Another victim .

[LKB]

Alexei Navalny Mourners Arrested in Russia as Putin Cracks Down on Dissent

Sure, Carlson, they've got it SO much better in Russia....

Since Fox booted him, Tucker has been pretty much a fringe character. After years in the media spotlight, such a reduced profile might well be intolerable. He is almost certainly pinning his hopes for renewed relevance on Trump's return to the Oval Office, and kissing the ass  of Donald's good buddy is just one more step towards that spotlight.

[JBS]

Believe it or not, some members of the so-called anti-Imperialist Left are claiming the CIA did it to distract attention from the Carlson interview of Putin.

They don't seem to be the same members of the so-called anti-imperialist Left who claim Navalny was a CIA asset who was attempting a "colour revolution".

[Karl Henning]

Believe it or not, some members of the so-called anti-Imperialist Left are claiming the CIA did it to distract attention from the Carlson interview of Putin.

They don't seem to be the same members of the so-called anti-imperialist Left who claim Navalny was a CIA asset who was attempting a "colour revolution".

It's a good reminder that there really is still a whackadoodle Left.

[Florestan]

Sure, Carlson, they've got it SO much better in Russia....

I've heard a rumor on a Romanian TV channel that Tucker Carlson might run as VP on the Trump ticket. Is that true? 

[AnotherSpin]

At the beginning of the war, there was a long discussion in Ukraine about whether Russians should be divided into "bad" and "good", or whether they were all the same essentially. The consensus seems to have leaned towards the second quite distinctively. "Autocrat" or "democrat", "pro-Putin' or 'anti-Putin", they are all the same colour in the end. The bottom line will come out, if not immediately, then in time. The second option can be worse, as illustrated by the current war.

[71 dB]

Of course we are not surprised Poju, but I could not let this pass unnoticed!

There was nothing wrong with you posting about the news. This was the big news of the day!

Like you I do not have hopes anymore that all will be well in the end, of course it will not.

Things will be better at some point in time, because of fluctuation, but they may not get well in our lifetimes. So what if the World is a great place between years 2367-2481? Good for future generations, but we won't be around to enjoy it!

I am not a cynical, but a realist, that is all what it takes, to realize what is going on in this world. It's all downhill from now on, and that fall started a long time ago.

Is there much difference between being a cynic or a realist given the state of the World? 

[Harry]

There was nothing wrong with you posting about the news. This was the big news of the day!
Things will be better at some point in time, because of fluctuation, but they may not get well in our lifetimes. So what if the World is a great place between years 2367-2481? Good for future generations, but we won't be around to enjoy it!

Is there much difference between being a cynic or a realist given the state of the World? 

Not really, no, but I like the sound of the word better

[Wendell_E]

I've heard a rumor on a Romanian TV channel that Tucker Carlson might run as VP on the Trump ticket. Is that true? 

True, with emphasis on "rumor" and "might". 

[AnotherSpin]

Is there much difference between being a cynic or a realist given the state of the World? 

Depends on age. At the beginning of life we believe the world is going to be forever. At the end, it looks pretty much fucked up.

[71 dB]

Depends on age. At the beginning of life we believe the world is going to be forever. At the end, it looks pretty much fucked up.

I have never assumed the World to go on forever, but I assumed it to go on much much longer than our lives. I was very naive in my youth assuming there won't be any wars in the 21st century, because we have evolved above such barbarism. In my twenties (90s) I started to question this as my knowledge of the World increased, but I still knew very little even 10 years ago! When Trump became the president, I really wanted to understand how it was possible and started following US politics on Youtube. Kyle Kulinski and other political commentators made me understand why Trump won and my knowledge and understanding of US politics increased massively (from almost zero to be fair). It was a shock for me to realize what kind of country the US really is and how it explains what's happening in the World. This and things happening in other countries have transformed me to become the cynic I am today.

In my youth I simply didn't care what happens outside Finland. I hardly even cared about what happens in other parts of Finland! Recent years have taught me what happens on this planet can have significant influence on my life. Conflicts thousands of miles away can make my electricity bill 3 times bigger! A virus leaking from a lab in China can force me to get vaccinated and wear a mask. That's why I am on my toes whenever something drastic happens anywhere in the World. It can come and bite me!

[LKB]

Never despair.

There is always a global danger of some kind, even if mankind is largely ignorant of it... for instance:

The United States and the Soviet Union approached direct military conflict in 1962, and again ( less famously ) in 1983.

Human-influenced climate change has been underway for at least decades, and for most of the period remained unknown, a latent threat stumbled upon only when it was mature.

Despots and dictators, tyrants great and small, have always held power for varying periods in various states.

Wars are a common human activity, and judging from historical and archeological evidence, always have been.

And yet... babies still get born, homes are built, lives are saved, victims are freed or rescued or receive justice, the lonely find solace, the sick are ( sometimes ) cured, music/poetry/ literature/film is brought to life, the hungry are ( sometimes ) fed, and the magnificent instruments of science continue their work of making our universe more knowable.

Never despair, for doing so concedes a great victory to all oppressors, everywhere.

[Florestan]

True, with emphasis on "rumor" and "might". 

I am relieved. 

[AnotherSpin]

I was very naive in my youth assuming there won't be any wars in the 21st century, because we have evolved above such barbarism. [..]

Man has always been and always will be attracted to three things: sex, kills and sweets. Everything else boils down to that.

[Florestan]

Never despair.

There is always a global danger of some kind, even if mankind is largely ignorant of it... for instance:

The United States and the Soviet Union approached direct military conflict in 1962, and again ( less famously ) in 1983.

Human-influenced climate change has been underway for at least decades, and for most of the period remained unknown, a latent threat stumbled upon only when it was mature.

Despots and dictators, tyrants great and small, have always held power for varying periods in various states.

Wars are a common human activity, and judging from historical and archeological evidence, always have been.

And yet... babies still get born, homes are built, lives are saved, victims are freed or rescued or receive justice, the lonely find solace, the sick are ( sometimes ) cured, music/poetry/ literature/film is brought to life, the hungry are ( sometimes ) fed, and the magnificent instruments of science continue their work of making our universe more knowable.

Never despair, for doing so concedes a great victory to all oppressors, everywhere.

Great post, I totally agree.

Actually, we should all take example from the commendable attitude of @AnotherSpin who, although living under daily life-threatening missile and drone attacks, yet he keeps his serenity and lives his life as best he can. This is all the more reason for the rest of us, who live in countries not at war and not in any imminent or prospective danger of being attacked, to do the same.

Actually, there were far worse periods in history that we could have been born in. Otomh, The Black Death, the Thirty Years War, Cromwell's dictatorship, the French Revolution, the US Civil War, the Spanish Civil War --- only a few periods which would have affected most GMGers in a far more negative way than the one we live in.

[Florestan]

Reverting on-topic, it is my firm conviction that, for various inexorable reasons, Russia will never be a rule-of-law state, let alone a democracy. The best we can expect from or hope for her is enlightened despotism --- ideally in the form of Tsarism restored.

[Karl Henning]

I've heard a rumor on a Romanian TV channel that Tucker Carlson might run as VP on the Trump ticket. Is that true? 

He's one of a select number of sycophant hopefuls, to be sure.

[Todd]

Actually, there were far worse periods in history that we could have been born in. Otomh, The Black Death, the Thirty Years War, Cromwell's dictatorship, the French Revolution, the US Civil War, the Spanish Civil War --- only a few periods which would have affected most GMGers in a far more negative way than the one we live in.

Standard Eurocentrism. 

To the topic at hand, this outrageous crime must surely be punished.  The West should impose sanctions like the world has never seen.  This time they will have the desired effect and bring about justice.

[Florestan]

He's one of a select number of sycophant hopefuls, to be sure.

Yes, but VP? That's too much even for Trump. 

[AnotherSpin]

Great post, I totally agree.

Actually, we should all take example from the commendable attitude of @AnotherSpin who, although living under daily life-threatening missile and drone attacks, yet he keeps his serenity and lives his life as best he can. This is all the more reason for the rest of us, who live in countries not at war and not in any imminent or prospective danger of being attacked, to do the same.

Actually, there were far worse periods in history that we could have been born in. Otomh, The Black Death, the Thirty Years War, Cromwell's dictatorship, the French Revolution, the US Civil War, the Spanish Civil War --- only a few periods which would have affected most GMGers in a far more negative way than the one we live in.

Thanks for the kind words, but I don't think the way I live my life can be an example for anyone. I eat too much and would like to lose 10 kilos

[AnotherSpin]

Standard Eurocentrism. 

To the topic at hand, this outrageous crime must surely be punished.  The West should impose sanctions like the world has never seen.  This time they will have the desired effect and bring about justice.

Relax.