Showing posts with label Vladimir Putin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Vladimir Putin. Show all posts

Tuesday, January 6, 2026

CliffsNotes of the Zeitgeist, 113th Edition. Some things you aren't hearing much about right now and some things that require explanation that we're not getting. The Venezuelan Distraction Edition.

Hmmmm. . . . 

The U.S. attacked Venezuela over the weekend as its a major drug exporter to the U.S., or maybe because we wanted to liberate the country from Maduro, or maybe because it has oil.  

One of those things.  

Anyhow, 

Somethings we aren't hearing much about now.

  • Where are those Epstein files?

Where, where?

Still delayed.

Marjorie Taylor Greene, whose leaves office today, claimed Trump would attack Venezuela as nothing distracts like war.  She said that, not me.

I'm not saying that he attacked Venezuela for that reason, although I don't put it past him.  But we sure aren't hearing much about them now, are we?

They could have dropped the entire file in a giant Playboy Ephebophilia, Collectors Edition, complete with underaged centefolds, and nobody would have noticed.

  • What's up with the economy?

Do you know?  I don't, and I follow the economy.

  • What's going on in the Russo Ukrainian War?

Trump was going to instantly end the war, but it turned out to be hard.  

Over the last month he was praising Putin, and then sort of praising Ukraine, and now we don't hear anything about the war at all.  Utterly nothing.

I'm sure Trump didn't end the war.

By The image created by © Yuriy Kvach, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=31547668

Somethings we need explanations on.

  • Greenland?

What is the real source of Trump's fascination with Greenland?  The strategic need line is complete and utter crap.  If somebody is actually telling him that, they need to be dope slapped into the 21st Century.  

I don't really think it's Trump, as I don't think Trump is smart enough to know anything about Greenland.  Having watched him now for years, I'm pretty much convinced that he was a fairly good salesman at one time, but he was never very intelligent.  Now he's demented so he's not even a good salesman.  

It's something or somebody else, or . . . 


  • Putin and Trump?

We have to seriously consider once again why Donald Trump is a Russian asset.  

We know that he is a Russian asset, but we don't know why.  He may be simply because he likes them for some reason.  Or he may have really bought into some weird vision of the world that's centered in the 18th Century, in which he's King Donald the Demented and Putin is Tsar Vlad the Magnificent.  Btu with the threats on Greenland we need to at least consider the possibility that Trump is a full-blown Russian asset as they have something on him, or are giving something to him.

That sounds extreme, but a US that pulls back to the Western Hemisphere and wrecks NATO is a gift to Russia.  And it appears to be happening.  Putin had been a backer of Maduro but he didn't lift a finger to help him once our illegitimate head of state caused that illegitimate head of state to be seized.

And Putin has been oddly quiet.

It's clear that at least for the time being the relationship between the United States and Europe is wrecked.  If you were writing a script for a Russian mole to occupy the White House, even Tom Clancy couldn't do better than this.

Harry Dexter White. . . it's sort of happened before.

  • Lindsey Graham.

What's going on with Lindsey Graham.  Unlike Trump, he's not dumb.  His complete and utter sycophancy needs some explanation.

  • Stephen and Katie Miller

Okay, this is going to be delicate, but there's something really weird about Stephen Miller playing Joseph Goebbels and his wife playing, well, Joseph Goebbels.

They're both Jewish.

Miller is the chief proponent of White Anglo Saxon Protestantism in the administration, and he ain't one.  I don't know the ethnicity of his wife, but she could pass for a Mizrahi Jew.  

This might not quite be as weird as it sounds, although its downright dangerous for them.  Goebbels had been a Communist and you can find plenty of Nazis who were drawn from German populations that were repressed in the most violent ways during the Third Reich, but there's the lesson.  The policies that Miller advocates for would, in the end, put him and Katie in the hold of a boat and deport them to a place that people who think like him would think he would find more to their liking, or at least theirs.

Before this sounds too one sided, there's a real lesson for Catholics supporting Trump.  His people don't think you are very American either.

Careful Steve and Katie. . . this is how a lot of your fellow travelers see you.

  • The weather.

It's been super warm this winter.  No winter at all.  

How long do we intend to ignore this?

Last edition:

CliffsNotes of the Zeitgeist, 112th Edition. Clinton calls Trump's bluff.

Saturday, December 20, 2025

Wars and Rumors of War, 2025. Part 9. The Neville Chamberlain Edition.

You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.

Matthew, Chapter 24.

The settlement of the Czechoslovak problem which has now been achieved is, in my view, only the prelude to a larger settlement in which all Europe may find peace. This morning I had another talk with the German Chancellor, Herr Hitler, and here is a paper which bears his name upon it as well as mine. Some of you perhaps have already heard what it contains, but I would just like to read it to you. " ... We regard the agreement signed last night and the Anglo-German Naval Agreement as symbolic of the desire of our two peoples never to go to war with one another again".[3]

* * *

My good friends, for the second time in our history, a British Prime Minister has returned from Germany bringing peace with honour.

