#in conclusion: i hate russia

[thecranberriesslut]

Cabin no. 5

Summary: You're the new recruit for task force 141, you end up having to share your cabin with your superior officer Ghost, who doesn't quite believe that you're up for this job. The tension in this particular cabin could be cut through with a knife.

Pairing: Simon!Ghost!Riley x Fem!Reader

Warnings: Power imbalance, Restraining, Profanity, Mean Ghost, Possibly Slightly Misogynistic Ghost, Degradation, Using force, Eventual smut, Dirty themes, Sort of Dark Ghost

Wc: 2,1k

Notes: Hey sluts, if you've missed my writing (although I'm sure I'm not that popular) here you go, this is a rare treat on account of I have finals soon and I'm just sososo busy, but i just had to write this... Anywayss enjoy, tell me what you think please, read at your own risk, blablabla. Also did not proof read this and wrote this in 2 hours without breaks, do not care if there are grammar errors.

Cabin no. 5, Pt.2 here!

Your old, worn-down boots scraped the slightly frozen terrain as you walked to cabin number 5—at least, that's what it said on the key they gave you when you arrived—you could almost feel the sharp rocks through your boots. You had gotten them at the beginning of your military training from your father; he said they'd last you a lifetime—maybe your know-it-all military captain father didn't know everything—but now they were one rough combat practice away from falling to pieces, as were your morals, unbeknownst to you.

Task Force 141, one of the most highly respected special operation units there is, and you—partially due to your father's influence—knew everything there was to know about this team. You had sent in your application only weeks after you finished extensive military training under your father. You had never expected to hear back from them, partially because you found it hard to believe that nepotism would have any influence in who was accepted into military task forces. But here you were, standing outside the cabin assigned to you by some apathetic-looking man at the main building, freezing your ass off.

The cabin was a small wooden box, but the light inside drew you in like a moth to a flame. You tried to calm your nerves by squeezing your fists very tight and letting go, but it did nothing for your racing heart and tight chest. You were told that you would be sharing a cabin with one of your commanding officers due to low funding for accommodation between missions. Also, the fact that you were the first female member of the 141 led you to the intellectual conclusion that this person would be a man. As a slashing gust of wind found the exact spot in your jacket that was ripped and penetrated your bones like an ice pick, you decided to suck it up and get inside that cabin.

You opened the door silently, hoping that your bunkmate would be asleep by now. But much to your demise, there, on the ratty old bunk, sat a big, hooded man, with no other part of him uncovered but his big, dark eyes. The light illuminated the dark forest path from where you came, and you could feel the wind blowing in stray snowflakes before you shut the door quickly behind you. This man on the bed—he just stared at you. He didn't move an inch, he didn't say anything; there he sat with an unreadable look in his cold eyes and his forearms tensed up like you were some kind of threat.

When the realization hit you, you almost cursed yourself out. In your surprise upon seeing the man, you had forgotten to salute your superior. You lifted your left hand quickly and firmly above your eyebrow as you set your bag down.

“Sir.”

“At ease,” he muttered with a dismissive, low voice muffled by his balaclava.

You put your hand down and let out the breath you had held unconsciously. After gathering yourself, you decided that you wouldn't be hated by your bunkmate. It would be a month before the next mission in Russia, and you weren't looking to share only awkward silence and deathly stares with the person in your room every single night until then. You forced your lips into a smile as you made your way to him, your slender arm extended in front of you. He stood up from his bunk, and your eyes followed him until your neck was physically unable to move any further back.

Jesus, fuck, this man was tall.

You swallowed the lump in your throat and kept your hand extended out for him. He took your hand in his and returned your handshake with a firm grip, his hand swallowing yours with ease.

“It's great to meet you. Heard so much about the 141,” you told him with sincerity. You wouldn't want to call yourself a fan of a military operational group, but—you were a fan.

“From your father,” he said dismissively. It wasn't a question; he knew that your father was a highly respected captain. He knew that if it wasn't for him, the 141 would have remained without its own nepo baby. Your eyebrows furrowed at his tone, but you knew better than to talk back to a superior officer, especially in your position.

“Yes, from my father,” you repeated. If he was going to try to insult you, you would just pretend not to realize it. You waited for him to pull away from the handshake, but his grip remained firm.

“You're mostly a sniper, no?” he assumed.

You could feel the anger rise to your cheeks. All your life, you had been dismissed as a soldier because of your gender, but on your first day in the 141, from your superior? God, you wanted to kick him in the nuts... instead, you smiled.

“I have the required training for a standard field operative.” You forced your voice to come out as professional and contained, but inside, you were screaming.

“Yeah, I'm sure your father trained you well. Be completely honest with me right now, officer—do you not realize the sheer size difference between you and everyone else on this team?” he asked as he let go of your hand.

You wanted to be angry at him for inequality, discrimination—anything—but you weren't stupid. Of course, you were smaller than them; it's biology. But what most men lack is reflexes, grace in their movements, swiftness… and that's exactly what you bring to the table.

“I understand your concerns, sir. But I assure you that I have the required skills. You do know that not all power comes from size.”

You could swear you saw a smirk under that balaclava.

“Well, we got a month to test that out, smartass, and I'm not making it easy for you,” he said before turning his back to you and laying down on his bunk. The bunk let out a big creak as his body weight lowered onto it, and you were left wondering what would ever come of you on this team.

You unpacked your stuff silently as he lay there. You couldn't tell if he was asleep or not—if he was, he was just as silent as he was awake.

“Uhm, sorry, where are the shower rooms?” you asked after you got done unpacking, your voice a mere whisper, although you doubted that a Task Force lieutenant would be very hard to wake up.

He groaned slightly and shifted in his bunk.

“Three cabins down. Be quiet when you get back.”

You said nothing as you made your way out of the door, almost dropping your shampoo bottle but catching it just in time.

The showers were, expectedly, old, damp, possibly covered in mold. The tiles were a seasick shade of green, and the overhead lights kept flickering like a scene from a horror movie. You sighed a breath of relief when you saw the shower stalls—at least you wouldn't have to be naked in front of the Task Force that you borderline idolized.

You turned the nozzle, and to your surprise, the water was instantly hot. The second the steaming water hit your tense shoulders, you let out a sigh. The water washed away your entire day of traveling to base in a cramped train, walking outside with your shitty boots, and that whole debacle with your lieutenant—whose name, you just realized, you didn’t catch. The shower walls echoed with dripping water and your quiet hums as you imagined how amazing it would be to get into bed and just go to sleep.

After your shower and getting dressed in the damp shower corridor—your clothes sticking to your skin like shorts on a hot summer day—you were walking back to your cabin when you felt like you were being watched. You looked around, but all the windows in the surrounding cabins were dark. Everyone was already asleep. You looked ahead into your own cabin, and it too just stood there, dark, quiet.

You knew it was stupid, but still, you picked up your pace to get inside quicker.

When you opened the door, your breath hitched in your throat. The bunk next to yours was empty… before you had time to think, the door to your cabin flew shut, and you felt a big arm come around your neck from the back, catching you in a chokehold.

You drew air into your lungs to scream, but before you could, a hand came over your mouth. You trashed in the tight hold the best you could, stomping on his feet and trying to use your hands to pry his arm away from you, but without result. You felt his face behind your ear, his breath causing goosebumps on the right side of your body, the goosebumps weren't the only thing you felt, because the heat in your body, and the damp spot that begun to form in your freshly changed panties, was undeniable.

“Where's your extensive training now, officer?” It was your lieutenant, of course it was him, how didn't you realize that this was one of his tests… which, you were failing miserably. You tried to explain yourself under his hand, but he moved it to your chin and pulled your head back against his shoulder, you winced at the roughness.

“Shut up and listen to me.” He said, his voice rough like gravel. You nodded your head the best you could in his grip and swallowed your fear.

“You should be able to get out of this, you think something like this couldn't happen out on missions?” He continued, to you, it felt like taunting.

