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Ukraine

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Comments

  • @cian said:

    @Gravitas said:

    @wim said:

    Which makes me very worried about Taiwan. If there was ever a time where China is likely make their move, this is it.

    Has there been sightings of military movement in that area of the world do you know?
    There have been reports of military air traffic in the media but non more unusual than
    what would normally be happening as the airforces tend to like to play chicken with each other.

    There would be a pretty visible build up of forces and resources. China seem as blindsided by the Ukrainian war as everyone else. And seemingly not happy about it.

    Agreed.

    I think they will keep their word for now in regards to Taiwan.
    Putin has a point to prove harking back to the Cold War Era.
    Putin has been bearing grudges that cannot be assuaged
    by financial means that’s why he doesn’t fear sanctions.
    He is old Soviet block.
    Putting colloquially, he doesn’t give a s!!t.

    China as I’ve mentioned has huge financial power.
    Both the U.S and the U.K owe China trillions and that’s second only to Japan.

    I don’t think China were blindsided, I think they’ve been trying
    to establish themselves as more neutral in this current conflict.

  • @Gravitas said:
    Still, saying that China have much to lose financially if they do attack Taiwan.
    Financially China is sweet right now and I don’t think
    they would want nor need to risk that financial security.
    If they do move on Taiwan then heavy sanctions will damage that financial security.
    China has immense trade with the rest of the world
    and I think that will sway the situation favourably against War with Taiwan.
    It’s mainly been Russia that has been making noises in regards to War
    and now they, as we now know, have followed through.

    Yes, I thought about that too after making my post. China needs the world economy healthy to feed their own. Putin is already screwing that up enough. A move on Taiwan would be the last straw for world economy.

    I think you're right that, if anything, this may be a reprieve from that threat. I bet they were thinking long and hard about pulling something in the next three years up until now though.

    Has there been sightings of military movement in that area of the world do you know?
    There have been reports of military air traffic in the media but non more unusual than
    what would normally be happening as the airforces tend to like to play chicken with each other.

    I don't keep up with much. I do know that they're expanding their Navy like crazy, but it seems like they're years away from where they'd want to be.

    I feel better. As long as no-one is stupid enough to confront them into a need to save face, I think you're probably right. I hope so anyway.

  • @wim

    I’m hoping so also.
    Though China has old allegiances with Russia they made their
    own Peace as it were through trade with the rest of the World.

    Agreed they most probably did think long and hard
    about joining with Russia in attacking old enemies.
    If push comes to shove they may get involved with
    the Ukraine but it would a foolhardy move on their part.
    Like I’ve mentioned they have much more to lose financially.

  • @cian said:

    @Gravitas said:

    @wim said:

    Which makes me very worried about Taiwan. If there was ever a time where China is likely make their move, this is it.

    Has there been sightings of military movement in that area of the world do you know?
    There have been reports of military air traffic in the media but non more unusual than
    what would normally be happening as the airforces tend to like to play chicken with each other.

    There would be a pretty visible build up of forces and resources. China seem as blindsided by the Ukrainian war as everyone else. And seemingly not happy about it.

    Where are you seeing an official Chinese government position on this?

  • @NeuM said:

    @cian said:

    @Gravitas said:

    @wim said:

    Which makes me very worried about Taiwan. If there was ever a time where China is likely make their move, this is it.

    Has there been sightings of military movement in that area of the world do you know?
    There have been reports of military air traffic in the media but non more unusual than
    what would normally be happening as the airforces tend to like to play chicken with each other.

    There would be a pretty visible build up of forces and resources. China seem as blindsided by the Ukrainian war as everyone else. And seemingly not happy about it.

    Where are you seeing an official Chinese government position on this?

    There are other media sources than the ones you read.
    Nope not going to find the articles for you.

    Look for it yourself.

  • edited February 2022

    @Gravitas said:

    @NeuM said:

    @cian said:

    @Gravitas said:

    @wim said:

    Which makes me very worried about Taiwan. If there was ever a time where China is likely make their move, this is it.

    Has there been sightings of military movement in that area of the world do you know?
    There have been reports of military air traffic in the media but non more unusual than
    what would normally be happening as the airforces tend to like to play chicken with each other.

    There would be a pretty visible build up of forces and resources. China seem as blindsided by the Ukrainian war as everyone else. And seemingly not happy about it.

    Where are you seeing an official Chinese government position on this?

