A report card on the Biden administration

[Sandy Shanks]

The Times reports, "The megadrought in the American Southwest has become so severe that it’s now the driest two decades in the region in at least 1,200 years, scientists said Monday, and climate change is largely responsible.

"The drought, which began in 2000 and has reduced water supplies, devastated farmers and ranchers and helped fuel wildfires across the region, had previously been considered the worst in 500 years, according to the researchers.

"But exceptional conditions in the summer of 2021, when about two-thirds of the West was in extreme drought, “really pushed it over the top,” said A. Park Williams, a climate scientist at the University of California, Los Angeles, who led an analysis using tree ring data to gauge drought. As a result, 2000-21 is the driest 22-year period since 800 A.D., which is as far back as the data goes."

That means this is the worst megadrought in human history, since the data began in 800 A.D., and there is no mention of a drought in that year.

Mind you, while this is a tragedy for some, I am not complaining.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

There are serious doubts Russia will invade Ukraine. Wars are very costly, and Ukraine has a respectable, battle hardened military, and she will get military assistance from NATO. If she invades, the sanctions placed on Russia and Russian leaders by the NATO countries will likely be more costly than the war itself.

In other words, if Putin decides to invade, he will not only suffer a military defeat, but economic calamity caused by Western sanctions as well. Russia's economy is vulnerable. It relies almost entirely on exporting energy products. That will come to an abrupt end if Putin invades.

Putin knows all that. He is not stupid.

I have been a student of the history of war since high school. How many can say they read the 1800 page The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich while in high school? I can.

Enough about my resume. My point being, throughout modern history, if an aggressor wishes to attack, he doesn't wait around during three months of discussion, enabling his enemy and his enemy's allies to prepare to defend invasion.

The examples of this principle are countless; the Confederate States of America in 1861, Germany attacking France in 1914, Germany attacking Poland in 1939, Germany attacking the Soviet Union in 1940, Japan attacking the United States in 1941, North Korea attacking South Korea in 1950. North Vietnam attacking South Vietnam in the 60's, Iraq attacking Kuwait in 1990, and Al Qaeda attacking the United States on 9/11.

In each case, there was little or no warning. In each case there was not three months worth of discussion. The aggressor attacked without warning, and, while most suffered defeat later, the attacks were remarkably successful in each and every case.

Putin has been involved in various discussions with many leaders and his colleagues going on three months now. Ukraine, which has a larger army than the Russian strike force, and Ukraine's allies, the entire NATO alliance, have been preparing for the attack.

Which will never come. Putin is bluffing. He wants security assurances at no cost to Russia, meaning, there will be no invasion. As shown, the cost of invasion is prohibitive, and Putin knows it.

The Times reports, "President Vladimir V. Putin said Tuesday that Russia had decided “to partially pull back troops,” and the Russian Defense Ministry announced that some forces from military districts bordering Ukraine were being sent back to their garrisons, a sign that Moscow might be stepping away from the threat of an invasion.

"The announcement was the strongest signal yet that Russia might be trying to de-escalate the military standoff near the Ukrainian border, but it was far from clear that the threat of war has passed. Military analysts warned that it was too early to make firm conclusions about any troop drawdown without more information."

Yesterday, the White House predicted that Russia will begin her invasion on Wednesday. Today, President Biden said "If Russia does invade in the days and weeks ahead ..."

One last thing. Do I trust Putin? Hell, no, but I trust what I see and know.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

Inasmuch as Trump blames the Republican Party for his overwhelming defeat in the 2020 election, Trump is determined to destroy the GOP. The party's only chance is if McConnell wins the turf war.

The Times reports, "As Mr. Trump works to retain his hold on the Republican Party, elevating a slate of friendly candidates in midterm elections, Mr. McConnell and his allies are quietly, desperately maneuvering to try to thwart him. The loose alliance, which was once thought of as the G.O.P. establishment, for months has been engaged in a high-stakes candidate recruitment campaign, full of phone calls, meetings, polling memos and promises of millions of dollars. It’s all aimed at recapturing the Senate majority, but the election also represents what could be Republicans’ last chance to reverse the spread of Trumpism before it fully consumes their party."

That said, Trump has problems of his own making, serious problems. Reuters explains.

"The accounting firm that handled Donald Trump's company's financial statements dropped it as a client and said it could no longer stand behind a decade of statements, a court filing showed on Monday.

"Mazars USA, in a Feb. 9 letter made public on Monday, told the Trump Organization, the former president's New York-based real estate business, that its financial statements for 2011 through 2020 should no longer be relied on.

"The accounting firm also said it would no longer work for the Trump Organization."

