sycasey said:

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Cal88 said:

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Russia is not going to stop, they`re winning the war of attrition, and have the upper hand. The sanctions on Russia haven`t worked, they`ve backfired, and there are no more sactions left on NATO`s deck.

The only way this stops is for Ukraine/Zelensky to come to the negotiation table with territorial concessions. The longer he waits, the more concessions he will have to make, and the longer the carnage goes.

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Your enthusiasm for Russia's impending victory is noted.

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Cal88 said:

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sycasey said:

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Cal88 said:

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Russia is not going to stop, they`re winning the war of attrition, and have the upper hand. The sanctions on Russia haven`t worked, they`ve backfired, and there are no more sactions left on NATO`s deck.

The only way this stops is for Ukraine/Zelensky to come to the negotiation table with territorial concessions. The longer he waits, the more concessions he will have to make, and the longer the carnage goes.

---

Your enthusiasm for Russia's impending victory is noted.

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The misguided enthusiasm here is people who want to keep this war going, people like you, out of some misguided notion that Ukraine can defeat Russia. The complex geopolitical situation is reduced to some kind of feel-good embodiment of the Star Wars storyboard with Zelensky as Luke Skywalker and Putin as Palpatine...

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Cal88 said:

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sycasey said:

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Cal88 said:

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Russia is not going to stop, they`re winning the war of attrition, and have the upper hand. The sanctions on Russia haven`t worked, they`ve backfired, and there are no more sactions left on NATO`s deck.

The only way this stops is for Ukraine/Zelensky to come to the negotiation table with territorial concessions. The longer he waits, the more concessions he will have to make, and the longer the carnage goes.

---

Your enthusiasm for Russia's impending victory is noted.

---

The misguided enthusiasm here is people who want to keep this war going, people like you, out of some misguided notion that Ukraine can defeat Russia. The complex geopolitical situation is reduced to some kind of feel-good embodiment of the Star Wars storyboard with Zelensky as Luke Skywalker and Putin as Palpatine...

But there is also a strong undercurrent of shear xenophobia that manifests itself every time there is a designated villain halfway around the world that we have to fight, from yellow peril commies in Vietnam, to muslim arab terrorists and mad dictators in Iraq, on to evil ruskies, and I don`t want any part of that.

Do not confuse that with bloodlust, the type base instinct some have shown when a 29yo journalist was blown up last week.

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Unit2Sucks said:

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Cal88 said:

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Unit2Sucks said:

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LOL, what a joke. A few days, became a few weeks, became a few months became a few years. Just like he is pretending that he was just off by a little bit when he predicted IN JULY 2020 that COVID would end a few weeks later. Now he says he was slightly off on timing but that it's essentially ended because it's less virulent, which both ignores that the main difference is that everyone has been vaccinated and/or infected and that we're still losing 3,000+ Americans per week to COVID.

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I agree with you, the vaccines don't work. And yes, the virus is less virulent, and natural immunity for most people is better than the vaccines'. Always been the case with respiratory viruses.

Countries like Sweden and Denmark with a somewhat more sane and competent leadersip have lifted all covid mandates, but I guess in California and Blue Coastal City, USA, covid will last forever, so you'd better double mask while you're showering, and get a mRNA booster every 3 months, for the rest of your life, or else you're going to kill grandma.

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Yes, yes, we all know that you take whatever Putin wants you to say and you layer some hyperbole on top of that. You are correct about one thing though - time will tell us who is right. And you have just about always been wrong and as of today everything you've said about this war continues to be wrong. Maybe some day that will change. Or maybe Putin will decide he can no longer afford to wage this stupid unprovoked war.

Either way we can count on you to dissemble Kremlin propaganda, cherry-pick sources and continue to attempt to gaslight us while entirely ignoring any possible criticism of Putin or Russia.

We know who you are and what you are doing here. So why do you still bother? At least Baghdad Bob was paid to do it for Saddam.

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Cal88 said:

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Unit2Sucks said:

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Cal88 said:

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Unit2Sucks said:

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LOL, what a joke. A few days, became a few weeks, became a few months became a few years. Just like he is pretending that he was just off by a little bit when he predicted IN JULY 2020 that COVID would end a few weeks later. Now he says he was slightly off on timing but that it's essentially ended because it's less virulent, which both ignores that the main difference is that everyone has been vaccinated and/or infected and that we're still losing 3,000+ Americans per week to COVID.