    There are other media sources than the ones you read.
    Nope not going to find the articles for you.

    Look for it yourself.

    Nice.

    For the record, I read all media sources whether I agree with them or not. I wanted to know what YOUR source is.

  • wimwim
    edited February 2022

    I don't think anyone even came close to implying "official government position". I don't know how you got to that from "seemingly not very happy about it".

    Just one example article opining that this is inconvenient for China: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-60492134. Even without research, that seems like a logical thing to speculate to me.

  • edited February 2022

    I too worry about the long-term impact that this will have on China's moves in Taiwan. (We have a number of Taiwanese friends.) I suspect that even if China's takeaway is that there is nothing standing in their way -- that they wouldn't be inclined to do anything in the immediate future. As others have said, China has shown an inclination to grow their power by economic means rather than military (though they have over the past years made it clear that they are prepared to use the military vis-a-vis Taiwan). China seems inclined to sit back and let this play out and learn what it can.

    It seems unlikely to me that China would make a move in the near-term such as aligning with Russia that might impact its markets.

  • @NeuM said:

    @Gravitas said:

    @NeuM said:

    @cian said:

    @Gravitas said:

    @wim said:

    Which makes me very worried about Taiwan. If there was ever a time where China is likely make their move, this is it.

    Has there been sightings of military movement in that area of the world do you know?
    There have been reports of military air traffic in the media but non more unusual than
    what would normally be happening as the airforces tend to like to play chicken with each other.

    There would be a pretty visible build up of forces and resources. China seem as blindsided by the Ukrainian war as everyone else. And seemingly not happy about it.

    Where are you seeing an official Chinese government position on this?

    There are other media sources than the ones you read.
    Nope not going to find the articles for you.

    Look for it yourself.

    Nice.

    For the record, I read all media sources.

    Yup.
    I was being nice.

    Your lack of respect in the ,”well wishes thread” was appalling.
    No compassion.
    No thought.
    No care.

    I refused to say something in that thread because I have something which it’s called ,”Respect”.

    Your comment earlier about it not being the concern of the U.S was equally appalling.
    So yes, I am being nice by saying look for them yourself.

    I have only replied because you didn’t remove my tag from the comment.

    We have no need to continue this discussion between us.
    Thank you.

  • @wim said:
    I don't think anyone even came close to implying "official government position". I don't know how you got to that from "seemingly not very happy about it".

    Just one example article opining that this is inconvenient for China: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-60492134. Even without research, that seems like a logical thing to speculate to me.

    From the article: “More recently, China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi discussed the situation with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, acknowledging that things were "getting worse" and repeating calls for "all parties to exercise restraint".”

    That is a standard issue PRC response. It doesn’t take sides.

  • @Gravitas said:

    @NeuM said:

    @Gravitas said:

    @NeuM said:

    @cian said:

    @Gravitas said:

    @wim said:

    Which makes me very worried about Taiwan. If there was ever a time where China is likely make their move, this is it.

    Has there been sightings of military movement in that area of the world do you know?
    There have been reports of military air traffic in the media but non more unusual than
    what would normally be happening as the airforces tend to like to play chicken with each other.

    There would be a pretty visible build up of forces and resources. China seem as blindsided by the Ukrainian war as everyone else. And seemingly not happy about it.

    Where are you seeing an official Chinese government position on this?

    There are other media sources than the ones you read.
    Nope not going to find the articles for you.

    Look for it yourself.

    Nice.

    For the record, I read all media sources.

    Yup.
    I was being nice.

    Your lack of respect in the ,”well wishes thread” was appalling.
    No compassion.
    No thought.
    No care.

    I refused to say something in that thread because I have something which it’s called ,”Respect”.

    Your comment earlier about it not being the concern of the U.S was equally appalling.
    So yes, I am being nice by saying look for them yourself.

    I have only replied because you didn’t remove my tag from the comment.

    We have no need to continue this discussion between us.
    Thank you.

    Don’t assume to know the thoughts of others. I am anti-war, but the fact is there is one currently being prosecuted. I hope for the best, but there is no way this ends well for Ukraine. In a matter of days or weeks, there will be no Ukraine.

  • @NeuM said:

    @richardyot said:
    It’s funny how libertarians seem to have a fetish for authoritarians.

    The cognitive dissonance must be deafening.

