Well, we lost power for about four hours out here in the Georgia countryside, thanks to Tropical Storm Debbie.

Not wanting to run down my iPad’s battery, I had to suspend work for a while, but I did manage to get in some reading by flashlight: an exciting new book by Anne Applebaum, titled “Autocracy, Inc.” For those of you who follow my commentaries on world events, I strongly recommend you consider adding it to your reading list.

*. *. *

But now that our power has been restored, I’m back at work on a couple of thoughts for posting later today. I’m not implying that I’d want to go back to the days of writing by candlelight with a quill and ink, but this dependency on all of our conveniences has made us helpless in the face of the occasional inconvenience.

Hmm . . . there’s a topic worth exploring.

But later. Right now, I believe I’m beginning to get used to the sound of the rain beating against the window — enough to allow me to concentrate, at any rate. It’s not the gentle pitter-patter I’d prefer, but it’s all right. And we haven’t floated away yet. I’ll break in from time to time with updates on Debbie’s impact on Coastal Georgia, but in the meantime . . .

Gotta write!

Brendochka
8/6/24

Seriously. Trying to concentrate on what’s going on in Ukraine, or Taiwan, or Doug Emhoff’s former love life has proven difficult today, what with the sheets of rain pounding against this side of the house, and a tornado watch issued for the next three days.

You guessed it: I’m down here in Coastal Georgia, USA, feeling the first impact of Hurricane Debbie (or Debby, depending on which account you’re reading). It’s not really a hurricane at the moment, but it’s the equivalent of one of those nasty storms that roll through here periodically. The problem with this one is that it’s moving painfully slowly, dumping gobs of water on already saturated ground.

I did say this was news from The Swamp, didn’t I? I wasn’t kidding. The houses here have no basements, because you can’t dig a basement in a swamp. The house would just pop up out of the ground with a huge, resounding “Thwoop!” and float down the Savannah River and off to Bermuda.

News flash: My phone just signaled me again with another weather alert. This one was a localized flood warning for the next several hours. No kidding, people? Possible flooding, in this weather? Who would have guessed?

So I’ve been looking at the headlines, trying to ignore the beating against the window in my den. There’s Mali severing diplomatic relations with Ukraine over some to-do with the Wagner Group . . . Wait! The Wagner Group? The late Yevgeny Prigozhin’s mercenaries? Are they still around? Well, that bears looking into.

And there’s another mention about the two children of those Russian spies who were just returned to Moscow from Slovenia. There’s a human interest story here, but it’s going to be hard to get any information out of Russia. Still, it’s worth a try. Those poor, confused kids.

Then I really need to get started on the annual birthday poem for an old friend. That’s coming up next month, and it takes me a while to finish those. It all started about 30 years ago, and — would you believe? — they’re beginning to feel a little repetitive. How’s this:

“There once was a girl from Nantucket . . .”

Okay, I can do better.

But all I can think of is that last piece of cheesecake in the refrigerator, and perhaps a little chair nap. I’ll try and pick up the threads later . . . or tomorrow.

If we haven’t floated away.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
8/5/24

That would be like saying “Happy anniversary of your husband being murdered.” Not cool.

Because it turns out there is more than one Jewish day of mourning and fasting. Yom Kippur is not exclusive after all. And I was not aware of that.

So, being thirsty for all sorts of knowledge, I did a little reading on the significance of this holiday. And, since misery — especially Jewish misery — craves company, I am compelled to share it with as many people as possible. That would be you, lucky reader.

First of all, it’s pronounced something like “Tish above.” But not exactly.

Second, it is commemorated every year on the ninth day of the month of Av, on the Hebrew calendar. On the Gregorian calendar (that’s the one used today in most of the world), that means it will begin this year at sundown on Monday, August 12th, and continue for 24 hours until sundown of the following day — at least, for those of us who have not been washed downriver and out to sea by Hurricane Debbie. So we still have a week to be joyous and eat as much as we want. Because, as I said, Tisha B’av is not a happy holiday.

My research taught me, first, that there are two main tragedies (which probably means there are a bunch of lesser ones) to be remembered on Tisha B’av: the destruction of Solomon’s Temple, and the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem. They built it once, it was destroyed in 585 BCE; built it again, and . . . well, you know what happened. History repeated itself, but not until 70 AD, so it did last for 655 years. That’s pretty good, in terms of amortization.

