Putin and Ukraine - Why are we having this war?

Who is Vladimir Putin and why is he Causing trouble in the Ukraine?

Former KGB Operative

Its true, Vladimir Putin is an ex KGB operative. Not only that, he says he always wanted to join the KGB from a young age. He himself has even said, that there is no such thing as a former KGB operative. But there's more to that story.

KGB in the 80's?

We have a malformed view of the KGB in the west. We remember a powerful, all knowing group of spies who we were told was capable if infiltrating our most secret areas. The truth was less impressive. Most of the KGB's success in the West came from “Walk ins” people who came to them,not the other way around. By Putin's time in the 80's the KGB had become a vast bureaucracy, where hundreds of thousands of operatives wrote thousands of reports that were never read by anyone.

This was so dangerous that it almost brought about a Nuclear Exchange in 1983. KGB analysts (falling completely for Ronald Reagan's Bad Cop routine) judged that he was a man capable of launching a first strike Nuclear War. The KGB were tasked with uncovering the evidence of when this strike would take place.

Agents dutifully reported back routine military activity and their analysis that the west did not intend to launch. The military activity was noted, but the crucial analysis was not. The KGB were quite shocked when Nuclear Missiles didn't fall from the heavens.

Vladimir Putin - Underachieving KGB Man

Into this mess we place Vladimir Putin. Putin was stationed in Dresden in East Germany. Dresden was a backwater as far as the KGB were concerned. Putin focussed on the local University students, hoping that they might have friends in East Berlin, hoping that those friends might have contacts in the west. Being 3 steps removed might have some advantages but the greatest work he seems to have done there at Dresden was to buy an unclassified US Army Manual for $700. Hardly future Head of State material.

Putin in KGB Uniform

Boris Yeltsin Anoints a Successor

On the 9^th of August 1999 Boris Yeltsin fired his Prime Minister Sergei Stepashin, appointed Vladimir Putin in his place and expressed the hope that Putin would succeed him as President. Putin seemingly had come from nowhere. It seems likely that Yeltsin's advisors believed Putin was incompetent and uncharismatic. In short he was controllable. This now seems to have been extremely short sighted.

 

Yeltsin, Putin and the Patriach

Putin Surprises Everyone

Russia in the 1990's was a free for all. The Privatisation of the State Economy resulted in the creation of some of the worlds richest men. This was seen by many Russians as pure theft. Putin took a hard line with these Oligarchs. His imprisoning of Russia's richest man Michail Khodorkovsky sent a message to all the Oligarchs that they did not want to make an enemy of Mr Putin. Putin's treatment of the elite was wildly popular in a Russia reeling from so much change so fast.

Next he launched a popular war on Chechnya. The Russian people began to feel safe under Mr Putin.

Dismantling Democracy

There is an unspoken deal between Governments and their people. As long as the peoples lives are improving, the government can has a black cheque to do whatever it wants. The Deal fails when the Government stops fulfilling it's side of the bargain. After the roller coaster ride of the 1990's, the Russian people were happy to have the good times back. They stood by and watched as Putin uprooted the disorienting Yeltsin system to implement something more stable which just happened to put all that power under Putin's control.

It's the Economy Stupid

The 2000's brought with it rising oil and energy prices. A lesser known fact is that Russia actually exports more oil than any other nation on Earth. One side effect of the massive growth of China coupled with the war in Iraq is that Russia experienced a resources boom. What was a weak and divided nation became strong again, unified under the rule of Mr Putin.

Global Downturn

Of course it couldn't last. As the price of oil fell the Russian people began to demand fair elections. In Late 2011 protesters began to take to the streets demanding an annulment of the 2011 election and indictment of the leader of the Central Election Commission. Putin's reaction was to suppress this movement and to crack down hard. 

Don't Panic

It's hard to uncover what is happening inside the Russian Government under Putin, but one thing seems clear, Putin was afraid.

It shouldn't be surprising that the one thing that terrifies a dictator more than anything else is an angry crowd, yet most commentators were shocked at the level of fear inside the Kremlin which was caused by only 30,000 or so protesters on the street. 

