COLLECTIVE MADNESS


“Soft despotism is a term coined by Alexis de Tocqueville describing the state into which a country overrun by "a network of small complicated rules" might degrade. Soft despotism is different from despotism (also called 'hard despotism') in the sense that it is not obvious to the people."

Tuesday, March 04, 2014

The Russians having over-reacted in the Ukraine. There is no acceptable military response to their stupidity.

Dont listen to Obama's Ukraine critics: he's not 'losing' – and it's not his fight

The ‘do something’ pundits rear their heads. Just like they did on Iraq, Afghanistan and every other crisis of US ‘credibility’


theguardian.com, Monday 3 March 2014 12.19 EST

In the days since Vladimir Putin sent Russian troops into the Crimea, it has been amateur hour back in Washington.
I don’t mean Barack Obama. He’s doing pretty much everything he can, with what are a very limited set of policy options at his disposal. No, I’m talking about the people who won’t stop weighing in on Obama’s lack of “action” in the Ukraine. Indeed, the sea of foreign policy punditry – already shark-infested – has reached new lows in fear-mongering, exaggerated doom-saying and a stunning inability to place global events in any rational historical context.
This would be a useful moment for Americans to have informed reporters, scholars and leaders explaining a crisis rapidly unfolding half a world away. Instead, we’ve already got all the usual suspect arguments:
Personality-driven Analysis
Let’s start here with Julia Ioffe of the New Republic, a popular former reporter in Moscow who now tells us that Putin has sent troops into Crimea “because he can. That’s it, that’s all you need to know”. It’s as if things like regional interests, spheres of influence, geopolitics, coercive diplomacy and the potential loss of a key ally in Kiev (as well as miscalculation) are alien concepts for Russian leaders.
Overstated Rhetoric Shorn of Political Context
David Kramer, president of Freedom House, hit the ball out of the park on this front when he hyperbolically declared that Obama’s response to Putin’s actions “will define his two terms in office” and “the future of U.S. standing in the world”.
Honorable mention goes to Ian Bremmer of Eurasia Group for calling this crisis “the most seismic geopolitical events since 9/11”. Putting aside the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, the Arab Spring, Syria’s civil war and tensions in the South China Sea, Bremmer might have a point.
Unhelpful Policy Recommendations
Admiral James Stavridis, former Supreme Commander of Nato, deserves a shout-out for calling on Nato to send maritime forces into the Black Sea, among other inflammatory steps. No danger of miscalculation or unnecessary provocation there. No, none at all.
Inappropriate Historical Analogies
So many to choose from here, but when you compare seizing Crimea to the Nazi annexation of Austria in 1938, as Leonid Bershidsky did at Bloomberg View, you pretty much blow away the competition.
Making It All About Us
As in practically every international crisis, the pundit class seems able to view events solely through the prism of US actions, which best explains Edward Luce in the Financial Times writing that Obama needs to convince Putin “he will not be outfoxed”, or Scott Wilson at the Washington Post intimating that this is all a result of America pulling back from military adventurism. Shocking as it may seem, sometimes countries take actions based on how they view their interests, irrespective of who the US did or did not bomb.
Missing from this “analysis” about how Obama should respond is why Obama should respond. After all, the US has few strategic interests in the former Soviet Union and little ability to affect Russian decision-making.
Our interests lie in a stable Europe, and that’s why the US and its European allies created a containment structure that will ensure Russia’s territorial ambitions will remain quite limited. (It’s called Nato.) Even if the Russian military wasn’t a hollow shell of the once formidable Red Army, it’s not about to mess with a Nato country.
The US concerns vis-à-vis Russia are the concerns that affect actual US interests. Concerns like nuclear non-proliferation, or containing the Syrian civil war, or stopping Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Those are all areas where Moscow has played an occasionally useful role.
So while Obama may utilize political capital to ratify the Start treaty with Russia, he’s not going to extend it so save the Crimea. The territorial integrity of Ukraine is not nothing, but it’s hardly in the top tier of US policy concerns.
What is America’s problem is ensuring that Russia pays a price for violating international law and the global norm against inter-state war. The formal suspension of a G8 summit in Sochi is a good first step. If Putin’s recalcitrance grows – and if he further escalates the crisis – then that pressure can be ratcheted up.
But this crisis is Putin’s Waterloo, not ours.
Which brings us to perhaps the most bizarre element of watching the Crimean situation unfold through a US-centric lens: the iron-clad certainty of the pundit class that Putin is winning and Obama is losing. The exact opposite is true.
Putin has initiated a conflict that will, quite obviously, result in greater diplomatic and political isolation as well as the potential for economic sanction. He’s compounded his loss of a key ally in Kiev by further enflaming Ukrainian nationalism, and his provocations could have a cascading effect in Europe by pushing countries that rely on Russia’s natural gas exports to look elsewhere for their energy needs. Putin is the leader of a country with a weak military, an under-performing economy and a host of social, environmental and health-related challenges. Seizing the Crimea will only make the problems facing Russia that much greater.
For Obama and the US, sure, there might be less Russian help on Syria going forward – not that there was much to begin with – and it could perhaps affect negotiations on Iran. But those issues are manageable. Meanwhile, Twitter and the opinion pages and the Sunday shows and too many blog posts that could be informative have been filled with an over-the-top notion: that failure to respond to Russia’s action will weaken America’s credibility with its key allies. To which I would ask: where are they gonna go? If anything, America’s key European allies are likely to fold the quickest, because, you know, gas. And why would any US ally in the Far East want Obama wasting his time on the Crimea anyway?
You don’t have to listen to the “do something” crowd. These are the same people who brought you the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, among other greatest hits. These are armchair “experts” convinced that every international problem is a vital interest of the US; that the maintenance of “credibility” and “strength” is essential, and that any demonstration of “weakness” is a slippery slope to global anarchy and American obsolescence; and that being wrong and/or needlessly alarmist never loses one a seat at the table.

The funny thing is, these are often the same people who bemoan the lack of public support for a more muscular American foreign policy. Gee, I wonder why.

166 comments:

  1. .

    Can't wait to hear what our two foreign policy experts, Buffalo Bob and the Maui Haole, have to say about this. It ought to be good.

    .

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am awaiting the next secret communique from my correspondent Quirk who should be Maria-less in Kiev by tomorrow but probably drunk as a skunk. Then I shall convey his reports.

      The last communique he was cursing President Mom Jeans......."That son bitch, if he had balls I wouldn't be going here."

      Delete
    2. One might ask, where are your Red Lines? Other than your eyes, of course.

      What if Pootie want Latvia back, or Estonia? They aren't worth a shit.

      What about Lithuania?

      What about Moldavia, which Deuce mentioned the other day?

      What about eastern Poland, what then?

      The trouble with a policy of never ever doing anything ever ever is it doesn't work. The policy of doing something sometimes is that once in a while it might work.

      I doubt Pootie has bitten off more than he can chew in Ukraine.

      Anyway, you're nearing Ukraine now and tomorrow I will post your communiques so you can read them here.

      Delete
  2. We did invade Iraq to save the Iraqis from Saddam, did we not? Wasn’t that the neocon line that justified the casualties?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. President Mom Jeans has withdrawn all out troops and thrown the whole thing away.

      And, actually, Saddam is dead, so the Iraqis have nothing more to fear from him.

      The problem is the Shia in the south are turning to Iran......

      I was neither for it nor against it, but we had to go into Afghanistan.

      Weren't you for it before you were against it?

