Zhong Lu + 845 February 27, 2019 12 hours ago, Observatus Geopoliticus said: Nah, the thug regimes don't collapse when they're supported by the US : Saudi Arabia (gold medal of thugish regimes), Qatar, Turkey. Koweit, Bahrein... Sounds like you're Shia.  1 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Illurion + 894 IG February 27, 2019 18 hours ago, Enthalpic said: Fair enough - If that's what the woman wants for her life. It just seems like some of these men expect women to fall into stereotypical roles - like if they aren't in the kitchen baking an apple pie they are not proper Christian women.  As a man, i have always EXPECTED my Wife to take care of the kids, and me...! And she always has.....! Whether it be baking pies, or cleaning little boys (and their dogs), or keeping me on the right track of what is important....... And in exchange,  i have worshiped her for 36 years so far..........  1 2 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Observatus Geopoliticus + 96 February 28, 2019 Three of the main countries on Earth oppose any US intervention in Venezuela : https://southfront.org/china-india-russia-stand-against-us-military-intervention-in-venezuela/ European US puppets seem to have cooled down the rhetorics against Maduro. Guaido who wanted to reach with the US ''humanitarian'' aid is now stuck in Colombia and little bit isolated. Strategic blunder as it seems : http://www.lefigaro.fr/international/2019/02/27/01003-20190227ARTFIG00229-guaido-veut-rentrer-au-venezuela-pour-defier-maduro.php 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Observatus Geopoliticus + 96 February 28, 2019 On 2/26/2019 at 11:47 AM, Jan van Eck said: Here's your problem, "Maxim:" you don't have "views." You are trolling. You are a Putin apologist. You say that you are not paid by the FSB, but it sure looks like you are. You try to excuse the mass murder of airline passengers, for which there is no excuse. Mass murder is always mass murder. You try to excuse Putin sending in green-shirted mercenaries into the Donbass and Crimea with some pathetic rubbish about "U.S.-engineered coup", a claim so utterly vapid and ridiculous that you end up looking like a total fool. And you actually think that anybody here is going to be persuaded by this obscenely-insulting rubbish, obscene to the Ukrainians and insulting to the Dead of Flight 17. Here is the reality of Russia: Russians have surrendered themselves to a sociopath, Putin, who is also turning the place into a kleptocracy. Putin's gang steals the wealth of Russia for themselves, and Putin himself has these ideas of returning to the days of the Russian Empire. So he invades his neighbors and tries to cover it up by saying that the troops are "invited" by somebody or other in order to "protect" Russian-speakers from - who? The CIA? The MI6? The Germans? Oh, that's right: those Dutchmen disguised as Waffen-SS Nazis. There we go. Lots of those guys running around. You are pathetic, Maxim. You have sold your soul to a madman, and turned yourself into a troll. Take a good look at yourself in the mirror. I think you should go away, and hang your head in shame. You have no morals, that has become perfectly clear. You try to excuse shooting down Malaysian airliners at 34,000 feet as - what? - a mis-event orchestrated by Ukrainian air traffic controllers? Do you seriously think that anybody here is going to swallow that garbage? And you do that for - what? To stay in the good graces of Putin and his thugs? Pathetic. What a troll. Good reading below for some folks out there. Oh, if the moderator wants to censure posts, it's ok but let's start with the trolls calling troll everybody they disagree with. It's the pot calling the kettle black. As for myself, I study and write about geopolitics for 25 years so I don't accept being called 'troll' by people who don't have 2% of my knowledge. 1 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tom Kirkman + 8,860 February 28, 2019 48 minutes ago, Observatus Geopoliticus said: Oh, if the moderator wants to censure posts, it's ok but let's start with the trolls calling troll everybody they disagree with. It's the pot calling the kettle black. As for myself, I study and write about geopolitics for 25 years so I don't accept being called 'troll' by people who don't have 2% of my knowledge.  1 1 5 1 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dan Warnick + 6,100 February 28, 2019 ^^ Nailed it that time, Tom. Never surrender! 