Russia's economy could suffer a 'deep' recession that cuts GDP by 11% as sanctions sharpen, JPMorgan says
https://www.businessinsider.com/russ...en-debt-2022-3





Russia's economy could suffer a 'deep' recession that cuts GDP by 11% as sanctions sharpen, JPMorgan says
https://www.businessinsider.com/russ...en-debt-2022-3
I am not pro Putin, I am not pro soviet union, my grandfather was Baltic and was tossed around by both Germany and Russia, the result is the only reason we came to America. He hated the USSR, and guess what we were all socialists, just a way different type. You are making wild assumptions with nothing to back it up.
The US gave weapons to people who became terrorists, to fight in proxy wars again and again
I am not ML. No where was that said. I think you need to step into the current times when discussing leftist ideas since you have such strong opinions.
Why does NATO exist after the fall of the Soviet Union? Why did all agreements mean nothing immediately after the fall? For the millionth time this doesn't justify what is happening in this direct invasion by Russia. I guess that has to be said every time just so you don't have to be accused of being a tankie a very small group BTW.
What would I do? Well I am an American so I would probably choose to have other countries not just looking for an oil grab make that choice.
If you never knew me, that'd probably be cheaper
If you really knew me, you would know I don't need ya- Saweetie





Ok Eagle, if the Ukraine has been as successful in shooting down a sufficient number of bombers and fighter aircrafts, and has otherwise successfully stopped the Russian invasion, as your no doubt well informed tactical analysis has concluded, then who is lying to us?
Are the reporters who keep telling us that the Russians are killing countless civilians lying to us? And not just with artillery, though that too of course, but with actual airstrikes that the Ukraine cannot seem to prevent? Boy that's an awful lot of liars.
Is Zelensky lying to us when he says they need more air power to contest their airspace? Is the Ukrainian Defense Minister lying? Sheesh, you'd think they'd be a little busy to be misleading their suppliers about what they really need right now, but who knows, right? Perhaps you think they are intentionally letting the Russians kill their people?
Look Eagle, normally I enjoy these little moments of ours more, where you pick at threads while ignoring everything else, including the obvious, in order to try to defend your views. But women and children are dying and we quite clearly are not doing enough to help.
Last edited by rickdugan; 03-06-2022 at 07:35 PM.





Here is a snippet from a Wall Street Journal piece published today. It was written by Natalie Jaresko, who served as the Ukraine's Finance Minister from 2014-2016 and in the U.S. State Department from '89-95. Of course she could be lying too, but she seems eminently more qualified to speak about what could and should be done to stop Russia than any of us.
"As a Ukrainian-American, I feel torn between anger and shame. Anger at the continuing massacre of thousands of Ukrainians by the Russian military as it targets civilians. Shame because the U.S. could do much more to stop this indiscriminate slaughter.
America must stop Vladimir Putin now to avoid the worst catastrophe in Europe since World War II. If Washington doesn’t act decisively, hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians will die, and other countries may be invaded as well. The U.S. has underestimated Mr. Putin’s appetite too many times, and Washington’s leniency has given him the confidence to commit the war crimes we see in the news today.
Mr. Putin must be stopped on two fronts—in Ukraine, by the Ukrainian army, with direct and unwavering U.S. support; and in Russia, by cutting off its economy and financial system to block the war’s funding.
For this to work, the U.S. must increase its involvement at all levels: federal, state and business.
At the federal level, that means substantially increasing the delivery of military equipment to the Ukrainian army, in particular air defense and electronic warfare systems, fighter jets provided through allies, and Patriot and Stinger missiles. It also means tightening economic sanctions. Washington must also expand these sanctions to all Russian and Belarusian banks and commodity and energy companies—Belarus has allowed Russian missile launches from its territory—as well as freeze all these institutions’ assets and put each one on the Treasury Department’s Specially Designated Nationals list. The U.S. must disconnect all of these banks, not only a “select” few number, from Swift—the international network through which almost all financial information flows. America can lead on these sanctions, bringing allies along."
Complete article: https://www.wsj.com/articles/us-ukra...nion_lead_pos8





