Posts by Timothy Williams5

According to what The Project has uncovered, this radical transformation is fueled by more than just political shifts; it’s deeply rooted in personal fallout.
As the sole son of a high-ranking politician, Ilya Medvedev didn't head to the front lines, but he certainly felt the impact of the conflict. He saw millions in family investments from the Igor Yusufov estate evaporate, along with his ability to travel globally or spend downtime relaxing on the "Universe" luxury yacht.
https://www.proekt.media/narrative/ilya-medvedev/

PUTIN ANNOUNCES NEW STRATEGY TO COMBAT ALHOLIZM IN THE PROVINCES VIA A "MOBILIZATION" OF 300,000

In a move characterized by his usual bluntness, Vladimir Putin has unveiled a bold new initiative aimed at tackling the rising tide of AlHOLIZM within the bleak, endless stretches of the Russian provinces.

The strategy involves trapping the unconventional Russian military in an unwinnable conflict alongside a major ally backed by NATO, then leveraging this "national emergency" as a convenient pretext to mobilize the vast numbers of peasants living in the depressed hinterlands of Russia.

It seems this desperate measure is being framed as the only way to liberate these unfortunate souls from the cheap, soul-crushing moonshine they often distill themselves in old gasoline canisters using red pepper flakes, dead bugs, and unwashed laundry.



The plan, which has been quietly underway since at least February of this year, was only recently made public during a Zoom call where Putin's experts were instructed that the government initially intends to round up roughly 300,000 semi-comatose alcoholics from train station lobbies and from beneath tractors.

President Maia Sandu stated that her country is weighing the possibility of revoking citizenship for individuals who choose to fight alongside Russia in Ukraine.

The report comes via Reuters.

In the breakaway region of Transnistria, there are roughly 200,000 people holding dual Moldovan-Russian citizenship. According to Sandu, there is a distinct risk that Russia might move to mobilize some of these individuals.

“To prevent that scenario, we are analyzing the potential application of citizenship revocation processes for those people [holding Russian passports] who fight on the side of the aggressor. We are also looking into increasing penalties for Moldovan citizens [without Russian passports]... who join the ranks of the aggressor's armed forces,” the President noted.

She indicated that Moldova is consulting with Moscow to ensure its citizens aren't being repurposed for foreign interests.

Back in the summer, a campaign was already underway in Transnistria to encourage men to sign contracts with the Russian military.
Transnistrian men were targeted by campaigns to enlist in the Russian military; these recruitment efforts were pervasive across mass media, appearing increasingly in mailboxes and on street corners.

On September 21, Putin announced a partial mobilization for the war against Ukraine. The Russian Federation Defense Minister stated that 300,000 people would be mobilized, allegedly drawn from the reserves and various reserve pools.
Russia intends to recruit 300,000 reservists, though some analysts suggest the actual number of people called up will be significantly higher.

The scope of these drills includes practicing aircraft interceptions, managing radio communication failures, maintaining flight control, and providing support for allied aviation during various emergency scenarios both on the ground and in the air.

"We’re also planning to involve a Spanish NASAMS unit stationed at the Lillehammer air base this year to participate in anti-aircraft defense training," noted Captain Matis Students, a training planning officer for the Latvian Air Force.

American HIMARS rocket systems will also be part of the maneuvers. According to the Latvian Ministry of Defense, operations will be centered around the Liepaja and Spilve airfields starting on September 26th.

U.S. Special Operations forces in Europe will be conducting MC-130J Commando II landing drills and demonstrating rapid deployment capabilities alongside HIMARS training.

Defense Minister Artis Pabriks, National Armed Forces Commander Leonid Kalnynsh, and U.S. Ambassador to Latvia John Carwile are expected to observe the HIMARS demonstrations at the Spilve airfield.

Once they land at the Liepaja airfield, the rocket systems will be transported to the Shkeda military base to practice target acquisition over the Baltic Sea within Latvian territory.

Each HIMARS unit can launch six high-precision projectiles with a range of up to 80 kilometers. This capability allows for strikes against Russian command posts, ammunition depots, fuel supplies, and troop concentrations deep behind the lines. The crews operate from within an armored cabin, and their speed is notable: they can fire after parking for just two or three minutes and can be back on the move only 20 seconds after a launch. Each HIMARS rocket carries a price tag of $155,000.