I believe it is peace for our time...

Go home and get a nice quiet sleep.

Neville Chamberlain.

Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain showing off the Munich Pact with Adolf Hitler that granted Germany territorial concessions in Czechoslovakia and which set the stage for increased German avarice and World War Two.

November 23, 2025

Russo Ukrainian War.

Regarding the articles of surrender being pushed by Donald Trump on Ukraine, a CST headline:

KYIV’S ALLIES PUSH BACK ON US PEACE PLAN

The claimant of Presidential Power, Дональд Трамп, stated that the proposal was his "final offer", as if the US is doing the offering.  Secretary of State Rubio, who always looks like he's caught in a bad dream and who is probably the only significant member of the cabinet who is not a complete today, claimed that the plan is a "wish list", not a plan.

Independent Maine Sen. Angus King said earlier in the day that the plan is “one of the most serious geopolitical mistakes in my lifetime" comparing it to the 1938 Munich Pact.  Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said in statement, “if Administration officials are more concerned with appeasing Putin than securing real peace, then the President ought to find new advisors.” Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said McConnell’s criticism didn’t go far enough. “Putin is a murderer, a rapist and an assassin. . .  We should not do anything that makes him feel like he has a win here.” Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, called the plan an “outrage.”

Israel v. Hamas in Gaza

Israel hit Gaza yesterday with airstrikes.

November 24, 2025

Israel v. Hezbollah

Israel launched a raid in Lebanon Saturday that killed Hezbollah's chief of staff.

November 26, 2025

Russo Ukrainian War

Steve Witkoff: Hi Yuri.

Yuri Ushakov: Yeah Steve hi, how are you?

SW: Good Yuri. How you doing?

YU: I am ok. Congratulations my friend.

SW: Thank you.

YU: You made a great job. Just a great job. Thank you so much. Thank you, thank you.

SW: Thank you Yuri and thanks for your support. I know your country supported it and I thank you.

YU: Yes, yes, yes. Yes. You know that’s why we suspend the organization of first Russian-Arabic summit.

SW: Yes.

YU: Yeah, because we think that you are making the real job there in the region.

SW: Well listen. I am going to tell you something. I think, I think if we can get the Russia-Ukraine thing solved, everybody’ll be jumping for joy.

YU: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, you need to solve only one problem. [laughs]

SW: What?

YU: Russian-Ukrainian war.

SW: I know! How do we get that solved?

YU: My friend, I just want your advice. Do you think that it will be useful if our bosses will talk on the phone?

SW: Yes, I do.

YU: You do. And when you think it could be possible?

SW: I think as soon as you suggest, my guy is ready to do it.

YU: Ok, ok.

SW: Yuri, Yuri, here’s what I would do. My recommendation.

YU: Yes, please.

SW: I would make the call and just reiterate that you congratulate the president on this achievement, that you supported it, you supported it, that you respect that he is a man of peace and you’re just, you’re really glad to have seen it happen. So I would say that. I think from that it’s going to be a really good call.

Because — let me tell you what I told the President. I told the president that you - that the Russian Federation has always wanted a peace deal. That’s my belief. I told the president I believe that. And I believe the question is — the issue is is that we have two nations that are having a hard time coming to a compromise and when we do, we’re going to have a peace deal. I’m even thinking that maybe we set out like a 20-point peace proposal, just like we did in Gaza. We put a 20-point Trump plan together that was 20 points for peace and I’m thinking maybe we do the same thing with you. My point is this...

YU: Ok, ok my friend. I think that very point our leaders could discuss. Hey Steve, I agree with you that he will congratulate, he will say that Mr. Trump is a real peace man and so and so. That he will say.

SW: But here’s what I think would be amazing.

YU: Ok, ok.

SW: What if, what if... hear me out...

YU: I will discuss that with my boss and then I come back to you. Ok?

SW: Yeah because listen to what I’m saying. I just want you to say, maybe just to say this to President Putin, because you know I have the deepest respect for President Putin.

YU: Yes, Yes.

SW: Maybe he says to President Trump: you know, Steve and Yuri discussed a very similar 20-point plan to peace and that could be something that we think might move the needle a little bit, we’re open to those sorts of things — to explore what it’s going to take to get a peace deal done. Now, me to you, I know what it’s going to take to get a peace deal done: Donetsk and maybe a land swap somewhere. But I’m saying instead of talking like that, let’s talk more hopefully because I think we’re going to get to a deal here. And I think Yuri, the president will give me a lot of space and discretion to get to the deal.

YU: I see...

SW: ...so if we can create that opportunity that after this I talked to Yuri and we had a conversation I think that could lead to big stuff.

YU: Ok, that sounds good. Sounds good.