    A realistic assessment of the situation should never be considered "support". And lying about someone else's motivations is a pathetic line of argumentation.

    If anyone here just watched Joe Biden's address to the nation, they saw a toothless invalid speaking. He just said he's going to "wait for a month" to see what happens. Ukraine will be completely overrun by Russian forces in a matter of days or weeks. Biden is an idiot.

    I happen to agree with you on several points such as Putin being a brilliant strategist and the likely outcome of this campaign and America's impotence and incompetence in this situation...but it would really help your case if you would stop acting like you are the infallible source of truth and wisdom here.

    For instance, you're wrong on impeachment which you would see if you actually read the very words you posted to support your argument:

    Article 1, Section 2, Clause 5

    The House of Representatives shall chuse their Speaker and other Officers; and shall have the sole Power of Impeachment.

    >

    Article 1, Section 3, Clauses 6 and 7

    The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments.

    Impeachment is like an indictment and it happens in the House acting like a grand jury, whereas the actual trial following impeachment occurs in the Senate which is where you receive a verdict. Trump was impeached but not convicted. If you are charged with murder and are found innocent, you don't get to say you were never indicted on the charges, just that the evidence was insufficient to convict you. It's important that you concede that point of fact. Feel free to maintain that the impeachment itself didn't have merit since they failed to convict, happy to disagree on that matter of opinion.

    Also, Biden is NOT the direct or only reason Putin is invading Ukraine. Is Biden a strong or competent leader? He sure hasn't shown much to support idea that yet, but he is pretty much playing from the more conventional historical US playbook. However, you are conveniently disregarding the fact that Russia has been meticulously building to this moment for a long time. They are attacking Ukraine now because Putin believes he can get away with it without foreign intervention, but that is precisely because they have been actively undermining American unity and stability via disinformation and incitement throughout the previous megalomaniacal con artist's (I was going to call him a moron but he's in fact brilliant when it comes to manipulating facts and swaying the minds of his supporters to his own narrative so that would've been somewhat unfair) term in office. Regardless, without a broad consensus behind him (which neither of our past 2 leaders have inspired), the President is little more than a scapegoat. It's not just Biden that is weak, it's America! Putin's efforts have been so effective at dividing us that we cannot even have an Internet conversation about the terrible thing Putin has done without blaming each other for it. Stop!

    That said, love and prayers to those in Ukraine or anyone outside with loved ones still there.

  • @oddSTAR said:

    @NeuM said:

    @richardyot said:
    It’s funny how libertarians seem to have a fetish for authoritarians.

    The cognitive dissonance must be deafening.

    A realistic assessment of the situation should never be considered "support". And lying about someone else's motivations is a pathetic line of argumentation.

    If anyone here just watched Joe Biden's address to the nation, they saw a toothless invalid speaking. He just said he's going to "wait for a month" to see what happens. Ukraine will be completely overrun by Russian forces in a matter of days or weeks. Biden is an idiot.

    I happen to agree with you on several points such as Putin being a brilliant strategist and the likely outcome of this campaign and America's impotence and incompetence in this situation...but it would really help your case if you would stop acting like you are the infallible source of truth and wisdom here.

    For instance, you're wrong on impeachment which you would see if you actually read the very words you posted to support your argument:

    Article 1, Section 2, Clause 5

    The House of Representatives shall chuse their Speaker and other Officers; and shall have the sole Power of Impeachment.

    >

    Article 1, Section 3, Clauses 6 and 7

    The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments.

    Impeachment is like an indictment and it happens in the House acting like a grand jury, whereas the actual trial following impeachment occurs in the Senate which is where you receive a verdict. Trump was impeached but not convicted. If you are charged with murder and are found innocent, you don't get to say you were never indicted on the charges, just that the evidence was insufficient to convict you. It's important that you concede that point of fact. Feel free to maintain that the impeachment itself didn't have merit since they failed to convict, happy to disagree on that matter of opinion.

