In truth, I have no special affinity for diamonds. They’re beautiful, but not really a necessity in my life.
But this diamond — well, that’s a whole different ball game. Found in Botswana — the world’s second-largest producer of natural diamonds (behind, of all places, Russia) — it is the largest one found in more than a century, and the second largest ever discovered in a mine.
As yet unnamed, it weighs in at about half a kilogram (a little over a pound), and is described as “fist-sized,” “exceptional,” “overwhelming,” and . . . by Botswana’s President Mokgweetsi Masisi . . . simply “Wow!” [Sello Motseta, Associated Press, August 22, 2024.]
It is, of course, too soon to place a value on the stone. I’m not a gemologist — not even an amateur — but I would guess that the value will depend on the usual “cut, clarity and color,” the absence or number of imperfections, as well as how it is to be divided into individual gemstones. To put it in perspective, a smaller diamond from the same mine was sold for a record $63 million in 2016. [Id.]
I do know that I would not want to be the lapidary chosen to make that first cut.
And if it were mine? Well, I don’t really enjoy a lifestyle that calls for the Crown jewels.
And I’m fairly small, so no Liz Taylor-size gems for me.
Nor do I crave jewel-encrusted costumes.
On second thought, maybe if I looked like that . . .
But more realistically, don’t you agree that it might make a nice:
Well, that can be decided later. For now, just add it to my Christmas wish list . . . somewhere between the new Jaguar XJ and that little estate in The Hamptons I saw listed on Zillow. And thanks in advance.
We continue to celebrate the homecoming of the sixteen hostages on August 1st, and wish them renewed health and success in their return to families, friends, and their real lives.
But there are still eight Americans — and hundreds of Russian dissidents — who remain locked up in Russia. So we also continue to remember them each week, and pledge to do so until each and every one has been returned home.
Sadly, but not surprisingly, this week saw the Russian court’s denial of the appeal of one of those eight Americans, Gordon Black, and his return to prison to serve out the remainder of his sentence.
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.
Staff Sergeant Gordon Black – “Hostage of the Week”
*. *. *
Ksenia Karelina, dual U.S.-Russian citizen, recently convicted of espionage and sentenced to 12 years in prison for contributing $51.80 to an American charity providing aid to Ukraine.
Ksenia Karelina
*. *. *
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.
Marc Fogel
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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.
Robert Romanov Woodland
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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.
Robert Gilman
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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!
David Barnes
*. *. *
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.”
Eugene Spector
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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.”
Michael Travis Leake
*. *. *
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.
Having recently heard the descriptions of the Russian prison systems from the sixteen newly released (i.e., traded) political prisoners, it is difficult to imagine a situation in which four prisoners convicted of actual violent crimes could manage to overwhelm and take hostage twelve people — eight officers and four inmates — killing four of the officers before themselves being shot and killed by special forces snipers.
But it happened this week in maximum security prison IK-19 in Surovikino, near Volgograd, Russia.
Russian Federal Penitentiary Service Vehicles at Surovikino
What we have learned from American journalist Evan Gershkovich and the others of their experiences has been horrifying: innocent civilians, guilty of no more than having criticized the Russian government or the war against Ukraine, being locked for months in punishment cells, deprived of basic necessities, and never seeing another human being other than the prison guards and occasionally their attorneys.
Yet in a supposed “maximum security” prison, we now have four ISIS-affiliated convicts — charged with violent crimes — being in a position to grab and kill prison officers and other inmates during a meeting of the prison system’s disciplinary commission. [Radina Gigova and Sergey Gudkov, CNN, August 23, 2024.]
There is a scarcity of detail thus far; but such meetings are said to be held “where cases of malicious violators are considered, among other things.” It does seem that there must have been a sizable group of people present; but there is no information given as to whether the prisoners were involved in the meeting, whether they were in any way restrained, whether the prison guards were armed . . . or much of anything else to indicate exactly how the scenario evolved, other than the fact that the assailants did have knives. Where they got those knives, we don’t yet know.
