If anything, Elon Musk is a master of PR. He is a master of Hype. But not all his illusions turn out to be a success. Remember Hyperloop? I am personally not against technology, quite the opposite but I am a technology sceptic. Dependence on technology keeps people vulnerable and enslaved. Also, seeing technology as a panacea to world’s problems is wrong…
Self-driving cars were all the hype for many years now and nobody has yet come up with a working and safe, commercially viable vehicle.
But if anyone runs a fleet of these robo-taxis, especially in an urban area with a high density of wealthy individuals, he could be making a killing. No need to pay drivers. If this makes it possible to replace the car entirely, this creates extra money in people’s pockets. Cars are already expensive, in the UK having a car and paying for road tax, congestion charges, and insurance can cost several thousand pound per year.
Come to think of it, a humanoid robot is such a cringe technology. What tasks would it be able to perform? Besides, the joy of living is doing many of these tasks yourself. So on one hand, I would not mind a robot that would clean my AirBNB, so I can dedicate my time to something else but cleaning it myself is also good.
Little did wannabe warlord and catering magnate Yevgeny Prigozhin realize his short-lived mutiny would result in his demise, leaving behind a legacy—and admirers—far beyond Russia’s borders, particularly in China, where Prigozhin has become a cult figure on closely monitored social media.
Prigozhin’s following among top military bloggers on Weibo, one of the largest social media platforms in China, mirrors that in Russia. From Moscow to Beijing, Prigozhin is seen as the embodiment of a more vigorous and genuine patriotism, a man who prioritized the motherland’s interests over his own life. He is celebrated as a man of the people, despite the wealth he generated from the Wagner Group’s operations.
His blunt criticism of Russia’s top military leaders bolstered his image as a truth-teller willing to risk his life. This resonated in China, where a purge of top military officials in the People’s Liberation Army is underway due to accusations of corruption and of betraying the ideals of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
Amid rising tension between Beijing and Washington, many Chinese military bloggers suspect U.S. involvement in Prigozhin’s death, despite there being no evidence of this. A poll on Weibo, limited to 1,000 respondents, showed a majority asserting that the United States orchestrated Prigozhin’s plane crash to incite civil war in Russia. A smaller number of voters pointed the finger at Russian President Vladimir Putin, stating that allowing Prigozhin to walk away unpunished could set a dangerous precedent.
Prigozhin according to my information never opposed Putin, and he could have been assassinated by somebody in the Russian government that he had beef with, and against whom he mutinied. Who that was I don’t know…
I thought Ukraine was supposed to win with the support of Western democracies. We have been told, by Karlin for instance, that the West has a GDP far surpassing Russia, and the Russians would simply lose…
It is rather questionable the amount of help Russia received from the likes of China, North Korea, or Iran. We have all heard about Iranian drones the Shahid-Geran but it is unclear how many of those drones Iran has delivered, or whether the Russians haven’t acquired the technology and don’t produce the drones themselves. I think the second option is more probable, and the Russian have actually perfected the Iranian prototype.
There was a story about the Russians firing a North Korean version of Iskander, the Kimskander. There was also a story about North Korea providing artillery shells. There was also a story that the North Korean shells are shit and they explode prematurely. If the second information is true, and not just a propaganda, this form of help wasn’t worth much. On the other hand, we have also heard that Russia is perfectly capable of producing shells by themselves.
Recently, a story about North Korean soldiers being sent to Ukraine has surfaced. The Kim regime could be interested in providing its troops with some combat experience but is this a game-changer? On the other hand, Ukraine has attracted thousands of volunteers from the West, from Georgia, Chechens and Islamists from North Caucasus and the Middle East. This is a very internationalized conflict, and many parties would like to be present.
China’s position is not exactly supportive of Russia’s efforts. You don’t hear about the Russians firing Chinese ammo and rockets on Ukraine. Recently, I heard China is developing drones together with Russia. I think I saw a document that said China will work with Russia but not to the detriment of its own interests. Hence, China is happy to import Russian oil and gas but Chinese banks might be reluctant to service Russian clients because of sanctions. Also, many of those FPV drones Ukraine was using to destroy Russian tanks were bought from China. China recently said they will not allow export of technologies that might be used for military purposes but I don’t think Beijing has the infrastructure to police people in Czechia that send drones to Ukraine.
And this brings me to another point. Ukraine is benefiting from an international financial system. I have seen zero fundraisers for Russia or the republics of the Donbas but I have seen a lot of fundraisers for Ukraine. That is on top of packages sent by Western governments. Russia has only itself to rely on, and Ukraine is still losing. The whole point in having Ukraine fight Russia was to deal a blow with Russia by proxy. Russia is seen, by the West as a competitor that ought to be contained by constantly mounting sanctions, negative PR, and proxy conflicts on its borders. This stress is supposed to halt Russia. And nobody gives a fuck if some Ukrs are going to die at this.
