BruceVC

Oh thats normal for the Russian media which is almost all aligned to the propaganda machinery of the state, I think their is only one independent media house left in Russia But the gaslighting catches up to the Russian apologists and spin-doctors. Yesterday on a SA talk show the Russian ambassador to SA came on the show to " give the Russian perspective ". And he stated its " not a war or an invasion, its a special operation " or something similar But then 2 minutes later when he was being questioned he said " this war is not the fault of Russia " The talk show host asked him " oh so it is a war " ?? The ambassador responded " are you a lawyer " " Oh what a tangled web we weave when we seek to deceive "

I think Biden has handled this Putins War into Ukraine admirably and he has done the right thing on the sequence of steps and comments from the WH Hopefully this will change popular support for him in a positive way in the US because he deserves it

Fair enough, I see what you saying

No but I would be worried about you if you suggested that. The definition of ageism is discrimination against older people, not younger people https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/ageism

But dont you think suggesting our politicians cant be a certain age is ageism? I am not talking about other things in society because the original point was about the age of politicians ? I am asking for your personal opinion

Okay so if someone is 68 and becomes president for a 4 year term what happens when they turn 70 and can they elected for a second term? Because I still think you are suggesting the actual age should be the factor and not cognitive ability ?

Sorry for misunderstanding you, no need to shout I was confused by the words " upper limit ", what do you mean by that ?

How did you know peoples salaries? In SA salaries are confidential and you can honestly be dismissed or get a written warning for revealing salaries and you not suppose to talk about your salary either with other staff for various reasons

Oby had some genius and hilarious comments Remember his " purebred WASP tribes living in mountains in Russia "

Yes but their is a reason people retire at a certain age and its not because of them automatically being incapable due to age. Its about retirement funds and what governments can pay and allowing younger people into the job market which has limited jobs available always. But you dont necessarily have the same considerations with politicians because they come and go based on peoples votes So why would you support our politicians being restricted to a certain age ? Dont you think it should be about their cognitive ability and not their age ?

I was going to give you examples by comments I have read over the last 12 years but I would rather not because it may offend people and thats not my intention I dont put you in that group but their is general sentiment where some constantly refer to the US as "warmongers " but handwave the same thing done by Russia. So for me its about consistency with outrage and criticism

Im a little confused, who are you saying created this mess ?

I thought you were going to stop using zerohedge as your reason for predictions after they have been so wrong ? Their is nothing wrong with the SWIFT system and it wont become weaponized so no need to be concerned. The primary reason it is so effective is because it is used by choice by the majority of banks globally and it works , no one is forcing any bank to use it so you welcome to create your system and try to convince other banks to use it? Also these Russian sanctions have really become so damaging to Putin because the US has slapped Dollar related sanctions on the various Russian banks meaning they cant trade in the $. This is not the same as SWIFT sanctions And this works because the $ is the worlds reserve currency and very stable https://www.investopedia.com/articles/forex-currencies/092316/how-us-dollar-became-worlds-reserve-currency.asp

Remember that some of our forum friends have always thought of Putin and Russia as an alternative to the current Western "hegemony " so the reality of how he is acting now is disappointing and shatters that narrative Now you may immediately ask " why would you want to replace governments that are Constitutional Democracies that have proven to offer historically overall the best quality of life compared to other systems of government " ? And I cant answer that and why people use to think Putin was such an great leader compared to Western leaders, I have never liked him and he has history of irrational and highly controversial behavior Western ideology is not perfect and neither are its leaders but compared to Putin they Mother Theresa

Geez that is ageism 101 and Im very surprised. Hurlshot please dont be a bigot. Old people have a right to dignity the same as the rest of us What would your students think if they found out you pushing bigotry on the Internet ????? You not automatically useless at a certain age unless your mental faculties are not functioning correctly, no need for someone at 70 to not be an effective president

Thanks Gorthfuscious, you make me laugh sometimes Only you could find positive things to say about Putin when globally this is probably the most unpopular he has ever been in his life But I do appreciate the sentiment

@Malcador Malc what does your Russian lady friend think about this whole invasion ?

I just assumed we were all thinking about it

Another serious economic blow to Putin is by putting sanctions on the Russian central bank you directly impact their ability to access their $650 billion foreign reserve war chest which is in dollars and the central bank cant trade in dollars....this type of sanction is very clever https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/feb/27/swift-action-at-last-brings-meaningful-sanctions-against-putin-regime

Radiohead is too Western for him but yes on the Vodka and hot Russian escorts

Congratulations and well done to the Finnish people for making this prudent change of perspective The sooner the better. Its been mentioned before but one of the real consequence to Putins War is to unite the EU even more and to get more countries to want to join NATO @PidescoNow we just need Sweden to want to join NATO and the EU will really be a happy family

GD I hope you paying her overtime, medical aid, UIF, leave pay and ensuring she gets a bonus with no KPI ....you dont want to be seen as greedy, Capitalist abusing his workers and only being concerned with profit !!!!

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-02-28/russian-stocks-plummet-in-london-with-moscow-exchange-shut Okay I must be honest I have never seen such damage done so quickly to an economy as this and its only going to get worse for Russia I wish it wasnt about life and death because its interesting to see how being banned from systems like SWIFT immediately impact any economy. And the West and its allies are not even targeting all Russian banks and companies with sanctions that could be worse. The Moscow exchange shutdown today, wait till they reopen to see further mass selling of shares into this economic maelstrom created by Putins War Putin needs to end this madness and immediately pull the Russian army out of Ukraine

Have you ever asked yourself why the majority of countries that use to be ex-Soviet states couldnt wait to join the EU and NATO? If Russia offered an better way of life sovereign countries like Ukraine would join them like you said Western countries are not just about selling weapons and causing wars, they offer a better quality of life and that works for most people who have lived under the Soviet rule or who look at Putins idea of resurrecting the old borders of the Russian empire and they reject it People outside what you have always known your whole life generally dont think badly of the idea of Western ideology

The threat and reality of a nuclear war is always something to be concerned about. I do think its highly unlikely because it never happened in the 50 years of the Cold War due to Mutually Assured Destruction and in those days you also had mentally unhinged people like Putin in both the West and East but they werent that irrational to doom their countries and or the world to nuclear holocaust so its unlikely it will happen now