The International Red Cross has confirmed promised 'humanitarian corridor' offered to Ukrainian civilians trapped in city of Mariupol, had been mined by Russia. Landmines to maim civilians
I need to explain this industrial scale sadistic torture
Mariupol is a city of nearly half a million. Same size roughly as Tampa or Minneapolis, a bit bigger than New Orleans or Cleveland. It is at SouthEastern edge of Ukraine near Russian border so Russian army quickly encircled the city. Laid siege to it
Mariupol Minefield Thread 3/
Immediately on invading Ukraine, Putin shut down electricity, gas, food & water to Mariupol. And cut off the HEAT. Mariupol is about same latitude as Toronto, Ottawa and Winnipeg. It is winter & Mariupol is colder than Detroit, Chicago or Minneapolis
Mariupol Minefield Thread 4/
The Russian army encircled Mariupol but did not enter the city. It laid a minefield all around the city, guarded by snipers. And then started shelling. Continuous artillery bombardment, day & night. Slaughtering civilians. With no way out
Mariupol Minefield Thread 5/
Mariupol TV and radio towers were destroyed. So the people hear no news from their own government. Telephone & internet links broken, including cellphones. So the people are now blinded, isolated and terrified and cannot reach out to friends
Mariupol Minefield Thread 6/
The artillery fire is indiscriminate butchering of civilians. Firing at residential housing areas, deliberately to terrorize the people stuck inside this hellscape. Hungry, cold and scared out of their minds. And fed Russian propaganda
Mariupol Minefield Thread 7/
After a week of this horror, Russia promised a safe passage, a humanitarian corridor to get out of Mariupol. Ukrainians who trusted Putin, walked into a trap, they were fired at by snipers and mortar fire. And had to go back. Next day, same nightmare
Mariupol Minefield Thread 8/
After 2 days of terror of being shot at while testing a humanitarian corridor offered by Putin, came the horror. Now, after 11 days of freezing cold, no food, no water, no electicity, they were promised safe passage. And were walked into a mine field
Mariupol Minefield Thread 9/
This is not like the mine fields you see in movies of WW2. Russia uses the PFM-1 'buttefly mine' as anti-personnel mine. It will not kill you. No. It is intended to only remove your shoe, with your foot still in it. Instant amputation below the knee
Mariupol Minefield Thread 10/
The butterfly mine is a bit larger than your hand. It is made of plastic, so metal detectors will not find it. They are colored to blend in with grass and foilage on the ground. Even if a child steps on it, that child will need an artificial limb
Mariupol Minefield Thread 11/
The 'military logic' to such mines that are not going to kill you, but maim you for life, is that they take TWO soldiers off the battlefield. If your mine amputates a soldier, he will scream & bleed, needs a fellow soldier to carry him to a medic.
Mariupol Minefield Thread 12/
The sick side effect of these plastic weapons, is that to children they seem like toys. And simply squeezing or bending one, will set it off, maiming & cripling the child. in Afghanistan, Soviet use of these minds cripled 30,000 - mostly kids
Mariupol Minefield Thread 13/
This is the evil part. Vladimir Putin does this to Mariupol civilians DELIBERATELY
He did the SAME gambit in the (Second) Chechen War, in the siege of Grozny, city of similar size. The promised corridors and snipers, mortars and yes the mine fields
Mariupol Minefield Thread 14/
The SAME systematic, industrial scale sadistic cruelty was used by Putin's boy, mass-murdering brutal dictator Assad to slaughter Syrian civilians in Aleppo.
This same gambit was used by Putin in 7 year long border wars in Donbas region of Ukraine
Mariupol Minefield Thread 15/
It is a cruel psychological warfare method, designed to crush hope. To defeat a NATION. Putin creates horrible pressure to the citizens of Mariupol. Then offers them hope. And then DESTROYS that hope. And repeat, and repeat, and repeat. Pure evil
Mariupol Minefield Thread 16/
Putin intends to do this to EVERY city he captures, crush all those people in the same way. If they get out alive, their psychological damage is likely to never be fixed. He is committing war crimes in front of our eyes, & he doesn't care (or worry)
Mariupol Minefield Thread 17/
Whatever you have done, to help Ukraine, please do more. The horror to the citizens of Mariupol will continue, until Putin is driven out. And this SAME terror comes to EVERY city Putin captures. We need to help Ukraine win. Fast
On Monday Judge Chutkan in DC (Jack Smith 2) case will hold a hearing about putting a gag order on Herr Hezbollah, the nation's Terrorist-In-Chief. Trump was under protective order. He breached it many times. So this is now his 'final warning'
Let's do a Thread
GAG ORDER THREAD/2
Don't look at me like that! This is JUSTICE. It is EXACTLY the same legal standard that would apply to you and me. Nothing more, nothing less. Trump is a FIRST TIME OFFENDER; has NEVER been convicted of any crime (yet). He was put on a 'protective order' FIRST
GAG ORDER THREAD/3
Then Trump repeatedly broke that protective order. We WITNESSED IT LIVE on TV and on social media, REPEATEDLY
But the Judge CANNOT do anything about it. Until she is FORMALLY told by the prosecution. She CANNOT do anything yet. It would be same for you and me
We certainly feel it was taking too long. In reality this is about par for the course, in some ways FASTER than normal, for such a large criminal conspiracy. Timing is similar to Watergate
FIRST of PLANNERS of Jan 6 go to trial, in Georgia in two weeks !!!
