Four years ago today, Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine — a “special military operation” that was supposed to have been wrapped up in a matter of days or weeks.

But today, after four long years of bloodshed and sacrifice, Ukraine is still standing, and still fighting for its sovereignty.

Glory to Ukraine. The free world stands with you.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
2/24/26

Didn’t expect to hear from me today, did you?

Well, all I can say is, it’s a damned good thing I never succumbed to the temptations of recreational drugs, cigarettes, or excessive amounts of alcohol. But I have a new-found respect for those who did, and who then successfully went through the hell of recovery to come out clean on the other end; because I have discovered that I do, after all, have an addictive side: I’m hooked on writing.

On Monday, my first day of attempting to break from my obsession with the daily news, I found that — while I was still sorely tempted to rant on a number of subjects — I was able to restrain myself. As it turns out, it’s more the act of writing that I miss. And I’ve been thinking that perhaps, in seeking relief from all of the angst, I mistakenly also tried to break from the one thing that actually does bring me joy: communication.

No, I am not going back on my word; I do need this break from the daily ration of anger, frustration, and hatred swirling around out there in cyberspace. But perhaps “lukewarm turkey” is more my style than flat-out cold turkey: disengaging from the negative, while still keeping company with my keyboard . . . and my blog buddies.

I am not, after all, a hermit. And anyway, where is it written that a spiritual journey has to be taken alone?

So, full disclosure: I haven’t shut down the news alerts on my phone; I still need to know what’s happening in the world I inhabit. But when I received one yesterday morning, I found myself being able to laugh at the absurdity of something that would normally have pissed me off and sent me running for my iPad. That reaction struck me as progress . . . but what good was it if I couldn’t share it with my friends? So here it is:

It was the report of a Fox News interview given by real estate guru and White House special envoy Steve Witkoff, in turn relating what Donald Trump had said to him about Iran’s failure thus far to surrender to Trump’s threats of invasion:

“I don’t want to use the word ‘frustrated,’ because he understands he has plenty of alternatives, but he’s curious as to why they haven’t . . . I don’t want to use the word ‘capitulated,’ but why they haven’t capitulated.

“Why, under this pressure, with the amount of sea power and naval power over there, why haven’t they come to us and said, ‘We profess we don’t want a weapon, so here’s what we’re prepared to do’? And yet it’s sort of hard to get them to that place.” [RFE/RL, February 23, 2026.]

*. *. *

Now, normally the newshound in me would have been spewing epithets all over the place, raging at the thought of this idiot being in charge of our negotiations with Russia, Iran, and the whole freakin’ Middle East.

But the fact is — when you eliminate the prospect of World War III erupting momentarily — you have to admit that those two, Trump and Witkoff, are the Laurel and Hardy of modern-day vaudeville.

And I’m feeling much better already.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
2/24/26

A little over three years ago, I printed out the final pages of a non-fiction book I had been trying to write for 25 years or more, and had finally found the time and the courage to tackle once I was retired.

But the manuscript lay gathering dust, for reasons I won’t go into here.

I found, though, that I missed the writing; so I started this blog — a sort of autobiographical serial at first, then branching out into commentaries on international affairs, and even a few attempts at humor. As the daily news grew more and more imperative, so did my urge to comment on it. I wasn’t writing for profit, and I never expected my little blog — even though I posted it on Facebook — to go viral . . .

. . . which it didn’t, and that was fine. My viewership grew a bit, and I enjoyed knowing that someone out there was aware of my existence, and found relevance in what I had to say.

Lately, though, it has all begun to feel like more of a burden than a pleasure — like Marley’s ghost plodding through eternity, dragging the chains that he had forged in life. Only these are not my chains.

The problem is not the amount of time it takes to read, research and write; I have plenty of available hours during the day for all of that. But the subject matter — the constant barrage of horror stories emanating from every nook and cranny of the globe — has become like a personal dark cloud hanging over my head, invading my sleep at night and filling my days with the little “ding!” of yet another news alert from my phone.

And now, instead of raging against it as I have been doing — using the writing as a sort of catharsis — I find myself wanting to disconnect from it, and trying to search for something that will instead bring me a measure of comfort and peace.

