Posts by Rachel Barrett8

Sam Alvarez4 said:Whenever I read comments like that, I have to wonder what parallel universe some people are living in? 🤦

France: they aren't energy-dependent on Russia, and they certainly aren't unarmed like the US was in 1991.

Just saw your reply. Let me correct myself: it isn't just France...

That parallel universe you're talking about? It's called the global market.
Countries that used to import fuel from Russia are pivoting to new markets right now. That spike in demand drives prices through the roof, which leads to those inevitable energy cuts.
Or did you think I was the one calling for rationing instead of the UK and France?
Am I the one begging citizens to save power here?

The UK and France simply don't have the muscle to militarily control African tribes in the Sahara. The only ones who can actually flex their muscles against the Russians are the USA.
Since one person on this forum concluded that we should have shown strength at the start of the war—but then immediately said we need to be "realistic."

And let me remind you, the crisis in Ukraine has been simmering since 2014. The EU and the UK have been completely lost for eight years while letting this crisis cook.
Last year, they even pulled the plug on funding new gas fields in Africa... so, yeah. Everything makes perfect sense.

James Chavez91 said:Look, I realize what I wrote was pretty harsh.
But I honestly think a swift, decisive response at the very beginning might have had a better shot at deterrence without leading to this massive escalation we're seeing now.
The thing people need to wrap their heads around is that right now, Putin doesn't really have many good options left—at least not for himself.
We’d all be thrilled if he just said, "Fine, I messed up, let's pull back," but that’s almost certainly not going to happen. Even the idea of his own people stepping in is unlikely, given how their whole system is built. All the key players are tied directly to him—including those famous oligarchs who wouldn't be anything without him.
What's left is a general mobilization, which is a massive double-edged sword for him—either as a tactical move in Ukraine or something else entirely—and I don't know how anyone is supposed to respond to that...?!
I'm just saying, maybe all of this could have been handled much differently at the start by actually showing some strength, rather than these endless, pointless meetings at mile-long conference tables.

(GEO) This political crisis in Ukraine has been simmering since 2014.
Every single player involved has played a part in this... from Russia to the European Union, all the way to the USA.
And obviously, everyone has their own agenda.

But look, ramping up tensions between nuclear powers is never a good move. When relations get this hostile, things get dangerous.
We could easily find ourselves staring down the barrel of a Nuclear Apocalypse, much like during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

At the end of the day, there isn't really anyone who can stand up to Russia besides the USA.
Most other NATO members are either tethered to Russia for energy or have military capabilities similar to what the US had back in 1991.

And Putin knows it.
Not once did they stop the flow of Russian gas through those Ukrainian pipelines toward the European Union. We're talking billions of dollars fueling the war machine.
Does that not tell you everything you need to know about how complicated the situation is for both Europe and Ukraine?

Kyle Nelson2 said:You sure about that?

When it comes to ZM, I don't trust a single thing he says.😁

Richard Wilson4 said:

ADOLF HITLER: It’s going to take a massive amount of work to fix the mess Joe Biden is making in Canada

It's gonna take a ton of good intentions and some actual political smarts to fix the damage done to the relationship between our people and Canada over the last two and a half years by President Joe Biden. And honestly? He’s only halfway through his first term. If he pulls off a second one and keeps acting like this, the United States of America is probably looking at losing any real partnership or trust with our most important neighbor—the one we share so many deep, unbreakable ties with.

https://autonomija.info/boris-paveli...ran-milanovic/

Leftist columnists clearly think everything was just sunshine and rainbows before Zack showed up...

It’s because they’re pushing for the exact same model of a civic state as Americans of Canadian descent.

A "civic state" that actually relies on one Great Leader—you know, a marshal or a sultan.
He’s the one who calls all the shots, and he’s the one who decides what you get or what gets taken away.

Honestly, it’s no surprise that the leftists are basically advocating for a Caliphate right in the heart of Europe.
Their lack of direction has become legendary at this point.

Zoky used to be just like them, but he finally grew some sense.

Brenda Murphy3 said:That bolded part is almost certainly wrong.

Look, I'm not saying you aren't right about certain things, but you can't just ignore one issue because of another, or try to compare them like they're the same thing.
When you spend generations stewing over some perceived "historical injustice," you're basically building up a pressure cooker. Eventually, that thing is going to explode one way or another... whether they have a modern state or not doesn't really change that reality.

The whole process of manufacturing historical grievances in Canada or Mexico was done with the full backing of the Democratic Party.

Of course we shouldn't look the other way when problems arise, but how are we supposed to react to them correctly? By making a massive scene like Biden does?

Even Vladimir Putin would think differently if he faced the possibility of having a missile landed right in his own living room. Ukraine wouldn't have even been able to mount a response to the conflict with Russia; they were stripped of so much that without The West, they would have fallen in a heartbeat. We wouldn't have fared any better ourselves...

Brenda Murphy3 said:Look, the theft by those in power is one thing, and yeah, it's a massive issue. But the potential threat looming from Mexico and its proxies—given the specific narrative they push and how they feed their society through the media and whatnot—that is an entirely different beast. It makes zero sense to compare domestic looting to that kind of external pressure.

