All Things Russia & Ukraine

[Typical Lax Dad]

I've pledged allegiance to not to getting dragged back into another Cold War with Russia.
The inevitable ones with China & Iran

Nothing inevitable with either. Unless we CHOOSE to pick a fight with both.

Which is precisely what Trump is doing. Surely you see that.

Might be hard to see it through the support....you know, he was duly elected so he earned the old sailor's support....

[old salt]

You may have noticed that even the (D)'s & the EUroburghers are supporting Trump's get tough policy with China.

Too bad about your Huawei phone.

[old salt]

I've pledged allegiance to not to getting dragged back into another Cold War with Russia.
The inevitable ones with China & Iran

Nothing inevitable with either. Unless we CHOOSE to pick a fight with both.

Which is precisely what Trump is doing. Surely you see that.

Might be hard to see it through the support....you know, he was duly elected so he earned the old sailor's support....

Just as I supported Obama telling Vlad he'd have more flexibility after the election.

[Typical Lax Dad]

I've pledged allegiance to not to getting dragged back into another Cold War with Russia.
The inevitable ones with China & Iran

Nothing inevitable with either. Unless we CHOOSE to pick a fight with both.

Which is precisely what Trump is doing. Surely you see that.

Might be hard to see it through the support....you know, he was duly elected so he earned the old sailor's support....

Just as I supported Obama telling Vlad he'd have more flexibility after the election.

Good for you!

[a fan]

You may have noticed that even the (D)'s & the EUroburghers are supporting Trump's get tough policy with China.

Sure. That's because they're all the 1%, and don't give a rat's behind about financial consequences. They don't have to bear the consequences. They'll just shift their insider info. trades to better stocks. What do they care?

Trump's still responsible, and is the one calling the shots. Don't care what the Dems say.

I said it at the very start. It's the Iraq War all over again: it's simply inconceivable to Americans that we could possibly lose. Our collective stupidity of making this mistake again, and again, and again, and again has become an artform. We should get medals for this century long hubris.

So because we can't conceive that China can simply tell us to get lost, we cheer this idiocy on. Everyone thinks it's no-risk, and all reward. Trying to convince Americans otherwise is like talking to a bunch of children.

I mean come on: didn't you figure out we didn't have a chance the instant leader Trump borrowed $17 Billion from China to give to our farmers just weeks into the first round of tariffs?

Does think, I dunno, kind of show how laughably cr*ppy the cards are that we are holding in this pointless game? And our hope that China will concede pointless concessions to give Trumpy an excuse to claim victory are fading fast..


Oh well. Hope everyone enjoys their inflation.

[a fan]

Just as I supported Obama telling Vlad he'd have more flexibility after the election.

To this day I don't get why FoxNation holds this up as an important soundbyte. Do they think we're all so stupid that we think that doesn't happen in negotiations every single day, between elected leaders all over the world?

Why the heck does everyone think that all our leaders start fundraising the day after they're sworn in?

[old salt]

Just as I supported Obama telling Vlad he'd have more flexibility after the election.

To this day I don't get why FoxNation holds this up as an important soundbyte. Do they think we're all so stupid that we think that doesn't happen in negotiations every single day, between elected leaders all over the world?

Why the heck does everyone think that all our leaders start fundraising the day after they're sworn in?

Good grief ! You even rant when I say something positive about Obama.

[a fan]

I'm not "ranting" at you.

But point taken....even thought I'm no Obama fan.

[dislaxxic]

Surely It's a Coincidence That a Firm Tied to a Russian Oligarch Is Pouring Millions Into Kentucky

Yep, that's Turkey Wattle's home state...

..

[OCanada]

he series of posts on Russia are about as current as they can be. One discussed various appeocahced Russia is using to subvert the west.

This is one example:

LONDON — Russians who were linked to interference in the 2016 U.S. election discussed ambitious plans to stoke unrest and even violence inside the U.S. as recently as 2018, according to documents reviewed by NBC News.

The documents — communications between associates of Yevgeny Prigozhin, a Kremlin-linked oligarch indicted by special counsel Robert Mueller for previous influence operations against the U.S. — laid out a new plot to manipulate and radicalize African Americans. The plans show that Prigozhin’s circle has sought to exploit racial tensions well beyond Russia’s social media and misinformation efforts tied to the 2016 election.

The documents were obtained through the Dossier Center, a London-based investigative project funded by Russian opposition figure Mikhail Khodorkovsky. NBC News has not independently verified the materials, but forensic analysis by the Dossier Center appeared to substantiate the communications.

