Politics

[Ontario Hunter]

It’s amusing that Democrats celebrated Zelenskyy blowing up the Crimea bridge but it’s a war crime if Trump blows up a bridge.

The Crimean bridge was in occupied Ukrainian territory. I guess they have a right to blow up what's supposed to be theirs. Duh!

 

[Mark A Ouellette]

And please leave NATO..we are so far apart politically..we need to go separate ways..

Perhaps you have me on your ignor list? I posted these things only 6-days ago.

Since you are the Norwegian NATO expert, maybe you should contact NATO Chief Mark Ruffe and tell him what you told us on AH. He would probably give your advice as much regard as we do...

The link below is to NATO Chief Mark Ruffe stating, perhaps berating the European NATO members that "we" need each other,

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1D3piQmqv8/?mibextid=wwXIfr

For those with poor Internet connection Chief Ruffe said,
"If anyone thinks they can defend themselves without the US, keep on dreaming..."
"For Europe, if you really want to go it alone, forget you can ever get there with 5% (GDP Contribution), it will be 10%. You have to build up your own nuclear capability, that costs billions and billions of Euros, in that scenario, you will lose the ultimate guarantor of our freedom, the US nuclear umbrella. So hey, good luck..."

And...

If the above words from NATO Chief Mark Ruffe were not enough, here he is again praising Donald Trump's NATO leadership (or badgering),

1.2M views · 40K reactions | NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said Donald Trump was right to worry about Arctic security but called for "thoughtful diplomacy" over the US president's push to acquire Greenland. Follow live updates: https://trib.al/

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said Donald Trump was right to worry about Arctic security but called for "thoughtful diplomacy" over the US president's push to acquire Greenland. Follow live...

www.facebook.com

And here he is again, speaking of the goodness of the US degrading Iran's neclear capability,

440K views · 10K reactions | STOP Iran Now! – NATO Chief Issues Stark Warning on Nuclear Threat! A Nuclear Iran Is a Threat to Europe & Israel – Rutte Backs Action to Degrade Capabilities! At NATO Headquarters, Secretary General Mark Rutte delivers a

STOP Iran Now! – NATO Chief Issues Stark Warning on Nuclear Threat! A Nuclear Iran Is a Threat to Europe & Israel – Rutte Backs Action to Degrade Capabilities! At NATO Headquarters, Secretary General...

www.facebook.com

As Winston Churchhill so famously stated,
"The only thing harder than fighting with allies, is fighting without allies!"

 

[mdwest]

The Crimean bridge was in occupied Ukrainian territory. I guess they have a right to blow up what's supposed to be theirs. Duh!

Was it theirs?

Russia has occupied Crimea since 2014..

Nobody gave much of a shit until the current Russian invasion in 2022…

Ukraine didn’t hit the bridge until 2023…

9 years after it became Russias..

Your double standards are showing…

 

[steve white]

I wonder if France might have started to pay for the oil with Euro? I read somewhere (cant find the source now) that Iran offered the EU and China to freely transit the strait if they paid for oil in their own currency rather then in dollars. Also the US under Trump has been voting against UN resolutions in the company of Russia, Belarus and others...for example this one: https://www.congress.gov/119/meeting/house/117930/documents/HHRG-119-GO06-20250225-SD006.pdf

And in regard to article 5 why cant the US then formally withdraw instead of creating this (very negative) strategic ambiguity concerning Nato? Like I wrote just now in response to mdwest, by now a clean break would probably be for the best, both for Europe and the US...

Do you really think not needing a passport to hunt in Greenland is worth a war (however short it would be)? Thats just plain sad...

They were just "yanking your chain" a way of joking by aggravation.
Concerning replacing the dollar as reserve currency--NOW you're playing with world wide depression/instability, AND, do you really want that power to go to China because you couldn't wait 2 more years for a presidency to change. That will be cutting off your nose to spite your face.
It is also a massively larger betrayal to the US than what you have suffered. You do that and, joking aside, it WILL not be forgotten.

