Ukraine Crisis

[Derek27]

I can't believe Finland has public swimming pools that double as air-raid shelters. They must have seen this coming a long way off!

[Derek27]

Russian ambassador in Warsaw is not having a good time : https://twitter.com/OnetWiadomosci/stat ... MX7vw&s=09

Russia has lodged an official complaint.

It's not really funny though, given what Russia is doing.

[Archery1969]

I can't believe Finland has public swimming pools that double as air-raid shelters. They must have seen this coming a long way off!

In Finland the Ministry of Interior maintains hard shelters, capable of accommodating 3.6 million persons, in cities and in other densely populated areas where two-thirds of the country's population live. They are built to withstand the detonation of a 100-kilotonne-of-TNT (420 TJ) nuclear bomb at ground zero.

The UK has 3 sites which offer some protection to VIP's and elite forces but is for less than 0.5% of the population.

[greenmark]

On holiday in Scotland right now. I expect to see the Saltyre at several locations I know well.
They;ve all been replaced by the Ukrainian flag. Are you watching Vladimir?
The only caveat I have about Putin is he MAY be the barrier between us and a really fascist Russian elite.
But can you judge anyone except by their actions?
And just for the irradication of doubt. I don't think of Russia or Russians as fascists or bad people.
But Putin (or the pyramid of power he sits on top of) has made a realy bad decision invading Ukraine, whether they win or not.

[Derek27]

On holiday in Scotland right now. I expect to see the Saltyre at several locations I know well.
They;ve all been replaced by the Ukrainian flag. Are you watching Vladimir?
The only caveat I have about Putin is he MAY be the barrier between us and a really fascist Russian elite.
But can you judge anyone except by their actions?
And just for the irradication of doubt. I don't think of Russia or Russians as fascists or bad people.
But Putin (or the pyramid of power he sits on top of) has made a realy bad decision invading Ukraine, whether they win or not.

Have a nice time up there. I hope you're staying at a good hotel.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7PETX-0L9g

[napshnap]

On holiday in Scotland right now. I expect to see the Saltyre at several locations I know well.
They;ve all been replaced by the Ukrainian flag. Are you watching Vladimir?
The only caveat I have about Putin is he MAY be the barrier between us and a really fascist Russian elite.
But can you judge anyone except by their actions?
And just for the irradication of doubt. I don't think of Russia or Russians as fascists or bad people.
But Putin (or the pyramid of power he sits on top of) has made a realy bad decision invading Ukraine, whether they win or not.

I don't know, but if racism is a critical characteristic of fascism, then you're very wrong about the elite. They're anyone but racists, they are very ethically diverse. If it is not a critical characteristic, then you can fit many other participants of this conflict to it too. Using a definition of fascism characteristics given by Britannica encyclopaedia, for example, US and EU fit it almost perfectly:

- "First, these movements sourced their political strength from populations experiencing economic woes, real or imagined." - "...Putin’s Price Hike are increasing the price of food for working families here at home and leading to shortages of food in countries across the globe.".

- "Jews, immigrants, leftists, and other groups became useful scapegoats. Redirecting popular anger toward these people would, in theory, rid a country of its ailments." - Notorius social networks calls to kill Russians. Emergence of a new disgustingly racist term -"rashism". Real estate and financial prohibitions. And all this is not just about the elite but about ordinary not involved into politics people.

- "To unify a country, fascist movements propagated extreme nationalism that often went hand in hand with militarism and racial purity." - Dozens of invasions of other countries, nonstop Ukraine weaponry stuffing, not conciliatory but strange (it's all about saving people's lives, right?) escalatory rhetoric (I read that UN general secretary Antonio Guterres after an hour meeting with the president said that he doesn't have a crystal ball to predict his moves. You don't need a "crystal ball", you need a normal two, damn it!)

- "The prosperity of a nation depended on a unified polity that put the group’s welfare above the individual’s." - A call to endure prices increase in order not to buy resources from Russia and for the sake of "green energy". Unwillingness to end the conflict immediately and fight to the end for the sake of "democratic values" ​​paradoxically disregarding the lives of people.

- "A strong, vigilant military was considered necessary to defend these group interests." - Nato expansion, increase in military spendings.

- "Although many fascist movements initially organized themselves around democratic institutions for political legitimacy, they resorted to totalitarianism in practice." - Where are they now on this path exactly? Will they stop?

[greenmark]

I'm afraid we see the same scenario from different viewpoints. I see Russia run by Putin and kleptocrats. The fascist accusation is based on fascism's acceptance of violence as a legitimate means to an end.
Every 5 years the western countries can kick out politicians they don't like.
I thought Putin was out in 2024 but have read he has rewritten the law to allow him to potentially be in power until 2036.
Do you not smell a rat here, chief?
Anyhow I'm off out to walk an spot heron's kestrels et al.
Sincerely, enjoy your day, sir.

