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 discuss how Estonia, Latvia & Lithuania cut the cord on Russian energy, further reducing their reliance on the Kremlin.
At the same time, the Baltics set an example for EU countries like Slovakia & Hungary whose leadership still worships Putin.
1/24
Moscow has long used its vast natural gas reserves as a geopolitical weapon, manipulating energy supplies to keep neighbors obedient. They’ve used the “energy weapon” several times, with the most blatant cases of Kremlin blackmail coming of course from Ukraine.
2/24
Let’s rewind back to the 1990s: The USSR dissolved, but Russia inherited the gas reserves, pipelines, and Gazprom — its political weapon. Meanwhile, the Baltic states were politically free but economically tied to Russia, heavily reliant on Russian gas.
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll introduce an Estonian politician, Jana Toom (@JanaToomEE). She’s best-known for promoting pro-Kremlin viewpoints both in domestic Estonian politics and in the European Parliament.
1/22
Toom’s mother, Margarita Chernogorova, studied law in Leningrad & worked for the Communist Party. She was also a confidant to the most notorious leader of the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic, Karl Vaino. One of Chernogorova’s tasks was to suppress the Singing Revolution.
2/22
During the early 90s Toom lived with her husband in Snezhinsk, Russia and returned to Estonia in 1994. Soon after, she joined the editorial board of Molodyož Estonii, a paper known for being a mouthpiece for the Leninist Communist Youth League during the Soviet era.
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll discuss the Kremlin’s toolbox at sea. Recently, we have seen several sabotage operations allegedly conducted by Russia & its allies, especially in the Baltic Sea region. Since 2023, there have been several underwater cables cut by ships’ anchors.
1/18
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine,the Baltic Sea has become a hotspot for NATO-Russia rivalry. This rivalry ramped up in Sep 2022,when the Nord Stream gas pipelines were sabotaged by an unknown perpetrator (some blame a “pro-Ukraine group”, others, the Russians).
2/18
These sabotage operations in the Baltic Sea now target critical infrastructure like Internet and energy cables, links that are vital for European communication and trade. Russia and its allies allegedly use these acts to test NATO’s resilience and response.
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll discuss the absolute state of X in January 2025. Since its acquisition by Elon Musk, this platform has rapidly transformed into his personal political tool and a breeding ground for hate speech and disinformation.
1/22
Not everyone is following this shitshow as closely as I am, so I thought it would be good to write a summary of all the changes that have happened on this forum and outside of it. These changes have drastically changed how the platform operates and who gets “a voice” here.
2/22
Elon’s team has been tweaking the algorithm many times after the takeover. One of these tweaks happened already around Nov 2022, when the platform heavily suppressed the visibility of pro-Ukraine accounts. This change was then noticed & reported by many pro-Ukraine accounts.
3/22
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll introduce a Venezuelan bus driver, politician & dictator, Nicolás Maduro (@NicolasMaduro). He’s best-known for ruining Venezuela, turning it into a dictatorship, and for collaborating with other authoritarian regimes like Russia, Iran & Belarus.
1/22
His exact birthplace has been questioned, but most sources agree that Mr. Maduro was born in Caracas, Venezuela. Maduro was raised in a Catholic family, but at some point became a follower of Indian Hindu guru Sathya Sai Baba and even visited the guru in India back in 2005.
2/22
Nicolás’ introduction to leftist politics happened during the 80s, when he acted as an unofficial trade unionist and as bodyguard for José Vicente Rangel, who later worked as a foreign minister under Hugo Chávez. He also visited Havana, Cuba, where he “studied communism”,…