One of the ISIS-Affiliated Hostage-Takers
There is a description of one of the hostage-takers “displaying a flag emblematic of the Islamic State” — likely the photo above — and an indication that one of the suspects said the strike was “revenge” for the militants presently being held elsewhere on charges of having committed the attack on a concert venue near Moscow earlier this year in which more than 130 people were killed. [Id.]
This week’s siege ended when “Snipers from the special forces of the Russian National Guard in the Volgograd Region neutralized four prisoners who had taken prisoner [sic] employees hostage with four precise shots; the hostages were freed.” [Id.]
Well, except the three who had been killed earlier (the fourth victim died later).
Further information (though unconfirmed) identified the four perpetrators as being two men from Uzbekistan and two from Tajikistan. Three were serving terms for illegal drug charges, and one for “inflicting serious damage to a person’s health.” [RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty, August 23, 2024.]
This was an incident that never should have occurred in the first place. But once it did start, the “special forces” knew exactly how to end it. They’re good at “neutralizing.”
Special Forces at IK-19 Prison
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On reading these articles, I couldn’t help making the mental leap from prison IK-19 to other prisons — those penal colonies where American and other Western political prisoners have been (and some still are) held hostage on false charges built out of thin air — and some questions come immediately to my mind. First and foremost: Why are non-violent political prisoners — those men and women like Gershkovich, Paul Whelan, Alsu Kurmasheva, and Vladimir Kara-Murza — so closely confined and guarded, when they are obviously not a physical threat to anyone? Whereas in prisons for violent criminals . . . well, we’ve just seen what can happen there.
There are still eight American hostages locked away in Russian penal colonies on strictly political grounds, falsely convicted of espionage and similarly ludicrous charges. They’re never going to riot, to try to take hostages, to cause any sort of trouble. They deserve humane treatment, but they won’t receive it as long as Vladimir Putin is allowed to use them as pawns for a future trade . . . because he knows that the worse they are treated, the more incentive there is for us to bring them home.
And the grand-prize question — the one I keep asking, over and over again — is this: How long is Vladimir Putin going to be allowed to continue flouting international law, invading sovereign countries, and committing his crimes against humanity? Surely, the Russian people deserve better.
Yesterday I wrote about the sad passing of Sphen, the gay Australian penguin, and his surviving life companion, Magic. I was so taken with the story of their romance and the family they had fostered together, and I was sure it must have been a rare event — if not actually unique — in the avian world.
Sphen and Magic
And then today I was amazed to read about a similar case . . . only these two are not penguins, but a pair of beautiful pink flamingos.
Seriously.
This couple call the Paignton Zoo in southwest England their home. There is reportedly a thriving gay flamingo community there, but one pair — Arthur and Curtis — are indeed unique in that they are the first known to have adopted and hatched an abandoned egg, thus becoming proud parents of a little flaminglet. [AJ Willingham, CNN’s Good Stuff, August 24, 2024.]
And yes, that is what baby flamingos are called. They’re also sometimes called chicklets, but that just reminds me of my favorite chewing gum when I was a kid, so I’ll go with flaminglet.
Anyway, I’m sure Arthur and Curtis will make fine parents to little what’s-its-name. And their story, along with that of Sphen and Magic, has taught me something I did not know — quite probably because I never had a reason to give it any thought: and that is, that humans are not the only animal species of which some members are homosexual.
And that is an exciting discovery, because it led me to conclude that the answer to the age-old argument of “nature vs. nurture” turns out to be — at least where birds are concerned — nature. Right? You can dress your little girl penguin in a tuxedo, and your little boy flamingo in a pink tutu, and they will still turn out to be as Mother Nature — not you — intended them to be.
Which is a good thing. They’re gorgeous creatures, they’re happy, they’re living the good life, free of hang-ups or prejudices, doing no harm to anyone.
We humans could learn a lot from our feathered friends.
It seems as though Viktor Orban is determined to become a total pariah amongst his fellow EU members . . . and all in order to find favor with Vladimir Putin.
So what has he done now? Oh, not much — just invited Russia, Belarus, Moldova, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro, and North Macedonia to traipse freely throughout all the countries of Europe’s Schengen zone, basically unimpeded.
Let’s see now . . . What’s wrong with this picture?