      Can't recall for sure.

      Miss T, Joe Biden and Buffalo Bob had it right.....making the decision to go in, we should have divided the place up.

      If Pootie goes into Kiev I'd suggest some gun running.

      If he destroys the Maiden monument, I'm joining Quirk.

      Delete
  3. 1/26/98 - Project for a New American Century (PNAC)—founded by Cheney, Scooter Libby, Donald Rumsfeld, Jeb Bush, Paul Wolfowitz, and other top neocons—demands President Clinton undertake the “removal of Saddam Hussein’s regime."

    ReplyDelete
  4. Nov. 1999 - Chalabi-connected Iraqi defector “Curveball"—a convicted sex offender and low-level engineer who became the sole source for much of the case that Saddam had WMD, particularly mobile weapons labs—enters Munich seeking a German visa. German intel officers describe his information as highly suspect. US agents never debrief Curveball or perform background check. Nonetheless, Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) and CIA will pass raw intel on to senior policymakers. [Date the public knew: 11/20/05]

    ReplyDelete
  5. 11/6/00 - Congress doubles funding for Iraqi opposition groups to more than $25 million; $18 million is earmarked for Chalabi’s Iraqi National Congress, which then pays defectors for anti-Iraq tales.

    ReplyDelete
  6. 7/11/02 - “Iraq is a very wealthy country. Enormous oil reserves. They can finance, largely finance, the reconstruction of their own country. And I have no doubt that they will."—Richard Perle

    ReplyDelete
  7. Most everybody voted for it. Hillary was for it. Kerry was for it.

    ReplyDelete
  8. “The United States of America is a threat to world peace. Because what [America] is saying is that if you are afraid of a veto in the Security Council, you can go outside and take action and violate the sovereignty of other countries. That is the message they are sending to the world. That must be condemned in the strongest terms.”

    - Nelson Mandela

    ReplyDelete
  9. "Saddam is neither friend, nor brother to us, and he will never pay off debts to us. It’s the question of precedent: today the United States doesn't like Iraq, tomorrow Syria, then Iran, North Korea and then what: everyone else?"

    - Russian Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov (1 April, BBC News)

    ReplyDelete
  10. Let the Russians own it. Forget financial sanctions. With the Chinese and the Russians falling into each other’s arms, it would ruin us financially with little more than a ding to the Russians.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Watch Netanyahu try and take advantage of the distraction.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Sometimes the best reaction is no reaction. Putin will soon sober-up.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Jesus Deuce. You're quoting Mandela.

    And watch that damn shifty Netanyahu try to take advantage of the situation.

    The Palestinians are noble, and upright, and honest, and trusty.....

    Just keep your eyes on the clever shifty Jews........

    That's the main thing, to hell with the Ukrainians.......

    goodnight

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Before this is over you'll have figured out some way to blame the whole thing on us.

      Delete
    2. Instead of quoting Mandela condemning the USA, why not, just once, just this once, on Ukrainian Invasion Day, condemn someone else for something, like, o, maybe, the Roossians who have just invaded another country and mean to gobble gobble gobble it up?

      Delete
  14. Wow, Quirk travels fast:

    "Bobbo / In Independence Square, Kiev / Have set up machine gun nest on the Maiden Monument / Defend this Maiden's head from all comers till death. / Vodka in great supply / Q"

    ReplyDelete
  15. Deuce quotes Mandela rather than quoting Farmer Bob :):):)

    Because Mandela was one hundred times the man than Bob ever hoped to be
    A thousand times the man Bob ever was.

    RIP Bob.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Deuce has made fighting the last war a hobby, like that Lesbo TV Reporter.

    Make love, not war, say I.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Charming picture of Rachel here:

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rachel_Maddow

      Delete
  17. - Biden tries to pitch Obamacare to Canadian tourist -

    Vice President Joe Biden tried to pitch Obamacare to a Canadian tourist during a surprise stop at an Arizona restaurant on Friday.

    The video by news station KTVK showed Mr. Biden touching the woman’s arm as he sits next to her on a bench outside the Scottsdale restaurant, Mediaite.com reported.

    “Everybody young signs up for healthcare. It’s affordable, you can get subsidies to do it. It’s in your interest, and if you don’t even want to do it for yourself, do it for your parents, give them piece of mind,” he told her.

    (Be sure to check larger picture of Cool Hand Joe in his Shades)

    ReplyDelete
  18. Focus Nigeria, con't - anothe day, another village

    Nigeria: Jihadists outgun military, murder 32 people in latest jihad attack

    Robert Spencer Mar 3, 2014 at 11:57am Nigeria 5 Comments
    NIGERIA-CAMEROON-FRANCE-KIDNAPAnother day, another jihad massacre in Nigeria. This follows the jihad murder of 39 people in Mainok on Saturday, and the mass murder in a Maiduguri market that same day. These ongoing jihad mass murder attacks show how truly monstrous is the entire “Islamophobia” mythmaking industry, and “Islamophobia” seminars such as the one last week at Georgetown University: cosseted academics sit in oaken meeting rooms in prestigious universities discussing supposed hatred of Islam, never bothering even to mention that every day, innocent people are being murdered because of Islam’s doctrine of jihad, and doing all they can to demonize and marginalize those who are calling attention to these atrocities and their root causes. The result will be inevitable: more jihad murders.

    Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau put it succinctly: “The reason why I will kill you is you are infidels…we must establish Islam in this country.” But as the jihad body count rises, Daniel Varisco and John Esposito (and Reza Aslan and his gunsel Nathan Lean, and Nihad Awad and Ibrahim Hooper, and 1000 others) will just speak even more loudly about the need to silence all criticism of Islam and end all counter-terror initiatives. The blood, quite obviously, is on their hands.

    “Nigeria bloodshed continues with 32 dead,” from the Associated Press, March 3 (thanks to Lookmann):

    MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (AP) — After a weekend of violence, officials say 32 people were killed in an attack on the northern Nigerian village of Mafa Sunday night, after soldiers fled the area, outgunned by suspected Islamist insurgents.

    Thatched roofs were set ablaze as gunmen rolled into town shooting at about 8 p.m., witnesses say. All homes, shops and government buildings were destroyed. Senator Ahmed Zannah says two police officers were also killed in a bomb blast early Monday, as they attempted to rescue other victims.

    The destruction comes after bombings and shootouts on Saturday evening in Borno State, Nigeria that killed nearly 100 people.

    Zannah says a week before the attack most Mafa residents fled their homes after leaflets were dropped in the village, warning of imminent danger. He said seven soldiers in Borno are also believed to be missing.

    JihadWatch

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm growing a little tired of this Boko Haram character.

      Delete
    2. And you will agree after he burns your village down, and kills your women and children.

      From the article -

      Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau put it succinctly: “The reason why I will kill you is you are infidels…we must establish Islam in this country.”

      Jackratanonymous, our Islamic apologist, blames it all on Churchill.

      Delete
    3. Damn, pissing at night is tiring.

      Delete
    4. Farmer Bob, are you still eating your daily quota of 'Blood Avocados"?

      Delete
  19. Marie Claude (At BC)

    Anyways the error lies in the EU and its master the Nuls in land, that should have integrated Russia to the discussions in the first place

    The EU, George Bush, or Joe Biden's fault:

    You Decide

    Putin picks the winner in case of a tie.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Has Marie's English improved at all?

      Delete
    2. Did you decode "its master the Nuls in land" ?

