While the White House hasn’t yet announced a final decision, JD Vance said this week that, as a result of Vladimir Putin’s continuing refusal to discuss a ceasefire in Ukraine, Donald Trump has indicated he might consider acceding to Ukraine’s request for long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles that could conceivably reach Moscow and most of European Russia if fired from Ukraine.

Encouraged by that possibility, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned Kremlin officials that they should “know where the bomb shelters are.” [Guy Faulconbridge, Dmitry Antonov and Mark Trevelyan, Reuters, September 29, 2025.]

That was one threat the Kremlin could not shrug off. In an indication that Putin has given the matter considerable thought, spokesman Dmitry Peskov tossed these questions at reporters when asked for comment:

“The question … is this: who can launch these missiles …? Can only Ukrainians launch them, or do American soldiers have to do that? Who is determining the targeting of these missiles? The American side or the Ukrainians themselves?” . . . adding that “a very in-depth analysis” was required.

And Andrei Kartapolov, head of the Russian Parliament’s Defense Committee, said that any U.S. military specialists who aided Ukraine in launching Tomahawks against Russia would then become legitimate targets for Moscow. “And no one will protect them. Not Trump, not [special envoy Keith] Kellogg, nor anyone else,” he said. [Id.]

To which Kellogg replied that, according to Trump, Kyiv should now have the ability to conduct long-range strikes on Russia, adding:

“Use the ability to hit deep. There are no such things as sanctuaries.” [Id.]

In a show of defiance and confidence in Russia’s ultimate victory, Peskov had one further comment:

“Even if this happens, there’s no panacea that can change the situation on the front for the Kyiv regime right now . . . And whether it’s Tomahawks or other missiles, they won’t be able to change the dynamic. [Id.]

And finally — never to be outdone — the world heard from Kremlin super-hawk Dmitry Medvedev with one additional threat, proclaiming that Europe “simply cannot afford a war with Russia . . . [but that] the possibility of a fatal accident always exists.” [Id.]

*. *. *

While Trump’s realization that coddling Putin wouldn’t work was long overdue, this verbal escalation is far too reminiscent of the Kennedy-Khrushchev exchanges during the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. Toe-to-toe confrontations such as these demand the application of patient, experienced diplomacy on both sides. Vladimir Putin has both the experience and the patience.

But who from our side can match him?

*. *. *

And this is me, going to sleep tonight:

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
10/1/25

The extent of the danger created by forgetting, ignoring or denying history cannot be overemphasized. There are already legions of Holocaust deniers who disavow the hard evidence and the testimony of the few remaining survivors. And with the aging and inevitable passing of the generation of people who lived through the years of World War II and witnessed its horrors, we are more at risk than ever of being unable to identify the warning signs of creeping fascism.

But the signs are already here.

And they’ve never been more clear than they were this morning at Marine Base Quantico in the Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C., when Donald Trump and self-styled “Secretary of War” Pete Hegseth addressed a mandatory gathering of some 800 top-ranking military officers for an “urgent” meeting that could (and should) have been handled remotely.

Dragging the heads of military commands away from their assigned posts around the world — at taxpayer expense, of course — accomplished two things: First, it left those vital posts, for about three days including travel time, in a condition of vulnerability in the absence of their top brass. And second, by gathering in one place 800 of our military’s upper echelon, together with the head of the Defense Department and the occupant of the Oval Office, it created a doomsday scenario — the perfect target for terrorists and other would-be mass murderers.

Oh, and I did mention those tax dollars stolen from essential programs to finance this little pep rally, didn’t I?

But did anything substantive come out of this all-important briefing of our most experienced warriors by a draft-dodger and a failed TV personality?

Well, there was Trump’s puzzling revelation — apparently just tossed into the mix for no particular reason — that:

“I’m very careful when I walk down stairs, like I’m on stairs … I walk very slowly. Nobody has to set a record. Just try not to fall because it doesn’t work out well.” [Rex Huppke, USA Today, September 30, 2025.]

I’m sure all of the Generals and Admirals in the audience appreciated receiving that bit of intelligence: Trump is an old man who tends to lose his balance.

But then he got into his favorite topic: the “decriminalization” of the country:

“We’re under invasion from within. No different than a foreign enemy, but more difficult in many ways because they don’t wear uniforms. At least when they’re wearing a uniform you can take them out.” [Id.]

