"But what you’ll note is that the entire Western order has devolved into a theatre of the absurd."
This was entirely enabled by Putin's presidency, no one can be blamed for these acts of theatre except for how Russia has responded to provocations and its foreign policy. I'd go as far as to say, that since Putin's presidency, from 2001-2025 Russia has lost the 'superpower' status and has irrevocably become a 'paper tiger'.
A 'responsible' president of a powerful country, would not allow its adversary to threaten it with launching nuclear capable missiles, and continually allow its proxy to strike the motherland. It would deal with it accordingly and decisively without sacrificing Russian lives and endangering the world by further provocations.
Paper tiger that is winning a war against Ukraine with unprecedented support from NATO? Basically winning against NATO? If that makes you a paper tiger, what does losing against the Chadliban and the Houthis makes you?
They are killing Ukrainians but Ukraine still has many years left till they're out of soldiers.
In the meantime, Russia is losing men at a pretty fast pace too. Lack of people is one of their main problems as a country. And Russia is having its infrastructure being attacked at an increasingly severe rate.
And the next proxies are already being prepared to attack Russia.
The Ukraine is truly just one battle of this war. Russia would be careful not to make it a pyrrhic victory.
"Lack of people is one of their main problems as a country." - this describes Ukraine better than Russia. The next wars will be with Iran and Venezuela - neither of which are Russia proxies, and are likely to be drawn out wars, draining US resources.
Then China's new restrictions on rare earths for military manufacturing is an arrow at the US military industrial complex. It will take 5 years to build alternative supply chains.
By only using volunteers in Ukraine, and the slow advances keep casualties down, and improving Russia's chances during these multi-polar wars.
The West needs soldiers for Iran and Venezuela, and to stand against China. They're unable to muster their forces at a single point. Conscription will go down badly in the West as well.
The US is already trying to dump Ukraine on the EU, so don't count on US troops.
Wrong. NATO has 750 million. Russia is allied with China, who has 1.4 billion..
Russia has at least 160 million counting the 13 million recent admissions from what used to be Ukraine. There's a baby boom going on right now besides.
Plus, the great equalizers are Nukes. Russia has 6,000 of those.
Yeah. Yeah. Tell me what Western population will follow the likes of Macron, Drump, Merz amd Starmer into WW III. Half the population in these places would welcome a Russian proxie government in place of these blackguards.
A billion is a gross exaggeration. I do agree though that west much more bodies to throw at the Russians. And the longer this war drags on, the more the Russians pussy foot around, the wider this conflict is likely to become.
They've got more than enough, anyway, and did you notice that last night the Finnish prime minister was at a protest in Georgia? And that the EU is strong-arming Serbia? Russia needs to close the Ukrainian theater.
The KIA and POW exchange lists tell a different story than what you NAFO types are trying to convince yourselves of. Not since around January of 2023 has the Banderan army been near parity for the listed KIA exchanges and longer than that for the POW exchanges.
Sock puppetry has extended into the White House where Trump has taken to generating world wide backing for his war on Russia by just speaking for/as everyone else. Well, its one way of avoiding the inconvenience of other people in your own narcissistic world view.
Hell, yes, R! A responsible superpower would push the red button and go all out for a big crater where everything south and west of the Siberian wastes used to be. Hot damn, why not sink Siberia too. You cannot win too big!
We keep hearing what clowns NATO are, yet not a single gram of explosives has hit NATO land while Russia is under 24/7 bombardment by NATO and Russian leadership not only refuses to do anything to stop it, but is giving verbal tongue baths to the very people who are bombing the country.
Russia is looking long term. The West is weakening itself militarily, economically, and by reputation on the world stage. Russia is becoming more admired, more independent of other markets, and better militarily and economically.
When the time comes, Russia will be able to knock out the West with just a heavy breath.
2) Russia being destroyed under massive bombardment which its leadership refuses to do anything to stop
Do you think is going to cross the finishing line first?
How is the West's economic decline going to result in the drones and missiles no longer raining on Russian cities, and even if it does, how long would that take?
Do you think Russia is not able to absorb the bombardment that is getting through? They have air defense that is better than the West's, and are able to repair what gets hit quickly.
Russia is in good shape, and getting stronger by the metrics I stated.
The West is sliding down hill fast. They are running out of things to give Ukraine, and are low on what they need for themselves. They are getting weaker and weaker. Their economies are failing, although they try to hide it with smoke and mirrors. Their citizens are sick of suffering for Ukraine, that black hole of their tax dollars.
I'll gladly take the bet that Russia will cross the finish line far ahead of the West.
2) There is no such thing as bulletproof AD with infinite capacity
3) No serious country would tolerate even a single occasion of bombardment if it can stop it. Russia can stop it, the problem is that means permanent total severance of all ties with the West, but its political elite is too compromised to accept that cost (to itself) so it would rather have the country pay the cost of not stopping it.
>The West is sliding down hill fast. They are running out of things to give Ukraine
This is pure idiocy. Where do you think the long-range drones come from? Have you noticed how their availability ramped up?
Have you thought about the manufacturing complexity of these things? It is on the same order as a motorcycle or a cheap small car. How many motorcycles and cheap cars is the West producing annually? Tens of millions.
It is pointless arguing about a developing situation - why not do as you have done in your argument to this point, which is to point to historical trends to support your position that NATO is only growing more powerful while Russia is getting weaker? Wait until the current conflict is ended, one way or another, and then see if there are grounds for you to strut and pound your chest.
From my position - to comment on a developing situation myself, which I believe is not very helpful to the conclusion - it appears NATO confidently predicted a rapid series of setbacks for Russia, culminating in a Ukrainian victory the west would modestly share without too much hoopla about how it arranged and engineered it. Since then NATO has steadily and measurably upped its own wager until it is talking about nuclear war itself. How, exactly, does this represent power to you? Considering that Russia and China are far and away NATO's superior in nuclear weapons stocks and training? Does it make sense for NATO to advance from where it merely told itself it is superior - and appears not to be - to where it must know it is weaker?
If NATO is determined to escalate until the outbreak of even a general conventional war in Europe, it would start on the back foot of sacrificing thousands of infantry daily to a drone war in which it has neither experience or production capacity, as its generals continue to plan without the new consideration that even your rear positions are visible to surveillance in real time, 24/7 except for during heavy rain. Most of the NATO countries have failed for a decade to reach recruiting targets, and cannot afford to take any losses at all.
Those air defense systems worked pretty damn good in Iran right? OOOHHH..FUCK ME... Iran didn't want any help! Isn't that what 20 fucking years in power Putin said? The same Putin that said that Ukrainian people are BROTHERS of RUSSIA? Or the guy that even KNOWING NATO has not only attacked military targets (EVEN STRATEGIC ONES) in Russia but is DIRECTLY responsible for the INVASION and THE MURDER AND RAPE OF RUSSIAN CIVILIANS went on to meet TRUMP is his home turf and took a ride on LIMO 01 riding shotgun while B2 bomber flew over his head? Love the KILL YOU WITH KINDNESS strategy! Russian nuclear arsenal DOES MEAN SHIT! the fact that a external hostile alliance is DIRECTLY support a third party to attack it proves that! But HEY. Lets not take our heads out of the hole in the ground. After all Putin believes that a man (A JEW AT THAT) was born from a virgen,, walked on water, made brad and fish appear out of thin air and was killed and resurrect!!!!!OOOO..And eventually is coming back Why not believe in SUPERMAN, SPIDERMAN or even ELON!!! AGAIN...S A D!
As I have said many times, the "Russia can just absorb the damage" line reveals the same kind of racism towards Russians that the openly Russophobic voices express, it's just implicit in this case and not so open.
But it's fundamentally the same thing -- the snow niggers over there can die in huge numbers, but it's OK, they don't matter, it's just damage that can be absorbed.
The west is weakening itself at home - its psychopathic support for an evidently nazi regime is being increasingly and vociferously opposed by an electorate it claims to - but doesn't - represent.
At least three major European governments are teetering on the very brink of collapse, so whatever game they are playing is not long for this world.
Saner voices are becoming increasingly heard.
It's not really correct to say that western missiles and drones are raining on Russian infrastructure, although of course some are getting through.
If the mechanisms of this war are mainly attritional, then the attrition is largely one way; ie against the interests of the NATO cabal.
As to "how long this will take, " various voices in Ukraine - eg Timoshenko most recently - are saying that the war will be over very shortly, based on information they are receiving.
>At least three major European governments are teetering on the very brink of collapse
How is that going to stop the missiles and drones?
How naive does one have to be to think European governments make any decisions?
>If the mechanisms of this war are mainly attritional, then the attrition is largely one way; ie against the interests of the NATO cabal.
How? There is zero attrition of NATO, Russia is taking hits daily.
>Timoshenko most recently - are saying that the war will be over very shortly, based on information they are receiving.
Yes, the information is that Putin will capitulate.
How do you see in the current situation with the current posture and force disposition Russia getting to Uzhgorod "very shortly"? Impossible unless the nukes come out.
But the minimum winning condition for Russia is that Ukraine disappears.
Anything else will be capitulation and grand treason on the part of Putin if he settles for anything less than that once again.
You seem to suggest that Russia is incapable of tolerating casualties. If so, they are similar to the Western Europeans, however historically, Russia has been able to absorb heavy punishment.
Imagine Vietnam deciding to surrender because chemical warfare was deforesting their country, casualties rates were extreme, and Hanoi was being bombed constantly.
The 4 oblasts that voted to join Russia need to be liberated whatever the cost. The USSR showed ruling over hostile populations is not worth the cost, so trying to take all of Ukraine will be counterproductive.
I’m in France too and Lecornu second round had no option to let the socio’s take over, by Macron’s permission and think, think again French communists let a footprint on this coalition. Is Macron and his cabal gang now recruiting French commies to go to war against Putin? I bet EU is playing its joker card.
A "fistfight" is not a fight between fists - fists are simply the tools used to inflict damage. Ukraine may be being destroyed (I believe it is), but it is just a tool. All the attrition that's happening is on the Russian side, and this war doesn't end until Russia starts fighting its actual opponent and not its tools.
I wish the rest of this extremely complacent note were true, and they may be, but I'm not seeing it. The oligarchy (never mind which flavor) gains in control in the US, and the Europeans are just another fist - brainless maybe, but they don't need brains to serve their master.
I'll never understand the way so many people on here shrug away Russian casualties at the hands of a country and coalition that have announced their intention to destroy the nation.
The WEST is weakening itself since the 1920's. And MAN how weak they are when since they have controlled the world! Did I say 1920s???? Sorry..I've meant 420s!
A tree is judged by its fruits. The nowadays generation on TikTok a ratio of 8-12 hours a day and listening to Taylor swift is collapsing. One in 4 is depressed and suicidal, a second is on the verge and for the other 2 it’s just a matter of time. The best or is it pest of the west stinks! No future except of going to war, 5000 civilised wars in 2000 years of non barbaric and anti terrorist civilisation. When are we going to start with the real thing, becoming human is a good start.
Just bring forward the data on depression and suicide, I know there’s more poverty and less opportunities in Russia, alcohol and using drugs is huge but I don’t think westerners are in a majority to give their lives for their country even when it has never been theirs…EU, NATO, US. Give a Russian a vodka bottle and he goes to the end of the world, no American or European will do the same on whiskey or a Rothchild’s wine.
Of course you attack NATO, and you attack NATO in such a way that there is no NATO left to respond after that.
Because NATO is attacking you 24/7, and if you don't fight back, you will get destroyed.
It is that simple.
>I expect you've heard about the legendary Article 5.
And I expect that you have read what I have posted on the subject here -- it is fiction when it comes to nuclear war. Any non-nuclear NATO country can be completely wiped out and the US will then sit it out and fold. Because nobody will sacrifice the US mainland just to retaliate over something that no longer exists.
But that only works in full if the countries hit are indeed fully wiped out, tactical strikes on military bases alone will indeed only inflame the situation.
It is the nature of the suicide pact that NATO is for the non-US members.
Yeah, but what he describes there -- using TNW to blow holes in the front -- is not applicable to Ukraine. Because this is a liberation operation, not a Cold War Fulda-gap-breakthrough one.
What are you going to hit with nukes in Ukraine to blow up holes in the front? Erase Kharkov from the map? But it is a Russian city, and the people left there are self-selected to be the most pro-Russian ones, waiting for liberation. In vain, apparently...
Also, drones have made the battlefield so dispersed and atomized, that you would have to basically do glassing-on-a-grid of most of Ukraine to achieve a real breakthrough. And again, that would be nuking yourself. Can't do.
This is why Ukraine is such a particularly nasty situation for Russia -- it's a hostage extraction and liberation of Russian land operation, and that largely eliminates the nukes as a tool.
The one good use of nukes here is to isolate the battlefield. As I keep repeating here -- take out the border crossings and stop the weapon flows, and if need be, do glass Poland and Romania and take them over (and as further west as necessary). The reasoning above does not apply to those territories.
Agree on the futile to nuke something on that dispersed, porous frontzone.
And nuking their owns in the cities make no sense either.
Now Ukraine are claiming they could build 20 millions drones during 2026 if they get financing and help from West. They could very well be built (and are built) on locations in the West. Hot times approaching….
Article 5 is not what most people think it is. There is no obligation to actually join in. Even USA, the "leader" of NATO, invoked article 5 after the attacks on the towers and very few joined. Only the usual suspects, like UK and some others. Article 5 is another massively propagandized thing and most people think it's something it really isn't, and all they need to do to understand what it is, is actually read the article instead of believing western propaganda.. I can assure you that USA will not risk being wiped out of existence, to help Ukraine. Much less some other nazi country like the baltics. Not even for Germany, its biggest vassal in Europe. Ukraine is just a proxy. It serves USA's interests to attack Russia and keep it in a semi perpetual state of war, but no master sacrifices itself to protect its vassal. Plus USA are a bunch of cowards, which is why they need proxies. They can't really do anything against a powerful country. They are like the guy in movies that stays behind someone else, to slap a third guy.
As for the rest, I agree, even though it's infuriating sometimes the way Putin reacts to the orange psychopath. I'm not saying Putin should threaten Trump, but Putin should definitely and publicly say that if they are attacked, with direct USA involvement, with the new "wonder weapons" - tomahawks - Russia will attack USA assets. Just saying that "Russia's air defenses will adapt" is not acceptable, because Trump is doing exactly what he did to Iran. Claims to want peace, then threatens to attack Iran, then does attack Iran in the middle of negotiations for peace. I'm 100% sure Putin knows all this, but his public messaging is just completely wrong.
The problem is that NATO is a suicide pact, in which the weakest, most villainous parties to it can drag the US into conflict to one degree or another. This was somewhat reasonable when NATO consisted of large, mature political and economic units (Germany, Britain, sometimes France, even Turkey), so energy could be spent on internal orthodoxy, oppression of its own Communist movements, covering up assassinations, and serving as an employment mill to gently rehabilitate ex-Wehrmacht officers. (/sarc)
At the height of the Cold War, and into the '80s, the expectation was that NATO's substantial forces would last just long enough--maybe a few days, two weeks tops--for the US to mobilize and start shipping reinforcements into theatre. And, of course, for the whole thing to go nuclear in an orderly manner. The problem being, however, that "orderly nuclear conflict in Europe" quickly stops being so since there are no incentives for Russia to hold back US strikes, once a tiny sun appears on their own territory.
Which leads us to actualities: even the Biden administration, sock-puppets all, were unwilling to advance the involvement of the US military in the CIA/MI6 Ukraine adventure to the point of getting shot at under its own flag by the Russians. Because not even they were willing to trade an American city for a Russian one. The Globalists, for whom Ukraine represents many flavors of existential crisis, want urgently to foment such trades, or at minimum to physically destroy Europe in a fashion they can claim they are not responsible for, such that their own enormous debts may be written off ("force majeure") and their assets can go to buying out the impoverished soon-to-be-peasants.
