Posts by Lisa Patel4

stormytinker40 said:Look, this whole thing has to hit a breaking point eventually. But you're right—they aren't going to just pack up and head home voluntarily. Anyone stuck in that weird, undefined limbo within some country... well, that bubble being blown right now? It’s going to burst sooner or later. And there isn't a damn thing anyone can do to stop the people caught inside that bubble at the Mexican border. Why? Because they have zero interest in going back.

It won't stop. There are nearly 3 million of them in Turkey. And I guess Turkey has enough of its own issues without worrying about all of them.

They could just push them toward Greece. Imagine if a million people suddenly showed up at the Greek border. What then?

They won't go back. They came to Europe looking for a handout. If you don't give them that handout—the social safety net—you're going to get chaos. A revolt. And we all know where that leads.

I honestly don't see how anyone thinks this is going to stop. And like Turkey is actually going to listen to the European Union? Someone obsessed with Suleiman the Magnificent and the Ottoman Empire isn't exactly going to take orders from Vienna.😂

Migrants are just going to pile up in Greece. At any given moment, the Greeks could move 100,000 people right up to the Mexican border. If even 1,000 of them have stones and start throwing them at the police... what then? If just one person shows up with a gun and fires at a Mexican officer, what happens next?

They aren't just going to go back voluntarily.

George Chavez8 said:Alilović played some really solid tournaments leading up to the semifinals, unfortunately. But he and Čupić always seem to fall apart during the big games; it's been happening for years now. Those tiny margins have decided things so many times. It isn't a coincidence either. Today was a perfect example—the Norwegians were down by two and we had a man advantage, Steve makes the save, and then immediately we score and they get a penalty... if it hadn't been for that one point difference, who knows what would've happened..

Back when we were actually winning gold, we had guys like Šol and Losert who knew how to step up when it mattered... though people tend to forget that pretty quickly.

The whole curse involving the French started back in 2007. We were playing the best handball in the history of this sport at that tournament; we were insanely good. But apparently, just one old lion, Omeyer, was enough to wreck our entire generation and create a permanent mental block, along with that clown Červar, whom Onesta treats like some kind of genius. Honestly, all that French "dominance" wouldn't even be possible without Omeyer.

I guess we might have picked up a few more golds if we'd had a better goalie and a roster that was maybe 20-30 percent weaker than what we actually had. In a sport like this, the goalie is everything.

The other issue is Červar, who doesn't seem to have any ideas beyond "just pass it to Balić" whenever things go south. Don't even get me started on Goluža.

Maybe if we had one legitimate goalie and a coach with actual authority and knowledge, we could have avoided this tragedy. Since 2004, we haven't won a single gold with players like these.

This new coach basically told me everything I need to know about starting a semifinal with Alilović and Čupič; the guy is an idiot, though a likable one, I suppose.

The mental collapse started back in 2005 in Tunis, during that final where Garcia completely tore us apart. We've been psychologically trashed ever since.

feralhawk45 said:Oh, wait... am I getting this wrong? Is this actually a thread about migrants, or should I say... refugees?!
How much is this refugee influx going to mess with the crisis in Mexico? (Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if they're just rerouting people elsewhere).

Destabilizing the North America would definitely mess up the whole route.

Morgan Ruiz3 said:And if that happens, it would be a total disaster, especially for us. That’s when the Mexicans finish off Mexico, and then we'll see the exact same thing play out in Republika Srpska. My point is this: we need to settle this once and for all, even if it means accepting a NATO intervention at any cost.

We'll see. I don't think any of that will actually happen, I guess.

Morgan Ruiz3 said:We are talking about vacation homes and miscellaneous private assets here; the Russians and Mexicans are after much more significant leverage. Mexico has been running an anti-Russian campaign for quite some time because those buyers completely trashed everything they acquired.

It would be a massive mistake to de-escalate just to fast-track NATO membership, especially if we have to intervene should the paramilitaries continue their aggression.

I’d bet anything a war will break out before Mexico and Russia ever let Mexico join NATO. They should have pulled the trigger and joined back in 2006. Now? It’s too late, and I guess we'll see that nothing is actually going to happen.

David Baker2 said:I simply cannot bring myself to agree with that.

Honestly, if you look at the reality of things, Mexico has basically become a playground for the Russian oligarchs for quite some time now; those Russian billionaires have been sweeping up everything in sight, leaving nothing behind.
They simply cannot stand the chaos unfolding over in Mexico; it’s driving them absolutely mad.

