Russia-Ukraine

[Eric]

This keeps getting more and more Trumpy.

Putin holds rally to bolster support as Ukraine war falters

Russian President Vladimir Putin held a rally on Friday to boost public morale, as the invasion of Ukraine he launched last month continued to meet with determined resistance, bolstered by the United States and Europe.

news.yahoo.com

He’s holding rallies now? For a war??

With sloganeering on posters yet?

Looks like he’s learned a thing or two from Donny. Next he’ll be leading crowds in “Build that wall!”-style chants.

A tactic that worked well for Hitler in the beginning, only he was more revered than Putin who has very little support from anyone in this war effort.

 

[yaxomoxay]

is this because things have already gotten hard to find, or in anticipation of how things might develop?

My understanding is that they are having minimal problems; in my opinion it was more to make sure that the gravity of the situation is clear to everyone.

 

[SuperMatt]

A powerful story of refugees commenting on the current crisis through relaying their past experiences.

Refugees from other wars see themselves in fleeing Ukrainians

NPR's Mary Louise Kelly talks with people about the experience of being a refugee, how fleeing their home country has affected their life and what life is like now.

www.npr.org

 

[Yoused]

here is the public google drive page where Ukrainians upload their videos from their homeland

 

[Zoidberg]

The cosmonauts that just arrived onboard the ISS had a little surprise.

When asked about it, the Russian commander replied, tongue in cheek, that they had “too much yellow fabric in the warehouse”.

Oddly, Rogozin hasn’t posted a picture of their arrival yet…

 

[SuperMatt]

The cosmonauts that just arrived onboard the ISS had a little surprise.

View attachment 12521

When asked about it, the Russian commander replied, tongue in cheek, that they had “too much yellow fabric in the warehouse”.

Oddly, Rogozin hasn’t posted a picture of their arrival yet…

WOW. Incredible that Russian cosmonauts would stick it directly to Putin. The more signs of people pushing back on Putin, the better.

I just saw a bit on PBS News Hour about the shuttering of the last open McDonald’s in Russia (which was also the first one there, opening in 1990). I wasn’t aware that McDonald’s was so popular there. It seems frivolous, but the more signs that can be sent to Russia that Putin is shunned by the world, the better.

Also saw that a big rally with Putin was interrupted by pre-recorded footage. I’m not sure if that is big news or not. However, I did marvel at how similar the Putin event seemed to a Trump rally, or perhaps Trump’s pre-inauguration event in DC. Trump also had the big July 4th event a couple years ago where he tried to make it all about him, instead of the traditional American celebrations.

Trump really is a wanna-be Putin. If Putin‘s war fails and his economy collapses, and he has to come crawling to the negotiating table, will America’s aspiring autocrats take the lesson? Will American voters take the lesson? One can hope.

I am discouraged when I see Republicans voting against aid for Ukraine, but then trying to find any reason to attack Biden’s response as insufficient. This is a time to come together. There will be plenty of time for sniping political opponents later.

 

[Yoused]

Sergei Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister praised F**news for providing alternative coverage of happenings.

But when you see, you watch other channels, and when you—watch, read the social networks and internet platforms, when the acting president was blocked, as you know, and this censorship continues in a very big way and the substitution of notions whenever something is happening by the way of mass protest mass demonstrations, which they don't like, they immediately call it domestic terrorism. So it's a war, and it's a war which involves the methods of information terrorism. There is no doubt about this.

If that is not a messed up translation, he must have taken the same course in Coherent Communication as did Individual-ONE.

 

[AG_PhamD]

There’s a lot in the media today about Russia allegedly using a Kinzhal “hypersonic” missile against Ukraine and all the potential consequences of such a weapon.

What they’re not saying is the that the Kinzhal missile is basically a Islander ballistic missile modified to be air launched instead of ground launched. The Russians have launched numerous Iskanders and they were developed in the 80’s. And it’s worth mentioning nearly all ballistic missiles travel at hypersonic speed.

The Kinzhal (and Islander) are technically quasi-ballistic missiles in that they presumably travel in a depressed ballistic trajectory and/or have some degree of maneuverability in flight. There are doubts as to how maneuverable these missiles actually are based on their design.

