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Scott Ritter: Helping Crimea recover from decades of Ukrainian misrule is a tough but necessary challenge

Ritter
© Scott RitterScott Ritter (Left) handshake
Deliberate neglect, followed by a blockade and now war have failed to break the resolve of the peninsula's inhabitants...

As the Russian military operation against Ukraine approaches its third year, the focus on the ongoing conflict has allowed another anniversary to go relatively unnoticed - it's now around ten years since the violent events in Kiev's Maidan square that put in motion the circumstances which precipitated the current conflict.

Over the course of five days, from February 18 to 23, 2014, neo-Nazi provocateurs from the Svoboda (All Ukrainian Union 'Freedom') Party and the Right Sector, a coalition of far-right Ukrainian nationalists who follow the political teachings of Stepan Bandera and the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists, engaged in targeted violence against the government of President Viktor Yanukovich. It was designed to remove him from power and replace him with a new, US-backed government. They were successful; Yanukovich fled to Russia on February 23, 2014.

Soon thereafter, the predominantly Russian-speaking population of Crimea undertook actions to separate from the new Ukrainian nationalist government in Kiev. On March 16, 2014, the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, both of which at that time were legally considered to be part of Ukraine, held a referendum on whether to join Russia or remain part of Ukraine. Over 97% of the votes cast were in favor of joining Russia. Five days later, on March 21, Crimea formally became part of the Russian Federation.

Light Saber

Fed up: UK police launch grass-roots gender-critical network to fight back against woke trans policies

Britain police officers foot patrol
© Shutterstock/Tana888Serving officers have launched the Police Sex Equality and Equity Network, accusing the service of 'actions that embed gender ideology' within forces nationwid
They've accused the service of 'actions that embed gender ideology' which 'creates a culture of fear' within forces across Britain

Grassroots police officers have launched a gender-critical network to push back against forces they are concerned have adopted self-ID policies not recognised in law.

The serving officers have launched the Police Sex Equality and Equity Network, accusing the service of 'actions that embed gender ideology' within forces nationwide.

They called on bodies representing both rank and file officers, as well as chief constables, to recognise lobby groups and activists within policing in England and Wales had created a 'culture of fear' among those holding gender-critical views.

Comment: Bravo to the Bobbies. May commons sense prevail.


Jet4

UK to give Ukraine 'swarming' drones - Bloomberg

drone operator Ukraine
© AFP / Sergey BobokA Ukrainian operator uses a drone equipped with a metal detector to clear mines in Kharkov Region, Ukraine, October 1, 2023. Brussels proposes 'legal task force' to explore ways to use the common budget for defence. EU member states agreed in 2022 to finance weapons shipments to Ukraine, but only through a multilateral fund set up outside the EU budget.
British officials hope the autonomous craft will help Kiev compensate for its artillery shortage, the news site reported.

Ukraine will soon receive thousands of AI-enabled drones capable of autonomously "swarming" Russian targets, Bloomberg has reported. However, Moscow has repeatedly pointed out that Western "wonder weapons" have thus far failed to change Kiev's fortunes on the battlefield.

The UK is working with the US to acquire the still-in-development technology, Bloomberg stated on Saturday, citing "people familiar with the matter."

Comment: Just more and more (expensive) toys to try to delay the inevitable.

See also:


Tank

Musk agrees Ukraine conflict is 'war of lies'

SpaceX, X (formerly known as Twitter), and Tesla CEO Elon Musk
© Omar Marques/Getty ImagesSpaceX, X (formerly known as Twitter), and Tesla CEO Elon Musk

The tech mogul has apparently concurred with entrepreneur David Sacks that people are being told Kiev "is winning when in fact it is losing"


Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has seemingly agreed with American investor David Sacks, who believes that the Ukraine conflict will end in a heavy defeat for Kiev, but that the West will try to spin the narrative in a way to sweep the truth under the rug.

On Sunday, Sacks published a post on X (formerly Twitter) entitled "A war of lies," arguing that the Ukraine conflict is based on falsehoods and deceit about "how it started, how it's going, and how it will end."

The entrepreneur stated that citizens of Western countries are being told that "Ukraine is winning when in fact it is losing" while being lied to that Kiev's main problem is a lack of US funding, while in reality it is the "fact the West can't produce enough ammunition."

Comment: One wonders in this whole scenario whether they can even see through all their lies. It looks as if the West has no interest at all in ending the war, and certainly not with the help of negotiations. And the crowd looks on cheeringly, almost like in ancient Rome. Bread and circuses.

See also:


Cult

Moscow condemns neo-Nazi march in US

blood tribe
© Social media
The 'Blood Tribe' group has marched through Nashville, Tennessee, openly displaying Nazi symbols and chanting offensive slogans.

The US concept of freedom applies exclusively to the "forces of evil" and effectively boils down to unleashing everything that is "taboo," Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said, commenting on a recent rally held by the neo-Nazi group 'Blood Tribe' in Nashville, Tennessee.

The group's balaclava-clad members marched through the city on Saturday, carrying black flags bearing Nazi swastikas, while chanting anti-immigration slogans such as "Deportation saves the nation." Some of the masked individuals wore sport shirts with assorted runic symbols commonly used by neo-Nazis worldwide, as well as the code '2218', which stands the slogan 'Bring back Adolf Hitler'.

Comment: While the official narrative has talked about overt neo-nazi groups in the US for a long time now, it was previously not much more than a convenient boogie man. To actually see nazi's on the streets marching is a somewhat new phenomenon. What are they up to?