We Need an Enemy

A way was found to deflect the frustration of the populace. It is the same solution that dictators the world over use time and time again. He claimed that Russia was being attacked by enemies without and harboured enemies within who consorted with those enemies.

There's going to be a Pussy Riot!

The protesters themes of greater openness in government, rights for women and the LGBT community didn't go unnoticed. Here was the enemy within and without that Putin needed. Within Russia anyone advocating for the Feminist/LGBT agenda was branded an enemy of the natural order of things.

The Enemy without is of course the West. We who have submitted to the gay agenda, we have turned our backs on the natural order of things and want to bring our brand of HOMOFASCISM to Russia. The West that must be resisted at all cost to save civilisation as we know it. (I know it sounds ridiculous but most propaganda does outside of its original context).

The Protest Band Pussy Riot

Which Brings us to Ukraine

Ukraine is a nation which can be likened to a tidal island. When the power of Russia is strong, Ukraine is inundated and disappears for decades. Then when the tide goes out Ukraine is uncovered as an independent nation. Russia's tide is rising again, however this time Russia has a rival. 

Ukraine looks West

The European Union exerts a powerful influence upon Eastern Europe. Many people see the high standards of living enjoyed in western nations and ask “why can't we have that?” For politicians in nations such as Ukraine, European integration is popular. It wins votes.

But before economic Integration comes military integration in the form of NATO membership. In 2008 Ukraine began the long Application process.

The Homofascists are Encircling Us!

Many Russians feel that Ukraine is Russian and belongs to Russia. The have a shared history and many shared experiences. Therefore it came as a great shock and trauma for the Russian nation that Ukraine might re-orient itself westward. In accordance with the propaganda the only explanation is that the Homofascists have infiltrated Ukrainian society and corrupted it. 

A Real Man Stands Up To Be Counted

Flying in the face of this “corrosive” influence is President Putin who annexed Crimea (majority good ethnic Russian citizens) to save them from the Homofascists. This act was in violation of International Law.

Definitely not Gay?

Why Are We Having this War Again?

In short we're having this war because Vladimir Putin is terrified of mass protests. He needs to assert to the Russian people that he a strong leader and can save the nation from threats within and without. The conflation of the two threats into the gay agenda means he can funnel foreign policy and domestic persecution into the one narrative of saving civilization from itself.

Where do we go from here?

The west has clearly signalled that it wont go to war over the Ukraine although the Australian Prime Minister has promised to physically assault Mr Putin the next time the two leaders meet.

Putin has placed himself in a position where it looks that he is unlikely to back down. So far the Russian people are not paying any price for his invasion of Ukrainian territory. He has kept his moves measured and incremental. The West has placed sanctions on members of the Russian regime, but its difficult to see anything changing.

Putin on the other hand has every reason to ratchet up the pressure on Ukraine and the West. At home he is seen as a hero standing up for natural values fighting off the Homofascist western oppressors. He does have a difficult balancing act however. The catalyst for all this was declining living standards. If the Russian people see the war in Ukraine has bringing down living standards in their nation, they may return to the streets and nothing horrifies a dictator more than that.

The Legacy of Edward Gough Whitlam

I was 6 months old in November 1975. While I have no memories of his time in office, Whitlam’s effect on my life in Australia in 2014 is still profound.

The Positive

·         Universal Health Care

If you don’t pay a cent when you go to the doctors, you have Gough Whitlam to thank for it.  Malcolm Fraser tried to turn the clock back upon his election and destroy Medibank, but Gough,s dream was reintroduced by Bob Hawke as Medicare. Even Hard Line Conservative John Howard knew not to play with fire and touch Medicare. As for Mr Abbott, time will tell, but it’s clear that Australians like Medicare and wish to keep it. If you have any doubt about the success of Medicare, compare the spending per Capita in Healthcare between us and the United States.

