Ukraine

[I-5]

You have woken us up Putin. You have woken America up.

The real stars of the show are the Ukrainians - that's who Putin woke up. Their patriotism, their ingenuity, and their resolve to fight to the death to protect it. And now Putin has made a true hero out of President Zelensky - he wanted to be the one riding in on a white horse as the hero, but he'll forever be the villian in world history. It's only a matter of time before the brainwashed russians also realize it.

[Aseahawkfan]

The real stars of the show are the Ukrainians - that's who Putin woke up. Their patriotism, their ingenuity, and their resolve to fight to the death to protect it. And now Putin has made a true hero out of President Zelensky - he wanted to be the one riding in on a white horse as the hero, but he'll forever be the villian in world history. It's only a matter of time before the brainwashed russians also realize it.

That is what makes it so hard to sit by is watching the Ukrainians fight so hard for their freedom. We should be there with a people that finally want some help to be a free nation. I'm glad some Americans are flying over to fight.

And I'm glad Europe has been awakened to the danger Russia poses. Seeing Germany finally decide to build a real military will be a great help.

[Stream Hawk]

Wait, what type of Americans are flying over to help during the war? You are disappointed that our military is not over there right now? Be careful what you wish for as that would likely be no bueno in the long run. It’s just a delicate situation.

[Aseahawkfan]

Wait, what type of Americans are flying over to help during the war? You are disappointed that our military is not over there right now? Be careful what you wish for as that would likely be no bueno in the long run. It’s just a delicate situation.

Some American ex-soldiers I believe.

Some Americans hear the call for freedom and head over. We are a warrior people who believe in freedom.

Putin is pushing us. I can't believe you as an American think some guy threatening us with nuclear attack is tolerable. I don't like to cower. That is not our American way.

When someone threatens us, the war machine starts to move. I know our military is already preparing for a worse case scenario and the full force of our military will be brought to bear if that idiot Putin decides to test us.

[Aseahawkfan]

And gas prices now at the highest average in history at 4.17 a gallon national average and rising.

[RiverDog]

And gas prices now at the highest average in history at 4.17 a gallon national average and rising.

You can thank a Democrat for those high prices.

[RiverDog]

Here's an interesting take from U.S. Army Col. Yevgeny (Eugene) Vindman who, along with his twin brother, Alexander Vindman, served on the National Security Council during the Trump administration. They raised concerns about President Donald Trump's phone call to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in 2019; the brothers were later fired from the NSC. His family has deep roots in Ukraine:

Q. Do you see a likely scenario where Putin can now retreat and retain power? Or has he stumbled into a trap where he must keep fighting this war in an attempt to save his dictatorship and himself?

A. My personal opinion is that Putin's days are numbered. Putin has attempted maximalist goals – conquer all of Ukraine and pacify the population. He will not achieve these goals. Putin is a strongman who is demonstrating that he is not very strong. His only leverage against the West is nuclear war.

However, he cannot push the red button on his own. He requires many subordinates to execute his orders. They are not likely interested in a war of nuclear annihilation that Putin started for no reason. He is also afraid and isolated, as demonstrated by the distance he puts between himself and others at a table. It’s hard for me to believe that someone so scared is willing to die in a nuclear holocaust.

Having said all this, the risks are high, and that is why the U.S. and the West are taking a measured and restrained approach. Creatively thinking about off-ramps and engaging intermediaries, like the Israelis, is the smart and rational approach.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/opinion/ ... d=msedgntp

[Hawktawk]

Heard a report on a FB site shared by a friend who is US Army lt Colonel . It said the latest general killed was an absolute superstar , highly decorated veteran of the chechnian and Crimea wars . Also their encrypted communications are completely disabled so the death was announced on a private cell phone with a current SIM card which is alarming when they are flying blind . I hope there’s enough checks and balances. If there were I’d think Putin would be receiving pressure to declare some sort of victory and get out . Hope for the best and be as prepared as possible for the worst .

[RiverDog]

If you think gas prices are high now, just wait until our banning of Russian oil imports takes effect:

President Joe Biden announced Tuesday that the U.S. will ban imports of Russian oil and other energy products, but will not be joined in doing so by European allies.