*. *. *

Well, I was right. It emerged as I read on that there are the so-called Five Calamities that befell the Jewish people on the ninth of Av. Sort of like the Jewish Friday the 13th. The other three were:

– When twelve spies were sent to the land of Canaan by Moses, of whom ten came back . . . and with negative reports on the land. The Children of Israel despaired in their fear of never being able to enter the Promised Land, which displeased God, Who apparently wasn’t fond of quitters and complainers. So He punished them by declaring that the ninth day of Av would be a day when Jews would be crying for generations.

Generations? Try centuries!

[Note: These were not “spies” of the James Bond sort. It seems they were more like advance men, or scouts, searching for the Promised Land.]

– Then there was the capture of Beitar by the Romans, when thousands of Jews were murdered. This city was located southwest of Jerusalem and was captured after a 2-1/2-year siege by a Roman General named Severus.

[Note: That sort of thing seemed to keep happening a lot throughout the centuries, didn’t it? Right up to the present time, in fact. Genocide, ethnic cleansing ... call it what you will. There always seems to be someone who thinks it’s a good idea.]

– And finally, there was the big one: the total destruction of Jerusalem in 136 AD. Known as the Bar Kokhba revolt, this one lasted four years from 132-136 AD, and resulted not only in the plowing-under of the city itself, but also the displacement of the entire surviving population of the region.

[Note: The good news is that it was eventually rebuilt, and stands proudly in Israel to this day. The bad news is that it’s not a land at peace.]

*. *. *

The “curse” of Tisha B’av seems destined never to end. There have been many events begun on that date in more recent times, as, for example:

– The expulsion of Jews from England, France and Spain between the 13th and 15th centuries;

– The approval of Hitler’s “Final Solution” by the Nazi Party, thus beginning the Holocaust that saw one-third of the world’s Jewish population eliminated; and

– The deportation of Jewish people from the Warsaw Ghetto to Treblinka Concentration Camp in World War II.

Coincidences? Really?!!

*. *. *

So now you see why Tisha B’av is a day of mourning and fasting. It is not one of the High Holy Days — that honor is reserved for the period from Rosh Hashanah through Yom Kippur. But it definitely takes its place among the most revered by the Jewish people.

[Note: Sukkot and Simchat Torah are also considered High Holy Days; however, being more of a celebratory nature, they’re not really relevant to my narrative.

*. *. *

But Jews can be funny, too. (Just think of Mel Brooks, Joan Rivers, Sacha Baron Cohen . . .) Example: There is an old joke that sums up, in just three short declarative sentences — nine monosyllabic words — the entire history of the Jewish people and their method of dealing with the vicissitudes of life:

They tried to kill us.
They failed.
Let’s eat.

To which I say:

L’chaim! . . . To life!

Brendochka
8/5/24

Dmitry Medvedev, Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council, has issued a chilling warning to the recently released political hostages in the United States and Germany: That they are not safe from the wrath of the Russian government, and perhaps should seek witness protection. (See today’s earlier post: “The Long Arm of the Lawless …”)

But Vladimir Putin’s vengeance has also descended upon those whom he once considered friends, when they dared to displease him. So I suggest a word of warning might also be in order for his newly returned “heroes” . . . and one in particular:

*. *. *

Ode To An Assassin

To Putin’s “good friend,” Vadim Krasikov,
I offer a few words of caution:
Remember what happened just one year ago
To his other “friend,” Zhenya Prigozhin.

*. *. *

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
8/5/24

They have been freed from the hell of their Russian prison cells. Some are back home in the United States or Germany; others are temporarily stateless, kicked out of their Russian homeland with no time to make plans for the future. But they are free, and they will survive and thrive.

They are the lucky sixteen: former hostages of Vladimir Putin who were traded on August 1st for eight of his people — spies, thugs, cyber criminals, and a convicted murderer. He calls his eight returnees “heroes,” while to him our sixteen are “traitors.” And Vladimir Putin does not abide traitors . . . either real or imagined.

The years-long, incredibly complex negotiations that resulted in this week’s historic prisoner swap may at last be over; but the fallout is yet to be seen. And there will be fallout.

