Steve Thomas

Czech PM Says Putin Will Create New Soviet Union if We Don’t Stop Him Now https://www.thedailybeast.com/czech-pm-petr-fiala-says-putin-will-create-new-soviet-union-if-we-dont-stop-him-now?ref=scroll "Prague appears to be firmly on the side of Ukrainians. Blue and yellow flags can be seen in many windows, on flagpoles or on the front of buses and trams. Even some street signs have been replaced, unofficially. One street in Prague that has been for decades called Russia has been renamed by Prague residents: “Russian battleship, go xxxx yourself.”" Steve Thomas

Russian tabloid posts — then removes — report on Defense Ministry's count of Russian soldier deaths in Ukraine From CNN's Paul P. Murphy, Vasco Cotovio http://https://www.cnn.com/europe/live-news/ukraine-russia-putin-news-03-21-22/h_a213420135eab380f17aa89f50fa890d "The Russian tabloid Komsomolskaya Pravda published, then later removed, a report that the Russian Ministry of Defense had recorded 9,861 Russian Armed forces deaths in the war in Ukraine. The report from the tabloid originally read, "According to the Russian Defense Ministry, during the special operation in Ukraine, the Russian Armed Forces lost 9861 people killed and 16153 wounded." Seconds after CNN read the original article — at 9:56 p.m. Moscow time according to the HTML code — the story was updated and removed all references to the death count. That update on the outlet's website came shortly after the article began to get attention from social media posts, which referenced the death count. " 10,000 people a month? That can't last long. Steve Thomas

W., That article reminded me a lot of the testimony of Paul Raigorodsky before the Warren Commission on March 31, 1964. https://www.jfk-assassination.net/russ/testimony/raigorod.htm Steve Thomas

How Putin’s invasion became a holy war for Russia "Kirill's response to the war was the culmination of a decade-long effort to wrap Russia’s geopolitical ambitions in faith" March 19, 2022 Jack Jenkins http://https://religionnews.com/2022/03/19/how-putins-invasion-became-a-holy-war-for-russia/ "Two days before he launched a bloody invasion of Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin sat alone in front of a camera and delivered a rambling, hour-long address. It outlined the ideological justification for what would ultimately become his “special military action” in Ukraine — an invasion that, as far as Putin was concerned, had more than a little to do with religion “Ukraine is an inalienable part of our own history, culture and spiritual space,” he said. Two days later, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, head of the Russian Orthodox Church, spoke to military leaders and published a statement in honor of Defender of the Fatherland Day. The cleric congratulated Putin for his “high and responsible service to the people of Russia,” declared the Russian Orthodox Church has “always striven to make a significant contribution to the patriotic education of compatriots,” and lauded military service as “an active manifestation of evangelical love for neighbors.” Within hours, bombs began to rain down on Ukraine. This religious ramp-up to war was the culmination of a decade-long effort to wrap Russia’s geopolitical ambitions in faith — specifically, the flowing vestments of the Russian Orthodox Church. Fusing religion, nationalism, a defense of conservative values that likens same-sex marriage to Nazism and a version of history that seeks to define Ukraine and other nearby nations as mere subsets of a greater “Russkiy mir” (Russian world), the partnership of Putin and Kirill laid the ideological and theological groundwork for the current invasion.")" "Kirill has long perpetuated a version of history that insists many countries that made up the former Soviet Union are one people with a common religious origin: namely, the 10th century baptism of Prince Vladimir I of Kiev, known as St. Vladimir. It’s often paired with a geo-political (and geo-religious) vision hundreds of Orthodox theologians and scholars recently decried as a heresy: a “transnational Russian sphere or civilization, called Holy Russia or Holy Rus’, which includes Russia, Ukraine and Belarus (and sometimes Moldova and Kazakhstan), as well as ethnic Russians and Russian-speaking people throughout the world.” Steve Thomas

California MAGA candidate says she’s running because Jesus spoke to her son in a closet David Badash, March 18, 2022 https://www.rawstory.com/rachel-hamm/ "California Republican Rachel Hamm is running for Secretary of State in the June primary. Like many candidates, she is speaking about her motivation for running. Like many GOP candidates, she is claiming God was involved in her decision. Unlike any other candidate, Hamm says Jesus spoke to her son in a closet and told her to declare her candidacy." Closet's a good a place as any, I guess. Steve Thomas