The move is expected to trigger sharply higher gasoline and other energy prices in the U.S. and worldwide.

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/biden-a ... d=83315763

Not that I object, to the contrary, we need to do everything short of war to stop this POS.

[I-5]

High gas prices aren't good, but less reliance on Russian oil imports is VERY good. It will accelerate the move to EV's too. I'm not there yet, but I think I'll get there sooner.

[c_hawkbob]

If you think gas prices are high now, just wait until our banning of Russian oil imports takes effect:

President Joe Biden announced Tuesday that the U.S. will ban imports of Russian oil and other energy products, but will not be joined in doing so by European allies.

The move is expected to trigger sharply higher gasoline and other energy prices in the U.S. and worldwide.

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/biden-a ... d=83315763

Not that I object, to the contrary, we need to do everything short of war to stop this POS.

They were essentially already in effect, this just putting a political exclamation point on it. All of the major oil companies (except Shell) had already ceased doing business with Russian oil and in fact BP had divested their 19.75% stake in Russian oil giant Rosneft. And Shell is apologizing for not jumping on that 'banned' wagon earlier:

Shell apologized on Tuesday for buying Russian oil last week after it had said it would pull out of its Russian operations, including the Sakhalin 2 LNG plant in which it holds a 27.5% stake and which is operated by Gazprom.

"We are acutely aware that our decision last week to purchase a cargo of Russian crude oil ... was not the right one and we are sorry," Chief Executive Officer Ben van Beurden said.

[mykc14]

High gas prices aren't good, but less reliance on Russian oil imports is VERY good. It will accelerate the move to EV's too. I'm not there yet, but I think I'll get there sooner.

We have enough oil to get away from any foreign reliance on oil. There is no reason that we should be paying 4+ dollars a gallon for gas. That is what democrats want- the artificially high oil prices to push you to EV.

[c_hawkbob]

High gas prices aren't good, but less reliance on Russian oil imports is VERY good. It will accelerate the move to EV's too. I'm not there yet, but I think I'll get there sooner.

We have enough oil to get away from any foreign reliance on oil. There is no reason that we should be paying 4+ dollars a gallon for gas. That is what democrats want- the artificially high oil prices to push you to EV.

Hogwash. It's what the right wants so they can use it against Dems on election day.

[mykc14]

Hogwash. It's what the right wants so they can use it against Dems on election day.

Which part is Hogwash? The part where I stated Democrats want us to move to EV's or the part where I said the gas prices are artificially high? I thought it was common knowledge that Dems want to move us towards EV, is it not? I thought that was as fundamental as gun control, abortion, etc... It's pretty clear that if Biden wouldn't have shut down domestic oil production our gas prices would be lower. Whether you agree with why he closed it or not doesn't change that fact.

[Aseahawkfan]

Dems are going to take a beating and lose The White House if inflation and gas prices stay this high or higher. Talk about idiots practically handing the presidency and Congress back to the Republicans gift wrapped in a bow.

Kamala Harris is absolutely The Invisible Woman. Incapable of handling some of this level of importance. She's out of her element. So is Biden.

[mykc14]

Dems are going to take a beating and lose The White House if inflation and gas prices stay this high or higher. Talk about idiots practically handing the presidency and Congress back to the Republicans gift wrapped in a bow.

Kamala Harris is absolutely The Invisible Woman. Incapable of handling some of this level of importance. She's out of her element. So is Biden.

Yeah, I wish we had better options. Trump and Biden/Harris are historically bad. Biden had options to bridge the gap between moderate/left leaning Republicans and the Democrats and he has failed greatly. A perfect example of that is what he has done with domestic oil. One of the first things he does is shut it down- costing Americans thousands of jobs and millions of dollars in the middle of a pandemic under the guise of environmentalism. We still needed the same amount of oil as before, but instead of drill and processing it domestically we had to transfer it across the ocean. I imagine foreign oil processing/shipping produced more pollution than domestic oil production. Instead of opening it up now, in the midst of the highest national average gas prices in history, American oil is closed. Canada is just as dumb. I don't mind the push for EV, it is the future of vehicles but it also isn't as innocent and environmentally friendly as many people believe it to be. Use the domestic oil while we have it/need it and highly incentivize EV vehicle development/purchase.

