Category: Russia

Coffee and a Rebel or a Terrorist…

Windows to Russia
Rebel...

I was sipping that wonderful cup of coffee this morning and  thinking about why we as humans use different words for certain things. In this particular case the terms rebel and terrorist…

Russia has had big issues with these terms in the past and present. Russia considers the issues in the North Caucasus to be terrorism. The West continues to call the issues in Russia a rebellion…

Here is what Wikipedia has to say about the number one terrorist in Russia: Doku (Dokka) Khamatovich Umarov (born April 13, 1964) is a major Chechen Islamist “rebel” leader in Russia. He is responsible for numerous deadly attacks on civilians, earning himself the nickname “Russia’s Osama Bin Laden”…

So what is he? A rebel or a terrorist? (Osama Bin Laden is a terrorist but the Russian Osama Bin Laden is a rebel.”  I have to whole heartily agree with Russia. He is a lot more terrorist than rebel. As he likes to blow up metros and buses all around Russia and civilians are on top his list to kill…

Now lets see what each word (rebel and terrorist) means: (All terms can be found just Google them!)

A rebel is a participant in a rebellion; or more generally, an individual who resists authority or control…

A terrorist is one who participates in terrorism.

Which leads us to define terrorism.

Terrorism is the systematic use of terror especially as a means of coercion. No universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition of terrorism currently exists. Common definitions of terrorism refer only to those violent acts which are intended to create fear (terror), are perpetrated for a religious, political or ideological goal, deliberately target or disregard the safety of non-combatants (civilians), and are committed by non-government agencies.

OK – so we know have the basis of data of what is going through my head…

I then look and think about Libya… (Oh No!)

Qaddafi is calling it terrorism (al Qaeda?) and the West has decided that we will term them Rebels (al Qaeda?).  All news articles refer to rebels this and rebels that and rebels are trying so hard. We have made the world feel so bad for the rebels…

Wait a minute! If this is a possibility that al Qaeda could be behind this. If there is even a remote possibility. If there is even a inkling of a chance. Then why are we cheering them (opposition) on? I guess I am confused… 🙁

[pullquote]*** Remember in the last decade, strangely, a strong bond between Libya and the United States was against terrorism, which we all know that in the past this was not always true. Given that Libya has much experience with jihadists, and the forward role of Libyans in al Qaeda. This was a partnership that benefited both sides…[/pullquote]

Who is al-Qaeda, alternatively spelled al-Qaida and sometimes al-Qa’ida, is a militant Islamist group founded sometime between August 1988 and late 1989. It operates as a network comprising both a multinational, stateless army and a radical Sunni Muslim movement calling for global Jihad. Most of the world considers it a terrorist organization. Al-Qaeda has attacked civilian and military targets in various countries, most notably the September 11 attacks on New York City and Washington, D.C. in 2001. The U.S. government responded by launching the War on Terror…

OK lets get this straight: It is a possibility that al Qaeda really has caused this problem in Libya. Qaddafi really dislike the al Qaeda and they dislike him also. But isn’t the Western world wanting to support the rebels in Libya with their rebellion? (***)

Why we even want to supply weapons and such to the opposition in Libya… (al-Qaeda???? would not be the first time though…)

But back to the start of this post. A rebel or a terrorist?

We have made the word rebel to be a term that stands for good and right and justice. We have a movie that is well known: Rebel Without a Cause, with James Dean. Hollywood has used the term over and over for all these years and rebel is a wonderful thing to be called. Now in contrasting terms, terrorist has become the word of only the worst scourge that crawl the earth. And that term is alternated with rebel when the situation demands such…

The world has a long history of such flip flopping around on issues like this. (Hence the video that remembers a time of love and joy with Saddam Hussein.) But right now we all believe that Libya has rebels who are rebelling against a tyrant of such magnitude that he deserves to die. But not very many days ago,  He was Europe’s and Americas best friend in oil and terrorist control…

You know what? “With friends like that you do not need enemies…”
 

Windows to Russia!

