I Believe It Is Peace For Our Time

The Crimea has a special place in Russian history. Per David Brooks, Putin has a much grander vision but right now, Putin seems to be offering Obama an off-ramp (rather than the other way around): accept the revised status quo, dial back the bloviating, and move on.

Sufficient unto the day are the snacks thereof for the Russian bear. By way of comparison, Hitler expanded Germany in patient steps over several years, remilitarizing the Rhineland in 1936, annexing Austria in the spring of 1938, and picking up the Sudetenland that fall.

If Putin really wants to bite off the eastern Ukraine, he need not hurry - Obama is unlikely to be a less lame duck in six months or a year. So Putin can let the world recalibrate to the new status quo and then impose a new recalibration when it suits his vision or political needs. Rome wasn't built in a day and the Ukraine won't be re-integrated in Greater Russia in a week. But it is hard to see why Putin would stop now, forever.

TROUBLING: Hillary Clinton Compares Russia Moves To Nazi Aggression. I'm on the same wavelength as Hillary?

GUTLESS: Perhaps fearing a Godwin's Law disqualification, Hillary backs off the Hitler talk. But wait a second! Comparing a tin-pot tyrant like Assad to Hitler has obvious flaws. But with Putin we are talking about the leader of a former superpower contemplating its former greatness and seeking a rematch. Why is the comparison to post-WWI Germany out of bounds there?

Comments

[Jane on Ipad]

OL, aren't you Chalibi now? We all know about your sushi habit.

[Account Deleted]

Narciso,

A number of companies allowed early renewal in November so people could hang onto their current coverage. They got clipped with healthy premium increases due to the "support a parasite" bump but they kept their coverage. It appears to me that someone has done the sidewalk chalk briefing for BOzo at a level simple enough for him to understand how bad his ass kicking is actually going to be.

[miss Marple]

Narciso, I mailed it. Whether it gets there or not, who knows?

It was in Russia, but close to the border.

[Bori]

Clarice you know you hooked my wife on Sushi, now she can't pass a Sushi joint without stopping in. She should have gone to Casper!

[Jane on Ipad]

I might have to change sides in the Ukraine matter. Apparently George Soros is heavily invested in Ukraine, investing in creating a " progressive" media among other things.

The story is a WND. I'm on IPad so I can't link it.

[narciso]

Right, Orenberg, name slipped, well the puzzlebox seems to always lead to Pinhead, Rick, no matter how you shake it,

[Patriot4Freedom]

beester - Thanks for the wonderful sentiments you posted earlier !

[GMax]

Please everyone share my joy. 1Lt Tmax is back on US soil after 9 months in Afghanistan. I was doing a major happy dance inside that hanger on the base at about midnight last evening.

BTW, the military is the most polite and courteous segment of American society by a mile.

[narciso]

What is the attraction, is it like collecting pet rocks;

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/03/03/us-bankia-sale-idUSBREA221WG20140303

[Patriot4Freedom]

jane - Isn't Soros in Ukraine for the same reason Ayers and Dohrn, et. al. were in Egypt . . . ?

Just doing their best to assist America's enemies in coming to power and/or weakening a nascent movement for democracy?

[GMax]

By the way, I cant make Bunco, and don't know how to play anyhow...

[Account Deleted]

Wonderful news of answered prayers, GMax.

[jimmyk]

Congrats, GMax, great news.

[narciso]

Great news, Gmax.

[Centralcal on iPad]

Oh my, GMax! What wonderful news and such a "heavy load" of worry off your heart and mind. Just thrilled for you.

[NKonIPad]

Many congrats to the family Max, and please thank Tmax for his service.

[Jane on Ipad]

I dunno Patriot. Read the article and let me know what you think.

GMAX. YIPPEE! I share your joy!

[beester]

I finally post something and the site goes down...but I'm not Sibel Edmonds.

Congratulations Gmax. A dear family friend returned from Afghanistan yesterday, too. The pilot had to turn the plane back once due to weather but the servicemen and women finally made it home. Joy indeed.

