Untitled Document

MAR - 22

U K R A I N E

The Ukraine issue is turning out to be about as divisive as Brexit. Which to me means it's worth trying to understand why.

The logic of what's happened looks to me very predictable and not surprising at all - that is, with regard to how Russia has reacted and then how the West has responded to that.

What is surprising is this:

Zelensky's primary responsibility, like any president, was to protect the security of his country and people. And he has failed MONUMENTALLY.

Russia's requests were reasonable: that if Ukraine wasn't going to keep to the Minsk agreement, then just stop bombing Donbas and agree to remain independent (not in th e EU) and neutral (ie, not in Nato).

Russia made it clear that it had no designs on Ukraine, only that it should work towards being governed through regional administrations; maybe like States in the US. Also that Donbas should remain part of Ukraine, but as one of those administrations.

Having failed to comply with the Minsk agreement, one would think Zelensky COULD have agreed to this, at least provisionally. Thereby saving his country and thousands of lives.

So why did Zelensky expose his country to attack and destruction that was easily avoidable?

And more to the point, why did the West support such an absurd and irrational decision?

These two questions are actually easy to answer, though only make sense from a very cynical angle. One could just assume all these politicians: Zelensky, Biden, Johnson, plus EU leaders... are complete idiots - which from every angle, cynical or otherwise, they are, or else are monumentally dishonest in failing to publicly acknowledge that Ukraine is actually ruled by nationalist Fascists and that the West's politicians are controlled by the arms and energy industries (such is all industries' mandate in capitalist countries).

Zelensky's predicament is clarified by professor Stephen Cohen in the first 5-mins of this youtube interview from 2-years ago.

So, apparently, apart from when Obama was president, the US have been arming Ukraine, which presumably was half-way to Ukraine joining Nato.

Hence, following the 2014 Minsk agreement the US, via it's Ukrainian stooges/Fascists in govt posts, has been waging a proxy war with Russia - bombing Donbas and killing a reputed 14,000 civilians.

Russia (and academics like Chomsky, Cohen and John Mearsheimer, etc.) gave warning over several years, and even when its troops were in position Russia still hesitated, pressing Biden and EU leaders to rescind Nato ambitions in Ukraine.

Only Biden KNEW he wouldn't capitulate and that Russia would be forced to invade, and even tried to predict the very day. Putin didn't know, and probably thought surely that Biden would instruct his puppet Zelinsky to withdraw the Nato option and cease bombing Donbas.

In the end, as I say, Russia had no choice. And the rest is ongoing history.

Two things:

How do Western politicians think Zelensky's position is admirable when it looks to me deplorable? (see below on BIG lies).

And with all the destruction and death going-on, why don't they just all call a truce and discuss the situation rationally?

And it's not as if Russia's demands are unreasonable. Military people and arms suppliers, as I say, will use this as an opportunity to justify their existence and profit from it. Biden is under pressure from these outfits - that's the nature of capitalism. They're going to insist anything they need to - ie, that Russia poses a bigger threat and might invade neighbouring countries, etc., etc. Such notions are clearly absurd, but politicians are vulnerable to such pressures, so now EU countries are also bolstering their military and Nato is calling for greater investment in arms.

No-one is being sensible. No-one in the West has the insight to see where the situation they've created is leading. No-one's talking about the strategic madness of what's happened and that it might be a much better idea for the West to shelve aims that threaten Russia's security and which it will not and cannot accept?

No, instead all they talk about is aggressive response... more arms... more ways to destabilise Russia, which has obviously been Washington's intention from before 2014 even. More arms mean more killing - and for what? Russia cannot lose: Alexander Mercouris explains Russia's brilliant military strategy HERE - Ukraine should surrender immediately.

The propaganda Western media spreads to its populations: that 'Russia is the aggressor' is the reverse of the facts. And Western politicians block foreign media sources that present opposing angles or even objective neutral news and analyses: ie, blanket censorship.

The world will owe a huge debt to India, the Middle East, China, Africa and South America for standing-up to US aims for world domination. The US has this time, it seems, over-reached itself and will fail.

