This is really sad because there are actually a lot of people in China who do not speak Mandarin (or at least do not speak it very well), and this is cutting children off from being able to have meaningful conversations with their grandparents in many cases.
Oh JFC on a stick. Why hasn’t the CIA learned that supporting violent extremists always backfires? Bad for us and worse for the country they are in. That is a tried and true terrible way to get what the USA wants. Is the CIA even on the side of the USA democracy anymore?
I have this really novel idea. The ends do not justify the means. If the USA cannot provide actual help to a country, we need to stay the fuck out of their affairs. And for the record, supporting Nazis is never ever helping
Magic law of similarity?
Are cargo planes the new fishing trawlers?
Trawlers certainly can be seine more easily.
More Olympics shadiness
Do people really want a Third Intifada?
With Finland’s role in ongoing tensions between Russia and Ukraine becoming a point of focus, several experts have turned their attention to the autonomous island region of Åland, a Swedish-speaking maritime province of Finland.
Göran Djupsund, Professor Emeritus of political science, told Helsingin Sanomat that given Russia’s recent actions, the strategic importance of the island province, which is centrally located along several key shipping routes in the Baltic Sea, warrants discussions about its security.
Last week, Sweden stepped up its military presence on the neighbouring island of Gotland in response to the appearance of Russian warships in the Baltic Sea.
While Åland is demilitarised, which means that there can be no military force on the island, Djupsund points out that historic treaties dictate that it must be protected by Finland in case of a security threat.
Ilta-Sanomat reports that as per a decades-old treaty with the Soviet Union, disarmament and neutrality in the Swedish-speaking region is still officially monitored by Russia.
A Russian consulate, which was established to monitor the implementation of the treaty after the Winter War, is still located on the island.
In an interview with Reuters on Wednesday, Prime Minister Sanna Marin stated that it was “very unlikely” that Finland would join Nato anytime soon.
She stressed; however, that the country would stand with the US and its European allies and would impose sanctions on Russia if it invaded Ukraine.
Finnish President Sauli Niinistö discussed the situation with U.S. President Joe Biden via a telephone call on Tuesday.
I don’t know. But the air traffic around is getting hot.
Yeah, Germany is in a moral dilemma due to having peaceniks in the current executive coalition. The Greens suffered a massive hit with their base the last time they supported military intervention, so they have to tiptoe around their own voters whilst doing what they can to keep bullies like Putin in check.
I think this is the main reason why Olaf Scholz is doing the mix of no drama politics but also a definite “just remember that I have the last word” putting down his foot.
I believe that they wiil have to decide on this soon. I hope them, or anyone else, could defuse this “bomb”.
(SCMP reprint)
American media today:
