Listen to a reading of this article: ❖ So Putin has finally made a move, issuing a decree formally recognizing the sovereignty of the separatist-held Donbas territories in eastern Ukraine known as the DPR and LPR. Russian troops are being deployed to the region in what Putin describes as a "peacekeeping" mission amid a dramatic spike in ceasefire violations.
You know what's weird? In the early to mid-1990s, when Yugoslavia split into newly independent republics, those republics received international recognition within a matter of months. But in Ukraine, when the Donetsk and Lugansk provinces declared their independence in 2014, no recognition was granted by any nation until just now. Russia waited patiently for 8 years for a diplomatic solution that would have kept the LDNRs within Ukraine. But foot-dragging and outright obstructionism by the Ukraine central government at the behest of the United States was more than enough time for that patience to wear out. So Russia took matters into its own hands and decided the matter. The US/NATO will cry like babies, but they have just received another body blow only a few months after having been knocked out in Afghanistan. There can be no doubt that the Empire is on the ropes.
Yugoslavia and Ukraine are completely different. I’m accused of strawmaning, but that’s an actual straw man argument.
You’ve been so obsessed with standing against the many cases of US imperialism (of which there are many, Cuba, Venezuela, Iraq and so on) that you’ve now gone from that to Anti Americanism to now being pro Russian imperialism.
You can’t even acknowledge what this is: a country invading another.
I can’t tell if you’re serious and believe half that nonsense or are trolling. Hard to tell these days.
I do not acknowledge that this is one country invading another. The US coup in 2014 was one country invading another. Why is the comparison of Ukraine and Yugoslavia a straw man argument?
You do not address the basic point that I made regarding a double standard for separatist states gaining international recognition. Why are Yugoslavia and Ukraine completely different? And what would you call NATO's bombing of Serbia other than an act of war? Responsibility to Protect (R2P) is literally always a cover for achieving geopolitical goals. Perhaps there were no NATO boots on the ground, but that is a mere technical difference.
There was an offer on the table since the Minsk Accords in 2015 for the breakaway Donbass republics to remain in Ukraine with some degree of autonomy. The Ukraine government was a signatory to those accords, yet it failed to implement them. Any fair minded person would agree that the clock had run out on Ukraine. They would either have to cede the republics their independence or fight to prevent it. Russia, at long last, made the decisive move. Now, if Ukraine chooses to fight, they will have chosen their own destruction. There may be more than a few crazed Neo-Nazis in their ranks, but are they actually suicidal?
Yugoslavia was never a real country. It first existed as a kingdom, then Tito kept it together via his own means, but as soon as that happened, the suppressed cultural individuality broke out (the tragedy was how violent it was)
So what were the geopolitical interests in Serbia that made it necessary to bomb it?
Ukraine would’ve been at peace if Russia hadn’t stirred up the locals and sent in Spetznez. Telling them they’ll be a genocide if they didn’t fight.
Because the Russian rebels were making nonsense of it. Look through the archives, the rebels used it to shell the Ukrainian government side all throughout the process and when it became clear Russia was never going to stand it’s proxies down, the Ukrainians disregarded it.
The fact Ukraine was even negotiating for giving its own recognised territory away to another is the real insane point here.
This has been Russia’s modus operandi since 08’ when they did the exact same thing in Georgia, expect swap out Ethic Russians with South Ossetians and Georgia with Ukraine.
Georgia to this day has 25% of its territory occupied.
It’s funny and tragic: you seem to give Russia all the leeway it wants and take their statement as actual evidence, but hold NATO to the highest standards possible.
There’s always some excuse for Russia. The ex Soviet states who overwhelming want nothing to do with Russia? Sections of the left have to disregard them at all costs.
Remember that ancient history where Putin was even denying any troops were on Ukrainian soil to begin with? How times have changed.
You must be joking about which side is lying. Take, for instance, the promise made by the US to the USSR that NATO would not expand "one inch to the east." It was NATO's breaking of that promise in the late 1990s that led to todays impasse. As for Russian troops being present in Georgia and soon to be in Ukraine, what say you about US troops that have been stationed in Germany practically since the end of WW-II? You see, depending upon one's point of view, having foreign troops present does not necessarily equate with occupation.