So January 6th, 2021 was two years and 9 months ago. Over 1,000 of the violent mob have been caught, over half prosecuted, and prison sentences for those running up to more than a decade in prison. That is justice
The ORGANIZERS of the Jan 6th plot are Trump, the Seditious Six..
The ORGANIZERS of Jan 6 are
Trump
Seditious Six (Giuliani, Flynn etc)
Evil Eleven of Congress (Gosar, Gym, Gaetz etc)
and a handful others (Roger Stone, Bannon etc)
They are ALL CAUGHT
Jack Smith STARTED to prosecute the organizers. Look who he has as WITNESSES to this crime
Trump calls Hezbollah "very smart" for their terrorist attack? Same Senile Man called Putin smart for invading Ukraine. And called murdering dictators MBS and Kim Jong Un smart
Meanwhile Trump has called HIS OWN CABINET and HIS OWN GENERALS idiots & stupid
General Mattis: Trump's not mature, a 5th grader
General McMaster: he's a dope, kindergartner idiot
Colonel Esper: irresponsible
General Milley: crazy
General Hytin: an idiot
General Kelly: Trump's crazy, an unhinged idiot
Next...
Then let's ask Trump White House staff, people Trump selected:
VP Pence: Trump is reckless
CoS 1 Priebus: he's an idiot
CoS 2 (Kelly, in above)
CoS 3 Mulvaney: terrible human being, a clown show
CoS 4 Meadows: Trump is worthless
SoS Tillerson: he's a fucking moron
Trump was massively embarrassed in New York, and that trial still continues. But this incident (Trump sitting in NY court for 3 days and then bailed) exposes insight into how incredibly stupid, and self-destructive Trump is
Let's do a Thread
New York New York Thread /2
So what happened? Trump sat in the civil trial - he is NOT required to be there (he must attend all criminal trials which start in March 2024). He feuded with the judge, got hit with a gag order, then stormed out of New York. Let's see how dumb it was
New York New York Thread /3
Donald the Duck McTrump's whole brand is based on the carefully constructed fake illusion, that he is somehow a 'billionaire'. WE know he is not. That Trump is a fake, a con-artist, living on other people's money. But his SUPPORTERS believe that lie
What happens next? The House cannot conduct any other business until it has selected a new House Speaker. The GOP is in civil war. It may be chaos for a while. Most likely they find a suitable Republican Speaker
DEMs do not have votes for DEM Speaker
BUT DEMs could make a deal
If a slice of Republicans (as few as 6) ally with DEMs, then that alliance could select (a Republican) speaker
Realistically the most logical such choice is an EX House Republican, like Liz Cheney
Because of GOP civil war, DEMs have leverage now
This is the deal I suggest:
DEMs make deal for ANY Republican who they can trust (like Liz Cheney, Kinzinger) where promise is 2 House Votes every week. One vote on legislation provided by GOP, the other vote legislation provided by DEMs. Both will get a floor vote each week
With Friday's bombshell news in court filing by Jack Smith of 3 more prosecution witnesses - now just about as big as they come - let's do a Thread about the flippers in Trump's life, the rats who all testify under oath, in criminal courts, against Trump
Flipper Thread/2
Trump committed an act of insurgency against America. That word is rarely used. The legal EFFECT is the same as 'treason'. Trump committed a crime which is essentially as bad as treason
So who does Jack Smith have as a witness? Trump's OWN Attorney General Barr
Flipper Thread/3
Bill Barr was not just the nation's top lawyer, as Attorney General, when this plot was first hatched - Barr learned of the idea - and TOLD TRUMP IT IS ILLEGAL. That is what Barr will testify under oath. That Trump KNEW this plot is illegal