When Orban says that Russia is too weak to attack NATO, it’s probably time to start worrying 😀
https://tvpworld.com/87188101/hungarys-orbn-says-russia-too-weak-to-attack-nato
The other scenario I haven’t gotten to yet is – somewhere and that Russia comes up with some mischief with them, but I’ll come back to that – the problem Russia has there is that China doesn’t like it, and if anyone has a grip on Putin, it’s everyone’s Xi Jinping.
In May, Estonia had Operation Hedgehog where over 3000 British soldiers participated in a mechanized brigade format with a lot of capabilities – at the end of May, they returned to the UK 😐
https://www.army.mod.uk/news/british-and-estonian-troops-stronger-together-as-exercise-hedgehog-ends
In the event of war, this brigade’s destination is indeed Estonia.
I don’t know what the trigger is for the brigade to land in Estonia – the UK can decide to send it on its own without “Article 5,” but does it need to be voted on in parliament first or is this under the Chief of Defence or the government’s mandate?
Someone who knows may be able to explain this in more detail because if it needs to go through parliament, it could take days at the fastest.
Anyway, it took the brigade 48 hours to move to Estonia, and it is in “high readiness” in the UK.
Since it was an exercise and they had prepared, everything went faster, but we can assume that they are sitting in the vehicles with the engines running when Zapad 25 kicks off in mid-September, right?
If this brigade is not in Estonia before the Russian Baltic Fleet leaves the ports and Russia crosses the border, it will never reach Estonia. What will happen is that Russia will scream and promise to shoot down anything moving within their exercise area, which will then become a conflict zone.
And no country will risk losing an entire brigade on a boat in the Baltic Sea, period.
I have looked at how Sweden has handled Gotland, and every time before Zapad 25 or an increased threat, we have reinforced with some new capabilities months in advance – before Russia jumped on Ukraine in February 2022, we also strengthened Gotland. We have communicated it openly, clearly, and very Swedishly.
Europe, the West, NATO, and the USA have always announced their exercises well in advance before the Russians start to move.
So far this year, NATO and Europe have had exercises in the spring and in June where the forces then disappeared, meaning they left the Baltics.
And from what I can gather, there are no other exercises planned by NATO or Europe during Zapad 25, except for Poland’s, Lithuania’s, and Germany’s. Germany has started to deploy forces, but to Poland and possibly Lithuania. I think when Lithuania is mentioned, it refers to the Suwalki area, but I’m not sure.
As soon as the Russian Baltic Fleet leaves its ports for Zapad 25, the sea route to the Baltics is closed. No country will risk the “accidental shooting” that Putin will threaten with.
The Suwalki Gap is about 40km wide at its narrowest point with dense forest on both sides, and Germany is supposed to practice occupying it this summer – how do you keep it open against anti-tank mines and 4000 FPV drones per day hiding in the surrounding forest belts?
If it doesn’t work, I wouldn’t want to claim that Suwalki will also be closed to transit when Russia so desires.
When I look at where these exercises in eastern Baltics have been, they are 50km inland from the border both in the north and south, by the way, but that may not be very important.
From what I can gather after a day of googling, NATO or Europe have no plans to group forces in the Baltics before Zapad 25 starts, and today is August 7, 2025.
Just to be clear – the Baltics are constantly asking for the USA, NATO, and Europe to group forces in their countries pronto – they want a “force posture” ahead of Zapad 25, which is what I’m discussing, right? 😀
https://newsukraine.rbc.ua/news/us-has-not-guaranteed-troop-presence-in-baltic-1753904335.html
At least the Belarus opposition candidate says that if/when the Russians attack the Baltics, Belarus will not participate – the tricky part then is that targets in Belarus cannot be taken out, but I don’t think she has malicious intentions.
At any rate, the Baltics expect a war in the near future – they are concerned that Russia will build up capabilities through Zapad 25.
Poland has a counter-exercise during Zapad 25, Iron Defender, with 34,000 participants, which is the one we mentioned earlier.
https://armenpress.am/en/article/1225545
What’s interesting is that Poland has managed to involve a whole bunch of NATO countries in the exercise, but the Baltic states don’t have any NATO countries willing to exercise there.
In terms of risk, Poland is low-risk because they have a defense force, but the Baltics are high-risk as they are virtually undefended. So NATO should have its exercise in the Baltics and not in Poland, where they will try to defend the Suwalki Gap with tanks against drone swarms.
No matter how I twist and turn this, Europe and NATO don’t show any strong fists against a Russian invasion of the Baltics.
Now someone will shout – “you do understand that we can’t provoke Russia during Zapad 25.”
Oh really – Poland has managed to involve 16 NATO countries in a major exercise with 34,000 troops, probably one of the largest post-Cold War exercises.
The next vibrating uvula – “there is a solid plan to support the Baltics.”
Oh really – as soon as the Russian Baltic Fleet is out of port, that plan becomes obsolete, and the Suwalki Gap is closed at the same time, it’s just that Europe and NATO won’t discover it before we try to pass through the area and get lost in a cloud of FPV drones.