[sbwaters]

Smiles, Gmax. Ear-to-ear smiles! Yay!

[miss Marple]

I wish I knew why posts disappear.

Gmax, glad he is home. Thank him from me.

[clarice]

GMax!! Wonderful, wonderful news.I wouldn't want to be in the service or have a family member in it with a Democrat president. Especially this one.

[GMax]

The pilot had to turn the plane back once due to weather

Beester, same plane. It stopped to refuel in New Hampshire, dropped off a group at Ft Campbell and then the rest got to Ft Polk. 40 hours enroute in total. Awful way to fly, but its over.

[Danube on iPad]

Absolutely wonderful, Gmax--give you joy.

"...the military is the most polite and courteous segment of American society by a mile."

I have begun to doubt whether the nation as a whole deserves them.

[Bori]

GMax, first off, thank TMax for his service and congratulations to the family.

[narciso]

so, who did she think she was working for;

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/03/05/exclusive-rt-today-anchor-liz-wahl-explains-why-she-quit.html

[miss Marple]

I can't imagine 40 hours. I did 23 hours in flying and layovers coming back from Rome. I could barely get my suitcase off the carousel.

[narciso]

Flathead just continued with the ridiculous, besides the Carbon Tax

What disturbs me about Crimea is the larger trend it fits into, that Putinism used to just be a threat to Russia but is now becoming a threat to global stability. I opposed expanding NATO toward Russia after the Cold War, when Russia was at its most democratic and least threatening. It remains one of the dumbest things we’ve ever done and, of course, laid the groundwork for Putin’s rise…

[narciso]

Oh, frabjous joy;

http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2014/03/as-russians-swallow-up-crimea-obama-plans-yet-another-vacation-for-this-weekend/

[cindyk]

Yeah, Yeah, Gmax!

[Ignatz]

--..the military is the most polite and courteous segment of American society by a mile--

My concern is after a couple more Dem presidents our military is going to be the most polite and courteous military on the battlefield and just as nasty and intolerant as the creeps trying to transform it onto an adjunct of their party at home.

[Jim Rhoads f/k/a vnjagvet]

Great news GMax. On the way home, no flight is too long.

[matt]

GMax, wonderful news. Was he 10th Mountain? My friends at JRTC Ft. Polk take great joy in teachable moments for much larger units on their way overseas. I wonder if he got to play with them before he left.

I do not like Leesville very much, though. Hopefully he will transfer to a metropolis like Fayettenam.

[Patriot4Freedom]

Gmax - Great news for the Max family !

Please thank him for his service to our country.
He is one of the true heroes of our time.

[Patriot4Freedom]

jane - Who would have thought Soros would support such an effort? Even a blind squirrel . . .

"WND EXCLUSIVE
Soros heavily invested in Ukraine crisis.
Billionaire activist wants EU intervention"

http://www.wnd.com/2014/03/soros-heavily-invested-in-ukraine-crisis/

I agree with virtually all of the initiatives they mention in the article to align Ukraine with Europe/democracy/free markets, but I suspect Soros might have a hidden agenda that profits himself. I wouldn't trust Soros as far as I could throw all of his billions.

[(A) nuther Bub]

Just read some comments over at MOTUS Mirror and am so shocked. Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman, is apparently a big phoney baloney. Some claim she even steals her recipes from Junior League cookbooks.

Wait. Has everyone moved on from Ree Drummond? Has even Peggy Noonan stopped vouching for her? Bad news! I went to MOTUS CC, and could not find the comments you referenced. Thus I don't know what I'm talking about -- not news -- but everyone who writes about cooking steals recipes. I've worked on cookbooks for writers and publishers, and everything is stolen. You change 1/2 teaspoon salt to 3/4 teaspoon salt and that makes it a new recipe. How many ways can you make a pork roast?

I adore Ree Drummond, who is not a great cook but is a wonderful person who homeschools her kids, brands cattle in her spare time, loves cats, dogs and cowboys, goes regularly to church, and writes with verve and wit. Okay, the caravan has moved on, but I just had to say something in her defense.