“Hmmm . . .”
A little background: Hungary’s existing “national card” program makes it easier for people from other countries to come to Hungary to live and work than if they were to apply for traditional work permits or business visas. The holder of a national card is allowed to work in Hungary without any special security clearance, and can bring their family with them. [Reuters, August 21.] After three years, it may even lead to permanent residency. [RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty, August 13, 2024.]
But now, the extension of the program to include Russia, Belarus, and the others named above has raised more than a few eyebrows — not surprisingly, as it is contrary to EU policy toward Russia and Belarus, in light of the existing EU visa bans and asset freezes on more than 2,000 citizens from both countries, imposed since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. [Id.]
“But isn’t that Hungary’s problem?” — you may ask.
Actually, no . . . because of the aforesaid European Schengen zone, which allows free travel, without the necessity for border checks, among the 29 member countries. This includes virtually all EU countries, with the exception of Ireland and Cyprus.
So, that covers most of Europe . . . including Hungary. Which means that anyone holding a national card from Hungary can also travel freely from there throughout Austria, Bulgaria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.
The EU — which has already been at odds with Orban over his continuing close relationship with Vladimir Putin, his “Patriots for Europe” coalition, and his unauthorized visits to Moscow and Kyiv — is quite naturally worried about the likelihood of some (or possibly a lot) of those un-vetted Russians and Belarusians galavanting at will through the Schengen zone.
And considering the recent spate of revelations involving Russian illegals, assassins, and other ne’er-do-wells now back home in Mother Russia thanks to the prisoner swap of August 1st . . . who wouldn’t be worried?
Welcoming the Illegals Back Home – 8/1/24
Sandor Pinter, Hungary’s Minister of the Interior, wrote in a letter to the EU that “The National Card will be issued in accordance with the relevant EU framework and with due consideration of the possible security risks involved. In this respect, the Hungarian legislation and practice, which the Commission has not objected to so far, has not changed.” [Anita Komuves, Reuters, August 21, 2024.]
Well, of course the EU hasn’t objected to it before — it didn’t previously include Russia or Belarus.
Earlier this month, EU internal affairs chief Ylva Johansson warned Hungary that “its decision to ease visa restrictions for Russians and Belarusians posed a potential security threat and [that] she would take action if her concerns were not addressed.” Apparently, Johansson also posed specific questions to Pinter; he has said, in an annex to his letter, that he would provide detailed answers. [Id.]
This is beginning to feel like tryouts for the lead in the high school senior play. First we heard from Ushakov . . . then Chemezov . . . and now it’s Antonov. Who’s up next — is there a Popov in the wings, waiting to deliver the next Putin Proclamation?
And seriously . . . Where on earth is the actual Kremlin spokesman, Dmitry Peskov??!!!
Today’s broadcast of “The Daily Threat From Moscow” was brought to us by the current Russian Ambassador to the United States, Anatoly Antonov. Referring to the Ukrainian counter-offensive (Russian version: “incursion”) in the Kursk region, Antonov said:
“I tell you sincerely that the president has made a decision. I am firmly convinced that everyone will be severely punished for what has happened in Kursk region.”
Ambassador Antonov
Well, I’m sure we’re all glad that he was speaking “sincerely.” We certainly wouldn’t want him to lie to us, would we?
Unfortunately, that was all he had to say about that — no details, despite Putin’s having just met with the governors of border regions and other senior officials. They’re playing this one close to the chest.
He did, however, go on to offer his assessment of the United States, complete with a prediction that it would at some point remove all restrictions on the use of weapons supplied to Ukraine:
“The current administration behaves like a person who extends one hand and holds a dagger behind their back with another one. They are, essentially, laying ground [for a decision] to simply remove all the existing restrictions at a certain point, without much thought.” [Lucy Papachristou, Reuters, August 23, 2024.]
I suppose times have changed; but there was a day when a diplomat was supposed to remain . . . well . . . diplomatic.
Ben Franklin: The Diplomat’s Diplomat
But back to my original point: this round of musical spokesmen being offered us from Moscow this week. It’s an odd assortment, including — so far — an “aide,” an industrialist, and a diplomat. But where is the actual Kremlin press secretary? Where is that adorable Dmitry Peskov? Have there been any sightings of him this week, perhaps on a Crimean beach, or at a casino on the French Riviera?