---

I agree with you, the vaccines don't work. And yes, the virus is less virulent, and natural immunity for most people is better than the vaccines'. Always been the case with respiratory viruses.

Countries like Sweden and Denmark with a somewhat more sane and competent leadersip have lifted all covid mandates, but I guess in California and Blue Coastal City, USA, covid will last forever, so you'd better double mask while you're showering, and get a mRNA booster every 3 months, for the rest of your life, or else you're going to kill grandma.

---

Yes, yes, we all know that you take whatever Putin wants you to say and you layer some hyperbole on top of that. You are correct about one thing though - time will tell us who is right. And you have just about always been wrong and as of today everything you've said about this war continues to be wrong. Maybe some day that will change. Or maybe Putin will decide he can no longer afford to wage this stupid unprovoked war.

Either way we can count on you to dissemble Kremlin propaganda, cherry-pick sources and continue to attempt to gaslight us while entirely ignoring any possible criticism of Putin or Russia.

We know who you are and what you are doing here. So why do you still bother? At least Baghdad Bob was paid to do it for Saddam.

---

Were you the guy whose grandma was pelted with tomatoes by Ruskies 110 years ago? And if so I can understand how you have been Russiagated to the bone. Just don't assume that everyone here has some kind of ancestral vendetta against Russia.

I have a lot more respect for Baghdad Bob than for Zelensky's bunch. The Iraqis were accused of crimes they did not commit by a hegemon drunk with vengance, and their country was completely destroyed as a result, millions bombed to bits.

Iraq did everything it could to avoid the war, but the neocons wanted their scalp, they could not be placated. Zelensky, Arestovich and the Bandera bunch on the other hand wanted to fight Russia, could have easily avoided this war (and can still stop it), and they are willing to do it to the last Ukrainian. These guys are just as big liars as Baghdad Bob ever was, but they are much better at it, having the whole weight of the war propaganda apparatus on their side.

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Unit2Sucks said:

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Cal88 said:

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The misguided enthusiasm here is people who want to keep this war going, people like you, out of some misguided notion that Ukraine can defeat Russia. The complex geopolitical situation is reduced to some kind of feel-good embodiment of the Star Wars storyboard with Zelensky as Luke Skywalker and Putin as Palpatine...

But there is also a strong undercurrent of shear xenophobia that manifests itself every time there is a designated villain halfway around the world that we have to fight, from yellow peril commies in Vietnam, to muslim arab terrorists and mad dictators in Iraq, on to evil ruskies, and I don`t want any part of that.

Do not confuse that with bloodlust, the type base instinct some have shown when a 29yo journalist was blown up last week.

---

Irony thy name is Putin88. Kremlin propaganda has a lot of the same tone-deaf feel. You paint Zelensky and Ukraine as cartoon villains and ignore any and all wrongdoing by Putin/Kremlin.

Literally yesterday you cited the Pandora Papers for the proposition that Zelensky and corrupt Ukrainian oligarchs have some clandestine financial dealings while SIMULTANEOUSLY claiming that Putin has "reined in" the oligarchs. The Pandora Papers are most notable for revealing just how corrupt Putin and Russia are. You are remarkably disingenuous.

This has nothing to do with the Russian people and everything to do with their leadership, starting with Putin. And you will continue to pearl-clutch and pretend to be for peace while continuing to blame the victim for resisting an unprovoked attack. You are shameless and your condescension juxtaposed with your slavish devotion to the Kremlin narrative is lost on no one, yet you continue to think you're fooling anyone.

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Cal88 said:

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Zelensky, Arestovich and the Bandera bunch on the other hand wanted to fight Russia, could have easily avoided this war (and can still stop it)

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Unit2Sucks said:

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Cal88 said:

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Were you the guy whose grandma was pelted with tomatoes by Ruskies 110 years ago? And if so I can understand how you have been Russiagated to the bone. Just don't assume that everyone here has some kind of ancestral vendetta against Russia.

