[vtsnowedin]

I think the battle cry for November is" You can fix this city. Vote Republican in every race"

I suppose that if you are delusional enough to believe that American cities can be fixed relatively easily, and that they can be fixed by voting, and that Republicans are capable of fixing anything, you might as well believe all three impossible things.

I never said it would be easy.
Voting in a Republican majority in both house, Senate ,Governor, Mayor and board of alderman (or whatever NY city calls them ) would be a necessary first step.
Then they could rescind the stupid no bail law and catch and release policies and start putting the worst 2000 criminals or so behind bars. And yes that means building and staffing adequate prison facilities to hold them.
At the same time they will have to open and fill facilities for the mentally disabled and get them off the streets and away from illegal drugs and unable to prey on innocent citizens just walking down the street.
So it is all possible but the first step is the vote.

[Plantagenet]

.... delusional enough to believe that American cities can be fixed relatively easily, and that they can be fixed by voting, and that Republicans are capable of fixing anything, you might as well believe all three impossible things.

Its even more delusional to think that mindless party line voting for the Ds who will then continue the same policies that screwed things up in the cities in the first place is somehow going to fix things.

The whole reason we have a two party system is so people can vote for a different party to protest the incompetence of the people in power and to try to get change.

IMHO Just continuing to vote for the same old people who have already shown how incompetent they are by screwing things up is pointless and even self-destructive.


The Ds have clearly screwed things up in the cities.....why not let the Rs try now?

Cheers!

[vtsnowedin]

.... delusional enough to believe that American cities can be fixed relatively easily, and that they can be fixed by voting, and that Republicans are capable of fixing anything, you might as well believe all three impossible things.

Its even more delusional to think that mindless party line voting for the Ds who will then continue the same policies that screwed things up in the cities in the first place is somehow going to fix things.

The whole reason we have a two party system is so people can vote for a different party to protest the incompetence of the people in power and to try to get change.

IMHO Just continuing to vote for the same old people who have already shown how incompetent they are by screwing things up is pointless and even self-destructive.


The Ds have clearly screwed things up in the cities.....why not let the Rs try now?

Cheers!

You have messed that up having my quote after your comment.
I'll leave it up to you to fix it or not.

[Plantagenet]

You have messed that up having my quote after your comment.
I'll leave it up to you to fix it or not.

Sorry snowie.

I don't usually think of of quoting you as "messing that up" but in this case you are right.

I noticed your quote fragment was on the end right after I made my post, and I immediately tried twice to delete your quote fragment .... but the site wouldn't do it.

The first time I went into edit mode and erased your quote and re-submitted and......the site just reposted my original post with your errant bit of quote dangling off the end.

So I tried a second time by going into edit mode again, erasing your quote, looking at it using "preview" and making sure your quote fragment was gone, and then re-submitting the edited post from there......and unfortunately the site once again just ignored my two attempts to edit to remove your errant quote fragment and reposted the original post with your quote fragment still dangling off the end.

I've noticed before this website won't always correct a post using the edit mode. This is another example of that.

You have my deepest apologies if I have offended you or misrepresented your thoughts by my accidental inclusion of a short quote fragment from your earlier post.


As they say in Japan.....SHIMATA!!!!....I have erred.

Cheers!

[vtsnowedin]

You have messed that up having my quote after your comment.
I'll leave it up to you to fix it or not.

Sorry snowie.


Cheers!

Not a problem. No offense taken and I join you in having problems dealing with the mechanics of this site.
I am a bit surprised that the people in charge here have not been able to sort out these problems after so much time.

[Newfie]

Not many more people involved.

Just be glad we don’t go the way of Malthusia.

[AdamB]

Not many more people involved.

Just be glad we don’t go the way of Malthusia.

I miss "General Dooms" site. That was Shannymara's site if memory serves?

[Plantagenet]

Not many more people involved.

Just be glad we don’t go the way of Malthusia.

My thanks to the small group of folks who keep this site going.

Its kind of marvelous to still be discussing the end of the world and other interesting topics with this small, mostly congenial group.

Hopefully we'll all be still chatting and laughing about things together in 2030 when Hunter Biden is President and global oil production has finally peaked and the polar ice has melted away and the seas are flooding into Manhattan and and Minneapolis is being looted for the dozenth times and Putin is preparing his invasion force to go into Paris.



cheers!

[vtsnowedin]

By 2030 Putin will be just 77 and will probably invading Alaska to rejoin it to Mother Russia.

[Plantagenet]

By 2030 Putin will be just 77 and will probably invading Alaska to rejoin it to Mother Russia.

After Putin reconquers Ukraine, Georgia, Poland, Moldavia, Bulgaria, Romania and all the STAN countries in his effort to recreate the Soviet Union, I wouldn't put it past him to
invade Alaska to try to recreate the Czar's old empire.

