Хрїстóсъ воскрéсе! Воистину воскресе!

...and Christ conquers all!

All will be revealed!

Posted by: Brad | Apr 20 2014 9:47 utc | 1

The backup in the system is being unclogged is all. Kiev has no military chips to play, so this will peter out in a few days. You forget external powers can't be drawn into a war unless there are two participants. Russia invades Kiev can't do anything, and the West won't go to bat over something not NATO.

But Russia will not invade, they will instead allow this to drag on a few more days until the coup government is exposed as completely powerless, which is all this is about. After being embarrassed by paramilitary in the East, the Russian demands will be accepted post haste. The objective is not to conquer but to discredit.

Posted by: Todd Bennett | Apr 20 2014 10:25 utc | 2

I do not think this incident will cause Russia to intervene militarily; we are still far, far away from that. It is possible that at some point Russia will intervene, but that will only be at the end game. The game now is to win as much ground as possible. Outside interference will solidify the battle lines and cause a strong (anti-Russian) reaction.

At the moment the pro-Rus' Russian Spring is advancing, so there would be little motive for Russia to get involved anyway, even if militarily interfering in the internal affairs of its neighbors was Russian policy.

P.S. – Fascism now has a fancy new name: Pro-Unity! NATO occupation of Ukraine sold to public as defiance against Russian aggression.

Posted by: Petri Krohn | Apr 20 2014 10:37 utc | 3

"This is likely the beginning of an intense civil war in Ukraine."

stop your fear mongering. there's not enough concensus for an intense civil war. and a bunch of fuckwits in ski masks in the dark of night wandering around wreaking havoc doesn't amount to civil war. your long list of tweets refers to one incident. chill out.

Posted by: john | Apr 20 2014 10:38 utc | 4

I agree with Petri Krohn @3

The Russians surely had intelligence of the Privat Sektor move, and it seems to me unlikely that the Russian inhabitants of the affected districts are as fearful as the Americans around Washington DC a few years ago who holed up in their homes in response to a series of random suburban mall shootings. Unless the Russians are that fearful, nothing will happen except some revenge killings. The PV thugs are pretty exposed out there beyond their non-existent supply line.

Posted by: Knut | Apr 20 2014 10:54 utc | 5

Posted by: john | Apr 20, 2014 6:38:19 AM | 4

How many people do you need for a "civil war" of terrorist acts nowadays? Pravy Sector might just be the critical mass.

Posted by: somebody | Apr 20 2014 11:00 utc | 6

2,4

Your assessments fail the situation completely. Absent a viable central power you need just 500 to 1500 well armed militiamen at most do impose civil war on a nation. And to date there are no indications that a viable central power may be reinstalled, even without foreign interference. The old and new powers are discredited and the genuine part of the maidan-movement was and is now more than ever clueless, purposeless, planless.

Nevertheless I believe, you are right in one aspect: The civil societies in Ukraine seem strong enough to baffle a rapid, explosive escalation like we saw in Syria. So there will be civil war, but on a comparatively low level. I expect the main outcome - and the real purpose behind it - to be a strong migration movement towards Russia followed by economic collapse of industries because the qualified workforce will leave first.

Posted by: TomGard | Apr 20 2014 11:09 utc | 7

oh dear, that was quick - well, who knows whose provocation it was, anyway

Head of the self-defense units of Ukraine's eastern town of Slavyansk, Vladimir Ponomaryov, who was appointed Slavyansk mayor by the town's residents, has asked Russia to send peacekeepers to eastern Ukraine to protect civilians from National Guard and Right Sector militants.

No, I don't think Russia did it, but it is a clever message to whom it may concern, that if there will be UN peacekeepers in Ukraine, they will be Russian.

Posted by: somebody | Apr 20 2014 11:15 utc | 8

This here is the story of the Georgian peacekeeping force - the "Joint Control Commission for Georgian–Ossetian Conflict Resolution"

Seems to me no way how this is played, Russia will win - bit like holding the bank in Roulette.

Posted by: somebody | Apr 20 2014 11:20 utc | 9

fivethirtyeight does the statistics - and explains why

- it might be in the interest of the Kyiv government if Ukraine's Eastern provinces secede
- but not in Russia's interest

so this is some kind of billiard - the "Kyiv government"/US/Europe pretend to be pro unity but aren't, Russia is supposed to be pro Eastern Ukrainian secession but is not.

Posted by: somebody | Apr 20 2014 11:35 utc | 10

The Interior Ministry of the Kiev junta issued a declaration in which it says it "forgives" the Berkut and is asking them to return--and to serve the junta in suppressing the anti-fascist protests in Ukraine. Altogether, the Berkut numbered some 4,000 policemen whom the junta disbanded in one of its first acts after seizing power. #desperation
http://www.vesti.ru/doc.html?id=1498788&tid=105474

Posted by: brian | Apr 20 2014 11:42 utc | 11

@ 6

"How many people do you need for a "civil war" of terrorist acts nowadays?"

more than two cars full

@ 7

"Nevertheless I believe, you are right in one aspect..."

yeah, that was pretty much my comment's only aspect

Posted by: john | Apr 20 2014 11:51 utc | 12

Posted by: john | Apr 20, 2014 7:51:29 AM | 12

I would say the formation of "self defense" forces is the first indicator of civil war. If this incident meant lighting the fuse remains to be seen.

