Posts by Melissa Rivera5

urbanotter said:Even though this isn't strictly on topic, I thought I should mention it

At 5:05 PM today, you can catch one of fifteen interviews where Oscar winner Oliver Stone sat down with Putin. It’s quite striking because they didn't shy away from any subject; there really wasn't anything off-limits during their conversation.

It'll be airing on Discovery Channel at 5:05 PM.

I caught the whole thing. Putin kept saying Russia doesn't stand a chance against NATO, but honestly, it was pretty obvious they were planning to hit Ukraine no matter what happens.

brightheron64 said:But why would they bother? Do you truly believe anyone in this administration is actually thinking strategically or looking at the long term...

Just take a look at the prices for flour, bread, and pastries lately... meanwhile, farmers are being offered buyback prices as low as 2-$0.70 cents per pound (compared to the much higher rates on the European Union market).
Whoever owns the silos will just store their stock safely and wait out the harvest season, and once those prices skyrocket again... well, they'll be laughing all the way to the bank.

It’s also worth noting who actually controls the storage infrastructure (for instance, companies like PPK Valpovo—where 45,000 tons are held by Stipa Matić, the owner of M-san and King ITC).

I guess we technically have strategic reserves, but the real question is what’s actually inside them. A few years back, it came out that everything had been looted and ended up funneled into Agrokor. I really hope the idiots don't pull the same stunt this time, because if things get desperate, people are gonna be calling for heads to roll.

Kate Lewis3 said:Funny thing is, the same country trying so hard to keep NATO away from its borders is simultaneously obsessed with swallowing up neighbors that sit right on the edge of NATO territory.

I'm sure those pro-Kremlin hacks have some perfectly "rational" explanation for that massive contradiction.

That’s probably why they were all obsessed with getting NATO back to where things stood before '97 or whatever year it was.😵😵

Nancy Gomez26 said:One must jump before they can shout "eureka." They prepared extensively, yet they chose the wrong stage. Had they focused slightly more on their tires and slightly less on the fine print in their passports—perhaps the future would look different. It is the same old story. They stumble over the most basic, fundamental details every single time.

I guess I'd start printing new passports that say Moscow, Ukraine

dustyowl29 said:Sure, but let’s be real—Russia is acting like a total predator here. It’s just the same old story where everything is crashing down again over some other country and its people. Honestly, it makes zero sense...

So basically, Alexander Lukashenko is a collaborator. Once he's out of the picture, they'll just pull Belarus under Western influence, and then Russia will be totally surrounded by "hostile" nations. If they weren't such psychopaths, maybe they could have actually built some decent neighborly relations, but nah. It’s pretty obvious they just want to be the big bully, so if they want to act like a superpower, I guess they can deal with being cornered by one.

dustyowl29 said:Lukashenko is probably just going to play the victim and claim those missiles were fired by the Russian military.
Which—let's be honest—is technically true. Neither Belarus nor Ukraine has the kind of cash required to fund their own nuclear programs anyway.

I don't really see the issue, just another special operation to denazify Belarus.

feralhawk45 said:Imagine if Lukashenko fires a nuclear missile at Ukraine or Poland on Putin's orders, then Putin just shrugs and disavows him, cleans house, and installs some other puppet. Would that kind of tactic even work for them?

I mean, imagine if NATO invaded Belarus and Russia just sent a message saying "don't get involved" or something.

urbanotter said:The real challenge here is just identifying who the true egoists and the villains actually are in this whole scenario.

Once that's settled, everything else should fall perfectly into place.

Some people argue that we need to wait a hundred years to see the actual impact of sanctions, while others might take a century just to figure out who the bad guys are because they've been blinded by some shiny trinkets. They convince themselves they are being "pragmatic" and more sophisticated than those who refuse to trade away their principles for mere glitter.

So, whether it takes a seventh, eighth, or ninth round of sanctions, once we look back a hundred years from now to see how effective they were, we'll finally know who was actually trading wisely.

But, if I'm being honest, I have a gut feeling we won't have to wait a hundred years; we'll probably see the real impact of these sanctions within a few months.

And I guess in your eyes, everyone and everything is evil except for Putin, who started the whole invasion?😵 😵

Nancy Gomez26 said:Now that there’s fresh beets and kale available... will they still be allowed to cook up some borscht at home without trouble? Will there be an issue if someone throws a cut of beef into the pot? Just asking for a friend.

Beef, pork, whatever you want, man 🙂

Nancy Gomez26 said:In reality, at the start of the American Civil War, we possessed a much lower level of recognized state sovereignty than what Ukraine enjoys today. In fact, we had less than Ukraine did then, or even back during the days of the USSR. The way we managed to fight for our independence despite all the hardships—starting from a significantly weaker position—is precisely how Ukraine must struggle for its own now.