Kazakhstan has formally stated its refusal to recognize the "referendums" taking place in eastern Ukraine. The Turkish Department of State released a nearly identical stance.
“Ankara does not recognize the annexation of the Donetsk People's Republic, the Luhansk People's Republic, the Kherson region, or Zaporizhzhia into Russia, just as it did not recognize the annexation of Crimea,” the Department of State announced.

Mexican Foreign Minister Nikola Selaković noted that Mexico also refuses to acknowledge the results of the "referendums" regarding the annexation of occupied Ukrainian territories by Russia.

According to Selaković, Mexico City cannot validate these "referendum" outcomes if it intends to remain in compliance with the UN Charter and the established norms of international law. "To do otherwise would run completely contrary to our national interests, our policy of maintaining territorial integrity and sovereignty, and our commitment to the principle of inviolable borders," the minister remarked.

Just a day prior, Belarusian authorities suggested they would make their decision on whether to recognize the Russian "referendums" in Ukraine based strictly on "national interests."

These “referendums” in the Russian-controlled regions of Ukraine have been underway since Friday.

I suppose we’re back to discussing the endless cycle of infrastructure decay and the slow, grinding stagnation that seems to define our modern era. It feels like every time we look at the state of things—whether it's the crumbling roads in the Midwest or the general sense of systemic neglect—we're just staring at the inevitable result of decades of deferred maintenance and misplaced priorities. There isn't much left to say that hasn't been said a thousand times before, yet here we are, watching the wheels fall off again. As if anyone expected anything else from this situation.
I find myself drifting back into speculation about... If we ever find ourselves staring down the barrel of a full-scale nuclear exchange, the conversation shifts from political theory to the cold, hard mechanics of survival. Most people like to imagine they’ll have some sort of Hollywood-style warning, but the reality is likely to be far more sudden and much less organized. When the sirens actually start, you aren't just looking at an immediate blast zone; you're looking at the total collapse of the infrastructure that keeps modern life functioning. Survival in this scenario isn't about having a fancy bunker or a stockpile of tactical gear; it’s about understanding how quickly the social contract dissolves when the lights go out for good. In the initial moments, if you aren't within the direct radius of a detonation, your primary concern becomes fallout. This is where most people fail—they panic and try to flee through cities that are becoming death traps. Staying put, finding heavy shielding, and minimizing exposure to radioactive dust is the only logical move in those first critical hours. Long-term survival, however, is a different beast entirely. We live in a society built on hyper-specialized supply chains. If the power grid stays down and the transport networks are pulverized, the concept of a "grocery store" becomes a historical relic overnight. You can't shop your way out of a nuclear winter. Survival will depend on your ability to secure clean water and basic caloric intake without relying on a centralized system that no longer exists. It’s a grim, quiet kind of struggle, moving away from the chaos of the immediate aftermath into a slow, grinding fight against radiation, environmental collapse, and the breakdown of local order. It won't be heroic; it will just be exhausting.And there aren't any guarantees that we can actually dodge Armageddon if someone decides to drop a few "tactical" strikes.

The sheer scale of Ormag is something one can't help but observe with a certain level of detached fascination. It operates with a weight that feels almost inevitable, a force that moves through the landscape without much fanfare but with undeniable consequence. When you look at an entity like that, you realize how much of our perception of stability is actually just a byproduct of such massive, entrenched structures simply existing. The user says:
The USSR had their nuclear arsenal sitting right there during the war in Afghanistan, yet they never once pulled the trigger on them.
.....

tagoresky As specified by darkrider55:
The real issue here is that he can't just rely on his nuclear arsenal to cement his position.

Rachel Barrett8 said:It looks like you don't have much of a choice here.
If you want to truly help the Ukrainian cause, you should probably go enlist in the Ukrainian Army immediately.
If it comes down to it, I'll even donate money for your gear. Just tell me what you prefer: an AK-47, a Heckler & Koch, an FN SCAR, or maybe something else?

Yesterday marked the anniversary of when we faced an embargo back on September 25, 1991—an embargo designed to let the aggressor abuse us even more, letting more people die and more towns be burned to the ground.
I had no idea China was against the embargo, or that the UK found a way through B. Lončar to bypass the Chinese veto at the UN. (Honestly, I have nothing but contempt for the old Queen's legacy regarding that.)