3 2 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Enthalpic + 1,496 February 28, 2019 (edited) 18 hours ago, Tom Kirkman said: Â He is the internet filter dept. Just replace banned books with blocked users / ignored posts / "fake news." Mr head in sand - protecting his mind from dissenting ideas. Edited February 28, 2019 by Enthalpic Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Observatus Geopoliticus + 96 February 28, 2019 Funny, funny... When one doesn't have facts to give, to call names and discredite is the usual tactics. Anywaaay... At the UN, the game goes on. Russia and China vetoed a US resolution. Few minutes later, the US and its European poddles vetoed a Russian resolution. Stalemate... On the field, some foreign videos appear for few days to counterbalande Western MSM propaganda, showing the humanitaria crisis is ''not that bad'' : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-p5xWpJCicw https://actualidad.rt.com/actualidad/307101-turista-argentino-caracas-estafa-mundial-venezuela I'm split about that. Clearly, the usual Western presstitute has exagerated the situation in Venezuela, almost suggesting people are dying by thousands. When Western countries interests are involved, don't expect a fair information : incubator babies in Kuwayt, genocide invented in Kosovo, Al Qaeda magically labelled as ''moderate rebels'' in Syria, half-nazis Maidan coup labelled as a ''democratic revolution'' in Ukraine... the list of Western propaganda is endless. Nevertheless, to deny the Venezuelan crisis is just as dumb. Millions have fled and I personnaly see venezuelan refugees every day. As we said in the previous message, Guaido may have miscalculed the ssituation. The self-proclaimed thought he would come back to Venezuela with the US ''humanitarian aid'' after the concert supposed to draw hundreds of thousands of fans. The concert flopped badly and he's still stuck abroad. He promises to go back to Venezuela soon and the next days may see another outburst. 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tom Kirkman + 8,860 March 1, 2019 3 hours ago, Enthalpic said: He is the internet filter dept. Just replace banned books with blocked users / ignored posts / "fake news." Mr head in sand - protecting his mind from dissenting ideas. Thanks for the chuckle this morning : ) 1 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jan van Eck + 7,558 MG March 1, 2019 4 minutes ago, Tom Kirkman said: Thanks for the chuckle this morning : ) Actually, I could not figure out whether that post was directed at you, or at the original poster. It was all rather vague. OK, so if it was directed at you, then it was seriously lunatic. But I stand for the proposition that the comment was directed at the Original Poster; makes more sense, don't you think?  The world is an enigma within a riddle, wrapped in mystery..... 2 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tom Kirkman + 8,860 March 1, 2019 3 hours ago, Jan van Eck said: Actually, I could not figure out whether that post was directed at you, or at the original poster. It was all rather vague. OK, so if it was directed at you, then it was seriously lunatic. But I stand for the proposition that the comment was directed at the Original Poster; makes more sense, don't you think?  The world is an enigma within a riddle, wrapped in mystery..... Since he quoted me, I thought the comment was directed at me. Which I found amusing. 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Glenn Ellis + 57 March 2, 2019 On 2/24/2019 at 5:10 PM, Illurion said: It will be an interesting read when t is all over..  ps: COLOMBIA...  not Columbia......... Proof reading, glasses change, and you are correct, I cant believe I made that slip. Talk about begining "Old Timers" Now that have everyone's attention I will go back and change the spelling. Wondering how long it would take for someone to spot it......... WINNER, WINNER, CHICKEN DINNER!!!!!! 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Glenn Ellis + 57 March 2, 2019 (edited) On 2/24/2019 at 5:10 PM, Illurion said: It will be an interesting read when t is all over..  ps: COLOMBIA...  not Columbia.........   Proves you are on point...Congrats Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner !!! Edited March 2, 2019 by Glenn Ellis duplication Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tom Kirkman + 8,860 March 3, 2019 On 3/1/2019 at 5:25 AM, Enthalpic said: He is the internet filter dept. Just replace banned books with blocked users / ignored posts / "fake news." Mr head in sand - protecting his mind from dissenting ideas. Your distraction attempts to twist narratives can be amusing. Here's one of my earlier comments about dissent. Presuming makes an *** out of you. I frequent 8chan forums more than I frequent this forum. There are places for both unhinged, anything goes discourse forums, and also for more professional-type forums such as here and LinkedIn. On this forum dissent is not an issue. Heck, I have long encouraged dissent, and have been a Freedom of Speach Activist for many years.   