Posted by: somebody | Apr 20 2014 11:58 utc | 13

@13

look, my original statement was, "there's not enough concensus for an intense civil war."

and i'll stand by it, skip your little semantic quiz, and wait for what "remains to be seen."

ok?

Posted by: john | Apr 20 2014 12:08 utc | 14

This site was down for me from late last night until early this morning, in NYC.

Posted by: guest77 | Apr 20 2014 17:07 utc | 15

Sloviansk request russian help

Followed his tweets today as usual alot of stupid western brainwashed trolls harassing him
https://twitter.com/GrahamWP_UK

Posted by: Anonymous | Apr 20 2014 17:15 utc | 16

I suspect we can see more events like this one in Ukraine.

It will divide those with something to lose on the Russian side from those who do not, and it will bring out the radicals. And though this is just one incident like john mentions, there is plenty of reason to believe that there will be more.

The head of the CIA was in Kiev for a reason - and if he was there for a visit, you can be sure that there are many CIA underlings there laying out the ground game.

The USA has done this numerous times in Central America and in Iraq and Syria - we'll see if it is dangerous enough to try it right here on the doorstep of Russia. An open war in the east of Ukraine frankly benefits the EU's economy - the refugees will head east into Russia, and there will be plenty of opportunity for sales of small arms and other materials from Germany and Poland.

Posted by: guest77 | Apr 20 2014 17:25 utc | 17

@2
Total agreement, Todd Bennet:- Kiev has no military chips to play. It looks terrible but the womb of “all the Russias,” Ukraina, still seems pretty well secure. Human being are now tending to be armed, thus the anti-humans shall be shortly matched.
@4
Seemingly correct, john:-there’s not enough consensus for an intense civil war
@7
And TomGad correctly adds:- The civil societies in Ukraine seem strong enough to baffle a rapid, explosive escalation…

Posted by: Michaël | Apr 20 2014 17:27 utc | 18

You can't be bothered to read the long chorus of people saying that the blog is under continuous or almost continuous DDoS Attack, yet you rush into print with a hysterical seriews of tweets.

Posted by: Rowan Berkeley | Apr 20 2014 17:39 utc | 19

b - hysterical scribblings with no new information, no analysis, even the embarrassing attempt to instigate religious "feelings" and put the blame on the EU "offer" in November - was that the start of the ukrainian history??? stupid attempts to only draw a picture of bloodthirsty western politicians instead of an analysis of the situation. Reality is much more than you seem to see.

The geneva accord has stirred a process of reasonable steps in clear words none of the four parties involved can ignore without loosing public support. That there will be disruptions in the days and weeks coming is clear like broth, but these reactions here are neither wise nor worth of adults. Childish screaming.

Posted by: thomas | Apr 20 2014 17:39 utc | 20

While I respect your opinion, I don't see this developing into a civil war...not yet, at least.

If the right sector was involved--and I think they were--doesn't this expose their weakness? These guys can't even take down a checkpoint manned by "unarmed" protestors.
How are goofballs like that going to start a civil war?

I think we are overestimating their power. These guys are NOT the Waffen SS. They're more like the 3 Stooges.

Posted by: plantman | Apr 20 2014 17:44 utc | 21

Site availability

It took a very long time and numerous attempts to get Moon up today here in N.Fl at approx 12:30 in the afternoon.

It seems to have cleared for now.

Posted by: rouge | Apr 20 2014 17:47 utc | 22

He doesn't seem to care, we've been telling him that for over 24 hrs. Don't say he can't be bothered to read the comments on the existing posts from the last two days before rushing into print with his half-baked shock horror "news". That would be too stupid.

BTW, I’m thinking mystery snipers here, and in Mariupol during the night of Tues/Wed Apr 15/16. Mystery snipers who materialise and dematerialise like ghosts, in the Maidan as they did in Syria and Egypt. Since I can’t be bothered to keep up with their name changes, I shall continue to refer to them as “Blackwater”

Posted by: Rowan Berkeley | Apr 20 2014 17:52 utc | 23

The un-professional journalist Graham Phiilps has been the best Western reporter in Eastern Ukraine. He simply shoots video of the area, centers of activity, with local residents airing their views.

The BBC, NYT, WaPo Reuters all parrot the US/CIA line on events.

Posted by: Brindle | Apr 20 2014 17:54 utc | 24

"The EU made an "offer" to Yanukovich which could not accept without destroying the Ukrainian economy, especially the eastern industries. When he rejected the "offer" a "color revolution" was instigated in Kiev and the democratically elected Yanukovich was removed by force."

This is pure horseshit. But, people are buying horseshit, these days.

Posted by: slothrop | Apr 20 2014 18:00 utc | 25

Posted by: plantman | Apr 20, 2014 1:44:44 PM | 21

As a provocation it was successful.

Eastern self defense will now refuse to disarm (they already did, but now have more reason) and Western self defense will take that as reason not to disarm either.

