Merged Ukraine erupts in riots and general strike.

[WildCat]

Russia’s Senate Approves Use of Military Force in Ukraine

As Russian-backed armed forces effectively seized control of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula on Saturday, President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia requested —and received — authorization from the Russian Senate to use military force in Ukraine.

[qimg]http://i.imgur.com/y9P1Cvr.png[/qimg]

Nothing to see here, just local private militias or something, not Russian troops!

I'm going to look away now and refuse to look again.

/putin apologist

 

[trustbutverify]

And I still don't get your investigative method of relying on your google-fu. You seem to google random sources and reports from the chaotic events and from those picking the ones seemingly supporting your notions. And to doubt your claims is "sticking it to Putin". .

I disagree with the highlighted part.

 

[trustbutverify]

I think what's going on in Crimea is more about saving face for Putin. The Russians will most likely take control of Crimea after being 'invited' by local pro-Russian politicians and citizens in a fanfare of patriotic spin so Putin can bury the fact that his efforts to bring Ukraine back into Russian sphere of influence have been an abject failure.

The US and EU know this and will make loud diplomatic noises but do nothing so long as Putin sticks to Crimea.

100% correct.

 

[spin0]

An interesting dissection of rhetorics in the Putinist media in Russia: What Kind of Target Are You?

The Great Patriotic War is more important as an ideological keystone now than it has been in decades, and its categories—fascist, collaborator, patriot—are a means of understanding politics as well as justifying repression.
...
I said above that these 16½ minutes encapsulate the new Putinist ideology, and they do, more explicitly than has hitherto seemed possible. What you see here are not just the familiar totalitarian tropes—the threat of the external enemy, the fifth column, the association between liberalism and spinelessness, Jewishness, effeminacy, cowardice. They also openly present to us the spectrum of targets the regime sees as fair game.

Putin biographer Masha Gessen states the obvious (which for some is still impossible to admit): Most Russians believe the Crimea is theirs – Putin has acted on his belief

Can something be evident and incredible at the same time? Certainly, if you are in denial. Until Russian troops landed in the Crimea many Russians were in denial about Vladimir Putin. They believed he was all bark and no bite.

Not that Putin had kept his intentions secret. He has always promoted the idea that the Soviet Union was a colonising power; furthermore, he called the breakup of the USSR "the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of our time".
...
It signals a loss of innocence: no longer will Russians be able to think that Putin merely feels nostalgic for the USSR. It also signals ever greater polarisation of Russian society: in addition to all the other lines along which Russians are divided and across which civilised dialogue is impossible, there is now the chasm between supporters and opponents of the planned annexation. It also means the political crackdown in Russia will intensify further.

 

[IDB87]

You are pro-imperialism now?

Well, when it's your own

 

[IDB87]

Yup, the imperialist American puppet Nazi Joos with false flags who forced Putin to further stabilize situation with tanks.

So CE and CL have a Wiki together about the conflict in Syria (heavily pro-Assad), but there's a subsection from that Wiki that deals with the goings-on in Ukraine. A picture was uploaded of Berkut forces with rifles and body armor, I'm sure you've seen it, with the caption of (Summarizing) "Possible Right Sector members in disguise". I believe they got that snippet from a pro-Yanukovych facebooker, whose evidence of Right Sector infiltration was an unsourced assertion that the Berkut police didn't use AKs and wore heavier boots. Also someone in the Yanukovych government asserted the police were in fact Right Sector members.

So, the protesters are 100% capable of infiltrating the police lines and shooting up their comrades, but the police forces would NEVER disguise themselves as protesters and infiltrate their lines in order to set up shop. It's just impossible. Take the governments word for it, and don't fact check some random claim made on the internet (because it aligns with your ideology)


Their posts radiate skepticism.

 

[trustbutverify]

Their posts radiate something, that's for sure.

Nick Cohen @NickCohen4
Follow
Heading into London. Looking forward to seeing the peace movement marching against Putin

Any day now, Mr Cohen.

 

[spin0]

^ Yep, any day now...

Their posts radiate skepticism.

They sure do. And anti-imperialism.

inb4 someone posts "proof" (= a random picture of a web page) that the Euromaidan protesters are conspiring with Chechen terrorists against Russia. That CT claim has been making rounds in the Putin media today.

So now it's the imperialist American puppet Nazi Islamist Joos with false flags who forced Putin to further stabilize situation with tanks.

 

[Childlike Empress]

This is starting to become rather amusing.

[imgw=600]http://i.imgur.com/q7NEBlW.jpg[/imgw]

btw, for those who don't know our wiki, the page on the Ukraine affair is here and the image mentioned by the guy who is on my ignore list for acting obnoxious and lying, but gets a lurk occasionally, is on the talk page here. For a good laugh, compare what he claims the caption says with what the caption really says, and take a look at the image's talk page to see why it says what it says and is signed.

Long story short: The contributor who uploaded the image is 100% convinced that those are Berkut units and - he has a dry sense of humor - named the pic "Fake_Berkut" and added the caption "Berkut policemen with assault rifles claimed by Yanukovitch supporters to be Right Sector militants in disguise.", which our little forum friend wants you to believe reads "Possible Right Sector members in disguise". We even had a little dispute there as you can read, where I changed the caption to something leaving the identity of the pictured men open, but that wasn't met with approval and so we settled on signing the caption, which still says that those are Berkut policemen...