Again, the fact that we are not all incinerated or starving irradiates is evidence of the divisions between Western elites. There is a faction (perhaps the "new money") whose value is mostly in financial instruments that go poof with the rest of the economy, and they don't want to be literally eaten. Which they would be. With salt.
Yes, if you are member of NATO, and someone invokes article 5, you can simply send a couple rolls of toilet paper to them for example and you have fulfilled your obligation - you helped 'to the extent of your abilities' or something to that tune.
No military help is mandatory and anyone who counts on it lives in a dreamland.
In fact when Article 5 was being written, it was the United States which disagreed with the specification of a military commitment, and argued for a more nuanced rule which allowed a considerable degree of interpretation. The accepted text merely reads that nations will do what they feel is necessary to aid an embattled member attacked from without, and it includes specific geographic references as well. That might result in member nations offering little other than moral support and tough-sounding rhetoric, and that would still fit under the umbrella of Article 5.
European leaders are credited - if that's the right word - with sounding tougher this time around because they are learning from their master, Washington. Formerly Europe's warnings and threats were more circumspect, whereas now they sound like hysterical screeching. That's because very direct and specific threats are Washington's diplomatic language - American politics does not do hints and implications. Daddy rules the world now, at least in his own mind, and his disciples are eager to ape his mannerisms.
However, Europe can do nothing against Russia on its own, at least nothing which will affect the Kremlin's decision-making, and it knows it. European recruiting efforts have consistently fallen short for more than a decade, and government opposition in most countries regularly argues the nation's military muscle falls short of what would be needed even for defense, never mind mounting an offensive. Owing to protectionism, European nations frequently do not use the same weapons or ammunition, there have mostly been only token efforts at standardization. The UK uses the Challenger II tank, for example, although they have a few less of them now, thanks to Ukraine. France uses the Leclerc; they cannot exchange ammunition, and their controls are considerably different even exclusive of labeling; you could not put a Leclerc driver in a Challenger II and expect him to drive it competently almost immediately - as you would need to in a combat situation - never mind fight it effectively. All qualified drivers in the Russian military know how to operate the same tank, regardless where they are from, and if you find a wrecked one you can use its ammunition, if any remains, in your tank. Then, too, Russia has made continuous and prudent contributions, in both men and equipment, to its military reserve, which appears to have been modelled specifically to fight NATO, should that prove necessary. New Divisions, new tanks and artillery which have rolled straight off the assembly line and never been fired, straight into the reserves. Europe already gave away most of the older equipment it had in its unimpressive reserves, to Ukraine.
Note the not-very-subtle difference - if Europe had a muscular reserve and a population which supported the government's military policies by a decided majority, it would have struck already. But Russia does have those; nobody reasonable can doubt it. Do you see Russia constantly threatening Europe? If that was so the Europeans would not have to make up scary drone threats, or characterize Putin's mostly-mild warnings to stay out of the Ukrainian conflict as bloodcurdling threats.
If Europe cannot get Washington on board, European confrontation of Russia would be either a non-starter or - if Europe's leaders are as stupid and un-leaderlike as they appear - a disastrous mistake. But a new World War would not be like the last one; everyone's logistics are within relatively-easy reach even while they are at home; on the battlefield they are visible to surveillance 24-7. Russia's ground forces are on the cutting edge of drone warfare while the west has only vicarious experience. All of this presupposes NATO would be fighting only Russia - but that's not likely, is it? Can any of us imagine China sitting by passively while its enemies take over and redistribute its energy supplies? I can't.
Agree about Article 5 - it doesn't mean anything practical. But I think you're wrong about the US not responding. US could obviously not give a damn about Ukraine, it is a pawn, but this war is being fought for western hegemony. It might fight for that. I wouldn't count it out.
Are you here, mascot? Whose brains did you steal to come and spread your wings here? A fly, a mosquito? When will you send us a message from a NATO barracks?
I follow podcasts of different American expats living in various parts of European Russia. From walk and talks to table talking, they report life going on as usual in Russia. Shops overflowing. No bombs raining down, nothing. You wouldn't know a war was going on. The camera doesn't lie.
Except for the Donbass frontier, no checkpoints or roadblocks in Russia either.
Nothing staged just random walking through those Russian cities.
Conversely:
Kiev's sewage system is shut down. Has been all year They have no running water. They poo poo in a bucket. Only 20% of the electricity is flowing..
The elderly in Kiev, cut off of pension stipends, hunt rats at night with pointed sticks for victuals.
Most people in Kiev use little gas powered portable heaters, one room only, to keep from freezing. And those are gifts from the EU.
GM's 'concern-casting' falls flat when it comes face to face with reality. Reality will get you everytime.
Yeah Yeah. Personally we should all be grateful that Russia has exercised exceptional forbearance. In reality NATOstan is a military and economic basket case. Russia-China and BRICS+ partners have already won the battle for global dominance. It's over, GM. Evidentially you and your confederates will be the last to know.
News is just reaching US-EU numbskull financial elites. The discussion below is focused on the Chinese energy/ EV/ battery sector but applies across the board to all industies. It's over and it's finally dawning of the Big Shots... including Drump. The West will never catch up to the Chinese juggernaut and their allies.
You wrote another comment on this article claiming Nato would not hesitate to use nukes yet i see you mocking Russia for not engaging directly with Nato! I cannot figure out if you have a deathwish or completely mad? Maybe both?
What superpower accepts missile and drone strikes 24/7 deep into its own territory without doing absolutely anything to stop it?
That automatically puts you on the same level as Syria, Libya, Yugoslavia, Iraq, soon Venezuela, and all the other places the US bombed freely with no danger to its own territory.
During Putin's reign Russia was also completely kicked out of the Middle East, and lost all of its former Soviet near abroad, except for Belarus.
Geopolitically Putin is the most catastrophic ruler Russia has had after Gorbachev and Nicholas II, and the way things are going, he may surpass them in terms of the damage he has done.
Creating a consumerist society after the nightmare of the 1990s is not the success people think it is given the strategic defeats in all other sphere.
And the worst part of it is why it happened. For much of it Putin was not even not combating it, but often even actively assisting it, i.e. directly working against strategic Russian interests (the Middle East, the first round of color revolutions in the 00s, much of the shit show in Ukraine, etc. etc.). So f***d up was Russian internal politics that it dictated outright suicidal foreign policy...
A proxy war means, escalating until a nuclear threshold is reached, there is still a long list of steps in escalation ladder that have NOT been taken, from shadow fleet obstruction,
A civil war means Russian soldiers are fighting guys who are shouting Russians never surrender, their identity psychologically Russian, politically antiRUssian, Ukraine having been captured politically by CIA and MI6, US and Britain, a lot of political work here,
A world war means that Russia is not alone, Russia has allies, having common mortal enemies, but also needs allies, because although enormous in territory, and strong economically, Russia needs customers, and transport,
Ongoing means political, economical, military changes coming, happening, that are resetting centuries old political framework are equivalent to Third World War. To enact change means to defeat the West. And to have West accept defeat. Going slowly looks like empowering West, but there is no other time to give the West necessary time to swallow and digest defeat.
Remember that the only way West can defeat Russia is by causing internal strife, civil war, regime change, not the military defeat.
And the only answer is unity, patience and victory on the battlefield, in a proxy, civil, world war..
And here your rant crosses with US/British i.e CIA/MI6 strategy.
It's not a proxy war when American GMLRS systems manned by American military personal are firing into Belgorod.
That is a direct war.
And if the Russian president, for two weeks after it most recently started happening on a serious scale, is praising the Americans for their contributions to world peace, then that is just outright treason and whoever that person is has to be removed and replaced.
Proceeding according to strategy prepared for decades. From the beginning.
Americans firing into Russia?
The whole war, is Americans firing into Russia, whole Ukrainian Army is being led, instructed, created, recreated by US intelligence, military, Ukrainian society is being kept afloat, eating having pensions, salaries, oil, electricity by US.
And losing.
US has been losing the war. Losing. On the battlefield.
Tovariska GM, you are crying a river again for no reason.
What you have seen so far is just partial results; Russia is preparing methodically and carefully. If and when the West pushes too far, it will be hit very fast and very hard. Even a very unhappy critic will be impressed, witnessing the defeat of the evil slaveholders who are trying to enslave humanity. So dry up your tears, and if you have weak nerves, don't watch TV news for a while, as long as the cannons do the talking.
So destroying refineries in the Urals, direct American bombing of Belgorod, and taking out a quarter of Russian strategic aviation, plus many other things (the list is very, very, very long) are perfectly OK according to you?
How far can the west push? Sugar Dady’s debt is 33 Trillion and France’s 33 Billion. The west weapons are fabricated on credit and this while Chinese and other Asian are outrages cheap and coming in an endless series. Second hand markets and clandestine deals are uprooting the west’s luxury and unaffordable war. Dream on.
The part where I think your mind may be clouded is the "why it has happened".
None who is self-aware can feel self-assured as to their knowing the why. Only guesses, better or worse educated, may be made. And the most reasonable of them is that Russia's ruling committee (certainly not Putin alone) have assessed so far that the injury would be still more for their country if they entered a frontal, overt, clash with the USA.
Which is far from being unrealistic; very far, considering they who can "print" debt money limitlessly are at a structural advantage versus every other country, since every other country has a budget constrained by limits.
Missile and drone strikes 24/7 deep in its territory? But that’s already the case for 3 years on American territory namely Ukraine, which was hijacked by means of US secretary Nuland in 2014. USraine should be the exact name for Ukraine, losing their territory would be the same as losing Quatar, Israel or Washington.
I think Lavrov commented that being a regional power is more sustainable after Biden's jab, "that Russia is not a superpower, only a regional one".
Rutte crowed that Russia no longer has a military presence in the Mediterranean, but given Russia doesn't trade with Europe and Cyprus is no longer a Russian playground, why would they?
The US is telling the EU they're on their own in Ukraine now, as the US struggles to start wars against Iran and China. Their recent policy paper downplays China, and starting a war with Venezuela, could be transforming to a regional power as well.
I don't know where you sit or your perspective, but I have been writing about Russia and Putin since Abe Lincoln wore knee pants, and Russia was in no condition to do ten years ago what it did in 2022. My final submission as a Senior Fellow at the dread Atlantic Council -- then as poor as a churchmouse and weak as a kitten -- was to remark that Russia was on its knees, but it was not going to stay there and that the west would do well to befriend Putin, because he was what the doctor ordered for Russia at a critical time. I was appalled at how low the Russian spirit had sunk, Putin turned that around and made Russia a place to live, travel, do business. For the west, however, the goal has always been to "defeat Russia," one of America's dumbest ideas and let's not even discuss the EU, a collection of buffoons. My take is this, Putin has dragged his feet believing or needing to believe that the west actually had a brain and could figure out this was a loser for NATO. That Kiev would wake up and see they were just being thrown out as bait for the lion. Now Russia has actually learned and leapt by decades militarily because the stupid west sent their weapons for Russia to pore over and duplicate or foil. Now Russia can fight, and because it can fight, because it went slow to sacrifice fewer, it has the force to make the last push(es) -- certainly to Odessa (why do you think the Ukrainians aka UK and NATO, are so focused on defending that Russian port?) and probably to Kiev. If you want to talk about somebody who was weak and allowed every sort of offense by the western spies and saboteurs, look at mr. Yeltsin, the friendly drunk. Nice guy, but he sold out Russia in many ways. His election was engineered by the west, his office was dripping with western agents "working" with Yeltsin. Well, that's my two point five cents.
Nice wrapup. The hatred of Russia by the majority of Europeans seems illogical to me.....all the lives and resources wasted on all sides fighting instead of freely trading amounts to a lose-lose position. Further, this hatred goes back at least hundreds of years. Now, if we survive this conflict, the "West" will probably get to have the experience that Russia had in the 90s.....
It's actually quite simple. The Russians threw the Khazarian Jew mafia out. The Jew cocksuckers have never forgotten and don't give a shit about free trading. They want all the resources for themselves.
The West invaded Iraq for the oil. Invaded Afghanistan because they wanted to build pipelines across it and the CIA needed heroin money from the poppy fields. Looking to invade Venezuela to steal the oil reserves even after Maduro offered to have US oil companies come in and drill. Not good enough. The Jews want it all for their satanic selves.
The West gave up on learning and promoting merit decades ago. We are rusting out. Russia appears to be polishing itself to a razor edge. This anti Russian act is the stupidest thing a stupid, declining empire ever did.
Who's threatening Russia with Nukes? You mean those blow-hard generals that no one listens to?
The Ukraine war is not the only event being fought over. Russia needs to bring the rest of the world along with him. And he's doing quite a good job of it.
What? Paper Tiger? It’s worse much worse Putin defeating Eurolords, NATO and Tomahawks with men on bikes and only composed of teams of 2 at the most 3? Bring in the diapers now, Rutte is degenerating into gangrene.
You say cartoonish which is lending an air of amusement to village idiots like rutte and his norwegian predecessor when they are anything but. The King Clown in the US is equally deranged in his incoherent rants about supremacy and effectiveness of his actions. How can it not end in world wide open conflict with such wilful intent to spread evil by morally and mentally defunct men and women.
Since JFK 1963, zero potus takes foreign policy decision, I repeat zero even neocons like Bush or zombie Biden.JFK was the last one who tried we saw what happened to him.
The last was actually Nixon. But they couldn’t just simply blow his brains out after the JFK debacle. Hence, Watergate - a scandal manufactured via mass media over the common criminality which all imperialist politicians are obliged to engage in.
Nixon was almost certainly told the burglary was a CIA op (most of the burglars were former CIA). He had no choice but to follow national security and help the cover-up. Once he realized he'd been screwed it was too late to tell the truth.
The tapes indicate Nixon knew about and agreed to participate in the cover-up. They do not destroy my claim Nixon believed he was covering up a CIA/FBI operation for national security. Perhaps being more specific would help.
Yeah, I believe Russiagate was deployed to keep him “on task” and remind him that he doesn’t get to make decisions that could fundamentally alter the US’ policy. He’s handed the policy, and how he wants to execute it is largely up to him.
Trump called out the Neocons by name last year. He said they were taking America down a very dark path. I was pretty excited after he gave that speech. It was while he was Pres Elect I think (December 2024ish). Trump also dressed down Zelensky as most of you recall.
I have been under the impression that around that time a threat must’ve been made on Trump’s family. Blackmail didn’t make any sense or he would have been hung long ago.
However, I am currently listening to Alex Jones 10/14 full show. Apparently a Dr whistleblower has come forward and said Trump’s Doctors are killing him with different drugs/chemicals. I haven’t heard from him yet but perhaps it explains Trumps very strange behavior as of late?
As far as AJ is concerned I am aware embellishing the truth; particularly on micro issues. That being said, I believe he does have a good handle on the pig picture for the most part. Not sure about the Doc but I do understand why whistleblowers might to turn to Jones. I mean where else you going to go? Big Media or the FBI? Guess we shall see where this goes.
Thanks, I saw that with Tucker and it was great. I just put on the regular broadcast on banned.video I usually sleep to it until AJ starts yelling lol. He immediately starts in about the whistleblower Doc. Still haven’t gotten there yet tho.
Funny you should say that, I was watching some clips of him, I think at the generals meeting and he for sure had the Valium Buzz going on.... Benzodiazapines always give patients that buzzed look. The thing is though, from personal experience, that shit catches up to you with runaway addiction and crippling anxiety. if you try to get off of it without a slow taper. Pretty soon he'll be 'beating medicare' also.