Sean, Let's invade a neighboring country and bomb the hell out of their schools and apartment buildings and hospitals. We're the Freedom Caucus by God! Steve Thomas

https://twitter.com/RepLloydDoggett/status/1504551656226177026?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw Lloyd Doggett @RepLloydDoggett Breaking: The House just passed the Suspending Normal Trade Relations with Russia and Belarus Act in a 424-8 vote. It would end normal trade relations with Russia and Belarus, as I first proposed in the bill I introduced day after Russia invaded. It now awaits Senate action. Here are the eight "no" votes Lauren Boebert (CO) Thomas Massie (KY) Matt Gaetz (FL) Andy Biggs (AZ) Marjorie Taylor Greene (GA) Dan Bishop (NC) Chip Roy (TX) Glenn Grothman (WI) Remember their names. Steve Thomas

Postmen deliver the goods on Ukraine's home front by Agence France-Presse March18. 2022 https://www.rawstory.com/postmen-deliver-the-goods-on-ukraine-s-home-front/ “There is war raging in Ukraine but the postmasters in the western city of Lviv promise to keep making deliveries. Parcels may be rattled on roads pockmarked by shell blasts, delayed at sandbag checkpoints, and held static during overnight curfews pierced by wailing air raid sirens. But Volodymyr Shved and Anatoliy Goretsky -- who manage the Nova Poshta courier company in Lviv -- insist parcels will arrive at their destination. "The only places we aren't working is where the bombs are falling, at the moment they're falling," said 39-year-old Shved. "When the alarms go off we stop, but when they are silent we go back to work."” Hooray for the Post Men and Women! Life imitates art. Steve Thomas

Pat Robertson slams Biden for not threatening to launch nukes against Russia By Matthew Chapman March 16, 2022 https://www.rawstory.com/pat-robertson-2656972960/ "As Russia has escalated its invasion of Ukraine, President Joe Biden has walked a fine line, doing everything in his power to sanction, embargo, and punish Vladimir Putin's regime short of actually going to war, 666ywhich could lead to the launch of nuclear weapons and the end of human civilization as we know it." Nuclear war would 'end civilization' with famine, study says by Shaun Tandon https://phys.org/news/2013-12-nuclear-war-civilization-famine.html "A billion people dead in the developing world is obviously a catastrophe unparalleled in human history. But then if you add to that the possibility of another 1.3 billion people in China being at risk, we are entering something that is clearly the end of civilization," said Ira Helfand, the report's author. "But 700 Club" televangelist Pat Robertson — who has previously stated he believes the end of the world is necessary to fulfill the word of Jesus — took the exact opposite attitude on Wednesday, and criticized Biden for not being willing to launch nuclear weapons against Russia." Oh goody! Where do I sign? Steve Thomas

Russian soldiers' horror diet laid bare as as Ukrainians steal battlefield kitchen "The three-ingredient diet was plain to see in a video clip filmed by troops in Ukraine where the battlefield kitchen was supposedly conquered in the invasion https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/russian-soldiers-horror-diet-laid-26477049 Russia's army apears to be surviving on just three ingredients after Ukrainian troops seized a battlefield kitchen. Video taken by Ukrainian troops shows a huge KamAZ armoured vehicle fitted with a professional kitchen onboard. But its cupboards were stocked with just onions, potatoes and jars of pickles, according to the clip which was posted on Reddit overnight." Steve Thomas

I think Putin has bitten off more than he can chew. His soldiers are deserting. A fourth major general has died, see https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/russian-general-killed-trying-storm-26478770 He's suffering about a 10% loss rate and having to recruit foreign fighters. He's having to ask China for re-supply. More than anything, he's shown Russia to be a laughingstock on the world stage as a modern fighting force. I think he bit off more than he could chew. Steve Thomas

"White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki mocked the Russian government on Tuesday by noting that the country may have accidentally sanctioned President Joe Biden's father. "I would first note that President Biden is a junior so they may have sanctioned his dad, may he rest in peace," Psaki said in response to a question." Steve Thomas

