Year: 2009

In the village of Tatar Saiman in central Russia which use to be a collective farm in the Soviet days. They have the “top-top” – You ask they have what? Glad you asked…

“Top-top” – The word comes from the sound that old two-stroke engines make. The hand built cars are mostly used to carry wood and hay, or building materials in a localized area.

When the USSR broke up, it was virtually impossible to get new farm equipment. Also the old farm equipment became personal property to many farmers because the state was no longer in existence. This messed up understanding of ownership has created a whole line of interesting customized vehicles and particular in the village of Tatar Saiman in central Russia we have the famous – “top-top” vehicle.

They take these trucks serious and I think they are great. So watch the video and enjoy.

The old sayings: “You gotta do what you gotta do!” or “Waste not want not!” happens to fit here real well…

“Top-top” 🙂

Windows to Russia!
comments always welcome.

Former deputy PM ‘pleased’ to be sued by richest woman in Russia:
Former Russian deputy prime minister Boris Nemtsov said on Friday he is “pleased” to be sued by Yelena Baturina, the wife of Moscow’s mayor and the richest woman in Russia.

Serbian foreign minister to visit Moscow October 4-6:
Serbia’s foreign minister will arrive in Moscow on Sunday for a three-day official visit to Moscow, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Andrei Nesterenko said on Friday.

Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft docks with the ISS:
The Soyuz TMA-16 spacecraft successfully docked with the International Space Station (ISS) on Friday, a RIA Novosti correspondent reported from Russia’s Mission Control Center.

Jackson’s autopsy report-Homicide:
Pop star Michael Jackson had a strong heart and was a “fairly healthy” 50-year-old, according to an autopsy report obtained in the US.

Russian monetary base down $950 mln in week to $133.8 bln:
Russia’s Central Bank said Friday the country’s narrowly defined money supply (M1) was 4 trillion 26.8 million rubles ($133.8 million at the current exchange rate) as of September 28, down 28.6 billion rubles ($950 million) in the week since September 21.

Russian customs officers arrest 2 drug mules in Orenburg airport:
Russian customs officials in the southern Urals city of Orenburg on Friday morning arrested two drug mules from Tajikistan with 225 capsules of heroin in their stomachs, a spokeswoman said.

Russian FM Lavrov to discuss Geneva talks in Abkhazia:
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is arriving in Abkhazia on a two-day visit Friday to discuss the latest round of Geneva discussions on the situation in the Caucasus and meet with the Russian military.

Medvedev visits Cathedral of the Sign in Kursk:
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev visited on Thursday the Cathedral of the Sign in the city of Kursk some 300 miles south of Moscow where a miracle-working icon of the Mother of God was recently brought.

Russia says Arctic Sea ship to be released, no secret cargo found:
Inspections of the Arctic Sea ship, which was held captive for several weeks during the summer, have not revealed suspicious cargo, and the vessel will soon be released, Russia’s Foreign Ministry has said.

Georgia started South Ossetian war – report:

30 September, 2009, 15:35

Georgia is responsible for unleashing the Five-Day War in the Caucasus last August, says an investigative report carried out by the EU.

An international commission of more than 30 military specialists headed by Swiss diplomat Heidi Tagliavini has concluded that it was Georgia who fired the first shot, Itar-Tass reports, with reference to a high-ranking diplomatic source.

The report also says that Russia was preparing for a possible conflict. Russia’s actions have been qualified as a response to the Georgian military operation.

At the same time the commission says that Russia used excessive force, which led to the conflict spreading outside South Ossetia to Georgia.

The diplomat also confirmed that the commission “is satisfied with the level of cooperation with all the sides involved in the conflict.”

We knew that didn’t we?

