For once I come across an essay by the ever-erudite Edward Curtin before a week or so has gone by since its posting. This one is worth a reading or two — soon. It will be picked up by the usual blogs and then some. As is often the case with his efforts, “Why Is Everything Broken?” is a syllabus for a course its readers won’t begin to have the time to take (besides, it doesn’t exist), but they may track down one or two of the works he mentions. Occasionally it pays to get sick. — MCM

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Why Is Everything Broken?

By Edward Curtin

Begin then with a fracture, a cesura, a rent; opening a crack in this fallen world, a shaft of light. — Norman O. Brown, Love’s Body

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Being sick for the past few weeks has had its advantages.  It has forced me to take a break from writing since I could not concentrate enough to do so.  It has gifted me with a deeper sympathy for the vast numbers of the seriously ill around the world, those suffering souls without succor except for desperate prayers for relief.  And it has allowed thoughts to think me as I relinquished all efforts at control for a few miserable weeks of “doing nothing” except napping, reading short paragraphs in books, watching some sports and a documentary, and being receptive to the light coming through the cracks in my consciousness.

I suppose you could say that my temporary illness forced me, as José Ortega Y Gasset described it, virtually and provisionally to withdraw myself from the world and take a stand inside myself – “or, to use a magnificent word which exists only in Spanish, that man can ensimismarse (‘be inside himself’).”

But as I learned, being “inside myself” doesn’t mean the outside world doesn’t come visiting, both in its present and past manifestations.  When you are sick, you feel most vulnerable; this sense of frailty breaks you open to strange and familiar thoughts, feelings, dreams and memories that you must catch on the fly, pin with words if you are quick enough.  I’ve pinned some over these weeks as they came to me through the cracks.

“Broken flesh, broken mind, broken speech,” wrote Norman Brown when he argued for aphoristic truth as opposed to methods or systematic form.  These days the feeling that everything is broken is the norm, that madness reigns, that truth is being strangled and all we have are lies and more lies. Carefully constructed arguments fall on deaf ears as dissociation of the personality, post-modern attention-disorder, gender confusion, and corporate/intelligence mass media propaganda techniques are used daily to sow confusion.  In simple colloquial language, people are badly fucked up.

Much of the world is suffering from megrims.  Bob Dylan puts it simply:

Broken lines, broken strings / Broken threads, broken springs / Broken idols, broken heads / People sleeping in broken beds / Ain’t no use jiving / Ain’t no use joking / Everything is broken.

Who can disagree?  Everyone’s mind seems to be at the end of its tether.

Why?  There are obvious answers, and while so many are true, they are insufficient, for they usually scratch the surface of a worldwide crisis that has been developing for at least a century and a half.  That crisis is spiritual.  Many can feel it rumbling beneath the surface of world events. It’s a rumbling in the bowels. It’s unspoken. It’s something very dark, sinister, and satanic. It seems to be a form of systemic evil almost with a will of its own that is sweeping the world.

For many decades I have studied, written, and taught in an effort to grasp the essence of what has been happening in our world.  My tools . . . READ MORE . . . in a more legible format

To begin, on day 100 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, links to stories from the Associated Press, Reuters and National Public Radio; links to their other stories are found by clicking on their names below. Then, a link to a report by Consortium News’s editor that Newsguard has accused CN of publishing false information. Linked next, also via Consortium News, Caitlin Johnstone’s take on an establishment view of a cosmetic change in Ukraine (with helpful links). — MCM

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Russia may be in Ukraine to stay after 100 days of war. By The Associated Press. When Vladimir Putin sent troops into Ukraine in late February, the Russian president vowed his forces would not occupy the neighboring country. But as the invasion reached its 100th day today, Russia seemed increasingly unlikely to relinquish the territory it has taken in the war. The ruble is now an official currency in the southern Kherson region, alongside the Ukrainian hryvnia. Residents there and in Russia-controlled parts of the Zaporizhzhia region are getting offered Russian passports. READ MORE . . .

