| Author | Message | ||
     Sifo |
England used to be the premier power in the world. Of course, during that period, they gained their power through tyranny. Perhaps it's no great wonder that they don't recognize the evil in their back yard. | ||
| Brumbear |
Well currently the combined military of GB,France,Germany,Australia is 616,774 active and reserve The US is 1,369,352 active 850,000 reserve How exactly are they gonna do that? The Russian military is 766,000 active with a reserve of 2,000,000 The Chinese have over 2,000,000 active and 3,900,000 in reserve | ||
| Reindog |
That is priceless....and true. How many of you understood what Sifo wrote without WikiBraining it? I got it immediately. | ||
| Reindog |
Bash America all y'all want but the parallels to 1938 are unmistakable. I hope I am wrong but Putin isn't going to stop with the Crimean Peninsula. Why should he? This has happened thousands of time in human history. Northern Ireland for instance. | ||
| Blake |
"It would be impossible to come to the BadWeB, it being a minuscule representative of the American psyche, and expect any less a number of stupid unfathomed responses like the above." The idiocy is in thinking that if America was to disengage, all would be better. That's just incredibly naive. In the vacuum left by our absence, the opposing power brokers would step in. In no particular order... Iran, Hezbola, Hamas, Muslim Brotherhood, Al Qaeda, Russia, N. Korea, China, Cuba, Venezuela, the Balkans, the former Soviet block... The world would turn red with blood and for Marxism.. Do we act in our interests? D'uh! It just so happens that our interests are more often than not a LOT more noble than others. History is pretty clear on the issue. "Mind your own business," followed by "you should have intervened sooner!" Unbelievable. The mental gymnastics defy comprehension. The intellectual price some are willing to pay in order to support their blame America first attitude is frightening. Now if you're talking about the most recent years of our foreign policy, we might agree. On the whole, no. If you don't find the above convincing, why then you're just stupid like everyone else in your country. LOL. Not really. It's just so juvenile and fun to make such commentary though, eh Sean? | ||
| Rocket_in_uk |
May I say without offense, here's one of yours. https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embed ded&v=oKqPwGTjDlY Rocket in England | ||
| Rocket_in_uk |
Oh puleeeze. Britain once a tyrannical nation. Yes yes yes. Move on. It's ancient history. Dumb comments about such will only serve to show who the gung-ho misinformed fools are. Britain's role in the world today is as ever powerful as always, and is not so by the threat of a gun. Rocket in England | ||
| Mr_grumpy |
I fully agree that without the US the Nazis & the Japanese would have won. However the same can be said of Russia, Canada, Australia, Great Britain... My point being it was a collective effort to get the job done, something that appears not to register in the USA. Hollywood is the major factor to blame in this as the big films have virtually always had Americans being the heroes & everybody else being the supporting role. Case in point, a few years back a film was made about the capture of the Enigma coding machine from a German submarine, a key moment of the war as it enabled the Allies to read the German communications. The Film has Americans doing it when the reality is it was the British. Also people tend to forget all the British & Commonwealth forces who perished fighting the Japanese. It's far from black & white. Please don't get me wrong Europeans are very grateful to America for the sacrifice so many of her citizens made, we're getting a bit tired of the "we won the war" thing though. If you read my post correctly about the US intervening sooner, you'll see that I was pointing out that events can be read in different ways depending on your viewpoint. It's the old, "One man's terrorist is another's freedom fighter" thing. To your countrymen in the revolutionary war the British were tyrants & those who stood against them good American patriots, to the British at that time those same people were ungrateful rebellious terrorists. | ||
| Rocket_in_uk |