As long as the "Kyiv government" does not deescalate - that would mean not to call Eastern self defense terrorist - and is not capable to get rid of their right sector/Swoboda "security advisors" the road is towards civil war.

I think this is intentional. This here is Yatseniuk on NBC Meet the Press yesterday - he does not seem to have understood the text of the Geneva statement, he obviously did not get any message to deescalate - the interviewer is even worse - basically pressuring him to ask for US weapons (which Yatseniuk does not do).

Posted by: somebody | Apr 20 2014 18:10 utc | 26

All: re site availability.

The problem is with Typepad.com who provide the DBMS that runs this site. All typepad sites are experiencing disruption at present and have been for several weeks, it's not just this one.

Dubhaltach

Posted by: Dubhaltach | Apr 20 2014 18:10 utc | 27

@ 10 Somebody,

Thanks for the link but I doubt Russia's Ukraine policy is driven by local electoral politics. It seems winning elections in Ukraine is meaningless, since the loosing side can just reverse the vote by "protesting." Since it has already happened twice in a decade, there is no reason to think it wont happen again if east Ukraine and Russia chose to play democracy by western rules.

By the same token, those who figured they can take power by extra-electoral means wont give up half the country just to win elections easily in the other half.

I just don't see how the west/NATO could benefit by watching Russia annex the best parts of Ukraine and leave them with Chernobyl and environs. Extreme violence and terror are fine when dealing with weak 3rd world countries, but not so much when dealing with countries having a near unlimited toolbox for hurting you back.

I'm not saying Russia wants to do this, only that it can easily and there isn't much to gain for NATO beyond easily scaring Poland and the east into greater compliance.

Posted by: Lysander | Apr 20 2014 18:11 utc | 28

The Kiev regime has now killed, that the public is aware, how many - 100?

Kramatorsk, Mariupol, and now Slavyansksk, plus those killed in Kiev. We won't count Oleksandr Muzychko. He hardly counts as human.

There is this interesting outpouring in the comments here, every time the Kiev regime kills a few more, that it is "old news". "stupidity", or "hysterical scribblings". What exactly has to occur before some people here take the threats of violence seriously? I mean, I know it isn't your brothers dying - but it is someones.

....

On a different note: Hey thomas, how's that lawsuit going?

Posted by: guest77 | Apr 20 2014 18:16 utc | 29

@thomas #20:

How are your attempts to intimidate b using the German legal system by accusing him of enabling holocaust denial going?

With that, you showed that you do not participate in this blog with good faith, so please leave.

@slothrop #25:

That is exactly hat happened.

A second troll.

Posted by: Demian | Apr 20 2014 18:22 utc | 30

All: re site availability. The problem is with Typepad.com who provide the DBMS that runs this site. All typepad sites are experiencing disruption at present and have been for several weeks, it's not just this one. Dubhaltach Posted by: Dubhaltach | Apr 20, 2014 2:10:51 PM | 27

Posted by: Rowan Berkeley | Apr 20 2014 18:25 utc | 31

Recent history. --- Delegations from the EU (impulse of Steinmeier? F. Min. of Germany), the US, Russia, Yanukovitch (then president) and some opposition leaders signed an agreement on Friday, Feb 21, in Kiev, after lengthy negotiations.

Announced by Yanukovitch in the early afternoon.

Agreed on: Early elections, a return to the 2004 constitution, plus other such as freeing Timoshenko, amnesties, more, etc.

Ex. Guardian: http://goo.gl/P5bFRg, RT video: http://on.rt.com/l6q3bh

The Maidan sniping began the day before, on Thursday, while the negotiations were ongoing.

The actors behind the scenes were determined no compromise be effected, no deal be agreed. So it was. Yanukovitch fled on Saturday, the morning after the deal was signed.

Steinmeier has said he doesn’t regret it, “You have to try.” (Spiegel interview, not linked.)

This latest signing of ‘accords’ or whatever (Geneva on Thur 17 April) is lame, odd.

The conditions are smiley-smirk or forked tongue-in-cheek, how does the US sign on and then threaten more sanctions against Russia? How can a disarmament program proceed without a very strong Gov / security forces / police on the ground to do that job?

Posted by: Noirette | Apr 20 2014 18:27 utc | 32

Matters in the Ukraine now rest in the hands of two parties: on the one hand the determined residents of the east and, on the other, the fascist rump affecting to be the Ukrainian people.
The latter obviously have the support of imperialism which means they have finance, arms and all the rentathug personnel they can absorb. But they do not appear to have much support beyond that. Not even in the "west's" public opinion which is beginning to wake up and realise that the warmongers always lie.

The other side, that of the east, where the Kiev junta has not been able to impose itself by intimidating opposition-though as the events b reports show they are trying hard- the situation is more complex and much more interesting. The Russian government does not want to get involved. The last thing it wants is to be forced by the west to send in troops to protect Russian speakers, though it is very much afraid, and so am I that it may have to do so if the terrorism from Kiev escalates.
But the prospect of the easterners allowing themselves to be colonised by Galician fascists- a road their grandparents were frog marched down- is unlikely. "New Russia will fight and New Russia will be right", to borrow a slogan which is about 100 years old in Ireland.

