Lee B

quote:

---

Loss of Iran will definitely impact Russia's abilities on the front.

---

I'd hope there would be a Shahed drone shortage, but I think Russia makes or imports most of the parts for those from places other than Iran, now.

quote:

---

It was Russia who fomented and fed the protests.

---

Um... no. Not everything bad for US interests was caused by the Soviets.

Middle-class Iranians had long wanted Democracy and not to be ruled by a King and his elite cronies... they'd deposed him once (in 1953), the CIA and the British(and the oil industry) helped him retake power, which led to some bloody retribution... and that created the general anti-American/anti-British sentiment among the public. I'm not sure the Atheist Soviet Union would be that into installing a Fundamnetalist Islamic regime (trampling Islam inside of The Soviet Union was a big struggle for the U.S.S.R.)... also, The Shah was chummy enough with the Soviets that they viewed Iran as a potential ally...

I know I've mentioned this before, but Americans seem to have no idea that at the same time as the Iranian Revolution, the military dictatorship in neighboring Afghanistan (which had deposed the popular King of Afghanistan earlier in the decade) had been ousted by a People's Revolution, which sought to have the country officially join the U.S.S.R. that bordered it... the CIA funded and trained Saudi Mujaheideen to start a "Civil War" under the reasoning that Communist Athesim was working its way towards the Holy Land and Mecca and had to be stopped early. The Afghan government asked the Soviets to come help, and we Americans were told it was a 'Soviet Invasion'... and we believed it. A guy from Pakistan straightened that out for us in College... some people angrily didn't believe him. I brought it up in a Poli Sci class and the teacher said "yes, that's what happened... it's just too controversial to talk about it... we created a 'Vietnam' for the U.S.S.R. to get stuck in, as revenge." After the Soviets pulled out and the U.S.S.R. collapsed soon after, all those people who were in Carter's cabinet at the time tried to take credit for the idea in their memoirs.

Anyway, if the U.S.S.R. wanted to control/conquer Iran (as the Tsars had always wanted to do), turning it into a militant Shi'ite Islamic regime would not be the way to do it. The Soviets much preferred the secular Pan-Arab/Persian autocrats (Saddam, Gaddafi, Assad) who they understood to religious extremists they didn't. Putin is a bit different because he is not running Russia as an Atheist entity, but uses the Russian Orthodox Church much like the Mullahs use the Mosques.

Iran has long been a powderkeg. The people hate the regime they are under, and most of them had it much better under the Shah.

Ironically, pushing for education and modernization. and creating a growing and thriving urban middle-class, the Shah and others created the very segment of the population that would want them toppled the most. The poor are too desperate and concerned with eating tonight and tomorrow to pine for things like political autonomy.

quote:

---

It literally doesn't. Russia doesn't give a frick how long it takes if they get what they want.

---

But not when it comes to the Baltic States?

"tHeY DoN'T wAnT tHoSe!!!"

quote:

---

If Ukraine did target Putin's residence...

---

That's not allowed?

International Business Times (February 26, 2022): Russia Unleashes Elite Squad of Chechen 'Hunters' in Ukraine to Kill Zelensky and Other Kyiv Officials
According to a Moscow Telegram group with links to the security establishment, each soldier was given a special "deck of cards" with Ukrainian officials' images and descriptions on them.

A large number of Russian special forces, ranging from elite front-line troops to assassination and sabotage squads, have been deployed in Ukraine with the aim of assassinating the country's leadership, according o reports. Among these are over 10,000 ruthless and battle-hardened Chechen 'hunters' who have been unleashed in Ukraine especially with the aim of detaining or killing a group of Ukrainian officials.

These Chechens are also hunting for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his family. According to reports, Russia is recruiting and deploying Chechens mainly form their hometown Grozny, escalating fears the battle for Ukraine will turn into a horrific bloodbath.

quote:

---

Following various incidents — starting with the undersea cables some time ago or the different drone incursions into NATO airspace or aircraft violations — what we've seen is that, in response to reactions from the West or NATO, Russia has taken various measures to prevent such incidents from happening again in the future.

---

CNN: Finland detains ship and its crew after critical undersea cable damaged

Dec 31, 2025, 7:24 AM ET

Finland has detained a ship and its crew after a critical undersea telecommunication cable connecting the country to Estonia was damaged Wednesday, Finnish authorities said.

Finnish police said in a statement that the vessel suspected of causing the damage was found with its anchor chain lowered into the sea in Finland’s waters, while the damage site itself was in Estonia’s waters. The police later named the vessel as the Fitburg, a Saint Vincent and the Grenadines flagged cargo ship.

