Russia-Ukrainian War

[CGJB]

Here's wishing a very happy birthday to Russian President Vladimir Putin, born 72 years ago today. By far the best leader Russia has had in more than a century. May he have many, many more.
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[cubsfan]

^^^ I guess even Ted Bundy had a fan club..

[dwy000]

2 hours ago, cubsfan said:

^^^ I guess even Ted Bundy had a fan club..

At first i assumed it was being ironic.  Guess not!

[UK]

12 hours ago, CGJB said:

Here's wishing a very happy birthday to Russian President Vladimir Putin, born 72 years ago today. By far the best leader Russia has had in more than a century. May he have many, many more.
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Interesting map in the backgroud. Not sure I recognize it or what teritory is marked by the red to the west from the yellow one (Russia?), but for his birthday I wish him to rule only in the yellow part to the east in the future:))

[Luke]

It's interesting how "unimpressed" Putin was about Western sanctions, etc, and focussed on China as the more important partner anyway based on economy size, manufacturing base, etc in the Interview with Tucker. I think also Russian Leadership sees the downfall in the EU with their current policies, lack of natural resources, climate targets that are only attainable with degrowth etc. They also see the bad manufacturing base in the US which makes it not as attractive of a partner as China. 

[Luke]

But they are totally dependent on China now! 

[Xerxes]

Good read.
As always from Byron Callab

 

[Dinar]

On 10/7/2024 at 5:46 PM, CGJB said:

Here's wishing a very happy birthday to Russian President Vladimir Putin, born 72 years ago today. By far the best leader Russia has had in more than a century. May he have many, many more.
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Too bad abortion was illegal in the USSR in the 1950s...

[John Hjorth]

On 9/26/2024 at 11:37 PM, John Hjorth said:

 

Good questions, Sanjeev [ @Parsad ],

 

I have spent a good deal of today to find some answers to some this, - to understand how the man is thinking and try to understand his world view. I recalled hearing a bite of interview some time ago with Samuel Rachlin, a Danish journalist and author of several books about Russia and Putin, here considerered an expert in Russian relations and affairs. Mr. Rachlin was born in Sibiria and lived there in the first nine years of his life, while his parents were deporteret thereto for 14 years, after which the family ended up in Denmark.

 

I found it on a streaming service called 'TV2 Play' provided by the Danish TV channel TV2, the streaming service avaiable to me, all services from TV2 are included in the TV package in my household. Mr. Rachlin mentions specifically a speech held by Vladimir Putin at MSC [Munich Security Conference], in 2007, where he is totally candid towards the participants about his intentions : The objective being a new world order. Actually stunned by hearing this I started to seach for that speech, and found :

 

Wikipedia : 2007 Munich speech of Vladimir Putin.

 

Link to the speech : kremlin.ru : President of Russia : Speech and the Following Discussion at the Munich Conference on Security Policy [February 10th 2007, Munich].

 

- - - o 0 o - - -

 

Speech also attached here.

 

- - - o 0 o - - -

 

Let me just say that I today personally have been hit by a very frustrating feeling of being naive - very naive - earlier - before February 24^th 2022.

Speech and the Following Discussion at the Munich Conference on Security Policy - President of Russia 20070210 - 20240926.pdf 191.67 kB · 9 downloads

 

A few days ago I started reading :

 

Amazon : Samuel Rachlin : 'Jeg, Putin' [which translates, from Danish to English : 'I, Putin'], second edition.

 

First edition was written under 'the Russian Spring' first half 2014, when the Crimea situation evolved and escalated. Second edition is with a new foreword spring 2022 added. While reading the book I feel like getting dragged up of the soil I was planted in with my roots, to be replanted  in another set of values and criteirias by which to judge Putins motives, actions and doings in general, that are so far away from my personal set of values as a Western European.

 

Unfortunately, with this book, there is a language barrier, because the book is only available in Danish language.

Edited October 12 by John Hjorth

[Spekulatius]

They say Russia is a gas station masquerading as a country:

 

[Ulti]

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/10/21/alexei-navalny-patriot-memoir
 

excerpts from Navalny’s memoir…. I read this and realize how , paraphrasing Buffett , lucky I am to be living in the  

 

[John Hjorth]

3 hours ago, Ulti said:

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/10/21/alexei-navalny-patriot-memoir
 

excerpts from Navalny’s memoir…. I read this and realize how , paraphrasing Buffett , lucky I am to be living in the  

 

 

Yeah, Great to be born and to live in the Western part of the world, as an alternative to, and compared to, such a hellhole as Russia nowadays.

 

I preordered The book today at my favorite Danish online bookstore [called saxo.com].