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Ukrainians hold out as Russia storms eastern city on war’s 100th day, by Natalia Zinets and Pavel Polityuk | Reuters * Too early to write off Sievierodonetsk, governor says * Russia warns U.S. on arming Ukraine * U.N. aid chief is in Moscow for grain talks | KYIV — Russian forces advanced deep into the ruined eastern factory city of Sievierodonetsk, but Ukrainian troops were still holding out on Friday as Russia’s assault on its neighbour entered its 100th day. A war that Western countries believe Russia planned to win within hours has ground on for more than three months, with Moscow having been driven back from the capital Kyiv but launching a huge new assault in the east. The past weeks have seen . . . READ MORE . . .

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Has military support for Ukraine from the U.S. and NATO peaked? Rachel Martin of National Public Radio speaks with defense policy expert Andrew Exum about whether the U.S. and its allies will continue to endure the economic cost of supporting Ukraine against Russian aggression. Click HERE to listen and, tomorrow, read.

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U.S. Government-Affiliated NewsGuard Targets Consortium News, by Joe Lauria | Consortium News Consortium News is being “reviewed” by NewsGuard, a U.S. government-linked organization that is trying to enforce a narrative on Ukraine while seeking to discredit dissenting views. The organization has accused Consortium News . . . of publishing “false content” on Ukraine. It calls “false” essential facts about Ukraine that have been suppressed in mainstream media: 1) that there was a U.S.-backed coup in 2014 and 2) that neo-Nazism is a significant force in Ukraine. Reporting crucial information left out of corporate media is Consortium News‘ essential mission. But NewsGuard considers these facts to be “myths” and is . . . READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine ‘Solves’ Nazi Problem With New Logo, by Caitlin Johnstone | caitlinjohnstone.com / Consortium News Problem solved. British empire rag The Times has an article out titled “Azov Battalion drops neo-Nazi symbol exploited by Russian propagandists,” which has got to be the most hilarious headline of 2022 so far (and I’m including The Onion and other intentionally funny headlines in the running). “The Azov Battalion has removed a neo-Nazi symbol from its insignia that has helped perpetuate . . . READ MORE . . .

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TO BE CONTINUED

First, links to reports from National Public Radio, the Associated Press, and Reuters; click on their names below for more of their stories. Then, via both Consortium News and Popular Resistance, a link to commentary on contrasting views of the global food insecurity worsened by the war in Ukraine. Next, via Global Research, a second account of the firing of a Ukrainian official for her influential but dubious reports of Russian troops’ human rights violations. — MCM

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Volodymyr vs. Vladimir: How rival statues explain the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Reported by Greg Myre and Charles Maynes | National Public Radio. One of Ukraine’s most legendary figures is Volodymyr the Great. He ruled Kyiv from the year 980 to 1015, launching major building projects, pulling together divided tribes and introducing Christianity. Today, he’s honored with a soaring statue in Kyiv overlooking the Dnipro River that bisects the city. Yet Russia also claims him as central to its political and religious history. They know him by the Russian version of his name — Vladimir the Great. Six years ago . . . Click HERE to listen and read.

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Soaring energy prices multiply the challenges for Ukraine’s allies in Europe. NPR’s Rachel Martin talks to Ben Cahill, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, about Europe’s push to end its reliance on Russian fossil fuels. Click HERE to listen and, tomorrow, read.

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UK pledges missiles to Ukraine; new U.S. ambassador in Kyiv, by John Leicester and Elena Becatoros | The Associated Press KYIV — Britain pledged today to send sophisticated medium-range rocket systems to Ukraine, joining the United States and Germany in equipping the embattled nation with advanced weapons for shooting down aircraft and knocking out artillery. . . . Kyiv also is set to get a diplomatic boost with the formal installation of a new U.S. ambassador to Ukraine. U.S. Ambassador Bridget Brink was set to hand her credentials to Zelenskyy today. READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine seeks UN-backed mission to export grain shipments through Black Sea. From Reuters. KYIV — Ukraine is working with international partners to create a United Nations-backed mission to restore Black Sea shipping routes and export Ukrainian farm produce, foreign ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko said today. Russia has captured some of Ukraine’s biggest seaports and its navy . . . READ MORE . . .