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While I was drinking my morning cup of wonderful coffee and looking over e-mails and comments that I got during the night. I came upon an e-mail that threatened my life. This threat was over the fact that I am not smart enough to understand that Iran is a terrible, evil country and that Iran should be destroyed and all her people sent to Hell! I was told that I need to go with them {exact words were, minus cuss words of course, (“Kyle you need to die with the Iranian Scum!”)} – all because I do not condemn Iran…

So in light of this wonderful e-mail, I am going to do another Iran post. This post will have two videos. One by Russia Today and the other one of these videos is by Ron Paul. I put the Ron Paul Video in because as he says: Iran has not done anything that is unlawful. We knew about this Secret Nuclear Plant since 2006. Iran is the ones who told the world about the Secret Nuclear Plant and this was in accordance to the rules by announcing 6 months before start of production of producing nuclear fuel… (Iran is with in the guidelines that they are to follow!) The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has never found Iran at fault with their Nuclear Program…

I have no feelings of love for Iran. I do not want to see any more countries get nuclear weapons because the ones that have them need to get rid of them.

But I will say as I always do: “We reap what we sow!” and America by her sneaky ways has created virtual time bombs all over the word. Now America wants to tell other countries what they should do and should not do.

Example of “Reap what we sow!” – Just look at Israel and many multiples of nukes… (Iran does!)

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PS: By the way the only story that you will get from Western press is that Iran broke the law! That is not true the law that they are talking about was explained in Ron Pauls video and it is an issue that does not apply to Iran any more. In fact the issue of this law was because America let the ball drop so to speak… (Watch the video with Ron Paul and you will see.)

I would like to say a word about regional issues, particularly the problems related to Iran. As we stated two days ago in New York, we are united in our determination to begin talks on signing an all-encompassing, long-term agreement intended to settle the nuclear issues in Iran as soon as possible.

That said, today’s situation requires particular attention. In their recent letter to the IAEA, Iranian authorities admitted that they are building a new uranium enrichment plant. The fact that Iran has been constructing this enrichment plant over the course of several years without IAEA’s knowledge is a cause of great concern.

The construction of a new uranium enrichment plant contradicts the UN Security Council’s repeated demands for Iran to halt its enrichment activities.

The Russian Side, along with its other partners, feels that the IAEA must immediately examine the situation in the context of the inspections being carried out over Iran’s nuclear program. As part of the obligations that Russia has taken upon itself as an IAEA member, we will assist in this audit through any means we have available. We are calling on Iran to fully cooperate with the Agency as it conducts this investigation.

Russia remains committed to serious dialogue with Iran, with the goal of reaching an agreement on effective measures to alleviate the international community’s concerns regarding Iran’s nuclear program. Indeed, the evidence that has surfaced, which shows that Iran is building a new enrichment plant, only increases our determination to quickly attain concrete, verifiable results.

On October 1, 2009, we are planning a meeting of the so-called Group of Six – of which Russia is a member – together with representatives from Iran. This meeting will give Iran the opportunity to demonstrate that it also intends to seek out a negotiated solution to this problem. This will be possible if Iran arrives at the meeting in Geneva ready to focus on the nuclear issue, take practical steps toward rebuilding trust toward its nuclear program and ensuring its transparency, and demonstrate its willingness to fully cooperate with the IAEA. In light of the newly-revealed evidence that Iran is building a new enrichment plant, we are counting on Iran to present convincing evidence of its intent to develop nuclear energy strictly for peaceful purposes.

Driver dies in head-on collision with gas pipeline:
A driver lost control of his car and hit a plug of the gas pipeline running along the Novorizhskoye Highway near Moscow. He died in the fire.

Russian govt. to sell stakes purchased during crisis:
The Russian government intends to sell the shares in companies it has purchased during the crisis, Russian Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin said on Tuesday.

Sochi Olympics to get $7.6 bln from Russian budget in 2010:
Russia is to allocate 228 billion rubles ($7.6 bln) from the state budget in 2010 for the construction of sports facilities for the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, a deputy finance minister said on Tuesday.

Russian special services to limit rights of Internet users:
Russia’s Justice Ministry has posted for public discussion a draft law which will increase state control over the Internet, a government daily reported on Tuesday.

Iran test launches Shahab-3 and Sajjil missiles:
Iran tested its most advanced missiles on Monday to cap two days of war games, raising more international concern and stronger pressure to quickly come clean on the newly revealed nuclear site Tehran was secretly constructing.