During his "The Apprentice" turn, Trump was abusing Adderall and Xanax according to those on set with him. And that despite his repeated claims of being drug & alcohol free- A lot of older Americans do fool themselves into believing that it's not "drugs" if a doctor prescribed it.
In his first term, when he left a G7 , I think in Montreal and flew to South Korea direct, to meet Kim, when he got there, he logged on to Twitter and made a completely bizarre post. There wasn't a coherent sentence and rambling psychobabble. I suggested he get some sleep. i went to find it later and it had been scrubbed from the archives, which is actually illegal.
J.D Vance and couple others praised Trump saying how hard he works 'he sleeps only 3 hours every night - goes to bed at 2 AM and wakes up again at 5 AM'
That cannot be healthy in the long run, your brains simply need more rest, no matter if you are 79 or 29.
3 hours a night leads to bad results sooner rather than later, and he has to be on some of the aforementioned chemicals or the like to be able to sustain that.
I went back to check the Twitter feeds and looked everywhere for his morning after Montreal G7 psychotic whatever the fuck that was and cannot find it anywhere. It was FOR CERTAIN scrubbed from the record. There is actually a day left blank meaning that he supposedly never tweeted that day, where he was prepping to meet Kim. Imagine that ! I wonder who arranged that and I'm sure that is illegal. All POTUS records are permanent by law.
Every experience I've had with psychotic people and I've had a few, verified by Physicians, had an immediately prior history of serious sleep deprevation. One thing to watch too is that people who are struggling with benzodiazepine addiction start drinking heavily. That's because both benzos and alcohol act on the same neurochemicals and in the same way.
Honestly, I don't think he'll finish his term. Next thing he will be passing out in public or ambulances will be showing up at the WH cause he's having a heart attack.
79 and not in great shape. Praying for a heart attack to take him out before he fucks up everything more than he already has. Then again who will we get next ?
Trump was part of the republican and larger establishment within days of taking office in his 1st term, stop coping..it couldn't be any other way, thats why all his campaign promises went out the window with the media circus as a distraction. If you can't think of anything else noteworthy happening before his nomination - October 2023 for example - so that you have to resort to fan fiction about blackmail threats i dont know what to tell you. That's what gave the republicans and maga the green light to finally wear the big boy pants with the big dick hanging out even before Trump took office, because they could play the bad cop and do things their friends and associates on the Dem side couldn't
If it's actually true that as stated, Trump took a booster shot when at WR recently, then he is looking at turbo cancer in the near future
" ... Blackmail didn’t make any sense or he would have been hung long ago.... "
The whole point about blackmail is that you don't need to be hanged, when there are videos of you disporting yourself with your daughter Ivanka available for release.
For those die hard Trump fans, it will be a hard pill to swallow when their hero, upon whom all their hopes rest, dissolves into a pudding eater like dementia Joe.
Wow. Even for Rut that was startlingly pathetic. There's such a high school feel to every political meeting in the west these days, with all the hugging and pep rallies. It's embarrassing to me as a US citizen. I mean we're the bad guys here, but do we really have to so lame?
Anyone aware of any historical parallels to this behavior? Just wondering if this is something new, or something old and recurrent.
My take is that there is a lot of these people are homosexual, but concealing it behind "beards". I have no particular issue with homosexual leaders on that grounds when they're honest about it. It's the deceit that bothers me. A lot of Dutch people strongly believe Mark Rutte is gay, although I don't really see it. They base that on his behavior in their language and before he took a more prominent European role. Zelensky is obviously homosexual as is Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron. I think JD Vance is as well.
I don't throw that out as a slur - I think it's the truth about these men, and that it affects their leadership (especially the keeping it concealed part and playing married men in public).
My suspicion of Vance being a closeted homosexual masquerading as a married family man is influenced by the fact that Peter Thiel groomed him for the role he's in now, and arranged their marriage - Thiel introduced him to his wife and paid for their wedding. They're a mismatch in my opinion in terms of looks. Whenever I've seen a guy married to a woman where they're just not matched looks-wise, I suspect that (because I've seen the end result when it broke up and the truth came out). Vance seems like he's play-acting at the Indian culture stuff, too.
I speak Russian and Ukrainian, and have spent a lot of time watching the Telethon (Zelensky's production company's 24/7 show that runs on all Ukrainian TV stations). It is just non-stop homoerotica, outside of the interview segments. It's all gay cabaret with men wearing tear-off stripper-style army uniforms and things like that. Zelensky himself starred in a lot of that stuff - blatantly homoerotic material that shouldn't be shown to children.
I think both U.S. and European leadership know the name of the game, and the actual geopolitical reasons for fanning the flames of hostility against Russia. The west is collapsing, and - just like for FDR, who ruled over an economy worse in 1942 than it was when he took power at the start of the Great Depression - the only way out is war.
I was hoping you would have more to share, so thank you for all of it. I didn't want to push the point but anybody who has seen Z's stuff has no doubts. I've been to a Russian wedding (Simferopol) at which the guys came out and did a Chippendale style routine in police uniforms - it was a scream. Yet none of them would have been the least bit comfortable going so far as Z routinely did. Also, his wife is remarkably vacuous.
I also agree entirely with your assessment of this political "grand game." The analogies to the fall of the Roman Empire also ring familiar. That might not be so bad...Rome was sacked and the "fall" took 200 years and it was properous. I seriously chafe with embarrassment at the sad attempt of posturing with implications that the US can just go and make anybody do anything it wants. It makes me wonder if that is part of why Trump has garnered so much support. He is all about bluster, intimidation, and the facade. And that sort of thing is frequently very successful in the business world.
This is not business for Russia. It is existential. And incredibly, Russia has a leader who sees it in this light, has a backbone, and because of this accidental timing of his empowerment via the intelligence agencies buffering him vis a vis the oligarchs, he has sufficient control to call out a true red line.
What is brilliant in my opinion is that whilst so many Pro Russian people wondered out loud when Russia would call a red line or lash out, Putin has managed to set this up - starting with comments from 2021 - so that he has called out a red line when the US was bluffing. It is a rare opportunity for a direct and outcome determining clash without a single shot being fired in that regard. If so, that's remarkable.
It was a bluff. I believe I have read Steve Witkoff correctly. Maybe not. Either way...the Typhon delivery system is gigantic and there's no way to get it into Ukraine without a C-17 or a C-5, which are not concealable or defendable. I will post a comment toward the top when you check back.
Oh...about looking like your partner. We have all seen a great deal of this. But I can, sadly, offer another data pool for you to consider. People thought my first wife and I looked somewhat alike...nobody thought my second wife and I looked the least bit alike...and nobody would ever suggest my third wife and I look the least bit alike. She is Russian and a beautiful woman, and when we got engaged, the babushkas all came around and they studied my face intensely and unabashedly...and declared I was a suitable candidate to provide for attractive children. I am not exaggerating in the least. 😎
Well, mr. Z did participate in the gay pride rally in NYC in the late 90's , there is photos of him with him and some random male in the traditional 'hard-core gay' outfit - black leather, bare ass, bare nipples etc.
No doubts about his sexual orientation whatsoever.
I don't think it's necessarily "homosexuality". But I see examples of this "feminization" of the Western white male quite often.
The DEI and wokeness being indoctrinated by the social scientwits at the university produces public education teachers and social studies/history books that spread this anti-white, anti-male syndrome.
The white male is suppressed, while every other categorized identity group is evaluated by the media and educrats as superior. For the white male, ensuing self-realization actions can include transitioning or homosexuality.
None of this matters. It does not matter whether they are stupid, reckless, gay, unpopular, ahistorical, whatever. I am willing to believe all of that and more, but so what?
What matters is that their orders are carried out, which they are.
I'm pretty certain JD Vance is homosexual. I have a few gay men that I've been long-time friends with - a family member, someone I grew up with, a friend's brother - and they all think so too. Vance was taken under the wing of Peter Thiel (who's married to a man) fairly quickly after he was accepted to Yale Law School (and thus showed potential). He was reported as having dating a woman once for a short period early in his undergraduate studies, and it not being fun or something like that. He married his Indian wife when he finished law school - and met her there.
If you watch the chemistry between Vance and his wife in public, it's the same as that between Emmanuel and Brigette, Starmer and his Mossad wife, and Zelensky and his lesbian wife: awkward, their affection seems unnatural and forced, they've always lived separate lives, etc. It seems likely to me that Thiel groomed Vance for a political career from the beginning. Everything about him seems manufactured. Thiel had the resources to attract a beard for JD, and the savvy to realize he wouldn't make it far follows his desire for men.
Barrack Obama is homosexual too. It was well known in Chicago circles when he was climbing the ladder in local and state politics. He was caught several times with male prostitutes (and crack cocaine) where it made the news, and then suddenly disappeared. And then once he started running for national office, it was all memory holed. I don't know if the "Brigette and Michelle are trans-women" thing has any truth to it, but Michelle Obama is a very masculine looking woman - she looks like a dude in a dress. People in Chicago remember the multiple times she apparently had an erection and was filmed sporting it when Obama was in the state legislature, like at a night club.
Yes Michael Robinson or whatever his name was back then, clearly the same dude as 'big mike' , use any photo tool to compare Michael and Michelle and result is close to 100 % , not that you need any computer tool to see it plainly with your own eyes.
Urupp today, aka the evil EUSSR is run by girly men and manly girls which both Uschi van der Lyin' of the pedovore Politburo in Natostan sewer Brussels and Rutt from Bangladesh of the North, are pathetic examples of these transgendermutant retards.
All war propaganda in the age of EMPs and nuclear weapons is infantile. The only end is all the people fighting for food while freezing with no transportation, news, or money while the elite hide in their bunkers to come out and save us. This is war in the time of depopulation and the politicians care more about the survival of their governments than the lives of their people. The idea of war in the modern age should be to get rid of the politicians and financiers causing the wars and let the people live. What would happen to Ukraine if the Bank of England was EMPed? A war of attrition doesn't matter if the politicians don't give a damn about Ukrainian lives or the lives of their own citizens. The war isn't against the Ukrainian citizen, it is against the imperial banking system with NATO handling security and everyone knows their names and where they live. And against the elite Putin cannot act, because he is one of them and beholden to them. Putin's biggest problem is he doesn't have sovereignty over his own currency as the Russian Central Bank is run by the Rothchild system, and they are crashing his economy with 17-24% interest rates. Rather than set up a treasury to sell war bonds, Putin carts Ms. Nabi around showing he is playing according to their rules. If he continues to play by the rules and the war of attrition continues, Russia will eventually lose, or go nuke. Putin will eventually lose as the Bank of England was set up for the exact purpose of financing wars while Putin's was set up so it could not fuel Russian exploitation of its own resources or fund a long term war. Putin is also beholden to all the Jewish Oligarchs who he rose with and thus Putin protected Netanyahu losing Palestine and the Mideast to Adelman and Trump. Putin is controlled opposition.
To claim that Russia will lose is to support the idea that NATO will win. How?
You claim Russia's economy is collapsing. How?
While all wars are bankers wars, you need to connect the dots for us. How are the Rothchilds in charge of the Russian central bank?
A recent pundit was explaining that Russia was being nice to Israel and the Jews because they felt it was important to the USA and that Russian actions would elicit a positive response from the USA. That hasn't happened. Russia is telling Netanyahu "you're on your own".
If Putin is beholding to the Jewish Oligarchs, what does this mean about AIPAC and US politicians? Something doesn't quite square here.
Who knows where that mystery baggie went when Starmer, Merz, and Macron got off the train from Kiev. When mis-leaders are so detached from reality and consequences it would seem they possibly have some substance abuse issue. It wouldn't surprise with what issues from their pie holes.
Yesterday's the excellent Mr. Helmer underlined in Dima's show that they are not stupid. The Europeans only way out is war to keep their seats and political family businesses. In addition, a virtuous loop is being established between the US and the EU in which the latter pay for the bill (the European population) for American weapons to Ukraine, while the former can withdraw from the the Ukranian front and focus on China. He was quite pessimist concerning the Russian options now. It worths the watch.
Ironically, they can’t buy rare earth metals due to China's recent trade sanction, the very country they constantly threaten with war. What amazes me is that Trump claimed to be surprised when China reacted this way. Really? You need rare earths for your military-industrial complex, yet you’re threatening the nation that supplies them, common sense alone should have predicted this outcome. Well, perhaps he thought he could source them from his “Ukraine deal,” but the problem is that most of those resources now lie in Russian-controlled territory, even if the U.S. had the means and technology to mine them.
The reports of Ukrainian REE are wildly exaggerated. They exist, but were they present in economically viable quantities the USSR would have been mining them.
In the meantime, enjoy Pascal's giddiness as he reports on China's boycott of REEs to the US.
That was an excellent talk about the REEs restrictions. He is the only one to consider China's explanation for the reasoning behind the new certification process.
I also liked how he stressed the certification process target military use, no civilian, so it's not a trade issue as Trump pretends, but a national security one, as the US MIC's output will be reduced.
If you want a laugh. People are going nuts over this MOU between Pakistan and the US as if China imposed the export restrictions in response. It is sad in a hilarious way that they have to look for something as trivial as this MOU to pretend that China gives a damn.
Helmer is unwatchable for me. Everything is just a repeat of Trump propaganda. U.S. taxpayers are still funding almost 100% of Ukraine, from salaries to healthcare to media propaganda. The EU is simply running a huge scam on their citizens. The EU is not "paying for anything" especially weapons NATO is the US more than 70% of NATO money is US and 100% of decisions are US. Helmer works for the tiny percentage of Russian elite who hate Putin and he has finally, after 3 years of bashing everything Putin , he has so called Alternative media putting him on. Ask yourself why now?? Why did no one talk to him or allow him a platform until the alt. media has been injected with huge amounts of money and intelligence oversight.
The alt media is getting predictable and repeatable, with little new, just endless supposition. Retitled episodes of previous discussions isn't going to keep the curious coming back for more. They are clearly going for the money. Predictable.
"Focus on China" ? I spluttered my vodka after reading that. $lumville needs to "focus" on $lumville and the ongoing total collapse of all things Pentacon. China already owns US!
Since 1917, european strategy has been to get Americans to do their fighting for them. Europeans are unable to find their own dicks with both hands and a magnifying glass, but they are skilled at the arts of the courtier, at whispering campaigns, at simpering and prancing pageantry and bending the ears of senile monarchs.
Trump is well on the way to being mousetrapped into war. Whether that comes directly or whether the Americans have to ride to the rescue of their european catamites makes no difference.
I don’t think Trump needs to be mousetrapped or lured into any war, and we’re in it already up to our elbows. Which is not to disagree with what you say about Rut, just that that sort of display is disgusting and degenerate.
The only questions in my mind is when will Putin drop the pretense, and when when will he arrange for the American body bags that are necessary to change the course of this war.
I wonder if he thinks he has a choice and is just picking his time. I think he doesn’t have a choice, and that the time came a long time ago. But again, I still think that consideration had to be given to world reaction, and I can appreciate caution in one whose actions and decisions affect so many people.
Indecision and weakness do not make friends. Strength and decisiveness do.
It is abundantly obvious that Russia does not want to make war on the West, they want to be allowed to join it. This is foolish beyond belief, as the West has made it plain that they will be satisfied with nothing less than blood.
About the west I see no room for doubt, but on the decisions Putin has to make I’d need to know more before criticizing. I do think westerners, and specifically Americans, will have to die before peace becomes possible. Too many things shield and blunt us from the ruination this war is already bringing us.. And unlike a lot of people here, I don’t think this war is in the bag.
