In the “Kyiv Independent “…

 …the leader of the Ukraine Parliament, the Prime Minister and the President are asking to fast track Ukraine into NATO.

Ukraine should be made a member of NATO as soon as possible. They have fought and won. It is time to make them safe. 

Candidates for the Michigan Supreme Court. It is not an empty vote anymore.

Candidates to fill two seats on the Michigan Supreme Court (click here) were near unanimous during a candidate forum Wednesday evening: They said they would be impartial judges, not merely politicians sitting on the bench of the state's highest court.

The forum, held virtually by the League of Women Voters and the Jewish Bar Association of Michigan, was an opportunity for voters to hear from five candidates who will be on the ballot this November: Justice Brian Zahra, Justice Richard Bernstein, state Rep. Kyra Bolden, Paul Hudson and Kerry Morgan.

All of the individuals have been endorsed by a political party for the contest — Democrats have backed Bernstein and Bolden, while Republicans have endorsed Zahra and Hudson. Morgan has been endorsed by the Libertarian Party of Michigan....

...Zahra and Bernstein will likely be boosted by their incumbent status, as voters will see "Justice of the Supreme Court" next to their names when they receive their ballots, either on Election Day or during early voting. Zahra was appointed to the court by former Gov. Rick Snyder in 2011 before winning a partial term the next year and a full term in 2014. During the forum, Zahra highlighted his work as co-chair of the Michigan Justice For All Commission, a state-sponsored group that works to ensure equitable access to justice.

"One of the biggest areas of injustice in our civil justice system is when people who have legal problems are denied assistance," Zahra said.

Bernstein, whose family name is synonymous with the Sam Bernstein Law Firm in Michigan, is the first and only blind person to serve on the court....

..Bolden, a state representative whose district includes Southfield and other nearby communities, is in her second term in the Michigan House of Representatives. She is also an attorney, and would be the first Black woman to serve on the Michigan Supreme Court.

Hudson leads Miller Canfield's appeals division. Hudson has argued more than 150 cases in the Michigan appellate system, per his website.

Morgan is an attorney for Pentiuk, Couvreur and Kobiljak. He specializes in a variety of fields, including labor law and municipal law, according to the law firm's website.

While there are two seats on the court that will be decided at the ballot box this November, a third new face will appear on the Michigan Supreme Court before next year. Chief Justice Bridget McCormack has announced her retirement from the court. Whitmer will name her replacement before the end of the year.

Snyder is not mentioned in any proceedings.

Have the payments to the lawyers for Snyder and his co-defendants ended?

September 30, 2022
By Ryan Jeltema

Days after the Flint City Council approved $300 water bill credits, over 28,000 customers got their money. (click here)

Flint Mayor Sheldon Neeley said $8.4 million worth of bill credits were successfully applied to all active water customers in the city by Friday. City Council members approved the spending on Monday.

Money for the credits came from Flint's share of American Rescue Plan Act funding.

"I'm so proud that this administration has accomplished another one of our goals in reducing the cost of water for Flint residents,” Neeley said. “I’m grateful to our staff who were prepared to implement this so quickly following the resolution passing earlier this week."...

September 30, 2022

By Ron Fonger

A federal judge (click here) who presided over a bellwether Flint water crisis trial that ended with a hung jury in August has set the schedule for a retrial in 2023.

U.S. District Court Judge Judith E. Levy published the schedule in an order filed Thursday, Sept. 29, targeting Feb. 22 as the first day of jury selection in the retrial at the federal courthouse in Ann Arbor.

Levy’s scheduling motion also sets multiple deadlines for later this year in preparation for the second trial, including the filing of expert depositions and reports....

September 30, 2022

By Katrenia Busch

Statistics released Friday by the Flint Police Department show a reduction in overall crime from last year.

Murder/nonnegligent manslaughter is down 50 percent for 2022 in comparison to 2021.  First-degree criminal sexual conduct is down just over 70 percent compared to 2021.  Overall crime is down 13.05 percent, according to the city’s Crimestat report.

September 30, 2022

By Ron Fonger

The House of Esther (click here) is asking a Genesee County Circuit Court judge to block the city from selling property that the organization says it has the right of first refusal to purchase — the former St. Agnes Catholic Church.

Paul Taylor, an attorney for the nonprofit group, asked Judge David J. Newblatt for the temporary restraining order in a motion filed Thursday, Sept. 29, just days after the Flint City Council voted down a resolution asking Mayor Sheldon Neeley to halt the sale of the property and the eviction of the House of Esther and the Flint Freedom School Collaborative....

42 dead in Florida is the first count by Ian.

September 30, 2022
By Tim Renaud

Hurricane Ian (click here) officially made landfall at 2:05 p.m. near Georgetown with maximum sustained winds of 85 mph. This is Ian’s second landfall in the United States. It first made landfall in Cuba before taking on Florida’s west coast, making landfall as a powerful Category 4 storm at Cayo Costa near Fort Myers.

Ian collapsed a bridge and isolated two islands in Florida. That is where two of the deaths occurred.

September 30, 2022
By Amy Simonson, Christina Maxouris, Paul P. Murphy, Rebekah Riess and Dakin Andone

Hurricane Ian has left at least two people dead on Sanibel Island (click here) and ripped away several parts of the causeway that was the island’s only access to Florida’s mainland.

On Thursday night, dozens of people remained stranded, according to Sanibel Mayor Holly Smith. At least five sections of the Sanibel Causeway – which connects the barrier islands, including Sanibel and Captiva, to the mainland – were washed away by the storm, Lee County officials said. (Lee County includes Fort Myers in addition to Sanibel and Captiva islands and Cape Coral.)

Twelve people were rescued off Sanibel Island with injuries and about 40 people were rescued without injuries, the mayor told CNN on Thursday. Sanibel City Manager Dana Souza reported the two fatalities....

The world is witnessing the rebirth of Hitler…

 …in Vladimir Putin and his military. Hitler never had nukes. If he did he wouldn’t be as reckless as Putin.

Literally, Putin commits genocide in the name of Russian speaking people and then takes their land for his own purposes. 

He wants to end NATO by repeating the same process over and over. He wants to reconstitute the USSR in the name of Russian speaking people. He is coming. He needs to be stopped now while the people he is supposed to be protecting run from him.

Lavrov is just as bad in trying to defend him and make excuses. The communists of Russia will use every method of propaganda and aggression and death to maintain Putin in power as their puppet president.

Putin and his communists are Hitler and the Third Reich all over again only worse. His annexation is at the cost of genocide and is completely illegitimate. All of it is a war crime.

Evacuate Florida

Begin to open southbound lanes to north bound. 

Ian may very well cross Florida and then scour the entire eastern seaboard of the USA. People need to prepare and move to safety. 

NOW!

The Gulf is not immune. Ian has nearly entered the Gulf waters and is a Cat 3. If it continues to increase in velocity it will increase in size to support those lower central pressures while churning very, very warm waters.

The DIAMETER is as important as the “eye.” Pay attention.

https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/mobile/refresh/MIATCPAT4+html/MIATCPAT4_261456.html

WDSU is reporting hurricane recon plane central pressures of 947 millibars. That is a dangerous storm. Katrina was a Cat 5 at 902 millibars.

North Ossetia?

 https://www.kyivpost.com/world/fsb-at-georgia-border-to-stop-russians-trying-to-flee-mobilization.html

Ossetia was taken as a possession years ago because of the mobilization of tanks by Poland. Now, they want to come to Poland because they are going to be drafted into military service. This is an interesting development. They need to make up their minds about what kind of governance is best.

It is a civil uprising in Russia.

https://www.kyivpost.com/russia/russian-military-registration-and-enlistment-offices-on-fire.html

They are rebelling against Putin’s plans for them.