Once again Trump is misled by his firm belief that laws and rules do not apply to him.

Little wonder why McConnell wants the Republican Party to cut itself off from Trump and his silent, uninformed, education challenged followers.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

With the help of Vladimir Putin -- yes, the same Vladimir Putin who is now threatening to invade Ukraine -- Donald Trump was elected our President in 2016. Largely because the Democratic Party made the worst possible choice as their Presidential candidate, the Republican Party captured the House and Senate along with the Oval Office.

By 2021, the Trump government had lost the Presidency, the House, and the Senate, giving some idea of what American voters thought of Trump and his government.

As far as Trump is concerned, matters steadily got worse. Trump lost reelection by over seven million votes. He claims the election was stolen from him. Despite every bit of evidence to the contrary, to this day Trump preaches the stolen election, and Trump Republicans pay him to say this. Trump then led an insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, a coup attempt to overthrown the elected government. Among other issues, Trump is being investigated for his handling of classified documents, his role in the insurrection, and recently his accounting firm dropped him after ten years because his data is unreliable.

Despite the countless failures, Trump's educationally deprived, uninformed followers remain loyal to him in a cult-like matter. As this thread shows, they lack the wherewithal to defend their champion or explain why they support him. Proof of that will become apparent when the forum's Republicans will remain silent concerning the issues of this report. They are even unable to defend themselves.

His followers remain loyal despite Trump's complete incompetency and lack of judgement? Members of his cult can't explain it, but the Times can explain the phenomenon.

"Today, the Republican Party is very much still Mr. Trump’s, transforming his lies about a stolen 2020 election into an article of faith, and even a litmus test that he is seeking to impose on the 2022 primaries with the candidates he backs. He is the party’s most coveted endorser, its top fund-raiser and the polling front-runner for the 2024 presidential nomination.

"Mr. Trump is also deeply divisive, unpopular among the broader electorate and under investigation for his business practices and his interference with election officials in Fulton County, Ga.

"Yet his unrivaled power inside the G.O.P., one year after inciting the sacking of the Capitol to forcibly forestall the certification of the election, is a testament to his unrelenting hold on the loyalty of the party base."

Only one conclusion can be drawn. While President, Trump admired autocrats like Putin. Xi Jinping, and Kim Jong-un. He actually told an audience in West Virginia that he and Kim fell in love. He has chosen to reject American elections. Obviously, Trump is an autocrat wannabe.

Equally obvious, because his followers are devoted to him. his unenlightened cult admires this. indicating they favor an autocracy.

But they don't know that, either.

Trump Republicans are expected to win control of Congress in the November elections.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

Elected in 2016, by 2021, the Trump government had lost the Presidency, the House, and the Senate, giving some idea of what American voters thought of Trump and the Republican government.

Trump lost reelection by over seven million votes. He then claimed the election was stolen from him. Despite every bit of evidence to the contrary, to this day Trump preaches the stolen election, and Trump Republicans pay him to say this. Trump then led an insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, a coup attempt to overthrow the elected government. Among other issues, Trump is being investigated for his handling of classified documents, his role in the insurrection, and recently his accounting firm dropped him after ten years because his data is unreliable.

Compare the incompetence of the Republican Trump government to the competence of our current President, a competence that drives Trump Republicans nuts as they desperately try to find fault with the Biden government.

President Biden is fighting the ravages of rampant inflation, supply chain problems, and a pandemic. His fight against the pandemic appears to be successful, but it is not over yet. While this is going on, he must deal with a 50/50 Senate and two Democrats who act more like Republicans, thwarting nearly every piece of Biden sponsored legislation.

While all this is going on, President Biden must deal with Vladimir Putin and his threat to invade Ukraine, sparking a war that could rival WWII as major powers collide.

While all this is going on, our President must deal with our economy and the covid-inspired recession.

ABC News reports, "Fueled by pay gains, solid hiring and enhanced savings, Americans sharply ramped up their spending at retail stores last month in a sign that many consumers remain unfazed by rising inflation.

"Retail sales jumped 3.8% from December to January, the Commerce Department said Wednesday, a much bigger increase than economists had expected. Though inflation helped boost that figure, most of January’s gain reflected more purchases, not higher prices.

"Last month’s increase was the largest since last March, when most households received a final federal stimulus check of $1,400. The fact that consumer spending remains brisk even after government stimulus has faded — enhanced unemployment aid ended in September — suggests that Americans’ pay is rising enough to drive a healthy pace of spending and economic growth."

Perhaps we should cut our President some slack as opposed to Trump Republicans who consider a robust economy a bad thing and wish it were so.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

How much longer is the Russia/Ukraine crisis going to go on? Americans are getting weary of Russian disinformation which often times makes very little sense.

