Tuesday, March 1st. National Pancake Day.
The Florida teenager who was tracking Elon Musk‘s private jet is now tracking the movements of Russian oligarchs .
For years Russia has been testing limits. Political assassinations in the UK and Washington DC. Proxy cyber attacks and social media propaganda campaigns. (Not to mention the odd shooting down of civilian airliners.) World leaders in the west knew that Putin was trying to manipulate and undermine their political systems and economies but there was plausible deniability and a real risk in confronting him in a serious way. The attack on Ukraine has unleashed all that pent up anti-Russian sentiment in Europe and the west, giving common cause against a long-time enemy. It’s remarkable how much things have changed in just a couple of years.
Great behind the scenes look at a modern-day war footing mobilization of cyber assets.
Economists may have underestimated the impact that the war in Ukraine will have on the global economy. Within Russia, as the sanctions take their toll, the ruble may go the way of the bolivar. In the short term, the outcome doesn’t look good for Russia. But Putin could well play the long game, which would not be good for Russia, Ukraine, or the rest of the world.
And a bizarre tweet by Clay Higgins has spurred a competition for who could provide the best retort. I think we have a winner.