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Arrow Down

Judge rejects attempts to toss indictments against Texas AG Ken Paxton, keeps April trial on course

Paxton
© Julia Reihs/KUT NewsTexas Attorney General Ken Paxton has been under active indictment for alleged securities fraud since 2015.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton remains on track to be tried for felony fraud this spring after the presiding judge shot down his attempts to have the charges thrown out.

During a Friday court hearing in Houston, Harris County District Court Judge Andrea Beall rejected Paxton's arguments that his right to a speedy trial had been violated.

Beall's decision means that, barring another unexpected delay, Paxton's securities fraud trial will kick off on April 15. The proceedings are much anticipated; the attorney has been under active indictment for nearly nine years. He has pleaded not guilty.

Special prosecutor Brian Wice applauded Beall's decision and said Paxton was the reason these cases have not yet gone to trial.

"We think that the general's fingerprints, footprints and DNA were all over the delays," said Wice, a private criminal defense lawyer brought on to represent the state after the local district attorney recused himself.

During the hearing, Paxton's defense attorney Dan Cogdell blamed the prosecutors for much of the delay. He said their attempts to be paid — which have been unsuccessful since 2016 — put off the trial for years.
"That's what this food fight has been all about. This case has been pending longer than three out of four of my marriages lasted."
Other factors that led to the delay included the prosecution's successful motions to move the case from Collin to Harris County, Hurricane Harvey and COVID-19.

Paxton, donned in a blue suit and pink socks, sat quietly through the hearing.

Comment: See also:


Truck

"F**k around & find out": Truckers warn loads to NYC will be rejected starting Monday after Trump verdict

Trending on X this morning:
trending tweet trucker boycott new york city trump jpg
Google search trends for "trucker boycott" surging across nation:
google search trucker boycott new york city trump
© Google

Biohazard

Best of the Web: British NHS - Trans 'milk' as good as the real thing


Comment: Demented.


The makers of a drug used off-label to induce lactation in men warn it could adversely affect a baby's heart.
Breast Feeding

The drug-induced nipple secretions of trans women are as good as mothers' breast milk for babies, the University of Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust claimed in a letter to campaigners made public in a report by British think tank the Policy Exchange on Sunday.

The healthcare trust's medical director, Rachel James, argued that the off-label prescription drug cocktail men transitioning to female take in order to produce milk was "similar to the natural hormones which encourage lactation to develop when the baby is newly born."

"The evidence which is available demonstrates that the milk is comparable to that produced following the birth of a baby," James wrote in the letter, sent to Children of Transitioners last August.

Biological men who wish to lactate must first take hormones to grow milk glands and then take high doses of either domperidone or metoclopramide to stimulate milk production. Neither drug is approved for this use, though they are occasionally prescribed off-label to biological women who have trouble lactating.

Comment:
apocalypse now sheen



Eye 1

Kiev abandoned wounded during Avdeevka rout - media

Ukrainian soldiers
© Diego Herrera Carcedo/Anadolu via Getty ImagesUkrainian soldiers prepare Soviet-era artillery in Donetsk Region, on February 14, 2024.
The Ukrainian military abandoned a number of severely injured soldiers on the battlefield in the former Donbass stronghold of Avdeevka, local media have reported, citing a video with one of the service members. Kiev has acknowledged that several troops were captured during the retreat.

In a clip that went viral on social media on Saturday, a 30-year-old Ukrainian junior sergeant with the call sign 'Django' is seen telling his weeping sister that he and five other soldiers who were unable to move on their own were promised that they would be evacuated to the rear. The evacuation truck, however, never came, according to the soldier.

"All the others retreated... I have both legs crippled, shell fragments in the back. I can do nothing at all," Django says.

Calculator

Israel hiring Indian workers as Palestinian labor permits halted; Taiwan also turning to Delhi amid shortage

israel india
© Diaa Hadid/NPRIndian men line up at a registration office set up in a technical college in the northern Indian city of Lucknow, where they hope to sign up to work in Israel.
A devotional song blares from a Hindu temple as dozens of men cram in line for the chance to register for work in Israel. But mostly what the men hear are orders. An official directs them to a warehouse-style waiting room if they haven't already signed up. As the men jostle to get to the head of the line, a security guard orders them to sit down on the ground. "Do it like gentlemen," the guard orders. "No need for mischief!"

This unruly line outside a vocational training center in the northern Indian city of Lucknow is more than 2,700 miles away from Gaza — and it spotlights the many ways the war between Israel and Hamas is affecting life around the world.

Comment: Swarajya reports:
Taiwan To Hire Indian Workers Amid Island Nation's Rising Labour Shortage

Taiwan and India have signed a memorandum of understanding on migrant workers that is expected to lead to the South Asian nation becoming a source of labor for the island.

The industries to be assigned and number of Indian migrant workers to be allowed will be decided by Taiwan under the agreement, the Taiwanese labour ministry said in a statement on Friday (16 February).

India has committed to recruiting and training the employees, according to the needs of Taiwan, according to the statement.

The ministry will formally notify lawmakers of the MOU and hold follow-up meetings with Indian officials, as per the statement.

Taipei will declare India a new source country for migrant labour when all preparatory work is in place, it said.

At present, there are four source countries for migrant workers to Taiwan - Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand.

The ministry said that due to country's aging population and low birthrate, the working-age population and grassroots labor force have shrunk sharply.

It said that the shortage of workers in manufacturing, construction, agriculture and other industries is continuously expanding.

The ministry said that the number of Indian workers working overseas has reached 18 million, adding that Indian workers are stable, hard-working, and have good reviews.

"Indian workers with good English proficiency will be targeted at the introduction on a small scale in the initial stage, and the results of opening will be reviewed regularly; if the implementation results are good, the opening will be gradually increased," it said.