I read a comment on Facebook yesterday in response to an adorable baby picture, wherein the commenter said she just wanted to “give his face a little pinch.” And while I wholeheartedly agreed with her — the baby is positively precious — I had to wonder:

How do babies feel when you do that?

Maybe some of them are okay with it, until the umpteenth person comes along to grab their face, and then it’s more like . . .

Seriously, why do we think babies and small children don’t have feelings? How would you like it if some stranger were constantly touching, stroking, pinching, poking . . . Well, maybe I should rephrase that. Or withdraw it completely. I really don’t know your individual proclivities.

But as a baby, you don’t know who all these big people are, or what they want. It must be scary when they come charging at you, going “Itchy kitchy coo,” or whatever mumbo-jumbo they’re uttering, and start tickling your belly or — oh, for God’s sake! — kissing your naked, freshly-powdered bottom and telling you how sweet you smell. I mean, it’s not like when Mommy and Daddy do it. At least you know them! Maybe a well-timed poop would teach those strangers a lesson.

And you’d think it would stop when you got a little bit bigger, like two or three, and those people know they’d be locked up if they tried to get at your naked bottom. So they switch gears and aim for your head: tweaking your nose, or your ears, or playing with your hair.

Now, dogs are another matter. They love being touched, stroked, rubbed, scratched . . . anything to connect them with a human being. They can’t get enough of that stuff. So perhaps, if you have an unquenchable desire to touch someone, go get yourself a sweet little puppy and cuddle the hell out of it. It will be your loving companion for life.

In fact, it won’t leave you alone, until finally one day you’ll understand how those poor babies must have felt.

Now, that’s true love.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
8/9/24

His name is Adam Britton. He looks like a nice, normal fellow . . . the sort you might enjoy knowing as a neighbor or co-worker. He’s also renowned as a zoologist and crocodile expert who has worked on BBC and National Geographic productions.

And he has now pled guilty to 56 — fifty-six! — charges of . . .

No, I can’t say it, or even type the words, without wanting to retch.

Try again.

Because he has pled guilty in Australia to 56 charges relating to bestiality and animal cruelty. He has been sentenced by the Northern Territory Supreme Court to ten years and five months in prison “after admitting to sexually abusing dozens of dogs . . .” [Tiffanie Turnbull, BBC News, August 8, 2024.]

Holy Mother of God . . . what is this world coming to??!!!

And, just incidentally, he has also admitted to four counts of accessing child abuse material.

The BBC report continues: “Much of the detail of Britton’s crimes are too graphic to publish, and so ‘grotesque’ Chief Justice Michael Grant warned the courtroom they could cause ‘nervous shock.’”

”As the facts of the case were read aloud, some members of the public rushed outside. Others watching from the gallery cried and mouthed insults at Britton . . . Justice Grant said the ‘unalloyed pleasure’ Britton took in torturing the animals was ‘sickeningly evident.’” [BBC News, id.]

Mercifully, the good people at BBC News had the sound judgment and sense of decency to omit the most gruesome details, and I shall follow suit here. But the news report does shed light on Britton’s past, including the fact that his unnatural, sadistic tendencies toward animals date back to his childhood. And yet it all went undetected until 2022, when he uploaded a sickening video clip containing an identifiable City of Darwin dog leash in the background. Within weeks, he was arrested, and he’s been in custody ever since.

*. *. *

My sole purpose in commenting on this disturbing story is to point out the similarities to the many cases involving mass killers who are found, only after the fact, to have exhibited signs of sadism or other mental anomalies dating back many years, often to childhood. And each time it happens, family, friends, teachers, and neighbors all seem suddenly to recall an incident or two that were out of character for an otherwise “normal” individual. Or someone will come forward to say they suspected all along that something was not right, but didn’t feel comfortable reporting it to authorities.

And thus, a future mass murderer goes unchecked . . . until it is too late. The fact that the victims in Adam Britton’s case were four-legged animals rather than humans does not make his crimes any less horrific; in fact, to my mind they are worse. The animals are helpless, defenseless, unable even to speak for themselves. All they ever wanted in life was to be loved. And they trusted this man, who had been trained to care for them, and instead, he . . .

Clearly, some mental disorder — perhaps even some specific traumatic event — caused Adam Britton to become the twisted man he is today. Why didn’t someone recognize it sooner? How do we get society to address these issues before, once again, it’s too late?

