Navalny Poisoning Just A Bump In The Road For Nord Stream 2

The smart money would be on NS2’s eventual completion and Russia’s continued domination of the European gas market. Navalny has survived, NS2’s defenders and lobbyists are in full swing. The Trump administration may have run out of sanctions options. The European Union has bigger problems to deal with. With the feeble demand for gas associated with COVID-19, Germany and Europe can take their time as Russia pulls out all stops in its defense of NS2.

NS2 will be completed. The only question is the duration of the delay.

go to Forbes.com 

Don't expect Europe to hold Putin accountable in Navalny poisoning

The Kremlin has already made clear there will be no “transparent” investigation of the attempted murder of Aleksei Navalny. How can there be when the chief suspect is the head of state?

The West is not able to deal with a rogue state located in its heartland. Russian forces still occupy Crimea, Eastern Ukraine and Georgian territory; Russia still denies being involved in shooting down Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17 over Eastern Ukraine in 2014. Russia ranks among the most dangerous countries for journalists, and any number of political assassinations remain unresolved.

When Putin is caught red handed, he keeps on playing for time and throws preposterous theories against the wall to see if any stick. 

It seems that only the Russian people – somehow, some day – can find a solution.

go to The Hill 

Is Putin getting away with poisoning another political opponent?

Irrespective of Navalny’s health outcome, we can pretty well predict what will happen next: The Kremlin will cook up all kinds of alternative explanations for Navalny’s presumed poisoning. Almost certain will be charges that Navalny poisoned himself to get back at Putin, that the CIA slipped him the poison, or that it was those dastardly Ukrainians who did so. If necessary, Putin can raise the volume to blast the entire Russian Federation with the good news that their president (for life) is not to blame.

Perhaps the tried-and-true Putin playbook will not work this time; Russia already is sufficiently riled up — and Navalny is a sympathetic figure with a beautiful wife and daughters. Maybe Putin can no longer go to this well. But does he have other tricks up his sleeve? The smart money would bet that he does.

https://thehill.com/opinion/international/513276-is-putin-getting-away-with-poisoning-another-political-opponent 

Steele's dossier: 'Clown show' or the greatest Russian coup?

In retrospect, the “clown show” dossier was put together ingeniously. First, the identity of the ultimate client (DNC/Clinton) was kept secret long enough for it not to ruin the show. Second, in Steele the Russians had someone with a modicum of respectability to gain access to American government and media; and, in the media and professional bureaucracy, they had an army of Trump-haters ready to believe anything.

For the Kremlin, it all meant the Holy Grail of a sorely wounded United States.

https://thehill.com/opinion/white-house/510635-steeles-dossier-clown-show-or-the-greatest-russian-coup#bottom-story-socials

What Antifa Won’t Tell You

“At a certain point destroying fascism is really about promoting a revolutionary socialist alternative [My italics]…The question is not about establishing a neutral line beyond which right-wing politics cannot cross, but about entirely transforming society by tearing down oppression in all its forms.”

go to the American Mind

Why Putin Fears the Shaman's Exorcism

Could it be that a lowly Shaman’s vision of Putin’s demise will prove prophetic? There are hundreds of sparks that can burst into the flame that will dissolve the shaky union of the Russian Federation. If you add a sympathetic figure, who claims supernatural powers and deep religious beliefs, and is unafraid to confront Putin, the Kremlin’s disaster scenario seems less preposterous. 

Stranger things have happened throughout Russian history. Just think of Rasputin.

go to Defining Ideas