"All of Vlad's forces and all of Vlad's men, are out to put Humpty together again." (8 Viewers)

[Dimlee]

Important difference: The mass of the population in Ukraine has united behind the government in power. This provides a structure that allows governement to function despite any corruption that may exist unlike in South Vietnam or Afghanistan where the government was as much an enemy of the population as were those invading from outside. This may or may not last but in the meantime provides a very different context for the people of Ukraine to those other situations

We see the nation in the making, so to say. I lived in Ukraine for many years and made Kyiv my home base in 2010. Despite all the knowledge about the country, I'm astonished at how the nation grew up in the last several years. What doesn't kill us makes us stronger, and in Ukraine, it made people smarter, wiser, more resilient and united.

 

[SaparotRob]

President Zelensky will probably have a much stronger position to initiate anti-corruption policies after the war. I don't know how committed he was to reduce corruption before the invasion, but he does have the eyes of the world on him now.

 

[buffnut453]

Russian held countries - former USSR and/or Warsaw Pact? Corruption levels are not the same in that region, they are different.
Just compare the ranks of Estonia, Ukraine, and Turkmenistan.

2021 Corruption Perceptions Index - Explore the results

How does your country measure up in the 2021 Corruption Perceptions Index?

www.transparency.org

And one only has to look at the tremendous strides made by Ukraine since 2014 in striving to overcome corruption, which led to the nation moving several places up the list (with most corrupt at the bottom). Ukraine is absolutely a work in progress...but I feel it's a good work and there are good people striving to do the right thing and overcome the mistakes of the past. Ukraine isn't perfect (which country is?) but, prior to the Russian invasion, they made concerted efforts to improve...and I applaud the leaders and the entire nation for that.

 

[GTX]

don't know how committed he was to reduce corruption before the invasion, but he does have the eyes of the world on him now.

I understood that one of his themes during his election was anti-corruption.

 

[SaparotRob]

I didn't want to sound too hopeful.

 

[MiTasol]

There's a lot of unfairness in what I write above.

Who said people are fair?

 

[MiTasol]

But when the teachers lack the knowledge, the system becomes unstable.

And that applies here in Australia as much as in the USA. Forty odd years ago when my son was in grade two in Victoria we would spell check his homework. Often the teacher would mark a correctly spelt word as wrong. When we took her to task on it she said spelling is not important anyway. Soon after that became the norm in the state school system and the mantra when training teachers became "never traumatize a child by saying they are wrong".
Starting the following January our children went to a private school where spelling WAS important. In year 12 our oldest got 86% average and youngest got 96.6% so we have never regretted the expense.

 

[Admiral Beez]

President Zelensky will probably have a much stronger position to initiate anti-corruption policies after the war.

So will the Russians (once Putin is dead, likely natural cases before 2025), as part of their post-Putin national reckoning and attempt at reintroducting themselves to the free world.

 

[vikingBerserker]

I don't think they will have a choice if they want to grow.

 

[wlewisiii]

I don't think they will have a choice if they want to grow.

The problem is if yet another kleptocratic despot gains power he won't care about anything but sheering the wool and dining on mutton so long as any of the sheep survive.

 

[buffnut453]

Transnistria in the news:

Several explosions have hit the state security ministry in the breakaway Moldovan region of Transnistria, the interior ministry said on its Telegram channel.

The ministry said the building appeared to have been hit with rocket-propelled grenades, but it said no one was injured.

It comes days after a Russian general suggested Moscow wanted to take full control of southern Ukraine, giving Russia access to the separatist region of Moldova which it supports.

He said there was "oppression of the Russian-speaking population" in Transnistria, a claim which had also been made - without evidence - to justify the invasion of Ukraine.

Ukraine's defence ministry said the incident was a "planned provocation" by Russia itself to instil "panic and anti-Ukrainian sentiment".

A small Russian-speaking breakaway region, Transnistria borders Ukraine from the west. It claimed independence after the fall of the Soviet Union in a bloody conflict, but is not recognised internationally and officially remains part of Moldova.