The possible MUST employee No Idea has on my Substack (which I hope you have subscribed to and not forgotten about the paid subscription either) announced that the Russian “tugboat” S123 is lying over a somewhat sensitive (communication) cable outside the Baltics.
A big step backward – do you remember that Estonia and Finland were supposed to start stopping the shadow fleet, and the rest of Europe took a firm stance – now they were supposed to get the environmentally hazardous and uninsured ships out of the Baltic Sea.
Did it strike you that the discussion has died down now?
That’s because Russia has declared that the fleet and air force are now protecting the shadow fleet, which accounts for just over 70% of it moving up and down along Europe’s coasts and into the Baltic Sea.
Another red line and a violent threat that we have backed down on accordingly.
This one was interesting too
https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/russia-baltics-security
“The fundamental issue is that traditional wargaming of attack scenarios offers insufficient grounds to conclude that Russia would not launch a war it could not win. While such wargames might predict a swift Russian defeat, the nature of warfare is transforming, making it exceedingly difficult to foresee when, if or how an armed standoff will erupt into a shooting war. In this new environment of smoke and mirrors, the Russian regime seemingly remains convinced it can prevail”.
My proposal based on Rise of Nations has as known been the following –
-Russia intends to test Article 5 without triggering a response; if they assess that the entire Baltics can be conquered, they will go for it (born a bit later in the analysis).
-EU will through this black swan be subjected to economic warfare, perhaps the USA sees its chance to push us down a couple of notches so we ONCE AGAIN become dependent on those who were during the cold war. Now that Trump has a trade agreement, this theory is gaining popularity in the cottages.
-If you have read my posts, the Russian war is just a prelude to China’s grand blow, the purpose is to unlock Europe.
All I hear right now is, “Russia wouldn’t dare,” “Russia doesn’t have the capability,” “Russia would never open a two-front war,” “NATO is strong,” and so on endlessly.
One is thinking wrong, Russia intends to restore the Soviet Union, is in a war economy, has an expiration date, and the window to retake the Baltics closes around mid-2026 perhaps.
Has Europe done anything so far to stop Russia?
Do we trust Trump?
Does China intend to escalate (likely because they say so)?
Two-front war – the chance for Russia that Europe and the USA do not intervene is not nonexistent, and the defense forces of the Baltics are like the Swedish ones, minus a body of water in between.
If one intends to sift through 150,000 more, it is best done in the Baltics and not in Ukraine, which turns them into mush, and the window is at most a year from September 2025.
Perhaps things are not in order yet, perhaps Europe manages to catch up, perhaps, perhaps – but the risk is extremely high right now, I don’t think Europe has been closer to a war since the late 80s, except for the period before Russia chose Ukraine as a target.
There is a lot going on behind the scenes, with the US making all these tough statements now, for example, and then they have higher activity at their bases around Europe – a pretty big assumption is that Trump is Krasnov or something.
If Trump turns out to be a president we have just misunderstood, then he has a lot to back up his threats with, which Europe does not.
I can only really imagine two outcomes of Zapad 25, either Russia increases in Ukraine while projecting a threat to the Baltics and Poland, or they attack the Baltics while projecting a threat to Poland.
Possibly something towards somewhere, but China doesn’t want that, and the third is that they start building up from Zapad 25 but a conflict breaks out a few months later, which is not unlikely.
Russia is very fond of creating a smokescreen and then doing something completely different – that’s their reptilian brain.
Since Poland and Germany may have exercises in Poland that spill over a bit into Lithuania, presumably the Suwalki area, other countries in Europe could have exercises in Estonia and Latvia, right?
Our rotating battalion should immediately be sent to Latvia, for example, and Norway and Denmark should each send a battalion.
If we can gather 50,000 in eastern Estonia and Latvia, the threat level goes down to yellow, and we have done what we always say we do – defend the free world.
The ones with the best insight here are probably the Balts, Poland, and Ukraine, and they all warn that Zapad could turn into a violent brawl – should we just ignore it in the rest of Europe?
On Substack – there is still a chance to become subscribers and it would be valuable to me if you want to become paying ones. All content is posted freely to everyone, but it still takes a lot of time to put together, costs 80 SEK per month, and then you skip a meal at McDonald’s, so it’s also healthy – Johan No.1 makes you healthier too 👍
Continued appreciation for the site johanno1.se is always gratefully received, and there is a QR code for the purpose that you absolutely must not miss as we have costs, and there is a donation page with links to Swedish Rescuers, drones 2 Ukraine, and other organizations we have learned over time are legitimate and dare to donate to.
If you liked the post – please share it in your channels, and most importantly, feel free to share the English version with people you think may appreciate posts and comments they have not been able to read before.
https://bsky.app/profile/johanno1.bsky.social
Don't forget to donate, Ukraine's cause is ours! Support Ukraine!
ADS
As you have probably noticed, we now have ads on the site. The ads and their placement are managed by Google, which also tries to optimize it automatically. We will let it run for a few weeks to see where it ends up. Some placements feel quite large, but it might get better.