SW: And here’s one more thing: Zelenskiy is coming to the White House on Friday.

YU: I know that. [chuckles]

SW: I will go to that meeting because they want me there, but I think if possible we have the call with your boss before that Friday meeting.

YU: Before, before — yeah?

SW: Correct.

YU: Ok, ok. I got your advice. So I discuss that with my boss and then I come back to you, ok?

SW: Ok Yuri, I’ll speak to you soon.

YU: Great, great. Thank you so much. Thanks you.

SW: Bye, bye.

YU: Bye.

[Call Ends]

From Bloomberg.

This comes at a time when the illegitimate Trump Administration, headed by a man who committed actual sedition, is threatening to prosecute members of Congress for sedition.

November 28, 2025

Russo Ukrainian War

Putin termed the Trump surrender terms a "starting point" and threatened to overrun Ukraine with Russia's larger army if Ukraine did not come to terms.

It should be plain by now that Russia's army is crap.  It has been since some point before 1900.  If it could overrun Ukraine, it would have by now.  If all aid was cut off to it, and Russia then overran Ukraine, a guerrilla war would then ensue.

cont:

US. v. Venezuelan boats

From the Washington Post:

Hegseth order on first Caribbean boat strike, officials say: Kill them all

As two men clung to a stricken, burning ship targeted by SEAL Team 6, the Joint Special Operations commander followed the defense secretary’s order to leave no survivors

 

So now we kill people in the water.  Something we decried in World War One and World War Two.

A U-boat commander was tried and executed for that after the Second World War.

Heinz-Wilhelm Eck.  He ordered his crew to kill survivors and was convicted of a war crime and sentenced to death as a result.

November 30, 2025

United States v. Venezuela

Trump threatened to close Venezuelan air space.

cont:

The United Kingdom no longer shares intelligence with the US in the Caribbean due to the illegal actions of the United States in this region.

December 5, 2025

Congo

Rwanda and Congo signed an agreement aimed at bringing peace in the region, but analysts are skeptical of it holding.

United States v. Venezuela

U.S. Navy Adm. Frank M. Bradley denied in front of Congress that there'd been a "kill them all" order given by Hegseth.

December 8, 2025

United States v. Venezuela 

Members of Congress appeared on the weekend shows about the murder of two men in the fist strike who were on a remnant of the destroyed boat.

Tom Cotton showed himself the most extreme, maintaining that they were a dangers as they were attempting to upright the boat and reload the cargo, which is absurd.  He pretty much took the position that killing drug runners through military force is perfectly okay.

If that's the GOP position, and it apparently is in Congress, they should just state that.  The problem is, of course, that Trump just pardoned convicted drug runner, former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández.  Cotton claimed not to know the details of that while berating the host of This Week.

Add Cotton to the list if individuals who are temperamentally unsuited to be in Congress.

Thailand v. Cambodia

The countries entered into a ceasefire agreement recently which Trump claims as one of his "eight wars".  Thailand bombed Cambodian positions on their disputed border yesterday.

December 11, 2025

United States v. Venezuela

The US seized the Guyana-flagged "Very Large Crude Carrier" that was loaded covertly with 1.1 million barrels of oil in mid-November.   The ship was headed for Cuba, but has been anchored offshore Venezuela since being loaded with oil.  Half of the country's oil production goes to Cuba.

Why did we stop it?

This isn't clear, actually.  The government claims the ship is involved in the illegal transportation of oil.

December 14, 2025

US (and Syria) v ISIL

An attack in Syria killed U.S. troops and civilians.

Israel v. Hamas

An attack by Hamas wounded Israeli soldiers and Israel retaliated by killing a top Hamas figure.

December 15, 2025

US (and Syria) v ISIL

The soldiers killed in Syria were National Guardsmen:

Army identifies 2 Iowa National Guardsmen killed in Syria attack

Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard and Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar were killed on Dec. 13 in Palmyra, Syria.

December 16, 2025

United States v. Venezuela


And so Mad King Donald inches us that much closer to a war we'll still be waging when he's out of office.

And land? WTF is he talking about?

December 17, 2025

United States v. Venezuela

CST  headline:


December 19,  2025

United States v. Venezuela.

Senator from Deseret Mike Lee has introduced the Cartel Marque and Reprisal Reauthorization Act allowing for  the issuance of  letters of marque and reprisal to private entities to seize drug smuggling boats.

Apparently Sen. Lee is charmingly unaware that what you get with a letter of marque and reprisal is ownership of what you seize. . . thereby making this a more efficient means of directly importing illegal drugs into the US.

Hmmm. . . 

Well presumably you only get the boat.

Seemingly not a day goes by where Lee doesn't do or say something outright whacky.

December 20, 2025

United States v. ISIS

The U.S. hit 70 ISIL targets in Syria yesterday in reprisal for a the killing of two U.S. troops.

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