Medvedev Meets with Joseph Biden…


PRESIDENT OF RUSSIA DMITRY MEDVEDEV:
Mr Vice President, I am happy to be meeting with you again. Last year, we were able to make a lot of progress in the relations between the United States of America and the Russian Federation. This past year was successful, including the ratification of the new START treaty, which was a significant event for all of us. I think that the President and I did some good work and I would like to say that your participation in this process was also quite successful. For that, I want to thank you.

I am certain that this will benefit our nations, and therefore, the overall security on our planet. But at the same time, we have bilateral issues that are also very important for our states. And that is the context in which I view your visit to our nation. I think that our economic relations lag significantly behind our political relations. In this sense, of course, the issue is also hampered by Russia’s lack of membership in the World Trade Organization. I hope that this year, the processes will be completed, particularly with the United States’ active support.

We have major economic projects that we must develop jointly. I am very happy that you have just visited Skolkovo. It is an example of good cooperation in the high-tech sector and the creation of new types of businesses, which is particularly important for our nations, perhaps especially so during a time when the economies of both our nations are overcoming the financial crisis.

I think you’ve had talks on economic issues today, and will continue to do so tomorrow. But naturally, there are issues that nevertheless remain exceedingly important for our nations: I am referring to ensuring security. Recently, we have had a whole series of important events in this area.

Last year, during the Russia-NATO summit, I proposed a joint configuration for our work on anti-missile defense, as well as generally looking into this matter in the European security context. There are problems that have occurred this year; I feel that they must also have a place on our joint agenda – including the problems and challenges that are currently concentrated in the Middle East and North Africa. There is a whole set of other international problems on which we are cooperating well with the United States of America. I am certain that this kind of cooperation will continue.

Thus, I hope that your visit will be successful and productive. We are ready to develop full-fledged, full-scale, strategic relations with the United States, and you know this. And especially as your last visit to our nation was a long time ago. I hope that your current visit will give you new impressions. In any event, we will create all the conditions for this. I would like you to pass my best wishes on to my colleague, President Obama.

VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES JOSEPH BIDEN: Mr President, President Obama sends his regards as well. As you know, he has sought your counsel and advice and met with you more than any other head of state by probably a factor of three.

It’s very good to be back in Russia. I am both a student of and a respecter of the great traditions of a great power. The first Russian leader I met with was Brezhnev. That’s how old I am. To further age myself, I knew both Jackson and Vanik. I think that’s why President Obama keeps me around.

But Mr President, as you know, when President Obama and I were elected, the first matter of business internationally we thought we should attend to and change the direction of was US-Russian relations. For years before, as the chairman of our Senate Foreign Relations Committee, I, along with President Obama, thought that the relationship was drifting in the wrong direction prior to us coming to office. The first foreign policy pronouncement our administration made was the speech I made in Munich at the request of President Obama, where we used the phrase that it was time to push the reset button, reset our relationship with Russia. Because of your personal leadership and your colleagues, I think we’ve proved the skeptics wrong. We have made great progress in the last two years – not only on the new START treaty, but on matters relating to Korea, Iran, matters related to Afghanistan, a whole range of areas where there has been cooperation and Russian leadership.

As you pointed out, I just came from meeting with Russian and American business leaders, on a beautiful new campus which, hopefully, will become the Silicon Valley of Russia. The reason I’m here is because the President wants me to make it clear we wish to continue the progress we’ve made, this time on the economic front – economic cooperation – your vision for Russia of innovation and change and modernization, and we’d like very much to be a part of that.

A fundamental change has taken place between my first visit in the seventies and today as we no longer and you no longer view our mutual success as a zero-sum game. We both benefit when the other succeeds. I consider it a success when I attend a meeting and I learn something that I hadn’t thought of or knew before the meeting. That happened in my meeting today with Russian business leaders. One of the Russian CEOs said, ‘You seem to demand more of us, and expect more of us, Russia, than you do of China or India.’ And he suggested that may be a legacy from the Cold War. And I thought about that. I don’t think it’s because of the Cold War. I think it’s because we have such high expectations – and I mean this seriously – we have such high expectations and such respect for Russia. For my entire career, when I sat with a Russian leader, I was sitting with one of the most powerful men in the world, and that’s how we still think of you. I mean that sincerely. So it may be, sometimes, we do expect too much progress too quickly. But the expectation is born out of admiration and respect, not out of disrespect.

