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Thread: Geopolitical Conflict News

  1. #91
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    The fact that Ukraine is not a NATO state is the only reason why Putin is maneuvering as he wants. Why do you think he's not touching Latvia or Estonia. Both have a strong pro-Russian population but both are NATO members. Putin can't do anything there.

    Getting back to Urkaine, no one and I mean no one will intervene through military actions except Ukraine itself and they are no match for the Russians.
    The question is where will it stop? Will Putin completely take over Ukraine (I doubt) or will he only focus on southern and southeastern towns along the border.
    Novoazovs'k just fell down to Russia. It is a key town as it will now serves as an entry point for Russian soldiers through the southeastern borders.

    How far can the US and EU push economic sanctions down Russia's throat before Putin shuts down oil & gas exports to Europe?

  2. #92
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    Quote Originally Posted by Deepvoid View Post
    How far can the US and EU push economic sanctions down Russia's throat before Putin shuts down oil & gas exports to Europe?
    That's what I have been wondering. But is it worth it for Ukrainians to lose sovereignty because the rest of Europe needs its oil and gas? Sad thing is, the rest of Europe would rather lose the Ukraine and keep the oil. I don't know how much of Europe's oil and gas comes from Russia, but I expect it will be a big hit to the EU's economy if it is cut off.

    I wonder if Russia can put sanctions on Estonia and Latvia in an effort to get them to leave NATO? Interesting to see what they will do in the coming months.
    Last edited by icecream; 08-28-2014 at 10:22 AM.

  3. #93
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    Quote Originally Posted by icecream View Post
    That's what I have been wondering. But is it worth it for Ukrainians to lose sovereignty because the rest of Europe needs its oil and gas? Sad thing is, the rest of Europe would rather lose the Ukraine and keep the oil. I don't know how much of Europe's oil and gas comes from Russia, but I expect it will be a big hit to the EU's economy if it is cut off.

    I wonder if Russia can put sanctions on Estonia and Latvia in an effort to get them to leave NATO? Interesting to see what they will do in the coming months.
    According to this report EU crude oil imports represent 53.1% of their total consumption. 32.6% of crude oil imports came from Russia.
    Gas imports from Russia was 38.7% in 2007. I believe it's about 40% today.

    So yes, cutting crude oil or gas exports would be a freaking disaster for Europe.

    "While buyers can switch oil and coal suppliers relatively quickly and easily, Europe receives most of its gas through pipelines that are fed by only one supplier, Gazprom, in annual exports worth $80 billion."
    http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/...0GR0W120140827
    Last edited by Deepvoid; 08-28-2014 at 10:46 AM.

  4. #94
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  5. #95
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  6. #96
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    I am not a religious person and I don't believe in the book of revelations. With that being said, the Middle East has never been that stable but as mentioned on CNN the Middle East is in the worst shape in 40 years. Israel and Gaza may have a cease fire at the moment but it never seems to last. Iraq, Syria, Isis control, outside of the Middle East you have the Ebola outbreak in west Africa, Russia and the Ukraine crisis. Iran has been surprisingly quiet thus far.
    To me the world seems like its on the brink of disaster, it seems like so many countries that hate the US. Isis is baiting the US to draw us into Syria and I'm not sure if going after them in Syria would be a smart move for the US. My concern is a well funded terrorist organization like Isis getting access to a nuclear weapon.
    I'm also concerned about a possible world war that didn't use nuclear weapons but more modern day technology like chemical or biological weapons or just an attack on communication or Satallites. Imagine waking up one morning and your cell phone doesn't work, the cable is out and you can't access the internet on your laptop, iPad or phone. Do you still have a land line?

  7. #97
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    I had a land line until last year, but then I realized I couldn't call anybody, anyway, because nobody I knew had a land line, so it didn't really matter much. So now I have cable phone and cell phones. Ugh.

  8. #98
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    I'm not sure what would happen if modern communication failure were to occur. It would pandemonium, I have friends that are addicted to their cell phones and Facebook page. I don't even have a Facebook page I'm sort of anti Facebook.
    A communication failure would be far worse then no cell service or Facebook, think about what it could do to financial markets or government services, or the electrical grid or water service we could be in for a world of hurt. The loss of water and electricity many countries would become unglued.