[Aseahawkfan]

Yeah, I wish we had better options. Trump and Biden/Harris are historically bad. Biden had options to bridge the gap between moderate/left leaning Republicans and the Democrats and he has failed greatly. A perfect example of that is what he has done with domestic oil. One of the first things he does is shut it down- costing Americans thousands of jobs and millions of dollars in the middle of a pandemic under the guise of environmentalism. We still needed the same amount of oil as before, but instead of drill and processing it domestically we had to transfer it across the ocean. I imagine foreign oil processing/shipping produced more pollution than domestic oil production. Instead of opening it up now, in the midst of the highest national average gas prices in history, American oil is closed. Canada is just as dumb. I don't mind the push for EV, it is the future of vehicles but it also isn't as innocent and environmentally friendly as many people believe it to be. Use the domestic oil while we have it/need it and highly incentivize EV vehicle development/purchase.

Dems are more concerned with culture wars than taking care of real and needed business and international issues.

[I-5]

If the goal was simply to win the White House, then every president would want to keep gas prices as low as possible. Russisn oil only makes up 10% of all US oil imports, so yes it has an effect but its not as dramatic as for european countries.

And yes we all wish we had better options, but to say Biden/Harris are historically bad means you have to perform a self lobotomy to forget Trump (Pence ain’t too bad, though, at least he’s an adult). For anyone that points out that Putin didn’t invade Ukraine on Donald’s watch, its because he already had Trump weakening NATO for him. Unfortunately, the reverse effect happened. Germany and France woke up and started trusting the US less for protection, thereby strengthening NATO. Sorry, Vlad.

Lastly, if the US really wants to contribute to Ukraine, its time to up its refugee program. See how well that goes with conservatives, but thats what is needed as mich as military aid.

[Aseahawkfan]

Wheat prices are rising which will increase the cost of bread, cereal, and a variety of other products.

[Aseahawkfan]

If the goal was simply to win the White House, then every president would want to keep gas prices as low as possible. Russisn oil only makes up 10% of all US oil imports, so yes it has an effect but its not as dramatic as for european countries.

And yes we all wish we had better options, but to say Biden/Harris are historically bad means you have to perform a self lobotomy to forget Trump (Pence ain’t too bad, though, at least he’s an adult). For anyone that points out that Putin didn’t invade Ukraine on Donald’s watch, its because he already had Trump weakening NATO for him. Unfortunately, the reverse effect happened. Germany and France woke up and started trusting the US less for protection, thereby strengthening NATO. Sorry, Vlad.

Lastly, if the US really wants to contribute to Ukraine, its time to up its refugee program. See how well that goes with conservatives, but thats what is needed as mich as military aid.

I think Putin planned to invade in Trump's second term when he was lame duck president. He wanted Trump to win a second term and that would not have happened if he invaded during Trump's first term for the same reasons, though Trump would have been smart enough to get domestic oil production going to offset the price increases.

Or perhaps he is trying to get Trump a second term starting this war because he knows all the economic issues caused by this will get Biden booted out of The White House. This entire move is to set Biden up to fall and help Trump get back in The White House in 2024. I guess we'll see how it goes.

Right now, I don't think Biden is going to win a second term. He looks pretty terrible right now and if he doesn't get domestic oil going he's going to screw himself and the Democrats even more. I truly cannot fathom the level of stupidity necessary to not realize how badly this is going to go if he doesn't get control of these oil prices and the worst of it will be visited on working Americans. I can't even imagine Clinton or Obama being this dumb.

And you gotta wake up buddy, Trump would welcome Ukrainian refugees for obvious reasons. He's literally married two wives from that area of the world. Trump would finally have refugees coming to America who look like the people he wants them to look like. Republicans will probably be falling over themselves to finally have a large number of European refugees into America. You see Ukrainians? They look like Trump's kids.

