That is not true mate, there are a lot of merit sources giving out merits to users on a daily basis and ranking them up, though you prolly might not have noticed it caused they do not have dedicated ranking up threads like this one. Of course Ratimov is doing a fantastic job, and he is definitely amongst the top users in the list of "most generous users giving merits", just like many other merit sources, check this thread: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=4523027.0
Yes there are, it is constantly happening.

Yes, and honestly i doubt any member of our community is hoping for that cause it is somewhat impossible, we could only possibly reduce it to a bare minimum somewhere along the line, i mean, if there is a 'multitude' of good/decent users and a couple of spam users who will prolly get most of their posts reported and maybe deleted every now and then, thus that will be just fine.
Honestly signature campaign managers shoulder a lot of responsibility in the forum, some users might not notice it but they do, quite a lot of users are on a signature campaign, and many of these managers make it a criteria for the user to be a decent poster, i am pretty sure this has encouraged a lot of users to work on themselves and bolster their knowledge, so on one hand they get to learn a lot about Bitcoin, post quality stuff and then earn some 'pocket money' via signature campaigns; so campaign managers have a lot to play in the quality of posts on the forum.

Well, i am not in any way attempting to discourage you, but personally i would not hold Shina inu for the long term, i am not saying that it is impossible for it to do well in the long period, but honestly the chances do not look high, there is quite a lot of hype surrounding that project at the moment, and i just have that believe that if something kills off that hype, then the project would definitely stumble as well. Having said that, holding it for the short period and taking ROI when you get them is prolly not a bad idea, but then all of this is just my opinion formed from my observation and research, thus the onus still rests on you, if you do all the research you ought to do and you find the coin suitable for a long term investment, then that is fine.

For a project to actually have a future alot has to do with the developers, so i can't state categorically if this project has a future or not, maybe cause i am not an investor of this project and as such i have done no research whatsoever into their project/team. Having said that, there was actually a time Solana was actually popular amongst investors, but from what i can sense now, that is no longer the case. But like i have said earlier the Solana team have to work really hard to keep their project running and if they are to actually have a future.

I personally do not think Manchester City would go for Messi this time around, they have attempted to sign him a couple of times in the past already, and they prolly would have loved to get him last season, but he chose PSG, i don't think City would need him anymore, they will be considering age, wages and form, which wouldn't favor them at the moment. Actually there is a huge chance of Messi and Ronaldo both leaving their current clubs, they do not seem so happy to be where they are at the moment, but the thing is, who is going to sign them.

I absolutely have to agree with you on that, Xavi deserves an awful lot of credit for Barcelona's resurgence of late, if you take a look at the situation and position barca were before signing Xavi, then you will understand just how much credit should go Xavi's way, one thing i like most about what he did is the signings he made, he was able to get the sort of players Barca needs at the moment and right now they are delivering results for the team.

Having said that, i have to say Barcelona are contenders for the Europa league this season, i know it is definitely not the sort of trophy a team of their level would want to win, but with how things have gone for Barcelona in the last one year or so, i think they will take it, and hope to compete for the CL and laliga next season.

What circumstances exactly, do you mean the war? Yes i understand what you are talking about as every Ukrainian at this point would prolly hold a little bit of recentment towards Russians, but let us be honest, there are quite a lot of Russians who do not support their country's invasion of Ukraine, so we can't really generalize the whole issue.

Having said that, i think the forum actually recognizes Ukraine as being independent, if it didn't would there be a Ukrainian local thread? The thing is, i do not think Theymos would just create a Ukrainian local board cause there is an ongoing altercation between Russians and Ukrainians in the Russian local section, i believe first of all there has to be enough quality activity in the existing Ukrainian thread, then with time the request for a local board can be listened to.

Imagine if this local board is created just cause of the present altercation, who is going to stop Russians from posting in the newly created board, or Ukrainians from still posting in the Russian local board, so it really would not solve anything. Mind you that i am not against a Ukrainian local board, all i am saying is that there has to be a good reason backing up this request.

I think Barcelona have a real chance to overtake Sevilla in the laliga standings, they are just five points behind Sevilla having played a game less, and honestly i think Xavi deserves an awful amount of credit for what he has done since his arrival, especially with how he has brought back the winning mentality into the team, another thing to note is the signings he has made, he made really good signings and that is why Barcelona's performances have improved lately and greatly. I think Barcelona will finish 2nd, and it will really be a good finish for them considering how far they were from the top of the table some weeks ago.

