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You are here: Home / Politics / Biden Administration in Action / Jake Sullivan with Jen Psaki Today, Except No Jen Psaki

Jake Sullivan with Jen Psaki Today, Except No Jen Psaki

by WaterGirl|  March 22, 20221:54 pm| 175 Comments

This post is in: Biden Administration in Action, Open Threads, War in Ukraine

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Jen Psaki has National Security Advisory Jake Sullivan with her at the today’s press briefing.  The briefing just started, and no Jen Psaki, because Jen tested positive for Covid – and has Covid for a second time.  Good thoughts for Jen Psaki.

Someone from Jen’s staff spoke for a minute about the Supreme Court hearings, and now Jake Sullivan is up.

In my experience, the questions to guests at the press briefings are typically less inane than the questions Jen Psaki usually gets in per briefings.

Open thread.

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Reader Interactions

175Comments

  1. 1.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 1:57 pm

    Nothing good comes from ditching masks just because we are tired of the fucking pandemic.

  2. 2.

    James E Powell

    March 22, 2022 at 2:03 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    Totally agree. Effective tomorrow, my employer, Los Angeles Schools, will no longer require masks indoors.

    In his email announcing the change, our brand new superintendent says he “strongly supports” ending the mask requirement. He does not say why. Then he says, “Now that this important issue is behind us, it is time to focus on each student’s full academic potential.”

    What do masks have to do with that?

    What makes him think we were not focused on each student’s full academic potential before he was hired?

    I had two students out last week with positive COVID tests. No student has ever complained to me about the masks. (NB – They complain about every thing that bothers them.)  What makes them all so sure that masks are the problem?

  3. 3.

    Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes

    March 22, 2022 at 2:05 pm

    https://twitter.com/sumlenny/status/1506265327973376009?s=20&t=EzT4vO6rfx8ApKcLzDz1-g

    Looks like an entire Russian army may be encircled any day now.

    My notion is that anybody captured at the rank of major and above gets a noose. They’re reusable, and the war crimes are obvious.

    EDIT by WG: Starting at 5:30 pm today, comments like this will get people banned from BJ for 3 days. Per John Cole. See my comment at #117 for details.

  4. 4.

    Dangerman

    March 22, 2022 at 2:17 pm

    @WaterGirl: I still mask up. Then I don’t have to shave every day. Win. Win.

    Now if I can only do something with this noose  around my neck called a “tie”.

  5. 5.

    Betty Cracker

    March 22, 2022 at 2:21 pm

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes: Wow, that’s mindboggling if true! I am against mass executions, but the tweeter is right that such a massive defeat of the Russian Army would create a dilemma about what to do with all the POWs.

  6. 6.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 2:21 pm

    @Dangerman: I mask up also.  I feel bad for Jen.

  7. 7.

    Gin & Tonic

    March 22, 2022 at 2:22 pm

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes:  Interesting Tweet as part of a Kamil Galeev thread. The Russian kids that are there, are from shithole towns in the middle of nowhere, with no prospects. They’re the ones who either don’t know someone who can get them out or don’t have money to buy their way out of serving. I know this has been suggested elsewhere before, but offer them 5,000 Euros and an EU visa, and they’re gone.

    One thing to understand about Russian soldiers. I watched many videos with captured conscripts. Countryside, small towns, provincial cities. For the entire time I saw 1 (one) from Moscow. It’s the army of the poor. They can be bought very cheaply if you just try
    — Kamil Galeev (@kamilkazani) March 22, 2022

  8. 8.

    Spanky

    March 22, 2022 at 2:22 pm

    There’s a new backpfeifengesicht candidate.

  9. 9.

    Gin & Tonic

    March 22, 2022 at 2:23 pm

    @Betty Cracker: I think they should be taught the history of Katyn.

  10. 10.

    Benw

    March 22, 2022 at 2:24 pm

    @WaterGirl: @James E Powell:  yes and yes. Masks don’t just work on Covid – they can help stop cold and flu transmission if we could just normalize wearing one when symptomatic. Fewer sick kids means missing fewer days of school. My daughter’s up to 20+ days missed this year, and our district made masks optional 2 weeks ago!

  11. 11.

    CaseyL

    March 22, 2022 at 2:24 pm

    I feel bad for Jen, getting Covid not once but twice.  I hope the symptoms are mild and she gets better soon.

    Very short, as press conferences go.  More like a teaser trailer: “Stay tuned for Thursdays press conference, when we will talk more about sanctions, posture, and kicking Putin in the balls!”

  12. 12.

    sdhays

    March 22, 2022 at 2:26 pm

    @Betty Cracker: Surely, that’s something that NATO can help out with. As long as Ukraine can get POW’s to a NATO border, NATO should be able to take care of housing and feeding them and keeping them out of trouble.

    ETA: I have no particular knowledge about this, it just seems the obvious thing to do. And while we know Putin and his regime really don’t care whether Russian soldiers live, die, or are tortured, I expect knowing that you’d be sent to a nice, comfortable NATO prison with warm food, guarded by people who aren’t actively at war with you and suffering horrible atrocities at your country’s hands would make the prospect of surrender more appealing to actual Russian soldiers.

  13. 13.

    geg6

    March 22, 2022 at 2:26 pm

    @James E Powell: ​
     
    It’s not the problem and they know it. But they are sick of hearing about it from insane parents and just want to stop getting screamed at by mentally iffy assholes who probably have guns.

  14. 14.

    Baud

    March 22, 2022 at 2:26 pm

    @Benw:

    Masks don’t just work on Covid – they can help stop cold and flu transmission

    Masks are condoms for the face.

  15. 15.

    Gin & Tonic

    March 22, 2022 at 2:29 pm

    This is a long but very interesting thread about differences in how the “west” and Ukraine view and interact with Russia.

    Another surprising miscalculation. I often see that Ukrainians (officials, media, scholars, NGO) are often perceived and treated exclusively as eye witnesses, a biased part of the conflict. This, their data, ideas and narratives are immediately disregard…1/15
    — Tymofii Brik (@brik_t) March 22, 2022

  16. 16.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 2:31 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: Who is the “they” and for those of us in the cheap seats who don’t know all the history of the region, what is the history of Katyn?

  17. 17.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 2:33 pm

    @CaseyL: Well, they were prepared for Jen to do the press briefing, so I’m not surprised if it was shorter than normal.

  18. 18.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 2:34 pm

    I saw this on twitter just now, I missed it when it happened yesterday.

    BREAKING: Joe Biden warns “The magnitude of Russia’s cyber capacity is fairly consequential and it’s coming”

    — Samuel Ramani (@SamRamani2) March 21, 2022

  19. 19.

    Nicole

    March 22, 2022 at 2:36 pm

    Oh, that sucks that Psaki has Covid again! Ugh. I know she’ll be fine; vaccines are awesome, but man. I wonder if this is a new infection or the old one continuing to shed out.

  20. 20.

    Betty Cracker

    March 22, 2022 at 2:36 pm

    @WaterGirl: Here’s what I wonder: what is the magnitude of the United States’ cyber capacity, and how has it been deployed?

  21. 21.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 2:37 pm

    @Nicole: Jen is tested frequently, so I can’t imagine that it’s the previous Covid infection suddenly showing up again.