One document said that President Donald Trump’s election had “deepened conflicts in American society” and suggested that, if successful, the influence project would “undermine the country’s territorial integrity and military and economic potential.”

The revelations come as U.S. intelligence agencies have warned of probable Russian meddling in the 2020 election.

The documents contained proposals for several ways to further exacerbate racial discord in the future, including a suggestion to recruit African Americans and transport them to camps in Africa “for combat prep and training in sabotage.” Those recruits would then be sent back to America to foment violence and work to establish a pan-African state in the South, particularly in South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana.

There is no indication that the plan — which is light on details — was ever put into action, but it offers a fresh example of the mindset around Russian efforts to sow discord in the U.S.

The blueprint, entitled “Development Strategy of a Pan-African State on U.S. Territory,” floated the idea of enlisting poor, formerly incarcerated African Americans “who have experience in organized crime groups” as well as members of “radical black movements for participation in civil disobedience actions.”

The goal was to “destabilize the internal situation in the U.S.”

Frank Figliuzzi, a former assistant director of counterintelligence at the FBI and an NBC News contributor, who reviewed the documents, said that they offer a warning to the U.S.

“Regardless of whether or not these plans are an amateurish thought experiment, the fact that these people are talking about doing this should disturb Americans of all stripes,” Figliuzzi said.

“The unfortunate reality is that we’re seeing an adversary that will consider virtually anything to get what it wants, and if it means violence or splitting America along racial lines or eroding our trust in institutions, they’ll do it.”

Some of the documents appear to have been sent by Dzheykhun “Jay” Aslanov, an employee of the Internet Research Agency, the St. Petersburg-based troll farm that played a key role in the 2016 Russian meddling campaign. Aslanov was one of 13 Russians indicted by Mueller in February 2018 for his role with the IRA.

The plan was shared with Mikhail Potepkin, a Russian businessman, who then circulated it more widely, according to communications reviewed by NBC News.

Both Aslanov and Potepkin have been linked to Prigozhin, a Russian catering magnate often described as “Putin’s chef.” Prigozhin was also indicted by Mueller for funding the IRA. Widely perceived as a Kremlin operative, he has been connected to a shadowy mercenary outfit known as the Wagner Group, whose guns-for-hire are reported to have been involved in Russian military operations in Syria and Eastern Ukraine, according to U.S. military officials.

The Mueller report exposed how Russian trolls, employed by associates of Prigozhin, deliberately inflamed racial tensions by spreading false and incendiary stories to African Americans via social media. Among the objectives was to suppress black turnout in the 2016 U.S. election.

Another of the newly obtained documents is a map of the U.S. overlaid with information about African American population size in seven southern states. Also included are the number of subscribers to websites and social media accounts that were set up by Russian trolls at the IRA to spread race-baiting rhetoric, the latter of which were later removed by the social media companies.

Rep. Val Demings, D-Fla., who was briefed on the documents, said they highlight how ongoing racial issues in the U.S. can be used in misinformation efforts.

“Russia understands how critical the African American vote is to determining the outcome of elections,” said Demings, who sits on the House Intelligence Committee. “And because we have not effectively dealt with racism as a country ourselves, I believe we've made ourselves vulnerable to foreign powers like Russia to continue to try to undermine.”

The documents also discuss how to expand Russia’s clout on the African continent and win business there, from arms sales to mining contracts. They outline propaganda efforts to target Africans and stir up negative opinions about Europe and the U.S.

Cooking up elaborate interference schemes is standard practice within Prigozhin’s circle, according to Andrei Soldatov, an expert on Russian intelligence and author of “The Red Web,” a book on Russian information warfare.

“This is typical of the way Prigozhin and his team operate,” Soldatov said. “They come up with pitches, some of them very ambitious. They discuss many possible ideas and then send the pitches to the Kremlin to be authorized or rejected. It’s their modus operandi.”

The idea of African American statehood has an intellectual precedent in Russia. During the early 20th century, communists in America proposed forming a “black-belt nation” in the South. Some party members traveled to the Soviet Union for training.

“Even though these kinds of initiatives from the Russians aren’t new to us, what is new is the rapidity with which they can get this message out on social media and saturate the American consumer with these kinds of thoughts,” said Figliuzzi, the former FBI official. “That puts the Russian initiative on steroids and should scare all of us.”