“Taking them out” seems to be his newest delight: immigrants, alleged Venezuelan drug runners, anyone who looks suspicious. It doesn’t seem to matter.

And he added that he had told Hegseth:

“We should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military, National Guard, but military. Because we’re going into Chicago and it’s a big city with an incompetent governor, stupid governor.” [Id.]

As always unable to resist a good campaign moment, he then took the opportunity to try — for the zillionth time — exorcising his greatest demon, former President Joe Biden:

“You’ll never see four years like we had with Biden and that group of incompetent people that ran this country.” [Id.]

The man is possessed.

Finally, Trump yielded the floor to Hegseth, who can’t seem to forget that he is no longer a TV personality, and launched into the importance of optics above all else:

“Frankly, it’s tiring to look out at combat formations or really any formation and see fat troops. Likewise, it’s completely unacceptable to see fat generals and admirals in the halls of the Pentagon and leading commands around the country and the world. It’s a bad look.” [Id.]

I wonder — did he ever suggest to Trump that his medically-diagnosed obesity is also a “bad look”? Somehow, I doubt it.

Because Trump then followed up on the whole “let’s pretty up” theme with this:

“I am a very aesthetic person. I don’t like some of the ships you’re doing aesthetically. They say, ‘Oh, it’s stealth.’ … That’s not stealth. An ugly ship is not necessary in order to say you’re stealth.” [Id.]

Right — let’s gold-plate all those warships and planes, hang a few gilt-framed portraits of Trump and some crystal chandeliers in prominent spaces, and make ours the most aesthetically-pleasing military in the world.

*. *. *

But embarrassing stupidity aside, the underlying message of the day was this: We’re going to be using our American cities as training grounds for the military, thus killing two birds with one stone . . . the second bird being the American public itself, as it becomes accustomed to living under martial law.

You see, folks . . . the signs are already there.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
9/30/25

The modern definition of “paladin” refers to any of the 12 legendary peers or knightly champions who attended the 9th-century Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne. More commonly, however, it is used to describe any determined advocate or defender of a noble cause.

But who are the new “Paladins” — a group who call themselves an “international league of anti-globalists” and held their founding conference on September 12th in St. Petersburg, Russia?

As though born fully-formed from the head of Zeus, they seem to have sprung out of nowhere. But their first gathering, at the Imperial-style Mariinsky Palace (the site of St. Petersburg’s Legislative Assembly) in Russia’s pre-Revolutionary capital, was attended by far-right politicians and extremists from a number of nations, reportedly including France, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Spain, South Africa, Serbia, Hungary, Greece, Belgium, Brazil, Argentina, and the United Kingdom.

Following a religious procession led by Patriarch Kirill, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, their inaugural forum began with a welcome by Russian politicians, far-right ideologues, and priests . . . and “a minute of silence for the slain young leader of American traditionalists, Charlie Kirk.” [Meduza.io, September 24, 2025.]

That alone — if nothing else about this event — raises questions in my mind that I would rather not contemplate . . . the first being what, if any, connection might exist between this group and any government official or private citizen of the United States.

*. *. *

But enough said about that, for now. Turning to the people who were in attendance, there are a couple of notables.

First and foremost is the principal organizer of the conclave: 51-year-old Konstantin Malofeev: a Russian media mogul, oligarch, financier, and rabid monarchist, who has been under Western sanctions since 2014 for his involvement in Vladimir Putin’s invasions of Ukraine.

Described by some as “Russia’s real strongman,” and “part Steve Bannon, part Elon Musk,” he has been pressing Putin for years to destroy Ukraine. In 2014, he helped organize, and possibly even instigated, the Russian separatist movement in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine that led to Putin’s later all-out invasion. [Paul Starobin, Business Insider, February 23, 2025.]

His closeness to Putin, his media access, and his wealth place him in a position potentially to wield considerable influence on Kremlin policy. And he is virulently anti-Western. Following Donald Trump’s election in 2024, Malofeev posted on Telegram an image of Trump with a raised clenched fist, and a caption saying that Trump “is our enemy. He wants a great America.” But then he goes on to suggest that it might be possible for Trump and Putin to come to an agreement on how to divide the world between them. And he finishes with a sardonic: “LET’S MAKE RUSSIA GREAT AGAIN.” [Id.]