    If I’m Jen’s husband, I am lobbying for her to tie up her role as Press Secretary sooner rather than later.  I know Jen said she promised at least a year, but this war, I’m guessing, is  extending her stay as Press Secretary.

  22. 22.

    Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes

    March 22, 2022 at 2:38 pm

    @Betty Cracker:

    Thats why my solution is so elegant. It recognizes the extreme hierarchy of the conscript army, and holds those who give the orders responsible.

    Hell, they have dress uniforms with them. Let them wear ‘em while they kick.

  23. 23.

    Gin & Tonic

    March 22, 2022 at 2:39 pm

    @WaterGirl: Le Comte was suggesting a fate for the allegedly surrounded Russians (at least their officers.) BCrack chimed in, so “they” is that cohort. Katyn is where the NKVD executed some 22,000 captured Polish officers in the spring of 1940. Poland remembers.

    This is where many members of the Polish government were flying in April of 2011 when their plane crashed. Many Poles view that crash as a continuation of the 1940 massacre.

  24. 24.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 2:39 pm

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes: How can you possibly think it’s a good idea for the good guys to violate the Geneva Convention???

  25. 25.

    Steeplejack

    March 22, 2022 at 2:43 pm

    @Gin & Tonic:

    Just read that. Agree that it is very informative.

  26. 26.

    Spanky

    March 22, 2022 at 2:45 pm

    @Betty Cracker:

    Here’s what I wonder: what is the magnitude of the United States’ cyber capacity, and how has it been deployed?

    Assume this: It’s the best in the world, and it has been deployed both offensively and defensively.

    Also assume this: The better players never show their hands.

  27. 27.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 2:45 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: Thank you.  So you were mentioning that as a cautionary tale rather than as something to be emulated.

  28. 28.

    Uncle Cosmo

    March 22, 2022 at 2:46 pm

    @WaterGirl: …for those of us in the cheap seats who don’t know all the history of the region, what is the history of Katyn?

    I’m sure someone will get here before me (ETA: G&T at #23, natch) but just in case not, you could click here.

    IIUC the massacre was part & parcel of the Soviets’ postwar intentions to make Poland its satellite (after shoving its borders 100 km westward).

  29. 29.

    mrmoshpotato

    March 22, 2022 at 2:46 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    Nothing good comes from ditching masks just because we are tired of the fucking pandemic. 

    Amen.

  30. 30.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    March 22, 2022 at 2:48 pm

    @Spanky: also, as I read the White House statement, they were telling the private sector to up their game.

    I should say, I know enough not to click on emails with funny fonts and telling me I won a prize, not much more

  31. 31.

    Gravenstone

    March 22, 2022 at 2:51 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: In the Twitter thread, there was a suggestion the Poland might step up to deal with the POW influx. Maybe I am misinterpreting things, but that seems to me like a potential excuse for Putin to move against Poland in turn, to “rescue” his troops. Not that he really needs one right now, a he likely thrashes about in anger and his failure to secure Ukraine.

  32. 32.

    Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes

    March 22, 2022 at 2:54 pm

    My comments were a poor jest.

    And no, the POWs should not be moved anywhere outside of Ukraine. That would be a cassus belli that Putin would exploit.

  33. 33.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 2:55 pm

    @Betty Cracker: Someone in our government made reference to the strength of our cyber game – but I don’t recall who said it – most likely in a press briefing from last week.

    I took the answer/comment as “we’ve got game” in that arena.

  34. 34.

    Soprano2

    March 22, 2022 at 2:56 pm

    @WaterGirl: I don’t know if it will help, but right after Russia attacked Ukraine our IT people blocked all foreign access to our servers, out of an abundance of caution. They e-mailed us and said if we needed an exception we needed to let them know, but I doubt we have many people here who communicate with someone overseas.

  35. 35.

    Gin & Tonic

    March 22, 2022 at 2:56 pm

    @WaterGirl: Was I?

  36. 36.

    Another Scott

    March 22, 2022 at 2:57 pm

    I hope Biden is masking up whenever he is around others.  :-(

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  37. 37.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 2:58 pm

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: They also met with reps from the 150 most-at-risk companies who provide infrastructure in this country.  The meeting was (earlier this week or last week, I don’t recall the exact timing) FOR A CLASSIFIED BRIEFING.

    Then they announced more generally to the rest of the US companies to patch their stuff because shit is about to get real.

    My paraphrase, of course.

  38. 38.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 3:01 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: I debated whether to put a question mark at the end of my sentence.  So perhaps you were suggesting that payback’s a bitch?

  39. 39.

    gvg

    March 22, 2022 at 3:01 pm

    @sdhays: I don’t see why it would be considered easier to move POW’s out of Ukraine as opposed to evacuating citizens through fake “humanitarian” corridors or getting food and medicines to Ukrainian citizens. The Russians are attacking everywhere and are hitting hospitals and neighborhoods. They are leaving their own dead and aren’t able to keep their own unsurrendered troops fed apparently. I think they will just keep shelling even if it’s their own troops. They can lie and say its a ruse and it was really resupply to the Ukrainians or blame the Ukrainians for not keeping them safe-to their own public.

    All logistics are hard in a war zone.

  40. 40.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 3:02 pm

    @Another Scott: From answers to the questions on that subject in the briefings, I get the impression that he is not.  But anyone in close contact does have to be tested before they are with the President, so there’s that.

  41. 41.

    Baud

    March 22, 2022 at 3:03 pm

    We never should have canceled CSI Cyber.

  42. 42.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 3:04 pm

    @Baud:

    We never should have canceled CSI Cyber.

    They should never have made CSI Cyber, possibly the worst non-sitcom program ever made.

  43. 43.

    Doug R

    March 22, 2022 at 3:04 pm

    @WaterGirl: You gotta give the next Russian dictator something to “whatabout” next time they commit war crimes.

    Seriously, though I wouldn’t mind trials and long sentences for those giving orders to target civilians.

  44. 44.

    Ken

    March 22, 2022 at 3:07 pm

    @Doug R: You gotta give the next Russian dictator something to “whatabout” next time they commit war crimes.

    Why? Putin’s shown no hesitation at just making stuff up, and I doubt the next one will be any better.

  45. 45.

    Martin

    March 22, 2022 at 3:10 pm

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes: Been waiting for this. A week or two ago there was a mention of using the flood control from the Kyiv Reservoir to flood the Tetariv, which flows past Ivankiv. That didn’t happen right away, so I thought it was speculation, but that seems to be what has happened in the last week based on satellite photos. the town of Ivankiv is completely flooded, and Russia can’t cross that any longer. Their bridging equipment can’t cross a flood plain. They might be able to build a pontoon bridge, but it doesn’t seem like they’re prepared for that.

    Last night Ukraine took back Makariv so they seem to have bottled up Russias advance from the northwest. Ukraine has held them from Kyiv, they can’t retreat north of Ivankiv because of the flooding, they can’t really swing west due to the lack of roads and passable terrain. Their only ability to get resupplied is from the air.

    The downside is that Ukraine is now also blocked from moving north of Ivankiv to retake Chernobyl, etc. but I think that’s the least of their concerns at the moment. This should give Kyiv complete ground protection from west of the reservoir, which if nothing else keeps the city from getting surrounded and keeps supply lines open.

