Update from Ukraine | Revenge in action | Ukraine Hit Many Ruzzian Tanks

They arrogantly cite the rules of Mr. Robinson, while flagrantly violating them - often in the same post (the irony is lost on them, or maybe not, perhaps laughing at what a joke things have become).

Ah, yes, their finger-wagging at others as they simultaneously sling their insults. One of the hallmarks of a FRUkazoid. Seriously, who *are* these people? What a blight on this site they are.

While you are absolutely correct that backing up your points with citations and links are the best method in debate, I tend to find with these trolls that it is a useless exercise. In many instances, as you’ve pointed out, they often will come “armed” with their own (propaganda) links from disreputable sources (as we’ve seen, we’ve got them on record as saying the NY Times is “reputable”). Since what we know is reputable and what they claim to be is at odds with reality, there cannot be an honest debate of the facts. And, of course, from there flows the usual deterioration of the discourse.

You’re also right that almost all of what gets posted or debated here makes not a hoot in hell with those who decide on policy. We did, once, have more of an impact 2 decades ago (I believe it was a FReeper who exposed Dan Rather’s insidious attempts to deceive the public for the 2004 election on G.W. Bush’s military service. Although I have since disavowed the ex-President, as has most of FR, Rather should’ve been brought up on criminal charges for his role in the matter).

I think we missed the boat after around 2004 to continue to remain relevant to the public, as many have expressed both publicly and privately, and retreated inward. Failure to update the website, which remains curiously a relic of a 1997 internet, has also been a problem. Though it may be comforting to some of us old-timers here (I first came here in 1998 and started posting in 2001), we’re failing to attract vigorous newcomers and no doubt our median age rises with each passing year, along with an ever-increasingly longer obit page dedicated to those that have gone on to their great reward.

Yes, your final observation that being able to quickly scroll headlines and make a quick post on a given topic remains what we basically are. Some folks are happy with that, though some others hope we could be a bit more, and have more of a public impact as we once did.

Take care.

7% at the height of the frenzy for “action.” Of course, they counter with some outrageous claim that 90%(?) of Republicans support The Ukraine (more to the point, the Zelensky regime). I think the party base support for his regime is quite low, because those vocal GOP elected officials supporting sending $$ there (and arms) are amongst the most unpopular persons in the party, bar none.

Ex-Sec of State Mike Pompeo committed career suicide over his support for the issue at the time he was going to enter the Presidential race. If this were remotely a popular issue with the base, Pompeo would be considered a #1 choice to be Trump’s running mate. It’s doubtful now he’d be offered the role of men’s room attendant.

Well, we know what they’re not: civilized, rational or Conservative.

Atlas VPN - Trusted by Denys Davydov. 86% off

In addition to all the other options for making money, Davydov is offering this "deal" -- beacuse money talks.

Atlas VPN is a Delaware-registered, New York based company.

Here is some news about Atlas for Linux users -- recommended by Denys:

"We're aware of the security vulnerability that affects our Linux client. We take security and user privacy very seriously. Therefore, we're actively working on fixing it as soon as possible. Once resolved, our users will receive a prompt to update their Linux app to the latest version,” the company said. (September 6, 2023 )
Source: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/atlas-vpn-security-flaw-leaked-170733064.html
"Atlas VPN is a budget VPN service with a good set of everyday-use features, albeit limited by a small server network and the fact that it is based in a “Five Eyes” country (United States), making it susceptible to data scrutiny from the authorities."
Source: https://restoreprivacy.com/atlasvpn-0-day-disconnects-client-and-leaks-users-ip-address/
"Atlas VPN zero-day vulnerability leaks users' real IP address" From Atlas, as of today: "Due to system migration chats are temporarily unavailable. We highly appreciate your patience. In case you are unable to connect to the VPN from China, try connecting to Hong Kong, Netherlands, or Japan locations."
Source: https://help.atlasvpn.com/hc/en-us/articles/4410036471570-How-to-reach-Atlas-VPN-customer-support

As one looks about a bit, one finds more details about UMCRevMom@aol.com's headline star....

"Petitioner Denys Davydov, a citizen of Ukraine, was charged as removable under INA § 237(a)(2)(B)(i) for having a conviction of a controlled substance violation. AR 925-26, 1453. He subsequently applied for cancellation of removal, asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture (“CAT”) on the basis of his Jewish religion. Before an Immigration Judges (“IJ”), who sustained the controlled substance charge, Davydov testified that he arrived in the United States from Ukraine in 1996 when he was 11 years old. AR 288. He did not remember ever practicing Judaism or attending a synagogue in Ukraine, AR 291, nor did he ever face any persecution there because of his religion, AR 296, and he did not practice Judaism in the United States, AR 293."
Toward the end of the "On Petition for Review of an Order of the Board of Immigration Appeals" one reads:
"As the IJ and BIA rightly observed, neither the record evidence nor Davydov’s speculative testimony established that Jews were commonly tortured in Ukraine or that Davydov would be specifically targeted. And though Davydov submitted some articles showing that certain public officials have espoused anti-Semitic views, he has not shown that the government would acquiesce even if he were tortured. Accordingly, we will deny the petition for review."
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT
No. 20-1324
(Opinion filed: August 11, 2020)
Source: https://digitalcommons.law.villanova.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1748&context=thirdcircuit_2020

