If somehow Putin is arrested and convicted of war crimes, let's put this on continuous loop in his prison cellhttps://t.co/hPhraWYjCS

— David Burge (@iowahawkblog) February 24, 2022

April 1945. Once the conqueror of Europe, the Bohemian corporal who rose from the slums of Munich and Vienna to perform a spontaneous little dance of joy outside the railroad carriage in which the Armistice of 1918 was signed, having just compelled the proud French to dine on the same unappetizing meal of humiliation and surrender previously served up to Germany, is now trapped like a rat in the catacombs beneath the Reichs Chancellery, listening to the nearby fighting and the shells falling outside his bunker while enemy forces draw closer and closer, with a cyanide capsule and a Walther pistol as his best remaining choice.

How did it come to this?

Hitler destroyed himself and his short-lived Reich by pushing his luck too far, intoxicated by the phantom allure of a terribly bad idea which was both impractically unattainable and of no real relevance to reality.

Hitler’s ideology was, at root, a sort of political patent medicine combining German Romanticism with Populism and technological Futurism. That mixture had considerable appeal, outmarketing thuggish and divisive Bolshevism as well as milk-and-water Social Democracy. But Hitler was only an autodidact café intellectual and putting him in charge of a major country was a very bad idea.

Hitler’s big idea in the realm of Foreign Policy simply amounted to reversing German losses consequent to WWI and the Treaty of Versailles, then proceeding to implement a humongous modern revival of the Teutonic Drang nach Osten that would enserf (or alternatively eliminate) Slavic populations to the East and take over their lands giving the German people (supposedly vital) Lebensraum and control of natural resources, particularly coal and petroleum.

This sort of stuff sounded great to German Nationalists, living mentally in the 19th Century, but all the racialist nonsense motivating and justifying this kind of barbarous piratical policy was nonsense. Germans and Slavs differed in linguistic traditions, but had lived as neighbors, immemorially, for countless centuries, intermarrying and mixing economically and culturally and politically. A “Hitler” is a Hüttler (also spelled Huettler), meaning “one who lives in a hut”, from Hütte (“hut”) and most probably of Slavic origin.

Even the Germans noticed the ironies of those racialist theories, and commonly joked that “the ideal Nazi was someone as tall as Goebbels, as slim as Goering, and as blond as Hitler.”

And a “Drang nach Osten” that required 52 million Germans to defeat 170.5 million Russian, 131 million Americans, 545 million from the British Commonwealth, &c., &c. that pitted the German economy as well against the US economy, the British economy, that effectively pitted Germany and Italy, and Japan against most of the rest of the world was never going to work out successfully.

Karl Marx said that history repeats itself, first as tragedy, then as farce, and he might very well have been speaking of WWII followed by Vladimir Putin’s newly implemented war to restore the Soviet Empire and to reverse the result of the Cold War. Read the rest of this entry »

He stood in the rain for wreath-laying ceremonies on the Russian Day of Memory commemorating the start of WWII, and when questioned by the Press, responded:

“I didn’t even think of getting under an umbrella as the wreath was being laid,” Putin said, adding, that Russian soldiers fought day and night in any weather during the World War II. “People lived there and died there. That’s such a horrible situation.”

“It’s not that I had thought of something or not, or had made a decision. It didn’t cross my mind that I should’ve acted differently. I think it’s normal. We aren’t made of sugar, we won’t melt.”

Putin is 65 years old.

Liberty Hangout:

The CIA has concluded in a secret assessment that Russia intervened in killing Harambe the gorilla, according to officials briefed on the matter.

Intelligence agencies have identified individuals with connections to the Russian government who provided WikiLeaks with thousands of hacked emails from the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden and others, including Harambe’s own caretaker, according to U.S. officials. Those officials described the individuals as actors known to the intelligence community and part of a wider Russian operation to boost the nearby Columbus Zoo and Aquarium’s profits.

“It is the assessment of the intelligence community that Russia’s goal here was to favor one zoo over the other,” said a senior U.S. official briefed on an intelligence presentation made to U.S. senators. “That’s the consensus view.”

The Obama administration has been debating for months how to respond to the alleged Russian intrusions, with White House officials concerned about escalating tensions with Moscow and being accused of trying to boost Columbus Zoo’s revenues.