The conservative right would love to have Ukrainian refugees in America. White, Christian and Jewish people from a European nation with a Western Style culture. They'll be falling over themselves to bring Ukrainians here.

[RiverDog]

If the goal was simply to win the White House, then every president would want to keep gas prices as low as possible. Russisn oil only makes up 10% of all US oil imports, so yes it has an effect but its not as dramatic as for european countries.

And yes we all wish we had better options, but to say Biden/Harris are historically bad means you have to perform a self lobotomy to forget Trump (Pence ain’t too bad, though, at least he’s an adult). For anyone that points out that Putin didn’t invade Ukraine on Donald’s watch, its because he already had Trump weakening NATO for him. Unfortunately, the reverse effect happened. Germany and France woke up and started trusting the US less for protection, thereby strengthening NATO. Sorry, Vlad.

Lastly, if the US really wants to contribute to Ukraine, its time to up its refugee program. See how well that goes with conservatives, but thats what is needed as mich as military aid.

Russian oil makes up less than 10% of our imports. But the problem is that oil is a commodity traded on the world market, so even though most of our oil is produced domestically, the price of crude is driven by international economics. But you're right, it's not as bad here as it is in Europe. However, if you've ever been to Europe, you will have noticed that they're in a much better position to deal with the cost of gas than we are here as they have a much more extensive mass transportation system than we do here.

My take on Putin not invading Ukraine during Trump's watch is because for whatever reason, him and Trump were best buddies, and Putin didn't want to do something that would have backed Trump into a corner and forced him to take a stand.

[mykc14]

to say Biden/Harris are historically bad means you have to perform a self lobotomy to forget Trump (Pence ain’t too bad, though, at least he’s an adult). For anyone that points out that Putin didn’t invade Ukraine on Donald’s watch, its because he already had Trump weakening NATO for him. Unfortunately, the reverse effect happened. Germany and France woke up and started trusting the US less for protection, thereby strengthening NATO. Sorry, Vlad.

I agree which is why I said TRUMP and Biden/Harris are historically bad.

[I-5]

And you gotta wake up buddy, Trump would welcome Ukrainian refugees for obvious reasons. He's literally married two wives from that area of the world. Trump would finally have refugees coming to America who look like the people he wants them to look like. Republicans will probably be falling over themselves to finally have a large number of European refugees into America. You see Ukrainians? They look like Trump's kids.

The conservative right would love to have Ukrainian refugees in America. White, Christian and Jewish people from a European nation with a Western Style culture. They'll be falling over themselves to bring Ukrainians here.

Thanks for saying the quiet part out loud. Conservatives are ok with refugees if they’re the right color and religion.

[Aseahawkfan]

Thanks for saying the quiet part out loud. Conservatives are ok with refugees if they’re the right color and religion.

At least the anti-immigration people and Trump. I wouldn't include all conservatives. The political spectrum is varied substantially. I would say the people who most whine about immigration would be happier to take in some white Christian and Jewish Ukrainians. And Trump himself of course. We all know the rumor about him not wanting people from s-hole countries and would prefer some European immigrants.

Conservatives like Riverdog and myself couldn't care less. I'm conservative mostly when it comes to money, taxes, the 2nd Amendment, and less government interference.

[RiverDog]

Thanks for saying the quiet part out loud. Conservatives are ok with refugees if they’re the right color and religion.

At least the anti-immigration people and Trump. I wouldn't include all conservatives. The political spectrum is varied substantially. I would say the people who most whine about immigration would be happier to take in some white Christian and Jewish Ukrainians. And Trump himself of course. We all know the rumor about him not wanting people from s-hole countries and would prefer some European immigrants.

Conservatives like Riverdog and myself couldn't care less. I'm conservative mostly when it comes to money, taxes, the 2nd Amendment, and less government interference.

As a rule, I don't like people speaking for me, but in this case, ASF is exactly right about my attitude.

Personally, I'd rather have immigrants from "s-hole countries" than I would from a wealthier country like the UK, Canada, or Australia as they are less likely to have an entitlement attitude about them and more likely to be hard, productive workers because they're hungrier and know poverty. As long as they are law abiding and willing to work, I say not only should we be letting them in, we should be out there recruiting and encouraging them to apply even if they can't speak a word of English.

