Don't mention Donbas ?

things are turning on Vlad... it appears this year it's the year he will die

‘Death sentence’: Putin will die this year, says former Russian politician

https://au.yahoo.com/news/death-sentence-putin-will-die-this-year-ilya-ponomarev-070505281.html

Russian commander killed ‘deliberately’ by his own troops in Ukraine, Western officials say

https://au.yahoo.com/news/russian-commander-killed-deliberately-own-154427930.html

 

‘Another Russian general killed’ in new blow for Vladimir Putin

https://au.yahoo.com/news/another-russian-general-killed-blow-140131689.html

2 hours ago, StayinThailand2much said:

Spot on. I asked a good number of Thais over the years to find Thailand on a world map. Guess what, most failed!

My GF highly insults me once in a while when she says she thinks the USA and England are two names for the same country. Then she asks me again where I'm from.

29 minutes ago, smutcakes said:

I did not know what agreements she is referring, if there were promises, documents in place they would be there for everyone to see.

I think she is referring to Russian propaganda that paints NATO as a aggressive, expansionist western military force.

 

No one, in their right mind, could ever imagine NATO invading anywhere, let alone Russia..........countries are not invited to join NATO, they ask to join for their own protection from lunatics like Putin.

2 minutes ago, patman30 said:

Don't mention Donbas ?

The Donbas region of Ukraine is a good example of how truth is always attended by a body of lies.

The Holomodor, ordered by Stalin, emptied the Donetsk and Lukhansk regions of Ukrainians via mass starvation. The USSR then filled the vacuum left by mass migration of Russians, who now claim it as their territory.

Putin has taken a leaf out of Stalin's playbook by forced transfer of Ukrainian civilians into Belarus and Russia, presumably on their way to the gulags.

There is more than enough information out there for anybody who wants to know more about that war.

And at the same time we all must realize that there is nothing we can do to make a difference.

 

To be able to change the mind of Putin it would be first necessary to understand him. Is he thinking rationally? I don't think so because if he would do that then he wouldn't have invaded Ukraine. 

How to convince a madman to change his mind and behavior? Good luck with that one.

2 minutes ago, OneMoreFarang said:

There is more than enough information out there for anybody who wants to know more about that war.

And at the same time we all must realize that there is nothing we can do to make a difference.

 

To be able to change the mind of Putin it would be first necessary to understand him. Is he thinking rationally? I don't think so because if he would do that then he wouldn't have invaded Ukraine. 

How to convince a madman to change his mind and behavior? Good luck with that one.

A classic example of absolute power.......even if transitory......it makes you appreciate democracy and how it must be protected.......even in the UK many aspects of democracy are under threat and activists need to remain vigilant.

2 hours ago, StayinThailand2much said:

For many Thais, it seems, Thailand is their planet. Only fitting, that we foreigners are officially classed as aliens...

That's because, legally speaking, all foreigners in any country are "aliens" ????

With regards to Thais and there knowledge of where they are on a world map.

 

There is a movie starring Yul Brynner that may still be banned in Thailand but it shows a teacher showing children a map of the world and how it relates to the location of Thailand.

Just a movie but the kids reaction says it all.

It's an INVASION, not and INCONVENIENCE !

30 minutes ago, Will B Good said:

A classic example of absolute power.......even if transitory......it makes you appreciate democracy and how it must be protected.......even in the UK many aspects of democracy are under threat and activists need to remain vigilant.

I like the idea of democracy. But looking at Trump and Boris and others I find it frustrating that so many uneducated stupid ignorant people vote for guys with a big mouth who are obviously incapable of doing any important job and definitely absolutely incapable of doing the top job in their country.

 

Or in fewer words: Democracy doesn't work when idiots vote for idiots. 

1 hour ago, smutcakes said:

I did not know what agreements she is referring, if there were promises, documents in place they would be there for everyone to see.

Seems that your lady boss (from sooo uneducated country) is better versed in history than you...

(Google is your friend).

17 minutes ago, OneMoreFarang said:

I like the idea of democracy. But looking at Trump and Boris and others I find it frustrating that so many uneducated stupid ignorant people vote for guys with a big mouth who are obviously incapable of doing any important job and definitely absolutely incapable of doing the top job in their country.

 

Or in fewer words: Democracy doesn't work when idiots vote for idiots. 

Just like religion and communism......fine on paper........ until humans become involved.

3 hours ago, Lacessit said:

It is going to affect everyone, although most do not realise it. Russia will very likely default on its debt, which will roil financial markets worldwide. The cost of fossil fuels has already soared, nickel is trading at 5 times its price prior to the war. Wheat is up 20%. All that spells inflation and rising interest rates in most countries.

Kudos and thanks for being alive to the world at large - a rarity on Aseannow, which seems to have its own village mentality. My Phuket rental villa is earning 50% less, due to 2 years of Covid restrictions. I think you'll find that this war has and will continue to affect the Phuket tourist market - and your next petrol top-up bill, even if you live on a farm.

1 hour ago, OneMoreFarang said:

.

 

To be able to change the mind of Putin it would be first necessary to understand him. Is he thinking rationally? I don't think so because if he would do that then he wouldn't have invaded Ukraine. 