As for Yugoslavia never being a "real" country, can the same not be said of Ukraine, which passed from the hands of one European sovereign to those of another for centuries before ultimately becoming part of the Russian empire in the eighteenth century? Though there are clearly ethnic Ukrainian people, when was there ever a Ukrainian nation?
Which is the binding legal document is out there that states clearly, no ambiguity, that NATO cannot “move an inch to the East”?
See, this literally the textbook definition of “whataboutism”, refusing to answer my points on the public records of Russian lying and actions. All I’m asking is you concede That Russia is just as bad as the US in terms of imperialism (today and in the past) and we’ve got few things we disagree on otherwise.
Ukraine has existed in many forms, sometimes with the name of Ukraine, sometimes not. But they have their own language, culture and traditions and a geographical area that makes up their country.
I’m warning you for your own sake, you’re getting into some very dangerous territory there. You might wanna step back from it.
This hasn’t answered my question on the Russians lying about having troops in Ukraine.
If you’re response to this is “well the US…”
You’ve lost the argument.
I’ve accepted the evil shit America has done from Guatemala to Libya.
You so far seem incapable of holding Russia to the same standard. As Chomsky would say, this is elementary morality.
What do you mean by "you’re getting into some very dangerous territory there. You might wanna step back from it"? Is this some kind of threat? Please explain. I hope that Caitlin is monitoring your posts.
each and every one of us has the moral obligation to refuse to participate in and contribute to the crimes against humanity perpetuated in our name, on our dime, and by our own brothers, sisters, fathers, sons, friends, and colleagues. no one is free from the responsibility to do everything we can to stop the crime and pay for the crimes.
the criminals and profiteers have already called us "treasonous traitors" for not fighting their wars, for boycotting their evil system. the choice is clear as day.
"on our dime" - do you have any tips on how one could refuse to pay taxes? Or come up with ways to withhold some share of it?
What I'm getting at - there's next to nothing one can do to achieve any meaningful outcome. You can protest all you want on things that don't matter. As soon as you're involved in something that does you'll be dealt with swiftly and you'll suffer depending on the "offence" committed.
we can boycott whatever the criminals try to sell. no one can force you to consume corporate junk and poison. no one forces you to work for rockheed martin or join the military, for instance. no one can force you to marry a bankster. no one can arrest you for making, repairing, recycling, sharing, and conserving. no one can sent you to prison for living simply. in most cases, you risk almost nothing for doing so.
As we're seeing in Canada, even donating $20 to the wrong cause can lead to getting your assets frozen buy some impenetrable governmental decree. After Occupy, we were told to move our accounts into credit unions, but even they must tow the line to these same venal dictates. And with a nod our entire Internet access could go dark, so living outside the webs of modern society is vastly more complicated than at first realized, especially for those of us who've already stopped consuming corporate news or voting for the usual suspects.
The most egregious example is Assange. He mattered, he is paying. And on down that is the rule.
Everyone should clearly realize - they are only "free" since they really haven't done anything of real value to be threatening to the system. That includes our respected "fearless" journalists. They are able to vent until it actually matters. When it does they'll be shut down.
There's no need to engage in whataboutism. The US and its lapdogs have been supporting the Nazi Ukraine in stalling the Minsk agreements. That was going nowhere for too long.
In truth, the Ukraine in liaison with US neoliberal investors have enabled the rise and support of neo-nazi fascist groups in the Ukraine. Not only this but these fascist groups dominate the seat of power in the Ukraine now and the US investors are good with this. Moreover, these obtuse fascist groups have been stirring sh** unnecessarily with the Donbas people which in turn has given Russia cause to break that sh** up. Russia is not out of line in doing what it is doing. If I had to choose between a fascist Ukraine and the protection of the Donbas people, I'd pick the Donbas people. In essence, Russia is protecting a people from being bullied by neo-nazis. The problem comes from US investors supporting these neo-nazis and in the name of profit (i.e. Walmarts and McDonalds in the Ukraine).
The comments here keep missing the point about the events in Ukraine.
Ukraine is being used to launder money for the benefit of the American Oligarchy -- Period!
Until one recognizes that fact, you may as well be arguing about how many angels can dance on the head of a pin.
I'm not saying that the posts here are "wrong", they aren't. They just miss the "big picture".
For instance, arguing about which country is doing the invading, well, we really don't know do we because it is such a convoluted mess. But we do know the American Oligarchy is making money through all the weapons shipped to Ukraine.