The idiocy is in thinking that if America was to disengage, all would be better. That's just incredibly naive. In the vacuum left by our absence, the opposing power brokers would step in. In no particular order... Iran, Hezbola, Hamas, Muslim Brotherhood, Al Qaeda, Russia, N. Korea, China, Cuba, Venezuela, the Balkans, the former Soviet block... The world would turn red with blood and for Marxism.. Did you read links posted? Tell me how your above comment applies? Just to be sure all my American friends here know what the facts are (in case you didn't care to read the facts (yes they are posted by RT but they remain the FACTS) here they are. No argument. End of chat. Facts you need to know about Crimea and why it is in turmoil With its multinational society and a long history of conquests, the Crimean Peninsula has always been a crossroads of cultures – and a hotbed of conflicts. Amid Ukrainian turmoil, every ethnic group of Crimeans has its own vision of the region’s future. What is Crimea? Now known as Autonomous Republic of Crimea, the picturesque peninsula shooting out into Black Sea from mainland Ukraine was for centuries colonized and conquered by historic empires and nomadic tribes. Greeks, Scythians, Byzantians and the Genoese have all left traces of their presence in Crimean archeological sites and placenames. The Russian Empire annexed the territory of Crimea in the last quarter of the 18th century, after a number of bloody wars with the Ottoman Empire. As part of the 1774 Kuchuk-Kainarji peace treaty the Crimean Khanate, previously subordinate to Ottomans and notorious for its brutal and perpetual slave raids into East Slavic lands, aligned itself with Russia. Soon Empress Catherine the Great abolished the Crimean Khanate, giving them a historic Greek name of Taurida. Soviet citizens got to know Crimea as an “all-Union health resort,” with many of those born in the Soviet Union sharing nostalgic memories of children’s holiday camps and seaside. Who lives there now? The majority of those living in Crimea today are ethnic Russians – almost 1,200,000 or around 58.3 percent of the population, according to the last national census conducted back in 2001. Some 24 percent are Ukrainians (around 500,000) and 12 percent are Crimean Tatars. However, in the Crimea’s largest city of Sevastopol, which is considered a separate region of Crimea, there are very few Crimean Tatars and around 22 percent of Ukrainians, with over 70 percent of the population being Russians. An absolute majority of the Crimean population (97 percent) use Russian as their main language, according to a Kiev International Institute of Sociology poll. One of the first decisions of the interim Kiev government directly hit Crimea, as it revoked a law that allowed Russian and other minority languages to be recognized as official in multicultural regions. What's happening now? After the Ukrainian President was ousted and an interim government was established in Kiev, the Russian majority started protesting outside the regional parliament, urging local MPs not to support it. They want the Autonomous Region to return to the constitution of 1992, under which Crimea briefly had its own president and independent foreign policy. The parliament of the Crimean Autonomous Region was due to declare on Wednesday the region’s official position toward the new authorities in Kiev. The Mejlis of the Crimean Tatars has spoken out sharply against holding a parliamentary session on the issue, expressing their support for the new central authorities. Back in 2012 members of the Mejlis ran for parliamentary elections as part of Yulia Tymoshenko’s bloc and remain active supporters of the revolutionary Kiev government. Two separate rallies, consisting of several thousand protesters, faced each other in front of the parliament building in the Crimean capital, Simferopol. Two people have died as a result of scuffles and stampede and about 30 were injured, before the head of the Mejlis, Refat Chubarov, called for the participants of the rally to go home peacefully. While the Mejlis represents only around 20 percent of the minority, they claim to be the voice of the whole Tatar population. Many of the Crimean Tatars actually participated in the stand-off on the side of pro-Russian forces. Following the example of Kiev, vigilante groups are being formed, with about 3,500 people already patrolling the streets of Crimea along with police to prevent any provocations. After the central government in Kiev disbanded the Berkut special police task force, new authorities in Sevastopol have refused to comply and welcomed all Berkut officers who feel intimidated to come to live in Crimea with their families. Sevastopol earlier elected a new mayor after the popular gathering ousted the local government, which tried to cling to power by pledging allegiance to Kiev’s new rulers. Impact of 2014 change of power in Kiev Turmoil in the Crimean Autonomous Region began after the new Ukrainian authorities revoked a law that gave legal grounds for regional use of minority languages, including Russian. The 2012 law allowed predominantly Russian-speaking regions of Ukraine to use Russian in official business, education and some other areas. The new government in Kiev has also proposed an initiative that would prohibit members of the former regime from occupying official posts. Abolition of the regional language law sparked controversy throughout Ukraine. Even in the most nationalistic western regions of the country, people spoke against the reforms. In the stronghold of the far-right opposition, Lvov citizens announced a day of the Russian language, calling on all locals to speak Russian for one day in solidarity with the Russian population of Ukraine. How was Crimea separated from Russia? In 1954, a controversial decision of Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev, himself an ethnic Ukrainian, transferred the Crimea peninsula to the Ukrainian SSR, extracting it from Russian territory. Following the breakup of the Soviet Union, Khrushchev’s “gift” has been widely criticized by many Russians, including the majority of those living in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. Adding to the confusion was also the status of Soviet-era Sevastopol, which not only remained the largest Crimean city, but also retained its special strategic and military profile. In 1948, Sevastopol was separated from the surrounding region and made directly subordinate to Moscow. Serving as an important Soviet naval base, it remained a “closed city” for years. In the 1990s, the status of Sevastopol became the subject of endless debates between Russia and Ukraine. Following negotiations, the city with the surrounding territories was granted a special “state significance” status within the Ukrainian state, and some of the naval facilities were leased to Russia for its Black Sea Fleet until at least 2047. However, the city’s Russian majority and some outspoken Russian politicians still consider it to be a part of Russia. Ethnic controversy By the beginning of the 20th century, Russians and the Crimean Tatars were equally predominant ethnic groups in Crimea, followed by Ukrainian, Jewish and other minorities. Crimea was both a royal resort and an inspiration for some of the great Russian poets, writers and artists, some of whom lived or were born there. During WWII some 20,000 Crimean Tatars allied with the Nazi German occupants, but many others also fought the Germans within the Soviet Army. Citing the collaboration of Crimean Tatars with the Nazis, Joseph Stalin ordered the whole ethnic group to be deported from Crimea to several Central Asian Soviet republics. Officially, 183,155 people were deported from Crimea, followed by about 9,000 Crimean Tatar WWII veterans. That made up about 19 percent of the Crimean population on the eve of war, almost half of which was by then Russian. While the move was officially criticized by the communist leadership as early as in 1967, the Tatars were de facto unable to return to Crimea until the late 1980s. The tragic events surrounding Stalin’s deportation obviously shaped the ethnic group’s detestation of the Soviet regime. Referendums and hopes In 1991, the people of Crimea took part in several referendums. One proclaimed the region an Autonomous Republic within the Soviet Union, with 93.26 percent of the voters supporting the move. As the events unfolded fast, another one was already asking if the Crimeans supported the independence of Ukraine from the Soviet Union – a question that gathered 54 percent support. However, a referendum on Crimea’s independence from Ukraine was indefinitely banned from being held, leading critics to assert that their lawful rights were oppressed by Kiev authorities. Complicating the issue was the return of the Crimean Tatars, who not only started to resettle in tens of thousands, but also rivaled local authorities. The Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People was formed to represent the rights and interests of the ethnic minority. Although it was never officially recognized as an official organization, the body has enjoyed undisputed authority over most of Crimean Tatars and has successfully pushed for some concessions for the ethnic group in local laws. While the Crimean Tatar re-settlers and the peninsula’s current Russian majority have learned to