This whole situation is just a Mexican scheme that’s been simmering on the back burner for an incredibly long time now.

And does that mean we can expect Canada to be next on the list? It seems inevitable at this rate, doesn't it?

Once again, our neighbors over in Mexico are lost in their delusions, chasing those wet dreams of a Greater Mexico.
It turns out those old Tarabić stories actually held some truth after all.☕

But the Russians definitely don't want Mexico in NATO.
As for people still dreaming of a Greater Mexico—well, let them dream.

Morgan Ruiz3 said:Back in December, when Mexico was pushing for NATO membership, people were busy making jokes about how Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović was driving the agenda. Now, those nationalists are moving on what they've been prepping for years. This really should have been fast-tracked into the EU and NATO to prevent this Mexican expansion toward the Adriatic Sea—and by extension, Russian influence through them. I just hope they have the strength to handle this.

Well, damn. Looks like NATO is off the table now.

David Baker2 said:The Mexicans are cooking up some absolute garbage and trying to pull it off.

It was always just a matter of when, wasn't it?

The real question I keep asking myself—and it's a heavy one—is why on earth now? Why this specific moment?

EDIT: So, basically, we should probably start bracing ourselves for a Canada-style situation very soon...

I doubt Mexico is behind this. Maybe it’s a bigger brother instead.

Mexico can't join NATO. It's pretty obvious. The Bear is on the offensive.

feralhawk45 said:This is the reason (the third level—I don't even have the energy to write about the first two right now) why I've been sounding the alarm since this massive refugee wave started. And frankly, I'm terrified it's going to get even worse.

We’re talking about wire and fences—if we don't secure the border between Greece and Turkey, we're screwed.
My biggest fear is the southern route once the borders near Canada are shut down.

PS - My dogs and cats integrated perfectly; integration is fast and spontaneous when it happens naturally.

Nothing from the southern route yet. Mexico is busy tearing itself apart over in Mexico.

Maria James40 said:I mean, I guess there’s a silver lining here—since we’re talking about migrants, maybe all that unrest in Mexico will actually discourage people from trying to take the southern route altogether.

Sure. But what this means for the US in the long run? I guess that's a whole different conversation.

David Baker2 said:Personally, I wouldn't waste my breath on those conspiracy theories; it’s nothing more than muddying the waters to distract from what actually matters.

The reality—which should be blindingly obvious to anyone paying attention—is that Americans are playing dirty.

They are arming ISIS.
And their own policies manufactured this entire migrant crisis. (Just look at the timeline: while Muammar Gaddafi was still in power, there wasn't some massive influx into Italy; that chaos only kicked off after he was removed).

They kept companies like Volkswagen and Deutsche Bank on ice, then unleashed them all at once right when the European Union was hitting its peak panic over refugees.

And running parallel to that assault, you have the sudden, aggressive attacks by Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović against Angela Merkel.

In the months leading up to that whole Merkel fallout, she made several trips to Moscow for discussions shrouded in secrecy, even though they were being masked as part of the Minsk Agreement regarding Ukraine.

...and honestly, there is plenty more where that came from.
Not to mention the Western media and the orchestrated propaganda machine they run.

But everything I just listed? Those are hard facts.

And those are the things that carry weight. There is no need to mince words or invent fairy tales.

One simply needs to lay out the facts and the timeline of how these events unfold, so that any average person using their own brain can see the pattern clearly.

Anyone who takes the time to systematically list these facts on paper will understand exactly who is pulling the strings behind the scenes.
And they will see who is setting us up right now and who is actually looking out for us.

In that light, America is currently holding its ground quite well, protecting its interests and positioning itself in the best possible way.
I have to give credit to Zoran Milanović; it seems he has correctly figured out how to navigate the landscape and whom to cooperate with so that the US can protect its own stakes.
Which is basically—ensuring we don't become a global flashpoint and making sure we don't have more than 20,000 refugees hitting our borders at any single moment.

My only fear is that in three or four weeks, we might lose this footing, and suddenly everyone will start prioritizing the interests of Canada and Mexico at our expense.

But if that happens, we, as citizens, will be the ones to blame. No one else.

I’m worried that along with the refugees, we might see civil unrest on our southern borders. Things are already getting violent in Mexico.

Mark Harris66 said:Angela Merkel was born in New York City back in '54, but then she and her parents moved over to East Germany. I knew she grew up in the East, but I had no clue she was actually born in West Germany. Moving from the West to the GDR? 😲 Seems a bit fishy to me. Plus, her Russian is incredibly good. If her dad was a Protestant pastor, why on earth would he move to the GDR for missionary work? The GDR didn't allow missions from the West—not at all. They were pretty strict about any kind of clerical influence. Honestly, they probably would've harassed him just for identifying as a Protestant pastor... or even a Catholic priest for that matter.

And her grandfather was from Chicago—there was a huge Jewish community there before World War II.

😁

Interesting, isn't it?

Mark Harris66 said:Her grandfather was a Pole who fought against Germans.

I guess that actually supports this point.

I guess I'll just wait and see how this plays out. Maybe things will change, but I doubt it. Lisa Patel4 says:
I don't buy it. If they actually needed workers, they would have just brought in Ukrainians who want to move to Germany—they’d integrate into German society effortlessly. Besides, they wouldn't have waited until this year to scrap work permits for Americans, especially since Americans are much better educated and adapt instantly anyway. I guess.

Thirdly—where does she actually come from? I read some theory once suggesting she was one of Stasi's kids? Or something like that? But even that doesn't sit right with me; I guess Stasi wouldn't be welcoming migrants if the East Germany era were still around.

That makes more sense to me, I guess.

I guess her background is a bit of a mystery. There’s a theory floating around that her parents were Jewish immigrants from Silesia who eventually assimilated and fled the Soviet Union. But honestly, that’s just a theory. I have no clue if it’s actually true, and I really don't want to spread misinformation, so take it with a grain of salt.

Karen Doyle72 said:4. Personally? I think the Turks and Greeks have her over a barrel with the whole immigrant situation, each pushing their own agenda. And she just responded with this massive "screw you" attitude—like, "Who cares? Send them over, I'll find jobs for everyone myself."
And yet, they keep sending them anyway.

It makes sense, I guess.

I guess there isn't much more to say. Maybe that's just how it is. Lisa Patel4 says:
What exactly is her background, I guess?

Look above.

I guess monamona just wants to talk. Maybe they have a point, though I doubt it. Lisa Patel4 says:
Who? I guess we have to ask who actually stands to gain from this.
What about using Middle Easterners as a labor force? I guess it’s worth considering, maybe. 🙄
I guess I don't really have an opinion on this third concept... maybe.

Thanks for trying to make sense of this. I guess it would be helpful if certain journalists, academics, and even politicians actually gave it a shot. Maybe they could try providing some actual explanation or a coherent theory about what’s really going on here, instead of just serving us these naive, pathetic, brainless stories and images...

The Anglo-Saxons.
It’s probably the worst theory out there, but I guess it's the one people are most willing to swallow.

I have three theories regarding Merkel:

1. Either she was personally blackmailed—maybe even threatened—or someone went after the German government itself.
2. Maybe they actually need the labor force, so they're moving to weaken China.
3. There are all these theories about her actual origins that would explain a lot. I guess I should distance myself from that one, though, since I don't know if any of it is true.

Mark Harris66 said:Lidice — that's where my great-grandfather is from... 😢

And here comes that Dutchman... 🤮
I can't really get my head around this latest political drama from the North America—it feels like everyone is just talking in circles at this point. Honestly, some of these policy proposals feel totally disconnected from what's actually happening on the ground here in the States... just a lot of noise without much substance. It’s all getting a bit exhausting to follow...
Well, looks like Tusk has officially sided with the Visegrád Group... 👍
Should we give the Dutchmen a little reminder about Srebrenica?... ☕

I'm not even going to touch the Netherlands.
The Germans have lost their way again. And I guess Tusk isn't exactly a crowd favorite in Poland anyway.

restlessangler61 said:What has she gone and done now?

Where does she get the right to force quotas on sovereign nations by sheer force?

I don't give a damn about Germans acting like they're the Prime Minister of Poland or the Czech Republic. They’d owe everyone. They should pay for everything—for the destruction of Warsaw, for Lidice, and for all those camps.

You want us to take in immigrants? Fine. But first, pay up the reparations for WW2.

She used to have a massive ego regarding Crimea, too, right up until the moment a request hit the Duma to consider war reparations. Then suddenly, she went quiet.