Americans are getting equally tired of the repetitive ominous warnings emanating from the White House. How much longer are we going to hear on daily basis that the Russian invasion of Ukraine will happen in the next few days.

"My sense is this will happen in the next several days," President Biden told ABC News Chief White House Correspondent Cecilia Vega today.

Also today, Secretary of State Antony Blinken provided us a road map for war. "First, Russia plans to manufacture a pretext for its attack. ... We don't know exactly the form it will take. It could be a fabricated so-called terrorist bombing inside Russia. The invented discovery of the mass grave, a staged drone strike against civilians or a fake, even a real attack using chemical weapons," he said.

Sometimes the warnings from the White House appear ludicrous.

ABC News reports, "Mortar rounds fired by the separatists struck kindergarten number 21 in the village of Stanytsa Luhansk on Thursday morning close to the frontline with Ukrainian troops, injuring three adults, according to Ukraine’s military.

"For weeks, the separatist leadership and Russian state media have accused Ukraine of preparing to mount an offensive against the separatist territories."

Russian sponsored separatists attacked Ukraine!

ABC also reported, "Western officials and independent experts worry Russia may be laying the groundwork for a pretext it could use to justify a military intervention should it choose to attack."

So, Russia's attack on Ukraine could be a pretext to justify Russia's military intervention should it choose to attack."

Does that make sense to anyone?

Please allow a brief review of statements from the past.

There are serious doubts Russia will invade Ukraine. Wars are very costly, and Ukraine has a respectable, battle hardened military which outnumbers the Russian strike force, and she will get military assistance from NATO. If she invades, the sanctions placed on Russia and Russian leaders by the NATO countries will likely be more costly than the war itself.

If the attacking force is outnumbered by the defending force, it would be disastrous for the aggressor. That is Military Strategy 101.

If Putin decides to invade, he will not only suffer a military defeat, but an economic calamity caused by Western sanctions as well. Russia's economy is vulnerable. It relies almost entirely on exporting energy products. That will come to an abrupt end if Russia invades, and Putin is not stupid.

Those statements still apply. Ukraine has nothing to worry about.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

While all this is going on, our President must deal with our economy and the covid-inspired recession.

ABC News reports, "Fueled by pay gains, solid hiring and enhanced savings, Americans sharply ramped up their spending at retail stores last month in a sign that many consumers remain unfazed by rising inflation.

"Retail sales jumped 3.8% from December to January, the Commerce Department said Wednesday, a much bigger increase than economists had expected. Though inflation helped boost that figure, most of January’s gain reflected more purchases, not higher prices.

The good economic news continues.

The Post reports, "Applications for U.S. unemployment benefits rose last week but remain near historically low levels, reflecting relatively few layoffs across the economy.

"Yet the four-week average for claims, which compensates for weekly volatility, fell by 10,500 to 243,250. It was the second straight week of declines after rising for five straight weeks as the omicron variant of the coronavirus spread, disrupting business in many parts of the U.S.

"In total, fewer than 1.6 million Americans were collecting jobless aid the week that ended Feb. 5, a decrease of about 26,000 from the previous week.

"First-time applications for jobless aid generally track the pace of layoffs, which are back down to fairly healthy pre-pandemic levels.

"Earlier this month, the Labor Department reported a surprising burst of hiring in January, with employers adding 467,000 jobs."

Americans should re-think President Biden's performance on the economy.

His fight against the deadly virus is going well, too.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

If Russia invades, the attacking force is outnumbered by the defending force. It would be disastrous for the aggressor. That is Military Strategy 101.

If Putin decides to invade, he will not only suffer a military defeat, but an economic calamity caused by Western sanctions as well. Russia's economy is vulnerable. It relies almost entirely on exporting energy products. That will come to an abrupt end if Russia invades, and Putin is not stupid.

President Biden told Americans today that Putin has made up his mind. He will invade Ukraine, according to the President. More on that later.

If Putin invades Ukraine, it would be the Soviet/Afghan War all over again, and with it, the collapse of the Soviet Union.

In April 2005, Putin said the Soviet collapse was a tragedy for Russians.

“First and foremost it is worth acknowledging that the demise of the Soviet Union was the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the century,” Putin said. “As for the Russian people, it became a genuine tragedy. Tens of millions of our fellow citizens and countrymen found themselves beyond the fringes of Russian territory.

“The epidemic of collapse has spilled over to Russia itself,” he said.

The Afghan fighting force was puny compared to the Ukrainian army, second in size in Europe to Russia's army.