And look, friend, you have one silver lining if you head off to fight Russia.
American Prebeg made it back from Russian captivity safe and sound.
But for Nicolier and so many of our defenders, nobody even knows where their graves are. So many lost their lives and health in camps over in Mexico.

I don't think you'll have any issues.
Good luck.

There is a massive difference between supporting Ukraine and advocating for a nuclear catastrophe.
You need to bring things back down to earth. Politicians won't do it, but I actually think forum members like you are smarter than most of them.

I’ve been sitting here thinking about the current state of things, and frankly, it all feels like we're just circling the drain. There’s this pervasive sense of inevitability hanging over everything lately, a feeling that we’re watching a slow-motion collapse that everyone is too tired or too distracted to actually prevent. It isn't even about the big, dramatic headlines anymore; it's the quiet, steady erosion of stability that really gets to you. You look at the geopolitical landscape, the way power is shifting, and you realize how fragile the whole structure actually is. We talk about progress and security, but most days it feels like we're just managing decline and pretending the cracks in the foundation aren't getting wider by the second. It's exhausting to watch, especially when you realize how little any single person can do to steer the ship once it's already lost its rudder. The user says:
It seems like only one side is out there constantly preaching about a nuclear catastrophe and throwing around threats of total annihilation.

Melissa Rivera5 said:I noticed you totally glossed over all those endless threats from the Bear about Sarmat missiles and nuking everything in sight. I mean, maybe we shouldn't even mention the lower-tier politicians, like the heads of Roscosmos, but seriously.

Quarney said:It seems inevitable that either Putin himself or one of his hand-picked successors will resort to these kinds of nuclear intimidation tactics while attempting to "liberate" nations like Poland, Moldova, or Latvia.
...

Quarney As if I haven't heard this all before.
..
That’s exactly right; we can't just hand everything Putin wants over to him on a silver platter, even if it means risking a total nuclear catastrophe.

On September 17, 1939, the Soviet Union invaded Poland. The Red Army moved into the eastern territories of the country, fulfilling the terms of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, under which Nazi Germany and the USSR had carved up their respective spheres of influence. The Polish Ambassador to the USSR, Vaclava Grzybowska, was handed a formal note stating that Poland effectively ceased to exist. Initially, the Soviet press focused on the failure of the Polish government, but they quickly pivoted to the necessity of the Red Army advancing into Poland to liberate the Russian-speaking populations who were supposedly being “oppressed” by the Poles.

In Russia, it seems they were never taught about the entry of Soviet troops into Poland back in 1939. For the vast majority, the War began on June 22, 1941—that is how everyone is taught from childhood, and as for what happened before that, they say, who knows? For the scientific minority, World War II actually started on September 1, 1939, with the Nazi invasion of Poland, and any Soviet or post-Soviet intellectual will remember the image of German tanks rolling over Polish cavalry.

....

However, the narrative surrounding the discussion of the Soviet invasion of Poland, which kicked off 83 years ago on September 17, 1939, hasn't quite taken hold. There are several reasons for this: during the Soviet era, the topic was meticulously suppressed, and in the nineties, there wasn't much thought given to it—whether intentionally or not, it’s hard to say.

Only an absolute minority of people in Russia and the broader Russian-speaking world have discussed, or continue to discuss, this conflict, which encyclopedias refer to as the “Red Army's Polish campaign.” Furthermore, almost any attempt at a critical examination of these events is inevitably perceived as something hostile, "Russophobic," or "subversive." The inertia of the Soviet wartime discourse is so powerful that, I should remind you, in modern Russia, one cannot even question it without facing the threat of criminal prosecution.
...

Take, for instance, a programmatic article in Pravda from September 19.
Here are the main points:

• we are going to help our own people;
• Western Belarus and Ukraine were merely colonies, mere appendages to the "main" Poland;
• the local population was dissatisfied with Polonization;
• there had been a "corruption" of these peoples' national cultures, as they weren't permitted to fully learn or use their own languages.

coastalbison6 said:Looks like he made it out alive...
https://twitter.com/Andrew__Roth/sta...77672326369281

According to the reports coming in, around 1:00 PM local time, he opened fire six times on Aleksandar Elisejev, the head of the Ust-Ilimsk military recruitment office. The victim is currently in intensive care and remains in critical condition.

