President Volodymyr Zelensky's address to Parliament was without a doubt the most moving speech I have ever heard.
And his plea to help him "close the sky" was almost more than I could bear.
Knowing what the answer would be.
And knowing what Putin's fascist legions are doing to his country.
For let's be clear, this is now attempted mass murder on an industrial scale.
The Russians are now going after civilians.
They are attacking residential buildings, schools, daycare centers, and even hospitals.
Read this story and weep.
Realizing she was losing her baby, medics said, she had cried out to them, “Kill me now!”Ambushed by Ukrainians armed with missiles like these.Russian convoy ambushed pic.twitter.com/2AbnF4c3Sb
— Illia Ponomarenko 🇺🇦 (@IAPonomarenko) March 11, 2022
The Ukrainian countryside is littered with damaged and abandoned armoured vehicles.Ukrainian UAV footage showing a Russian tank being struck with a munition, possibly an anti-tank mine. https://t.co/hf3VQVxwRx pic.twitter.com/21zMExoC3W
— Rob Lee (@RALee85) March 15, 2022
Putin still has the weapons to incinerate entire Ukrainian cities, but if his army is further weakened he will have no choice but to try to find a way out of the nightmare he has created.Most of the Rosgvardia equipment in this destroyed column in Kharkiv was previously videotaped but I don’t remember seeing the Tunguska air defense system at the beginning before. https://t.co/c98L30dzut pic.twitter.com/KmpAAYN5KO
— Rob Lee (@RALee85) March 15, 2022
And that's why in the end they will win.Before leaving her apartment in Kiev she plays the piano for the last time.. pic.twitter.com/i1AmkGhKZX
— Lord Ashcroft (@LordAshcroft) March 13, 2022
I hope you're right, Simon. In the meantime, however, Putin keeps indiscriminately lobbing artillery and firing missiles into Ukraine's once beautiful cities, killing whoever is unlucky enough to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. It must be hell on earth for them. And now there's groups of Russian saboteurs targeting the press. Two Fox journalists dead in a matter of days and back in America, in total safety, their "colleague" Tuckyo Rose has the fucking gall to push conspiracy theories favoring Putin. In fact, he's a darling of the Kremlin now. Their star reporter on state television. WTF is wrong with America?!!! If someone like Carlson were doing that during WW2, I would hazard a guess and say they would either had been taken out and shot or jailed for life. FFS, he's aiding and abetting the enemy!!! It's long overdue time to re-examine and change the first amendment that allows these cranks to spread their lies without consequence. Same applies up here. The likes of Levant, CPC, GOP, etc. are pure poison to society and are entirely responsible for the divisions we are now experiencing. In fact, the biggest threat to democracy in North America today is the GOP and CPC. And as long as they have a long line of duped morons sucking up the alt-right kool aid, the shit-show will play on and on and on.
ReplyDeleteOn a more inspirational note, the clip of the pianist playing her beloved grand piano one last time was just...wow! What an incredible talent and equally incredible spirit she has. I think of her and others I've been following on social media and am amazed by their courage, strength and ability to maintain their dignity while their worlds are literally falling apart around them. Putin never counted on that happening and it is why he will never win this war. The question now is, how many Russian body bags will it take before those closest to Putin finally put him down and get the fuck out of Ukraine?
JD
Hi JD...I have no idea what will emerge out of the fog of war, but I am just concerned that too many people seem to believe it's a no-fly-zone or nothing. It isn't. I think that NATO jets shooting down Russian jets is the road to Armageddon. I think it would be better to give the Ukrainians more anti-tank and anti-air missiles and they can continue to grind down the Putin's forces and hopefully force him to negotiate. The Ukrainians are fighting a war of attrition, and they are good at it, so NATO should do everything they can to support them. Most of the damage the Russians are doing is coming from artillery, and ballistic and cruise missiles, so a no-fly zone would do nothing to stop that, but could push the maniac Putin over the deep end. But then I freely admit that my military expertise comes from playing with toy soldiers in my garden as a boy. So what do I know?
ReplyDeleteThe no-fly-zone idea is insane.
ReplyDeletehttps://saideman.blogspot.com/2022/03/why-no-no-fly-zone.html
Great post, Simon!
ReplyDeleteI agree that far too many people seem to think the No Fly Zone is The Only Answer To Everything. It's the only military tactic they ever heard of. The fact that it wouldn't work very well for Ukraine nor for the rest of Europe is not relevant to them.
Of course Zelenskyy is pressing for this now, but he is trying to save the lives of his people and he can't really be concerned with broader issues.
Someone said on twitter last week, the only time the West could have safely massed troops and planes in Ukraine was BEFORE Putin invaded, in the hopes of preventing the war in the first place. But at that time, Zelenskyy was downplaying the possibility of war and saying that Biden shouldn't provoke Putin.