The openly pathetic performances underline the danger we are in. This is the state of western leadership. It proves Darwin was wrong and mankind are indeed fallen/falling creatures. Our ruling class is as decrepit as France in the 1790s. But with nukes. The worst is the public is overwhelmingly oblivious.
You might be interested in this article - it is long, and about the “pandemic” and dancing nurses - you’ll see my point if you read it. https://substack.com/home/post/p-175746469
What was Darwin "right" about? He was a "humanist", part of the cabal, like Marx and Freud, who have been leading us down the wrong path for the past century and a half. Marx told us we are not spiritual beings, we are intelligent animals, and are doomed to behave like animals.
So much cherry picking of facts. Rutte earlier said Russia is outproducing NATO due to highers GDP PPP, but now reverts to nominal GDP comparisons. Russia is not alone - expect N Korean military, and potentially Chinese (China has stated they cannot afford for Russia to lose). Good luck with the EU military build up with the new restrictions on military production containing 0.1% of Chinese rare earths, magnets and Chinese technology. Russia as a regional power is more powerful than a global power, as it can concentrate it's forces, and enjoys better relations with it's Asian neighbours. Losing it's presence in the Mediterranean is no lose when Russia doesn't trade with the EU.
Quoting Pepe Escobar, Trump is the circus ringmaster. What else to call a group with the likes of Rutte, Kallas, Von der Leyen, Merz, Starmer, Macron, the Baltic Chihuahuas? Argentina should be invited to join NATO with Milei for the added craziness.
Some Slovenians were party pooping on NATO summit. ;)
"🇸🇮🇷🇺 NATO Gala in Ljubljana Met With Pro-Russian Protest
In Ljubljana, NATO and Slovenian officials gathered for a “gala” evening at the historic Union Hotel — an event paid for by Slovenian taxpayers. What was meant to be a celebration quickly turned into embarrassment.
As the guests walked along Nazorjeva Street toward the hotel, they were met by members of the Slovenia Against Russophobia (https://www.facebook.com/groups/681865386357978/) movement. Instead of applause, the NATO delegation passed through a corridor of Russian national flags and anti-NATO slogans, greeted by locals who made their opposition clear.
Among the protesters was Žiga, the same bearded man who, during last year’s visit of Zelensky’s wife to Slovenia, told her to her face (https://t.me/DDGeopolitics/130551) that Russia will win.
Eyewitnesses say many officials appeared uncomfortable and avoided cameras. Police were slow to react, allowing the protest to proceed without interruption.
One agitated government secretary reportedly shouted that the activists were “ruining the country’s reputation.” The demonstrators responded that this is simply the reality for those who choose to serve a fascist regime."
For true believers, cognitive dissonance often results in "doubling down" on belief conviction. Deepening ideological commitment often includes intellectual arrogance and cognitive rigidity.
Power corrupts the few, while weakness corrupts the many. Hatred, malice, rudeness, intolerance, and suspicion are the fruits of weakness.
"Mass movements can rise and spread without belief in a God, but never without belief in a devil" (Eric Hoffer, "The True Believer" - about the way mass movements are initiated, maintained and controlled)
Isnt it more frightening if the case they are not believing a word of it. They are only manipulating their own citizens to be scared and believe that a War MUST be fought against the ”evil Russian Empire” no later than 2030?
Only brain dead men in uniform could claim that taking Kaliningrad would be some sort of decisive NATO win. It would just mean Russia taking a whole much bigger slice of Ukraine (hey, all of it) and extending into the Baltic fringe to take K back. NATO has to decide if it really wants to risk its existing borders.
If however NATO-EU wants to dump the costly and expendable nutty Baltics, this braggadocio is the way to go. After all, why would the Russians wait around for these latest threats to materialise. Best to take counter measures while they have the time and space to do so with least casualties (it's is all relative).
If this posturing is really aimed at provoking Russia to bring this war-boil to a head along a partition behind which Ukraine can be re-armed to go at the Russkies again, that devilment has had its day. You had your chance, eurotwits way back in 2022 to come out with so much more. Any conceivable settlement has shrunk away the territory remorselessly since then. This is what saying Russia is winning this war means.
The recent mouthing off was reminiscent of Kellogg's pep talk to NATO-EU reps which initially contained traces of reference to their own protests that Russia was winning and that it was simply too strong to defeat, its weaponry too powerful. Subsequent coverage even in the alt media, airbrushed that out. So Simplicius is right: this is part of a long running slow burn of despair being papered over with hot-mouthing that does not bother Russia but does fuel justification (handy in Russia's long term management of its allies) for a bigger Russian victory than the very least its citizens will settle for, while doing zero to assuage the real concerns of the western alliance, namely that the whole point of this disaster had been a seizure of Russian assets through an internal uprising and the installation of various puppet regimes in the vast land mass the west has coveted ever since it realised just how valuable it was. What a long time ago this was when an old empire mired in unsustainable debt decided the time had come to acquire fresh collateral.
They will first run a trial in the PMR, to test Putin's resolve.
Putin will of course do nothing for the PMR -- why would he, given that for 35 years Kremlin policy has been to get rid of that inconvenience, the same way Pashinyan got rid of Karabakh in the case of Armenia, and for the same reasons -- there will be massacre plus ethnic cleansing, Lenin statues in Tiraspol will be toppled and that will be posted on social media for the whole world to see Russian impotence (which may well actually fill the hearts of Putin and the oligarchs with great joy), and only then will they move on Kaliningrad.
There is a difference between inveigling a change of regime through 'elections' even a coup if you think you can engineer what looks like a popular uprising, and just dropping a bomb on the place. Although to the average western military brain......
Discussion of flailing western attempts to 'turn' states, the whole fake democracy thing that defines western europe itself now, is a discussion for another day.
But you do seem to be advocating actually conquering the Baltic chihuahuas now while the getting is good. You don't think that would provoke a massive response?
So Rus dont let PMR go down initially, but enable its existence with peace keeping troops since 1992, but for 35 years they have been trying to get rid of it?
If you're one of those who are perplexed by Putin's passivity (restraint) in regards to attacks on pre-2014 Russia, I suggest you listen to the Duran's latest broadcast, "Putin Challenged on Trump Tomahawk deployment" (I listen at 1.5x speed since they talk so slowly).
I'm puzzled also, and don't understand how Putin thinks he can avoid escalation with his current strategy. But I'm not Russian so don't have a say in the matter.
Given how very much stronger than Russia NATO is, you might think they'd reduce the calls for increased military budgets and readiness, but he isn't going to be that sensible because as weak as Russia is, if you give them an inch they'll still take all of Europe.
I guess I shouldn’t have gone there. Seriously, though, I don’t think these clowns deserve anything less than the ultimate punishment. They are killing people now and risking global catastrophe. Call me old fashioned, but I think the hand of justice should be swift and merciless under the circs.
Yep. Add some fireworks and razzmatazz and you could sell out the Millennium Stadium, Wembley, Hampden Park: sell out all the major venues on a European tour. And the merch! Think of the revenue you could raise, and the tax cuts that could fund. It would certainly beat the degenerate queerfest that is the Eurovision Song Contest.
You could have beast-fights, too: stabby psycho criminals (Axel Rudakaba, for instance) slathered in bacon fat, armed with a rolled up newspaper for a sword and a dustbin lid for a shield, then put into the ring against 20 hungry hyaenas. A pitched battle to the death, between 150 noodle-armed Portland Antifa with baseball bats and 15 Hell’s Angels with chains and knuckle-dusters. Corporate sponsorship, mascots and cheerleaders, syndication, sports betting - the possibilities are endless.
Mark Rutte’s job is to keep the European corrupt officials still invested into Nato. It’s just marketting with under the table kickbacks, and theatre for us mortals.
As Escobar states, they’re spending funds (which they dont have) to purchase weapons (which they dont have) to give to Ukraining soldiers (which they dont have). And 10% for the big guy. Yawn.
They don't have them, and won't get them now China is throttling back on the rare earths. Even if they don't care about energy costs it's going to be hard for various manufacturers to keep their balance sheets in order, CNC machining, etc, etc. They don't actually plan they're so accustomed to outsourcing and offshoring. Warwick Powell has very clearly laid out how the US won't be able to re-industrialise in any meaningful way, besides it's a program run by hucksters looking for a quick buck.
First rule of the fight club, You don't talk shit about Russian Millirary Airforce. And yes, my father is a Party man who built the most beautiful airplanes out there. Socialism works.
However, if you want to live your life to the fullest, you need to recognize one thing - no blue angel or maverick promo on that ugly series of F s could possibly make a difference.
At this moment Russian Airforce is the most potent force out there and they are angry.
I am confused about cultural references. But I do have a couple of dramatic episodes under my belt. You rather be cute all things considered,. Dominance, Mother Russia and the fact that you are living out borrowed time.
"But what you’ll note is that the entire Western order has devolved into a theatre of the absurd."
This was entirely enabled by Putin's presidency, no one can be blamed for these acts of theatre except for how Russia has responded to provocations and its foreign policy. I'd go as far as to say, that since Putin's presidency, from 2001-2025 Russia has lost the 'superpower' status and has irrevocably become a 'paper tiger'.
A 'responsible' president of a powerful country, would not allow its adversary to threaten it with launching nuclear capable missiles, and continually allow its proxy to strike the motherland. It would deal with it accordingly and decisively without sacrificing Russian lives and endangering the world by further provocations.
Paper tiger that is winning a war against Ukraine with unprecedented support from NATO? Basically winning against NATO? If that makes you a paper tiger, what does losing against the Chadliban and the Houthis makes you?
It's not clear that they're winning the war.
They are killing Ukrainians but Ukraine still has many years left till they're out of soldiers.
In the meantime, Russia is losing men at a pretty fast pace too. Lack of people is one of their main problems as a country. And Russia is having its infrastructure being attacked at an increasingly severe rate.
And the next proxies are already being prepared to attack Russia.
The Ukraine is truly just one battle of this war. Russia would be careful not to make it a pyrrhic victory.
"Lack of people is one of their main problems as a country." - this describes Ukraine better than Russia. The next wars will be with Iran and Venezuela - neither of which are Russia proxies, and are likely to be drawn out wars, draining US resources.
Then China's new restrictions on rare earths for military manufacturing is an arrow at the US military industrial complex. It will take 5 years to build alternative supply chains.
By only using volunteers in Ukraine, and the slow advances keep casualties down, and improving Russia's chances during these multi-polar wars.
The West has more than a billion people in cannon fodder to throw at Russia
Russia's total population is 145M
The West needs soldiers for Iran and Venezuela, and to stand against China. They're unable to muster their forces at a single point. Conscription will go down badly in the West as well.
The US is already trying to dump Ukraine on the EU, so don't count on US troops.
China isn't going to invade Taiwan and destroy it's island province. China will blockade Taiwan and destroy any foreign navy that comes within range.
Wrong. NATO has 750 million. Russia is allied with China, who has 1.4 billion..
Russia has at least 160 million counting the 13 million recent admissions from what used to be Ukraine. There's a baby boom going on right now besides.
Plus, the great equalizers are Nukes. Russia has 6,000 of those.
Yeah. Yeah. Tell me what Western population will follow the likes of Macron, Drump, Merz amd Starmer into WW III. Half the population in these places would welcome a Russian proxie government in place of these blackguards.
A billion is a gross exaggeration. I do agree though that west much more bodies to throw at the Russians. And the longer this war drags on, the more the Russians pussy foot around, the wider this conflict is likely to become.
They've got more than enough, anyway, and did you notice that last night the Finnish prime minister was at a protest in Georgia? And that the EU is strong-arming Serbia? Russia needs to close the Ukrainian theater.
And we will arm them with spears?
Wrong. There are only 50 to 100 Russian casualties a day, compared to 1,400+ for Ukraine. There's no Pyrhhus in sight..
Russia's total KIAs are 125,000. UKRAINE's KIAs are approaching 2 million.
But thank you for your generous time and concern. Well keep your projections in mind.
Wrong! There are only 5 or 10 Russian casualties a day, compared to 7,575+ for Ukraine!
Russia's KIAs are 50,000. Ukraine's KIAs exceed 7-MILLION.
I'd "like" this if the site would let me.
The KIA and POW exchange lists tell a different story than what you NAFO types are trying to convince yourselves of. Not since around January of 2023 has the Banderan army been near parity for the listed KIA exchanges and longer than that for the POW exchanges.
Another troll, zero post before fake profile.
Where's GM? No trollery is compete without his valuable input.
Let me help: "Putin is weak and a traitor! Russia needs to nuke the world!" Will that do for now?
Spending some quality time with Senator Lindsay Graham is the best bet.
It's like those criminals who touch hot money and turn pink. except this is more like a cyber-taint.
Pitching or Catching?
He is in my cellar, chained up, and is now part of my collection of strange phenomena.
Q: "where's GM?"
A: See "Wannabe Expat", and likely a couple others.
Oh, you'll get his 'input' all right, across his sock bandwidth..
Sock puppetry has extended into the White House where Trump has taken to generating world wide backing for his war on Russia by just speaking for/as everyone else. Well, its one way of avoiding the inconvenience of other people in your own narcissistic world view.
GM’s helper…it’s so fuggin tiresome. Love ZeroHedge for the IGNORE button
It is easy to block a poster.
Hell, yes, R! A responsible superpower would push the red button and go all out for a big crater where everything south and west of the Siberian wastes used to be. Hot damn, why not sink Siberia too. You cannot win too big!
I suggest that before that he throws an Iskander into R's living room.
^^this.
We keep hearing what clowns NATO are, yet not a single gram of explosives has hit NATO land while Russia is under 24/7 bombardment by NATO and Russian leadership not only refuses to do anything to stop it, but is giving verbal tongue baths to the very people who are bombing the country.
Who is really divorced from reality here?
Russia is looking long term. The West is weakening itself militarily, economically, and by reputation on the world stage. Russia is becoming more admired, more independent of other markets, and better militarily and economically.
When the time comes, Russia will be able to knock out the West with just a heavy breath.
Which of these two trends:
1) The West weakening itself (how exactly?)
2) Russia being destroyed under massive bombardment which its leadership refuses to do anything to stop
Do you think is going to cross the finishing line first?
How is the West's economic decline going to result in the drones and missiles no longer raining on Russian cities, and even if it does, how long would that take?
Do you think Russia is not able to absorb the bombardment that is getting through? They have air defense that is better than the West's, and are able to repair what gets hit quickly.
Russia is in good shape, and getting stronger by the metrics I stated.
The West is sliding down hill fast. They are running out of things to give Ukraine, and are low on what they need for themselves. They are getting weaker and weaker. Their economies are failing, although they try to hide it with smoke and mirrors. Their citizens are sick of suffering for Ukraine, that black hole of their tax dollars.
I'll gladly take the bet that Russia will cross the finish line far ahead of the West.
1) The bombardment is only going to intensify
2) There is no such thing as bulletproof AD with infinite capacity
3) No serious country would tolerate even a single occasion of bombardment if it can stop it. Russia can stop it, the problem is that means permanent total severance of all ties with the West, but its political elite is too compromised to accept that cost (to itself) so it would rather have the country pay the cost of not stopping it.
>The West is sliding down hill fast. They are running out of things to give Ukraine
This is pure idiocy. Where do you think the long-range drones come from? Have you noticed how their availability ramped up?
Have you thought about the manufacturing complexity of these things? It is on the same order as a motorcycle or a cheap small car. How many motorcycles and cheap cars is the West producing annually? Tens of millions.
Do I need to elaborate further?
how can it intensify if there is nothing left to send?
No you need to explain how US shock and awe (your massive bombardments) won so many wars since 1945!
You probably think Bomber Harris defeated Hitler.
You already have trouble getting an erection, what would you like to develop further?