    Also, Biden is NOT the direct or only reason Putin is invading Ukraine. Is Biden a strong or competent leader? He sure hasn't shown much to support idea that yet, but he is pretty much playing from the more conventional historical US playbook. However, you are conveniently disregarding the fact that Russia has been meticulously building to this moment for a long time. They are attacking Ukraine now because Putin believes he can get away with it without foreign intervention, but that is precisely because they have been actively undermining American unity and stability via disinformation and incitement throughout the previous megalomaniacal con artist's (I was going to call him a moron but he's in fact brilliant when it comes to manipulating facts and swaying the minds of his supporters to his own narrative so that would've been somewhat unfair) term in office. Regardless, without a broad consensus behind him (which neither of our past 2 leaders have inspired), the President is little more than a scapegoat. It's not just Biden that is weak, it's America! Putin's efforts have been so effective at dividing us that we cannot even have an Internet conversation about the terrible thing Putin has done without blaming each other for it. Stop!

    That said, love and prayers to those in Ukraine or anyone outside with loved ones still there.

    America’s strength is in the ability of the people to question, insult or oppose our leaders. Countries where that isn’t possible are usually the ones people end up fleeing for their lives.

    Joe Biden’s failure to protect America’s interests is directly connected to the Ukraine invasion. Russia is now America’s 4th largest oil supplier. They weren’t before Biden came into office. America was oil and energy independent and Biden swept away this concentration on keeping the US self-sustaining in the energy sector because of the poorly thought out “Green New Deal” pushed by the radical Left in the Democratic base.

    Biden was pivotal in this catastrophe.

  • @NeuM said:
    Don’t assume to know the thoughts of others. I am anti-war, but the fact is there is one currently being prosecuted. I hope for the best, but there is no way this ends well for Ukraine. In a matter of days or weeks, there will be no Ukraine.

    please mate stfu already

  • @yug said:

    @NeuM said:
    Don’t assume to know the thoughts of others. I am anti-war, but the fact is there is one currently being prosecuted. I hope for the best, but there is no way this ends well for Ukraine. In a matter of days or weeks, there will be no Ukraine.

    please mate stfu already

    Seriously, go spew your venom in the other thread you've already poisoned.

  • wimwim
    edited February 2022

    C'mon. As annoying as it can be, I wouldn't call it venom. It's just a mindset that is completely alien to many. Start going down that road and it leads to simply disagreeing with someone being characterized as hate.

    This is what the "ignore" function is for. No need to try to shut someone down just because you disagree with them.

    Only, don't succumb to the temptation to expand the posts anyway like I can't seem help doing. :D

  • @wim said:
    C'mon. As annoying as it can be, I wouldn't call it venom. It's just a mindset that is completely alien to many. Start going down that road and it leads to simply disagreeing with someone being characterized as hate.

    This is what the "ignore" function is for. No need to try to shut someone down just because you disagree with them.

    Only, don't succumb to the temptation to expand the posts anyway like I can't seem help doing. :D

    I thought this was in the Well Wishes thread. My mistake. This is exactly where it belongs.

  • wimwim
    edited February 2022

    Aside from the surreal "impeachment" sidebar, most of the opinions have at least been opinions at least tangentially related to the Ukraine situation. Whether I agree with them or not, and no matter how frustrating trying to have a rational dialog about them has been, I would rather have people freely give their opinions. The frustration is holding back from useless engagement. But that's my problem to solve and the solution isn't to shut someone else up.

  • wimwim
    edited February 2022

    @ExAsperis99 said:

    @wim said:
    C'mon. As annoying as it can be, I wouldn't call it venom. It's just a mindset that is completely alien to many. Start going down that road and it leads to simply disagreeing with someone being characterized as hate.

    This is what the "ignore" function is for. No need to try to shut someone down just because you disagree with them.

    Only, don't succumb to the temptation to expand the posts anyway like I can't seem help doing. :D

    I thought this was in the Well Wishes thread. My mistake. This is exactly where it belongs.

    Ahh yeh, that was just plain rudeness (IMO) over in that thread. 👍🏼
    Oh, and though my post followed yours, it was more a general comment. Sorry if it sounded like it was directed solely at you. In fact it was also directed at myself given how many times I've had to fight the temptation to say something!

  • For those who are trying to sort out media coverage of the invasion, Neiman Labs, a journalism nonprofit, has an excellent thread on how to choose sources.

    https://www.niemanlab.org/2022/02/follow-war-ukraine/

  • edited February 2022

    @NeuM said:

    Personal attacks usually signal the imminent closure of a thread. Great job.

    You mean like this?

    @NeuM said:

    Don’t say stupid things.

    Practice what you preach.