      Delete
    3. That why I asked.....what the fuck is she talking about? No clue here.

      Delete
  20. Putin's Catastrophic Error in Ukraine

    "Americans and Europeans should agree that this is a story about Putin's violation of the international order"

    But not Deuce.

    Deuce immediately starts quoting Mandela implying we are the bad guys.

    It's disgusting.

    Read more: http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2014/03/03/putins_catastrophic_error_in_ukraine_121784.html#ixzz2uzBwVJcu
    Follow us: @RCP_Articles on Twitter

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Some might call hooded troops a violation of the rules.

      Some might not.

      Delete
  21. America did invade Iraq to save the Iraqis from Saddam. This is my thought. Really i don't know what to say??
    get youtube views fast

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Are you full of life, Caroline? Do you work for Quirk? Are you minding the office while he is in Kiev? When did Quirk go into the U-Tube business? So many questions......

      Delete
    2. Blood Avocados, Farmer Bob, still getting your daily dozen?

      Delete
  22. The Neocons justified the Iraqi civilian casualties, claiming that more Iraqis were dying under Saddam. Ergo, The US occupation was there to rescue and protect the Iraqis. Sound familiar to the Russian claims? No? Nothing? Not even close?

    ReplyDelete
  23. The claims may sound the same but the realities are considerably different. Has Ukraine gassed its citizens as Saddam did the Kurds?

    After Iraq War I we let Saddam keep his helicopter gunships and he immediately used them to mow down the Shia in the south. Has Ukraine invaded Moldovia? Like Saddam did Kuwait? Has Ukraine fought a long and bloody war with Poland as Saddam did with Iran? How many Ukrainians has the Ukrainian secret police killed? I have no idea but not in the same league as Saddam I'd wager.

    As for the equivalency of USA going into Iraq and Russia going into Ukraine, we actually set up something of a democracy, now fading fast, but the Russians have not that intention.

    The two situations are not nearly equivalent.

    Iraq may have been a mistake, but recall, Saddam was violating all those UN Resolutions, no fly zones, etc etc.

    Ukraine has done none of that.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It would be a big victory for the west if western Ukraine is able to break off and joins EU. Since I'm pessimist for this world, optimist for the next, I doubt it will go so easily.

      Delete
    2. So, bob, after all that blabber of yours above, what action should the USA do? Mobilize and invade?

      Delete
    3. The UN approved Iraq War I. Can't recall about Iraq War II but the Congress voted for it, a free Congress unlike the one in Russia, and the Brits were with us and some others too. We don't know who is going into Ukraine for sure, as the troops have no insignias (what IS the point of this?) and wear masks.

      What we got going here is Russian pride, Russian history, Russian imperialism - now there's an imperialistic country - Russian traditional fear of western Europe and its ways, Russian thuggery.....

      Delete
    4. You have avoided the question. What should Obama do?

      Delete
    5. Obama is doing all that he can do. Putin, arrogant prick that he is, just trashed the Russian stock market and erased ten year of diplomatic capital. Why should Obama follow him?

      Delete
  24. Peace, love, and hang the Pervs, good to know Iran has it's apologists here:

    "Iran executed two gay men on Sunday for the crime of “perversion” and has sentenced a third individual to death for “insulting the prophet,” according to human rights activists tracking the situation.

    The head of Iran’s judiciary department in the northern city of Rasht announced on Sunday that two homosexual men had been executed for “perversion,” which is considered a severe crime under Iran’s hardline Islamic law.

    The executions come less than two months after Iranian authorities publicly hanged 40 individuals in a two-week period. Iran is executing at least two people a day, according to activists."

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Only two a day? That's pitiful. They must do better.

      Delete
    2. Course it's getting tough to find a queer in Iran these days.

      Delete
    3. Natural selection, my boy, purely natural.

      ...plus, they don't multiply well.

      Delete
    4. Bob is still avoiding Ash's question

      heh, heh, heh

      Delete
  25. Our entire legal system is built upon precedent. Our foreign policy is conducted using precedent. Access through East Germany into Berlin throughout the entire Cold War is an example.The US Navy entering and maintaining established sea lanes is another. We have established some nasty, comeback to bite you on the ass, precedents since Bush-Clinton-Bush and their merry band of Neocons set all sorts of foreign policy precedents in Yugoslavia, Iraq, Libya and Panama.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Farmer Bob dislikes the Common Law system, much preferring the precedent free Napoleonic System.

      Nothing to be learned from what has happened before, the legislature will decide, the solution will always be found, it is in the 'Code'.

      Delete
  26. ...and Obama, after falling for the snappy salute syndrome, followed.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Replies
    1. "The cancellations would have created a firestorm for Democratic candidates in the last, crucial weeks before Election Day."

      No Problemo: The ACA was engineered to be a work in progress.

      Change The Law at Will.

      Delete
  28. Don't do links, either post it, or start a new thread, with pictures, graphs and video.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We know you are capable, of that, Doug

      Delete
    2. When did you become master of the Universe?

      Delete
    3. 1987 - That was when we released the film version.
      Putting Dolph Lundgren in the role of He-Man.

      When did you become technologically deficient?

      Delete
    4. We do not ascribe to the idea that the following is part of the franchise.

      The French publisher Lattes has sent “warning letters” to publishers it feels are infringing on the copyright of Fifty Shades of Grey.

      This erotica bestseller began as a work of Twilight fan fiction called Master of the Universe, earning a massive fan fiction following years before the book deal. Most traces of this fan fiction history have been removed from the Internet. Using the Wayback Machine, we were able to take snapshots from James’ old work–getting a peek into the book’s previous incarnation as an X-rated version of the Twilight story.

      Delete
    5. If you wish to worship the icon, it is available ....

      He-Man® Figure

      The Most Powerful Man in the Universe™


      Masters of the Universe® Classics

      $27.00

      Delete
    6. .

      A couple posts up the rat was telling how great precedent was. A couple posts later he denounces it.

      Go figure.

      If nothing else the main precedent established at the Elephant Bar/Libertarian is that you post what you like when you like. Unlike what rat has done in the past, the Maui Haole at least had the decency to put his divergence from topic in a separate post.

      Some say it is hard to walk and chew gum at the same time.

      .

      Delete
    7. Funny, I do not see a single post by 'The Rat'

      Please, cut and paste, even one of them into THIS thread.

      Delete
    8. "Stories happen in the mind of a reader, not among symbols printed on a page.”
      ― Brandon Mull

      Delete
    9. .

      The rat by any other name is still the rat.

      You can call yourself anything you want. I started to play that game with T until it quickly became silly. I'll not start over again with you.

      If you don't like me calling you rat, don't respond.

      Means nothing to me.

      .

      Delete
    10. Call anyone what ever you wish.
      If you are going to reference some remark, made by someone, and attribute it to whomever you wish, have at it.

      But admit you cannot quote it, cannot cut and past it, cannot really attribute it to someone that did not post it.

      As Anonymous said, they story has been put in YOUR mind.
      It is not on the page.



      Delete
    11. .

      I gave you my reply rat. What part of it do you fail to understand?

      .

      Delete
    12. Rat is not here, he is not responding.

      You are speaking to the world, and the world will respond, as it sees fit.

      What part do you fail to understand, Bob.

      Delete
    13. Or is it John, Bill or Joe, the Plumber?

      Delete
    14. .

      Call me what you like, rat. Or call me nothing at all. Unlike you, it bothers me not at all.