How to convince a madman to change his mind and behavior? Good luck with that one.

History shows Putin was a senior KGB officer, earned a living as a taxi driver after the break up of the USSR, then worked his way into power via alliances with the oligarchs and the Russian mafia. The title of Vozhd has meaning for both entities.

Putin has repeatedly stated his desire to see the USSR restored. That is his obsession. According to him, life in Russia was better then.

No-one who opposes him is going to be part of his advisory group, so his obsession is reinforced by the yes-men around him. If he is still rational, it must be difficult to cope with the intrusion of reality - an invasion not going to plan, the crippling sanctions, the losses on the field of battle. I doubt his advisers are willing to put their heads on the block by telling him the actual situation.

 

27 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

No-one who opposes him is going to be part of his advisory group, 

What an exception among world leaders always surrounding themselves with others than yes-men...  

2 hours ago, Will B Good said:

No one, in their right mind, could ever imagine NATO invading anywhere

How long is your mind? 

4 minutes ago, Saanim said:

How long is your mind? 

When has NATO been used?

From 1949 to the early 1990s

– Operation Anchor Guard, 10 August 1990 – 9 March 1991.
– Operation Ace Guard, 3 January 1991 – 8 March 1991.
– Operation Allied Goodwill I & II, 4-9 February & 27 February – 24 March 1992.
– Operation Agile Genie, 1-19 May 1992.

 

All interventions, not invasions.

2 hours ago, Saanim said:

Seems that your lady boss (from sooo uneducated country) is better versed in history than you...

(Google is your friend).

Checked google and nothing about promises of no expansion.....

20 minutes ago, smutcakes said:

Checked google and nothing about promises of no expansion.....

Obviously, Google is not your friend.

Try: "not one inch eastwards". 

The first link you will get: 

https://nsarchive.gwu.edu/briefing-book/russia-programs/2017-12-12/nato-expansion-what-gorbachev-heard-western-leaders-early

If you want to know lots of details and are willing to spend two hours on this then I can recommend these videos. I watched them both and I am sure there will be further updates.

 

 

 

2 hours ago, Saanim said:

What an exception among world leaders always surrounding themselves with others than yes-men...  

In democracies, dissenting voices are heard.

Check out Australia, the main parties have made an art form of stealing policies from one another.

3 hours ago, Lacessit said:

History shows Putin was a senior KGB officer, earned a living as a taxi driver after the break up of the USSR, then worked his way into power via alliances with the oligarchs and the Russian mafia. The title of Vozhd has meaning for both entities.

Putin has repeatedly stated his desire to see the USSR restored. That is his obsession. According to him, life in Russia was better then.

No-one who opposes him is going to be part of his advisory group, so his obsession is reinforced by the yes-men around him. If he is still rational, it must be difficult to cope with the intrusion of reality - an invasion not going to plan, the crippling sanctions, the losses on the field of battle. I doubt his advisers are willing to put their heads on the block by telling him the actual situation.

 

they could do to him what the French did to Louis XVI during French revolution, after all the guy is mortal, bleeds like anybody else.... I do think his days/months are counted

7 hours ago, Lacessit said:

it baffles me why any business would want to be paid with rubles.

 

of course it does - - like all currencies, they are traded at exchange places for baht and then businesses are paid in baht... did you ever try paying for your noodle soup with Aussie Dollars? 

9 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

In democracies, dissenting voices are heard.

Check out Australia, the main parties have made an art form of stealing policies from one another.

Unfortunately  Russia is called a Federation with an Emperor/Czar, not a Republic thus no dissident voices can or will be heard and/or allowed, the only thing an Emperor/Czar knows is the use of force to remove any and all potential opposition,  thus do as they do, kick axx time

 

 

 

2 minutes ago, 1FinickyOne said:

of course it does - - like all currencies, they are traded at exchange places for baht and then businesses are paid in baht... did you ever try paying for your noodle soup with Aussie Dollars? 

in Putin's case it's to appreciate his drowning rubble, it lost/depreciate almost 50%

I have a friend in Singapore who's always complaining that his dates don't know who Hitler is.

 

But why should they? And how can I get in on this Hitler-dating thing?

9 hours ago, CrunchWrapSupreme said:

and now my intl online teaching.

How's that going?  Are you teaching in China now, or has that evaporated?

1 hour ago, LaosLover said:

I have a friend in Singapore who's always complaining that his dates don't know who Hitler is.

 

But why should they?

Che Guevara is a cultural icon for many in the West (on t-shirts and posters all the time) and they don't really know what Mao did or who the Khmer Rouge and Pol Pot were.

 

I wonder why Hitler always comes up on his dates though...

 

"Wow.  What's taking the waiter so long?"

 

"I know, ri..."

 

"So what do you think about Hitler?"

2 hours ago, OneMoreFarang said:

If you want to know lots of details and are willing to spend two hours on this then I can recommend these videos. I watched them both and I am sure there will be further updates.

 

 

 

Is the Frederick Kagan a B-I-L of Victoria Nuland, the one who has been so helpful to the current Ukraine regime?  

Then, the report will be really unbiased, won't be?