    The delay may have been that there is no flood control on the Tetariv. I think it’s all controlled by the hydro plant in Vyshhorod and they may have needed the water level to rise naturally which can take a while. Also, raising the water level requires not running the hydro plant which is probably providing power to Kyiv and given the low temps they might have wanted to keep at least some power flowing.

    But Ukraine probably has options here. They can just hold the line and let the Russians starve, but that runs the risk that Russia is able to reopen a supply line from the north. They could just bypass them, figuring they are combat ineffective with no food, fuel, ammo and push into Ivankiv and push in from the west toward Chernobyl. Or they can just run them over and maybe pickup some equipment in the process.

    Given what’s going on in Belarus, I might buy those folks some time because Russia might be losing their capacity to bring supplies across Belarus, which would make retaking Chernobyl a lot easier. None of this affects Russias ability to use long range missiles against Kyiv or Ukrainian forces, air assets, etc. It just keeps tanks from rolling in, which is a hell of a good start.

    Hopefully that will also allow Ukraine to shift forces from the northwest of Kyiv to push south toward Mykolayiv and bolster that counteroffensive toward Kherson, or to intercept that flanking move by Russia to surround the Ukrainian forces in the east.

  46. 46.

    pluky

    March 22, 2022 at 3:12 pm

    @Betty Cracker: Offer them free passage to the West. Bet they’ll jump at the chance.

  47. 47.

    Steeplejack

    March 22, 2022 at 3:12 pm

    @Baud:

    Amen to that. [Shakes head.]

  48. 48.

    Nicole

    March 22, 2022 at 3:15 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    Jen is tested frequently, so I can’t imagine that it’s the previous Covid infection suddenly showing up again.

    That’s why I wondered if it’s the original, but I can’t remember if it was over 90 days since she last tested positive.  When you test positive, PCR tests are no good for 3 months afterwards because the test can’t tell the difference between living and dead virus.  I know antigen is different, but after my positive test I was excused from any sort of Covid test for 3 months.  I guess I’m just surprised, if it’s within 90 days, that she’s being tested at all (again, though, I can’t remember when she last had it; it may have been over 90 days).

  49. 49.

    Martin

    March 22, 2022 at 3:18 pm

    @Soprano2: A lot of US companies have employees in Ukraine. Lots of tech companies do, at least. They needed to cut off those employees entirely, because of this.

    It’d be fair to say that if Russia had found vulnerabilities in US infrastructure, they’d sit on it until they needed it rather than reveal it. I cannot articulate just how badly some of this shit is run and maintained. I’m glad the WH had that briefing, but I doubt it’ll matter that much. These guys are typically miles from where they need to be. Feds need to strongly regulate critical infrastructure IT because that’s the only way its going to happen.

  50. 50.

    comrade scotts agenda of rage

    March 22, 2022 at 3:18 pm

    @Gin & Tonic:

    The Taliban did just that last year: negotiate and financially compensate for mass surrenders.

  51. 51.

    Brachiator

    March 22, 2022 at 3:19 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    If I’m Jen’s husband, I am lobbying for her to tie up her role as Press Secretary sooner rather than later. I know Jen said she promised at least a year, but this war, I’m guessing, is extending her stay as Press Secretary.

    Can we come to an agreement with them to keep her on as Press Secretary?

    She’s my fave.

  52. 52.

    Another Scott

    March 22, 2022 at 3:19 pm

    @Nicole: Her previous positive was October 31 (about 4.75 months ago).  The test today was a PCR test.

    Here’s hoping she’s back soon, and stops getting infected!!

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  53. 53.

    Steeplejack

    March 22, 2022 at 3:23 pm

    Lengthy thread by Mark Hertling on the probable level of military casualties in Ukraine (high).

    Thread Reader version here.

  54. 54.

    Bill Arnold

    March 22, 2022 at 3:25 pm

    @Benw:

    Masks don’t just work on Covid – they can help stop cold and flu transmission if we could just normalize wearing one when symptomatic.

    They work a lot better on less-infectious diseases like influenza and various “cold” viruses. Even a completely-novel influenza has a R0 of like 1.6 (Omicron is like 7), and masks and other public health measures can completely block spread if they reduce R to less than 1.0. This is easy, as demonstrated by 3 missing influenza seasons (2 in the southern hemisphere) during the COVID-19 pandemic.

  55. 55.

    Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes

    March 22, 2022 at 3:28 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    Wait, what? This is a thing?!??

  56. 56.

    sdhays

    March 22, 2022 at 3:29 pm

    @gvg: The problem is dealing with POW’s. You want to get them away from the front lines because you don’t want your fighting forces dealing with them while fighting the war. So, assuming the Ukrainian armed forces can get POW’s away from the front lines and handed off to a less critical force, it should be comparatively easy to ship them west. At least that’s what makes sense from my novice thinking.

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes: Could you expand on this? If he wants to attack, say, Poland, what army is he going to do that with? His current army is being fairly rapidly destroyed in the muds of the Ukrainian plains. He really can’t afford to open up a new front with NATO. Are you suggesting that it could be a nuclear red line?

  57. 57.

    Gin & Tonic

    March 22, 2022 at 3:31 pm

    So, talking about buying them out?

    On this photo you can see a moment when a #Russian tank driver, a Soldier Misha surrenders to the #Ukrainian troops together with his tank for a reward. After the end of war he’ll receive $10,000 & a chance to apply for the #Ukraine citizenship. [Thread⬇️] pic.twitter.com/AHkcX45OxC
    — Victor Kovalenko (@MrKovalenko) March 22, 2022

  58. 58.

    Bill Arnold

    March 22, 2022 at 3:34 pm

    @sdhays:

    we know Putin and his regime really don’t care whether Russian soldiers live, die, or are tortured, I expect knowing that you’d be sent to a nice, comfortable NATO prison with warm food

    The Russians haven’t even been collecting most of the dead bodies of dead Russian soldiers. (It is reported.)
    Russian soldiers (any soldiers, really) are much more likely to surrender if they believe they will be treated well. We can be sure without even bothering to look that Russian propagandists are spreading rumors that surrendering Russian soldiers will be tortured and/or killed. (The Chechens made and distributed videos of the torture of(non-Chechen)Russian soldiers and those are within memory of many Russians, so it is/will be easy recycle those memories.)

  59. 59.

    Origuy

    March 22, 2022 at 3:39 pm

    I could save this for a good news thread, but good news is always welcome.

    A number of Ukrainian refugees have been settling into their new surroundings in an unusual setting on the outskirts of Galway. The women and children, from various locations in Ukraine, are being accommodated in Ballindooley Castle | https://t.co/aCXRoygrsi pic.twitter.com/TDvmzsnF0r— RTÉ News (@rtenews) March 22, 2022

  60. 60.

    Dopey-o

    March 22, 2022 at 3:42 pm

    @sdhays: Could you expand on this? If he wants to attack, say, Poland, what army is he going to do that with? His current army is being fairly rapidly destroyed in the muds of the Ukrainian plains. He really can’t afford to….

    1. Russian POWs shipped to Poland.

    2. Putin objects, fires cruise missiles into Warsaw.

    3. NATO invokes Article 5 in support of Poland.

    4. WW III ramps up when Putin nukes Warsaw and Berlin.

    5. Everyone dies.

    6. Adam proven right.

  61. 61.

    lowtechcyclist

    March 22, 2022 at 3:43 pm

    @WaterGirl:  Nothing good comes from ditching masks just because we are tired of the fucking pandemic.

