I Respect Ramzan Akhmatovich...

... profoundly and I can totally see where he is coming from defending Margarita Simonyan, but... What The FUCK! 

Симоньян 3 октября заявила, что ядерный взрыв в 100 км над Сибирью не принесёт вреда населению, но электромагнитный импульс выведет из строя все спутники над Землёй. Пресс-секретарь России Дмитрий Песков подчеркнул, что она не является госслужащим, а потому её мнение не всегда отражает позицию Москвы. Он напомнил, что Россия не выходила из режима отказа от ядерных испытаний. Симоньян также 9 сентября призвала предъявить Западу ультиматум из-за снарядов с обеднённым ураном, поставляемых на Украину. Она заявила, что в противном случае Запад не прекратит наращивать поставки Киеву всё более опасного вооружения.

Translation: Simonyan said on October 3 that a nuclear explosion 100 km above Siberia would not harm the population, but the electromagnetic pulse would disable all satellites above the Earth. Russian press secretary Dmitry Peskov emphasized that she is not a civil servant, and therefore her opinion does not always reflect the position of Moscow. He recalled that Russia did not abandon nuclear testing. Simonyan also on September 9 called for an ultimatum to be presented to the West over depleted uranium shells being supplied to Ukraine. She said that otherwise the West will not stop increasing supplies of increasingly dangerous weapons to Kyiv.

Simonyan, having zero professional education in anything except for BS they "teach" in the US journo schools, has ZERO business commenting on any military-technological affairs. She literally is semi-literate in any affair other than manipulation of media facts. Only a complete shithead could have proposed this, not to mention having NO tool kit whatsoever to pass assessments on any matter related to the use of nuclear weapons. Simonyan's ONLY skill is that of rubbing shoulders with Moscow's elite and this is the extent of it. 

No surprise then, that RT invites "military experts" fresh from the high school or consistently provides the tribune to all kinds of remnants of Moscow's closet pro-Western beau monde. I understand that Ramzan being a gentleman tries to support his friend, but Simonyan has been out of her depth for years now and suggesting this BS to other BSers she hangs out with she discredits not only herself (that is a done deal) but Russia. In related news, she should learn a simple fact that Russia has all necessary means WITHOUT the use of EMP of nukes, to dramatically degrade US (NATO) ISR satellites constellation. Recall how Vladimir Putin humiliated Megyn Kelly? I think RT is long overdue for change of the guard.

So, Simonyan...

... who herself is semi-literate (as most journos are) in any modern reality decided to finish flushing RT down the drain by offering the tribune to truly illiterate (I mean it) all-Russian imbecile with pedophile tendencies Yegor Kholmogorov. Next in RT list of "experts" are the remnants of Solzhenitsyn and seances with invocation of the spirits of General Krasnov and Ataman Shkuro (cadre SS officers).  

Egor Kholmogorov: The intertwined roots of history explain why Russia can't let go of Ukraine 

RT was going down the drain for a while now by means of its reserve of "experts" (such as Mr. Khodaryonok or Trenin), but this one tops it off. Simonyan (and her "team") obviously mistook their access to the fringes of Russian political power for their own talents, which they have very few. But then again, if medical doctors develop God Complex because they save human lives, journalists such as Simonyan develop such because they have no applicable real professional skills. The latest from RT is a perfect demonstration of this by invoking opinions of utter moron who barely lasted one year in Moscow State University  History department before dropping out even from this easy program. But then again, as they say in Russia: the fisherman recognizes the fisherman from afar, which is a euphemism for BSer recognizing a BSer a mile away. Simonyan just proved this truism beyond the shadow of a doubt. 

Atlantic Council "Wakes Up".

Poor, poor dears at the Atlantic Council--they are more concerned with RT NOT writing the headline, while in reality RT did write it, as did I. Here is what Atlantic Council writes now:

It sounds like the stuff of Kremlin propaganda, but it’s not. Last week Hromadske Radio revealed that Ukraine's Ministry of Youth and Sports is funding the neo-Nazi group C14 to promote "national patriotic education projects" in the country. On June 8, the Ministry announced that it will award C14 a little less than $17,000 for a children’s camp. It also awarded funds to Holosiyiv Hideout and Educational Assembly, both of which have links to the far-right. The revelation represents a dangerous example of law enforcement tacitly accepting or even encouraging the increasing lawlessness of far-right groups willing to use violence against those they don't like. Since the beginning of 2018, C14 and other far-right groups such as the Azov-affiliated National Militia, Right Sector, Karpatska Sich, and others have attacked Roma groups several times, as well as anti-fascist demonstrations, city council meetings, an event hosted by Amnesty International, art exhibitions, LGBT events, and environmental activists. On March 8, violent groups launched attacks against International Women’s Day marchers in cities across Ukraine. In only a few of these cases did police do anything to prevent the attacks, and in some they even arrested peaceful demonstrators rather than the actual perpetrators.