Nordstream 2: yes the sanctions hurt Russia, maybe since it has been argued that China will buy Russian gas and the price of gas is skyrocketing. However, it is Germany that will have to pay 4x what it was paying to import LNG from the USA -- benefiting the American Oligarchy.
Are the Ukrainians Nazis? Some are, and those were the ones Victoria Nuland supported after Maidan. Why? Because they were bribing the American Oligarchy. Both Trump -AND- Biden.
It is the American Oligarchy that is causing this rift.
How dare you mention commerce during one of democracy's shining moments. Don't you know the mere mention of economic matters causes the eyelids of Americans to droop uncontrollably?
Just a month ago, Canada and the US bullied (or bribed with a $140,000,000 loan?) Ukraine into dropping prosecution against their pal Poroshenko. Ukrainian sovereignty?
The US has all the moral authority of a defrocked pedophile priest caught in the act and promising he'll never molest an altar boy ever again. Or a pedophile hair-sniffing misogynistic racist senile douchebag of a president. Take your pick. Either way, if the US was so concerned about Ukraine and its breakaway republics we would have been working diplomatically behind the scenes for the past 8 years to prevent any violence in the region, wouldn't we?
Perfect description as to our nonstop interference in every corrupt way possible over and over again. We seriously have a corrupt government that has gone rogue and the sad issue is that the normal American citizens are to blind to our government incompetence.
I disagree with the "perhaps" part. Shut the fuck up about "sovereignty" and especially about "human rights" and "freedom of speech" and "the rule of law" and "democracy." Just shut the fuck up, period.
Serious question, who would benefit if the US were to "shut the fuck up" about denouncing obvious imperialism? The Ukrainians? She doesn't even attempt to give a reason.
Her "spot-on analysis" for the past few weeks consisted of mocking everyone predicting that Russia would invade, whoops
Canada has brought to light how powerful sanctions and freezing bank accounts are in dealing with dissidents (nice recent article by Glenn Greenwald as well).
Putin refused to recognize the breakaway provinces in 2014 after the Americans overthrew democratically elected Yanukovych (taking only Crimea for national security reasons after a plebescite), because the Minsk Accords appeared a diplomatic solution. When Ukraine continued to stockpile American weapons, and with US backing refused to honor the Minsk agreements, Russia was looking at a steadily increasing Ukrainian (American) weapons build up on its border, and eventually genocide crimes against Russian Ukrainians. This is perfect for megalomaniac Joe Biden, who gets a proxy war as in the 1980s in Afghanistan, which can be fought to "the last Unrainian NAZI". If the Russians slaughter the Ukrainians, they look bad (PR victory). If the Ukrainians wage even a draw, Russia looks bad (PR victory).
The only way the US loses is if Putin starts lobbing nuclear weapons, then everyone loses.
For one brief period in my youth I sold cars. It lasted but four months. What ultimately led me to the door was that I was unable to look people in the eye and lie to them. That is what the job required.
I recalled this minor adventure while reading today's article, realizing where I was unable to lie to sell Toyotas there are any number of seemingly grown ass people who have absolutely no problem selling starvation and death.
As the Wicked Witch of West famously lamented, "What a world! What a world!"
Without necessarily agreeing with any of Putin's statements, I'm struck with how much I'd like an American president who at least sounds like a functioning adult.
I'd be curious to hear which particular statements you don't agree with backed by arguments sourced somewhere real, not from western governments/media.
Much I did agree with. However, Putin's criticisms regarding privatization, degradation of the environment, and particularly his mentioning freedom of speech are highly hypocritical.
By the way, for fuller context and to appreciate the continuity of the Russian approaches I advise absolutely everyone to listen to Putin's address to the Munich security conference in 2007: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4MAsIh3zMA
“To say nothing of the fact that the US thought so little of Ukrainian sovereignty in 2014 that it was perfectly comfortable staging a coup there with the support of actual neo-Nazi militias, who the liberal media are still running PR segments for to this day even after years of yelling about Donald Trump's intimacy with the far right. The US thinks so highly of Ukraine's sovereignty that it's willing to ramp up cold war brinkmanship with a nuclear superpower to defend it, but not highly enough to refrain from backing literal Nazis to topple its government.”
You do not actually believe that that's saying “All Ukrainians who are against us are Nazis.” You're just pretending to believe that to advance a personal agenda.
