We are at $5. It was lower last week.
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We are at $5. It was lower last week.
I have no cable, so I've been watching France24 and Al Jazeera on Youtube. Round the clock coverage and no commercials to sit through.
I've also been watching RT. My perception is that in the beginning, fewer outright lies and more coverage of the actual war, albeit distorted. During the last couple of days, each time I've tuned in, it's been all about the Ukrainian military slaughtering the insurgents in the east and little mention of what's happening now.
This situation has taught me one thing - if you want to keep in touch with someone, make sure you have their mobile number. Don’t count on FB Messenger, FB, Instagram to keep in touch. What’s App is different as it’s tied to your mobile number.
I know too many people who have gotten booted off social media for a variety of reasons or even their account was hacked.
I pay $8 a month for a basic digital subscription to the NYT. Their app has always been excellent and the coverage is great.
This weekend, I rented several AirBnB rooms in Kiev for this week. (Remarkably inexpensive tourist destination btw, and it looks like it would have been a great actual trip).
I picked places that had been in business several years, that looked like they were run by individual owners and not giant vacation rental firms.
I told them all in my note that I wasn't actually going to show up, and to use the money for Good Things.
This morning I got back notes from actual human beings thanking me, mostly telling me they were giving the funds to their housekeepers and handymen, and the military resistance.
Mission accomplished.
This probably violates some federal law ��
A single day seemed to run anywhere from $30-$70/night, so it seems a light-weight method to get cash directly into the hands of a Ukrainian without governmental or NGO overhead.
Excellent work, Bae!
Wow, bae! What a wonderful thing to do!
One of my friends here used 23andme and ancestry.com to track down distant Ukrainian relatives, and initiated contact. Of the 80-ish cold-call emails he sent, he got back 5 responses, and is now directly aiding relatives he didn't even know he had, which I thought was cool.
That is really cool!
I've heard of people doing this, as well as using Etsy to order downloads, etc. in order to generate revenue for Ukrainians. That may not be possible, though, as the destruction ramps up. There's not much else we can do from here, save wishing for Putin to spend the rest of his miserable life in a cell somewhere, which isn't likely to happen.
I just got this in an email: “People are booking Airbnbs in Ukraine as a form of direct aid — telling hosts it's a gesture of solidarity. In 2 days, more than 61,000 nights were booked, grossing nearly $2 million, the company said.”
I just hope that money can provide food, shelter, and other necessities to the beleaguered people of the areas most in need.
Our local ammunition plant sent a million rounds.
Saw an article today that one Russian general made an unsecured phone call, which gave his location away. He’s now dead.
It hasn’t been a good time to be a Russian general officer. I understand two have been KIA and another eight have been fired. There is a long history of despots blaming their officers for their own paranoia and bad decisions. Especially in Russia.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tradd
I've thought about this a lot lately. I have been raised to believe that quickly fleeing a situation such as the invasion of Ukraine was honorable and noble. And then for the past 30 days I've been glued to the media as much as possible given my job.
I have to say one thing. I have much respect for Ukraine and it's people. It is amazing to me seeing Ukraine stand and fight. Obviously they believe in their country.....something I did not believe was possible in this world.
I also have to say I'd much rather be here than in Russia. You can't sue for police brutality in Russia and the police are markedly worse there towards protestors.....some of what I've been reading is very alarming.