I have a lot more respect for Baghdad Bob than for Zelensky's bunch. The Iraqis were accused of crimes they did not commit by a hegemon drunk with vengance, and their country was completely destroyed as a result, millions bombed to bits.

Iraq did everything it could to avoid the war, but the neocons wanted their scalp, they could not be placated. Zelensky, Arestovich and the Bandera bunch on the other hand wanted to fight Russia, could have easily avoided this war (and can still stop it), and they are willing to do it to the last Ukrainian. These guys are just as big liars as Baghdad Bob ever was, but they are much better at it, having the whole weight of the war propaganda apparatus on their side.

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Not even close. My grandmother lived on the border of Poland and Ukraine when she was pelted by tomatoes. Anti-semitism was everywhere in the world at that time. And obviously still far too prevalent now. We're even seeing it exploited as a fake excuse to justify an unprovoked war, as you have proven over the last 6 months.

I don't think anyone here has an ancestral vendetta, but it might explain why you are such an absolute shill for Putin and the Kremlin and why you continue to paint Zelensky as a cartoon villain while mysteriously remaining silent on the corrupt kleptocracy that is currently invading Zelensky's nation.

In case you want to claim, as anti-semites do, that I have some sort of dual loyalty, I also have a grandfather whose family fled Russia in the late 1800's or early 1900's. In case anyone is wondering - they too fled anti-semitic persecution. If I had a vendetta ancestral vendetta against every country that did my people wrong, I would live my life like Inigo Montoya in the Princess Bride.

There's only one person here who is constantly apologizing for a regime that attacked a sovereign nation and has committed untold war crimes - whether it's blowing up civilian bus and train stations or a hospital full of pregnant women (and no, don't bother telling us the Kremlin propaganda version - we know you have it at the ready and that you are full of it).

Everyone now sees what dajo9 pointed out years ago. You are just telling us what Putin wants us to hear.

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sycasey said:

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Cal88 said:

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Zelensky, Arestovich and the Bandera bunch on the other hand wanted to fight Russia, could have easily avoided this war (and can still stop it)

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But to be clear, the way they can avoid this war is by giving Russia a large portion of their country. Right?

Iraq probably could have avoided war too if they'd just given the USA everything we wanted. Why not blame them for our invasion as well?

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Cal88 said:

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sycasey said:

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Cal88 said:

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Zelensky, Arestovich and the Bandera bunch on the other hand wanted to fight Russia, could have easily avoided this war (and can still stop it)

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But to be clear, the way they can avoid this war is by giving Russia a large portion of their country. Right?

Iraq probably could have avoided war too if they'd just given the USA everything we wanted. Why not blame them for our invasion as well?

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Minsk II would have preserved Ukraine's borders, minus Crimea, which doesn't want to be in Ukraine, overwhelmingly so. Cultural autonomy for the Donbass, that was not much to ask, same conditions apply in regions like Catalonia, the Basque country, Quebec, Flemish Belgium etc.

The neocons wanted to invade and break up Iraq, they knew that the WMD pretext was just that, there was not much that the Iraqis could do to avoid it.

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golden sloth said:

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Cal88 said:

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sycasey said:

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Cal88 said:

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Zelensky, Arestovich and the Bandera bunch on the other hand wanted to fight Russia, could have easily avoided this war (and can still stop it)

---

But to be clear, the way they can avoid this war is by giving Russia a large portion of their country. Right?

Iraq probably could have avoided war too if they'd just given the USA everything we wanted. Why not blame them for our invasion as well?

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Minsk II would have preserved Ukraine's borders, minus Crimea, which doesn't want to be in Ukraine, overwhelmingly so. Cultural autonomy for the Donbass, that was not much to ask, same conditions apply in regions like Catalonia, the Basque country, Quebec, Flemish Belgium etc.

The neocons wanted to invade and break up Iraq, they knew that the WMD pretext was just that, there was not much that the Iraqis could do to avoid it.

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No, Minsk II has nothing to do with this invasion. Russia doesn't believe Ukraine has a right to exist. Putin said so himself at the beginning of the invasion. Russia invaded because they believed it was theirs. A belief not held by the resident population.

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Cal88 said:

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One aspect that I just don't get is how you can have a soft spot for Banderites given your heritage. This is the first time in Europe since WW2 that a regime has so openly and brazenly embraced its 1940s nazi heritage.