The Post Soviet states need refugee assistance for Russians as well as Ukrainians. Putin’s generals need to stop this insanity. A neutral delegation needs to travel to Moscow and present all available information to Putin and demand he live with reality.

Putin has been defeated in his special military exercise and now he wants a war. It isn’t going to happen and he needs to stop his brinkmanship. It isn’t working and the world is fully disgusted with him!

Putin should go on permanent vacation in Sochi. He has been president of Russia since 2012. Lenin was president of the USSR for 7 and 1/2 years. Enough of Putin’s mourning for the good ole days. He is up for re-election in 2024. No one will be living in Russia by then. Instead, the Russian speaking people will be living anywhere but Russia.

There is no land left in Europe or the border countries with Russia for entire nations of people to gladly leave their homeland for a chance to stay alive with their families. This cannot continue. 

The people leaving from Ossetia want to be Polish again.

Ian is now a killer storm…

 …as soon as the storms outer bans reached the Gulf of Mexico. From subtropical to category 3 hurricane in less than 24 hours.

It is a strong storm. Basically, it crossed Cuba without a pause. 

In six weeks,…

 Vote!

Charging Stations

All major truck stops for both car and tractor-trailers. Owners of the truck stops profit.

Drive-in Movie Theaters so charging can take place while watching movies. The Drive-In owners profit.

State Rest Areas should have charging stations for autos as well as tractor-trailers. The state profits.

Door to Door

It is said Russian soldiers are going door to door to bring people to vote. There are doors to knock on? But, that is not proof of citizenship. The entire infrastructure of the region near the Russian border is destroyed. Who exactly is voting?

Recruiting people to vote is also pressing them to act. A vote not cast is the same as a no vote.

This is Putin’s strategy. Be it war or voting he kills off people opposed to his point of view and then carries out a so-called democratic process and states it is the will of the people. Really? Who is voting for the dead?

Tax Credits

$5.49 and 9/10 per gallon is damaging the Transportation Industry including Independents. The cost of diesel effects truckers (ie: truck demonstrations), bus companies (including casinos that provide transportation to older citizens) AND, AND Farmers. The USA cannot over look the vital part farmers are playing globally. The cost of diesel is exploitive and a money grab.

The alternative to diesel is biodiesel and it should be made a priority along with a sizable diesel tax credit for commercial and agricultural use.

Any energy bill MUST include a hefty tax credit to bring the cost in line with AFFORDABILITY.

Tax credits for the purchase of electrical vehicles is a must. Going forward Americans will be energy independent with electric vehicles from cars, to pickup trucks, to semis. The tax credit should be consistent going forward year after year. Even when one electric vehicle is traded in for a new electric vehicle a tax credit should apply.

FIRST time homeowners need a huge tax incentive beginning now to purchase their new home. This must occur as the edu at credit is provided. All this is exploitation and greed. We need a User Friendly Senate majority that loves Americans and America to being about the end of greed.

US Senate Warnock should address the issue of Football Concussion that does not put the NFL out of business. Also concussion prevention at the educational level, including the youngest age levels of the sport, high school, colleges and universities. His opposition is a sympathetic figure.

US Senator Warnock should have a clear reason why abortion is between a woman and her doctor of which the best reason is the health of the mother. Physicians always try to protect life. Always. That is what they do. In the case of danger to a woman’s health the decision between the baby or woman is not best decided by government.

Liz Cheney…

 …is spot on. Going forward Americas need to vote for the US Constitution and not bizarre values that will bring anarchy and danger. Voting for an unknown future is just plain dangerous. There is a right way to change ruling laws and a wrong way. Denying an obvious danger to the US Constitution in voting for Republican extremists is wrong. 

Liz Cheney is absolutely correct in her message to the American people. It is obvious Liz Cheney loves the country, the people, and the US Constitution.

I will not be blogging…

 …tonight but a little later. I am traveling and having trouble with WiFi for my laptop. I am not going to spend hours blogging on my phone.

I can’t even use the phone as a hot pot because of heavy cloud cover. I will be home by Wednesday afternoon and will pursue this then.

The elections being held in Ukraine’s occupied provinces are fraudulent and an act of genocide.

Part of the problem in Iran is that the Kurds are oppressed and that is putting it mildly. The Kurds need a homeland. The problem is that no one will provide it for them. They have fought and died for their right to exist in the region, but, they are never provided the land they deserve. They were safe under Clinton’s no fly zone, but, not since. 

The Kurds need a homeland. Turkey has to stop displacing them. It would be a good start.

There have been at least 30 million Kurds spread throughout the region of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey and nowhere are they safe. I blogged this issue before and it was probably a decade or more ago. This is a chronic problem and it needs to be resolved.

I have a limited view of Ian but it appears to be moving northeast. I realize the current conditions have it coming up the west side of Florida. That’s fine, but, given the heat in the Gulf it will spin up over open waters. I think at this point it is wise for the entire Gulf Coast to pay attention.

People along the Gulf don’t react well to surprises. That is one of the reasons there were so many deaths with Katrina. There needs to be awareness that this could be a killer storm with a larger than average degree of uncertainty in its path. Just the size of the storm indicates a large land area of involvement. I would be very surprised to see this storm diminish when it hits the Gulf. That is not a reality expectation. The Gulf needs to be on alert at this point.

Rosh Hashanah is tomorrow, September 26, 2022.

If the Jewish people are ever to be recognized and endeared their holy days must be a part of the American conscience, especially now when White Supremacy is not only sought, but, given equal standing. Hate is on the rise and it must be confronted on all fronts.

Rosh Hashanah will end sundown, Tuesday, September 27, 2922.

Thank you for your interest.

Good night for now. 

More genocide by Putin

Voting held during war is a war crime. Both sides of the war have not held peace talks that have resulted in a joint agreement to allow such a vote. A vote such as this has to be consented to by all sovereign powers and demands a ceasefire.

Holding unilateral votes is nothing short of genocide as land is removed from a sovereign country for its people. Under such conditions people lose the homeland and benevolent government. It is nothing short of a hostile act that increases the danger to the people.

These were the same tactics Putin used in Crimea. The reason there was no resistance then was because Ukraine’s national military was disarmed by Yanukovych. This time the Ukraine national military has regained their sovereign strength and can fight back at Russia’s aggression.

Any voting held will be illegal as a large number of people in the occupied land are dead or refugees. This is very different than the illegitimate vote taken in Crimea. Additionally, Russia has reminded bed a large number of civilians from these regions and relocated them within Russia. Any returning people will be at the choice of Russia. Russia will weigh the outcome of any voting and completely corrupt any voting process.

The voting that Russia is trying to manipulate to change the language in regard to sovereignty is absolutely genocide and an international act of war. Putin in demanding this is the leader of a rouge country and has lost legitimacy to his purposes. Even before the vote occurs, the proposal is genocide by definition and Ukraine remains the sovereign power fighting for its homeland.

This is communist aggression. It can happen to other countries. If the information is correct that I read there is a build up of military aggression along Poland’s borders. Occupying these lands is only a military strategy to carry out greater war against NATO. 

This communist aggression is quickly turning into a regional challenge of sovereignty. Putin is attempting to recreate the failed Soviet Union to advance war against the Free World to attempt world domination by the communists. The entire dreamscape has no basis in international law or even practicality to even attempt it. 

All this aggression has no chance and is nothing but empty brinkmanship and people will die and remain displaced because the communists can’t admit defeat. Russians do not have to die to defend their country because no one is attacking Russia. If Putin continues his genocidal agenda NATO will be forced into it. NATO is not interested in a greater war. That is obvious. 

It was a great speech at the United Nations.

Classic Joe Biden. 

No frills, no deceptions, the truth. 

The world has a problem in Vladimir Putin. He thinks nothing of genocide for his political benefit. He has engaged in a ridiculous paradigm in calling up reservists. How many actually will fight will be a good question. The idea of releasing nuclear radiation into the atmosphere is crazy. There is no other word for Putin but desperate and it is time the Russian people have their way and end this hideous war. It is genocide, the Russian people don't consent to it!

I think I need to read the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) on line (click here). I think there is a lot of politics that overshadows a very important issue.

It is all in the definitions. The truth can be manipulated.

It all depends who is heading up HUD at the White House. It reminds me of the housing crisis during the Reagan years. Chicago is not alone. The entire country is experiencing an increase in homelessness and these are not drunks or druggies, these are people that work in many instances and have children with them.

September 20, 2022
By Maddie Ellis

In 2020, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (click here) identified 5,390 people experiencing homelessness in Chicago.

But in a new report released Tuesday, the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless put forth a different count: 65,611.

The difference is largely due to the difficulty of counting the fluid homeless population and the definitions of homelessness used by federal agencies, definitions that some advocates say keep resources from some of the most vulnerable populations — children and families living doubled up, or temporarily staying with others.

HUD defines homelessness generally to mean staying in a shelter or a place not meant for human habitation, which excludes those living doubled up from its estimate. The agency conducts a point-in-time count of the number of individuals living in sheltered or unsheltered locations, usually occurring in January....

In the case below, Sarah Davis and her daughters are environmental refugees within the borders of the USA.

Children's Defense Fund, State of America's Children 2020 (see link below).

More than a decade (click here) after she and her two daughters were displaced by Hurricane Katrina, Sarah Davis returned to New Orleans. Sarah found a job answering phones for a hotel chain, but she didn’t make enough to cover a security deposit to rent a home. She and her teenage daughters were homeless, only able to rent a small house after a local charity chipped in to cover the initial costs. The family now has a home, but half of Sarah’s wages still go toward housing. To make the rent every month, Sarah and her daughters have to make sacrifices: no vacations, no trips to the movies, no new school uniforms. “I have a lot of guilt because I can’t provide for them the way that I want to,” Sarah said.

Sarah and her children are far from alone. Millions of American families like Sarah’s do not have access to affordable housing. The 2008 financial crisis set off a chain reaction that sparked a nationwide affordable housing crisis. The decimated housing market and subsequent foreclosures pushed millions of homeowners into the rental market; nine million new households entered the rental marketplace over the past decade. As more families sought rental housing, construction failed to keep pace with demand and what new units were built were mostly luxury units in big cities. Rents rose and fewer and fewer families could find adequate housing for a reasonable price. The problem of rising rents was exacerbated by the problem of stagnant working-class wages....

I would like to compare colonialism under democracy and communism.

There is a lot of talk about the United Kingdom Commonwealth and ending colonialism.

13 September 2022
By Afua Hirsch

This will be remembered as a watershed moment in British history (click here) for two reasons. First, for the death of Queen Elizabeth II. Second, for what happened next: the voices of those colonised in the name of the British crown being heard, not as a fringe, exceptional view, but as a clamouring chorus of global trauma.

I had prepared for this moment as a time when I would not be free. I have no idea how I actually feel about the passing of Queen Elizabeth – the only British monarch I have known in my lifetime – because for all my life deference and admiration have been drilled into me as mandatory....

Besides the past year demonstrations where the Royal Family traveled in recognition of the Queens Platinum Jubilee (click here). There is also a reflection of history with her death.

September 13, 2022
By Caroline Houck

Queen Elizabeth II’s death (click here) last week has prompted both an outpouring of grief and complicated reactions across the globe — in large part because during her 70 years on the throne, she ruled over the twilight of the British Empire.

At the height of that empire after the First World War, the United Kingdom had colonies on every continent save Antarctica, ruling one out of every five people in the world. Over the centuries, Britain extracted wealth from those colonized lands — by one estimate, $45 trillion in today’s dollars from India alone.

“All empires were violent,” said Caroline Elkins, whose second book, Legacy of Violence: A History of the British Empire, came out earlier this year. “And the British Empire was no exception to that.”

And decoupling the monarchy from that legacy is in some ways impossible....

There are still real monarchies in the world and the UK is one of them. When Brexit hit, it was more than about the Sterling, it was about being absorbed as a colony to Europe. While the Euro is a strong currency, Brexit was more than economic security. The UK membership brought a lot with it than simply the island country.

Over the years to come the break-up of the Commonwealth will be making front page headlines. The Queen's death isn't destabilizing so much as an opportunity for change.

September 19, 2022
By Lauren Frayer

Mumbai - As world leaders gather in London (click here) today for the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi – head of the Commonwealth's most populous country – is absent.

Seventy-five years after it cast off British colonial rule, India sent its ceremonial president – a woman from one of the country's indigenous tribes – to its former monarch's funeral. As head of state, Indian President Droupadi Murmu's presence adheres to protocol, even though a mix of other prime ministers (heads of government) and presidents and royals (heads of state) are in attendance. Murmu also paid her respects to King Charles III at Buckingham Palace separately, before the service.

Modi's absence could be seen as a sign of his political priorities. Last week, he attended a security summit in Uzbekistan with Russia's Vladimir Putin and China's Xi Jinping. But he's skipping a chance to meet President Biden and others at the queen's funeral, as well as the United Nations General Assembly in New York....

Some of these countries that are colonies to the United Kingdom have been well served and protected. It won't be simple for some to sever their relationships with the UK. The issue of national security and/or economics really is a formula these countries have to meet. I think for the UK, Belize is an interesting example of independence.

21 September 2020
Written by Nicole D. Ramsey

...Becoming an independent nation on September 21, 1981, (click here) Belize is the last country in Central America to do so. Belize’s long road to self-rule is marred with conflicts pertaining to enslavement, land dispossession, and territorial disputes. For example, Guatemala claimed the Belizean territory although Belize was formally declared a British crown colony in 1862. Guatemala’s claim prolonged the nation’s ability to seek independence until the early 1980s. In 1992, Guatemala finally recognized Belize as a sovereign state, although recent developments have led both Belize and Guatemala to take their cases to the International Court of Justice in 2019.

British colonization in Belize, like many places throughout the Caribbean, was invasive and omnipresent. It touched all facets of life in Belize and its Diaspora through culture, politics, education, and memorialization. Antiquated depictions of slavery in Belize have often been represented as benign and less violent than other places across Latin America and the Caribbean, an argument which many Belizean scholars and historians have challenged.

Belizean slavery, although not related to plantations, was still violent and allowed for particular forms of resistance and identity-making to take place....

Separation into a sovereign country is possible and conducted with a coup so much as agreements. When Belize left the British Commonwealth it owned a great deal of money. It isn't as simple as paying off the UK, there are also individuals involved with these small countries and they have certain rights. In the case of Belize it is Michael Ashcroft a former member of the House of Lords.

(Michael) Ashcroft (click here) is also a major investor in Belize and previously served as the Belizean Ambassador to the United Nations from 1998 to 2000.

They are not necessarily draconian folks that take all the wealth and abandon the country they are involved.

A press release has been issued by the Belize Bank, (click here) today Wednesday, March 25, 2020, stating that Lord Ashcroft has spoken to the Prime Minister of Belize and advised him of his donation of BZ$10 Million in efforts to combat COVID-19.

April 10, 2021
By Zoila Palma

...Тhе соuntrіеѕ оwе ‘ѕtаggеrіng’ аmоuntѕ оf mоnеу tо ѕеvеrаl fоrеіgn lеаdеrѕ (click here) аnd аrе аlѕо fасіng сlіmаtе rіѕkѕ аnd thе СОVІD-19 раndеmіс соntіnuеѕ tо hаvе ѕеvеrе есоnоmіс іmрасtѕ оn thеm.

Ассоrdіng tо а nеw аѕѕеѕѕmеnt bу thе Wоrld Ваnk аnd Іntеrnаtіоnаl Моnеtаrу Fund (ІМF), thе соmbіnаtіоn оf dеbt, сlіmаtе сhаngе, аnd еnvіrоnmеntаl dеgrаdаtіоn “rерrеѕеntѕ а ѕуѕtеmіс rіѕk tо thе glоbаl есоnоmу thаt mау trіggеr а сусlе thаt dерrеѕѕеѕ rеvеnuеѕ, іnсrеаѕеѕ ѕреndіng, аnd ехасеrbаtеѕ сlіmаtе аnd nаturе vulnеrаbіlіtіеѕ.”

Тhе ІМF аnd thе Wоrld Ваnk wіll mееt аnd dіѕсuѕѕ wіth dеbtоr соuntrіеѕ, сrеdіtоrѕ, аdvосаtеѕ, аnd rаtіng аgеnсіеѕ tо fіgurе оut hоw tо mаkе nеw mоnеу аvаіlаblе fоr whаt thеу саll а grееn есоnоmіс rесоvеrу.

“Оnе оf thе соuntrіеѕ аt thе сrоѕѕrоаdѕ оf thе сlіmаtе аnd dеbt сrіѕеѕ іѕ Веlіzе, а mіddlе-іnсоmе соuntrу оn thе Саrіbbеаn соаѕt оf Сеntrаl Аmеrіса. Іtѕ fоrеіgn dеbt hаd bееn ѕtеаdіlу rіѕіng fоr thе lаѕt fеw уеаrѕ. Іt wаѕ аlѕо fееlіng ѕоmе оf thе mоѕt асutе еffесtѕ оf сlіmаtе сhаngе: ѕеа-lеvеl rіѕе, blеасhеd соrаlѕ, соаѕtаl еrоѕіоn. Тhе раndеmіс drіеd uр tоurіѕm, а mаіnѕtау оf іtѕ есоnоmу. Тhеn, аftеr twо hurrісаnеѕ, Еtа аnd Іоtа, hіt nеіghbоrіng Guаtеmаlа, flооdѕ ѕwерt аwау fаrmѕ аnd rоаdѕ dоwnѕtrеаm іn Веlіzе,” thе аrtісlе ехрlаіnеd.

Тhе dеbt thаt Веlіzе оwеѕ tо fоrеіgn сrеdіtоrѕ іѕ еquаl tо 85 реrсеnt оf іtѕ еntіrе nаtіоnаl есоnоmу аnd thе ІМF hаѕ саllеd іt “unѕuѕtаіnаblе.”

Dоmеѕtісаllу, thе Веlіzе Gоvеrnmеnt оwеѕ $1.323 bіllіоn іn dеbt, thе mајоrіtу оf whісh аrе іn Тrеаѕurу Воndѕ аnd Тrеаѕurу Nоtеѕ.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) in its recently concluded Article Four consultation with Belize advised the government to work toward reducing the debt to GDP ratio, currently above 130 percent....

So, with those examples in place, the comparison to colonialism by communists is very different. Once colonies of the UK are showing their ability to move forward to independence the relationship actually dissolves, but, business interests remain to help mitigate the problems of the people. 

The easiest example of communism in regard to colonialism is China. Hong Kong and Taiwan are prime examples of how China sees no business interests so much as communist control. Yes, the issue is obvious with Russia and Ukraine, but, it is not so much existing colonialism so much as the desired achievement of the return of colonialism of a Post-Soviet state.

18 September 2022
By Kate Mayberry

Retired Cardinal Joseph Zen was at mass in Hong Kong hours after being charged over a fund that helped pay the legal costs of those arrested in the 2019 protests 

Political activist Alex Chow (click here) has not forgotten the kindness of Joseph Zen Ze-kiun, the retired head of the Catholic Church in Hong Kong, who came to visit him when he was behind bars five years ago.

Cardinal Zen has long been known for his work as a prison chaplain. On the day Chow met him at the Pik Uk correctional centre, a maximum security jail in Hong Kong’s New Territories, the elderly priest had taken a public minibus to the prison, some 40 minutes ride into the hills from the densely-packed city....

...For Chow, jailed for his role in the peaceful 2014 Occupy Hong Kong protests, the cardinal was a source of comfort and reassurance and a much-needed connection to the outside world.

“It meant a lot to me,” Chow, who was later released on bail ahead of the appeal he eventually won, told Al Jazeera. “I could see his genuine concern for others and staunch opposition to injustice. I felt like I was genuinely in his prayers and one of the people he cared about.”

The 90-year-old former head of the Catholic Church in Hong Kong now faces a trial of his own....

Hong Kong is not simply a city as many Americans think of it, it is a country.

COUNTRY PARKS 

Although Hong Kong is one of the world’s metropolises, (click here) out of the total 1 108 square kilometres of land, about three quarters is countryside. Scenically, Hong Kong has a great deal to offer — a landscape rising from sandy beaches and rocky foreshores to heights of almost 1 000 metres, woodlands and mountain ranges covered by open grassland and a variety of scenic vistas rarely, if ever, matched in so small a territorial unit.

The Country Parks Ordinance provides a legal framework for the designation, development and management of country parks and special areas. It provides for the establishment of a Country and Marine Parks Board to advise the Director of Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation on all matters related to country parks and special areas.

A total of 24 country parks have been designated for the purposes of nature conservation, countryside recreation and outdoor education. There are 22 special areas created mainly for the purpose of nature conservation....

Communist China is not that old, while the history of the Chinese people is ancient. The current Communist government of China began 101 years ago.

On July 23, 1921, (click here) thirteen members held their first national congress of the Communist Party of China here, marking the birth of the Party.

The people of Hong Kong have an independent identity from China.

Destination Hong Kong, (click here) a Nations Online profile of the territory, also known as Xianggang, the "Fragrant Harbor."

For more than 150 years, Hong Kong was a colony of the British Crown. In 1997 the British returned the city. Since then, it has been a Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China, a type of provincial administrative unit.

Hong Kong is located on the Pearl River Delta south of the Chinese province of Guangdong and the Chinese city of Shenzhen, surrounded by the South China Sea....

Hong Kong is viewed by Communist China as a threat of which can be invaded by Free World interests with military consequences. Hong Kong was never coveted by the Free World as a military instillation similar to Cuba has been to the USA in the past. The Communists of China have no interest in Hong Kong enjoying self-governance. The Communists of China rather hate the people of Hong Kong and confine their freedoms and rule over them to control all their outcomes. There is no real legal bond on the timeline of history to China by Hong Kong so much as a set of treaties after WWII granting land to China which the Free World had no right to make.

When peace agreements with Japan were made after WWII, China demanded those territories. They were granted to break up any potential of Japan to return to power. The same ideology can be seen when Berlin was divided in four quadrants only to have Russia be the last hold out and the Berlin Wall came down. The Berlin Wall came down because the free people of Germany wanted their entire city and country returned to them. This is a matter of human nature and not of governance. People will fight for freedom because it is their desire and not simply because Communists occupy land near them.

What the Free World witnessed with the violent takeover of Hong Kong is also playing out with Taiwan. Here again, history places no long ties to Communist China of the Taiwanese. It is Communist China that wants possession of the land that is Taiwan based in old treaties that have nothing to do with the modern day world. Today, Taiwan has experienced a strong and devastating earthquake. 