·         China

Gough Whitlam flew to China in 1971 as opposition leader. At the time China was a Pariah state, a victim of international communism who’s true leadership lay on the island of Taiwan. China is now our largest trading partner.

·         The quintessentially Australian Election Campaign

“Its Time” set the standard, a standard which has never been bettered

·         Race Relations in Australia and Overseas

Gough ordered the Australian Delegation at the United Nations to vote for sanctions against South Africa and Rhodesia due to the apartheid regimes. At home he overrode racist state laws, made it illegal to discriminate by Race through the Racial Discrimination Act, but he’s most remembered for the return of the Gurundji’ peoples land in 1975, symbolising Aboriginal peoples connection to Country by pouring sand through Vincent Lingiari’s hand.

·         Equal Pay for Women

Whitlam reopened an equal pay case at the Commonwealth Concilliation and Arbitration Commision. This raised the pay by 30% of 500,000 women in Australia. As a child of a single mother I am certain that few actions taken by an Australian Government could have had a greater effect on Child Poverty than Equal Pay for Women.

·         Independence for Papua New Guinea

Until the Whitlam Government granted Papua New Guinea (PNG) independence they were a colony of Australia. PNG’s destiny is now in the hands of  PNG

PNG Parliament House

·         Signed the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty

Menzies and the Coalition Government had always had Nuclear Ambitions for this nation. The Lucas Heights Nuclear Reactor was just the start. Whitlam felt this was folly and consigned Australia’s Nuclear ambition to the dustbin of history.

Lucas Heights Nuclear Facility

·         Placed the Birth Control Pill on the Pharmaceutical Benefit Scheme

The oral contraceptive pill is one of the most  life altering inventions of the modern age, bringing sexual freedom to women. The Whitlam Government placed it on the Pharmaceutical Benefit Scheme(PBS) itself a Labor reform from 1948.

·         Abolished the Death Penalty

The Whitlam Government passed the Death Penalty Abolition Act in 1973. Enough said.

Ronald Ryan. The last man to receive the Death Penalty in Australia

·         Lowered the Voting Age

18 Year olds were being conscripted and sent to war when they didn’t even have a say in the matter at the Ballot Box. Whitlam fixed this.

·         Ended Conscription

The Whitlam Government ended the forced acquisition of young people to serve under arms.  It was called the lottery of death. Although by the time he was PM combat troops had already been withdrawn.

·         Withdrawal from Vietnam

Prime Minister McMahon had already withdrawn combat troops from Vietnam by the time Whitlam came into office, however Whitlam finished the job.

·         The Sewering of Western Sydney

Another reform that brought millions out of poverty. In the early 1970’s many of Sydneys outer suburbs were not sewered. The Whitlam Government introduced the National Sewerage Program which aimed to change that. If you live in Western Sydney. Every time you use the Loo. Remember Gough.

·         Triple J

Australia needed a non profit radio station that would play the music that the commercials wouldn’t. We still do. The fact we have one is courtesy of the Whitlam Government.

The Negative

No-one is perfect and Gough did adversely affect Australia too:

·         Fiscal Responsibility

There is no doubt about it, Spending under Whitlam skyrocketed. 1973 Saw an oil crisis and a global downturn. The pace of expensive social reforms continued during the crisis. It could be argued that a slowing down of the pace of reform could have averted the crisis that ultimately brought about his dismissal.

·         The Dismissal

Gough played his hand quite poorly during the lead up to, and just after being dismissed by Sir John Kerr. His appointment of Kerr proved to be extremely poor judgement.

·         Defeat

Whitlam was resoundingly rejected by the Australian people in 1975. The Double Dissolution arranged by Kerr and Fraser elected the Fraser Government. The 1978 election proved that 1975 was no fluke.

Summing Up

            Whitlam is a figure of hope. We remember him as a champion of the poor and the downtrodden. Equal pay for women, Land Rights for Aborigines, Universal Health Care are his greatest legacies. There may never be another like Gough. I’ll leave the last words to him though: When asked about meeting his maker Gough joked, “You can be sure of one thing, I shall treat Him as an equal.”