Rodent will likely agree with me here regarding dissent not being an issue here. @Rodent Forum guidelines are here. Those are the forum guidelines that I nudge others to follow. And while I can gleefully troll to my heart's content on other freedom-of-speech forums where trolling is the norm, on this Oil Price forum, as a volunteer moderator, I try to keep things relatively civil. Sometimes I fail. But it's the thought that counts : ) 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rodent + 1,424 March 3, 2019 4 hours ago, Tom Kirkman said: Your distraction attempts to twist narratives can be amusing. Here's one of my earlier comments about dissent. Presuming makes an *** out of you. I frequent 8chan forums more than I frequent this forum. There are places for both unhinged, anything goes discourse forums, and also for more professional-type forums such as here and LinkedIn. On this forum dissent is not an issue. Heck, I have long encouraged dissent, and have been a Freedom of Speach Activist for many years.   Rodent will likely agree with me here regarding dissent not being an issue here. @Rodent Forum guidelines are here. Those are the forum guidelines that I nudge others to follow. And while I can gleefully troll to my heart's content on other freedom-of-speech forums where trolling is the norm, on this Oil Price forum, as a volunteer moderator, I try to keep things relatively civil. Sometimes I fail. But it's the thought that counts : )  I'm an equal opportunity moderator. 2 1 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
specinho + 467 March 3, 2019 On 2/26/2019 at 1:13 AM, Observatus Geopoliticus said: Great map, Nick. As Washington's doctors Strangelove would say : Iran is too close to our bases, they should remove their country... uhhh.......... in case the neighbourhood BBQ party is intended as mentioned and cactus juice is passing from the left to the right and vice versa............. why is iran left out in the party? They don't drink cactus juice? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jan van Eck + 7,558 MG March 4, 2019 (edited) On 2/25/2019 at 2:05 PM, Jan van Eck said: The "justification" was that Saddam slaughtered his way into Kuwait, looted the place into oblivion, then destroyed and set fire to thousands of oil wells, dumping staggering amounts of crude into the Gulf and over the soil, creating untold horrors of pollution, and all that is before you even consider his invasion of Iran, the slaughter of Iranians, then his slaughters of the Kurds, and of the Shi'ites and the "reed people" living in the Euphrates Delta, and whatever other horrors he inflicted on Iraq and its neighbors. Nice guy? Not so much? worthy of being declared an international Outlaw, printed on the Ace of Spaces of the Bad Guys of Iraq? Definitely. Worthy of being hung? You bet. Total scumbag, monster, and killer. What is to be done with such malignant growths? Put a price on their heads? Hang them? Shoot them? Yup, all three.  Mr "Sen," who otherwise describes himself as "Sean Mc," put a red-arrow downvote on the above post. I would thus query what should be done with a man who is prepared to do this to 732 oil wells: Note all the flames farther off to the right. Those are other oil wells with the Christmas trees blown off and set ablaze, oil gushing out and burning, a waste of the Earth's resources and done just for malice and spite.  The options remain limited. When you add in his mass murder of groups and ethnic clans he did not like, there really is no appropriate response other than hanging or firing squad.  This is what Kuwait looked like from space, a massive burning lake of fires sending plumes of smoke and soot out into space: What else can you do with a man who is prepared to do that? Tell us, Sean.  And this is what the US Air Force did with the Iraqis that were responsible and tried to flee (the press dubbed it "The Highway of Death"): Edited March 4, 2019 by Jan van Eck added picture of Highway of Death 1 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tomasz + 1,608 March 9, 2019 (edited) On 2/25/2019 at 10:51 PM, Serhii Li said:  Hi, all real and honest members of Oilprice, those 2 members (Observatus Geopoliticus, Maxim Androsov) above are clearly just paid russian trolls. They use different nicknames, but post same info everywhere: - Maduro is legitimate, anything else is US Coup - Russian invasion in Georgia and annexation of Abkhazia was legitimate, Geourgia was a victime of US Coup. - Russian invation in Ukraine and annexation of Crimea and part of Donbass was legitimate (US Coup bla-bla-bla).  