PLEASE note the date of the opinion -- 11 August 2020. Then simply calculate from the following: "arrived in the United States from Ukraine in 1996 when he was 11 years old." Twenty-four years in the US. Should be about 38 years old now....

Interesting

Very interesting. Booted out of the U.S. for possession of a controlled substance. Sought asylum on the pretext that he is being persecuted for being Jewish (apparently non-practicing?) Did I read that right?

I wonder what rationale he used to establish residence in Switzerland?

Seems more like a draft-dodger, but that’s just me.

If he'd been flying with a smaller EU airline or with UIA, then temporary residency could have been established, as in a "pied a terre." One obtains then a work permit, or shows assets enough to not be reliant on the state.

Visa – Entry to and residence in Switzerland

A little tidbit from Wiki: "On 14 June 2016, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine had the offices of UIA searched because of an investigation by the Bureau into passenger fees not paid to the State Aviation Fund." And "The head of the state air traffic regulator of Ukraine stated at 8 November 2019 that UIA would[clarification needed] owe them ₴1 billion of unpaid fees and penalties."

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukraine_International_Airlines

He'd stated he had flown the ATR 42/72, and one finds that two Swiss companies used them. ASL Airlines Switzerland (Basel) and Zimex Aviation (based in Glattbrugg (Zurich), Switzerland). Cargo and charter, mostly. UIA seems not to have had this plane in their fleet.

One finds: "UIA temporarily will not operate scheduled and charter flight to and from Ukraine." And "UIA extends flight suspension until the lifting of martial law and reopening of ukrainian airspace"

https://www.flyuia.com/ua/en/home

"April 10, 2023: Ukraine International Airlines announces that the suspension of regular and charter flights to and from Ukraine will continue until martial law in Ukraine is lifted, and Ukrainian airspace is reopened."

Source: https://www.flyuia.com/ua/en/news/2023/uia-extends-flight-suspension-until-the-lifting-of-martial-law-and-reopening-of-ukrainian-airspace

Another interesting tidbit. Using Google, and searching for the regulation mentioned in the court opinion, "AR 925-26, 1453," one comes across the Denys Davydov court opinion immediately, but also several links -- caution, do not open -- which are basically "sex" related. These are via suspicious French, German and Polish sites, and very much to be avoided.

Odd, however, that the links name "Youtube denys davydov ukraine" and "Denys davydov telegraph ukraine" variants to lure in the casual computer user. And more oddly, some of the URL names, when checked with whois.com, show a connection to the Netherlands. It is a strange world out there....

Something especially despicable about atheistic Communist Satanists hiding behind their Jewish ancestry to claim victimhood (like George Soros).

--- "...to claim victimhood."

When I asked someone using the "Zelensky is Jewish" gambit to explain the depth of Zelensky's Judaism, he could not cite such things as in which shul he was raised or attended, if he ever went to form a minyan, what "parashah" was his to learn and recite, and the like. The discussion then simply went away. One may assert anything, but proving an assertion seems to often be an anathema to some.

Many like to trot out the similar "Marx was Jewish," failing to take note of Marx' "satanic: poetry, his racism and urge to name-call, and of course his marriage in the Protestant Kreuznacher Pauluskirche to Jenny von Westphalen.

Soros -- or György Schwartz -- shows no sign of being Jewish, merely of claiming a heritage. Being born "in Budapest to a non-observant Jewish family," as according to Wiki, does not make one Jewish. In fact, the Wiki goes on to quote, "Soros has wryly described his home as a Jewish antisemitic home."

Yuck, yuck.

As to Zelensky, one reads:

"While Zelensky does not profess to be religious, he identifies as Jewish and told The Times of Israel in 2020 that he was raised in 'an ordinary Soviet Jewish family.' 'I never speak about religion and I never speak about God because I have my own personal opinion about it,' he said in the interview. 'Of course, I believe in God. But I speak with him only in those moments which are personal for me'.”
Putin: My Jewish friends say Zelensky isn't Jewish, is a ‘disgrace’ to the faith

This is an enormous topic, as for some to be Jewish means being of an identifiable race, and to others to be observant of religious practices, and to yet someone else to merely "identify" with, as goes the joke about the "lox and bagel" Jew. Like the Christmas and Easter Christian.