Lockheed Might Just Have Solved Climate Change

Did Lockheed Martin just promise a Carbon Emission Free World in 50 Years?

Lockheed Martin announced the development of a Compact Fusion Reactor on the 15^th October 2014.

What is a Compact Fusion Reactor?

Fusion Reactors are a completely different technology to the Fission Reactors we are all familiar with. Fission Reactors requires Uranium for Fuel, which is of course a finite resource, creates a terrible Nuclear Waste Problem, and the Nuclear Power industry almost inevitably leads to Nuclear Proliferation. Fusion on the other hand requires hydrogen. Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe. It's the H in H20. There is quite a lot of water on Planet Earth, therefore a great deal of hydrogen. The problem with Nuclear Fusion(which is what is powering the sun right now) is that to fuse hydrogen into Helium you need massive amounts of heat. So far all fusion reactors have been quite large and more electricity is required to heat up the fuel than the system produces. This is where Lockheed Martin say they have made the breakthrough.

Lockheed Martin are promising a prototype small scale reactor that fits on the back of a truck that could power 1000 homes in 12 months. That's quite a promise.

Compact Fusion Reactor

Who's Making this Promise?

Lockheed Martin is one of the largest Defence Contractors in the world. Their pedigree goes all the way back to the early days of aviation. The built the aircraft that made Amelia Earhart famous.

The Lockheed Vega

And they built this. The F22 Raptor:

The division of Lockheed Martin making this claim is of interest as well because it is the Skunkworks. The Skunkworks is the Black Budget Top Secret area of Lockheed Martin. It seems they were working on something.....interesting.

What Are They Working On

The Skunkworks develops hi tech aviation equipment. It's pretty clear from the press release that they are working on Fusion powered aircraft. Fusion powered aircraft provides theoretically almost unlimited endurance over a target.

It seems they have developed something revolutionary in the miniaturisation process. In the short term you can imagine a drone loitering over a target for weeks at a time. In the medium term imagine airliners capable of flying point to point anywhere on the planet. Long Term who knows, Spacecraft, Submarines, all powered by fusion reactors.

Any Non Lethal Opportunities?

The good thing is that this breakthrough has other less Militaristic Applications. This technology scales up well in theory. Lockheed Martin are calling for partners in the power industry. They want to roll out fusion reactors everywhere in the world producing ZERO carbon emissions. Their own press release states that they want to do this in a 20 year timeframe. This technology as far as we know is pretty harmless. There's no risk of meltdown, no risk of contamination, because in essence they use Hydrogen as fuel, so there's no issue with Nuclear proliferation. Within 50 Years all electricity in the world could be generated with this Nuclear Fusion Technology. This technology could solve the problem we have with climate change.

Are there any Caveats?

Hell Yes. Lockheed have failed to publish any scientific papers on their new work. This is to be expected, they are a very secretive organisation, careful of propriety developments, however Dr. Swadesh M. Mahajan, a thermonuclear plasma physicist at the University of Texas told Mother Jones magazine that "We know of no materials that would be able to handle anywhere near that amount of heat."

To Sum Up

Have Lockheed Martin promised a Carbon Emission Free future. No. Not really. The Media have spun it that way, but nowhere in the press release is a promise of that. However there is the potential, even if it wasn't spelt out by Lockheed Martin.

The other issue is that many scientists are extremely sceptical of the claims made by the team at the Lockheed Skunkworks. They say that we've seen a press release and a Youtube video, but not much else.

I hope they can do all they claim, but I seriously doubt it.

Did Tony Abbott really just physically threaten Vladimir Putin?

Why is Tony Abbott Going to “Shirtfront” Vladimir Putin

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24ruCWdyRzY

So Tony Abbott has physically threatened the President of Russia. If you want to know what a shirtfront is then watch this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbNyfl33GEU

Now I hope that Mr Abbott was speaking figuratively, but one world leader should never physically threaten another world leader. Especially one who has a black belt in Judo and a nuclear arsenal of more than 5000 weapons.