The Finnish National Police Commissioner Ilkka Koskimäki said at a news conference on Wednesday afternoon that all 14 members of the ship’s crew have been detained, adding that the crew are citizens of Russia, Georgia, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan.

It is certainly an atomic bomb in the box. Just as it was an actual hand grenade.

Carol was so deprived of... companionship and human interaction and... love, that she deluded herself. Yes, she fell for it... it was all designed by the Hive to make sure that she did... Zosia performed it all perfectly. But The Hive is not capable of romantic love or true affection... the opening with the Kusimayu's pet goat was a bit of a foreshadowed warning of that...

quote:

---

I don't know if it was this episode or the last when Zosia mentioned something about how the hive communicates via eletromagnetism or something. It made me think Carol (and/or Manousos) is going to get Zosia into a metal safe or some other shielded room to free her from the hive, at least temporarily.

---

Atomic Bombs have EMPs attached, don't they?

quote:

---

I don't see any chance at a mulit-polar world taking place. Whose going to be the other pole?

---

China and Russia certainly want to try...

quote:

---

My guess is the show is largely about her anger issues and how this strange, new world is going to force her to deal with them.

She's a miserable count, her default is to be angry and self-righteous in (and about) her anger. She now, literally, has the entire world bending over backwards to please her and that makes her even more angry.

Along with that, it was just pointed out to her (or at least allowed to be inferred) that everyone in the hive mind is happy and content because of their membership in it. That is diametrically opposed to her default bitchiness.

She failed at creating a movement with the English-speaking immunes, which made her angry, so she tried to reach out to the guy in Peru who is keeping his distance. His keeping distance from the hive mind probably kindled the idea in her that they were of like minds, so she would finally have someone to join up with and try to fight this. But he outright rejected her (he may not have known she was an immune), which... of course... made her angry.

She can only express her anger to a certain point or the hive will spaz out for a few minutes and millions of people will die. So already she is having to limit her pissy outbursts, and that -of course- also makes her angry.

Her conversation about the bomb seemed more about trying to find a chink in their armor of collective happiness. She seems to feel that their happiness and contentment can't possibly be real (and it may not be, but that's not the point) because happiness and contentment are fairly foreign to her (unless she's watching Golden Girls... maybe?).

---

great post... yeah, it's about her anger issues and her alienation.

I'm glad Gilligan changed the character from a male to a female early on (especially for Rhea), because we already had the male version that episode of "The Last of Us," played brilliantly by Nick Offerman... and, a male misanthrope probably would not need anybody. Remember when that character realized humanity was mostly wiped out. He looked around... then smiled. We're kind of getting that character in the guy from Peru...

quote:

---

random thought…carol is the only American among the immune. She also has no family that we’ve met. Her sense of isolation is far greater than the other immune, some of which are natives to countries where the individual is already subject to the state. So in a real sense, so far, she is the last free human on earth.

the “world peace” speech on AF1 was particularly powerful in light of that

Rhea Seehorn is a magnificent actress as everyone clearly agrees. This show has balls

---

I think the show is about alienation vs. conformity, and then the viewer can supply a focus on something else on top of that....

Some say AI and the internet... Gilligan (a vocal AI critic) says he wrote this 8 years ago and AI was not even on his mind, yet... but the internet, social media and smart phones had to be, somewhat...

Some say "Communism," and they're not wrong... "collectivism," certainly, but beyond just political or economic. We Americans are the ultimate Individualists on this planet, so much that we don't trust Europeans or Canadians because they prioritize Social Programs. All alien invasion/"zombie" movies of the 50s and 60s were really about the Red Scare, turning your neighbors, friends and loved ones into part of a collective...

Some say "It's about COVID, and Carol represents us COVID-aware people who have to deal with the rest of the world just going on about things like none of it ever happened or is still a threat to some of us..." and are pretty insistent about that... but he wrote it before COVID, so...

I see a big analogy to religion... the other survivors at the meeting are all probably adherents of Eastern Religions, except for the Central or South American (Peruvian?) girl, who is probably Catholic (and the most enthusiastic about being turned into one of the HIve), Samba the Mauritarian guy, is probably Muslim... the new reality somewhat represents "heaven" as described in most religions, especially Buddhism... I have no doubt that angry, cynical, lesbian misanthrope Carol is an Atheist. It's hell for her, but other people were hell for her before.

Provocative show.

quote:

---

"The Europeans are convinced of it. The Poles are absolutely convinced of it. The Baltics think they're first.”

---

but no mention of TD posters who insist that's nonsense?