understand one another as neighbors, hardcore politicians from both ethnic groups also created grounds for a heated standoff. Calls for wider autonomy and aggressive lobbying for Crimean Tatar rights have prompted several pro-Russian Crimean political leaders to call the Mejlis an “organized criminal group” leading “unconstitutional” activities. The remarks sparked furious claims of “discrimination” from the Crimean Tatar community. What happens next? The ultimate goal of the ethnic Russian population protesting in Crimea is to hold a referendum on whether the region should retain its current status as an autonomous region in Ukraine, to become independent, or become part of Russia again. In the meantime, they claim to have a right to disobey orders of the “illegal” central government. The Mejlis Tatar group, meanwhile, feels that ethnic Russians are trying to “tear Crimea away from Ukraine” excluding them from deciding the land’s fate. They however represent only a small portion of the Tatar minority, while the rest remain apolitical or even support the Crimea’s right for self-determination. Right-wing radicals from Western Ukraine earlier threatened to send the so-called “trains of friendship” full of armed fighters in order to crush any signs of resistance to the revolution they were fighting so hard for. The Kiev authorities busy with appointing roles in the revolutionary government in the meantime embraced a soft approach towards Crimea. The interim interior minister even did not undertake any “drastic measures” to arrest fugitive ousted President Yanukovich, fearing that may spark unrest. Russia repeatedly confirmed it does not doubt Crimea is a part of Ukraine, even though it understands the emotions of the residents of the region. This week Russian MPs initiated a bill that will allow Russian citizenship within six month if the applicant successfully proves his or her Russian ethnicity. It is prepared especially to save Russian-speaking Ukrainians from possible infringement of their rights. The facts behind a so called Russian invasion are here. Russia’s 25,000-troop allowance & other facts you may not know about Crimea Ukraine’s statement at the UN that ‘16,000 Russian soldiers had been deployed’ across Crimea sparked a MSM feeding frenzy that steadfastly ignored any hard facts that got in their way. Especially unwelcome is the fact that the so-called ‘invasion force’ has been there for 15 years already. The media many trust described in hysterical tones how the Autonomous Republic of Crimea was under a full-scale Russian invasion with headlines like: “Ukraine says Russia sent 16,000 troops to Crimea”, “Ukraine crisis deepens as Russia sends more troops into Crimea,” as well as “What can Obama do about Russia's invasion of Crimea?”. Facts, and ardent statements by top Russian diplomats were totally ignored by the western ‘war press’. Russian UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin pointed to the longstanding 25,000 troop allowance while FM Sergey Lavrov stressed the Russian military “strictly executes the agreements which stipulate the Russian fleet’s presence in Ukraine, and follows the stance and claims coming from the legitimate authority in Ukraine and in this case the legitimate authority of the Autonomous Republic Crimea as well.” So here they are, the facts: 1) A Russian naval presence in Crimea dates to 1783 when the port city of Sevastopol was founded by Russian Prince Grigory Potemkin. Crimea was part of Russia until Nikita Khruschev gave it to Ukraine in 1954. 2) In 1997, amid the wreckage of the USSR, Russia & Ukraine signed a Partition Treaty determining the fate of the military bases and vessels in Crimea. The deal sparked widespread officer ‘defections’ to Russia and was ratified by the Russian & Ukrainian parliaments in 1999. Russia received 81.7 percent of the fleet’s ships after paying the Ukrainian government US$526.5 million. 3) The deal allowed the Russian Black Sea Fleet to stay in Crimea until 2017. This was extended by another 25 years to 2042 with a 5-year extension option in 2010. 4) Moscow annually writes off $97.75 million of Kiev’s debt for the right to use Ukrainian waters and radio frequencies, and to compensate for the Black Sea Fleet’s environmental impact. 5) The Russian navy is allowed up to - 25,000 troops, - 24 artillery systems with a caliber smaller than 100 mm, - 132 armored vehicles, and - 22 military planes, on Crimean territory. 