Dmitry Peskov
Wherever you are, Dima, do enjoy yourself. But come back to us soon, well rested and raring to go, because we miss your unique brand of sarcasm.
– Bodies recovered from yacht sunk by water spout off coast of Sicily . . .
– Volcano erupts in Iceland for sixth time in eight months . . .
– Putin has plan of action to counter Kursk attack . . .
– Trump loses it — again . . .
– Woman is swallowed by sinkhole in Kuala Lumpur . . .
“Holy Sinkholes, Batman!”
And that’s just part of this morning’s news.
I’m going back to bed now. Wake me when we reach the next millennium . . . if we reach the next millennium. Or when there’s actually some good news to report . . . whichever comes first.
The loss of a loved one is incredibly sad. And for a monogamous animal — say, for example, a penguin — it is a terrible tragedy, though we humans don’t know just how much they understand or feel. But under ordinary circumstances, a penguin’s loss can be overcome when he or she finds another mate from their large community, and is able to continue breeding and increasing the herd . . . which, for penguins at least, is the real purpose of mating in the first place.
But what happens when one member of a gay penguin couple dies?
Sphen and Magic
So you didn’t know that was a possibility? Never heard of Sphen and Magic, the Australian gentoo penguins who fell in love at the Sea Life Sydney Aquarium in 2018, and later adopted and raised two chicks together? Neither had I, until this week when I read about the loss of Sphen; and considering that they were world-famous, I must have been living under a rock not to have known about them. But I do now; and being a lover of penguins anyway (if you’ve ever seen Happy Feet, you’ll understand), I found the couple’s story particularly touching.
Magic and Sphen had been together for six years, Sphen being older by three years. The staff at the Aquarium noticed them bowing to each other one day, which is a gentoo way of flirting. And in the years since then, they had become a symbol of equality around the world, even inspiring a Mardi Gras float, being referenced in Australia’s education syllabus, and featured in the Netflix series Atypical. [Tiffanie Turnbull, BBC News, August 21, 2024.] Nobody was bothered by the fact that they were gay.
Gentoo penguins have an average life expectancy of 12 to 13 years. Sphen was 11 when his health began to deteriorate, and the decision was made to euthanize him to end his suffering. Magic, who is just eight years old, was taken to see Sphen’s body so that he would understand his partner would not be returning. It was reported that Magic immediately began singing, and was joined by others in the penguin colony. [Id.]
It seems they understand quite a lot.
His obituary noted that he is also survived by Sphengic and Clancy, their two fostered chicks.
From Sphengic’s Baby Album
You may have thought in the beginning that this was going to be a humorous piece; but it isn’t. I am heartbroken for Magic, and concerned that he may never find another partner to share the rest of his life. But I will try to follow his story from now on, and rest assured — I will share my findings with you.
In the meantime, my condolences to all of the good people at the Sea Life Sydney Aquarium who are in mourning for Sphen, and who I know are taking the best possible care of Magic, Sphengic, Clancy, and the rest of the colony.
I repeat: Where is Dmitri Peskov? And why are we suddenly hearing Kremlin policy from the mouths of people we didn’t even know existed until this week?
On Monday it was former Ambassador to the United States — now aide to Vladimir Putin — Yuri Ushakov, telling us to forget about peace negotiations with Ukraine as long as their “venture” — i.e., counter-offensive — into Russia continues.
And on Wednesday we were introduced to Sergei Chemezov — not even a government official, but CEO of major arms manufacturer Rostec . . . and, not incidentally, a close friend of Putin from their days in the service of the KGB in then East Germany.
Who’s next . . . Aleksandr Dugin??!!!
Sergei Chemezov
At any rate, General (his former KGB rank) Chemezov had a strong warning for the United States and its Western allies, saying that we “risk triggering a global war if Washington continues to ‘provoke’ the conflict in Ukraine and allow Kyiv to attack Russian territory.” [Guy Faulconbridge and Gleb Stolyarov, Reuters, August 21, 2024.]