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G7 downplays U.S. sanctions’ role in food shortage, by John Ross | Consortium News / Educate! “There is really no true solution to the problem of global food security without bringing back the agriculture production of Ukraine and the food and fertilizer production of Russia and Belarus into world markets despite the war.” These blunt words by U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres accurately describe the present global food crisis. As the U.S. and the G7 (comprising Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States) insist that cutting off food exports from Ukraine poses the biggest threat to world food security, rather than admitting the far more powerful negative effect of Western sanctions against Russia, their propaganda does immense damage to the world’s understanding and capability of avoiding a looming . . . READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine Fires Own Human Rights Chief for Perpetuating Russian Troop ‘Systematic Rape’ Stories, by Zero Hedge | Global Research For over the past two months, an avalanche of stories have hit Western mainstream press which purported to document instances of mass rape carried out by Russian troops against Ukrainian civilians. One particular story in Time took off, driving outrage and condemnation by Western officials and receiving repeat coverage on CNN and other major US networks. It alleged “a systemic, coordinated campaign of sexual violence” — relying chiefly . . . READ MORE . . .

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TO BE CONTINUED

The article linked below may contain nothing that is not in Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s comprehensive 2021 book The Real Anthony Fauci: Bill Gates, Big Pharma, and the Global War on Democracy and Public Health, but among its virtues is that it is brief. — MCM

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Sen. Roger Marshall: COVID Lab Theory Suppression Revealed by Fauci Emails, by Peter Malbin | Newsmax Emails between Dr. Anthony Fauci and other scientists reveal that there was an effort to suppress the theory that the coronavirus was leaked from a laboratory in Wuhan, China, said Sen. Roger Marshall. Scientists sent emails at the beginning of the pandemic to Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health. These . . . READ MORE . . .

FIrst, links to articles from the Associated Press, Reuters, National Public Radio, and the New York Post; click on organizations’ names below for more of their stories. Then, a link to Lionel thinking out loud again and promoting his next appearance; he begins with a long quote on propaganda by Edward Bernays. Next, a link to text and video of George Soros address at the World Economic Forum. Finally, via Consortium News, a link to a possible change in how Ukraine’s government feeds the news media. — MCM

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Biden says U.S. sending medium-range rocket systems to Ukraine, by Lolita C. Baldor | The Associated Press WASHINGTON — The Biden administration says it will send Ukraine a small number of high-tech, medium-range rocket systems, a critical weapon that Ukrainian leaders have been begging for as they struggle to stall Russian progress in the Donbas region. The rocket systems are part of a new $700 million tranche of security assistance for Ukraine from the U.S. that will include helicopters, Javelin anti-tank weapon systems, tactical vehicles, spare parts and more, two senior administration officials said Tuesday. The officials spoke on the condition of anonymity to preview the weapons package that will be formally unveiled today. The U.S. decision to . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russian forces advance in factory city, U.S. to send precision rockets to Ukraine, by Pavel Polityuk and Max Hunder | Reuters * Advanced U.S. rockets will not be fired into Russia – official * Russia conducts nuclear drills * Russian forces tighten grip on city of Sievierodonetsk * Russia cuts more gas to Europe after EU agrees oil ban | KYIV — Russian troops today pressed their assault on a factory city targeted in their push to grab a swathe of eastern Ukraine, while the United States said it would supply advanced rockets to Kyiv to help it force Moscow to negotiate an end to the war. Ukraine’s General Staff said Russian forces, now 98 days into their invasion, were pounding infrastructure in eastern and southern regions including the symbolically important industrial city of Sievierodonetsk, the main focus of Moscow’s offensive in recent days . . . READ MORE . . .

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The U.S. is sending long-range rockets to Ukraine. Reported by A Martínez and Tom Bowman | National Public Radio President Biden said in a guest essay in The New York Times that he’s decided to provide Ukraine with more advanced rockets that will enable it to more precisely strike targets on the battlefield. Click HERE to listen and, tomorrow, read.

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Biden reverses course, says US will send rockets to Ukraine, by Allie Griffin | New York Post President Biden announced in an op-ed today that his administration will send advanced missile systems to Ukraine — reversing course from a day earlier when he said the US would not deliver the rockets to the war-torn country.“We have moved quickly to send Ukraine a significant . . . READ MORE . . .