So maybe I’ll attack that “to-be-read” pile of books in the corner, or binge-watch my DVDs of the entire series of “The West Wing.” (Now, there was a presidential administration to aspire to!) Or I might even get back to work on a book of my own — either to finish the first one, or plunge into something entirely new and different. I don’t know yet; but I’m sure I’ll think of something.

In the meantime, I want my handful of loyal readers to know that, if you don’t see any posts from me for a while, I’m not ill . . . just taking a mental-health break. I’m sure I’ll be checking in from time to time; old habits are hard to break.

*. *. *

P.S. It suddenly occurs to me, as I sit here contemplating my present mood and my future direction: Maybe there really is such a thing as “Trump Derangement Syndrome,” and I’ve caught it!

That would certainly explain a lot.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
2/23/26

There are several possibilities here:

> Bobby Kennedy, Jr.’s brain worm has migrated to what’s left of Donald Trump’s brain;

> Trump’s immigration obsession has grown to include all species of “aliens”;

> A White House aide got hold of Trump’s phone again;

> Melania is systematically trying to drive him over the edge;

> There really are extraterrestrials running loose in the West Wing; or, most likely,

> It’s another excuse for Trump to pick on Barack Obama.

Last week, Trump posted on Truth Social that he will be directing U.S. government agencies, including the Defense Department, to “begin the process of identifying and releasing” government files on aliens and extraterrestrial life. [Grace Eliza Goodwin, BBC, February 20, 2026.]

This was a follow-up to his earlier statement aboard Air Force One, when he said that Obama had revealed classified information by stating during a podcast that “aliens are real.” According to Trump:

“He’s not supposed to be doing that. He made a big mistake.” [Id.]

Then, when asked by reporters whether he believes aliens exist, he replied: “Well, I don’t know if they’re real or not.” [Id.]

So, which is it? If Obama’s comments were indeed revelatory of classified information, then there must be some substance to the widespread belief that such beings exist, and that the government has been covering up the proof for decades.

On the other hand, if there has been a cover-up, why would he order the files released?

But on the other hand — yes, I know I’m starting to sound like Tevye again — those files could have been scrubbed, a la Epstein, as part of the cover-up . . .

What Obama actually told podcast host Brian Tyler Cohen was this:

“They’re real, but I haven’t seen them, and they’re not being kept in Area 51. There’s no underground facility unless there’s this enormous conspiracy and they hid it from the president of the United States.” [Id.]

When his comments drew public reaction, Obama then clarified in a post on Instagram that he thinks it is statistically likely that, given the vastness of the universe, life exists somewhere other than on Earth. But he added:

“I saw no evidence during my presidency that extraterrestrials have made contact with us. Really!” [Id.]

Meanwhile, there has been no indication that Obama revealed any sort of classified information on the subject of aliens. But Trump — never one to pass up an opportunity to harass someone he can’t stand — just had to waste more government resources, and taxpayer dollars, on another meaningless exercise.

But if it makes the little guy happy . . .

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
2/22/26

On Thursday, February 19th, word was received of the final release by Belarusian authorities of oppositionist and one-time presidential candidate Mikalay Statkevich, following a stroke suffered while in prison.

Originally part of the release of 52 political prisoners on September 11, 2025, Statkevich was to have been deported to Lithuania. However, he refused to leave his homeland, and positioned himself in a no-man’s land on the Belarus-Lithuania border, where he was eventually re-arrested and returned to prison.

On January 21, 2026, while back in prison, he suffered a stroke, but was not released until last week. After spending 12 of the past 20 years as a political prisoner of the Lukashenko regime, he has at last been reunited with his family in Minsk. His wife, Marina Adamovich, posted on Facebook following his release:

“Dear friends! Mikalay is home! He had a stroke. He is now recovering. For now, he is having problems with speech. Otherwise, everything is fine. Everything will be OK.” [RFE/RL, February 19, 2026.]

In 2016, after nearly five years in prison, Statkevich told reporters:

“I am ready to sacrifice my freedom to bring my country closer to freedom. I am fighting for Belarus. I will continue this work as long as I am alive.” [Id.]

Whether he will follow through on that pledge when he has regained his health remains to be seen. But in the meantime, welcome home, and all best wishes for a speedy recovery, to Mikalay Statkevich.

