Posts by rowdyraven112

jadetinker85 said:So, did that neighbor you were walking the dog with finally sober up regarding the war in Ukraine?

Nobody’s sobered up about the war in Ukraine. Not the pro-Ukraine side, not the pro-Russia side. Everyone's just living by "Ignorance is Blessing." It’s going to come back to haunt them one day. ☕

gentlestag15 said:He was released along with about four or five commanders from Mariupol
but there was a catch—they have to stay in Turkey until the war is over.
plus there were another 200 people from Azovstal who were swapped out in Ukraine.

Which means negotiations are actually happening. Let's stop obsessing over whether the leaders in Turkey and Saudi Arabia are meddling as mediators. They’re just there as window dressing. The real heavy lifting? That was done by ambassadors from Britain, the US, and Russia. I bet the Turkish and Saudi guys were nothing more than waiters circling the room.

Kate Lewis3 said:Look, the European Union is just this bloated, slow-moving bureaucratic mess that takes forever to react to anything.

And now we've got this sudden "surge" of Russians arriving, and honestly, nobody knows what their real intentions are. It's a massive security risk—kind of like what happened over in Albania.

Germany already pulled the highway cameras online in the east—they aren't even accessible on the web anymore—basically so people wouldn't see how much traffic is heading toward Poland. And now we're supposed to just let some Russian guy wander in with a smartphone? Great idea.

If you want a real solution, you'd have to set up internment camps for every Russian trying to defect. But that requires massive logistics and extra spending, which is a tough pill to swallow during a recession.

Plus, for certain countries, that kind of thing carries some pretty dark historical baggage.

So, the easiest fix? If you can't make it into the European Union, go to Georgia or Kazakhstan instead.

Show some seriousness when suggesting that a country responsible for the Holocaust should start bringing back camp-style detention. Reporting to a local police station where you registered your residence would be a much more logical path.

A few days ago, Ursula von der Leyen claimed we aren't importing oil or gas from dictatorships anymore. Does that mean the US is just going to run out of fuel entirely? Since about 90% of the countries supplying our oil and gas are ruled by dictatorships, how does that math even work? ☕

Carl Lee27 said:The border with Georgia—it’s basically every man for himself out there right now.
https://twitter.com/Flash_news_ua/st...11107806638081

It’s the same story here. I’ve already mentioned seeing groups of draft-age Ukrainians driving around cities like Chicago in cars worth at least $30,000. The ones who can afford to run, run. The poor stay behind. ☕.

We used to have our own version of those Munich battalions, acting all proud over their service in the old wars. ☕

crimsoncyclist71 said:I don't know why this kind of trolling is allowed here.

What? Does the truth bother you as much as it bothers Putin? ☕

Robert Barrett6 said:How does that disprove it? Look at the data—Russia has one of the most skewed male-to-female population ratios in the world because of WWII.
In Russia, there are about 11 million more women than men.

They're facing massive demographic crises.

I'm also talking about Germany ☕

Carol Johnson21 said:To those who insist on grouping the "decaying West" in the same category as Russia, I honestly don't have much to say. What a complete lack of intellect.
The United States is such a corrupt mess that if its military ever actually decided to go on an unprovoked rampage, they’d probably bumble through it just as clumsily as the Russians did.
The European Union is a bizarre collection of states where you have members with wildly different corruption indices and varying degrees of civil liberties—yet, despite those internal contradictions, they still act like a glorified space shuttle for Russia.
Go ahead and ask the Russian oligarchs and those living in exile—or even our own 300,000 expats scattered across the globe—why they aren't all rushing back to Moscow just to scrape by. Why bother with the grind when you can have a villa on the Mediterranean? It’s a non-negotiable, isn't it?
Brain is officially offline.

Colonialism, maybe? If major European powers had actually paid fairly for what they took from their colonies, they wouldn't have such highly developed industries. In an environment where the strong exploit the weak, it's obvious that capital accumulates wherever it can multiply—specifically in manufacturing—which explains why the economies look so different.
It's like claiming climate change is caused by the last five years instead of the last hundred. ☕

But if you think it's totally fine for our people to migrate abroad to work minimum wage jobs—taking away roles from Germans who won't touch those low wages—while also finding it normal when Indians, Pakistanis, or Kyrgyz migrants come here to take those same minimum wage jobs away from our people who also won't work for peanuts, then that’s your problem.
Someone once said: if you can't pay a worker a decent wage, turn the key in the lock and goodbye. I remember them saying, "there are as many people like you at the unemployment office as you want"... now it's changed to "there are as many people like you in Pakistan and India as you want"... just wait until those guys start touching minors... ☕
But to you, it's all perfectly normal.

I never claimed Russia was a democracy. It's a totalitarian state. How is the US any different? Maybe you don't go to jail for speaking your mind or spreading the truth unless you pick a fight with a superpower like Assange, but economically, things were more or less the same for the middle class until the war started☕.