The Soviet–Afghan War was a conflict wherein insurgent groups known collectively as the Mujahideen fought a nine-year guerrilla war against the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan (DRA) and the Soviet Army. Eventually the Soviet army had to withdraw in defeat.

The war was costly in bodies and cash, largely bankrupting the Soviet Union. Western sanctions contributed to the bankruptcy. Two years later the Soviet Union collapsed.

The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 was one of the biggest historic events of Twentieth Century. The occupation of Afghanistan caused irreversible internal conflicts between the Soviet republics and the Soviet government.

“First and foremost it is worth acknowledging that the demise of the Soviet Union was the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the century.”

Will Putin cause Russia to make the same mistake again?

Despite the words of our President, there are serious doubts.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

President Biden spoke today. He may have just added to the confusion.

The Times reports, "President Biden said on Friday the United States has intelligence showing that President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia has made a final decision to invade Ukraine, rejecting the final efforts of diplomacy.

“We have reason to believe the Russian forces are planning to, intend to, attack Ukraine in the coming week, in the coming days,” Mr. Biden said in the Roosevelt Room at the White House. “We believe that they will target Ukraine’s capital Kyiv, a city of 2.8 million innocent people.”

"Asked whether he thinks that Mr. Putin is still wavering about whether to invade, Mr. Biden said: “I’m convinced he’s made the decision.” Later he added that his impression of Mr. Putin’s intentions is based on U.S. intelligence.

"I'm convinced." I am bothered by the President's terminology. If true, he should have said U.S. intelligence sources consider Putin has made the decision. Personalizing the statement does not give one confidence in its authenticity. We expect our President to use the services of our intelligence agencies, and to say so.

This is "his impression?" Very poor choice of words.

Then one has to wonder how U.S. intelligence sources know what going on inside Putin's head. Did he send out orders? If so, why not say that without disclosing the nature of the orders? Is our intelligence so good, it can sneak inside Russian command and control? Really?

Without disclosing sources and methods, perhaps intelligence can tell the American people how they know Putin has made a decision to attack Ukraine and spark the worst fighting on the European continent since WWII.

"I'm convinced" doesn't cut it even if the phraseology came from the President.

Then there is the really weird nature of the reporting.

ABC News reports, "On Friday, the leader of Russian-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine called for his supporters to begin a mass evacuation to Russia, claiming Ukraine was readying for an invasion of the region. Ukraine immediately denied the claim.

"The Biden administration has repeatedly warned Moscow will likely manufacture Ukrainian provocations to justify an invasion of its smaller neighbor." In other words, a false flag operation.

All that is nuts.

The separatist leader is causing the mass evacuation, not Ukraine. A car was set on fire. None of that is a false flag.

The Russian backed separatist leader claimed Ukraine will invade eastern Ukraine. That is ludicrous, and, if Ukraine asserted its authority in eastern Ukraine, that is justified. It certainly is not a false flag operation.

Come on, the Russian aren't that stupid, but this is what we are being fed by the media as it tries to up the stakes when absolutely nothing has happened.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

The new voting laws in Texas are working!

The new laws were designed to make it harder for Texans to vote, and they are doing exactly that, no doubt discouraging some and giving up.

When did voting become complicated science? Ask Governor Abbott of Texas. He was extremely proud to sign the new restrictive voting laws into existence.

NBC reports, "New voting rules in Texas are tripping up voters at an unusual rate, putting thousands of ballots at risk of being rejected if voters don't correct them soon, multiple county officials said.

"Mail voting kicked off in January ahead of the state's primaries on March 1 — the first contest of the 2022 midterm cycle — with early in-person voting beginning this week. Already, thousands of ballots have failed to meet the state's new identification requirements, according to election officials.

"In El Paso County, nearly half of all mail ballots returned so far have failed to satisfy new ID requirements, while 35 percent of ballots were flagged for rejection in Harris County for similar reasons, county officials told NBC News.

"Harris County, home to the city of Houston and more than 4 million residents, was the first to report a high rejection rate for mail ballots. The county was inundated with thousands of questions about mail voting in January and forced to quickly hire new staff to deal with the surge of work that voter confusion and rejected ballots have created, according to Harris County Elections Administrator Isabel Longoria."

The forum's Republicans will not respond to this report. Republicans rarely talk about what Republicans are doing. The prefer making up fantasies -- sometimes known as pnropaganda -- about Biden or showing us cartoons. As their posts indicate, they are not a very savvy bunch while being sadly uninformed primarily because they avoid reality.

Nevertheless, Republicans expect to win control of Congress in the November mid-terms. As in the case of the 2016 Presidential election, they may be right because millions of Americans will not vote due to the hassle created by Republican legislatures and signed by Republican governors.

