Yes it's all about oil!
If the Ukraine didn't have considerable reserves of oil/gas, would Putin be interested in their territory?
After all, if Russia, with it's very modest economy, were obliged to support it's even poorer neighbor, it would be bankrupted.
What GENUINELY opposing Governments need to do, is develop such new oil as is available; like the huge, multi-trillion barrel reserve at Edmonton!
This oil would, if developed, easily replace Russian oil sales, to all of Russia's European oil customers!
And at prices, very expensive to recover Russian oil couldn't compete with!
And if that brings a couple of entirely self serving, non patriotic oil companies undone?
Well, what could be a better reward?
Even so, a lifeline could be proffered, like Edmonton or Russia; choose now or forfeit all future non Russian opportunities!
And given we, own a similarly large hydrocarbon repository to our immediate north, we should just put all those tired old meaningless mantras to bed, and simply crack on developing this resource ourselves, using expert contracting companies, in the initial development stages.
This is exactly how big oil does it.
We who own the resource, have the freedom to please ourselves.
And as Russian oil becomes too expensive in comparison, where do you think the oil companies will go, in order to save themselves?
Russia and Russian military is almost completely dependent on oil and gas sales, for most if not all their funding; and they are anything but a united cohesive group!
Without oil revenue, many could be paid to turn on their masters, and put paid to Putin!?
And with him gone, so are all the current problems besetting Eastern Europe!
Imagine, how different history would be, and how many millions of lives could have been spared, and national treasure; if someone had had the testicular fortitude, to take out Mr Hitler, and before he annexed Austria or Czechoslovakia?
Rhrosty.

Or maybe it's all about money. Money as in the IMF and the World Bank and the threat to them posed by the recent announcement of an alternative to the current system signed in Brazil by Russia, China, India, Brazil and South Africa.
Without a monopoly on the world's finances, all these sanctions would lose their relevance, and where would the western banksters be then?
Europe has been dragging its feet on the sanctions the US wants to impose on Russia. What better way to bring them into line than by knocking a commercial jet liner out of the sky? Was it really a ground-to-air missile? Or could it have been an air-to-air missile, with the Ukrainian Air Force flying one of its jets right alongside?
Let's not forget in our haste to blame all this on Mr Putin that the same chorus that is leading this song also brought us the non-existent weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, deionising Saddam Hussein in the process.
With a compliant media,a gullible public and masters of disinformation playing them both like a piano, anything is possible, and much of it might not be true.
Look for sanctions to be imposed. The impoverishment of Russia is the goal, with a stop put to the financial integration of China, Russia and Europe along the New Silk Road.

There is clear and incontrovertible evidence, that a ground to air missile, fired just inside the Ukrainian/Russian border, was the evil that brought down the Malaysian airliner, full of noncombatant, murdered men, women and children.
I can't begin to imagine the horror of those last few moments, after the missile hit, dismembering many innocent men, women and children in the process.
And in those final moments, did those remaining totally terrified mothers hug their children, their husbands, and say in those few precious remaining seconds, a final, I love you!?
Or scream their final goodbyes, as the wind plucked them like straw, from the airliner!
Or just scream all the way to the ground, as the pain from torn/ripped from their bodies, limbs, started to explode on/in their persons, as unimaginable pain!?
And has any of the inventory of Ukrainian, surface to air, air to air Missiles been fired, or is missing?
No, the prerecorded inventory is intact, with the world free to count it!
Meaning, the mother murdering, baby killing missile, and the expertise that fired it, had to come from the excuse making, obfuscating evil empire, as shown in indisputable satellite footage!
If Russia's constitution hadn't been altered, with the acceptance of the majority of Russians!
Then a soulless Mr Putin wouldn't be ruling, or indeed, imposing his belligerency on Russian Gays, or Russian speaking, non consenting, pro Ukrainian separatist majority, residing in, the so-called disputed territory!
Or indeed, a formerly free press, many of who, have been disappeared or routinely murdered, and just for exposing the literal facts!.
And then we also have to tolerate excuse making apologists, posting their unique brand of blase BS on this site!
I'm so infuriated, I'm almost ready to throw up!
Rhrosty.

