Free Republic

University student Olesya Krivtsova has been missing a lot of classes. That's because 20-year-old Olesya is under house arrest. She has an electronic tag on her leg. Police can monitor her every move. Her alleged crime? Olesya was arrested for anti-war posts on social media. One of them concerned last October's explosion on the bridge linking Russia to annexed Crimea. "I posted an Instagram story about the bridge," Olesya tells the BBC, "reflecting on how Ukrainians were happy with what had happened." She had also shared a friend's post about the war. Then the drama began.

BRUSSELS (AP) — NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg warned Monday that Ukraine is using up ammunition far faster than its allies can provide it and putting pressure on Western defense industries, just as Russia ramps up its military offensive. “The war in Ukraine is consuming an enormous amount of munitions and depleting allied stockpiles,” Stoltenberg said. “The current rate of Ukraine’s ammunition expenditure is many times higher than our current rate of production. This puts our defense industries under strain.” According to some estimates, Ukraine is firing up to 6,000-7,000 artillery shells each day, around a third of the daily amount...

... For too long Washington has refused to think strategically about some of the major foreign policy issues of our time. In the rare instance where Washington’s policymakers do think strategically, the strategies they concoct seem less like realistic attempts at applying state power and more like they were conceived over a game of Risk while under the heavy influence of alcohol. Such is the case with the current American preoccupation in Ukraine. The Russians have invaded Ukraine. They’ve committed their entire society to the war. In the words of popular geopolitical analyst Peter Zeihan, this is “Russia’s last war.”...

@mtracey "The Biden administration is preparing to ask Congress for the largest Pentagon budget in history, according to the Defense Department’s chief financial officer" -- per POLITICO Remember when "progressives" used to pretend to care about this 😂

President Biden will travel to Poland on Feb. 20 to mark the first anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the White House announced Friday. Mr. Biden will meet with Polish President Andrzej Duda and NATO leaders during the two-day visit to “reaffirm the United States’ unwavering support and security for the alliance,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said. She said he also will highlight “how the United States has rallied the world to support the people of Ukraine as they defend their freedom and democracy, and how we will continue to stand with the people of Ukraine for...