Nobody interested in the Russia-Ukraine conflict?

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Difference is that Iraq was ruled by a dictator who had invaded two neighbouring countries, repressed multiple minority groups within his own country, and had a track record of using weapons of mass destruction (he used chemical weapons both against Iran and against his own people). Meanwhile, Ukraine is a democracy that doesn't have a track record of invading neighbouring countries, where ethnic minorities are not subject to genocide, and where there are no WMDs (with those inherited from the collapse of the USSR given to Russia). They're very different. All they have in common is that they are both wars.

Liz Truss ‘phone hack by Russia’ needs investigation, say Tory MPs

Liz Truss, the UK Prime Minister before the current one, apparently had her phone hacked by Russians. Surely this is a sign how 'seriously' the UK government takes the Ukraine-Russia conflict.

This is very lax and careless!

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/p ... 13758.html

Russia’s Recruiting Afghan Commandos: "Abandoned special forces veterans are getting job offers for a very different kind of battlefield," by Lynne O’Donnell, Foreign Policy, October 25, 2022. Excerpt:

See also this Twitter thread.

^that’s not good.

Looks like Russian propaganda, instead of calling Ukrainians "Nazis" these days, has recently started calling them "Satanists." Instead of "de-Nazification," they now claim to be doing "de-Satanization."

My guess is that this is an attempt to get American religious right wingers and QAnoners to side with Russia?

Some relevant news stories:

- Russian Politician Calls for ‘Desatanization’ of Ukraine: Russian politicians and media are increasingly telling the story that Ukraine is actually full of Satanic covens, by Matthew Gault, Vice, October 26, 2022.

- 'Holy war': Russia now depicts Ukraine invasion in spiritual terms, by Alexander Nazaryan, Yahoo News, Thu, October 27, 2022.

Some relevant Twitter threads here, here, here, and here.

Russia, under Putin, has had a long history of reaching out to various American right wingers. This has been going on for decades. (It didn't start with the Trump campaign.) Just as the Soviet Union was the leader of international Communism, Putin's Russia has tried to be the leader of the international Christian religious right wing.

The founder of Wicca , Gerald Gardner, once claimed that he was involved in a coven of witches who cast spells to keep the Nazis from taking over the UK and to help defeat them during World War 2.

Since the Russians are on this crazy anti-witchcraft/satanism/'nazi' propagandistic crusade, I feel like the witches of the world should unite and curse their army in order to defend Ukraine and the rest of Europe.


...or maybe they already have? I mean, it DOES seem really miraculous that Ukraine has pushed the Russian army back so far when everyone was so sure that the Russians would fully take over their country in less than a week when this war started.

It's not quite a victory yet but there's been a lot of hope I think.

I thought Wicca and Satanism were totally disjoint. I am aware of at least one self-identified Satanist on this site maybe they have some input.

They are. But clearly people like Putin's supporters in Russia and even here in the US by proxy through Trump either don't know there is a difference or don't care. Most Christians don't even seem to grasp the concept that "paganism" has nothing to do with willingly worshipping the Devil. It's about the worship of deities of any religion that is not Christian.

Also witches and wiccans are not necessarily the same thing. Wicca was a religion invented by Gerald Gardener in the 1940's that was based on witchcraft and the syncretism of many pagan deities into one God and Goddess.

Witchcraft itself on the other hand is much older than wicca and has existed in every culture in the world in one form or another. It's also simply called folk magic by those who don't necessarily like the title of "witch".

There are a variety of folk magic practices that could be regarded as witchcraft from wicca to santeria to voodoo to hoodoo to shaminism to kabbalah to fortune telling to druidry to something known as Appalachian granny witchcraft (my great grandmother here in Georgia used to practice this stuff from what I heard). There's also Luciferian Witches which are witches who actually do believe in and worship the Devil, unlike Satanists who are actually athiests. So yes some witches can be into Devil Worship aswell.

When regarding the whole Wicca vs Satanist vs what makes a Witch a Witch thing it gets very complicated.

Some witches are even Christian in their beliefs. Hoodoo practioners tend to be protestant as was my great grandmother who practiced Appalachian Folk Magic. So not every witch is a Pagan or Devil worshipper.

Yes.
Very.

I never thought I'd see the day when Americans would actually want to side with the Russians.

I mean... weren't they the ones threatening to nuke us all throughout the Cold War? And Putin still wants to nuke us.

Trump was kissing pootin's arse from day one.
Presumably, Trump wanted to friend pootin so pootin would be more amenable to him.
While I can see the wisdom of this bromance, it should have ended when pootin invaded Ukraine.
Trump is an "ass".

Also, the Biden administration has been far more militarily-friendly towards Australia.
I doubt Trump would be the same.
Go frack yourself, Orange Man.

Crazy isn't it! The last time Russians and Americans fought on the same side it was WW2, then the Cold War happened.

It's kind of like those Americans have twisted in circles and they've ended up going 180 degrees. I guess their logic is:

1. We don't like Democrats.
2. Democrats are giving our money to 'forriners' (Ukrainians)
3. Therefore we don't support the Ukraine because we don't like Democrats.

Also known as 'cutting off their nose to spite their face.'

I really hope this doesn't happen in Britain. I hope that because Ukraine and Russia are on our doorstep, we can see the threat of Russia more clearly. Fingers crossed anyway.

I suppose it depends on what the British media says. They are brainwashing the public to believe that all refugees are bad and taking our jobs and money, so they could easily turn on the Ukrainian refugees...

Because rightwingers and the QAnon and Maga cults will rile against Satanists, but not against Nazis? LOL you may be on to something.

Some good & not great happening right here locally in Canada to help with teenaged Ukrainian refugees fleeing solo to Canada: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/u ... -1.6630566

Good they're coming & can get a 3 year visa to stay For Now. (Hopefully they're able to then parlay that into Permanent Resident status and then citizenship if they want to stay.)

Not so great that some are falling through the cracks with no one knowing where they are if they leave a host family's house and there's no system in place to track them.

Not so great that the government of Canada only offers a one time $1500 support payment to host families to help cover expenses. Basically, you have to be able to afford to take on a dependent and house/clothe/feed them. Hopefully there are enough hosts willing and able, but there'd be a lot more with a bedroom to offer if Canada would chip in to help cover regular recurring expenses. Life is very costly here.. if someone's paying full current market price for housing + food/clothing/medicine etc that could easily cost $1500-1800/mo for each dependent. But if the space is being paid for anyways Or was bought/rented long ago for cheap, then it may only be ~$500-800/mo in variable expenses of food/clothing/medicine etc. But still, wtf Canada ? Irks me that this is the way it is in part because if I end up with an extra bedroom available in a house I may rent IF I move, I'd consider doing something like this.. but Especially if some/all of the hard costs of doing so were covered vs. coming directly out of my pocket. Still, never know, if I have the space and numbers jive and there are other financial supports, it is Possible that I'd consider doing something like this. I mean, I'd already be vetted and background checked by our own local government to take on a kid that isn't mine.

Blah blah blah, even if Canada is in large part dropping the ball on this, it's rather nice to read that people with deep pockets and big hearts are opening up their homes to kids fleeing the war. Even if they have to take it upon themselves to have Facebook groups and "informal," vetting processes etc it's rather moving that locals right here where I am are taking this on and making it happen.

Are all or most of the British media saying this sort of thing, or just the right wing media?