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Mandy Lifeboats

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Everything posted by Mandy Lifeboats

  1. And look how it's failed. He's hinted at nuclear war if: Any country interfers with the SMO NATO allows its citizens to join the Ukrainian Army NATO arms Ukraine NATO provides targetting data to Ukraine NATO arms Ukraine with long range weapons NATO arms Ukraine with tanks NATO arms Ukraine with jet fighters NATO troops enter Ukraine Every red line he's drawn NATO has jumped across.
  2. Putin would portray it as an invasion of Russia by NATO. That's a large step towards a nuclear war.
  3. Nope. The earth is curved. That line is not straight.
  4. The expansion of NATO has dealt a huge blow to Russia. Their main naval bases against NATO are Murmansk, St Petersburg and Crimea. Murmansk is supplied by a single road and single railway that run parallel to the Finish border. It runs through several hundred miles of snowy forests and mountains. Finland's armed forces could destroy both with relative ease. That's why Putin needs a huge force to protect the border. Without the supply lines Murmansk would need to be supplied by air and/or sea. Its iced up during the winter and transport planes are sitting ducks for NATO. St Petersburg is at the eastern end of the Baltic. The Baltic is now completely surrounded by NATO. Even if Russia ships/subs reached the western end of the Baltic they still have to navigate the narrow exit through the Danish islands. St Petersburg is also within artillery range of NATO. The Black Sea fleet based in Crimea was once a fearsome force. Its now hiding in ports to avoid the mighty Ukrainian navy of zero warships. Even if it recovered, the Black Sea is almost surrounded by NATO and Ukraine. Its access is also completely controlled by Turkey. Putin has effectively killed his own navy. Its great to see. (pardon the pun)
  5. NATO v Russia. This is before Sweden joined. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1293174/nato-russia-military-comparison/
  6. We don't need to be "all in". NATO is vastly superior in numbers and ability. We also have non-NATO allies who we can rely upon. Russia is surrounded, outnumbered and outgunned. That's the whole crux of the problem. Russia thinks its a superpower but it's not.
  7. Danhausen seems to have returned to the independent scene whilst remaining on the AEW roster. That guy has amazing talent. Its just a shame its not wrestling talent. I can't believe AEW hasn't found him a storyline outside of the ring. But I also wonder if his desire to actually wrestle will end up costing him dearly.
  8. I have not watched any of the most recent Star Trek shows. Can someone explain how Data has got older and fatter please?
  9. I retired recently at the grand old age of 53. I decided I still had some life left in me and applied for a few volunteer jobs. I got one at the National Trust who immediately converted it to a paid position. It's wonderful. I swapped an office, responsibilities, full time for chatting to people about history and answering their questions about a glorious stately home and gardens for 2 or 3 days a week. I feel better physically and mentally. Life is good.
  10. Ruble to Gold exchange rate. Over 10 years the ruble is down 300% Over 1 year the ruble is down 30% https://www.xe.com/en-gb/currencycharts/?from=XAU&to=RUB&view=10Y This is an excellent website that allows you to track currency values with a few clicks. So far I have only note 1 currency performing worse than the ruble. North Korea.
  11. Eggs.......... Nothing could sum up the Russian economy than their recent egg problem. Russia egg producers (the farmers not the hens) could not get spare parts to maintain their hatcheries. Nor could they find skilled workers to maintain the hatcheries. All the engineering companies who could make spare parts were supporting the war. The cost of spare parts rocketed. The cost of labour rocketed. Egg prices went crazy. Putin ordered punishments for the farmers for blatantly profiteering. But this was quickly withdrawn when it was realised that the price rises were justified. The solution was simple. The Russian government purchased eggs from abroad at sky high prices and sold them on the domestic market for much less than their purchase value. But they were still 40% more expensive than a year ago. The resultant expenditure could not be used for the war. The same scenario with occur with car parts, plane parts, mobile phone infrastructure, computers, central heating systems, lifts, escalators, cranes, oil refineries, train parts etc.
  12. Actually we are both correct. Russia still has supplies of foreign currency but the steps they have taken to obtain it are draconian and completely unsustainable. Since the start of the war all companies and citizens were obligated to surrender 80% of foreign currency to the Russian central bank at a ridiculous "official" exchange rate. They have also just raised interest rates to 16%. They compelled western companies to sell Russian assets at a tiny % of their true value. They simply stole other assets from the west and Ukraine. Unemployment is low because of conscription and deaths. Prison costs have never been lower because most of them are rotting in the fields around Bakhmut. Those measures are all short term wins but medium/long term disasters. They can't raid the population's foreign reserves again. There's nothing left and what is left has been hidden outside Russia. I have posted this many times. Sanctions will not ruin Russia overnight. They simply make imports expensive and exports cheap. The resultant financial loss then snowballs.
  13. Russia imports refined fuel. Ukraine's attacks are increasing the demand for imported refined products. The ruble is now worthless and nobody will accept payment in rubles. This gives Russia a major problem. They need to pay for their imports with something. They have run out of foreign currency and gold. So their only option is to pay for refined oil with unrefined oil. This further reduces the need for the echange of rubles. The ruble will crash soon. That will make imports even more expensive and exports even cheaper. It's a vicious cycle for Russia. 10 years ago there were 55 rubles to the £. Its now 115.
  14. What are all those gaps?
  15. That whole period of history was truly depressing. The miners strike, mass unemployment, derelict industry, recession etc. "The Boys From The Black Stuff" just summed up the era.
  16. 1. This cou.d be interpreted as a paranoid thought. That worries me. 2. Just stay in touch. Self diagnosing mental health is obviously ridiculous. Your condition could prevent an objective view.
  17. You could be doing fine. A professional can make that judgement. You could be doing badly but THINKING you are fine, A professional can make that judgement. Make sure you check in with the professionals. That's why they are there.
  18. I think they withdrew a few weeks ago. They simply didn't have the ammunition to stop Russian artillery controlling the area.
  19. NATO surveillance drones downed by the Russian airforce = 1 Russian surveillance planes downed by pigeons = 1 The pigeons are winning the air war!
  20. Plane crash - Russia state media are saying 15 dead after an engine "fell off". The plane crashed into a cemetery. Very efficient.
  21. 1. Its not genuine. The signature and handwriting comes from another document. 2. It basically says that Russia plans to expand further and encourage turmoil and chaos in the west.
  22. There are no gods. Religion causes evil.
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