The Trump transition team dismissed the findings in a short statement issued Friday evening. “These are the same people that said Cecil the Lion had teeth of mass destruction. It’s now time to move on and ‘Make Columbus Zoo Great Again,’ ” the statement read.

Trump has consistently dismissed the intelligence community’s findings about Russia.

“I don’t believe they interfered” in the killing of Harambe, he told Time magazine this week. The killing, he said, “could be Russia. And it could be China. And it could be some guy in his home in New Jersey.”

Going viral today is news of Vladimir Putin’s latest comment, echoing the famous 19th century marching song of Teutonic aggression penned by Ernst Moritz Arndt.

The Independent:

Vladimir Putin has said Russia’s borders “do not end anywhere” during a live televised awards ceremony for students in Moscow.

On stage, the Russian president asked a nine-year-old boy: “Where does Russia’s border end?” The child answered “at the Bering Strait with the United States”.

Mr Putin then gave his own answer, adding “it was a joke” to applause and laughter from the audience.

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Des Deutschen Vaterland (1813)

Was ist des Deutschen Vaterland?
Ist’s Preußenland? Ist’s Schwabenland?
Ist’s, wo am Rhein die Rebe blüht?
Ist’s, wo am Belt die Möwe zieht?
O nein, nein, nein!
Sein Vaterland muss größer sein!

What is the German’s fatherland?
Is it Prussia, is it Swabia?
Is it where the vines blossom on the Rhine?
Is it where the gull moves on the Belt?
Oh no! oh no! oh no! oh no!
His fatherland must be greater!

Was ist des Deutschen Vaterland?
Ist’s Bayerland? Ist’s Steierland?
Ist’s, wo des Marsen Rind sich streckt?
Ist’s, wo der Märker Eisen reckt?
O nein, nein, nein!
Sein Vaterland muss größer sein!

What is the German’s fatherland?
Is it Bavaria, is it Styria?
Is it where the cattle of the Marsi roam?
Is it where the citizens of the Mark mold iron?
Oh no! oh no! oh no! oh no!
His fatherland must be greater!

Was ist des Deutschen Vaterland?
Ist’s Pommerland? Westfalenland?
Ist’s, wo der Sand der Dünen weht?
Ist’s, wo die Donau brausend geht?
O nein, nein, nein!
Sein Vaterland muss größer sein!

What is the German’s fatherland?
Is it Pomerania, Westphalia?
Is it where the sand of dunes blows?
Is it where the Danube rushes along?
Oh no! oh no! oh no! oh no!
His fatherland must be greater!

Was ist des Deutschen Vaterland?
So nenne mir das große Land!
Ist’s Land der Schweizer? Ist’s Tirol?
Das Land und Volk gefiel mir wohl.
Doch nein, nein, nein!
Sein Vaterland muss größer sein!

What is the German’s fatherland?
So name the great land to me!
Is it the land of the Swiss, is it Tyrol?
The land and people that please me well!
Oh no! oh no! oh no! oh no!
His fatherland must be greater!

Was ist des Deutschen Vaterland?
So nenne mir das große Land!
Gewiss, es ist das Österreich,
An Ehren und an Siegen reich?
O nein, nein, nein!
Sein Vaterland muss größer sein!

What is the German’s fatherland?
So name the great land to me!
Certainly it must be Austria,
Rich in victories and in honors?
Oh no! oh no! oh no! oh no!
His fatherland must be greater!

Was ist des Deutschen Vaterland?
So nenne endlich mir das Land!
So weit die deutsche Zunge klingt
Und Gott im Himmel Lieder singt:
Das soll es sein! Das soll es sein!
Das, wackrer Deutscher, nenne dein!

What is the German’s fatherland?
So name the great land to me, finally!
As far as the German tongue sounds
And sings songs to God in heaven!
That shall it be,
That, brave German, shall it be!

Das ist des Deutschen Vaterland,
Wo Eide schwört der Druck der Hand,
Wo Treue hell vom Auge blitzt
Und Liebe warm im Herzen sitzt.
Das soll es sein! Das soll es sein!
Das, wackrer Deutscher, nenne dein!

That is the German’s fatherland,
Where oaths are sworn with a handshake,
Where loyalty blazes brightly from the eye
And love sits warmly in the heart.
That shall it be,
That, brave German, shall it be!