And Western toady politicians of almost all political-colours will be forced to reverse support for the US in its brutal invasions and mass slaughter: Guatemala, Vietnam, Chile, Salvador, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya... and many more:

See William Blum

And this time, unlike Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, etc., the world economy, because of sanctions against Russian energy etc., is taking a massive hit too - an 'own-goal' by the West that will ONLY affect the lives of the poor.... unless maybe, could this be an accurate parallel: quoting Chomsky.

BIG LIES

The bigger the lie, the bigger the yarn or scam to confirm it.

If a kid is confronted for stealing a wallet, say, and the kid is innocent, he'll respond by saying "No, wasn't me.... when are we going out, where's my sweets?"

If he's guilty he'll reply: "I haven't even seen it. But a dog was in here and went out with what looked like a wallet in its mouth. It went down the street.... "

Or some elaborate nonsensical story.

It's the same with religion - that Clive James described as an advertising agency for a product that doesn't exist.

Religion is the BIGGEST lie of all, hence the most elaborate myths, rigmaroles and structures required to convince the gullible masses so they can be controlled and comforted. If religion was true, none of that elaborate humbug would be needed to convince anyone.

AND now, Zelensky - whose actions should be deplored for all the deaths and destruction they's caused - receives rapturous acclaim from Western politicians... to convince the gullible Western masses that he's right to expose his country and compatriots to death and destruction instead of shelving Nato membership and stop bombing Donbas.

What's most astonishing is that most people buy it. How are so many otherwise intelligent people so easily conned? I guess Uri Geller is an expert in that.

It reminds me of Malcolm X's observation of how the media controls totally what people think.

OK

--------------- // ----------------

JAN - 2022

Blue days ahead....

...or blue decades: a continuation of the last 4 (since ~1980) but now with increased momentum having so comprehensively demolished pink 2-years ago?

Even so, I somehow always remain in the PINK un-demoralised. But it is the start of year three from when the final chance of recovering some of what the elites and their knowing supporters (in contrast to their naive propaganda-vulnerable fans) have stolen from us over the past 4-decades was solidly filched by stealth for decades to come. Not that the same mob haven't been robbing us poor for centuries anyway....

And now the Establishment dishes out medals and other meaningless gongs to their delighted acolytes and unwitting supporters. Hence real heroes like Assange who alert the world to elite crimes get banged-up in high-security for many years, while those who partake in genocide - Blair - are awarded the highest honours.... what more needs to be said? - except: what kind of imbeciles are they who fail to see the true situation here and continue to uphold such a decrepit Establishment? OK... the gullibility of the masses, their vulnerability to propaganda from the elites' mainsteam media - ie, the BBC, the Murdoch press, etc., etc. is as bizarre as it is incredible. But it's reality...

Another example of the elite Establishment, remaining as primitive and ruthless as throughout history is the recent conviction of two 'Thatcher children' of the 80s ('no-society' cuts in social services, remember?) for the murder of a 6-year old kid... wasn't just to criticise, condemn and jail them for 20+ years, but how they aim to revise the sentenses upwards. No one asks about their deprived background, or that two happy contented people could never commit such a crime. No one asks if their childhood left them psychologically disturbed and miserable and intellectually compromised, trapped in Tory poverty? Nor does anyone ask why a wealthy politician can order the massacre of thousands with impunity, while a couple of hapless poor are locked-up for decades for killing one through neglect.... aren't such harsh sentences a guily response of an Establishment whose deliberate neglect is the REAL cause of the 6-year-old's death? OK: it's all part of the shaddow of the decadent, degenerate regime we live under.

* * * * *

So, as ever for me, I take diversions and switch away from blueness to pinkness and yellowness and orangeness and greenness... all the colours.

To take a very tacky over-used metaphor, every day presents a chance to follow some little diversion - as going along a road has junctions and forks, so do my days. And once we take a fork there's no actual going back. True, we can divert back to where we would have been, but we can't un-learn the experience of that fork.

As with forks in a road, something attractive leaps into focus and lures us in. And each time we follow something new... hey presto, we learn something new - maybe only that it's an inappropriate fork, but more often it'll be delightful, full of fresh ideas and experience.

I'm not getting any better at selecting or rejecting what's appropriate. What I reject I never quite know. And I've sometimes tried again at some previously rejected route then as soon as I turn a corner found it delightful.

OK, enough metaphor. So my latest is a film I'd been hoping to see but was too stingy to shell-out for the DVD. And now it's on youtube for free.