If neo-nazis want to throw themselves into the meat grinder against the Russian war machine, then it sounds like a problem that will fix itself. In the meantime, is there any reason everyone here is ignoring the vast number of nazis and white nationalists in the Russian army?
I’ve got nothing to edit. You asked and you got the answer.
The “Ukraine is run by Nazis” is a literal talking point used by the Russian government.
Which if it is, I’ll ask you this: why are the Ukrainians not fleeing east by the millions? 4 million Ukrainians fought in the Red Army and Partisans and celebrated the Germans defeat (keep in mind, that is all after the Holodomor)
What evidence is there that Ukraine is run by a Nazi party other than a few unfortunate military units?
You know what's weird? In the early to mid-1990s, when Yugoslavia split into newly independent republics, those republics received international recognition within a matter of months. But in Ukraine, when the Donetsk and Lugansk provinces declared their independence in 2014, no recognition was granted by any nation until just now. Russia waited patiently for 8 years for a diplomatic solution that would have kept the LDNRs within Ukraine. But foot-dragging and outright obstructionism by the Ukraine central government at the behest of the United States was more than enough time for that patience to wear out. So Russia took matters into its own hands and decided the matter. The US/NATO will cry like babies, but they have just received another body blow only a few months after having been knocked out in Afghanistan. There can be no doubt that the Empire is on the ropes.
Yugoslavia and Ukraine are completely different. I’m accused of strawmaning, but that’s an actual straw man argument.
You’ve been so obsessed with standing against the many cases of US imperialism (of which there are many, Cuba, Venezuela, Iraq and so on) that you’ve now gone from that to Anti Americanism to now being pro Russian imperialism.
You can’t even acknowledge what this is: a country invading another.
I can’t tell if you’re serious and believe half that nonsense or are trolling. Hard to tell these days.
I do not acknowledge that this is one country invading another. The US coup in 2014 was one country invading another. Why is the comparison of Ukraine and Yugoslavia a straw man argument?
Ok Russian bot
You do not address the basic point that I made regarding a double standard for separatist states gaining international recognition. Why are Yugoslavia and Ukraine completely different? And what would you call NATO's bombing of Serbia other than an act of war? Responsibility to Protect (R2P) is literally always a cover for achieving geopolitical goals. Perhaps there were no NATO boots on the ground, but that is a mere technical difference.
There was an offer on the table since the Minsk Accords in 2015 for the breakaway Donbass republics to remain in Ukraine with some degree of autonomy. The Ukraine government was a signatory to those accords, yet it failed to implement them. Any fair minded person would agree that the clock had run out on Ukraine. They would either have to cede the republics their independence or fight to prevent it. Russia, at long last, made the decisive move. Now, if Ukraine chooses to fight, they will have chosen their own destruction. There may be more than a few crazed Neo-Nazis in their ranks, but are they actually suicidal?
Yugoslavia was never a real country. It first existed as a kingdom, then Tito kept it together via his own means, but as soon as that happened, the suppressed cultural individuality broke out (the tragedy was how violent it was)
So what were the geopolitical interests in Serbia that made it necessary to bomb it?
Ukraine would’ve been at peace if Russia hadn’t stirred up the locals and sent in Spetznez. Telling them they’ll be a genocide if they didn’t fight.
Because the Russian rebels were making nonsense of it. Look through the archives, the rebels used it to shell the Ukrainian government side all throughout the process and when it became clear Russia was never going to stand it’s proxies down, the Ukrainians disregarded it.
The fact Ukraine was even negotiating for giving its own recognised territory away to another is the real insane point here.
This has been Russia’s modus operandi since 08’ when they did the exact same thing in Georgia, expect swap out Ethic Russians with South Ossetians and Georgia with Ukraine.
Georgia to this day has 25% of its territory occupied.
It’s funny and tragic: you seem to give Russia all the leeway it wants and take their statement as actual evidence, but hold NATO to the highest standards possible.
There’s always some excuse for Russia. The ex Soviet states who overwhelming want nothing to do with Russia? Sections of the left have to disregard them at all costs.
Remember that ancient history where Putin was even denying any troops were on Ukrainian soil to begin with? How times have changed.
