CNN is reporting that the Russians have taken Chernobyl.
So the US is a major supplier of LNG. Can the US increase production sufficiently to supply Europe should the Russian supply be cut off?
I am pretty sure there have been a lot of discussions about this in the past few months between the EU, US and other major LNG suppliers.
We might be able to but LNG has its own issues. Keep in mind a very large amount of it comes from Fracking.
In the short term, I don’t think so. I’d say definitively ‘no’, but I’m not that well versed on the LGN trade, so not sure what contracts could or would be shifted to redirect gas to Europe, or the logistics aspects that would have to be changed or redirected. My WAG is that it’s not something we could do quickly or easily, though eventually we probably could. There are other medium or long term solutions to this in North Africa, IIRC, which would probably be better. Again, would take quite a bit of time though.
Gamma World style mutant soldiers is the long game.
With regards to what Ukraine can do? Against artillery which Russian army is a huge fan of? Nothing. What stops the US from annihilating opposition is TV cameras and a fear of public opinion. I’m not sure Russia has the same ideological constraints.
And the problem with that is the volatility of energy pricing and of the geopolitical situation generally. Right now, oil is up over $90 and other forms of energy are similarly up there, but a mere few years ago oil was in the $20s and energy producers were going bankrupt right and left. Once bitten twice shy, and the energy producers are very wary of investing a lot of money to up production when the price might plummet again and leave them more indebted and hung out to dry.
US oil companies are in no rush to solve Biden’s gas price problem - CNN
Of course, if there was some way to ensure that Russian supply was permanently removed from the market, that would be a different situation. But between uncertainty over how Russia might evade sanctions, and uncertainty over what type of deals might eventually ease them, it’s a very speculative situation.
Yeah, I see no reason why oil companies should do anything but lay back and put their feet up and enjoy the high demand/crunch/high oil prices. Wiggle their toes while it goes past $110/barrel.
Unless they calculated that by a slight increase in production - slight, but no more - they could maximize profit.
Great. Goodbye Russian-made electric guitar amp tubes. Thanks Putin!
… those are way better to begin with 
…
That was the take on NPR at midday.
My understanding is that Anonymous was a group of youngish people who either went to jail for hacking or grew out of it sometime over a decade ago. I wouldn’t expect any response on Ukraine now since it’s no longer a group. I’m unaware of any new version of it worth calling the real deal.
It sounds like one of them made a BLM post back in 2020 - so they certainly could do similar now - but, if they’re still hacking, I expect that they’re doing it under the employ of a government agency.
Well… not exactly. Sergei and Yulia Skripal were killed by a nerve toxin, more specifically a novichok nerve agent. applied to the door of their home. Alexander Litvinenko was polonium in the tea.
It’s not. They’re just the most sloppy about using it and thus the most well-known.
So why aren’t they being attacked right now?
Are you sure they’re not?
How do you know they’re not?
Russians, with their state-controlled media, are pretty good at hiding when bad things happen. Like the Chinese or North Koreans. So, we don’t actually know this, though my WAG is they aren’t being attacked via cyber methods currently because countries with good counter cyber are waiting to see if Putin’s threats translate into actual attacks. I would guess that Russia, like China, can be hurt just as badly as the US and western countries have been. The difference is that those countries do a lot more attacking, especially of our companies, than we do against them. That doesn’t mean, however, that they can’t be attacked.
To add: the absolute worst hacks are the one that no one notices.
For almost minute-by-minute coverage, I follow this Twitter list, curated by Josh Marshall from Talking Points Memo, which combines tweets from multiple journalists and experts based in or around Ukraine:
https://twitter.com/i/lists/1494877848087187461
From following it, the fighting appears relatively fierce and even back and forth; at one point (according to these Twitter sources) an airfield near Kiev was taken by Russian paratroopers, and then shortly after retaken by Ukrainian forces, who drove the Russians into the woods.
Anonymous is now claiming strikes against Russian targets. Go get them you basement-dwelling Klingon-speakers!
" #Anonymous is currently involved in operations against the Russian Federation. Our operations are targeting the Russian government. There is an inevitability that the private sector will most likely be affected too. While this account cannot claim to speak for the whole (con)"
It is interesting how often the efficacy of Javelin antitank missiles has been mentioned in various feeds, which suggest the Ukrainians are at least taking some Russian vehicles and troops down with them.
That said, it’s being reported Russia has achieved air supremacy, and their numbers are overwhelming. Ukraine is ideal ground for fast maneuver warfare. Russian victory is inevitable; the only question is whether they plan to consume the entire country or just part of it.
The iron curtain descends again.