DMITRY MEDVEDEV: Mr Vice President, thank you for your words. I would just like to express hope that the next time you come to our nation – which I hope will happen soon – at least one of the topics you’ve mentioned will be left in the past. I am referring to the Jackson-Vanik amendment, because this is an issue that always comes up during your visits. I hope that this will be the last time. After all, you cannot keep dealing with it throughout your entire career.

JOSEPH BIDEN: I hope not, Mr President. We strongly support the repeal of Jackson-Vanik and we will work to eliminate it. As you know, we are working in Geneva, not just with you but the international community, to push for Russian accession. We are not being passive in this effort.

March 9, 2011, 20:00Gorki, Moscow Region

Windows to Russia!

Gaddafi Has Not Rolled Over and Played Dead When the West Demanded…

They say Gaddafi is in a good mood and is doing interviews…

I see the Western press is starting to look like it has egg on its face and they are shutting up with a lot of the rhetoric lately…

Have you noticed that all you see on videos of Libya is people in their cars running around. People shooting guns into the air. People with raised fists everywhere. People testing weapons at imaginary foes. People shooting at fighter jets doing mach 1 with a pop gun…

I have yet to see a single major news source come up with any videos or pictures of mass death and destruction. I have yet to see the streets run red with blood…

Oh I know that some have died and been wounded but have you noticed that the reported deaths went to 6000 + and now they have jumped back down to around a thousand and more?

Try this video. This is as exciting of a video of Libya that I have found. Notice the person sitting in the middle of the intersection in a plush office chair. He seems to be really worried about being shot and becoming a statistic…

What a fake show they put on for the West. This video is typical of what you see. The fighter jets are on other missions in life. They do not have much chance of hitting a fighter jet so high in the sky that it can not be seen, with those tiny anti aircraft guns. Maybe if it paused in mid air for a minute or so…

The truth in fact is that Gaddafi seems to be doing OK. Just like he always does in life. Gaddafi is a very intelligent person. He has been running that country for 41 or 42 years…

Maybe that is what the West is mad about. He did not roll over and play dead when they told him too…

Windows to Russia!

Sipping Coffee in Russia and Watching the Turmoil…

It is strange to watch the world from Russia. I sit here and drink my coffee and watch the world in exceedingly more turmoil (or lack of balance) over the last few months. What I see is 13 or 14 ++ (Could it be twenty countries?) countries with huge uprisings and expressions – bordering in most countries as riots. It is strange in Russia because the news is so unbiased and just encompasses everything. Russia just tells it all. If the Western press prints it. Russia also tells it. It is their way of showing both sides of what is happening. Sometimes there is so much volume of news that you forget more than you remember. The Eastern press is an increasing wealth of information that sometimes overwhelms you with its blatant bluntness…

What countries are having fun around now? Well USA, Egypt, Jordan, Rome, Yemen, Sydney, Tunisia, London, Seoul, Libya, Algeria, Spain, Iran and Greece. For starters. (Link) There also are multiples of other countries staring in the eyes the same situation as a reality and possibility of country disruption. Including Russia in the Southern part, known as the Caucasus…

Just in the last few days. I see an Israel that has asked the USA for $20 billion in military aid because of What is happening in the Middle East and let me tell you Israel is feeling distressing emotion at what is manifesting itself in their next door neighbors. I watch as 600 people attempt to citizen arrest a judge in Britain. (Link) They were within their rights, in my eyes. The next fear that is being mongered in the press is that Saudi Arabia will have a revolt. (Link) Or has it already begun there? I see a world that interferes in other countries business (Link) as if they have a right to. Such as arming the opposition groups of countries that we do not like. (Link) Yea we like to arm the opposition (rebel or terrorist makes no difference) as if it is a good thing to do. I see that we don’t care if some countries kill all their people. But care if other countries do. I see that we allow some countries to kill people in other countries with no repercussions and not allow some countries to kill people in other countries. I also see a world that is flat broke and no food, while we as humans play war all over the world…

Is it my imagination or is the human race looking more like a virus or parasite on the planet earth than part of the ecological balance of things? Is it my imagination or has it always been this way (past) and we are just not smart enough to learn any lessons?