It is pointless arguing about a developing situation - why not do as you have done in your argument to this point, which is to point to historical trends to support your position that NATO is only growing more powerful while Russia is getting weaker? Wait until the current conflict is ended, one way or another, and then see if there are grounds for you to strut and pound your chest.
From my position - to comment on a developing situation myself, which I believe is not very helpful to the conclusion - it appears NATO confidently predicted a rapid series of setbacks for Russia, culminating in a Ukrainian victory the west would modestly share without too much hoopla about how it arranged and engineered it. Since then NATO has steadily and measurably upped its own wager until it is talking about nuclear war itself. How, exactly, does this represent power to you? Considering that Russia and China are far and away NATO's superior in nuclear weapons stocks and training? Does it make sense for NATO to advance from where it merely told itself it is superior - and appears not to be - to where it must know it is weaker?
If NATO is determined to escalate until the outbreak of even a general conventional war in Europe, it would start on the back foot of sacrificing thousands of infantry daily to a drone war in which it has neither experience or production capacity, as its generals continue to plan without the new consideration that even your rear positions are visible to surveillance in real time, 24/7 except for during heavy rain. Most of the NATO countries have failed for a decade to reach recruiting targets, and cannot afford to take any losses at all.
Those air defense systems worked pretty damn good in Iran right? OOOHHH..FUCK ME... Iran didn't want any help! Isn't that what 20 fucking years in power Putin said? The same Putin that said that Ukrainian people are BROTHERS of RUSSIA? Or the guy that even KNOWING NATO has not only attacked military targets (EVEN STRATEGIC ONES) in Russia but is DIRECTLY responsible for the INVASION and THE MURDER AND RAPE OF RUSSIAN CIVILIANS went on to meet TRUMP is his home turf and took a ride on LIMO 01 riding shotgun while B2 bomber flew over his head? Love the KILL YOU WITH KINDNESS strategy! Russian nuclear arsenal DOES MEAN SHIT! the fact that a external hostile alliance is DIRECTLY support a third party to attack it proves that! But HEY. Lets not take our heads out of the hole in the ground. After all Putin believes that a man (A JEW AT THAT) was born from a virgen,, walked on water, made brad and fish appear out of thin air and was killed and resurrect!!!!!OOOO..And eventually is coming back Why not believe in SUPERMAN, SPIDERMAN or even ELON!!! AGAIN...S A D!
In June, usrahell's AD was not effective.....
Syria "didnt want help" either per Putin. I'm sure Venezuela will decline assistance also, and Cuba afterwards.
"They are getting weaker and weaker"
Another example:
The US gub'ment is sending troops to attack the Chicago taxpayers that pay for their food-bag. What an upside-down world...
" Do you think Russia is not able to absorb the bombardment that is getting through? "
I would love to talk to you about " absorbing bombardments" after your family was wiped out by a Ukrainian drone. I doubt you would be so passive.
^^this
As I have said many times, the "Russia can just absorb the damage" line reveals the same kind of racism towards Russians that the openly Russophobic voices express, it's just implicit in this case and not so open.
But it's fundamentally the same thing -- the snow niggers over there can die in huge numbers, but it's OK, they don't matter, it's just damage that can be absorbed.
The west is weakening itself at home - its psychopathic support for an evidently nazi regime is being increasingly and vociferously opposed by an electorate it claims to - but doesn't - represent.
At least three major European governments are teetering on the very brink of collapse, so whatever game they are playing is not long for this world.
Saner voices are becoming increasingly heard.
It's not really correct to say that western missiles and drones are raining on Russian infrastructure, although of course some are getting through.
If the mechanisms of this war are mainly attritional, then the attrition is largely one way; ie against the interests of the NATO cabal.
As to "how long this will take, " various voices in Ukraine - eg Timoshenko most recently - are saying that the war will be over very shortly, based on information they are receiving.
>At least three major European governments are teetering on the very brink of collapse
How is that going to stop the missiles and drones?
How naive does one have to be to think European governments make any decisions?
>If the mechanisms of this war are mainly attritional, then the attrition is largely one way; ie against the interests of the NATO cabal.
How? There is zero attrition of NATO, Russia is taking hits daily.
>Timoshenko most recently - are saying that the war will be over very shortly, based on information they are receiving.
Yes, the information is that Putin will capitulate.
How do you see in the current situation with the current posture and force disposition Russia getting to Uzhgorod "very shortly"? Impossible unless the nukes come out.
But the minimum winning condition for Russia is that Ukraine disappears.
Anything else will be capitulation and grand treason on the part of Putin if he settles for anything less than that once again.
You seem to suggest that Russia is incapable of tolerating casualties. If so, they are similar to the Western Europeans, however historically, Russia has been able to absorb heavy punishment.
Imagine Vietnam deciding to surrender because chemical warfare was deforesting their country, casualties rates were extreme, and Hanoi was being bombed constantly.
The 4 oblasts that voted to join Russia need to be liberated whatever the cost. The USSR showed ruling over hostile populations is not worth the cost, so trying to take all of Ukraine will be counterproductive.
I am in France: Our leaders want war, we do not.
Nobody of influence and authority cares what you or I want, and the rulers have ways of making the populace obey unpopular orders.
Then why are you the people not buying drones and grenades and taking out your leaders?
I’m in France too and Lecornu second round had no option to let the socio’s take over, by Macron’s permission and think, think again French communists let a footprint on this coalition. Is Macron and his cabal gang now recruiting French commies to go to war against Putin? I bet EU is playing its joker card.
the west is a JEW regime. get it right...
A "fistfight" is not a fight between fists - fists are simply the tools used to inflict damage. Ukraine may be being destroyed (I believe it is), but it is just a tool. All the attrition that's happening is on the Russian side, and this war doesn't end until Russia starts fighting its actual opponent and not its tools.
I wish the rest of this extremely complacent note were true, and they may be, but I'm not seeing it. The oligarchy (never mind which flavor) gains in control in the US, and the Europeans are just another fist - brainless maybe, but they don't need brains to serve their master.
I'll never understand the way so many people on here shrug away Russian casualties at the hands of a country and coalition that have announced their intention to destroy the nation.
Dude why dont u chill out just once ? WW4 will start soon enough. Dont get mentally irregular
"Do you think you'll cross the finish line first?" No, the Ukrops will arrive in Kiev, then in Lviv, before the Russians.
The WEST is weakening itself since the 1920's. And MAN how weak they are when since they have controlled the world! Did I say 1920s???? Sorry..I've meant 420s!
A tree is judged by its fruits. The nowadays generation on TikTok a ratio of 8-12 hours a day and listening to Taylor swift is collapsing. One in 4 is depressed and suicidal, a second is on the verge and for the other 2 it’s just a matter of time. The best or is it pest of the west stinks! No future except of going to war, 5000 civilised wars in 2000 years of non barbaric and anti terrorist civilisation. When are we going to start with the real thing, becoming human is a good start.
" he nowadays generation on TikTok a ratio of 8-12 hours a day and listening to Taylor swift is collapsing. "
You know this applies to many Russia youth also ?
Just bring forward the data on depression and suicide, I know there’s more poverty and less opportunities in Russia, alcohol and using drugs is huge but I don’t think westerners are in a majority to give their lives for their country even when it has never been theirs…EU, NATO, US. Give a Russian a vodka bottle and he goes to the end of the world, no American or European will do the same on whiskey or a Rothchild’s wine.
Some people only understand instant gratification, especially if there's lots of fireworks and kabooms involved.
Attacking NATO territory would simply inflame the situation, rather than defusing it.
I expect you've heard about the legendary Article 5.
Russia's job is rather like the job it is giving to those laser demining drones, ie defusing situations, rather than enabling them to blow up.
Of course you attack NATO, and you attack NATO in such a way that there is no NATO left to respond after that.
Because NATO is attacking you 24/7, and if you don't fight back, you will get destroyed.
It is that simple.
>I expect you've heard about the legendary Article 5.
And I expect that you have read what I have posted on the subject here -- it is fiction when it comes to nuclear war. Any non-nuclear NATO country can be completely wiped out and the US will then sit it out and fold. Because nobody will sacrifice the US mainland just to retaliate over something that no longer exists.
But that only works in full if the countries hit are indeed fully wiped out, tactical strikes on military bases alone will indeed only inflame the situation.
It is the nature of the suicide pact that NATO is for the non-US members.
NATO GM is a paper tiger a waste for the paper, there’s only sugar daddy US
I think Simplcius gives you right in his latest post on X citing Military Chronicle about tactical use of nukes….
Yeah, but what he describes there -- using TNW to blow holes in the front -- is not applicable to Ukraine. Because this is a liberation operation, not a Cold War Fulda-gap-breakthrough one.
What are you going to hit with nukes in Ukraine to blow up holes in the front? Erase Kharkov from the map? But it is a Russian city, and the people left there are self-selected to be the most pro-Russian ones, waiting for liberation. In vain, apparently...
Also, drones have made the battlefield so dispersed and atomized, that you would have to basically do glassing-on-a-grid of most of Ukraine to achieve a real breakthrough. And again, that would be nuking yourself. Can't do.
This is why Ukraine is such a particularly nasty situation for Russia -- it's a hostage extraction and liberation of Russian land operation, and that largely eliminates the nukes as a tool.
The one good use of nukes here is to isolate the battlefield. As I keep repeating here -- take out the border crossings and stop the weapon flows, and if need be, do glass Poland and Romania and take them over (and as further west as necessary). The reasoning above does not apply to those territories.
Your reasoning is like a torchblow, GM :-9
Agree on the futile to nuke something on that dispersed, porous frontzone.
And nuking their owns in the cities make no sense either.
Now Ukraine are claiming they could build 20 millions drones during 2026 if they get financing and help from West. They could very well be built (and are built) on locations in the West. Hot times approaching….
Article 5 is not what most people think it is. There is no obligation to actually join in. Even USA, the "leader" of NATO, invoked article 5 after the attacks on the towers and very few joined. Only the usual suspects, like UK and some others. Article 5 is another massively propagandized thing and most people think it's something it really isn't, and all they need to do to understand what it is, is actually read the article instead of believing western propaganda.. I can assure you that USA will not risk being wiped out of existence, to help Ukraine. Much less some other nazi country like the baltics. Not even for Germany, its biggest vassal in Europe. Ukraine is just a proxy. It serves USA's interests to attack Russia and keep it in a semi perpetual state of war, but no master sacrifices itself to protect its vassal. Plus USA are a bunch of cowards, which is why they need proxies. They can't really do anything against a powerful country. They are like the guy in movies that stays behind someone else, to slap a third guy.
As for the rest, I agree, even though it's infuriating sometimes the way Putin reacts to the orange psychopath. I'm not saying Putin should threaten Trump, but Putin should definitely and publicly say that if they are attacked, with direct USA involvement, with the new "wonder weapons" - tomahawks - Russia will attack USA assets. Just saying that "Russia's air defenses will adapt" is not acceptable, because Trump is doing exactly what he did to Iran. Claims to want peace, then threatens to attack Iran, then does attack Iran in the middle of negotiations for peace. I'm 100% sure Putin knows all this, but his public messaging is just completely wrong.
Article 5 simply means whatever the Americans say it means at any given moment.
The problem is that NATO is a suicide pact, in which the weakest, most villainous parties to it can drag the US into conflict to one degree or another. This was somewhat reasonable when NATO consisted of large, mature political and economic units (Germany, Britain, sometimes France, even Turkey), so energy could be spent on internal orthodoxy, oppression of its own Communist movements, covering up assassinations, and serving as an employment mill to gently rehabilitate ex-Wehrmacht officers. (/sarc)
At the height of the Cold War, and into the '80s, the expectation was that NATO's substantial forces would last just long enough--maybe a few days, two weeks tops--for the US to mobilize and start shipping reinforcements into theatre. And, of course, for the whole thing to go nuclear in an orderly manner. The problem being, however, that "orderly nuclear conflict in Europe" quickly stops being so since there are no incentives for Russia to hold back US strikes, once a tiny sun appears on their own territory.
Which leads us to actualities: even the Biden administration, sock-puppets all, were unwilling to advance the involvement of the US military in the CIA/MI6 Ukraine adventure to the point of getting shot at under its own flag by the Russians. Because not even they were willing to trade an American city for a Russian one. The Globalists, for whom Ukraine represents many flavors of existential crisis, want urgently to foment such trades, or at minimum to physically destroy Europe in a fashion they can claim they are not responsible for, such that their own enormous debts may be written off ("force majeure") and their assets can go to buying out the impoverished soon-to-be-peasants.
Again, the fact that we are not all incinerated or starving irradiates is evidence of the divisions between Western elites. There is a faction (perhaps the "new money") whose value is mostly in financial instruments that go poof with the rest of the economy, and they don't want to be literally eaten. Which they would be. With salt.
Yes, if you are member of NATO, and someone invokes article 5, you can simply send a couple rolls of toilet paper to them for example and you have fulfilled your obligation - you helped 'to the extent of your abilities' or something to that tune.
No military help is mandatory and anyone who counts on it lives in a dreamland.
In fact when Article 5 was being written, it was the United States which disagreed with the specification of a military commitment, and argued for a more nuanced rule which allowed a considerable degree of interpretation. The accepted text merely reads that nations will do what they feel is necessary to aid an embattled member attacked from without, and it includes specific geographic references as well. That might result in member nations offering little other than moral support and tough-sounding rhetoric, and that would still fit under the umbrella of Article 5.
European leaders are credited - if that's the right word - with sounding tougher this time around because they are learning from their master, Washington. Formerly Europe's warnings and threats were more circumspect, whereas now they sound like hysterical screeching. That's because very direct and specific threats are Washington's diplomatic language - American politics does not do hints and implications. Daddy rules the world now, at least in his own mind, and his disciples are eager to ape his mannerisms.
However, Europe can do nothing against Russia on its own, at least nothing which will affect the Kremlin's decision-making, and it knows it. European recruiting efforts have consistently fallen short for more than a decade, and government opposition in most countries regularly argues the nation's military muscle falls short of what would be needed even for defense, never mind mounting an offensive. Owing to protectionism, European nations frequently do not use the same weapons or ammunition, there have mostly been only token efforts at standardization. The UK uses the Challenger II tank, for example, although they have a few less of them now, thanks to Ukraine. France uses the Leclerc; they cannot exchange ammunition, and their controls are considerably different even exclusive of labeling; you could not put a Leclerc driver in a Challenger II and expect him to drive it competently almost immediately - as you would need to in a combat situation - never mind fight it effectively. All qualified drivers in the Russian military know how to operate the same tank, regardless where they are from, and if you find a wrecked one you can use its ammunition, if any remains, in your tank. Then, too, Russia has made continuous and prudent contributions, in both men and equipment, to its military reserve, which appears to have been modelled specifically to fight NATO, should that prove necessary. New Divisions, new tanks and artillery which have rolled straight off the assembly line and never been fired, straight into the reserves. Europe already gave away most of the older equipment it had in its unimpressive reserves, to Ukraine.
Note the not-very-subtle difference - if Europe had a muscular reserve and a population which supported the government's military policies by a decided majority, it would have struck already. But Russia does have those; nobody reasonable can doubt it. Do you see Russia constantly threatening Europe? If that was so the Europeans would not have to make up scary drone threats, or characterize Putin's mostly-mild warnings to stay out of the Ukrainian conflict as bloodcurdling threats.
If Europe cannot get Washington on board, European confrontation of Russia would be either a non-starter or - if Europe's leaders are as stupid and un-leaderlike as they appear - a disastrous mistake. But a new World War would not be like the last one; everyone's logistics are within relatively-easy reach even while they are at home; on the battlefield they are visible to surveillance 24-7. Russia's ground forces are on the cutting edge of drone warfare while the west has only vicarious experience. All of this presupposes NATO would be fighting only Russia - but that's not likely, is it? Can any of us imagine China sitting by passively while its enemies take over and redistribute its energy supplies? I can't.