We will then post a survey to hear what you think, if there are too many ads, if there are certain placements that are particularly annoying, etc. so we can make any adjustments after that.
Good morning! Russian losses in Ukraine, 2025-08-08
SLAVA UKRAINI
AFU reports:
147 combat clashes
6 aviation strikes
160 KAB + 2 missiles
~ 6,000 shellings (129 from MLRS)
4,305 kamikaze drones
Rumors say it could be a military base, we’ll see if there is more coming during the day.
“🔥 In the Rostov region, explosions and a fire near the Millerovo airfield.”
https://bsky.app/profile/maks23.bsky.social/post/3lvtvq5xsrk2cl
N Slobozhansky-Kursk 11💥↘️
S Slobozhansky 5
Kupyansk 10💥
Lyman 25💥💥↗️
Siverskyi 4
Kramatorsk 5
Toretsk 10💥
Pokrovsk 42💥💥
Novopavlivka 15💥
Huliaypillia 1
Orikhivsk 3
Dnipro/Prydniprovsky 1↘️
Kupyansk 10💥
Near Mirny, Golubivka, Kindrashivka, Stepova Novoselivka and Zagryzove.
Lyman 25💥💥↗️
In the areas of the settlements of Zelenaya Dolina, Karpivka, Yampilivka, Kolodyazi, Torske, as well as in the direction of Serebryanka, Hryhorivka and Olgivka.
Pokrovsk 42💥💥
In the areas of the settlements of Poltavka, Boikivka, Mykolaivka, Novoekonomichne, Rodynske, Sukhetske, Lysivka, Zapovidne, Zvirove, Kotlyne, Udachne, Zelenyi Kut, and Horikove.
If they are planning to launch an offensive this year, they have a maximum of a couple of months left if they want to avoid the mud, but in reality, it should have already started by early September.
Now, admittedly, armor seems to be used less and less, if they have rethought and instead go all-in with drones (and artillery) to support the infantry soldiers, they are of course not as dependent on the weather.
At the same time, logistics must function, it also risks getting stuck in the mud so my guess is still that if there is an offensive, it will come fairly soon.
Ideally, it should have started already to show strength before the negotiations.
“Victory cannot be achieved in defence”: Syrskyi confirmed that there are plans for an offensive Commander-in-Chief revealed that military command developed corresponding operational plans for that”
“During the night, 🇺🇦Ukrainian military shot down 82/108 🇷🇺Russian UAVs”
Regarding negotiations between Ukraine, the USA, and Russia on a ceasefire. From Kiev Independent.
Putin, Trump to meet in coming days, Moscow says as US sanctions deadline draws near. Preparations for the meeting are underway, and the venue has already been agreed upon, Russian foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov said.
https://kyivindependent.com/russia-confirms-putin-trump-meeting
‘It is time we ended the war’ — Zelensky confirms talks on trilateral leader summit. “Yesterday (Aug. 6), various potential formats for leader-level meetings to bring peace were also discussed – two bilateral and one trilateral,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said after a phone call with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
https://kyivindependent.com/ukraine-is-not-afraid-of-meetings-zelensky-confirms-discussions-about-trilateral-leader-meeting
Over 70% of Ukrainians reject Russian peace plan, support for US proposal remains divisive, poll shows. “As in May 2025, the only plan that can be the subject of discussions and approval by the Ukrainian public is a joint plan from Europe and Ukraine,” the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology read.
https://kyivindependent.com/over-70-of-ukrainians-reject-russian-peace-plan-support-for-us-proposal-remains-divisive-poll-shows
‘It’s up to him’ — Trump says ceasefire deadline depends on Putin. U.S. President Donald Trump said the ceasefire deadline he set for Russia — scheduled for Aug. 8 — now depends on Vladimir Putin. “We’re going to see what he has to say. It’s going to be up to him,” Trump told reporters on Aug. 7.
https://kyivindependent.com/its-up-to-him-trump-says-ceasefire-deadline-depends-on-putin
”As many of you know as I’ve said it from the ground, since Trump’s ‘toe dip’ into a so-called peace deal, the situation has only escalated. I don’t need a chart to see that, but it certainly puts things in perspective for you.” 🕊️https://x.com/olddog100ua/status/1953672638850634026?s=46
Unpleasant development and the risk is that the curve continues upwards.
Here one really wishes that it was somehow possible to shut down the factories but it is probably both a problem to locate them and to reach them.
Keeping fingers crossed that Ukraine’s new drones will be effective and that they can be mass-produced in sufficient quantity.
One knows where they are, among other places here
https://www.svt.se/nyheter/utrikes/har-tillverkar-ryssland-dronare-som-anvands-i-kriget-mot-ukraina
But since several media outlets have written about African young women who have been deceived there for slave wages, and someone even claimed that children work there, it is difficult to bomb the crap out of it without ending up in a bad light in the media.