Considering the months of delays and excuses issuing from both Putin and Trump over a solution to the conflict in Ukraine, one might wonder how much of Malofeev’s bizarre suggestion was serious, how much was meant as a joke . . . and how much weight it might carry with two volatile, autocratic tyrants as they vie for world dominance.

*. *. *

Not surprisingly, another attendee at the St. Petersburg gathering of self-styled Paladins whose name was all too familiar was Aleksandr Dugin — self-styled philosopher, ultra-nationalist, and noted paranoid whack-job sometimes referred to as “Putin’s Brain.”

This is the guy about whom I wrote earlier (8/20/24: “Putin’s Rasputin”), who told American right-wing fruitcake Tucker Carlson in an interview that Ukrainians are “a race of degenerates who crept up from sewers and deserve to be eliminated through genocide,” and that Russia’s occupation of Ukrainian territories is actually an “opposition to the junta and Ukrainian Nazism that exterminates civilians.” [Julia Davis, CEPA, May 2, 2024.]

He has somehow managed to work his way into Putin’s circle of friends and advisors, though it isn’t clear how much real influence he has. Still, the involvement of both Dugin and Malofeev begs the question of whether this is indeed Kremlin-sanctioned . . . and if so, to what purpose?

It’s too soon to tell; but it will be interesting — as always — to keep an eye on them.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
9/30/25

Hallelujah! There is good news from Europe at last:

The election in Moldova — viewed as a significant factor in the neutral country’s possible path to EU membership — has seen President Maia Sandu’s Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) walk away with a solid majority in Parliament.

Warning of “massive Russian interference” in the election, President Sandu has hammered home to her people the warning that the entire future of their country was at stake. And the party’s leader, Igor Grosu, said that their victory had been secured despite Russia’s having thrown “everything it had” into swinging the election toward the opposition. [Sarah Rainsford and Paul Kirby, BBC, September 29, 2025.]

Opposition leader Igor Dodon tried claiming victory before results had even come in, and called for protests outside Parliament on election day. But the protests were small, and the results — after 99.9% of the vote had been counted — were definitive: PAS had taken 50.17% of the vote, and Dodon’s pro-Russian Patriotic Electoral Bloc only 24.18%. [Id.]

Wedged between Ukraine and Romania, tiny, land-locked Moldova is strategically positioned as one of Russia’s potential next steps (after Ukraine) on its path to European expansion. What Vladimir Putin probably considers an easy mark from a military point of view has today proven itself a tougher political foe than he may have anticipated.

Three cheers for Moldova!

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
9/29/25

In January of this year, just four days before Inauguration Day in the U.S., I posted an article on the oligarchy of Russia, and how Vladimir Putin had managed to rein in his billionaire friends and keep them under control.

I began by mentioning outgoing American President Joe Biden’s expressed concern that the U.S. itself might be heading toward oligarchy under the incoming second Trump administration; and I closed with a little prayer that he was wrong.

Tragically, President Biden hit the proverbial nail on its big fat head in that farewell speech to the nation. And so I’d like to acknowledge . . . no, I’d like to honor . . . his wisdom and his foresight by re-posting that earlier article of mine, as a reminder to us all:

*. *. *

1/16/25: How To Control Your Oligarchs, In One Easy Lesson

In his farewell speech to the nation yesterday, U.S. President Joe Biden expressed his concern that our country is descending into oligarchy. And this, of course, immediately brought to mind the existing oligarchy in Vladimir Putin’s Russia.

In the 1990s — the “Yeltsin years” — Russia’s economy was in free-fall. The Soviet Union had ceased to exist as of Christmas Day 1991; and in the absence of a solid structure to replace it, most of its assets were up for grabs by those shrewd enough to know what to grab, when to grab it, and for how much (usually pennies on the dollar).

And thus was born a whole new category of Russian big shots who became known, rather derisively, as the oligarchs. Suddenly, a handful of billionaires found themselves wielding previously unheard-of personal power; and Boris Yeltsin seemed quite content to let it happen as he watched his country’s economy growing with the creation of new industries and services.

But in December of 1999, Yeltsin suddenly resigned the presidency, passing the torch to his then Prime Minister — a considerably younger, previously unknown former KGB officer and career opportunist from St. Petersburg named Vladimir Putin — to complete his term of office. And in March of 2000, Putin ran in his first election and won. Today, 25 years later, he’s still in power . . . and shows no signs of letting go. Ever.