6) Five Russian naval units are stationed in the port city of Sevastopol, in compliance with the treaty: - The 30th Surface Ship Division formed by the 11th Antisubmarine Ship Brigade. Comprises the Black Sea Fleet’s flagship guard missile cruiser Moskva as well as Kerch, Ochakov, Smetlivy, Ladny, and Pytlivy vessels, and the 197th Landing Ship Brigade, consisting of seven large amphibious vessels; - The 41st Missile Boat Brigade includes the 166th Fast Attack Craft Division, consisting of Bora and Samum hovercrafts as well as small missile ships Mirazh and Shtil, and 295th missile Boat Division; - The 247th Separate Submarine Division, consisting of two diesel submarines – B-871 Alrosa and B-380 Svyatoy Knyaz Georgy; - The 68th Harbor Defense Ship Brigade formed by 4 vessels of the 400th Antisubmarine Ship Battalion and 418 Mine Hunting Ship Division respectively.; - The 422nd Separate Hydrographic Ship Division boasts the Cheleken, Stvor, Donuzlav and GS-402 survey vessels and hydrographic boats. 7) Russia has two airbases in Crimea, in Kacha and Gvardeysky. 8) Russian coastal forces in Ukraine consist of the 1096th Separate Anti-Aircraft Missile Regiment in Sevastopol and the 810th Marine Brigade, which hosts around 2,000 marines. 9) Russian naval units are permitted to implement security measures at their permanent post as well as during re-deployments in cooperation with Ukrainian forces, in accordance with Russia’s armed forces procedures. Authorities in the Ukrainian Autonomous Republic of Crimea – where over half the population is Russian – requested Moscow’s assistance after the self-proclaimed government in Kiev introduced a law abolishing the use of languages other than Ukrainian in official circumstances. Last week, Russia’s Federation Council unanimously approved President Vladimir Putin’s request to send the country’s military forces to Ukraine to ensure peace and order in the region “until the socio-political situation in the country is stabilized.” However, the final say about deploying troops lies with Putin, who hasn’t yet made such a decision, stressing that deploying military force would be a last resort. Tell me all of the above is bollocks. Rocket in England | ||
| Just_ziptab |
What pray tell does America want here? America (we the people) don't want a damned thing there. Don't blame us for what most of us don't want.It's the damnable politicians that represent their own agenda and not that of the people. Knock on any household door and ask... | ||
| Reindog |
Goebbels would be most proud of you, Sean. I can't wait for what RT has to say about Estonia. Your BAF BS just ain't cutting it. Innes, I mostly agree with you. The 'Cans and the 'Ish are buds (Sean included) and are mostly spilling beer foam on the counter top in this bar room "solving" of the world's problems. Welcome to North United States.  | ||
| Greatlaker |
Excellent rhetorical response there Reindog. Nice and empty. You are a master at verbal slush. | ||
| Brumbear |
The Allied effort in WWII will never be thought of as nonexistent to anyone who studies it a minute bit.Also The British did help in the pacific theater a great deal however they also had huge interests to protect as well as the French in the Pacific and North Africa. I just wanted to point out that left unchecked the potential for a world conflict grows by the day. And when shyt hits the fan Europe aint calling ghostbusters if ya follow. I have said from the beginning I think this is political leap frog here but I am starting to realize my presidents lack of conviction may cause more harm than good.If we don't mobilize troops and stand to and we let Puty get a bigger head there may be a military conflict. | ||
| Ferris_von_bueller |
Britain's role in the world today is as ever powerful as always, and is not so by the threat of a gun. You must be joking. | ||
| Fahren |
Ferris, Follow the money. He's not joking. | ||
| Ferris_von_bueller |
What money? http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-03-09/global-de bt-exceeds-100-trillion-as-governments-binge-bis-s ays.html | ||
| Kenm123t |
We have the fools in congress and ole Dumbo But the Brit's have parliament I love Watching them on the BBC absolute comedy in action! We have Obama Brit's had Chamberlin We are hoping doesn't end up the same way with Europe beaten down by years of war On the other hand who gives a damn what happens to that Cesspool | ||
| Ferris_von_bueller |
Europe is heading for Islamization. Native birth rates are stagnant or in the negative. Good luck living under Sharia law. | ||
| Rocket_in_uk |