[I-5]

Personally, I'd rather have immigrants from "s-hole countries" than I would from a wealthier country like the UK, Canada, or Australia as they are less likely to have an entitlement attitude about them and more likely to be hard, productive workers because they're hungrier and know poverty. As long as they are law abiding and willing to work, I say not only should we be letting them in, we should be out there recruiting and encouraging them to apply even if they can't speak a word of English.

Riv, I know enough about you that you're not a 'typical' conservative. Unfortunately, I don't think you represent the majority of conservative attitude on immigration. The way Americans are responding to Ukrainians today is the way it should be with all innocent people trying to escape violence from all so called 's-hole' countries. We all know that's not the case, not even close.

[RiverDog]

Riv, I know enough about you that you're not a 'typical' conservative. Unfortunately, I don't think you represent the majority of conservative attitude on immigration. The way Americans are responding to Ukrainians today is the way it should be with all innocent people trying to escape violence from all so called 's-hole' countries. We all know that's not the case, not even close.

Most of those that subscribe to Donald Trump's insecurity about immigrants, harbor racial and country of origin biases, are conservatives/R's. I don't think that anyone would argue with that. But whether or not that paranoia and prejudicial attitude is 'typical' of conservatives/R's, I couldn't say. I will say that I know quite a few people that hold very similar views to that of my own that consider themselves to be at least fiscal conservatives, enough of them for me to conclude that I'm not an anomaly.

I feel that there are A LOT of people that aren't necessarily bigots or that harbor a deep seated hatred, but do have an unjustifiable fear of people that don't look or talk like they do, which isn't limited to whites or to Americans and in some respects is quite natural, but that are open minded enough to where they could be reasoned with given the right circumstances.

Our little group here isn't exactly a scientific sampling, but of those that are regular contributors to this forum, I can count 5 of us that if not conservatives, have expressed opinions generally associated with conservative thought yet do not appear to hold the same type of bias that you're suggesting is 'typical' of a conservative.

[I-5]

Most of those that subscribe to Donald Trump's insecurity about immigrants, harbor racial and country of origin biases, are conservatives/R's. I don't think that anyone would argue with that. But whether or not that paranoia and prejudicial attitude is 'typical' of conservatives/R's, I couldn't say. I will say that I know quite a few people that hold very similar views to that of my own that consider themselves to be at least fiscal conservatives, enough of them for me to conclude that I'm not an anomaly.

I feel that there are A LOT of people that aren't necessarily bigots or that harbor a deep seated hatred, but do have an unjustifiable fear of people that don't look or talk like they do, which isn't limited to whites or to Americans and in some respects is quite natural, but that are open minded enough to where they could be reasoned with given the right circumstances.

Our little group here isn't exactly a scientific sampling, but of those that are regular contributors to this forum, I can count 5 of us that if not conservatives, have expressed opinions generally associated with conservative thought yet do not appear to hold the same type of bias that you're suggesting is 'typical' of a conservative.

Can you articulate what you think mainstream conservatives believe about refugees escaping violence and how they should or shouldn't be treated in terms of US response? I'm interested to learn something here.

Do you agree the response to Ukrainians is not exactly the same as those from Syria or latin America, for example?

[RiverDog]

Can you articulate what you think mainstream conservatives believe about refugees escaping violence and how they should or shouldn't be treated in terms of US response? I'm interested to learn something here.

From my previous comments: But whether or not that paranoia and prejudicial attitude is 'typical' of conservatives/R's, I couldn't say.

Short answer is no, I can't. Slightly longer answer is that I have no idea what 'mainstream conservatives' believe. To begin with, I don't even know what a mainstream conservative is. Are they Trump supporters? MAGA people? Or are they Romney/Cheney types? All I am saying is that my views aren't necessarily atypical of a conservative, that I know a lot of people that think much as I do. How many or what percentage, I haven't a clue.

Do you agree the response to Ukrainians is not exactly the same as those from Syria or latin America, for example?