He has kept his position as absolute ruler of Russia — some liken it to being self-appointed “Tsar for Life” — by various heavy-handed, even ruthless means, including pushing through constitutional amendments to extend the number of years for each term of office, and the number of times he can be reelected.

And by reeling in the oligarchs.

One of his early acts upon first being elected was to call a closed-door meeting in the Kremlin during the summer of 2000, summoning 21 of the wealthiest men in Russia to hear what the future had in store for them. These men were not what one would call pillars of society; they had gained their wealth and power through shady deals, corruption, and sometimes even murder. But there was a new kid in town, and the rules were about to change.

What Putin told them that day shook them — and the foundation upon which they stood — to their very core:

“I want to draw your attention to the fact that you built this state yourself, to a great degree, through the political or semi-political structures under your control. So there is no point in blaming the reflection in the mirror. So let us get down to the point and be open and do what is necessary to do to make our relationship in this field civilized and transparent.” [Greg Rosalsky, NPR News, March 29, 2022.]

The deal he offered them was this: bend to his authority, stay out of his way, and they could keep their mansions, super-yachts, private jets, and multibillion-dollar corporations. [Id.]

And most of them did just that. But some didn’t; and they didn’t fare well. Some — like Vladimir Gusinsky and Mikhail Khodorkovsky — ended up in prison, were forced into exile, or both. Others — such as Boris Berezovsky — died in suspicious circumstances.

Bottom line: Vladimir Putin no longer has an oligarch problem. Easy.

And today I ask myself if this is the future that President Biden foresees for America under the incoming administration, with its innately autocratic leadership and its “Billionaires’ Club”?

I pray not.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
1/16/25

*. *. *

Joe Biden was not a perfect president; none of them were. But he is a compassionate man, and has always had the best interests of his country at heart . . . which is far more than we can say about some.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
9/29/25

It was just over two years ago, on September 1, 2023, that I first wrote — in a post titled “Hungary: Another Wild Card?” — about Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and his growing tendency to cozy up to Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.

At that time, I quoted a report by Bloomberg that said:

“The West should make a ‘deal’ with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Ukraine’s new security architecture, which shouldn’t include the return of Crimea nor membership in the NATO military alliance, according to Hungarian prime Minister Viktor Orban.”

And in an interview shortly thereafter with Fox News’ Tucker Carlson, and as published on X, Orban reiterated:

“We should make a deal with the Russians on the new security architecture to provide security and sovereignty for Ukraine but not membership in NATO. . . . the best chance for peace was for former US President Donald Trump to return to power and for him to end military support to Ukraine.”

I further reported at the time that Orban had already cut deals with Russia for the purchase of Russian energy despite existing sanctions, and despite Hungary’s membership in both NATO and the EU; and — again citing a Bloomberg article — that he had referred to Putin as a “model on which . . . [to build] an ‘illiberal democracy’ that opposes the EU’s multi-cultural values.”

*. *. *

Now fast-forward two years. As we are all too well aware, one of Orban’s wishes came true when Donald Trump bulldozed his way back into the White House and began behaving more like his buddy Vladimir Putin than the head of the U.S. government.

One of the biggest problems Trump inherited was, of course, the war against Ukraine, which he still insists would never have happened if he, instead of his nemesis Joe Biden, had been in office for the past four years. But, that bit of fantasy aside, he did have a mess to deal with; and in the eight months since he resumed office, he has only made it more complicated by vacillating between total support and near-total abandonment of Ukraine . . . seemingly depending upon the last person with whom he had a conversation on the subject.

Trump has been trying to convince the leaders of Europe’s NATO and EU countries to stop purchasing oil and natural gas from Russia in order to hit hard at Putin’s wartime economy. And most of those countries have indeed found other sources of energy and weaned themselves from Russia’s spigots.

But not Hungary. Despite Trump’s and Orban’s declarations of mutual admiration, and Hungary’s obligations to NATO and the EU, Orban said on Friday that dropping Russian energy would be a “disaster” for his country’s economy. In comments on state radio on September 26th, Orban said:

“I told the U.S. president . . . that if Hungary is cut off from Russian oil and natural gas, immediately, within a minute, Hungarian economic performance will drop by 4%. It means the Hungarian economy would be on its knees.” [Justin Spike, AP, September 26, 2025.]