Ukraine ceased to be a sovereign nation the moment it went to war with its large Russian minority in 2014, just like Yugoslavia lost its sovereignty when the Serbs started persecuting other ethnic groups in that country, leading it to be invaded and split up into ethnic enclaves by the outside champion of the persecuted minority. This is what is going to happen in Ukraine, it will be split in 2 or 3 parts along ethno-linguistic lines.

You don't have a good grasp of European history and culture, too far removed, and raised on a steady diet of black and white, us vs them nationalism. I don't have that kind of baggage.

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Cal88 said:

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Russia did rein in its oligarchs, Putin purged half of them, and threatened the remainders with jail or worse if they got too involved in politics. Putin also nationalized state assets like oil and gas, which were taken over by gangster-oligarchs in the 90s. He also paid off Russia's huge debt, built up his country's gold and currency reserves, set up a sovereign fund similar to Norway's and invested heavily into productive infrastructure assets.

Russia is still not a panacea, but it is very far from the "****hole with gas" that some idiots still think it is. There are no no-go zones in Russia, the kind you will find in nearly every large American city. It used to be the case in the 90s but not any more.

In the Ukraine their oligarchs are still running the show, owning state assets, gangsters like Kolomoisky who have funded their own private armed militias in order to muscle in on state assets like steel mills and fledgling private banks.

That's why Ukraine is 3 times poorer than Russia (and that was before the war), the poorest, most corrupt nation in Europe. That's also why Putin is very popular in Russia, polling in the 60%-80% range over his 20yr tenure at the top of his country.

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Unit2Sucks said:

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Cal88 said:

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One aspect that I just don't get is how you can have a soft spot for Banderites given your heritage. This is the first time in Europe since WW2 that a regime has so openly and brazenly embraced its 1940s nazi heritage.

Ukraine ceased to be a sovereign nation the moment it went to war with its large Russian minority in 2014, just like Yugoslavia lost its sovereignty when the Serbs started persecuting other ethnic groups in that country, leading it to be invaded and split up into ethnic enclaves by the outside champion of the persecuted minority. This is what is going to happen in Ukraine, it will be split in 2 or 3 parts along ethno-linguistic lines.

You don't have a good grasp of European history and culture, too far removed, and raised on a steady diet of black and white, us vs them nationalism. I don't have that kind of baggage.

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Cal88 said:

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Russia did rein in its oligarchs, Putin purged half of them, and threatened the remainders with jail or worse if they got too involved in politics. Putin also nationalized state assets like oil and gas, which were taken over by gangster-oligarchs in the 90s. He also paid off Russia's huge debt, built up his country's gold and currency reserves, set up a sovereign fund similar to Norway's and invested heavily into productive infrastructure assets.

Russia is still not a panacea, but it is very far from the "****hole with gas" that some idiots still think it is. There are no no-go zones in Russia, the kind you will find in nearly every large American city. It used to be the case in the 90s but not any more.

In the Ukraine their oligarchs are still running the show, owning state assets, gangsters like Kolomoisky who have funded their own private armed militias in order to muscle in on state assets like steel mills and fledgling private banks.

That's why Ukraine is 3 times poorer than Russia (and that was before the war), the poorest, most corrupt nation in Europe. That's also why Putin is very popular in Russia, polling in the 60%-80% range over his 20yr tenure at the top of his country.

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You have a remarkable inability to grasp anything other than Kremlin propaganda. This is just another Gish Gallop of propaganda from Kremlin Bob.

I had a whole post here but honestly what is the point. You don't care to discuss reality and won't ever move off of your propaganda playing field. I feel like responding to you is just giving your credibility when I should be ignoring you like I do other disingenuous bad faith posters.

Good luck to everyone else in dealing with whatever propaganda Putin has coming for us.

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Cal88 said:

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Incidentally, this remarkably good essay on this very subject that came into my feed today, from Caitlin Johnstone:

https://caitlinjohnstone.com/2022/08/31/were-being-trained-to-worry-about-russian-propaganda-while-drowning-in-us-propaganda/

One of the weirdest, most insane things happening today is the way the entire western world is being trained to freak out about "Russian propaganda" which barely exists in the west while ignoring the fact that we are spending every day marinating in billions of dollars worth of US empire propaganda.