“Mhmm.” You hummed a silent agreement.

“You're jeopardizing my men's safety by not being able to pull your weight in this team.”

“I could fight you, Sir, I just don't want to hurt you.” You tried to sound convincing, but the truth is that he left you exhausted, unalert, and completely by surprise. Your voice came out as a shaky mess, and at this point, no matter how fucked up it might be, you weren't sure you wanted to get out.

“Aw, how sweet, you don't want to hurt your superior officer, but tell me, do they give a fuck about rank in the middle of a battlefield somewhere in assfuck Russia?” His voice started out gentle, but towards the end he was practically yelling. You were used to this, you were a soldier after all, but you were so tired, and he was suddenly, so very scary, also the pit in your stomach wasn't helping, it was making you weak. You tried to claw at his arm once more, but you genuinely didn't want to hurt him and potentially get kicked out.

“You're weak, weak, and soft… and in this line of work, weak and soft gets you killed.” He drew out the words to maximize their hurtfulness, but you weren't hurt, you were turned on.

God, how fucked up is it to be turned on by this? You tried to rationalize your feelings with the forced abstinence that came with a busy military schedule, but you still felt like a gross pervert, until you felt something hard against your back. Your eyes widened in shock as your superior officer's undeniably hard dick pressed against your back unapologetically.

“Maybe I don't want out.” You said with a growing sense of confidence. You could feel his hand shift from your jaw to your neck as he squeezed, not hard enough to hurt, but hard enough to let you know that he could make it hurt if he so pleased.

“What did you say to me?” He asked with, what sounded like gritted teeth. After the warning squeeze, he let you out of his hold, you stumbled forward and regained your balance as you turned to face him. After a couple of coughs, you managed to say.

“Thanks, pleasure.” You said sarcastically, although your voice was hoarse and the dried tears on your face evident. His face remained stone-cold as he scanned your body.

“Don't think I can't tell when a soldier is trying to flirt with their CO.” He said casually, but with a dangerous edge to his tone.

“I would never.” You shot back.

“Good, 'cause if you tried to flirt with me, I'd have to report you for sexual harassment… or throw you down on the bed and make you regret your smart fucking mouth.” He said, so casually that it gave you an involuntary shiver. He looked at you once more with his expressionless eyes before making his way to his bunk once again, before he sat down, he turned to you.

“It's Ghost, by the way.”

[hetafice]

Can you do yandere!allies with an oblivious / insecure reader? I'd really love that -🪽

sure can! i included canada as well. enjoy below the cut!

England

At first, Arthur would assume you weren’t interested in him. In his eyes, there was no other explanation. He spent countless hours devising how to best court you, all to no avail. That can only mean one thing, right?

Finding out that you were oblivious to his feelings would be equal parts relieving and annoying for him.

It would give him a boost of confidence; he would try to reassure you to the best of his abilities, outlining why he likes you and why you should agree to let him take care of you, but he would struggle to do so gently. 

Expect a few callous words and unintentional insults. He would not intentionally hurt you (at least not at first). He is just not at all patient when it comes to you and wants to fast-forward to the part where you’re madly in love with him.

Arthur is not at all above engineering a situation where you need to be dependent on him. He craves having people look up to him and chase after his affections. He would love nothing more than to be in complete control of your emotions, knowing that he was the only one who could affect your mood or self-consciousness.

France

He is so upfront with you that it is impossible to remain unaware of his feelings.

Francis would not do anything to alleviate your insecurity, in fact, he might try to make it even worse. In his eyes this would be a perfect tool to control you, with you always chasing his validation, you would never step out of line.

He subtly and sporadically feeds into your insecurities over time until you are constantly seeking his reassurance. Francis, ever the romantic, would use this as a full license to shower you with open and public displays of affection. If he has his way, the whole world will know how deeply in love the two of you are.

You may love it or hate it, but with how badly you need his affection, you won’t ever have it in you to complain.

Russia 

Ivan is constantly looking for an excuse to place you under his care.

If you come to him about your insecurities, that’s all the better, it’ll save him the effort of manufacturing one. 

Someone or something must have poisoned your thoughts to make you so self-conscious. Ivan, being as kind and purehearted as he is, has to step in and re-educate you. It’s the right thing to do. A few months sequestered with him should do wonders for your self-confidence, no?

Or as oblivious to his feelings as you may be, his intentions will be made perfectly clear when the only person you can interact with is him. He’ll have all day to tell you about his feelings, and how the two of you are meant to be together, forever.

He isn’t above small gestures of affection to show that he cares. He’ll often think of you while the two of you are apart, bringing back the occasional well-thought-out gift. In his calmer moments, he will be sure to tell you how much he appreciates you being with him, regardless of whether or not you came by force.

Canada

Matthew finds everything about you incredibly endearing, flaws and all; and would move mountains to keep you happy. 

Any hint of self-doubt from you has him spiraling. At first, he would place all the blame on himself. Was he not attentive enough? Should he give you more compliments or gifts? Did you have feelings for someone else? After ruling all of those out, he settles on another possibility.

Being prone to overthinking, he would jump to conclusions, assuming someone had to have hurt you for you to act like this.

Having intimately understood what it feels like to be overlooked, this would set him off. Regardless of why you’re insecure, he’s going on a rampage, looking into your past and exacting revenge on anyone who has ever made you feel lesser. All of this is done without your knowledge, of course, he wouldn't want you to think he was overbearing.

Being shy himself, he could also understand you struggling to pick up on his subtle cues, but for you, he’s willing to overcome his own anxieties and confess his feelings for you.

China

Yao is an expert at reading people and understands your general character and personality traits soon after meeting you. 

Despite knowing that you may take a while to understand his intentions, or that you may deal with insecurity, he won’t try to overcompensate for that by being extra nice - his pride simply won’t allow him to.

He has the money and power to manipulate you right into his arms, but he needs you to come to him on your own, despite how badly he wants to rush the process.

No stranger to playing the long game, he’ll let you take as long as you need. He knows that he’s the only one for you. Forget a confession, he has always let his actions speak louder than words, and you are certainly no exception.

In your time of need, he will always be the first one there, helping you out for nothing in return, while always somehow knowing what you need the most.

Over time he may let a few of his more intense emotions slip out, just enough to let you notice, to help you understand how deeply he cares for you.

America

Alfred’s relatively short but storied time on this Earth has made him a deeply distrustful person.

There is not a single second where he is not at odds with someone, where he’s not fretting over a potential mistake or trying to plan against an inevitable betrayal.

Alfred is so outwardly showy that even the most oblivious person should be able to understand his feelings towards them.

To him, your refusal to accept his compliments or a lack of response to his teasing has to be some sort of mind game. You can’t think so poorly of yourself; this has to be some sort of tactic to endear yourself to him. Fine by him; he just assumes you enjoy the chase and finds it cute.

He may decide to up the ante, approaching you with increasingly grand romantic gestures. In this way, he’ll “play into your game” while also showcasing how ideal of a partner he can be. 

The longer you take to deliver a satisfactory reaction, the more intense he gets. He likes you, and he makes sure to tell you that at every opportunity, so what is it that you aren’t getting? Why haven’t you reciprocated anything? What else could he possibly do to get you to stop playing coy? 

Being as tenacious as he is, he’ll keep trying until you openly return his affections.

[thepaleys]

The Strained Relationship between Olga Paley and Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich

While it seems that Princess Paley's relationship with her stepdaughter Grand Duchess Marie Pavlovna was very cordial and even friendly, the same could not be said of her stepson, Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich. Here are a few excerpts from "The Flight of the Romanovs" by John Curtis Perry.

Dmitri had grown up to be a handsome, indeed dashing, young man but a Romanov Hamlet, tormented by many things simultaneously: his childhood as a virtual orphan, with his mother dead and his father banned from Russia; the terrible death of his guardian Grand Duke Sergei; his sister, closer to him than any other person, taken to Sweden in the duty of a royal marriage; and his ironic intimacy with the emperor and empress who had made him almost a member of their family but actually had deprived him in childhood of a father and in adolescence a sister. Dmitri remained always an outsider. (...)

