GRACIEBIRD
GRACIEBIRD's JournalPssstt Dmitry, tell Vladimir that I will have more flexibility after the election...
Oh ffs if I see another youtube link on Facebook to that off-mic comment I'm going to puke. I even saw a "How can Putin respect a man who wears mom jeans and can't throw a baseball without looking like a wimp?"
As usual the US right wing is in apoplectic giddy seizures as global markets tank. I was reading the Baltic Times yesterday and a leading Russian expert claims that after Ukraine the Baltic may be next.
I think this is all blown out of proportion. The right has their war hard on fully engaged (and some Dems too I'm afraid) and I just wish it were over. Why did the protestors not simply accept the offer for new elections and leave it at that?
So let me get this right, Right Wing Rabble topple a Democratically elected Gov't
in Ukraine and DU blames Russia for sending in troops to secure it's own military bases and Russian speaking minority?
Make no mistake. The current "insurgent government" in Kiev is represented by a large number of right-wing elements and we're not talking "right wing" like a Ted Cruz, we're talking "right-wing" like Hitler. The center-moderate parties of Ukraine made a deal with the right wing devil parties for their support including the "muscle" during the riots.
So now I hear these ridiculous war mongering TOOLS like Hannity et al talking like tough guys and talk of facing down the Russians and it's just disgusting. The US is hypocritical and it's transparent and awful.
NEWSFLASH!! Revolutions don't always bring the right people to power!! (look at last few years of international instability)
Europe vs. Russia, nearly a century of conflict and some modern day payback.
Just wanted to talk about the European vs. Russia issues we're seeing now.
It's not new.
It goes back to before WW2 but let's start in WW2.
From the 1930's on there was a strong Anti-Bolshevik movement in most European countries including France, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Spain, Italy, Netherlands and of course Germany and Austria.
This anti-Bolshevik sentiment became anti-Semitic as there was a Jewish face attached to Bolshevism in much of the propaganda.
As the war in Europe in progressed, many of these countries came under German rule. The German Waffen-SS (the military arm of the SS, not to be confused with the Concentration Camp SS) recruited foreign volunteers for nation specific volunteer SS divisions. For example, the French SS division, the 33rd Waffen Grenadier SS numbered some 11,000 soldiers in 1944.
The volunteer SS soldiers were fervent anti-Bolshevik. They joined the Germans as a way to fight for a free Europe. The memoirs of a famous French SS volunteer is named “Por L'Europe” (For Europe)
Particularly passionate were countries who had been under the yoke of Soviet oppression before like the Baltic nations. In Estonia the Russian military juggernaut moved west from Russia into Estonia in 1944 to chase the Germans out of the Baltic. Germany responded by placing the III (Germanic) Panzer Corps in Estonia. This was a majority volunteer SS army of several divisions including Estonian, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, French, Dutch and other volunteers.
The III (Germanic) SS Corps fought so heroically in Estonia that a group of 20,000 European volunteers fought off a Russian force of 130,000 soldiers for months. In fact the volunteer SS soldiers were never defeated and ended the war in the Western Baltic region in a pocket of resistance.
Needless to say the Russians were not fond of these volunteer soldiers and most that surrendered after the war were simply murdered or sent to Siberia to disappear. After the war the Soviets absolutely brutally crushed the hearts and souls of the people of the Baltic states, Western Poland, Czechoslovakia and anywhere else they controlled.
So, the bottom line... the bad blood between what some people call Eastern Europe (the Baltic, Czech Republic and Poland is actually central Europe) and Russia is unimaginable.
In Estonia the volunteers of the Estonian Waffen SS are heroes. They have a memorial and an annual parade. In fact the 70th anniversary of the Battle of the Tannenberg will be a national holiday this summer.
There is a strong right-wing Nationalist movement in Europe and their primary motivation is an anti-Russian one. Europe has been waiting nearly a century for some payback against the Russians and now you're seeing Ukraine fighting to free itself from the Russian yoke. Oh and yes, there was a volunteer Ukraine SS division during the war too.
Just a little trivia... at the very end in Berlin in May, 1945 it was not Germans who were defending Hitlers bunker. It was mostly French, Dutch, Norwegian, Swedish and Danes.
Celebrity PIGS and their underage girls problems
Nugent represents a long line of disgusting PIGS.
(from all over the net)
1. Jimmy Page - Led Zeppelin
She reportedly lost her virginity to Bowie at the ripe age of 13 and began a relationship with Page at 14 while he was still involved with Des Barres. Page went so far as to have his manager snatch her up and bring her to his room the first time they hooked up.
2. Steven Tyler - Aerosmith
In 1975, Tyler persuaded the parents of 16 year old groupie Julia Holcomb (sometimes spelled Holcolm) to sign over guardianship to him so that he could live with her in Boston. (similar to Nugent story)
3. R Kelly
In 2002, a video leaked online reportedly showing Kelly engaging in sex with and urinating on an underage girl. Though she later admitted it was consensual, Kelly was arrested on a variety of charges stemming from the incident. It took six years for the case to go to trial and he was acquitted on all counts. In 2003, police found a stash of child porn and a video of Kelly having sex with yet another minor in his home.
4. Jerry Lee Lewis
No list of this kind would be complete without Lewis, who famously married his 13-year-old cousin. The scandal essentially ruined his career. Surprisingly, his first cousin (once removed -- that's key) was not his first wife. He said in an interview he was first married at the age of 14 to a 17-year-old.