[napshnap]

I'm afraid we see the same scenario from different viewpoints. I see Russia run by Putin and kleptocrats. The fascist accusation is based on fascism's acceptance of violence as a legitimate means to an end.
Every 5 years the western countries can kick out politicians they don't like.
I thought Putin was out in 2024 but have read he has rewritten the law to allow him to potentially be in power until 2036.
Do you not smell a rat here, chief?
Anyhow I'm off out to walk an spot heron's kestrels et al.
Sincerely, enjoy your day, sir.

I guess we are. "Even a broken clock is right twice a day."

"Every 5 years the western countries can kick out politicians they don't like. "
At first I read it as "they can kick out politicians they don't like in other countries")).

"Do you not smell a rat here, chief?"
We got used to this, unfortunately.

Enjoy your day too.

[Archery1969]

Kremlin says Finland joining Nato is a direct threat to Russia.

Looks like we will get WW3 very soon.

[Trader Pat]

Kremlin says Finland joining Nato is a direct threat to Russia.

Looks like we will get WW3 very soon.

Doubt it. Don't think Putin is that stupid or has the balls to be honest.

Invading Ukraine was a massive miscalculation both in the response of the Ukrainian people and in the backlash from the rest of the world. Finland's military is superior to Ukraine's and if the Russians are labouring this much to a military victory there I wouldn't fancy their chances against FInland. Add to that Finland have been given assurances by Britain and others that any Russian aggression will be met in kind by NATO then Putin's only option would be ready the nuke's which won't happen unless he's totally gone mentally. Hopefully Finland joining NATO puts Putin back in his box once and for all.

[Kai]

Kremlin says Finland joining Nato is a direct threat to Russia.

Looks like we will get WW3 very soon.

Doubt it. Don't think Putin is that stupid or has the balls to be honest.

Can always count on Putin to do the Reich thing.

My nuclear bunker is nearly complete and I have already started hoarding bottle caps as this will no doubt be the currency in the post-apocalyptic world.

[Trader Pat]

Kremlin says Finland joining Nato is a direct threat to Russia.

Looks like we will get WW3 very soon.

Doubt it. Don't think Putin is that stupid or has the balls to be honest.

Can always count on Putin to do the Reich thing.

My nuclear bunker is nearly complete and I have already started hoarding bottle caps as this will no doubt be the currency in the post-apocalyptic world.

Think I'd rather be vapourised.

[Archery1969]

My take on this is that Putin is very ill, we already know he is taking high doses of experimental drugs for thyroid cancer. Some believe this is affecting his judgement plus he seems paronoid about being attacked/invaded by Nato or Nazi's. There is nothing to stop him waking from a bad dream and pressing the button, assuming his technology works.

I think he will launch a small nuclear tactical strike against Ukraine or even Finland to show Nato and the world that he is not mucking about.

The question will then be how Nato responds as the situation woukd likely escalate very quickly into WW3.

Personally, i wouldn't wait to see what he does as hybpersonic missiles carrying Nuclear warheads would be unstoppable according to many. There are around 200 targets in Russia to take out airfields, naval basis and alike. Just take those out asap. Then all you need to worry about is the submarines they have carrying Nuclear warheads. No idea if they being tracked somehow, i guess they are if its possible.

This is not a football match where one team sits back and waits to see what the opposition does, they have nuclear weapons, therefore i say strike first and take your chances.

Putin might think, well, i am dying anyway, so why not take Nato countries out asap with no warning. He probably wont be around to see the consequences of his actions etc.

[Derek27]

My take on this is that Putin is very ill, we already know he is taking high doses of experimental drugs for thyroid cancer. Some believe this is affecting his judgement plus he seems paronoid about being attacked/invaded by Nato or Nazi's. There is nothing to stop him waking from a bad dream and pressing the button, assuming his technology works.

I think he will launch a small nuclear tactical strike against Ukraine or even Finland to show Nato and the world that he is not mucking about.

The question will then be how Nato responds as the situation woukd likely escalate very quickly into WW3.

Personally, i wouldn't wait to see what he does as hybpersonic missiles carrying Nuclear warheads would be unstoppable according to many. There are around 200 targets in Russia to take out airfields, naval basis and alike. Just take those out asap. Then all you need to worry about is the submarines they have carrying Nuclear warheads. No idea if they being tracked somehow, i guess they are if its possible.

This is not a football match where one team sits back and waits to see what the opposition does, they have nuclear weapons, therefore i say strike first and take your chances.

Putin might think, well, i am dying anyway, so why not take Nato countries out asap with no warning. He probably wont be around to see the consequences of his actions etc.

Putin's submarines are outdated and noisy, as submarines go. I don't think it would be too difficult for the US to seek out and destroy them.

As for hypersonic missiles, Putin used 3 of them this week on mundane targets that didn't even require that technology. Military analysts are questioning whether he's running out of cruise missiles or trying to demonstrate his strength, but he won't have many of them left.

[Kai]

Might be a good time to share this important survival tip that I got from an expert doomsday prepper, if you ever get lost in the woods without food and water just start talking politics and someone will show up to argue with you.