It's a waste of time trying to have a discussion with someone so poorly informed and having such a poor understanding of the facts, and is so far removed from reality that he thinks Ukraine could wipe out Russia's military overnight, and the only reason they haven't done it, is because we didn't supply them with enough equipment. It seems far above and beyond your ability to understand that Russia has a much, much larger military than Ukraine, which is why they're still able to go on fighting, even after losing dozens of fighter planes and helicopters, and hundreds of tanks, armored vehicles, and trucks. I wouldn't be surprised if you're secretly cheering for Russia, so you can bash Biden over it.
You're comment suggesting we send F16s to Ukraine shows how little you know about the military. You're completely clueless.
You continue to have this stupid, delusional idea that what gets posted on a stripper forum is going to have some type of impact on the war in Ukraine. In your mind you're a brave keyboard warrior. In reality, you've accomplished nothing more than show how clueless and uninformed you are. I should have known better than to think I could have an intelligent conversation with you, or that you would show respect for the other members of the forum by not turning this thread into a fight, like you love to do. No more feeding the troll for me. I'm putting you back on ignore.
Last edited by eagle2; 03-06-2022 at 11:47 PM.



I would take with an enormous grain of salt the stories about fighter aircraft being shot down, these aircraft use CCIP or CCRP equivalents to drop bombs they are not flying low at all. In particular the Fullback that was designed specifically for PGM.
The propaganda war is real.





We don't have to provide them enough equipment to wipe out Russia's military, lol, just enough to make it too costly to continue. Oh and btw Russia's military is estimated to be one million strong, so 150k is a lot less than its whole military. I thought that I'd share that "clueless" tidbit as well.
But you never answered my question: So who's lying? The reporters? Current and former Ukrainian officials? All of them? Also have you now also convinced yourself that you have a better handle on the tactical deployment of those requested weapons than the military experts asking for them?
Any place is a good place to talk about this, even a stripper forum. The more collective awareness there is about what is happening the more that our politicians will feel increasing pressure to do more.