Is that a form of fascism?

Republicans are virtually admitting restricting voting is the only way they can win elections.

Texas looks like a backward state that belongs in the early part of the Twentieth Century.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

The Soviet–Afghan War was costly in bodies and cash, largely bankrupting the Soviet Union. Western sanctions contributed to the bankruptcy. Two years later the Soviet Union collapsed.

“First and foremost it is worth acknowledging that the demise of the Soviet Union was the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the century.” Putin

Will Putin cause Russia to make the same mistake again?

CBS News reports, "The U.S. has intelligence that Russian commanders have received orders to proceed with an invasion of Ukraine, with commanders on the ground making specific plans for how they would maneuver in their sectors of the battlefield, a U.S. official told CBS News."

The orders don't mean a invasion is a certainty, as Russian President Vladimir Putin could still change the orders if he changes his mind, the official said.

In six weeks nothing has changed!

The rhetoric has become a bit more elaborate, but there have been no strategic changes on the ground. Russia is playing games, but in three months she has not invaded.

An aggressor does not dally round for three months waiting for its target to prepare and become more heavily armed by its allies, namely NATO, including the U.S.

American commanding generals have orders to attack Russia, China, North Korea, Iran, and a few other hostiles. They are called contingency plans.

It is not surprising in the least that Russian generals have orders to attack Ukraine. In fact, it makes perfect sense.

Nice try, media. The media finds all this interesting as it tries to fill slow news days ever since Trump left office. His incompetence, stupidity, and fanciful conspiracies were always entertaining.

Now all that is gone.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

The forum's Republicans will not respond to this report. Republicans rarely talk about what Republicans are doing. The prefer making up fantasies -- sometimes known as propaganda -- about Biden or showing us cartoons. As their posts indicate, they are not a very savvy bunch while being sadly uninformed primarily because they avoid reality.

Shocking, no Republican asserted himself, defended his party or themselves from the contents in post 935.

They really are not very bright. That is obvious.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

This phony alleged war between Russia and Ukraine is getting ludicrous.

It must be embarrassing for the White House to keep saying day after day for weeks on end that Russia is likely to invade Ukraine any day now. Two weeks ago war was imminent, but they gave up using the term.

It must be embarrassing for the media to keep telling Americans half truths or no truths at all. For example you won't hear it from the media that Ukrainian forces outnumber the Russian strike force.

Then we have Putin continuing to make a fool of himself as he tries to legitimize war with the Russian people and not informing them of the dire circumstances. Body bags will begin to pile up as the Russian economy goes in the toilet caused by Western sanctions.

A few days after President Biden told the world that Putin decided to invade Ukraine, Putin agreed to a summit with Biden. "President Joe Biden has agreed “in principle” to French-brokered summit talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin as long as Russia does not further invade Ukraine, the White House said late Sunday," CNN.

That summit may not happen because Putin made a fool of himself.

Putin decided to invade Ukraine.

The Times reports, "The Kremlin has ordered Russia’s defense ministry to deploy troops in two Russia-backed separatist territories."

Putin told his nation that he had decided to recognize Russia-backed separatists in the so-called Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics. That is the Russian backed separatist region in eastern Ukraine. He told the Russian people he is sending "peacekeeping" army troops to keep the peace.

Actually, Russia invaded Ukraine eight years ago.

From the beginning of March 2014, in the aftermath of the 2014 Ukrainian revolution and the Euromaidan movement, protests by Russia-backed anti-government separatist groups took place in the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts of Ukraine, collectively called the Donbas region. As the conflict escalated in May 2014, Russia deployed irregular fighters, regular Russian troops, and conventional military support to destabilise the Donbas region. Wikipedia

Putin is doing nothing different. His B.S. may fool the Russian people, but it won't fool the West and certainly not the U.N. Security Council.

The media is not telling the whole story, and it fails to tell the American people that Russian troops have been in the Donbas region for eight years. We are being led to believe this is new. That this is an invasion.

It's not.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

Putin is doing nothing different. His B.S. may fool the Russian people, but it won't fool the West and certainly not the U.N. Security Council.

CNN reports, "The US is declining to specify whether so-called “peacekeeping” forces sent from Russia into eastern Ukraine would constitute a further invasion of the country.

"Instead, the official said Russian forces have been operating in the Donbas region since Moscow’s first incursion into the country in 2014."

“Russian troops moving into Donbas would not itself be a new step. Russia has had forces in the Donbas region for the past eight years,” the official said.

 

[Jay59]

Have you downgraded Biden's grade to a D yet? It's time.

