" I have not heard of anyone calling for prayers"

If you only listen to atheists you only hear atheists....
http://www.wlwt.com/article/gov-dewine-announces-day-of-prayer-for-ukraine-orders-halt-to-state-purchase-and-sale-of-russian-vodka/39242432

and hundreds of other examples.

Things continue to go poorly for the Russian military. Certainly, the Ukrainians are mounting a defence that is surprising the Russians as well as the so-called experts in the west.

Kiev, according to Russian planning, would have already fallen by now and a puppet government would be forming. But that’s not happening. Its now reported that the Russian supply lines are straining under the delay with fuel and replacement armaments being in short supply. Even more surprisingly, its now confirmed that the Ukrainians have hit military targets in Russia and that the Turks have closed the Dardanelles to Russian shipping. Russia has mistakenly (?) hit shipping belonging to Japan and Turkey.

Russian attempts to secure airports near Kiev to allow for the quick movement of troops, have failed. It’s reported that several planes of elite troops have been downed and troops who did manage to land have been isolated. Its clear Russia has failed to achieve air superiority over Kiev.

The US has offered to evacuate Zelensky, but he refused…” I need ammunition, not a ride”. The guy’s reputation grows daily.

The west continues to flounder under equivocal leadership. SWIFT bans are on then off. Biden now admits that the sanctions were never going to deter Putin from invasion, having said the opposite a week ago. The legacy media pretend not to notice. (A US survey shows 62% of voters think Putin wouldn’t have done this against Trump - the legacy media pretend otherwise).

Other interesting developments:
Protests increase in Russia itself.
Marco Rubio hints at an undisclosed health problem with Putin
Anger grows over Chinese duplicity in giving US intelligence to Russia and the US’s foolishness in trusting China with that intelligence in the first place.
Elon Musk, friend of freedom, has repurposed Starlink over Ukraine and is gifting receivers to stop Russians from cutting Ukraine’s internet

mhaze,

You don't like my opinion on Trump?

Well okay.

Grab a chair and wait for me to care.

Didn't care yesterday.
Don't give a sh** today
Probably won't give a f... tomorrow
As to what you think.

Dear mhaze,

It is true. There are people calling for prayers, and I have not heard of them. I really am not interested in listening to those that rely on nonsense. Natural happenings have natural causes. Rain falls because of climatic conditions. Climatic conditions are the result of natural actions including the acts of humans. People in churches on all sides which have churches pray for the success of the armies of their respective countries. As far as I know no war or atmospheric disturbance has been affected by prayer.

One thing we agree on is that Zelensky is acting in the way a leader should act. He is a contrast to the head of Afghanistan who bugged out and left others to take the brunt of the Taliban.

For many people this is all about right and wrong. Does Russia have the right to invade based on the view that Ukraine is an existential threat? Does Ukraine have the right to side with potential enemies of Russia? Self-determination v. national viability? And so on in myriad forms.

But in the end, none of that is critical. This, like all international issues, is all about realpolitik… http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Realpolitik

I’ve previously discussed this in relation to the Melian Debate from 416BC… http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Melos#The_Melian_Dialogue

Whether Putin has the right to invade is largely beside the point. He could and he did and all his claims to justify it are just fluff for his supporter’s consumption. Equally claims by Ukraine’s backers about rights and justice are beside the point as missiles strike apartment blocks.

Putin only understands power. He wants to make his state powerful both for prestige and safety. Powerful states are less likely to suffer assault than the unpowerful. The unpowerful states talk justice but, in reality, want protection from the powerful and/or to be left unmolested by the powerful. As the Athenians said… “"the strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must".

The invasion occurred because Putin calculated that he could achieve his aims more easily and more quickly by force than by diplomacy. In the end, that is because he had calculated that the west, in its current configuration, was unlikely to do much to stop him. In that he’s been proven right. OTOH, he surely didn’t count on the resistance from Ukraine. The more they resist the more possible it becomes that elements in the west will be stirred to increase their help.

In realpolitik terms, the west is trying to show that aggression is costly in the hope that the lesson will be learned by others. When the US was strong, that was clear. But with the failures in Iraq and the debacle in Kabul, the idea that aggressors will pay a price is lost.

Meanwhile China, which also only thinks in realpolitik terms, looks on with interest.

Sorry Foxy, constantly, desperately saying how little you care just shows how much you care.