Lionator

It was always going to end this way by the way. People had the wool pulled over their eyes for three years. Now you’re feeling the betrayal. It’s probably better in the long run that it happened like this than a long drawn affair. The anger in Ukraine and parts of Europe will last for decades. Europe and the west is mainly led by short sighted idiots that haven’t a clue. Zelensky will always be a hero but he’s finished.

I don’t care for Trump, he’s a lunatic. My discomfort is with the last administration. Frankly there’s two ways to view the world, the first is that there is a right and wrong way to be ie liberal democratic values good, everything else bad (even as a Liberal Democrat myself), the second is the Kissinger style real politik. A cynical, disgusting world where everything is transactional. Unfortunately the last administration gaslighted Zelenskyy into thinking the first one is reality, when as we see now, and have seen since 1945, it’s the second. And yes maybe this will bite me on the arse, but Putin the loser hasn’t been able to take a fifth of Ukraine, while destroying his economy, wiping out the next generation of Russian males and blowing all of Russia’s Soviet stockpiles. Why should I believe that he’s going to take on the whole of Europe?

Sickening rudeness aside, Trump is just doing what Biden was afraid to say. For three years they lied and gaslighted Ukraine into thinking they could join NATO when they had absolutely no intention of that ever happening. It was a pathetic, weak policy, it was dangerous. Of course the USA is never going to fight against Russians because we all know where that leads. Yet Biden and Blinken made the Ukrainians think that that was a possibility. So while what happened today was disgusting, it is not a new issue, it is a culmination of muddled geopolitical thinking. Putin also won’t need to rebuild his army to attack Ukraine again because he’s probably going to get what he wants anyway now. A neutral Ukrainian state not in NATO. Unless of course you believe he’s Hitler pt.2 and is going to roll through Europe.

A lot of people are saying that the ‘peace deal is off’, are completely misunderstanding how much Ukraine have relied on the United States. Europe cannot go this alone, our economies are not designed for it. We can let our elderly freeze or choose to massively fund and arm Ukraine. We can’t do both. Ukraine don’t have a choice, if they ‘reject’ a peace deal, then they’ll collapse.

Orban is going to lose in 2026 and even despite all the bluster, those countries still go along with most of the policy decisions in the EU. Hungary are still funding Ukraine for example.

The problem is that Trump doesn’t see Russia as an enemy. He’s sees them as a much bigger financial ally than Ukraine and maybe even the rest of Europe at this point.

It’s also stupid for America. Any country on earth faced with the choice of a trade deal with a man child in America or stable, trustworthy autocracy in China, is surely going to choose the latter. At this point I’d rather us economically align closer to China.

Damn, Trump telling Zelenskyy that the US is now a neutral country is the war and that Ukraine is losing. Awful. This press conference is an absolute disaster

He does look a bit like Brussel.

Beat Burden, Trump, Holt and Murphy to get there too, some run that.

Ant Middleton, wannabe hard man that did the SAS show on channel 4. Got sacked and is now trying his hand at politics. Prize plank if you ask me, would probably sell all of our black players.

Protect them from what though? Because Russia won’t attack the UK soil and the UK won’t send troops to Ukraine, because there won’t be a ceasefire if it’s planned that we do.

Why do people believe that Russia is going to agree to a ceasefire that involves British troops (aka NATO) being placed in Ukraine? Surely the prime minister isn’t that naive?

I mean that’s all well and good but the metrics that will actually see how he’s judged are still going in the wrong direction. I have no doubt that underneath the political clothes, Starmer is a good, moral man but as a country we’re screwed and no PM is going to be able to fix that without making incredible structural changes to the way this country is run.

A cross for this and the death thread. Sad news for a national treasure.

In Canada, through a combination of Trudeau resigning and Trump’s threats, the Liberal party have gone from 20 points behind to ahead in the polls, which to say is remarkable would be an understatement.

It’s so cringe how the narrative is that you have to mollycoddle Trump. Like you say, he’s easy to read, he’s not actually winnable and it makes us look even weaker, desperate and embarrassing that we already are.

Ainsley Harriott, Dale Winton (RIP), the Would I lie to you lot, Ross kemp.

He can’t even take the Donbass after 10 years, why do people think Putin is gonna roll through Europe? And also even if he tried, what would be his incentive? He’s a bad man but he’s not Hitler. He’s just another fool like Brezhnev

He’s gonna win the europa league and retire. It’s written in the stars. If they can get past Bilbao, it’s a simple run to the final.

I tell you who is quality, Khusanov at Man City.

Didn’t realise he was on 7, been a few close calls this season.

The obvious thing there is that the weather was atrocious for most of the blast. I can think of one game that was in sunshine and that was the same day England were playing in the euros, so I do have sympathy. But ultimately the commercial side has to improve as the squad is pretty threadbare now as it is.

Enjoying Forest’s defensive set piece tactic of falling on the floor and getting a free kick everytime. One way to kill arsenals threat.

The test side is still decent, easily a top 4 in the world but the vibes are all wrong. There’s just not enough responsibility and an arrogance that runs through both teams. You can also tell these guys just aren’t equipped to play 50 over cricket, throwing wickets away playing appalling shot after appalling shot at the exact wrong times. If you can’t bat your overs, you’re gonna lose at this level.