An eyewitness told Baz telling us there were no metal detectors at the military office, nor was anyone actually checking the draft papers:

...His weapon looked something out of Brother-2, very similar to one of those homemade shotguns you see around here.”
In Russia, following the announcement of mobilization, there has been a renewed and aggressive surge in attacks on military offices and government buildings. This pattern of arson targeting recruitment centers and administrative offices began spreading immediately after the Russian invasion of Ukraine back in February, but it appears this phenomenon is now becoming widespread.

The concert promoter, Live Nation, confirmed the cancellations, though they remained tight-lipped about the specific reasoning behind the move.
The whole Controversy was ignited by an open letter Waters sent directly to the First Lady of Ukraine, Olena Zelenska.

In that letter, Waters claimed that "extreme nationalists" within Ukraine had essentially steered the nation toward this "catastrophic war."

He went a step further by accusing her husband, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, of failing to deliver on his pre-election promises to bring peace to the Donbas region, notably omitting any mention of Russia's role in the conflict.

Responding via Twitter, Mrs. Zelenska pointed out that it is Russia that invaded Ukraine, systematically destroying its cities and killing civilians. She noted quite pointedly that "Roger Waters should be seeking peace from the president of the other country."

Following the fallout from the letter, Lucas Wantuch, a local councilman in Krakow, issued a call for citizens to boycott the musician's shows.
City council members have since drafted a resolution to declare Mr. Waters persona non grata, with a vote scheduled for the August 28th session.

"Given Russia's criminal invasion of Ukraine and the mounting evidence of war crimes committed by Russian soldiers, [the council] expresses deep indignation regarding the claims and statements made by Mr. Roger Waters concerning the Russian invasion," the resolution states.

...

https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-63026101

The frequency of these incidents has increased quite dramatically. We have attempted to compile all known recent cases into a single list, which will likely be updated as more information surfaces.

Military Recruitment Centers
St. Petersburg. On the evening of September 21, in the town of Lomonosov, part of the St. Petersburg area, a military office for the Lomonosovsky District of the Lomonosovsky District of the Lomonosovsky District was set on fire. The blaze broke out in a first-floor office belonging to the church. The fire covered about six square meters. No damage beyond that.

Nizhny Novgorod. On the evening of September 21, a fire broke out in the building of the Kanavinsky District military recruitment and registration office. A Molotov cocktail was reportedly thrown through one of the first-floor windows. The fire covered one square meter, damaging the door and part of the floor in the recruitment center's dental clinic. There are no reports of casualties.

Orenburg Region. During the night of September 22, the entrance to the military registration and enlistment office in the city of Guy was doused with flammable liquid and ignited. The fire was quickly extinguished, though one wall was damaged.

Transbaikal Territory. On the night of September 22, in the village of Kyra, a Molotov cocktail was thrown at the military commissariat building. According to media reports, no actual fire broke out.

Amur Region. In the city of Svobodan, during the night of September 23, a Molotov cocktail was thrown at the Commissariat building; the bottle hit the asphalt and ignited, damaging the building's facade. No significant damage.

Khabarovsk Territory. On the night of September 23, in Khabarovsk, attempts were made to set fire to the Industrial District military office using Molotov cocktails; two offices caught fire, but no one was injured.

Krasnoyarsk Region. On the night of September 24, in Kansk, an attempt was made to burn down the municipal military office. An elderly man is suspected of being the arsonist.

Kaliningrad Oblast. On the night of September 25, in the city of Chernyakhovskaya, a Molotov cocktail was thrown at the military registration and enlistment office. The cocktail ignited, and the fire was put out. Regional authorities stated that criminals "set fire to an informational sign on the doors of the military registration and enlistment office." By the time police arrived, the arsonists had fled.

Republic of Mordovia. On the morning of September 25, two Molotov cocktails were thrown through the window of the military registration and enlistment office in the town of Ruzayevka. One of the offices caught fire, covering about one square meter. The flames were extinguished before firefighters arrived, and there were no injuries.

