Analysis: The Riddle of Why Russians Don't Protest Against the War in Ukraine

by Nomad

Although now a British citizen, Oxford-educated political philosopher Vlad Vexler was born in the Soviet Union. For this reason, when it comes to an understanding the Russian mentality, he is something of an insider.
He says:

I know that there are a lot of people who are concerned and overwhelmed about what's happening with politics, not just in their country but all over the world, what I do here is help us operate openly in the light and not blindly in darkness.

In the video below, he takes on one of the most perplexing questions of our time: What can account for the apathy of the Russian people in the wake of the brutal invasion of Ukraine?

You will probably what he has to say interesting and, given the current politics in the USA, a bit foreboding.

Alexander Nevzorov: Where Putin's Disastrous War in Ukraine Will Leave Russia

by Nomad

Russian and Soviet television journalist, a film director and a former member of the Russian parliament, Alexander Nevzorov isn't afraid to criticize Russia's ruling elite. And he is not a man to mince his words.

Putin's Disastrous Misadventure in Ukraine

by Nomad

Russian Invasion of Ukraine: A Dark Day for Europe

by Nomad

Scenes from the Alexei Navalny Protests in Russia

by Nomad

Embed from Getty Images

Throughout Russia, demonstrators launched a second round of protests calling for jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny's release. This despite a growing crackdown and threats of prosecution by the authorities. 

Obsolete Ideals: The Truth Behind Putin's Eulogy for Western Liberalism

by Nomad

In Conflict with the Majority

Quite a few eyebrows were raised recently when President Vladimir Putin, in an interview with the Financial Times, declared that Western liberalism and its values were "obsolete" and have been rejected by the majority of the people in Western nations.

Much like Trump during his campaign, Putin talked about migrants running amok who are allowed to "kill, plunder and rape with impunity." Every crime, he declared, must have its punishment.
(Unless, of course, you happen to be an oligarch with lots of bigly connections.)

Operation InfeKtion: The Worldwide War on Truth - Part 3

by Nomad

Taking Action Against Active Measures

When it comes to mounting a defense against Russian disinformation, targeted governments from Pakistan to Mexico, from the UK to the USA, have shown themselves to be woefully ill-equipped.

Operation InfeKtion: The Seven Commandments of Fake News - Part 2

by Nomad

Operation InfeKtion: The Seven Commandments of Fake News is part two of a three-part NYT op-ed series takes a closer look at Russia's highly developed disinformation campaign and why it has, so far, been so effective.

Operation InfeKtion: Meet the KGB Spies who Invented Fake News - Part 1

by Nomad

"If you don't know who to trust anymore, this might be the thing that's making you feel that way. If you feel exhausted by the news, this could be why. And if you're sick of it all and you just want to stop caring, then we really need to talk."

The Art of Deception

Supreme warfare is achieved by overcoming one's enemy without fighting. That's a fundamental precept from the Chinese military general Sun Tzu's "The Art of War.

All warfare, writes Tzu, is based on deception. And the most successful type of warfare is that where the enemy does not recognize the battlefield and the type of weapons used. The greatest victory is that which requires no battle.

Therefore the skillful leader subdues the enemy's troops without any fighting; he captures their cities without laying siege to them; he overthrows their kingdom without lengthy operations in the field.

How Roger Stone's Trump Campaign Timeline Spells Trouble for the GOP Dirty Trickster

by Nomad

Yesterday, right-wing conspiracy theory-monger, Jerome Corsi, said in an interview that he expects to soon be indicted by Robert Mueller as part of the Russian collusion investigation.

According to NBC News, Corsi is just s one of several associates of Roger Stone who have been called by Mueller to appear before a grand jury.

Sanity Sunday: The Weekly Review (Aug 27-Sept 2) and a Musical Break

by Nomad

Considering Trump's past antics, this week was seemingly tranquil. One reason for that was the McCain funeral to which President Trump was cordially not invited. Despite the sting of the shunning, Trump still managed to find ways to draw attention and, in doing so, make a complete ass of himself.

Sanity Sunday - Week in Review (July 30 - August 5) and Nomadic Playlist 4

by Nomad

This edition of Weekly Review covers a lot of ground. While the last seven days weren't particularly dramatic, there were quite a few noteworthy events.  

Russia Brags About Infiltration

The week started off with a mysterious remark from Russia's top diplomat, Sergey Lavrov,  On Monday, Lavrov claimed  Russia now has access to insider information about U.S. military plans. Addressing the Terra Scientia on Klyazma River National Educational Youth Forum, he explained that Moscow would be

"provided with information about the schemes harbored by the militaries of both the U.S. and other Western countries against the Russian Federation."

The State Department declined to comment on Lavrov's remarks. However, the Defense Secretary, James Mattis put his own spin on the Russian admission, saying that it was "most important that we talk with those countries we have the largest disagreements with."
This is the man in charge of overseeing the defense of our nation.