What major historical events do you remember?
I remember the fall of Communism but I lived in a small town in Bohemia so the events there were nothing dramatic, overall nothing is ever dramatic in Czechia. Technically everything is a historical event in some environment. Little do you know but you could be making history right now, and future generations will remember your ass.
Electric vehicles have a future in armies, especially when it comes to light vehicles. EVs have a lower heat signature. The Russian military is experimenting with using electric motorcycles that they are using in their storm trooper units. I am not very knowledgeable in this area but I have heard of weapons that take out electric devices.
Electric tanks would be less noisy and there would be less of a risk of a fire. I wonder how they manage this technologically. Have you seen a Tesla Truck trying to climb a hill? Have you seen Tesla on fire from a damaged battery? Mind you, these tanks will be hit with rockets and suicide drones flying at high velocity, and one would need to pack a shit loads of power to make this thing run.
At the end of the day, there are weapons coming out of research and development being introduced into production only to shine at one battlefield and totally suck at another. Also, war makes weapons quickly obsolete. Think Bayraktar, Javelin, or even HIMARS. Think of the horse in WWI…
PS: This allegedly is an electric off road bike from Kalashnikov…
I still don’t get why the Germans vote for the Social Democrats, the Christian Democrats, or the Greens…
These are the parties of economic decline, of servility to America, of support for the Ukrainian oligarchy and Ukrainian Nazis, the parties of impoverishment, of failed energy policies, of deindustrialization, of bankruptcy. This is a globalist uniparty of similar ideology and similar values. Only AfD is a sensible option…
AfD wants to normalize relations with Russia. I don’t know what their policy on nuclear is but hopefully they represent the sensible part of German society.
PS: Die Linke
Crippled Negro is the most normal of the bunch if you ask me…
2 weeks ago, Apple deleted almost 100 VPN, today independent media. Current Time and Radio Liberty. (Note: both of these “independent” media are sponsored by the US government)
I spoke about this at a UN session. Such measures don’t do any harm to Putin, they give him advantage because he controls the TV.
However, they are depriving the Russians of access to truthful and honest information.
It is a mistake to follow a repressive law, to pay billions in fines in Russian war chest and to think we exist in a world of “business as usual.”
Recently, my neighbors visited Japan, and they flew through Shanghai…
The Chinese airlines are making a killing transporting people from Europe to Asia. Following Russian invasion of Ukraine, to punish Russia, America’s lackies decided to deny Russia their Boeings and Airbuses. As a response, Russia denied its airspace to airlines from unfriendly countries. This means that Chinese airlines now have a monopoly on flights between Europe and North Asia, and South Asia has traditionally been the domain of the Arabs, Hong Kong and Singapore.
In an interview on the Dutch television programme WNL Op Zondag, she [Marjan Rintel, the CEO of KLM] highlighted that, unlike European airlines for whom Russian airspace is closed due to the war on Ukraine, Chinese carriers can use Russian airspace when serving Europe, which saves them time, reduces fuel costs, and results in lower fares. “That sometimes saves you two to four hours. You see that reflected in the price, and of course, the costs are higher for us.”
***
Akin to rival Lufthansa (LH, Frankfurt International) and its recent appeals to the EU, Rintel called on Brussels to address this disparity to level the playing field for European carriers. “Europe can at least see how we can prevent that unfair playing field by pricing it or looking at it differently.”
I have written about Lufthansa’s woes on this blog here. So these airlines instead of demanding an easing of sanctions against Russia, which could open up flight corridors over that country, would rather like to make travel to Asia expensive for everyone. No doubt their demands were encouraged by tariffs on Chinese EVs. Not like the price of EVs isn’t already high for the consumer, and the latter does not see it as a worth while expense for EV’s that are generally shit cars. The Chinese offered a cheaper option, and had to be punished.
Deglobalization will ultimately hurt Joe Average, who is already suffering from inflation.
What are you most proud of in your life?
In my life, everything is hard, everything is pain, everything arrives late, nothing to be proud of.
The other day I watched Tucker’s interview with Rep. Thomas Massie…
It is well worth watching. As mentioned, they discuss AIPAC. They are left bewildered that given the activities AIPAC does, it is not registered as a foreign agent. The argument goes that AIPAC are not foreigners but rather Zionist Americans. But no other country has its own public lobby group in Murica. Don’t tell me, Murica doesn’t have enough pro-Russian individuals that could act as Congressman’s friend on the phone that will direct his voting. 😆
Massie says he keeps hearing from colleagues that supporting Ukraine is good because the Russians are dying. But nobody would speak about the price the Ukrainians are paying for this containment of Russia.
I guess you might enjoy the interview more if you are an American, which I am not….
Insomniac Resurrected 