Agree about Article 5 - it doesn't mean anything practical. But I think you're wrong about the US not responding. US could obviously not give a damn about Ukraine, it is a pawn, but this war is being fought for western hegemony. It might fight for that. I wouldn't count it out.
why not just supply nukes and endless IADS to Iran? send arms to the HAMAS heroes ?
Because Israel, a de facto part of Russia per Putin.
You...........
Are you here, mascot? Whose brains did you steal to come and spread your wings here? A fly, a mosquito? When will you send us a message from a NATO barracks?
Q: "who's divorced from reality here?"
A: General Maestro is.
I follow podcasts of different American expats living in various parts of European Russia. From walk and talks to table talking, they report life going on as usual in Russia. Shops overflowing. No bombs raining down, nothing. You wouldn't know a war was going on. The camera doesn't lie.
Except for the Donbass frontier, no checkpoints or roadblocks in Russia either.
Nothing staged just random walking through those Russian cities.
Conversely:
Kiev's sewage system is shut down. Has been all year They have no running water. They poo poo in a bucket. Only 20% of the electricity is flowing..
The elderly in Kiev, cut off of pension stipends, hunt rats at night with pointed sticks for victuals.
Most people in Kiev use little gas powered portable heaters, one room only, to keep from freezing. And those are gifts from the EU.
GM's 'concern-casting' falls flat when it comes face to face with reality. Reality will get you everytime.
"He who practices to deceive..."
Yeah Yeah. Personally we should all be grateful that Russia has exercised exceptional forbearance. In reality NATOstan is a military and economic basket case. Russia-China and BRICS+ partners have already won the battle for global dominance. It's over, GM. Evidentially you and your confederates will be the last to know.
News is just reaching US-EU numbskull financial elites. The discussion below is focused on the Chinese energy/ EV/ battery sector but applies across the board to all industies. It's over and it's finally dawning of the Big Shots... including Drump. The West will never catch up to the Chinese juggernaut and their allies.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCUnlPJRGY4
You wrote another comment on this article claiming Nato would not hesitate to use nukes yet i see you mocking Russia for not engaging directly with Nato! I cannot figure out if you have a deathwish or completely mad? Maybe both?
Interesting take
What superpower accepts missile and drone strikes 24/7 deep into its own territory without doing absolutely anything to stop it?
That automatically puts you on the same level as Syria, Libya, Yugoslavia, Iraq, soon Venezuela, and all the other places the US bombed freely with no danger to its own territory.
During Putin's reign Russia was also completely kicked out of the Middle East, and lost all of its former Soviet near abroad, except for Belarus.
Geopolitically Putin is the most catastrophic ruler Russia has had after Gorbachev and Nicholas II, and the way things are going, he may surpass them in terms of the damage he has done.
Creating a consumerist society after the nightmare of the 1990s is not the success people think it is given the strategic defeats in all other sphere.
And the worst part of it is why it happened. For much of it Putin was not even not combating it, but often even actively assisting it, i.e. directly working against strategic Russian interests (the Middle East, the first round of color revolutions in the 00s, much of the shit show in Ukraine, etc. etc.). So f***d up was Russian internal politics that it dictated outright suicidal foreign policy...
Colleague, you're just hurting people.
You define white restraint as cowardice.
By the way,
Be glad that Russia is so white and reserved, because if it weren't...there wouldn't be any such idiots like you left.
But I really doubt you understand the logic behind it now.
Today whining about consumerist society, yesterday whining about restoring churches and cultural heritage. Make up your mind.
GM
it is a proxy war,
it is a civil war,
it is a world war
and it is ongoing
A proxy war means, escalating until a nuclear threshold is reached, there is still a long list of steps in escalation ladder that have NOT been taken, from shadow fleet obstruction,
A civil war means Russian soldiers are fighting guys who are shouting Russians never surrender, their identity psychologically Russian, politically antiRUssian, Ukraine having been captured politically by CIA and MI6, US and Britain, a lot of political work here,
A world war means that Russia is not alone, Russia has allies, having common mortal enemies, but also needs allies, because although enormous in territory, and strong economically, Russia needs customers, and transport,
Ongoing means political, economical, military changes coming, happening, that are resetting centuries old political framework are equivalent to Third World War. To enact change means to defeat the West. And to have West accept defeat. Going slowly looks like empowering West, but there is no other time to give the West necessary time to swallow and digest defeat.
Remember that the only way West can defeat Russia is by causing internal strife, civil war, regime change, not the military defeat.
And the only answer is unity, patience and victory on the battlefield, in a proxy, civil, world war..
And here your rant crosses with US/British i.e CIA/MI6 strategy.
It's not a proxy war when American GMLRS systems manned by American military personal are firing into Belgorod.
That is a direct war.
And if the Russian president, for two weeks after it most recently started happening on a serious scale, is praising the Americans for their contributions to world peace, then that is just outright treason and whoever that person is has to be removed and replaced.
How hard is that to understand?
GM
he is talking Trumpian.
How hard is that to understand?
The war is US against Russia. From the beginning.
Existential. From the beginning.
Proceeding according to strategy prepared for decades. From the beginning.
Americans firing into Russia?
The whole war, is Americans firing into Russia, whole Ukrainian Army is being led, instructed, created, recreated by US intelligence, military, Ukrainian society is being kept afloat, eating having pensions, salaries, oil, electricity by US.
And losing.
US has been losing the war. Losing. On the battlefield.
Learn Trumpian.
Get your bike ready you might be winning WW3.
In the famous marshmallow experiment with children, GM would gobble the morsel up immediately, without any thoughts about the future benefits
Tovariska GM, you are crying a river again for no reason.
What you have seen so far is just partial results; Russia is preparing methodically and carefully. If and when the West pushes too far, it will be hit very fast and very hard. Even a very unhappy critic will be impressed, witnessing the defeat of the evil slaveholders who are trying to enslave humanity. So dry up your tears, and if you have weak nerves, don't watch TV news for a while, as long as the cannons do the talking.
>If and when the West pushes too far
So destroying refineries in the Urals, direct American bombing of Belgorod, and taking out a quarter of Russian strategic aviation, plus many other things (the list is very, very, very long) are perfectly OK according to you?
They will pay for it dearly.
I trust the Russian spirit.
a quarter of strategic aviation??? citation needed....
Russia had 40-50 Tu-95MS and 15-16 Tu-160.
Operation Spiderweb destroyed about a dozen Tu-95Ms and several others were lost in individual drone strikes.
Last Friday a factory in Tennessee usrahell that mixed TNT and sold some ammunition to the US war machine somehow blew up!
So much for US' insensitive munitions design!
How far can the west push? Sugar Dady’s debt is 33 Trillion and France’s 33 Billion. The west weapons are fabricated on credit and this while Chinese and other Asian are outrages cheap and coming in an endless series. Second hand markets and clandestine deals are uprooting the west’s luxury and unaffordable war. Dream on.
The debt only makes them more aggressive, because they need to steal the Russian collateral to address the debt problem.
Thus it is not the win you think it is.
You were any more full of shit, you would explode.
The part where I think your mind may be clouded is the "why it has happened".
None who is self-aware can feel self-assured as to their knowing the why. Only guesses, better or worse educated, may be made. And the most reasonable of them is that Russia's ruling committee (certainly not Putin alone) have assessed so far that the injury would be still more for their country if they entered a frontal, overt, clash with the USA.
Which is far from being unrealistic; very far, considering they who can "print" debt money limitlessly are at a structural advantage versus every other country, since every other country has a budget constrained by limits.
Missile and drone strikes 24/7 deep in its territory? But that’s already the case for 3 years on American territory namely Ukraine, which was hijacked by means of US secretary Nuland in 2014. USraine should be the exact name for Ukraine, losing their territory would be the same as losing Quatar, Israel or Washington.
" American territory namely Ukraine, "
Piffle.
I think Lavrov commented that being a regional power is more sustainable after Biden's jab, "that Russia is not a superpower, only a regional one".
Rutte crowed that Russia no longer has a military presence in the Mediterranean, but given Russia doesn't trade with Europe and Cyprus is no longer a Russian playground, why would they?
The US is telling the EU they're on their own in Ukraine now, as the US struggles to start wars against Iran and China. Their recent policy paper downplays China, and starting a war with Venezuela, could be transforming to a regional power as well.
It’s not a choice.
If you don’t push the enemy as far away from you as possible it parks itself right at your borders and starts firing into your heartland.
Which is what is happening now.
And in Russia’s case there is the Central Asian problem too, which most people here completely ignore.
Cope, little sarah, cope harder
Mr Rutte needs a short sharp shock from an Oreshnik or two.
I propose instead the Roger Waters approach - The Fletcher Memorial:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDDzR2zSgsM
Why shift the problem solving to the Russians? They are not our daddy.
I don't know where you sit or your perspective, but I have been writing about Russia and Putin since Abe Lincoln wore knee pants, and Russia was in no condition to do ten years ago what it did in 2022. My final submission as a Senior Fellow at the dread Atlantic Council -- then as poor as a churchmouse and weak as a kitten -- was to remark that Russia was on its knees, but it was not going to stay there and that the west would do well to befriend Putin, because he was what the doctor ordered for Russia at a critical time. I was appalled at how low the Russian spirit had sunk, Putin turned that around and made Russia a place to live, travel, do business. For the west, however, the goal has always been to "defeat Russia," one of America's dumbest ideas and let's not even discuss the EU, a collection of buffoons. My take is this, Putin has dragged his feet believing or needing to believe that the west actually had a brain and could figure out this was a loser for NATO. That Kiev would wake up and see they were just being thrown out as bait for the lion. Now Russia has actually learned and leapt by decades militarily because the stupid west sent their weapons for Russia to pore over and duplicate or foil. Now Russia can fight, and because it can fight, because it went slow to sacrifice fewer, it has the force to make the last push(es) -- certainly to Odessa (why do you think the Ukrainians aka UK and NATO, are so focused on defending that Russian port?) and probably to Kiev. If you want to talk about somebody who was weak and allowed every sort of offense by the western spies and saboteurs, look at mr. Yeltsin, the friendly drunk. Nice guy, but he sold out Russia in many ways. His election was engineered by the west, his office was dripping with western agents "working" with Yeltsin. Well, that's my two point five cents.
Nice wrapup. The hatred of Russia by the majority of Europeans seems illogical to me.....all the lives and resources wasted on all sides fighting instead of freely trading amounts to a lose-lose position. Further, this hatred goes back at least hundreds of years. Now, if we survive this conflict, the "West" will probably get to have the experience that Russia had in the 90s.....
It's actually quite simple. The Russians threw the Khazarian Jew mafia out. The Jew cocksuckers have never forgotten and don't give a shit about free trading. They want all the resources for themselves.
The West invaded Iraq for the oil. Invaded Afghanistan because they wanted to build pipelines across it and the CIA needed heroin money from the poppy fields. Looking to invade Venezuela to steal the oil reserves even after Maduro offered to have US oil companies come in and drill. Not good enough. The Jews want it all for their satanic selves.
The West gave up on learning and promoting merit decades ago. We are rusting out. Russia appears to be polishing itself to a razor edge. This anti Russian act is the stupidest thing a stupid, declining empire ever did.
Well put, although I question the “kneepants” …..
ROFL!!
Is that you GM??? Stupid is as stupid does... Chip
Who's threatening Russia with Nukes? You mean those blow-hard generals that no one listens to?
The Ukraine war is not the only event being fought over. Russia needs to bring the rest of the world along with him. And he's doing quite a good job of it.
What support for this ?
What? Paper Tiger? It’s worse much worse Putin defeating Eurolords, NATO and Tomahawks with men on bikes and only composed of teams of 2 at the most 3? Bring in the diapers now, Rutte is degenerating into gangrene.
You say cartoonish which is lending an air of amusement to village idiots like rutte and his norwegian predecessor when they are anything but. The King Clown in the US is equally deranged in his incoherent rants about supremacy and effectiveness of his actions. How can it not end in world wide open conflict with such wilful intent to spread evil by morally and mentally defunct men and women.
Since JFK 1963, zero potus takes foreign policy decision, I repeat zero even neocons like Bush or zombie Biden.JFK was the last one who tried we saw what happened to him.
The last was actually Nixon. But they couldn’t just simply blow his brains out after the JFK debacle. Hence, Watergate - a scandal manufactured via mass media over the common criminality which all imperialist politicians are obliged to engage in.
Right about Nixon.
Your accusation of common criminality may or may not be true, but Nixon wasn't smart enough to avoid getting caught red-handed.
how would you know who is smart or not?
By his actions and the Nixon tapes, genius. I'm not at all surprised you chalk this up to some grand conspiracy.
You failed to address my point midwit.
Nixon was almost certainly told the burglary was a CIA op (most of the burglars were former CIA). He had no choice but to follow national security and help the cover-up. Once he realized he'd been screwed it was too late to tell the truth.
Funny enough most presidents do far worse on a monthly basis than what he was accused of…..
Funny how when all arguments fall flat, revert to the "what aboutism" standby.
The Nixon tapes destroy your claim.
The tapes indicate Nixon knew about and agreed to participate in the cover-up. They do not destroy my claim Nixon believed he was covering up a CIA/FBI operation for national security. Perhaps being more specific would help.
Let’s welcome our new shit-agitator
Reagan did exactly the same thing. His men caught red-handed.
And the press got the news and tried to ...repeat Watergate.
No way. Nothing happened.
JFK was trying to be an independent President. Nixon was trying to be a half-independent one. That was seen as too much; hence Watergate.
Trump also tried in his first mandate, and we saw the reaction from the Media–Judiciary–Security apparatus (RussiaGate being alike with Watergate).
Yeah, I believe Russiagate was deployed to keep him “on task” and remind him that he doesn’t get to make decisions that could fundamentally alter the US’ policy. He’s handed the policy, and how he wants to execute it is largely up to him.
exactly, the jew runs the west.
Touché
The banking cartel way!
Sigh. It doesn't matter whether they are stupid or not. What matters is that their orders are carried out.
Sigh. It matters very much that they are stupid Precisely because their orders are carried out. It should be a no-brainer.
Trump called out the Neocons by name last year. He said they were taking America down a very dark path. I was pretty excited after he gave that speech. It was while he was Pres Elect I think (December 2024ish). Trump also dressed down Zelensky as most of you recall.
I have been under the impression that around that time a threat must’ve been made on Trump’s family. Blackmail didn’t make any sense or he would have been hung long ago.
However, I am currently listening to Alex Jones 10/14 full show. Apparently a Dr whistleblower has come forward and said Trump’s Doctors are killing him with different drugs/chemicals. I haven’t heard from him yet but perhaps it explains Trumps very strange behavior as of late?
As far as AJ is concerned I am aware embellishing the truth; particularly on micro issues. That being said, I believe he does have a good handle on the pig picture for the most part. Not sure about the Doc but I do understand why whistleblowers might to turn to Jones. I mean where else you going to go? Big Media or the FBI? Guess we shall see where this goes.
Alex Jones Warns of the Globalist Death Cult.
https://rumble.com/v709o9w-alex-jones-warns-of-the-globalist-death-cult-fueling-the-next-civil-war-and.html?e9s=src_v1_clr%2Csrc_v1_ucp_a
Thanks, I saw that with Tucker and it was great. I just put on the regular broadcast on banned.video I usually sleep to it until AJ starts yelling lol. He immediately starts in about the whistleblower Doc. Still haven’t gotten there yet tho.
https://www.banned.video/watch?id=68eee00a39e6174f5da3314f
Funny you should say that, I was watching some clips of him, I think at the generals meeting and he for sure had the Valium Buzz going on.... Benzodiazapines always give patients that buzzed look. The thing is though, from personal experience, that shit catches up to you with runaway addiction and crippling anxiety. if you try to get off of it without a slow taper. Pretty soon he'll be 'beating medicare' also.