      Multiple personality disorder is a clinical problem and not being qualified to help you I simply refuse to enable or abet your pathology. The dissociative behavior you display here seems to point to an identity problem, interesting in its own right but not enough so for me to play along.

      .

      Delete
  29. By Robert Coalson
    March 04, 2014

    Is Russian President Vladimir Putin crazy or crazy like a fox?

    Rumors of Putin's supposed madness have become so prevalent in recent days that one can't help but recall the "madman theory" of former U.S. President Richard Nixon, whose administration tried to plant the suspicion that he was unbalanced in order to scare geopolitical opponents into concessions.

    But Putin has been such a shrewd political player for more than a decade and a half, and many observers see cold calculation and deliberation, rather than madness, in his latest Ukraine gambit.

    Cost-Benefit Calculus

    Jan Techau, director of Carnegie Europe in Brussels, suggests that Putin is simply employing a cost-benefit calculus that is completely different from that used by Western politicians. Putin, he says, sees an existential threat to Russia in Ukraine's westward drift and therefore is willing to bear a very high political and economic cost to prevent it -- and has been preparing the ground to do so for a long time.

    A U.S. diplomatic cable from the Kyiv mission in 2006 that was released by WikiLeaks accuses Russia of funding "a deliberate effort to destabilize Crimea, weaken Ukraine, and prevent Ukraine's movement west in institutions like NATO and the EU." It says that plan had been in operation at least since the Orange Revolution of 2004.

    Ben Judah, the author of "Fragile Empire: How Russia Fell In And Out Of Love With Vladimir Putin," says "the crucial thing that Putin was trying to achieve in Ukraine over the past few weeks was to continue to impose a Russian veto over Ukraine's future."

    "From the moment that Russia threatened a trade war to block [deposed Ukrainian President] Viktor Yanukovych signing an Association Agreement with the European Union to the decision to intervene in Crimea, it is all about this one thing -- it is that Ukraine can't fully have autonomous control over its own destiny," Judah says.

    In addition to geopolitics, domestic considerations are also a strong motivator for Putin, analysts say.

    Russian opposition figure Leonid Gozman said in Crimea, Putin is engaged in a "genuine attempt at an Anschluss," an apparent reference to Adolf Hitler's annexation of Austria to Nazi Germany in 1938.

    But Gozman says the reason Putin is seeking outside "enemies" is to bolster his political legitimacy at home, which has declined among much of the population since vocal public opposition to him emerged in late 2011.

    "What is Vladimir Putin's situation? He has serious problems with his legitimacy, which began -- or at least he recognized them -- when he was booed [at a martial arts event in Moscow's] Olympic [stadium] back before the last Duma elections," Gozman says.

    "He's a smart person and he understands that his charisma is weakened. It happens -- they loved him and now they don't love him. So he needs some other foundation for his legitimacy. And another foundation for legitimacy is victory."


    Putin's Ukraine Strategy: Crazy, Shrewd, A Little Of Both?

    ReplyDelete
  30. I'm beginning to suspect that Putin is "rethinking" the whole Ukrainian thing. A big fight in the Ukraine might be bad for the gas pipeline business, and Vladimir is all about the gas pipeline bizness.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. .

      I initially speculated that Russia was taking a big gamble in the Ukraine 'because' of gas. While they could cut off gas to the Ukraine and/or Europe in response to any actions taken against them, they would in turn take a serious blow to their economy because of the lost revenue. However, that speculation was on the basis that most of the pipelines went through Ukraine.

      However, the following map shows they have more flexibility than I thought, at least in the short run.

      http://www.eegas.com/images/Yamal-Europe-2.jpg

      also, if interested

      http://www.eegas.com/maps.htm

      .

      Delete
    2. .

      Part of why Putin might be upset was the proposal to ship Western European gas through Slovakia to the Ukraine to provide competition to Russian gas prices.

      Of course, Ukraine's first problem will be getting their hands on money to get anyone's gas. This will be the real test to judge how much Western support there actually is for the Ukraine.

      .

      Delete
  31. Egypt's el-Sissi Gives Clearest Sign He Will Run for President

    CAIRO — Egyptian armed forces chief Field Marshal Abdel Fattah el-Sissi has given the clearest signal yet that he will run for president, saying he cannot ignore the demands of the “majority”, Egypt's state news agency reported on Tuesday.

    El-Sissi, who toppled Egypt's first freely elected president, Mohamed Morsi, said “official procedures” concerning his candidacy were expected in the coming days.

    El-Sissi, widely expected to win the presidency of the Arab world's most populous country, was speaking at a graduation ceremony at the Cairo war college.

    Most Egyptians regard him as a decisive figure who can end the political turmoil that has gripped Egypt since a popular uprising toppled autocratic president Hosni Mubarak in 2011.

    In his speech, el-Sissi said Egypt was witnessing difficult times that required the unity of the people, army and police, according to the state news agency MENA

    http://www.voanews.com/content/egypt-army-chief-gives-clearest-sing-he-will-run-for-president/1863659.html

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. .

      Here is the new boss, same as the old boss.

      What can you expect in a failed state where the military is the baddest dude in the valley?

      .

      Delete
    2. Kind of a reactionary, Quirk, aren't you?

      a man walking backwards with his face to the future
      - Aneurin Bevan


      Delete
    3. .

      No, not at all. In this case, I am neither reactionary nor radical, merely (I think) realistic.

      El-Sisi, Mubarak, even Morsi for that matter, a dick by any other name is still a dick. We see it more often than not. Were Erdogan to fall, Gulan an even more fundamentalist Islamist would likely replace him. In Ukraine, we see a bunch of corrupt oligarchs replaced (I suspect) by a bunch of right-wing nut jobs. In Israel, were Bibi to be voted out, it is likely he would be replaced by even more ultra-conservative right-wing nut jobs. And so it goes in much of the world.

      .

      Delete
  32. Crimean Leader Says Ukrainian Military Units Are Surrendering

    SIMFEROPOL, Ukraine — The prime minister of Crimea, the autonomous Ukrainian republic seized by Russian military forces, said Tuesday that most Ukrainian military units on the peninsula had surrendered and pledged allegiance to his pro-Russian government, and that local officials were working to speed up a referendum on independence.

    Speaking at a news conference on Tuesday morning, Prime Minister Sergei Aksyonov said that regional officials were in control of the security situation, even as armed standoffs continued between Russian forces and Ukrainian troops at several military installations, including a base near the airport of Belbek near Sevastopol.

    “There is no safety threat to human life in Crimea,” Mr. Aksyonov said.


    And the Referendum for Crimean Independence from the Ukraine is still scheduled for the 30 March 2014.

    Meanwhile ...

    Oil falls below $110 as Ukraine worries ease

    LONDON, March 4 (Reuters) - Oil fell towards $109 on Tuesday after President Vladimir Putin said Russia would only use military force in Ukraine as a last resort.

    ReplyDelete
  33. .

    I was watching various news programs yesterday (FOX, CNN, NBC) and the military analysts and 'experts' they brought on to discuss the Ukraine crisis. It was a waste of time.

    While a good many of them (like some here) speculated that Obama's 'weak' or as John-John McCain put it 'feckless' foreign policy was a big reason Putin had troops enter the Crimea, none of them had any solutions to offer other than what Obama was
    doing or proposed doing right now. I see our resident neocons have little to offer either.