Just one more reason why the west needs to unhook itself from the carbon economy. The Europeans will not take any serious action because they are too dependent on Russian fossil fuels.

Or maybe it's all about power: as shown in the last paragraphs of this article from the Guardian:

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jul/23/mh17-dutch-mayor-vladimir-putin-daughter-deport

Of course Freud would say that if it's about power, then it's about sex. With Russia's birth-rate and life-expectancy declining, Russians are probably hoping that's true.

Joe

The investment newsletters that hit my email desk every day are full of bullish bargain hunting tips to start buying up shares in the Russian stock exchange and energy sector. So I wouldn't be too concerned about Russia's energy blues just yet, especially with such powerful global energy players worried about their bottom line. These guys are powerful enough to eat Washington for breakfast.

Rhrosty

Please spare us the cheap theatrics!

And your gullible regurgitation of the usual dodgy 'incontrovertible evidence'. The US-led Western propaganda machine has a track record of doing to 'incontrovertible evidence' what Pussy Riot does to chickens.

Killarney:
Please spare us the almost unbelievable calloused indifference!
Cheap theatrics?
How dare you!
Rhrosty.

Yes, Rhrosty, cheap theatrics! Airline disaster porn to score equally cheap political points, based on cheap accounts of 'incontrovertible evidence' gained from hopelessly one-sided propaganda.

I suppose you'd believe stories about Putin eating babies, if the Western media printed it.

And on other threads you happily spruik for Israel's slaughter of Gazans, with equal disregard for evidence.

Two can play that game. Would you like me give you a melodramatic account of Gazan mothers hugging their babies, with whatever limbs they have left, while they choke to death under a ton of rubble after their home is hit by an Israeli missile because a terrorist tunnel digger might be somewhere in the neighbourhood?

Would you like some more gory stories like that? I got dozens of 'em.

Another important question to ask is what possible benefit would, or could, accrue to Russia as a result of committing such a public and reprehensible act? There is none. And it's not as if they could think they might "get away with it".
On the other hand, asking the same question of the western powers, and the benefits are readily apparent. Russia is demonised and further isolated among the community of nations - that's happening now. NATO gets to move its forces closer to Russia's western border - I suspect that will happen any day now. And sanctions, quite possibly the much loved "crippling" sanctions so often sought by the US, will be asked for and likely granted.
It's impossible to overemphasise how important that last point is. The new global financial system being built by Russia, China, Brazil, India and South Africa will be difficult enough to pull off even with a solvent Russia. With Russia crippled economically, it might prove to be impossible.

Killarney:
I'm not the one using Gazan Mothers and their babies as human shields!
What did you expect, that Hamas could fire thousands of missiles at Israeli mothers and their babies, and there would be no response?
You seem to be the one with the factual and the huge exaggeration problem.
If a bloodthirsty Hamas wasn't spending most its generous aid on weapons, there'd be money for shelters!
And nowhere is there any evidence that Israel is the aggressor, albeit, they are the ones now asked to accept a conditional cease fire!
What for?
So that Hamas can rearm and begin the same old same old all over again; and then criticize Israel for defending itself, as you seem to do!?
Unbelievable!
The one thing that set the bloodthirsty Nazis apart and allowed them and other psychopaths like Stalin, to murder millions of unarmed men, women and children, without a single qualm!
Was the complete lack of NORMAL, repeat, NORMAL human empathy!
Suggest you open the other eye, and raise your head from where you've buried it!
If you have a problem with people firing back when attacked, suggest you're in for a rude awakening, and even more distraught Gazan Mothers hugging their dismembered babies!
Perhaps if Gazan men behaved like men, they wouldn't need to hide behind mothers and their babies like the craven cowards they really are, and fight like real desert warriors, with only their lives on the line if defeated?
Then Gazan mothers wouldn't need to hug their babies, at least not those simply created, as is the often proud boast, just to become human bombs.
And so bloody stupid, when just 9-10 years of waiting and biding their time, in peace!
Israeli Arabs will outnumber the Jews at the ballot box, and effectively control what happens to Gaza and Gazan mothers from then on!
And that's what would occur, if NORMAN human empathy played any part in this totally bizarre conflict.
Putin eats babies!?
Well I did remark on your seemingly limitless ability to hugely exaggerate!
Rhrosty.