 

[Red Leg]

If the USA even thought of leaving NATO it would crumble overnight. None of the european crybabies have a clue how to run it.

Let's not get too carried away. Mark Rutte is the current Secretary General of NATO and former Prime Minister of the Netherlands. He seems quite competent, and moreover seems to manage Trump rather well.

I think Europe's greatest risk will be whether it is able to form a lasting continental military coalition. The closest thing that ever resembled one before NATO was the Empire of Napoleon, and of course it excluded the United Kingdom, and was, shall we say, rather ethereal, lasting only ten years. Perhaps the EU is resilient enough to sponsor a true European Combined Force without a senior partner herding the cats, but history would argue against it.

 

[Wheels]

I think it’s more realistic that NATO would simply cease to be. The United States is the backbone of the organization and without the US there is no NATO.

I think the suggestion by some here that we leave it in order to somehow preserve it from Trump is horribly naive. It’s really an all or nothing proposition. If you want NATO, you have to put up with the US.

And this isn’t me defending Trump’s aggressive stance towards NATO (though I do agree with everyone paying their due), it’s just realistic.

Google tells me that the US supplies 35-40% of the alliance’s manpower and 65% of funding. Turkey is the second largest contributor of manpower.

Some of our friends here suggesting that the US leaving somehow preserves anything meaningful is asinine.

America drawing down troops yet keeping a maintenance staff at all NATO installations seems to make sense. Cut off all economic impact to to the local communities yet have an installation available if a true emergency arises.

 

[Ontario Hunter]

Was it theirs?

Russia has occupied Crimea since 2014..

Nobody gave much of a shit until the current Russian invasion in 2022…

Ukraine didn’t hit the bridge until 2023…

9 years after it became Russias..

Your double standards are showing…

The Ukrainians have never acknowledged the land taken from them in 2014 belongs to Russia. According to the old USSR boundaries it was part of Ukraine. It is disputed but the last legitimate owner was Ukraine. The bridge was theirs. They can blow it up if they want. No comparison to what's happening in Iran. Any halfwit can see that.

 

[Red Leg]

The Crimean bridge was in occupied Ukrainian territory. I guess they have a right to blow up what's supposed to be theirs. Duh!

Was it theirs?

Russia has occupied Crimea since 2014..

Nobody gave much of a shit until the current Russian invasion in 2022…

Ukraine didn’t hit the bridge until 2023…

9 years after it became Russias..

Your double standards are showing…

You have a gift for stating uninformed things with such sarcastic conviction.

The bridge was built by the Russians. Work began 2016 and Putin himself opened and dedicated it three or four years before the invasion. Prior to 2022 it carried fuel and material by both rail and truck - some military and some not, along with lots of Russian tourists heading to the beaches. It fits every nonsensical "war crime" label as any such bridge in Iran.

 

[Ontario Hunter]

Let's not get too carried away. Mark Rutte is the current Secretary General of NATO and former Prime Minister of the Netherlands. He seems quite competent, and moreover seems to manage Trump rather well.

I think Europe's greatest risk will be whether it is able to form a lasting continental military coalition. The closest thing that ever resembled one before NATO was the Empire of Napoleon, and of course it excluded the United Kingdom, and was, shall we say, rather ethereal, lasting only ten years. Perhaps the EU is resilient enough to sponsor a true European Combined Force without a senior partner herding the cats, but history would argue against it.

Yep. He knows how to manage Trump. So does Carney. Blowing a little smoke up Donald's butt really gets results. He responds well to anyone who helps make his head fatter. Flattery is the key to managing a childish bully. Funny thing is he doesn't even know he's being managed. Everyone laughs behind his back. They'll be writing books about it for a hundred years.

 

[Tanks]

Why should we not be able to launch sattelites..? There is already talks of an european nuclear arms build up to restain Russia.

I am sure Musk would take your money to enable that. Though I wonder if you cry about increasing the NATO budget how you will manage without the USA.