I'm from Donetsk, Ukrainian city occupied and controlled by Russia since 2014. Since Russian invasion in Ukraine in 2014 I have seen literally thousands of these accounts with proven links to known paid-troll-factories in Russia. Moreover, due to Russian propaganda being so waste, some people became persuaded that this information from troll-factory is true, so these people became free-trolls.  Thus, I would advise to to save your valuable time and do not argue with dishonest people - since they are paid based on amount of comments on their posts, you are just helping them to earn their dirty money. You can just post "Russian troll detected" Hello I am from Poland. I can assure you that we had on polish sites a lot of ukrainian trolls. Their most common argument is that people who remember Wolyn Massacre  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massacres_of_Poles_in_Volhynia_and_Eastern_Galicia  and warn about ukrainian extreme nationalism are russian paid trolls. We called them Mykola on polish sites because its most common  ukrainian name. 5 years ago I was in small minority that called Maidan armed coup d etat and warned about ukrainian extreme nationalism that led to Odessa massacre and civil war with russian intervention. There was a widespread support for Maidan because Poles are rabid antirussian so polish society supported even Shamil Basayev and his chechen supporters. Not anymore because in fact there was only a change of oligarchs staying in power- Donbas oligarchs were replaced by western-orientated oligarchs from Dnipropetrovsk. And if you dont agree with me I really suggest to spend quite a lot of time on this twitter account = its best source of information about growing ukrainian extreme nationalism updated a couple of times per day because this men finds such a lot of signs of this and you will finally get informed whats going on in your country https://twitter.com/edolinsky its Mr Eduard Dolinski  Ukrainian Jewish Committee Director very respected man surely not russian troll https://www.facebook.com/eduard.dolinsky his facebook account Im sorry but I still remember about 100 people killed in Odessa on 2 May 2014 that started Donbas uprising. And unfortunately it reminds me more than 100.000 Poles Russian Czechs or Jews killed by Ukrainians in the same manner 70 years earlier. You can compare it only with Armenian Genocide in Ottoman Empire. Russian population in Donbas was lucky to avoid it and anyone should be suprised that when they watched how about 100 people of russian descent were burned alive in Odessa that was a turning point. So please if I can met a lot of ukrainian paid trolls every day in polish net claiming that Wolyn Massacre never happened or that it was NKVD special operation or we should forget about it because Russia is our common enemy and help them do their traditional ethic cleansing in Donbas dont accuse anyone of being paid troll because its pathetic and its your main argument in all three of your posts.  Edited March 9, 2019 by Tomasz 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shadowkin + 584 EA March 9, 2019 It doesn't have to be smooth just successful Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shadowkin + 584 EA March 9, 2019 17 hours ago, Tomasz said: And unfortunately it reminds me more than 100.000 Poles Russian Czechs or Jews killed by Ukrainians in the same manner 70 years earlier. I'll accept your 100,000 number. Any comment on the 6 million Ukrainians killed by starvation by the Bolsheviks from Russia almost 90 years ago? 1 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Illurion + 894 IG March 10, 2019 On 2/28/2019 at 4:25 PM, Enthalpic said: He is the internet filter dept. Just replace banned books with blocked users / ignored posts / "fake news." Mr head in sand - protecting his mind from dissenting ideas. Or,  he is very smart, and realizes that the "information transfer method being used" may change over time,  but the tools that "information banning" liberals use to try to destroy everyone and everything they do not agree with never changes.......... 