“❗️Footage of the 🇺🇦Ukrainian UAV “Lyuty” striking an oil refinery in 🇷🇺Novokuibyshevsk.”
https://bsky.app/profile/militarynewsua.bsky.social/post/3lvuotijbpc2o
Once upon a time, Russia copied the USA, now it seems to be the other way around?
“❗️The 🇺🇸US has developed an analogue of the Shahed kamikaze drone called the MQM-172 Arrowhead”
https://bsky.app/profile/militarynewsua.bsky.social/post/3lvuom4di3s2o
One thing if it was equipped with a jet engine, but a moped?
Even Russian-Iranian Shaheds are evolving towards jet propulsion.
And isn’t a jet engine actually cheaper and simpler in terms of technology and materials than a multi-cylinder engine with a lot of precision mechanical and moving parts?
20 times faster to manufacture?
BAE Systems should go on a study visit to Ukraine!
“The Ukrainian military is increasingly relying on domestically produced artillery pieces of the Bohdana type, writes SvD, which has visited one of the units in Ukraine.
“Bohdana is not as good as the Swedish-developed Archer, which Ukraine also uses, but it has other advantages.
One is that they can be manufactured inside Ukraine. Another is that it is twenty times faster to manufacture than an Archer. Additionally, training can be condensed to just three days, according to an artillery officer interviewed by SvD, compared to over a year for an Archer crew.
– In this war, mass production is needed. We have been able to solve that in record time, says artillery officer Serhij to the newspaper.”
https://omni.se/ukraina-forlitar-sig-allt-mer-pa-eget-artilleri/a/nyz1zn
👍Interesting. The war of quantities. In the beginning, quality surely played a decisive role. Drones, infantry, artillery are needed in large quantities in modern warfare.
Or? If Ukraine had a strong air force — comparable to what the USA and allies brought to the Middle East during the invasion of Kuwait and Iraq respectively — would Russia have even attempted such a large-scale invasion?
Ukraine was forced to use alternative methods early on to combat the Russian invasion. If they had a strong air force and plenty of robots and missiles, would we even have ended up in drone warfare and infantry combat?
Rhetorical question.
Interesting question 😀
I thought Sweden was world-leading?
That was when we had Electrolux, ASEA, AGA, and Volvo. It was in my childhood when we were an industrial nation.
Possibly something against -stan but China does not want to
Then the question is how China views freedom aspirations in -stan. From the Kremlin. Is it then easier for China to exercise and expand control?
Then we have in Russia incorporated equivalents of -stan, countless in the south and east. These are surely of interest to China as well.
And as for the West’s interest in the above regions, freedom aspirations that are fulfilled would be the most beneficial when it comes to creating mutual trade relations. And thus something that the West should observe.
China has its land route to Europe, which is strategically important, and then they also want lebensraum and can they economically take over – somewhere that’s probably the easiest?
Exactly – the mosaic of provinces in Russia 😀
A punch must come methodically, not brusquely and thoughtlessly. I am not thinking about Ukraine but the rest of the West. No matter how powerful one may be, it doesn’t matter if the Russian military survives the battle. One must go all in. Not least, the war in Ukraine has shown that infantry is the cornerstone in both offense and defense. To observe in response to Russian aggression against the rest of the West.
A question I have asked myself for a long time – we know what life is like for the military today in 2025.
Are we in the West ready for it?
This is no longer just about poorly armed in MENA or Africa.
We have had “peace” for a long time now. And the Caroleans, they were mercenaries, right? Not so much experience then.
Probably better to ask a Finn.
We had the allotment system. A village of a certain size was required to provide a soldier who was called in for training regularly. It served our country well for hundreds of years.
Hmm. The war my grandfather fought at the Hanko Front and later at the Karelian Isthmus was probably quite similar to the beginning of the war in Ukraine, with massive artillery bombardments, followed by high knees and piles of bodies.
However, much has changed after the drones entered. People no longer see each other eye to eye, now it’s more like a Finnish summer, except that the mosquitoes and horseflies are deadly.
One point that (perhaps) is not emphasized is, why are the Baltic states’ own defense forces so small? They, of all people, should know who they are dealing with, and they are right next door. Not to mention that these countries have a whole bunch of potential fifth columnists. In Lithuania, the Russian-speaking population makes up more than a third of the inhabitants, in Estonia just under a quarter, and in Lithuania about 5%. Completely in line with classic Russian imperialism to relocate people in order to subdue the local population and create Lebensraum for themselves.
Wondered the same. The defense must not be proportional to the population but to the threat. A good example is Israel 🇮🇱.
Notice that I wrote Lithuania twice. It’s in Latvia that the Russian-speaking population makes up over a third, in Lithuania about 5%.
The Baltic countries were parts of the Soviet Union and not separate countries like East Germany, Hungary, and the other countries in Eastern Europe.
Russia took the entire defense with it when the Soviet Union dissolved, which did not happen in the Eastern European countries.
They had to start from scratch and build up the defense while also incurring costs to build a Western society.