The emperor had pardoned Dmitri’s father, Paul, his last surviving uncle, and permitted him to return to Russia when the war had broken out. Paul’s second wife, Olga, had shrewdly asked Rasputin to intercede on her husband’s behalf. She had been eager to drop her German title for a Russian one, and Paul secured permission from the emperor for his wife to be promoted from Countess Hohenfelsen to Princess Paley, taking the name of a Cossack chief to whom she was related.

There was no love lost between Dmitri and his stepmother. Olga, Princess Paley, had her own son by Paul, Vladimir, upon whom she doted. The fact that her own morganatic marriage meant that Vladimir could never be a grand duke like Dmitri irritated her tremendously. Dmitri, on his part, wrote to the emperor saying that he saw the “honorable family of Countess Hohenfelsen” as little as possible, thus making life in St. Petersburg, he said, much more peaceful.

Dmitri could only pity his father, so dominated by his aggressive second wife. In October 1916, Princess Paley was outraged to find that Grand Duke Paul had been choosing wines from their cellar and taking them to army headquarters, where he was then stationed. “I would somehow understand if you treated the Sovereign to it,” the princess complained, “but to waste it on Dmitri or Grand Duke George Mikhailovich was totally unnecessary.”

Princess Paley believed that Dmitri was scheming not only against her son but also against his own father. She wrote to her husband, “I have been telling you in every letter; ‘don’t trust Dmitri,’ and I myself was deceived by his damned tricks! I have rarely hated people, as I hate him right now!”

Of course, nothing of this comes across Princess Paley's Memoires, in which she gives the following description of Dmitri:

"During our stay at Mohileff the Grand Duke Dimitri, who was on duty with the Emperor, often came to lunch and. dine with us. Very well informed about war matters and what was in progress at the headquarters of the General Staff, endowed with remarkable intelligence and with the faculty of grasping facts and drawing from them the necessary conclusion, this young man of twenty-five was a mature man and a shrewd observer. He also recognised the imminent danger which the country was running, and he had conversations on the subject more than once with the Emperor . and with his own father. I remember that one day at Mohileff, at tea time, he said to me:

"Ah, mamotchka (a tender diminutive of mama), if only you knew what is going to happen!"

It was in vain that I pressed him to continue. he would say no more."

[warsofasoiaf]

who would be a better pick for director of national intelligence? as far as im aware Tulsi doesnt have experience in positions of that level, im not sure what to think about her views on Russia given she takes nuclear war seriously but also she was slandered by Shillary

Frankly speaking, any number of intelligence professionals would be more qualified than Tulsi Gabbard. She has no experience in the intelligence field, neither her assignments nor her Senate career saw her exposed to anything, so her lack of experience should be an automatic disqualifier, even if her trafficking in Russian and Syrian conspiracies didn't already demonstrate that she is manifestly unfit for the position. But let's embark on a thought exercise, just so I can illustrate my point a bit more clearly.

I hate steelmanning, but let's steelman her actions. Let's say that she's not a Russian stooge or a pet, and that her statements come from a place of deep personal conviction against US foreign entanglements. Let's assume she is not being coerced or compensated to repeat Russian propaganda, and say that she's a true believer. Her statements on the Russo-Ukrainian War would already render her unfit. As I've mentioned before, the idea of "NATO encroachment" on Russia doesn't suit the facts of what actually occurred in Ukraine. Russia was the primary breacher of the Minsk Accords (over 80% of ceasefire breaches were performed by Russian or pro-Russian separatist movements), and Ukraine didn't pivot toward NATO membership until after the seizure of Crimea (well-documented by reliable polling). These are not opinions, but facts. Just as how she made statements that Bashar al-Assad did not use chemical weapons despite the actual *physical* evidence that he did. This means that Tulsi Gabbard ignores objective reality to find a narrative that suits her - and then uses it to inform her conclusions, and thus, her decisions. This is *not* someone suited to lead any intelligence-gathering apparatus. Ignoring what *is* for what is *desired* does not lead to rational decision-making.

So even by the most generous of graces, Tulsi Gabbard is at best, a moron who looks to justify her own pre-conceived conclusions. And that's not someone I'd want in charge of intelligence.

Thanks for the question, Anon.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[velvetvexations]

I figured it out, I figured out how to explain part of the link between tankies and trfs and in fact how they even almost got me once upon a time.

It's the essential oppositional thinking, where everyone else's grass is greener - a step beyond your usual black and white, "X is bad, Y is good," all the way into "X is bad, therefore its very nature is bad and it can be nothing but bad, and Y is considered its opposite, so Y is good and will always be good."

Being a woman is good for them, therefore being a woman Is Good, it is objectively good, this is a universal fact, therefore it is ALSO an immutable universal fact that being a man is inherently bad. Good old fashioned oppositional sexism, in a pink hat, just like every flavor of radfeminism.

And in international politics? It doesn't seem like a coincidence that most tankie trfs are American:

The US's economic system is fucked, and we've probably never been the good guy in ANY international relation, therefore any country that has an adversarial relationship with the US government must be wholly inscrutable.

Russia was a utopia, actually, until they just RANDOMLY decided to start hating gay people out of nowhere, and if we could just get her back to her glory days everything would be amazing, and no this is totally not a RETVRN statement about a fantasy past what are you talking about? This is simply the truth, because we know that the US government doesn't like them and hated them even more then, and the US government is Bad, therefore anyone the US government doesn't like must be doing EVERYTHING right.

China has never had a problem with corruption and state-sanctioned violence and disaster mismanagement. We know this to be true, because the US has those things, and the US government is unfriendly with that of China, so we are opposites, so if we are Bad they must be Good. They must have gotten everything right.

If that's the level you're operating on, it feels like a very natural conclusion, and when you're just learning how deep the rabbit hole of "sexism is more than just 'get back in the kitchen' jokes" and/or "America is usually the bad guy in the international politics game and imperialism really fucking sucks" goes, it's easy to end up slipping into that level without realizing it.

I mean, if the other guy was ACTUALLY doing bad things, then why didn't people just expose THAT instead of making shit up for propaganda? (@ my younger self: because they thought the actual bad stuff was the okay part, dipshit (lovingly).)

String Theory but for internet leftist assholes. Congratulations, anon.

[scuderiagorobets]

So, remember that scene from "Collusion" (thank you, Season 5, I hate the way you named your episodes because it's fucking confusing) where Caline kissed her wife?

This one ☝️

Now I give you the Russian dub of this scene

Translation:

Gisèle (on background): Caline!

Caline (running towards Gisèle): Sister!

Yes, you heard that right. The Russian dub of Season 5 made Caline and Gisèle "sisters"... That's bad because we all know how fucking homophobic Russia is.

BUT THESE IDIOTS DIDN'T EVEN CUT THE KISS AFTER CALINE CALLED HER WIFE "SISTER"!!!

THE RUSSIAN DUB MADE THEM INCESTIOUS SISTERS!!! RIDICULOUS, UTTERLY RIDICULOUS!!!

("Fun" Fact: in Russia, LGBTQ+ is branded as an "extremist and terroristic organization", while incest is still pretty much okay here. There is no penalty for incest, while for "gay propaganda", you will be ashamed and can be fined)

They also made Zoé confession from "I love you, Marinette" to "I'm in love with a boy but I'm afraid to tell you this", which is also bad, but that is beside the point.

Conclusion: The Russian Dub of Season 5 sucks harder than Season 5 itself!

[unhonestlymirror]

Ok i know you hate russia from hetalia being Ukraine and Belarus' sister but what do you think about ONLY Ukraine and Belarus being related and not russia??