Correction.
Correcting the automatic correction!
NORMAN should read NORMAL!
Rhrosty.

Rhosty, the passengers all died virtually immediately because the very
high G forces of their almost instant deceleration would have ruptured
all internal organs.

A latest news bit, Russia's GDP has fallen to 0.2 %.
A recession is guaranteed. Their oil production has peaked hence the
very expensive drilling program that Rhosty mentioned.
That can only mean expensive oil.
Russia is now very dependant on oil & gas sales.

We are all in the same boat, with governments that are pretending that
there is nothing to worry about.

Rhosty, you keep mentioning those Northern deposits; are they of
a significant size, and are they seismic only results ?
Are they below the Great Barrier Reef ?

If they are then we would not be able to get at them unless all our
cars were up on blocks.

This is from the proponents of oil/gas...
http://www.appea.com.au/oil-gas-explained/benefits/cleaner-energy/

Cleaner energy
Natural gas can help reduce greenhouse emissions in Australia and in LNG export markets.
Renewable energy sources, such as solar power and wind power, are intermittent – they cannot provide continuous power generation. Renewable energy must be combined with forms of baseload power (continuous power generation) and peaking power (which can be brought online quickly in times of high demand).
Gas is suitable for both baseload and peaking power, and it produces much lower greenhouse gas emissions than coal (generally about 50-70% lower). Gradually replacing coal-fired power with gas-fired power would greatly reduce Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions.
When converted to liquefied natural gas (LNG) for export, natural gas can also help reduce greenhouse gas emissions elsewhere in the Asia-Pacific region. For every tonne of greenhouse gas emissions generated by LNG production in Australia, up to 9 tonnes of emissions are avoided in the Asia-Pacific region when this gas is substituted for coal in electricity generation. This has global benefits.Other environmental benefits...
Natural gas also uses much less water than coal-fired power and produces much lower levels of noxious substances such as sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and fine particle emissions. Burning gas instead of coal also improves urban air quality, which is particularly important in many Asian cities.

continued on next post ...

The shale gas opportunity
Over the past decade, there has been a technological revolution in the extraction of oil and gas.
In the US, new drilling and production techniques have made it possible to produce gas held in shale rocks.
The emergence of this major new energy source has enhanced US energy security by triggering a rapid increase in natural gas production, which has increased local gas supply and reduced gas prices.
Big resource, big production
In 2012, the US Government’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) estimated the country has about 482 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of recoverable shale gas.
US shale gas production rose from less than 1.3tcf in 2007 to more than 5.3tcf in 2010 – an increase of more than 300%.
In 2000 shale gas provided only 1% of U.S. natural gas production; by 2010 it was 23%. The EIA predicts that by 2035, 46% of US natural gas supply will come from shale gas.
Economic benefits
Rising shale gas production has had an enormous impact on the US, cutting emissions and boosting the economy.
Gas is an important component in many industrial processes. US chemical, plastics, aluminium, iron and steel, rubber, coated metals, and glass industries have been revitalised. The country is now also a net exporter of refined petroleum products.
In a 2012 report, business and economic research firm IHS found that US shale gas production alone will create some 1.5 million jobs by 2015, and 2.4 million by 2035.
The IHS study further concluded that the shale gas boom will continue to drive economic growth, receiving $3.2 trillion in cumulative investment between 2010 and 2035, and contributing $332 billion to US gross domestic product (GDP) by 2035.
Environmental benefits
US greenhouse gas emissions have fallen as industry and consumers switched from coal to gas. The nation’s 2011 emissions were 9% lower than its 2007 emissions.

Continued...