This El Classico is going to be Barca's first big test since they started playing excellently well again, if they win it, then it will increase the morale of the team and it is a big plus for them, they prolly would not win the league, but if they finish this season on a high, it will help them in their push/challenge for the title next season.

Well Old Trafford has not really been a fortress of late with quite a lot of teams coming there and doing damage to United, i am not saying that playing at home wouldn't favor United, it will, but the advantage would not be too much. Having said that, this game is really going to be decided by fine margins, the two teams are really in the same sort of form, so picking a winner would prove to be a difficult thing to do, i will actually be rooting for manchester United though, i would fancy them to be a more interesting team to watch in the QF of the CL, Ronaldo is another big factor in my decision, i believe quite a lot of people would also want to see him in the CL QF just like me.

Well you could say that, but could you refer me to instances prior to this war were Ukrainians and Russians had a serious problem communicating in the same local board, maybe then i can start believing your assumptions that there have always been chaos like you're suggesting.
Again stop making assumptions, can you likewise refer me to instances of me making the disaster worse, i am waiting. And what independence are you talking about exactly? There are certain criterias for the creation of a local board, and activity is one very important one, since you are requesting for a local board, give Theymost reasons why he should create one, without saying there is chaos in the Russian locale and thus there should be a local board. Look at what a request for a local board should look like: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5315340.0
Since all activity of Ukrainians flow to the Russian locale, then this is what to do: Ukrainians should post in their local thread and boost the activity of the thread, and then should request for a local board. I really do not understand the seriousness of your tone and why you're making a needless comparison with the Nigerian local thread, but need i remind you that the Ukrainian local thread has been around since 2013 (over 9 years ago), with 280 pages of posts, while the Nigerian local thread was created in 2019 (over 3 years ago) with over 128 pages of posts, it definitely isn't a low activity thread, but then again, what is the comparison for?

For Braga and Rangers yes i think so, Rangers are already 3 goals up against Red Star Belgrade, so that game should be as good as finished, the same can be said of Braga who lead Monaco 2-0, so it is really going to be difficult for Monaco to bet back into this game, though not impossible. But as for Barcelona, they head into the reverse fixture against Galatasaray with no advantage after a goaless draw in the first leg, Barca are in so much good form and i do not expect this second leg tie to be like the first, i expect goals, and i think Barca will get the most of the goals and go through.

There is already a ukrainian local 'thread': https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=236982.0 i know it is not a "fully-featured" board that you are asking for, but it is at least a place Ukrainians can discuss varieties of issues in their local language.

But having said that, don't you think if Theymos even does that (i mean accept your request), it could prolly send the wrong message, a message that we're fostering/fueling disunity, AFAIK, Ukrainians and Russians have communicated together in the Russian section for a long while without many problems till this war started, in my opinion i believe we should stand on the side of peace and hope this war ends asap and we all can settle our disputes and start discussing about Bitcoin as a community, like we used to.

This war will definitely end, but our actions during it as a community will decide if things will ever go back to normal on the forum between nationals of the two nations in conflict.

It is really turning out to be tighter that we ever imagined, to think that a couple of weeks ago, we all thought City was going to run away with the title, but now having played a game more we're just 4 points above Liverpool, the pressure is really intense and i could see it in some of City's play today, there was a little bit of panic and worry cause of what the game meant to them, they knew a slip up would be costly, and it eventually was. I actually thought City had a less difficult fixture list in the final ten games than Liverpool, but they have dropped two points in a game they ordinarily should take all three.

Well, Liverpool aren't going to have it easy against Arsenal on wednesday, they will want to make sure this counts, and all i can hope is that it turns into a little bit of pressure, and possibly a slip up , Arsenal are in good form, so obviously they wouldn't be mere pushovers, but if Liverpool are to win (on Wednesday), then go on to beat watford (on April 2nd), while City wins Burnley (on April 2nd), in their next game, then the encounter between City and Liverpool on the 10th of April could be the title decider.

Well i doubt that possibility, not only cause i am a Manchester City fan, but cause if you look at the remaining fixtures (10 games to go), i think Liverpool have tougher fixtures than City and that could aid City to the title, in the remaining games left to play, Liverpool have a rejuvenated and high-flying Arsenal to play, they have to play United, Spurs and City as well, i am not saying there is no possibility of them winning all of the four games, but no matter how you look at it, they are big games and one thing with big games is that it is difficult to predict as any team can come out on top, irrespective of current form. City have tough games only when they face Liverpool, and we can also include West Ham, do not get be wrong, i am not saying City can't drop points to the smaller teams, i am just pointing out big games, and the win probability for both CIty and Liverpool in the remaining ten fixtures, of which i think City's is higher.