You must be joking about which side is lying. Take, for instance, the promise made by the US to the USSR that NATO would not expand "one inch to the east." It was NATO's breaking of that promise in the late 1990s that led to todays impasse. As for Russian troops being present in Georgia and soon to be in Ukraine, what say you about US troops that have been stationed in Germany practically since the end of WW-II? You see, depending upon one's point of view, having foreign troops present does not necessarily equate with occupation.
As for Yugoslavia never being a "real" country, can the same not be said of Ukraine, which passed from the hands of one European sovereign to those of another for centuries before ultimately becoming part of the Russian empire in the eighteenth century? Though there are clearly ethnic Ukrainian people, when was there ever a Ukrainian nation?
Which is the binding legal document is out there that states clearly, no ambiguity, that NATO cannot “move an inch to the East”?
See, this literally the textbook definition of “whataboutism”, refusing to answer my points on the public records of Russian lying and actions. All I’m asking is you concede That Russia is just as bad as the US in terms of imperialism (today and in the past) and we’ve got few things we disagree on otherwise.
Ukraine has existed in many forms, sometimes with the name of Ukraine, sometimes not. But they have their own language, culture and traditions and a geographical area that makes up their country.
I’m warning you for your own sake, you’re getting into some very dangerous territory there. You might wanna step back from it.
This hasn’t answered my question on the Russians lying about having troops in Ukraine.
If you’re response to this is “well the US…”
You’ve lost the argument.
I’ve accepted the evil shit America has done from Guatemala to Libya.
You so far seem incapable of holding Russia to the same standard. As Chomsky would say, this is elementary morality.
What do you mean by "you’re getting into some very dangerous territory there. You might wanna step back from it"? Is this some kind of threat? Please explain. I hope that Caitlin is monitoring your posts.
The countries that split historically existed before being part of Yugoslavia. Stop blathering about history you know nothing about.
each and every one of us has the moral obligation to refuse to participate in and contribute to the crimes against humanity perpetuated in our name, on our dime, and by our own brothers, sisters, fathers, sons, friends, and colleagues. no one is free from the responsibility to do everything we can to stop the crime and pay for the crimes.
the criminals and profiteers have already called us "treasonous traitors" for not fighting their wars, for boycotting their evil system. the choice is clear as day.
"on our dime" - do you have any tips on how one could refuse to pay taxes? Or come up with ways to withhold some share of it?
What I'm getting at - there's next to nothing one can do to achieve any meaningful outcome. You can protest all you want on things that don't matter. As soon as you're involved in something that does you'll be dealt with swiftly and you'll suffer depending on the "offence" committed.
we can boycott whatever the criminals try to sell. no one can force you to consume corporate junk and poison. no one forces you to work for rockheed martin or join the military, for instance. no one can force you to marry a bankster. no one can arrest you for making, repairing, recycling, sharing, and conserving. no one can sent you to prison for living simply. in most cases, you risk almost nothing for doing so.
As we're seeing in Canada, even donating $20 to the wrong cause can lead to getting your assets frozen buy some impenetrable governmental decree. After Occupy, we were told to move our accounts into credit unions, but even they must tow the line to these same venal dictates. And with a nod our entire Internet access could go dark, so living outside the webs of modern society is vastly more complicated than at first realized, especially for those of us who've already stopped consuming corporate news or voting for the usual suspects.
The most egregious example is Assange. He mattered, he is paying. And on down that is the rule.
Everyone should clearly realize - they are only "free" since they really haven't done anything of real value to be threatening to the system. That includes our respected "fearless" journalists. They are able to vent until it actually matters. When it does they'll be shut down.
unless we change our way of life first, we can change nothing, we can blame nobody else.
There's no need to engage in whataboutism. The US and its lapdogs have been supporting the Nazi Ukraine in stalling the Minsk agreements. That was going nowhere for too long.
Proving my point. Reducing an entire people and country to a Nazi state, which subliminally justifies Russian action.
What's your point? Germany was a Nazi state for couple decades some 80 years back. Does it mean all individual Germans were Nazis?
I don’t understand the question
In truth, the Ukraine in liaison with US neoliberal investors have enabled the rise and support of neo-nazi fascist groups in the Ukraine. Not only this but these fascist groups dominate the seat of power in the Ukraine now and the US investors are good with this. Moreover, these obtuse fascist groups have been stirring sh** unnecessarily with the Donbas people which in turn has given Russia cause to break that sh** up. Russia is not out of line in doing what it is doing. If I had to choose between a fascist Ukraine and the protection of the Donbas people, I'd pick the Donbas people. In essence, Russia is protecting a people from being bullied by neo-nazis. The problem comes from US investors supporting these neo-nazis and in the name of profit (i.e. Walmarts and McDonalds in the Ukraine).