  9. #99
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    Quote Originally Posted by Your Name Here View Post
    I'm not sure what would happen if modern communication failure were to occur. It would pandemonium, I have friends that are addicted to their cell phones and Facebook page. I don't even have a Facebook page I'm sort of anti Facebook.
    A communication failure would be far worse then no cell service or Facebook, think about what it could do to financial markets or government services, or the electrical grid or water service we could be in for a world of hurt. The loss of water and electricity many countries would become unglued.
    Getting a cheap emergency radio is a good step....Keeping it in a Faraday cage is a good second step.

  10. #100
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    Quote Originally Posted by Satyr View Post
    Getting a cheap emergency radio is a good step....Keeping it in a Faraday cage is a good second step.
    You called me a hoplophobe earlier, because I thought guns were dangerous and we should work on regulating who gets access to them.

    What's the word for "irrational fear of the apocalypse?"

  11. #101
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jinsai View Post
    You called me a hoplophobe earlier, because I thought guns were dangerous and we should work on regulating who gets access to them.

    What's the word for "irrational fear of the apocalypse?"
    I called you a hoplophobe ("earlier" as in at least a couple weeks ago) because you are one (I didn't even know what a hoplophobe was until someone pointed out that you were the definition). As for having an "irrational fear of the apocalypse"....I doubt I have that as you're the only one talking about the apocalypse (an overtly religious description of a worldwide catastrophe)....

    If owning a cheap emergency radio means I have an "irrational fear of the apocalypse".....I guess I don't have that as I don't own one (just saying I should). I'll go with you're just mad that I pointed out that you're a hoplophobe though (because you are).

  12. #102
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    Quote Originally Posted by Satyr View Post
    I called you a hoplophobe ("earlier" as in at least a couple weeks ago) because you are one (I didn't even know what a hoplophobe was until someone pointed out that you were the definition)
    Have you ever had a lethal weapon pulled on you with the threat of it being actually used?

  13. #103
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    Shouldn't most people be a hoplophobe considering weapons are used to kill?

  14. #104
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    Quote Originally Posted by icecream View Post
    Shouldn't most people be a hoplophobe considering weapons are used to kill?
    Not if you're some psychotic internet warrior who has never had a gun pointed at him in real life... then you can run around online mocking people for being "irrationally scared of guns."

  15. #105
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jinsai View Post
    Not if you're some psychotic internet warrior who has never had a gun pointed at him in real life... then you can run around online mocking people for being "irrationally scared of guns."
    Not even guns. Knives are pretty scary when used threateningly, even baseball bats. I would consider myself scared of those when used as a weapon

  16. #106
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jinsai View Post
    Have you ever had a lethal weapon pulled on you with the threat of it being actually used?
    Yes....I work in Emergency Medicine.

    I used to have an irrational fear of guns. When I was going through college one of my friends friends revealed that he had a CCW and my first thought was I was going to accidentally get shot to death (which is not rational). A gun is an inanimate object. It on its own can not hurt you.

    I am afraid of an unstable PERSON going on a shooting spree where I work. We even have training for just that scenario. You can fixate on firearms all you want.....The real problem is Mental Health.

  17. #107
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    Mental Health is absolutely part of the "problem". But it is a problem that has more than one cause.

  18. #108
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    Am I drunk or this is not the gun thread?

  19. #109
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    Quote Originally Posted by Deepvoid View Post
    Am I drunk or this is not the gun thread?
    You're right, its not. I'm sorry that Jinsai started ranting about guns after I suggested people that are concerned with communications failures might want to buy a cheap emergency radio.

    By all means, back to the topic at hand.

  20. #110
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    So is everyone Prepared For Assault/World War Three?

  21. #111
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    Putin said he could take Kiev in 2 weeks if he wanted to.
    Allegedly taken out of context. I'm wondering in which context this statement could have a positive spin.

    NATO has plan to build up troops in the region.
    I just hope no one presses the red button by mistake.

  22. #112
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    i'm kinda uneasy about all of this...i just realized i started this thread right at a year ago, and things are looking a HELL of a lot worse.
    And my fears remain the same...
    a russian/syrian (ISIS)/possibly chinese alliance that could actually start a world war.