This introduces, after many years off history's stage, the people of Old Russia. In Russia the mood of apathy and mild toleration of the US and its wealthy Eurofriends is wearing off. After years in which all opposition to Putin came from the US Embassy based bourgeois right, the defeat at the White House where the Duma sat has lost its fearful sting. The Russian people will not allow their government, however much it might want to do so, to sell out to the west this time: blood is involved, these people in the Donbas are kith and kin who have lived and died shoulder to shoulder with the people of Moscow and the rest of Russia.
That may be the real result of this: the return in Russia of a popular nationalism, not the faux Orthodox pseudo tsarism of recent years but the spirit which fuelled the Red Army and gave a broken, plundered, cheated Russia victory against 21 Foreign armies, in 1921. Add this to the signs that popular economic and social demands are being put forward by the militants defending Odessa and the east and we see, looming behind the duel between Kiev's Right Sector and Moscow oriented oligarchs, the revival of the class struggle in Russia.

If the CIA has awakened the sleeping giant which gave birth to the Soviet Union it has made a big mistake.

(I'm amazed that 'b" should be attacked for not doing more to ensure the publication of Thomas and Berk's paranoid drivelling. But I shouldn't be, the world is a weird place.)

Posted by: bevin | Apr 20 2014 18:36 utc | 33

Posted by: Lysander | Apr 20, 2014 2:11:44 PM | 28

It does not make sense for Russia to annex the best part of Ukraine. What they need is a neutral buffer zone of influence. And they really plan for this free trade zone from Lisbon to Vladivostok.

US is interested in a New Cold War and Europe rearming. They also want a free trade zone with Europe. Plus, they want NATO a few kilometers closer to the Russian border.

So US is interested in a split and Russia is interested in united Ukraine (just not Ukraine united against Russia)

No one is interested in the economy of Ukraine.

Posted by: somebody | Apr 20 2014 18:39 utc | 34

@Noirette #32:

Dmitry Orlov's take on the agreement is that it was a challenge to the Kiev putsch regime to show that it is a real government capable of controlling something in its country and following through on international agreements.

The agreement also had the side benefit of being signed by both the US and RF, being about the Ukraine, but nowhere mentioning the Crimea.

Posted by: Demian | Apr 20 2014 18:39 utc | 35

RT foolishly has this disgusting turd, Robert Spencer on, to discuss the Boston Bombings. I don't care how much the host questions and argues with him, he is a revolting asshat and RT should know better than to trot out such a fucking goon.

He is discussing now describing Gaza as a place of "Luxury hotels and markets overflowing with food".

Posted by: guest77 | Apr 20 2014 18:42 utc | 36

@2

Agree.

Posted by: Tea | Apr 20 2014 18:43 utc | 37

Posted by: Brindle | Apr 20, 2014 1:54:16 PM | 24

He is very professional. And he speaks the language. Which should be a matter of course but is not.

Posted by: somebody | Apr 20 2014 18:46 utc | 38

All: re site availability. The problem is with Typepad.com who provide the DBMS that runs this site. All typepad sites are experiencing disruption at present and have been for several weeks, it's not just this one. Dubhaltach Posted by: Dubhaltach | Apr 20, 2014 2:10:51 PM | 27

Rubbish. Don't try to teach your grandmother to suck eggs.

Posted by: Rowan Berkeley | Apr 20, 2014 2:25:53 PM | 31

Sorry that you're as incapable of dealing with reality on this subject as you are everything else. But the fact remains that all typepad powered sites are having accessibility problems at the moment.

Dubhaltach

Posted by: Dubhaltach | Apr 20 2014 18:51 utc | 39

@29 + 30: reasonable well, as you have seen. The most ignorant word spitting machines have been banned here and/or left voluntarily; the insane Z discussions ceased, some here still have to learn to see the J as much human as the A B C. The amount of ad hominem attacks have been reduced dramatically by these measures, only sometimes when people like yourself don't have any more counter arguments in a discussion you fall back into ad hominem. Not too much to bother about, I believe you will still learn.

The registered letter I sent to b has not been collected and came back, so if you cause this site to be in the shit again I would be forced to call b through my lawyer now. But I don't think it's needed - don't you think it's much more pleasant to discuss in a rather civilised manner you experienced in the last weeks?

Posted by: thomas | Apr 20 2014 18:53 utc | 40

@11

1.) restore status of Russian language on Friday
2.) ratchet up tension with the Right
3.) restore Berkut

It almost sounds like a script.

Posted by: Tea | Apr 20 2014 18:55 utc | 41

thomas

forced to call b through my lawyer now.

Haha who do you think you are fooling?
With all your threats racist comments etc I guess you will need a lawyer if b plan to sue you.

Posted by: Anonymous | Apr 20 2014 19:04 utc | 42

@ 40

This is a blog.

A BLOG!

If it's not a good space for you, don't log on.

Posted by: Tea | Apr 20 2014 19:07 utc | 43

@Rowan Berkeley #31:

Typical Ubuntu user. Understands very little about computing.