*. *. *

And yet another weekly salute to those still being held hostage:

Victims of Greed:

The President, First Lady, and citizens of Venezuela

Europeans Under Threat:

The Nation and the People of Greenland
The people of NATO and EU member states

Prisoners of War:

The 19,500 Kidnapped Ukrainian Children
The People of Ukraine

Immigrant Detainees in Russia:

Migrants from the Central Asian nations of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan,
Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan

Endangered Exiles:

Mikita Losik
Yulia Navalnaya
Countless Journalists and Other Dissidents

Political Prisoners:

In Afghanistan:

Dennis Coyle (American)

In Azerbaijan:

The “Azerbaijan 7”:
— Farid Mehralizada
— Ulvi Hasanli
— Sevinj Abbasova (Vagifqiai)
— Mahammad Kekalov
— Hafiz Babali
— Nargiz Absalamova
— Elnara Gasimova

In Belarus:

Andrei Chapiuk
Uladzimir Labkovich
Andrzej Poczobut
Marfa Rabkova
Valiantsin Stafanovic
Yuras Zyankovich

In Georgia:

Mzia Amaglobeli

In Russia:

The “Crimea 8”:
— Oleg Antipov
— Artyom Azatyan
— Georgy Azatyan
— Aleksandr Bylin
— Roman Solomko
— Artur Terchanyan
— Dmitry Tyazhelykh
— Vladimir Zloba

James Scott Rhys Anderson (British)
David Barnes (American)
Gordon Black (American)
Hayden Davies (British)
Antonina Favorskaya
Konstantin Gabov
Robert Gilman (American)
Stephen James Hubbard (American)
Sergey Karelin
Timur Kishukov
Vadim Kobzev
Darya Kozyreva
Artyom Kriger
Michael Travis Leake (American)
Aleksei Liptser
Grigory Melkonyants
Nika Novak
Leonid Pshenychnov (in Russian-occupied Crimea)
Nadezhda Rossinskaya (a.k.a. Nadin Geisler)
Sofiane Sehili (French)
Igor Sergunin
Dmitry Shatresov
Robert Shonov
Grigory Skvortsov
Eugene Spector (American)
Joseph Tater (American, disappeared)
Laurent Vinatier
Robert Romanov Woodland (American)

You have not been, and will not be, forgotten.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
2/22/26

She’s always good for a smile, a chuckle, or a guffaw. And her ability to find humor in the most mundane and even frustrating aspects of everyday life, marriage and motherhood are inspirational.

I found one of her writings today that I hadn’t seen before, or had overlooked. Under the heading, “If I had my life to live over . . .” she said she would have spent less time doing chores and more time appreciating her children, her friends, or a beautiful spring day — things that many of us have thought from time to time.

But she really struck a chord for me when she added this one:

“I would have eaten less cottage cheese and more ice cream.”

– Erma Bombeck, “Thoughts On Life From Erma Bombeck”

As my regular readers know, I surrendered to my ice cream addiction long ago. But today, thanks to Erma, I also bought a box of Twinkies. I think she would have approved.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
2/21/26

He began by picking off small boats in the Caribbean he allegedly suspected of carrying illegal drugs from Venezuela to the United States.

Then he deployed an armada to the region — including the world’s largest aircraft carrier, the USS GERALD R. FORD — purportedly to “bolster U.S. capacity to detect, monitor, and disrupt illicit actors and activities that compromise the safety and prosperity of the United States.” [Konstantin Toropin, AP, October 24, 2025.]

But it had really been about regime change, and not just drugs, all along. Because on January 3rd — in an operation worthy of a Jason Bourne sequel — he sent in U.S. special ops Delta Force commandos to kidnap Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife and bring them to the United States, where they currently await trial in New York on charges of drug trafficking and narcoterrorism. And he declared that the U.S. would “run” Venezuela until a new administration had been installed to his satisfaction, which hasn’t officially happened yet.

Of course, I’m talking about Donald Trump, who — fresh off of his Venezuelan “success” — now has his sights, and a sizable number of U.S. military forces, aimed at Iran. The issue there is bigger than the Latin American drug trade; it involves ongoing talks concerning nuclear containment, which have dragged on with little or no progress for longer than he anticipated.

At the first meeting of his ironically-named “Board of Peace” in Washington this week, Trump gave the Iranian regime another ten days to knuckle under to his demands, saying:

“We have to make a meaningful deal otherwise bad things happen.” [Bernd Debusmann, Jr., BBC, February 20, 2026.]