I don't hate only the concept of russia being their sister but also brother as well! Let's be inclusive and woke☝️

Jokes aside, although I don't mind people drawing Ukraine and Belarus as sisters (because I myself am half-Ukrainian-half-Belaruthian and I know about Belarus a bit more than an average Ukrainian) - they are not really siblings. Genetically, culturally and linguistically speaking.

First of all, because Belaruthians aren't Slavs. A lot of them think otherwise because that's what russians have been teaching us in schools since Nikolai the Second times but it's simply not true. Belaruthians are Baltics - really slavicized, almost wiped off the face of Earth - but Baltics. Even legitimate President of Belarus doesn't call them Slavs. It's way easier to confuse a Belaruthian with a Lithuanian or Latvian, than with a Ukrainian. Many ethnic Belaruthians are really tall, lean, blonde, blue- or green-eyed and generally have a bit alien facial features, imo.

As an example: when I used to live in Ukraine, every single morning riding a trolley to school while standing - I was a head taller than most of other Ukrainians (including men). I have perfectly normal height for Lithuanian standards - but for Ukrainian, I look like a Chicago Bulls player. As they told me, my accent is a bit different from Ukrainian, too, "but it's definitely not russian" - and I have lived in Ukraine my whole life, I can't even speak Belaruthian normally!! Every time I met someone new in Ukraine, they IMMEDIATELY asked: "Oh my god! you must be from Belarus." Even some Lithuanians don't really see me as a Ukrainian at first, they believe I'm either a dumb local or from Belarus.

Belaruthian mentality is pretty different from Ukrainian, too. It is based on politeness, quiteness and blending in, while Ukrainian is based on being straightforward, honest and bright. There are other things, but it would take me a whole day to list them.

Belarus is different culturally, too. Maybe it's not that obvious today because of the mass murders and cultural erasing but, e.g., if we take намітка - the head scarf, white with fine red geometrical embroidery, really square-shaped - you will not see it in Ukraine (except for some Northern parts) or Czech or Poland. But it's super common for Belarus, Lithuania, Samogitia, Estonia and I think Latvia, too.

Politically, Belarus as Polatsk Principality had declared independence from Kyivan Rus (Kyiv wasn't happy with it). Then, Teutons happened and Polatsk had to become Lithuania, but pretty much since Polatsk times, Belarus didn't consider itself a part of Kyivan Rus or Poland or russia. In fact, Belarus called itself "Litva" (Belaruthian Lithuania) until russian tsar Nikolai the Second dedicated his whole reign to destroying Belaruthian culture and national consciousness.

In conclusion, do I see Ukraine and Belarus as spiritual sisters or so-called побратими? Rather yes than no. Do I see them as "biological" sisters? Absolutely not. XD

P.S. Many Ukrainians will not be happy with people drawing them as sisters because of the russian invasion in 2022. Please consider that.

[junk-whunk-punk]

broski are you in like... Russia? U doing ok over there?

Uh ummmmm😳😳... ????????? yes i'm in Russia????? i always was here??????

I guess, uh, PERSONALLY I'm quite well yeah thank you for your concern anon😌 I'm ok rn and I live the same way as any of my average fellow citizen soooo I also sometimes suffer from a lack of money, comfort attention, love, time and mental energy, but at least I'm still alive🥹 That's all like this thanks to my impenetrable thinking and pacifism heehee, otherwise I'd have gone crazy with this continuous political propaganda here.

I just love my motherland, its culture, its people and life here, but not those poliDICKians who are now measuring dicks with other such idiots.

(anon if you wanted to have a filthy political answer so uhhh IT'LL BE A QUITE LONG POST ABOUT MY INNER CRIES THAT WERE WAITING FOR FREEDOM I'M SORRYYYYY I just want to speak out and never return to this topic again if there's no need to)

I feel sorry and upset each time I see how radicalist propaganda brainwashes ordinary people, whether ukrainians, americans, russians or any other peoples who are now under intense pressure. Neither side is right, everyone who starts conflicts is always to blame for any conflict, but not ordinary people who just want to fucking survive. Alas, in my motherland there is just terrible oppression of pacifists now, because they are considered anti-patriots and extremists (that's NOT even a joke really, now pacifists are being driven under the same roof with terrorists and sectarians👍👍)

I'm just so scared of what that all will lead. Y'know, adequate and sane people would never want to harm anyone but OH ALAS, a drop of power makes weak people crazy. Unfortunately, such rotten fruits are now at the head of many influential countries in the modern world🤷‍♀️

But! I have a ray of hope. Many russians are aware of this problem. They know that the russian authorities seem to be set against absolutely everyone, both their fellow citizens and foreigners. That's why I chose the perfect tactic – I'm also against. Against all politicians. I am against all authorities😌 I just hate them all😌 but at the same time I love people regardless of their nationality. As for me, this is the most humane and the most correct choice, at least if we take into account the fact that we russians cannot influence the situation in world, no matter how much we want it. (c'mon we can't even choose anything in our own country)

So. The conclusion. I'm scared, I'm angry and I'm an anarchist yeah. Stay sane and don't be a victim of radical propaganda. Love people. Be supportive to those who in need. We ALL are fellow humans and we must stay them.

[theculturedmarxist]

War Games

You need to be ready because war between the United States and China is inevitable.

I hate to use the word "inevitable" because it implies that it is preordained, a foregone conclusion irrespective of circumstance or volition. In this instance it is apt because the US has crafted the circumstances and shaped itself internally and externally so that it has no other choice but to engage in conflict.

To fully explain why this is would require a substantially longer post, several posts in fact, at the very least. In summary though, the welfare state created by the New Deal and the activist sentiment cultivated by the Vietnam War and the Civil Rights Movement spurred a reaction by the bourgeoisie, which resulted in the "Reagan Revolution." Proletarian empowerment was to be checked and dismantled at every opportunity and any impediment to corporate power was to be removed. Unions were dismantled. Public Education was attacked. Trusts were to be facilitated in the name of "efficiency."

Over the course of forty years, the players of the US political and economic system have taken steps favorable to themselves which have made reform impossible. Aberration from the desires of the ruling class is treated with extreme intolerance and the heterodox are expelled from "polite society." Alternative conceptions to the current state of things are portrayed as quixotic at best and foreign or evil at worst.

The result is such that any attempt to reform or ameliorate the social, economic, or political status quo of the United States is virtually impossible.

The US's foreign policy goals since the fall of the Soviet Union has been the dissolution of the Russian Federation and the subjugation of the People's Republic of China, as set out in the policy document "Project for a New American Century." 9/11, the invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq, the destruction of Libya, occupation of Syria, etc, etc, have all been stepping stones on the war towards those ultimate goals. Clinton, Bush, Obama, Trump, and Biden have all facilitated those goals.

The problem is that the "United States," by which I mean the bourgeoisie which represent its interested parties, its political facilitators, and its petite-bourgeois factions which occupy its implementation mechanisms, have crafted the internal and external national circumstances so that novel responses to emerging circumstances are impossible.

To give an example, the war in Ukraine proves that its patently impossible for the US to wage war directly against Russia. In terms of production capacity, the United States simply cannot compete. Case in point, the Russian Federation is producing 4.5 million artillery shells per year. The US meanwhile is producing somewhere in the neighborhood of 450,000. The reason this is is because monopolies have hollowed out the US's production capacity. Increasing production would mean decreasing profit, and that would mean bankruptcy, and then no production. So the US government has to guarantee profit in order to guarantee production. Russia and China don't have this defect currently. Part of the reason Russia has been able to out-produce the US is that its production companies and facilities are state owned. The Russian government says "jump" and their MIC says "how high?" Profit isn't the goal, but rather production.

These circumstances aren't entirely alien to the US. During World War 2, the US government intervened heavily in its domestic economy, dictating wages and benefits, ordering production in support of its war effort. Now though the tail is wagging the dog. In the name of the "economy," monopolies dictate economic and state policy. We saw this recently when the CEO of Delta airlines got the isolation period for covid cut from two weeks to five days.