[Spekulatius]

The most important thing about Navalny is that he is dead. He basically surrendered himself to Putin when he flew back into Russia. Putin tends to kill his opponents.

 

Something to think about when recommending to surrender to Russia.

[Spekulatius]

@Luke views pretty much line up with those from the AfD leadership, which is a German right wing party.

 

For those that care:

AFD believes that everything will be fine if Germany leaves NATO, the EU and makes deals with Putin and Xi Jinping.

Edited October 13 by Spekulatius

[John Hjorth]

23 hours ago, Spekulatius said:

@Luke views pretty much line up with those from the AfD leadership, which is a German right wing party.

 

For those that care:

AFD believes that everything will be fine if Germany leaves NATO, the EU and makes deals with Putin and Xi Jinping.

 

I'm personaly not sure about that. It does a not matter at all. Naturallly, and sucject to, and untill it does.

Edited October 14 by John Hjorth

[Xerxes]

[John Hjorth]

@Xerxes,

 

Thank you, I have read the piece on the Economist website, too : The Economist - Europe [September 19^th 2024] : Aland is lovely, weapon-free and too close to Russia.

 

Personally, I can relate to the sentiment expressed in the article by people living there, and the thinking about what to do? Deadlock it is.

 

Nato [<-?], EU, Europe, Western World here has to do with a mad man and his doings, based on delutional ideas inside that mans head, rooted in the past greatness of Russia. It's deeply concerning.

 

On the TV Channel National Geografic a series [Title : 'Defence Europe'] of the war / military history of each European country is rolled out by now, one piece, one country, one session per week, transmitted late in the evening here on Sundays [, but doesen't really matter, because our household has access to it as a streaming service].

 

The first three pieces has been about Finland, France and Poland. I somehow succeded in missing the Poland session last night, but I will get to it, eventually. Great mental fodder for an old historical ignorant like me, I would say.

 

The history of France's perpetual disagreements with Germany during history is just so striking and mind provoking, like a never ending story. Yet, somehow the world has become a better place to live, since the war ax was burried last time between those two countries.

 

The war history of Finland is similar towards Russia. I did not know before, that the people of Finland back in the '60's decided to build an 'undergound city' - carved out under central Helsinki [Wikipedia : Asematunneli] as a precaution towards possible agressions from the - from to times to times - agressive neighbour to the East.

Edited October 14 by John Hjorth
Spelling

[UK]

7 hours ago, John Hjorth said:

The war history of Finland is similar towards Russia. I did not know before, that the people of Finland back in the '60's decided to build an 'undergound city' - carved out under central Helsinki [Wikipedia : Asematunneli] as a precaution towards possible agressions from the - from to times to times - agressive neighbour to the East.

 

A bit offtopic, but I read these books first and only later realised why they had such an apocalyptic feel at times:

 

https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/tove-jansson-s-moominland-what-was-the-inspiration-for-finland-s-most-famous-family-9883098.html

 

Much of this had a direct effect on Moominvalley. The knowledge that the world could be destroyed by just the push of a button certainly influenced the books. The threat of total annihilation is therefore a major theme and a highly original one in a book for children.

[Xerxes]

14 hours ago, John Hjorth said:

@Xerxes,

 

Thank you, I have read the piece on the Economist website, too : The Economist - Europe [September 19^th 2024] : Aland is lovely, weapon-free and too close to Russia.

 

Personally, I can relate to the sentiment expressed in the article by people living there, and the thinking about what to do? Deadlock it is.

 

Nato [<-?], EU, Europe, Western World here has to do with a mad man and his doings, based on delutional ideas inside that mans head, rooted in the past greatness of Russia. It's deeply concerning.

 

On the TV Channel National Geografic a series [Title : 'Defence Europe'] of the war / military history of each European country is rolled out by now, one piece, one country, one session per week, transmitted late in the evening here on Sundays [, but doesen't really matter, because our household has access to it as a streaming service].

 

The first three pieces has been about Finland, France and Poland. I somehow succeded in missing the Poland session last night, but I will get to it, eventually. Great mental fodder for an old historical ignorant like me, I would say.

 

The history of France's perpetual disagreements with Germany during history is just so striking and mind provoking, like a never ending story. Yet, somehow the world has become a better place to live, since the war ax was burried last time between those two countries.

 

The war history of Finland is similar towards Russia. I did not know before, that the people of Finland back in the '60's decided to build an 'undergound city' - carved out under central Helsinki [Wikipedia : Asematunneli] as a precaution towards possible agressions from the - from to times to times - agressive neighbour to the East.