Das ist des Deutschen Vaterland,
Wo Zorn vertilgt den welschen Tand,
Wo jeder Franzmann heißet Feind,
Wo jeder Deutsche heißet Freund.
Das soll es sein! das soll es sein!
Das ganze Deutschland soll es sein!

That is the German’s fatherland,
Where rage wipes out the foreign junk,
Where every Frenchman is called enemy,
Where every German is called friend.
That shall it be,
The whole Germany shall it be.

Das ganze Deutschland soll es sein!
O Gott vom Himmel, sieh darein
Und gib uns rechten deutschen Mut,
Dass wir es lieben treu und gut!
Das soll es sein! Das soll es sein!
Das ganze Deutschland soll es sein!

The whole Germany shall it be,
O God from heaven, see within
And give us real German courage,
That we may love it faithfully and well.
That shall it be,
The whole Germany shall it be.

Wendi Deng Murdoch and Ivanka Trump vacationing together in Dubrovnik

A younger friend from Yale sent me this interesting item.

Occupy Democrats screams:

Surprise, surprise! Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka and the ex-wife of Fox News owner Rupert Murdoch and current girlfriend of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, Wendi Deng Murdoch, are best buddies who just went on a lavish vacation together…. Trump’s vow that he does not know or speak to Putin is now obviously proved untrue.

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Occupy Democrats is obviously a commie blog, but People Magazine confirms the story, and adds one pretty significant detail.

Ivanka Trump is taking a break from the campaign trail to vacation with friends.

The daughter of GOP nominee Donald Trump shared a scenic snap with Wendi Deng Murdoch, the ex-wife of billionaire media mogul Rupert Murdoch, from Dubrovnik, Croatia.

Trump, 34, was spotted with husband Jared Kushner in the city’s old town, seemingly taking a couple’s vacation without their three children – Arabella, 5, Joseph, 2, and Theodore, 4 months.

Deng Murdoch was actually responsible for setting up Trump and Kushner.

———————————-

Concerning the Wendi Deng Murdoch-Putin Connection, I find that there were gossip stories all over the media last March & April.

US Magazine, 31 March:

How’s this for a new couple alert? The rumor circulating around the corridors of power — from Washington, D.C., to Europe and Asia — is that Vladimir Putin and Wendi Deng, Rupert Murdoch’s ex-wife, are dating.

Reports of the pair have been floating around for years, ever since their respective divorces in 2014 and 2013.

One insider close to the powerful leader tells Us Weekly the relationship is “serious.” …

Deng has yet to be spotted looking romantic with the Russian leader, but was seen boarding her pal Roman Abramovich’s yacht in St. Bart’s on Monday, March 28. Abramovich also happens to be friends with Putin.

AND

Daily Mail, 2 April:

Wendi Deng has been seen frolicking in the tropical waves of St Barts amid claims that she is in a ‘serious’ relationship with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

The 47-year-old showed off her impressive figure in a skimpy red bikini as she splashed about on the Caribbean coast with friends.

Deng has been enjoying a holiday on St Barts aboard the $400 million yacht of Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, a close friend of Putin.

Assuming the gossip reportage is correct, it looks like there really are some pretty intimate links between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin.

Hat tip to Emmy Chang.

Defense One:

Evidence suggests that a Russian intelligence group was the source of the most recent Wikileaks intel dump, which was aimed to influence the U.S. election.

Close your eyes and imagine that a hacking group backed by Russian President Vladimir Putin broke into the email system of a major U.S. political party. The group stole thousands of sensitive messages and then published them through an obliging third party in a way that was strategically timed to influence the United States presidential election. Now open your eyes, because that’s what just happened.

On Friday, Wikileaks published 20,000 emails stolen from the Democratic National Committee. They reveal, among other things, thuggish infighting, a push by a top DNC official to use Bernie Sanders’ religious convictions against him in the South, and attempts to strong-arm media outlets. In other words, they reveal the Washington campaign monster for what it is.

But leave aside the purported content of the Wikileaks data dump (to which numerous other outlets have devoted considerable attention) and consider the source. Considerable evidence shows that the Wikileaks dump was an orchestrated act by the Russian government, working through proxies, to undermine Hillary Clinton’s Presidential campaign.

“This has all the hallmarks of tradecraft. The only rationale to release such data from the Russian bulletproof host was to empower one candidate against another. The Cold War is alive and well,” Tom Kellermann, the CEO of Strategic Cyber Ventures told Defense One.

Here’s the timeline: On June 14, cybersecurity company CrowdStrike, under contract with the DNC, announced in a blog post that two separate Russian intelligence groups had gained access to the DNC network. One group, FANCY BEAR or APT 28, gained access in April. The other, COZY BEAR, (also called Cozy Duke and APT 29) first breached the network in the summer of 2015.

Cybersecurity company FireEye first discovered APT 29 in 2014 and was quick to point out a clear Kremlin connection. “We suspect the Russian government sponsors the group because of the organizations it targets and the data it steals. Additionally, APT 29 appeared to cease operations on Russian holidays, and their work hours seem to align with the UTC +3 time zone, which contains cities such as Moscow and St. Petersburg,” they wrote in their report on the group. Other U.S. officials have said that the group looks like it has sponsorship from the Russian government due in large part to the level of sophistication behind the group’s attacks.

Read the whole thing.

Daily Mail:

Vladimir Putin has sacked every single commander in Russia’s Baltic fleet in what has been described as a ‘Stalin-style’ purge.

Up to 50 officers of the fleet were fired alongside Vice Admiral Viktor Kravchuk and his chief of staff Rear Admiral Sergei Popov after they reportedly refused to follow orders to confront Western ships.

Reports in Russia also suggested the purges followed an alleged cover-up of a submarine accident, flaws in recruitment and military construction projects.

It comes amid an undisclosed number of other senior officers of the fleets have been fired over serious flaws in combat training and their failure to take proper care of personnel.

The purges’ scope and publicity make them highly unusual for the Russian military, which usually removes senior officers in a more subtle way.

It is particularly unexpected as it follows Putin’s visit to the Baltic fleet last year in Kalingrad, during which he praised its performance.

However, there has been speculation the drastic measures were prompted after the US Navy ship the USS Donald Cook was ‘buzzed’ by Russian fighter bombers in April, which was meant to be part of a series of confrontations against Western ships in the Baltic.

But international affairs analyst Peter Coates told news.com.au: ‘But the Russian Baltic Fleet, however, refused to follow such dangerous orders – hence Putin’s retaliation against his own naval officers.

Meanwhile after news of the sackings were announced, the Moscow Times noted that ‘not since Stalin’s purges had so many officers been ousted at once.’

ISIS taking credit for downing that Russian airliner in the Sinai caused John Hinderaker to recall the same events from the 1980s, back when Iranian-backed Hezbollah terrorists were kidnapping Western diplomats in Beirut. They took the American CIA station chief, William Francis Buckley, then turned him over to the Iranians who tortured him for fifteen months until he died in captivity. Then they kidnapped some Russian diplomats…

I dimly remembered a news story from several decades ago that also involved Arab terrorism, and found it via Google. Here it is, from 1986:

The KGB has adopted novel, brutal and apparently effective methods of dealing with terrorists who attack Soviet interests in the Middle East, an Israeli newspaper reported Monday.

The Jerusalem Post said the Soviet secret police last year secured the release of three kidnaped Soviet diplomats in Beirut by castrating a relative of a radical Lebanese Shia Muslim leader, sending him the severed organs and then shooting the relative in the head.

The incident began when four Soviet diplomats were kidnaped last September by Muslim extremists who demanded that Moscow pressure the Syrian government to stop pro-Syrian militiamen from shelling rival Muslim positions in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli.

The militiamen, the Jerusalem paper said, did not cease their attacks, and the body of one of the Soviet diplomats, Arkady Katkov, was found a few days later in a field in Beirut.

The KGB then apparently kidnaped and killed a relative of an unnamed leader of the Shias’ Hezbollah (Party of God) group, a radical, pro-Iranian group that has been suspected of various terrorist activities against Western targets in Lebanon.

Parts of the man’s body, the paper said, were then sent to the Hezbollah leader with a warning that he would lose other relatives in a similar fashion if the three remaining Soviet diplomats were not immediately released. They were quickly freed.

The newspaper quoted “observers in Jerusalem” as saying: “This is the way the Soviets operate. They do things–they don’t talk. And this is the language Hezbollah understands.”

Arab terrorists never again, to my knowledge, tried to kill or kidnap Russians in the Middle East.