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
8/9/24

This is Ksenia Karelina — dual U.S.-Russian citizen — at home in Los Angeles last year:

And this is Ksenia now, after spending eight months in a Russian prison.

Arrested sometime between her arrival in Russia to visit family in January of this year and the announcement on February 8th that she had been detained, she was charged with “high treason” and has been in custody ever since. Her trial, scheduled for today, August 8th, is being held in Yekaterinburg, in the same court — and before the same judge — that recently held journalist Evan Gershkovich and saw him sentenced to 16 years for espionage.

The prosecutor in Karelina’s case is seeking a sentence of 15 years, based on her “confession” of “guilt.” What, in fact, she was accused of — and has admitted doing because it is absolutely true — is having contributed $51.80 in the United States to a charity (“Razom”) providing non-military aid to war-torn Ukraine.

And that, in Russia, is considered “high treason” . . . when you are a Russian citizen, which Ms. Karelina still is. And that is an offense now punishable by a sentence of up to life in prison.

There has been no explanation of how — or even why — the Russian authorities knew of her contribution to the charity, though in this electronic age, it is not difficult to imagine. And there would be no purpose in trying to deny it; in fact, doing so would only work against her. So she undoubtedly admitted to having made the contribution, which was then automatically interpreted as an admission of “guilt.”

So today we await word on the outcome of the trial in Yekaterinburg, which may be quick, or may take more than one day. And once she is found guilty — a foregone conclusion in these cases — and sentenced, she will be eligible, under Russian procedures, to be considered in a future trade negotiation. Had she been tried ten days ago, she might have been home by now.

And that, dear reader, is justice in Vladimir Putin’s Russia, where the laws are flexible and people are disposable.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
8/8/24

For one thing, we know they’ve recently elected a new president, Claudia Sheinbaum, and that her inauguration is scheduled for October 1st of this year. What was recently disclosed was that included on their invitation list is none other than Vladimir Putin.

Well, I only know of one Vladimir Putin. And yes, the Mexican Embassy in Moscow has confirmed that “Russia’s invitation to take part in the inauguration of President Sheinbaum was sent to President Putin.”

In and of itself, such an invitation wouldn’t seem strange; after all, the Mexican government (as stated by its Foreign Ministry) has sent them to “all nations with which it [has] relations, as well as international organizations of which it is a member.” [Reuters, August 6, 2024.] Perfectly normal, and in accordance with international protocol.

But . . .

But the International Criminal Court (ICC), of which Mexico is a member, issued a warrant against Putin in 2023, charging him with war crimes in connection with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Which means that Mexico would be obligated to place Putin under arrest if he were to set foot on Mexican soil. Awkward.

However . . .

It seems that Mexico has not severed ties with Russia since the start of the war in Ukraine, as many other countries have. In fact, when Putin congratulated President-Elect Sheinbaum on her election victory, he said that Mexico is Russia’s “historically friendly partner in Latin America.” [Reuters, id.]

Of course, it’s up to Putin to accept or decline the invitation as he sees fit; he could very well send an emissary, such as Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. And if he’s smart, that is exactly what he will do.

So the invitation by itself isn’t a big deal. What is concerning is that our next-door neighbor to the south continues to maintain friendly relations with the Putin regime . . . even having included a Russian military unit in Mexico’s independence day parade in September of 2023, despite engendering severe criticism from other nations.

We share a border with Mexico, which means we share many mutual concerns with them: trade, immigration, drug enforcement, to name just three. The idea of Vladimir Putin oozing his way further into Mexico’s good graces is simply — to use a favorite word of Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov — unacceptable.

Let us hope that Mexico’s new president will see it that way.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
8/8/24

Bye-bye, Debby. More or less.

She’s moving out now, headed generally north/northeast — a much weakened old girl, but still dumping an overabundance of water as she makes her exit. Even here, it’s still raining on and off, but more gently.

We’re also still under intermittent flood watches and warnings, with lots of roads washed out in places. One dam was braced in time to prevent its failure; but I heard there was a second one in bad shape, and quite a few people were evacuated.

So, as life slowly returns to normal, we give thanks for having survived . . . and wonder when the next one will hit. I like to make up my own names for them.

Let’s see now: Esmerelda, Frankincense, Griselda, Hortense, Ichabod . . .

Be safe, everyone.

Brendochka
8/8/24

Let me get this straight.

On July 12th of this year, one Asif Merchant, a Pakistani national with purported ties to Iran, was arrested on charges of plotting to assassinate Donald Trump and “multiple other public officials,” according to a criminal complaint filed in Brooklyn (NY) federal court.