Trump did not explain what he meant by “bad things.” But I doubt that what then actually happened on Thursday was what he had in mind. That was the day that Iran and Russia began joint military drills in the Gulf of Oman and the Indian Ocean, with the purported goal of “upgrading operational coordination as well as exchange of military experiences.” [Ryan Mancini, The Hill, February 19, 2026.]

Apparently, Trump does not understand the difference in consequences between stepping on an anthill and poking a hornets’ nest. Furthermore, in his own ignorance concerning the history, the culture and the mindset of the Middle East nation — and his failure to anticipate Russia’s willingness to step into the fray — he placed responsibility for the negotiations in the hands of two equally unqualified individuals: realtor Steve Witkoff, and Trump’s own wunderkind son-in-law, Jared Kushner.

Yes, the same pair who have thus far failed to bring Ukraine a millimeter closer to peace have simultaneously been tasked with convincing Iran’s leaders to bow down before the Temple of Trump.

Well, good luck with that, boys. The countdown has begun.

10 . . . 9 . . . 8 . . .

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
2/21/26

Yesterday, when addressing the inaugural meeting of his “Board of Peace” in Washington, Donald Trump made a Freudian slip. In speaking of the future of the Board, he said, “Someday I won’t be here . . .”

Much has been written lately about Trump’s apparently declining health, and maybe he has secretly been contemplating his inevitable demise, as we all do at some point. After all, he is not a young man.

So perhaps he should consider the words of Roman Emperor and Stoic philosopher Marcus Aurelius, who wrote:

“Your days are numbered. Use them to throw open the windows of your soul to the sun. If you do not, the sun will soon set, and you with it.”

– Marcus Aurelius, “The Emperor’s Handbook”

Though sadly, there are some whose souls are so dark that even the sun would have difficulty reaching them.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
2/20/26

One dictionary definition of “mafia,” with a lower-case “m,” is:

“ . . . a popular attitude of hostility to legal restraint and to the law, often manifesting itself in criminal acts.”

I’d say that’s close enough for government work.

In this case, the governments to which I refer are the 47 (mostly autocratic) nations that sent representatives to the inaugural meeting of Donald Trump’s brand-new “Board of Peace” in Washington yesterday. While Israel was represented, no Palestinian was in attendance. Also notably absent were many European and other Western allies who have expressed concern about the purpose and scope of the Board’s initiative.

Trump told the meeting that nations had already contributed $7 billion to a Gaza reconstruction fund for work to begin once Hamas has been disarmed. Contributors included Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Morocco, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Uzbekistan. He also said that the U.S. would give $10 billion to the Board, though it was not clear where the money would come from or what it would be earmarked for. [Christina Anagnostopoulos, et al., Reuters, February 19, 2026.]

He added that the United Nations will contribute $2 billion for humanitarian assistance, and —rather incongruously — that FIFA has said it would raise $75 million for soccer-related projects in Gaza. [Id.]

Oh, goody! The people of Gaza are desperate for food, water, medical care, shelter — the basic necessities of existence — but let’s give them soccer to take their minds off of their misery.

In his remarks, Trump characteristically painted a glowing picture for the future of his newest undertaking, telling the assembly:

“This is the mot prestigious board ever put together. You know, I’ve seen some great corporate boards. I’ve seen some great boards, period. It’s peanuts compared to this board.” [Michele Kelemen and Aya Batrawy, NPR, February 19, 2026.]

Then he continued:

“Someday I won’t be here, the United Nations will be, I think, is going to be much stronger. The Board of Peace is going to almost be looking over the United Nations and making sure it runs properly.” [Id.]

Perhaps in response to recent expressions of concern that he might be attempting to supplant the role of the United Nations, he added that the Board would be working “very closely” with the U.N. — though it sounds more as though he expects the U.N. to be working closely with him.

*. *. *

It’s early days for Donald Trump’s Board of Peace, and it remains to be seen what direction they will take from here. In the meantime, the billions of dollars already contributed will be . . . doing what? Sitting in a bank in Qatar? In whose name? Or perhaps it will be used as start-up funding for son-in-law Jared Kushner’s “New Gaza” development plan, as presented last month at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

You know . . . the one the people of Gaza won’t be able to afford to live in.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
2/20/26

He appeared in Geneva on Tuesday — seemingly out of nowhere — to take the lead for the Russian side in the Ukraine peace talks.

