CRIMEA

[DOR]

Rockadelic said:Who needs freedom, our government will take care of all our needs.

 

[LazarusOblong]

DocMcCoy said:Tired old cliches about empire notwithstanding (it takes one to know one), this is pretty much dead-on.





In the days of the Cold War, Western leaders like Thatcher and Reagan were seen as dependable defenders of freedom in the eyes of those behind the Iron Curtain. Their modern equivalents barely pay lipservice to the notion.




Thatcher? That rancid old hag thought Ireland was her own personal sandpit.





Good riddance.





And there is no Iron Curtain anymore, so what's with the apples and oranges comparison? You know what Reagan and Thatcher would have done in this exact same situation?





Jackshit. Anyone who thinks the West will or should go to war over this is a cannibalistic necrophile-level wackaloon.

 

[white_tea]

I had been meaning to read this thread for a few days, eager to see if the Soul Strut community had any enlightenment on the issue. Sadly, it was not to be. Webmasters, does Soul Strut get any traffic from the former USSR?

 

[fishmongerfunk]

white_tea said: does Soul Strut get any traffic from the former USSR?




only from scammy dudes who are trying to move super secret, hypnotic, unkown braek scat monsters.

 

[LokoOne]

parallax said:Was chatting with my wife about this on the weekend. I don't know that a full-scale war will erupt, but I'm nervous that it might. The potential is definitely there.










I'm on the other end of that spectrum, I don't think there is any way a war would happened (apart from some Russian/Ukraine skirmishing). Which country, if they wanted to (which I don't think they do), would be able to send troops to Ukraine to defend it?





I don't think the US military is in a position to invade, and unlike some of the other countries they have invaded in the past, if they try to just bomb the Russians they would get a run for the money since the Russians would be able to match them in air power (unlike say Afghanistan or Iraq). Last I checked Europe is broke as fuck, so I don't see them putting their hand up for a fight against Russia.


The Chinese will just be watching this and hoping Putin succeeds with no dramas, so they can pull the same shit down the line if they want.





Whether you agree with Putin or not, he has picked the best time to do this (imo) and not many other nations with any might can raise a valid argument against his invasion since they have all done the same (or would do so). At the same time I think I don;t Putin won't overplay this. The Russians will probably be happy taking Crimea and splitting Ukraine into two countries.





But then again according to Nostredamus, the next anti-christ will come from Russia, right?


So maybe this is the start of the muthafucking ending

 

[LaserWolf]

You guys are not listening to John Kerry. (who is that?)


All Options Are On The Table!

 

[Horseleech]

LaserWolf said:All Options Are On The Table!




Yeah, both of them.





- Vague Hollow Threats Of Sanctions


- Vague Hollow Threats Of "Isolation"

 

[skel]

Yes, lollers at anyone thinking they can step to Putin in his back yard.

 

[Rockadelic]

I bet Putin is shaking in his booties.





Secretary of State John Kerry warned of serious repercussions for Russia on Monday if last-ditch talks over the weekend to resolve the crisis in Ukraine failed to persuade Moscow to soften its stance.

 

[Brian]

http://ronpaulinstitute.org/archives/featured-articles/2014/march/23/us-democracy-promotion-destroys-democracy-overseas.aspx

It was almost ten years ago when, before the House International Relations Committee, I objected to the US Government funding NGOs to meddle in the internal affairs of Ukraine. At the time the ÔÇ£Orange RevolutionÔÇØ had forced a regime change in Ukraine with the help of millions of dollars from Washington.





At that time I told the Committee:


We do not know exactly how many millionsÔÇöor tens of millionsÔÇöof dollars the United States government spent on the presidential election in Ukraine. We do know that much of that money was targeted to assist one particular candidate, and that through a series of cut-out non-governmental organizations (NGOs)ÔÇöboth American and UkrainianÔÇömillions of dollars ended up in support of the presidential candidate...


I was worried about millions of dollars that the US government-funded National Endowment for Democracy (NED) and its various related organizations spent to meddle in UkraineÔÇÖs internal affairs. But it turns out that was only the tip of the iceberg.





Last December, US Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland gave a speech in which she admitted that since 1991 the US government has:


nvested more than 5 billion dollars to help Ukraine...in the development of democratic institutions and skills in promoting civil society and a good form of government.


This is the same State Department official who was caught on tape just recently planning in detail the overthrow of the Ukrainian government.





That five billion dollars appears to have bought a revolution in Ukraine. But what do the US taxpayers get, who were forced to pay for this interventionism? Nothing good. Ukraine is a bankrupt country that will need tens of billions of dollars to survive the year. Already the US-selected prime minister has made a trip to Washington to ask for more money.





And what will the Ukrainians get? Their democracy has been undermined by the US-backed coup in Kiev. In democracies, power is transferred peacefully through elections, not seized by rebels in the streets. At least it used to be.





The IMF will descend on Ukraine to implement yet another of its failed rescue plans, which enrich the well-connected and international bankers at the expense of the local population. The IMF adds debt, organizes sweetheart deals for foreign corporations, and demands that the local population accept ÔÇ£austerityÔÇØ in exchange for ÔÇ£reformÔÇØ that never seems to produce the promised results.





The groundwork for this disaster has been laid by NED, USAID, and the army of NGOs they have funded over the years in Ukraine.





Supporters of NED and its related organizations will argue that nothing is wrong with sending US dollars to ÔÇ£promote democracyÔÇØ overseas. The fact is, however, that NED, USAID, and the others have nothing to do with promoting democracy and everything to do with destroying democracy.