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Chaos Guns War Death Confusion in Synchrony, by Lionel. Here’s a statistic. How much did the Russians and Soviets suffer during World War II? 27M Soviets lost their lives, with as many as 11.4M military deaths joined by up to 10M civilian deaths due to military activity and an additional 8-9M deaths due to famine and disease. . . . Which of your children would you sacrifice for NATO expansion? . . . Would you advise any young person today to volunteer for the United States military in any capacity that could result in combat or war? READ MORE . . .

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Soros ‘on Russia, China, and the Fight for Our Lives.’ Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos last week, George Soros discussed a wide range of topics, including why he believes Russia’s invasion of Ukraine “. . . may have been the beginning of the Third World War and our civilization may not survive it.” Click HERE for the transcript and a video of the speech.

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Official Behind Media Reports of Russian Atrocities Fired by Ukrainian Parliament, by Caitlin Johnstone | caitlinjohnstone.com / Consortium News A Ukrainian government official frequently cited as a source by western news media for her allegations of atrocities committed by Russian troops has been fired by the Ukrainian parliament, in part because of the unevidenced nature of . . . READ MORE . . .

TO BE CONTINUED

To begin, via The Greanville Post, links to three commentaries from the other day. NOTE: an essay by Edward Curtin seen HERE in this blog eight days ago, was picked up by that blog; it can be found at the TGP website by scrolling down at the right hand side of the screen. ALSO, a late posting at this website yesterday, HERE, a link to Scott Ritter’s latest essay on the war. Then, links to reports from the Associated Press, Reuters, National Public Radio and  the Daily Mail, a UK newspaper; click on these organizations’ names below for some of their other offerings. — MCM

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Will NATO Aggression Force Russia to Extend the Special Operation Beyond the Ukraine? by Batiushka for the Saker Blog | The Greanville Post The three aims of the Russian Federation’s Special Military Operation in the Ukraine were clearly announced by President Putin at the outset on 24 February. They were very specific, very limited and deliberately excluded the occupation of the whole of the Ukraine, let alone attacks on any territories outside it. Moreover, any suggestion of the use of nuclear weapons was quite absent – that was only ever raised by the hysterical irresponsibility and propaganda of Western politicians and journalists. Let us recall that the three aims were, firstly, the liberation of the Russian Donbass from the Nazis, and, secondly and thirdly, . . . READ MORE . . .

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As Things Continue to Deteriorate in Ukraine, Everyone Is Positioning Themselves For the Incoming Ukrainian Disintegration, spoken by Gonzolo Lira, with anonymous commentary | TGP So, everyone is realizing that the war is lost. That the Russians are going to win. And that it’s an inevitability at this point. . . . We see it from different perspectives — it’s really interesting. At Davis, for instance, Henry Kissinger, who . . . .  Click HERE for the video; a transcript is not provided.

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Grains of deceit (updated with visual of maritime corridor set up by the Russian Navy), by Nat South | TGP There are several evolving issues that are being watched regarding plans and developments made by the West to open Ukrainian Black Sea commercial ports. A medley of articles has recently popped up on grain shipments from Russia and the grain shortage caused by the conflict. As always, these articles from the corporate Western MSM are part of a propaganda effort to portray Russia in the worst light possible, articles with little or no evidence, just allegations, skewed data or blatantly omitting . . . READ MORE . . .

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In big bid to punish Moscow, EU bans most Russia oil imports, by Lorne Cook and Samuel Petrequin | The Associated Press BRUSSELS — In the most significant effort yet to punish Russia for its war in Ukraine, the European Union agreed to ban the overwhelming majority of Russian oil imports after tense negotiations that tested how far the bloc is willing to go to ostracize Moscow. From the moment Russia invaded on Feb. 24, the West has sought to make Moscow pay economically for its war. But targeting the lucrative energy sector was . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russia widens Europe gas cuts as Gazprom halts Dutch trader’s supply, by Toby Sterling, Anthony Deutsch and Philip Blenkinsop | Reuters * Gazprom says it cuts off supply to GasTerra * Russians cite refusal to pay in roubles * Danish also on watch for possible cut * Move a day after EU agrees to slash Russian oil imports * European gas prices rise 5% | — Russia widened its gas cuts to Europe today with Gazprom (GAZP.MM) turning off supply to top Dutch trader GasTerra escalating the economic battle between Moscow and Brussels and pushing up European gas prices. The move comes a day after Denmark flagged a potential end to its Russian gas supply and the European Union’s toughest measure yet against Russia for its invasion . . . READ MORE . . .