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Cal88 said:

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Unit2Sucks said:

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Cal88 said:

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Unit2Sucks said:

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LOL, what a joke. A few days, became a few weeks, became a few months became a few years. Just like he is pretending that he was just off by a little bit when he predicted IN JULY 2020 that COVID would end a few weeks later. Now he says he was slightly off on timing but that it's essentially ended because it's less virulent, which both ignores that the main difference is that everyone has been vaccinated and/or infected and that we're still losing 3,000+ Americans per week to COVID.

---

I agree with you, the vaccines don't work. And yes, the virus is less virulent, and natural immunity for most people is better than the vaccines'. Always been the case with respiratory viruses.

Countries like Sweden and Denmark with a somewhat more sane and competent leadersip have lifted all covid mandates, but I guess in California and Blue Coastal City, USA, covid will last forever, so you'd better double mask while you're showering, and get a mRNA booster every 3 months, for the rest of your life, or else you're going to kill grandma.

---

Yes, yes, we all know that you take whatever Putin wants you to say and you layer some hyperbole on top of that. You are correct about one thing though - time will tell us who is right. And you have just about always been wrong and as of today everything you've said about this war continues to be wrong. Maybe some day that will change. Or maybe Putin will decide he can no longer afford to wage this stupid unprovoked war.

Either way we can count on you to dissemble Kremlin propaganda, cherry-pick sources and continue to attempt to gaslight us while entirely ignoring any possible criticism of Putin or Russia.

We know who you are and what you are doing here. So why do you still bother? At least Baghdad Bob was paid to do it for Saddam.

---

I have a lot more respect for Baghdad Bob than for Zelensky's bunch. The Iraqis were accused of crimes they did not commit by a hegemon drunk with vengance, and their country was completely destroyed as a result, millions bombed to bits.

Iraq did everything it could to avoid the war, but the neocons wanted their scalp, they could not be placated. Zelensky, Arestovich and the Bandera bunch on the other hand wanted to fight Russia, could have easily avoided this war (and can still stop it), and they are willing to do it to the last Ukrainian. These guys are just as big liars as Baghdad Bob ever was, but they are much better at it, having the whole weight of the war propaganda apparatus on their side.

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The chairman of the board of Lukoil, Russia’s biggest privately held oil producer and one of the few Russian companies to criticize the invasion of Ukraine, has died after falling out of a hospital window, Interfax reports https://t.co/wM9r1KAkQn

— max seddon (@maxseddon) September 1, 2022

dajo9 said:

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Putin reining in more oligarchs

The chairman of the board of Lukoil, Russia’s biggest privately held oil producer and one of the few Russian companies to criticize the invasion of Ukraine, has died after falling out of a hospital window, Interfax reports https://t.co/wM9r1KAkQn

— max seddon (@maxseddon) September 1, 2022

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bearister said:

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They didn't even have the common decency to wait for the toxin they injected into him at the hospital kick in?

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DiabloWags said:

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The SPX was +50 this morning until the market reversed badly on news that the Russians shut off Nord Stream.

SPX: Closed down 42 points at 3,924.26

Russia shuts off Nord Stream gas pipeline indefinitely (theweek.com)

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Eastern Oregon Bear said:

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Cal88 said:

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Unit2Sucks said:

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Yes, yes, we all know that you take whatever Putin wants you to say and you layer some hyperbole on top of that. You are correct about one thing though - time will tell us who is right. And you have just about always been wrong and as of today everything you've said about this war continues to be wrong. Maybe some day that will change. Or maybe Putin will decide he can no longer afford to wage this stupid unprovoked war.

Either way we can count on you to dissemble Kremlin propaganda, cherry-pick sources and continue to attempt to gaslight us while entirely ignoring any possible criticism of Putin or Russia.

We know who you are and what you are doing here. So why do you still bother? At least Baghdad Bob was paid to do it for Saddam.

---

I have a lot more respect for Baghdad Bob than for Zelensky's bunch. The Iraqis were accused of crimes they did not commit by a hegemon drunk with vengance, and their country was completely destroyed as a result, millions bombed to bits.