Really loving how you skipped over the post which was directed at you and went to the one which wasn’t.
I did no such thing. That was a general statement not directed at you. Again, as long as we’ve both been on this forum, it shouldn’t escape you that if I have something I want to say to you, I will say it to you outright.
Welcome to the way of the world. The Soviet Union/Russia, China, Germany, Libya, Greece, France, et. al. did this also. But we’re not talking arming a ragtag band of peasants here, we’re talking about weapons going to the bona fide Ukrainian military.The US gave weapons to people who became terrorists, to fight in proxy wars again and again
Again, a general observation which wasn’t directed at you. And I’m probably further left than you are, so maybe you need to step back and check yourself. But tell me again how I’m the one making baseless assumptions here.I am not ML. No where was that said. I think you need to step into the current times when discussing leftist ideas since you have such strong opinions.
Absence of war does not mean peace. Stability in Europe wasn’t just magically guaranteed after the fall of the Iron Curtain, nor did the ancien régime just magically disappear at that point. Hardliners attempted a coup in Moscow shortly before the final end of the Soviet Union, Russia had a constitutional crisis two years later, and the Yugoslav wars also kicked off in 1991 and went until 1999, then dark skies started showing over Ukraine in 2004… at which point were they supposed to be encouraged to abandon that framework? And apparently three former Soviet republics (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) saw the writing on the wall and joined in 2004, rather than pursue a policy of neutrality akin to Sweden, Switzerland, Austria, and Finland.Why does NATO exist after the fall of the Soviet Union?
Realistically, the Warsaw Pact never fully died out either… it’s just that those who didn’t jump ship and join the opposite formed the Commonwealth of Independent States (which Ukraine never fully withdrew from until 201.
You mean the agreement by which Ukraine returned all strategic nuclear weapons to Russian control in exchange for a promise of noninterference from Russia? If not, which one(s) are you talking about?Why did all agreements mean nothing immediately after the fall?
If I were making any such accusation, I wouldn’t imply it - I’d say it outright. And again, you’re replying to a post which wasn’t directed at you while ignoring one which was.For the millionth time this doesn't justify what is happening in this direct invasion by Russia. I guess that has to be said every time just so you don't have to be accused of being a tankie a very small group BTW.
Just call it like it is - a cop out. What makes you think they aren’t? The response to the invasion isn’t just happening among NATO countries - which is a council of the heads of government of all involved - but also by countries which aren’t members. Countries not even in Europe have condemned the invasion (with a couple outliers, such as Cuba and Venezuela). Nothing to say about that, though?What would I do? Well I am an American so I would probably choose to have other countries not just looking for an oil grab make that choice.
Written on the walls at the house of sorrow
You can find the names of those who burned
Greater yet, the pain in little drawings
I could not remain in that room
long story short:
*NATO (Europe's army alliance) want Ukraine to join the club
*Russia (Ukraine's neighbor) will not allow NATO to come any closer to their borders
*Russia preferred to attack Ukraine before they joined NATO
Really loving how you skipped over the post which was directed at you and went to the one which wasn’t.
I did no such thing. That was a general statement not directed at you. Again, as long as we’ve both been on this forum, it shouldn’t escape you that if I have something I want to say to you, I will say it to you outright.
-You keep calling me a Russian sympathizer, stop. I was sick of you not getting the point of my nuclear post. You took issue with me stating that with the LATEST attack, Putin wasn't attempting to start a Nuclear war. I don't know what you were posting about.
Also not sure why I need to educate you that the Taliban emerged from the chaos the US created.
"The mujahedeen waged a guerrilla-style war against Soviet forces for several years, until exhausting the invaders militarily and politically. That and international pressure brought the Soviet Union to the negotiating table.
After the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan in 1989, chaos reigned. Within three years, the new government collapsed and the old mujahedeen commanders turned into warlords – with different factions in different regions, increasingly turning on one another.
Amid this chaos, one former Islamist mujahedeen commander, Mullah Mohammad Omar, looked to Pakistan – where a generation of young Afghans had grown up in refugee camps, going to various madrassas where they were trained in a brand of strict Islamic ideology, known as Deobandi.
From these camps he drew support for what became the Taliban – “taliban” means students. The bulk of Taliban members are not from the mujahedeen; they are the next generation – and they actually ended up fighting the mujahedeen." leaving the last line in because that is still what I meant.
https://theconversation.com/the-hist...en-next-166630
-I am also on vacation without a mouse making it hard to make these post look readable without thowing my laptop across the wall, so that is the main reason I didn't respond directly.
Welcome to the way of the world. The Soviet Union/Russia, China, Germany, Libya, Greece, France, et. al. did this also. But we’re not talking arming a ragtag band of peasants here, we’re talking about weapons going to the bona fide Ukrainian military.
-not really, this is a regime less then 10 years old
You mean the agreement by which Ukraine returned all strategic nuclear weapons to Russian control in exchange for a promise of noninterference from Russia? If not, which one(s) are you talking about?
-no I am talking about how we promised not to expand NATO east and we have been doing that since Germany joined in 55. How everyone from Kissinger to Chomsky warned that this would happen. Would you like those links to read?
Just call it like it is - a cop out. What makes you think they aren’t? The response to the invasion isn’t just happening among NATO countries - which is a council of the heads of government of all involved - but also by countries which aren’t members. Countries not even in Europe have condemned the invasion (with a couple outliers, such as Cuba and Venezuela). Nothing to say about that, though?
-I am condemning the invasion too. You know what is a cop out? What a hypocrite the US is on this issue. You say you are further to the left then me... please show me where because it sounds like you are pretty ok with imperialism in the name of democracy...
If you never knew me, that'd probably be cheaper
If you really knew me, you would know I don't need ya- Saweetie
I started a new threat to provide support (personal or work-related) for Ukrainian and Russian models during war:
https://www.stripperweb.com/forum/sh...els-during-war