They were quite thorough in taking everything. Went sightseeing to Paldiski, in -98, I think. The houses were still standing, but only the concrete shells. In a Russian manner, they had taken everything that came loose with them, even window panes. “Kasakka vie mikä irti saa” is an old Finnish proverb, like “The Cossack takes everything he can get loose”
This explains a lot, and why Sweden gave away a lot of “rat” (with a long A) as they say up here in northern Sweden. But now a lot of water has flowed under the bridges since 1991. They seem to have been stuck in the mindset of eternal peace as they appear to have handled defense in a more Swedish rather than Finnish way.
They trusted that NATO would come and save them. A bit like Sweden thought.
Just as Wesley says, now in 2025 they have started to crack down on Russian subversive activities, but unfortunately they have not mined the border again.
Then they have fragile economies and rely on conscription and mobilization but too little too late.
The BIG question is whether the citizens are like the Ukrainians and will use slingshots against the Russians or not – remains to be seen.
After leaving the Soviet Union, they had a pretty poor economy when they had to adapt, then the financial crisis hit them hard too.
They have a GDP per capita of about 70% of Sweden. Their economies have recovered well in recent years.
Even though they lag behind us, they are far ahead of Ukraine in terms of GDP.
Difficult to find reliable information, but they seem to have spent around 2.3-2.8% of GDP on defense before the Ukraine war. A bit low considering they are neighbors with Russia.
But they have probably also been affected by the peace and may have counted on NATO to come to their aid.
Difficult to find reliable information, but in terms of military personnel, the active numbers in the three countries vary between 0.32 to 0.71% of the population. Lithuania has the most, around 20,000.
Sweden and Finland are at ~0.2%, but as mentioned, these are active personnel, not reserves.
So, they are still quite high in comparison.
They are probably doing their best and have surely increased since these figures (2023).
There were rumors of another “drone in containers” attack yesterday but then it died out and the pro-Russians say it failed – what have we heard?
Are you keeping track of Trump? So we can get the answers for the survey? Seems like it will be TACO again as most people have guessed?
Kreminnaskogarna 😐
I remember when Kreminna was in the media. When was UA supposed to take Kreminna? Yes, that was a couple of years ago, right? It would be a good start to an offensive from UA’s side to finally take Kreminna.
The discussion about the ridiculously low defense forces of the Baltic states. After all, they haven’t been at war for a very long time and were enslaved between 1945 – 1989, or before that when the Soviet Union annexed the Baltics?
Israel has been at war several times and without the USA, that country would collapse within weeks – the Balts have never had the opportunity to be able to buy a defense force.
Finland also has bitter experience of two wars and a revolutionary attempt.
The EU has not paid for a strong shell protection.
There is ENORMOUS Russian subversive activity in the countries – I can promise you that they have never mined the border again because of it. They have been arguing about the thickness of the bunker walls for three years now.
Instead, NATO has promised protection but now it turns out that it’s only if the Suwalki Gap and the ports are open after the conflict has started.
A little Srebrenica warning in all of this actually.
Now maybe nothing will happen but if you want peace, they say you should prepare for war.
The gap is 65km wide and both Kaliningrad and Belarus end in points. Poland will be able to walk north.
Poland which is unlocked by all forces in Belarus?
Through the drone cover that denies Ukraine movement within 50km of the fronts?
Those tips – could they possibly be thick forest?
Yep, thick as pea soup, the kind that’s usually described as pea soup. The Russian fiber optic drones will get tangled up before they even reach the border.
If Ukraine was hopeless at 50km, why wasn’t Pokrovsk already fallen a year ago?
50km is about half the distance from the Black Sea to the front line?
So I find that both Russia and Ukraine can create an area behind the fronts where movement is hindered by drones – come on now MXT 😀
It is well known and has been discussed countless times by both Ukraine and Russia.
It is very difficult today to drive vehicles within that area and both parties are experimenting with maintenance.
What does a mechanized brigade’s advance look like?
Several kilometers long with a maximum gap of 100m and moving at 30km per hour.
Are you keeping an eye on Trump? So we can get the answers for the survey? It seems like it will be TACO again as most people have guessed?
Was going to vote but it was closed – I think you misunderstand a little, now it’s time for Putin to get a ceasefire in Ukraine so there will be a ceasefire between today and mid-September.
Can’t really let people vote after the deadline, can you?
Sure, you usually reconstruct yourself to have been right sometimes, but there’s actually a limit! 😂
Welcome to the one and only Friday binge-drinking session – I had to have three beers yesterday to calm down, but I think this might be an opportunity in the midst of darkness.
As you know, I’m trying to create a functioning transportation service for myself with a hired driver, a car, and a gas card, but they are all up to mischief.
At the gas station, when the pump stops, the gas station attendant comes over and adds another 15 liters, it took me two refills to understand that trick.
If I refuel in the morning, the driver returns in the afternoon and there’s still half a tank left, and there are always popcorn, soda cans, and other things in the car, and the seats are constantly rearranged. So, he has to drive between my workplace and family during the day.
