the west applies to Mother Russia the more determined Putin becomes and the more important victory in Ukraine, whatever the cost for all parties, is for him.
IDK…I do hope whoever is making these decisions in the west is at least looking two or three moves ahead. I respect and love the commitment and valor of these people but they may very well pulling a Thelma and Louise, driving not just their own convertible but a busload of people….
good bookmark
https://twitter.com/KyivIndependent
Biden says “ don’t worry about nuclear war, the bigger concern is the shortage of prune juice 😂😂😂
Crushed Russia has a lot of small areas in the Russian federation inhabited by non Russians, and some with substantial Russian populations in addition to the indigenous people. Checyna, Dagestan, Ingushtia, Tartarstan to name a few.
Heavy bombardment in Kharkiv by Russian forces, and its a predominantly Russian speaking population. Bombing the population he supposed cares about.
3B – depressing read on the subject of bombing your own people, interview with Fiona Hill a Putin expert.
Putin wants to be in power until he is 84, and he wants some form of the old Russian TSAR empire restored, and may use whatever it takes to get there.
https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2022/02/28/world-war-iii-already-there-00012340
Ukraine’s prime minister said that the one time payment for deceased military members is 15,000,000 hryvnias… this is $498,977.40. I had YT streaming in the corner of my work screen and this raised an eyebrow. I rewound and listened twice, $500K.
they’ve also increased the monthly amount payable to paycheck to ~$4K.