Tarkovsky's 'Stalker'

see also: 'Exile & Death of..'

	U K R A I N E
	The Ukraine issue is turning out to be about as divisive as Brexit. Which to me means it's worth trying to understand why. The logic of what's happened looks to me very predictable and not surprising at all - that is, with regard to how Russia has reacted and then how the West has responded to that. What is surprising is this: Zelensky's primary responsibility, like any president, was to protect the security of his country and people. And he has failed MONUMENTALLY. Russia's requests were reasonable: that if Ukraine wasn't going to keep to the Minsk agreement, then just stop bombing Donbas and agree to remain independent (not in th e EU) and neutral (ie, not in Nato). Russia made it clear that it had no designs on Ukraine, only that it should work towards being governed through regional administrations; maybe like States in the US. Also that Donbas should remain part of Ukraine, but as one of those administrations. Having failed to comply with the Minsk agreement, one would think Zelensky COULD have agreed to this, at least provisionally. Thereby saving his country and thousands of lives. So why did Zelensky expose his country to attack and destruction that was easily avoidable? And more to the point, why did the West support such an absurd and irrational decision? These two questions are actually easy to answer, though only make sense from a very cynical angle. One could just assume all these politicians: Zelensky, Biden, Johnson, plus EU leaders... are complete idiots - which from every angle, cynical or otherwise, they are, or else are monumentally dishonest in failing to publicly acknowledge that Ukraine is actually ruled by nationalist Fascists and that the West's politicians are controlled by the arms and energy industries (such is all industries' mandate in capitalist countries). Zelensky's predicament is clarified by professor Stephen Cohen in the first 5-mins of this youtube interview from 2-years ago. So, apparently, apart from when Obama was president, the US have been arming Ukraine, which presumably was half-way to Ukraine joining Nato. Hence, following the 2014 Minsk agreement the US, via it's Ukrainian stooges/Fascists in govt posts, has been waging a proxy war with Russia - bombing Donbas and killing a reputed 14,000 civilians. Russia (and academics like Chomsky, Cohen and John Mearsheimer, etc.) gave warning over several years, and even when its troops were in position Russia still hesitated, pressing Biden and EU leaders to rescind Nato ambitions in Ukraine. Only Biden KNEW he wouldn't capitulate and that Russia would be forced to invade, and even tried to predict the very day. Putin didn't know, and probably thought surely that Biden would instruct his puppet Zelinsky to withdraw the Nato option and cease bombing Donbas. In the end, as I say, Russia had no choice. And the rest is ongoing history. Two things: How do Western politicians think Zelensky's position is admirable when it looks to me deplorable? (see below on BIG lies). And with all the destruction and death going-on, why don't they just all call a truce and discuss the situation rationally? And it's not as if Russia's demands are unreasonable. Military people and arms suppliers, as I say, will use this as an opportunity to justify their existence and profit from it. Biden is under pressure from these outfits - that's the nature of capitalism. They're going to insist anything they need to - ie, that Russia poses a bigger threat and might invade neighbouring countries, etc., etc. Such notions are clearly absurd, but politicians are vulnerable to such pressures, so now EU countries are also bolstering their military and Nato is calling for greater investment in arms. No-one is being sensible. No-one in the West has the insight to see where the situation they've created is leading. No-one's talking about the strategic madness of what's happened and that it might be a much better idea for the West to shelve aims that threaten Russia's security and which it will not and cannot accept? No, instead all they talk about is aggressive response... more arms... more ways to destabilise Russia, which has obviously been Washington's intention from before 2014 even. More arms mean more killing - and for what? Russia cannot lose: Alexander Mercouris explains Russia's brilliant military strategy HERE - Ukraine should surrender immediately. The propaganda Western media spreads to its populations: that 'Russia is the aggressor' is the reverse of the facts. And Western politicians block foreign media sources that present opposing angles or even objective neutral news and analyses: ie, blanket censorship. The world will owe a huge debt to India, the Middle East, China, Africa and South America for standing-up to US aims for world domination. The US has this time, it seems, over-reached itself and will fail. And Western toady politicians of almost all political-colours will be forced to reverse support for the US in its brutal invasions and mass slaughter: Guatemala, Vietnam, Chile, Salvador, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya... and many more: See William Blum And this time, unlike Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, etc., the world economy, because of sanctions against Russian energy etc., is taking a massive hit too - an 'own-goal' by the West that will ONLY affect the lives of the poor.... unless maybe, could this be an accurate parallel: quoting Chomsky. BIG LIES The bigger the lie, the bigger the yarn or scam to confirm it. If a kid is confronted for stealing a wallet, say, and the kid is innocent, he'll respond by saying "No, wasn't me.... when are we going out, where's my sweets?" If he's guilty he'll reply: "I haven't even seen it. But a dog was in here and went out with what looked like a wallet in its mouth. It went down the street.... " Or some elaborate nonsensical story. It's the same with religion - that Clive James described as an advertising agency for a product that doesn't exist. Religion is the BIGGEST lie of all, hence the most elaborate myths, rigmaroles and structures required to convince the gullible masses so they can be controlled and comforted. If religion was true, none of that elaborate humbug would be needed to convince anyone. AND now, Zelensky - whose actions should be deplored for all the deaths and destruction they's caused - receives rapturous acclaim from Western politicians... to convince the gullible Western masses that he's right to expose his country and compatriots to death and destruction instead of shelving Nato membership and stop bombing Donbas. What's most astonishing is that most people buy it. How are so many otherwise intelligent people so easily conned? I guess Uri Geller is an expert in that. It reminds me of Malcolm X's observation of how the media controls totally what people think. OK --------------- // ----------------

	Blue days ahead.... ...or blue decades: a continuation of the last 4 (since ~1980) but now with increased momentum having so comprehensively demolished pink 2-years ago? Even so, I somehow always remain in the PINK un-demoralised. But it is the start of year three from when the final chance of recovering some of what the elites and their knowing supporters (in contrast to their naive propaganda-vulnerable fans) have stolen from us over the past 4-decades was solidly filched by stealth for decades to come. Not that the same mob haven't been robbing us poor for centuries anyway.... And now the Establishment dishes out medals and other meaningless gongs to their delighted acolytes and unwitting supporters. Hence real heroes like Assange who alert the world to elite crimes get banged-up in high-security for many years, while those who partake in genocide - Blair - are awarded the highest honours.... what more needs to be said? - except: what kind of imbeciles are they who fail to see the true situation here and continue to uphold such a decrepit Establishment? OK... the gullibility of the masses, their vulnerability to propaganda from the elites' mainsteam media - ie, the BBC, the Murdoch press, etc., etc. is as bizarre as it is incredible. But it's reality... Another example of the elite Establishment, remaining as primitive and ruthless as throughout history is the recent conviction of two 'Thatcher children' of the 80s ('no-society' cuts in social services, remember?) for the murder of a 6-year old kid... wasn't just to criticise, condemn and jail them for 20+ years, but how they aim to revise the sentenses upwards. No one asks about their deprived background, or that two happy contented people could never commit such a crime. No one asks if their childhood left them psychologically disturbed and miserable and intellectually compromised, trapped in Tory poverty? Nor does anyone ask why a wealthy politician can order the massacre of thousands with impunity, while a couple of hapless poor are locked-up for decades for killing one through neglect.... aren't such harsh sentences a guily response of an Establishment whose deliberate neglect is the REAL cause of the 6-year-old's death? OK: it's all part of the shaddow of the decadent, degenerate regime we live under. * * * * * So, as ever for me, I take diversions and switch away from blueness to pinkness and yellowness and orangeness and greenness... all the colours. To take a very tacky over-used metaphor, every day presents a chance to follow some little diversion - as going along a road has junctions and forks, so do my days. And once we take a fork there's no actual going back. True, we can divert back to where we would have been, but we can't un-learn the experience of that fork. As with forks in a road, something attractive leaps into focus and lures us in. And each time we follow something new... hey presto, we learn something new - maybe only that it's an inappropriate fork, but more often it'll be delightful, full of fresh ideas and experience. I'm not getting any better at selecting or rejecting what's appropriate. What I reject I never quite know. And I've sometimes tried again at some previously rejected route then as soon as I turn a corner found it delightful. OK, enough metaphor. So my latest is a film I'd been hoping to see but was too stingy to shell-out for the DVD. And now it's on youtube for free. Tarkovsky's 'Stalker' see also: 'Exile & Death of..'