Why is Tony doing this?

The answer is simple- Votes. The shooting down of MH 17 was a shocking occurrence to many Australians. The fact that the aircraft was carrying so many Australians came as a surprise to many Australians who still tend to feel that our isolation protects us from the intrigues of the wider world. Russia has been historically unpopular in this country since the MH17 shoot-down. Also since the MH17 Shoot-down Mr Abbott's popularity has risen sharply. Abbott's strident criticism of Putin has been quite popular. With his renewed War On ISIS in Iraq Abbott has moved from Laughing stock (anyone remember #TonyDumDum) to a viable choice for re-election. Mr Putin is unwittingly helping him do it.

There is truth in what he says – Yes I put this one after the political expedient, but it is quite true that Vladimir started a war for the Crimea. He provided the weapons and the training for the Ukrainian separatists. He is at least complicit in the shoot-down if not ultimately responsible for it. There is little at stake. The trade between Russia and Australian is negligible. As an energy provider to China and many other nations, Russia is more competitor than partner in trade. Therefore few Australian Jobs are at stake, the Australian Chamber of Commerce won't fire up and speak out against him. This argument with Russia is all upside for the one time ailing PM.

Is there Anything in it for Putin?

Actually there is. While Australia is not high on Russia's priorities, and I doubt very much that Abbott's comments last night were included in My Putins morning brief today, there is some mileage to be made out of this by the Russians.

In Russian Propaganda the West has lost it's way. Misguided by our freedom and equality for all we have given in to the deviants in our societies. Only Russia has remained true. It is the last place civilisation still thrives. It's only natural that Obama, Cameron, Abbott, Merkel, etc attack him.

Where to From Here

Putin's grip on power in Russia is absolute in one way, but slipping in another. Dictators always do well during the good times, but of course the good times are fast receding in the rear view mirror. A good stoush is great for popularity in the short term, but often buys your nation more trouble in the long term. I hope this is the xcase for Russia and Putin.

Why do So Many People Believe So Much Crap?

Conspiracy Theories and Pareidolia

The Face On Mars

I Like the above picture. It was taken in 1976 by the Viking probe. It's a Face. Definitely a Face. It even seems to be wearing some sort of Egyptian Headress. The problem with the face in the picture is that its a landform on Mars. If it is truly a face, then it's evidence of an extra-terrestrial intelligence.

So NASA went back to Mars in 2001 to image the area again in HD. This is what they got.

HD Face On Mars

You can see all the same elements as in the 1^st image, but in HD the face suddenly fades away. This phenomenon is called Pareidolia. 

The Carina Nebula

 

Pareidolia is the result of our brains trying to discern patterns from random information. Anyone who has looked at the clouds and described shapes has engaged in a bit of harmless pareidolia. It turns out that pareidolia is a side affect of the human brain being so clever.

No animal we know of is better at recognising patterns out of chaos. It's one of Humanities Super Powers. None of our computers are as capable at pattern recognition as we are either. If you have ever tried to register an account on a website and had to type in a number which is surrounded by clutter you'll know its to prevent automated signups.

Computers can't do this

The ability to hear a rustle in the trees, and discern a food source is nearby is of course a massive evolutionary advantage, but it does come with some disadvantages.

In evolutionary terms the safe position is to imagine that there is an agency at play when we see a pattern. Sometimes it is there. Sometimes it isn’t. If we hear a branch breaking in the jungle, better to assume it's a Tiger than find out it was as it devours you.

Unscrupulous people understand this and prey upon it. There is an argument that Pareidolia is the explanation for religion. It's very easy to point out patterns in the background static that is life and then give your explanation. People will believe you! Certainly the Life of L Ron Hubbard of Scientology, Charles Taze Russell who founded the Jehovahs Witnesses and Joseph Smith, a convicted con artist who founded the Mormons don't argue against it. 

 

In the Picture Joseph Smith uses a magical “Seer Stone” to look upon the stone tablets that only he can see because he's placed them in his hat. The magic stones translate the stone tablet from North American Hebrew to King James English. And when I say King James English, large chunks of the Book of Mormon”are identical to the bible.

