I think we steered a bit off-topic this morning ...
Hoping to end this sidetrack:
Germany's mass murder of Jews far exceeds the total of German civilians killed by all Soviet action. Even if you count the several hundred thousands of Germans soldiers who died as Soviet POWs, the number is still dwarfed by the murder of Jewish civilians -- and then, you must set it against MILLIONS of Soviet soldiers who died as prisoners of the Germans.
And people often forget that the slaughter of Jews was only one phase of Nazi murder of civilians. The total of gypsies, disabled and homosexuals murder likely reaches half a million. Almost two million non-Jewish Polish civilians died from Nazi persecution. Perhaps ten million non-Jewish Soviet civilians were killed by German military action, ethnic cleansing, slave labor, and mass slaughter (in similar fashion to mass murder of Jews).
Etched upon my mind is testimony I saw in a documentary from a German man who was elderly by the time of the interview, but still quite handsome. After the fighting ended, he was required* to help take care of survivors in one of the Nazi concentration camps. He saw eight children among the survivors. He said (with tears in his eyes), "when people talk about millions of Germans who died after the war, all I can say is that even if those eight were the only children who were ever in the camps, it was the most terrible thing that has ever been." [Not word-for-word, going from memory of years ago.]
*He had joined the SS around the time of Hitler's election, and quit within a couple of years. He was not present for the mass persecutions of civilians by the SS. However, after the war SS officers were compelled by occupation authorities to go help out in the camps, and he was included because his name was on the SS rolls.
Muslim Chechens, and Tatars are behind the Malaysian plane flight MH 370 hijacked and steered off-course Investigators have concluded . Flight MH370 was taken over by hijackers with the intention of flying and landing in a remote desert region in either Turkmenistan or another remote lawless islamic region in the Northern Pakistan area with the intention of re fuelling, and re launching the plane to be used as a weapon against a major Russian city in a 9/11 type attrocity
"Muslim Chechens, and Tatars are behind the Malaysian plane flight MH 370 hijacked and steered off-course Investigators have concluded . Flight MH370 was taken over by hijackers with the intention of flying and landing in a remote desert region in either Turkmenistan or another remote lawless islamic region in the Northern Pakistan area with the intention of re fuelling, and re launching the plane to be used as a weapon against a major Russian city in a 9/11 type attrocity"
With my background in aviation I've been following the MH370 situ quite closely, as recently as an hour ago, and this is the first I've heard of this!
You mean they couldn't hijack an aircraft nearer to Moscow and without a need to stop for a refuel at which point it's unlikely that they would have been allowed to proceed any further never mind the fact that they would have let the world know there was a hijacked airliner heading towards Moscow with more than sufficient time for Russia to shoot the aircraft down..
Durak,LR,
She is 41 years old.Beemer i appreciate your reply it is definitely noted. I have never told her yet that one of my hobbies is WW2 reenacting. It is strictly tactical and nothing political. I reenact with a large group of people down to the correct socks and underwear.We do mock battles against the Allies and Russians and Ukrainians with blanks and tanks etc. My group represents the 3rd SS Totenkopf Division which basically were wiped out in feirce fighting against the russians. Should i send her a photo of me in my tunic to close the deal ))))))))!
It's helpful, that you posted her age. This means that all of her primary and secondary education was in the Soviet Union. Until she started university, everything she knew about the world (with probably near zero exceptions, because access to the outside was so tightly controlled) was the "official line" -- the whole Soviet mythology.
I think it likely that all countries teach propagandized history to at least some extent -- but in most places, people have some opportunity to learn alternative views.
Probably, she new nothing about Soviet atrocities before adulthood. But she was taught to worship the holy struggle against the fascists.
In the Soviet Union, all students were required to take standardized exams at the end of secondary school -- passing them was necessary to go on to university. There was one class (year) of Soviet students for which the History exam was cancelled, because during the reforms of perestroika, it had to be admitted that the history Soviet students had taught was so warped and full of fiction, that it would be pointless to test how well they had learned the lies.
sunvolt's lady probably missed that by only a year or so.
Until today, I thought it likely that Russia's rape and mutiliation of Ukraine would end with Crimea's annexation.
However, my interpretation of news reports is that Russia is actively preparing for military invasion of eastern Ukraine. Significantly, unlike Crimea where a large percentage of the population (perhaps less than half, but likely a third or more) think of themselves as Russian or want to be part of Russia ... eastern Ukrainians are much more committed to Ukrainian national unity (even if they are culturally Russian). Russian theft of this territory would (if my opinion data is correct) take place against the objection of a considerable majority of its residents.
We'll know on Monday. If Russia continues its strong-arm tactics in east Ukraine after Sunday's referendum in Crimea (for example, beating and killing non-violent pro-Ukraine protesters, and then publishing reports the Ukrainian patriots attacked pro-Russians), then it will be more likely than not that Russian and Ukraine are soon at war.
Today -- perhaps within the past hour or two -- Russian military forces siezed a natural gas pumping station in Kherson Oblast, OUTSIDE of Crimea.