5. Bill Wyman - Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones' sexual appetites are the stuff of legend and Wyman might have led that pack. It has been documented that he slept with more than 1,000 women throughout his life, a number that would make Wilt Chamberlin proud. But, his most controversial affair with with Mandy Smith, an 18-year-old he had been seeing since she was 13 when he was in his 60s. Gross!
6. Chuck Berry
What we don't cotton to is his reported exploits with younger ladies. In 1961, he was arrested for transporting a minor across state lines, in this case a 14-year-old girl. He also allegedly video taped women in the bathroom of a restaurant he bought in 1989.
7. David Bowie
Maddox (or Lori Lightning as she was known) was a notorious groupie in the early 70s. She reportedly lost her virginity to Bowie at the ripe age of 13
8. Don Henley - The Eagles
Back in 1980, Eagles drummer/singer Don Henley was arrested when police found a drugged, naked 16-year-old girl at his house in Hollywood. Henley got a $2,000 fine and two years probation (seriously?) for the offense.
9. Ted Nugent
No one disputes the fact that he became the guardian of a 17-year-old girl with her parents permission in the 80s to avoid statutory rape charges. He was 30 at the time.
10. Don Johnson - Miami Heat
With his celebrity, he managed to land the uber-hot Melanie Griffith. Only problem is that she was 14 at the time.
Republican obstructionism and the potential success or failure of President Obama
So I've been thinking about the historical view that the President will face after he's out of office.
I think it's been terribly unfair that President Obama has been stymied in every possible way and I feel the word "sabotage" isn't out of line. Reagan was able to make a legacy because he "got" what he wanted whether through flexible Democrats or whatever. President Clinton also sat in the drivers seat for a tremendous US Economy and he's looked upon by most as a VERY GOOD President. The guy who came after President Clinton was able to pursue and achieve goals and the agenda he wanted often times at a ghastly cost to the nation.
But President Obama has received no breaks. If/When the next Republican President takes office the ACA will be out on it's ear and President Obama will more likely be remembered for the economy and Afghanistan War.
So my point is... the timing for an inspirational and thoughtful man such as President Obama was obviously just off. And it's a pity.
Then my stream of thought took a sharp turn.
I started thinking about the unfairness and thought to myself, "We would never do this to a Republican President". And that got me to thinking, "What if Ted Cruz was President of the USA today? I'm sure that Republicans see President Obama in the same manner that Democrats see Ted Cruz. If Ted Cruz was President today, and we held a Democratic House and had a chance at taking back the Republican Senate how would we expect our elected Representatives to act?
Would we support obstruction of President Cruz's agenda?
Would we filibuster legislation in the Senate?
What would we think when President Cruz said in a speech, "Babies are dying because the Democrats are obstructing my agenda" or "If the Democrats won't work with me I will push my agenda with Executive Orders".
Then I just realize... our system is messed up. There is a huge split in this Nation and I don't know if it will ever be healed. Our form of government was designed around compromise. The Republicans should have said, "Ok we will support the ACA if you give us a new Submarine or two." or "We will approve a job creating stimulus bill if it includes help for the SBA".
So like I said... it would be REALLY unfair if President Obama were the first President in US History to have his reputation and history shaped by the misdeeds of others rather than by hos own actions.
About wealthy people
As I've grown up I've been exposed to a number of wealthy people. Most of them have been "self-made" meaning their wealth was amassed by their own action, not by their birth.
They are different than you and I. Do they work harder? No, not really. They work differently. Let me explain.
They LOVE building business and making money. In fact they live for it. I firmly believe that the vast majority of "self made" wealthy people could be dropped in a small town with $10 in their pocket and be a wealthy again in a few years. It's who they are, they have special skills to facilitate this. They resonate confidence and power. They are single minded. They wake in the morning before the average citizen to check the news and check their investments. They look at every facet of life as an opportunity to build wealth.
I, on the other hand will never be one of them. I prefer to goof around online or be in nature or with friends having fun. I prefer to enjoy life by letting the winds of life tussle my hair rather than trying to control the wind.
So what is the meaning of this rant? I have no problem with many wealthy people.
They are a rare and unique type of person who is vital for a nation. However I do have a problem with how some of them use their money or hoard it. Every dollar/euro taken out of circulation by setting in a 401k or a mutual fund or a Zurich bank vault has lost it's ability to drive the economic engine. I am a proponent of fair taxation. I believe that money should not be stagnant. Possibly a tax on unspent money or further taxes on investment income?
But finally, don't hate the wealthy for being different. But encourage them to keep their money circulating.
(oh and to clarify, I'm only talking about people who become wealthy by their efforts not by birth or Hollywood, etc.)
Guns and Violence in America
Hi All,
My perspective is that of an American, born in Germany... living in France with 10+ years living in the US.
First I'd like to reiterate that the rest of the world is stunned and shocked by our/your gun fetish, availability and proliferation of guns.
But more importantly... there's something WRONG with our/your CULTURE. Guns or no guns, the VIOLENT CULTURE in the US is unprecedented in the civilized world. I've seen the reactions to one another at bars and clubs, at sporting events and at concerts and even on the streets. In Munich a man will apologize for dropping a cup of coffee on the sidewalk and use his handkerchief to blot up the liquid. In Los Angeles a man will relieve himself on the street.
One does NOT see violence in ever day life in Europe. If taking guns calms your violence then please do but I think the violence goes beyond your guns.
Thoughts?
OOPSSS I have been informed that you don't like talk of guns here so it's ok to delete or move this statement. thanks and sorry
Profile Information
Name: KellyGender: Female
Member since: Mon Jan 20, 2014, 06:44 PM
Number of posts: 94