The comments here keep missing the point about the events in Ukraine.
Ukraine is being used to launder money for the benefit of the American Oligarchy -- Period!
Until one recognizes that fact, you may as well be arguing about how many angels can dance on the head of a pin.
I'm not saying that the posts here are "wrong", they aren't. They just miss the "big picture".
For instance, arguing about which country is doing the invading, well, we really don't know do we because it is such a convoluted mess. But we do know the American Oligarchy is making money through all the weapons shipped to Ukraine.
Nordstream 2: yes the sanctions hurt Russia, maybe since it has been argued that China will buy Russian gas and the price of gas is skyrocketing. However, it is Germany that will have to pay 4x what it was paying to import LNG from the USA -- benefiting the American Oligarchy.
Are the Ukrainians Nazis? Some are, and those were the ones Victoria Nuland supported after Maidan. Why? Because they were bribing the American Oligarchy. Both Trump -AND- Biden.
It is the American Oligarchy that is causing this rift.
How dare you mention commerce during one of democracy's shining moments. Don't you know the mere mention of economic matters causes the eyelids of Americans to droop uncontrollably?
Just a month ago, Canada and the US bullied (or bribed with a $140,000,000 loan?) Ukraine into dropping prosecution against their pal Poroshenko. Ukrainian sovereignty?
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/politics/article-canada-credited-for-preventing-arrest-of-former-ukrainian-president/
The US has all the moral authority of a defrocked pedophile priest caught in the act and promising he'll never molest an altar boy ever again. Or a pedophile hair-sniffing misogynistic racist senile douchebag of a president. Take your pick. Either way, if the US was so concerned about Ukraine and its breakaway republics we would have been working diplomatically behind the scenes for the past 8 years to prevent any violence in the region, wouldn't we?
Perfect description as to our nonstop interference in every corrupt way possible over and over again. We seriously have a corrupt government that has gone rogue and the sad issue is that the normal American citizens are to blind to our government incompetence.
I disagree with the "perhaps" part. Shut the fuck up about "sovereignty" and especially about "human rights" and "freedom of speech" and "the rule of law" and "democracy." Just shut the fuck up, period.
What would that accomplish? The people of Ukraine certainly don't want us to be silent
I'm so glad the US was instrumental in creating the UN after WWII so that international disputes would never again result in war.
Still waiting for them to rectify what they did to Palestine, a real Dred Scott moment.
lol - the Declaration of Human Rights was a doozy! The first line has never been accomplished!
Well yeah, since the UN was founded the number, size, and scope of wars has dramatically fallen.
I hope you are being sarcastic.
It's objectively true though. Compare the number of wars and their bodycounts before+after the founding the UN
That depends on how much of history we include surely?
The UN has been very weak in the face of wars, particularly those initiated by NATO members.
Thanks once again for your spot-on analysis, Caitlin.
Serious question, who would benefit if the US were to "shut the fuck up" about denouncing obvious imperialism? The Ukrainians? She doesn't even attempt to give a reason.
Her "spot-on analysis" for the past few weeks consisted of mocking everyone predicting that Russia would invade, whoops
Canada has brought to light how powerful sanctions and freezing bank accounts are in dealing with dissidents (nice recent article by Glenn Greenwald as well).
Putin refused to recognize the breakaway provinces in 2014 after the Americans overthrew democratically elected Yanukovych (taking only Crimea for national security reasons after a plebescite), because the Minsk Accords appeared a diplomatic solution. When Ukraine continued to stockpile American weapons, and with US backing refused to honor the Minsk agreements, Russia was looking at a steadily increasing Ukrainian (American) weapons build up on its border, and eventually genocide crimes against Russian Ukrainians. This is perfect for megalomaniac Joe Biden, who gets a proxy war as in the 1980s in Afghanistan, which can be fought to "the last Unrainian NAZI". If the Russians slaughter the Ukrainians, they look bad (PR victory). If the Ukrainians wage even a draw, Russia looks bad (PR victory).