So we have is a situation where the US can't achieve its goals because of its own inadequacies. If the US wanted to achieve parity with its rivals, it would have to at the very least assume the sort of state-directed production that its rivals have. However, currently that isn't possible because the monopolies which control economic production enjoy control over the state which is ostensibly supposed to regulate it. Put another way, in Russia and China, the state dictates economic activity. In the US, the economy dictates political activity. To use an American saying, "the inmates are running the asylum."

These circumstances cannot be reformed as they currently are. We saw in 2016 that attempts to do so were legally thwarted. If the political system cannot be restructured so that the people's will is preeminent before the will of the bourgeoisie, then the will of the bourgeoisie will dominate. That means that economic monopolies will continue their stranglehold over policy, and profit will retain preeminence before any other consideration, including militaristic victory.

The significance of Taiwan currently is that it accounts for at least half of the planet's semiconductor microchip production. This produces a dilemma for the United States. This essential resource is at least de jure in the hands of an ideological enemy and a presumed economic subordinate. Furthermore, it has no way of ameliorating this state of affairs without military intervention. To the first part, this state of affairs would give China de facto control over US economic policy, both foreign and domestic, as it would give Beijing control over how many microprocessors the US has access to to put into its various domestic products as well as the military hardware it requires to enforce its domestic policy. To the second part, in its efforts to crush the working class all those skilled trades necessary to facilitate its own domestic production, along with the educational institutions necessary to impart the knowledge and expertise for their creation, have been systematically gutted by the bourgeoisie.

In short, if the United States started today to try and achieve the productive capacities currently existing in China and Russia, it would be at least ten years before it could accomplish what either of its adversaries are currently capable of. It lacks the skilled personnel. It lacks the machinery necessary. Its institutions lack the candidates or the program to train its citizens at scale. It very simply lacks the capability to produce more than its limited quantities of boutique weaponry, which means it cannot possibly compete with its chosen adversaries.

The rational response to these facts would be to adjust its course in relation to the existing circumstances. The period of American hegemony outlined in the PFANAC is as unrealistic as traveling to the moon on a hot air balloon, so rational course of action would be to adjust policies and expectations accordingly. Unfortunately, these adjustments cannot be made. They would require upsetting the dominance of the monopolies over the American political and economic status quo, and the monopolies are unwilling to let that happen and the US government is incapable of making that happen. For the American economy to continue, the monopolies must continue to exist as monopolies, and also for American politics to continue. It is a reciprocal relationship, where reformers that endanger corporate profits like Sanders are kept out of positions of power, so that those in power can continue to guarantee corporate profits. One hand washes the other, and nothing is allowed to fundamentally change.

The problem, as any Marxist could tell you, is that change is the fundamental state of things. In spite of the war and sanctions, Russia's economy is strengthening while Europe's is weakening. China alone has more than twice the consumers as all of NAFTA combined. The bottom line is that the United States simply cannot compete, and what's more is that it has fashioned itself into such a state so that it can never, ever do so, because the necessary changes are simply impossible to achieve and implement while also keep profits up and proles down. To keep things as they are, change is utterly impermissible, in spite of how devastatingly necessary it might be.

Yet regardless, the status quo is not only viewed by the bourgeoisie as the natural state of things, but totally essential. Unable to escape their own ideology, they are restricted by its prescriptions. The United States must, must, dominate not only Russia, and China, but the entire world. It cannot do so economically, and yet it cannot alter itself so that it may do so. In terms of production the US can never, ever surpass China in its current state, but at the same time it cannot realistically alter itself to do so. The American bourgeoisie has achieved victory over the American working class, but in so doing it has forfeited the struggle to dominate internationally. It has very little to offer in terms of real goods. Its only useful product is its currency and the ascendance of BRICS severely limits that's lifetime. Since 2001 the US has let its diplomatic strength atrophy, and in its hubris reality has increasingly passed it by.

If it has no real goods to offer, no useful currency, and no means of persuasion, then the only thing left that the US has to ensure its necessary, is essential dominance is its military weaponry. While much of it is dated and inherited from the First Cold War, it still has the capacity to wreak fearful destruction, especially its nuclear arsenal.

We see the evidence of this fact even now. The US's puppet Ukraine cannot possibly win against Russia. This was a fact even before the start of the most recent phase of this conflict in 2022. Yet in spite of the unrelenting slaughter of the Ukrainian people the conflict continues because the US as instigator of this war has no other alternative. It cannot allow peace to break out. It cannot pursue an alternative to war. It cannot even fathom a world where it doesn't dictate the state of affairs. So in spite of bleeding itself dry trying to wear down an enemy that surpasses it in virtually every capacity, it insists on continuing, because the alternative cannot possibly be countenanced.

Russia, in spite of its growing strength, is nowhere near the level that China currently enjoys. If the United States cannot even defeat Russia, it would be absurd to court conflict with China, especially considering how much the US relies on Chinese goods for, well, practically everything. The pandemic "shutdown" saw the US practically on the verge of collapse and panic as essential goods grew scarce. Still, the US continues to ratchet up tensions with China, provoking it, while preparing itself for war insofar as its capable. For the United States and its controlling monopolies, there is no other choice. Profit must be assured, which can only come at the expense of its imperial subjects, and without any other alternative those subjects must be maintained at the barrel of a gun—or the tip of a nuclear weapon.

[mysteriouslytransparentwitch]

This isn't the first time I've read this. I'd be interested to know what you think. This is pure propaganda and much deeper than we think. Some powerful groups want the monarchy to be abolished. They want William gone. Maybe it's to launch the new world order. Look at the seed they are trying to sow through the media. Meghan is just a pawn in a bigger plan. Getting rid of the monarchy means getting rid of stability to implement the change they want, they could then weaken other governments. 🌹

This will be my quarter of an hour of truth:

There is no global force that wants the United Kingdom to lose, there is no chance that the United Kingdom will become a republic! why the British are not the French. France has a better chance of having a 6th republic and a 4th revolution in the next 30 years. Even Russia is not trying to overthrow the United Kingdom because it is too busy with its attacks in Eastern Europe. The USA is currently divided in two and therefore too busy on its own. The global south is in the midst of a revolution to attract the global economy so there is not enough time to try to overthrow William. There is a new global organization but it has nothing to do with Prince William, it's just economic, technological and environmental (I remind you that in the global south there are monarchies!!!)

The truth is that William is not ready for office, being ready to be King is not about making beautiful children and taking beautiful photos. William's problem is that he does not want to follow the line of King George 6, nor Queen Elizabeth 2 and even less of Charles (because he is someone who wants to kill his son since birth according to some people here)

This is not the first time that William has made mistakes, he threw his godmother under the bus while Buckingham Palace was already investigating because there were already different versions now we know the truth! William does not have a cool head, he reigns with his ego and his emotions which can take on completely crazy proportions.

He is not aware (because he does not read the foreign press like the Queen and Charles) of the changes taking place worldwide. He just gets scared of tweets on Twitter like Omid and dr shola I don't know what…. YES they make a lot of noise on Twitter but neither of them are capable of selling books in the real world!!! conclusion Twitter is an epiphenomenon.

Yes the social networks are going crazy about Catherine we went to a cosmetic operation on the nose then on the buttocks for William to a mistress who is pregnant and who came to see Catherine at Christmas (I don't know if young people realize their stupidity, at Christmas she was with Charles, yes!!!)

William must put together a real team to help him in his role and not protect his private life. If we were to listen to William, as armies, we should stop inspecting the armies in African countries because it's colonial lol lol all heads of state around the world inspect their army and hi to the other armies it's is tradition! (this sentence definitely comes from him!!!) Your guy is so afraid of everything that he doesn't even understand the meaning of these sentences and the impact they can have. Fortunately the United Kingdom is a parliamentary monarchy so there is power to put things in their place.

If this story of Catherine made the journalists/reporters in the foreign policy section frown, it is because there is a good reason.