[Beasts of England]

Congrats, GMax!

[daddy]

Great news GMax!

In other news, I'm happy to see that Begich voted for the Mumia cop Killer apologist. That should hurt his re-election chances if the press up here would ever report it.

As for Natural Gas Pipelines, Alaska's State Govt is trying a 5th approach in the last couple decades to get one built in State:

Unanswered questions loom as Alaska natural gas project bill marches on

Fingers crossed, but I'm not holding my breath.

[Beasts of England]

Any links on the Ree Drummond brouhaha?

[Threadkiller]

Looks like we've stabilized a bit from the earlier DDoS attack. We'll continue monitoring...

https://mobile.twitter.com/typepad

A what?

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denial-of-service_attack

Oh.

[Threadkiller]

Great news GMax!

[Gus]

Clarice, how can you sleep when your good friend, Vlad Putin is killing fish and eating them!!?? Care to explain??

[narciso]

did he now, well he is like the Tommy Boy of the Senate,

[narciso]

Interesting, so the story takes a turnL

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2014/03/05/220273/senate-staffers-slipped-secret.html

[Marlene]

Congrats GMAX! We're off to the airport,early flight,can't wait to escape winter!

[Jane on Ipad]

Patriot,

Thanks for linking that. The whole progressive agenda thing got to me, and I have a really hard time attributing anything but evil to Soros, but you are right, so who knows.

[Danube on iPad]

What in God's name am I doing here at this hour?

[henry]

Someone flash a martini symbol in the Coronado sky?

[rich@gmu]

What in God's name am I doing here at this hour?

Posted by: Danube on iPad | March 06, 2014 at 05:58 AM

motherfucker...keeping me company. not for long though...i've got a date this morning...

[pagar]

Gmax, so glad to hear that Tmax is safely back.
Please thank him for his service.

I see in the memo sidebar that some one is claiming supporting cop killers is a civil right. Unbelievable!

[Jane on Ipad]

Welcome to the East Coast Dot. We're always up at this hour.

[centralcal]

Alright, everybody - okay, not everybody, but those who asked - there were some not very nice comments about Ree Drummond on one of MOTUS's blogs and they were sort of shocking to me.

I am like (A)B - always liked Pioneer Woman blog, her TV show and her. I don't know anything negative about her - well, I didn't until I read those comments yesterday. Are they fair, reliable, true? I have no idea. I was just shocked to read them and said so here. Which I probably shouldn't have done.

[Patriot4Freedom]

Oh my goodness, henry . . .

Someone flash a martini symbol in the Coronado sky?

Posted by: henry | March 06, 2014 at 06:01 AM

You've already got my vote for Comment of the Year, hands down.

[centralcal]

(A)B: Go to the MOTUS blog post for yesterday. In the comment section a person begins a discussion about Rachel Ray, other commenters join in and the talk turns to Pioneer Woman.

A sample (by someone named Carlyle):

Yuck..Pioneer Woman! She is not only a complete phony but a con artist too. She and her multi-millionaire husband (family money, these two have never earned an honest dollar on their own) took Bureau of Land Management money for wild horses they supposedly care for and abuse. Google her and see all of the abuses the state of OK has investigated.

There is more, but I am not going to share it all, since none of it may be true. I was surprised by it and probably shouldn't have shared it here, but I did. So....too late now.

[GMax]

Matt

Yes 10th Mountain Division

[Ignatz]

I can't get MOTUS comments to load, but here is an article from a critic.
Seems her crime is being married to a dude whose family owns a bunch of land and is paid by the Feds to take in wild horses the BLM takes off overgrazed BLM lands.
There are a great many PETA type nuts involved in the wild horse issue so I'd take anything said about it with a horse pill sized grain of salt.
And her husband and other relatives have gotten speeding tickets.
Yike.