Sochi Olympics construction to cost over 1 trillion rubles:
More than 1 trillion rubles ($33 billion) will be spent on the preparations for the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Russian resort city of Sochi, a Russian business daily said on Tuesday.

NATO secretary general not sure of success in Afghanistan:
Victory in Afghanistan is not guaranteed, and NATO needs to change its strategy in the country, the alliance’s secretary general said Monday at a Washington-based think tank.

Uzbekistan urges checks of hydro plants over Siberian dam accident:
Independent inspections should be carried out at a number of hydroelectric power plants in connection with the recent deadly accident at a Siberian hydroelectric station last month, Uzbekistan’s foreign minister said.

Medvedev congratulates Merkel on election victory:
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has congratulated German Chancellor Angela Merkel on election victory in a phone conversation, the Kremlin press service said in a statement.

Russia concerned over Iran missile launches, calls for restraint:
Russia is concerned over Iran’s missile launches against the backdrop of the Islamic Republic’s unresolved nuclear issues, but Moscow is calling for restraint, the Russian foreign minister said Monday.

Medvedev pledges to recreate strong Navy in 10 years:
Russia will recreate a powerful Navy in the next ten years, President Dmitry Medvedev said on Monday at a meeting with military personnel who took part in the Zapad 2009 drills.

Russia to help Abkhazia with postal, telecommunications services:
Abkhazia and Russia have signed a memorandum that will see the former Georgian republic establish its own independent telecommunication and postal services, the Abkhaz Apsnypress news agency said on Monday.

What is the hot news all over Georgia and Russia? Well if you would mention that Hillary Clinton Opened her mouth and expressed some information about the future of America in the Caucasus. Then you would have guessed correctly…

If the project is implemented, up to 25,000 US troops will be deployed in the former Soviet republic (Georgia). This number is much more than the number of Russian servicemen deployed in military bases in Abkhazia and South Ossetia, observers say.

“Analysts have no doubts that the US is eager to control routes of the transit of hydrocarbons from the Caspian basin to the West using all possible means, including military ones,” Rossiya TV and press said. “The plans to deploy tracker stations and military bases in Georgia only support this theory,” the paper said.

The Georgian media is awash with the news that Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton were discussing military plans during their meeting at the 64th session of the UN General Assembly. (That was not smart!)

Also A few days ago, Georgian mass media reported the U.S. can deploy military bases in the country. According to their data, a group of Republican Congressmen and ex-Vice President Dick Cheney are dealing with the project. (Link) (I like how Dick Cheney still runs everything.)

Lets see:
We have 25,000 troops permanently in South Korea!
We have 33,000 troops permanently Japan!
We have 57,000 troops permanently Germany!
We have 10,000 troops permanently Itlay!
We have 10,000 troops permanently in the UK!
We have 1300 troops permanently in Spain!
We have 1600 troops permanently in Turkey!
Now we can look forward to 25,000 troops permanently in Georgia (That is not Georgia the USA but Georgia the country!)

By the way in the whole world:

The military of the United States is deployed in more than 150 countries around the world, with more than 369,000 of its 1,379,551 active-duty troops serving outside the United States and its territories. Many of these troops are still located at installations activated during the Cold War, by which the US government sought to counter the Soviet Union in the aftermath of World War II. Since 2001, the US has redeployed some of its forces as part of the “War on Terror.”

Now that is good use of tax payers money when the USA is broke…

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In Russia they have a variety of Vegetable pastes that I love to spread on black bread. I have even used these pastes to make a variety of dishes that really have a wonderful and unique flavor. Since there are about 400,000,000 types of veggy paste lets grab a good simple one and try it out.

Vegetable Paste with Red Beets and Prunes:

Ingredients:

500 grams of red beets
300 grams of red onions
300grams of prunes
100 grams of raisins

Lets Make:

Rinse the red beet, peel it and grate coarsely into a sauce pan add a glass of water and start cooking with a cover over low heat – add after a few minutes the prunes and raisins after thoroughly rinsing them both. (You should now have beets, raisins and prunes cooking in the sauce pan.)