I can continue like this except that here on this forum as soon as we highlight certain things, the only answer is you have been a fan of Charles since the beginning you hate William bla bla

For your information, these two have no impact on my life.

[panimoonchild]

I find myself in pieces

Yeah, I'm alive. Just after I saw what Russia had done with my classmates from Donetsk, I picked myself by pieces. Tomorrow I will write posts about it. And a special important one of my old friend in Donetsk who was caught in Russian captivity in 2020💔 Just his pro-russian "friend" in Netherlands when Bogdan is in captivity. Pieces that I glued crushed yesterday again. Now I have totally different conclusion about teens who Russia zombifies. When kids is target, that's clear they're victims. But when you 14-15 come on. And in your twenties you don't give a damn that your friend is in danger. Fuck it. I hate you with all my might. You're just disgusting creature.

And these days Russia receives a new portion of weapons from Iran. I hate this world. Fuck Russia. Fuck Iran. Fuck China. Fuck Belarusia (yeah, not Belarus because it's not a sovereign state with Lukashenko).

The world is fucked up.

[thegayhimbo]

Say "I know nothing about the history of Russia's treatment of Ukraine (the Holodomor being one such example) or what's currently going on between Russia and Ukraine" without saying it. 🙄😒

For those who can't access the video due to the "age restriction," here is a transcript of the 60 Minutes interview with Scott Pelley interviewing Freed Ukrainian Prisoners of War:

SPOILER ALERT: The following video/transcript contains descriptions of beatings, torture, rape, starvation, child deaths, and human rights violations.

As for "Russia is not continuously bombing all civilian infrastructure and committing a genocide," there have been multiple posts and articles over the past 2 years proving otherwise (including their recent attack on New Year's Eve). This also includes the Russian war crime of Ukrainian children being kidnapped by Russian soldiers, deported to Russian reeducation camps, getting brainwashed, and being used as Russian Propaganda tools:

Between the 2:27 and 2:37 mark, Isobel Yeung (the narrator) doesn't mince her words when she notes how Vladimir Putin and his cronies are accused of trying to "ethically cleanse a generation of young Ukrainians."

If you've read this far, you can probably come to the conclusion that imtryingsir did absolutely zero research, or even cared enough to follow the last 2 years of news about the Russian-Ukraine War, before making their abhorrently idiotic comment.

So why am I bothering to dignify this with a response when it's clear this person is being maliciously stupid? Because of this post. Specifically, the disgusting little remark they made where they tried to justify why a Jewish woman on social media deserved to be bullied/harassed (which eventually led to the Russia apologist comment above when they were called out on it by multiple Tumblr users):

Putting aside the gross victim-blaming and thinly-disguised antisemitism (which I'm sure my Jewish followers are deeply sick of at this point), what really gets me is how disingenuous this user is. They don't actually give a rat's ass about what's going on in Gaza: Someone who truly cares about genocide and the deaths/suffering of innocent people wouldn't be going out of their way to downplay/whitewash the genocidal actions of another country (Russia), or making comments dismissing another groups problems/trauma while dehumanizing them, or even straight up wishing for more death and destruction:

People like this (as well as the so-called "Pro-Palestine" users in the Jewish woman's post who were harassing her) are devoid of empathy. They relish in being cruel and condescending to others because they feel empowered in doing so, and they know they can get away with it without facing lasting consequences. They are doing nothing to help alleviate an already horrific situation, and are just making the world a worse place to live in. I'm sure they'll tell themselves the sweet little lies about how their bullying and antisemitism is really "activism" or "caring for Palestinians" or "Being antizionist; not antisemitic" (while continuing to spew the same bigoted rhetoric that Jews have been calling out as antisemitic for YEARS). At this point, I truly don't give a damn what their excuses are since they will grasp at anything, no matter how flimsy, to rationalize their behavior.

I never thought I'd see the day where a bunch of Leftist/Westerners would embody two of the most loathsome fictional characters in media (right down to their hateful, sadistic, vile attitudes), and yet that is the point we've currently reached:

To say this has been deeply unpleasant to witness is an understatement. 😒

I talked about this in a recent post about antisemitism from the Left, and I'm going to reiterate something I said: "There is a larger conversation that needs to be had about how selective Leftist empathy and compassion really is. By this, I’m talking about people on the Left who will a.) Only be compassionate/empathetic when it’s convenient for them, or b.) Only be compassionate/empathetic towards people they think are “deserving” of it."

People like imtryingsir only prove why it's important to have this conversation: If you're perfectly okay dismissing/downplaying the suffering of one group of people (be it Jews, Ukrainians, Palestinians, etc) so you can prop up your preferred group of people who are suffering because you think they are more "deserving" of empathy/compassion......................you need to do some serious self-reflection about the type of person you've become.

[theinkdrinker8888]

Salutations, Internet. I’m The Ink Drinker. Do you like Sci-Fi and Fantasy genres?

Indie Animation?

OC artwork?

Maaaaaaaybe Commissions?? And Merch?? And websites?? In the future potentially, because I really want to do those??

I’ve made a new blog just for you on Tumblr then, to get enough support to fund my dreams. I’m planning some really good stuff, I swear. We all know indie animators are producing better stuff than the big companies, so I want to give it a shot. Appreciate anyone even just taking a glance or sharing.

Some stories I am developing, writing, and making art and animations about:

‘M15HK4’- A dystopian Sci-Fi comic/tv show concept about a disabled teenage girl surviving a post-apocalyptic, irradiated Russia. Themes- Friendship, Revolution, Rebellion. Fun and tragic stuff.

’GL1TCH’- Based off a messy film I made in my final year of high-school. It’s a cyber-punk Sci-Fi film series concept following the story of a young ambitious- and oblivious- intern whose life takes a dark and dramatic twist after they start to doubt the world-dominant company they work for. Think Eugenics and Capitalism, taken to their natural conclusion. Trying to be hauntingly relevant here.

‘Below The Nocturne Circus’- A Musical Fantasy stop-motion/ 2D Animation TV series concept. A bunch of supernatural outcasts from all walks of life agree to join as a troupe in a circus run by a mysterious entity, who in return will offer them refuge from the cruel world in which they reside. But this Circus faces many external threats, involving a secret that is hidden below the Circus’ cellar.

’Omnipotent Souls’- Also Fantasy. Also musical. More vague and less development than the others but basically two deities are trapped in a world they are assigned to care for, as gods do. One is filled with rage, the other is more caring and curious about the lives of the mortals that hate them so much.

More posts soon!! Thank you if you read all of that!!

[art-the-f-up]

If I came across as snippy or trying to start something, I apologize, I'm barely holding myself together right now. I just saw some of the comments people have made about the situation on your Palestine AU and got frustrated. I want to be sure people have the whole picture, but whenever I try, people shut me down without really listening and blocking me. A guy got my original account deleted for "hate speech" when I posted my story just because they didn't like what I said. That's why I'm staying anon.

The truth is, I have someone over there who's being held in the middle of it all. She went on a school trip a few months ago and was reported missing. My family panicked not knowing what happened, and then a few weeks later all hell broke loose with this war.

My family was furious with Israel, and jumped to the conclusion it was like Russia & Ukraine, but later found out they were trying to take out Hamas, who had taken her and some of her classmates hostage.

No one knows what it's like to have someone over there, and no one seems to try to understand or even care. In their minds, Israel is the big bully and Palestine is the sole victim, but things aren't that black and white. Hell, Israel negotiating for hostage releases is the only reason a couple of her classmates have come home.

Meanwhile, everyone online seems to keep preaching about how Palestine must be free and how they need to stop supporting this war while offering no real alternatives to stopping Hamas, even going so far as to say they are a bunch of freedom fighters who need the support. Sometimes the only options you have are bad ones... But you still have to choose...

I'm not saying what's happening to the innocent people in Palestine isn't a tragedy, or trying to just brush it off, but men who kill without reason cannot be reasoned with. I wouldn't wish this on anyone; knowing those monsters have her is a living hell, and not a day goes by that we don't hope and pray that they'll be stopped, just so my sister can come home.

