Every now and again I read something interesting or striking in the news which doesn’t relate to the U.S. but doesn’t fit into any of the current threads. For simplicity I figured I would start a thread for world news generally. I’ll start with these two items:

1. What in God’s name was Justin Trudeau thinking? His week running around India in something like four different novelty Indian costumes was bizarre enough to draw the attention of the late-night comedians on American TV (and they have no shortage of material as it is). It’s unlikely to be the only reason that the Liberals are now behind in the polls, but it’s almost certainly a factor.

Trudeau was the first in a series of high-profile Gen X leaders offering a fresh and stylish image – Emmanuel Macron in France and Jacinda Ardern in NZ are others. And all three saw waves of popular enthusiasm carry them into office. But this is also a reminder that the very shiny tarnishes easily.

2. What in God’s name was the ANC thinking? South Africa’s parliament has voted 241-83 to allow for the Government to seize land from white farmers without compensation. I’m no expert on African politics, but I honestly can’t see the difference between the ANC’s policy and the absolutely disastrous land policy of the Government of neighbouring Zimbabwe. I understand how the fact that three-quarters of South Africa’s land is owned by the white minority is a problem for the ANC, but emulating Zimbabwe doesn’t seem like a solution to this, or any, problem.

I was thinking the same. I don't know enough about the situation to have an informed opinion, but this seems like a really really bad plan.

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When you can do nothing what can you do?

Vladimir Putin has been re-elected president of Russia for another six-year term with nearly 77% of the vote.

I’ve learned enough about Russia over the years to know that I don’t know anywhere near enough about it to comment on its politics. I can’t remember who said Russia should be treated as the westernmost eastern country not the easternmost western country, but it seems like a fair call to me.

Putin is obviously still popular. Of course, it also helps when the leading opposition figures have been driven into exile, assassinated, or charged with crimes in circumstances which look more than a little politically-motivated. And, of course, there was the pro-Putin song ‘Vova’ by girl band Fabrika, featuring the singers swooning over pictures of Putin and apparently acting out fantasies of marrying him (yay for learning a bit of Cyrillic, I could find the video on Yotube):



So, yeah, I can’t really comment on Russia. Any other commentary welcome.

That ....video. It 100% feels like an SNL parody song. Are we sure it's not?

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I wanna love somebody but I don't know how
I wanna throw my body in the river and drown
-The Decemberists

Poe's law does not apply to countries with state-controlled media. At least based on Russian-language comments, the song was meant to be taken literally. The comments are mostly negative, except regarding the looks of the singers.

I caught a few minutes of RT at FIL yesterday, and it was like going back to late 70s (or earlier, but I don't remember earlier). "This is a victory, not just for Putin, it is a victory for Russia. Russia is a great and mighty country, and it will grow ever greater under Putin's leadership."

Another RT program was quoted as calling Putin a "vozhd," a term that belongs in the untranslatable words thread - it is a term for a leader that is only applied to chiefs of native tribes, as in The Ransom of Red Chief, and to Great Beloved Leaders of the Motherland. The last Vozhd was Brezhnev.

Learning about Russian political history, and watching Fox and RT side by side, will tell you a great deal about what is happening in the US today.

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“I am not so blind that I can't see darkness.”
Dangerous Beans
Terry Pratchett, The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents

I often wonder whether you feel a sense of deja vu to your childhood, Frelga.

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In gratitude forever … .

Sweet Bema, do I ever.

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“I am not so blind that I can't see darkness.”
Dangerous Beans
Terry Pratchett, The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents

I used to know this Frelga but were you from Russia or Ukraine? How long have you lived in the US?

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My heart is forever in the Shire.

Ukraine. Early 90s.

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“I am not so blind that I can't see darkness.”
Dangerous Beans
Terry Pratchett, The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents

I thought that is what I (vaguely) remembered. Perhaps we had a conversation about Rusyns/Ruthenians? Four of my g. grandparents were from the North East area of what is now Slovakia.

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My heart is forever in the Shire.

Good to know Youtube comments in other languages are pretty much the same as the ones in English.

On another note, Google has clearly been paying attention to my Youtube viewing recently, because I've started getting ads for sites where I can "Meet Russian Singles". If I ever try them out I'll need to remember to leave the "unironically admires dictators" box unticked.

On an entirely different note, I got this video recommended in my Youtube feed, which might help lighten the mood in the thread (and the forum generally):

Aahahaaa. that's pretty funny.

If you clear your viewing history on YouTube the targeted ads should stop. That is, if that is if you want them to stop.

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My heart is forever in the Shire.

Hahahahaha! I forwarded the link to my son.

Sent from a tiny phone keyboard via Tapatalk - typos inevitable.

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Mornings wouldn't suck so badly if they came later in the day.

I don't get ads for Russian singles. *pouts*

Túrin, come to think, the comments really weren't the kind that earned youtube comments a bad name. The worst were something like "a nice rear is not enough to save a bad song." Curiously, when I went back, there were more comments of the, "it's actually a pretty good song, reminiscent of that other really good artist." I surmise that after John Oliver drew Western attention to the clip, the psi ops kicked in.

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“I am not so blind that I can't see darkness.”
Dangerous Beans
Terry Pratchett, The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents

psi ops?

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*title copyright: Teremia

'You just said "your getting shorter": you've obviously been drinking too much ent-draught and not enough Prim's.' - Jude

In the military that's short for psychological operations- propaganda, in other words.

Meanwhile, in Ontario, the Ford family is back in the headlines.

Doug Ford, younger brother of the infamous Rob Ford, has won the Conservative party leadership for the upcoming provincial election.

An exposé by the Globe and Mail claims that Doug was heavily into selling pot when he was in his teens and twenties. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/to ... e12153014/

Ford claims the allegations are false. Personally, I have my doubts about that. Some of the information in the Globe article is very hard to deny. Also, we're talking about my old high school, and my old stomping grounds here. I saw first hand what went on in James Gardens as the sun was going down, and my family did all of their grocery shopping and banking at Royal York Plaza. I wouldn't have been able to pick Doug out of a lineup, but there is absolutely no doubt that a very active drug trade was going on in the high school and surrounding area at the time. It was so bad that the school said anyone caught in the hallways between periods without a hall pass would be given an automatic detention, as that was when most of the drug dealing was taking place. Anyway, if the allegations are true, since Canada is going to legalize the sale of marijuana this year, it might not be such a bad idea to have Ford at the helm of the government. He does have some thoughts on the best way to market pot: https://www.theleafnews.com/news/leafle ... 05853.html

Gawd, and you thought Canadian politics were DULL??

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When the night has been too lonely, and the road has been too long,
And you think that love is only for the lucky and the strong,
Just remember in the winter far beneath the bitter snows,
Lies the seed, that with the sun's love, in the spring becomes The Rose.

Reports now that the Brexit campaign was funded illegally. I wonder if this will be pounced on as an opportunity to backtrack?

https://www.independent.ie/world-news/e ... 40560.html

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The Vinyamars on Stage! This time at Bag End

It will be pounced on, but I'm not sure to what effect. Even if these allegations are proven, I doubt there's any provision in the legislation establishing the referendum for the result to be invalidated based on breaches of electoral law (although I'm not familiar with it).

*is reading*

*laughed at the Russian anthem*

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