    Damned straight.

    ETA: I’ve always said I’d be one of the last people to ditch their masks in public, and that still holds.  When Covid’s killing fewer Americans than automobiles do, I think I may relax.

    @James E Powell:

    No student has ever complained to me about the masks. (NB – They complain about every thing that bothers them.)

    My kiddo is in high school, and he complains about a lot of things, as kids that age will. Masks haven’t been one of them.

  62. 62.

    Bill Arnold

    March 22, 2022 at 3:48 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    Then they announced more generally to the rest of the US companies to patch their stuff because shit is about to get real.

    Yes, there is definitely a push. Reality of it, I don’t know. The infosec world has been busier than usual the last few weeks. And e.g. one might have noticed browser patches (firefox, chrome, brave at least). This infosec hyperactivity is a good thing in that it can quickly change the landscape negatively for attackers, and that can discourage attacks.
    I hope the Russians are not so stupid as to underestimate The West, again.

  63. 63.

    sdhays

    March 22, 2022 at 3:50 pm

    @Dopey-o: Yes, but is there something specific that makes shipping POW’s to Poland more of an offense than shipping tens of thousands of advanced weapons across the Ukrainian border?

    We’re already doing lots of things that Putin has called “acts of war”, including the sanctions. Is there something that makes giving POW’s to NATO more of an escalation? I can appreciate that it might be, but is there something specific that makes it obvious to the non-ignorant?

  64. 64.

    Fake Irishman

    March 22, 2022 at 3:51 pm

    @Gin & Tonic:

    This is a good thread with all sorts of interesting nuggets about how Ukraine has been developing and adjusting logistically and intellectually under the threat of the Russian bear. It’s quite an accomplishment that parliament and national governmental agencies are working as well as they are under these conditions. I do wonder who the “west” is in this particular case —- American media outlets? NATO country diplomats? NGOs leadership in Geneva? Certain talking head “experts”?

  65. 65.

    Gin & Tonic

    March 22, 2022 at 3:53 pm

    @Bill Arnold: Speaking of “the cyber,” it appears that the Ukrainians have acquired an object which I’m sure will be of *enormous* interest to US intel.

    #Ukraine: We managed to identify this bizarre “container”, captured today by the UA forces near #Kyiv.

    It is likely to be the command post of one of the most potent Russian EW system – 1RL257 Krasukha-4, used to suppress AWACS radars & radar reconnaissance satellites. pic.twitter.com/1VvKjGoM2p
    — ?? Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@UAWeapons) March 22, 2022

  66. 66.

    Fake Irishman

    March 22, 2022 at 3:54 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: also, how are family members holding up? I seem to recall you’ve got a nephew in Kyiv that was worrying you quite a bit and maybe some other folks?

  67. 67.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 3:54 pm

    @Nicole: It’s been way longer than 3 months, sounds like closer to 5.

  68. 68.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    March 22, 2022 at 3:56 pm

    @Dopey-o: The real problem is “This will start a nuclear war” is as Adam has been also pointing out Putin is batshit nuts.  If Putin just got to start it, then it’s going to happen, so, no point in bother second guessing him.

  69. 69.

    Fake Irishman

    March 22, 2022 at 3:56 pm

    @sdhays:

    i think in this particular case that you are dealing directly with soldiers as POWS in a conflict you technically aren’t a party to  rather than merely doing business with one of the combatants.

  70. 70.

    Ken

    March 22, 2022 at 3:57 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: Speaking of “the cyber,” it appears that the Ukrainians have acquired an object which I’m sure will be of *enormous* interest to US intel.

    Hillary’s server? Hunter’s laptop?

  71. 71.

    trollhattan

    March 22, 2022 at 4:00 pm

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes:

    There will be exchanges of many kinds. IIRC one kidnapped Ukrainian mayor was exchanged for half a dozen Russian POWs last week.

    As things are, Russia can simply continue isolating Mariupol and most of the hundreds of thousands trapped will die. They will use this as a bargaining chip should Ukraine capture thousands of troops.

    OTOH it will be interesting should that happen, to see how many refuse to go back.

  72. 72.

    Omnes Omnibus

    March 22, 2022 at 4:00 pm

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes: No, just fucking no.  War crimes do not justify war crimes.

  73. 73.

    trollhattan

    March 22, 2022 at 4:01 pm

    @Ken: Call Barron, stat! He does the cybers.

    If the speculation pans out, this is like capturing Enigma.

  74. 74.

    Martin

    March 22, 2022 at 4:04 pm

    Someone yesterday mentioned that Russia’s main tank manufacturer stopped production due to a lack of resources. This should have been expected. In fact, you should expect it everywhere in Russia.

    There are very few industries in very few countries that are entirely self sufficient within national borders. Almost every industry needs to drag some element across its border – or at least chooses to do so because of cost, quality, availability or intellectual property. If you have 95% of your industry self-sufficient, but can’t import that last 5% because it’s from a US company, or needs a shipper that won’t go to your country, or whatever, then you’re shut down. And it’s not just the resources to make the thing, it’s also the equipment used to make it and on down the line. Things break, you need spare parts, you need consumable resources, and so on. That why you want to be a good global citizen – it gives you access to these things, and backups to that as well.

    This is what the US and the west are trying to do. To cut Russia off from so much of their external sources that nothing functions any more. Today they can harvest enough wheat to feed the country, but what about next year when they can’t get parts for their tractors, most of which come from the Czech Republic. And Russia never really even made an attemtp to protect national industries. In part because envisioning themselves as a global entity like the US, they figured they could operate as the US does. But they aren’t, and they don’t act like a nation that wants to maintain global relations. And this is also in part because whatever industrial progress Russia makes, their leaders steal. In spite of Russias pivot to capitalism, Russia is worse at a whole bunch of stuff than they were under the USSR. They’ve somehow managed to preserve the worst aspects of both capitalism and communism. I mean, even their main industry – oil – they are pretty much entirely dependent on US drillers like Halliburton, and they’ve all left the country. Russia never even developed their own expertise in the very thing they were most economically dependent on, probably because you couldn’t steal from it.

    Russia will likely still have a lifeline through China, but that’s about it. And we’ll see how willing China will be to serve that market and put up with the harassment the west gives them over that.

  75. 75.

    lowtechcyclist

    March 22, 2022 at 4:06 pm

    Here’s an idea about the (non-officer) POWs, a variant of a couple things suggested in this thread and elsewhere:

    Offer then 5000 Euros (or its equivalent in their destination’s currency), their freedom, and transport to any non-NATO, non-Russia-friendly country they’d like to go to that is willing to let them in.  Brazil, Tanzania, wherever. Take them there, give them the money, and turn them loose.  Problem solved.

    Ukraine should of course keep the officers imprisoned for future war crimes trials.

  76. 76.

    Ishiyama

    March 22, 2022 at 4:06 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes: No, just fucking no.  War crimes do not justify war crimes.

    Of course you are correct. Then again, if you turn the senior officers over to the enlisted men of the surrendered army, they might have their own ideas.

  77. 77.

    Bill Arnold

    March 22, 2022 at 4:06 pm

    @Gin & Tonic:
    LOL, definitely a win for both Ukraine and the US if they don’t already have one.
    The wikipedia article was updated today to mention the (alleged) capture.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krasukha_(electronic_warfare_system)

  78. 78.