    They had the recent ambassador to the Ukraine on one of the stations. He retired five days ago or five weeks ago, whichever. He recently retired. He now has taken a job as professor at an eastern university. He said that based on his last job (ambassador) he felt that the administration was doing all it could to influence Putin. However, speaking from his new job (professor), he wasn't optimistic it would work. Then they had a former general who was past head of NATO. He blustered and spouted and talked about how we had to get tough with Russia, gets some respect, show them we and out allies can't be pushed around. When the interviewer said, "So you are saying that all options should be on the table even the military", the guy sputtered "No. No. I'm not talking military."

    So I put it to those who say we should get tough with Russia, what 'specifically' would you like to see us do? Of course, I mean other than what we are doing already.

    .

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Wait for the Referendum, then Putin will have the government he desires, in the Crimea.
      The government the people there desire.

      He will have fulfilled his "Responsibility to Protect".

      Gas and oil prices will stabilize, we will move on to the next 'crisis' of US leadership.

      Few if any killed or injured, but in the US funded riots in Kiev.

      Everyone 'wins', the essence of a 'good deal'

      Win -Win for everyone involved, but the war mongers.

      Delete
  34. .

    Michigan has pipeline issues too.

    Integrity of oil pipeline under Straights of Mackinaw raises concerns.

    Stretched across the bottom of the waterway at depths reaching 270 feet are two 20-inch pipes that carry nearly 23 million gallons of crude oil daily. They are part of the 1,900-mile Lakehead network, which originates in North Dakota near the Canadian border. A segment known as Line 5 slices through northern Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula before ducking beneath the Straits of Mackinac and winding up in Sarnia, Ontario.

    The pipes were laid in 1953. They’ve never leaked, according to the system’s owner, Enbridge Energy Partners LP, which says the lines are in good shape and pose no threat.

    =====================

    Enbridge has reached an agreement with Michigan Technological University to deploy a newly developed “autonomous underwater vehicle” to provide digital images of the pipeline eight times in the next two years.

    The equipment probably isn’t capable of detecting cracks, but “never before have you been able to see this kind of detail,” said Guy Meadows, a director of the university’s Great Lakes Research Center.

    The National Wildlife Federation maintains it’s time to replace the lines. The group posted a short video taken by divers that appears to show broken supports and sections suspended above the bottom or covered with debris. Critics also complain the company won’t release enough data from its inspections of the pipelines and note that above-ground sections of Line 5 have ruptured in numerous spots on land, spilling hundreds of thousands of gallons.


    The Detroit News: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20140304/METRO/303030117#ixzz2v16JZT9m

    .

    ReplyDelete
  35. AshTue Mar 04, 08:07:00 AM EST
    So, bob, after all that blabber of yours above, what action should the USA do? Mobilize and invade?

    Ash, just woke up. Strange sleep patterns.

    I already said what I think we should do which is put the economic screws to Russia best we can. And we ought in the long run to figure out a way to import natural gas to EU to get them off the Russian tit.

    Other than that, if they go into west Ukraine we might think about gun running and keep the situation simmering. We could put that missile defense system into Poland too.

    I feel better about the situation today -

    "Bobbo / have 5 50's at Maiden / ammo / 7 recruits from train station / Vodka supply good / Cigars / Itching for action / Q"

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Meanwhile, Ash, I suggest we spend the week condemning the Russians and leaving off with the USA, the "neocons" and the Israelis. For just one week.

      Delete
    2. .

      While a good many people argue that American weakness under Obama is the reason Putin decided to invade the Ukraine, the following article by Peter Beinhart argues the opposite. He argues that after the fall of the USSR, a unified Germany was merely the first of numerous Soviet clients that were absorbed by the West, moving ever closer to Russia.

      At a certain point, that NATO expansion would have to stop and it did, first in Georgia and now in the Ukraine.

      http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2014/03/no-american-weakness-didnt-encourage-putin-to-invade-ukraine/284168/

      .

      Delete
    3. Some truth to that but it does not suffice, except in Russian minds. The idea that NATO wants a war with Russia is ridiculous. We invited Russia INTO NATO at one time. Russia could join EU if they wanted to and played nice and obeyed the EU rules. They sit in NATO in some capacity as observers. Both France and Germany have learned their lessons about fucking with Russia. Besides, the game is all different now. Russia can wipe EU out in a few minutes, if needed.

      Delete
    4. .

      We invited Russia INTO NATO at one time.

      A link would be nice. I am not aware that Russia was ever invited to join NATO. In fact, lack of Russian membership while actively pursuing Russian neighbors like Georgia and Ukraine provides a good reason for Russian mistrust.

      .

      Delete
    5. A fantasy, or a lie, misinformation.

      Never can tell with Farmer Bob.

      There was once discussion of inviting Ukraine into NATO, but since that country is about to fragment into pieces, thanks to the US funded revolution in Kiev, the one we watched 'Live' on RT Television, which displaced the duly and legally elected government, well ... doubt if that offer is discussed seriously, soon.

      But Russia, it was NEVER invited to join NATO.

      Delete
  36. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  37. QuirkTue Mar 04, 11:50:00 AM EST
    .

    The rat by any other name is still the rat.

    You can call yourself anything you want. I started to play that game with T until it quickly became silly. I'll not start over again with you.

    If you don't like me calling you rat, don't respond.

    Means nothing to me.

    QuirkTue Mar 04, 12:22:00 PM EST
    .

    Call me what you like, rat. Or call me nothing at all. Unlike you, it bothers me not at all.

    Multiple personality disorder is a clinical problem and not being qualified to help you I simply refuse to enable or abet your pathology. The dissociative behavior you display here seems to point to an identity problem, interesting in its own right but not enough so for me to play along.

    I see Schizorat is splitting this morning.

    Q is refusing to go slumming.

    More important things to do in Kiev.

    ReplyDelete
  38. News from Deuce's favorite site -

    Video: Russia Today anchor blasts invasion of Ukraine
    POSTED AT 2:41 PM ON MARCH 4, 2014 BY ED MORRISSEY


    In this case, one can actually sympathize with Vladimir Putin. When an oligarch spends this kind of money on a propaganda machine, shouldn’t it stay bought? Abby Martin didn’t get the memo, but her editors did (via Mashable):



    Shortly before wrapping up her show on the international, multilingual Russia Today (RT) network, Abby Martin announced she, “wanted to say something from my heart about the ongoing political crisis in Ukraine and Russia’s military occupation of Crimea.”

    “What Russia did is wrong,” she said. “I admittedly don’t know as much about Ukraine’s history or the cultural dynamics of the region, but what I do know is that military intervention is never the answer, and I will not sit here and apologize or defend military aggression.”

    Working for the station funded by the Russian government and broadcast in around 100 countries, would not compromise her editorial independence, she added.

    “I can’t stress enough how strongly I am against any state intervention in a sovereign nation’s affairs,” she said.
    Martin slammed the media coverage from everyone, but took particular aim at her own network:

    Signing off she vowed to keep telling the truth as she saw it, and promised to return to the show that RT describes as cutting “through the pre-written narrative that tries to tell you what to think and what to care about” on Tuesday.
    France 24 slammed the “propaganda machine” and offered a fact-check of the most outrageous claims coming from Russian media – most of which either originated at RT or was parroted by the broadcaster:

    Over the weekend, Russia’s propaganda machine appeared to have gone into overdrive. As Russian troops and military hardware rolled into the Crimean peninsula, the country’s media were busy whipping up support for an armed incursion. Russian television even announced it was cancelling coverage of Sunday night’s Oscars to concentrate on the crisis next-door. The situation has led Ukrainian media bosses to publish an open letter in which they urge their Russian counterparts to report with balance and objectivity. In parts of eastern Ukraine and Crimea, Russian is the only language spoken: that makes Russian-language media the only source of news.