During his "The Apprentice" turn, Trump was abusing Adderall and Xanax according to those on set with him. And that despite his repeated claims of being drug & alcohol free- A lot of older Americans do fool themselves into believing that it's not "drugs" if a doctor prescribed it.
In his first term, when he left a G7 , I think in Montreal and flew to South Korea direct, to meet Kim, when he got there, he logged on to Twitter and made a completely bizarre post. There wasn't a coherent sentence and rambling psychobabble. I suggested he get some sleep. i went to find it later and it had been scrubbed from the archives, which is actually illegal.
J.D Vance and couple others praised Trump saying how hard he works 'he sleeps only 3 hours every night - goes to bed at 2 AM and wakes up again at 5 AM'
That cannot be healthy in the long run, your brains simply need more rest, no matter if you are 79 or 29.
3 hours a night leads to bad results sooner rather than later, and he has to be on some of the aforementioned chemicals or the like to be able to sustain that.
I went back to check the Twitter feeds and looked everywhere for his morning after Montreal G7 psychotic whatever the fuck that was and cannot find it anywhere. It was FOR CERTAIN scrubbed from the record. There is actually a day left blank meaning that he supposedly never tweeted that day, where he was prepping to meet Kim. Imagine that ! I wonder who arranged that and I'm sure that is illegal. All POTUS records are permanent by law.
Every experience I've had with psychotic people and I've had a few, verified by Physicians, had an immediately prior history of serious sleep deprevation. One thing to watch too is that people who are struggling with benzodiazepine addiction start drinking heavily. That's because both benzos and alcohol act on the same neurochemicals and in the same way.
Starts at 9:52. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7ZM7Htum0A
Honestly, I don't think he'll finish his term. Next thing he will be passing out in public or ambulances will be showing up at the WH cause he's having a heart attack.
79 and not in great shape. Praying for a heart attack to take him out before he fucks up everything more than he already has. Then again who will we get next ?
Trump's VP. J. D. Vance, directly chosen by Peter Thiel, whose minion he is.
But what if he turns out to be Thomas a Becket?
Define who "he" is? Vance?
Trump was part of the republican and larger establishment within days of taking office in his 1st term, stop coping..it couldn't be any other way, thats why all his campaign promises went out the window with the media circus as a distraction. If you can't think of anything else noteworthy happening before his nomination - October 2023 for example - so that you have to resort to fan fiction about blackmail threats i dont know what to tell you. That's what gave the republicans and maga the green light to finally wear the big boy pants with the big dick hanging out even before Trump took office, because they could play the bad cop and do things their friends and associates on the Dem side couldn't
If it's actually true that as stated, Trump took a booster shot when at WR recently, then he is looking at turbo cancer in the near future
" ... Blackmail didn’t make any sense or he would have been hung long ago.... "
The whole point about blackmail is that you don't need to be hanged, when there are videos of you disporting yourself with your daughter Ivanka available for release.
oh god.... are you not the vax nonsense? Name the jew - that is the real virus we need a NS vaccine for....
the antivax bullshit was a psyop from day 1 to turn people into retards consuming conspiracy slop instead of engaging with reality
Covid turned you turbo retarded
trumptard luke. zion don is a puppet of the jew... stop listening to alex jones idiocy
😂
There's also the fact that his father had dementia at this age.
So what? Biden was obviously senile, but his orders were still carried out, even if he had no clue what he was auto-penning.
Same with Trump.
For those die hard Trump fans, it will be a hard pill to swallow when their hero, upon whom all their hopes rest, dissolves into a pudding eater like dementia Joe.
The Orange Clown already is well on the way. The cult will continue to ladle on the frantic excuses.
But as I said, it won't matter.
No need for anything so crude as blackmail. Trump is weak, stupid and easily manipulated. Flattery works just fine.
Wow. Even for Rut that was startlingly pathetic. There's such a high school feel to every political meeting in the west these days, with all the hugging and pep rallies. It's embarrassing to me as a US citizen. I mean we're the bad guys here, but do we really have to so lame?
Precisely. They have significantly dropped in class to an oddly infantile level of pomp and propaganda
Anyone aware of any historical parallels to this behavior? Just wondering if this is something new, or something old and recurrent.
My take is that there is a lot of these people are homosexual, but concealing it behind "beards". I have no particular issue with homosexual leaders on that grounds when they're honest about it. It's the deceit that bothers me. A lot of Dutch people strongly believe Mark Rutte is gay, although I don't really see it. They base that on his behavior in their language and before he took a more prominent European role. Zelensky is obviously homosexual as is Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron. I think JD Vance is as well.
I don't throw that out as a slur - I think it's the truth about these men, and that it affects their leadership (especially the keeping it concealed part and playing married men in public).
My suspicion of Vance being a closeted homosexual masquerading as a married family man is influenced by the fact that Peter Thiel groomed him for the role he's in now, and arranged their marriage - Thiel introduced him to his wife and paid for their wedding. They're a mismatch in my opinion in terms of looks. Whenever I've seen a guy married to a woman where they're just not matched looks-wise, I suspect that (because I've seen the end result when it broke up and the truth came out). Vance seems like he's play-acting at the Indian culture stuff, too.
I speak Russian and Ukrainian, and have spent a lot of time watching the Telethon (Zelensky's production company's 24/7 show that runs on all Ukrainian TV stations). It is just non-stop homoerotica, outside of the interview segments. It's all gay cabaret with men wearing tear-off stripper-style army uniforms and things like that. Zelensky himself starred in a lot of that stuff - blatantly homoerotic material that shouldn't be shown to children.
I think both U.S. and European leadership know the name of the game, and the actual geopolitical reasons for fanning the flames of hostility against Russia. The west is collapsing, and - just like for FDR, who ruled over an economy worse in 1942 than it was when he took power at the start of the Great Depression - the only way out is war.
I was hoping you would have more to share, so thank you for all of it. I didn't want to push the point but anybody who has seen Z's stuff has no doubts. I've been to a Russian wedding (Simferopol) at which the guys came out and did a Chippendale style routine in police uniforms - it was a scream. Yet none of them would have been the least bit comfortable going so far as Z routinely did. Also, his wife is remarkably vacuous.
I also agree entirely with your assessment of this political "grand game." The analogies to the fall of the Roman Empire also ring familiar. That might not be so bad...Rome was sacked and the "fall" took 200 years and it was properous. I seriously chafe with embarrassment at the sad attempt of posturing with implications that the US can just go and make anybody do anything it wants. It makes me wonder if that is part of why Trump has garnered so much support. He is all about bluster, intimidation, and the facade. And that sort of thing is frequently very successful in the business world.
This is not business for Russia. It is existential. And incredibly, Russia has a leader who sees it in this light, has a backbone, and because of this accidental timing of his empowerment via the intelligence agencies buffering him vis a vis the oligarchs, he has sufficient control to call out a true red line.
What is brilliant in my opinion is that whilst so many Pro Russian people wondered out loud when Russia would call a red line or lash out, Putin has managed to set this up - starting with comments from 2021 - so that he has called out a red line when the US was bluffing. It is a rare opportunity for a direct and outcome determining clash without a single shot being fired in that regard. If so, that's remarkable.
It was a bluff. I believe I have read Steve Witkoff correctly. Maybe not. Either way...the Typhon delivery system is gigantic and there's no way to get it into Ukraine without a C-17 or a C-5, which are not concealable or defendable. I will post a comment toward the top when you check back.
Oh...about looking like your partner. We have all seen a great deal of this. But I can, sadly, offer another data pool for you to consider. People thought my first wife and I looked somewhat alike...nobody thought my second wife and I looked the least bit alike...and nobody would ever suggest my third wife and I look the least bit alike. She is Russian and a beautiful woman, and when we got engaged, the babushkas all came around and they studied my face intensely and unabashedly...and declared I was a suitable candidate to provide for attractive children. I am not exaggerating in the least. 😎
Well, mr. Z did participate in the gay pride rally in NYC in the late 90's , there is photos of him with him and some random male in the traditional 'hard-core gay' outfit - black leather, bare ass, bare nipples etc.
No doubts about his sexual orientation whatsoever.
Pols and their "beards"...what a joke demokkkracy in the West has become.
I don't think it's necessarily "homosexuality". But I see examples of this "feminization" of the Western white male quite often.
The DEI and wokeness being indoctrinated by the social scientwits at the university produces public education teachers and social studies/history books that spread this anti-white, anti-male syndrome.
The white male is suppressed, while every other categorized identity group is evaluated by the media and educrats as superior. For the white male, ensuing self-realization actions can include transitioning or homosexuality.
The feminization is real.
None of this matters. It does not matter whether they are stupid, reckless, gay, unpopular, ahistorical, whatever. I am willing to believe all of that and more, but so what?
What matters is that their orders are carried out, which they are.
They did?
JD Vance?
I'm pretty certain JD Vance is homosexual. I have a few gay men that I've been long-time friends with - a family member, someone I grew up with, a friend's brother - and they all think so too. Vance was taken under the wing of Peter Thiel (who's married to a man) fairly quickly after he was accepted to Yale Law School (and thus showed potential). He was reported as having dating a woman once for a short period early in his undergraduate studies, and it not being fun or something like that. He married his Indian wife when he finished law school - and met her there.
If you watch the chemistry between Vance and his wife in public, it's the same as that between Emmanuel and Brigette, Starmer and his Mossad wife, and Zelensky and his lesbian wife: awkward, their affection seems unnatural and forced, they've always lived separate lives, etc. It seems likely to me that Thiel groomed Vance for a political career from the beginning. Everything about him seems manufactured. Thiel had the resources to attract a beard for JD, and the savvy to realize he wouldn't make it far follows his desire for men.
Barrack Obama is homosexual too. It was well known in Chicago circles when he was climbing the ladder in local and state politics. He was caught several times with male prostitutes (and crack cocaine) where it made the news, and then suddenly disappeared. And then once he started running for national office, it was all memory holed. I don't know if the "Brigette and Michelle are trans-women" thing has any truth to it, but Michelle Obama is a very masculine looking woman - she looks like a dude in a dress. People in Chicago remember the multiple times she apparently had an erection and was filmed sporting it when Obama was in the state legislature, like at a night club.
"Michelle Obama is a very masculine looking woman - she looks like a dude in a dress."
Hence the moniker: "Big Mike"
Yes Michael Robinson or whatever his name was back then, clearly the same dude as 'big mike' , use any photo tool to compare Michael and Michelle and result is close to 100 % , not that you need any computer tool to see it plainly with your own eyes.
Not to mention Bathhouse Barry Obomber the other part of the menage.
So you acknowledge the Global Homo Empire is theoretically a possibility?
Urupp today, aka the evil EUSSR is run by girly men and manly girls which both Uschi van der Lyin' of the pedovore Politburo in Natostan sewer Brussels and Rutt from Bangladesh of the North, are pathetic examples of these transgendermutant retards.
All war propaganda in the age of EMPs and nuclear weapons is infantile. The only end is all the people fighting for food while freezing with no transportation, news, or money while the elite hide in their bunkers to come out and save us. This is war in the time of depopulation and the politicians care more about the survival of their governments than the lives of their people. The idea of war in the modern age should be to get rid of the politicians and financiers causing the wars and let the people live. What would happen to Ukraine if the Bank of England was EMPed? A war of attrition doesn't matter if the politicians don't give a damn about Ukrainian lives or the lives of their own citizens. The war isn't against the Ukrainian citizen, it is against the imperial banking system with NATO handling security and everyone knows their names and where they live. And against the elite Putin cannot act, because he is one of them and beholden to them. Putin's biggest problem is he doesn't have sovereignty over his own currency as the Russian Central Bank is run by the Rothchild system, and they are crashing his economy with 17-24% interest rates. Rather than set up a treasury to sell war bonds, Putin carts Ms. Nabi around showing he is playing according to their rules. If he continues to play by the rules and the war of attrition continues, Russia will eventually lose, or go nuke. Putin will eventually lose as the Bank of England was set up for the exact purpose of financing wars while Putin's was set up so it could not fuel Russian exploitation of its own resources or fund a long term war. Putin is also beholden to all the Jewish Oligarchs who he rose with and thus Putin protected Netanyahu losing Palestine and the Mideast to Adelman and Trump. Putin is controlled opposition.
To claim that Russia will lose is to support the idea that NATO will win. How?
You claim Russia's economy is collapsing. How?
While all wars are bankers wars, you need to connect the dots for us. How are the Rothchilds in charge of the Russian central bank?
A recent pundit was explaining that Russia was being nice to Israel and the Jews because they felt it was important to the USA and that Russian actions would elicit a positive response from the USA. That hasn't happened. Russia is telling Netanyahu "you're on your own".
If Putin is beholding to the Jewish Oligarchs, what does this mean about AIPAC and US politicians? Something doesn't quite square here.
It works.
"oddly infantile level of pomp and propaganda"......
Keep in mind the level of their average audience - all you need to do is watch the average commercial on TV.
Who knows where that mystery baggie went when Starmer, Merz, and Macron got off the train from Kiev. When mis-leaders are so detached from reality and consequences it would seem they possibly have some substance abuse issue. It wouldn't surprise with what issues from their pie holes.
Wouldn’t surprise me. They do seem intellectually compromised.
Yesterday's the excellent Mr. Helmer underlined in Dima's show that they are not stupid. The Europeans only way out is war to keep their seats and political family businesses. In addition, a virtuous loop is being established between the US and the EU in which the latter pay for the bill (the European population) for American weapons to Ukraine, while the former can withdraw from the the Ukranian front and focus on China. He was quite pessimist concerning the Russian options now. It worths the watch.
You cannot focus on China if you have sold all your weaponry to Europe to give to Zelensky.
You've also just lost the big TNT factory in Texas, thanks to Spetznaz assistance.
Wasn't that Tennessee?
You mean Tennessee don't you?
https://abcnews.go.com/US/tennessee-explosives-plant-manufacturer-explosion/story?id=126405185
Most likely incompetent workers
The US "focus on China" resembles the look of a deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming freight train...
Ironically, they can’t buy rare earth metals due to China's recent trade sanction, the very country they constantly threaten with war. What amazes me is that Trump claimed to be surprised when China reacted this way. Really? You need rare earths for your military-industrial complex, yet you’re threatening the nation that supplies them, common sense alone should have predicted this outcome. Well, perhaps he thought he could source them from his “Ukraine deal,” but the problem is that most of those resources now lie in Russian-controlled territory, even if the U.S. had the means and technology to mine them.
The reports of Ukrainian REE are wildly exaggerated. They exist, but were they present in economically viable quantities the USSR would have been mining them.
In the meantime, enjoy Pascal's giddiness as he reports on China's boycott of REEs to the US.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eX3WlHcTvF8
That was an excellent talk about the REEs restrictions. He is the only one to consider China's explanation for the reasoning behind the new certification process.
I also liked how he stressed the certification process target military use, no civilian, so it's not a trade issue as Trump pretends, but a national security one, as the US MIC's output will be reduced.
If you want a laugh. People are going nuts over this MOU between Pakistan and the US as if China imposed the export restrictions in response. It is sad in a hilarious way that they have to look for something as trivial as this MOU to pretend that China gives a damn.