    Gin & Tonic

    March 22, 2022 at 4:06 pm

    @Fake Irishman: So far so good. I’d rather not go into detail.

  79. 79.

    japa21

    March 22, 2022 at 4:08 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: They have been in my thoughts.  I know you don’t want to provide any even vague details and we all respect that desire.

  80. 80.

    catclub

    March 22, 2022 at 4:10 pm

    @Betty Cracker: and how has it been deployed?

     

    almost entirely against Iran?

  81. 81.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 4:14 pm

    @Brachiator: It’s Jen who only promised to do it for a year, not the President only keeping her for a year. I’m sure they would be thrilled to keep her in that role forever.

    My worry is that the second bout of Covid might get her to stick to her guns on being press secretary for a shorter term than I would like.

  82. 82.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 4:16 pm

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes: Just be grateful that you never saw the show.  A-W-F-U-L.

  83. 83.

    Fake Irishman

    March 22, 2022 at 4:16 pm

    @Gin & Tonic:

    Glad to hear it. Also, no need to violate specific operational/familial security on our account; your [dysfunctional] family on this blog just cares that your family irl are as OK as they can be in a war zone.

  84. 84.

    Bill Arnold

    March 22, 2022 at 4:17 pm

    @Enhanced Voting Techniques:

    …Putin is batshit nuts. If Putin just got to start it, then it’s going to happen, so, no point in bother second guessing him.

    It’s a matter of probabilities, and “nuts” is not a precise diagnosis. Analysts are doing their best to estimate probabilities/risks. With thermonuclear warfare in play, nation-level leaders not making a serious attempt to assess risks would be a psychopathic act, akin to picking up a revolver and playing Russian roulette with it without bothering to check to see how many cylinders have cartridges.
    Except that the bullet would kill not only oneself, but also most of the people one cares about and billions more humans worldwide.
    More importantly, perhaps, Putin does not have a “button” – he issues orders through a device like the the US “football”, which one or more somebodies (I do not know the details, but they probably have families and friends) in the military hierarchy would need to obey.

  85. 85.

    Benw

    March 22, 2022 at 4:17 pm

    @Bill Arnold: “Even a completely-novel influenza has a R0 of like 1.6 (Omicron is like 7)”

    Good to know!

  86. 86.

    Martin

    March 22, 2022 at 4:21 pm

    @Fake Irishman: I’d expect it to be those countries that do not have regular on-the-ground interaction with Russia, either because they aren’t on the border, or because they weren’t Warsaw Pact at some point in the past.

    And I’ve observed that as well. US and much of NATO is presented as very detached and academic. They have a certain bias toward how they want this to work. While Ukraine and some others in the region are dismissed as not having the kind of access to spy networks that the ‘west’ has, as being too biased due to old grudges, etc. (as if the US isn’t susceptible to that <cough>Cuba</cough>).

    At the core I think is the nuclear veto. Ukraine kind of has nothing to lose here. Triggering a nuclear exchange doesn’t materially worse then situation given what’s happening in Mariupol. Same for their neighbors. The delta between stepping over the line and not stepping over the line is pretty small for them. But for Germany west, it’s different. There is no imminent risk to any of these nations of a conventional war, but there is of a nuclear one. If you’re going to go nuclear, you don’t drop it on Kyiv, you drop it on DC. Either one will trigger the same response from the west, so you might as well go for it. So in a lot of ways the ‘west’ doesn’t want those voices to have credibility because it raises the risk level for countries like the US, UK, Germany, etc., even though those voices in Ukraine, Lithuania, Finland, etc are probably correct.

  87. 87.

    Fake Irishman

    March 22, 2022 at 4:23 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    thanks for your continued sanity in times of difficulty.

  88. 88.

    Frankensteinbeck

    March 22, 2022 at 4:25 pm

    @Martin:

    And Russia never really even made an attemtp to protect national industries.

    I am told that Putin made a policy/project of rendering Russia’s industries completely independent and self-sufficient to prevent exactly this problem – and that he failed utterly.  From what we’re hearing about Putin’s ‘shoot the messenger’ policy, he may not know that yet.

  89. 89.

    Bostondreams

    March 22, 2022 at 4:25 pm

    way off topic, but DeSantis calls trans women ‘basically men’. 

    God I really hope he never becomes president.

  90. 90.

    Martin

    March 22, 2022 at 4:27 pm

    @Bill Arnold: Omicron is higher than 7. And BA.2 is estimated to be between 12 and 15.

    It’s high enough that to drive it back under 1 you need 95% vaccination plus masking. That’s why California switched to an endemic strategy. There’s no way to get there.

    The mistake is that everyone has interpreted ‘endemic’ as ‘will go away’. It just means that we can’t make it go away, but we can still compartmentalize it. Rather than locking the whole state down, you lock down counties, or cities, or neighborhoods. You tip up and tear down mask mandates as needed. It’s a shift toward agility, but not a reduction in effort.

  91. 91.

    zhena gogolia

    March 22, 2022 at 4:30 pm

    @Fake Irishman: Seconded.

     

    @Omnes Omnibus:

  92. 92.

    Betty Cracker

    March 22, 2022 at 4:31 pm

    @Bostondreams: He is truly horrible and one of the most breathtakingly cynical pols I’ve ever seen, and that is saying something considering I’ve watched FL politics all my life. I share your hope that he never becomes POTUS but he’s shrewd enough to have teed up the 2024 GOP nomination unless Trump fucks it up for him. Or I suppose the voters of Florida could be a fly in the ointment, but that doesn’t seem likely

    ETA: I still occasionally entertain hope DeSantis’s act won’t resonate outside of FL and he’ll fizzle like a Pawlenty, Jeb, Walker, etc. I don’t think we can count on that. He’s mean as fuck, and the modern GOP loves a snarly prick. Also, he’s managed to build an army of cultists already here, and I don’t think Republicans in the other 49 are any better than FL maga-dopes.

  93. 93.

    Wapiti

    March 22, 2022 at 4:33 pm

    @sdhays: Reading International Red Cross stuff on it, POWs can be sent to and held in a neutral county IF the parties to the conflict and the neutral country agree.

    (The Red Cross materials also say that war material may not be shipped by a neutral to a warring state, so… maybe the US and the EU aren’t so neutral.)

    In my opinion, it might be easiest to put the POW camps in the western part of Ukraine, close to the border. Ship in tentage and construction materials for building the camps, as well as food and care packages. Heck, use the western volunteers that haven’t gotten issued weapons yet as labor, or the POWs if that’s permitted. Use separate transportation corridors from the west to the POW camps and the refugee/war material flows.

  94. 94.

    geg6

    March 22, 2022 at 4:35 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    All I know is that the University has done numerous “updates” to our servers and even our individual computers over the last two weeks.  We’re used to these updates, but not so many over such a short period of time.  We are all speculating that it’s due to some sort of threat management protocol.

  95. 95.

    Bill Arnold

    March 22, 2022 at 4:37 pm

    @Martin:

    Omicron is higher than 7. And BA.2 is estimated to be between 12 and 15.

    7 was just the lowest number I could find.
    N95 masks/respirators are pretty good, so our collective masking game could be a lot better than it was in e.g. 2020, in locations that allow public health measures against respiratory viruses.

