John Brown's Notes and Essays

From: The lessons of history quotes ; below comment from your blogger The Austro-Hungarian Empire  -- no longer in existence -- arguably was, and still is, to some degree, the culturally defined heart of central Europe. image from Russia (again, arguably) is the leader in the culturally/to some politically correct defined soul ( dusha ) of Euro-Asia proclaimed by some politicians in that part of the world   -- at least for now  image from The "we're the no. 1 USA" (arguably) is the culturally defined soul/inspiration of North America/the world (?) -- for now. How long will this USA-all-the way inspiration on its corner of the world last?  -- at least for now image from Could history be any guide?  Sorry don't much about China ... Advice welcome.

By targeting Russia’s central bank with sanctions, experts said, American and European leaders have taken aim at what could be one of President Vladimir V. Putin’s greatest weaknesses: the country’s currency.   image (not from article) from By Patricia Cohen and Jeanna Smialek, The New York Times , Feb. 28, 2022 Updated 11:58 a.m. ET [original article contains phographs and and informative links; jb note: as a total non-economist, I found this article very informative -- and comprehensible -- to a layman such as yours truly] In Russian cities, anxious customers started lining up on Sunday in front of A.T.M.s, hoping to withdraw the money they had deposited in banks, fearful it would run out. The panic spread on Monday. To try to restore calm, the Bank of Russia posted a notice on its website: “The volume of bank notes ready for loading into A.T.M.s is more than sufficient. All customer funds on bank accounts are fully preserved and available for any transactions.” Even before the s...

image from , with caption: Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko shake hands during a joint news conference in Moscow, Russia, on February 18.  (Sergey Guneev/Sputnik/Reuters)

By Francis X. Rocca , The Wall Street Journal , Feb 28, 2022 at 8:05 am ET [original article contains links]; see also image (not  from  cited article), under the headline,"  'First in history' – Pope Francis to meet Russian Patriarch in Cuba"  [dated Feb 5, 2016] Pope Francis on Sunday lamented the “tragic” war in Ukraine, and had strong words for those who wage war in general, but he didn't speak of an invasion or refer to Russia by name. That makes the pope, who has made a priority of better relations with Russia, one of the few Western leaders to have refrained from explicitly condemning the attack on Ukraine. “Those who wage war forget humanity,” the pope said from a window overlooking St. Peter’s Square, after reciting the noon Angelus prayer. “They rely on the diabolic and perverse logic of weapons which is the most distant from the will of God, and they distance themselves from the common people who want peace.” Those words might as easily have described ...

Thousands of civilian fighters volunteer their service, including many from abroad, as authorities distribute rifles and others assemble Molotov cocktails and coordinate support By James Marson and Drew Hinshaw , The Wall Street Journal ,  Feb. 26, 2022 1:34 pm [original article contains additional illustrations and links]; see also In the battle for Kviv, Russian troops are facing not only Ukrainian armed forces but also thousands of civilians including a pizzeria owner and a political consultant.  Authorities say they have distributed 18,000 rifles to volunteers in the capital willing to fight. Websites and social media channels published instructions on how to make Molotov cocktails. Groups are spontaneously coordinating storage and distribution points for food, clothes and fuel. The battle is even drawing home fighters from abroad. “I am fulfilling my duty as a Ukrainian citizen, a father and a son,” said Kostyantyn Batozsky, a 41-year-old political consultant who said h...

By Ginger Adams Otis , The Wall Street Journal , [2/27/2022] image (not from article): Let's Learn Judo with Vladimir Putin Video , 2008, 1h 30m  Star Vladimir Putin   Russian President Vladimir Putin was suspended from his role as honorary president of the International Judo Federation, the sport's governing body said Sunday.   The IJF cited Russia’s invasion of Ukraine for its decision to oust Mr. Putin, a judo black belt and enthusiastic booster of the sport. “In light of the ongoing war conflict in Ukraine, the International Judo Federation announces the suspension of Mr. Vladimir Putin’s status as honorary president and Ambassador of the International Judo Federation,” the statement said. Mr. Putin, 69 years old, has credited judo with getting him off Russia’s streets as a young man and teaching him discipline. He has even suited up in the past to spar with Russia’s national team. The IJF said Friday that it had canceled the 2022 Grand Slam in Kazan, Russia, plan...

Penn image from article NEW YORK ( AP ) [Feb 24]— Filmmaker and actor Sean Penn is in Ukraine to continue work on a documentary about the ongoing Russian assault. The Office of the President wrote in a Facebook post Thursday that Penn attended press briefings, met with Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk and spoke to journalists and military personnel about the Russian invasion. “Sean Penn demonstrates the courage that many others, especially western politicians lack,” the president’s office wrote on Facebook. “The director specially came to Kiev to record all the events that are currently happening in Ukraine and to tell the world the truth about Russia’s invasion of our country.” He was also there in late November to work on the project, which is being produced by VICE Studios. Photographs at the time showed him visiting the frontlines of the Ukrainian Armed Forces near the Donetsk region. The Oscar-winner has been involved in numerous international humanitarian and anti-war effor...

February 9, 2022 | By Alberto M. Fernandez, MEMRI Daily Brief No. 360 ; see a frivolous article, Diplomacies, from Public to Pubic  [pardon the typo in the headline] Over a year into the Biden Administration, one expects that at some point in 2022, the Democrats will announce a nominee for the position of Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs. There are six "under-secretaries" at State, very senior positions, and all but one are currently staffed by officials nominated by the White House and confirmed by the Senate. Incredibly, the senior Public Diplomacy (known as "R" in State Department jargon) position has been vacant for almost four years. The last Senate-confirmed incumbent, liberal Republican Steve Goldstein, was fired by President Trump in March 2018, along with his boss, Rex Tillerson. Since then, various senior career officers or political appointees from other offices have kept the seat warm. Public Diplomacy (PD) is a term of a...

image (not from article from )   By Colby Itkowitz , The Washington Post [2/26/2022] 9:13 p.m.; see also  Former president Donald Trump again lauded Russian President Vladimir Putin as “smart,” telling a crowd of his most ardent supporters that the problem is not with Putin, but that U.S. leaders “are dumb.” Most of Trump’s comments about the Russian invasion of Ukraine during his speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Orlando on Saturday were focused on himself and his grievances; he and Putin understood each other, Trump said, so this wouldn’t be happening if he were still president. He mildly criticized Russia’s invasion of Ukraine without denigrating Putin directly, saying it’s “appalling and it’s an outrage and an atrocity that should never have been allowed to occur.” It would never have happened “if our election was not rigged,” he said — a reference to Trump’s false assertion that a 2020 election win was stolen from him. The former presi...

By  Chris Isidore , CNN Business Updated 4:04 PM ET, Sat February 26, 2022  Biden aims to lower gas prices with release of oil reserves Why the US has a huge stash of emergency oil BP CEO on the API: We don't agree on everything How a global energy crisis could affect the US The future of flight could run on renewables The complex world of carbon offsets explained IEA: We need to accelerate clean energy efforts Energy costs rise amid global crunch Russia comes under barrage of sanctions. Here's what's not on the list US stocks rebound after Biden announces sanctions How the situation with Ukraine could impact the gas in our tanks Europe could face a crisis if Russia stops gas flow to Europe Drivers are crossing state lines to get cheaper gas amid price hikes Rising oil prices put gas prices in the danger zone $100 oil? Citigroup doesn't think so Germany plans to phase out nuclear energy as Britain expands it Biden aims to lower gas prices with release of oil reserves Wh...