Iraq did everything it could to avoid the war, but the neocons wanted their scalp, they could not be placated. Zelensky, Arestovich and the Bandera bunch on the other hand wanted to fight Russia, could have easily avoided this war (and can still stop it), and they are willing to do it to the last Ukrainian. These guys are just as big liars as Baghdad Bob ever was, but they are much better at it, having the whole weight of the war propaganda apparatus on their side.

---

Maybe Iran shouldn't have invaded Kuwait then. It would have avoided the whole Gulf War fiasco. You handwave Russia's invasion of Ukraine as justified and necessary and now I see you holding Iran blameless for invading Kuwait. I see a pattern here.

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Cal88 said:

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Eastern Oregon Bear said:

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Cal88 said:

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Unit2Sucks said:

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Yes, yes, we all know that you take whatever Putin wants you to say and you layer some hyperbole on top of that. You are correct about one thing though - time will tell us who is right. And you have just about always been wrong and as of today everything you've said about this war continues to be wrong. Maybe some day that will change. Or maybe Putin will decide he can no longer afford to wage this stupid unprovoked war.

Either way we can count on you to dissemble Kremlin propaganda, cherry-pick sources and continue to attempt to gaslight us while entirely ignoring any possible criticism of Putin or Russia.

We know who you are and what you are doing here. So why do you still bother? At least Baghdad Bob was paid to do it for Saddam.

---

I have a lot more respect for Baghdad Bob than for Zelensky's bunch. The Iraqis were accused of crimes they did not commit by a hegemon drunk with vengance, and their country was completely destroyed as a result, millions bombed to bits.

Iraq did everything it could to avoid the war, but the neocons wanted their scalp, they could not be placated. Zelensky, Arestovich and the Bandera bunch on the other hand wanted to fight Russia, could have easily avoided this war (and can still stop it), and they are willing to do it to the last Ukrainian. These guys are just as big liars as Baghdad Bob ever was, but they are much better at it, having the whole weight of the war propaganda apparatus on their side.

---

Maybe Iran shouldn't have invaded Kuwait then. It would have avoided the whole Gulf War fiasco. You handwave Russia's invasion of Ukraine as justified and necessary and now I see you holding Iran blameless for invading Kuwait. I see a pattern here.

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^that's the pattern I am seeing here, summarized in one picture.

Not a whole lot of understanding of basic geopolitics and modern history, in that post above, bordering on complete idiocy. And a post with 7 likes, no less...

I'm not sure why I am wasting my time mentioning Mackinder or Spykman with people who believe that IRAN invaded Koweit.

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Eastern Oregon Bear said:

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Cal88 said:

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Eastern Oregon Bear said:

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Maybe Iran shouldn't have invaded Kuwait then. It would have avoided the whole Gulf War fiasco. You handwave Russia's invasion of Ukraine as justified and necessary and now I see you holding Iran blameless for invading Kuwait. I see a pattern here.

---

^that's the pattern I am seeing here, summarized in one picture.

Not a whole lot of understanding of basic geopolitics and modern history, in that post above, bordering on complete idiocy. And a post with 7 likes, no less...

I'm not sure why I am wasting my time mentioning Mackinder or Spykman with people who believe that IRAN invaded Koweit.

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Well, if all you have is a criticism of my typing Iran instead of Iraq, I guess I'll call it a day and move on.

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Cal88 said:

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Eastern Oregon Bear said:

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Cal88 said:

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Eastern Oregon Bear said:

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Maybe Iran shouldn't have invaded Kuwait then. It would have avoided the whole Gulf War fiasco. You handwave Russia's invasion of Ukraine as justified and necessary and now I see you holding Iran blameless for invading Kuwait. I see a pattern here.

---

^that's the pattern I am seeing here, summarized in one picture.

Not a whole lot of understanding of basic geopolitics and modern history, in that post above, bordering on complete idiocy. And a post with 7 likes, no less...

I'm not sure why I am wasting my time mentioning Mackinder or Spykman with people who believe that IRAN invaded Koweit.

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Well, if all you have is a criticism of my typing Iran instead of Iraq, I guess I'll call it a day and move on.

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Twice?

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