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11
DnD Central / Re: The comings and goings of the European Union
Last post by jax -
Yes, seen the same documentary.

Where there are sanctions, there will be sanctions busting. Inevitably, and every time as long as the sanctioned has money to pay for it. And a siege of Russia is not a practicality.

However, where there is sanction busting, there can be sanctions busting busting. And while sanctions have never brought down a regime, not even South Africa, and can make people connected to the regime even richer, they do impoverish a country. That however is a long game.

Doesn't mean they are useless, only that they are gradual and not a replacement for more direct action. Ukraine's "sanctions" inside Russia are pretty good, even though they too are gradual.
16
DnD Central / Re: What's going on in Scandinavia, North Atlantic, Baltic States and Scotland?
Last post by ersi -
Putin wants Estonia's PM. I wonder how much he is willing to pay for her. Prigozhin was valued by various US services from $100,000 up to $8m. But there's no Prigozhin anymore available for bounty hunters. What's KGB's preiskurant?

Another question is that maybe Putin feels like not paying out anything out to the bounty hunter who delivers. Or maybe he will pay AND send the bounty hunter to the Ukraine front.
17
DnD Central / Re: Everything Trump…
Last post by ersi -
Of course, another fundamental issue is that "pay bills" is not how Nato membership works. The fact that Trump thinks that USA functions in Nato like the mafia don who collects tribute is yet another disqualification of his. Naturally, he cannot think any other way, because mafia don is his mode of operation, for which he should have been locked up in late 80's already, or in late 00's at the latest.

Instead Trump was rewarded with the presidency and this only made him think of himself as an untouchable mafia don. Probably the elites reasoned along the lines, "We are all corrupt, so let's have the most brazenly corruptest of us have the most visible post, so the rest of us will look less corrupt." Hopefully they have realised their mistake now and want to take the country out of the third world dump failed state status. I still entertain some hope that Trump will be taken off the ballot as justice and law and order and due process required a long time ago.
18
DnD Central / Re: Everything Trump…
Last post by jax -
He was persuaded to leave NATO alone the first time. It probably won't work the second time.

A Russia with the US president in their pocket is, to put it mildly, a dangerous place. It dramatically increases the risk that Kremlin will do something irreversible.

This could easily become the most disastrous election since 1933.
19
DnD Central / Re: Everything Trump…
Last post by ersi -
Trump Encourages Putin to Attack NATO Members

[Trump said in a campaign speech:] One of the presidents of a big country stood up and said, “Well, sir, if we don't pay and we’re attacked by Russia, will you protect us?” I said, “You didn’t pay, you’re delinquent?” He said, “Yes, let’s say that happened.” “No, I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want. You gotta pay. You gotta pay your bills.”
Of course, this is not about paying bills. It's about defuncting Nato altogether.

Those who don't pay bills are far away from Russia, so Russia is no threat to them. Russia is a threat to those Nato members who always paid the bills. What Trump is actually saying here is that Putin is free to attack without any repercussions. All incursions by Putin have been net positives anyway for Putin, but Trump promises better than that.

I did not notice Putin mentioning Trump in his exchange with Tucker, but apparently Trump got this message out of it.
20
DnD Central / Re: What's Going on in Business?
Last post by jax -
In addition to bursting into flames, Tesla cars seem to have a tendency to plunge into fjords.
Two motorists whose car plunged into a freezing Oslo fjord escaped unharmed when a floating sauna came to their rescue, Norwegian police have said. [...] The owner of the car, who was not identified by name, said he had thought the car was in park mode when he hit the accelerator pedal.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTTND6daGWI

Passengers of a sinking Tesla picked up by a sauna boat has been described as "Peak Bjørvika" (a district in Oslo). 

I used to live in Bjørvika back when it was a port/industrial/motorway ringroad. Not that anymore.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J9DxB0SgOq4