Hungarian officials have attributed their alleged energy difficulties to geographical and infrastructural issues. But other countries in the region have managed to break away from Russian oil — with the notable other exception of Slovakia, whose Prime Minister, Robert Fico, is similarly Russia-friendly.

Orban added on Friday that where energy sources are concerned, “It is clear what is in Hungary’s interest and we will act accordingly. . . . [Hungary and the United States] are sovereign countries. There is no need for either of us to accept the arguments of the other. America has its arguments and interests, and Hungary does too.” [Id.]

In other words — in typically Putinesque jargon — he has made it crystal clear where he stands, and has always stood: with his feet firmly planted in NATO and EU territory, and his self-interest in Moscow.

Somehow, I can’t help thinking about the fox in the henhouse.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
9/29/25

Well, that didn’t take long: Peskov denied; Lavrov threatened; and now Putin has delivered.

Following up on Kremlin spokesman Peskov’s denials of any Russian military incursions into NATO airspace, and Foreign Minister Lavrov’s not-so-veiled threats of recriminations if any Russian aircraft were shot down — you know, the aircraft they deny are up there — Vladimir Putin hit Ukraine last night with the third-largest air attack in the history of his war of attrition against the sovereign nation he continues to claim as his own.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that some 500 drones and 40 missiles were fired at several regions. Their targets included what were clearly civilian buildings: an industrial bakery, a tire factory, a medical facility, a kindergarten, private houses, and apartment buildings. In Kyiv, four people were killed, including a 12-year-old girl, with dozens of others injured. [RFE/RL, September 28, 2025.]

(Note: A later report stated that nearly 600 drones were detected. – BBC, September 28, 2025.)

In the southern city of Zaporizhzhya, dozens of people, including children, were injured when 41 apartment buildings, 22 houses, and several other structures were damaged by the attacks, according to the area’s regional Governor, Ivan Fedorov. [RFE/RL, op.cit.]

The Russian Ministry of Defense has, of course, claimed the attacks were aimed against Ukrainian military infrastructure, and that they do not target civilians.

*. *. *

Earlier today, I posited that the recent fly-overs of Russian drones and warplanes in NATO airspace might be intended as an incitement for a Western response that would in turn give Moscow an excuse to escalate a conflict with one or more NATO countries, thereby allowing Putin to withdraw troops from Ukraine and quietly wind down operations there.

But today’s new development leads me to think I was initially on the right track but may have taken a wrong detour.

As President Zelensky said following last night’s attacks:

“This vile attack took place practically as the UN General Assembly week was concluding, and this is exactly how Russia declares its real position.” [Victoria Butenko, et al., CNN, September 28, 2025.] [Bold emphasis is mine.]

Perhaps, conversely, the invasions of Polish, Romanian, Estonian and Danish airspace are a red herring to draw Western defenses away from Ukraine, while Putin increases his efforts there toward a final victory.

Or it could be something entirely different — something so diabolical it might never occur to me.

As I indicated this morning, attempting to plumb the depths of Putin’s psyche is like trying to swim through mud — the harder you struggle, the more deeply you become mired in the muck.

And if the experts can’t do it, why do I even try?

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
9/28/25

At the session of the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, September 23rd, Donald Trump let loose with nearly an hour of invective against . . . well, against nearly everyone he could think of.

Surprisingly, that included — in a stunning 180-degree turn from his usual soft-pedaling concerning Vladimir Putin’s war against Ukraine — a statement that he now believes that country “is in a position to fight and WIN all of Ukraine back in its original form,” and calling Russia a “paper tiger.”

It took two days, but when Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov finally acknowledged the slur, it was merely to say that “Russia is more compared with a bear. There are no paper bears.” [Zeeshan Aleem, MSNBC Daily, September 25, 2025.]

Another two days had passed when, on September 27th, Bloomberg issued a report that European diplomats from the UK, France and Germany had privately warned Moscow that NATO forces were prepared to shoot down any Russian aircraft violating European airspace. This, of course, took place in the wake of numerous recent incursions by Russian drones and warplanes into Polish, Romanian, Danish and Estonian airspace, which have been seen by some as a test of NATO’s willingness and readiness to respond to a real invasion.

Asked how Russia would react if NATO were to shoot down a Russian plane, Peskov said:

“You know, I don’t even want to talk about this; it’s a very irresponsible statement.” [Dmitry Antonov, Mark Trevelyan and Lucy Papachristou, Reuters, September 26, 2025.]