I assume that you are suggesting that the primary reason why Ukrainians are being met with considerably more sympathy than those in Syria or Latin America has something to do with race or ethnicity, and again, I can't really say for sure. It certainly may be a factor, but it also could be that Americans still have a residual dislike and a distrust of the Russians that got its roots during the Cold War, and it's more about the aggressor than it is the victims. We grew up in a world where the "Rooskies" were our arch enemies, the ones that Ronald Reagan called the Evil Empire, that shoots down passenger airliners, and that Tom Cruise battled in Top Gun.

I also think that the Ukrainian President, Zelensky, has had a lot to do with the amount and intensity of support in this country, that is open defiance, his look-em in the eye and saying "Go ahead: Make my day!" in spite of the odds being stacked heavily against him appeals to our souls, like rooting for the underdog, for David to kick the crap out of Goliath. We haven't seen that kind of defiance out of anyone in the world since Winston Churchill. BTW, did you know that Churchill wanted to be in the first wave to storm the beaches at Normandy? Eisenhower had to go to the king of England to talk him out of it.

I know that wasn't the answer you were looking for, that you're trying to get inside the thought process of a 'typical' conservative, but I honestly don't know anymore than you do.

[Aseahawkfan]

Most of those that subscribe to Donald Trump's insecurity about immigrants, harbor racial and country of origin biases, are conservatives/R's. I don't think that anyone would argue with that. But whether or not that paranoia and prejudicial attitude is 'typical' of conservatives/R's, I couldn't say. I will say that I know quite a few people that hold very similar views to that of my own that consider themselves to be at least fiscal conservatives, enough of them for me to conclude that I'm not an anomaly.

I feel that there are A LOT of people that aren't necessarily bigots or that harbor a deep seated hatred, but do have an unjustifiable fear of people that don't look or talk like they do, which isn't limited to whites or to Americans and in some respects is quite natural, but that are open minded enough to where they could be reasoned with given the right circumstances.

Our little group here isn't exactly a scientific sampling, but of those that are regular contributors to this forum, I can count 5 of us that if not conservatives, have expressed opinions generally associated with conservative thought yet do not appear to hold the same type of bias that you're suggesting is 'typical' of a conservative.

I wouldn't hang out with racist people myself. My Republican and Trump supporting buddies don't focus much on his anti-immigrant rhetoric. Their primary reason for voting for Trump is to oppose the Democrats. Hate for Democrats is the primary driving force behind votes for Trump.

Why? Because conservative news stations like Fox News take every crazy thing the Democrats support and do and find the the worst person they can to represent those values, then push it hard on Fox News. And sadly the Democrats support as much crazy as some of the Republicans. It's different crazy, but crazy in my opinion nonetheless. It drives Republican and conservative hate to vote against them.

Our entire nation at the moment pretty much votes mostly on who they hate the most with some strong believer groups in each camp like Ann Coulter who makes her money on her anti-immigrant crusade or Cortez who makes her money attacking capitalists and pushing climate change Armageddon. Most other conservatives or Republicans kind of loosely buy into the issues that don't even greatly understand as sold to them by Fox or whatever conservative news station they listen to and then vote based on outrage and hate for the opposition.

[RiverDog]

I wouldn't hang out with racist people myself. My Republican and Trump supporting buddies don't focus much on his anti-immigrant rhetoric. Their primary reason for voting for Trump is to oppose the Democrats. Hate for Democrats is the primary driving force behind votes for Trump.

Why? Because conservative news stations like Fox News take every crazy thing the Democrats support and do and find the the worst person they can to represent those values, then push it hard on Fox News. And sadly the Democrats support as much crazy as some of the Republicans. It's different crazy, but crazy in my opinion nonetheless. It drives Republican and conservative hate to vote against them.

I wouldn't hang out with openly racist people, either, even if I had something in common with them. Nearly half of my friends here locally weren't born in this country, and I have two nephews that I love dearly that are multi-racial as their mom is a native Ethiopian. I wouldn't want to be seen with a known racist for fear of hurting those I care about.