Posted by: Demian | Apr 20 2014 19:09 utc | 44

There may very well be bugs in Typepad's script. But I've been inhabiting this miserable blogosphere for about 12 years, day in, day out, and I think I know the difference between a script failure and a DDoS attack. I got a 503 on it, "there are no servers available to handle your request," which suggests DDoS to me. I assume it will return. But no matter. If bernhard can't be bothered to say anything about it, then why dwell on it?

I'm more interested in the fact that Mr Pragma ("вот так") posted bernhard's full name without permission. I regard that sort of behaviour as intolerable. When I taxed him with it, he denied that he is even "Mr Pragma". So I hit him again with the fact that I have evidence that his great hero Alexandr Dugin is actually a supporter of extreme, right-wing religious Zionism. Perhaps that will shut him up for a while.

Posted by: Rowan Berkeley | Apr 20 2014 19:17 utc | 45

Gee whiz thomas, I merely asked you how an important endeavor of yours is going and you accuse me of an ad hominem attack?

What a prick.

Posted by: guest77 | Apr 20 2014 19:19 utc | 46

Er, Rowan... вот так is not Mr. Pragma.

You know that вот так used to hang out here. He wasn't nearly as prolific a writer as Mr. Pragma, though they shared some ideological similarities.

Posted by: guest77 | Apr 20 2014 19:22 utc | 47

This site was down for me from late last night until early this morning, in NYC.

Posted by: guest77 | Apr 20, 2014 1:07:36 PM | 15

Same, here in California.

Posted by: ben | Apr 20 2014 19:26 utc | 48

OT: Another negative article appears in the US press about Israel:
A look at the dual justice system in the West Bank

Again, it is just in my imagination that this has anything to do with Israel's not coming to the UNGA vote on the Crimea.

Posted by: Demian | Apr 20 2014 19:39 utc | 49

@45

I like how it doesnt occur to you that he probably isnt Mr. Pragma...

Posted by: Massinissa | Apr 20 2014 19:41 utc | 50

Ok, let's say he isn't Mr P, just another guy who happened to be addressed with the identical words by bernhard that Mr P was addressed with. He quotes them, and I recognised them. So maybe they are phase duplicates of each other from neighboring dimensions in hyperspace. That isn't the point I was making. The point I was making is that due to his dudgeon at having been kicked off here, like his phase replica Mr P, this BOT TAK posted bernhard's full name, with evidently malicious intent, and I detest that.

Posted by: Rowan Berkeley | Apr 20 2014 19:51 utc | 51

CNN - Armanpour - giving the full Russian perspective.

Posted by: somebody | Apr 20 2014 19:52 utc | 52

Poland trained Ukrainian putchists two months in advance

The Polish left-wing weekly Nie (No) published a startling witness account of the training given to the most violent of the EuroMaidan activists.

According to this source, in September 2013, Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski invited 86 members of the Right Sector (Sector Pravy), allegedly in the context of a university exchange program. In reality, the guests were not students, and many were over 40. Contrary to their official schedule, they did not go to the Warsaw University of Technology, but headed instead for the police training center in Legionowo, an hour’s drive from the capital. There, they received four weeks of intensive training in crowd management, person recognition, combat tactics, command skills, behavior in crisis situations, protection against gases used by police, erecting barricades, and especially shooting, including the handling of sniper rifles. […]

This scandal illustrates the role assigned by NATO to Poland in Ukraine, analogous to the one entrusted to Turkey in Syria. […]

To overthrow the government of its neighbor state, Poland resorted to Nazi activists in the same way that Turkey uses Al-Qaeda to overthrow the Syrian government.

Posted by: Demian | Apr 20 2014 20:04 utc | 53

OT re: site availability::

http://www.isitdownrightnow.com/typepad.com.html

http://downrightnow.com/typepad

Bot report problems, and the first site gave me a status of 'DOWN' even though I seem to be able to view and post at this moment. A couple days ago I could get the site to load about 30% of the time.

So, no, not a DDoS on MoA directly, unless they're trying to clobber TypePad to get to all the 'undesirables' in one go.

Posted by: Dr. Wellington Yueh | Apr 20 2014 20:07 utc | 54

@53 Your link doesn't seem to work.

Posted by: Bob In Portland | Apr 20 2014 20:07 utc | 55

keep on feeding the trolls folks.. doesn't seem to be working, but perhaps you are able to relieve yourselves some and bore the shit out of the rest of us.

Posted by: james | Apr 20 2014 20:14 utc | 56

There may very well be bugs in Typepad's script. But I've been inhabiting this miserable blogosphere for about 12 years, day in, day out, and I think I know the difference between a script failure and a DDoS attack. I got a 503 on it, "there are no servers available to handle your request," which suggests DDoS to me. I assume it will return. But no matter. If bernhard can't be bothered to say anything about it, then why dwell on it?

I'm more interested in the fact that Mr Pragma ("вот так") posted bernhard's full name without permission. I regard that sort of behaviour as intolerable. When I taxed him with it, he denied that he is even "Mr Pragma". So I hit him again with the fact that I have evidence that his great hero Alexandr Dugin is actually a supporter of extreme, right-wing religious Zionism. Perhaps that will shut him up for a while.