 

[Integrityrespec]

President Joe R. Biden, how refreshing that sounds. What a refreshing day. Our divisive, erratic, foolish, conspiratorial, narcissistic President is gone, replaced by a President who deeply wants to unite us. Barring ill-advised preconceived notions about President Biden, his task should be easy. We are all Americans.

That said, although I voted for Biden for obvious reasons, not unlike 81 million Americans who did the same, I am a conservative Independent. That's official. In CA, we have to declare our political posture. Until I was driven out by Trump, for over a quarter of a century I was a declared Republican. I voted for Biden, but I have some reservations concerning him, mostly having to do with taxation and spending.

I said all that because I want to be honest with readers. I want them to know where I am coming from.

Whether or not Biden will be a good President is obviously an open question, but I think he is a good man. He will do his best to unite us and adopt policies that benefit all Americans, while removing those policies that do us harm. He wants the United States to rejoin the community of nations, and the days of isolation and making unitary decisions that involve other nations, in particular our traditional allies, are over.

The European Union's top politician, Ursula von der Leyen, said it best. "After four long years, Europe has a friend in the White House."

For the first time in four years, there is optimism in America created by a popular President. 59% of Americans approve of Biden.

On day one, Trump's approval rating was 40%, and, although it went lower than that, it never got much higher. Thus the reason for American optimism.

Wow, were you ever mistaken!

 

[Integrityrespec]

I have been a student of the history of war since high school. How many can say they read the 1800 page The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich while in high school? I can.

Enough about my resume. My point being, throughout modern history, if an aggressor wishes to attack, he doesn't wait around during three months of discussion, enabling his enemy and his enemy's allies to prepare to defend invasion.

The examples of this principle are countless; the Confederate States of America in 1861, Germany attacking France in 1914, Germany attacking Poland in 1939, Germany attacking the Soviet Union in 1940, Japan attacking the United States in 1941, North Korea attacking South Korea in 1950. North Vietnam attacking South Vietnam in the 60's, Iraq attacking Kuwait in 1990, and Al Qaeda attacking the United States on 9/11.

In each case, there was little or no warning. In each case there was not three months worth of discussion. The aggressor attacked without warning, and, while most suffered defeat later, the attacks were remarkably successful in each and every case.

Putin has been involved in various discussions with many leaders and his colleagues going on three months now. Ukraine, which has a larger army than the Russian strike force, and Ukraine's allies, the entire NATO alliance, have been preparing for the attack.

Which will never come. Putin is bluffing. He wants security assurances at no cost to Russia, meaning, there will be no invasion. As shown, the cost of invasion is prohibitive, and Putin knows it.

The Times reports, "President Vladimir V. Putin said Tuesday that Russia had decided “to partially pull back troops,” and the Russian Defense Ministry announced that some forces from military districts bordering Ukraine were being sent back to their garrisons, a sign that Moscow might be stepping away from the threat of an invasion.

"The announcement was the strongest signal yet that Russia might be trying to de-escalate the military standoff near the Ukrainian border, but it was far from clear that the threat of war has passed. Military analysts warned that it was too early to make firm conclusions about any troop drawdown without more information."

Yesterday, the White House predicted that Russia will begin her invasion on Wednesday. Today, President Biden said "If Russia does invade in the days and weeks ahead ..."

One last thing. Do I trust Putin? Hell, no, but I trust what I see and know.

Seems you got most of this wrong.
Hitler signed the Munich Agreement in sept 38 and a year later invaded Poland. During the year between he continued to build his military in defiance of the Versaille Treaty. He had played games with Chamberlain for weeks, and always intended war. In March of 1939 he tore up the Munich Agreement and annexed all of Czechoslovakia. Hitler wasn't bluffing, he intended war all along as Europle eventually realized. Putin isn't bluffing either. He only understands strenght.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

When is an invasion not an invasion? That's easy. When the invader has already invaded ... eight years ago.

The White House and the media are having a hard time dealing with an invasion that isn't an invasion.

"This is the beginning of a Russian invasion of Ukraine ..." President Biden announced today at the White House, in response to Putin's decision to send "peacekeeping" forces into Ukraine's eastern breakaway regions hours after he formally recognized Luhansk and Donetsk as independent from Ukraine on Monday.

It is understood that the President must be prepared for all contingencies, however, many are convinced Putin is bluffing. Why wait three and a half months for the enemy to become more prepared and more heavily armed courtesy of its allies? That makes little sense.

What makes more sense is that Putin is trying to get security arrangements on the cheap, not war, but through threats and intimidation. Besides, he is getting all this attention, and he doesn't mind that one bit. On the contrary, he is luxuriating in the world wide attention he is getting.