The arrest was made after Merchant attempted to hire as many as 25 hitmen to commit the multiple killings, while he himself would hightail it out of the country. But he made his initial contact with — of all things! — a confidential informant working with the FBI. They arrested him on the day he had been planning to flee. Score one for the good guys. [Aaron Katerskyy and Jack Date, ABC News, August 6, 2024.

*. *. *

But then, on July 13th — the very next day — a young Pennsylvania man, Thomas Matthew Crooks, took a long-distance shot at former president Donald Trump from the roof of a building adjacent to the scene of a political rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, taking off part of Trump’s right ear with the bullet (or possibly a piece of shrapnel). A very close call — and much closer for Corey Comperatore, a spectator who was shot and killed protecting his family from the gunfire. Two other spectators were also injured, and the gunman himself was shot dead by Secret Service agents.

Incredibly, authorities had somehow already identified Crooks as a “person of interest” a full 62 minutes before the shooting. And Secret Service snipers had spotted him on the roof of the building — which was outside the security zone for the rally — 20 minutes prior to the shots being fired.

*. *. *

So let’s see: Even after the arrest of Asif Merchant the day before . . . and after identifying a “person of interest” a full hour prior to Trump’s scheduled appearance . . . and after spotting a man on a nearby roof some 20 minutes ahead of his appearance . . .

They still did nothing??!!!

And it’s not as though they didn’t have time. After the first shot was fired, it took the Secret Service a mere 11 seconds to locate, and another 15 seconds to shoot and kill, the gunman. They can move very quickly when they have to.

*. *. *

Now, I know — and appreciate the fact — that the Secret Service is responsible for the lives of a large number of federal officials, including the current president, vice president, candidates, members of the Cabinet, Congress, and others, as well as their immediate families. And 365 days a year, they do a hell of a job. But there are a few jobs in this world that require absolute perfection, because the slightest mistake, and people can die.

Well, there’s your surgeon . . . your anesthesiologist . . . airline pilot . . . high-wire circus performer . . .

. . . and Secret Service agent. It’s one of the most stressful jobs in the world; but it’s what you signed up for, what you’ve been trained for, and what you’re depended upon to do . . . without fail.

Bottom line: That guy should never have been on that roof in the first place. Didn’t we learn anything 60 years ago in Dallas?

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
8/8/24

A concert that actually takes place, that is. Because it’s not much fun if it has to be cancelled.

And especially if that cancellation is due to a threat of terrorism.

That’s what happened in Vienna, Austria today: A series of three events — Taylor Swift concerts! — originally scheduled for Thursday through Saturday, will not take place because authorities identified and arrested two suspects in a terror plot.

Swift’s Austria promoter, Barracuda Music, posted on social media:

“With confirmation from government officials of a planned terrorist attack at Ernst Happel Stadium, we have no choice but to cancel the three scheduled shows for everyone’s safety.”

They confirmed that all tickets would be refunded promptly. But those fans would much rather have had what would probably have been a once-in-a-lifetime experience for them, seeing their idol perform in person. And now they won’t.

Of course, they’re alive to complain about it . . . and so is Ms. Swift. No question that the right action was taken. But how sad that it had to come to this.

Really, what could be more fun than seeing your favorite singer, dancer, musician, band, circus . . . whatever . . . in person, jammed in with a couple of thousand of your contemporaries, stomping, clapping, squealing like banshees when your idol finally appears on stage? Jumping up and down when you hear the opening strains of your favorite song? Clapping and swinging to the beat of the music? Spilling your drink on the stranger seated next to you, and no one caring?

Absolutely nothing.

In my day, it was Neil Diamond — “Hot August Night,” people! — at the DC Stadium. And it was epic. We didn’t worry about being blown away by lunatics with bombs or AK-47s. We were there to have fun, to enjoy a few hours of camaraderie with like-minded people. And we did.

This time, the suspects were two young Austrians, Islamist sympathizers who had been radicalized by what they had seen on the internet. No motive or specific target has yet been given, but explosives and chemical substances were found at the home of one, and the two are said to have undertaken “concrete preparatory measures” for a terrorist attack, most likely at events in the Vienna region. [Zahid Mahmood, CNN, August 7, 2024.]

But another time, it might be a young American, or British, or Japanese student with a grudge against a teacher, who decides to shoot up their school. Or a postal worker who feels he’s been unjustly fired. Or just someone who’s had an argument with someone else. It could be anyone.