Meanwhile, Margo Simonyan of RT wrote today an excellent piece (in Russian) for Ria. The title of a piece is excellent:

Dear Atlantic Council, You Know Horseradish (the next up is  Dick--in Russia horseradish is a euphemism for dick) About Surrounding World.

I have to go with Margo here since she hits it right in the bulls eye. I will translate just one para from her piece:

Может, вы, наконец, поймете, что вы не верите нам не потому, что мы врем, а потому что вы не знаете ни хрена об окружающем мире, потому что плохо образованы, читаете мало и не то, ездите не туда, общаетесь с одной и той же горсточкой предвзятых и/или сумасшедших людей, которые только подкрепляют ваше высокомерное невежество.

Translation: Maybe you will finally understand that you do not believe us not because we lie, but because you know horseradish (dick) about surrounding world, because you are badly educated, do not read much and when do, do not read what is needed, you visit all the wrong places and communicate with the same small bunch of prejudiced and/or mental people, who only reinforce your condescending ignorance.

But I want to go even further and recall what Andrei Bezrukov, a former intelligence man and now a professor in the Department of Applied Analysis of International Problems of the famed MGIMO wrote a month and a half ago in his no gimmicks, bottom line, piece with the title (in Russian) What Is Our Strength.

В чем их слабость? Как противники эти ребята – серость, второй сорт. Заелись. Их предыдущее поколение было сильнее. Они нас уважали. А мы их. Этих мы не уважаем, они того не заслужили. Пугать они могут, а драться – посмотрим... Их бесит, что им скоро придется жить по средствам. Они от этого давно отвыкли. Поэтому они хотят решить проблему с нами сейчас, пока другие их еще боятся.

Translation: What is THEIR weakness? As enemies these guys are mediocrities, second rate. They overate. Their previous generation was stronger. They respected us, we respected them. We don't respect these ones, they didn't deserve it. They can bully, as for the real fight--we'll see about that... They are enraged that soon they will have to live within their means. They forgot how to do so long time ago. That is why they want to solve a problem with us now, while others are still afraid of them.

Each day I see reminders of an intellectual hole current Western so called "elites" dug themselves into. Of course, there are still people among them who know the real score and merely toe the party line, but most are genuine articles--arrogant, uncultured, acrimonious, badly educated, despite sometimes holding several Ph.Ds, and highly unprofessional. The signs are everywhere, everyday--in media, in news, in social networks, on political Parnassus, in economy and in foreign policy which, for the lack of a better word, is exhibit A of sheer incompetence. 

Donald Trump needs Russia, it is as clear as a sunny day, but he lacks that necessary foreign policy refinement which may get him at least some kind of "deal" with Russia which will help him to ensure his second term and maybe, just maybe, a shot at both demolishing the EU, thus giving some small lifeline to American economy, and having Russia take a less pro-active stance in US dealings with China. But Trump's Administration is filled with precisely the types of people described in Simonyan's article--America doesn't produce any other types anymore. So, it is difficult to predict the outcome. In the end, the time for a real deal may simply be gone. As Patrick Armstrong wrote in May:

NO, YOUR INTELLIGENCE IS ACTUALLY BAD. VERY BAD.

I somehow have a hunch that the term "intelligence" here can be used simultaneously with its both meanings.  

Ahh, The Skripal Snafu.

Even if it takes a profoundly lefty Salon to start question things and even come to this conclusion: 

It may be that the not-especially-competent May got carelessly out in front of herself as she authorized the first expulsions of Russian foreign service staff. It may be that the French, Germans and Americans lined up an extensive alliance behind the British to save the May government from self-induced embarrassment. But what followed last week suggests something else. Given the evident coordination of the rapid-fire wave of expulsions, we are left to question whether the Skripal incident was not extensively planned among the leading Western capitals as an intentional provocation. This is Moscow’s argument now, in any case.

Then something went really-really wrong. I can even say what--a loss of Western competencies across the whole spectrum of states' activities, including inability to even do a proper false flag. Not that recent West's false flags were proper--all of them, from WMD in Iraq to White Helmets' "chemical weapons" histrionics in Syria, all of them are the work of amateurs. As it is duly noted in Salon's piece:

If I read the past week correctly, we witness the start of a sustained campaign to force Russia into a condition of diplomatic isolation. This may be correctly viewed as a response to the failure of economic sanctions to cripple the Russian economy, given that Russian GDP is now once again expanding, but that is not the point. As spring turns to summer we are also to watch as NATO once again pushes the degree of tension along Russia’s frontier to a still higher degree of danger.

Are these matters a prelude to events disastrous enough to get their own chapter in the history books? Things unfold incrementally, one bit of bad news at a time, leaving us disinclined to think in these terms. We should resist this tendency. Moments such as this have turned into disasters often enough in the past.