Biden announced new sanctions against Russia as a result of Putin's latest actions concerning Ukraine.

"A White House official said the sanctions the president announced Tuesday would be "swift and severe." The U.S. is imposing sanctions on Russia's elite and their family members, and a senior administration official told reporters on a call Tuesday that export controls are also being considered," according to CBS.

"Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday that a previously scheduled meeting with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, would no longer take place "now that we see the invasion beginning," CBS.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

When is an invasion not an invasion? That's easy. When the invader has already invaded ... eight years ago.

The White House and the media are having a hard time dealing with an invasion that isn't an invasion.

CNN reports, "US Secretary of State Antony Blinken canceled a planned meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Geneva this week, he announced Tuesday, in the latest sign that diplomatic avenues with Russia over Ukraine are quickly closing."

“Now that we see the invasion is beginning and Russia has made clear its wholesale rejection of diplomacy, it does not make sense to go forward with that meeting at this time,” Blinken said at the State Department on Tuesday. “I consulted with our allies and partners – all agree.”

Here's what is interesting. Putin did not instruct Lavrov to call off the meeting because hostilities were imminent. Blinken canceled the meeting.

The meeting between President Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin is off the table for the time being, White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters on Tuesday.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian announced his meeting with Lavrov scheduled for Friday would no longer occur.

Putin isn't canceling these meetings. Putin wants to talk. How else will he get his security arrangements?

After all, that is what this is all about.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

Russia is already starting to pay.

NBC News reports, "A Russian natural gas pipeline to Germany was delayed Tuesday as the United States and its allies threatened far-reaching sanctions to punish President Vladimir Putin after he ordered troops into Ukraine.

"German Chancellor Olaf Scholz took the first steps to suspend the certification process for the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which would bring natural gas into Europe. It has been built but is not yet operational.

“It is important to launch new sanctions now in order to prevent an escalation and a disaster,” Scholz said at a news conference in Berlin. “These are difficult hours for Europe and almost 80 years after the end of the Second World War, we might see a new war in Eastern Europe.”

He added that it was necessary to “send a clear signal to Moscow that such actions won’t remain without consequences.”

 

[Warcok]

tldr

 

[Sandy Shanks]

As the Russian leader prepares to invade Ukraine, the leader of the Republican Party had only praise for Vladimir Putin.

Donald Trump has a history of supporting Putin ever since the Russian helped Trump win the 2016 Presidential election. So, it is no big surprise that Trump would have high praise for what Putin is doing as the latter prepares for a European war that could rival WWII in its severity.

The leader of the GOP thinks this is a great idea.

ABC News reports, "As Vladimir Putin steers Russia toward an invasion of Ukraine, former President Donald Trump is calling the actions of the Russian president "genius" and "savvy."

“I went in yesterday and there was a television screen, and I said, ‘This is genius.’ Putin declares a big portion of the Ukraine, of Ukraine, Putin declares it as independent. Oh, that’s wonderful,” Trump said.

“So Putin is now saying, ‘It’s independent,’ a large section of Ukraine. I said, ‘How smart is that?’ And he’s going to go in and be a peacekeeper. That’s the strongest peace force. We could use that on our southern border. That’s the strongest peace force I’ve ever seen. … Here’s a guy who’s very savvy. … I know him very well. Very, very well,” Trump added.

Trump's comments were made on Tuesday. They have been endorsed by the Republican leadership by virtue of their silence.

ABC continued, "Trump has long expressed an admiration for Putin, saying on Tuesday that as president, he got along "great" with the Russian leader."

"He liked me. I liked him. I mean, you know, he's a tough cookie, got a lot of great charm and a lot of pride," Trump said. "And he loves his country, you know? He loves his country."

It's true. The Republican has always been in total agreement with the communist dictator.

Concerning Russia's interference in our 2016 election, President Trump sided with Putin in July 2018. He "declined to endorse the US government’s assessment that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election, saying he doesn’t “see any reason why” Russia would be responsible," CNN reports.

“I have great confidence in my intelligence people, but I will tell you that President Putin was extremely strong and powerful in his denial today,” Trump said during a joint news conference in Helsinki.

Iran is a sworn enemy of the U.S. and the West. Iran is a Russian ally. The Iranian nuclear agreement (known as the JCPOA) was an agreement between Iran and the six major powers. It permanently barred Iran from making a nuclear weapon.

President Trump destroyed the agreement in May 2018.