September 18, 2022

This photo provided by Hualien County fire department show firefighters in the search for trapped victims in a collapsed residential building following earthquake in Yuli township in Hualien County, eastern Taiwan, Sunday, Sept. 18, 2022.

Taipei - A strong earthquake (click here) shook much of Taiwan on Sunday, toppling a three-story building and temporarily trapping four people inside, stranding about 400 tourists on a mountainside, and knocking part of a passenger train off its tracks.

The magnitude 6.8 quake was the largest among dozens that have rattled the island's southeastern coast since Saturday evening, when a 6.4 quake struck the same area. There were no immediate reports of serious injuries.

Most of the damage appeared to be north of the epicenter, which Taiwan's Central Weather Bureau said was in the town of Chishang at the relatively shallow depth of 7 kilometers (4 miles)....

There are humanitarian issues now and the question is will China be benevolent or continue a hostile relationship with the people of Taiwan. I am certain the Free World will respond to this earthquake and will China stand down and allow the help to flow in or will there be issues of ideology that gets in the way of people that should maintain their freedom today and in the future?

In comparing colonialism within the Free World and that of Communists there is no doubt to the benevolence of the Free World going forward to these small nations of people. Quite the contrary, the Communists do not view these vulnerable people as having the right to self-governance.

Besides the humanitarian aspect needed for these small nations, they contribute to the global economy. In the case of Taiwan it is the global supply of microchips. I know the Free World can produce microchips, but, will they meet Taiwan's quality or will the change to a different environment in Texas be equivalent?

If there is to be peace in the world it needs participation of all nations of people. When war breaks out it is an interesting time on Wall Street, but, it distributes wealth differently than if the world was at peace. People suffer not just in the war zone but across the globe as the countries involved dedicate a lot of assets to the war effort to protect freedom and democracy. Those assets could be used differently in a world at peace whereby economic ties produce benevolence between countries.

There is also a caution globally now due to the radical measures of Russia with Ukraine. The Free World made contracts and concessions in the past with Russia to attain relationships that encouraged benevolence. Russia threw all that in the garbage dump when it decided to celebrate a day in the Five Year Plan with death of Ukrainians and an invasion to teach every other country in the world a lesson. Russia is still attempting to teach the world a lesson when it is obvious their war is over and the death count is becoming clear. A death count that also includes Russians killed by it's own government.

I believe the world is at an impasse when it comes to peace and war. World War II was fought from September 1, 1939 until September 2, 1945. The world is vastly different now. These ideological territorial wars are getting in the way of civilization. These disputes over islands for the sake of expanding legal boundaries as with China or preserving a form of governance in the way of dictatorship or communism as with Russia is in the way of quality of life on Earth. It is futile to continue to decide the fate of people through war. It is time to recognize history and genetics to be viewed as liberators and an end to war. WWII is causing conflict even today through the limited view of the victors back then and their assumed rights to land that was never theirs. We need to end the World War against peace and bring clear benevolent understandings to all countries and all people. We are capable of placing faith in a strong United Nations, IAEA through proof of truth telling in treaties, and an end to war.

Wow.

Queen Elizabeth II’s coffin (click here) is transported to Westminster Abbey on the day of her funeral....

May she rest in peace.

MAGA Personality Disorder

The radicalization of Trump is predictable. I am fairly convinced he entered office with the agenda witnessed at the end of his term in office. I would like to focus on the people that support Trump and his extremism. I think it is safe to say most of his supporters are among white men. The women may be spouses, but, they are mostly aggrieved by life in the USA after military service.

Let's say a person is a Caucasian man that has served in the USA military, some even in higher ranking and elite units. Sitting in the lounge chair at home with a past of a good paying job and retirement currently and/or permanent disability from the service or not, the issues presented on the internet or on cable television are disturbing. Every military person likes to have purpose in their lives no matter the time or difficulty of their lives. 

"DON'T YA WANT TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT?!"

That is the MAGA American.

Every CAUSE of the unspoken is the follower of Trump. He is and has been willing to sell his soul to anyone that will lend him a vote and carry him into permanent power in the USA. There is no doubt Trump wants permanent occupation of the White House. He is probably convinced he is the only one that can do it, whatever it is. So, the nightmare is true. If Trump were put back into power in the USA he would carry forward every "cure" his followers demand.

Imagine being a Shaman all you life and you are still in your thirty somethings, wouldn't you want to be propelled into power and have a mega-church all your own where money can be stuffed into mattresses and walls for safe keeping? Sure. Absolutely. So, why not attach oneself as a Shaman to an extremist campaign that adheres to ANY belief system so long as it garners more supporters and can elect candidates friendly to "the cause?"

The one extremist problem within the MAGA movement is that they will seek to achieve every nightmare scenario no matter the outcomes. They have no intelligence regarding the issues in the files in Maralago and they have no real solutions, except, they know money and plenty of it will solve their so called problems. So, with Trump in the White House and access to all the best information while hosting the constituency, he is the only one that can do it, no matter what it is. That is why the knowledge he had was not shared with his constituency and is the only reason he has value. He is the only one that will be able to link the intelligence of the USA government to anyone else, hence value.

The communists should be taking notes right now because whatever their plans were after accessing USA intelligence via Trump, it isn't working. That should tell USA enemies Americans think on their feet and not out of files. It is not to diminish the value of the files, it isn't as though the Maralago files are meaningless, it is just that those in power within the USA structure know how to protect the most powerful country on Earth. I didn't say the most virtuous, but, it is the most powerful.

So, I think that explains why Americans are willing to follow Trump. They do believe he is an answer of sorts.

I think QAnon is a problem in our society because there is no doctrine. When one looks to established religions there are doctrines of the church that can be understood. QAnon is a make it up as you go kinda religion. So, in the case of QAnon, there are a lot of emotional components that make it work. Emotionally, this is God. No different than the Robert's Court putting religion before country, that is the type of power within QAnon. If the leader of an established religion states a qualifying requirement, the membership will follow to the best of their ability. That is QAnon to the Trump extremist. Additionally, QAnon is not solidly defined in it's doctrine. So, as an example, if a Catholic goes into a confessional and receives a sentence to absolve the sins before God, that is fairly predictable. Any Catholic knows that after confessing sins to a priest they will be on their knees for awhile after leaving the Confessional. That is not the case with QAnon.

QAnon runs the universe. Not just politics, not just economics, but, the entire universe. So, when it comes to the followers of the faith a lot of abstract ideas can be drawn on to propel the belief systems. QAnon in small populations is fairly benign, but, when attracting large populations while answering all the questions in that population of people with whatever the "here after" says, is very powerful. Basically, QAnon is a national security issue for the Free World. That is not a problem for communists, they simply eliminate the problem, even with legalized euthanasia. 

So, when it comes to MAGA politics, QAnon is willing to be "the spiritual" component to the questionable. Additionally, there is a Shaman in prison right now (click here). What a perfect icon for Trump and his run up to power again. As soon as Trump is in power he can free the Shaman and all will be right with the universe. There are such understandings in the world as political prisoners. I don't identify the shaman in prison as a political prisoner, he is an insurgent to a dangerous mind set for Americans. But as to the QAnon followers and the Trumpies, they want that power. They want to be able not just to be spiritually satisfied, but, also to break every law on the books that gets in the way of "creating" their own perfect outcomes. NOT A PERFECT WORLD, their own perfect outcomes.

Attaching oneself to a belief system that is highly dangerous and destructive is nothing short of a personality disorder. Substance abuse of any kind is not a true life in the sense of purpose or happiness. A human being becomes a slave to nothing that cares about him or her, but, only saps resources that satisfy the addiction. That is why the Free World wants to cure all ills.

