A Russian peasant has 4 evils to strangle against: winter, spring, summer, autumn.
The last winter 16 regions experienced weeks and months without central heating and water, both warm and cold. In terms of Russia, it's many thousands. We can call it "winter".
The most of the heating infrastructure was built in the Soviet times and now just failing because of old age. What was built under later times.... well, as I said somewhere else, 60-85% from every project got stolen...You can call it “corruption”.
Now, there's corruption before. Petr the first decreed: "Whoever would steal a rope, will be hung on that rope..." and it didn't work. Not that they stopped stealing. And not that they stopped hang for stealing. It just didn’t work.
But under putler's times it – corruption - assumed gargantuasque proportions:
This time of year, the snow is melting and south Ural is sitting under water. I checked Guardian and found nothing on the subject. Hence, the inquiring minds are to check "Russian links".
There were dams. They didn't hold. The authorities said: "A rodent gnaw throw it" about one dam (built 10 years ago). And "The citizens took the stuff from" about the other. They evacuated people in the middle of the morning: one second you are there in a nightgown and slippers... the other second - you are in a boat and it is. The rescuers are not allowed to take pets in the boats.
*I will not start about roads and aqueducts built by Romans 2 tou… before our time…*
There are videos, when a rescuers boat came to the area days after and a man tears off tales of a roof with his bare hands – are they’nt supposed to have tools? - in order to free a cat captured under. There was about 3 cm left for the cat to breath.
Yes, corruption kills. Not only animals. Do you know how many old, handicapped, bed-ridden people got under along with the bound / caged animals? Neither do I.
(Do we have to bother at all about handicapped old people and bound animals?)
But our site is a site of good news: so, some of animals were rescued.
And to continue the happy news: while some areas in Russia are getting under water, the other areas are starting to experience grass- and forest fires. Because as always.
Less happy news are: the same category of men working in heating-maintenance, rescue-teams, building et cetera. Now, the wages in those positions are low, you can’t support your family on.
They promise, and at some occasions, they pay more money, that a usual blue-color worker will earn in his life. And they don’t tell about “meat attacks”. They say: you’ll be guarding a military supply store long in the country.
Well… an early spring…
There are about 1000 political prisoners in Russia now. It is more, than there were in late USSR times. That means, that the present putler's regimen is worse.
Kara-Murza
Yashin
Chanysheva
Scochilenko
Pivovarov
Gabyshev
Gorinov
Berkovich
Here's the full list of political prisoners:
Who will be next?
Crocus concert hall in Russia just outside Moscow was attacked by 4 gunmen last Friday, who shot at random people in order to kill indiscriminately and then set fire on the building. The following smoke killed more people, than the shooters. Then the roof collapsed eventually, killing more. The latest number I saw: 133 people dead.
Questions and inconsistencies.
- The attack has lasted for ca 19 min. The closest riot police unit is located in 8 min ride from the place. Took ‘em 1.5 hour to arrive.
- The attack is deemed as a well-prepared and professional by experts. Looks like the terrorists knew the premises and what to do with their weapon. Yet their exit method raises a lot of questions. Like why did they get into the same vehicle after the attack? And then why it took several hours to spot them and stop? Why did they go to the Ukrainian (Belarusian) border that is under heavily surveillance because of the war, while Kazakhstani border is bloody totally transparent?
(In the middle of the escape calamity: how did they manage to set afire this enormous building? They didn’t have anything with them to cause it. Was any inflammable material placed in advance? How? By whom? And why didn’t water-sprinkling system react? Was it turned off? Was there any? Eh? Hallo?)
- The video of the captured gunmen raises a lot of questions too. Is it really a hardened ISIS fighter? Prepared to die for jihad? Eh?
It is Russian secret services’ major f*ck-off, no doubt. But on the other side: what would you expect. To investigate terrorist threats and prevent them takes one breed of men. To lift female anti-war protesters by their hair – that’s another. Guess, what type works for huilo?
There’s a concern, of course, in what way huilo is going to use this horrible event. The ghouls are talking about returning execution. The political prisoners, like Kara-Murza, Yashin, Chanysheva or Berkovich can be among the first.
By the way, did you see “Finist, the Bright Falcon”? It’s what Berkovich is arrested for. Here’s the link to the piece for an inquiring mind (translation in the right corner):
Ekaterina Duntsova – the next president of RF?