2 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dan Warnick + 6,100 March 10, 2019 Back to Venezuela. Is everyone watching what's happening down there the last 2-3 days? Power outages that are further crippling the country, allowing for what fresh food there is to rot in the refrigerators. And, no, this is not because a mere sabotage, it is because of a government that did not manage the power generation systems. VENEZUELA'S SUICIDE (this is a long article, but it is worth reading for anyone that wants to try to understand more about how the current crisis formed) (Excerpt) The short answer is Chavismo. Under the leadership of Hugo Chávez and his successor, Nicolás Maduro, the country has experienced a toxic mix of wantonly destructive policy, escalating authoritarianism, and kleptocracy, all under a level of Cuban influence that often resembles an occupation. Any one of these features would have created huge problems on its own. All of them together hatched a catastrophe. Today, Venezuela is a poor country and a failed and criminalized state run by an autocrat beholden to a foreign power. The remaining options for reversing this situation are slim; the risk now is that hopelessness will push Venezuelans to consider supporting dangerous measures, such as a U.S.-led military invasion, that could make a bad situation worse. And this a great article, published on February 19 (so not so "right now" but it is pretty close).: This Is What's Happening in Venezuela Right Now By Matt Essert | Feb. 19, 2014 (Excerpt) There is a crisis in Venezuela. Already one of the most violent places on Earth — a person is murdered every 21 minutes, and there were roughly 24,700 violent deaths last year — the country is in the throes of a massive shake-up. For the past few months, Leopold López has led an opposition movement against President Nicolas Maduro's government, which has been running the country into the ground. Since taking over for the deceased Hugo Chávez in April 2013, Maduro has led Venezuela to 56% inflation rate and a 50% increase in the budget deficit, prompting China to cut back on its $20 billion loan, and Moody's and Standard & Poor to downgrade Venezuelan bonds to "junk" status. Additionally, the once-strong dollar has dropped from an 8 to 1 exchange rate relative to the U.S. dollar at Chávez's death, to a disastrous 87 to 1. In response, Maduro has taken to blaming U.S.-backed "fascists" and the "parasitic bourgeoisie." He has also called for more state intervention. This has only made things harder for the private sector, which has since made it nearly impossible for Venezuelans to get food and other basic material necessities.  Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Enthalpic + 1,496 March 10, 2019 (edited) 19 hours ago, Illurion said: Or,  he is very smart, and realizes that the "information transfer method being used" may change over time,  but the tools that "information banning" liberals use to try to destroy everyone and everything they do not agree with never changes.......... Information banning liberals? Look at history - it was the conservatives that did things like book burnings and scientific suppression. con·ser·va·tism /kənˈsərvədizəm/ noun noun: conservatism 1. commitment to traditional values and ideas with opposition to change or innovation. "proponents of theological conservatism"  Edited March 10, 2019 by Enthalpic Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Illurion + 894 IG March 11, 2019 5 hours ago, Enthalpic said: Information banning liberals? Look at history - it was the conservatives that did things like book burnings and scientific suppression. con·ser·va·tism /kənˈsərvədizəm/ noun noun: conservatism 1. commitment to traditional values and ideas with opposition to change or innovation. "proponents of theological conservatism"  EXACTLY....... MY LONG YEARS OF LIFE HAVE SHOWN ME THAT MOST "CHANGE" IS BAD........... In Venezuela,  the "change" there is actually "NOT A CHANGE", but, rather,  "A RETURN TO THE DEMOCRACY THAT EXISTED BEFORE CHAVEZ AND MADURO "CHANGED" THINGS FOR THE WORSE."............ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Maxim Androsov + 31 March 16, 2019 On 3/9/2019 at 1:44 AM, Tomasz said: Hello I am from Poland. I can assure you that we had on polish sites a lot of ukrainian trolls. Their most common argument is that people who remember Wolyn Massacre  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massacres_of_Poles_in_Volhynia_and_Eastern_Galicia  and warn about ukrainian extreme nationalism are russian paid trolls. We called them Mykola on polish sites because its most common  ukrainian name.  I fully agree with you! Thank you Tomasz! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites