Showing posts with label crimea. Show all posts
Showing posts with label crimea. Show all posts

Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Jon Karl and Mitt ~ Obama is Weak Because Putin Does Stuff

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Previous Related Posts:
Jonathan Karl Issues Non-Apology Apology Over Fake Benghazi Emails
ABC's Jon Karl Gets Juiced by Fake Benghazi Leak
3rd Debate 2012 ~ Horses and Bayonets
Romney - Most Awkward Candidate of All Time?
Republicans Predict Romney Landslide

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Mitt just can't seem to go away. Yes, during the last Presidential debate he did sort-of predict that Vladimir Putin might cause trouble in the future. Duh. But when asked what he would do differently from President Obama about the invasion of Ukraine, he had nothing but sanctions and more sanctions, which is what is happening now. Then along comes White House Press Corps member Jonathan Karl riding posse for Mitt, asking the President to 'splain his Fail, and Obama was having none of it. Epic smackdown!

Transcript of CBS Face the Nation March 23, 2014
Good morning, Governor, and welcome back to FACE THE NATION. During the campaign, and I want to start with this, you took a lot of heat for saying that Russia was our greatest geopolitical foe. In the third debate, the President came down pretty hard on you about that.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA (2012): A few months ago when you were asked what's the biggest geopolitical threat facing America you said Russia. Not al Qaeda, you said Russia. And the 1980s are now calling to ask for their foreign policy back because, you know, the Cold War has been over for twenty years.

BOB SCHIEFFER: I'm sure, Governor, you're tempted this morning to say, I told you so, but do you really believe that what happened in Ukraine had anything to do with what President Obama has or hasn't done?

MITT ROMNEY (2012 Republican Presidential Nominee): Well, there's no question, but that the-- the President's naivety with regards to-- to Russia and his faulty judgment about Russia's intentions and objectives has led to a number of foreign policy challenges that we face. And unfortunately not having anticipated Russia's intentions, the President wasn't able to shape the kinds of events that may have been able to prevent the kinds of circumstances that you're seeing in the Ukraine as well as the things that you're seeing in Syria.

. . . BOB SCHIEFFER: Well, we had put on some sanctions now, they don't seem to have done much good. You're saying if we had done it earlier, how-- how actually would we have done that? And-- and are the sanctions they put on now, do we need stronger sanctions?

MITT ROMNEY: Well, let's-- let's step back. I think effective leaders typically are able to see the future to a certain degree and then try and take actions to shape it in some way. And that's, of course, what this President has failed to do and his Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as well. They thought resetting relations with Russia, handing out gifts to Russia would somehow make Russia change its objectives. Well, that certainly wasn't the case.
Had we from the very beginning of the demonstrations in Crimea, excuse me, in-- in Ukraine, had we worked with our allies and said, look, let's talk about the kinds of severe sanctions we would put in place if Russia were to decide to move and had we then communicated that to Russia beforehand, not put in place the sanctions, but communicate, look, Russia, stand down here. Don't you think about grabbing territory or these are the things that will have to happen. These are the actions we will take. And by the way, Russia, we're not going to interfere with your base in Sevastopol and so forth. Had we communicated those things there is always the potential that we could have kept them from invading a country and annexing it into their own?




Transcript Via RealClearPolitics
JONATHAN KARL, ABC NEWS: Mr. President, thank you. In China, in Syria, in Egypt, and now in Russia we've seen you make strong statements, issue warnings that have been ignored. Are you concerned that America's influence in the world -- that your influence in the world -- is on the decline? And in light of recent developments, do you think Mitt Romney had a point when he said that Russia is America's greatest geopolitical foe, if not Russia, who? And Mr. Prime Minister, do you think these sanctions will change Vladimir Putin's calculation? Or cause him to back down. Where do you see a Russian red line where if they go any further, into Eastern Ukraine, into Moldova, when would options beyond sanctions have to be considered?

BARACK OBAMA: I think if the premise of the question is that whenever the United States objects to an action and other countries don't immediately do what we want, that that's been the norm, that would pretty much erase most of twentieth century history.
. . . Russia is a regional power that is threatening some of its immediate neighbors, not out of strength but out of weakness...
. . . The fact that Russia felt compelled to go in militarily and lay bare these violations of international law indicates less influence, not more.





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Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Snowden Evolves into Max Headroom for TED Talk

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Forget about the Russian invasion of Crimea in Ukraine - Edward Snowden needs to talk about the security of the United States as a remote robot! No really - irony is lost on this guy. We are in danger from the NSA, but meanwhile his friend Putin is invading other countries, not to mention spying on everybody. But nevermind that - Snowden is a hero!

Previous Related Posts:
Define Spy For Us ~ Greenwald and Snowden Secrets
Snowden Supporters Applaud His Empty Chair in Berlin
Edward Snowden ~ Hero or Villain

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Whistleblower Edward Snowden has appeared as a surprise guest at the Ted (Technology, Entertainment and Design) conference in Vancouver.
Speaking via a robotic screen from an undisclosed location in Russia, the fugitive promised that there are more revelations to come.
He urged tech firms to protect users by encrypting all web pages.
Web inventor Sir Tim Berners-Lee joined him on stage, describing him as a "hero".
~ The BBC

At the end of Snowden’s appearance, Anderson stuck a TED conference badge on Snownden’s bot and invited him to stick around for the week. With that, he rolled offstage, accompanied by his lawyer
~ Wired

Complete TED Transcript Here
Chris Anderson: You’ve been called many things in the last few months: whistleblower, traitor, hero… What words would you use to describe yourself?

Edward Snowden: You know, everybody who’s involved with this debate has been struggling over me, my personality and how to describe me. This isn’t the question we should be struggling with. Who I am really doesn’t matter at all. If I’m the worst person in the world, hate me and move on. What really matters here are the issues of the government we want, the Internet we want, the relationship between people and societies. That’s what I hope the debate will move towards. If i had to describe myself, I’m not a hero, patriot, traitor. I’d say I’m an American and a citizen. [Applause.]












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So surreal you could fry an egg on it.
~ Dave F. on YouTube

The nay Sayers of this video don't have a clue the planets round. Go back to your trailor park and be the all American you can be by being on welfare and taking pills and become controlled like a puppet 
~ Zachary V. YouTube

Just wait until you see Edward Snowden become the US president in few years LOL
This guy is making history, similar to Nelson Mandela!
~ DJ Lando on YouTube

Anyone noticing the irony that Snowden is only able to make his case for liberty and democracy because it happens to be a good way for Putin to poke the US in the eye?
~ Kevin T. on YouTube

Snowden might as well be working for RT (Russia Today)
Snowden said "What really matters here is the kind of government we want; the kind of internet we want."
The kind of place where child porn purveyors can trade their wares without worrying about prosecution.
Russia is playing him like a fool, stroking his ego to keep the goods coming.
~ SaucyMugWump on ZDNet






























Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Putin Shambles on Ukraine - With Bizarro-World Press Conference

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Wow, I think today will go down in Russian history, filed under "bizarre."

From Julia Ioffe in The Nation
Slouching in a fancy chair in front of a dozen reporters, Putin squirmed and rambled. And rambled and rambled. He was a rainbow of emotion: Serious! angry! bemused! flustered! confused! So confused. Victor Yanukovich is still the acting president of Ukraine, but he can't talk to Ukraine because Ukraine has no president. Ukraine needs elections, but you can't have elections because there is already a president. And no elections will be valid given that there is terrorism in the streets of Ukraine. And how are you going to let just anyone run for president? What if some nationalist punk just pops out like a jack-in-the-box? An anti-Semite? Look at how peaceful the Crimea is, probably thanks to those guys with guns holding it down. Who are they, by the way?
. . . Today's Putin was nervous, angry, cornered, and paranoid, periodically illuminated by flashes of his own righteousness. Here was an authoritarian dancing uncomfortably in his new dictator shoes, squirming in his throne.

























































Sunday, March 2, 2014

Optics Delusion ~ Russia Invades Ukraine - Twitter Erupts Over Obama in Jeans

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Official White House Photographer Pete Souza tweeted a picture of President Obama speaking to Russian President Vladimir Putin on the phone in the Oval Office about Ukraine, and no one really cared about a possible war or diplomacy. What mattered was . . . why was the President wearing blue jeans while talking on the phone?! Why wasn't he wearing a smartly tailored suit on a SATURDAY? People weren't incensed just that Obama was wearing jeans while speaking to another world leader, they were upset because the picture wasn't "staged" precisely to their liking. OPTICS!!!!

No, really. this happened . . .



Pete Souza responded to critics of the photo:



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