The idea is to cook the beets, raisins and prunes but not turn them to mush and waste product…

Then peel the onions, chop them very fine and saute in a light vegetable oil on medium heat in a skillet. (just get them to turn opaque)

After everything is done drain excess moister off by using a colander. (Leave the oil on the onions.)

Then mix and create a paste with the vegetables and fruit in a blender. Make sure to mix well. You should have a thick paste that a spoon will stand up in. Very important that you drain all excess moisture. That is why we do not cook the veggies and fruit to death. (Russians will use a grinder to mix these items but there are many good food processors that will do the same job.)

I love to eat this paste warm but it fantastic chilled and makes a great nutritious spread for toast in the morning times. Yummy!

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I have posted this salad before and it is called Olivier and or Russian potato salad. I love this salad very much and decided to refine the recipe so that it would be a lot simpler to make. The original recipe is long and takes much longer. This version has no meat in it and is much more true to the term potato salad. It also has no pickles in it. This is not just a summer salad in Russia it is a anytime of the year salad. So give it a try or give the other recipe a try – You will find that you like any version of the Russian Potato Salad…

No Meat – Russian Potato Salad:

6 to 7 medium potatoes – peeled and cut up in cubes
1 cup of sour cream
1 medium can of peas
1 medium can of diced carrots
1 cup Mayonnaise or Miracle Whip – according to which part of world you are from!
1 onion, finely diced
2 eggs – hard boiled and diced
Salt and pepper to taste

Lets make:

Cook potato cubes until done (firm not mush) – Drain.

Add can of peas and can of carrots – drain excess liquid off – Mix with the hot potatoes to help cool the potatoes down.

Inportant – While still warm, add diced onion, mayonnaise, sour cream and diced eggs.

Mix well and season to taste. (I know that many will eat salad at this point and it is very good warm…)

Potatoes will absorb moisture as it cools in refrigerator. So you may want to add more mayonnaise if you so desire.

Once cooled – you can garnish with an extra sliced hard boiled egg and parsley if desired. Paprika is nice to sprinkle on top.

Time to eat and say Yummy for the Tummy…

Note: I like to add diced cheese also to this salad. I also like to leave the peeling on but that is not a Russian tradition. A touch of fresh garlic makes this salad come to life also. In fact you can add almost anything you want to this salad and it will come out great. – well almost 🙂

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comments always welcome.

South Russian district chief unharmed after bomb attack:
A home-made bomb went off outside the house of a district chief in the south Russian republic of Ingushetia during the night, but no one was injured, local police said on Saturday.

California says historic Russian fort to stay open:
Fort Ross, built in 1812 in California by Russian settlers, will remain open as a state park, local authorities announced.

Washington praises visit of Russia’s Drug Control Service head:
Russia and the United States have a lot to share in the fight against drugs turnover, a spokesman for the U.S. Department of State said.

G20 may discuss anti-crisis strategy in June 2010 – Medvedev:
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on Saturday that he expects the Group of 20 leading economies to discuss a strategy to tackle the global financial crisis at a summit in June 2010.

Moscow reiterates readiness for equal-basis cooperation with NATO:
The Russian foreign minister said on Saturday that Moscow is still ready to cooperate with NATO, but only on equal-rights basis.

Medvedev decides against Iskander missiles in Kaliningrad:
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on Saturday he decided against deploying Iskander missiles in Russia’s Kaliningrad Region, near Poland, after the U.S. shelved its nuclear missile shield plans for Europe.

Russia voices concern over Iran’s second enrichment plant:
Russia’s president voiced concern on Friday over Iran’s revelations on a second uranium enrichment facility, and urged the country to provide reassurances over its nuclear program.

Russian patriarch calls on Belarus to uphold spiritual values:
The head of the Russian Orthodox Church called on Belarusians during a visit to Minsk on Friday to maintain the spiritual and moral values of their ancestors based on the Orthodox faith.

“Iran is Russia’s Joker before the US”:
Diplomatic experts suggest Russia has a fine line to tread in reacting to Iran. Dmitry Suslov from the Council on Foreign and Defence Policy told RT that Moscow will benefit from keeping Tehran onside.