There is even a stream of Judaism which espouses atheism.

Jewish atheism - Wikipedia

Consider from a long Yom Kippur address (2004) --

Philosophers and theologians agree you can't define God, and sociologists agree you can't define Jews. We Jews are a singular people. Race? Nation? Religion? Have you ever heard of an Episcopalian agnostic or a secular Baptist or a Jehovah Witness atheist? Such contradictions are oxymorons. but secular Jews, atheist Jews and agnostic Jews produce no shock. In fact, they comprise the largest constituency of the Jewish people.
I admire that inclusiveness in Judaism. There is no Jewish dogma that excludes non-believing Jews from their identity, from their belonging, from salvation.
Indeed, we are rather proprietary when it comes to such secular Jews. Like Baruch Spinoza, Karl Marx and Albert Einstein (and we can throw in Theodore Herzl and David Ben Gurion), we are proud of our pluralistic Jewish people.
To console me, one of my friends argued that all Jews, regardless of their belief or disbelief, pray the same prayer, only with a different dialect. The traditional Jew prays, "Shema Yisrael, Adonai Eloheinu, Adonai Echad." Not to be outdone, the atheist Jew prays, "Shema Yisrael, I deny Eloheinu, I deny Echad." And the agnostic Jew recites, "Shema Yisrael, I dunno Eloheino, I dunno Echad."
Source: https://www.vbs.org/worship/meet-our-clergy/rabbi-harold-schulweis/sermons/outreach-jewish-secularists-and-atheists

That sermon ends: "Recognize that there is Godliness that resides in each of us."

I mention all this because the same architecture of complex thought is found through Christendom as well. A pastor and friend of many years said to me, "the harshest fight isn't between the Catholics and Protestants, or between Episcopalians and Anglicans, but sometimes between two members of my own vestry."

I suggest that there is such between us conservatives as well. To "claim victimhood" is the easy and cheap argument.

Many appear cheap -- and in your word, despicable -- when they drape themselves in victimhood. Or drape themselves with a flag. Or a religion. We see this everyday in our own news. It has seemed to me to be a sort of camouflage over deeper issues, usually having little to do with being a victim or a flag or a religion. But usually it has to do with money, more money and even more money.

Perhaps more than you intended, but there is a bundle over which to muse. Best wishes.

No, no. You augmented my observation quite brilliantly. Thanks again.

*As an aside, we see something similar with “fake” Catholics in America. Virtually all Democrats trying to hide behind a heritage to which they have nothing but visceral contempt for the faith (see the Kennedys and Pelosi, et al). They’ve often been the ones we see for years who used to trot out (to the low-info voters) how they’re “personally against” abortion because of their “religion” (one they don’t really observe), but vote for every infanticide bill to come down the pike, because they don’t wish to impose their views on others.

To shock individuals, I tried a different approach. Were I to run for office, I would say I’m personally pro-abortion. Vacuum it out, stab it in the neck, hamburgerize it, serve it up as a meal with some fava beans, toss it in the trash, use it for fertilizer, use it as a cat toy, use it as a door stop. But I’d never impose my “religious” views on the public and would vote against all pro-abortion bills. I mean, if you’re going to be absurd about something, go all out (because, really, my position isn’t any more ludicrous than the Democrat’s excuse).

If I may, I add a point. We may use "Methodist," "minister" and "mother" as an examination into language itself.

As to "draping" or camouflage, we can note that the "Methodist" church is deep into a schism. And yet we cling to the ntion that church means unity.

More Florida churches leaving UMC over LGBTQ issues
Departure of 55 churches in Florida Methodist Conference is approved

As to "minister," the term is applied in various ways, not all favorable. A rather well known example:

As Sharpton Rose, So Did His Unpaid Taxes
Lessons From Rev. Al Sharpton's $4.5 Million Tax Bill

As to "mother," one finds love in some and horror in some, thankfully fee:

Susan Smith, South Carolina mom jailed for killing 2 sons, stopped writing to long-distance boyfriend
The Real Reason Medea Killed Her Children

Disclaimer: None of this is meant to characterize the originator of these threads. Nothing at all.

But an simple examination of words as we use them shows many words to be multivalent, sometimes containing their own opposites. Therefore "drapery" wrapped is much like a theatrical costume -- or in the modern parlance of virtue "signaling" -- that there is so often an intent in the use of words to convey something which may not in fact be true. To give an impression.

Were we to practice such a language investigation of ourselves, we too would find many of the words we use to describe ourselves can be read in other, and sometimes condemning manner. We all have clay feet, as the adage goes. Daniel 5:27 informs. As does Romans 3:23.

For us all.

Yup. I see the thread on Methodism and its descent into Sodomic madness. I was going to drop in and say howdy to the usual trolls, but decided to deprive myself of that joy.