Well I personally am shocked that this wasn’t a deterrent! pic.twitter.com/urFMx0lNHD
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) February 24, 2022
Author: Blazingcatfur
Just 26% of Americans want U.S. to play “major role” in Ukraine standoff
This feels like the flip side of the White House’s rhetorical game-playing about “invasions” versus “minor incursions.” How “minor” does an incursion need to be to avoid qualifying as an “invasion”?
Similarly, how restrained does the U.S. response to Russian aggression need to be to avoid qualifying as “major? The term is sufficiently vague that it can mean anything.
I hope Trudeauscu commits to 40,000 Ukraine refugees as he did for his Afghan Mohammedans.
Reality Honks Back
The Canadian trucker convoy suggests a new class divide originating in our experience of reality itself.
The world is watching what’s happening in Canada with a mixture of fascination and horror. The weeks-long saga of the “Freedom Convoy” protest against pandemic restrictions, spearheaded by Canadian truckers, has taken an authoritarian turn. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked emergency powers to crush the peaceful protest, suspending civil liberties protections, arresting hundreds, and taking the unprecedented step of ordering dissident citizens entirely frozen out of the financial system. What brought Canada’s normally placid politics to this point?
Why Is Democratic Biden Rescuing Autocratic Erdoğan at the Expense of U.S. Allies?
In just over one year in office, U.S. President Joe Biden has swung from a pledge to oust Turkey’s Islamist autocrat, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, to occasionally appease him, first behind doors, and now publicly.
Appearing to detest Erdoğan’s suffocating regime, increasingly Islamist governance and pro-Russian aspirations, Biden, a year before he became president, had described Erdoğan as an autocrat and promised to empower Turkey’s opposition parties through democratic processes.
Federal government facing lawsuits over Emergencies Act
The federal government will have to defend its use of the Emergencies Act in court after two civil-liberties groups asserted in legal challenges that invoking the act against anti-mandate protesters was unlawful. Alberta Premier Jason Kenney announced on Wednesday that his government will file its own court challenge.
In separate court actions, the Canadian Constitution Foundation and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA) are asking for a hearing in Federal Court. Both say they will continue their challenges despite Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s announcement on Wednesday that the government is ending its declaration of an emergency.
Kerry: ‘I Hope President Putin Will Help Us to Stay on Track‘ with ‘What We Need to Do for the Climate‘
During an interview with the BBC released on Wednesday prior to Russia’s attack on Ukraine, Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry expressed concern that a war in Ukraine would have “massive emissions consequences” and divert attention from climate change and stated, “I hope President Putin will help us to stay on track with respect to what we need to do for the climate.”
Eurovision: Russia can compete despite invasion of Ukraine
Russia will be allowed to participate in this year’s Eurovision Song Contest, despite launching a military assault on neighbouring Ukraine.
Organisers called the competition a “non-political cultural event” and said they were “currently planning” to host entrants from both Russia and Ukraine at the event this May.
“We of course will continue to monitor the situation closely,” they added.
Ukraine’s state broadcaster UA:PBC had called for Russia to be suspended.
A modern Cold War with Russia will be CYBERWAR targeting America’s energy grid and critical infrastructure
Imagine – it’s winter. Heating oil prices are rising. Low temperatures are forecast for the next few days.
You turn on your television and hear the first reports of a massive cyberattack against America’s largest pipeline.
Ransomware has infected the company’s computer system, bringing operations to a halt as IT staff work feverishly to stop the spread.
Trudeau’s convoy response gets failing grade, but even fewer support protesters: poll
As the so-called “Freedom Convoy” comes to an end in Ottawa, Canadians remain divided on how they feel about the protests.
According to a new Ipsos poll published Thursday, Canadians’ approval of Justin Trudeau’s handling of the convoy blockade was only seven points higher than that of the protesters.
How would you answer this poll knowing Trudeauscu might have you un-personed?
What can the west do about Russia invading Ukraine?
In the wake of what the Nato secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, described as Russia’s “fully fledged invasion of Ukraine”, the west has to decide how to respond to what France’s Emmanuel Macron has called a turning point in European history.
Yet can the west now offer Ukraine more than a mixture of prayers, sanctions and diplomatic demarches? Throughout this conflict western intelligence has shown it has been able to predict Putin’s next step, but less capable of stopping it. Boris Johnson told the Ukrainian people “we are with you”, but what this western solidarity means in practice is now up for debate.
Foreign Affairs minister Joly calls Russia envoy on carpet!!!
OTTAWA — Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly has summoned Russia’s ambassador to Canada for a dressing down after his country’s invasion of Ukraine.
Ambassador Oleg V. Stepanov met Joly at the headquarters of Global Affairs Canada on Thursday, where she condemned “in the strongest possible terms Russia’s egregious attack on Ukraine,” the minister’s office told The Canadian Press.
Russian troops seize Chernobyl after ‘fierce’ battle with condition of nuclear storage ‘unknown’
Russian forces have seized control of Chernobyl nuclear power plant after a ‘fierce’ battle, with the condition of nuclear storage facilities ‘unknown’, sparking fears of a radiation leak that could cause fallout in Europe.
Video revealed Russian tanks and armoured vehicles standing in front of the destroyed reactor, which sits just 60 miles north of the capital Kiev.
Meanwhile Turkey reported that one of its ships had been hit by a ‘bomb’ off the coast of Odessa, where fighting is also going on. Turkey is a member of NATO, underlining fears that the war in Ukraine could quickly suck in other states and spark an all-out conflict in Europe.
US Truck Convoy Departs on Cross-Country Trek to Washington to Protest COVID-19 Mandates
ADELANTO, California—Hundreds of truckers and supporters departed a southern California site on Feb. 23 for a trip planned to culminate in the Washington area.
The so-called People’s Convoy, inspired by Canadian truckers who drew international attention, hopes to convince authorities to ease or withdraw COVID-19 vaccine mandates and other restrictions imposed during the pandemic.
The convoy has specific demands, including urging President Joe Biden to rescind his declaration of a national emergency over COVID-19. Biden, a Democrat, on Feb. 20 said the emergency will be extended beyond March 1 because of a “risk to the public health and safety.”
Cost of gas in the GTA could hit $2 a litre next month as Russian attack on Ukraine impacts oil prices: analyst
Gas prices across the GTA will likely surpass the $2 a litre mark sometime next month as Russia’s decision to attack Ukraine and the resulting economic sanctions it will face as a result puts pressure on the cost of oil, warns one industry analyst.
Dan McTeague, who is the president of Canadians for Affordable Energy, told CP24 on Thursday that he expects the price of gas across the GTA to go up eight cents this weekend to an average of $1.67 per litre.
That, however, could just be the beginning of a sustained run up in the cost of gasoline that McTeague said will ultimately drive up the price of other goods, including food.