The only way the US loses is if Putin starts lobbing nuclear weapons, then everyone loses.
For readers: These outstanding Caitlin's audios can also be found:
Perhaps The US Should Shut The Fuck Up About Respecting Other Countries' Sovereignty
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=npmHA3ZHUGI
PS: The narrator is the best I have found in ALL podcasts so far !!
For one brief period in my youth I sold cars. It lasted but four months. What ultimately led me to the door was that I was unable to look people in the eye and lie to them. That is what the job required.
I recalled this minor adventure while reading today's article, realizing where I was unable to lie to sell Toyotas there are any number of seemingly grown ass people who have absolutely no problem selling starvation and death.
As the Wicked Witch of West famously lamented, "What a world! What a world!"
Putin's speech in English here: https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DIOHKUG0v__A%26fbclid%3DIwAR2atYefitj9hHynahAVRSexruldwOhhwz_epAsladCm1zxlgCj6z6pU_1A&h=AT3x2zTdyMVcVjV1OjE4boZN8IscGcQaCJt097lKWZ-J0cDLQnlLg-e9hlC9IADKUszEpFngRwmKHrRFp4vKDYBfF-vjicmNTDp-VGH7B7VQ8kSKgpacb3ieurhDcKEBkribt6vzZjLcgUb2PMZJ&__tn__=%2CmH-R&c[0]=AT2lvS__1kWadiIhGcrjZc_tcpuUEJ2RYvh_SQsQPC6uv9Bz_vdfDz304BZXSFV8TN-i_TvogHM5Lapx4I-UeAaoqThBJbuGXYDlHEEZf58-nTPiVL98E_5cIPsncZYehkrZkoooQQXmSJp9d3FBePj2hQ. (Too bad you can't use hyperlinks here in the comments.) I listened to it and heard nothing I would disagree with.
This link takes us to a short RT clip of the signing ceremony.
See above.
Here's the source: http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/67828
Without necessarily agreeing with any of Putin's statements, I'm struck with how much I'd like an American president who at least sounds like a functioning adult.
I'd be curious to hear which particular statements you don't agree with backed by arguments sourced somewhere real, not from western governments/media.
Much I did agree with. However, Putin's criticisms regarding privatization, degradation of the environment, and particularly his mentioning freedom of speech are highly hypocritical.
You've made the statement based on what? That's what I asked, didn't I, "backed by arguments".
By the way, for fuller context and to appreciate the continuity of the Russian approaches I advise absolutely everyone to listen to Putin's address to the Munich security conference in 2007: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4MAsIh3zMA
Really?
You’re smart enough to see through almost all the bullshit but not the Russian “All Ukrainians who are against us are Nazis” narrative?
Don't strawman people on the internet. It's obnoxious.
Where did you come up with this one, dude?
This very article I assume you’ve also read?
Which paragraph, which sentence?
“To say nothing of the fact that the US thought so little of Ukrainian sovereignty in 2014 that it was perfectly comfortable staging a coup there with the support of actual neo-Nazi militias, who the liberal media are still running PR segments for to this day even after years of yelling about Donald Trump's intimacy with the far right. The US thinks so highly of Ukraine's sovereignty that it's willing to ramp up cold war brinkmanship with a nuclear superpower to defend it, but not highly enough to refrain from backing literal Nazis to topple its government.”
You do not actually believe that that's saying “All Ukrainians who are against us are Nazis.” You're just pretending to believe that to advance a personal agenda.
If neo-nazis want to throw themselves into the meat grinder against the Russian war machine, then it sounds like a problem that will fix itself. In the meantime, is there any reason everyone here is ignoring the vast number of nazis and white nationalists in the Russian army?
In case you decide to edit your original question I'll quote it below. Keep looking for that sentence.
"Really?
You’re smart enough to see through almost all the bullshit but not the Russian “All Ukrainians who are against us are Nazis” narrative?"
I’ve got nothing to edit. You asked and you got the answer.
The “Ukraine is run by Nazis” is a literal talking point used by the Russian government.
Which if it is, I’ll ask you this: why are the Ukrainians not fleeing east by the millions? 4 million Ukrainians fought in the Red Army and Partisans and celebrated the Germans defeat (keep in mind, that is all after the Holodomor)
What evidence is there that Ukraine is run by a Nazi party other than a few unfortunate military units?