Talk About Tennis 2.0

Those are considerable number of people marching in a country that is totalitarian.
I will claim expertise in that subject: Marching will achieve nothing. Nothing.
(Says a Venezuelan).

ponchi101 wrote: ↑Fri Feb 25, 2022 1:07 am Those are considerable number of people marching in a country that is totalitarian.
I will claim expertise in that subject: Marching will achieve nothing. Nothing.
(Says a Venezuelan).

^ Well, it might get the marchers jailed - or even killed...
Other than that, it shows the rest of the world that this invasion has far less than unanimous approval in Russia. If that many people are protesting in the streets against the invasion, there are likely at least 10 or 20 (likely even more than that) times as many others in Russia who are also against it, but are afraid to take to the streets.

Also, on an individual level, it makes one feel better psychologically to protest against something one is against, rather than doing nothing actively about it.

Mick - are you still (relatively) ok?

.

The situation is escalating. There are hits on apartment buildings, windows are shattered. They hit a boiler station (we have a centralized water-heating). So the heating was off for a couple of hours (not enough to feel the difference yet, but radiators were cooling down). But then municipal workers fixed the boiler or diverted the hot water from another. Now radiators are warm again. We put a duct tape on windows - it will not prevent breaking the windows, but will limit the debris.

mick1303 wrote: ↑Fri Feb 25, 2022 12:32 pm The situation is escalating. There are hits on apartment buildings, windows are shattered. They hit a boiler station (we have a centralized water-heating). So the heating was off for a couple of hours (not enough to feel the difference yet, but radiators were cooling down). But then municipal workers fixed the boiler or diverted the hot water from another. Now radiators are warm again. We put a duct tape on windows - it will not prevent breaking the windows, but will limit the debris.

Sigh...
Are you with your family there?
Do you have any chance of getting out of the country?

Deuce wrote: ↑Fri Feb 25, 2022 12:40 pm

mick1303 wrote: ↑Fri Feb 25, 2022 12:32 pm The situation is escalating. There are hits on apartment buildings, windows are shattered. They hit a boiler station (we have a centralized water-heating). So the heating was off for a couple of hours (not enough to feel the difference yet, but radiators were cooling down). But then municipal workers fixed the boiler or diverted the hot water from another. Now radiators are warm again. We put a duct tape on windows - it will not prevent breaking the windows, but will limit the debris.

Sigh...
Are you with your family there?
Do you have any chance of getting out of the country?

With a family. Not a chance to leave. First it looks like Russians are moving rather freely in between cities. Second - Ukraine declared martial law and every man 18-60 cannot leave the country. I'm 57. And the most important - my father who is 86 lives in the next building and he will not be able to care of himself, if I leave. He is also not healthy - he has cancer...

mick1303 wrote: ↑Fri Feb 25, 2022 1:16 pm

Deuce wrote: ↑Fri Feb 25, 2022 12:40 pm

mick1303 wrote: ↑Fri Feb 25, 2022 12:32 pm The situation is escalating. There are hits on apartment buildings, windows are shattered. They hit a boiler station (we have a centralized water-heating). So the heating was off for a couple of hours (not enough to feel the difference yet, but radiators were cooling down). But then municipal workers fixed the boiler or diverted the hot water from another. Now radiators are warm again. We put a duct tape on windows - it will not prevent breaking the windows, but will limit the debris.

Sigh...
Are you with your family there?
Do you have any chance of getting out of the country?

With a family. Not a chance to leave. First it looks like Russians are moving rather freely in between cities. Second - Ukraine declared martial law and every man 18-60 cannot leave the country. I'm 57. And the most important - my father who is 86 lives in the next building and he will not be able to care of himself, if I leave. He is also not healthy - he has cancer...

Hang in there, Mick. Do the best you can.
I wish we could do - or at least say - more.


I started a thread about the Russian invasion specifically - if you want to switch to posting there, you can find it here:
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=777

mick1303 wrote: ↑Fri Feb 25, 2022 1:16 pm

Deuce wrote: ↑Fri Feb 25, 2022 12:40 pm

mick1303 wrote: ↑Fri Feb 25, 2022 12:32 pm The situation is escalating. There are hits on apartment buildings, windows are shattered. They hit a boiler station (we have a centralized water-heating). So the heating was off for a couple of hours (not enough to feel the difference yet, but radiators were cooling down). But then municipal workers fixed the boiler or diverted the hot water from another. Now radiators are warm again. We put a duct tape on windows - it will not prevent breaking the windows, but will limit the debris.

Sigh...
Are you with your family there?
Do you have any chance of getting out of the country?

With a family. Not a chance to leave. First it looks like Russians are moving rather freely in between cities. Second - Ukraine declared martial law and every man 18-60 cannot leave the country. I'm 57. And the most important - my father who is 86 lives in the next building and he will not be able to care of himself, if I leave. He is also not healthy - he has cancer...

Thanks for the update, Mick. I wish there was something we could do to help you. Is there? I'll keep praying of you and your family.

Mick sincere thoughts and prayers to you and your family.

^^ Russia is the Chair of the Council this moth, which is why they could veto. UAE chairs next month, according to this vote, not sure this will pass in just another week. UK and US chair in April and May.

Russia can always veto just as US, France, UK and China.

Suliso wrote: ↑Sat Feb 26, 2022 8:32 am Russia can always veto just as US, France, UK and China.

^ But there are some things that Russia cannot veto...
.

The U.N. will never work for anything of relevance as long as the veto of those five nations can overturn anything.
And when two of those nations are totalitarian regimes, just dismantle the place.

ponchi101 wrote: ↑Sat Feb 26, 2022 4:51 pm The U.N. will never work for anything of relevance as long as the veto of those five nations can overturn anything.
And when two of those nations are totalitarian regimes, just dismantle the place.

Their vetoes only occur in the Security Council, not in the General Assembly. So, maybe the General Assembly will do something that Russia can't veto.

dave g wrote: ↑Sat Feb 26, 2022 5:24 pm

ponchi101 wrote: ↑Sat Feb 26, 2022 4:51 pm The U.N. will never work for anything of relevance as long as the veto of those five nations can overturn anything.
And when two of those nations are totalitarian regimes, just dismantle the place.

Their vetoes only occur in the Security Council, not in the General Assembly. So, maybe the General Assembly will do something that Russia can't veto.

Yes, that was said as well. Apparently the vote being so one-sided along with the abstentions that occurred instead of being no votes is an embarrassment to Putin. From those that cover UN regularly, I guess China was expected to be a NO vote, so the abstention from them is particularly embarrassing.

I have no idea about the relationship between Russia and UAE. Is that about oil or something else?