Actually, what is highlighted in yellow IS the point. Everything what was thrown at Russia in the last 10 years by combined West not only didn't reach any desired objectives but, in fact, grossly weakened this very West. You know I like to use Tolstoy often and I'll do it again to draw warranted, in fact irresistible, parallels with the state of mind of the combined West today, which explains a lot:

"Despite news of the capture of the fleches, Napoleon saw that this was not the same, not at all the same, as what had happened in his former battles. He saw that what he was feeling was felt by all the men about him experienced in the art of war. All their faces looked dejected, and they all shunned one another's eyes only a de Beausset could fail to grasp the meaning of what was happening.

But Napoleon with his long experience of war well knew the meaning of a battle not gained by the attacking side in eight hours, after all efforts had been expended. He knew that it was a lost battle and that the least accident might now- with the fight balanced on such a strained center- destroy him and his army.

When he ran his mind over the whole of this strange Russian campaign in which not one battle had been won, and in which not a flag, or cannon, or army corps had been captured in two months, when he looked at the concealed depression on the faces around him and heard reports of the Russians still holding their ground- a terrible feeling like a nightmare took possession of him, and all the unlucky accidents that might destroy him occurred to his mind. The Russians might fall on his left wing, might break through his center, he himself might be killed by a stray cannon ball. All this was possible. In former battles he had only considered the possibilities of success, but now innumerable unlucky chances presented themselves, and he expected them all. Yes, it was like a dream in which a man fancies that a ruffian is coming to attack him, and raises his arm to strike that ruffian a terrible blow which he knows should annihilate him, but then feels that his arm drops powerless and limp like a rag, and the horror of unavoidable destruction seizes him in his helplessness"

Leo Tolstoy, War And Peace, Book 10, Chapter XXXIV.

I can only repeat Marga Simonyan's recent appeal to the West:

I’ve been telling you for a long time to find normal advisers on Russia. Sack all those parasites. ...But the only Empire, you have left, ignores history, it doesn’t teach it and refuses to learn it,  meaning that it all will end the way it always does, in such cases. 

Margarita Simonyan' Manifesto.

A great post on Saker's site with RT's Chief Margarita Simonyan giving some passionate but in the same time sober assessment of Russia-West relations which are in the process of being dismantled not only by the West, which is obvious, but by Russians themselves. They had enough and they don't want to deal with West anymore. I don't blame them.

Essentially, the West should be horrified not because 76% of Russians voted for Putin, but because this elections have demonstrated that 95% of Russia’s population supports conservative-patriotic, communist and nationalist ideas. That means that liberal ideas are barely surviving among measly 5% of population.
And that’s your fault, my Western friends. It was you who pushed us into “Russians never surrender” mode.
I’ve been telling you for a long time to find normal advisers on Russia. Sack all those parasites. With their short-sighted sanctions, heartless humiliation of our athletes (including athletes with disabilities ), with their “skripals” and ostentatious disregard of the most basic liberal values, like a presumption of innocence, that they manage to hypocritically combined with forcible imposition of ultra-liberal ideas in their own countries, their epileptic mass hysteria, causing in a healthy person a sigh of relief that he lives  in Russia, and not in Hollywood, with their post-electoral mess in the United States, in Germany, and in the Brexit-zone; with their attacks on RT, which they cannot forgive for taking advantage of the freedom of speech and showing to the world how to use it, and it turned out that the freedom of speech never was intended to be used for good, but was invented as an object of beauty, like some sort of crystal mop that shines from afar, but is not suitable to clean your stables, with all your injustice and cruelty, inquisitorial hypocrisy and lies you forced us to stop respecting you. You and your so called “values.”
We don’t want to live like you live, anymore. For fifty years, secretly and openly, we wanted to live like you, but not any longer.
We have no more respect for you, and for those amongst us that you support, and for all those people who support you. That’s how this 5% came to be.
For that you only have yourself to blame. And also your Western politicians and analysts, newsmakers and scouts.
Our people are capable to forgive a lot. But we don’t forgive arrogance, and no normal nation would.
Your only remaining Empire would be wise to learn history of its allies, all of them are former empires. To learn the ways they lost  their empires. Only because of their arrogance.
White man’s burden, my ass (in English in the original text – trans.)
But the only Empire, you have left, ignores history, it doesn’t teach it and refuses to learn it,  meaning that it all will end the way it always does, in such cases.
In meantime, you’ve pushed us to rally around your enemy. Immediately, after you declared him an enemy, we united around him.
Before, he was just our President, who could be reelected. Now, he has become our Leader. We won’t let you change this.  And it was you, who created this situation.
It was you who imposed an opposition between patriotism and liberalism. Although, they shouldn’t be mutually exclusive notions. This false dilemma, created by you, made us to chose patriotism.
Even though, many of us are really liberals, myself included.
Get cleaned up, now. You don’t have much time left.

Not much to add here, really. I highlighted one (among many) very important point in Marga's message and that is what this blog was and is about since the inception, that is what forced me to write a book and start working on a second one. I can only reiterate what I stated 4 years ago. Detachment from reality and lies can last only so long without consequences. Consequences are coming now and we only begin to feel their dramatic effect. I quote myself:

But the conventional wisdom states that sand castles do not last.