Ranxerox

A really good, short speech.
 
 

A really good, short speech.
 
 

A really good, short speech.
 
 

A really good, short speech.
 
 

A really good, short speech.
 
 

International assistance/aid roundup:
 
Of course a number of countries donated money, military assistance, and humanitarian aid before the conflict started. So this is just the last couple of days (and yes, I probably missed a lot).
 
====
EU
 
European Union member countries will supply Ukraine with jet fighters, EU foreign-policy chief Josep Borrell said Sunday. Mr. Borrell said Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has asked for jet fighters that his country’s air force can operate. Those planes would be Soviet-built models, mainly MiG and Sukhoi jets. Some current EU members that were once part of the USSR-led Warsaw Pact still fly such planes or have old ones parked. That's part of a 450 million Euro lethal military aid package.
 
(A Senior advisor to the EU Parliament said those aircraft will be on their way to Ukraine within a couple of hours.)
 
(Slovakia and Poland, for example, both are still flying such aircraft.)
 
https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/russia-ukraine-latest-news-2022-02-26/card/zjCJ5iME2keSkxfiaIpr
or without a paywall
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-02-27/eu-approves-450-million-euros-in-lethal-military-aid-for-ukraine
 
====
 
UK
 
British Petroleum (BP) to end partnership with Russian oil company Rosneft. BP currently owns 19.7% of Rosneft. They're currently in consultations with the UK government to figure out how to divest itself without selling its share to potentially inappropriate buyers. (Without BP resources and technical assistance, Rosneft will likely be partially crippled unless they can find replacement experts.)
https://www.foxbusiness.com/energy/bp-exits-partnership-with-russian-energy-company
====
Poland
 
According to a source, the air-to-air missiles which #Poland has delivered #Ukraine today are mostly R-73 short-range Infrared guided air-to-air missiles which will be used by MiG-29s of #UkrainianAirForce.
https://www.aeroflap.com.br/uniao-europeia-fornecera-avioes-de-caca-para-a-ucrania/
 
====
Sweden
 
Sweden will send military aid to Ukraine, including anti-tank weapons, helmets and body armour, Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson said on Sunday.
"Sweden is now proposing direct support for Ukraine's armed forces. It includes 135,000 field rations, 5,000 helmets, 5,000 body shields and 5,000 anti-tank weapons" Andersson told a news conference.
https://www.devdiscourse.com/article/law-order/1940486-sweden-to-send-military-aid-to-ukraine---pm-andersson?amp
 
====
Croatia
 
About 200 Croatian volunteers arrive to fight for Ukraine
https://dnevnik.hr/vijesti/svijet/dragovoljac-iz-hrvatske-za-dnevnik-nove-tv-o-razlozima-odlaska-u-ukrajinu---697812.html?itm_source=HomeTopRow&itm_medium=Dnevnik&itm_campaign=Naslovnica
 
====
Slovakia
 
Slovakia announces temporary residency, including free healthcare and permission to work, for all Ukrainian refugees - a NYT story that's being tweeted about but I haven't looked up a link.
 
====
Czech
 
After a previous delivery of small arms and artillery shells, Czech Republic sends unspecified "heavy weaponry" worth roughly 16 million euros to Ukraine. (Czech twitter sourced)
 
====
Belgium
 
Belgium will supply Ukraine with 3,000 automatic rifles and 200 anti-tank weapons
https://censor.net/ua/news/3319787/belgiya_postavyt_ukrayini_3_tys_avtomatychnyh_gvyntivok_i_200_protytankovyh_zasobiv
 
====
Norway
 
Norway donates an additional $226 Million humanitarian aid to Ukraine. 
Norway gives 140 million Euros in military aid and equipment, setting aside principle and law not supplying countries engaged in active war with military equipment. 
https://www.vg.no/nyheter/innenriks/i/7dg0mW/norge-trekker-oljefondet-ut-av-russland
https://www.nrk.no/norge/store-holder-pressekonferanse-om-situasjonen-i-ukraina-1.15872013
 
Norway's $1.3 trillion sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest, will divest its Russian assets following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the Norwegian government said on Sunday.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/norway-says-sovereign-fund-divest-180353072.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAADlrsS-RsKE4iXp3S5bJqKES6NZymJ2nl9CCINZILwV7E7StyZ-RphDTik1z1SChxCX3Nru78ztsiJtsQr6UCyjgF9uoJoYgyBP7gzR1Z9d1ehqCERYvnzI5qRQYVMKHB_6jPHLolzE5lCZ7MJu5vPBvzubieUPCouvx-dqxxGLw
 
====
Turkey
 
Turkey to implement Montreux Convention due to Ukraine War. That allows them under international treaty to not let Russian warships transit from the Mediterranean into the Black Sea or vice versa.
 