But then he did have a bit more to add:

“It’s very irresponsible because accusations against Russia that its military aircraft violated someone’s airspace and intruded into someone’s skies are groundless. No convincing evidence has been presented.”

No surprise there — just your standard Kremlin denial.

But yesterday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov took the floor at the U.N. and offered this:

“Threats of force against Russia, accused of practically planning an attack on the North Atlantic Alliance [NATO] and the European Union [EU], are becoming increasingly common. President Putin has repeatedly debunked such provocations.

“Russia has never had and does not have such intentions, but any aggression against my country will be met with a decisive response.” [Kathryn Armstrong, BBC, September 27, 2025.]

Well, now, where do I begin?

First of all, Putin and Peskov seem to have conflated “debunking” with “denying.” Maybe it’s a linguistic problem . . . but I doubt it. They’re just dissembling.

And further, they have now progressed from mere denial to the more aggressive Kremlin tactic of “DDD”: Deny, Deflect, Denounce. Twist the truth so far out of shape that you can then accuse your opponent of the very act of which you yourself are guilty. And in so doing, you are positioned to assume the role of victim, striking back in “self-defense.”

After all, isn’t that exactly what they have been trying to make the world believe about their “special military operation” in Ukraine?

The question next arises: Why now? They haven’t finished with Ukraine yet. And Kyiv’s recent successful attacks on Russian oil and gas production and distribution facilities are having a devastating effect on Moscow’s economy, to the point of having to cut exports and ration domestic consumption. Why open a new Pandora’s box when things are already going so badly?

But perhaps that’s the point. By manufacturing the “need” to defend themselves against alleged NATO aggression, they would have given themselves the perfect face-saving excuse for backing out of Ukraine and blaming the whole ugly mess on the West.

Or maybe I’ve just read one too many byzantine John le Carre novels; it may all turn out to be much ado about nothing. Whatever the truth is, at this point only Putin knows for sure. And trying to second-guess him has thus far eluded even the most seasoned Russia experts.

So, as always, we wait for whatever tomorrow may bring.

Happy Sunday, everyone.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
9/28/25

They are the engine that keeps our government running: the hundreds of thousands of federal workers across the country — those who survived DOGE’s slash-and-burn rampage earlier in the year — who show up every day to do the jobs the rest of us are largely unaware of, but on whose efforts we depend to shore up this country’s economic and physical infrastructure . . . and who, in turn, depend upon those jobs to support themselves and their families.

And they are once again — in what has become a regular annual ritual — being held hostage to the passage of a federal budget for 2026 that will make just one man in the Oval Office happy. If Congress cannot pass that budget bill by midnight on September 30th, the U.S. government — with the exception of essential services — will shut down on October 1st, and perhaps as many as half of those workers (based on the numbers from Donald Trump’s first-term record) could be placed on involuntary unpaid leave for an indeterminate length of time.

Members of Congress, of course, will continue to receive their full salaries and perks, as mandated by the U.S. Constitution.

And while Congress argues and threatens and nitpicks, those hundreds of thousands of loyal government employees, while not in a literal prison, are in limbo, scrambling to figure out how they will pay the rent and put food on the table if the shutdown does become a reality.

They are the innocent hostages of their own government, imprisoned without bars by the avarice of the leaders for whom some (but certainly not all) of them voted.

If the words of French philosopher Joseph de Maistre are true — if indeed “Every country has the government it deserves” — we must at some time have done something really terrible to deserve what we are being dragged through now.

*. *. *

But in this, our own Time of Troubles, let us not forget the literal hostages in prisons and penal colonies throughout Russia, Belarus and elsewhere, praying for a breakthrough in the negotiations that will set them free at last.

Once again, here is the list of the ones I know of:

Immigrant Detainees in Russia:

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

Prisoners of War:

The 19,500 Kidnapped Ukrainian Children
The People of Ukraine
The Azov 12

Endangered Exiles:

Mikita Losik
Yulia Navalnaya
Countless Journalists and Other Dissidents

Political Prisoners:

In Azerbaijan:

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

In Belarus:

Ales Bialiatski
Andrei Chapiuk
Marya Kalesnikava
Uladzimir Labkovich
Marfa Rabkova
Valiantsin Stafanovic
Yuras Zyankovich

In China:

Chenyue Mao (American)

In Russia:

David Barnes (American)
Gordon Black (American)
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
Nadezhda Rossinskaya (a.k.a. Nadin Geisler)
Sofiane Sehili (French)
Igor Sergunin
Dmitry Shatresov
Robert Shonov
Grigory Skvortsov
Eugene Spector (American)
Laurent Vinatier
Robert Romanov Woodland (American)

You are not forgotten.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
9/28/25

When did the United States become a nation of heartless, sadistic, stone-cold killers?