Sometimes you really have to wonder...

 

[spin0]

heh, this guy: Yanukovych snaps pen in anger at press conference

“Let me address the Ukrainian people,” Yanukovych begins. He then pauses for a few seconds, looks down, grimaces and in a burst of anger attempts to snap his pen in half.

He then recovers himself and continues his speech, saying: “First, I want to ask for your forgiveness…”

 

[IDB87]

Long story short: The contributor who uploaded the image is 100% convinced that those are Berkut units and - he has a dry sense of humor - named the pic "Fake_Berkut" and added the caption "Berkut policemen with assault rifles claimed by Yanukovitch supporters to be Right Sector militants in disguise.",

Neat. The uploader, whose "Golden Rule of Dry humor" is summarized thusly:

Who ever possesses the bodies is guilty of their murder.

Is that some of his world-famous dry humor on display? The protesters had the bodies of their slain comrades, thus they are guilty. Or do you dispute his philosophy?

The caption they included when they uploaded the picture (which is found on this facebook page:

The militants of the Right Sector, militarised extremist wing of the opposition's national party, are trying to impose as law reinforcement officers. The black SWAT uniforms are not used by Berkut division of police. The AK model has been removed from the law reinforcement forces awhile ago. Light boots are not worn by Berkut as well as the ski goggles. Another attempt of opposition to discredit the police force and justify their crimes committed for the benefit of US and EU masters.

Such humor this guy has! My sides are in outer space.

which our little forum friend wants you to believe reads "Possible Right Sector members in disguise". We even had a little dispute there as you can read, where I changed the caption to something leaving the identity of the pictured men open, but that wasn't met with approval and so we settled on signing the caption, which still says that those are Berkut policemen...

Leave the asserted claim in place despite zero evidence in support - bogus you say? I fail to see the relevance of speculation. Do you want us to take your wiki seriously, or is it more of a hobby?

 

[spin0]

Lithuania, Latvia and now also Poland have invoked the NATO treaty's IV Article.

Lithuania's FM Linkevicius has said Russia's decision to deploy forces in Ukraine means "Nato, art. 4 becomes valid," referring to article 4 of the Nato treaty. The article says Nato members must meet for consultations if "the territorial integrity, political independence or security of any of the parties is threatened."

(Lithuania invokes Nato treaty on Ukraine)

NATO will now meet at their request.

Meanwhile in NY the UN Security Council open meeting is beginning. At first Russia tried to insist against holding the meeting open but apparently lost the vote about the procedure.

 

[Childlike Empress]

The beauty of wikimedia software is that every step is logged in the history, so if anybody doesn't have better things to do, they are totally capable of verifying my words. They could just read the uploader's comments right next to the embedded pic on the talk page and on the talk page of the pic, but it IS possible to do it the forensic way.

 

[Childlike Empress]

Lithuania, Latvia and now also Poland have invoked the NATO treaty's IV Article.

(Lithuania invokes Nato treaty on Ukraine)

NATO will now meet at their request.

Meanwhile in NY the UN Security Council open meeting is beginning. At first Russia tried to insist against holding the meeting open but apparently lost the vote about the procedure.

Seen the leaked Klitschko mails?

 

[spin0]

Seen the leaked Klitschko mails?

We are Anonymous Ukraine.

We are Anonymous.

We are Legion.

We Do Not Forgive.

We Do Not Forget.

Expect Us.

Great sources you have.

 

[uke2se]

Great sources you have.

Those emails certainly look legit.

 

[Childlike Empress]

The most interesting thing I am waiting for is to see what the grass roots activists, who still control the Kiev scene with their brown-looking armed wing, will do about the fact that their justifiable fight against the corrupt political class has ended so far with the other wing of the beast taking over again.

 

[spin0]

Apparently there has been an incident in Simferopol allegedly leaving two dead. It seems to have taken place right before the eyes of Russian media. What a coincidence! Luckily no journalists were injured in the crossfire despite being right in the midst of it judging by the images.

https://twitter.com/KeXXit/status/439805423520989184

https://twitter.com/towersight/status/439805773510488064

Videos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMvgzsTDReE
https://vine.co/v/MKPUve5hl5I
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqI5gTZjXz0

 

[geni]

Seen the leaked Klitschko mails?

Anonymous? None of the usual hubs of anonymous appear to be paying much attention.

We did lose a wikipedian but that doesn't appear to have been web related.

 

[L.Y.S.]

My god, Russia confirming it has been all over the news since yesterday. The newly installed Russian PM in Crimea has also confirmed it. And so has the Ukrainian gov.

I did not see these confirmations yesterday.

Those guys had no identifying insignia, had latest Russian military gear including the new "Barmitsa" uniform, weaponry and gear including night vision equipment, they looked and acted like professional soldiers, were driving Russian APCs, and flew Russian military helicopters. But yeah, they were probably just some local private strongmen.

In light of recent evidence, point taken.