Ukraine is in danger because WE, the corrupt people and govermnents of NATO and the US told Ukraine if they gave up their nukes in 1996 (international treaty saying we would protect them) then all would be fine.
News flash: it's not fine and America and its allies trashed another promise.
CALL YOUR REPRESENTATIVES NOW AND DEMAND THEY STAND WITH AND DEFEND UKRAINE.



ukraine is now part of EU and we still won't defend them? shameful





Well back when this happened I don't think that anyone was comfortable with a fledging independent state coming out of the gate as a major nuclear power. There was a lot of chaos back then in those former Soviet states and a lot of weaponry that was left behind ultimately landed in the hands of warlords and guerilla groups spread all over the world. Also Russia was simply not going to tolerate a potentially adversarial nuclear power on its doorstep.
Also, to be specific about our treaty obligation, the Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances does not actually obligate us to provide aid unless there is a nuclear attack. It merely states that each signatory will respect the Ukraine's independence and sovereignty. While Russia has clearly been in violation of this treaty since 2014, we are not strictly speaking in violation by failing to act against a conventional attack.
But with all of that said, I obviously agree that we need to stand with and defend Ukraine, for many other reasons.





Information update: Russia is now recruiting Syrian soldiers to fight in the Ukraine. Apparently they have urban combat experience and training that the Russian soldiers lack. Just wonderful. Let's just hope that they don't bring their chemical weapons in with them.
I won't post any more information updates about civilian casualties as it is constant now. They are indiscriminately targeting civilian areas and won't even honr human evacuation corridors. They just killed a bunch more in overnight shelling. Maybe Putin is hoping that the world eventually gets numb to it - IDK.





