New York Times Calls Out Putin

       In a blistering editorial, the NY Times called Putin a threat to the world order and called for action against the largest country in the world, run by another megalomaniac who has been appointed dictator for life.  This call out comes on the heels of the near death of Putin's sharpest critic, Aleksei Navalny.  He was the one who became ill on a flight to Moskova from Siberia.   The flight was diverted as the seriousness became obvious when he lapsed into unconsciousness.  The pilot landed at Omsk airport which was met by an ambulance which rushed him to a local hospital.  His condition was grave.  

       On learning that Mr. Navalny was hospitalized, his supporters rushed to the hotel where he had stayed the last night.   They gathered everything in the room that could be associated with his stay.  This would be analyzed later for any sign of contamination.   Meanwhile, Mr. Navalny was then taken to a hospital in Berlin, Germany, to thwart any attempt by the FSB/Kremlin to intervene while he was hospitalized in Russya.   Doctors in Russya stated it appeared he had been drinking or perhaps taken some drugs.   This bogus claim only underscored his precarious position while still in Russya.

        Subsequent testing revealed the presence of the banned nerve agent Novichuk.   As has happened in many other incidents, this agent seems to be the preferred agent when the FSB is operating at home or abroad against critics of the Kremlin.  The list gets longer by the month.  The NY Times called for other countries to take action.  Specifically, the editorial called for the EU to end the Nord Stream pipeline deal with Russya that would supply natural gas to the EU directly from Russya.  The project is about to be completed, and Prime Minister Angela Merkel is coming under pressure to cancel the project despite it being nearly completed.  Sanctions already exist upon Russya for various international actions, eg. invasion of Crimea; assassination attempts in the UK, and the murders of journalists w/i the borders of the federation.

       Meanwhile, the propaganda machine inside Russya is throwing out news of a Covid vaccine that has been developed in some lab inside the country.  The Kremlin maintains it has proven safe.  Ha.  Can you imagine?  Maybe each batch will have a "special" formulation to be reserved for "special" patients.   Would you want a vaccine covered with Russyan fingerprints?  No, of course not.