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European Union leaders agree to ban 90% of Russian oil by the end of 2022. Reported by Leila Fadel and Rob Schmitz | National Public Radio The European Union embargo covers only Russian oil brought in by sea — allowing a temporary exemption for imports delivered by pipeline. Click HERE to listen and, tomorrow, read.

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Boris Yeltsin’s son-in-law QUITS as advisor to Putin amid growing speculation the Russian President is losing his grip on power with army ‘on verge of collapse’ after Ukraine disaster, by Jack Newman | The Daily Mail  * Valentin Yumashev has served as an aide since the presidency of Boris Yeltsin * He ran the presidential administration in 1997 when Putin was promoted * He has now departed, months after his daughter protested the Ukraine invasion | Boris Yeltsin’s son-in-law has quit his role as a Kremlin adviser amid speculation [President] Vladimir Putin is losing his grip on power due to his health. Valentin Yumashev, who is married to the former president’s daughter Tatyana, has served as an unpaid aide who was one of the last links inside the administration to Yeltsin’s rule. Under Yeltsin, who was Russian president from 1991 to 1999, Yumashev served as a Kremlin adviser and later as Kremlin chief of staff. READ MORE . . .

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To BE CONTINUED

The essay beginning with the ten paragraphs below appears in its entirety on the Consortium News website, HERE, where it is probably more  legible. — MCM

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Phase Three in Ukraine

By Scott Ridder | Consortium News

Russia’s “Special Military Operation”, which began on Feb. 24, is entering its fourth month. Despite stiffer than expected Ukrainian resistance (bolstered by billions of dollars of western military assistance and accurate, real-time battlefield intelligence by the U.S. and other NATO members) Russia is winning the war on the ground, and in a big way

After more than ninety days of incessant Ukrainian propaganda, echoed mindlessly by a complicit western mainstream media that extolls the battlefield successes of the Ukrainian armed forces and the alleged incompetence of the Russian military, the Russians are on the cusp of achieving the stated goal of its operation, namely the liberation of the newly independent Donbass Republics of Lugansk and Donetsk, which Russia recognized two days before its invasion.

The Russian victory in Donbass comes after weeks of intensive combat that saw the Russian military shift gears away from what has become known as Phase One. That was the month-long opening act which, according to Russian President Vladimir Putin in his Feb. 24 address, was tasked with taking “actions throughout the territory of Ukraine with the implementation of measures for its demilitarization and denazification.”

Putin said the purpose was to restore “the DPR [Donetsk People’s Republic] and the LPR [Lugansk People’s Republic] within the administrative borders of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions, which is enshrined in the constitutions of the republics.”

On March 25, the head of the Main Operational Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, Colonel General Sergei Rudskoy, declared that “the main objectives of the first phase of the operation have been achieved. The combat capabilities of Ukraine’s Armed Forces have been significantly reduced, which allows us, once again, to concentrate our main efforts on achieving the main goal – the liberation of Donbass.”

According to Rudskoy, Phase One’s objectives were to cause:

“Such damage to military infrastructure, equipment, personnel of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the results of which allow not only to shackle their forces and do not give them the opportunity to strengthen their grouping in the Donbass, but also will not allow them to do so until the Russian army completely liberates the territories of the DPR and LPR. All 24 formations of the Land Forces that existed before the start of the operation suffered significant losses. Ukraine has no organized reserves left.”

Russia has completed Phase One despite the efforts of the U.S., NATO, and the E.U. to supply Ukraine with a significant amount of lethal military assistance, primarily in the form of light anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons. “We consider it a vast mistake,” Rudskoy concluded, “for Western countries to supply weapons to Kiev. This delays the conflict, increases the number of victims and will not be able to influence the outcome of the operation.”