Well, they are fighting. It's not like NATO sent over a single soldier to step in and stop WW3, but they are definitely helping out with equipment. I don't really see the issue with providing support. Even if it's just moral support from everyday people... and well, I won't get into the weeds about how that gear money comes straight from taxpayers.

Not everything that hurts is actually an illness🙂

Joshua Myers432 said:It might actually make sense if these sanctions weren't essentially us shooting ourselves in the foot. And we're doing it quite efficiently, too.

Besides, Ukraine doesn't need help projected a century into the future; they need it right now. Because by year 100, we'll just be celebrating the 99th anniversary of Russian occupation.

It’s just your classic move from the bureaucrats in D.C.—lazy, entitled types who pretend to be busy while having no clue what they're actually doing. Honestly, the only thing more pathetic than those incompetent officials is the army of internet trolls and armchair experts defending their every blunder.

Nah, we should probably just cheer for Russia all the way to Lisbon and hope Zelensky just surrenders so they can finish off the Ukrainian people even faster. Maybe he could even cut the ribbon at the opening of a concentration camp while he's at it. Right?

Arthur Watson4 said:https://twitter.com/EmbassyofRussia/...59938949275651

These Russians are seriously cringey when it comes to their PR.

Right? Just awful.

Nancy Gomez26 said:I’m certain there are Russians who hold that view, but there are also Ukrainians who insist Crimea belongs to Ukraine.
To me, the situation in Crimea is a matter of fundamental principle. If it remains under the control of the Russian Federation, it sets a dangerous precedent—it serves as a reward for launching an invasion and acts as a green light for any other nation looking to seize territory. It might even be seen as an invitation for the Russian Federation to resume its military campaigns in Ukraine down the road. Right now, they need to withdraw completely from Ukraine. That means retreating from everything they previously occupied.

It would be pretty wild if China just decided to grab pieces of Russia the same way, and then Japan does it, and a few other countries follow suit. Imagine a scene where both China and the West just totally isolate them. 🙂Man, Russia would basically turn into a new North Korea.

Nancy Gomez26 said:That’s exactly why they need to hit them—precisely because of those threats.
From my perspective, Ukrainians face a fundamentally different dilemma here. See, Crimea is Ukraine. It isn't easy for them to decide to demolish infrastructure within their own borders—essentially destroying their own property—even if that property sits on occupied land. The Russians hold the psychological advantage here; they know they are occupiers, and they feel no hesitation about tearing through Ukraine. But necessity dictates action. It isn't a hard choice, particularly when you understand the nature of the occupier. You know that at the end of the day, they will likely just destroy everything in their path before they ever consider showing "goodwill."

Man, tell me about it. I met some Russians back before 2014 around Crimea, and to them, it was never Ukraine—it was always Russia.

swiftjackal11 said:What if the West learns its lesson from what happened with Russia and starts pulling its industry out of China?

I mean, those Chinese people would probably just offer them way better deals and ditch the Russians immediately to show they're playing ball. Once that happens, the Russians would be stuck working under Chinese sanctions, leaving India as basically their only lifeline 🙂 but even then...

Henry Sullivan4 said:did you see what Elvisap👍said, 🤔so
what's the verdict?

Popović sends his regards and says you'll never be a true communist 👎

hollowdriver13 said:It’s honestly tough to tie such a massive pile of blatant lies together into one coherent story when they're being dumped on us so fast. Even the Russian propagandists are having a hard time keeping up lately—they're totally tripping over themselves. 🕺😬

Not just hard, it’s actually impossible. Like, Lavrov was dead serious when he claimed they hadn't even attacked Ukraine, so why would they attack anyone else? I mean, these FBI trolls here are clearly on the payroll, but the people who actually swallow this crap... maybe they need some psychiatric help. 🙂

George Robinson43 said:If they can't buy Western vehicles because they're shutting down their own plants, what choice is left but to settle for Chinese scrap metal that falls apart after three years? Or perhaps more low-quality imports from India?
Think of the auto industry as merely the opening act. Soon, entire manufacturing sectors will shutter, replaced entirely by imports from China—provided anyone actually wants to buy them, since factory closures always lead straight to unemployment.

And it’s not just that. When you kill off the auto industry, you're basically killing all the local suppliers and small businesses that rely on them. It's going to leave so many families struggling just so Putin can go ahead and annex Ukraine.

urbanotter said:The reality is that about half the components in those "sophisticated" Western cars are manufactured in China, and the relationship between Russia and China is actually improving.
People are already noticing that more and more Chinese vehicles are appearing on American highways, and honestly, they aren't any worse than the Western brands. Their only real "downside" is that they're cheaper.

I mean, that’s probably just because you've clearly never seen one of those Chinese cars sitting at an American mechanic shop. It’s not "just" a flaw that they’re cheap; the real issue is that they’re basically junk heaps compared to anything else—like, a Dacia would look like a spaceship next to them. The welding is terrible, they rust way faster than an old Chevy, and I bet the safety ratings for the driver and passengers are pretty sketchy.