I have been thinking about this for awhile now, i know the sanctions have hit the Russian economy hard and there will still be more sanctions to be imposed which will affect the Russian econony even more, but it still doesn't look like Putin is going to withdraw his troops from Russia, could it be as a result of ego? Or is he trying his possible best not to look 'weak' in the eyes of the entire world? So let us take a situation were Putin vehemently refuses to stop, and Ukraine refuses to surrender, that could mean that the war will go on for as long as possible ('fight to the end'), that will mean a really devastating implication, we are already certain there will be no external military intervention, thus to what end is all of this going to be really?

Of course, politics is a topic of discussion in this forum, but there is a dedicated section to discuss such and that is the politics and society board, then if you also want to discuss about the war in relation to how it affects the global and national economics, then there is also a board dedicated for such (economic) discussions, and that is the economics board.
I can understand the situation, and to be honest i was pretty sure it was going to get emotional and users would struggle to keep their emotions in check, it is indeed difficult times for Ukrainians and i would not blame them if they use every avenue to voice out their anger at this unnecesary war, i am pretty sure there are quite a lot of them here that are getting a first hand view of the war/bombardment, if i were such people, i honestly do not think i would as well be able to control my emotions. But in the end i really just hope for peace, cause taking sides would do nothing to help the situation, the sooner all of this ends, the better for us all as a community really.

Arteta deserves an awful lot of credit for this current Arsenal situation, it was a very difficult beginning of the season for Arsenal, and it looked like it was going to be another disappointing season for them, but little by little the gaffer started fixing things in the team, taking out players that were either underperforming or indisciplined, and that is exactly how a manager should act, you ought to be 'authoritative' in handling your players in order to get the best out of them. After Arteta did all that, the positive results started coming, and it has been that way till now, they are favorites for fourth position, and if you take a good look at the table and with the problems Chelsea are currently having off the field, i would not be surprised if Arsenal finishes in 3rd place above Chelsea, it is very possible.

Is Putin even predictable this days? Don't get me wrong, i am not saying Putin is going to do any of such in Ukraine, but it is much better to hope that things de-escalate pretty fast, so we do not ever have to get to stage or even contemplate such.

Having said that, the international world can't do more than they are already doing, which is attempting to force Russia to stop through imposing sanctions, i am sorry they can't do anything more than that, or let me rephrase if they do anything more than that, it could be counterproductive, and rather than de-escalate issues, it will further escalate it, take for example Ukraine's plea to the West to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine's airspace which was rejected for obvious reasons, you can't just basically tell a nation not to fly over a particular airspace, you will have to implemet it, and HOW? By shooting down any aircraft that flies into that restricted airspace, if the international world do that, we can brace up for another world war, and that is why they won't.

So to be honest, i do not see this conflict coming to an end soon, except if Ukraine surrenders, and watching the frequent messages from their president, there is absolutely no hint at that, what can the rest of the world do? Impose sanctions and threats to Russia and attempt to cripple their economy, thus far has it done much? Not really, the war is still going on, maybe cause Russia is also very important to the rest of the world and the sanctions is hurting both ways, in my opinion, this war will only end if the both parties involved in it (Russia and Ukraine) reach an agreement, a settlement or a resolution.

Honestly i think it was deleted because it was clearly a scam, there is already an address for people who want to donate to Ukraine in this hard time, so the OP basically wanted to use the current happenings in Ukraine to scam unsuspecting people, though it is a poorly orchestrated one if i am to be honest; i say it was deleted because it was an obvious scam cause i feel it still would have been deleted if the OP didn't include donations for the 'elimination of putin'. I really doubt anyone would have fallen for that, but using the current sufferings of the Ukrainian people to try to make money is really 'disgusting' to say the least.

I think Ukraine are suffering the most, having to deal with constant bombardment and destruction of their country which will take years to build again, and also having to deal with the same inflation and even far more worse of it than what the rest of the world is currently facing, i know post-war Ukraine is going to receive quite a lot of aids to assist them in the rebuilding process, but it still would not be easy and would take as long as possible.

Another thing we must even understand is that prior to this war, inflation was already a huge problem, caused as a result of measures taken to combat the pandemic, fast-forward to now, and this war is now making things a whole lot worse with all of this sanctions, honestly the west would likewise bear the brunt of this sanctions, but it is a sacrifice they are taking to force Putin to bring an end to all of this, the more this goes on, the longer the uncertainty lingers.