I see a world of no balance and hence we have created turmoil…

tur·moil/ˈtərˌmoil/

Noun: A state of great disturbance, confusion, or uncertainty.

Windows to Russia!

OK – Windows to Russia Comments Opened Back Up…

I received a lot of e-mails (lots) asking that I open the comments back up. In fact I was given by one e-mail a source, to a place, to report my “Washington DC bad mouth brigade” and was told that things would be better. I had another high school in America that wanted to be able to post comments easily…

So I will allow the comments to be opened back up again. But comments will be moderated. Everything will be moderated. I dislike the cussing and the death threats. They will no longer be allowed to get past go…

So we will try the open concept on comments again. Hence the revamping of the template. I have created a different comment system based on what I personally could code and we will see if it still keeps the spam out. The only step I am trying hard to keep from doing is putting a Captcha on the system. I really dislike those on a comment system. I will say, Google Friends-connect really kept the spam out…

While I was revamping the comments I decided to solve a few template issues. Such as flexible width and such. It was causing me headaches trying to implement posts…

You asked politely,  I listen…

Thanks Readers…

Windows to Russia!

Will Gaddafi Step Down?

RIA NovostiMuammar GaddafiRebels give Gaddafi 72 hours to step down

18:12 08/03/2011 The head of the rebel National Libyan Council said on Tuesday the opposition would not pursue President Muammar Gaddafi for war crimes if he steps down within 72 hours, Al Jazeera said.Read More >>>

Interesting…

Windows to Russia!

Fruit Varenye (Preserves)

Making varenye at home
Boiling Raspberry Varenye...

One of the things that is plentiful in Russia is berries. When in the village it is a pleasure to walk the woods and old village roads and trails. In these areas is always an abundance of berries. Just carry a plastic bag with you and several walks later, you will have enough berries to produce a Winters worth of Jams…

Making and canning your own Varenye (runny style jam) the Russian way is very easy. Just follow the recipe to see how to do it. This works equally well for strawberry, raspberry, blackberry, cranberry, blueberry, boysenberry, dewberry, gooseberry, loganberry, marionberry, peach, plum, damson plum, tayberry, youngberry and etc etc etc. Make by individual fruit or mixing them to make a berry jam…

Lets Make – Raspberry (any fruit will do) Varenye (Jam):

2.27 kg (5 lbs) freshly picked raspberries

1.5kg sugar

Several big jars, sterilized in boiling water (sterilize the lids as well and make sure very dry)

Making:

Clean raspberries. (remove stems and leaves)

Use a large bowl.

Dump the raspberries and pour all the sugar on top and cover all berries.

You may mix lightly but be gentle and not destroy the berries.

Let the mixture sit until the berries begin to produce fluid. This can take anywhere from 4-8 hours.(or longer if too cold)

Put the mixture over a low heat and warm until the sugar dissolves, then raise the heat and bring to a boil for 1-3 minutes. (Do not burn…)

Leave to cool, then transfer into jars. Make sure to wait until the varenye stops steaming. It’s also important that the jars are completely dry, as moisture will cause mold to grow.

Close (seal with lids) the jars and place them into a pot of boiling water for 10 minutes. Make sure that boiling water is over the top of the lids…

Remove from boiling water and set on a towel on the counter…

When the jars cool to the touch, store in a dark, dry place until needed for that sweet tooth. (Most Russians save Varenye for the Winter time to enjoy this treat of the senses…)

Eating:

In Russia, they eat it in a little bowl with hot tea, and many use it a a sweetener in the tea. I eat it on bread and pancakes, but it would also make a good topping for waffles, since the berries are floating in a homemade syrup…

PS: This can be used with apples, lemons, oranges, plums and or any fruit to make a wonderful jam. Store bought is just as good and I make a wonderful Kiwi Jam from the store bought variety. So even those stuck in the big cities can have homemade jams. I was also raised to use paraffin to seal the top with. Mason jars are great but to do it the Russian way just follow the above recipe.  It works for them…

 

Windows to Russia!