NBC News

I will continue to post on the correct Russia from time to time

[old salt]

Oh no ! The Rooskies are using social media for PSYOPS ! How could we have anticipated that ?

Even though these kinds of initiatives from the Russians aren’t new to us, what is new is the rapidity with which they can get this message out on social media and saturate the American consumer with these kinds of thoughts,” said Figliuzzi, the former FBI official. “That puts the Russian initiative on steroids and should scare all of us.

[foreverlax]

Why Did Obama Allow Comey to Brief Trump on the Russian Prostitute Story?

Not one journalist has posed a single question to Obama about what officials in his White House knew—or when they knew it—despite multiple ongoing investigations by the Justice Department and on Capitol Hill.

But Attorney General William Barr might do the work that the news media refuses to do.

Why did the sitting president give the green light to his FBI director to alarm the incoming president with bogus tales of Russian prostitutes and golden showers?

Is there a possibility that the January 6, 2017 ambush by Comey was Obama’s revenge for Trump’s “birther” comments? Is there a possibility that the entire Trump-Russia election collusion hoax was meant as payback for Trump? Will any journalists bother to ask?

Probably not. But it appears that William Barr, thankfully, just might.

So the author suggests this was all pay back....

A better question - why did Trump lie that he had proof that BHO wasn't a citizen, for over 5 years?

[old salt]

Why Did Obama Allow Comey to Brief Trump on the Russian Prostitute Story?

Not one journalist has posed a single question to Obama about what officials in his White House knew—or when they knew it—despite multiple ongoing investigations by the Justice Department and on Capitol Hill.

But Attorney General William Barr might do the work that the news media refuses to do.

Why did the sitting president give the green light to his FBI director to alarm the incoming president with bogus tales of Russian prostitutes and golden showers?

Is there a possibility that the January 6, 2017 ambush by Comey was Obama’s revenge for Trump’s “birther” comments? Is there a possibility that the entire Trump-Russia election collusion hoax was meant as payback for Trump? Will any journalists bother to ask?

Probably not. But it appears that William Barr, thankfully, just might.

So the author suggests this was all pay back....

A better question - why did Trump lie that he had proof that BHO wasn't a citizen, for over 5 years?

Interesting reading this, in retrospect. How to fabricate a disinformation smear campaign to bring down a Presidency.

[CU88]

r's trust o d; but are IDIOTS in doing so:

“I don’t think I have to prepare very much,” Trump said

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/na ... 88206b5c18

[foreverlax]

Why Did Obama Allow Comey to Brief Trump on the Russian Prostitute Story?

Not one journalist has posed a single question to Obama about what officials in his White House knew—or when they knew it—despite multiple ongoing investigations by the Justice Department and on Capitol Hill.

But Attorney General William Barr might do the work that the news media refuses to do.

Why did the sitting president give the green light to his FBI director to alarm the incoming president with bogus tales of Russian prostitutes and golden showers?

Is there a possibility that the January 6, 2017 ambush by Comey was Obama’s revenge for Trump’s “birther” comments? Is there a possibility that the entire Trump-Russia election collusion hoax was meant as payback for Trump? Will any journalists bother to ask?

Probably not. But it appears that William Barr, thankfully, just might.

So the author suggests this was all pay back....

A better question - why did Trump lie that he had proof that BHO wasn't a citizen, for over 5 years?

Interesting reading this, in retrospect. How to fabricate a disinformation smear campaign to bring down a Presidency.

Intel chiefs presented Trump with claims of Russian efforts to compromise him
Updated 5:26 PM ET, Thu January 12, 2017
Intel chiefs inform Trump of Russian claims

And how do you get that out of the article?

[OCanada]

Bogus tales? based on what? Define bogus and why it applies? It seems to me it is only bogus if there is proof it isn’t true. I have seen any it maybe I missed it

[old salt]

That CNN article linked lays out how unsubstantiated purchased oppo, was injected into the intel stream & given the IC imprimatur, so it could then give the MSM the cover needed to publish uncorroborated garbage they could not otherwise publish.

So you gents still agree with the way the Obama Admin (IC, DoJ, FBI, DoS, Clapper, Brennan, Comey, Mccabe, & associates) all handled the Steele dossier ?

Strap in, you're in for a rough ride.

[a fan]

So you gents still agree with the way the Obama Admin (IC, DoJ, FBI, DoS, Clapper, Brennan, Comey, Mccabe, & associates) all handled the Steele dossier ?

No one knows how it was handled.

Get the FISA Judge in question in front of Congress. Same with whomever applied for the warrants.