Putin’s Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev — as always, sparing no drop of venom — openly threatened the opposition figures, saying in a post on Telegram that they “pose an existential threat to today’s Russia. They should not forget the transience of their existence in this world.” [DPA International, August 4, 2024.]

And in case that wasn’t clear enough, he went on to advise them to always “look around with caution,” to “hide under new names” and “actively disguise themselves.” [Shweta Kukreti, Hindustan Times, August 2, 2024.]

But to justify their release, he added that: “[While] it would be desirable to see the traitors of Russia rot behind bars . . . it’s more useful to get our guys out.”

So . . . is it safe to assume Medvedev’s not going to be running for any Humanitarian of the Year award any time soon?

*. *. *

But this is not new. Actual threats and physical attacks have long been made against Russian dissidents who have already fled the country. Leonid Volkov, a former associate of the late activist Alexei Navalny, was brutally attacked by thugs with hammers outside his home in Vilnius, Lithuania, a few months ago. He was lucky to have survived.

Donald Tusk, Prime Minister of Poland, said the two Polish football “hooligans” (his word) had been paid to attack Volkov by a Belarusian man working for Russian intelligence. All three have been arrested . . . but it is certain that there are countless others out there, more than willing to be hired at the right price. [Will Vernon, BBC News, August 3, 2024.]

*. *. *

Dmitry Gudkov, a Russian opposition politician living in exile in an undisclosed EU country, flew to London last summer for a friend’s birthday. On arrival at Luton Airport, he was approached by two plain-clothes UK police officers, who had been waiting for him — not to arrest him — but to warn him that he was on a list of people considered to be in danger. They asked where he would be staying and what phone he would be using. [BBC News, id.]

Reading the description of Gudkov’s experience, I immediately wondered whether those two “officers” were indeed members of UK law enforcement. Or were they Russian messengers, hired to plant the seeds of doubt and fear, and to track his movements? I assume their identity was verified by Mr. Gudkov, who took the warning seriously. But my initial doubts stem, not from paranoid delusions, but from the reality of the way Russia’s security forces actually operate.

*. *. *

Another anti-Kremlin activist contacted by British police was the founder of the Russian Democratic Society, Ksenia Maximova. She said they told her “they needed to discuss the safety of me and my family,” and advised her not to travel to certain countries where Russian agents operate more freely. [BBC News, id.]

Maximova stated that “[The Kremlin is] stepping up the campaign against ‘enemies,’ that’s absolutely true. They’re tightening the screws.” She and others have noticed an increase in cyber attacks. [Id.]

*. *. *

Alesya Marokhovskaya is a Russian investigative journalist living in Prague. She felt she was safe there. But she has been receiving anonymous messages, one saying, “Parasites can’t sleep in peace . . .” She thought it might be “some crazy Czech guy who was pro-Putin and had recognised me on the street.” But she moved to a new home, “to make it harder for them.” [BBC News, id.]

And then the messages became more sinister. They called her a “scumbag,” and threatened to find her “wherever she walks her wheezing dog.” She really does have a dog . . . and it really does wheeze when it goes for walks. So she notified the Czech police.

Later, when she was preparing to fly to Sweden for a conference, she received threats including details of her flight, her seat number, and the hotel she had booked. “It was clear they had high-level access to documents. It looks like the behaviour of the Russian state,” she said. [BBC News, id.]

*. *. *

These are just four of the horror stories coming from Russians forced to live in exile because they opposed the policies and actions of the Putin regime . . . proof that Vladimir Putin’s reach is long and deadly. While he sits in the Kremlin, himself under threat of arrest in accordance with a warrant issued by the International Criminal Court, his goons are scattered around Europe — and who knows where else? — to do his dirty work for him. The occupants of the Kremlin have always been known for their short tempers and long memories.

As Alesya Marokhovskaya said:

“When I left Russia and came to Prague, I had this illusion of security. Now I realise that [Russian intelligence services] can get their hands on people almost anywhere in Europe. I can’t say I’m not afraid, because I am.” [BBC News, id.]

*. *. *

I know I would be.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
8/5/24

Today is both National Friendship Day and Sisters’ Day. Since my sister was also my best friend, I’m missing her twice as much today.

Rest well, “Merny” . . . ‘til I get there. Then we’ll start the rounds again: theater, restaurants, shopping, cruises . . . theater, restaurants, shopping, cruises . . . theater . . .