Sorry for rambling, I just really needed that release. I've said my peace, I promise I won't bother you about it again.

Hey, I completely understand your situation. But we have to admit this is a sensitive topic for many. NOT forbidden, just sensitive. You can expect me to listen to what you have to say and even understand your perspective, but you won't find many people like that when it comes to this topic and that is just what the internet is like. Just because I am understanding you doesn't mean other people are, and they each have their own right to being exhausted with justifications of crimes on any side. If there's anything I've learned it's that pointing fingers in an argument is not going to get anyone anywhere. I am someone who has been trying to hear out both israelis and Palestinians because like anyone else, after oct 7 I wanted to get the whole picture, as you say.

But your entire discussion started with being biased instead of trying to show the whole situation. You started with saying "israel is not the bad guy" but also said "Hamas is a terrorist organization" and I want you to really look at the use of words if you want people to see the "entire picture". Otherwise you ARE going to get shut down. The entire point of starting an argument online is that you first have to claim you've tried to study the complexity thoroughly. Chalking it up to Hamas being a terrorist organization and justifying a genocide is not going to cut that.

I am completely against trying to shut down someone's grief no matter how big or small it is. Everything comes down to the fact that we are all human, we all have feelings and every life matters. I can only send my condolences to the family that's going through this first hand. First of all, if you are actually someone who has been so closely impacted by this, trying to show the 'bigger picture' on the other accounts instead of your own is ALREADY a pretty dangerous thing for you to do, let alone to the art account of a local tribal artist in the north of some little country.

Now I really want you to evaluate your situation. Your family is tensed, is grieving, they are beside themselves with worry. Just thinking about it makes me sad and I sincerely hope that everything safely gets resolved for you and hopefully everyone is safe. But can you seriously say that as soon as your family found out "oh, Israel is just trying to eradicate a terrorist organization by blowing up the very place where the hostages could potentially be" they were…. okay with it?

I understand what it's like. I understand and I care. I grew UP on the stories of people going missing, people being blown up, people getting martyred in Palestine. Trust me I understand what you are going through.

I will never try to justify what happened to civilians on oct 7. it is horrible. What happened on oct 7 and what has been happening in Palestine for years makes no one but the innocent suffer at the hands of evil powers. But you cannot, with all due respect, try to say you're showing a 'bigger picture' when you clearly failed to mention the entire history.

Everyone living in Israel knows they are, first and foremost, living in an apartheid state. It is not that difficult for anyone mature enough to see the situation around them and look up and research to come to that conclusion. And many Israelis have. And many have left. Because they knew what living being such a place will entail for them.

And keep in mind I am also NOT in support of trying to make any Israelis leave, who have documented proof of any of their ancestors being from that land and/or don't have second citizenship somewhere else in the world. I hold them to the same level of rights as I do Palestinians.

I don't need to get into overcomplicated finger-pointing and yelling. You can look up Israeli soldiers shooting their own hostages in Gaza despite them shouting in Hebrew and holding up white flags. And the army only apologized because they were identified as Israeli citizens. How does that differentiate the Israeli army from Hamas? I don't need to pull up multiple sources or proof provided by the Israelis themselves. They are already everywhere. What I've heard and what I've seen from October seven, I'm seeing more and more of it being done by the Israeli Army. So we need to be really careful trying to call one side a terrorist, because that will automatically mean calling the other side the same. Which is true. In terms of definitions, what's happening in Gaza is blatant terrorism.

If Palestine was an apartheid state, you would see me speaking out against them. If Palestine was a colonizer apartheid and the people stood up to fight back against a powerful army with resources far more than that of them, you would see me calling them freedom fighters, not terrorists. Because I did happen to read a little bit about the international laws. I do happen to be from a family with a history of armed freedom fighters.

So yes, I am incredibly sorry that this is impacting you mentally, I hope you and you family stays safe and united, but if the impact is making you say biased things, it's better to go offline, take a break from social media, and spend this time trying to pray for your family and spending time with them.

[tmarshconnors]

President Trump and President Zelenskyy Meeting

I've never seen or heard anything like this in my lifetime. The recent meeting between President Donald Trump and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was nothing short of extraordinary. Tense, revealing, and ultimately a defining moment, this meeting less than an hour long will shape the course of history in ways we may not yet fully understand.

From the moment they entered the room, the atmosphere was charged with a palpable sense of unease. The weight of the ongoing war, the billions of dollars funneled into Ukraine’s defense, and the growing fatigue of Western nations loomed heavily. And then, something remarkable happened probably for the first time in history: every reporter in the room shut the hell up. The usual media circus, so eager to twist and spin every word, seemed to grasp the sheer gravity of the moment.

President Trump, always the master of the deal, was direct. His stance was clear: the United States has spent enough. The American taxpayer has been drained dry funding a war that shows no sign of a decisive conclusion. And for what? To prolong a conflict that Ukraine cannot win outright, while the West continues to bleed resources? There is no doubt that the Ukrainian people have shown resilience, but at what cost to the nations supporting them?

And then, there's Zelenskyy himself. Let’s be blunt: I genuinely think he is nothing but a clown. This man, once a comedian, now leads a war-torn nation, but his theatrics remain. He demands, pleads, and guilt-trips Western nations into financing his war machine rather than negotiating an end to the bloodshed. The Western media paints him as a hero, but to me, he seems more like an actor desperately trying to keep his show running.

Now, let me be clear: NO, I DO NOT SUPPORT Russia. This is not about taking sides with Putin or excusing his actions. But at some point, the United States, the United Kingdom, and the rest of the West need to leave Ukraine alone and let them sort this out themselves. Nations cannot be expected to endlessly bankroll another country’s fight while their own citizens suffer economic turmoil at home. The simple truth is that Ukraine would have already been forced into negotiations without Western support. And maybe that’s what should have happened a long time ago.

This meeting, though brief, was monumental. It wasn’t just another diplomatic gathering; it was a reckoning. Trump clarified that if he returns to the White House, the blank checks for Ukraine will stop. And whether you love or hate him, that stance marks a turning point.

The question now is, will history remember this as the moment the tide turned? Only time will tell. But one thing is certain: this conversation, this tension, this cold reality will be felt across the globe for years to come.

Liberals used to be the ones opposing war, yet now they seem to crave an endless conflict at the expense of the taxpayer, of course. Without Britain and America pouring in billions, Ukraine would have already been overrun. The only logical solution is to strike a deal and save what can be saved. But instead, we’re expected to keep sending money to fund a war that Ukraine will never win, no matter how much we spend. And what’s next? Sending our own troops?

There’s no real answer from the usual lot, just the same tired nonsense about how "Trump is bad." The reality is simple: Trump doesn’t control Putin, and Putin doesn’t control Trump. Putin will do whatever he wants. Yet, I don’t see any other country stepping up to try to end this. Britain and America are doing more than anyone, but how long can this go on? How many more billions? How many more lives will be lost? The only way to stop the killing and the waste is a negotiated peace. But say that, and you’re met with empty slogans and blind hysteria.

[the-jam-to-the-unicorn]

Here are the issues I have with the book. Since it's a lot, I'll try to keep it as short as possible and only mention my biggest problems with it. So this list is not complete and I could write pages about it.

Let me start by saying that a good autobiography (or any book that highlights a real life person) should be balanced. It should not glorify that person or pretend that person is a god and without mistakes. I also have no problem with critizing Ze, because, let's face it, yes he made mistakes and fucked things up in the past and not every war decision or speech or whatever was good or perfect. The point is: the critique should be fair and balanced (this obviously doesn't apply to bad people in general and the books about them; but since Ze isn't a bad person...you get what I want to say). The portrayal of Ze in the book is anything but fair or balanced. Or true, for that matter (unless literally every person in Ze's life and who knows him better, including the Kvartal fam, Olena, Andriy or people like them, have been lying to everyone for decades).