The quality of life of any obsessed person is unattainable. Quality of life is not defined as wealth that successfully fulfills an addiction and hence it is not an addiction so much as a habit. That is not a habit, it is being wealthy while suffering from a personality disorder. Does one argue that a personality disorder that allows financial success is a good one to have? Sure. That argument is made everyday somewhere in the USA, but, it is an invalid value system. There are examples of people willing to attach themselves to someone that "will deliver" their own outcomes whether or not it is good for the country.

Eager to offset a Democratic advantage (click here) among so-called dark money groups, wealthy pro-Trump conservatives like Peter Thiel are involved in efforts to wield greater influence outside the traditional party machinery.

Trump is an opportunity. These donors and his followers may see Trump's blind ambition for power as a real solution for their wealth.

One has to look at the million/billionaires and decide when is enough, enough? When do these people hit the billion dollar mark and decide that is plenty for me and then benefit charities trying to solve problems such as United Nations NGOs or the Salvation Army or a non-profit trying to end child poverty or a conservation organization with a handle on the climate crisis with real solutions? The fact of the matter is that the wealthy are in need of the most control they can have in order to keep every penny earned through investment and/or invention. Not that they don't donate. That would never be the truth, but, they donate to satisfy negating their tax balance in any certain year. Also, we know that donations by individuals such as billionaires aren't necessarily making it to those that need that level of help, that is why the tax structure of the government must be insisted upon to bring equity to disenfranchised Americans.

The question is not whether Trump is the answer to all the outcomes backing him, the question is do Americans understand what quality of life is and how to achieve it. In the USA where capitalism exists, the problems such as health care and prescription drugs can be a hurdle for more than a handful of Americans, therefore, government at the federal level has to legislate to bring about the best outcome for all Americans. These common issues are not just solved at the state level, but, at the federal level.

So, are we finally finished with the extremist Republican movement called MAGA? No. MAGA Republicans are not exactly a movement so much as a corrupt aspect of our society that is harmful to the country in general. MAGAs have a problem. Their mindset is dangerous to freedom and democracy. The former Republican Party allowed it, rather than ostracizing it. There are MAGA Republicans today who are just as extreme as even and they do no favor to their constituencies for allowing the lies rather than the truth. Truth telling is a virtue that should be demanded by all Americans. Lies will destroy freedom and democracy.

ONLY TRUTH TELLING RESULTS IN A GREAT COUNTRY WHERE ANSWERS ARE SOUGHT IN REWARD FOR THE TRUTH.

This is a difficult time for all the Free World and not just the USA. We will conquer it. The only question is how long will it take and how much damage is done along the way? 

September 19, 2022
By Alan Feuer and Maggie Haberman

Former President Donald J. Trump (click here) appeared to more fully embrace QAnon on Saturday, playing a song at a political rally in Ohio that prompted attendees to respond with a salute in reference to the cultlike conspiracy theory’s theme song.

While speaking in Youngstown in support of J.D. Vance, whom he has endorsed as Ohio’s Republican nominee for the Senate, Mr. Trump delivered a dark address about the decline of America over music that was all but identical to a song called “Wwg1wga” — an abbreviation for the QAnon slogan, “Where we go one, we go all.”

As Mr. Trump spoke, scores of people in the crowd raised fingers in the air in an apparent reference to the “1” in what they thought was the song’s title. It was the first time in the memory of some Trump aides that such a display had occurred at one of his rallies.

Aides to Mr. Trump said the song played at the rally was called “Mirrors,” and it was selected for use in a video that Mr. Trump played at the conservative meeting CPAC and posted on his social media site, Truth Social. But it sounds strikingly like the QAnon theme song....

"Morning Papers"

The Rooster

"Okeydokey"

There are some nights a person just has to be a friend. Sleep deprived parents aren't always helpful. The circumstances involves a child and I don't feel at ease writing about the particulars here. She is resting. Thank you for any concerns.

I apologize…

 …for what may appear as a lack of interest. There is a lot going on personally that does not lend itself well to blogging. I will be blogging tomorrow.

Right now, someone dear has a 9 year old daughter in the hospital and they are talking kidney failure. It is a difficult situation.

Acute pyelonephritis in children can be turned around with antibiotics if an infection is the cause. At this very moment it seems to be the etiology of the kidney failure. It is a matter of wait and see. But, it is difficult as a parent to accept any of her circumstances.

So that is where I am this evening.

Thank you for your interest and good night.  

MIA/POW

Every September 16th is national recognition of the missing from war and those held prisoner.

https://www.dpaa.mil/

Good night.

Viewing the Late Queen Elizabeth II may not happen as the que line is nearing 24 hours.

The ships are being sold.

August 24, 2022

Madrid - $75-million superyacht (click here) linked to a sanctioned Russian steel billionaire was auctioned on Tuesday in Gibraltar, court sources said, in what is understood to be the first sale of its kind since Russia invaded Ukraine in February.

The Axioma was impounded by the Gibraltar authorities in March after JPMorgan said its alleged owner Dmitry Pumpyansky had reneged on the terms of a $20 million loan.

The 72.5-meter vessel was auctioned by the Gibraltar Admiralty Court through a system of closed bids to be sent electronically by midday on Tuesday, a court spokesman said. The court added that 63 bids had been submitted for consideration, with the selection process expected to take 10 to 14 days.

There was an "unexpected late surge by prospective buyers" around the world for the vessel, Nigel Hollyer, broker to the Admiralty Marshal of the Supreme Court of Gibraltar who led the auction, told the Guardian newspaper last week....

Unrelated? LUKoil is having a very turbulent year for executives. There is something to be said for capitalism under the governance of democracy.

September 14, 2022

The top manager at Russia's Corporation (click here) for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic (KRDV), Ivan Pechorin, has been found dead after media reports said last weekend that he fell out of a motorboat in the Sea of Japan close to the city of Vladivostok.

The KRDV said in a statement that Pechorin's body was found on September 12.

Pechorin's death is the latest in a string of mysterious deaths among Russian executives to occur shortly before or after Russia's ongoing unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.

In early September, LUKoil, Russia's largest private oil company and one of the few corporate voices to oppose to the Kremlin's war in Ukraine, said its chairman, Ravil Maganov, had died in Moscow following a "serious illness," while local media reports said the 67-year-old tycoon had plunged to his death from a hospital window.

In May, Russian media reported that a former top manager of LUKoil, Aleksandr Subbotin, was found dead in the basement of a house in the town of Mytishchi near Moscow....

I doubt a person would fall from a hospital window. Jumped or pushed or encouraged to jump might be closer to the truth. Normally, jumping from hospital buildings occurs when it is on fire. Why was he in the hospital? He thought he was safe? Oh, under the influence of alcohol and drugs. Well. That explains everything, doesn't it? Oh, more like heart failure. Right. Suicide with a knife? Really? Oh, "staged suicide." That is more believable. All these folks are Russian speaking people, right? A little gun violence seems to be at work as well. Falling off a mountain side? Falling off the side of a mountain is not suicide, okay? It just isn't. Who would go through all that trouble to die? First climb the mountain and then walk to a cliff and fall off. That seems like wrong. Okay? This guy loved nature and he went into nature to commit suicide. I would expect the opposite. I would expect he would find peace in the mountains and return home refreshed to face the day no matter what Putin had in mind for his life. Okay? I don't believe ANY of these deaths were suicide. Falling out an open window doesn't happen either. No one goes into a high rise building to enjoy the view so much they simply fall out of the window. I don't buy that one either.

And of all these murders. Dan Rapoport's murder is not being investigated. He just showed up dead in front of a ritzy hotel. That happens everyday, right? It is just one of those, oops, there goes another Russian billionaire kind of death. Well, I don't buy it! He knew and wanted Alexei Navalny to lead Russia. THAT IS A CLUE!