And this is how we express ourselves today — not with words, or even a solid left to the jaw of the person we feel has wronged us. Today, we grab for the most lethal available weapon and aim at the greatest number of people we can find in one place. And we make the news.

If I had a solution, I’d be famous. But I don’t, and I’m not.

What I am, though, is fed up.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
8/7/24

I lived through the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. Trust me . . . we don’t want another one.

For 13 days in October, 1962, Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev and U.S. President John F. Kennedy stood toe to toe, the world on the brink of a nuclear holocaust, while we all held our collective breath. The details of events leading up to that crisis are long and complex; but no one who lived through those two weeks will ever forget the unremitting feeling of dread that permeated our days and invaded what little sleep we were able to steal.

We knew the missiles were there; we saw them. We knew they were Russia’s response to the earlier, failed American operation — known as the “Bay of Pigs” invasion — that had been designed to overthrow Cuban leader Fidel Castro.

And we knew that those missiles could take out a sizable chunk of the Eastern seaboard of the United States in — quite literally — a flash.

Fortunately for history, President Kennedy stood his ground; Premier Khrushchev finally “blinked”; and the Eastern seaboard remains today a beautiful stretch of beachfront playgrounds, historic cities, and U.S. military bases.

*. *. *

But Vladimir Putin is not Nikita Khrushchev. And Joe Biden — or whoever succeeds him in the White House in November — is not Jack Kennedy. And this is not 1962.

And we sure as hell do not need a repeat of those 13 days.

But the U.S. and Germany have decided to begin adding long-range missiles to their existing Multi-Domain Task Force in Germany beginning in 2026. And Vladimir Putin is not happy. Speaking at Russia’s annual Navy Day in St. Petersburg on July 28th, Putin said:

“If the United States of America implements such plans, we will consider ourselves free from the unilateral moratorium on the deployment of medium and shorter-range strike weapons, including increasing the capabilities of the coastal forces of our Navy.”

And he added: “This situation is reminiscent of the events of the Cold War related to the deployment of Pershing medium-range missiles in Europe.” [Darya Tarasova and Benjamin Brown, CNN, July 28, 2024.]

It’s not Cuba; it’s on someone else’s doorstep this time. But in 2024, distance is no guarantee of safety. One nervous finger on the red button at the wrong instant, and Elon Musk’s dream of populating Mars would go up in smoke . . . along with everything and everyone else on planet Earth.

This is really nothing new. It’s been a scary world for a long time now. What I don’t understand — will never understand — is why we are incapable of learning from past lessons. What in the name of God is wrong with us?

I don’t know . . . Maybe we deserve to be blown to smithereens.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
8/7/24

Go home already, Debby. You’re a lousy guest.

Actually, she behaved much worse in Florida than she did here in Coastal Georgia. And now, although it’s still raining, she has subsided considerably. But . . .

Yes, our neighborhood has been lucky. But judging from the County’s alerts, that’s not true everywhere. There are flooded roads, at least one sinkhole, and yesterday there was a notice of an imminent “catastrophic dam failure.” I haven’t heard any more about that one.

And, since everything flows downstream, we’re on the alert for more water coming our way from farther inland, where apparently they got hit harder than we did.

But wait . . . there’s more. Apparently, Debby is still on the move. She’s headed north through the Carolinas, Virginia, DC, Maryland, and beyond. She is a persistent (expletive deleted), isn’t she? Be safe up there, folks.

*. *. *

Back in the 1950s and ‘60s they were building bomb shelters. Maybe we should be working on our arks.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
8/7/24

Just a couple of days ago I mentioned that I wanted to keep tabs, if possible, on the two children of Artyom and Anna Dultsev — the two Russian spies who were part of the historic swap concluded on August 1st. The only initial information the public had been given was that Sofia, 11, and Daniel, 8, did not know that they were Russian, and not Argentinian, until they were on a plane from Ankara to Moscow with their parents, whom they had not seen for the past nineteen months because . . .

But wait . . . I’m getting ahead of myself. It’s a convoluted tale, best told in some sort of logical sequence. And thanks to Shaun Walker of The Guardian (U.K.), some further details are now available.

If you’ve never seen the 2013 Golden Globe-winning, six-season TV series “The Americans” . . . well, let me just say that I consider it essential viewing for every adult who isn’t afraid of the truth. It is fiction, overflowing with violence and sex (and violent sex). But it is superbly written and acted, and inspired by the story of a real Russian family of “illegals” — specially-trained spies who infiltrate into another country, blend in as locals, and sacrifice their own normal lives for the benefit of Mother Russia.