Using the quote tag would be really helpful
Bullshit. I’m not even gonna justify this claim of yours beyond that.
You were making a point?I was sick of you not getting the point of my nuclear post. You took issue with me stating that with the LATEST attack, Putin wasn't attempting to start a Nuclear war. I don't know what you were posting about.
Apparently you don’t know, either. I pointed out that the plants were at risk. Never did I say Putin wanted it to go nuclear, but they have been careless (hence there was a fire at one) and I listed instances where design flaws were revealed after the fact. I still find it concerning that there are nuclear power plants in the middle of this. Putin, in spite of being at the head of this whole thing, isn’t the one spotting artillery fire, aiming cannons, etc., and the Russians have been a bit haphazard about it.
This is a good question, though a better one would be what is it that makes you think you’re educating anyone? I can offer a couple guesses? You can’t accept that I have a lot more studies in this than you realize? Your definition of education is as flawed as other definitions you’ve presented?Also not sure why I need to educate you that the Taliban emerged from the chaos the US created.
Your last sentence is an outright lie. Let’s look at what it says."The mujahedeen waged a guerrilla-style war against Soviet forces for several years, until exhausting the invaders militarily and politically. That and international pressure brought the Soviet Union to the negotiating table.
After the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan in 1989, chaos reigned. Within three years, the new government collapsed and the old mujahedeen commanders turned into warlords – with different factions in different regions, increasingly turning on one another.
Amid this chaos, one former Islamist mujahedeen commander, Mullah Mohammad Omar, looked to Pakistan – where a generation of young Afghans had grown up in refugee camps, going to various madrassas where they were trained in a brand of strict Islamic ideology, known as Deobandi.
From these camps he drew support for what became the Taliban – “taliban” means students. The bulk of Taliban members are not from the mujahedeen; they are the next generation – and they actually ended up fighting the mujahedeen." leaving the last line in because that is still what I meant
versus what you saidThe bulk of Taliban members are not from mujahadeen; they are the next generation
Oh, wait… we can’t because you edited the part out of your post where you quite literally said “The Taliban are the mujahadeen”. That is 100% NOT what you meant, and even with your cover up, I do remember what you said. Maybe I should’ve followed your example and not quote tagged it.
It’s really sad that you think five minutes of Google is going to make an adequate argument here. First, “the US created”. That’s a very woke point of view, but a very flawed and shortsighted one. Let’s see what your article ignores…
1: the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in 1979.
2: this origins of the mujahadeen and what would become the Taliban alike existed well before 1979, and the seeds were sewn during the Mughal empire, and solidified further during the British conquest and Soviet invasion.
3: the US and USSR weren’t the only players. Pakistan also supported the mujahadeen during the Soviet invasion and occupation, even directly flying sorties against the Soviets.
4: The organization known as the Taliban had Pakistani intelligence at the helm. After the mujahadeen warlords left in power following the Soviet withdrawal ceased taking directives from the Pakistanis, the Taliban was formed to overthrow them and install a government more friendly to Pakistan.
5: The civil war in Afghanistan was a proxy war, with Russia supporting the Northern Alliance and the Taliban being supported by Pakistan and China (via Pakistan).
Would you like a recommended reading list? Books aren’t as convenient as YouTube or Google, I know, but these were authored by people whose credentials and credibility are well established. Shit, I’ll go one better - I’ll give them to you if you want. I don’t expect I’ll be reading them again, and I need to clear out some space. Then you can actually educate yourself before trying to educate others (least of all, those much more well read on a subject than you are).
Anyhow, while the US certainly would not be absolved, you have to do some serious cherry picking here to ignore the involvement of other countries (including the one which actually invaded it) and the fact that this is all seated in something which runs much deeper than the 20th Century.
And everything I’ve posted on this thread has been either on an iPhone or iPad with neither a mouse nor a stylus. Guess we have different perspectives on what makes for a good excuse?I am also on vacation without a mouse making it hard to make these post look readable without thowing my laptop across the wall, so that is the main reason I didn't respond directly.
Also, what I was pointing out wasn’t that you didn’t answer me directly (which you did, you just didn’t use the quote tags), it was that the post you skipped over a post I directed at you and went to a post which wasn’t, and which was just a general statement about what I’ve noticed from people who have self identified as Marxist-Leninist (so your ‘get with the times comment should be directed at them if anyone). Is there a way I can explain this that you’ll comprehend it, because I keep having to repeat this?
Yes, really. The Ukrainian military (which is more than 10 years old) is the armed forces of a sovereign state with worldwide recognition, nor was the Ukrainian military simply built from scratch, as its origins are in the Soviet armed forces. Your logic seems to be falling a bit short here.-not really, this is a regime less then 10 years old
No such promise or agreement was ever made. The Russians have argued that comments made by various Western leaders were to that effect, but there is nothing binding at all.no I am talking about how we promised not to expand NATO east and we have been doing that since Germany joined in 55.
If you had something worthwhile, I feel like you would’ve posted it, as you did your link where you thought you were “educating” me about the Taliban. Second, NATO is a scapegoat. Why weren’t Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, or Poland attacked? What makes Ukraine so different?How everyone from Kissinger to Chomsky warned that this would happen. Would you like those links to read?
It’s not NATO which the Russian regime feels threatened by. With over 6,000 nuclear warheads in their possession, Russia isn’t being invaded. It’s the EU. You won’t pick up on this making “on the fly” arguments as you browse through Wikipedia.
For years, Russians were more or less told that Ukrainians were simply Russians of a different seasoning, and Ukrainians for the most part accepted the notion. Not to mention Ukrainian Parliament shelved all notions to join NATO in 2010, and instead opted for a policy of nonalignment, which remained in place until after the annexation of Crimea. What they didn’t stop pursuing was integration with Europe and the Eurozone. So, let’s say Ukraine joins the EU, and they prosper. What happens when everyday Russians see this and start to ask the question of, “if we’re Russians, and they’re Russians for all practical purposes as we’ve been told, why don’t we have it like they do?”. What implication would that have for Putin, the various oligarchs, and his cabinet as a whole?
NATO isn’t invading Russia. Putin knows this. Russia, the US, UK, France… if you’re going to try to invade them, you’re going to absorb a nuclear strike - several, actually. They are infinitely more afraid of an Orange Revolution (or whatever color they would choose). They’re infinitely more afraid of that than they are of NATO. Russia can’t match any growth and prosperity which Ukraine would see joining the Eurozone - their oligarchs are far too busy plundering the country (we have a not too dissimilar problem here), so what’s their recourse? Russians don’t feel any particularly affinity with Estonians, Latvians, Czechs, Poles, etc. But Ukrainians? Much different story.
In a pretty halfassed, ‘playing devil’s advocate’ sort of way.I am condemning the invasion too.
Yes, caring enough to understand the facts of the matter even if they don’t support the point of view I’d like them to is totally being okay with imperialism. Way to use the whataboutism argument. Way to “condemn” an imperialist invasion.You know what is a cop out? What a hypocrite the US is on this issue. You say you are further to the left then me... please show me where because it sounds like you are pretty ok with imperialism in the name of democracy...
As for showing it? Maybe you should ask the others who I’ve taken into my home. The one who was thrown out and disowned by her family after they found out she had an abortion (she’s in the Navy now), the one who ran away from an abusive husband at 19, the one who was discarded by her family after she came out as a lesbian, the Amish runaway who had no other lifeline, the girl who was in the foster and group care system until she was 18, then was more or less told she was on her own. And while we all contribute to food and upkeep, perhaps my refusal to charge them rent because I have to means to pay my mortgage without taking it out on them, allowing them to retain their money for their own needs. While it wasn’t mere politics which led to it and I’m not subscribing to any Socialist channels on YouTube (which I don’t use YT much anyhow), I think I can at least use that to demonstrate where my philosophies and values lie, as well as my willingness to actually put it into action. I know it’s not changing the world, and I don’t even know if I’m doing it right, but I’m doing what I can here.
Last edited by AChildOfBoredom; 03-08-2022 at 01:08 AM.
Written on the walls at the house of sorrow
You can find the names of those who burned
Greater yet, the pain in little drawings
I could not remain in that room