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

FoxNews poll joins Obummer at 38% approval (down from 42%). No real reason to rejoice, most of the loss came from Dem support dropping, independents down a wee bit to 28% approval-- 28% of Indies approve of Obummer. So 38% of people (Gallup) and voters (Fox) aprove of Obummer. No wonder the House Repubs are flipping him off about Min wage, and the Senate Dems stabbed him in the back with the cop hater. Good times, now that has to be turned into action. http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/03/05/fox-news-poll-obama-approval-hits-new-low-falls-in-key-areas/

[centralcal]

Beasts: Here is the link to MOTUS blog post for yesterday.

Comments are in Disqus format. (Main Comment at left margin, sub-comments [replies] indented in after that.

Looking at comments sorted "oldest first," Main Comment Number 5 talks about Rachel Ray and then sub-comments (indents) add to that discussion, which evolves to talking about Ree Drummond.

Maybe the commenter "Carlyle" is like some of our trolls - just a trouble maker?

[Miss Marple]

cantralcal, I went over and read those comments last night.

1. She has never disguised that her father was a professional (doctor or banker or something, I forget) because when I first started reading her blog she had a multi-part saga of how she met her husband, and I distinctly remember her wedding reception was at the country club her family belonged to.

2. Anyone who is a cattle rancher has to have lots of land, because cows eat lots of grass, and you aren't going to make any money on 40 acres of Oklahoma pasture.

3. I see no reason to believe they abuse horses. Touchy feely PETA types might think that the normal method of breaking a wild horse is abusive, but that is just stupid.

4. I didn't bother to Google this because OK probably has had to go to the ranch because of wild claims by said PETA people. I once had someone complain to eBay about my selling a 1950's leopard hat, which is a vintage piece. THEN they tried to get me to relist it as fake fur so I would get kicked off eBay, which I did not do as I am wise to the ways of these insane people.

4. Of course her husband "inherited his money" (the land) because large ranches usually keep the land in the family. Very few guys start out from scratch owning thousands of acres of pastureland, unless they are Ted Turner.

This sounds to me like local jealousy and envy coupled with nut-case PETA types scouring the internet for people to harass because they make their money from raising livestock. I don't believe any of it.

[centralcal]

And her husband and other relatives have gotten speeding tickets.
Yike.

Thanks Iggy. I didn't care enough to "google" her or her family.

[Ignatz]

BTW, the wild horses they have are part of a gov program to let them live in lieu of being slaughtered.
Now I happen to think it's a stupid program and the excess horses ought to be used for something, but the alternative the animal rights retards want of letting these things run wild and free, tee hee, would be a disaster.
They never seem to consider the damage these horses do when they overpopulate nor do they consider the disaster they are for native wildlife that is crowded out (ie, starved to death) by them or what happens to an overpopulation of mustangs (ie, they starve to death).
IMO it would be a quite a good thing if they were pretty much eliminated since they're only there as an introduced species in the last few hundred years.

[Janet - the districts lie fallow, while the Capitol gorges itself]

Interesting bit in the Senate/CIA brouha...

it looks like the whole thing got started when a Senate staffer stole classified documents.

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2014/03/05/220273/senate-staffers-slipped-secret.html

So the Senate is saying...you wouldn't have known we stole them if you weren't monitoring our computer.
Anyway...that's how it looks to me.

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

For those of you who are interested in climate/weather, the go to place is WUWT by Anthony Watts and his contributors. But if you want to see raw data, Dr. Roy Spencers blog about his UAH satellited temperature data is worth checking every month. Here is the February global temp (and hemisphere subzones)-- 1.7Centigrade anomoly. The satelite readings are at temps seen during the 1988 el nino, that was when Goddard's Hansen gave that staged testimony in the Senate to kick off the Skydragon scam in the USA. We are at those same temps this month-- 26 years later. The anomoly will continue to fall fo a few more months, then will probably rise if we have an el nino july-November. Bottom line, since the 1998 'super el nino' no warming trend. Galileo would say about Skydragon temps "And yet, they do not rise"). http://www.drroyspencer.com/

[centralcal]

MM: totally agree with all your points.