Russian member of parliament demands Putin take Alaska while state TV host suggests nuclear strikes: report By Sarah K. Burris March 15, 2022 https://www.rawstory.com/russia-alaska-uclear-strike/ "We should be thinking about reparations from the damage that was caused by the sanctions and the war itself, because that too costs money and we should get it back. The return of all Russian properties, those of the Russian empire, the Soviet Union and current Russia, which has been seized in the United States, and so on." “Are you including Alaska and Fort Ross?” the host asked. “That was my next point. As well as the Antarctic," Matveychev, continued. "We discovered it, so it belongs to us... Also, the return of all medals that have been unlawfully taken from our sportsmen during all Olympic games, "Does your list include a tactical nuclear strike, or are we going straight for the strategic one?" the host asked. “What for? We can take them down without it," replied Matveychev. “I still think that those who took our money should be told, you have 24 hours to unfreeze our funds, or else we’ll send you what you know we’ve got," the host claimed, according to the translation. "Your choice. Tactical or strategic, take a pick. You took our money, you’re the thieves, our talk is short with you: a bullet to the head.” Steve Thomas

W.,x. I studied Russian history for a bit when I was in college. The thing you have to understand about Russia is that, as a nation, Russia has a massive inferiority complex. i think Gesine Argent expressed it well in his study of the influence of the French language in Russian society. The French Language in Russia: A Social, Political, Cultural, and Literary History von Editorial Board · Veröffentlicht 18. Dezember 2018 · Aktualisiert 6. Februar 2019 By Gesine Argent https://trafo.hypotheses.org/16019 “Foreign language use first started spreading in the Russian empire from the days of Peter the Great (sole ruler 1696-1725), who drove forward the modernisation of the empire, which meant Westernisation. Knowledge about diverse fields, from architecture, shipbuilding and mining to art, music and literature, could only be accessed via experts who spoke foreign languages, and the books and instruction manuals they wrote in those languages.” “Of course French was used also to communicate with those who had no Russian language skills, for example in diplomacy and other official domains, as one chapter of the book shows. French was also used for propagandistic purposes, to forge a favourable image of Russia as an international, westward-looking country that was a legitimate member of the European family of nations and to counteract accounts of Russia as a backward, uncivilised place. Catherine the Great (ruled 1762-1796), for example, corresponded with Voltaire in French – Voltaire praised her as ‘the Semiramis of the North’ – and bought Denis Diderot’s library in a bid for positive publicity. Many publications in French written by Russians were intended for an international audience, to show how advanced literary, political and social life was in Russia.” Steve Thomas

Tracy, Alice Daily Echo Newspaper Archives September 08, 1963 - Page 6 https://newspaperarchive.com/alice-daily-echo-sep-08-1963-p-6/ Bv THE ASSOCIATED PRESS “Gusts of powerful winds struck in the Dallas area Saturday as a surprise rainstorm whipped into the roof of one residence and damaged another in Mesquite, a suburb just east of Dallas. State Police said no injuries resulted. The wind blew a wooden block through the windshield of a mobile news unit of Radio KBOX of Dallas while it was near White Rock Lake inside the Dallas city limits. On Dallas' North Central Expressway, the blast blew in the side of a service station. Tarpaulins protecting building construction work in downtown Dallas were whipped to shreds. The storm occurred during unexpected rain activity in Dallas and other parts of North Central and Northeast Texas. The rest of the state was unusually hot and nearly all places were dry.” September 7, 1963 was a Saturday. The temperature was 102 degrees. Posted by Andrej Stancak in the Education Forum 02/10/17 http://educationforum.ipbhost.com/topic/23465-wynne-and-vicki-southland-center-1963/ I would like to turn the attention of Forum members to a remarkable testimony of Mr. Wynne Johnson. Wynne was 15 years old in 1963, and had a girlfriend Vicki. Vicki and Wynne liked to visit the roof of the Southland Center to view the scenery of Dallas. And so they did on September 7, 1963. I just can't picture someone being up on a hot tar roof in those kinds of weather conditions. It just never did ring true to me. Steve Thomas

'What happened to her?': Fox's Bartiromo buried for claim Biden administration sees Putin as a 'partner' By Tom Boggioni March 13, 2022 https://www.rawstory.com/maria-bartiromo-2656949825/ “Fox News host Maria Bartiromo was raked over the coals on Sunday after making a wild claim on-air that President Joe Biden's administration secretly sees Russian President Vladimir Putin as a partner. Addressing her audience, the Fox host explained, "Some people have told me over the weekend that they feel that, at the end of the day, this administration does not see Putin as the enemy, they see him as a partner on many issues. They see him as a partner on climate change. They see him as a partner on the Iran deal." She then added, "When is this administration going to get serious and tell Vladimir Putin that we are done?"” Some people have told me over the weekend that Maria Bartiromo is an idiot. Steve Thomas