His name was Vladimir Medinsky, and I wondered who he was and what he was doing there, heading a delegation that still included two former lead negotiators: Kirill Dmitriev, and Admiral Igor Kostyukov, Chief of the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces (GRU), who had led the earlier talks in Abu Dhabi . . . as well as a Deputy Foreign Minister and a Deputy Defense Minister.

His earlier involvement in the Russia-Ukraine conflict dated back to talks held in Istanbul in the early days of the invasion, in March-April of 2022, and included some of last year’s talks as well. But his name has not been at the forefront of the media reports. So I did a little digging.

His Wikipedia biography identifies him as an historian with an education in English and journalism at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO); a former posting as Minister of Culture; a stint in the State Duma in the early 2000s; a present place as a member of Putin’s “ideological clan”; and a politically “statist” and “ultraconservative” philosophy, with a strong emphasis on a return to Russian “traditional values.” From that, I could only wonder anew at his relevance to peace negotiations.

The second day of talks brought no further clarity, when his only post-meeting comment was that they had been “difficult but businesslike,” and that further meetings would follow. [RFE/RL, February 18, 2026.]

My first clue came with this morning’s news reports, one of which quoted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky — normally a model of realistic but diplomatic composure — as calling the Geneva talks “historical shit.” [Mike Eckel, RFE/RL, February 19, 2026.]

Well, that snapped my eyelids open and sent my mind into overdrive. So I grabbed my reading glasses and read on.

Aside from the dry biographical information, it seems Mr. Medinsky has been known — at least in Russia — as the author of a series of supposedly best-selling non-fiction history books . . . although their historical value has been questioned by experts. As reported:

“Among his more eyebrow-raising statements: The 1939 Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, which divided up Poland between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, ‘deserves a monument’; anti-Semitism in Tsarist Russia was ‘greatly exaggeraged’; and the Soviet Union never occupied the Baltic states, it just ‘incorporated’ them. [Id.]

He has been accused by Russian academics of plagiarism; he has overseen the revisionist rewriting of history textbooks used in the Russian schools; and he attempted, in the final volume of his book series, to justify the Russian invasion of Ukraine by writing:

“The West became fixated with destabilizing the situation inside Russia. The aim was not even hidden: to dismember Russia and to get control over its resources.” [Id.]

While suggesting in a news interview that video-streaming service Netflix was a U.S. government tool for mind control, he conversely claimed rap and hip-hop music as being uniquely Russian art forms.

And it is believed he was central to the drafting in July 2021 of an essay released by the Kremlin under Putin’s name, titled “On the Historical Unity of Russians and Ukrainians” [http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/66181] — a revisionist theory of history that Putin has consistently used to justify his February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. [Id.]

Still, what was he doing at Geneva? Earlier this year, when trilateral talks were again held, that time led on the Russian side by the head of the GRU (military intelligence), the Ukrainian officials were delighted. Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha said at the time, “These are different people, and there were no more pseudo-historical lectures” — obviously referring to Medinsky’s tendency to propagandize and sermonize.

So when Medinsky’s return to the table was announced just days prior to the February 17th meeting, experts agreed that it was not a good sign. And it appears they were right.

“Earlier, Sky News analyst Michael Clarke called Medinsky a ‘nasty piece of work’ with a deranged view of Russian history, who likes to lecture everyone. He ‘swears at people, he annoys them, he angers them.’ His goal, according to Clarke, is to make others walk away and later say the negotiations failed because they themselves abandoned them.” [Olena Mukhina, Euromaidan, February 18, 2026.]

It has now been reported that Medinsky spent considerable time in Geneva doing exactly that — while Moscow’s key demand of the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from the entire Donetsk Oblast remains unchanged.

And there is your answer: Vladimir Medinsky, an “aide” to Putin with no official governmental position, was a diversionary tactic — what the Russians call an “otvlekayushchiy manevr,” or “red herring” — sent, not merely to reinforce Putin’s alleged historical claims to Ukrainian territory, but also to sabotage any serious attempts at genuine peace negotiations.

Unfortunately, he appears to have succeeded.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
2/19/26