Oh, you remember.

Love you and miss you so much,
“Brendy”

October 1st will mark his 100th birthday. And President Jimmy Carter says, “I’m only trying to make it to vote for Kamala Harris” in November.

In hospice since February of 2023, survivor of metastatic brain cancer and liver cancer, survivor of brain surgery after a fall in 2019 — he has defied the odds countless times. His grandson Jason Carter said in May of this year that his grandfather was “coming to an end.” It appears that he’ll be doing that on his own terms. I hope so.

You hang in there, Mr. President. And don’t forget to vote.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
8/4/24

It’s fantasy. It was always fantasy. It could never be anything but fantasy. But it made us feel good.

Do you remember walking out of the movie theater, smiling at the Seven Dwarfs singing “Hi-ho, hi-ho,” as off to work they went?

Or the antics of Robin Williams’ irrepressible Genie in Disney’s “Aladdin”?

Or Cinderella finally trading in her mop and bucket for a castle and a handsome prince?

Maybe you didn’t actually think for one minute that any of that could ever be possible. But didn’t you feel, at least for a little while, that there was good in the world, and that if you believed — really, really believed with all your heart — then something lovely could happen?

*. *. *

And don’t you wish today’s generation, and the next, and the one after that could all experience what we did as kids: that innocent, accepting, all-believing wonderment of Disney’s fantasy world?

And not this crap:

*. *. *

We were raised on Mozart, not Metal. On respect, not rebellion. On Disney, not Death. And we were happy. We didn’t have child protective services, or shrinks, or probation officers, because we didn’t need them.

We had parents and teachers who taught us right from wrong, and looked after us, and made sure we were okay. And we had Disney.

And I think we grew up good.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
8/4/24

Happily, this is a “Hostage Sunday” to celebrate. Three of our American hostages — Evan Gershkovich, Alsu Kurmasheva, and Paul Whelan — as well as dual British-Russian citizen Vladimir Kara-Murza, have been released and are safely back in the land of the free.

In addition, the complex, multi-nation exchange included the release of twelve Russian and German political prisoners . . . all of whom were immediately deported and flown to Germany, where the Russian members of the group await uncertain futures. Some, understandably, have said they had hoped to remain in their homeland with their families and friends, despite the obvious dangers.

But the Russian government had other ideas, which did not include housing “traitors,” as they called them. The twelve now in Germany are:

Lilia Chanysheva
Ksenia Fadeyeva
Oleg Orlov
Ilya Yashin
Kevin Lik
Rico Krieger
Dieter Voronin
Patrick Schobel
German Moyzhes
Vadim Ostanin
Andrei Pivovarov
Aleksandra Skochilenko

Three of the most vocal dissidents — Vladimir Kara-Murza, Ilya Yashin and Andrei Pivovarov — have already expressed their intention to continue fighting the Putin regime until the Russian people are able to live in a free and peaceful society . . . even though they will probably have to work from outside the country. No surprise there, and best of luck to them.

*. *. *

But while we were able to free a total of sixteen wrongfully-detained political prisoners, there remain hundreds of others throughout Russia’s prison system . . . including eight additional American citizens. And they must not be forgotten.

So who are these eight people still locked away, who now comprise our much-reduced HOSTAGE list?

*. *. *

Marc Fogel, a schoolteacher from Pennsylvania, was arrested in August of 2021 for possession of 0.6 ounce of legally-prescribed (in the U.S.) medical marijuana. In June of 2022 he was sentenced to 14 years in prison.

*. *. *

Robert Romanov Woodland, a dual US-Russian citizen, was teaching English in Russia when he was arrested in January of 2024 for allegedly attempting to sell drugs. In July, he was sentenced to 12-1/2 years in a maximum security prison.

*. *. *

U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Gordon Black was stationed in South Korea when he fell into a Russian “honey trap.” He was on his way back to his home in Texas, on two weeks’ leave, when he was lured to Vladivostok by the Russian girlfriend he had met in Korea. He was arrested in May of 2024 on charges of alleged larceny and murder threat, and sentenced the following month to a prison term of three years and nine months.