Beijing will pay if it helps Russia evade sanctions, US State Department official warns
https://www.scmp.com/news/china/arti...ate-department





Ukraine is begging for planes that are just sitting in Poland and which its pilots are already trained to fly, but we just won't let them have the planes.
https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/08/polit...sis/index.html
Now the White House has been making some passive aggressive comments about this being Poland's decision, but nobody believes that. Poland is using a "drawing NATO into the war" excuse but who really speaks for NATO if not the U.S.? It's a pass the buck shell game where everyone is stalling, no doubt until the issue becomes moot.
Western leaders have been shamed by President Zelensky, who has been speaking directly to the world via social and other media, along with never-ending images of the slaughter. In one newly posted video, President Zelensky made the following statement:
"Some powerful people have decided to give up on Ukraine. But we will not allow that," Zelensky said in a passionate Facebook address, calling on world leaders to supply "lifesaving" military aviation and anti-rocket systems.
"(The) fault is with the occupants (Russians) but the responsibility is with those who for the last 13 days, somewhere out there, on the West, somewhere in their offices, can't approve an obviously necessary decision. Those who still haven't secured Ukrainian skies from the Russian killers, who hasn't protected our cities from air bombings and rockets, when they actually can."
One day we are going to look back upon all of this as the greatest human tragedy of our modern era. And when that day comes, history is going to paint a very unflattering portrait of our apathy and cowardice in the face of the slaughter of women and children and the downfall of a free democratic nation.
I understand your passion and share your outrage at Putin's crimes. I favor giving Ukraine the weapons to fight their own battles. We should NOT be directly confronting Russia militarily as we would be doing with a "No Fly Zone ". I am all in favor of assisting them and letting them set up their own air defense.
Some of these conflicts go back centuries. Stalin starved millions of Ukrainians. Many Ukrainians greeted the invading German Army as liberators and collaborated. Including helping to round up and execute Jews and Roma ( Gypsies ). After the Great Patriotic War Stalin deported millions of Poles , Ukrainians , Tatars and other groups replacing them with ethnic Russians. I am NOT trying to excuse or explain away anything that is happening now. I AM trying to sound cautionary notes that we ought to have learned in places like Vietnam , Iraq and the Balkans. That we better know and understand the history and have updated scorecards .
What you are calling "cowardice" looks more like caution and care to me and lots of Biden detractors both in and out of Congress. While we are pleased at the lousy performance of the Russian Army it still remains part of a military that has something like 6,000 nuclear weapons.
Btw, Biden is supposedly announcing today an embargo on Russian oil and gas. FINALLY !