    On Sunday, state news broadcaster Russia Today published an article alleging that 675,000 people had fled Ukraine’s “revolutionary chaos” in the past two months into Russia. The source of the figure appears to be Russia’s border guard service. The same day, state network Channel One Russia [ORT] broadcast these images claiming to show Ukrainians pouring into Russia. But in the same report, a sign is visible at 0:14 with the name of the crossing – ‘Shegyni-Medyka’ – which is actually situated on Ukraine’s border with Poland. ORT’s willingness to read from the same script as President Putin could be explained by the man who currently sits on its board of directors: Alexey Gromov. Once President Putin’s press secretary, Gromov is now Putin’s deputy chief of staff.
    Russian media has been running footage of what they claim are attacks on Ukrainian government buildings by hooligans associated with the Euromaidan uprising in Kyiv. However, a closer look reveals a hint of staging:

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. A closer look at the video may help shine some light on the identity of the alleged assailants. The fighters appear to be armed with GM 94 grenade launchers and AK-100 machine guns: according to a weapons expert contacted by FRANCE 24, these sophisticated weapons are normally used by the Russian military. The yellow bus that the masked men use to make their getaway also seems out of place: that’s because this bus also belongs to the city’s local zoo, and can be seen on the zoo’s official website. Towards the end of the same footage captured live by French channel BFM TV, the armed men can be seen running back onto the same bus. At the one minute mark, the markings of a zoo animal can be seen on the vehicle door that closely resembles those found on the zoo bus shown here. Also visible on the front of the vehicle is ‘Тайган’, the name of the local zoo which translates to English as ‘Taigan’.
      Basically, RT and the Russian media have been a non-stop clown show save for Martin’s brief statement, as Buzzfeed and The Week have already pointed out. It’s not as though the American media did all that much better, though, at least before the invasion.

      So what happened when this went out to air in Russia? According to The Blaze and a pop-up in the YouTube video, it got censored, although this hasn’t been independently confirmed yet. (If it did, it would have to have been censored on rebroadcast — otherwise the video wouldn’t exist.) Assuming that’s accurate, it appears Putin is indeed getting his money’s worth out of RT these days.

      Update (Allahpundit): RT’s decided to ship Martin off to Crimea to help fill the “gaps” in her knowledge about whether military action is warranted. I wonder what she’ll conclude when she gets back.

      Hot Air

      Delete
    2. http://hotair.com/archives/2014/03/04/video-russia-today-anchor-blasts-invasion-of-ukraine/

      Delete
    3. "Basically, RT and the Russian media have been a non-stop clown show save for Martin’s brief statement"

      Much like this blog when schizorat gets going clown show good, and Deuce b.s.es about neocons and the conga line and the shifty Israelis.

      Delete
    4. I'm not slumming today, either. Going to drive into treatment, then the casino.

      tata

      Delete
    5. I said it before - reading bob drivel and taking it at all seriously is to jump in a rabbit hole.

      Delete
    6. What is your analysis of what USA - and Canada too - should do concerning the recent events of which we speak, O Noble Ash?

      You have not said yet.

      What are you Canadians going 'to do about it'?

      Do you care?

      Enough to even pick your nose?

      Or are you going back to the hockey game, golf, and sailing?

      Will you Canadians verbally condemn?

      Ash, my good man, you have not yet informed us what we should all properly do.

      We wait.

      Delete
    7. And why are you always repeating yourself?

      Delete
    8. (Ash - thinking to himself - hmmm,hmmmm,ah, hmmmm, a verbal condemnation perhaps, hmmmmm, hmmmm, or would this rile the russkie? hmmm, hmmm, counterproductive hmmmm,hmmmm, tee time !)

      Delete
    9. "bobbo / send.... reinforcements / anyone / anyone..... but Ash / rooskie snipers / bobbo / bobbo / masked snipers / boooobbo...../ Q"

      Delete
    10. Iranian General: Obama threats 'joke of the year'........drudge

      Delete
    11. Having showered, I'm outta here, carry on Ash !!

      Delete
  39. Gee, through a mistake in navigation, I was just shown how "Jack Hawkins" shamelessly stole my NY Times Ethnic Map w/o thanks or attribution!

    mirabile dictu !

    ReplyDelete
  40. QuirkTue Mar 04, 03:28:00 PM EST
    .

    We invited Russia INTO NATO at one time.

    A link would be nice. I am not aware that Russia was ever invited to join NATO. In fact, lack of Russian membership while actively pursuing Russian neighbors like Georgia and Ukraine provides a good reason for Russian mistrust.

    .


    Jack HawkinsTue Mar 04, 04:28:00 PM EST
    A fantasy, or a lie, misinformation.

    Never can tell with Farmer Bob.

    There was once discussion of inviting Ukraine into NATO, but since that country is about to fragment into pieces, thanks to the US funded revolution in Kiev, the one we watched 'Live' on RT Television, which displaced the duly and legally elected government, well ... doubt if that offer is discussed seriously, soon.

    But Russia, it was NEVER invited to join NATO.

    ---

    We just guaranteed Ukraine we would have their backs in exchange for them giving up their Nukes.

    First, under Clinton, then seconded by Obama.

    Shows what promises by leftists are worth.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Russia was a signatory as well.

      Delete
    2. I may have overstated that Quirk.

      Upon consideration, I recall the deal was observer status for awhile with the possibility of joining at a later date.

      They should do it, too. Or, should have done it. It's on the backburner now. They too, need to think about the Chinese.

      Delete
  41. Peter Beinhart argues the opposite...

    An American Patriot, through and through! :-)

    :-)


    :-)


    :-)


    :-)

    ReplyDelete
  42. QuirkTue Mar 04, 11:50:00 AM EST
    .

    The rat by any other name is still the rat.

    You can call yourself anything you want. I started to play that game with T until it quickly became silly. I'll not start over again with you.

    If you don't like me calling you rat, don't respond.

    Means nothing to me.

    ---

    In retrospect, it does seem rather silly to have spent so much time w/Rat and T's imaginary personas, but it was semi-entertaining while it lasted.

    Or not.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. rat was an imaginary persona, Doug, just as imaginary as any of the others.

      An amero will get you a doughnut, if the name on Quirk's driver license is Quirk.

      Do you think that RufusII is the name on his driver's license?

      Or Deuce?

      Come on, amigo, get a grip on reality.
      The names don't make a difference, none at all.

      Bu if you want to reference one of the posts, and 'rat' has not posted, the reference is WORTHLESS.

      That's the point.

      “He presumes to name those who have no name."
      Perhaps it provides him and others a sense of security, continuity, who knows.

      But 'rat' does not post any more. In fact 'rat' barely posts at all.

      So to reference post to him, is in a word, silly.
      Just makes following the discussion, that much more inane.

      Delete
    2. Much like when 'truth?' made a few posts.

      Queer Quirk immediately stated it was WiO, but who or what is WiO?

      From reading those posts, over the years it was quite evident that when the account changed, the map and profile changed the author o the contributions did, as well.

      One day we had an Israeli passport holder, the next day that claim was denied.

      The 'voice' of the contributor would vary. It was not always the same fingers on the keyboard, but always with the WiO sign-on. It made for fun, the differing claims all from the 'same' source.