Apparently, on January 20th.

It started with immigrants. Some of them were here illegally, and some may have committed crimes; so they said let’s just send them all to third-world countries, or to our own private hellhole, Alligator Alcatraz.

*. *. *

But why stop there? Let’s clean up our city streets, beginning with the homeless. They’re mostly harmless folks, down on their luck. But can they prove that? No? Well, then, let’s just label them a danger to society, drag them out of their tents, and move them to . . .

Wait a minute. Where were they taken? Are they all right? We haven’t heard anything about that, have we?

Come to think of it, Fox News host Brian Kilmeade did comment on Fox & Friends that those who didn’t accept the services offered to them (whatever “services” he’s talking about) should be jailed . . .

“Or involuntary lethal injection, or something. Just kill ‘em.” [CBS News, September 15, 2025.]

He did later apologize . . . but how can you expect people to forget a statement taken right out of Adolph Hitler’s playbook?

*. *. *

Then Attorney General Pam Bondi happily echoed Donald Trump’s “suggestion” that the death penalty be reinstated in Washington, D.C. She even upped the ante by announcing that her Justice Department would be seeking capital punishment across the country . . . ignoring, as usual, any and all legal impediments to such a move, as well as verified statistics proving that the death penalty is not a deterrent to crime.

And in order not to overlook any other potential targets of their sadistic spree, Bondi further stated that prison inmates who had been moved off of death row by former President Joe Biden were now being relocated into maximum security facilities:

“We’re moving them to Supermax facilities where they will be treated like they’re on death row for the rest of their lives.” [Alayna Treene, CNN, September 25, 2025.]

Nice one, Cruella. You get to watch the inmates suffer, while at the same time giving your boss the thrill of reversing another of Biden’s humanitarian acts.

*. *. *

So where does the killing enter the picture? In the Caribbean, of course, with the point-blank murders of at least 17 alleged drug runners from Venezuela, in missile or drone strikes on three (or more) separate boats on separate days, in international waters.

Trump had this to say during his rambling presentation to the United Nations on September 23rd:

“To every terrorist thug smuggling poisonous drugs into the United States of America, please be warned that we will blow you out of existence.” [Reuters, September 23, 2025.]

That’s telling ‘em, mister!

There are also unverified indications (from anonymous sources familiar with the situation) that Trump is attempting to reach agreement with Venezuelan authorities whereby he could target drug traffickers inside their country. [Courtney Kube, Gabe Gutierrez and Katherine Doyle, NBC News, September 26, 2025.]

And he still thinks he deserves a Nobel Peace Prize.

*. *. *

And last, but far from least, is this from the Department of Defense, where Secretary Pete Hegseth has called hundreds of generals and admirals to an urgent meeting in Virginia next week, without providing any details.

However, according to several people with knowledge of the plan, Hegseth’s purpose is to describe the Trump administration’s “reinvention” of the DOD as the “Department of War,” and to outline new standards for military personnel. A White House official has said:

“It’s meant to be a show of force of what the new military now looks like under the president.” [Natasha Bertrand and Alayna Treene, CNN, September 26, 2025.]

Portrayed as a sort of “pep rally” designed to emphasize the importance of a “warrior ethos,” the event is intended to instruct the captive audience as to new readiness, fitness and grooming standards that the officers are expected to adhere to and enforce.

One defense official had this to say:

“It’s about getting the horses into the stable and whipping them into shape. And the guys with the stars on their shoulders make for a better audience from an optics standpoint. This is a showcase for Hegseth to tell them: get on board, or potentially have your career shortened.” [Id.]

Are we preparing to go to war? Because this is what Herr Hegseth’s showcase calls to my mind:

It’s all about the optics: scare the masses, and they will submit.

*. *. *

Had enough? If not, I’m fairly certain we won’t have long to wait for the next installment of Murder, Inc. Just give me a few minutes to digest today’s news.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
9/27/25