‘Extremely Bad’

The history of the conflict so far has proven Rudskoy correct — no amount of western military aid has been able to prevent Russia from achieving its military objective of liberating the entire territories of both Lugansk and Donetsk.

As Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba admitted at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, “I don’t want anyone to get the feeling that the war is more or less OK. The situation in Donbass is extremely bad.”

Gone are the bold pronouncements . . . READ MORE . . .

The article blow, which appeared in today’s Springfield (MA) Republican, contains a lot of good general information. But notice how neither the question nor the physician’s answer addresses the matter of whether the rapidly-approved pharmaceuticals promoted as protecting people from coronavirus should be injected into children, or whether they are vaccines at all. Among the article’s broader implications may be that online social media posts in general are suspect and need fact checking while establishment organizations, as repositories of truth, don’t need fact checking. Not all people opposed to mass injections for coronavirus are “anti-vaxxers.” (Perhaps some of these things have been tackled in previous articles from the American Academy of Pediatrics.) — MCM

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Do children need all these vaccines?

By Dr. Whitney Casares | Am. Academy of Pediatrics

Q. I read a lot online about vaccines. Do kids really need so many vaccines?

A: Childhood vaccination has been one of modern medicine’s biggest success stories. In fact, vaccines for children have been so successful that we no longer see many of the diseases that used to cause severe illnesses and lasting disabilities.

Thanks to vaccines, most children will never get whooping cough, tetanus, polio or meningitis—so we rarely see how serious these diseases can be. As a result, parents may wonder if their child needs all of the vaccinations on the recommended immunization schedule. The schedule is approved by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and five other health care organizations. It is based on a review of the most recent scientific data for each vaccine. To be on the recommended schedule, the vaccines must be licensed by the Food and Drug Administration.

Perhaps you’ve wondered about vaccines and done Google searches. These days, it’s easy to search online and find answers that support a belief about the risks of vaccines. But the bulk of these claims are inaccurate and unproven. A lot of this information is not just scary, it has caused parents to second-guess the facts they hear from their pediatrician and other trusted sources. And it scares people away from a vaccine that could save their child’s life.

You may be surprised to know that much of the “anti-vaccine” content on social media platforms about kids and vaccines originates from a tiny group of just 12 people. In a 2021 analysis, the Center for Countering Digital Hate found that this tiny group of influencers—it nicknamed the “disinformation dozen”—was the original source of about two-thirds of the anti-vaccine posts and messages. These 12 individuals wanted to draw more traffic to their own websites.

Just like other rumors that go viral on social media platforms, these anti-vaccine posts . . . READ MORE . . .

First, links to summaries of the war from the Associated Press, Reuters, Newsweek, and National Public Radio; click on the news organizations’ names for links to some of their other stories. Then, via Global Research, links to two articles relating a continued war to global food availability and possibly additional naval warfare. — MCM

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Russian troops entering Sievierodonetsk in eastern Ukraine, by Yuras Karmnau and Elena Becatoros | The Associated Press KRAMATORSK, Ukraine — The Russian-battered eastern Ukrainian city of Sievierodonetsk appeared to be on the brink of becoming another Mariupol today as the mayor told The Associated Press that Russian troops have entered, power and communications have been cut and “the city has been completely ruined.” Moscow seeks to capture all of Ukraine’s industrial Donbas region, and Sievierodonetsk is key to that. Fierce street fighting is underway in the city as . . . READ MORE . . .

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Heavy fighting as Russian troops enter outskirts of Sievierodonetsk, by Max Hunder and Pavel Polityuk | Reuters KYIV — Russian troops have entered the outskirts of the Ukrainian city of Sievierodonetsk, the regional governor said today, describing “very fierce” fighting in the ruins of a city that has become the focus of Moscow’s offensive. Russia has concentrated its firepower on the last major population centre still held by Ukrainian forces in the eastern Luhansk province, in a push to achieve one of President Vladimir Putin’s stated objectives after three months of war. Incessant shelling has left Ukrainian forces defending ruins in Sievierodonetsk, but . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russia Warns Long-Range U.S. Missiles at Ukraine Border ‘Intolerable,‘ by Xander Landen | Newsweek Reacting to news reports that the U.S. is planning to send long-range rocket systems to Ukraine, a top Russian diplomat on Saturday called for an “end to the senseless and extremely risky pumping of weapons into the country.” On Friday, news outlets reported that the Biden administration is expected to send multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS) to the Eastern European nation. Ukrainian officials have requested the weapons to attack Russians at longer ranges and threaten Russian logistics hubs and . . . READ MORE . . .