This is a very different and much more rudimentary concept than hypersonic glide vehicles and hypersonic cruise missiles we hear so much about. Calling the Kinzhal a hypersonic weapon is more like a marketing strategy.

That said, these are still very capable weapons. It’s rather interesting Russia presumably has chosen to use Kinzhal considering Ukraine has little ability to defend from cruise and standard ballistic missiles as it is. Similarly it was discovered Iskanders were being launched with decoys, again a strange choice when there are little-no defenses on the other side. All this might actually suggest their weapons supplies are running low and they’re having to use unnecessarily more complex and expensive weapons.

 

[Thomas Veil]

New development per CNN. Russia is taking thousands of Ukrainian citizens from Mariupol and transporting them against their will to Russia. I’m presuming this means prison camps.

Gets more Hitler-like by the day, doesn’t it?

Captured Mariupol residents were taken to camps where Russian forces checked their phones and documents, then redirected some of the residents to remote cities in Russia, the statement said, adding that the "fate of the others is unknown."

Mariupol residents are being forced to go to Russia, city council says | CNN

Residents of the Ukrainian city of Mariupol are being taken to Russia against their will by Russian forces, the Mariupol City Council said Saturday.

www.cnn.com

 

[Citysnaps]

New development per CNN. Russia is taking thousands of Ukrainian citizens from Mariupol and transporting them against their will to Russia. I’m presuming this means prison camps.

Gets more Hitler-like by the day, doesn’t it?

Mariupol residents are being forced to go to Russia, city council says | CNN

Residents of the Ukrainian city of Mariupol are being taken to Russia against their will by Russian forces, the Mariupol City Council said Saturday.

www.cnn.com

Smells like kidnapping, or potentially worse, to me.

 

[Thomas Veil]

Now, having shared that, I have to say I’ve been unable to find any other news reports about this. Either other news outfits are still chasing down confirmation of the story, or CNN got it wrong.

Edit: nope, here it is from Reuters.

Mariupol says thousands deported from besieged Ukrainian city

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Russia's siege of the port city of Mariupol was "a terror that will be remembered for centuries to come", while local authorities said thousands of residents there had been taken by force across the border.

www.reuters.com

 

[AG_PhamD]

Allegedly they’re taking Ukrainian citizens and filtering them out to remote work camps in remote parts of Russia where they are forced to sign papers promising to live there for a number of years and work for free.

I am hesitant to accept this as fact given the amount of false information that flies around during wars, but this definitely needs to be investigated. I would not be surprised if this or something similar is happening. If so, I believe this forced relocation could be a form of genocide, which I believe has already been met with the complete destruction of Mariupol. And Putin will go down in history among the likes of Hitler and Stalin.

 

[Citysnaps]

By Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial cartoonist Steve Breen for the San Diego Union-Tribune.

 

[Yoused]

Russia could not attack Ukraine before because we had a bigly tough president,

_ Rudey Ghouliani blorts:
(Individual-ONE) says, ‘Vladimir, you shouldn’t, like, attack Ukraine. I never liked those big, what are those things you got in Moscow, those big bubbles? Those big gold bubbles, I never liked those things, so I’m gonna have to blow them up.

So Putin says, ‘They’re churches,’

'Oh, Vladimir, don’t tell me that about churches, c’mon. Churches? You can fool Bush, you can’t fool me. You care about churches?'

That’s why he’s a genius. Of course he says he’s smart: ‘Hey Vladimir, you’re really, really smart.’​

It does not have to make sense – maybe even better if not.

 

[Eric]

Hope he was able to have some good times throughout his life as well.

 

[yaxomoxay]

another piece of news that might be of interest - especially to @Scepticalscribe - on March 25th, Pope Francis in unison with all the Bishops of the world and Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI will consecrate Russia (and Ukraine).

This is a major event which has been discussed and subject of much controversy since at least 1917. For the political purpose of this forum, just know that this will be one of the strongest political signals of the Catholic Church in recent memory, and will likely piss off the Russian Orthodox Church to no end. It will also set the tone for Catholics worldwide (that’s also why Catholic Churches worldwide are rising lots of $$$ for Ukraine).

