In today's #vatnik soup I'll introduce an American, pro-Russian politician and a conspiracy theorist, Marjorie Taylor Greene (@RepMTG). She's also a US representative for Georgia and member of the Republican Party, and is best known for her love of guns and QAnon.
1/15
She started her political career after the 2016 Republican Party primaries, and in 2017 she was writing dozens of articles for fake news blogs such as the American Truth Seekers and Law Enforcement Today. In 2018 she was also "moderating" a FB page for the Family America...
2/15
... Project, an organization known for posting death threats against Democrats, racist post against the Obama's and generally supporting the wackiest conspiracy theories out there.
Greene knows her audience and campaigns accordingly: ...
3/15
... she's shared a meme of herself holding a AR-15 rifle next to collage of various Democratic politicians. Nancy Pelosi called this a "threat of violence" and the post was removed, after which Marjorie said that she was being the victim of "cancel culture".
4/15
Later on she went and called Pelosi a "hypocrite" & a "bitch". She's also expressed support for execution of FBI agents & some leading Democrats, including Pelosi, Obama and H. Clinton. When asked about their hangings, she said "Stage is being set. [...] We must be patient."
5/15
In the eyes of Trump, Andy Biggs, Matt Gaetz, Charlie Kirk, and L. Lin Wood, she was apparently the perfect candidate to represent the US demographic who loved guns, conspiracy theories (and possibly opiates, too).
Marjorie is also a stout supporter of Russia and Putin.
6/15
In Mar, 2022, she said that "Ukraine just kept poking the bear, poking the bear which is Russia, and Russia invaded" and that "There is no win for Ukraine here". She concluded that "Russia is being very successful in their invasion."
7/15
She also declared that "NATO has been supplying the neo-Nazis in Ukraine with powerful weapons and extensive training" and concluded her message with the hashtag #NATONazis. She has also voted against every sanctions proposal against Russia and aid package for Ukraine.
8/15
Greene identifies as a "Christian nationalist", which may also explain the close relation with the Russians: Putin has been described as a global leader of the Christian nationalist movement.
9/15
Marjorie has supported many, many conspiracy theories in the past, including white genocide, Great Replacement, Sandy Hook school shooting, Camp Fire space solar generators and of course QAnon.
10/15
Greene hasn't only supported existing conspiracy theories, she's also made her own - she has suggested, that to make Republicans go along with gun control, 4th of July Highland Park mass shooting was organized to happen during "MAGA month".
11/15
Marjorie has suggested that there are links between Hillary Clinton, pedophilia and human sacrifice, and she has stated that the Pizzagate is real. She discovered QAnon through Liz Crokin, and said that many of Q's prophecies "have really proven to be true".
12/15
In her famous quote, she said that "There's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take this global cabal of Satan-worshipping pedophiles out, and I think we have the president [referring to Donald Trump] to do it."
She later distanced herself from the QAnon movement.
13/15
Marjorie was condemned and criticized by several representatives, which eventually made her to delete some of her old social media posts. She was also removed from House Committee assignments. Greene might also be the first person to be condemned by the CrossFit community.
14/15
She's also referred the US Capitol police as "gazpacho police", confusing the delicious Spanish soup gazpacho with the secret police of the Nazi Germany, Gestapo.
Greene's personal Twitter account was reinstated by Musk in Nov, 2022.
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll explain the Alaska Fiasco and how it marks the peak of Trump’s two-year betrayal of Ukraine. What was sold as “peace talks” turned into a spectacle of weakness, humiliation, empty promises, and photo-ops that handed Putin exactly what he wanted.
1/24
Let’s start with the obvious: Trump desperately wants the gold medal of the Nobel Peace Prize, mainly because Obama got one. That’s why he’s now LARPing as a “peace maker” in every conflict: Israel-Gaza, Azerbaijan-Armenia, India-Pakistan, and of course Ukraine-Russia.
2/24
Another theory is that Putin holds kompromat — compromising material such as videos or documents — that would put Trump in an extremely bad light. Some have suggested it could be tied to the Epstein files or Russia’s interference in the 2016 US presidential election.
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll talk about engagement farming: a cynical social media tactic to rack up likes, shares, and comments. From rage farming to AI-powered outrage factories, engagement farming is reshaping online discourse and turning division into profit.
1/23
Engagement farming is a social media tactic aimed at getting maximum likes, shares, and comments, with truth being optional. It thrives on provocative texts, images, or videos designed to spark strong reactions, boost reach, and turn online outrage into clicks and cash.
2/23
One subset of engagement farming is rage farming: a tactic built to provoke strong negative emotions through outrageous or inflammatory claims. By triggering anger or moral outrage, these posts often generate 100s or even 1,000s of heated comments, amplifying their reach.
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll cover the autocratic concept of “Good Tsar, Bad Boyars”: the idea that the leader is wise and just, but constantly sabotaged by corrupt advisors. This narrative shields the ruler from blame, and it’s used by both Putin and Trump today.
1/20
The phrase “Good Tsar, Bad Boyars” (Царь хороший, бояре плохие), also known as Naïve Monarchism, refers to a long-standing idea in Russian political culture: the ruler is good and benevolent, but his advisors are corrupt, incompetent and responsible for all failures.
2/20
From this perception, any positive action taken by the government is viewed as being an accomplishment of the benevolent leader, whereas any negative one is viewed as being caused by lower-level bureaucrats or “boyars”, without the approval of the leader.
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll introduce a Russian politician and First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Administration of Russia, Sergey Kiriyenko. He’s best known for running both domestic and foreign disinformation and propaganda operations for the Kremlin.
1/20
On paper, and in photos, Kiriyenko is just as boring as most of the Kremlin’s “political technologists”: between 2005-2016 he headed the Rosatom nuclear energy company, but later played a leading role in the governance of Russia-occupied territories in Ukraine.
2/20
What is a political technologist? In Russia, they’re spin doctors & propaganda architects who shape opinion, control narratives, and manage elections — often by faking opposition, staging events, and spreading disinfo to maintain Putin’s power and the illusion of democracy.
Let me show you how a Pakistani (or Indian, they're usually the same) AI slop farm/scam operates. The account @designbonsay is a prime example: a relatively attractive, AI-generated profile picture and a ChatGPT-style profile description are the first red flags.
1/5
The profile's posts are just generic engagement farming, usually using AI-generated photos of celebrities or relatively attractive women.
These posts are often emotionally loaded and ask the user to interact with them ("like and share if you agree!").
2/5
Then there's the monetization part. This particular account sells "pencil art", which again are just AI-generated slop.
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll introduce an American lawyer and politician, Mike Lee (@BasedMikeLee). He’s best-known for opposing the aid to Ukraine, undermining NATO by calling the US to withdraw from the alliance, and for fighting with a bunch of braindead dogs online.
1/21
Like many of the most vile vatniks out there, “Based Mike” is a lawyer by profession. He hails from the holy land of Mormons, Utah, where he faces little political competition, allowing him to make the most outrageous claims online without risking his Senate seat.
2/21
Before becoming a senator, Mike fought to let a nuclear waste company dump Italian radioactive waste in Utah, arguing it was fine if they just diluted it. The state said no, the public revolted, and the courts told poor Mikey to sit down.