Europe at War

[Florestan]

liberals win popular votes if the "vast majority" are indifferent to their "desires".

What popular vote did liberals win in Russia? I am not aware of any such vote in the whole history of Russia.

[SimonNZ]

What popular vote did liberals win in Russia? I am not aware of any such vote in the whole history of Russia.

The quote wasn't about Russia. It was a sweeping generalization about Europe: "There is no European country in which the vast majority of the people is not absolutely indifferent ...."

[Florestan]

The quote wasn't about Russia. It was a sweeping generalization about Europe: "There is no European country in which the vast majority of the people is not absolutely indifferent ...."

The quote was exactly about Russia, clumsily transation notwithstanding, and it matches Russia to a tee.

What popular vote did liberals ever win in Russia, pray tell?

[SimonNZ]

You...can see the word European there...right?

Forget it. I was wanting clarity, not another argument.

[Archaic Torso of Apollo]

What popular vote did liberals win in Russia? I am not aware of any such vote in the whole history of Russia.

What's your definition of "liberal"? Various reformist and constitutionalist parties did quite well in Duma elections until 1917. I'm too lazy to look up the details though.

[drogulus]

     It's not just the US and UK sending anti-tank weapons to Ukraine, the Swedes are sending their own AT4. It's made in Sweden by Saab Bofors.

     

     

[MusicTurner]

It seems that the Russians are loosing or simply leaving huge amounts of equipment. Besides the poor Russian logistics and tactics, the tanks also seem very vulnerable to a single person armed with such a weapon, or shots from drones. Apparently tanks, at least under the conditions of this war, could be loosing the importance they once had - like the knights did many centuries ago. As a crew member there, you're stuck in a fragile tin can, that can explode any minute.

[Que]

And so it begins...

Fitch Ratings warns Russian bond default 'imminent'

[Mandryka]

And so it begins...

Fitch Ratings warns Russian bond default 'imminent'

What is the objective of all this economic war? How do EU and USA want it to end?

[Spotted Horses]

What is the objective of all this economic war? How do EU and USA want it to end?

Yes, the Ukrainian army is not going to defeat the Russian army and chase them back to Moscow. A stalemate is the best that can be achieved. Either they put Putin in a position where he must accept a face-saving settlement in which he gets something but much less than he demanded, or they hope for regime change in Russia.

[vandermolen]

I completely agree!

+1 I was moved by Zelensky's speech yesterday to a packed House of Commons.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-60664488

[Harry]

+1 I was moved by Zelensky's speech yesterday to a packed House of Commons.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-60664488

He is a true hero in the purest form. I salute his courage and that of the Ukrainian people.
May they survive and conquer. My prayers are with all of them.

[Florestan]

What's your definition of "liberal"? Various reformist and constitutionalist parties did quite well in Duma elections until 1917. I'm too lazy to look up the details though.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitutional_Democratic_Party

They did quite well when the various socialist parties  boycotted the elections. In 1917 they got less than 5 % of the votes.

[Que]

What is the objective of all this economic war? How do EU and USA want it to end?

Even though Putin is not really winning, he holds all the cards. The economic warfare is aimed at balacing this.

[Mandryka]

Even though Putin is not really winning, he holds all the cards. The economic warfare is aimed at balacing this.

So when will sanctions end do you think?

[Que]

So when will sanctions end do you think?

When (if) Russian troops pull out of Ukraine.

[Mandryka]

When (if) Russian troops pull out of Ukraine.

They will be quietly dropped after this story has stopped grabbing the headlines.

[Que]

They will be quietly dropped after this story has stopped grabbing the headlines.

As fa as I know, none of the sanctions imposed right after and since the annexation of the Crimea has been lifted.

[Pohjolas Daughter]

Czech is about the hardest Slavic language, at least in my experience.

Ukraine is basically a bilingual country, with Russian predominating in the bigger cities and Ukrainian in the countryside and the western part (Galicia). However, what a lot of people speak on a daily basis is actually this:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surzhyk

The initial lockdown period was the worst: no business trips, courts in Europe closed, everything dried up. Things have improved since then, but it's still not back to what it was, so I'm having to pursue other gigs in addition.

Not really, since it's been so long. Some years ago I discovered that one of my teachers in Kiev is now living in Philadelphia and running his own business. I've tried to get in contact with him, so far without success.

Mainly, I know a lot of post-Soviet people here in the Chicago area, most of them newish acquaintances. The lady whose house we had dinner at last Saturday is or was a citizen of Belarus, with a Russian father and a Ukrainian mother. A very typical situation in that part of the world, which underscores the fratricidal character of the current war.

Thank you for that link.  Languages are fascinating:  what they reveal about the culture, history, values, etc., are quite illuminating.

Do you and/or your Belorussian friend have any thoughts about what should and can be done to help Ukraine and the area in general?  I'd be interested to hear them.

PD

[drogulus]

As fa as I know, none of the sanctions imposed right after and since the annexation of the Crimea has been lifted.

     Weak sanctions didn't work. Now we'll see what strong sanctions can do.

     Putin can crush Ukraine if he commits elite forces not part of the invasion package. I judge, though, that these units will not be much more capable at the extremely difficult task of urban house to house combat than the invasion force is. When Russians leave their vehicles it's likely they will be scrounging for food or surrendering.

     Putin has to be wary of his military commanders and the security services. Feeding the best Russian troops into the Ukrainian meat grinder could be the last straw. He has to be thinking along these lines unless he's in worse shape than he appears thinkwise.