      So what?

      His line of propaganda was the Conga line, all that differed were the details of the persona.
      Which really don't matter, but to have made him appear foolish.

      desert rat is gone, that's the real deal.
      So call anonymous what you will, call Jack Hawkins anything you want, dougo.

      But if you want to make an issue of Anonymous's posts, don't reference 'rat' when 'rat' didn't make it.

      It is a reactionary rationalization in Quirk's head, that either rat place there, or he created without asistance.
      Does not really matter which.

      Delete
    3. "But if you want to make an issue of Anonymous's posts, don't reference 'rat' when 'rat' didn't make it."

      Last time I noticed that assertion, it was made by "Farmer" Bob.

      Delete
    4. Farmer Bob, he's gone.

      Now there is a contributor calls himself 'Bob'.

      I didn't even notice that it had changed, until 'Bob' threatened the people of Arizona with genocide and butchery.

      So 'Bob' is no longer a Farmer, or he is.
      It doesn't make much difference, does it.

      He is still a racist, bigoted Fudd.

      He even answered to that moniker, for a while.
      Called himself the 'authentic Fudd'

      Hysterically entertaining, it was.

      Delete
    5. .

      Sure, rat, whatever you say.

      .

      Delete
    6. Farmer Bob changed to Bob after being hounded by Schizorat posting as Farmer Rob.

      Seriously, rat, you are borderline schizophrenic and need help.

      Delete
    7. .

      But which side of the border?

      .

      Delete
  43. "PUTIN FIRES WARNING SHOTS AT WEST"

    Very honest reportage by Mr. Drudge:

    After properly alerting us, Pootie lit off an RS-12M, first put into service in 1985.

    Quite a testament to the state of Russian Missilery back in '85.

    Maybe we should hire those guys to stand in for the Shuttle.

    ...oops, I forgot: We Have.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Astronauts in the Shuttle Era were often converted into Shit on a Shittle.

      Delete
  44. Personal Income, and Spending increased, nicely, in January.

    The Commerce Dept. credits Obamacare for a large part of it.

    I seem to remember that I was made fun of for saying that the ACA would be mildly stimulative for the Economy this year; well, there ya go.

    Personal Income and Spending

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are more than mildly stimulative to my sense of humor.

      ...and whenever I have the need, I'll be sure to give you a call to stand in for Ex-Lax.

      Delete
    2. .

      Increased spending?

      You mean those higher insurance prices are actually a good thing?

      .

      Delete
  45. Who’d a-thunk it- All very low-wage jobs added in 2013 fell below 30-hour threshold that ObamaCare defines as full-time.

    All of the very low-wage jobs added in 2013 fell below the 30-hour threshold that ObamaCare defines as full-time, an analysis of government wage and hours-worked data suggests.

    The finding highlights concerns about the impact of the health law’s employer insurance mandate, the proposed minimum wage hike and — especially — the combination of both.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Doug's Department of Drugs credits Doug for (another) Good High.

      Delete
  46. Disney Attributes uptick in Looney Tune Sales to Lunar Perihelion.

    ReplyDelete
  47. "Do you think that RufusII is the name on his driver's license?"

    I do belief "Rufus" is the name on his driver's license, just as "Douglas" is on mine.

    Guess we're the last honest men standing!

    I even know where Rufus's name came from, although I can't say the same for myself.

    The "II" was a matter of convenience when something went down with blogger, or some such, best I can remember.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It may be that you know a story, or two, doug, but 'Rufus' was not the name on his e-mail address.
      Deuce was 2164, for a while.

      Quirk, I would bet that is not his 'real' name, if it is that would explain a lot

      Farmer Bob's name is not Bob.

      Don't know about Mr Potato Head. His name could be Ash, but I doubt it.

      Delete
    2. galop47@yahoo.com was/is my email address.

      My name is neither gallop, nor rufus.

      "Rufus" just popped into my head the moment I set up my first commenter account.

      Delete
    3. There is a back story to the "galop," which I don't think I'll go into, right now.

      Delete
    4. "Rufus" just popped into my head the moment I set up my first commenter account.

      You lying SOB!!!

      You fed us that whole line of Shit about being named after your Grandpappy killed in WWII?

      Come clean, R2!

      Nobody lives forever... You're gonna have to meet your maker!

      Delete
    5. No one named Rufus died on the West Virginia on Dec 7, 1941.

      Delete
    6. And, it was my "Uncle," not my grand-daddy.

      Delete
    7. My name is Bob.

      Schizorat knows that perfectly well.

      He lies as usual.

      Ruf's first name is not Rufus. He has a nice dignified first name even royalty would be proud to bear.

      Doug's name is Douglas.

      And Quirk's name is unknown to me.

      Sam is Sam.

      I think Jenny is Jenny.

      But not sure.

      The Cleaning Lady's name was The Cleaning Lady.

      So, there you have it.

      Delete
  48. So sign in "Bob"

    Is you is, or is you ain't, in which case Doug is the honest man left standing.

    "Deuce" can vouch for me.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Deuce can vouch for me too. If fact he probably can vouch for all of us.

      Delete
  49. Start sending them Malware Missives to "galop47@yahoo.com" Gang!

    He's bound to click on one of them in a drunken stupor if we just gang-bang galop.

    ReplyDelete
  50. REEFER MADNESS!

    "Woman charged in mom's slaying

    Cindy Burleigh was charged with murder with special circumstances in the death of her mother Nancy Eleanor Burleigh.

    Cindy Burleigh, 57, of San Mateo allegedly beat her mother with a hammer after the victim complained about her pot smoking."

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Killing a Mammal with a Mallet is just not that pleasant.

      Delete
    2. Wait a minute:

      Is a Possum a Mammal?

      Google would know...

      Delete
    3. Marsupials are an infraclass of mammals living primarily in Australasia and the New World. A distinctive characteristic, common to most species, is that the young are carried in a pouch. Well-known marsupials include kangaroos, wallabies, the koala, possums, opossums, wombats and the Tasmanian devil. Less well-known species of marsupials include the numbat, bandicoots, bettongs, the bilby, quolls and the quokka.

      Marsupials represent the clade originating with the last common ancestor of extant metatherians. Like other mammals in the Metatheria, they are characterized by giving birth to relatively undeveloped young, often residing in a pouch with the mother for a certain time after birth. Close to 70% of the 334 extant species occur in Australia, New Guinea, and nearby islands, with the remaining 100 found in the Americas, primarily in South America, but with 13 in Central America, and one in North America north of Mexico.

      Delete
    4. ...starting to think I've been lying about being a BioChem major all these years.

      That shit's Greek to me.

      Then again, me ain't what I used to be.

      Delete
    5. "and one in North America north of Mexico"

      So I guess our Possum is the one and only?

      Have a tough skull to crack, that's all I know.

      Delete
    6. I wonder what the special circumstance was?

      The Hammer?

      The Mom?

      The Uglyness of the DopeHead Perp?

      Delete
    7. You might want to consider banning the AZ Doper Rodent, Deuce.

      Lawsuits are the shits at this stage of life.

      Delete
    8. He did steal my map, if you need any more evidence of his unfitness.

      Delete
  51. Radioactive Gambling Experiment: Day 14

    Win

    Score so far:

    Wins - 11
    Loses- 3

    If I can convince Quirk of the validity of my thesis, he will soon be touching off the Geiger Counters at every pawn shop in West Detroit, you can Geiger count on it.