Yes, this shit really happens. Not to be overly dramatic — okay, maybe just a little bit dramatic — you don’t really know who your neighbors are.

That, in a nutshell, describes — though hopefully without all the violence (the sex is their own business) — the lives of Artyom Dultsev and Anna Dultseva. They were sent first to live in Argentina as Maria Mayer and Ludwig Gisch. Their children were born there, and grew up speaking Spanish. On the excuse that they feared the excess of street crime in Argentina, the family moved to Ljubljana, Slovenia (wouldn’t that be everyone’s obvious first choice?), where the children attended an international school and studied English. Little Sofia and Daniel knew their parents as ordinary business people who sometimes had to travel; they had no idea they were Russian . . . let alone Russian spies.

Life was good for the family, until one day in December of 2022, when their suburban home was raided by armed police who had come to arrest the couple on the basis of a tip from “an allied intelligence service.” [The Guardian, August 6, 2024.] They were sent to prison; Sofia and Daniel were placed in foster care, and were only reunited with their parents 19 months later — on the day of the spy swap, August 1st, 2024.

What those 19 months were like for the children can only be imagined.

Now look at the picture of them arriving in Moscow. They appear so composed, so normal. Or perhaps they’re simply shell-shocked. In one day, they have been brought back from foster care to their real parents (it is not clear whether they knew why they had been separated in the first place); given some story to explain why they were immediately leaving Slovenia on a plane with strange foreign writing on its exterior; and then told, when they were in the air and it was too late to run away, that they were not Argentinian, their parents were Russian spies, and they were leaving everything behind to spend the rest of their lives in Russia!

Yes . . . I definitely vote for shell-shocked.

Apparently, the children’s parents had done such a good job of keeping them in the dark about all things Russian for the past eleven years that, when they arrived at Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport to be greeted by a military honor guard and Vladimir Putin himself, the youngsters didn’t know who the hell he was.

And now, for the second time in their short lives, they are being forced to start over in a strange land, learn a new language, make new friends . . . and adapt to a restricted way of life they have never known before. I believe a few history lessons — including current events — are in order for them. And perhaps a little therapy.

Those poor children . . .

But, according to — yes, folks, he’s back! — Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, it’s all worth it; that “making such sacrifices for the sake of their work and their dedication to their service” is all just part of being an illegal.

Easy for you to say, Dima. You’re not the one making the sacrifices.

The story of the Dultsevs is already being touted in Russia with pride, as an indication of what Russian operatives are willing to do in the name of patriotism. Appearing on Russian TV in an interview that was broadcast from the grounds of SVR headquarters outside Moscow (presumably the Yasenevo complex), Anna Dultseva expressed her appreciation:

“I am so grateful to our country and so grateful to Vladimir Vladimirovich [Putin].”

Of course you are, Anna. You have no choice.

The children were also there; it happened to be young Daniel’s ninth birthday, and the interviewer presented him with a gift: a plush toy character from a popular Soviet-era book, Cheburashka — a fuzzy little creature, an orphan who doesn’t quite fit in but remains optimistic, and has a best friend Gena, a lonely crocodile . . .

Well, I’m sure Daniel was thrilled.

The interviewer further offered the following palliative to viewers concerning the Dultsev family:

“They are high-class professionals who devoted their whole lives to the motherland, making sacrifices that ordinary people could never understand. They raised their children as Spanish-speaking Catholics. Now they will have to teach them what borscht is.” [The Guardian, id.]

Oh, I feel much better now.

*. *. *

But what about the backstory? How many of these “illegals” does Putin have scattered around the world, living seemingly normal lives while rooting for valuable information to transmit back home, spreading the current line of Russian propaganda, and possibly even recruiting converts to Russia’s team?

The simple truth is, they’re everywhere, and have been for decades. We round them up when we find them, but I don’t suppose there’s any way of estimating how many there are — not just here in the U.S., but throughout the world.

And they have now become heroes of Putin’s propaganda machine, appearing in TV documentaries, “carefully edited” books depicting their patriotic activities, and even statues to some of the most well-known in various cities. The hardships are ignored; what is stressed is their “glorious sacrifice for the benefit of the motherland.” [The Guardian, id.]

I wonder how 11-year-old Sofia and 9-year-old Daniel feel about that.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
8/7/24