“JOURNALIST AND ACTIVIST
A mother of three, 40-year-old Ekaterina Duntsova lives in Rzhev (55,000 inhabitants), the second largest city in the Tver region bordering the Moscow region.
”
The biggest news of the last months in Russia and among every one else, who is interested in Russian Federation. She is running for a president of RF. She’s against the war.
Now it’s known, that she’s been denied some procedure to continue here move. Do you watch? Do you care? Do you support? I do.
Driving doesn’t come naturally to me: 4.5 months of no-driving made me insecure and cautious, even only at the start. But as soon as my hands felt the paddle, I didn’t have to control my movements. They happened automatically. As if they were waiting all this time just for this moment: to get the grip and start paddling. It felt like liberation. Like the piece, previously missing in my life, at last fell on its place.
Saw a heron. Saw 2 female eiders with 5 or 6 tiny eiderlings and a couple of gees with their newly hatched goslings: so small, it’s difficult to count at the distance and against the sun. Saw a pair of swains mating: there will be small singlets in a couple of weeks.
Paddled and drifted with the elements and then paddled again. Saw no seal.
Overbrimmed with happiness and already longing for the next time
A few years ago – or, perhaps, already many – Leonard Cohen had a concert in Gotheburg. I’s busy with something or other and decided to go next time. But he died. Then there’s an opportunity to go and see Aznavour, when he performed in Sankt-Peterburg, but I’s busy again. He died too.
Now there’s a rumour that they will close the Russian part of Youtube. Don’t know whether it’s about everything downloaded from Russia or they just would deny access to Russian users. I take no chances this time: sitting and converting to MP3 everything by Chsherbakov. Planned to buy from his page, but now it’s war and you can’t transfer money. Feels like taking farewell.
It’s sad and surreal. I want it to end.
What to do if you want to contribute to fight against Putin's propaganda:
Every end of the year I order 5 calendars with pictures of the gone year. I have one myself and distribute the rest among people I care for. This year I found out that one of those people was a Q-anonist. Which made him redundant per se. Have a calendar free. What to do?
Link to the study:
"NPR looked at deaths per 100,000 people in roughly 3,000 counties across the U.S. from May 2021, the point at which vaccinations widely became available. People living in counties that went 60% or higher for Trump in November 2020 had 2.73 times the death rates of those that went for Biden"
Got up at 7.30 in order to leave home at 9.15 and the garage at 9.30, so that 100 km later I could catch the 11.00 ferry and then get into a kayak and paddle into the greyness of Scandinavian December looking for seals. Everything went smoothly, until it didn’t: some 20 min into the trip the car began to sound funny and shake violently. Well, it’s an old thing and I’m used to some noise and tremor, but this time it was too much even for me. Turned and stopped and called road assistance.
Which came eventually, lifted the car on its platform and transported it to the mechanical facility. (One of the rear tyres was totally busted: twisted and almost off the wheel; could end ugly, I’s told.) And taxi came too and transported me home. Event free.
When back at home at 12.30, opened a moderate box of Ferrero Rocher and consumed it with a large cup of warm milk. Will take a glass of red with the evening meal. Also large.
Totally boring.
Haven’t paddled for 3 weeks, was awaiting this day with longing and anticipation, now am stranded on the couch. Sure, there’s always something to wash, clean and tidy up. Goodbye manicure :/
This site summarized in one word - is what I call ART :D
Two bottles of water, some nuts and an apple…and I’m good to go.
The skies are grey, the rocks are grey, the water is grey, the middle of November. No wind and mild.
Alone in the whole fjord… or so it felt until that loud splash behind my back. Turned around and indeed there were signs of disturbed water. Started slowly to circle the place and it surfaced in the beginning of the second loop. Paddled in wide circles for some time, enjoying the company, then continued with the usual rout. And it followed me for some while. Wasn’t the first time a seal followed me, but this one made a splash with its back flippers, when it felt like I haven’t turned for a while to look at it. Seals…
Otherwise, the usual for the season and the place: more swans than Canada geese. One or another V-shaped formation. A lot of young herons: some fishing, some flying both solo and in larger groups. And a bird of prey, that could be a sea eagle.
Returning in the dusk, that part of the day when the sun got down, but it isn’t dark yet; when the last ones are finishing their daily activity and hurrying back to the nest; when everyone is trying to keep quiet… and there’s me paddling carefully for the last kilometre, trying not to disturb this delicate silence…
I consider every occasion as it could be the last one. It feels more special in that way.
Tulefell Blog (40)