Russian invasion of Ukraine

[David]

Hard to say at the moment whether this is all sabre-rattling, but Russia has been steadily moving military forces to its Ukrainian border over recent weeks, while the US and allies are themselves sending huge weapons shipments to Ukraine. Hopefully a peaceful diplomatic solution can be found and this doesn't turn into a full-blown war.

This is a pretty good explainer, for people trying to work out WTF is going on:

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/1/25/five-things-to-know-about-russia-ukraine-tensions

[think positive]

Die hard 77?

Scary shit

[roar]

Grossly incompetent (criminal?) US foreign policy causing political problems, yet again.

[pietillidie]

^Well, no one is going to disagree with that broadly and historically, but let's not play violins for the petrothug and his fossil fuels economy. He needs to blackmail the planet because he refuses to reform the economy, rewarding grifters and cons with sleazy backroom contracts rather than fostering competitive and productive business. Think of all that wasted science and technology in a country with so many smarts. Must get his economic policy from the Libs

[Dave The Man]

Guess just send someone over with Covid instead of Shooting with Guns

[David]

Even if one were in favour of biological warfare, there's hardly a country in the world (some Pacific islands aside) where COVID hasn't already been rampant over these past two years. Ukraine and Russia have already been devastated by it, on a much greater scale than we have here.

[#26]

This exchange between the spokesperson and the reporter is gold.

"AP reporter confronts Biden spokesperson over Russia allegations"

https://www.axios.com/russia-ukraine-ned-price-b5f16863-d495-46c1-ba3b-6bb43193fce6.html

[David]

I saw that a few days ago. Amazing how American public officials see themselves. Why do they think anyone would trust anything an American administration or intelligence agency says about stuff like this?

The video's also a great example in how to do proper journalism, by the way. It's not about taking sides or seeking to advance one narrative over another; it's about grilling the people in charge and trying to get proper answers from them. Something that's been lost in the US media's shift towards being a partisan cheerleader for one or the other side of politics (a loss that is, unfortunately, evident both in some of Price's responses and much of the discussion of this exchange that I've seen on social media – i.e. you're either with the Biden administration and treating what they say as gospel or you're doing the work of the Russians/Republicans).

[David]

On another note, the sabre-rattling from the US/UK (and their compliant journalists) continues:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/feb/08/emmanuel-macron-remark-russia-set-alarm-bell-ringing-ukraine-crisis-talk-vladimir-putin

[think positive]

I agree, I cannot believe this is happening, when will they learn? Greed, makes men do bad things!

[#26]

[pietillidie]

^And the penalty for worse information is worse decisions, and worse decisions mean worse outcomes, and worse outcomes mean a death loop of extremism, especially in a country devoted to a rural evangelicalism from another century.

When vast tracts of a country have the emotional maturity, world knowledge and belief systems of children, you can't see things ending well.

Very easy pickings for Putin, of course.

[pietillidie]

Does Ukraine get any say at all in this? The media is dominated by the US and Russia, and people lining up for or against those two powers as their politics dictates.

[pietillidie]

No one seems to know what the probability of invasion is, with uncertainty part of Putin's usual blackmail kit. If I have understood correctly, most in Eastern Ukraine don't hold great affection for Russia, in contrast to Crimea. Is this right or have I been misinformed??

[roar]

^^ Pretty simple really: Russians in Ukraine are generally for Putin/Russia; Ukranians are against Russia taking any more of their territory.