Is one antidote to Vladimirâs venom (doping of Russian athletes in the Olympics, invasion of Ukraine, poisoning of his enemies outside Russia, interfering with elections of other nations, âŚ) an international refusal to participate in the World Cup in Russia this June? Can FIFA be mobilized to seek another venue and prepare a cup to poison Putin? Seems a just response. Just wondering.
The UK and every other NATO member needs to freeze any funds and seize any assets (properties) owned by Russians within their borders; there is likely $1 trillion worth in Britain alone, if not more. In no time youâll be hearing Russians scream âdyadya.â Itâs the only thing they understand.
Speaking of which, I wonder if Comrade Cockholster will be instituting those Congressionally mandated sanctions anytime soon?
How did it become possible that we wouldnât have Britainâs back at this moment?
âNo puppet. Youâre the puppet.â
Has anyone ever been to Moscow? I used to go there regularly. Itâs a âshitholeâ. Dank, cold and grey. Evryoneâs drunk and the streets smell like urine. The people are miserable and act like it. Shitty food too. Getting âexpelledâ from there would be a blessing. Ill bet theyâre lining up to volunteer in that British Embassy.
Ask yourself: âwhy would Putin kill this western spy at this time in a way that clearly leaves a trail back to Russia?â How about this: Putin hates traitors and sometimes acts out of this framework. But Putin also has an investment in America (DJT) that is paying big dividends for him in the US and abroad. That investment is threatened by an investigation by R Mueller, and it looks like the investigation may mean trouble. So, for Vlad, time to kill two birds (pardon the phrase) with one stone. He has his black bag team attack Skripal and daughter. He knows that using a nerve agent only Russia possesses leaves no room for doubt about who is behind the assassination attempt. This forces Britain to respond, not as forcefully as they could mind, but severely enough. And Trump? His administration gets to talk real tough at the UN about standing with Britain and condemning the Russians. There is no real impact on Putin, but DJT gets to say, âSee, Iâm even tougher on Russia than Obama. No collusion.â Perhaps that will be enough cover to allow Trump to replace Sessions with Pruitt, fire Mueller (Rosenstein resigns I assume), and end the investigation.
âMaskirovkaâ. Itâs the Russian word for a tactic that deceives, particularly in battling your enemy. The more I ruminate on what has happened, and how it now positions the pieces on the chess board, the more I think Putin is playing the West, particularly the US, with another maskirova.
That may be a bit too complex an analysis. Russia has always thumbed itâs nose at the West from a safe place. Look at the hacking during 2015 and 2016. It was done so loudly thereâs only one explanation: "what you gonna do about itâ AS far as achieving anything. Nope. Russia will never beat the west. Itâs not near powerful enough. In time the quit when the sanctions and pressure get real. Right now they have a shield in Trump but thatâs not going to last as long as Putin thinks and when heâs out the door the backlash against Russia will be very harsh.
I am glad UK is looking into the bunch of other cases where ex spies keep dying, just removing diplomats is far short of what UK needs to do though. Russia is using chemical weapons in their country to kill its citizens, and all they do is kick a few diplomats out?
Why not just poison them? President Bottom Boy wonât utter a peep.
Also, how did the UK place itself in a situation in which the European community is barely committed to the UKâs interests? Putinâs investments in Trump and Brexit are paying huge dividends.
Not just donât have their backs. We fired the SoS and a senior deputy for indicating that we would have their back.
Hey, I can poison anybody I want. Itâs what Emperors do.
This will probably give commander genius a few ideas.
So yeah, Trump does kinda have Britainâs back in the sense of standing behind it with a knife.
RJ - have to disagree. In my opinion Russia never does anything without a longer term goal in mind. If they act out like they are a bully on the street corner it is for some other long term purpose. And I think it is pretty clear Putin believes he can beat the west.
And now more reaction from the Trump administration. From the WAPO just now:
âThe Trump administration on Thursday imposed fresh financial sanctions on Russian government hackers and spy agencies to punish Moscow for interfering in the 2016 presidential election and for a cyberattack against Ukraine and other countries that officials have characterized as âthe most destructive and costlyâ in history.â
So, we have the UN speech by Haley is backed up by the announcement of âfinancial sanctionsâ on Russia. This further gives DJT the soapbox to scream that he is tough on Putin. âNo Collusion!â
But when you look at who these âsanctionsâ target is it really a punishment? 'Government hackers and spy agencies? What exactly are the financial ramifications to sanctioning these people? Ask yourself, would the folks at Langley get in a twist if Russia announced sanctions against them? It is meaningless except as eyewash to help with the domestic politics that may accompany a move on Mueller.