Hello Gary. Well said. I agree. Right now the world is being held hostage to Putin’s vague threats and letting him make the rules. Why does he get to be the only one to make the rules and draw redlines? We are already involved, we know it, Russia knows it, but by playing a game of only so much help at a time we are allowing more deaths of the Ukrainian people including children. How many deaths do we stand by and accept, how many kids losing their mothers and fathers is worth it to hold back so we don’t upset Putin? To me it has already been too many. The world will be asked why we did not use our ability to stop the deaths of Ukrainians sooner. The longer we wait the harder it will be to answer.
Day after day, we in the West sit in our comfortable living rooms, watching our televisions, witnessing the brutal slaughter of thousands of Ukrainian men, women, and children. Yes, we send arms and money, but otherwise we sit and do nothing. Why? We fear a war with the Russians.
But how long do we wait? Do we wait until Ukraine and its people have been completely decimated?
The West faced the same dilemma with Hitler. We made concession after concession to him, hoping that if we gave him what he wanted, he wouldn’t demand more. He wanted the Sudetenland to protect “ethnic Germans”. We gave it to him. He then wanted all of Czechoslovakia. We let him have it. He wanted Austria. He annexed it and the West did nothing. So why stop? He then took Poland. France and Britain declared war…and then did nothing…giving him time…
Ukraine Zoo Says Missing Workers Who Stayed to Help Animals During Russian Attacks Are Dead
“We have received confirmation that two of our employees who went missing in early March have died,” the Feldman Ecopark in Kharviv, Ukraine, shared in a statement
Specter of war looms large over Ukraine’s tiny neighbor
Moldova is poor, dependent on Moscow and split by a separatist movement, making it especially vulnerable to Russia.
I wonder if Disney regrets the millions they have poured into the Florida Republican party. This is the Republican party that claims businesses are people and can do anything they want, is now showing that applies only as long as they do what the most regressive right wing parts of the party want them to do. This is a warning to all big business in red states, toe the line or be attacked. The problem is big companies cannot attract qualified top people to work in bigoted states. They cannot get parents to move to these states. And if the businesses is like Disney that depends on tourism the normal non-bigoted people won’t support the company if they become right wing assholes. Personally I think Disney should immediately pour all that money into Democratic candidates and help bring the state back to its former glory as a Democratic strong hold before so many conservatives retired down here. Businesses like Disney seen the state turning Republican and poured money into the Republican candidates thinking they would stay loyal to the big money donors. We see now that propaganda, ideology, indoctrination, and pleasing the fascist leader is far more important in the minds of the right wing.
The Republican-controlled Florida Senate quickly voted Wednesday to dissolve Disney World’s Reedy Creek Improvement District. The Senate voted 23-16 to dissolve Reedy Creek, with Sen. Jeff Brandes the only Republican to vote against Sen. Jennifer Bradley’s bill.
The Senate voted along party lines to approve Bradley’s bill retracting the Disney carveout. Democrats assailed their Republican colleagues for capitulating to DeSantis out of fear of facing primary opponents.
Critics of the governor say the bills were meant to punish Disney, Florida’s largest single-site employer, for opposing the so-called “don’t say gay” law signed by DeSantis last month.
Read the full article. As you can see below, Bradley’s campaign video is full MAGA.
Republican-led Florida Senate passed a bill Wednesday that would eliminate a special tax district that has allowed Disney to govern the land where its theme parks sit $DIShttps://t.co/yJwn6fkksV
I presume that Disney would no longer have to pay employee wages and benefits to the firefighters and police. Looks like the taxes will be going up for the new municipality it is absorbed into. Not very bright on DeathSentences judgement. Of course, it’s the optics that count for them.
“A 2019 study found Disney dominates the Central Florida tourism industry, according to Oxford Economics, and produced: $75.2 billion annual economic impact for Central Florida. 463,000 jobs. $5.8 billion in additional state tax revenue.”
Well, businesses looking at locating in Florida are taking note of the political tyranny. If the state will fuck over a corporate giant like Disney, imagine what they’d do to a regular company or business.
It’s all GQP theater to warn corporations that they better be on the “right” side of the culture wars. Meanwhile, Florida continues to lose shoreline and fresh water due to climate change, but there’s no Special Legislative Session for real problems.
Yes, it is, and despite our efforts of more than half a century since Stonewall to convince people that we’re worth having around, it’s now abundantly clear that they haven’t been listening to us all this time because they simply don’t care – they want us all dead.
We maxed out what exposure would get us. It was a lot and a big thanks to everyone who risked their family relationships and careers by coming out. Younger generations are more lgbt-friendly as a result. But the generation still in power hates us as much as ever and see this as their last chance to enact their theocratic hate on us. Yes, they want us dead. And their voters show up to keep them in power. Will ours? Sometimes they do but most of the time they don’t.
Example of what I mean about us hitting the limit. I just watched this year’s GLAAD awards. (Not worth your time for the most part, tbh, except for this part.) A mom of a trans son got up and spoke. She had had Abbott and his wife over for dinner to show him what a family with a trans kid was really like. He’s been in their home at their table. I’m sure it seemed to go well. Didn’t change a damn thing. They don’t see us as human. They might be nice to our faces (I know tons of people like this) but they will vote to send us all to firing squads if that was possible.
Putin Is Deploying Mercenaries in Ukraine That Terrorized Libyans
The last time Russian forces tried to topple an internationally recognized government it was in a country far from Eastern Europe and on a far smaller scale than today’s war in Ukraine. But what I saw in Libya was no less terrifying for civilians and similarly corrosive to national sovereignty—a testing ground, of sorts, for the conflict now raging in Ukraine. That includes the use of mercenaries, which U.S. officials say President Vladimir Putin is resorting to as regular Russian forces falter,
The fight for the Donbas could turn the tide of war in Ukraine. Here’s why Russia wants it.
Why has Russian President Vladimir Putin refocused his military’s efforts on this region, and what should we expect now the offensive has begun? NBC News takes a look.
The Trump judge’s opinion striking down the airplane mask mandate is a legal disaster
This decision is what happens when judges don’t care what the law actually says.
How Ukraine Is Crowdsourcing Digital Evidence of War Crimes
It all looks like a game at first. Verified users of Ukraine’s government mobile app are greeted with options illustrated by icons of military helmets and targets. An automated prompt helps you report Russian troop movements in your area, and rewards you with a flexed-arm emoji. “Remember,” the message says. “Each of your shots in this bot means one less enemy.” Another option on the menu, illustrated by a droplet of blood, prompts Ukrainians to report and submit footage of war crimes in places
Scottie's Playtime 