14 September 2022

By Aleksandar Brezar and David Mac Dougall

...The news of Pechorin's death (click here) came less than two weeks after the chairman of the board of Russia's largest private oil company, Ravil Maganov, died in what Russian news agencies cited as an accidental fall from a hospital window.

Initially, a statement by his company Lukoil said Maganov “passed away after a severe illness” on 1 September but did not give further details....

...Maganov appeared to have fallen from a sixth-story window, the reports said. Some sources claimed he tripped and fell while smoking, stating a pack of cigarettes was found by the window. The news site RBK also said police were investigating the possibility of suicide....

...A former top manager Aleksandr Subbotin was found dead in the basement of a residence in a Moscow suburb in May.

Russian news reports said the house belonged to a self-styled healer, Shaman Magua, who practised purification rites.

Magua testified that Subbotin came to his house under the influence of alcohol and drugs and demanded that the healer, whose real name is Aleksei Pindurin, performs a healing ritual for hangover symptoms....

...Only a month before the outbreak of the conflict in Ukraine, a top executive of the gas company Gazprom was found dead in his cottage near St Petersburg.

Leonid Shulman, 60, was found in the bathroom of the house with slashed wrists, local news reported, citing a source.

According to the police authorities, a suicide note was allegedly found next to his body, in which he recounted his suffering after a leg injury -- which Gazprom claimed caused him to take a leave of absence.

The version has been questioned after the Warsaw Institue think tank stated that Shulman, who was the head of the transport service at Gazprom Invest, was involved in a possible corruption case at the Russian gas giant.

The morning after Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February, Alexander Tyulyakov, 65, a senior executive of Gazproms's Corporate Security, died at his home in the same village as Shulman. According to the Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta, his body was found hanged in the garage.

The same newspaper quoted an unnamed law enforcement source as saying that Gazprom's own security unit arrived at the scene of the suicide at the same time as the police and was also investigating the death.

One of two deaths that have taken place abroad is that of Mikhail Watford, who lived with his family in the UK. On 28 February, the Ukrainian-born 66-year-old oil and gas magnate, who also built a property empire in London, was found dead at his home in Surrey.

Watford's cause of death was determined as death by hanging, but his wife and children, who were at home at the time, were unharmed. UK authorities were treating Watford's death as unexplained but not suspicious....

...In March, the bodies of Russian billionaire Vasily Melnikov and his family were found in his luxury flat in Nizhny Novgorod, a city in western Russia.

Melnikov had made his fortune working for one of the medical companies affected by Western sanctions.

According to the Russian newspaper Kommersant, Melnikov, along with his 41-year-old wife and two young children, aged 10 and 4 respectively, died of stab wounds. The murder weapon was allegedly found at the scene of the crime.

The newspaper reported that the oligarch had killed his family before committing suicide, although neighbours and other relatives disagreed with the official version....

...The latest case has taken place in Spain, more specifically in Lloret de Mar, where Russian oligarch Sergei Protosenya, 55, was found dead along with two other family members on 19 April.

The former head of the gas giant Novatek, with a personal worth of €400 million, was found hanged, along with those of his wife and daughter, who were stabbed to death in the family villa.

What was initially classified by the police as a double homicide followed by Protosenya's suicide was later categorically denied by his son.

Several family friends have also come out in public to state that Protosenya is, in fact, the third victim of a "staged suicide" and that the oligarch would have been incapable of murdering his family....

...Just a day before the death of Protosenya and his family, the body of Russian oligarch Vladislav Avayev was found in his Moscow flat, along with the bodies of his wife and 13-year-old daughter. His daughter Anastasia, 26, was the one who discovered the crime scene.

Russian state-owned news agency TASS quoted a source close to law enforcement as saying that preliminary evidence pointed to Avayev -- former advisor to Putin and former vice-president of Gazprombank -- killing his wife and daughter and then committing suicide.

A pistol was found in the oligarch's hand, and the flat was locked from the inside....

...On 2 May, Andrei Krukovsky, the 37-year-old director of a Sochi ski resort owned by the gas giant, died after allegedly falling off a cliff while hiking near the Achipse fortress, the scenic area's landmark monument.

“The general manager of the Krasnaya Polyana resort, Andrei Alekseevich Krukovsky, tragically passed away. He loved the mountains and found peace there,” TASS news agency reported.

The Krasnaya Polyana is one of the most popular ski venues in Russia and was a part of the Olympic complex during the 2014 Sochi Winter Games.

And on 4 July, multi-millionaire businessman Yuri Voronov was found in the swimming pool at his home in the affluent Vyborgsky neighbourhood of St Petersburg with a gunshot wound to his head.

The police retrieved a handgun at the scene, while bullet casings were found at the bottom of the pool, local media reported....

...In October 2021, a Russian diplomat was found dead after he fell from a window of the Russian embassy in Berlin, Der Spiegel reported.

The unidentified man was a second secretary at the embassy, but German intelligence sources told the newspaper they suspected he was an undercover officer with Russia's FSB.

Investigative outlet Bellingcat said it used open-source data to identify the man as Kirill Zhalo, the son of General Alexey Zhalo, deputy director of the FSB's Second Service, responsible for dealing with internal political threats for the Kremlin.

In December of the same year, the founder of nationalist blog Sputnik and Pogrom Yegor Prosvirnin died after falling out of a window of a Moscow apartment building.

Prosvirnin's naked body was found next to a knife and a gas canister after shouts and yelling were heard from his apartment, local media reported....

...And on 14 August, Dan Rapoport, Latvian-American investment banker and outspoken Putin critic who had just left Ukraine after the Russian invasion, was found dead in front of a luxury apartment building in Washington DC.

Police say they were not treating Rapoport's death as suspicious, the Washington-based Politico reported, but the case remains under investigation.

Rapoport became rich while in Moscow before falling out of favour with the Kremlin, mostly due to his support for the opposition leader Alexei Navalny, according to reports.

In 2017, Rapoport's then-business partner, Sergei Tkachenko, also fell to his death from his Moscow apartment's window....

Vladimir Putin is afraid of his critics. All these deaths were of people with a voice in business and government. If enough of his critics were able to raise enough awareness to Putin's war deeds there might be an overthrow of the Putin regime in Moscow. Putin silences his critics. That is what he does. There are poisonings in Europe to confirm that. 

None of these people died because they were distressed. They were all murdered. There needs to be open ended UNSOLVED murders of these cases, especially in Washington, DC. How it is an influential citizen of Russia simply shows up dead in front of a hotel in Washington, DC? I guess Putin wanted to make it plain no one can hide from his power. I would think in Washington, DC with mysterious deaths of Russian speaking people turning up everywhere, there would be at least a warning about the potential and an offer to provide some sort of protection.

These people hang in the balance of peace. They are vulnerable and while loyal to Russia, it is not plain to anyone they are loyal to Putin. One of the peace initiatives of USA policy is the encouragement of human rights and women's rights and girl's rights and prosperity for businesses that operate under the flag of global peace. These people should be at least on a list of vulnerable Russian speaking people by the FBI and/or CIA. They aren't operating as spies to injure the Free World, quite the contrary, they want enough global peace to make money. They should at least have the opportunity to know that the Free World knows their life is in danger.

All these very suspicious deaths need to be listed in the Free World as open ended unsolved murders. Please, let's find these Russian speaking people some dignity out of the wrath of Putin.

There is plenty evidence of Russia's status as guilty of state sponsored terrorism, but, now is not the time.

September 16, 2022

Russia (click here) is now six months into its long-feared full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which began on 24 February when Vladimir Putin announced his “special military operation” in a televised address to his citizens.

