Posts by Anthony Hill5

Delta Airlines is reportedly slashing its aircraft fleet by a staggering 40%. The plan involves stripping these planes down for spare parts just to keep the remaining fleet operational.

https://theins.ru/news/249664

Gerald Chavez7 said:What a load of nonsense 🤦... it’s going to be an uphill battle for the pro-Putin crowd over the next few years. Europe is ramping up both renewables and nuclear energy, while Russian gas supplies just keep shrinking year after year.

Don't you worry about a thing. It’ll be shoved right into Xi Jinping's backside before you can even finish saying "cookies."

hollowdriver13 said:https://twitter.com/sentdefender/sta...Cpsef8gOopAAAA

It’s not just about sending weapons over to Ukraine; they're shipping all sorts of other supplies their way too.

They are even providing gas masks now. It is certainly a positive development that they have begun supplying those to them too.

edit: turns out this photo is actually from three or four years ago.

https://www.reddit.com/r/MilitaryPor...m_source=share

Chris Thomas94 said:Well, all that stuff we’ve been whispering about? It’s finally official now:

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has asserted that her nation has already reached its ceiling regarding the amount of weaponry it can supply to Ukraine. Yet, a high-ranking official within their Ministry of Defense countered this by claiming that Germany possesses ample stockpiles, suggesting that the true bottleneck is simply a lack of political willpower.

The Germans are quite frankly an absolute disgrace to the EU and a complete joke on the global stage. Are they not primarily responsible for the current state of affairs, while simultaneously providing the least amount of meaningful assistance?

Michael Ortiz68 said:I honestly cannot wrap my head around people like Aleksandar Novak, the Russian Deputy Prime Minister, claiming that Europe won't be able to function without Russian gas for at least five years. Is that really the extent of their strategic foresight—looking just five years ahead? Do these people even have children or grandchildren to think about?

Their own children and grandchildren are perfectly taken care of and will never want for anything, yet they couldn't care less about anyone else's offspring, which is evident when you look at the ages of the Russian soldiers they've sent straight into the meat grinder.

analogbear5 said:Let's see what kind of excuses they start making once there's zero money left for pensions or paying off all those bureaucrats.

Mass protests in Russia, 2011-2013

Russian budget, expenditures:

That is precisely why I made the point in my previous post:

Anthony Hill5 said:Putin secured the people's loyalty by providing stability and economic growth following the chaotic 1990s that followed the fall of the USSR. He effectively blamed the failures of that era on democracy itself, using it as a pretext to consolidate his authoritarian grip. At the time, Americans—or rather, the citizens there—were more than willing to trade certain liberties for a full stomach.

With these sanctions, he is effectively dragging the nation back to those dark 1990s; we shall see how much longer a failing economy can sustain itself simply by pointing fingers at the West. A single decision has essentially flushed twenty years of economic progress and regime stabilization down the drain. Was he perhaps under the delusion that the country was too massive and too deeply woven into the global economy to be crippled by such measures? It appears a series of catastrophic miscalculations and errors in judgment have been made.

There are far too many unknowns to make any definitive predictions at this stage, yet if we look at the precedents set by Iran and Venezuela, one can draw a chilling conclusion: should protests arise, they will undoubtedly be met with overwhelming bloodshed. Putin’s repressive apparatus is simply too vast, and the ruling elite has far too much at stake to ever permit a regime change. It is my firm belief that Russia must be isolated to the greatest extent possible, with every effort made to curb their ability to destabilize Europe and the rest of the global community.

analogbear5 said:I’ve gotta handle this one manually—this whole narrative about how Putin single-handedly fixed an economy that Yeltsin completely trashed.




Source: World Bank, via tradingeconomics.com

Is it any wonder? Of course he isn't the architect of this recovery; it is nothing more than the volatility of oil prices. Yet, does it not stand to reason that the average citizen—particularly those who are older or lack formal education—would naturally credit him for the growth?

Amanda Allen4 said:The truth is, Putin has the support of his people—and that is the fundamental difference between what happened when the USSR collapsed and the current state of Russian policy.

Every single opponent of the government in Russia is fleeing to neighboring countries! What remains? A monolithic core that stands firmly behind Putin.

Putin secured the people's loyalty by providing stability and economic growth following the chaotic 1990s that followed the fall of the USSR. He effectively blamed the failures of that era on democracy itself, using it as a pretext to consolidate his authoritarian grip. At the time, Americans—or rather, the citizens there—were more than willing to trade certain liberties for a full stomach.

With these sanctions, he is effectively dragging the nation back to those dark 1990s; we shall see how much longer a failing economy can sustain itself simply by pointing fingers at the West. A single decision has essentially flushed twenty years of economic progress and regime stabilization down the drain. Was he perhaps under the delusion that the country was too massive and too deeply woven into the global economy to be crippled by such measures? It appears a series of catastrophic miscalculations and errors in judgment have been made.

Paul Sanders5 said:Seriously, Angela Merkel, please don't go packing up the free world.

If Merkel were actually in charge, she would simply express her "deep concern" before suggesting that we should somehow decouple the crisis in Ukraine from our business interests.

Who could have possibly predicted that these sanctions wouldn't end up making Russia stronger and even wealthier? We Americans can only sit here and hope the rest of the world eventually imposes sanctions on us too, because clearly, without sanctions, there is simply no progress to be made.

Demand for domestic software in Russia has surged sixfold.

Residents of Skolkovo, such as Rosa and Galaxy, are also delivering incredibly promising solutions. For Russian projects, these sanctions have transformed into nothing more than a golden opportunity to secure even more profitable market positions.

https://twitter.com/sk_en/status/150...DXq7LMnU4WHH1A

Morgan Morales4 said:In my view, the only certain result of these sanctions against Putin is the weakening of the EU—specifically Germany—and the worst part is that people don't seem to grasp what that actually looks like on the ground. Everyone forgets about the practical stuff: losing hot water in hospitals, or heating issues in ICUs, pediatric wards, daycare centers, and schools... I could go on. Now, the German Foreign Minister is talking about having to find housing for 8 million refugees across the EU. These economic sanctions show absolutely no sign of breaking Vladimir Putin or removing him politically, and there's no guarantee the world will be any better afterward, especially since two-thirds of the globe didn't join in on sanctioning Russia.

Precisely, because we are supposed to care about sanctions that weren't even implemented by Bangladesh, Nigeria, Sudan, North Korea, Myanmar, or God knows what other non-global economic powers.

When looking at the truly significant nations, only China and India have refrained from imposing sanctions, and Russia isn't overly dependent on their technology anyway; furthermore, China certainly won't risk its massive trade relationship with the West or face secondary sanctions just to protect a mere 2% of their trade that goes to Russia.

Nathan Evans78 said:They completely moved the goalposts, didn't they? One minute it’s all "they’ll be bankrupt by tomorrow"—after paying out their coupons with crisp Benjamin Franklins—and now we’ve pivoted to "they’ll definitely be hungry by 2025."

Some good news for us sovereignty enthusiasts: those gas oligarchies from Qatar, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Ukraine, and the rest can go jump in a lake.

Gas has started flowing from a new ExxonMobil well on the Ika b platform in the Northern Adriatic, near the coast, according to HRT. Another well on the Marica platform is set to go live in early April, with a third planned in a few years once the new Irena 2. platform is built. This is actually great news, considering gas production in the Northern Adriatic has been on the decline for years.

Over in El Paso-Srijem County, the Canadian firm Vermilion has struck two gas fields—Cerić and Berak—so they'll be contributing fresh supplies next year too. On top of that, ExxonMobil has made the Severovac discovery following the latest round of exploration block allocations, according to Marijan Krpan, the head of the Hydrocarbon Agency.

Well, it seems the milk and honey is flowing straight from Russia. Look at how electronics retailers have stopped offering installment plans. One has to wonder why? It is surely due to this abundance of milk and honey.

The transport companies are equally overjoyed.

Transport firms in Saratov have reached out to the regional governor, Valerij Radajevo, the head of Saratov, Mikhail Isayev, and the regional transport minister, Alexey Petayev, requesting assistance to combat the crushing weight of sanctions. According to a letter obtained by The Wall Street Journal, the cost of spare parts and essential consumables required for basic vehicle operation has recently surged "dramatically and without explanation."

These carriers are now demanding fare hikes, increased user fees, access to subsidized loans, the abolition of penalties for failing to meet safety requirements, and an exemption from fines regarding the lack of tachographs in buses—since the price of those units has skyrocketed by an average of 135%, jumping from 28,000 to 66,000 rubles. Furthermore, they are pleading for an extension of the moratorium on mandatory bus inspections until the end of the year.

https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/5269943

Milk and honey.

Is anyone finally going to address my formal appeal? I reached out to two out of the three moderators overseeing this specific PDF through the Democratic Party channels, and yet not a single one of them seems to have any clue why I was issued a partial penalty; they simply claim they have no authority over the decision. One of the supermods—or perhaps an administrator, if we’re talking about those highlighted in red—informed me that partial penalties are only handed out when there is a unanimous consensus among all moderators. So, I find myself quite perplexed: how on earth was a partial penalty levied against me if two-thirds of the moderation team are completely oblivious to the specifics of my case?

placidtinker39 said:Honestly, there’s zero need to overshare or offer lengthy explanations. Just stick to the diplomatic script: "We are evaluating aid options," and leave it at that.
Especially when you're dealing with a loose cannon on the other side who happens to have a suitcase full of nuclear warheads at his disposal...

Publicly committing to aid serves to bolster the morale of the Ukrainian people and their defenders; besides, it is already glaringly obvious to the psychotic maniac in the White House that the weaponry is arriving, as they can feel its impact directly on the battlefield.

hollowdriver13 As stated by:
https://twitter.com/biannagolodryga/...27615802654726

Is it not entirely predictable that the Moscow Stock Exchange is allegedly slated to reopen this coming Monday? One has to wonder if anyone truly believes such sudden shifts in market stability can occur without significant prior maneuvering. 🍿

While I harbor significant doubts that they will actually follow through with opening it, I find myself eagerly anticipating the moment when Uncle Vanja manages to leapfrog right over McDonald's in total market value.

wearytrucker22 said:Just wait. These guys are going to show you how Russia actually thrives under sanctions, while IKEA, Germany, and the rest of the European Union just go broke. Both Russia and the USA are winning here.

Jovan Mrgodic
10 Hours ago
We’ll find a way to survive regardless. Just imagine what's happening to those Swedes...

The shows on Fox News are even more absurd. They are nothing short of pure comedy, especially when you have Smith on screen.

Hannah Williams8 said:I honestly think we have plenty of basic food supplies, and if they actually manage to conquer Ukraine, we'll probably have even more.
This war didn't just pop up overnight; it’s been in the works for years.
I've been saying it from the start: this is really a war against Western civilization.

Their grand design was to seize Ukraine within a mere forty-eight hours without significant resistance, effectively completing their regime change before the Western powers could even convene a meeting, let alone coordinate any meaningful sanctions.

It has become painfully obvious to everyone—including the fools residing within The Kremlin—that they have catastrophically miscalculated. Is it any wonder? That is precisely how things conclude when one chooses to live insulated within the delusional bubble of a dictatorship.

wiredseal7 said:Just your classic American way of blowing smoke.
China isn't actually meddling—it's just that certain people keep cooking up these fake accusations, hoping to drive a wedge between China and the EU.

🤣

We were enjoying perfectly fine relations before, so naturally, we need Americans to step in and ruin them for us, don't we?

According to certain reports, Lavrov departed by plane this morning bound for China, yet after 1740 miles hours of flight, the aircraft abruptly turned around and headed back to Moscow.

Meanwhile, the Chinese have been busy praising the courageous resistance shown by Ukrainians, even going so far as to promise financial aid.

https://polishnews.co.uk/sergey-lavr...he-daily-bild/

https://www.newsweek.com/china-prais...upport-1688608

Michelle Nelson4 said:Following Putin's latest speech, it looks like Russia's primary export is about to become its most educated workforce. Everyone seems to be making a break for it—from I.T. Evac specialists to the principal dancers at the Metropolitan Opera. Honestly, this brain drain is going to hit just as hard as any sanctions, if not harder, because they're essentially causing this collapse on themselves. 2 dem/kg

Human capital has been one of their main export products for quite some time now. I have argued on this topic regarding Russia before: that eventually, the country will be left with nothing but coal miners and laborers at gas and oil wells—and even those resources will dry up, given that they lack the Western technology required to exploit new fields.

Unknown, the RAS presidium’s chief scientific secretary, estimated that emigration among Russian researchers increased from 14,000 in 2012 to almost 70,000 last year. He contrasted the figures with China, the United States and other countries bolstering their ranks with tens of thousands of New researchers over The same period.

He noted that in 1990 Russia had 992,000 researchers, the world’s highest number. By 2019, that figure had dwindled by two-thirds to 348,000 researchers.

https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2021/...ce-2012-a73682