    Quirk routinely visits the pawn shops of Detroit to offer cheap on items and sometimes sell his own 'wares', normally gotten in trade for IOU's people owe him that are listed as uncollectible accounts on his IRS Forms. Does good at it, too.

    ReplyDelete
  52. Alcatraz inmate Robert Stroud (the "Birdman of Alcatraz") was a convicted murderer and one of the most famous prisoners at Alcatraz.

    He reared and sold birds as a prisoner in Kansas and became an ornithologist.

    He didn't have any birds on Alcatraz because pets were not allowed.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. In these more enlightened times, holding an ornithologist on an Island like that without pets, would be considered cruel and unusual, I would hope.

      Delete
    2. They could have at least put a parrot in Stroud's cage at Alcatraz with him.

      Somebody to talk to.

      Delete
  53. I am becoming somewhat concerned, like John Kerry, that Russia is not conducting itself in a manner befitting a G-8 member.

    I think John is on to something here.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I also agree with Ralph Peters - Pootie is enjoying himself, having a great time.

      Delete
  54. Get with the program, Bob:

    It's all our fault, even tho Obammie, the local Hero, is POTUS.

    ReplyDelete
  55. I've never reared a bird, but then again, my salad days were long before it became fashionable to out oneself.

    ReplyDelete
  56. "LOS ANGELES (AP) — The pizza delivery man who fed stars at the Oscars received a best tip award for a supporting player: $1,000 in cash handed over by ceremony host Ellen DeGeneres.

    That included money collected from A-list celebrities who chowed down on the pies during the ceremony Sunday and from DeGeneres herself.

    Edgar Martirosyan received the tip during a visit Monday to "The Ellen DeGeneres Show."

    DeGeneres said she passed Pharrell Williams' oversized hat at the Oscars and collected about $600, then contributed more.

    The Big Mama's & Papa's delivery guy said he had already gotten a reward: serving Julia Roberts, whom he called the woman of his dreams."

    ReplyDelete
  57. TALK ABOUT A BUNCH OF CHEAP-ASS MOTHERFUCKING HYPOCRITES!

    That takes the cake, and I don't mean Pizza.

    ReplyDelete
  58. McALLEN, Tex. — Establishment Republican leaders on Tuesday defeated challenges from the right in a statewide primary election as conservatives inspired by Senator Ted Cruz largely failed to topple mainstream incumbents.

    Two Republican leaders in Congress — Senator John Cornyn and Representative Pete Sessions — and a number of other Republicans in the House overcame opponents backed by Tea Party activists.
    ...

    On Tuesday, Mr. Dewhurst faced three prominent conservatives in his re-election bid and the possibility of a runoff on May 27.


    Mr. Dewhurst had been criticized for pandering to the far right, by calling for President Obama’s impeachment and suggesting his support of the repeal of the 17th Amendment — a favorite cause of the Tea Party — which established the election of United States senators by popular vote rather than by state legislatures.
    ...
    Tuesday’s primary served as a kind of referendum on some of the leading figures in state politics, including Mr. Cornyn and former President George W. Bush.

    Mr. Cornyn faced seven challengers, a sign of the frustration among some Tea Party activists and conservative groups with him for failing to back Mr. Cruz in his efforts to shut down the government over Mr. Obama’s health care law and to block a vote to raise the federal debt ceiling. Mr. Cruz refused to endorse Mr. Cornyn in the primary, but Mr. Cornyn’s main challenger, Representative Steve Stockman, made few public appearances on the campaign trail and failed to build widespread momentum. Mr. Cornyn beat him easily.

    George P. Bush — the nephew of the former president, who served as governor here from 1995 to 2000 — campaigned for land commissioner, a relatively low-profile position that some Republicans, including Mr. Dewhurst, have used as a steppingstone for higher office. Mr. Bush’s easy victory on Tuesday illustrated the lasting influence of the family political brand and provided Hispanic conservatives with their most high-profile spokesman in the state.

    Mr. Bush, whose mother is Mexican-American, is the co-founder of Hispanic Republicans of Texas, a political action committee. Political analysts say he could play a major role in helping Republicans woo Hispanics in Texas, a population that has traditionally voted Democratic and that has become crucial as Republicans try to maintain their dominance in Texas and Democrats try to break Republican control.

    “He comes from the most prominent political family in the history of our country, and he’s Hispanic,” Aaron Pena, a Republican and a former state lawmaker from the Rio Grande Valley, said of the younger Mr. Bush. “George can be a rallying figure that can bring us all together.”


    For Democrats, the primary was not nearly as competitive, although several races were noteworthy. The musician and humorist Kinky Friedman, who ran for governor in 2006, sought the Democratic nomination for agriculture commissioner. Appearing on the ballot as Richard “Kinky” Friedman, he advocated the legalization of marijuana.


    http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/05/us/primaries-in-texas.html?_r=0

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  59. WASHINGTON - District of Columbia lawmakers voted on Tuesday to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana, in what advocates of more lenient marijuana laws hope is another step toward legalizing the drug outright.

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  60. Slouching in a fancy chair in front of a dozen reporters, Putin squirmed and rambled. And rambled and rambled. He was a rainbow of emotion: Serious! angry! bemused! flustered! confused! So confused. Victor Yanukovich is still the acting president of Ukraine, but he can't talk to Ukraine because Ukraine has no president. Ukraine needs elections, but you can't have elections because there is already a president. And no elections will be valid given that there is terrorism in the streets of Ukraine. And how are you going to let just anyone run for president? What if some nationalist punk just pops out like a jack-in-the-box? An anti-Semite? Look at how peaceful the Crimea is, probably thanks to those guys with guns holding it down. Who are they, by the way? Speaking of instability, did you know that the mayor of Dniepropetrovsk is a thief? He cheated "our oligarch, [Chelsea owner Roman] Abramovich" of millions. Just pocketed them! Yanukovich has no political future, I've told him that. He didn't fulfill his obligations as leader of the country. I've told him that. Mr. Putin, what mistakes did Yanukovich make as president? You know, I can't answer that. Not because I don't know the answer, but because it just wouldn't be right of me to say. Did you know they burned someone alive in Kiev? Just like that? Is that what you call a manifestation of democracy? Mr. Putin, what about the snipers in Kiev who were firing on civilians? Who gave them orders to shoot? Those were provocateurs. Didn't you read the reports? They were open source reports. So I don't know what happened there. It's unclear. But did you see the bullets piercing the shields of the Berkut [special police]. That was obvious. As for who gave the order to shoot, I don't know. Yanukovich didn't give that order. He told me. I only know what Yanukovich told me. And I told him, don't do it. You'll bring chaos to your city. And he did it, and they toppled him. Look at that bacchanalia. The American political technologists they did their work well. And this isn't the first time they've done this in Ukraine, no. Sometimes, I get the feeling that these people...these people in America. They are sitting there, in their laboratory, and doing experiments, like on rats. You're not listening to me. I've already said, that yesterday, I met with three colleagues. Colleagues, you're not listening. It's not that Yanukovich said he's not going to sign the agreement with Europe. What he said was that, based on the content of the agreement, having examined it, he did not like it. We have problems. We have a lot of problems in Russia. But they're not as bad as in Ukraine. The Secretary of State. Well. The Secretary of State is not the ultimate authority, is he?

    Putin Holds Press Conference

    http://www.newrepublic.com/article/116852/merkel-was-right-putins-lost-his-mind-press-conference


    Sounds like Schizorat, doesn't he?

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