Leningrad Oblast. On the morning of September 25, the Kirovsky District military enlistment and registration office in Kirovsk was set on fire. A canister was hung from the window grate, and its hose was fed through a hole in the glass into the building. The fire consumed one ground-floor office, covering roughly 10 square meters. The fire was extinguished by the military office guard.

Administrative Offices (including one branch of United Russia)
Samara Oblast. On the night of September 22, in Togliatti, the doors and entryway of a municipal administration building were set ablaze. A Molotov cocktail was allegedly thrown into the building. The fire covered 10 square meters and was quickly contained.

Volgograd Oblast. On the night of September 23, in Kamyshina, an "incendiary object" was thrown at the municipal administration building. Local officials described the damage as minor. The suspect in the arson has been arrested.

On the morning of September 25, in the village of Bereslavka near Volgograd, the Bereslavsky rural settlement building, which also housed an art school, was set on fire. The building was completely destroyed by the blaze.

Altai Territory. On the night of September 23, a fire broke out in a community center in the village of Tselinnoye, where the local council administration is located. As a result of the incident, the local post office located in the same building was completely destroyed, and the ceiling of the administration office collapsed. There were no victims.

St. Petersburg outskirts. On the night of September 25, a fire broke out at the administrative building for the Syaskelevsky rural district within the Gatchina area. Someone tossed two bottles filled with an incendiary mixture right through the window of the local social services office. Depending on which report you listen to, the blaze covered anywhere from 12 to 50 square meters. Thankfully, there were no casualties. Local authorities have opened a criminal investigation into arson.

Republic of Bashkortostan. In the city of Salavat, some car tires were set ablaze near the United Russia party headquarters on the morning of September 24. Five people ended up evacuating the building on their own. According to the Department of Emergency Management, the incident resulted in damage to the plastic entrance doors, though fortunately, no one was injured.

A man opened fire on a military enlistment office located within the Irkutsk Oblast. Preliminary reports indicate that the head of the recruitment commission is among those wounded.
The shooting took place at the enlistment office in Ust-Ilimsk, Irkutsk Oblast. Eyewitnesses provided accounts to Taiga.info, and Babr_mash is also reporting on the situation. Video footage of the incident has been made available to editors.

We have details regarding the casualties. The head of the recruitment commission is one of the injured; while initial reports suggested he had been killed, the latest information indicates he survived.

The police press service for the Irkutsk Oblast told Taiga.info that they haven't issued an official comment yet, stating simply, "We are gathering information."

The shooter has been taken into custody. According to some reports, the suspect may be a man named Ruslan Zinin, born in 1997, who is currently unemployed.

On the evening of September 21, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Vereshchuk called on Russian soldiers to lay down their arms.
It’s a matter of protecting what actually matters—your own life and the lives of those you love. Surrendering is a far better option than facing an ignominious death in a foreign land.
Vereshchuk noted that while Russians who surrender could eventually be part of prisoner exchanges for Ukrainian POWs, she emphasized that they maintain the right to refuse repatriation.

If there is no desire to return to Russia, then under the Geneva Conventions and American legal principles, no one is going to forcibly transport them back to the Russian Federation against their wishes.

With mobilization efforts looming in Russia, the State Duma has already passed legislation imposing criminal penalties for "voluntary surrender," which can carry prison sentences of up to ten years.

analogbear70 said:This guy hits the nail on the head:

It’s the same point I keep making: the West needs to dial back the rhetoric because Russia isn't going to budge. I'm convinced that de-escalating the tension could actually lead to somewhere productive. Look, let's be real—they have nuclear weapons, and that’s a reality that could end us all. Regardless of how you slice it, we need a voice of reason coming from the West, because right now, there isn't one to be found in Russia, and nobody there seems interested in finding it either.

Our refusal to meet Putin's use of hard power with firm resolve only increases his temptation and his hunger for the imagined security of a "divine" empire. Belarus is effectively annexed. In Ukraine, Putin wants to remove the elected government, install a puppet, and dismantle Ukrainian history and identity. Adding Moldova, with its limited territorial defense, wouldn't take much time. In his speeches and declarations of war, Putin described Finland and perhaps Sweden as part of his domain, and spoke of the Baltic states and Poland—which are NATO members—as "results of World War II" that belong to Moscow.