Ukraine’s cities have been under attack ever since, with the locals putting up a courageous resistance at street level to ensure the conquest is far from the formality Mr Putin and the Russian military appear to have assumed it would be.

As the country’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, leads by example from the streets of the capital Kyiv, tirelessly rallying the international community for support, his troops are holding back Russia’s armed forces as best they can....

September 16, 2022

Izium, Ukraine - The hundreds of graves (click here) had been cut into the sandy soil of a pine forest, isolated and unexamined for months. A chilly wind blew through the tree branches. Police officers spoke in hushed tones. And newly dug up bodies lay all about on the forest floor.

Ukrainian investigators on Friday began exhuming hundreds of bodies found after Russian forces fled the city of Izium in disarray last weekend. It was the first step in what officials said would be a painstaking process of figuring out how people had died during a three-week siege of their city and the six months of Russian occupation that followed.

The site consisted of around 445 individual graves and one mass grave where soldiers appeared to have been buried. Some had died when a Russian airstrike leveled an apartment building in March, residents said. “Here are my neighbors and friends,” said Serhiy Shtanko, 33.

Among the bodies already exhumed were a family — a mother, father, daughter and two grandparents — killed in Russian bombardments in the spring, Ukrainian officials said....

...He refused and was released, he said. But only a short time later, the Russians were at his door again. This time, they took him along with his wife and 15-year-old son to the basement.

“They tied our hands and put bags on our heads,” said Andriy, who, along with another resident interviewed by The New York Times, asked that only his first name be used for fear of reprisals. “For two days, they didn’t allow us to go anywhere, not even to the toilet, and gave us no food. They tortured me again, but I didn’t confess. After a week they saw it was useless and let us go.”

Andriy’s account, which could not immediately be verified, fits with a pattern of Russian abuses described by residents of the city who remained during the months of Russian occupation. It is also supported by the well-documented behavior of Russian forces during their brief occupation of areas outside Kyiv and other northern cities and testimony by witnesses who have fled still-occupied parts of Ukraine....

I agree with the US Senate bill to name Russia a country that sponsors terrorism, but, the current price to pay for that designation is high and the world's global food supply would be at risk in making that designation. There is no guarantee that Russia will back down from committing these crimes, but, they are all well documented. It would be wrong to inflict further pain and strife on the world due to Russia's unexpected war into Ukraine. 

If Russia backs away from the grain deal there is plenty of reason to apply the terrorist label to Russia.

The USA Senate bill is correct, but lacks balance in recognition of the current state of hunger caused by Russia.

August 18, 2022

By Alexander Ward

...To date, (click here) State officials haven’t openly said anything for or against the House measure, except to insist the ultimate decision rests solely with Blinken and note that current U.S.-imposed sanctions and export controls on Russia are nearly equivalent to what the bill would mandate....

Currently, President Maduro is romancing OPEC to bring income to Venezuela.

Kuwait, June 14 (QNA) - HH Kuwaiti Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah (click here) held an official talks session on Tuesday with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro Moros, who is currently visiting Kuwait. During the session, bilateral relations were discussed, as well as ways to enhance and develop them in various fields, in addition to a number of issues of common concern.

Don't make the mistake that this interest in OPEC is about the Venezuelan people, it is not. This is about power and Russia and Venezuela's potential strike against the USA. While some of any oil and gas proceeds will find it's way to the people, the intention of the Maduro regime is seeking power in the Western Hemisphere.

September 15, 2022
By Timothy Gardner

Washington -  A U.S. State Department official (click here) put pressure on Venezuela leader Nicolas Maduro in a congressional hearing on Thursday, threatening more sanctions if talks with the opposition on resolving the country's long-running political and economic crisis are not renewed.

The talks between Maduro and opposition leader Juan Guaido were last held in Mexico City last year, but yielded little.

The Biden administration recognizes Guaido as Venezuela's legitimate president, having rejected Maduro's 2018 re-election as a sham. Maduro, a socialist, remains in power in the OPEC nation despite tough U.S. sanctions on it oil industry....

February 4, 2019

By Max Fisher

Venezuela’s crisis (click here) has raised questions that could determine the country’s future — and that a far-off news reader could be forgiven for finding confusing.

Juan Guaidó, the opposition leader, has declared that President Nicolás Maduro is illegitimate and has asserted himself as Venezuela’s interim president.

So who is the legitimate leader, how can we tell and who gets to decide?

The United States and several countries in Latin America and Europe have recognized Mr. Guaidó as the rightful leader, and he has called on the military to withdraw its support for Mr. Maduro.

But would elevating Mr. Guaidó constitute a democratic transition or a coup?

The answers to these questions, though urgently important, are not at all straightforward. Here is some help in trying to think them through....

January 4, 2022

The United States (click here) continues to recognize the authority of the democratically elected 2015 National Assembly as the last remaining democratic institution and Juan Guaidó as Venezuela’s interim president. We welcome the agreement reached to extend the authority of the National Assembly elected in 2015 and of interim President Guaidó as its president.

The United States supports the Venezuelan people in their desire for a peaceful restoration of democracy through free and fair elections. The Maduro regime’s pattern of political repression, rampant human rights abuses, as well as severe restrictions on political and civil society actors and freedom of expression have robbed the Venezuelan people of democratic self-determination. We support the efforts of the Unitary Platform and other actors to establish democratic order and rule of law in Venezuela....

The military coup by Maduro is lasting years. It never allowed a change in leadership to Juan Guaido. The most recent elections saw the defeat of the oppositional party in most of the elections held. That is not a free and fair election as the oppositional party has either fled the country or is jailed.

...The exodus of Venezuelans (click here) fleeing repression and shortages of food, medicine, and medical supplies represents the largest migration crisis in recent Latin American history. Difficulty accessing legal status in other countries and economic hardship as a result of measures to curb the spread of Covid-19 have led approximately 130,000 to return since March 2020. Returnees are subject to abuse upon arrival.

Persistent concerns include brutal policing practices, poor prison conditions, impunity for human rights violations, lack of judicial independence, and harassment of human rights defenders and independent media....

...Intelligence and security forces have detained and tortured military personnel accused of plotting against the government. Authorities have tortured various detainees for information about alleged conspiracies. To determine the whereabouts of some suspects, authorities have detained and tortured family members.

During several crackdowns since 2014, Venezuelan security forces and colectivos have attacked demonstrations. Security forces have shot demonstrators at point-blank range with riot-control munitions, brutally beaten people who offered no resistance, and staged violent raids on apartment buildings.

Of more than 15,500 people arrested since 2014 in connection with protests—including demonstrators, bystanders, and people taken from their homes without warrants—some 9,255 had been conditionally released as of September 2020 but remained subject to prosecution. A total of 870 had been prosecuted by military courts....

There is simply no way possible to recognize the Maduro regime as the legitimate president of Venezuela. A continued military coup is the only legitimate statement anyone can make about Maduro's leadership.

November 22, 2021

Venezuela’s political opposition (click here) must rebuild and reflect on its strategy after suffering a heavy defeat in weekend elections, leader Juan Guaido has said, calling for unity among the fragmented movement’s leadership.

The opposition broke a nearly four-year election boycott to take part in mayoral and gubernatorial votes on Sunday, but paid for its failure to put up single candidates against President Nicolas Maduro’s ruling United Socialist Party (PSUV).


Opposition candidates won in only three out of 23 states, while Maduro’s allies won 18 governorships, according to updated election results published by the National Electoral Council (CNE) on Monday.

Maduro’s ruling party and its allies were well-positioned to claim the final two states, while a PSUV candidate also took the mayor’s office in the capital of Caracas. The President on Sunday welcomed the results of the vote as an “impressive” victory that “must be celebrated”....