Posted by: Rowan Berkeley | Apr 20, 2014 3:17:51 PM | 45

Really you need to stop displaying your ignorance, unless you have access to the logs - something which I very seriously doubt that either B or Typepad would give you you have no way of knowing what the state of this particular site's DBMS and operating system was at an particular point. You are yet again pretending to experience and expertise that you do not in fact possess.

A 503 error message - simply means that some part of the set of progams that service web requests to a server are unable to cope with demand. This inability to handle a HTTP request is typically due either to temporary overloading or to maintenance being carried out. The point of a 503 is that it denotes a temporary condition the server is still functioning but something such as the fact that at present typepad's engineers are currently altering the typepad environment's load balancing algorithms is preventing it from servicing a particular HTTP request, a particular class of request, or even all requests in which case you'll get other error messages being thrown because, for example, the socket creation timed out.

You can't even get that much right and you try to pontificate about the software and the DBMS that runs this site along with many others. The fact is that all typepad driven sites are experiencing disruption at present. I'm not getting into a debate with you on this because unlike you I know what's happening what a 503 means and unlike you I know what error messages are generated by a typepad based system when it's under attack. You manifestly are not in possession of this knowledge as your ludicrous and pompous remarks above plainly demonstrate.

Dubhaltach

Posted by: Dubhaltach | Apr 20 2014 20:15 utc | 57

Same, here in California.

Posted by: ben | Apr 20, 2014 3:26:12 PM | 48

Same for everyone worldwide - in fact there are lots of typepad blog owners who are at present unable to login to their own blogs. I know some of 'em - they're not particularly happy little Easter bunnies at present :-).

Dubhaltach

Posted by: Dubhaltach | Apr 20 2014 20:17 utc | 58

Somebody

Armanpour, really "somebody"? :)
Come on we dont need to drag that ugly western witch to this board do we?

Posted by: Anonymous | Apr 20 2014 20:18 utc | 59

@ Posted by: Dr. Wellington Yueh | Apr 20, 2014 4:07:14 PM | 54

indeed

Dubhaltach

Posted by: Dubhaltach | Apr 20 2014 20:21 utc | 60

Kiev-regime with its right sector apparently plan to storm slaveniesk, it might happen tonight or early tommorow.

Posted by: Anonymous | Apr 20 2014 20:25 utc | 61

The UN as a Propaganda Nest for the NATO Information Vulture

Indicating yet another instance of institutional bias against the Russian Federation and its interests, Ivan Šimonović, the UN’s Assistant Secretary General for Human Rights, has filled the so-called report with bias, misleading reporting, important omissions, one-sided analysis, and in some cases, outright false statements. Considering his history of “biased, prejudiced and nonobjective assessment”, this should not come as a surprise, but it is surprising that such opinions are institutionalized into a nominally neutral organization’s reporting. […]

The report’s obvious bias makes it look as though NATO’s anti-Russian informational interests have infiltrated the UN and that the military-political organization is using its agents of influence (in this case, Simonovic, whose institutional loyalty is with NATO first and the UN second [he was promoted to his current position in 2010, one year after Croatia joined NATO]) to further its agenda. In fact and in form, the UN is quickly mutating into a propaganda nest for the vicious NATO information vulture.

Sad.

Posted by: Demian | Apr 20 2014 20:26 utc | 62

@Bob In Portland #55:

Sorry. Here is the correct link:
Poland trained Ukrainian putchists two months in advance

Posted by: Demian | Apr 20 2014 20:31 utc | 63

@somebody 38

I meant "non-professional journalist" as a compliment, in that his work is better than the six figure types at major news orgs.

Posted by: Brindle | Apr 20 2014 20:33 utc | 64

Posted by: Anonymous | Apr 20, 2014 4:18:31 PM | 59

It is true, have a look. She interviews a Russian member of parliament on Ukraine and does not interrupt him.

Posted by: somebody | Apr 20 2014 20:36 utc | 65

This whole Irma Krat detention could be a psy-op. Have to wait and see.

Posted by: Brindle | Apr 20 2014 20:39 utc | 66

@53 & 55
story seems to be several places, here's one link:
http://www.voltairenet.org/article183373.html

Posted by: Grieved | Apr 20 2014 20:47 utc | 67

OT: According to Paul Craig Roberts, the USG destroyed the photos of the kill bin Laden. I hadn't heard that. Why would it do that?

He is quite the conspiracy theorist, so I'm not going to give a direct link. His piece is at Voltairenet.org, where I also got the last two stories I linked to from.

Posted by: Demian | Apr 20 2014 20:55 utc | 68

Ukranian Constitution

Article 17

The Armed Forces of Ukraine and other military formations shall not be used by anyone to restrict the rights and freedoms of citizens or with the intent to overthrow the constitutional order, subvert the bodies of power, or obstruct their activity.

Posted by: Tea | Apr 20 2014 20:56 utc | 69

Act Three

"In the wake of an armed incident in Slovyansk, a town in Ukraine's Donetsk region, Kyiv urged Russia to assist implementation of the Geneva accords.[More..]

Russia should remember the obligations, assumed under the Geneva agreements, and "exert all necessary influence" on the pro-federalization forces in order "to get the illegally occupied premises vacated, roads unblocked, weapons surrendered and bloodshed prevented," the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said in a commentary."

