Russia/Ukraine

[heat40]

We are talking about the same guy who stood next to Putin, and mumbled his way into saying he totally believed that Russia didn’t interfere in the US. No way, would he have stood up to him. And Putin didn’t have to do anything when trump was president, because trump was creating the chaos himself. Putin just sat back and watched.

ETA and even if this invasion would have happened, do we remember when trump held back the defense stuff for Ukraine, unless they helped him with hitting back at Biden? What a gift to Russia.

[cous0226]

Does anyone know why Ukraine is not a part of Nato? I couldn’t find a good article on it online other than they tried to apply in 2010.

[Velar Fricative]

I had no idea until now that Vitali Klitschko is the mayor of Kyiv. He and his brother have signed up to fight for Ukraine.

www.espn.com/boxing/story/_/id/33363582/former-heavyweight-champion-vitali-klitschko-plans-fight-ukraine-brother?platform=amp

[acuore]

Feb 24, 2022 15:50:42 GMT -5 cous0226 said:

Feb 24, 2022 15:44:10 GMT -5 clairebear said:

I am seeing so much of people posting on social media that if Trump was in office this wouldn't have happened, or that this is all Biden's fault. So what's the thought process? That Putin views Biden as weak and would allow the invasion? That Putin respects Trump enough to not invade if Trump was still in office? I thought about asking about people's reasoning on FB, but I didn't want to engage the idiots either. 

Trump would have told Putin I will nuke your entire country if you invade and Putin would have believed him.  They are both crazy.  Also Trump would have said that because he knows that oil prices and stock market would have affected his Presidency and that's all he cares about.

No way. Trump would have praised Putin’s “savvy” just like he’s doing now, said it was none of the US’s business anyway, and then gotten Putin on the phone to ask if he could build a Trump Tower in Kiev just as soon as the Russians have captured it. 

[carmenere]

Feb 24, 2022 20:33:17 GMT -5 cous0226 said:

Does anyone know why Ukraine is not a part of Nato? I couldn’t find a good article on it online other than they tried to apply in 2010.

I would guess it has to do with instability and past corruption. Ukraine just had a revolution in 2014 and I assume takes some years for the current government to “prove” it’s stable enough to contribute to the alliance.

[bears]

Feb 24, 2022 20:33:17 GMT -5 cous0226 said:

Does anyone know why Ukraine is not a part of Nato? I couldn’t find a good article on it online other than they tried to apply in 2010.

It's a bit complicated, but I don't think member states want to poke the bear. This lays out the history pretty well: www.npr.org/2022/01/29/1076193616/ukraine-russia-nato-explainer

[icedcoffee]

Feb 24, 2022 23:10:08 GMT -5 bears said:

Feb 24, 2022 20:33:17 GMT -5 cous0226 said:

Does anyone know why Ukraine is not a part of Nato? I couldn’t find a good article on it online other than they tried to apply in 2010.

It's a bit complicated, but I don't think member states want to poke the bear. This lays out the history pretty well: www.npr.org/2022/01/29/1076193616/ukraine-russia-nato-explainer

So essentially Ukraine is the sacrificial lamb. 

[cville]

I have a number of Russian friends (2 Russian citizens and 3 who are now American). I'm not exactly sure how that happened.

Anyway, TO A ONE they are expressing fervent support for Ukraine and antipathy toward Russia's actions. That plus the protests in Russia have really underscored for me that this is authoritarian bullshit and nothing to do with the people of that country.

Which is heartening, but also reminds me of the black hole we were in with 45 as president and how we MUST keep him and his ilk out of office. Yes, we have a longer tradition of democracy, but the executive is powerful.

[mrsukyankee]

Let's see - countries decimated by Covid, lots of angry people about their own gov't responses to Covid and the like, a fracture in the US, UK taken off the world stage by Brexit (as well as having been massively compromised by Putin and Russia), Angela Merkel no longer head of Germany, other countries within the EU becoming less and less democratic. What a perfect time to hit. Putin is all about chaos and power.

[sugarbear1]

imimahoney, thank you! I have the Choices materials to use. Do you have a file of the videos? I’d love to use some of them. Good

[imimahoney]

Feb 25, 2022 10:47:52 GMT -5 sugarbear1 said:

imimahoney, thank you! I have the Choices materials to use. Do you have a file of the videos? I’d love to use some of them. Good

Send me a msg with your email

[midwestmama]

I was on a work meeting this morning with all our employees in Europe and Ukraine. I was in tears (as were many others on the call) hearing our Ukrainian employees asking for help as they try to evacuate Ukraine, and what to do/where to go once they get out. But so many other European employees offered rooms/space in their homes for refugees and wanted to know what they could do to help. Our Polish employees saying, "just get across the border and we'll help you" (we have a large office in Krakow). It was beautiful and heartbreaking at the same time. I am in the US and wish I could do more than just provide financial assistance.

[suburbanzookeeper]

"President Zelensky says Russia is trying to take Kyiv tonight."

We connected with some Ukrainian friends who were able to get out and into Poland but they're truly devastated.

[Velar Fricative]

Feb 25, 2022 10:29:19 GMT -5 mrsukyankee said:

Let's see - countries decimated by Covid, lots of angry people about their own gov't responses to Covid and the like, a fracture in the US, UK taken off the world stage by Brexit (as well as having been massively compromised by Putin and Russia), Angela Merkel no longer head of Germany, other countries within the EU becoming less and less democratic. What a perfect time to hit. Putin is all about chaos and power.