In Russia Odd Not Even Number of Flowers…

Remember: Today is the 8th of March…

International Women’s Day…

Remember also that you never send even numbers of flowers…

In Russia, odd numbers of flowers are given for romantic occasions. You should send 11 roses instead of the usual dozen. Really, any odd number is good and the more flowers in the bouquet the more attention is generated. Even numbers of flowers are only given at funerals…

Also don’t forget your woman’s mother and daughter. This is the act is of a true gentleman and is sure to get the hugs and kisses of your woman…

Windows to Russia!

Libya and the Oil Troubles…

Crude oil futures continued to rise toward $107 a barrel as unrest in Libya continues and growing fear unrest could spread to other oil-producing states grew deeper.

Crude prices grew by $2.45 to $106.87 a barrel in trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange having earlier hit a day high of $106.98. Futures trading rallied 2.5 percent on March 4, pushing the rise over the past week to 6.4 percent.

Windows to Russia!

Blogging In Russia…

Blogging has become a national hobby in Russia, with Russians among the most enthusiastic users of social networking sites and other new Web 2.0 media.

President Dmitry Medvedev is just one of 642,681 active Twitter users in Russia. The number of bloggers in the Russian LiveJournal segment has exceeded two million, making Russia the second “LiveJournal-addict” country after the United States with its five million bloggers.

With pressure on media to always be the first with news, many wonder whether the rise of blogging is a threat to traditional journalism.

This question was debated by Russian media bosses at a Vedomosti business daily’s annual conference on media business in Moscow on Thursday.

News agencies inevitably lose the battle with bloggers in breaking news first, said Farit Khusnoyarov, development director of Medialogia, which produces and sells online media monitoring to press services of companies, including the Presidential Executive Office.

“Twitter overtook the information agencies while covering the Domodedovo blast,” Khusnoyarov said, referring to the terrorist attack at Moscow’s largest airport on January 24 when 36 people were killed and dozens were injured.

The two leading Russian news agencies, Interfax and RIA Novosti, were delivering the news with almost an hour delay, he said.

The first online reaction to the attack came from a blogger nicknamed laddove, who reported about the attack just five minutes after the initial blast, at 4:37 p.m.

RIA Novosti reported the incident at 4:47, but did not describe it as a terrorist attack, as the origins of the explosion were still unclear.

RIA journalists near the scene of the attack reported “fumes” filling the arrival zone, but “had not rushed to describe it as a terrorist attack as the bloggers did,” RIA Novosti Deputy Editor-in-Chief Valery Levchenko said.

Similarly, Interfax reported at 4:57 p.m. that a “loud bang” had been heard in the airport’s arrival zone.

“In the first Twitter messages people asked where RIA and Interfax were. People were waiting for information to be structured and checked,” said Yury Pogorely, the head of the economics service at Interfax.

Speed versus accuracy is an eternal dilemma for journalists, and citizen journalism together with digital technology has only made it worse. Videos and photos posted online tend to be trusted because “the camera never lies,” although images can be just as misleading as text is if it is misinterpreted.

One factor boosting the media news race is the need to hit top positions in search lists like Google. Being first and grabbing the top positions in search engine results in the number of views is what makes the media attractive for advertisers.

Many media experts think a few minutes’ delay in waiting for an accurate story means little to the average reader. Readers still demand more reliable and in-depth content than a simple blog.

Vedomosti website’s Digital Publisher, Viktor Saxon, said the influence of bloggers on the media market was over-exaggerated. “Bloomberg and Reuters monitor the stock market and no Twitter post can trigger a collapse in a company’s stocks.”

“It is a great myth that in the future there will be no need for journalists since people will write everything themselves,” said Vladimir Sungorkin, editor-in-chief of the popular Russian tabloid Komsomolskaya Pravda. “They will not write worth a damn.”

“People are irresponsible, they tend toward wishful thinking…we will not receive any clear information about what happened from ordinary people,” Sungorkin added.

Media experts, like any ordinary journalist, love to argue, make forecasts and calculate profitability, but as long as the number one Russian blogger is the Russian president, citizen journalism will flourish. Many news agencies have already hired dedicated staff to monitor the blogosphere.

MOSCOW, March 5 (RIA Novosti, Anastasia Markitan)

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