There have been a few minor traffic accidents, and there have also been days when I stayed home every other week because no one showed up, the phone was turned off, and so on – a few times we also used the wrong fuel causing the engine to stall.
We are on our third car after half a year – the one that got into an accident last weekend was a 2024 model, so not too old, but the previous ones were older and temporary before I got this one, but that didn’t prevent them from getting into accidents, fortunately, it turned out fine 👍
Yesterday, the CFO came and said, “Hey buddy, I have an exciting idea, I’ll pay you a lump sum and then a monthly amount, and you can take care of your transportation completely on your own.”
“Yeah, I can accept a Lamborghini, red please” (never sell yourself short!)
To be continued, but I’m considering if it wouldn’t be easier for me to just buy a service – book a trip from A to B. Instead of trying to build this service for myself?
Now, this is the Caribbean, but there are reliable “private hires” you can hire.
You might also be wondering why my employer doesn’t provide this service, but they all drive themselves and can’t imagine another solution, all jobs are different, simple as that.
After witnessing traffic accidents escalate into lynching mobs in Angola, where they always tear one of the drivers to pieces – which driver is always random, so my principle is to pay someone to be torn to pieces instead of me.
The only time I was close to being in trouble was when the car broke down and we were surrounded by an eager lynch mob, the driver said, “Don’t worry, I’ll handle this,” then he went out and said, “It’s not my car, the white guy in the back seat is the one you should talk to, and he’s a tough one” – and then he disappeared. I was seconds away from being covered in burning tires that time.
It all depends on the deal, but “you don’t have to accept, you can make a counteroffer or continue as is” – didn’t sound like a typical Italian scam, but rather that they are more willing to pay to avoid a never-ending problem.
The movies, almost forgot about the dog movies 🤣🤣🤣
https://x.com/catsareblessing/
Cat
https://x.com/catsareblessing/
Dog again
https://x.com/itsme_urstruly/
Love the dogs that tumble like stiff sticks when they see a cat (oh how awful I am).
Completely incredible 🥲 .
I know that the interest in this kind of thing may not be very huge, but check out what time the post for Friday fun was posted 😎
I love the dogs that tumble over stiff as sticks! (Oh, how terrible I am).
😂
Ah, have you found the feature for admins that allows you to schedule the posting of comments?
No, I actually posted after the clock on the computer that has minutes and not seconds, happy with that 😎
For those of you who don’t believe that Russia is engaged in preparations for war – 500 reconnaissance drones over Germany in one quarter, and those are just the ones that have been detected, right 😀
https://www.ukrinform.net/rubric-society/4023658-over-500-spy-drones-spotted-over-germany-during-first-quarter-of-year.html
Well, in reality it was actually 501 pcs. 😂
Sorry, couldn’t resist.
Even though I don’t agree with you on everything you try to attribute to Russian subversive activities (no, it wasn’t the Russians who, in the form of a disguised snake, got Adam and Eve to munch on an apple or the environmental movement to fear nuclear power and also didn’t ensure that we scaled up wind power or other environmental ramifications), I do agree that we need to do significantly more than we do to counteract them.
I am pleased that you do not consider 500 drone observations in 2.5 months over naval bases, military bases, military airfields, power nodes, and highly sensitive civilian infrastructure to be particularly serious.
That the Russians are logging targets is quite obvious to the rest of us.
The only reason we know this is because someone leaked a secret report.
You believe that Russia did not know about the German bases long before and needed to send up drones?
They may be incompetent, but discovering military bases and where the most important parts (ground) are located, they have probably known for a long time.
If you do NOT seriously believe that these are Russian drones and preparations for war, I’m starting to get a little worried 😶
No, unfortunately, Northvolt did quite well on their own, not a single battery produced in 4 years and 500 million SEK per month.
A bit of honest incompetence, political interference, and corruption went well too.
But wasn’t it more Chinese involvement combined with Swedish incompetence when one believes they have found a beautiful prestige project?
A bit like before when every municipality felt that a really tall building would show how successful they were?
Or wait, maybe it wasn’t vanity, it was probably the Russians too?
I thought we were leading in the green transition?
Shouldn’t that include being able to produce a car battery?
“There are five different ways in which the war between Ukraine and Russia can end with Trump’s planned meeting with Putin. This is written by CNN’s Nick Paton Walsh in an analytical text where he also notes that all five are bad for Ukraine.”
Considering the voting results you posted the other day and the recent demonstrations against Zelensky – is there a risk of popular protests and demands for resignation when the ceasefire is declared?
Yes, and if it is not an explicit temporary solution, it will be those with the most violence capital who will protest the hardest. Everyone who has seen their comrades sacrifice themselves to defend Ukraine…
Zelenskyy received a lot of hatred when it turned out that they could not save them in Azovstsal.
A peace agreement with Russia could be completely devastating even if the majority of the population is positive.
Potentially could tear Ukraine apart.
In the long run, you may also be right when you write about disillusioned Ukrainian soldiers in Europe.