Reiterating the Kremlin line that the conflict is a battle between the West and Russia, he further stated:
“In a situation where the West, led by the United States, provokes war, we must be ready. The third year of the special operation is under way — Russia feels confident.” [Id.]
This really is nothing new — we hear it almost daily from Putin, Medvedev, Peskov and others. What strikes me, though, is the consistent use of the word “provoke” in laying the blame at the feet of the Western nations. And they repeat it, and repeat it, and repeat it, without so much as a blink or a blush, as though it were true . . . when they know damned well who it was that lined their troops up at the border and invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
Russian Troop Deployment at Ukraine Border (CNN)
It was not the United States. It was not any NATO or EU member country.
IT WAS RUSSIA!
And no matter how many times they say otherwise, the facts do not, and will not, change.
IT WAS RUSSIA who started this war. And it is a war — not a “special military operation.”
How do we get this across to Putin & Company? That is the $64,000 question (or $64 billion, in today’s money). It’s like trying to get a recalcitrant child to understand that, no matter what he says, pigs cannot fly. Saying it — no matter how many times — doesn’t make it so.
“Not listening.”
Putin put in his two cents’ worth last week when he predicted Ukrainian troops would be beaten back from Russian territory; but they’re still there. He also said in June that he could deploy conventional missiles within striking distance of the U.S. and its European allies if they allowed Ukraine to use long-range Western missiles in Russia. [Id.]
Vladimir Putin is a man who has never gotten over the breakup of the Soviet Union, which he considers “the greatest geopolitical disaster of the [20th] century.” He took that event as a personal humiliation; and now he has been further mortified by his inability to defeat Ukraine — as he originally bragged — in a matter of days or weeks.
And now, is there some special meaning behind the sudden appearance of Ambassador Ushakov and General Chemezov? Or are they just filling in temporarily for Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov?
*. *. *
Which leads me back to my original question: Dima . . . where are you? And why are they sending in these second-stringers?
Come back, Dima
They’re saying basically the same things you would be saying. It’s just that you’re that familiar, relatable face we’ve come to know and . . . well, look forward to.
* [From History.com, This Day In History, August 22, 2024.]
1776: The British Are Coming! The British Are Coming! On this date in the year of my country’s birth, British General William Howe came to Long Island, New York, with a reported “near twenty four thousand men ready to land in a moment,” hoping to capture New York City and gain control of the Hudson River. At Brooklyn Heights, the British Redcoats overcame the Americans and outflanked the entire Continental Army. The Americans suffered 1,000 casualties; the British only 400.
Battle of Long Island (Britannica)
The British missed a couple of opportunities to finish the job, and finally, on September 11th, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and other congressional representatives reopened negotiations with General Howe and his brother, Admiral Richard Howe. But the British refused to accept the condition of American independence, and negotiations fell through.
Fighting resumed, and on September 15th, the British captured New York City, which remained in British hands for the duration of the war.
*. *. *
1968: The Russians Are Coming! The Russians Are Coming!
Same date, different country, nearly 200 years later.
Moscow was annoyed (to say the least) at reforms instituted by Czech Communist Party General Secretary Alexander Dubcek. When Dubcek refused to back down, Russia did what Russia always does: they invaded Czechoslovakia on August 20th with more than 200,000 troops. On August 22nd, thousands of Czechs gathered in and around Vaclav Namesti (Wenceslas Square) in the capital city of Prague in protest against the Soviet invasion. What began as a peaceful demonstration erupted in violence at times, and several protesters were killed that day and during the days that followed.
Soviet Tanks and Czech Protesters, Wenceslas Square, Prague – 1968
Despite international condemnation, the Soviet Union pushed Dubcek from power and replaced him with a hardliner. Czechoslovakia remained under the control of the Soviet Union until its “Velvet Revolution” of 1989 — a time when Eastern European nations were breaking free of communist control, the Berlin Wall came down in Germany (November 9th), and as a result — some two years later — the Soviet Union itself splintered and ceased to exist.
All in all, a big day for invasions. It would be best if history did not repeat itself this way again — at least not for another 200 years.