  96. 96.

    Kelly

    March 22, 2022 at 4:38 pm

    Seems the Ukrainian POW policy is “Here’s a nice cup of tea, food and a phone. Call your mother and tell her you’re OK.” Word of good treatment is likely get around. “For you the war is over”

  97. 97.

    Soprano2

    March 22, 2022 at 4:39 pm

    @Martin: I know that our IT people are obsessive about security for our mainframe because we’re a city government. They periodically send out phishing tests for employees, which sometimes are good and sometimes are comically bad. If you fail they lock you out of the network and you have to call them to get your password back. Ask me how I know that. LOL

  98. 98.

    sdhays

    March 22, 2022 at 4:40 pm

    @Wapiti: Ah, ok. That clarifies things. Thanks!

    There aren’t many countries in Europe that would count as “neutral”.

  99. 99.

    Martin

    March 22, 2022 at 4:41 pm

    @Frankensteinbeck: Yeah, exactly this. A while back Putin was concerned that Russian semiconductors weren’t competitive with the west. They were 8 years behind. So they started a big program to catch up and a decade later they were 15 years behind.

    Visa and Mastercard cut off Russia, so Russian banks need to reissue a ton of cards. Their industry who can make the chips in the cards has a monthly output less than 5% of what they need, and there’s a number of critical resources they don’t produce in Russia, so they’re trying to figure out how to get China (who also doesn’t produce them) to act as middleman. And they can’t get plastic for the cards.

    Russia has been increasing their production of plastics, but they still produce no more than about ⅓ of what they need. Which is impressive as country whose primary industry is oil. You’d think they’d focus on building out the plastics sector so they could get the additional value out of the processed oil vs the raw oil, but no, they didn’t do that and only recently started to crank things up. So South Korea and Germany import Russian oil to turn it into plastic to sell it back to Russia. And both of those supplies are now cut off, as are almost all other sources.

    And could Russia increase their plastic production? In theory, but I bet the equipment to make the plastic is made in Germany, Japan, South Korea, etc. And that too is cut off.

  100. 100.

    Fake Irishman

    March 22, 2022 at 4:45 pm

    @Soprano2:

    Did the enhancement pills work?
    ….asking for a friend, of course.

  101. 101.

    Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes

    March 22, 2022 at 4:46 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    Query – when the apparent professional development of Russian staff officers appears to be “when you aren’t having luck at fighting armed formations, switch to the soft targets and be brutal”, how do you burn that out of the system?

  102. 102.

    Martin

    March 22, 2022 at 4:47 pm

    @Soprano2: If they are reliant on password management for security, they’ve already failed.

  103. 103.

    Quiltingfool

    March 22, 2022 at 4:49 pm

    Trae Crowder’s thoughts on Judge Jackson’s confirmation hearing.

    https://twitter.com/traecrowder/status/1506344304272306177?s=20&t=cP7r3dEbfdFuNOSWcQvZiA

  104. 104.

    SiubhanDuinne

    March 22, 2022 at 5:02 pm

    The Ketanji Brown Jackson thread from this morning has long since shuffled off this mortal coil, so I’ll take advantage of this Open Thread to be incredibly shallow, to wit:

    I think it’s a shame that the Supremes always have to wear those dreary old black robes, because Judge KBJ looks specfuckingtacular in red. I wish she could show up on the bench wearing that colour every day.

  105. 105.

    japa21

    March 22, 2022 at 5:07 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Everbody has the right to be incredibly shallow at least once in her life.  You just waited until middle age.  Me, my life is spent in the shallows.

  106. 106.

    Omnes Omnibus

    March 22, 2022 at 5:08 pm

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes: Not with summary executions that will make Ukrainian soldiers war criminals.

  107. 107.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 5:10 pm

    @Quiltingfool: This one is so good, it makes me want to have Trae Crowders babies.

    ON KETANJI BROWN JACKSON AND THE CONFIRMATION HEARINGS pic.twitter.com/oLv3eQD6BQ

    — Trae in ARKANSAS 4/1-3 (@traecrowder) March 22, 2022

  108. 108.

    Marc

    March 22, 2022 at 5:14 pm

    @Bill Arnold: This infosec hyperactivity is a good thing in that it can quickly change the landscape negatively for attackers, and that can discourage attacks.

    Our IT department has been sending out lots of hyperactive emails. Just yesterday I got an email from a colleague who clicked on a link in yet another email from the “IT Department” (complete with the right logo) and dutifully provided user id, password, and 2nd factor code, then got suspicious only because nothing else happened. I had to carefully explain that our IT department does not send links in emails, that they needed to change their password, like right now, and watch out for suspicious transactions. Hyperactivity does not always trump human behavior.

  109. 109.

    Fake Irishman

    March 22, 2022 at 5:15 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    right. We do have this thing at The Hague that can deal with those officers, at least in theory. Unlikely? Sure. But I do remember being an undergrad in 1998 and listening to a presentation by a classmate in an IR class about how Milosovic could be prosecuted. I thought, “sounds great, but no chance”

    He died in custody while on trial.

    granted these guys would take an several orders of magnitude more moxie to prosecute but these sorts of things seem impossible right up until they’re not.

  110. 110.

    ian

    March 22, 2022 at 5:18 pm

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes:

    Thats why my solution is so elegant.

    That is an interesting way of describing a policy of mass executions.

  111. 111.

    Quiltingfool

    March 22, 2022 at 5:19 pm

    @WaterGirl: He’s a cutie, ain’t he?  I’m physically old enough to be his Meemaw, but my mind refuses to accept being “old.” (My body constantly reminds my brain of my real age, damn it).  In my mind, I’m not a day over 25, so, yeah, Trae is a hottie!

  112. 112.

    Spanky

    March 22, 2022 at 5:20 pm

    Executing POWs is a supreme way to motivate your enemy to fight to the death.

  113. 113.

    zhena gogolia

    March 22, 2022 at 5:20 pm

    There’s a lot of intense armchair warfare on this blog.

  114. 114.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 5:22 pm

    @Quiltingfool: I suppose he’s cute enough, but I only want to bear his children because he’s smart and speaks for me!

  115. 115.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 5:24 pm

    @zhena gogolia: We are better than that.  At least most of us are.  And we definitely should be better than that.

  116. 116.

    Ken

    March 22, 2022 at 5:24 pm

    @ian: Maybe he was going for the proverbial “For every problem there is a solution that is simple, elegant, and wrong”?

  117. 117.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 5:29 pm

    Text exchange between Cole and me just now:

    Jake Sullivan with Jen Psaki Today, Except No Jen Psaki

  118. 118.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 5:31 pm

    @WaterGirl: I won’t do that retroactively, but we will do that going forward.

    Starting now.

  119. 119.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    March 22, 2022 at 5:32 pm

    @WaterGirl: That was awesome

  120. 120.

    Geminid

    March 22, 2022 at 5:34 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: Aside from moral imperatives, a more practical problem is that executing prisoners inevitably brings reprisals from the other side.

    After armed militias invaded the Michigan capital a year or so ago, someone here was angry enough to assert that this would  not have happened if instead of paroling Lee’s army at Appomattox, and then Johnston’s army in North Carolina, U.S. troops had massacred them, as if this would have nipped our white supremacy problem in the bud. Aside from the fact that Lincoln, Grant and Sherman never, ever would have done this, if they had white Southerners would have butchered every Black man and boy they could get their hands on.