FBI Indictment Of Russian Officers Reveals Extent of Putin's Attack on US Election System

by Nomad

Amid the hubbub of Trump's catastrophic NATO meeting and humiliating summit with Vladimir Putin, the indictment of 12 Russian intel officers for the state-sponsored cyber-attack on the US was mostly overlooked. The details found in that indictment reveal the scope and precision of the Mueller investigation.  

"Don't Think About This Anymore Again"

Last week, In Helsinki, President Trump was standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Russian President Putin, the man over a dozen intel agencies have fingered as the person behind cyber attacks on the US election.

Putin's Grand Offensive Against the West and What We Must Do About It - Part 2

by Nomad

In part one of this two-part series, we looked at Putin's strategy and the origins of his ire with the West. Writing for Foreign Affairs, Michael Anthony McFaul, the US ambassador to Russia between 2012 and 2014, offers his recommendations on the best path forward for the US.

The Humiliation of a Superpower in Decline

Even before the Trump-Putin summit last week, Russian state-run media outlets were hard at work praising the Russian president's strategy.
According to the Washington Post, one Russian state TV host brazenly asserted that "Trump is ours" and he "joked" that the recent visit by US lawmakers- on July 4, no less - was an attempt “to make deals with our hackers, so they can rig the midterms in favor of Trump’s team.”  

Why Russian Opposition Leader Navalny's Recent Video Deserves a Closer Look

by Nomad

At the beginning of this month, while all of us were preoccupied with porn star pay-offs and Trump's tweets, the main opposition leader in Russia, Alexei Navalny posted a video on YouTube, outlining interesting accusations against the Putin administration.
His private investigation involves a wild cast of characters: an indiscreet escort, a philandering oligarch, and an extremely powerful, and possibly corrupt government official.

How Rampant Corruption in Russia Forced Putin to Attack Western Democracies

by Nomad

A few days ago, Sergei Aleksashenko wrote an article in The Moscow Times that very likely went unnoticed in the West. Aleksashenko was Deputy Minister of Finance and Deputy Chairman of the Central Bank in the 1990s.
Since that time, Aleksashenko witnessed with his own eyes the 1992 promise of economic transformation turn sour. The creation of the Putin's autocracy, wiping away Russia's chance for substantive reform, has been one of the modern history's sadness stories.

Cartoonists Take Aim at Trump and the G20 Summit

by Nomad

How Trump Has Already Delivered Everything Putin Ever Wished For

by Nomad

 

Shaltay Boltay: The Fall of Russia's Humpty-Dumpty

by Nomad

One of the stories that was, I think, under-reported in all of the ongoing Trump-induced chaos was the strange tale of the arrest of the Russian colonel. Here's some information on that mysterious event. 

The Arrest of the Colonel

In December 2016, one of Russia's top security officials was arrested and it was, by all accounts, an extremely dramatic event. During a meeting, officers grabbed him, putting a bag over his head before taking him away.The charge: high treason.

The accused, Colonel Sergey Mikhailov, was the former chief of the 2nd Operational Management of FSB Information Security Center (ISC).

At that time of the arrest, it was tempting to make some kind of connection between Russian interferences in last year's election and this arrest. The spate of mysterious deaths of Russian officials calls out for some explanation or theory about what's really going on behind the scenes.
However, the story of this particular event, based on the information which has emerged, could easily have been the subject of a Le Carre spy thriller.

Hybrid Warfare: NATO Investigates Putin's Troll War against the West 3/3

by Nomad

Part One
Part Two

In the third and final installment in this series, we finish up with a look at what NATO learned by studying Russian trolling activities in the Baltic nation of Latvia before 2015. How can we apply these findings to what went on in the US a year later?

So Why Latvia?

Back in 2015, NATO had several good reasons for choosing the tiny Baltic nation of Latvia to study how hybrid trolling operated.

When it comes to vulnerability, the nation has many unique characteristics. For one thing, Latvia and Russia share a 214 km border as well as a long and often contentious history. Even today, it is very much in the shadow of the Russian bear.

It is also a divided nation.
Demographically, ethnic Latvians form 61% of the population while a full 25.6% are ethnic Russians. There are other divisions as well. Latvia is historically predominantly Protestant Lutheran yet its ethnic Russians population is Eastern Orthodox Christians. Despite the fact that the sole official language of Latvia is Latvian, Russian, widely spoken during the Soviet occupation, is still the most widely used minority language.

It is also one of the limited club of NATO members that was once a member of the rival Warsaw Pact 1955–1991 and a part of the Soviet Union. Latvia regained its independence in August 1991 when the Soviet Union collapsed.  For that reason, Latvia will probably always be a politically divided nation.
For these and other reasons, Latvia is in many ways a perfect target for outside tampering by Russians.