SMIAI

In a world where resources matter, it's not just about 'some lines'. So if Russia decided to take your country over, you would just smile meekly and carry on as normal? It must be quite comfortable in that armchair of yours. If they marched on Kiev and succeeded, where do you think those lines would have been drawn? Of course, the whole thing was about money laundering. Now why didn't I think of that? Can you explain it to me?

You cannot help Trolling can you? Is this your character in real life?

https://www.voanews.com/a/avdiivka-s-fall-intensifies-reactions-over-us-aid-package-for-ukraine/7492717.html Nothing, they likely were going to do it anyway, once there was security of any possible investments. The difference here is the despicable behaviour of Trump and the Republicans in this case. This is what you fail to understand. It's just different faces at the trough and some rather unusual friendliness with Russia, that makes people somewhat uneasy. The point was to get Ukraine in a strong negotiating position. Trump and the Republicans deliberately sabotaged that in Russia's favour and continues to do so in order to force Ukraine to sign without any security guarantees at all. Signing away the future of your country to someone like Trump? This is the man who just backed down over tariffs AGAIN. He is untrustworthy and a bad actor. What peace agreement with Russia? Can you show it to me?

No. Russia were involved from the beginning, but not officially. Just pretending it was some independent separatists who were being unfairly targeted by Ukrainians. You don't know what you are talking about. You should do some proper research, rather than watching RT News. Doing deals with Ukraine independently of Russia. Under the Democrats, it was labelled as corruption. But under Trump, he's doing it as a "peacemaker". These people are just both sides of the same coin. You talk about Republicans and Democrats, but look at how chummy George Bush Jnr and Obama. They often support the same goals and understand the rivalry between the countries. But Trump has come out on the Russian side, so neither of them even acknowledge him. He is seen as a traitor. It's not about Left nor Right.

Starting your post with assumptions. it seems that you just cannot help yourself. Stop assuming what other people think and then using that as a basis of your arguments. It's a discussion, not a zero sum game. Ukraine wanted to be in a strong position to negotiate. Trump and the Republicans deliberately hobbled them under the pretence of caring about the American taxpayer. These are facts. They continue to sabotage Ukraine in order to coerce them into signing an unfavourable contract. These are despicable acts. Maybe that is the way of the world, but let's not paint it as Trump wanting peace. That's just propaganda and political tricks. It is almost always about the resources and taking control of them. By hook or by crook.

You would have done better, rather than trying to suggest that anything that I wrote was wrong or inaccurate, to have simply updated your post with more information. Nothing that I asserted was either wrong nor inaccurate. In fact your reply is littered with irrelevancies. Where to begin... First of all, you tell us about the procedure of getting a refund from your former debit card. But we are discussing credit cards, so that is totally irrelevant. You need to compare with credit cards. With both your old and new debit cards, your money was taken and you had to wait to get it back. Not convenient if it's your holiday spending money. Credit card and your money stays intact. You just don't need to pay for that item when the bill is due. Obviously safer and more convenient than having to wait to get your money back. As to your story about Russia, that has nothing to do with anything. If you are using bad products under unusual circumstances, that isn't the norm. The fact that your particular choice of card charges extra fees on top, doesn't make it a universal issue.. https://usa.visa.com/support/consumer/travel-support/exchange-rate-calculator.html VISA USA take 1.27% from the ECB rate, so on 03/03/25, the rate was 1 EUR = 35.558831 THB The fact that your particular choice of card charges extra fees on top, doesn't make it a universal issue. Credit cards are safer and have an equally good exchange rate. Please don't waste your time arguing with me, I know about what I am writing.

It's what I see. Some strange people ranting against some unseen enemy, when in fact they are just having a discussion with everyday people. Lose the Left/Right obsession and discuss the events. It's not one side against the other, unless the other is expressing themselves in such an extreme manner, that you could not possibly agree with them. Try to discuss without attacking the person with whom you communicate, as a Leftist or Trump-hater etc It's really nonsense, as you really have no idea about that person and it makes for a very unpleasant dialogue. Is that for what you are aiming? Just nasty barbs thrown at each other?

Half what country? Again, you are just projecting your own madness and weirdly altered perception. You see a divided country. I just see people.

Thank you for confirming, so quickly.

His 'Art of the Deal' in full view. Coerce the Republicans to withhold aid in order to get Ukraine to lose more ground and then to continue down that path as president, until he gets what he wants. If he is trying to get the world to despise Americans, he is doing a good job of it.

That is gleaned from evidence. Actual posting history over time. I don't see any intelligent discussion coming from those quarters, so I imagine they are either paid Trolls or just really stupid and unpleasant people. I can only write honestly as to what I see.

Do you see what I mean? You don't really seem to know or understand much about anything. Your posts seem more about baiting and Trolling, than actually having a healthy discussion and staying respectful. That's the club you have joined.

No. But why try to digress from the subject? Just discuss the actual subject. But I guess you have run out of any intelligence and so need to deflect on to the abstract.

I need to ask you....is that about it? Please link to anything that I have written, indicating that I hate Trump. That's just another illustration of you projecting your own hate and imagining that everyone feels the same. A mental issue that you try to project on to others. I just discuss published information. Show me otherwise.

Because I didn't post an anonymous source, but an editorial from a Russian news agency linked to the Kremlin, released prematurely and then removed hastily. This tells me that it is accepted Kremlin policy or it would not have been allowed to have been released in the first instance. Of course you can wait for Putin to say it to you 😊

Military aid could be peace keeping forces, medical, training. It's only dunderheads that try to convince that military aid means war.

and right on cue...

No. But that is the/your mental illness. If there is a Leftist media, that is their perspective. If there is Right wing media, that is their perspective. I don't swallow everything I read hook, line and sinker. I check, if I care enough. Your issue is that you have predetermined the outcome, in deciding that only left wing media is unreliable....and that is DUMB. Are you happy to be seen that way? I wouldn't be. Wherein I can check left, right and middle and then make a determination for myself. You are stuck in some weird world in which you have to hate and mock anyone who doesn't think like you. You are literally ranting at everyone, leftist or not. That is how you are seen here. You think that you are in a club of right against leftists, but really you are in a club of ranting nutters that no one here takes seriously. I don't even need to name names. Every normal poster knows who they are.

Standards of everything, judging by the quality of their posts.

No. Perhaps in the U.S.A, but not here. They might contact the payment processor, not the merchant. The merchant will deal with the payment processor.

So not only do you admit to making things up, but you demonstrate an unpleasant side too. Impressive.

Are you mentally ill? Why the obsession with leftists? It's like you cannot make a post without imagining Reds under the beds. How did you get from Russian news agencies being no better, to ranting about leftists? Intelligent people take their news from as many sources as possible, in order to glean the truth, rather than spin from one side or another. So people like yourself, seem totally deranged and obsessive, ranting about leftists and socialists. We get it, but don't assume that is to whom you are speaking. It just makes you seem like a madman to be avoided. Please, try to behave like a normal balanced person. No need to scream about leftists in every post. I'm not your enemy, but only comparing information and making a decision for myself. I don't need to see your obsessive behaviour alongside that. It's okay for you to have your own perspective on current affairs, but discuss that, rather than ranting on about leftists and what not.

We are discussing policy, not words.

What if those media sources are Russian news agencies? Would you be more inclined to believe them than the BBC?

What kind of nonsense is such a reply? Do you imagine that Putin sits alone in a room and thinks it all up by himself? A leaked report from anonymous sources? When the Special Military Operation began, an editorial was published by RIA Novosti, proclaiming victory and discussing the subject that @simple1 has highlighted. Only, when it didn't go to plan, the article was hastily removed. Thank goodness for the Web Archive. Since this is an English language website, I'll link to the syndicated version, in English and also the original version in Russian, https://web.archive.org/web/20220303080635/https://thefrontierpost.com/the-new-world-order/ https://web.archive.org/web/20220226051154/https://ria.ru/20220226/rossiya-1775162336.html For me it's not about taking sides, but simply discussing the facts as we know them.