That'd clear it up.

As of now, all we have are bits and pieces-----and FoxNation's outrage that someone might have been mean to Trump.

I haven't heard a word about anything illegal. If that continues to be the case....no one cares. There is no "strap yourselves in".


How long have you and FoxNation been telling us that morals and ethics in government were drown in a lake like a bag of cats? We point out absurdly unethical behavior, and blatant conflicts of interest, abuse of power, etc.......and all you ever say is "that's not illegal".


"That's not illegal". How many times did you tell us that? So guess what? That's the bar.

Odds of a conviction based on what we've heard so far?

Not high.

[old salt]

So you gents still agree with the way the Obama Admin (IC, DoJ, FBI, DoS, Clapper, Brennan, Comey, Mccabe, & associates) all handled the Steele dossier ?

No one knows how it was handled.
So you don't believe the CNN report I linked ?

Get the FISA Judge in question in front of Congress. Same with whomever applied for the warrants.
Not likely to hear from the FISA Judge. I expect to see the other's before the Senate, if Barr's inquiries don't provide answers.

That'd clear it up.

As of now, all we have are bits and pieces-----and FoxNation's outrage that someone might have been mean to Trump.
The same bits & pieces trail markers I pointed out to you as they dropped along the way.
You dismissed them as FNC outrage, but how many have proven to be accurate ?

I haven't heard a word about anything illegal. If that continues to be the case....no one cares. There is no "strap yourselves in".
There's laws & there's internal rules & guidelines that may not lead to prosecution. Comey, McCabe, Strzok, Page & Baker are all out of their jobs & may still be in legal jeopardy. ....nothing to see here.

How long have you and FoxNation been telling us that morals and ethics in government were drown in a lake like a bag of cats? We point out absurdly unethical behavior, and blatant conflicts of interest, abuse of power, etc.......and all you ever say is "that's not illegal"
Here it comes -- the inevitable ends justifies the means whataboutism - Trump's such a dirtbag, it's ok to bend or break the rules to take him out.

"That's not illegal". How many times did you tell us that? So guess what? That's the bar.
Maybe for elected officials & political appointees, but not for law enforcement, IC & military personnel.
It does not have to be illegal to be a firing offense, grounds for demotion, or a career ender.

Odds of a conviction based on what we've heard so far?
If they lose their jobs & their abuses of power are exposed, that's enough, if a criminal case can't be made.

Not high. As you said, @ now, we just know bits & pieces. The rocks are just starting to be turned over.

[Typical Lax Dad]

So you gents still agree with the way the Obama Admin (IC, DoJ, FBI, DoS, Clapper, Brennan, Comey, Mccabe, & associates) all handled the Steele dossier ?

No one knows how it was handled.
So you don't believe the CNN report I linked ?

Get the FISA Judge in question in front of Congress. Same with whomever applied for the warrants.
Not likely to hear from the FISA Judge. I expect to see the other's before the Senate, if Barr's inquiries don't provide answers.

That'd clear it up.

As of now, all we have are bits and pieces-----and FoxNation's outrage that someone might have been mean to Trump.
The same bits & pieces trail markers I pointed out to you as they dropped along the way.
You dismissed them as FNC outrage, but how many have proven to be accurate ?

I haven't heard a word about anything illegal. If that continues to be the case....no one cares. There is no "strap yourselves in".
There's laws & there's internal rules & guidelines that may not lead to prosecution. Comey, McCabe, Strzok, Page & Baker are all out of their jobs & may still be in legal jeopardy. ....nothing to see here.

How long have you and FoxNation been telling us that morals and ethics in government were drown in a lake like a bag of cats? We point out absurdly unethical behavior, and blatant conflicts of interest, abuse of power, etc.......and all you ever say is "that's not illegal"
Here it comes -- the inevitable ends justifies the means whataboutism - Trump's such a dirtbag, it's ok to bend or break the rules to take him out.

"That's not illegal". How many times did you tell us that? So guess what? That's the bar.
Maybe for elected officials & political appointees, but not for law enforcement, IC & military personnel.
It does not have to be illegal to be a firing offense, grounds for demotion, or a career ender.

Odds of a conviction based on what we've heard so far?
If they lose their jobs & their abuses of power are exposed, that's enough, if a criminal case can't be made.

Not high. As you said, @ now, we just know bits & pieces. The rocks are just starting to be turned over.

Dude don’t have to have done anything illegal to be impeached. Nice to see you have come around.