The world is getting a shocking wakeup call, helplessly watching a war in real time via social media. We listened to a young Ukrainian woman, an IT specialist, not leaving her country, learning to use a rifle. She’s a normal person, had a normal job, a normal life and had the unfortunate luck to be living in a country bordering Russia. There but for the grace of G-d go I.
Putin is out to annihilate Ukraine. First he will level the country, city by city, going mainly after civilian targets to try to demoralize the people. Then he will surround the cities so anyone still left will be unable to get food. He will try to starve the people. Then he will take over. Nothing has changed in centuries.
Sanctions? Spare us. Putin is untouched by sanctions. Nor, more importantly, will they stop him for a second.
So Russians can’t buy an Apple phone? Or billionaires have some of their money frozen? Or they are shut out of international banking? Or Apple Pay and google pay have stopped working? Or they are out of Interpol? Does Putin care if his own people starve? Not in the least. He cares about one thing. Saving face. And to do that he must obliterate Ukraine.
The United Nations condemning Putin’s invasion of Ukraine? Worth less than the napkin you used to wipe your mouth this morning.
Countries sending arms to Ukraine? Too little too late. This was coming for months and everyone ignored the visuals. It’s like the truck convoy that entered Ottawa. We’re coming. We’re coming. We’re coming. We’re here. What? They actually got in?
Until the arms being sent by Canada and other countries get into the hands of Ukrainians, half or more of Kiev will be leveled. Unless the Ukrainians have planes to bomb the long lines of army vehicles about to surround cities, they are doomed. All those sanctions are worthless.
After the Holocaust, the world said never again. Well, never again is here and where is the world?
On a positive note, thanks to Chabad, those 140 orphans were successfully brought out of Ukraine and are now all in Romania, shortly en route to Israel.
Thelma, we were going to write that covid bit the dust. Up until yesterday, the word was not even seen in a newspaper, nor uttered from the mouth of any newscaster or political pundit for over a week.
Finally, at last, emperor legault has spoken. His royal highness has ‘paskened’ – given over his genius edicts. Of course we will never find out why there had to be a curfew starting on December 30. That was a very bad political decision – it had zero to do with health. The emperor will never, ever answer that question. Nor will he refund the hundreds of thousands of dollars lost to restaurants the night before New Year’s Eve.
So what’s he doing now? Well, it appears the mask mandate will finally, at long last, be lifted mid-April. He finally woke up to what the rest of the world is doing: It’s up to each person to deal with the endemic on their own. If you need to feel safe, wear a mask. If you are comfortable not wearing a mask, don’t wear one.
And peeps – no one has been appointed the mask police. Unless of course you live in a condo. The boards in some condos seem to think that they were royally appointed. Here’s a headline: You were not. People are free to do as they wish. If you don’t feel ‘safe’ in your building, then take the best option available… move to an isolated cottage in the country. For sure you’ll be safe there. No one in the hallways or elevators to make you nervous. Wait. Weren’t the majority of the population vaccinated and/or had covid? Psha. A mere detail.
Here’s a good one. If you are on Twitter, these are two addresses to plug into: @RUOligarchJets and @Putinjet. And if you’re really bored you can also add this one: @ElonJet. What’s this about? 19 year-old Jack Sweeney (sounds like an old man, eh?) from Florida started tracking Elon Musk’s private plane (@EloJet). As of this past Tuesday, Sweeney’s account tracked the movements of roughly 40 planes and helicopters linked to Russian oligarchs.
As for Musk who asked Sweeney to stop tracking him, Sweeney said he’s still tracking Tesla’s chief executive and reiterated his stance that he’d take the account down in exchange for a new Tesla Model 3. This kid is a lot smarter than his 19 years.
So does Jean Charest have a chance at the leadership of the Conservative party? We thought not, but our sources say yes. That big business is backing him. They feel that Pierre Polivere is too divisive to lead the party.
Does Charest’s baggage haunt him? Seems that if the right people back him and he can guarantee votes in Ontario and Quebec, he’s in. The west doesn’t remember his scandals.
Don’t believe for a second that Polivere will go without a massive fight. He can already taste the leadership and to have big business decide he’s not the right person at the right time will not sit well with him.
Charest already has one victory. Polivere wanted the leadership convention in June, but it got pushed off to September, giving Charest enough time to get his ducks in a row.
Politics is not for the faint of heart.
Melinda Gates is finally spilling the beans. It appears that Bill Gates, one of, if not the wealthiest men in the world, kept some very, very bad company by the name of Jeffrey Epstein. Yup.
Ms. Gates is not a stupid woman. Far from it. She kept telling her beloved to stop seeing Epstein but of course he didn’t listen. So one day she decided to go meet Epstein herself. The best way to describe her reaction was totally, completely creeped out. She needed a shower after one meeting.
After the divorce, Bill said the following: “Meeting with Epstein was a mistake that I regret deeply. It was a substantial error in judgment.” Ya think? For a smart guy, he’s not so smart.
Good Shabbos We’ll talk…