Centrist Centralizing in Central Ohio

Back to the Future - Thread #22 The More things Change... Original Research! Old Newspapers! Internet Corners! Masks during the #SpanishFlu the #Grippe of 1918-1920. Post your own in the comments! (Try not to duplicate).

Is Bulgaria the next Hungary? For one second at his closing rally, Rumen Radev put a photo of himself shaking Putin's hand on the screen behind him. Three days later, he won. Kremlin propaganda is celebrating. [1/2]

Dutch intelligence has said Russia has lost over 1.2 million solders in Ukraine, with Ukraine losing over 500,000.

For the first time since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the Russian elite appears to be on the brink of an internal schism. On the one hand, the Kremlin’s continued use of the war to justify new rounds of repression makes it seem as if it’s business as usual. On the other hand, unhappiness over the recent push for total control of the internet is increasingly visible, with even loyalists starting to publicly criticize the Kremlin and predict revolution. While each individual act of criticism may seem irrelevant, together they are significant. To use a medical analogy: minor and difficult-to-explain symptoms can be a passing inconvenience—or a sign of life-threatening illness. carnegieendowment.org/russia-eurasia…

You know, the conquest and enslavement of Ukraine -- with its natural and human resources, its geographic position in Europe, its brains, its access to the sea, and its extraordinarily rich breadbasket -- was in the 18th century one of the key factors that enabled tsarist Moscow to proclaim itself the Russian Empire. Through control over Ukraine, it achieved unprecedented power and remained, in its various forms, a scourge of Europe right up to very 1991. Today, looking at these photographs (and this is the Russian oil port of Tuapse burning again tonight) I find myself understanding clearly that the Russian Empire in many ways began with Ukraine, and it is Ukraine that will bury it. And that will be the ultimate act of historical justice for all the centuries of enslavement, Holodomors, savage bloodshed, and isolation from the civilized world.

Russia has reindustrialized and retrofitted its society for perpetual war. They are teaching children to hate, to die for the motherland, and also how to kill with modern weapons. Only total defeat will destroy this virus, and it begins with victory for Ukraine.

European countries agree to unblock 90 billion in aid for Ukraine. Great news.

Donald says we would have won the Vietnam War if he'd been president. Maybe he should have just served.

The national debt crossed $39 trillion for the first time last month. That's another trillion added in five months. Interest alone is running $88 billion a month. Cut six cents out of every projected dollar for five years and the budget balances. It isn't radical. It's basic math.

We are conducting a detailed analysis of Russia’s updated war plans. The Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine has a clear understanding of what exactly the enemy is planning and which priorities have been set for the Russian army by Russia’s political leadership. We will counteract. Unfortunately, the reduction in sanctions and political pressure from our partners on the aggressor has led to a partial increase in Russia’s military ambitions. Yet our long-range sanctions, the growing use of drones on the front line, and the active actions of our units will provide the necessary responses to the occupier. Today, I approved the list of our next operations. The Commander-in-Chief and the Chief of the General Staff reported on the most effective units at the front – I thank them for every result. We also identified the priority supply needs on the frontline, which must be addressed immediately. I thank every soldier, sergeant, and officer for defending our state and our people. Glory to Ukraine!

A small fraction of online actors now exerts outsized influence over what the public sees, believes, and argues about. In a new short review paper, we trace how social media influencers can turn fringe claims into viral narratives—often by exploiting a feedback loop between influencers, algorithms, and crowds. As such, the modern information environment enables a tyranny of the minority: extreme and coordinated voices dominate attention, distort perceived social norms, and create a “funhouse mirror” version of public opinion that makes fringe positions look common and conflict look inevitable. We synthesize emerging evidence that a tiny number of highly active users drives a disproportionate share of misinformation and toxicity, and explain how platform incentives reward moralized, identity-salient, and emotionally charged content. We conclude by outlining pragmatic responses—individual, institutional, and policy-level—and by highlighting how generative AI could either accelerate bespoke realities or help rebuild shared understanding, depending on how these systems are designed and governed. osf.io/preprints/psya… We (@PillaiRaunak & @steverathje2) reviewed @noUpside's fantastic book "INVISIBLE RULERS" and connected it to the research we have been doing on this topic for the past decade.

Russia is preparing for mass mobilizations and is therefore restricting social networks to prevent unrest, according to Zelenskyy. That's right. Russia has massively tightened its internet and communications control in recent months. And Europe continues to sleep. A fact.

As Orbán's obstruction and spying on behalf of Moscow made clear, the EU's dependence on unanimity has become a suicide pact.

If the free world remains united, we will be just fine handling threats from China, Russia, and the rest of the autocratic world. If we continue down our current path of division, we have no chance.

Ukraine have successfully hit overnight Russias Tuapse oil refinery which produces alone 8 percent of the countries oil. Massive hit…

Ukraine continues to apply sanctions on Russian energy while Trump keeps lifting them.

Message to Putin: if you kill Ukrainian children, your oil refineries blow up. Pretty simple

Kyiv burns as Ukraine no longer has any Patriot interceptor missiles - the only defense against Russian Iskander ballistic missiles. Vice President Vance recently bragged of his "proudest" achievement - cutting off military support for Ukraine.

Hardcore. Magyar is a bad ass.

okay I guess I have to talk about Péter Magyar here. Let me just start with saying, in a very unladylike way, that you guys seem to have zero clue what happened in Hungary in the last two years, you completely miss the point, and you're a disappointing bunch. Let's go.

Massive victory! Too big to try to falsify or deny.