I blame Typepad for crashing yesterday, leading me to read other blog's comment sections! ha ha.

Just imagine what an infrequent reader of JOM comments thinks? (whispering: especially about Clarice and all her pals!)

With that, I am done spreading gossip.

[Janet - the districts lie fallow, while the Capitol gorges itself]

Wonderful news, GMax. Thank TMax for his service for me.
God bless our military...

[Ignatz]

I'll probably get myself in trouble again but wild horses are the Burmese pyhtons and green anacondas of the American west.

[Miss Marple]

centralcal,

SUCH a good point you make, and probably why clarice keeps getting harrassed here.

I am STILL mad about that leopard hat. I had to sell it locally and didn't make near as much money as if I had been able to sell it on the internet. And if I happen to find ivory-handled knives or something at auction, I don't even buy them.

There are nasty and crazy people out there, that's for sure.

[Account Deleted]

NK,

You have to dig deeper into the Fox poll (page 12) to get to the interesting bits and you have to interpolate Fox and Gallup results to get a better picture of the nature of the damage done by Progressive Fascist lies regarding 404Care.

BOzo is taking his biggest hit among lower income white women of modest educational achievement. The demographic splits don't reveal whether they are single or married or have children but the drop occurred right after the revelation ACA was actually unaffordable.

I went through the 10-Ks of the top five health insurers last night and WellPoint was the only one which provided sufficient detail to make a before and after determination regarding the individual market, showing a net loss of 5.4% in the number of lives covered. The others are, IMO, leaving themselves a bit open to SarBox and stockholder suits in their efforts to accommodate the Progressive Fascists' desire to mask actual results with fog and smoke.

The damage done by ACA just ain't gonna be fixed by November.

[Miss Marple]

Rick, I maintain that a lot of the less-informed voters actually thought they were going to get free healthcare, as opposed to pseudo-affordable coverage.

If you go back and look at how Obama spoke about it, he kept emphasizing "saving $2500 per year for an average family" and to a lot of people, that would have meant close to free since their current insurance (probably half paid for by employer) cost them personally just a little bit more.

Plus Nancy Pelosi kept talking about how you could paint or compose music instead of worrying about having a job for healthcare, and not one of the democrats bothered to explain premiums and deductibles.

They deliberately misled those people and that is why they are so mad. It's like if you were promised a car for your 16th birthday and you got a whopping car payment along with it with the note to get a job if you want to keep the car.

[Old Lurker]

I keep thinking about that Thucydides quote that Frau posted the other day:

"Of the gods we believe, and of men we know, that by a necessary law of their nature they rule wherever they can. And it is not as if we were the first to make this law, or to act upon it when made: we found it existing before us, and shall leave it to exist forever after us; all we do is to make use of it, knowing that you and everybody else, having the same power as we have, would do the same as we do"

And the more I think about that declaration of basic, timeless, human nature, I think it applies perfectly to our present struggle with our own "tribe" of public servants who relentlessly strive to gain control over us citizens, and also it explains the efforts of the "tribe" of leftists and environmentalists who similarly attempt to control our lives.

So if we are not strong enough to preserve our own freedoms and liberties using the tools given us in our Constitution, the gods (I am still into my Viking books) will arrange to give them to others who are will take them from us.

I know. Duh.

[Janet - the districts lie fallow, while the Capitol gorges itself]

http://thehill.com/blogs/defcon-hill/policy-strategy/200038-senators-alarmed-by-alleged-cia-spying

"Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin (D-Mich.), an ex officio member of the Intelligence panel, said the charge of spying is “extremely serious.”"

What's an ex officio member? It was probably a Levin staffer that stole the documents.
Levin's a known sneak that funnels info to the MFM.
http://archive.redstate.com/stories/liberals/correction_dubious_intelligence_at_the_washington_post

[Jeff Dobbs]

NK:
For those of you who are interested in climate/weather

Is it going to rain on Saturday?