    And the racism that permeated the North would have continued unabated anyway.

    There are a lot of people who thirst for other people to carry out their vengeance fantasies.

  121. 121.

    SiubhanDuinne

    March 22, 2022 at 5:40 pm

    @japa21:

    You just waited until middle age.

    HAHAHAHAHA! [Gasp!] HAHAHAHAHA!!!

    You’re so sweet.

  122. 122.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 5:45 pm

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes:

    Starting at 5:30 pm today, comments suggesting or encouraging war crimes will get people banned from BJ for 3 days. Per John Cole.

    See my edit of your comment #3.

  123. 123.

    Sure Lurkalot

    March 22, 2022 at 5:45 pm

    @WaterGirl: Wondrous how he spews out coherent point after point while hardly taking a breath.

  124. 124.

    Frankensteinbeck

    March 22, 2022 at 5:45 pm

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes:

    when the apparent professional development of Russian staff officers appears to be “when you aren’t having luck at fighting armed formations, switch to the soft targets and be brutal”, how do you burn that out of the system?

    I’m pretty sure these orders come straight from the top.  ‘Just following orders’ may not be a defense in a war crime trial, but it makes a difference in what to expect going forward.

    @Spanky:

    Executing POWs is a supreme way to motivate your enemy to fight to the death.

    One reason the Ukrainians are fighting to the death, I’m sure.  Putin has not been subtle about saying he intends to kill everyone in Ukraine who is insufficiently Russian.

  125. 125.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 5:47 pm

    @Sure Lurkalot: I know.  Does he memorize it?  Or is he speaking extemporaneously?

    Either way, it’s impressive.

  126. 126.

    Martin

    March 22, 2022 at 5:51 pm

    @WaterGirl: Clarification: Is skull fucking a kitten a war crime?

  127. 127.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 5:53 pm

    @Martin: No it is not!

    edit: always good to know the fine print!  :-)

  128. 128.

    Omnes Omnibus

    March 22, 2022 at 5:54 pm

    @Geminid: I am against it for moral, practical, and legal reasons.  It’s one of several peeves I have been keeping as a pets since this war started.  I will mention the others as needed going forward.

  129. 129.

    SiubhanDuinne

    March 22, 2022 at 5:54 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    Good for you and good for John. This is a beyond-tolerant blog, but there’s a limit. I’m glad you reached yours.

  130. 130.

    Ken

    March 22, 2022 at 5:55 pm

    @WaterGirl: Are you going to front-page that policy? For those who don’t dig into the old threads before reading Adam’s nightly update, etc.

  131. 131.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 6:01 pm

    @Ken: I don’t know that we will front-page that per se, but I can certainly copy that comment into other threads so people will know.

    I have edited the comment policy – that hangs out in the BJ site footer – to include this:

    1. Calling for murder or war crimes.

     

    I included the screen cap of the text in order to be transparent so there is no mystery about how it came about.

    Does that seem fair?

  132. 132.

    bjacques

    March 22, 2022 at 6:04 pm

    I’ve got friends who live across the plein from the Vredespaleis in The Hague, and I’d love to see wagonloads of Russian officers pulling up for pretrial detention. The place already looks empty since Bush and Blair aren’t there. It’s a shame they knocked down 5 of the 6 towers of the Bijlmer prison southeast of Amsterdam, given the expected need for capacity. Peskov is lucky he won’t have to cheat the hangman like Goebbels did. Anyway, I wish all in positions of responsibility for this massive war crime to sit in jail until everything they believed in has been repudiated and then forgotten except as fairy tales to frighten little kids thinking of embarking on careers as bullies.

  133. 133.

    Ken

    March 22, 2022 at 6:05 pm

    @WaterGirl: Sure. Mainly I’d like to avoid “but I didn’t know” whining, though I guess I wouldn’t be seeing that.

  134. 134.

    debbie

    March 22, 2022 at 6:06 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    Why not pin a post so people can at least be forewarned?

  135. 135.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 6:07 pm

    @Ken: Ha!  But there might be a disturbance in the force.

  136. 136.

    Martin

    March 22, 2022 at 6:07 pm

    John’s house, John’s rules.

    In other news, Sen Mike Braun thinks individual states should be able to decide whether interracial marriage should be legal or not. So, we’re rolling the clock back to 1967. Do we have an earlier landmark ruling the GOP wants to throw out? Anyone wanna go for broke and take out Brown? We know you want to – that question keeps coming up in confirmation hearings.

    Tinker seems like a no brainer. Miranda too. Gideon would just be fiscally responsible, so I’m guessing yes there

    And questioning interracial marriage is a really classy move during the Jackson confirmation. But he’s not racist, you know.

  137. 137.

    japa21

    March 22, 2022 at 6:10 pm

    @WaterGirl: Really this cancel culture of the left must be stopped. What about the First Amendment?  Have we no rights?  //s

  138. 138.

    japa21

    March 22, 2022 at 6:11 pm

    @Martin: ​
      They want both the 13th and 14th amendment considered unconstitutional.

  139. 139.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    March 22, 2022 at 6:12 pm

    anybody post this from J-L Cauvin (who apparently has a JD from Georgetown?) yet?

    J-L Cauvin @JLCauvin

    If a regular lawyer were nominated for the Supreme

  140. 140.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 6:13 pm

    @debbie: I added a note in the sidebar, does that work for you?

  141. 141.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 6:15 pm

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: I hadn’t seen that before.

  142. 142.

    japa21

    March 22, 2022 at 6:15 pm

    @WaterGirl: Does for me.  Hard to miss, at least on my laptop.  Not sure about phone.

  143. 143.

    Dan B

    March 22, 2022 at 6:16 pm

    @Martin: Braun walked back saying he thought racism was terrible but was mum about Roe and Griswold.  Seems like his right wing Christian views are showing.

  144. 144.

    Geminid

    March 22, 2022 at 6:16 pm

    @japa21: Sounds like the “Woke” Geneva Convention is overriding the First Amendment here. There are plenty of other forums, though, where the blood thirsty can encourage others to carry out their vengeance fantasies.

  145. 145.

    Gin & Tonic

    March 22, 2022 at 6:19 pm

    @bjacques:

    until everything they believed in has been repudiated and then forgotten

    I can assure you that this will *never* be forgotten in Ukraine.

  146. 146.

    SiubhanDuinne

    March 22, 2022 at 6:19 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    Adam has never been shy about deploying the banhammer. I wouldn’t be surprised if he makes a point of this policy in tonight’s Ukraine thread. We’ll know, I guess, in a few hours.

    Personal note: I’m in the middle of moving, and packing up STUFF is as tiresome and dreary as it’s always been. I let the staff know today that I’d be gone by the end of the month, and their reaction made me tear up. They don’t know yet that I’m giving each of them a crisp $50 bill in a handwritten personal thank-you note. It doesn’t seem much considering I’ve been here almost 2-1/2 years, but it totals to a fair chunk of change for me. I might also buy a sheet cake with a thank-you message for the entire staff to enjoy. They’re good people.

  147. 147.

    zhena gogolia

    March 22, 2022 at 6:20 pm

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: it’s great

  148. 148.