And when the best the US can come up with is trot out senile old Joe Biden and soulless Kamala Harris, why shouldn't Putin take action? Biden has already shown himself to be utterly incompetent......Putin couldn't help but notice how Biden botched things in Afghanistan. Putin has taken Biden's measure and he knows he can steamroll over Biden in Ukraine....just like he steamrolled over Obama when he invaded Crimea.


Putin will go down in Russian history as Putin the GREAT if he succeeds in his plan to reconquer all the lost parts of the Russian empire.

Cheers!

[vtsnowedin]

We are temporarily being led by senile incompetents. I expect we will get over that in a few years. After that Putin and his successors will have a hard time of it and might lose a lot of territory or at least the control of it to American corporations if not the USA nation as a whole. Our industrial and technological superiority will grind them to dust if they choose to challenge us.
Sad really as if they should chose to be a good neighbor in the community of nations we and every one else would let them be and enjoy the vodka imports.

[AgentR11]

After Putin reconquers Ukraine, Georgia, Poland, Moldavia, Bulgaria, Romania and all the STAN countries in his effort to recreate the Soviet Union, I wouldn't put it past him to invade Alaska to try to recreate the Czar's old empire.

I think this is a wrong take on Putin's objectives, Russia has plenty of territory, what it needs is more warm bodies that speak Russian. And that's exactly what he's gained in this last couple of weeks. I'm a little surprised that he didn't also have the men also come to Rostov, but I guess its easier to get a man to give up his house, if his home has already moved somewhere else.

I mean, honestly, granting the presumption of truth to what either side babbles is just too much; look at their actions, not their words. Putin's actions are clear as day. He's already gotten everything materially worthwhile from E. Ukraine, now he's getting the demographically valuable kids and women.

So my hunch... No invasion of Kiev, yet continuous border surges to sap Ukraine of any semblance of normalcy it might have. More open invites and encouragement to have the working age, Russian speaking men, join their families now in Russia. They already have Russian passports, so why linger once wife and kids have safely fled the zone.

Of course, I could be wrong, I could wake up to a bright flash of light, followed by the knowledge that modern, comfortable living has just come to an end. (Yes, we're far enough away from any potential target that we'd survive for quite some time, but food and meds will come to an end shortly thereafter, and death follows that). Gotta have some doom content, site is gettin' soft.

[Plantagenet]

Putin's actions are clear as day. He's already gotten everything materially worthwhile from E. Ukraine, now he's getting the demographically valuable kids and women.

So my hunch... No invasion of Kiev, yet continuous border surges to sap Ukraine of any semblance of normalcy it might have. More open invites and encouragement to have the working age, Russian speaking men, join their families now in Russia. They already have Russian passports, so why linger once wife and kids have safely fled the zone.

Even simpler....Putin could just take the step of officially incorporating Crimea and eastern Ukraine into Russia. That way he's get the people AND the land too.

He sent in Russian troops to invade Crimea in 2014 back when Obama was president....and then supported the Russian "insurgency" in eastern Ukraine.

It was little noticed in the US press, but the Russian parliament voted a few weeks ago to no longer recognize Ukraine's claims in these areas. A logical next step would be for Russia to do an "ANSCHLUSS" and just announce Crimea and eastern Ukraine are now part of Russia.


IMHO the next step will be a very limited invasion to carve off another bit of Ukraine and connect Crimea to the Russian satraps in eastern Ukraine, followed by official Russian incorporation of all these lands into Russia

We'll have to wait to see what Putin really does here, but whatever it is I have no doubt it will utterly confound and confuse poor senile old Biden, who has to be the worst President in the post WWII era.

Cheers!

[AgentR11]

just announce Crimea and eastern Ukraine are now part of Russia.

Crimea's already a done deal, and has been for some time. We'll see about Donbass I suppose sometimes this year or next. Not really sure what they gain from a degraded sliver of E. Ukraine as a territorial asset. Just doesn't add up, at least to me.

Of course the West will never recognize Crimea as a part of Russia, I just don't think that means much to Putin Incorporated.

[vtsnowedin]

just announce Crimea and eastern Ukraine are now part of Russia.

Crimea's already a done deal, and has been for some time. We'll see about Donbass I suppose sometimes this year or next. Not really sure what they gain from a degraded sliver of E. Ukraine as a territorial asset. Just doesn't add up, at least to me.

Of course the West will never recognize Crimea as a part of Russia, I just don't think that means much to Putin Incorporated.

Yes the Russian to US ambassador made that clear today on 'Face the Nation'.
But I don't think Putin is interested in a thin sliver. More like Kive and every thing East of it all the way down to the Black sea. Then wait a few years for our next weak president and then take the rest of it.