So the only thing Biden was able to do in February was signal to Putin that the West would respond vigorously -- Putin didn't believe him. I think his generals were telling him that the war would be over fast, before any other nation could marshall a response.
So three weeks later, here we are.
I read a tweet last week too, that argued the worst day in Ukraine's history will turn out to be the day Putin agrees to peace -- because Putin would demand to keep the southern provinces that give him a corridor to the Crimea, the world will insist that Ukraine agree, but Ukraine will never get these provinces back and a terrible guerilla war will continue.
I maintain there are no good guys. Someone wanted a fight in Ukranie, and it was not Russia and it was not Ukraine. If you follow current events over the last 4000 years you might figure out who it was.
ReplyDeleteCandy's room was a great Springteen song and likely the inspiration for Candy to be at the door in Stornoway, costing many taxpayer dollars for a short term stay.
Then she asked us to trust Putin would not launch thermonuclear war.
Every war has two sides. Russia is killing lots of innocents, the other side only kills killers right?
Ukraine has a beautiful national anthem and motto. The first line begins "Ukraine is not dead yet." The worst mistake any chest-puffing braggart could ever make is to underestimate their opponents. It happened with the Cons against Trudeau and now Putin with Zelenskyy and the Ukrainian people. He's made Russia a big, cold North Korea and the sanctions will not allow him to maintain the occupation or rebuild. He's 70 years old and is looking unhealthier by the minute. It may be a long war of attrition but, again, Ukraine is not dead yet -- and may they withstand for the long haul.
ReplyDelete313 Canadian MPs are now banned from Russia including Trudeau himself. I'm sure he's devastated. Poor Candy will never get to have a cougar holiday in Moscow despite all that positive PR she gave to Putin's Potemkin President. By the way, little-known fact: Republicans banned Pierre Trudeau from entering the US in the 1950s because they suspected him of being a communist. Today, Republicans' favorite foreign despot Vladimir Putin has banned Justin Trudeau from Russia under suspicions of being a Nazi. A risible conspiracy theory parroted by the likes of the #1 Russian propaganda outlet among Republicans, Fox Pravda. Moral of the story: Ukraine is not dead yet, people named Trudeau have an uncanny ability to drive right-wingers insane just by virtue of existing, and above all: Republicans are stupid.
Steve, the evidence quite clearly shows that Russia (or Putin at least) does want a fight in Ukraine and has wanted one since at least 2014 when it seized Crimea. And yes, wars do tend to have two sides: an aggressor and a defender. Those sides are not morally equal. Russia's invasion of Ukraine is a war of aggression: it is not an act of self-defense and was not sanctioned by the UN. As the tribunal at Nuremberg said, "War is essentially an evil thing. Its consequences are not confined to the belligerent states alone, but affect the whole world. To initiate a war of aggression, therefore, is not only an international crime; it is the supreme international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole."
ReplyDeleteJackie, notice how Putin sanctioned members of all Canadian parties, including the Cons, but only sanctioned a Dems in the US? I wonder why...
ReplyDeleteA distinction without a difference. For as long as they continue to be enamoured of Putin's Potemkin President, they remain Canada's own branch plant of the GOP North. As their "godfather's" close comity with the likes of Orban and Bolsonaro through IDU clearly demonstrates. Not to mention their preferred propaganda outlet's ownership by an American hedge fund with inextricable ties to Trump and the GOP.
ReplyDeletePutin is simply unfamiliar with the concept of six degrees of separation.
Hi Simon, nor am I a military expert but it's abundantly clear to me now that the Ukrainian military has been punching way beyond their weight class in spite of limited air defenses. As long as the ground based weaponry keeps coming in and is readily available to them, Putin will not win the war he clearly started. A few hundred more drones would also be a huge boost to help them take out the artillery/rocket positions that are murdering innocent civilians. The nonsense that no one started this war followed by a riddle is just that, nonsense. Or better yet, let the mayor of Kyiv call it what it is.
ReplyDeletehttps://twitter.com/PhilipinDC/status/1504033406971228164?cxt=HHwWiMC5jceas98pAAAA
Putin wanted it, started it and will now wear this war as his legacy. He may destroy the Ukraine's infrastructure and murder thousands but he'll never break the will of the people. That is now clearly evident. However, if we recall prior to the invasion, I and I believe many people were led to believe that it would be a cakewalk for Putin. Biden was repeatedly telling president Zelensky to get out while he could which led to what I believe will become the inspirational quote of the century, "I need ammunition, not a ride". Courage and humor, pride and honor. Zelensky's quote inspired a nation and the world to get behind him and they have, overwhelmingly. He is a leader for the ages. Contrast that with the paranoid Putin, who's probably hiding in his bunker while his own people are being dragged away for any modicum of protestation. And those cut off from seeing what's really happening wonder why they're devolving into what led to the collapse of the Soviet Union 30 years ago. This will not end well for Vlad the invader and the end can't come soon enough.
