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Hard to see how they could take an area the size of Crimea in such a short time and in winter, but good luck to them if they think they can pull it off.

It’s not going too well so far.

Apparently the Russians have said that their latest missile and drone attacks were launched because the Ukrainians are refusing to negotiate to find a solution. Putin must be getting very frustrated that the SMO isn’t going to plan.

If the Ukrainians start attacking Russia directly it will just allow Putin to say that Nato and its Ukrainian puppet have finally shown their true colours and left Russia with no choice but to retaliate with its nuclear weapons for this unprovoked aggression. Most Russians would believe him. Even those who are aware of what's going on and currently have some sympathy towards the Ukrainian people would probably fall into line.

He's not insane but he does seem to have one or two character flaws. He doesn't drink though, which is probably very wise given his personality.

They probably left all their ammunition on the other side of the river.

The elections seem to have run pretty smoothly with little or no talk of democrat rigging or republican militia heavies causing trouble at the polling booths. An encouraging sign for some semblance of a return to a normal democratic process in America, and another poke in the eye for Trump and his MAGA followers.

He has also managed to increase the likelihood that tha DOJ will indict him as the political pressure not to will have suddenly reduced.

Yeah, I was rower Gaza 31 in the Argonaut fleet.

Trump hasn’t come out of the election looking as good as he was expecting. Not that he will accept any blame of course, but there are more than a few unhappy Republicans looking in his direction.

If the Special Military Operation Fails and the surviving Russians go home with nothing to show for their efforts Putin will have a hard time surviving domestically. It’s in his interests to keep the war going no matter the cost to the country.

If the Republicans do well he’ll take the credit and if they don’t he’ll blame them for not listening to him. Win, win either way.

A combination of redneck supporters and a bunch of election officials only too ready to scam the system could see him get back in. He wouldn't win in a fair election, but the Republicans are trying very hard to make sure the next election goes their way irrespective of the outcome of the vote.

It will be interesting to see if Garland indicts him. Garland’s position seems to be that the law will be applied irrespective of the political consequences.

I have never understood how people can take the Bible as the literal truth. I’ve always thought they must be people who live with lot of fear. In fact doesn’t the Bible say ‘fear the Lord’? I’m sure their belief gives them a lot of comfort and certainty about their place in the cosmos, but I prefer to live with uncertainty.

`Chief Twit' is a very appropriate description in my opinion.

Yes, they're lucky to have Zelensky at the helm. He has been very adept at dealing with all the Western leaders and using the media effectively to keep the focus on the war effort.

Presumably the US and others are planning to give Ukraine some F16's or whatever they're going to train the pilots on. Given how much western hardware they've already got, Ukraine will probably end up effectively being a member of NATO in terms of integration even if they don't join formally. Putin won't be happy.

Yes but it seems that the number of disruptive kids coming from dysfunctional and fragmented families or have ADHD or have parents who are disinterested in helping their kids with homework, or are abusive to the teachers is steadily increasing. Even our teacher kids say that they never experienced significant levels of classroom disruption when they were that age. And when I was in primary school, the nuns encouraged obedience. attentiveness and completion of homework by liberal use of the strap. Not saying that was great either, but things these days seem pretty bad judging by some of the stories I hear. Not all kids and parents are like that of course, but a lot are.

Two of our daughters are primary school teachers. In reality they are social workers, psychologists, behaviour therapists, negotiators and report writers almost to the point where teaching is a secondary occupation.

He seems to be wearing combat robes. Must be a new addition to the traditional clerical wardrobe.

Sounds more like a warning to me.

Putin’s expression when Trump stood next to him and said he believed him over his own intelligence services was worth watching. Putin couldn’t believe what he was hearing and couldn’t wipe the grin off his face.

Putin will be alert to any jockeying for position going on and it may result in a few more unfortunate accident reports if he feels threatened.

As far as the Republicans are concerned Democracy is too valuable to be entrusted to the will of the people.