According to EurasiaNet, https://eurasianet.org/turkey-and-russia-history-fuels-rancor Russia and Turkey have fought 12 wars in the last 500 years. Steve Thomas

When you look in the Merriam-Webster dictionary for the definition of gibberish, this is what you will find: Trump cites 'a lot of love' as reason Putin wants to 'make his country larger' By David Edwards March 13, 2022 https://www.rawstory.com/trump-putin-love/ "He's got a big ego," Trump explained. "I think what's going on now is hard. I understand he's gotten rid of a lot of his generals." “They wanted to rebuild the Soviet Union," he continued. "That’s what this is all about to a large extent. And then you say, what’s the purpose of this? They had a country. You could see it was a country where there was a lot of love and we’re doing it because, you know, somebody wants to make his country larger or he wants to put it back the way it was when actually it didn’t work very well.” Steve Thomas

A 'Freedom Convoy' we can all support: Send the truckers to Russia! by Kirk Swearingen, Salon March 12, 2022 https://www.rawstory.com/trucker-2656938753/ “I'm talking about the gun-toting, flagpole­-wielding insurrectionists, those faux-truckers with their faux demands for faux freedom from wearing masks they weren't wearing anyway — at least not over their noses — and all those folks who want to push their religious beliefs or unbelievably idiotic conspiracy theories on the rest of us, the reasonably educated "elite." “ Maybe we can get a crowdsource funding thing going. Steve Thomas

Deutsche Bank announced that it will continue to do business in Russia because closing it would not be "practical". Surprise,surprise. Steve Thomas

This is Ulta-Secret, Super-Spy stuff. Don't share it with anyone! It's only because you are a friend and everything. Former President Donald Trump was flying from New Orleans back to Palm Beach when he was forced to make an emergency landing. Now, he's asking supporters to send him money. In an email to supporters mere hours after the news broke on his travel issues, Trump was asking them to pay for Trump Force One. (Just as an aside, he had to hitchhike home) Steve Thomas

"Donald Trump was interviewed on the Nelk Boys podcast at his Mar-a-Lago resort. The former commander-in-chief was asked how he saw Russia's invasion of Ukraine ending. "Well, and I said this a long time ago, if this happens, we are playing right into their hands. Green energy. The windmills, they don't work, they're too expensive, they kill all the birds, they ruin your landscapes, and yet, the environmentalists love the windmills," Trump complained after being asked about a war in Europe." Yup. We're playing right into their hands. Stable genius. Steve Thomas

Marjorie Taylor Greene helps Alex Jones promote conspiracy theory claiming '90% population reduction by 2030' by David Edwards March 09, 2022 https://www.rawstory.com/marjorie-taylor-greene-great-reset/ ““During his broadcast on Tuesday, Jones told Greene that he expects a nuclear war to "breakout" in the coming days as a part of the "Great Reset." According to BBC News, the Great Reset became popular among conspiracy theorists after a video with that title was presented at the annual Davos summit in 2020. Believers of the theory say that capitalists are trying to impose socialism on the world. "They want to get to 90% population reduction by 2030," Jones said. "That's the official goal and they're implementing everything they can. They think you're dumb and will think the breakdown of civilization and the energy prices exploding and the food prices exploding and all the hyperinflation is because of [Russian President Vladimir Putin], not because of the Great Reset, not because of [Dr. Anthony Fauci]."” Capitalists are trying to take over the world so they can impose socialism? Who woulda thunk? Dirty old Fauci. I hope you all are working on your bucket lists. Steve Thomas

- Lauren Boebert - “I don’t know who’s running the federal government these days: Joe Biden or Prince John from ... uhhhh ... Prince John,” Boebert said on Fox News Tuesday. “But they’re taxing us into poverty.” You remember Prince John from Prince John. As one Twitter user reminded us, “Prince John led the Gazpacho police to ram ramparts with space lasers at the Revolutionary War airport.” https://twitter.com/mmpadellan/status/1501384941157945349?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw An approval poll to determine how well people think Prince John is doing running the country to follow. Steve Thomas

George, I live in a part of the country that has a lot of coal strip mines. It poisons everything it touches. It poisons the land, it poisons the water, it poisons the air. It poisons the workers who produce it and the people who breathe it. There's nothing "beautiful" about it. Steve Thomas