Meanwhile in Ukraine... Revolution.

[bryant.coleman]

https://i.imgur.com/CTthxjc.jpg (what each country leads the world in)

Surprised to hear that alcohol consumption in Moldovia is higher than that in Russia. Such a sad state of affairs.

Moldovia (along with Ukraine) was the breadbasket of the USSR. The best wines were produced there. Ethnic Moldvin birth rate was almost 3 times that of ethnic Russians (still lower than Soviet Germans).

The country was completely destroyed due to the USSR disintegration. 20-30% of the women sold as slaves to the Turks and Albanians. Men killing themselves with alcohol and drugs. First ex-USSR republic to go extinct?

[myself]

Well , they got that map spot on.
You see that red thingy in eastern europe labelled Gypsies ?
Those are far more dangerous than nuclear warheads.

so far they only sell paper tissues at 50 cents a pack on european metros and trains not a big problem 

[Balthazar]

Justice-tan  

[Nemo1024]

Meanwhile the bandits, occupying the government offices in Kiev, proclaimed formation of "National Guardia" and announced that cars and other equipment will be confiscated from civilians and small businesses to equip this "army".

http://itar-tass.com/mezhdunarodnaya-panorama/1056452?utm_medium=rss20

Russia Today site, rt.com seems to be under DDOS. Right, then it's only me. It just stands and spins there for the longest while without ever loading. Worked fine earlier today.
EDIT: It seems corporate network firewall security policies (of a large US-based transnat) started blocking rt.com

Freedom of speech, oh yeah:
.@GoogleRussia confirms RT's YouTube channel suspended 'due to technical mistake'. They apologize to channel, users. http://t.co/4FOe6p887k

[fsb4000]

(Russia Today news channel, rt.com seems to be under DDOS, or is it only me?)

http://rt.com/ is working for me

[bryant.coleman]

Meanwhile the bandits, occupying the government offices in Kiev, proclaimed formation of "National Guardia" and announced that cars and other equipment will be confiscated from civilians and small businesses to equip this "army".

Cars against MBTs?

[Balthazar]

Meanwhile the bandits, occupying the government offices in Kiev, proclaimed formation of "National Guardia" and announced that cars and other equipment will be confiscated from civilians and small businesses to equip this "army".

Whaat?! 

[Balthazar]

http://news.kremlin.ru/news/20604

You can see this in English here http://rt.com/news/putin-include-crimea-sevastopol-russia-578/

Reading comments from the beginning...

BillK 18.03.2014 13:33
Now for referendums in the east and south. That will isolate the nazis and fascists and real Ukrainians can wipe them out once and for all.

By then west Ukraine might choose to have their own referendum.

+1

[Wilikon]

Why, across the world, are America’s hands so tied?

A large part of the answer is our leader’s terrible timing. In virtually every foreign-affairs crisis we have faced these past five years, there was a point when America had good choices and good options. There was a juncture when America had the potential to influence events. But we failed to act at the propitious point; that moment having passed, we were left without acceptable options. In foreign affairs as in life, there is, as Shakespeare had it, “a tide in the affairs of men which, taken at the flood leads on to fortune. Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries.”

When protests in Ukraine grew and violence ensued, it was surely evident to people in the intelligence community—and to the White House—that President Putin might try to take advantage of the situation to capture Crimea, or more. That was the time to talk with our global allies about punishments and sanctions, to secure their solidarity, and to communicate these to the Russian president. These steps, plus assurances that we would not exclude Russia from its base in Sevastopol or threaten its influence in Kiev, might have dissuaded him from invasion. …

Able leaders anticipate events, prepare for them, and act in time to shape them. My career in business and politics has exposed me to scores of people in leadership positions, only a few of whom actually have these qualities. Some simply cannot envision the future and are thus unpleasantly surprised when it arrives. Some simply hope for the best. Others succumb to analysis paralysis, weighing trends and forecasts and choices beyond the time of opportunity.

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304747404579445170801186310?mod=hp_opinion

[RobFordWotWot]

Crimea has already officially introduced the ruble as a second currency along with the Ukrainian hryvna. On Monday the republic also created the Bank of Crimea and announced that all budget incomes, which up until now were being transferred to Kiev, will now be credited to the republic's accounts. The dual currency will be in place for about six months.

I read that as rubble at first, good laugh.

[Balthazar]

 

[Nemo1024]

Why, across the world, are America’s hands so tied? Why does America have its hands across the world?

A large part of the answer is our leader’s terrible timing. In virtually every foreign-affairs crisis we have faced meddled with these past five years, there was a point when America had good choices and good options, when it could have stayed out of conflicts, but chose to get involved. There was a juncture when America had the potential to influence events, as it always does. But we failed to act at the propitious point; that moment having passed, we were left without acceptable options. In foreign affairs as in life, there is, as Shakespeare had it, “a tide in the affairs of men which, taken at the flood leads on to fortune. Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries.”

When protests in Ukraine grew and no planned violence ensued, it was surely evident to people in the intelligence community—and to the White House—that it was needed to ensure that violence would ensue so as to install Americas marionette government, but they failed to realise that this time it was different, that President Putin might try to take advantage of the situation to capture support Crimea's reunification with Russia, or more - for example also support reunification of the territories, given to Ukraine by Lenin. That was the time to talk with our global allies whom we haven't eavesdropped on about punishments and sanctions because we are so good at pre-emptive punishment (also known as aggression) than nothing can ever possibly go wrong, to secure their solidarity because NSA have enough dirt on all European country tops to keep them in-line, and to communicate these to the Russian president, and if that got ignored, that we'd bomb the living daylights out of Russia, just as we did with Yugoslavia. These steps, plus assurances that we would not exclude Russia from its historical base in Sevastopol or threaten its influence in Kiev Russia, might have dissuaded him from invasion verbally supporting the people of Crimea from reuniting with their historic homeland. …

Fixed it for him.