*. *. *

Robert Gilman, already in jail in Russia serving a 4-1/2-year sentence (later reduced to 3-1/2 years on appeal) for kicking a police officer in 2022, found himself facing added charges in 2023 of punching prison staff in the head, and later also attacking a criminal investigator and another prison guard.

*. *. *

Ksenia Karelina is a dual US-Russian citizen. A resident of Los Angeles, she was visiting family in Yekaterinburg, Russia, in February of this year, when she was arrested for treason . . . for having donated $50 — while in the United States — to a charity that offered assistance to Ukrainian war victims.

*. *. *

David Barnes, an American citizen and resident of Texas, was arrested in January of 2022 while visiting his children, who had been taken to Russia from Texas by his Russian wife. He was charged and sentenced in the fall of that year to 21 years in prison for child abuse (allegedly occurring while in Texas), on his wife’s accusation. I really wish I knew more of this story!

*. *. *

Eugene Spector, a dual US-Russian citizen already serving a four-year sentence handed down in June of 2021 on a bribery conviction, received additional charges of suspicion of espionage in August of 2023. No other details have been found, as the evidence is labelled “classified.”

*. *. *

Michael Travis Leake, a rock musician and former paratrooper, was sentenced in July of this year to 13 years in prison on drug charges — specifically, suspicion of selling mephedrone, and organizing a drug trafficking business “involving young people.”

*. *. *

Are any of these prisoners actually guilty of the charges leveled against them? I don’t know. But I do know that the recent timing of a number of the arrests, and the speed with which they were brought to trial, is a clear indication of Russia’s intentional roundup of American citizens to be used as (what I call) Putin’s Pawns.

What they are, quite simply, are HOSTAGES. And they will not — MUST not — be forgotten. Let’s shorten this list to zero.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
8/4/24

I happened to stumble across an article today about an American man from Kansas, Joe Schutzman, who “decided to move his family from Kansas to the Moscow region because of his frustration with LGBTQ+ ‘propaganda’ in the US.” [Daniel Zuidijk, Bloomberg, June 12, 2024.]

No need to go into detail here. Suffice it to say, I think Mr. Schutzman is certifiable, and his wife should have had him committed rather than follow him, with their six young children, halfway around the world to Putin’s Paradise. But maybe she’s as far off the reservation as he is. In any event, good luck to them in their search for the perfect life.

*. *. *

What this article reminded me of, though, is the Feenstra family from Canada. Remember them? Back in February, I wrote about their nearly identical journey: heading for a “better life” in Russia in order to escape the new “wokeness” of their Canadian home, dragging eight of their nine children (the smart one stayed behind voluntarily) into the unknown of a country that . . . well, it’s Russia, for crying out loud.

And I realized I hadn’t heard any more about those eight youngsters and their wacko parents for many months. So I did what everyone does these days: I Googled them. And I came up with their YouTube channel, “Feenstra Faith and Family.” Disturbingly, the last entry seems to have been made four months ago, when it was announced that they had been “kicked out of Russia.”

Oh, dear . . . what had they done?

Well, it’s still not clear. When they first moved there, they said it was to be a permanent arrangement, and that they had been promised all the help they needed to get settled. Aden Feenstra was a beet farmer in Canada, and he said before leaving that he had been assured they would be able to acquire a home and land to farm in Russia. And he believed it. But in this video, and in other similarly dated reports, it is said that they had only been given “visitor” visas, which expired in three months.

Aden’s videos of five to six months ago show him out strolling through the snow in Nizhny Novgorod. There is no sign of a farm. His wife, Anneesa, is busy with the eight children and “editing [their] YouTube channel.” But later (four months ago), he speaks of the problems involved in leaving the country for the required three months before being permitted to reenter, and the cost (an estimated $10,000 each way) of moving ten people back and forth. What their destination would be, he doesn’t say.

What the hell is wrong with these people??!!!

Didn’t they stop to think of these things before they packed up, sold the farm in Canada, and went traipsing off in search of Utopia in one of the most repressive societies in the entire world? Didn’t they do their due diligence?

Obviously not. And I worry about those eight innocent children, who had no say in any of the decision-making of their delusional parents, as well as for the Schutzmans’ six little ones.

Unfortunately, they’re most likely not eligible for a hostage exchange . . . unless they’re found to have been “wrongfully detained.”

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
8/3/24