Posted by: Tea | Apr 20 2014 21:16 utc | 70

Quite interesting
https://twitter.com/IndependentKrym/status/457979478484873216/photo/1
If its not fake.

Posted by: Anonymous | Apr 20 2014 21:21 utc | 71

@Tea #70:

In an interview with America's NBC News, IIRC, the Ukrainian negotiator in Geneva complained that Lavrov consistently denied that the RF has any influence over the resistance in Donetsk. So what you quote is just meaningless, inconsequential noise.

Also, any publication that uses the Ukrainian spelling of Kiev is not to be trusted.

Posted by: Demian | Apr 20 2014 21:33 utc | 72

@71 - stolen plates if they knew what they were doing..

Posted by: james | Apr 20 2014 21:34 utc | 73

Somebody, IMO the probelm with the, always reasonable Amanapour, interview is that she characterizes Kiev's behavior as restrained, when in fact it is the opposite. It is cognitive distortion.

Kiev has created units for punitive actions based on civil formations with the explicit purpose to physically eliminate the dissidents.
They have targeted civilians and two Pro-Russian presiential candidates thus far.
Seen together, and added to the destruction of the Lenin statues, is a picture of full on intimidation and punishment of the pro-Russian east.

No election is this environment can be fair, free, and representative off all groups.
Even if that many civilians do not actually die, their right to free elections and freedom does.

Posted by: Tea | Apr 20 2014 21:45 utc | 74

Exactly someone that think *nn Amanap*ur is something good needs a checkup.
Dont click those links, they get the cash.

Posted by: Anonymous | Apr 20 2014 21:48 utc | 75

Demian @63
Excellent piece you link to. The only thing missing is the information that Mrs Sikorski is aka Washington Post columnist-and the female sex's answer to Robert Conquest-Ann Applebaum (I think that is her name. Is Sikorski relayed to the Polish General of that name who was shot down-en route to Gibraltar, I believe in WWII?)

Posted by: bevin | Apr 20 2014 21:55 utc | 76

Even though Radoslaw Sikorski was taking a break from Polish politics as a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute in D.C. in the relevant period (2002-2005), I've always wondered what role Sikorski may have played in the Polish government's agreeing to house one of the CIA's chief secret torture prisons.

Posted by: lysias | Apr 20 2014 22:00 utc | 77

"According to Paul Craig Roberts, the USG destroyed the photos of the kill bin Laden. I hadn't heard that. Why would it do that?"

Dunno, but never having killed him is a perfectly reasonable guess.

Posted by: ruralito | Apr 20 2014 22:01 utc | 78

@77
I just read the Wikipedia hagiograph: this guy was a member of the notorious Bullingdon Club. I imagine torturing people in Poland was his idea. "Taking a break from Polish politics" indeed!

Posted by: bevin | Apr 20 2014 22:11 utc | 79

@79

He was probably taking a break from PUBLIC polish politics, wink wink

Posted by: Massinissa | Apr 20 2014 22:34 utc | 80

@76, 77, 79:

I didin't know about Mrs. Sikorski. Sikorski is obviously a fully paid member of the international elite.

Posted by: Demian | Apr 20 2014 22:43 utc | 81

russia,s syria policy,including its middle east position will come at a cost,beware of the dog that bites its tail only to then bite its neighbour

Posted by: enoch | Apr 20 2014 23:11 utc | 82

@ 36

Agree.

Posted by: MRW | Apr 20 2014 23:22 utc | 83

@bevin #76:

I looked at the original Polish article, and put through Google Translate. It doesn't seem to mention Sikorsky. The interview seems to be based solely on the story of and photos taken by one Ukrainian who says he took part in the training. It would be nice to see more investigation of this. Forget the Polish government, but maybe more mainstream Polish or European press?

Also, Putin had mentioned before that the Maidan protestors were trained in Poland and Lithuania. They were obviously trained, and they had to be trained somewhere, and Poland is a good a place as any.

Judging by a search on Google News, no English language source but Voltairenet appears to have picked this up.

Posted by: Demian | Apr 20 2014 23:33 utc | 84

@ 68,

How do you know Paul Craig Roberts is a conspiracy theorist?

Posted by: MRW | Apr 20 2014 23:35 utc | 85

Pole dancing: Poland trained the Putschists of Kiev
http://www.voltairenet.org/article183373.html

Posted by: brian | Apr 20 2014 23:39 utc | 86

@85

Well, if 'conspiracy theorist' = 'someone who believes in 9/11 truth', then Paul Craig Roberts is, hes written on 9/11 before. And to most of the population, 9/11 truth is a 'conspiracy theory', regardless of whether or not its true in fact.

Posted by: Massinissa | Apr 20 2014 23:42 utc | 87

@MRW #85, Massinissa #87:

Yes, that's why called PCR that.

As for my stand on 9/11 truth, for a while I believed in it, but after a few years I stopped. Now I'm more of an agnostic; that's largely because the official account of the Boston Marathon bombings is pretty hard to believe. The official account of Ibragim Todashev getting shot by the one FBI agent in the room after he confessed to a triple murder [!] is impossible to take seriously.