It is not democracy to send in billions of dollars to push regime change overseas. It isnÔÇÖt democracy to send in the NGOs to re-write laws and the constitution in places like Ukraine. It is none of our business.





How should we promote democracy overseas? First, we should stop the real isolationists ÔÇö those who seek to impose sanctions and blockades and restrictions that impede our engagement overseas. We can promote democracy with a US private sector that engages overseas. A society that prospers through increased trade ties with the US will be far more likely to adopt practices and policies that continue that prosperity and encourage peace.





In 2005, arguing against funding NED in the US foreign assistance authorization bill, I said:


The National Endowment for Democracy...has very little to do with democracy. It is an organization that uses US tax money to actually subvert democracy, by showering funding on favored political parties or movements overseas. It underwrites color-coded ÔÇÿpeople's revolutionsÔÇÖ overseas that look more like pages out of Lenin's writings on stealing power than genuine indigenous democratic movements.


Sadly, matters are even worse now. To promote democracy overseas, NED and all other meddling US government funded NGOs should be disbanded immediately.

 

[DB_Cooper]

Putin - Thanks for Being So Cool About Everything

 

[LaserWolf]

tl, dr

 

[Gary]

LaserWolf said:ronpaul, dr

 

[Frank]

LokoOne saidarallax said:Was chatting with my wife about this on the weekend. I don't know that a full-scale war will erupt, but I'm nervous that it might. The potential is definitely there.










I'm on the other end of that spectrum, I don't think there is any way a war would happened (apart from some Russian/Ukraine skirmishing). Which country, if they wanted to (which I don't think they do), would be able to send troops to Ukraine to defend it?





I don't think the US military is in a position to invade, and unlike some of the other countries they have invaded in the past, if they try to just bomb the Russians they would get a run for the money since the Russians would be able to match them in air power (unlike say Afghanistan or Iraq). Last I checked Europe is broke as fuck, so I don't see them putting their hand up for a fight against Russia.


The Chinese will just be watching this and hoping Putin succeeds with no dramas, so they can pull the same shit down the line if they want.





Whether you agree with Putin or not, he has picked the best time to do this (imo) and not many other nations with any might can raise a valid argument against his invasion since they have all done the same (or would do so). At the same time I think I don;t Putin won't overplay this. The Russians will probably be happy taking Crimea and splitting Ukraine into two countries.







That could happen... I actually hope Russia annexes the whole of Ukraine, one less place for those EU idiots to senselessly dump our money.





Regardless of what happens in Ukraine there will not be anything more but some empty sanctions talk and even that is just senseless posturing. We need their gas. So what? They don't have much else so why not just keep buying their gas and otherwise ignore them.





Maybe Obama put Putin up to this so he can again pose as the big friend of Europe.





Lying bastards, fuck them, all of them.

 

[LoopDreams]

Russia can't afford Ukraine, it would break them. Too many people, too much debt. Let them have it.





But I don't think Putin is fanatical enough to take it, he's more Machiavelli then Hitler most days of the week.

 

[DB_Cooper]

LoopDreams said:it would break them




We know how that works out with Russia.

 

[The_Non]

OK, this time, IT'S PERSONAL





http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/27/world/europe/crimea-dolphins-defect/

Report: Ukraine military dolphins to switch nationalities, join Russian navy


By Faith Karimi, CNN


updated 7:41 AM EDT, Thu March 27, 2014





(CNN) -- Just when you thought this divorce couldn't get any messier.





Weeks after Russia annexed Ukraine's Crimea region, it plans to take custody of dolphins in the nation as well.





Not just any dolphins. These highly trained military mammals detect risks such as sea mines or enemy scuba divers trying to slip through. Sea mines are sophisticated weapons that can sink ships and other watercraft.





"The combat dolphin program in the Crimean city of Sevastopol will be preserved and redirected toward the interests of the Russian navy," state-run Russian news agency RIA Novosti reported Thursday.





Dolphins are a crucial part of open-water security. They detect sounds and objects in murky waters that human beings can't, making them uniquely effective at highlighting dangers on the sea floor.





Harnessing the military power of animal intelligence





Ukraine was using outdated military equipment for the dolphin program and planned to disband it next month, RIA Novosti said.





The Ukraine Defense Ministry told CNN that the nation has an ocean dolphin facility but declined to provide details, saying they're classified.





The dolphin program dates to the 1960s, when Russia and Ukraine were part of the Soviet Union, but was handed over to Kiev after independence, RIA Novosti said.





The U.S. Navy in San Diego also trains dolphins and sea lions to help protect its assets and find dangerous objects underwater.





Tensions between Moscow and Kiev have escalated since Russia reclaimed the Crimea region after a referendum this month that overwhelmingly supported the annexation. The United States and its allies have pledged to isolate Russia for its actions.





Ukraine also has combat sea lions that operate under the same base. It's unclear whether they'll be barking allegiances to Moscow or Kiev.

 

[Gary]

The_Non said:OK, this time, IT'S PERSONAL





http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/27/world/europe/crimea-dolphins-defect/

The U.S. Navy in San Diego also trains dolphins and sea lions to help protect its assets and find dangerous objects underwater.

We don't do that anymore. Source: I work there!

 

[LazarusOblong]

DB_Cooper said:LoopDreams said:it would break them




We know how that works out with Russia.

One of the best Unintentional Comedies ever.

 

[rootlesscosmo]

indeed. some of the funniest boxing choreography I've seen.