The conservative news stations don't have to dramatize the crazy things that Democrats support in order to drive moderate conservatives to Donald Trump. They do a good enough job of that on their own. Even if all you watched was CNN or MSNBC, a conservative could see issues that would cause them to hate the Democrats, like abolishing ICE, defunding the police, and the anti 2nd Amendment laws. The Democratic governments of Seattle and Portland's reaction to the BLM riots of 2020 did more to harm to Biden and helped Trump nearly win a 2nd term than anything Fox News could have come up with.

Our entire nation at the moment pretty much votes mostly on who they hate the most with some strong believer groups in each camp like Ann Coulter who makes her money on her anti-immigrant crusade or Cortez who makes her money attacking capitalists and pushing climate change Armageddon. Most other conservatives or Republicans kind of loosely buy into the issues that don't even greatly understand as sold to them by Fox or whatever conservative news station they listen to and then vote based on outrage and hate for the opposition.

I pretty much agree with that. Most people, liberals as well as conservatives, will listen to whatever they like being told.

[Aseahawkfan]

I wouldn't hang out with openly racist people, either, even if I had something in common with them. Nearly half of my friends here locally weren't born in this country, and I have two nephews that I love dearly that are multi-racial as their mom is a native Ethiopian. I wouldn't want to be seen with a known racist for fear of hurting those I care about.

The conservative news stations don't have to dramatize the crazy things that Democrats support in order to drive moderate conservatives to Donald Trump. They do a good enough job of that on their own. Even if all you watched was CNN or MSNBC, a conservative could see issues that would cause them to hate the Democrats, like abolishing ICE, defunding the police, and the anti 2nd Amendment laws. The Democratic governments of Seattle and Portland's reaction to the BLM riots of 2020 did more to harm to Biden and helped Trump nearly win a 2nd term than anything Fox News could have come up with.

I don't recall when younger each party paying such attention to the loonies in their party. I keep wondering when this happened.

When did things like critical race theory, defunding the police, hating capitalism, and transgender rights become the core issues of the Democratic Party?

Or anti-immigrant stances, anti-vaccine stances, anti-science, and making excuses for racists become part of the Republican Party?

Seems to be recent.

[RiverDog]

I don't recall when younger each party paying such attention to the loonies in their party. I keep wondering when this happened.

When did things like critical race theory, defunding the police, hating capitalism, and transgender rights become the core issues of the Democratic Party?

Or anti-immigrant stances, anti-vaccine stances, anti-science, and making excuses for racists become part of the Republican Party?

Seems to be recent.

It seems to me that it has been extremely recent, like the start of the pandemic in the first half of 2020. Not many people believe me, but when we first started wearing masks, I'd go into a grocery store and I felt like I was in some sort of sci fi movie, walking around with a bunch of faceless clones, very dehumanizing. It was a surreal experience. I'm the type of person that always looks for eye contact, and if I get it, I smile and say hello, but that didn't happen when we were all wearing masks.

It was that spring that George Floyd was killed, and we had a summer of riots and protests that seemed to push the Demolibs into a different state of mind.

Sounds weird, but I have no other explanation.

[Aseahawkfan]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwScTlCf5IQ

Description of Thermobaric "Vacuum" Bomb being used in Ukraine urban setting. Terrifying.

[RiverDog]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwScTlCf5IQ

Description of Thermobaric "Vacuum" Bomb being used in Ukraine urban setting. Terrifying.

I had heard of fuel to air bombs, but until recently, I didn't know that this 'thermobaric' bomb was a different name for the same weapon. A very indiscriminate bomb, and if they were to employ this in an urban setting, everyone associated with its use should be hung.

[RiverDog]

Now the Russians are making some veiled threats to leave an American astronaut, Mark Vande Hei, on board the International Space Station without a ride home. Vande Hei is scheduled to return to Earth in about 3 weeks:

Russia recently threatened that its cosmonauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) could leave a U.S. astronaut without a ride home.