  • @yug said:

    @NeuM said:
    Don’t assume to know the thoughts of others. I am anti-war, but the fact is there is one currently being prosecuted. I hope for the best, but there is no way this ends well for Ukraine. In a matter of days or weeks, there will be no Ukraine.

    please mate stfu already

    Goodbye. Your conversations end with your personal attacks.

  • @NeuM said:

    >

    America’s strength is in the ability of the people to question, insult or oppose our leaders. Countries where that isn’t possible are usually the ones people end up fleeing for their lives.

    Joe Biden’s failure to protect America’s interests is directly connected to the Ukraine invasion. Russia is now America’s 4th largest oil supplier. They weren’t before Biden came into office. America was oil and energy independent and Biden swept away this concentration on keeping the US self-sustaining in the energy sector because of the poorly thought out “Green New Deal” pushed by the radical Left in the Democratic base.

    Biden was pivotal in this catastrophe.

    Russia provides 7% of our oil imports, hardly something for which we couldn't compensate. Certainly not enough to make us beholden to Russia and also highly unlikely to have been a major factor in Putin's calculations. The initiatives to convert American industry to other energy sources only serve to strengthen America's position in the long run by eliminating reliance on those other oil-producing nations. Listen, I could sit and have a beer with you and we can both complain about the many failures of the current administration and brainstorm on how it could be made better, but not if you can't even acknowledge that everything has been really messed up since 2016 (and even longer) and the roles that Putin and Trump both have played in that. Come on, my fellow American, give me a hug!

  • Sorry, I won't reply again unless it has something specifically related to Ukraine. They should be the focus and I truly do wish them well. My apologies, everyone!

  • edited February 2022

    @oddSTAR said:

    @NeuM said:

    >

    America’s strength is in the ability of the people to question, insult or oppose our leaders. Countries where that isn’t possible are usually the ones people end up fleeing for their lives.

    Joe Biden’s failure to protect America’s interests is directly connected to the Ukraine invasion. Russia is now America’s 4th largest oil supplier. They weren’t before Biden came into office. America was oil and energy independent and Biden swept away this concentration on keeping the US self-sustaining in the energy sector because of the poorly thought out “Green New Deal” pushed by the radical Left in the Democratic base.

    Biden was pivotal in this catastrophe.

    Russia provides 7% of our oil imports, hardly something for which we couldn't compensate. Certainly not enough to make us beholden to Russia and also highly unlikely to have been a major factor in Putin's calculations. The initiatives to convert American industry to other energy sources only serve to strengthen America's position in the long run by eliminating reliance on those other oil-producing nations. Listen, I could sit and have a beer with you and we can both complain about the many failures of the current administration and brainstorm on how it could be made better, but not if you can't even acknowledge that everything has been really messed up since 2016 (and even longer) and the roles that Putin and Trump both have played in that. Come on, my fellow American, give me a hug!

    I'm more than willing to entertain opposing views. When there are good arguments, I listen.

    Russia supplies nearly 600,000 barrels per day (BPD) of oil to the US. And Saudi Arabia isn't going to reduce prices or increase production to make up for a potential shortfall. Saudi Arabia and Russia supply nearly the same amount of oil to the US.

    Let me ask you this:

    Why did Joe Biden earlier today say he's not willing to kick Russia from the SWIFT banking system? This would instantly paralyze their ability to move money. Biden said he'll take another look "in a month". That's an oddly specific timeline and it's one that gives Russia ample time to wipe out Ukraine's military and completely take over their political system. Is Biden concerned about Ukraine or not? As I've said repeatedly, the US has no business getting involved. We are not the world's police and Ukraine is not a NATO member. We do not commit our military to regional conflicts or even military invasions for every at-risk country on the planet, so Biden should never have allowed the US to be entrapped in a position of weakness to begin with.

    And Germany, the UK and other countries are dependent on oil and natural gas supplied by Russia now, so they and the EU certainly don't want to get involved in a military conflict.

    And the last question: Why did Putin invade under Biden and not Trump? The claim on the Left is Russia controlled Trump. It would've made sense for him to invade Ukraine under Trump if that was remotely the case.

  • @NeuM said:

    Just one example article opining that this is inconvenient for China: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-60492134. Even without research, that seems like a logical thing to speculate to me.

    From the article: “More recently, China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi discussed the situation with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, acknowledging that things were "getting worse" and repeating calls for "all parties to exercise restraint".”

    That is a standard issue PRC response. It doesn’t take sides.