    Benw

    March 22, 2022 at 6:20 pm

    @WaterGirl: seems fair to me. My heart sank when I saw that first comment (since disowned, I think) and I’m glad you and JC responded.

    Can I apply for the first 3 day ban for explicit violence when I say I’d like to kick the current governor of FL right in the sack for his detestable comments on trans folks today? What an asshole

  149. 149.

    Raven

    March 22, 2022 at 6:23 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: When you say you were almost born in that beautiful car. . . ?

  150. 150.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 6:25 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Nice to know that you are cared about there!

  151. 151.

    debbie

    March 22, 2022 at 6:26 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    It’s way at the bottom of my sidebar. I never read beyond the recent comments to see where the active commenting is. If you leave it there, fine, but maybe think about issuing an official warning or two before banning.

    Frankly, maybe because I’m a visual thinker, skull fucking a kitten doesn’t seem a whole lot better than the offense above. ??‍♀️

  152. 152.

    Benw

    March 22, 2022 at 6:27 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: sounds like both you and the staff are good people.  I hope the move works out for you!

  153. 153.

    zhena gogolia

    March 22, 2022 at 6:27 pm

    @debbie: I hate that “joke”

  154. 154.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 6:28 pm

    @Benw: You can even say that you would tar and feather him because that’s not serious.  Or that you would shoot him to the moon.  But not that you would hang him by the neck until the corpse rotted and then let the dogs eat what’s left.

    It’s like art and pornography, you know it when you see it.

  155. 155.

    Raven

    March 22, 2022 at 6:29 pm

    @Raven: Austin Healy. . .

  156. 156.

    Steve in the ATL

    March 22, 2022 at 6:29 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: are you staying in the same area?  Maybe St. Ives or CC of the South?

  157. 157.

    Raven

    March 22, 2022 at 6:30 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: You movin over here? This has become a retirement destination.

  158. 158.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 6:31 pm

    @debbie: Are you on a phone?

    Because if you’re on a computer or a tablet, the last thing in the sidebar gets pinned and it sits there on the side no matter how many comments there are.

  159. 159.

    Spanky

    March 22, 2022 at 6:31 pm

    @Benw:

    Can I apply for the first 3 day ban for explicit violence when I say I’d like to kick the current governor of FL right in the sack for his detestable comments on trans folks today?

    Assumes sack not in evidence.

  160. 160.

    Omnes Omnibus

    March 22, 2022 at 6:33 pm

    @Raven: My parents barely got to the hospital in time.

  161. 161.

    debbie

    March 22, 2022 at 6:35 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    No, I’m on my laptop, a MacBookAir. There’s no pinning in the sidebar.

  162. 162.

    Raven

    March 22, 2022 at 6:37 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: So cool!!!!

  163. 163.

    indycat32

    March 22, 2022 at 6:41 pm

    @WaterGirl: I’m on a Kindle and the notice is at the very bottom of the screen, so I’d never see it, if I were so inclined to call for war crimes, which I am not.

  164. 164.

    Benw

    March 22, 2022 at 6:43 pm

    @WaterGirl: yeah good point!

    @Spanky: in the interest of science, I think we would have to keep searching for the sack by kicking  :)

  165. 165.

    Ruckus

    March 22, 2022 at 6:43 pm

    @Martin:

    It is amazing, to a degree, how much power commerce has, once it’s gone world wide. Which it has. China does pretty well on it’s own, with the one caveat that they sell stuff to everyone. From medicine to computers, phones, chips, and much else, they may not control entire items, but the parts missing makes everything shut down. Many/most  places on earth don’t have it all so world trade is vital. Take that away and it doesn’t take long to see the results. There really isn’t a country left now that can be totally isolated and fully functional. Some run out of most everything – I can think of at least one major country. Some run out of a lot of necessary stuff and I can’t think of one that isn’t somewhat dependent.

  166. 166.

    WaterGirl

    March 22, 2022 at 6:44 pm

    @debbie: What do you see in the sidebar?

    In order, top to bottom, it goes from:

    Search this website
    Balloon Juice for Ukraine thermometer
    Recent Comments
    Keep Balloon Juice ad-free
    Balloon Juice Post
    Shop Amazon
    Calling All Jackals
    Front-Page Twitter
    Featuring
    Join the Fight!
    Balloon Juice Events & Notes

  167. 167.

    debbie

    March 22, 2022 at 6:48 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    Yes, and your ban note is at the very bottom, underneath the NYC meetup announcement. It doesn’t appear until you’ve scrolled down to the fifth comment.

  168. 168.

    SiubhanDuinne

    March 22, 2022 at 6:52 pm

    @Steve in the ATL:

    LOL, not hardly. I’m moving to a house in Stone Mountain, owned by a former colleague who has decamped permanently to Portugal. It’s very nice, but remote from every part of Metro ATL I’m familiar with. But for the past 2-1/2 years I’ve been living in one room in an Extended Stay in Alpharetta, after 15+ years at my townhome in Duluth. The SM house will end up costing me barely more than half what I’m paying for my one room, and it gives me a lot more room, state of the art appliances, and a lovely deck. I couldn’t say no, and once I learn my way around I expect the area will begin to feel like home.

  169. 169.

    SiubhanDuinne

    March 22, 2022 at 6:54 pm

    @Raven:

    If I ever have to move again I will give Athens serious consideration. I have academic friends who have retired there, and I’ve always liked the town and the whole vibe.

  170. 170.

    debbie

    March 22, 2022 at 6:55 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    Sounds like a very sweet deal. Enjoy all that space!

  171. 171.

    Raven

    March 22, 2022 at 7:06 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:  I’ve been to several conferences at the park and it’s always interesting to see all the African-American folks walking the paths around the monument. I think there is a gate where residents can walk in for free. You’ll be fairly close to the Dekalb Farmers Market too!

  172. 172.

    SiubhanDuinne

    March 22, 2022 at 7:24 pm

    @Raven:

    Definitely looking forward to the DK Farmers’ Market! I’m not really that interested in the mountain itself, or the carvings, or the theme park. The house I’m moving to abuts the Yellow River Forest (owned by Gwinnett County) and has some nice hiking and equestrian trails.

    I had always thought Stone Mountain was DeKalb, but this chunk of it is in Gwinnett. Will make it easier to change my car tags, voter registration, etc. However, I have Hank Johnson as Congressman. Was hoping for Lucy McBath, although I have nothing against Hank.

  173. 173.

    Steeplejack

    March 22, 2022 at 7:42 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    Holy shnikeys, I think you may be moving very close to my best friends in Atlanta, with whom I stay when I visit. They also are next to the Yellow River forest or park. They are in the Mountain Cove subdivision, which I think is technically Snellville.

    The shopping area near them is Centerville, and there is a great Mexican restaurant nearby—El Jinete. I may be going down there in a few months, and we’ll have to finally meet up.

  174. 174.

    SiubhanDuinne

    March 22, 2022 at 7:52 pm

    @Steeplejack:

    That will be wonderful! After all this time, I can finally make good on that drink I owe you. Probably many drinks by now.

  175. 175.

    Steeplejack

    March 22, 2022 at 8:14 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    I looked it up, and they are also in Hank Johnson’s district. So you’re at least that close.

    I was interested to hear the back-story on your move. I knew you were moving, but I hadn’t seen any details before now. The new place sounds great.

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