JD
I am so grateful, thankful and proud of a Liberal government led by PM Trudeau attempting to seek a diplomatic solution to the Ukraine crisis as Liberals always do.
ReplyDeleteCan you imagine the outcome if we had a CONservative government? Right now Canada would be involved in another war like Mulroney in Kuwait and Harper in Afghanistan and the bodies would be coming home.
I Stand With Trudeau and I Stand With Ukraine.
Hi jrkrideau...Yes, trying to impose a no-fly zone would be insane. But people are letting their emotions guide them, and seem to be ignoring the dangers of triggering a nuclear war. We'll be lucky if we get out of this one alive...
ReplyDeleteHi Cathie...thank you. I can understand why people feel a no-fly zone is the answer to everything. When in fact it isn't and could only make things worse. The paranoid Putin could then claim it's all a NATO plot to torpedo Mother Russia, and who knows where that might lead us. The fact is the Ukrainians have or will soon have enough anti-air missile batteries to deny the Russians absolute control of the skies. And the mauling their ground forces are getting means they will never be able to take and hold any of the big Ukrainian cities. The big difference is that most Russians don't know what they're fighting for, while the Ukrainians are highly motivated to defend their country, and have the support of most of the world. Putin must be blind,or crazy, not to see the writing on the wall...
ReplyDeleteHi Steve...No, Putin is entirely to blame for starting this insane war. He is obsessed with trying to restore the Soviet Union, and the only way he can do that is at the point of a gun. And that's really tragic, not only for the Ukrainians but also for the Russian people who deserve better. But I do think you're right about Candy Bergen, anyone who would trust her must also out of their minds. Thank goodness the Cons are out of power, and are likely to remain there until long after this war is over...
ReplyDeleteHi Jackie...The Ukrainians are united in their desire to defend their country, and they are winning the propaganda war hands down. Putin is waging war as if it was 1941, and he doesn't seem to understand the power of social media, or that tank charges are out of date, and the armoured equivalent of the charge of the light brigade. Or for that matter that what worked in Syria won't work in modern Europe. And what really worries me, is that like the emperor with no clothes, none of his corrupt inner circle will dare tell him the truth...
ReplyDeleteHi JD...Yes, the mayor of Kyiv had it exactly right. The Ukrainians are lucky to have him and so many other great leaders. And the Russians are cursed to have a leader like Putin. His whole battle plan of trying to intimidate the Ukrainians with long convoys of armoured vehicles made absolutely no sense against Ukrainians armed with the most most sophisticated anti-tank missiles in the world. According to several reports I have read this morning, the resulting heavy losses are demoralizing his own army. It would be something out of The Three Stooges Go To War, if it wasn't so tragic...
ReplyDeletePutin is an autocrat with KGB training. At the risk of over simplifying autocrats tend to share the following attributes. Human lives are just another commodity to be exploited, they are self proclaimed champions charged with creating a glorious golden country, in order to win the opposition has to loose, win win is not in the vocabulary. The battle is not about Putins fear of physical aggression against Russia, its about the Ukrainian / western narrative eroding his power over the Russian empire. From his perspective the ideal outcome is some combination of the following; a puppet state, a failed state that can be used to rally his people with an example of an abusive failed democracy, real or perceived NATO aggression against Russia which will consolidate his grip over his people. The only way he can lose is if his invasion grinds to a halt or is reversed and Russian citizens do not perceive the war/operation as a threat to their security and blame him instead. Putin will do everything in his bag of tricks to ensure that it does not happen even if it means deliberately engaging NATO.
ReplyDeleteA possible outcome is that a truce deal is signed where Putin can claim liberation of suppressed Russian loyalists with the rest of Ukraine free but bound to some form of perceived neutrality for a period of time.
For Putin the conflict has reached a critical state where he needs a deal or has to take the action necessary to lock in the support of the Russian population through perceived fear of a powerful aggressor. The propaganda war about liberating past generations of Russian immigrants from the clutches of the Nazis by bombing them is not going so well! A no fly zone would give him the excuse he needs to lock in support at home and do everything in his power to turn Ukraine into a failed state of devastation.
RT
Hi RT...Sorry for taking so long to get back to you, but I have been flying all over the place. But I agree with you, Putting is clearly an autocrat which in my book is just another word for psychopath. He cannot feel the pain of others, and after being forced to work as a cab driver after the collapse of the Soviet Union, he wants to make sure he can keep his limo, even if that means rolling over the bodies of millions. I also believe that he has convinced himself that Russia can win a nuclear war, although so far at least I am alone in that belief. Like you, I also believe that the only way he can mobilize Russians behind him is to make them believe that NATO is a threat to their security. And if he can do that anything can happen....
ReplyDelete