 

[GrauGeist]

Transnistria in the news:

Several explosions have hit the state security ministry in the breakaway Moldovan region of Transnistria, the interior ministry said on its Telegram channel.

The ministry said the building appeared to have been hit with rocket-propelled grenades, but it said no one was injured.

It comes days after a Russian general suggested Moscow wanted to take full control of southern Ukraine, giving Russia access to the separatist region of Moldova which it supports.

He said there was "oppression of the Russian-speaking population" in Transnistria, a claim which had also been made - without evidence - to justify the invasion of Ukraine.

Ukraine's defence ministry said the incident was a "planned provocation" by Russia itself to instil "panic and anti-Ukrainian sentiment".

A small Russian-speaking breakaway region, Transnistria borders Ukraine from the west. It claimed independence after the fall of the Soviet Union in a bloody conflict, but is not recognised internationally and officially remains part of Moldova.

Well, I sure didn't see that coming...

Sarcasm aside, the worst thing the Russians can do at this point, is try to divide their numbers by going to Transneistra's "rescue".
Right now, the Russian Army is safe in numbers, once they expose themselves in southern Ukraine with a contingent, they'll get whittled down.

It will also most likely fast-track reunification with Romania, at which point, Moldovan territory is NATO territory and Russia will have to tread very lightly.

 

[buffnut453]

More nonsense from Lavrov....invading a country isn't war but providing weapons to that invaded country is war...you can't make this stuff up:

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said deliveries of Western weaponry to Ukraine mean that the Nato alliance is "in essence engaged in war with Russia".

In an interview aired on Monday, he said: "These weapons will be a legitimate target for Russia's military acting within the context of the special operation."

Lavrov also told state television: "Nato, in essence, is engaged in a war with Russia through a proxy and is arming that proxy. War means war."

 

[GrauGeist]

Funny how Russia also seems to think that attacking targets with a warship is ok, but when it gets sunk because the defenders don't like being attacked, it's considered an "act of war".

And last time I checked, Russian military backed "separatists" engaging in armed conflict in a neighboring nation is a "proxy war".

So here we are, more whiney bitch tears from the schoolyard bully...

 

[Thumpalumpacus]

Incredible. I frequently corrected my teachers in history class. I received poor marks in English class. I wouldn't bother with homework since I spoke the language better than my teacher.

I did that in one history class where the teacher was fool enough to base 80% of the grade on weekly tests, 10% on mid-term and final tests, and 10% on homework. He got mad at me one day when again I didn't turn in a homework assignment and asked me why I refused to do them. "I already know this stuff. Look at my test scores."

I passed the class with an A because I aced all the tests.

 

[GrauGeist]

Good artical on the current situation in Moldova:

 

[swampyankee]

You make the job undoable and you wonder why you can't get good help? I chose the rechnician job rather than getting a teaching certificate for that reason.
My teachers in school were TEACHERS. Today's teachers are expected to be cops, psychologists, social workers, and oh yes, do a little teaching on the side.

Alas, at least in the US, there is a very strong cabal of politicians and ideologues who want to cripple public education and replace it with their newspeak falsehoods.

 

[gumbyk]

You make the job undoable and you wonder why you can't get good help? I chose the rechnician job rather than getting a teaching certificate for that reason.
My teachers in school were TEACHERS. Today's teachers are expected to be cops, psychologists, social workers, and oh yes, do a little teaching on the side.

I'm on the Board at our school, and didn't realise how much sh1t teachers have to do that isn't teaching.
It seems that they're the ones picking up the pieces for parents that can't or won't do their job.

 

[SaparotRob]

If Moldova were to try and unify with Romania (NATO), how would Transnistria figure in it?

 

[wlewisiii]

My guess is Moldova would be best off just saying "Be careful what you wish for. You might get it. Bye" to Transnistria and getting under the NATO umbrella by rejoining with Romania tomorrow.