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A former president of Estonia predicted Russia would invade Ukraine. Reported by Jenna McLaughlin | National Public Radio Former Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves, who shepherded Estonia into the EU and NATO in the early 2000s, hopes the world is finally waking up to the dangers Russia poses. Click HERE to listen and, tomorrow, read.

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A missing Ukrainian woman’s family wants to know if she was forcibly taken to Russia. NPR spoke to five Ukrainian civilians who were detained, deported and subject to what human rights advocates call enforced disappearance. Click HERE to listen and, tomorrow, read.

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Because of the War in Ukraine, We Are Heading for a Global Food Catastrophe, by Marc Vandepitte | Global Research The invasion of Ukraine is a horror and has already cost thousands of lives. But this conflict may also destroy millions of lives far from the battlefield. The war is particularly detrimental to the global food system, which has already been weakened by Covid-19, by climate change and by high energy prices. If this war continues, we will be heading for a real food catastrophe. On May 18, António Guterres, the UN Secretary General, sounded . . . READ MORE . . .

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Retired U.S. General Calls for ‘Coalition of the Willing’ for Naval Conflict with Russia, by Andre Damon | WSWS / Global Research The governments of the United States, the United Kingdom and other NATO members are preparing a major new stage of the US-NATO war against Russia by using their warships to break the Russian blockade of Ukrainian ports, creating the conditions for a direct shooting war between NATO and Russian naval forces. . . . Retired four-star General Jack Keane, chairman of the Institute for the Study of War and chairman of AM General, the maker of the Humvee military vehicle . . . READ MORE . . .

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TO BE CONTINUED

The war has vanished from prominence in American newspapers,  replaced by copious coverage of the Buffalo and Uvalde massacres. A related shift was noticeable at a St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church service this morning (HERE soon) in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, a good deal of which was given over to “gun violence in the United States.” There was no acknowledgement of the possibility that a good chunk might be fueled by violence in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Ukraine and elsewhere, of which U.S. war policy has been an indispensable part. Below, links to reports from and about the Ukraine war follow a link to a 2018 version of a litany read in hundreds of Episcopal churches today. — MCM 

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Litany in the Wake of a Mass Shooting, by Bishops United Against Gun Violence, “a group of more than 100 Episcopal bishops working to curtail the epidemic of gun violence in the United States” | God of peace, we remember all those who have died in incidents of mass gun violence in this nation’s public and private spaces. Click HERE for the original November 2018 version, now updated and lengthened to include U.S. mass shootings up to and including the Buffalo and Uvalde massacres.

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Russian troops storm city amid eastern Ukraine bombardments, by Elena Becatoros and Ricardo Mazalan | The Associated Press POKROVSK, Ukraine — Russian and Ukrainian troops engaged in close-quarter combat in an eastern Ukraine city today as Moscow’s soldiers, supported by intense shelling, attempted to gain strategic footholds in the region while facing fierce Ukrainian resistance. Ukrainian regional officials reported that Russian forces were “storming” the eastern city of Sievierodonetsk, where the fighting has knocked out power and cellphone services and terrorized civilians who haven’t fled. Sievierodonetsk, a manufacturing center . . . READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine receives missiles, howitzers, Zelensky expects good news on arms supplies. From Reuters. KYIV — Ukraine has started receiving Harpoon anti-ship missiles from Denmark and self-propelled howitzers from the United States, Ukrainian Defence Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said on Saturday. He said the arms would bolster forces fighting Russia’s invasion. “The coastal defence of our country will not only be strengthened by Harpoon missiles – they will be used by trained Ukrainian teams,” Reznikov wrote on his Facebook page. He said Harpoon shore-to-ship missiles would be operated alongside Ukrainian Neptune missiles in the defence of the country’s coast  . . . READ MORE . . .

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TO BE CONTINUED