Yeah. As unhinged as Putin seems these days, there is a method to his madness.

Biden needs to keep addressing the country and prepare us for the world of hurt we will experience economically, at least. There is no non-military solution for punishment that won’t hurt us economically as well, but…that’s what we have to do.

[Vespasia]

Eurovision has banned* Russia from competing this year.

Hardly the most important piece of news, but I don't really have anything coherent to contribute.

*fixed typo

[StrawberryBlondie]

@@@

I was just out running errands and the guy on MPR said he was in a bomb shelter under a kindergarten and the teachers had made little beds for the kids to get some sleep while sheltering and I swear to God, it broke me.

[icedcoffee]

I’m going to a rally this weekend. What should I put on my signs?

[Saudade]

StrawberryBlondie, I was listening to MPR while driving to work and heard that too. It gutted me.

[Velar Fricative]

I feel like for a while, I’m going to dread waking up and checking my phone alerts each morning. I’m really worried about Zelensky and his team still in Kyiv. Per the WaPo, the US has offered to evacuate him.

[cattledogkisses]

Feb 25, 2022 20:59:42 GMT -5 Velar Fricative said:

I feel like for a while, I’m going to dread waking up and checking my phone alerts each morning. I’m really worried about Zelensky and his team still in Kyiv. Per the WaPo, the US has offered to evacuate him.

@@@

I hope that at least his wife and children are somewhere safe.  He's said that he's #1 on the Russians' kill list and that his family is #2, and I don't doubt that.

[jlt19]

So, real talk. What happens if they kill the President? I know they’re not a part of NATO and what Biden said, but do we let that slide?

[mcppalmbeach]

Feb 25, 2022 20:59:42 GMT -5 Velar Fricative said:

I feel like for a while, I’m going to dread waking up and checking my phone alerts each morning. I’m really worried about Zelensky and his team still in Kyiv. Per the WaPo, the US has offered to evacuate him.

Me too. What’s coming out right now with him saying the fate of Ukraine is being decided right now makes me heartsick. Braver man than I…I would be taking the US up on that offer and getting the hell out of dodge. I can’t imagine that kind of fortitude in the face of certain death. I wish I was brave like that. May God be with him and his people. I do hope at least his loved ones have been evacuated.

[mcppalmbeach]

And I’m seriously terrified by Putin’s threats. I really don’t doubt that he has plans to start launching nuclear weapons at the US. I need to stop watching the news.

[cattledogkisses]

Russia is apparently threatening “military and political consequences” if Sweden and Finland try to join NATO.

Where does this stop?

[acuore]

Feb 25, 2022 22:39:29 GMT -5 mcppalmbeach said:

And I’m seriously terrified by Putin’s threats. I really don’t doubt that he has plans to start launching nuclear weapons at the US. I need to stop watching the news.

I really doubt this is his plan. 

[elleblue]

Feb 25, 2022 17:56:31 GMT -5 Vespasia said:

Eurovision has band Russia from competing this year.

Hardly the most important piece of news, but I don't really have anything coherent to contribute.

Not anymore, they disinvited them today. Again, not the biggest or most important piece of news but certainly something I was wondering about. F1 has also canceled the Russian Grand Prix.

[mcppalmbeach]

Feb 26, 2022 1:10:51 GMT -5 acuore said:

Feb 25, 2022 22:39:29 GMT -5 mcppalmbeach said:

And I’m seriously terrified by Putin’s threats. I really don’t doubt that he has plans to start launching nuclear weapons at the US. I need to stop watching the news.

I really doubt this is his plan. 

You are right. I don’t think this is actually “his plan.” What I should have more accurately said is that I think Putin is unstable and paranoid enough right now that his access to nuclear weapons is frightening and I don’t think deploying them is out of the realm of what he would do to further his goals. Not for Ukraine perhaps, but if he continues his expansion into other places
Where US military involvement becomes a reality.

[underwaterrhymes]

Feb 25, 2022 22:39:29 GMT -5 mcppalmbeach said:

And I’m seriously terrified by Putin’s threats. I really don’t doubt that he has plans to start launching nuclear weapons at the US. I need to stop watching the news.

I don’t worry about this for us at this time. (If you’re worried about Chernobyl, it was right in the path to Kyiv, so it was a strategic move, rather than one that has nuclear implications for the globe. However, any fighting there could stir up nuclear waste, which obviously directly impacts the people in the area.)

Right now Ukraine is the country that’s in danger and that’s where the focus needs to be.

We will likely see economic implications but don’t spend time worrying about nuclear war. Instead, call your congresspeople for further sanctions, donate to worthy organizations that are on the ground in Ukraine or the Ukrainian army, and keep sharing material that is authentic and real to combat Russian propaganda.

Here is a list of resources and ways you can help:

www.legacyofwarfoundation.com/news/ukraine-resources22

An addendum: this is not to say that fear of nuclear threat is totally unfounded. However, I think we would have to see a huge escalation into other Baltic states for this to become a concern.

[underwaterrhymes]

Also, if you’re not following Oksana Potapova on Facebook, you should. She’s sharing her thoughts from Ukraine daily. Her posts are both raw and uplifting because you can feel her love for her country.

www.facebook.com/oksana.potapova.902

[wanderingback]

Is the US allowing Ukrainians to enter the US without going through the usual visa process?