In other words, within its context, this is a massive development

Pope invites bishops to join him in consecration of Russia and Ukraine - Vatican News

The Consecration of Russia and Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary will be pronounced by the Pope on the afternoon of Friday 25 March in St ...

www.vaticannews.va

 

[Huntn]

another piece of news that might be of interest - especially to @Scepticalscribe - on March 25th, Pope Francis in unison with all the Bishops of the world and Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI will consecrate Russia (and Ukraine).

This is a major event which has been discussed and subject of much controversy since at least 1917. For the political purpose of this forum, just know that this will be one of the strongest political signals of the Catholic Church in recent memory, and will likely piss off the Russian Orthodox Church to no end. It will also set the tone for Catholics worldwide (that’s also why Catholic Churches worldwide are rising lots of $$$ for Ukraine).

In other words, within its context, this is a massive development

Pope invites bishops to join him in consecration of Russia and Ukraine - Vatican News

The Consecration of Russia and Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary will be pronounced by the Pope on the afternoon of Friday 25 March in St ...

www.vaticannews.va

What is the significance of this?
consecrate
kŏn′sĭ-krāt″

transitive verb​

1. To declare or set apart as sacred.
2. To sanctify (bread and wine) for Eucharistic use through a ritual regarded by some Christian churches as effecting transubstantiation.
3. To initiate (a priest) into the order of bishops.

 

[sgtaylor5]

What is the significance of this?
consecrate
kŏn′sĭ-krāt″

transitive verb​

1. To declare or set apart as sacred.
2. To sanctify (bread and wine) for Eucharistic use through a ritual regarded by some Christian churches as effecting transubstantiation.
3. To initiate (a priest) into the order of bishops.

Apparently, this is why, quoting from the article:

In the apparition of 13 July 1917 in Fatima, Our Lady [Mary, the mother of Jesus - sgt] had asked for the consecration of Russia to her Immaculate Heart and the communion of reparation on the First Saturdays, stating that if this request was not granted, Russia would “spread her errors throughout the world, causing wars and persecutions of the Church,” and “the good will be martyred, the Holy Father will have much to suffer, various nations will be annihilated.”

Not trying to say this makes sense to my Protestant heart, but, by this act, the Catholic Church [Vatican] is trying to stop the war.

 

[yaxomoxay]

What is the significance of this?
consecrate
kŏn′sĭ-krāt″

transitive verb​

1. To declare or set apart as sacred.
2. To sanctify (bread and wine) for Eucharistic use through a ritual regarded by some Christian churches as effecting transubstantiation.
3. To initiate (a priest) into the order of bishops.

From the Church’s perspective, and formally, it means that Russia will be “reserved” for a holy purpose. The symbolic mean of the consecration to the immaculate heart of Mary basically means that through the wounds, Russia will serve a holy purpose.

Apparently, this is why, quoting from the article:

Not trying to say this makes sense to my Protestant heart, but, by this act, the Catholic Church [Vatican] is trying to stop the war.

Obviously I know that I am the only one here that believes in this stuff, so I report it more for political and historical importance.

The main political significance - and why John Paul II was very intentional in not naming Russia in his consecrations - is that by consecrating the Vatican “expects/wants” Russia to become westernized (and of course to become Catholic ), in order to be in the future a bastion of… goodness, if you will.

 

[yaxomoxay]

Here’s a decent explanation

Pope Francis will consecrate Russia and Ukraine. What's that mean?

A Pillar Explainer

www.pillarcatholic.com

Which touches the important point ref. John Paul II:

“the pope was urged not to mention Russia by name in the public prayers of the 1984 consecration, because it would anger the Russian Orthodox hierarchy, who opposed the notion of Catholics consecrating their country to Mary, and because of Vatican efforts at political diplomacy with the USSR.”

In other words, the Pope is now saying that “fixing” Russia (and the Russian Orthodox Church) is fair game and the ethical thing to do.