Oh, and there is an old Russian folk wisdom:

One does not wave about with fists after a fight.

[dotcom]

Why, across the world, are America’s hands so tied?

They aren't, we've just had a series of exceptionally inept and weak leaders. With the way people approach politics here, it's only going to get worse.

[Balthazar]

http://news.kremlin.ru/news/20604

You can see this in English here http://rt.com/news/putin-include-crimea-sevastopol-russia-578/

Reading comments from the beginning...

BillK 18.03.2014 13:33
Now for referendums in the east and south. That will isolate the nazis and fascists and real Ukrainians can wipe them out once and for all.

By then west Ukraine might choose to have their own referendum.

+1

The video has been published:

http://img.rt.com/files/news/23/c9/20/00/1431697_piskunov_1800_480p.mp4?event=download

[rmines]

Ukraine officer 'killed in attack on Crimea base'

Ukraine's military says an officer has been killed in an attack on a base in Crimea, the first such death since pro-Russia forces took control in February.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26637296

This doesn't look good..I believe this could be seen as an act of war towards Ukraine?

[Nemo1024]

Ukraine officer 'killed in attack on Crimea base'

Ukraine's military says an officer has been killed in an attack on a base in Crimea, the first such death since pro-Russia forces took control in February.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26637296

This doesn't look good..I believe this could be seen as an act of war towards Ukraine?

It doesn't. There'll be a series of provocations now to escalate it and give NATO an excuse to start bombing Crimea.

One member of Crimean self defence is shot dead and another wounded from a sniper rifle fire on Kubanskaja street in Simferopol.
http://news.rambler.ru/24136153/

Crimean Ministry of Internal Affairs: "Self defence forces got a report about people with weapons in a partially abandoned building. During the inspection they were fired upon, killing one and wounding another member of the self defence unit. The same armed people opened fire against a nearby Ukrainian military base, wounding one soldier there. Shooting against both sides was conducted from the same spot."

In the meantime in Moscow (video report):
http://www.vesti.ru/doc.html?id=1388887&cid=7

Ron Paul, one of the last sane American politicians (sadly, a former one) on the situation in Crimea:
http://rt.com/usa/ron-paul-crimea-secedes-610/

“What’s the big deal?”

“Opponents of the Crimea vote like to point to the illegality of the referendum,” Paul wrote. “But self-determination is a centerpiece of international law.”

"Article I of the United Nations Charter points out clearly that the purpose of the UN is to ‘develop friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples,’” he said. “Why does the US care which flag will be hoisted on a small piece of land thousands of miles away?”

“Where were these people when an election held in an Iraq occupied by US troops was called a ‘triumph of democracy’?”

....

But according to Paul, the US government has more or less ignored recent efforts waged by the people of Scotland, Catalonia and Venice to secede, and instead had opted only to focus on the Crimean conflict which, as a result, he says, “has led NATO closer to conflict with Russia than since the height of the Cold War."

“Perhaps the US officials who supported the unconstitutional overthrow of Ukraine's government should refocus their energies on learning our own Constitution, which does not allow the US government to overthrow governments overseas or send a billion dollars to bail out Ukraine and its international creditors,” the former congressman wrote.

[Balthazar]

Yep, the same as it was on maidan, provocators are shooting the both sides. I wounder to see these fags getting a portion of molotov cocktail.

[Nemo1024]

And now, under this pretext, the Ukrainian forces in Crimea got green light for using weapons (if they so desire).

It's time to ask the Ukrainian forces, (at least those 100 people who want to defend Fascism) to leave Crimea.

The rest should unite with the self-defence forces in search of that damned sniper, who claimed lives on both sides.

NEWSFLASH: Lavrov conducted a telephone conversation with his counterpart Kerry following the initiative from the US:
http://www.interfax.ru/world/365593
- "Sanctions by US/EU are not acceptable and will not remain without a symmetrical response"
- Situation in Ukraine was discussed, and Lavrov suggested reverting to the agreement of the 21st of February, and that Russia is open to conducting dialogues for stabilising the situation in Ukraine
- Lavrov especially pointed out that provocations from Ultra-Right against Russians and Russian-speaking people in Southern and South-Eastern Ukraine should stop
- Lavrov stated further with regard to Crimean voting that it was conducted democratically, and in accordance with international law as prescribed in to the 1st paragraph of UN norms. That the choice was made by the people of Crimea and that Russia is accepting and respecting said choice.


Also, about the provocatory shooting:
http://rt.com/news/crimea-shooting-military-center-646/

[Rassah]

This map doesn't make much sense, considering Ukraine was founded starting with Kyiv, as Kyevan Rus, in 600AD, something like 200 years before Russia even existed. It was a pretty powerful country, back when Russia was just a backwater farm and woods thing. If you want to talk history, start from there, not from much later when Ukraine was invaded, constantly harassed, and broken up by mongols, Russia, and Poland.

[bryant.coleman]

This map doesn't make much sense, considering Ukraine was founded starting with Kyiv, as Kyevan Rus, in 600AD

The term "Ukraine" or "Ukrainian" didn't existed in AD 600. The Ukrainian language evolved out of old Russian somewhere between AD 1300 and AD 1700.