I'm going to run with "cowardice" on this one. I can understand not wishing direct confrontation, but there is no reasonable excuse for us not to give them a fighting chance by letting them have those Soviet-era MIGs so that they can defend themselves. Those planes weren't built by us and would not be piloted by us. I also fully support giving them more missile defense systems, which, as the description states, are fully defensive.
If the Ukraine cannot contest the skies then this war has only one foregone conclusion. The only variables are how many civilians (including children) are slaughtered and how long it takes for Russia to bomb these cities into rubble and leave the defense forces with nowhere to hide. If we let the absurdly unlikely threat of Russian nukes freeze us while Russia slaughters countless Ukrainians, what's to stop them from eventually moving on other former Soviet states, including those in NATO?
This is not Putin's first civilian slaughter rodeo. He did it in Georgia and in Chechnya, where in both instances he followed the same playbook. He reduced cities to rubble without concern about killing thousands of civilians. The difference was that these conflicts were far removed from our eyes.
At some point we must show Putin that we will not tolerate this continued aggression against neighboring states or else we might as well invite him into Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia right now.
Hmmmm. I am literally biting my tongue and having myself tied to a chair to resist laying into a certain feckless and none too smart (or wise) person in a position of power and authority. I don't want to be accused of personal attacks masquerading as policy differences or vice versa. So I get you and what you are saying. Isn't it ironic that the same talking heads who ridiculed Romney for identifying Russia as our main adversary back in 2012 ; and who made fun of Trump for saying we would have $7 a gallon gas if Biden were elected haven't said anything close to : "They were right and we were wrong". ? But that would be too political.
Putin will do whatever he thinks is in his interest and that he can get away with.





Russia wasn't our main adversary in 2012 and the price of gas isn't anywhere near $7 a gallon. The avg. price is $4.17. The only way gas would be any cheaper than it is now, is if our government chose not to do anything about Russia's invasion of Ukraine. I'd rather pay more for gas.





In a new twist, Poland just announced that it will be providing its MIGs to the U.S. to distribute as it sees fit. A snippet below from the WSJ article:
"The Polish government on Tuesday said the planes “are ready to deploy—immediately and free of charge.” The aircraft would be flown to the American Ramstein air base in Germany, where they would be at the disposal of the U.S., Poland’s foreign ministry said in a statement."
The U.S. had been claiming all along that it was a Polish decision and then, when that ridiculous claim rang false, started a stalling song and dance about having to figure out the logistical challenges of replacing those planes for Poland. It seems that Poland was tired of being blamed so instead found a way to pass the buck back to the U.S.
But even more from a Polish diplomat involved in this transfer:
“We wanted the certainty that in six months or two years everyone will be comfortable that this was a NATO idea, a Western idea...”
“...We can act on behalf of NATO, but we need support in doing so. And not every Western country feels safe or comfortable with that. What we would really like to avoid is providing jets to Ukraine and then being left alone because it was ‘our call.’”
Reading between the lines, it sounds like Poland wanted to provide these jets all along, but was afraid that its NATO Allies would use this as an excuse down the road to ditch their treaty obligations if Russia attacked. Given everything I've seen from NATO's Western leaders so far I don't blame Poland for being concerned.
Let's see what excuse this Administration comes up with now if they choose to withhold these fighters.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/poland-...vecoverage_web




I wonder how high gas prices are going to get. I'm guessing it won't be long before the cost of food and other goods start increasing too.
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