 

Thank you.

 

Canadian Thanksgiving long weekend means, time to catch up on reading. 
 

I would say that when it comes Norway, Finland and Sweden, and the Baltic powers in general my history is “lacking”. So i enjoy reading up on tidbits here and there. 

[John Hjorth]

On 10/12/2024 at 5:55 PM, John Hjorth said:

 

A few days ago I started reading :

 

Amazon : Samuel Rachlin : 'Jeg, Putin' [which translates, from Danish to English : 'I, Putin'], second edition.

 

First edition was written under 'the Russian Spring' first half 2014, when the Crimea situation evolved and escalated. Second edition is with a new foreword spring 2022 added. While reading the book I feel like getting dragged up of the soil I was planted in with my roots, to be replanted  in another set of values and criteirias by which to judge Putins motives, actions and doings in general, that are so far away from my personal set of values as a Western European.

 

Unfortunately, with this book, there is a language barrier, because the book is only available in Danish language.

 

Now I'm taking a break from Samuel Rachlins book "I, Putin' and switched to start reading the following book by Anders Puck Nielsen [the man introduced upstream in this topic by @Spekulatius ] : 'Krigens Logik' [which translates from Danish to English by 'The Logic of the War'.

 

I think of it as 'The Warfare's ABC'. To me, very good and educational for a western citizen ignorant related to real warfare, like me. Unfortunately for this book, there also exists a language barrier here, because the book is only available in Danish language.

 

 

This book also introduces the original book - 'bible' - of warfare by former general Carl Philipp Gottlieb von Clausewitz [1780 - 1831] of the Army of the Preussian pricipality Magdeburg, which book still by its basic concepts and principles applies to warfare in our times, the book called 'Vom Kriege', originally written in German, translated from German to English by 'On Wars', and this book also available in English language, in several versions, at various prices, and also in other languages, among those, Danish.

 

This one I'm about to order today, and with this one I'm taking it on in it's original German language [great brain exercise to revive an inactive and dormant language, in which I as a young person at a time once was actively fluent in speaking].

 

Edited Friday at 12:40 PM by John Hjorth
Fixed spelling and language

[John Hjorth]

Reuters [October 18^th 2024] : North Korean troops in Russia readying for combat in Ukraine war, S.Korea says.

 

Concerning  information indeed. I have no idea about what this might cause or bring in the future. Letting ones imagination and fantasy stray about it is a really unpleasant mental exercise.

Edited Saturday at 10:26 AM by John Hjorth

[UK]

16 minutes ago, John Hjorth said:

Reuters [October 18^th 2024] : North Korean troops in Russia readying for combat in Ukraine war, S.Korea says.

 

Concerning  information indeed. I have no idea about what this might cause or bring in the future. Letting ones imagination and fantasy stray about it is a really unpleasant mental exercise.

 

This is indeed worrisome, still direction is the same, more and more escalation, formerly silent parties geting directly involved and also this recent talk/idea of Ukraine acquiring its own nuclear weapons.

 

Edited Saturday at 10:43 AM by UK

[Xerxes]

I want to get myself a Lego set of this Dark Eagle for Christmas.

 

[Spekulatius]

7 hours ago, Xerxes said:

I want to get myself a Lego set of this Dark Eagle for Christmas.

 

This is a repeat of the SS20 / Pershing 2 discussion during the 80‘s. The Russian were placing SS20 at their borders and in Poland believe. They were mid range nuclear missions. The counter was Pershing 2‘s. There was a piece movement in Europe and Germany if the sake be countered for the sake of piece and de-escalation.

 

Well, Breshnev was no Putin and whoever is going to be elected in November is no Ronald Reagan. Europe may have to get its own nukes eventually probably via  France ( force de frappe)

Edited Saturday at 09:26 PM by Spekulatius

[Xerxes]

16 hours ago, Spekulatius said:

This is a repeat of the SS20 / Pershing 2 discussion during the 80‘s. The Russian were placing SS20 at their borders and in Poland believe. They were mid range nuclear missions. The counter was Pershing 2‘s. There was a piece movement in Europe and Germany if the sake be countered for the sake of piece and de-escalation.

 

Well, Breshnev was no Putin and whoever is going to be elected in November is no Ronald Reagan. Europe may have to get its own nukes eventually probably via  France ( force de frappe)

 

Yes. 
 

I dug this out from David Hoffman’ Dead Hand. Some additional details on SS20 “Pioneer”. 
 

It was after all the Soviet military complex with its massive inertia and desire to keep the factories humming that came up with this unwanted product that ultimately created a problem for the gentlemen sitting in the Kremlin.