Reportedly, Ukrainian military forces surrounded the pumping station. Its status at this time is not clear to me.
Reportedly, no shots have been fired.
I suspect that this is a deliberate provocation -- Russia knows that in the eyes of most of the world, its theft of Crimea will be recognized as a criminal act. So Russia would love to trick Ukraine into violence now, to bolster their argument that they are "rescuing" Crimea from those hideous oppressive Ukrainians. It is a desperate attempt to give a veneer of legitimacy.
Ukrainian patriots seem to be wise to Russia's tactics (they know what happened in Georgia 5 1/2 years ago), and I am deeply impressed by the dignity and restraint they have shown in the face of tormenting provocations.
It will, of course, be free and fair -- if you ask Putin.
I just read in Foreign Policy magazine, an article whose author knows a political activist in Crimea, who has been organizing demonstrations for Ukrainian unity. A few days ago this activist, his son, and two of his colleagues "disappeared."
He wrote: "A few days later I had an opportunity to ask Dmitri Polonsky, the new Crimean minister of information, what had happened to the Ukrainian activists. His response was utterly Orwellian: 'There is no Ukrainian community in the Crimea, so there are no missing community leaders.'"
Many ethnic Ukrainians and Tatars will boycott the election, rather than confer any legitimacy on this sham by voting. But just in case, Crimean "officials" having been seizing the internal passports from Crimeans who are not ethnic Russians, meaning they couldn't vote anyway.
This is the throwback regime Putin is imposing on Ukraine.
It's rare that I feel inspired by any action of the US congress -- but today 8 United States Senators visited Kyiv, including very brief speeches and answering a few press questions.
This gave me more hope that the USA will support Ukraine through its hard times. Ain't gonna lie to you, I teared up.
I saw this on CSPAN, which also showed the meeting of the UN Security Council today, where Russia (as expected) vetoed a draft resolution calling mainly for respect of Ukraine's territorial integrity.
Some of the remarks were quite powerful, especially from the ambassadors of France and Ukraine.
22 years of indifference....... a photo opportunity, turn around and the Americans will be gone again. unable to sustain a campaign longer than a 30 minute situation comedy. Has Putin accepted gay marriage or is he still completely out of touch what is going on in the world? Fucking idiots!!!!!!
“Former Top Putin Advisor Sounds The Alarm: Putin Has Already Declared War On Kiev”
“Andrei Illarionov, formerly Vladimir Putin’s top economic advisor, has warned in an interview with Ukrainian television that Putin has already declared war on Kiev. Putin’s war is being conducted by Russian Spetsnaz (special operations) forces and KGB (now called FSB) agents and is aimed at toppling the pro-Western government in Kiev. The Spetsnaz forces’ orders include the sowing of civil unrest throughout Ukraine via strikes, demonstrations, staged incidents, and street battles. Putin’s subversive forces will also gin up neo-Nazi incidents with Nazi regalia and Swastikas on full display. Their orders include as well the deliberate killing of Russian soldiers and of ethnic Russian civilians to prove the hatred and extremism of radical Ukrainian nationalists. These orders come from Putin himself. Their goal is to create an image of intolerable chaos and loss of civil authority to justify a Russian takeover of all Ukraine. Putin’s goal is the destruction of pro-Western authority in Ukraine, the total humiliation of the West, and a makeover of the geopolitical balance.
Illiaronov’s urgent advice to Ukraine: Place all your effort into preserving civil order and avoid falling for the Spetsnaz provocations. (This will be difficult as Spetsnaz-organized gangs are already storming public buildings in East Ukraine). Ukrainian authorities must immediately close all borders with Russia to slow the infiltration of Spetsnaz and FSB destabilization units. Ukrainian TV and radio must immediately broadcast all their news in Russian or in English because many Ukrainian citizens and Russians do not understand Ukrainian.
Illarianov pleads that the whole world understand what Putin is up to. A Putin success in taking over Ukraine would change Europe and the balance of power and lead to further “restorations” of the former Soviet Union. The West should not hesitate in vigorously countering Putin’s war making for fear a strong reaction could trigger another cold war. We are already in a cold war, whether we want to recognize it or not.
This is scary stuff coming from someone who sat by Putin’s side as his chief economic advisor from 2000 to 2005. If anyone understands Putin it is Illarionov. He is not one to frighten without good reason.
Europe and the United States: Pay close attention to what this Putin insider is telling you. Either roll over or do something.”
It is a very strong statement -- and sad to say, consistent with press reports. Putin is indeed working to create as much disorder as possible in Ukraine, to give a pretext for further invasion.
Ukrainians have shown amazing restraint -- both military and civilian -- in the face of cruel provocations. It only magnifies my respect for their peaceable culture.
And in the big picture (the one that Putin's beady eyes have lost sight of) the contrast shows Russia's crude ugliness to the world in terms that people will long remember. Everything he is doing for "advantage" in the short term, is undoing Russia's decades of post-Soviet progress.