And waiting to see if he will attack or TACO out again..

 

[mdwest]

The Ukrainians have never acknowledged the land taken from them in 2014 belongs to Russia. According to the old USSR boundaries it was part of Ukraine. It is disputed but the last legitimate owner was Ukraine. The bridge was theirs. They can blow it up if they want. No comparison to what's happening in Iran. Any halfwit can see that.

So at what point are the Native Americans allowed to start blowing up bridges on the land they had taken?

Since when does a loser acknowledging a loss in war matter?

You seem to think your opinion matters more than the actual law…

I’m all for the Ukrainians blowing up any strategic target they can by the way… to include bridges in Moscow itself if they can figure out how to pull it off…

The law of land warfare supports it…

Just like it supports taking out bridges in Iran…

Your opinion on the matter is irrelevant (and incorrect)…. Any half wit can see that…

 

[Wheels]

The bridge was theirs. They can blow it up if they want.

The bridge(s) were built from Russia to Crimea by Russia. Not Ukraine.

 

[Red Leg]

As @mdwest has pointed out ad nauseum to the culturally effete, Trump has is own method of negotiation + business or internationally. Would it be my preferred bunting for such actions - no - but the fundamental methodology - employment of unbearable power is something both I, any fan of Teddy Roosevelt, and interestingly Colin Powel should applaud.

That said, what I read of the ten-point plan looks like an unlikely basis for negotiations.

Trump agrees to two-week extension on Iran deadline​

Tara Prindiville
Trump posted on Truth Social that he is suspending attacks on Iran for two weeks.

“Based on conversations with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir, of Pakistan, and wherein they requested that I hold off the destructive force being sent tonight to Iran, and subject to the Islamic Republic of Iran agreeing to the COMPLETE, IMMEDIATE, and SAFE OPENING of the Strait of Hormuz, I agree to suspend the bombing and attack of Iran for a period of two weeks," he wrote.

Trump added, "This will be a double sided CEASEFIRE! The reason for doing so is that we have already met and exceeded all Military objectives, and are very far along with a definitive Agreement concerning Longterm PEACE with Iran, and PEACE in the Middle East. We received a 10 point proposal from Iran, and believe it is a workable basis on which to negotiate. Almost all of the various points of past contention have been agreed to between the United States and Iran, but a two week period will allow the Agreement to be finalized and consummated. On behalf of the United States of America, as President, and also representing the Countries of the Middle East, it is an Honor to have this Longterm problem close to resolution. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DONALD J. TRUMP”

 

[Red Leg]

The bridge(s) were built from Russia to Crimea by Russia. Not Ukraine.

Beat you to it.

 

[Wheels]

Beat you to it.

Your mind is faster plus my bladder was full and I had to go take care of that issue

 

[Pondoro]

I am sure Musk would take your money to enable that. Though I wonder if you cry about increasing the NATO budget how you will manage without the USA.

View attachment 758144

IF Iran open the Hormuz that is..

 

[Hunt anything]

Your mind is faster plus my bladder was full and I had to go take care of that issue

TMI my friend!

 

[Wheels]

TMI my friend!

Sorry. I will try to refrain from posting while pissed off.

 

[Datchew]

A moments pause. Gold and miners are going to scream as crude Brent wanes. Most are based on profitability at 2k/oz or in that ball park.

Q2 is going to be reallllllly interesting.
LNG especially.

With all this expensive toys usage, and if the EU stops bitching and gets their checkbook into gear for military spend, the MIC stocks could be a real sweet choice for going long.

 

[Betterinthebush]

A moments pause. Gold and miners are going to scream as crude Brent wanes. Most are based on profitability at 2k/oz or in that ball park.

Q2 is going to be reallllllly interesting.
LNG especially.

With all this expensive toys usage, and if the EU stops bitching and gets their checkbook into gear for military spend, the MIC stocks could be a real sweet choice for going long.

Ditto