Throughout the whole book Shuster does say that Ze is Ukrainian (and Jewish) but also always tries to paint him as an "Ukrainian Russian" - so Ze is actually Russian despite being a "Ukrainian" (basically using one of Russia's Propaganda lies). Ze is basically a stubborn "Ukrainian" who kind of deserves all the hate and arrogance he gets from "real Russians" during KVN times (and later) because Ze is an insufferable asshole during his KVN times. And that Russian treated Ukrainian (or from other former Soviet Union countries) teams badly (including racist remarks, looking down on them, treating them like slaves, insulting them, not giving them a fair chance,...) teams awfully is, in Ze's case, deserved. Because Ze was oh so focused on always winning - no matter what and the cost.

Speaking of KVN: According to Shuster, Ze was terrible as a person during his first years of stardom. A maniac who only lived for applause and needs it to survive and was willing to do absolutely everything to win and beat other teams. Because, you know, he's so obsessed with winning. To a point were even he gives a flying fuck about the Kvartal team and their members (Shuster basically hints that they all disliked Ze and he was some kind of group dictator who only wanted to work and win all the time and was reckless and took to many risks and almost destroyed everyones lifes). When Shuster finds something positive to write about, he quotes people from Kvartal but what he quotes are just general statements or people saying what KVN was like during the 1990s and early 2000s. The moment Shuster writes about Ze and was he (allegedly) like during this time it's almost only "team members" and "people who knem him" and "classmates" and all that stuff - so anon sources. Or it's just Shuster telling stuff without saying what his source is or him just have feelings and thoughts and drawing conclusions. If people get named they - surprise, surprise - have a lot of times bad things to say about Ze or are people who we never ever have heard of as being part of Ze's life. Btw, it's not very hard to guess who the "team member", who talked the KVN years and adds a lot of negative talk about Ze, is... . Denys (yes, THAT Denys) contributed to the book with pictures, so chances are high he also talked to Shuster. If you ever wondered if the asshole would ever get over the fact that he fucked up and Ze kicked his ass out of the group - well, the answer is no. He now just tries to cash in on Ze. And since we are talking about Denys' obvious contribution to the book - he, once again, gave out private photos. How much we all wanna bet that he, once again, didn't ask for consent?!

Shuster also tries to paint Ze's family in a bad light. The father a tyrann who sacrified his wife's (Mama Ze) health for his job and money. Also rarely being at home and giving a fuck about his son and family. Mama Ze spoiling her child and making him entitled. Both to unloving and hard and more or less making Ze's life a living hell. Also that Ze's family was suddenly rich. Not to mention indirectly questioning the trauma his family had to go through (and Ze talked about in the past) under Stalin and the Nazis and family members that are suddenly alive (despite Ze stating in the past that they were dead). Also, Shuster sees in the childhood and family of Ze a part of the explanation why Ze is such a horrible person today, to stubborn to just give up and end the fight (and all that nonsense) and won't win this war. Because the parents put Ze in all kind of activities without him finishing any of it but letting him believe he can do everything and always demanding excellent perfomance in every aspect of his life (to keep it short). So of cooourse Ze had to grow up into a maniac who can't loose and always continues despite what people may tell him and who needs the constant validation and love from others.

There are also a ton of negative remarks about Ze as father and husband in regard of his own family. Not to mentiont hat a ton of informations are factually not correct. Things like birth dates or dates in general, how and where Ze's family lived (missing important context several times), Ze basically being as awful as his father, Ze not giving a fuck about his families safety during the war (Olena was the voice of reason who protects the poor, poor children because their father just wants them back for egoistic reasons and doesn't care about their safety) or not seeing anything concerning about his sons military obsession and instead fueling it (again, it's the poor poor wife who has to protect the son from the awful father), Ze giving zero fucks about his relationship with Olena right from the start and that poor, poor, poor woman always staying behind and having to go through hell and hate because of Ze's maniac ambitions and facing an unsave future in the early 2000s because Ze was so full of himself and had the biggest ego,... . (reading several parts you would think that this "poor, poor woman" is trapped in some abuse situation or Ze somehow tied her to himself and the whole marriage is fake and there is no love) (also Olena simultaniously romantizing things and her life and Ukraine but also being the only who who sees the truth about Ze or several parts of their lives but, of course, can't tell her terrible husband because bad, bad Ze) Also Shuster indirectly claiming that Ze and Olena lied about their relationship and they didn't date for eight years but for a shorter period of time. Because suddenly Olena also was a part of KVN long before Ze (???) and was essentially just his work buddy and friend for a while and somehow and for whatever reason they ended up in a relationship one day. (Also prepare yourself to read about a new version of the "Basic Instinct" story we never have heard before...and Ze and Olena never said.)

Btw, the way Ze is portrayed during his KVN years is essentially with little variation how he's portrayed in later stages of his life. Including his presidency and the war (I'm not going to write several more paragraphes because I think you get the picture Shuster tries to paint of Ze).

Only one thing about Ze's war portrayal: Shuster swings back and forth between Ze as wanna be dictator who will turn Ukraine into something bad as soon as the war is over (and is already starting with that) and who already makes his own rules and gives zero fucks about people and is only interested in his own fame and people applauding him and all that stuff. And Ze being the worst President ever because the war and the current state of Ukraine (which is, of course, very bad and they are about to collapse and loose and big Russia and winning and blablabla) are somehow also his fault. Yes, Shuster really manages to make Ze (and with that Ukraine) partly guilty.

Throughout the whole book he also, sometimes more obvious sometimes hidden, Shuster portrays Ukraine in the worst way possible. He does mention how "bad" Russia is but somehow justifying it several times or leaving out important facts and, once again, context. Also the portrayal of Putin, especially in comparsion with how he writes about Ze, is a joke.

Oh, and, the "inside look in the bunker" life Shuster used for his marketing campaign and that the claim of the book - yeah, bullshit. It's nothing now and anon and all that stuff. Also, once again, portraying Ze in a bad light. Like, yeah, the first weeks of war affected him but to such a worrying point (according to Shuster) that Ze was actually unfit to rule any longer as President but continued (because, you know, he loves power sooo much...). And now he's the mini dictator of Bankova who is always grumpy and changed into a (an even more) awful person and... .

What can I say at the end?! As mentioned earlier, the book has a ton of fake news and wrong facts. It's incredibly poorly researched - if sources exist at all. A lot of times it's Shuster just sharing his feelings or thougths or conclusions or interpretations or whatever. Or just saying things without context. Or writing stuff without giving sources. And to be honest, in some parts it also feels like that Shuster just made stuff up.

If you have no idea about Ze and his life or know very little - that's not the book to get informed. If you know a bit more about Ze, you will surprisingly often feel that certain parts of "exclusive interviews" or "when I talked with XYZ" are strangely familiar...with interviews we all know from Ze's (and several other people) past...because it is these interviews. Just a lot of times missing context, shortening what was said, adding stuff or giving it a new meaning.

Speaking of using old stuff: Shuster also really used his old articles to include them in the book...to a point where it's basically almost word for word.

Overall, the book is in large parts poorly written (so poorly that you wonder how he became a TIME journalist in the first place).

In the end, you probably haven't learned anything new or interesting about Ze, his life, the war or Ukraine. When we talk about Ze, I may have read one, maybe two new things I haven't read before (but questioning both of them and will do research if they are true or just made up by Shuster). It's over 300 sites of wasted paper and ink. I know articles who did a better job than this "book". It's a waste of time and money. And in the end it's a Pro-Russia Propaganda book, trying to undermine the support for Ukraine and hurt Ze and his image (as well as Ukraine's). Shuster tries to be subtle at his try to do this but he isn't not. He tries to come off as critical thinker who wants to portray a balanced picture of Ze and also writes about the sides no one dares to talk about. But nothing about this is balanced. It's just 300+ sites of trashing Ze and backstabbing him and using every possible way. Same applies to Ukraine.

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