Australian shale gas potential
The US Energy Information Administration has estimated that Australia could have up to 396 trillion cubic feet in shale gas resources. At current production rates, this is equivalent to about 185 years of total Australian gas production.
Tapping into these resources would boost Australia’s energy security and economy, and would provide larger reserves of reliable cleaner energy.
Shale gas exploration and appraisal programs are now underway in Western Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory.
If these programs are successful, Australia could experience economic and environmental benefits similar to those in the US.
Benefits of LNG
Liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects are driving an unprecedented level of investment in Australia, while also delivering reliable and cleaner energy to Asia.
Australia has seven LNG projects under development that will cost industry about $200 billion to build – an investment of more than $1200 per second over the next five years.
In 2012-13, Australia shipped 23.9 million tonnes of LNG cargoes, earning $13.7 billion in export revenue. Australia’s LNG exports are expected to quadruple over the next five years.

ENDS POST.

Unfortunately, as I keep bleating - the development of renewable technology will not happen as long as it is easier/profitable to pull oil/gas up from wherever. It will not be until the last mole of gas, or the last litre of crude oil is refined and put in a bottle and auctioned off on E-Bay that we will see any real inroads into these technologies. Battery technology and the design and unit cost of items such as Photo Voltaic cells will dictate this. Exotic minerals and metals used in those technologies will likewise be kept artificially more higher whilst oil/gas is in vogue. They who hold the whips can dictate as they will.

Rhrosty

'I'm not the one using Gazan Mothers and their babies as human shields!'

No. But you are one of many in the West who choose to believe all that rubbish. It's your psychological shield to protect yourself from having to face the horror of what Israel is doing to the Palestinians. The only way you can cope with it is to accept the propaganda that Hamas HAS to be causing it.

War Propaganda 101.

And now you are happily choosing to believe all the Western media propaganda about Russia, as it builds to hysterical levels. The possibility that it's all part of a long-term plan to eliminate Russia as an economic power is full of too much moral complexity for you to cope with.

That's your prerogative. And if it makes life simpler and more comfortable for you, all the better.

Well, no pun intended, Albie that is fine about the tight gas but as
I suspect you are aware those gas fields are ruled by the Red Queen.

That field near Coober Peady for instance, where do they think they
will get the large amount of water for fracking ?
Possibly they have their eyes on Lake Eyre or the Great Artesian Basin.

We should not be reckless and flog off all that gas as we may need it
for CNG for ALL our transport needs.
How long would it all last if it was our sole source of energy ?
Cars, trucks, trains, ships, Industry, electricity, fertilisers, etc etc etc etc ?
Perhaps even aircraft !
Who wants to fly on a coal fired 747 ?

When the Indonesians are finally made aware the Great (Australian) Artesian Basin also connects to them, and that fracking and associated industries being carried out in OZ will pollute their groundwater. It will be amusing to see the change of tune played by our government. That moment is probably not even 15 years away. The re-drawn boundaries in the Timor Sea, done to the advantage of US/European interests, likewise there, the Indonesians will be watching the ramp up of (US) bases being built and planned for the Top End to protect vested interests.

Joint exercises have been going on for ages in the north west involving Indonesian Kopassus, and other major players regionally. Just like in 1937, when Japanese "geologists", "scientists" and cartographers were noting mineral deposits, topography and cataloguing our lands... so too will we think we did the right thing embracing the zeitgeist, to our detriment in times to come.

The only factor in our advantage currently, is knowing that the Indonesian defence forces have poor maintenance on their materiel - generally speaking, and once their kit needs repair, it will become ineffectual in the battle environment. What they do have, however in their favour, is sheer numbers.

Siberia wanting to break away from Russia ? Who would have thought that the shoe could have been on the other foot ? Well, the Guardian hints at it:

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/aug/05/russia-bans-siberia-independence-march-extremism-law

How do you spell 'Schadenfreude' properly ?

Joe

Nyah ! nyah ! Told you so:

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/aug/15/russia-fledgling-independence-movements

Maybe, just like a lawyer should never ask a question that he doesn't already know the answer to, a dictator should be dead-sure of success before he launches into any aggressions against neighbouring countries, it can really bounce back on him.

And of all 'countries', Russia is a hotch-potch of nationalities and regions which its rulers have invaded over the past four or five hundred years. And five thousand miles across.

And what's the bet that if Putin cracks down on any marches today or in the near future, he'll turn aspirations for federalism into full-blown demands for independence ?

Wouldn't be dead for quids !

Joe