On Saturday, the Russian state media outlet RIA Novosti shared a video, reportedly published by the Russian space agency Roscosmos, depicting Russian cosmonauts waving goodbye to a lone American astronaut, Mark Vande Hei, and detaching the Russian section of ISS. The video is comprised partially of historic ISS footage and a CGI animation of the Russian section separating from ISS.

https://americanmilitarynews.com/2022/0 ... e-station/

This could get real nasty.

[Aseahawkfan]

Now the Russians are making some veiled threats to leave an American astronaut, Mark Vande Hei, on board the International Space Station without a ride home. Vande Hei is scheduled to return to Earth in about 3 weeks:

Russia recently threatened that its cosmonauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) could leave a U.S. astronaut without a ride home.

On Saturday, the Russian state media outlet RIA Novosti shared a video, reportedly published by the Russian space agency Roscosmos, depicting Russian cosmonauts waving goodbye to a lone American astronaut, Mark Vande Hei, and detaching the Russian section of ISS. The video is comprised partially of historic ISS footage and a CGI animation of the Russian section separating from ISS.

https://americanmilitarynews.com/2022/0 ... e-station/

This could get real nasty.

Understatement. It's already very nasty. This is at this point just petty.

[Aseahawkfan]

When I think about this, what kind a person do you have to be to watch COVID19 kill 6 million people and then decide it is a good time to start a war as the world is just coming out a global pandemic?

Putin must be a true sociopath. No real ability to process emotions or feel sympathy. Just looking at the world as a chessboard he wants to tactically manipulate regardless of what he does to people's lives.

I really hope at some point we breed these leaders out of the human race. The second criteria for any leader you vote for should be, "Does this person actually care about human beings and their well being?" This is of course after you determine you are voting for a sane person or as sane as you can surmise from afar.

[RiverDog]

When I think about this, what kind a person do you have to be to watch COVID19 kill 6 million people and then decide it is a good time to start a war as the world is just coming out a global pandemic?

Putin must be a true sociopath. No real ability to process emotions or feel sympathy. Just looking at the world as a chessboard he wants to tactically manipulate regardless of what he does to people's lives.

I really hope at some point we breed these leaders out of the human race. The second criteria for any leader you vote for should be, "Does this person actually care about human beings and their well being?" This is of course after you determine you are voting for a sane person or as sane as you can surmise from afar.

Yeah, if it's not one thing, it's another. This decade sure has started out on a crappy footing. Hopefully it doesn't turn out like our last bad decade, the '60's.

I have to think that at some point, the Russians will take care of Putin on their own rather than let him drive the country off a cliff. Did you see the protester that jumped behind the news anchor on their state run TV station in the middle of a live telecast and held up a sign saying No War?

[Aseahawkfan]

Yeah, if it's not one thing, it's another. This decade sure has started out on a crappy footing. Hopefully it doesn't turn out like our last bad decade, the '60's.

I have to think that at some point, the Russians will take care of Putin on their own rather than let him drive the country off a cliff. Did you see the protester that jumped behind the news anchor on their state run TV station in the middle of a live telecast and held up a sign saying No War?

I have to say that I'm honestly very happy with the way the world has handled this situation. If Putin doesn't set off nukes, this really could signal a change for the world, a positive change. So many people are seeing the negatives of this, but I'm seeing way more positive myself. The world doesn't want this war, not even China seems to want it. It seems only Putin and his backers want it. Even most Russians don't seem to want it. The Western nations don't want it. It seems like the world is sending up a signal that are really tired of men like Putin ruining the world for everyone.

I don't think I've seen the Russians so actively standing against Putin in my life. Even some of his news stations are rebelling. His soldiers seem to be unmotivated to make war. He is resorting to bombing from a distance because his soldiers don't like the up close fighting against a force as determined to resist as the Ukrainians.

I think a more positive outcome may occur worldwide than we think. If Putin falls or is at least greatly reduced in power, he may be the last of the Russian strongmen as regular Russians and the business people of Russia realize it doesn't do anything for Russia to pursue empire building. They make less money and accomplish nothing useful.

People don't like empire building any longer. They are tired of it and the type of leaders it produces.

We'll see how it goes long-term, but this may be a huge change in the world and not in the negative way. It may be a very positive change. The last kick of the old style Russian dictators.