Who is responsible for the war in Ukraine? Putin, obviously. What your brain fails to process is the fact that this has been going on for eight years, not just a few months☕. And everyone ignored it until now, didn't they?

William Cooper11 said:Once this war is over, Russia is going to hit a demographic wall, and everything beyond the Urals is basically going to end up under Chinese control. Just you wait and see.

A world war would prove you wrong... Same goes for Vietnam, where millions of Vietnamese lives were lost.☕

Carol Johnson21 said:We all know you're a dedicated pacifist and a deeply concerned citizen. Don't you worry.
Here we go again, entering another round where we, the "unconcerned alarmists," have to explain the sheer misery and incompetence of Russia. And predictably, you'll be right there to remind us all just how terrified you are of their nuclear arsenal.

The reality is this: Russia reeks of systemic corruption, a fact that has already proven disastrous for their military capabilities. It’s perfectly logical to assume that an organization built on such rot—relying on outdated USSR stockpiles for mobilization and equipment—is headed for a total collapse.

Your posts serve as a refreshing wake-up call and a prompt for us to think.

Meanwhile, America and the EU are acting like everything is sunshine and rainbows. Do you guys actually use your brains when you post, or are you just copying homework from pro-Ukrainian news sites? ☕

William Anderson5 said:Most Ukrainians want to fight, or they simply don't have any other choice but to pick up a rifle. If you genuinely believe an equal number of Russians are eager to head into Ukraine just to die for Putin for no reason at all, then you're seriously mistaken...

I'm lucky enough to see plenty of them—young guys driving cars worth at least $30,000 around Los Angeles☕

Brenda Murphy3 said:Look, we were the ones being attacked and torn apart here. And those guys you're talking about? Even if you’re twisting their story out of context just to make a point, they were defending their own homes. We weren't out there recruiting them like those fascist Russian scum and Wagner mercenaries. If you can't see the difference between that and what's happening—and clearly, you can't—then I don't even know what to say to you. Honestly, what's the point? It doesn't matter what those pro-Kremlin agitators think. They're nothing but bottom-of-the-barrel trash and fascists, along with the Russian regimes that back them up.

So, you're looking to rehabilitate someone who stole a mother's, a grandmother's, or a sister's life savings? Someone who ruined a family, or a domestic abuser whose family is lucky he's finally behind bars? And you try to justify it by calling it patriotism. I’d tell you exactly what I think of that kind of "patriotism," but this forum isn't the place for it. The Ukrainians did the exact same thing.
Until you realize that war itself is an evil, there's no point discussing this conflict. If you're just watching it like a fanatic sports fan, any debate is useless. That's why I haven't been commenting much lately. ☕

darkrider55 said:So, if they actually have that many reservists on standby, why on earth are they pulling lifers out of prison?

As I recall, we even offered those CRIMOs a chance to hit the front lines in exchange for full rehabilitation.☕

Nancy Gomez26 said:I didn't sit through the entire speech because I was stuck watching those subtitles—which honestly drive me up the wall—but from what I gathered, there was some nonsense about preserving the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation. Let’s be clear: Russia isn't launching an attack, nor is its own sovereignty under threat. What we are seeing in Ukraine is nothing more than standard territorial expansionism disguised as defense. By his logic, any nation could invade its neighbors and claim they're simply "protecting their borders." It’s a completely moronic way to frame reality.

Was US territory ever threatened by Cuba? No. By Grenada? No. Yet they pulled the exact same moves Putin did in Ukraine. The US explanation: "Preserving US territorial integrity."

It’s funny how history repeats itself, especially when people favoring one side conveniently forget the facts. Was Afghanistan ever a threat to Russia? No. Was Vietnam a threat to the US? No. Let's round out the comparison. Who actually reacted? Nobody. Whenever the US and Russia get involved—both are garbage in my book—all the little guy can do is grab his gear and hit the road.

The bottom line is that Russia is severely weakened right now, both militarily and economically. But what's causing the panic is Zakharov claiming we're delusional if we think Russia can lose this. Whatever that means. The real danger is Western politicians completely ignoring that statement. The million-dollar question is who's going to be the first to get screwed... ☕
Reminds me of the Matrix and that quote: Ignorance is bliss!

dustyowl29 said:Diesel taxes are back.
It's more expensive than gas all over the US.
Been this way for months.

It’s pricier because those damn taxes kicked back in everywhere. Nobody's going to tell you that, though.
Oil is sitting at $85. Maybe less. Gas prices are dropping while diesel climbs. How do you explain that gap when, historically, prices ALWAYS follow what the barrel is doing? ☕

Save that bedtime story for the kids.

bluemason3 said:Maybe the US can manage to be self-sufficient in the modern age, or close enough to it. I doubt anyone else can.