  23. #113
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    Quote Originally Posted by Deepvoid View Post
    Am I drunk or this is not the gun thread?
    My fault for the detour. Back to talking about WWIII.
    Last edited by Jinsai; 09-03-2014 at 11:25 AM.

  24. #114
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    Quote Originally Posted by Your Name Here View Post
    I'm not sure what would happen if modern communication failure were to occur. It would pandemonium, I have friends that are addicted to their cell phones and Facebook page. I don't even have a Facebook page I'm sort of anti Facebook.
    A communication failure would be far worse then no cell service or Facebook, think about what it could do to financial markets or government services, or the electrical grid or water service we could be in for a world of hurt. The loss of water and electricity many countries would become unglued.
    You'd be surprised to learn about all the emergency communication channels that do not require physical lines on the backend like the internet does. Ham radio being the most popular. How many people under 30 even know what that is let alone have stepped away from facebook long enough to learn it?

    There is also a lot of distributed mesh network technology that is being worked on. Stuff that uses off the shelf wireless routers and such. They are intended for the countries experiencing massive upheaval, but it's basically the same thing as an outright failure.

    You are right that a very large portion of people would lose their shit if any part of the grid dropped for even a week. It's pretty sad.

  25. #115
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    Quote Originally Posted by elevenism View Post
    So is everyone Prepared For Assault/World War Three?
    If it happens I doubt anyone will be really ready. Even the doomsday preppers that have massive arsenals/food/water saved up to last for years.

    Here's an interesting read for those curious about Shit Hit The Fan Scenarios.

    http://www.naturalnews.com/040249_bo...trategies.html

  26. #116
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    Quote Originally Posted by elevenism View Post
    i'm kinda uneasy about all of this...i just realized i started this thread right at a year ago, and things are looking a HELL of a lot worse.
    And my fears remain the same...
    a russian/syrian (ISIS)/possibly chinese alliance that could actually start a world war.
    Not sure if the Chinese government wants to get mixed up in the current mess. They have been relatively quiet so far.
    You're right, things have gotten worse over the past year. Are we witnessing history in the making (as is the beginning of WWIII), I don't think so personally.
    The idea of living through a third world war seems so far-fetched, especially because of the quantity of nukes out there. I don't think anyone would let that happen.

  27. #117
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    I dont think a nuclear war would kill everybody on the planet, Im not saying there isnt enough nukes to do that. What im saying is several cities my vanish on either side before both sides realize the futility of the excessive use of force.
    I think that the modern world is a bit more sinister and cynical to just go for the blinding flash of light.
    Cyber attacks, world wide blackouts, catastrophic communications failures, biological weapons, or virus epidemics like ebola all have the potential to create a doomsday scenario.
    I think all scenarios wouldnt kill everybody on the planet but it would definately change the world as we know it now.

  28. #118
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    Quote Originally Posted by Satyr View Post
    If it happens I doubt anyone will be really ready. Even the doomsday preppers that have massive arsenals/food/water saved up to last for years.
    This is the part that I'm not getting... Not everyone is completely helpless and lacking in survival skills. I have a friend that has a property that was cheap to buy, and he's set it up so that it's completely off the grid. He supplies his own power, grows his own food. He hasn't done it because he is afraid of a doomsday scenario, but he's perfectly "ready" if it happens.

  29. #119
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jinsai View Post
    This is the part that I'm not getting... Not everyone is completely helpless and lacking in survival skills. I have a friend that has a property that was cheap to buy, and he's set it up so that it's completely off the grid. He supplies his own power, grows his own food. He hasn't done it because he is afraid of a doomsday scenario, but he's perfectly "ready" if it happens.
    Most of the "Doomsday Preppers" are horribly underprepared individuals. Very overweight, thinks buying a bunch of gadgets and hoarding shit is all they need to do to survive, etc. They could survive through a 1 week inconvenience, but that's about it.

    The people who are already living the off the grid lifestyle will fare much better, but even those people are surprisingly dependent on the rest of society. Various food and trade, etc. There are very few people growing/making 100% of their food, clothes, electrical, tools, etc.

  30. #120
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    The way to survive upheaval is not to run away from other people.

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