Want a laugh in a sad way?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kz6QLP2srJU&t=45s
And the article debunking it:
https://rareearthexchanges.com/news/u-s-pakistan-minerals-pact-a-500-million-bet-with-big-questions-as-u-s-firm-inks-deal-with-pakistani-military-engineering-firm/
Oh fight over Formosa!
Everything west of the Marianas is threatened by DPRK nukes.
Suppose DPRK becomes a proxy player.....
Helmer is unwatchable for me. Everything is just a repeat of Trump propaganda. U.S. taxpayers are still funding almost 100% of Ukraine, from salaries to healthcare to media propaganda. The EU is simply running a huge scam on their citizens. The EU is not "paying for anything" especially weapons NATO is the US more than 70% of NATO money is US and 100% of decisions are US. Helmer works for the tiny percentage of Russian elite who hate Putin and he has finally, after 3 years of bashing everything Putin , he has so called Alternative media putting him on. Ask yourself why now?? Why did no one talk to him or allow him a platform until the alt. media has been injected with huge amounts of money and intelligence oversight.
The alt media is getting predictable and repeatable, with little new, just endless supposition. Retitled episodes of previous discussions isn't going to keep the curious coming back for more. They are clearly going for the money. Predictable.
Altmedia have long lived in a fantasy world.
The MSM simply lives in a different fantasy world.
Helmer is not pro-Trump at all…
"Focus on China" ? I spluttered my vodka after reading that. $lumville needs to "focus" on $lumville and the ongoing total collapse of all things Pentacon. China already owns US!
I feel that infantilisation in people who still believe the western narrative, too. It's been instructive
Quite. For all their faults, at least Hitler, Himmler, Goering and Goebbels weren’t as gay as that.
You’re right, the last thing those characters were was laughable. They were deluded but provoked fear till the end.
Trump, Boris Johnson and Milei with their weird hair thingys look so crazy that a mullet is starting to look respectable.
Rutte knows exactly what he is doing.
Since 1917, european strategy has been to get Americans to do their fighting for them. Europeans are unable to find their own dicks with both hands and a magnifying glass, but they are skilled at the arts of the courtier, at whispering campaigns, at simpering and prancing pageantry and bending the ears of senile monarchs.
Trump is well on the way to being mousetrapped into war. Whether that comes directly or whether the Americans have to ride to the rescue of their european catamites makes no difference.
I don’t think Trump needs to be mousetrapped or lured into any war, and we’re in it already up to our elbows. Which is not to disagree with what you say about Rut, just that that sort of display is disgusting and degenerate.
The only questions in my mind is when will Putin drop the pretense, and when when will he arrange for the American body bags that are necessary to change the course of this war.
The Americans are betting that Putin lacks the stones. I admit that they may have a point.
I wonder if he thinks he has a choice and is just picking his time. I think he doesn’t have a choice, and that the time came a long time ago. But again, I still think that consideration had to be given to world reaction, and I can appreciate caution in one whose actions and decisions affect so many people.
Indecision and weakness do not make friends. Strength and decisiveness do.
It is abundantly obvious that Russia does not want to make war on the West, they want to be allowed to join it. This is foolish beyond belief, as the West has made it plain that they will be satisfied with nothing less than blood.
About the west I see no room for doubt, but on the decisions Putin has to make I’d need to know more before criticizing. I do think westerners, and specifically Americans, will have to die before peace becomes possible. Too many things shield and blunt us from the ruination this war is already bringing us.. And unlike a lot of people here, I don’t think this war is in the bag.
The openly pathetic performances underline the danger we are in. This is the state of western leadership. It proves Darwin was wrong and mankind are indeed fallen/falling creatures. Our ruling class is as decrepit as France in the 1790s. But with nukes. The worst is the public is overwhelmingly oblivious.
You might be interested in this article - it is long, and about the “pandemic” and dancing nurses - you’ll see my point if you read it. https://substack.com/home/post/p-175746469
What was Darwin "right" about? He was a "humanist", part of the cabal, like Marx and Freud, who have been leading us down the wrong path for the past century and a half. Marx told us we are not spiritual beings, we are intelligent animals, and are doomed to behave like animals.
So much cherry picking of facts. Rutte earlier said Russia is outproducing NATO due to highers GDP PPP, but now reverts to nominal GDP comparisons. Russia is not alone - expect N Korean military, and potentially Chinese (China has stated they cannot afford for Russia to lose). Good luck with the EU military build up with the new restrictions on military production containing 0.1% of Chinese rare earths, magnets and Chinese technology. Russia as a regional power is more powerful than a global power, as it can concentrate it's forces, and enjoys better relations with it's Asian neighbours. Losing it's presence in the Mediterranean is no lose when Russia doesn't trade with the EU.
Quoting Pepe Escobar, Trump is the circus ringmaster. What else to call a group with the likes of Rutte, Kallas, Von der Leyen, Merz, Starmer, Macron, the Baltic Chihuahuas? Argentina should be invited to join NATO with Milei for the added craziness.
Traitors to their peoples?
I'd say Netanyahoo holds that role.
zion don is the carnival barker for his jew master...
Some Slovenians were party pooping on NATO summit. ;)
"🇸🇮🇷🇺 NATO Gala in Ljubljana Met With Pro-Russian Protest
In Ljubljana, NATO and Slovenian officials gathered for a “gala” evening at the historic Union Hotel — an event paid for by Slovenian taxpayers. What was meant to be a celebration quickly turned into embarrassment.
As the guests walked along Nazorjeva Street toward the hotel, they were met by members of the Slovenia Against Russophobia (https://www.facebook.com/groups/681865386357978/) movement. Instead of applause, the NATO delegation passed through a corridor of Russian national flags and anti-NATO slogans, greeted by locals who made their opposition clear.
Among the protesters was Žiga, the same bearded man who, during last year’s visit of Zelensky’s wife to Slovenia, told her to her face (https://t.me/DDGeopolitics/130551) that Russia will win.
Eyewitnesses say many officials appeared uncomfortable and avoided cameras. Police were slow to react, allowing the protest to proceed without interruption.
One agitated government secretary reportedly shouted that the activists were “ruining the country’s reputation.” The demonstrators responded that this is simply the reality for those who choose to serve a fascist regime."
https://t.me/DDGeopolitics/162832
Nice.
Awesome, thanks Fladr Maus. It's exactly this what's needed every time two or more of these war pigs meet in public spaces. Let them never know peace.
What's most frightening is that some of these "leaders of the West" may actually believe the absurd propaganda that they are putting out......
They self-hypnotize themselves by their own bluff.
They are not only arrogant, they are stupid as well.
For true believers, cognitive dissonance often results in "doubling down" on belief conviction. Deepening ideological commitment often includes intellectual arrogance and cognitive rigidity.
Power corrupts the few, while weakness corrupts the many. Hatred, malice, rudeness, intolerance, and suspicion are the fruits of weakness.
"Mass movements can rise and spread without belief in a God, but never without belief in a devil" (Eric Hoffer, "The True Believer" - about the way mass movements are initiated, maintained and controlled)
They absolutely do.
Isnt it more frightening if the case they are not believing a word of it. They are only manipulating their own citizens to be scared and believe that a War MUST be fought against the ”evil Russian Empire” no later than 2030?
Trump and the circus all collapsing (cbs)
https://johnhelmer.net/the-two-fundamentals-trump-doesnt-decide-the-europeans-are-politically-weak/
American government enslaved by the Israeli parasite. Europeans addicted to Russophobia.
What a time to be alive.
sometimes that’s how the pendulum’s gotta swing…
the farther the better
Only brain dead men in uniform could claim that taking Kaliningrad would be some sort of decisive NATO win. It would just mean Russia taking a whole much bigger slice of Ukraine (hey, all of it) and extending into the Baltic fringe to take K back. NATO has to decide if it really wants to risk its existing borders.
If however NATO-EU wants to dump the costly and expendable nutty Baltics, this braggadocio is the way to go. After all, why would the Russians wait around for these latest threats to materialise. Best to take counter measures while they have the time and space to do so with least casualties (it's is all relative).
If this posturing is really aimed at provoking Russia to bring this war-boil to a head along a partition behind which Ukraine can be re-armed to go at the Russkies again, that devilment has had its day. You had your chance, eurotwits way back in 2022 to come out with so much more. Any conceivable settlement has shrunk away the territory remorselessly since then. This is what saying Russia is winning this war means.
The recent mouthing off was reminiscent of Kellogg's pep talk to NATO-EU reps which initially contained traces of reference to their own protests that Russia was winning and that it was simply too strong to defeat, its weaponry too powerful. Subsequent coverage even in the alt media, airbrushed that out. So Simplicius is right: this is part of a long running slow burn of despair being papered over with hot-mouthing that does not bother Russia but does fuel justification (handy in Russia's long term management of its allies) for a bigger Russian victory than the very least its citizens will settle for, while doing zero to assuage the real concerns of the western alliance, namely that the whole point of this disaster had been a seizure of Russian assets through an internal uprising and the installation of various puppet regimes in the vast land mass the west has coveted ever since it realised just how valuable it was. What a long time ago this was when an old empire mired in unsustainable debt decided the time had come to acquire fresh collateral.
They will first run a trial in the PMR, to test Putin's resolve.
Putin will of course do nothing for the PMR -- why would he, given that for 35 years Kremlin policy has been to get rid of that inconvenience, the same way Pashinyan got rid of Karabakh in the case of Armenia, and for the same reasons -- there will be massacre plus ethnic cleansing, Lenin statues in Tiraspol will be toppled and that will be posted on social media for the whole world to see Russian impotence (which may well actually fill the hearts of Putin and the oligarchs with great joy), and only then will they move on Kaliningrad.
There is a difference between inveigling a change of regime through 'elections' even a coup if you think you can engineer what looks like a popular uprising, and just dropping a bomb on the place. Although to the average western military brain......
Discussion of flailing western attempts to 'turn' states, the whole fake democracy thing that defines western europe itself now, is a discussion for another day.
But you do seem to be advocating actually conquering the Baltic chihuahuas now while the getting is good. You don't think that would provoke a massive response?
There will be no massive response.......we do not (in Europe) or US have the weapons.
So Rus dont let PMR go down initially, but enable its existence with peace keeping troops since 1992, but for 35 years they have been trying to get rid of it?
You are a master of salto mortale.
Fu*king legend.
Unlike you, I know the history.
Not really, and math is not a strong side either.
GM, you know doo-doo not history. I just tested you a few days ago on the Korean War and Chinese intrusion there and your grade was barely an F-.
You did no such thing.
But the topic here is the PMR.
What is the PMR according to you, how did it came it to be, and why is it in the current situation it finds itself in?
remember that.
If you're one of those who are perplexed by Putin's passivity (restraint) in regards to attacks on pre-2014 Russia, I suggest you listen to the Duran's latest broadcast, "Putin Challenged on Trump Tomahawk deployment" (I listen at 1.5x speed since they talk so slowly).
I'm puzzled also, and don't understand how Putin thinks he can avoid escalation with his current strategy. But I'm not Russian so don't have a say in the matter.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=44Peq8p7H6o
You could be Russian and you'd similarly have no say in the matter.
I listen at 1.5x speed since they talk so slowly
Putin does not think he can avoid escalation.
He gives NATO a chance to avoid escalation.
I listen at double speed and they're still too slow - then again I listen to everyone at double speed even when working so might be just me ;)
In spite of its stupidity in terms of the reasons given, it's still the most sensible thing Rutte has ever said.
Not attacking Russia is a smart move.
It is uncanny how they can temper their wild flights of narcissism with the occasional reality check
As the Ferengi Rule of Acquisition #76 says: "Every now and then, declare peace. It scares the hell out of your enemies."
It's almost as if they know the truth...
Given how very much stronger than Russia NATO is, you might think they'd reduce the calls for increased military budgets and readiness, but he isn't going to be that sensible because as weak as Russia is, if you give them an inch they'll still take all of Europe.
I think we must reinstate the public flogging. For the elites. Not as terminal as a guillotine, but Rutte would benefit tremendously.
Best idea of the day!
I'm against piecemeal solutions.
@Elena
And I'm against mass casualty events. How will we compromise?
I’m femdom. You’ll have to submit.
:)
the simps like Rutte & Co. would be your clientele. Sorry for you ;-)
I'm not a decadent politico or oligarch, nor do I play dominance games for "points".
So do you prefer to be whipped with the nettles or the birch?
I guess I shouldn’t have gone there. Seriously, though, I don’t think these clowns deserve anything less than the ultimate punishment. They are killing people now and risking global catastrophe. Call me old fashioned, but I think the hand of justice should be swift and merciless under the circs.
As some day it may happen that a victim must be found
I've got a little list — I've got a little list
Of society offenders who might well be underground
And who never would be missed — who never would be missed!
----------
https://youtu.be/x5LHjAryJLU?si=h0KH0exFCz_fIIKO
Love your comments lol
Even the rack, (which) when taken to extremes results in piecemeal? ;)
"I think we must reinstate the public flogging."
A tremendously - INFINITELY watchable performance!
Yep. Add some fireworks and razzmatazz and you could sell out the Millennium Stadium, Wembley, Hampden Park: sell out all the major venues on a European tour. And the merch! Think of the revenue you could raise, and the tax cuts that could fund. It would certainly beat the degenerate queerfest that is the Eurovision Song Contest.
You could have beast-fights, too: stabby psycho criminals (Axel Rudakaba, for instance) slathered in bacon fat, armed with a rolled up newspaper for a sword and a dustbin lid for a shield, then put into the ring against 20 hungry hyaenas. A pitched battle to the death, between 150 noodle-armed Portland Antifa with baseball bats and 15 Hell’s Angels with chains and knuckle-dusters. Corporate sponsorship, mascots and cheerleaders, syndication, sports betting - the possibilities are endless.
A part of his psyche would probably find the idea quite exciting.
He might enjoy it!
Not as much as the rest of us, hopefully :-)
So who is going to do this, who is going to bell the cat?
Daddy, of course.
Might as well pray for deliverance.
"its military is “infinitely” superior as well—using the language of children."... You spelled Hitler and Napoleon wrong.
Mark Rutte’s job is to keep the European corrupt officials still invested into Nato. It’s just marketting with under the table kickbacks, and theatre for us mortals.
As Escobar states, they’re spending funds (which they dont have) to purchase weapons (which they dont have) to give to Ukraining soldiers (which they dont have). And 10% for the big guy. Yawn.
Precisely. And as the class of politician is debased lower and lower, Rutte's ilk are forced to use infantilizing tactics to keep the flock in pasture
Rutte's track record as dutch prime minister was already below any intellectual level imaginable.
His probably most famous words: "I don't have any active memory in that matter."
spot on
“Ukraine isn’t losing but the frontline is moving in the wrong direction,” OTAN SecGen Mark Rutte,
They don't have them, and won't get them now China is throttling back on the rare earths. Even if they don't care about energy costs it's going to be hard for various manufacturers to keep their balance sheets in order, CNC machining, etc, etc. They don't actually plan they're so accustomed to outsourcing and offshoring. Warwick Powell has very clearly laid out how the US won't be able to re-industrialise in any meaningful way, besides it's a program run by hucksters looking for a quick buck.
First rule of the fight club, You don't talk shit about Russian Millirary Airforce. And yes, my father is a Party man who built the most beautiful airplanes out there. Socialism works.
However, if you want to live your life to the fullest, you need to recognize one thing - no blue angel or maverick promo on that ugly series of F s could possibly make a difference.
At this moment Russian Airforce is the most potent force out there and they are angry.
The first rule of Dunning-Kruger club is that you don't know you are IN Dunning-Kruger club.
I am confused about cultural references. But I do have a couple of dramatic episodes under my belt. You rather be cute all things considered,. Dominance, Mother Russia and the fact that you are living out borrowed time.
Brilliant!