I just hope this ends or at least lessens soon. I'm not seeing Russia as gaining anything from this insane war. Rob
Agreed 100 percent. RobQuote:
Originally Posted by Tradd
It may mean hope for disenfranchised blue collar workers in the first world and for general labor elsewhere willing and able to travel. It will take many workers to rebuild and I'm thinking Ukraine will have to let in outsiders to get the work done more quickly. But....first this damn war needs to end, preferably with Putin being ousted.Quote:
Originally Posted by Teacher Terry
One more thing I've realized - I really miss Mikhail and Raisa Gorbachev of.the late 80's! What a hopeful time and what a different Russia that was, at least on the surface. Rob
I'm not surprised to hear that. At least you're in good company, a recent poll showed that a majority of Democrats in this country feel the same way, well, about the quickly fleeing part anyway. Personally, I think it's much more honorable and noble to stand up to a bully, make sure they understand that it's not so easy to invade and conquer. A good dose of standing up for yourself, your family and your country probably does more to prevent more of the same than your way ever will. To me, that's honorable and noble.Quote:
Originally Posted by gimmethesimplelife
I don't think those words mean what you think they mean.Quote:
Originally Posted by gimmethesimplelife
Probably not if you're a young mother with small children in tow, eitherQuote:
Originally Posted by bae
Just curious. Alan, do you know how the question in this poll was worded? RobQuote:
Originally Posted by Alan
Most Democrats have not grown up with a dose of harrowing during/after WW2 stories as I have. Because of this I think I believe this way - something like the invasion of Ukraine comes and the goal overnight changes to survival. That of yourself and anyone you can help on your way to safety. I don't disagree with your take entirely - surprise! - but I still hold that fleeing is noble and wise though not as respectable as Ukrainian behavior. Those people have courage! RobQuote:
Originally Posted by Alan
Not sure, it was a Quinnipiac University poll, you can find the results here: 3/7/22 - Vast Majority Of Americans Say Ban Russian Oil, Quinnipiac University National Poll Finds; Nearly 8 In 10 Support U.S. Military Response If Putin Attacks A NATO Country | Quinnipiac University PollQuote:
Originally Posted by gimmethesimplelife
An excerpt from their results: WHAT WOULD AMERICANS DO?
"As the world witnesses what is happening to Ukraine, Americans were asked what they would do if they were in the same position as Ukrainians are now: stay and fight or leave the country? A majority (55 percent) say they would stay and fight, while 38 percent say they would leave the country. Republicans say 68 - 25 percent and independents say 57 - 36 percent they would stay and fight, while Democrats say 52 - 40 percent they would leave the country."
Quote:
Originally Posted by gimmethesimplelife
I'm confused. What do Democrats have to do with it, and did they have an alternate reality than Republicans?
Why would they bother polling people about something that has zero chance of happening. If anyone is going to start a war with us it’s not going to be soldiers and tanks moving down Main Street USA.
True. That was my thought as well. Another stupid poll.Quote:
Originally Posted by jp1
Had a very disturbing conversation with a friend last night. Friend is of mostly Russian background, but has some Ukrainian heritage, as well. Her brother is married to a woman from Ukraine. Sister in law only had one remaining immediate relative alive - her mother - who goes back and forth her between the US and UKraine. I asked if SIL’s mother was in the US Indefinitely. Friend told me SIL’s mother lives south of Chernobyl in the middle of nowhere, has seen no fighting, and sees absolutely no reason to leave. She had been in the US over the winter but returned shortly before the Russians invaded. I was told SIL has an uncle who is refusing to fight for Ukraine but is defending his property from looters - not Russians, but the average citizens who had been handed guns and were now looting since they never had very much and are now taking whatever they can.
Friend then launched into conspiracy level stuff - Putin doesn’t want to hurt the average Ukrainians. He’s going slow to given them their time to surrender, etc. Plus a whole bunch of stuff that was weapons grade conspiracy theory stuff. The US and Europe are going to pay for what they’ve done so far and it would become apparent within a few years. She was telling me not to pay attention to what’s going on in the mainstream media and texted me a link to something on YT to watch. I got the “I have relatives/friends in UKraine and Russia that are telling me very different things.” Putin fan all the way. I knew she was somewhat right leaning, but I had no idea just how much. Yikes.
Forgot to mention about friend going off about Nazis in UKraine. Yikes.
They didn't. They polled people about overall American attitudes on multiple aspects of the Ukraine/Russia conflict. The part I quoted was just a small, yet interesting part of the overall poll and tied in neatly with Rob's odd concept of honor and nobility.Quote:
Originally Posted by jp1
I've always maintained I would fight against any hostile forces invading this country to the best of my ability.
I've also long said that there are countries that would better suit me, and that I'm sorry I didn't emigrate to one when I had the chance.
So the question, as silly as it was, caught me at a confluence.