The Republican Party which lost the House, Senate, and the Presidency during a span of two years (2018 to 2020) while under Trump's leadership is expected to win control of Congress in the November mid-terms.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

It's tough being President during a major crisis when the crisis hasn't happened yet ... if it happens at all.

The last five words say it all. The repetition of "ifs," "mays," and "any time nows" along with "imminent" have to be getting embarrassing. Two weeks ago, war was "imminent." It still is. For over three months we have been told the Russian army is poised to invade. It hasn't. One brave correspondent in an attempt to add drama to his reporting said today the Russians are getting closer to the border .

"Invading" a region Russia invaded eight years ago doesn't count, and convincing the world that Ukraine is about to attack Russia is a stretch.

But our President is doing his best as reported by CNN.

"The new US sanctions triggered by Russia’s latest actions in Ukraine included targets that in the past have gone untouched: the family members of those in Russian President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle.

"Denis Bortnikov and Vladimir Kiriyenko, both designated for individual sanctions by the Treasury Department on Tuesday, hold their own prominent positions in Russian business. But both will now have any US-held assets frozen and be barred from dealing with any US persons solely because their fathers serve as Putin’s domestic intelligence chief and as one of Putin’s closest advisers, respectively."

“They share in the corrupt gains of the Kremlin policies and should share in the pain as well,” Biden said Tuesday.

"The sanctions are meant to unsettle a very personal element of the Russian economy, one driven by the reality that Putin’s inner circle and the family members tied to them represent an extraordinary consolidation of wealth and power inside the country," CNN.

Germany took the first steps to suspend the certification process for the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. That is disastrous for the Russian economy.

This is is just a small taste of what is to happen if Putin makes the egregious mistake of invading Ukraine.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

I was wrong.

I did not think that a man as smart as Putin would be dumb enough to attack the second largest army in Europe, his being the largest.

The Guardian apparently agrees as it writes:

Vladimir Putin’s decision to launch a catastrophic new European war, combined with the sheer weirdness of his recent public appearances, has raised questions in western capitals about the mental stability of the leader of a country with 6,000 nuclear warheads.

They worry about a 69-year-old man whose tendency towards insularity has been amplified by his precautions against Covid, leaving him surrounded by an ever-shrinking coterie of fearful obedient courtiers. He appears increasingly uncoupled from the contemporary world, preferring to burrow deep into history and a personal quest for greatness.

After Macron held five hours of talks with the Russian leader in Moscow at opposite ends of a 15-metre table, he told reporters on the return flight that “the tension was palpable”. This was not the same Putin he had last met at the Elysée palace in December 2019, Macron said. He was “more rigid, more isolated” and was off on an “ideological and security drift”.

Maybe this isn't the same Putin I have known and studied for the past 20 years. His decision to start the largest war in Europe since WWII is not rational. His country will pay a steep price.

It is entirely possible that several countries will pay a steep price for Putin's rueful decision.

 

[Sandy Shanks]

Things aren't all bad.

Due to the Russia/Ukraine crisis and subsequent inflation woes, beginning in December the stock market began a free-fall. The stock market went in the toilet in January, and was doing the same in February.

Until today. On the first day that the market had an opportunity to respond to Putin's invasion of Ukraine, the Dow was up 92 points, the S&P up 63 points, and NASDAQ up 436. Go figure.

Also, our President began punishing Putin for his indiscretions.

ABC News reports, "After weeks of warning of "severe" sanctions if Russia invaded Ukraine, President Joe Biden addressed the nation and the world from the White House Thursday in what's unfolding as a defining moment in his presidency as President Vladimir Putin pressed a large-scale attack."

The President withheld some meaningful sanctions as an inducement to Putin to rein in his army.

ABC explains, "Biden announced escalated sanctions to correspond with the escalated Russian aggression, but not the full economic punishment Ukraine and others have called for and none yet on Putin himself, although he did say that option was "not a bluff. It's on the table."

"Putin is the aggressor. Putin chose this war. And now he and his country will bear the consequences," Biden said. "Today, I am authorizing additional strong sanctions and new limitations on what can be exported to Russia. This is going to impose severe costs on the Russian economy, both immediately and over time."

ABC continued, "Biden announced new sanctions on four large Russian banks including VTB and SberBank, additional Russian elites and family members, and restrictions on Russia's sovereign debt to state-owned enterprises, which are companies whose assets exceed $1.4 trillion, to keep them from raising money."

Biden estimated the sanctions would "cut off more than half of Russia's high-tech imports." He said, "We'll strike a blow to their ability to continue to modernize their military. It will degrade their aerospace industry, including their space program. It will hurt their ability to build ships, reducing their ability to compete economically. And it will be a major hit to Putin's long-term strategic ambitions."