[AgentR11]

I just think that assumed objective is all cost and no value. So far, everything Putin has taken during his reign has brought in value. The nearest UA object of value might be Mykolaiv but that's way far West and South of their current positions. Quite a reach I think. Might as well talk about sacking Lviy if they're going to go that deep.

[Newfie]

But Putins objective could be very different.

MAYBE what he wants to do is drive a wedge into NATO/EU and encourage greater German-Russian alliance.

Biden/Harris are a mess, Boris in trouble. Merkel gone and new Chancellor.

German nukes going down, where will energy come from? USA, Mid-East, or Russia? Which seems the more stable partner. EU has an islamic immigration problem, right wing may look to Putin favorably. If you live in Germany who do your want you energy supplier to be? Who seems more stable?

Germany has been quiet. Maybe all Putin wants to do is shake things up in EU, strengthen the right. Look how the left is fairing in USA.

I think Putin thinks way ahead, works the long game. Maybe that is what he is after here. To weaken trust within the EU and sow discord. Planting seeds.

[Plantagenet]

I think Putin thinks way ahead, works the long game. Maybe that is what he is after here. To weaken trust within the EU and sow discord. Planting seeds.

Exactly right. Putin doesn't have to invade all of Ukraine to win here. All he has to do is keep his troops marching, kill a few Ukrainians here and there and carve off another small piece of Ukraine. Already Germany is splitting away from NATO response on Ukraine. Putin can see he can split NATO into interest groups. Germany already has refused to send weapons to Ukraine, splitting the NATO response. NATO is in trouble when it splits, especially with a weak US president like Biden saying stupid things and making stupid decisions.

I just think that assumed objective is all cost and no value.....

The Russian empire was built piece by piece as the Czars conquered and incoporated lands and countries surrounding mother Russia.

Stalin conquered more countries to the Russia sphere of influence as the Red Army marched to Berlin at the end of WWII.

Then the Soviet Union collapsed.

Now Putin is starting the process over again. He is once again expanding Russian and the Russian sphere of influence.

His name will live forever in the glorious annals of Russian conquerers.

And what will it cost?

History says the cost will be very minimal.

Look at what happened after Putin invaded Crimea in 2014. Minimal sanctions is what happened.

Same thing after his proxies seized eastern Ukraine. More minimal sanctions.

Why should Putin fear seizing more of Ukraine now?

Biden is a frail and weak old man who is so cowardly he has already closed the US embassy in Kiev.

And Putin remembers well that when he started amassing troops Biden said sanctions will be minimal if its just a "minor" incursion.

By saying that Biden gave a clear green light to Putin to do a minor incursion.

biden-Russian-minor-incursion-ukraine-OK


Thats the problem with having a senile old fool like Biden as President....he keeps saying and doing stupid things....unfortunately Biden was always stupid, but now he's senile AND stupid..its a terrible weakness to have when you're dealing with Putin.....I'm sure the White House staff cringes every time Biden starts talking. So they order Biden to run away from reporters and never take questions, but that just makes Biden look even stupider and weaker. SHEESH!!!

Cheers!

[AgentR11]

History says the cost will be very minimal.
Look at what happened after Putin invaded Crimea in 2014. Minimal sanctions is what happened.
Same thing after his proxies seized eastern Ukraine. More minimal sanctions.
Why should Putin fear seizing more of Ukraine now?

I think the whole "fear" thing is way overplayed. There's nothing there for Putin to fear, other than perhaps he realizes he can never just simply retire and live in a comfortable apartment in Moscow. He has to rule till he drops. But sanctions?? lol.

What I'm more focused on is the value proposition. The costs are fairly low, and in some ways work to the advantage of a country like Russia that is both food and fuel positive on its production side. The real question to me is where is the value to be had in any of Ukraine as a target for territorial conquest, and I'm just not seeing it. The strategic value of Crimea of course can't be overstated, its immense, but the rest is kinda meh.

Maybe the cost associated with slicing off chunks of Ukraine bit by bit is simply so low that even at minimal value it makes sense to do.

Something to ponder, is if this is Putin bluff charging like a bear, repeatedly; when do we shrug and start ignoring it and admit there's just minimal interest for a UA conquest on the Russian side.

[Newfie]

It is curious that a week has gone by waiting for the attack. Successful attacks are often swift.

It is curiouser that we claim to know Russian Generals have been given orders to attack. Our intelligence is so good we are privy to battle orders?

Recall the WMD hoax.

France and USA say there will be a summit with Putin, if no attack.

Putin says talk of a summit is premature.

My sense is Putin holds all the cards and is working media to disgrace the West. He is reveling in our incompetence. He won’t invade as long as we are doing his work for him.

Will he invade eventually? Maybe. I lean not. Ukraine now exists at his pleasure, it is now his useful bargaining chip. Why give that up?