Russia had positioned a couple of missile cruisers in the Mediterranean to in theory be able to threaten a US carrier group there which could support NATO forces in the Balkans and Turkey plus reach as far as Ukraine. But I'm not sure how long the Russian ships can operate without additional fuel and other resupply.
https://thearabtimes.com/turkey-to-implement-montreux-convention-due-to-ukraine-war/
 
====
Germany
 
Germany to Raise Defense Spending Above 2% of GDP in Response to Ukraine War
2% is the supposed minimum to be a NATO member but Germany in the past hasn't been doing even that much. SO this is a big boost. I guess that's not necessarily assistance to Ukraine but if Putin starts worrying about a resurgent Germany, he might not want to squander all of his forces elsewhere. Some other sources such as ABC say this is a multiyear 100 billion Euro commitment.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/germany-to-raise-defense-spending-above-2-of-gdp-11645959425
 
====
Denmark
 
Denmark will send 2700 MANPATS to Ukraine (man-portable anti-tank systems)
https://www.dr.dk/nyheder/udland/seneste-nyt-om-konflikten-i-ukraine-putin-og-scholz-holder-moede-ved-det-store-hvide
 
Denmark will let its nationals join international brigades forming to fight in Ukraine against Russian forces, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said Sunday.
https://thethreadtimes.com/danish-pm-says-volunteers-can-join-ukraine-fight
 
====
Switzerland
 
Swiss President of the Federal Council: freezing of russian assets 'highly probable' (link in German)
 
That'd be an almost unprecedented step if they actual took a substantial step in an international conflict.
https://www.srf.ch/news/international/krieg-in-der-ukraine-cassis-einfrieren-russischer-vermoegenswerte-wahrscheinlich
 
====
Chechen
 
One of the most famous Chechen leaders living abroad (Ex Prime minister of Ichkeria who has many Chechen supporters from Europe and Turkey) said they are getting ready a Chechen resistance to fight against Russians, Kadyrovists (source foreign language twitter). 
 
Of course it took Russia an immense amount of effort to win the first two Chechen wars in the 1991-2000 era and to install a Russian puppet government there. If things start up again....

Javelin seemed to think that the spear was a big deal, and just because we never really got to see him us it does not mean that he was wrong.

(Link below should be unlocked for non-subscribers)
 
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/25/opinion/putin-russia-ukraine.html?unlocked_article_code=AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACEIPuomT1JKd6J17Vw1cRCfTTMQmqxCdw_PIxftm3iWka3DPDmwfiOMNAo6B_EGKfbd_Zt12xSmAX95IdaIsXvVzyOIZP1BoT0PghKq4r6k_And_r5OvDCRx1ojRXLs8_HjmZGDmJO4hzfjgthmIdWXrXaXA2Xd2cBIx9cQzfA78jicPk63VA6UijIkFqPQiBZF_QzgGYyiY7bK_W1glZoLwPlyL4RI2WupZRTjTgdWZjrsDew5VAl7BJ2httSd-sJgPfYNKY9usakIoa8H8gr4OC2Z3L4fPBpU5RITck7kCoqf70wyUjKV7uQr4KREkMPV9&smid=url-share
 
 

Russia Used Beatings and Tricks to Forcibly Send Rookie Troops to Ukraine, Rights Group Says

I knew he had a contract out on Superman!

Amazon’s overhaul of Comixology ignites concern from comic creators and readers

A Porno-Metal Song About Gay Cowboys Is Disrupting the Anti-Vax Trucker Convoy

"Corporal, we do not use Fuel-Air Explosives to fry a chicken! Do we?"
"Sir! No, Sir!"

Apropos to a conversation someplace else, I would love to see a Disney+ series with Colleen Wing and Misty Knight. If we can include a crossover with Kate Bishop in it, so much the better.

I see what you did there.

They're not sending us their best. They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.

Actually, I think traffic accidents can have some useful comparisons to Covid.
 
Consider: We are told to do various things to make driving safer. Speed limits, traffic lights, seat belts, etc. They do not guarantee you will never have a traffic accident, but make them less likely to happen, and less likely to kill you when they occur.
 
Traffic accidents are also "contagious" in that one person's bad luck or bad judgement can harm other people, too.
 
Suppose 20%, or whatever, of drivers refused to go along with these safety measures. They think accidents can't happen to them. Nobody they know died in a traffic accident, it must be all a hoax. Traffic laws are intolerable, tyrannical assaults on their FREEDOM!!! Or other narcissistic fantasies. They don't wear seat belts, they drive 100 mph, don't signal, etc. Accidents will go up. A lot. And they won't be the only ones who die.
 
Because that's the nub: In traffic and in public health, there's a limit to what you can do to protect yourself. You can never say, "Ha, I'm safe, screw the rest of you." What people around you do matters at least as much as what you, personally, do. It's a social contract: You follow the rules to protect everyone else, and they follow the rules to protect you. It's no guarantee, but everyone's odds get better.
 
So get your jab. Wear your mask. Avoid crowds when possible. Encourage the people around you to do the same. The life they save may be yours.
 
Thus endeth the sermon.
 
Dean Shomshak

The fact that this might be a viable path to the White House is quite disturbing enough.  Thank you.

As opposed to our vacuous overlord wannabes....

The fact that this might be a viable path to the White House is quite disturbing enough.  Thank you.

The fact that this might be a viable path to the White House is quite disturbing enough.  Thank you.

The fact that this might be a viable path to the White House is quite disturbing enough.  Thank you.

Javelin seemed to think that the spear was a big deal, and just because we never really got to see him us it does not mean that he was wrong.

It's so damn frustrating to me, with peoples' attitudes toward lockdowns and preventative measures.  I think of my dad, who lived through the Great Depression and World War II.  Heck, he managed to go to college at the end of the Depression, working at a spaghetti company to help pay his way while taking classes.  Then having to interrupt his studies to go fight in WWII.  When I think of all he had to go through... and I'm being asked to wear a mask, give people their space, and stay in my home.  If that's the worst I have to suffer, geez, I'll take it.  
 
To paraphrase something Robert Fulghum once wrote, people need to realize whether something is a lump in their throat, a lump in their potatoes, or a lump in their breast.

Ohhh, I have a list...