Knock on any household door and ask... I did. I knocked on the BadWeB door of a few American's, and found out what I already knew. For my efforts, as I knew anyway, I would lose friends, lose respect, and be insulted, as would my country. My efforts are not fruitless when responses typify an attitude of endemic patriotism whipped into paranoia fueled frenzy about how some foreign nation allegedly threatens the worlds security. How many times have you heard this rhetoric since the end of the 2nd WW? Rocket in England | ||
| Ferris_von_bueller |
...you don't seem to have any problems insulting Americans | ||
| Rocket_in_uk |
What money? The legitimate money for starters. http://www.trendingcentral.com/rule-britannia-brit ain-still-second-strongest-global-power-world-says -study/ Rocket in England | ||
| Rocket_in_uk |
...you don't seem to have any problems insulting Americans To have an opposed opinion is usually seen by most American's as insulting - hence part of the problem the rest of the world has with America. Rocket in England | ||
| Rocket_in_uk |
The money makers running America. http://media.cq.com/50richest/the-50-richest-membe rs-of-congress-113th-2013.html Rocket in England | ||
| Cityxslicker |
The Russian Assets have been there for over 25 years; I have stared at them many a time. They also have underground submarine ports - which before the farcus - you could tour for a couple of bucks - damn what we would have paid for that during the cold war American interest in the region is thin at best..... until they attack that Destroyer in the Black Sea (which they just hebbed in by scuttling a Russian ship in the Straits back out into the med) Things will get interesting - before they get better. | ||
| Aesquire |
I go help a bud move an air compressor, and you guys are fighting the war of 1812?? While I suppose I should still be upset at the depredations and cruelty of the English to my ancestors and their long term occupation etc. etc. It's probably time to get over their impressing merchant sailors. We might also consider that telling someone they should be grateful gets old and turns to resentment at a certain point. Sure, Europe is the birthplace of the most miserable, evil, tyrannical, and murderous concepts/ideologies/religions ever seen. The whole place would be in the grasp of tyrants if we hadn't helped. Not sure it isn't today, according to Ruskie news. It's also true that we in the US go isolationist, and then have to go stop Europe from burning. Yes, the Euros told us to leave them alone, and yes they told us to come help, sometimes within days of each bitch. So?? We probably deserved to be told to bugger off, and we usually come bail them out. We're freaking annoying relatives to each other, after all. The majority of Americans have European roots. Family bitches. Get a grip. So, a few thousand more troops on the Crimea? Did Putin ACTUALLY deny they were Russian? Seriously? Did anyone in the EU dispute that? Would Putin freeze their people if some president in Europe just went on tv and laughed at how stupidly dishonest that is? I think that may be the advice they get. I mean DAmn. Was Putin as convincing as Obama is when HE lies to our face? I find it hard to defend the actions of our country when I have such a low opinion of the brains in charge. Feel like an idiot saying "not my fault our President is a moron in international affairs", | ||
| Strokizator |
Hey Rocket, politics aside, if you ever make your way to our shores there's plenty of us that would show you a good time. The riding here is unparalleled (am I being too pro-USA?). I won't be heading your way as I won't go anywhere that I can't drive home from. | ||
| Rocket_in_uk |
Hey Rocket, politics aside, if you ever make your way to our shores there's plenty of us that would show you a good time. The riding here is unparalleled (am I being too pro-USA?). I won't be heading your way as I won't go anywhere that I can't drive home from. I have already had the pleasure thank you, and will do again sometime. One of my to do's is bring my own Buell. As for you coming this way. If it's your safety you're worried about, you'll be fine here given the sizable US military presence here in the UK and the rest of the world. Trust me. It is safe to travel outside of America. Take a look http://empire.is/ Rocket in England | ||
| Crackhead |
UK businesses finance or facilitate the financing of a lot of the world's economy. Think old school J.P. Morgan and Company. | ||
| Fahren |
crackhead, yep.  | ||
| Reindog |
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