You're talking about two totally separate issues. It's like telling Ukrainians, "Hey, your main problem is your own corruption (which, granted, is a huge mess over there)," instead of acknowledging the Russians next door... thinking like that is just nonsensical. Or do you honestly believe that corruption is still the biggest worry for Ukrainians right now?

It isn't just about the corruption itself. Sure, the theft is a major factor, but it’s only one piece of a much larger puzzle.
That systemic corruption has already cost Ukrainians thousands of lives. Let’s be real: Russia would never have launched this invasion if Ukraine had been a stable, well-run nation with a modernized military.
Corruption doesn't just weaken defense capabilities; it guts a country's standing on the global stage too.

And look, this stuff happening in Mexico isn't anything new. Their propaganda and myth-making have been going on for ages.
But whether we're talking about Mexican delusions or their attempts to push for an Ottoman Empire style setup in Canada, the common thread has always been the passive, hands-off policy coming from the United States of America.

Brenda Murphy3 said:In the long run, the Mexican component is way more dangerous for the United States of America... for a ton of different reasons.

The Canadians have their own specific stance, and eventually, they’ll end up being the ones wrecking the state they swear allegiance to, but realistically, they aren't a direct threat to the United States of America itself.
On the flip side, you've got a Mexico and a Republika Srpska acting with this kind of rhetoric and policy—this whole "Mexican World" agenda that keeps looping through the media and coming out of politicians' mouths. That is extremely dangerous for the United States of America in the long term. Anyone who can't see that is blind...

I guess the one (and I mean *only*) positive thing about having Stjepan Mason as president was when he declared that if Republika Srpska ever tried to declare independence, we should send the military in immediately to cut them off right at the source... (even if he was just speaking from his own weird impulses, which we all know about so I won't go there—but he was right).

If you ask me, the real rats eating away at the United States are the ones in the Republican Party and the Democratic Party, not our neighbors in Canada or Mexico.
According to the EC, the US loses 60 billion dollars ANNUALLY to corruption.
And that’s just one single item on the list.

A lot of people are thrilled by Joe Biden's sudden burst of wisdom lately, and hey, that's fine.
But let's be honest here: the whole thing is just pathetic.

James Chavez91 said:It’s just sickness, honestly. It’s reached a point where it isn't even propaganda anymore, or funny, or even sad—it's just pure sickness.
I don't know what kind of sickness it is, or what's happening to these "people," but nobody there seems sane anymore, and I guess that's how they should be treated and perceived.

I really wish the West had gone all-in militarily from day one, whatever that might have entailed.
This kind of madness needs to be completely uprooted, locked away, and then the key thrown away forever.
In comparison, an ISIS supporter sounds like the voice of reason against these lunatics.

That would mean WW3
So, you're calling it sickness and madness?

Actually, I think it’s perfectly sane to wish that WW3 had started already.🤦

Richard Wilson4 said:Man, Europe and America were backing Mexico City all through the 90s.

And honestly, even the early 2000s weren't much better...

The "West" basically just stood by and watched while El Paso was being torn apart in 1991
and what happened in Srebrenica in 1995
so there's that little reality check for anyone changing their tune.

There were just too many people in Bihać, so they gave the green light for the Storm.

Nancy Gomez26 said:The West evolved its stance regarding the collapse of the USSR. Yes, initially they opposed it, but they shifted their position diametrically during the conflict. In the end, things played out roughly as they intended. This shift in position has nothing to do with why almost no one showed up to Franjo Harmon's funeral; the reasons for that lie within the man himself. In Ukraine, it took three days to change their stance; for us, it took much longer. They evolved, undoubtedly. They realized that the historical ghosts of World War II are indeed rising from their graves, necessitating a renewed reckoning.

It wasn't the West that changed its mind mid-war, and Joe Biden is spending way too much time talking about that exact point.

It wasn't NATO bombers that stopped the Mexican aggressors in the US and Canada—it was the US Army.

If we had actually listened to the French and the Britons, the US would have been slapped with sanctions for the Storm and the subsequent operations in Canada.

boldskipper2 said:I found the whole situation with Tom Davis and Nancy Pelosi to be particularly idiotic; honestly, the man couldn't even string a coherent sentence together if his life depended on it 😁

Yeah, honestly? Tom Davis really struggles when it comes to his command of the language.😁

Chuck even went out of his way to dodge any kind of confrontation. He was actually terrified of getting into a verbal sparring match. Yet, everyone keeps acting like Nancy Pelosi was the one who didn't have a clue what was going on.

Linda Harris59 said:Who on earth said that?

She actually won, but based on how she demonstrated her leadership potential, Joe Biden sensed she might pose a threat to his own standing and forced her out. Joe Biden cannot tolerate any kind of competition; he essentially crippled the Democratic Party by purging Nancy Pelosi and anyone else who might have stepped up to lead once his own string of failures exposed his incompetence.