Did Trump try to get Zelensky removed early this spring?
Now he will make the deal so it stings a little extra in pride, and then he hands it over to GRU and FSB after having himself said several times that everything is Zelensky’s fault and that he is also corrupt.
Zelensky probably has zero chance of surviving this – it’s by design to create political chaos.
Unemployed soldiers?
They have already received an offer from masked FSB and GRU to work for 50 times the salary out in Europe but it’s not something they are boasting about yet.
Deeply tragic how this has developed.
A weak Europe and a madman in the White House.
You acknowledge that Trump is not our or Ukraine’s friend but still seems to support him “because he does what is best for the USA.”
I guess you want to see Sweden do the same.
The success of humanity has been driven forward by cooperation and knowledge sharing.
Isolating oneself drives development in the opposite direction.
Clearly as hell Trump does what is best for the USA – they want to put us in an economic straitjacket like during the Cold War and we’re soon there 😀
The USA has NEVER been our friend, why is it so hard for everyone to understand.
The USA, and also China, want us divided so they can play us against each other. We are supposed to compete with each other to do business with them.
Wait, I’ll explain (again) –
The USA wants to sell to us gladly at the highest possible price. If we are under threat from Russia, they will be the first port of call for our buyers.
Then Europe’s currency will take a hit if we are threatened, and all the money will flow to the USA.
The Baltic states will probably be enough for this.
Trump is not a lone madman doing whatever he pleases, he is doing what was good for the USA during the Cold War and what they want again.
The USA does not want a too strong EU.
If the “leaked” points from Trump’s peace proposal are correct, it’s probably a gift to Putin. Not exactly according to Putin’s wish list, but not far from it.
Then Trump probably discussed this with European leaders and Zelensky.
It may be that Ukraine starts to see that the US and Europe are starting to get tired and they begin to settle for a “deterrence victory” like Finland during WWII. But this is not the 1940s, and Russia has no Germany to fight against. Putin can stock up and fill the stores during a ceasefire, and when the time is right, strike again. Putin is driven by revenge, it doesn’t disappear, it just grows.
Now Bloomberg has published it so there is a certain risk that it is true.
The very definition of sacrificing a great deal 😭
The problem is that Merz, Starmer, and Macron are keeping completely silent 😡
How long does it take to move a million Russian soldiers to the Baltic border?
-two weeks is it too long?
It’s noticeable that I’ve blocked everyone who is woke and left-leaning tonight.
It’s just “Johan and I” 😂
https://youtu.be/xwxZngjU-Lg?si=DArFMgTws-IjvChY
Have you blocked anyone at all since we opened?
Yes, the turnout is absolutely zero, more interaction on Bluesky and Substack than here, even though this is where an effort is made to write and discuss.
Good weather in Sweden?
Maybe that’s why 😶
https://youtu.be/W4EbsUiVug8?si=z0WO0Eji2sE3JlU0
I am woke, I have for example started drinking tea at work and boycott the coffee machine coffee.
Äsch, I was thinking the opposite.
If I pretend that I’ve blocked all the woke, everyone else will post to prove that they are not.
So are you coming over for tea?
WTF! 😂👍👍👍
What is woke?
https://www.facebook.com/bbccomedy/videos/you-woke-tbtn/10155552204996778/
BBC making fun of woke 😂😂
Actually really funny!
😂
I cannot vouch for the publication, but they claim that in 2016 NATO discovered that in case of war, Russia reached the Baltic coast in the Baltics within 60 hours.
I must remind you that the British brigade was on site within 48 hours from pressing the button in the UK.
Today, Ru forces have combat experience and a drone weapon that we in the West lack.
They go on to speculate that NATO/Europe may have decided not to defend the Baltics, but conclude that we must, so it’s probably not the case.
And then they bring up something very important that I completely overlooked – the Baltic states have all donated a lot of their equipment to Ukraine 😐
https://neweasterneurope.eu/2025/07/02/the-tallinn-question/
And then they bring up something very important that I completely missed – the Baltic states have all donated a lot of their equipment to Ukraine 😐
In a way, you could say that the Baltic states have already defended themselves against Russia. They knew that their front line was next if Russia couldn’t be stopped in Ukraine.
Oh my God yes – the Balts have condemned in words, they have acted harshly towards Russians among them, they have burned all bridges and they have declared that they stand completely on Ukraine’s side.
If Russia were to run over them, the treatment would likely be quite violent.
You can’t possibly be serious and criticize the Baltic states for understanding that the best way to defeat the Russians is to give Ukraine what they need to do just that?
MXT – somewhere above am I criticizing the Baltic states?
Or is it you who are putting words in my mouth here 🧐
Ah, did you think you were complaining about the Baltics, but it was actually just the EU and NATO that hadn’t done their part?
60 hours? It’s mostly deciduous forest and possibly a bog or two that stops the Russians through the Baltics. They should be at the coast in a tenth of the time if it weren’t for the fact that it was so well prepared with minefields, tank obstacles, and NATO troops. Or did I dream the last points? 😴
I would check if Carsten Breuer had previously commented on Putin’s war plans and came across this gem.