I have acquired ZERO: Investigation into 9/11, about which PCR says that if you watch it, you will become a truther, but I haven't watched it yet. PCR seems to believe every 9/11 truther theory I have ever heard of: there is a middle ground.

The one thing I don't have much doubt of is that there was a lot of Saudi involvement; I don't consider that to be a conspiracy theory. I am reluctant to believe a conspiracy theory unless whowhatwhy has looked into it, and as far as I know, Russ Baker stays away from 9/11 truth.

Posted by: Demian | Apr 21 2014 0:07 utc | 88

Does anyone know what to make of this:

Putin Propagandists Caught Red-Handed Again

The Russian TV coverage of the story of the “Slavyansk slaughter” of the early morning of Easter Sunday contains a major blooper. The cache of so-called Right Sector paraphernalia, proudly displayed to prove its complicity, was already filmed by Russian TV cameras during the day of April 19 at least ten hours before the attack. (The camera crew did not bother to remove the date of the filming – the day of April 19).

Does anyone know what to make of this claim? I can only find one YouTube link, at a Pravda article linked to by this Forbes article, and the video never has any timestamp. Is the author just making this up out of thin air, like a birther?

Posted by: Demian | Apr 21 2014 0:24 utc | 89

"I've always wondered what role Sikorski may have played in the Polish government's agreeing to house one of the CIA's chief secret torture prisons."

All of it?

Posted by: guest77 | Apr 21 2014 0:29 utc | 90

excellent video of president Assad in maalouia inspefting the jihadi trashed city, tho i cant understand a bloody word! the locals are really really glad to see the man the western media claims is a brutal tyrant #mediahasnoshame
Elaine Khouri
1 min
A MUST See: A video that you would not see on the ‪#‎CNN‬, ‪#‎BBC‬ or any other western media station. A message to the world this is our President that loves his country ‪#‎Syria‬ and his people. Video of President Al-Assad to Maaloula on the occasion of Easter and from the heart of ‪#‎Maaloula‬ town in ‪#‎Damascus‬ countryside, President Bashar al-‪#‎Assad‬ wished a blessed Easter for all Syrians. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyqA-OQ-FLU#t=271

Posted by: brian | Apr 21 2014 1:04 utc | 91

@89

prize for sucker of the day goes to...

why post stuff from the MSM, hardly a bastion of media integrity!

Posted by: brian | Apr 21 2014 1:06 utc | 92

@brian #92: LOL

Posted by: Demian | Apr 21 2014 1:14 utc | 93

One has to admire the athletic prowess of these people:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1jvL27iNgA&

Posted by: scalawag | Apr 21 2014 1:17 utc | 94

Sikorski is obviously very well(badly) connected; apart from his neo-con wife, he has served as an advisor to Rupert Murdoch on "investing" in Poland*. He also had a British passport which he gave up and worked as a "freelance" for The Observer and The Spectator, the latter being the National review of British conservatis. He also worked for the National Review.
If he is not a CIA agent it is because he works for MI6.

As to Poland/Lithuania their interest in Ukraine is of very longstanding. I don't have any doubts that the Maidan plot was put together by the Poles and relayed, through neo-con contacts (now, as Parry says, virtually indistinguishable from the R2P whores) who prepared themselves to take advantage of the planned and produced events. It is another telling instance of Washington's complete incompetence that they sub contract important work to people like Bandar and Sikorski, neither of whom has the tiniest idea of democracy or costitutionality, as well as bozos such as the Blackwater-Greystone (geddit??) proprietors.
* At 15% commission?

Posted by: bevin | Apr 21 2014 1:20 utc | 95

@91 brian: I have a screen shot of Google News showing multiple outlets with the headlines along the lines of:

"Assad's Forces Seize Ancient Christian Town"

My god, as if to forget about what the jihadis did there! The mainstream media is positively worthless.

When will they realize we are not as dumb as they think we are? Do not all the endless comments that go utterly against the portraits they paint give them a hint?

Posted by: guest77 | Apr 21 2014 1:20 utc | 96

"he has served as an advisor to Rupert Murdoch on "investing" in Poland* At 15% commission?"

Its ye olde build-a-political-and-economic-elite-from-scratch-so-they-owe-you-big-because-you-know-all-their-corrupt-secrets gambit.

Posted by: guest77 | Apr 21 2014 1:23 utc | 97

http://ic1.static.km.ru/sites/default/files/imagecache/640x640/image2.jpeg

Yarosh got the message about restricting right sector violence to Russian speakers and the protestors in the east.

Posted by: scalawag | Apr 21 2014 1:33 utc | 98

Crimea&East ‏@IndependentKrym 1h
Maidan activist Irma Krat detained in Sloviansk .AntiMaidan activist Anton Davidchenko detained since weeks by Kiev pic.twitter.com/JZ1PCun2it
============
prisoner exchange?

Posted by: brian | Apr 21 2014 1:40 utc | 99

Republic of Donetsk ‏@alexlaserthrow Apr 19
A "couple" of people(by Kiev/Western MSM standards) in Odessa demand a referendum from Kiev. 19 April.: http://youtu.be/LBEduoSF0Ig

Posted by: brian | Apr 21 2014 1:43 utc | 100