Ssnake

I object to the phrasing of "NATO expansion". It directly supports the false Russian narrative that NATO is actively pursuing a strategy to gobble former Warsaw Pact states into "their" territory, and that this accumulation is directed against Russia. The reality is, that none of these countries has positive memories of being under Russian influence, and they seek protection from Russia, rather than NATO aggressively expanding to Russia. And Russia does everything possible to prove them right, in the cases of Moldova, Georgia, and Ukraine (arguably even in the case of Belarus). The Russian leadership understands the underlying realities very well. It's just that they want to be able to continue to behave like total assholes to their neighbors and recognize that even for them it's necessary to create a supporting narrative to minimize the repercussions of the way they act. We shouldn't fall into this propaganda trap by parroting those lines.

I think she secretly enjoys trolling the Kanzleramt astrologers one last time.

You're back at mind reading, asserting that Russia, after ("re"-)annexing Ukraine, would be satisfied. If only we gave them what they want. I'm decidedly less optimistic. I think, doing nothing will encourage Putin (possibly Xi, fat Kim) to further territorial aggression (and, as mentioned, reduce NATO's, Europe's, and the US's credibility as garantors for a rules-based system of international relations, which has suffered dramatically in the last years and possibly encouraged Russia to engage in the Donbass in the first place). There's the Budapest accord. Ukraine, reluctantly, returned its nuclear missile arsenal to Russia years ago in exchange for a guarantee of its territorial integrity - from both Russia, and the United States. Whatever that paper may ever have been worth, if the US did nothing, it'd be like Poland 1939 again, and that didn't end well. I don't know what damaged British reputation more, Munich '38, or Poland a year later.

Well, I suppose there's very little that happens in Taiwan that China wouldn't know about - but then it's not exactly a secret program.

Maple syrup is a sweet, but sticky topic.

Dissuading further territorial aggression by Russia in Europe?

Thank you, Justin Burke, to tell the world about that "secretive programme". Does he read his tweets to himself before sending? Whom am I kidding here.

Shit's getting real, the Strategic Maple Syrup Reserves are being released. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2021/11/28/canada-releases-22000-tonnes-stockpiled-maple-syrup/

That's what CNN makes of it, and of course the researchers say that "this could be big" and "more reasearch is needed". 🙄

I think the Russians know very well that this move has no practical relevance for their security situation. But they will use anything, however threadbare, to support their absurd narrative that Russia is just reacting to foreign aggression.

Don't be silly. Of course the answer is that anthropogenic climate change is even worse.

Yeah, it's not even false anymore.

I don't really care if vaccinated people were to contract covid more often (if it were a fact, it would fly right in the face of conventional wisdom, so I'm not ready to believe that without further evidence). I'm concerned about the health care system being overwhelmed, and where we're observing it, it's the unvasccinated people who are clogging the system, and as a result of their irresponsible obstinacy, denying the necessary treatment of others. I know people with cancer that won't get their scheduled treatments because ignorant anti-vaxxers are filling up the wards so fast that all scheduled treatments are on hold, again, and I'm beginning to lose patience with those fuckers, and people who feed them the bullshit.

But that's what they are, after all.