In hindsight, incredibly interesting to go through.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jan/28/german-intelligence-chief-bruno-kahl-russia-has-not-decided-whether-to-attack-ukraine
I was in and checked out that other blog, and there were even more sour faces about the peace negotiations than in here 😀
Yes, what’s happening?
Nothing interesting at all – nothing to look up
Yes, and there I must give them credit.
Trump will go down in history as the most corrupt and self-centered president the USA has ever had!
Good that you don’t agree with them on anything else they deserve 👍👍
😂
Before, there were strong powers with so-called strong men who settled border disputes in other countries. Now, it’s mostly a short, skinny KGB agent who somehow bosses around the developing country Moscovia (even Lagos and Bangalore have flashy quarters, that doesn’t mean those countries aren’t developing countries) and an edematous clown who is supposed to draw lines. Both are equally eager to pose as powerful in front of the press. Once upon a time, the USA was the powerful bull watching the calves run around and butt heads and mount each other in front of the rest of the cattle, but their president would rather run around with the other calves and get caught by the press when he gets mounted.
Tomorrow an alternative post will be published about the public waste of tax money, and on Monday a regular post about what we are facing.
Won’t The Taxpayers be upset if you intend to become the waste ombudsman 2.0?
Do not read if you do not want to have acute high blood pressure 😐
Anyone who thinks Zelensky will survive this?
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-08-08/us-and-russia-plan-truce-deal-to-cement-putin-s-gains-in-ukraine
Where are Macron, Merz, and Starmer 😡
For the hundredth time, it’s not the USA that will face the consequences of this, but us in Europe 😭
Has Trump put a muzzle on them, when he is supposed to play the role of a great peacemaker? It could also be a demand from Putin to negotiate.
Probably – below you have a link to a statement from Macron and Merz that is exactly the same and a word salad.
Now, no one has believed in me, but isn’t that new Ukrainian defense line located just outside Donetsk Oblast in a pretty good position now that the deal is about abandoning Donetsk Oblast?
Game over – Europe has rolled over on its back I saw now 😐
Note that no one longer says that Ukraine should regain all its territory – it is a word salad instead that can be interpreted in any way.
The three Chamberlains will soon be waving a piece of paper.
The self-harming behavior from Europe is magnificent to behold, Trump/USA gets exactly what they want and Putin as well – all at the expense of Ukraine and us.
Do you think Putin today feels that the Baltics are off-limits or not?
Where do you think the million Russian soldiers are heading now?
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/europe/european-leaders-welcome-trump-s-mediation-as-push-for-ukraine-ceasefire-gains-momentum/3653029
Nice that it’s Friday so you can have a beer 👍
🍻
If the ceasefire doesn’t happen soon, the risk of conflict in the Baltics will exponentially increase, but I think everyone has understood that by now.
The ability they would have in a few years – they already have it now when the calm settles in Ukraine.
This fire break is forced and is scheduled to arrive before Zapad 25.
Do you think Europe’s analysts, led by Carsten Breuer, have taken into account in their models what happens if Russia releases a million men from Ukraine and how it affects the timeline for a potential NATO attack?
Four years is the current timeframe.
What an insult… and Witkoff took it.
https://x.com/juliadavisnews/status/1953904667684917694?s=46
“The gesture by Putin, known for mind games and attempts to expose adversaries’ points of weakness, was likely meant to raise unhelpful questions and highlight that a CIA official’s son fought for Russia in the war.”
“The Order of Lenin is a Soviet-era award meant to highlight outstanding civilian service. It has been given to high-level spies, including the U.K.’s Kim Philby, a double agent for the Soviet Union.”
Putin needles U.S. by giving Trump envoy an award meant for CIA official whose son died fighting for Russia
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/putin-award-order-of-lenin-american-ukraine/
🇺🇦 00:00 | 09/08
Approximate flight routes of our UAVs:
🔴 Red arrow – directions of strike UAVs;
🔵 Blue arrow – directions of jet-powered UAVs;
All route information is based on Russian sources.
https://x.com/drnbmbr/status/1953924472706412951?s=46
“They fought for 35 years, now they are friends.” Trump with leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan
Both members of the Collective Security Treaty Organization Russia’s NATO parody, sit with Trump. Russian influence in the region keeps decreasing. Good.
— @bohuslavskakate
🎥https://x.com/bohuslavskakate/status/1953913927588278668?s=46
Latvia Confirms Readiness to Join NATO’s PURL Initiative to Arm Ukraine
As part of PURL, the Netherlands has prepared a $545 million assistance package for Ukraine, including components and missiles for the Patriot air defense system. Sweden, Norway, and Denmark will also jointly contribute around $486 million.
u24
They Laughed at This Little Farm Plane—Until Ukraine Gave It R-73 Missiles
https://united24media.com/latest-news/they-laughed-at-this-little-farm-plane-until-ukraine-gave-it-r-73-missiles-10577
205 👍