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

Hit-- dunno, but YOU may get freezing rain overnight tonight... check your local accuweather report online.

[NK(withnewsoftware)]

RickB-- as usual thanks for the pickup about women voters, that is significant. His drop in Dem support clearly comes from the realization that ACA is not affordable-- those Dems really thought it was FREE. The woman drop is good news, and if I had to guess, just the women's general disgust about wages, and food/fuel prices. Even in Ct, Malloy only gets 45% of women right now, and 18% of them are up for grabs. If the Repub get 46-47+ of women in CT for God's sakes, Malloy is gone.

[Ranger]

Interesting wrinkle in the CIA story. If the CIA was chasing stolen classified documents, they can probably legally justify the snooping. Looks like the Dem Senators on the committee decided to team up with DOJ to launch a pre-emptive strike rather than explain why they were stealing classified documents.

[pagar]

"The damage done by ACA just ain't gonna be fixed by November."

IMO, the damage done to America by ACA can never be repaired.

[Account Deleted]

Miss Marple,

It was your comments about the beliefs of the gals at the beauty shop which led me to dig deeper into the Gallup demographic splits and I'm quite sure you are correct in your assessment. The big damage to the Progressive Fascists is occurring below the median income line. If the party is looked at as a ship, that's the difference between having a hole punched in the hull two feet below the water line rather than two feet above. It's hole too big for their pumps to handle.

[Miss Marple]

Rick,

Thank you for the credit. I do not do well deciphering numbers on polls, so it is a very good thing you did. Anecdotal evidence isn't always indicative of widespread trends.

Another group I would be interested in (this is from my food pantry experience) is blue collar workers, particularly non-union construction. I am seeing a lot of them in the food pantry (even last summer) and my theory is that they have been hurt by both the reduction in construction and the influx of illegals who have taken jobs at lower pay.

Usually these guys have enough put by that they make it through the winter on that plus odd jobs and their wives income. This year the wives are unemployed or have reduced hours, there are fewer odd jobs to pick up, and heating bills have gone through the roof. Hence the food pantry.

[Miss Marple]

If you live long enough, all things come back in style.

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2014/03/06/fashion/the-monocle-returns-as-a-fashion-accessory.html

[clarice]

Heading off to L.A. this morning. If Sibel and Judith show up, givethem a hug frm me.

[matt]

I would think the CIA would have to go to the FBI to investigate Senate leaks. This is a highly fraught issue and goes to the heart of our checks and balances.

Our national security and legal establishment seems to become ever more lawless by the day, which is one reason I still am undecided on Snowden.

[GMax]

Always remember that historically, midterm elections are significantly more Republican in voter turnout than Presidential elections. Its hard to rouse the freeloaders to vote in offyear elections. And also historically the midterm election after the reelection is a blowout for the reelected President, as fatigue has set in.

For example in 2010 the polls were showing a small but significant advantage for Democrats in the generic ballot. Remember how that turned out?

This is going to be a massive wave I believe. Senate could well approach the 60 Republican vote threshold. The Democrats can thank Zero and Holder for that turn of affairs.

[Miss Marple]

GMax, I know the historical trends but I am not at all convinced they will hold this time.

Obama is desperate to avoid a GOP Senate, and the efforts they will make for this election will surpass anything we have seen before.

[21_cathy_f_in_tripep@d_prison_98]

Btw my doc told me if you go for the supposedly free wellness check and you are prescribed for a minor cold, too, the entire visit is no longer free and you will get hit for deductible/Copays as if it was a sick visit. Entirely.

It's worse than that. If you go for the "wellness" visit and your blood pressure is elevated -- sick visit. You say hey doc does this mole look funny? If the answer is yes and they do a biopsy, sick visit.

There is a whole industry of public health advising which says that if you have this or that or the other thing, "Ask your doctor." Articles in women's magazines, public service announcements, etc.

The Obama administration just changed the system so that anyone who follows that practical and commonsensical advice during theis "wellness" visit gets punished.