That whole "self-sufficient" dream was exactly what the old America tried to pull off. We all saw how that disaster played out. ☕

Bryan Booth82 said:"Oil is leaking everywhere, creating a massive explosion risk and a serious fire hazard. If you just give us the turbine, we can have Nord Stream 1 back online by tomorrow." "But no, they aren't giving us a damn thing," says Putin .
What was it they said again? That those Western sanctions don't actually do anything.
They won't lift a finger for a global superpower.
LP

European companies used to maintain the Nord Stream equipment under contract, but now sanctions mean they're legally barred from fulfilling those obligations... exactly what the crowd shouting against Russia wants. But when the situation flips regarding oil and gas deliveries, suddenly everyone starts screaming about penalties for breach of contract... ☕

The upside? Oil is sitting around $85 right now. The downside for Americans? Diesel prices spiked because they brought back taxes to feed the political machine, not because of actual oil prices.☕

Yep, looks like some people finally see the issue with implementing price freezes, just like they did in Mexico and North Korea. ☕
It's like Plenković watched Deep Impact, where Morgan Freeman put his hands on the table and declared a freeze on everything.☕

hollowdriver13 said:Honestly, the way these sanctions were drafted this time around is actually pretty brilliant. They’ve basically left the door open to keep trading Russian oil, and sure, even the Kremlin can try to set whatever price they want—but there's a massive catch. Shipping companies and the ports handling the transfers can only secure those loads if the price stays within that specific ceiling set by the G7. It's a clever little workaround that keeps things moving while still hitting them where it counts.
Look, when you consider that the West holds an absolute monopoly—we're talking like 97% of the entire market for shipping and port cargo insurance—nobody is going to be able to move that oil if the price hits that ceiling. It basically means that if Russia decides they aren't playing ball, they’ve effectively managed to shut down their entire oil export stream, even to countries that were previously buying from them, like India.

Shipping companies get their cut, and the cargo is covered by insurance anyway. If a ship sinks, the cargo gets paid out based on market value, not whatever arbitrary price was slapped onto a contract or decided by some bureaucrat. Correct me if I'm wrong. I didn't realize I needed to buy extra insurance every time I sit in a car with someone. ☕

Joshua Myers432 said:And what else are they supposed to say to such an insult? 🤣 They actually think they can just dictate the market price of oil to someone else 🤦

Someone a few pages up mentioned a similar situation, arguing that Russia doesn't set gas prices—and that nobody, not even Mother Russia, has the right to hold anyone hostage like that. I couldn't agree more. ☕

brightheron64 said:That’s just how you see it, though. Have you ever actually dealt with a freezing gale when it's 32 degrees or even 23 degrees Fahrenheit? Or those moments when you have to move the vegetables from your balcony garden into the fridge just so they don't freeze solid?

Down in Split, everything was built with the mindset that thermal insulation, concrete, and high-quality siding were basically optional because, hey, we live in such a warm climate, right?

So, saying this today might come off as incredibly cynical, but...

BREAKING NEWS
Natural gas finally reaches Split
April 16, 2019

By the way:

Snow in Split on February 3, 2012.

Snow in Split on February 26, 2018.

Snow in Split, April 6, 2021.

I was there. Winter 2001. The wind was howling for two straight weeks. No amount of hot water bottles or old man's advice could touch that cold. And it was only 5 degrees out.

Kate Lewis3 said:Look, let’s get one thing straight: trying to source wood pellets is a completely different beast than dealing with natural gas. Gas supply? That’s usually locked down through long-term contracts that have been "sold" before anyone even realizes there's a problem. It's already handled. Pellets? That's a whole other mess.

Nobody’s actually sharing anything here; it’s all just raw market forces—buy this, sell that, move on. The real question is how much room individual member states even have to step in with their own rules when it comes to moving goods around within the European Union. My point is, the US Federal Government—especially this current lot with their bureaucrats in Brussels breathing down their necks—can't, and honestly wouldn't dare, slap any restrictions on pellet exports from America.

Even if they actually wanted to fix things, the whole system is so broken and riddled with corruption that nothing would change. It’d probably end up being just like that mess with the timber supplies where the US government granted a special exemption, only for everyone to find a massive loophole. You'd see some Italian companies buying up small-scale sawmills just to get their hands on the raw logs, then shipping everything straight back to their main headquarters. Once those logs enter a subsidiary plant, there isn't a single soul in charge actually checking what's being produced. No oversight, no accountability—just a giant shell game.

An open market? Try filling up your tank in Canada or attempting to cross the border with twenty liters of cooking oil. So much for that "we're part of the European Union and it's an open market" nonsense.☕
I bet it's the exact same deal with pellets in Canada. You can export, sure, but maybe only enough to fill a single bag.