    After Russia invaded, China made a comment about both sides implementing the Minsk agreement. They also made a comment shortly before the invasion which made it pretty obvious they received no warning, which can't have made them happy.

    A spokesman has since made a more supportive comment:

    China wants to buy Russian oil and gas - but Russia was more interested in selling through the Nordstream pipeline. So for China this is a potential opportunity I guess. I'm not convinced that Nordstream is dead just because of how much European money is tied up in it, but we will see.

  • wimwim
    edited February 2022

    @NeuM said:
    Why did Joe Biden earlier today say he's not willing to kick Russia from the SWIFT banking system? This would instantly paralyze their ability to move money. Biden said he'll take another look "in a month".

    He needs that long to determine whether this is a "minor incursion" or not. :D :/

    Is Biden concerned about Ukraine or not?

    Oh yes! He must be! He sent Kamala Harris, his best and brightest, over there to sort it all out didn't he? 🙄

    And Germany, the UK and other countries are dependent on oil and natural gas supplied by Russia now, so they and the EU certainly don't want to get involved in a military conflict.

    It does seem that the world bumbled its way into setting the table so nicely for Putin that he could hardly resist striking now. At this point one can only hope that he exercises some restraint. He's a chess player, which seems to me like would cause him not to over play his hand, but then there's the megalomanic and deeply ingrained old-school KGB personality. I can't begin to guess at how this is going to go.

  • @wim said:

    @NeuM said:
    Why did Joe Biden earlier today say he's not willing to kick Russia from the SWIFT banking system? This would instantly paralyze their ability to move money. Biden said he'll take another look "in a month".

    He needs that long to determine whether this is a "minor incursion" or not. :D :/

    Is Biden concerned about Ukraine or not?

    Oh yes! He must be! He sent Kamala Harris, his best and brightest, over there to sort it all out didn't he? 🙄

    And Germany, the UK and other countries are dependent on oil and natural gas supplied by Russia now, so they and the EU certainly don't want to get involved in a military conflict.

    It does seem that the world bumbled its way into setting the table so nicely for Putin that he could hardly resist striking now. One can only hope that he exercises some restraint. He's a chess player, which seems to me like would cause him not to over play his hand, but then there's the megalomanic and deeply ingrained old-school KGB personality. I can't begin to guess at how this is going to go.

    Good comments. Putin is a grandmaster chess player and he has cornered everyone who bought oil and gas from Russia. That is not a statement of admiration, by the way (this means you, Richard). That is a statement of condemnation for the people who enabled Putin with shortsighted decisions.

  • @NeuM said:

    @wim said:

    @NeuM said:
    Why did Joe Biden earlier today say he's not willing to kick Russia from the SWIFT banking system? This would instantly paralyze their ability to move money. Biden said he'll take another look "in a month".

    He needs that long to determine whether this is a "minor incursion" or not. :D :/

    Is Biden concerned about Ukraine or not?

    Oh yes! He must be! He sent Kamala Harris, his best and brightest, over there to sort it all out didn't he? 🙄

    And Germany, the UK and other countries are dependent on oil and natural gas supplied by Russia now, so they and the EU certainly don't want to get involved in a military conflict.

    It does seem that the world bumbled its way into setting the table so nicely for Putin that he could hardly resist striking now. One can only hope that he exercises some restraint. He's a chess player, which seems to me like would cause him not to over play his hand, but then there's the megalomanic and deeply ingrained old-school KGB personality. I can't begin to guess at how this is going to go.

    Good comments. Putin is a grandmaster chess player and he has cornered everyone who bought oil and gas from Russia. That is not a statement of admiration, by the way (this means you, Richard). That is a statement of condemnation for the people who enabled Putin with shortsighted decisions.

    Does that include those who “trusted Putin more than US Intelligence”?

  • @wim said:
    It does seem that the world bumbled its way into setting the table so nicely for Putin that he could hardly resist striking now. One can only hope that he exercises some restraint. He's a chess player, which seems to me like would cause him not to over play his hand, but then there's the megalomanic and deeply ingrained old-school KGB personality. I can't begin to guess at how this is going to go.

    I’m following the situation very closely, and as I see it, he tried to bully Ukraine and other parties involved into accepting his terms but his bluff was called and he had no other option than to attack. He is very afraid to look weak, to lose face. His popularity among Russians is based on the myth that “Putin always wins”.

This discussion has been closed.