Tradd, that's horrifying. I guess "true believers" know no boundaries. How does she explain the coverage? "Crisis actors?" Anyone who has paid the slightest attention to Putin's history sees him for the ruthless dictator (and facile liar) he is.
So it would seem, but the longer I live the less certain I am about discounting the “zero chance” possibility. Who would have thought we’d be celebrating German rearmament? Or that there would be a Trump administration? Or that the Cubs would win a World Series? History can often mock complacency in bloody ways.Quote:
Originally Posted by jp1
Nor do I much credit polls about hypotheticals. I suspect that in a real “Red Dawn” situation behaviors would be quite different. A lot of F-150s with “These Colors Don’t Run” bumper stickers would be turbo-boosting toward Ensenada or Moose Jaw. A lot of Priuses with “Coexist” stickers would be silently hurrying to the sound of the guns with IEDs in their NPR totes. These sorts of questions tend to encourage cheap bluster and passive-aggressive sneering.
I couldn't agree more with this. Perfectly said.Quote:
Originally Posted by LDAHL
They surveyed 1,374 adults who actually answered the phone. Out of hundreds of millions of us. Despite the fact this is a highly regarded poll, I have lost all faith in polling recently as I have the news. It seems to me a bizarre question which only serves to polarize us. We are all Americans after all. Can you tell how much I hate the generalizations such as Republicans are racist, democrats want open borders, blah blah. it really is sad we are not coming together against the real enemies and instead claiming warfare on each other. We are playing right into the hands of our foes by allowing them to divide and conquer us.Quote:
Originally Posted by Alan
I certainly would be of no use to the fight as a 70+ YO woman who has never touched a gun. Of course I might be of use if I stayed but the situation in Ukraine is so vastly different due to their geography.
A woman I know has a sister in Poland who is taking in refugees as they move towards relatives and gives them a place to shower, Some matresses on a floor of her house to spend the night and hot meals and supplies to move on. so far it has been the old, the very young and their mothers.
All I do know is a bunch of us Regardless of political party that are sending her money and she is buying supplies to help them move to safety.
By the way I identify as an independent and have voted for Republican and Democrat presidents during my lifetime.
That is absolutely disturbing. However I wonder if we have raised the bar pretty high for the Ukraine population. Were this in the United States I could still picture a small group running out of stores with looted large screen TVs. And case in point, how many would believe authoritarian generated state propaganda and conspiracy falsehoods, as in stop the steal. In one of Putin's early speeches he used the ploy of weapons of mass destruction being hid in the Ukraine. It sounded sort of familiar.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tradd
Then there’s Biden’s apparently off the cuff remark that Putin can’t remain in power. The sec’y of state had to agree with the Russian gov’t statement that it’s their choice if Putin remains in power.
But I think Blinken should have added that the Russian people aren’t actually given a choice for president.
It doesn’t help that the US President fuels Russian propaganda with gaffes like “Putin has to go” or tells US troops how much they will appreciate the Ukrainian people “when you’re there”.Quote:
Originally Posted by Rogar
Flowers, thank you for this post. A voice of compassion, sanity and reason is refreshing. I have just finished reading The Choice and The Gift by Dr. Edith Eger recommending it whole heartedly. Yes, this book review does belong on this forum. I will now step back into the observer role.Quote:
Originally Posted by flowerseverywhere
I don't know how a poll in Russia could be accurate. A news report I heard said that almost a hundred percent of the older Russian generations believed in Putin's spin of things, but it was only around forty per cent for the younger generations with access to digital and social media. My first impression of the Putin has to go comment was that he had to go by the means of the Russian people. Sensationalist global media obviously had a different take.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rogar
Was out picking up some stuff for work yesterday, NPR had some story about a former Russian, who started a software company over here, and uses Russian programmers. She got her business partner and 3 other people out, but has 35 employee's over there yet.
Any talk of antiwar sentiment, gets you locked up. FSB taking your phones and searching them, etc. Older generations, lived through the keep your thoughts to yourself thing.
Russia runs a formidable worldwide propaganda machine:
https://www.politico.eu/article/russ...nformation-rt/
Its purpose is to destabilize the West by dividing and inflaming their citizenry.