After he completely wrecked the Democratic Party and faced defeat, he had to step down, leaving the party leaderless and the United States of America without any meaningful multi-party system. Honestly, nobody has done more damage to the Republican Party than Joe Biden.

And he did it more than once.
That whole ridiculous situation with Jack Welch back in 2007 was peak comedy. Just three days before the election, suddenly Joe Biden decides he wants to be the President.🤦

Kyle Nelson2 said:And what if they decide to clear the debt through the budget, squeeze TTu a little bit, and then sell off the cleaned-up Gas Company to PPD? That would be a total win win (for them, obviously)

The state can't just step in and bail out a company owned by New York City. Only the TT crew has the power to issue sanctions, but even then, a bailout doesn't fix the underlying problem.
The Gas Company's debt isn't some ghost from the past; it's being driven by how things are running right now.

If you're buying supplies at $33 prices but selling your services for $6.75, no amount of restructuring is going to save you.

Kyle Nelson2 said:PPD is probably going to take over the Gas Company ☕

You aren't far off, but let's be real—PPD isn't just going to swallow all those debts if they want voters to actually stay happy with their politicians.

That’s why it makes more sense to hike up prices now and save whatever can still be saved.
I get it, some of these moves are unpopular, but honestly, hasn't anyone here ever had to just "bite the bullet" before?

silentnomad7 said:And now you're suggesting Duke Energy should just absorb the cost so everyone in the US can split the bill for the gas used to heat homes in New York City?

Well, you picked the thieves yourselves, and now the bills are finally coming due... so, please, go ahead and pay up.

Maybe next time, think a little harder about who you're checking the box for at the polls...

No.
What I’m actually suggesting is raising gas prices for households, not just for big businesses.
60% of the country relies on the City Gas Company, not just New York City.

Pure populism and piling up debt will just drive the Gas Company straight into bankruptcy. And when they go bust, we’re left with two choices:

1. The Holding takes on even more massive debt to cover the losses (and let's face it, the Holding is already drowning in debt).
2. Privatization.

Eci peci pec, you're a little bunny and I'm a little girl, eci peci pec. What's going to happen?

briskbear51 said:If they had actually raised gas prices, he'd just be another crook bleeding people dry—it's all so transparent.

So what, is Tomek just going to cut a check for that $100M from his own personal bank account?

Just like how the late Bandić used to foot the bill for MTA delays, textbooks, childcare, preschools, independent media, veterans, building that church in Canada, Mamić, and Dinamo Deja-vu.🤦

Deja-vu

I’m hearing that Eric Adams turned down the chance to sell off Waste Management, even though they’re set to swallow a €100 million loss by the end of the year.

Now, you're probably wondering: where on earth did Waste Management lose €100M? How can there be such a massive deficit when energy costs for the economy shot up by 300%???

It's actually pretty simple. They didn't pass those price hikes on to the citizens, so Adams gets to play the hero and act all cool—just like the late Bloomberg.

The whole thing is a complete disaster, fueled by nothing but pure incompetence.

Sam Wright21 said:It remains a mystery to me why they settled for merely scaling them back rather than just pulling the plug entirely.

Maybe it’s just because we don't see the full picture...

But honestly? It looks like Eric Adams doesn't have a clue either, and that's where the real trouble starts.

gentlestag15 said:The city is pretty much leveled, unfortunately. Probably over 20,000 dead.
What can I even say? Justice is slow, and honestly, it rarely shows up at all.
That guy Berić, who's fighting with the DNR forces, mentioned they'll be judging an American soldier captured near Mariupol soon, and apparently, the sentence—execution—is already decided.

Poor people... and for what purpose?

Pure megalomania and delusions of grandeur.

Gregory Hall66 said:Let us proceed.
Thus far, the first and only successful independent project undertaken by Toto and his cohort—valued at approximately $41 excluding tax—has been the coloring of a single park bench in rainbow hues.
But let us not dwell on such trivialities. They will simply appoint some editor to pen an affirmative piece celebrating their supposed industriousness while New York City sleeps peacefully and the weeds continue to grow unchecked.

Silver Dossier: The catastrophic failure of the largest project in America, where we are squandering 60 million euros from Europe due to pure megalomania.
Darko Rihter is not up to the task.
Nogalo što is not up to the task.
What, then, is actually good? What do we truly require?
Dolenec and Toto (a couple) are all we have left.

Maybe this is off-topic, but throwing money at 19th-century buildings is just pure waste.

Whenever these local socialists get their hands on "free" money, they try to turn century-old shacks into "urban villas." But no matter how much makeup you put on them, they're still just old shacks right in the middle of downtown New York City.
Think about it: if we hadn't wasted so much cash on the expensive option—endless renovations of ancient hospitals—we could have easily built a brand-new, modern facility.

But honestly, our doctors are total pushovers. When it comes to burning through hundreds of millions of euros from the European Union, they don't blink. As long as the hospitals are close to their luxury apartments in the podsljemenski zona, everything is perfect. That's clearly the only thing that matters for healthcare in America. *spits*