The tricks are the same, but storys have changed. 

 

This is David Icke. He contends that we are all being controlled by Reptilian Aliens from the constellation Draco. You to can buy his books about it. (Which I sincerely doubt any alien overlord would allow to be published.) In short he's a charletan who manipulates people by scaring them witless, however there is a crazy internal logic to his statements. 

He earnt my enmity however when during the Swine Flu outbreak of a few years ago, he told people not to immunise themselves or their children against it, because the immunisation treatment was how the government was spreading spreading the flu to kill people. 

 

There are others. Some blame the Illuminati, others the Bilderburg Group, others the Grey Aliens from Zeta Reticuli. These sham merchants can explain all that's going wrong in the world. Why do the Rich get Richer? The Illluminati of course. Why are mental Health problem being diagnosed more frequently? Big Pharma of course. We jump at ready made simple explanations of highly complex systems that sound good in theory.

Of course others are doing this for altruistic reasons. They've fallen down the rabbit hole and

now share what they think they “know”.

When confronted with a new conspiracy theory I always do the following.

1. Ascertain whether the pattern is really there. eg. Q. Could Jet Fuel have brought down the WTC buildings? A. Yes most certainly.
2. Does this stand up to an application of Occams Razor. Occams razor states that all things being equal the simplest explanation is most likely the true one. eg. Is it more likey that aliens have used enough resourses to travel interstellar distances and then draw pictures in the crops of southern England or is it more likely that 2 guys working with a rope and crop flatteners were responsible for the craze.

So in Short is it likely that our Government is really being controlled by short Grey Aliens from Zeta Reticuli? If so follow Mulder and Scully down the Rabbit Hole. Otherwise. Please use some common sense.

What Now for Hong Kong?

What now for the Hong Kong Democracy Movement?

Hong Kong Democracy Stands at a Crossroads. With it's street protest winding down the Pro Democracy movement in Hong Kong has been bested by the Hong Kong Government. Most of the protesters have gone home. Hong Kong Public Servants are able to get into their workplaces and Businesses are open.

In many ways Hong Kong has returned to “Business as usual”. The protest leaders however have gained one concession from CY Leung. They agreed to talks between the Hong Kong Government and the student movement that started the "umbrella revolution".

China has learned quickly about how to deal with this existential threat to their regime. If these protests had spread to mainland China we could have seen the largest revolution in History.

Beijing has organised counter protests to provoke violence on the streets(no I cant prove that) which nicely muddied the international perception of the rally. CY Leung has barely had to give an inch. Which of course means that Universal Suffrage is still a pipe dream for ordinary Hong Kongers.

China initially dealt with the protests the same way most regimes deal with descent. Tear Gas and Police.

This course was altered quickly when it was seen to be disadvantageous to China's foreign policy to crack down too heavily on these protesters who represented freedom to the outside world.

The decision was clearly made to discredit the protest movement. Firstly thugs were procured to go down to the protest scene to intimidate and provoke protesters. It was winning strategy because to resist the thugs appeared to the media as if the protests were devolving and becoming violent. If the protesters were intimidated some might just go home.

The confidence that the business community had in the protests at the beginning faltered as well. Shutting down one of the great cities of the world took it's an economic toll. So much so that even the Australian Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong denounced the protests citing risks to investment and job creation.

The longer the protest went, the better China got at handling it. It is of course very difficult to know who was in charge of the response to the protest, be they from Beijing or Hong Kong, but one has to admire the craft of spin and manipulation on display over the last week.

It's the next few years though that will develop the legacy of these protests for Hong Kong and China in general. I suspect it is unlikely that the Hong Kong Government will accede to free and fair elections in 2017. That means it's most likely that tensions will continue to simmer away until another eruption. It;'s important to remember that these people are fighting for something that we take for granted in Western Countries. The right to free and fair elections.

Whatever the outcome Good Luck Hong Kong!

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