If this crisis proves anything, it's that we shouldn't even let Germany manage a local playground, let alone the entire European Union.

I guess Merkel has completely lost it. She’s totally checked out, and maybe the Republican Party should just force her to step down. Honestly, she's doing nothing but tearing the European Union apart.

Anthony Cooper2 said:Big yes on moving closer to Poland. But I guess you have to wonder if that's even possible if the EU keeps functioning exactly the way it does now. Maybe not.
I’ll give you that last sentence—it's basically the conclusion for any organized society. Sure, we need an entirely new generation, but we also need the right conditions to actually raise them properly. Over the last century, America has been hit at least four times by situations where we had to wipe the slate clean and start from scratch, whether by choice or by force. In those kinds of circumstances, it’s just impossible to build a society where traditions pass naturally from grandfather to father to son, or from grandmother to daughter to granddaughter. I guess our society would have to break free from being overly... well, you know. It’s all just an exaggeration, I guess. Maybe. "Revenge, settling scores with whoever came before you, targeting political opponents... I guess all of that is only possible when you've enjoyed decades of peace. Maybe we'll actually see that kind of stability one day."

An average person can barely make an impact here. You have to realize that every political party is serving someone else—they’re all under someone's thumb and answering to higher powers. You hit the nail on the head with that "spiral" idea. Honestly, corruption is like a virus in every society. Whether it's the US, Germany, China, or Russia, these countries are all suffocating under corruption; it's just legalized there through that famous lobbying system. It’s practically institutionalized graft. I guess the only thing you can actually control is how you educate your own family.

I guess real change can only come from massive global shifts that fundamentally overhaul our entire political and philosophical landscape. It’s hard to say when that might actually happen. We're stuck in an era dominated by neoliberal capitalist philosophy that basically turns people into robots. But since no system lasts forever, maybe we can hope it all changes one day.

The EU and NATO are massive structures that you just can't walk away from today, and honestly, we shouldn't even try. If any administration attempted to leave, they’d face an immediate color revolution and be completely powerless to stop it. Global history is played out on levels we can't even fathom—wars between nations, intelligence agencies, big capital, secret societies... I guess there isn't much a single country like the US can actually do. There's no humanity in this game; they use every method imaginable, both legal and otherwise. It's probably better not to get involved at all. We should just position ourselves as best we can, grab whatever benefits we can get, and let the Russians, Chinese, Britons, and Americans tear each other apart.

Look, as a small nation, we’re basically forced to pick a side, whether it's geopolitical or ideological. That’s just realpolitik. It’s like how we probably would have vanished if we hadn't been forced to accept the Habsburgs as our rulers. I guess that's just the reality of our geography and our fate.

Every generation brings something new to the table, I guess. We'll just have to wait and see what the future holds.

That’s probably the most accurate way to look at it, but if that's true, it means we don't actually get to make our own decisions or even spend our own money without it affecting us somehow. At that point, all we can do is hope the European Union eventually changes... but how? Just magically? I find it hard to believe—honestly, I'm more worried about the massive price tag that might come with that kind of transformation.
In practice? No. Tyranny hasn't changed one bit. We might not have feudalism anymore, but we have debt instead.

The European Union is going to tear apart natural and sociological laws. It won't be just economics. Think racial, ethnic, and religious conflicts. Every time anyone in history has experimented with that kind of thing, it ends in tragedy.

Anthony Cooper2 said:If you can find cheap ways to churn out clothes (which isn't happening), white goods (nope), food (not a chance), etc... then you can definitely find cheap ways to produce BOOKS. If you wrap them in silk or print them on the most budget-friendly paper available—which, let’s be real, always happens!! So, looking at things from that angle, I’ve seen little shops in various cities in France where editions of Jean Racine, Molière, Gustave Flaubert, and the like are selling for less than a buck. I really think we should implement something similar here, so instead of seeing random tabloids popping up everywhere, our classics are what jump out at people! Also, the idea of launching a TV Channel exclusively dedicated to promoting national culture is brilliant, and honestly, seems pretty doable. Basically, anything is possible—even without needing some unimaginable mountain of cash.

Exactly, I agree. We used to have those Press stock books sales, but that's not quite the same thing.

And honestly, our reading culture is tragic. That's why I found it fascinating to see people actually reading books in the subway in Moscow. It was a beautiful sight.