DL Open Thread: Friday, August 19, 2022
How Russian Spies Misread Ukraine And Misled the Kremlin. Faulty intelligence is not, as it turns out, the exclusive domain of the U. S.:
KYIV, Ukraine —In the final days before the invasion of Ukraine, Russia’s security service began sending cryptic instructions to informants in Kyiv. Pack up and get out of the capital, the Kremlin collaborators were told, but leave behind the keys to your homes.
The directions came from senior officers in a unit of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) with a prosaic name — the Department of Operational Information — but an ominous assignment: ensure the decapitation of the Ukrainian government and oversee the installation of a pro-Russian regime.
The messages were a measure of the confidence in that audacious plan. So certain were FSB operatives that they would soon control the levers of power in Kyiv, according to Ukrainian and Western security officials, that they spent the waning days before the war arrangingsafe houses or accommodations in informants’ apartments and other locations for the planned influx of personnel.
And yet, the agency failed to incapacitate Ukraine’s government, foment any semblance of a pro-Russian groundswell or interrupt President Volodymyr Zelensky’s hold on power. Its analysts either did not fathom how forcefully Ukraine would respond, Ukrainian and Western officials said, or did understand but couldn’t or wouldn’t convey such sober assessments to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Enough fair use. Read the whole damn article. Journalism at its best.
In the run-up to the 2016 election, Liz Cheney issued a dire warning. The future of American democracy, and the nation’s place as a symbol of freedom to the world, was on the ballot. If voters chose poorly, she told Rush Limbaugh, the next president “would be the most corrupt individual ever to sit in the Oval Office.”
She was referring, of course, to Hillary Clinton.
Are Ya Still Drinking Starbucks Swill? That’s fine, as far as you support union-busting:
A US judge has ordered Starbucks to reinstate seven employees at a cafe in Memphis, Tennessee who were allegedly fired for supporting a union campaign, as the coffee chain struggles to halt pending nationwide union elections.
Sheryl Lipman, the district judge in the city, said the US National Labor Relations Board had provided enough evidence that the dismissals earlier this year were motivated by anti-union feeling. Lipman granted the order pending the outcome of an administrative case before the board.
The Memphis store is one of nearly 220 Starbucks cafes in the US to unionise over the last year. Workers at 46 locations have voted against unionising, and dozens of other elections are pending.
Starbucks said in a statement on Thursday it disagreed with the ruling and planned to appeal. The company said the workers were fired for violating company safety policies and that it respected the unionisation process.
Yeah, right. Say-y-y-y, didn’t Starbucks’ CEO once run for the Democratic Presidential nomination? Well, he sorta did. Had he run, Jim Paoli would almost certainly have contributed to his campaign.
Why The Fuck Do We Need To Spend $122 Mill To Expand Leg Hall? Who benefits from this? The answer is: “Not the public.”:
Legislative Building Committee member Sen. Bryan Townsend, D-Newark, expressed some concerns he had within the vetting process. The proposal did not include improvements in areas like IT or general infrastructural issues like leakages, which he said he would have liked to see included as well as any additional enhancements deemed necessary. Sen. Townsend said while he certainly supports recommendations regarding Legislative Hall’s current needs, he did not feel comfortable modernizing the building at the proposed price tag as opposed to other investments that would better benefit the Delaware community, such as a modern, equitable high school in the city of Wilmington.
“I, for one, would find it very difficult to support recommending this level of investment on a building that is used part of the year, perhaps to avoid certain kinds of discomfort for legislators or even the public, when there are ample discomforts for other segments of the Delaware community that aren’t getting addressed or have a solution for,” Sen. Townsend said.
Although, come to think of it, I was looking forward to seeing the new lobbyists’ sanctuary, aka ‘The Bobby Byrd Big Bucks Lounge’, with extra-wide chairs, of course. And a complimentary open bar.
‘Campaign Checks 24-7. No Waiting’.
What do you want to talk about?
Here’s a link to the Leg Hall story that’s not behind a paywall.
https://www.delawarepublic.org/politics-government/2022-08-18/legislative-building-committee-debates-merits-of-leg-hall-expansion-plan
Twitter treatment @DelawarePublic
As part of our 2022 Election coverage, we’re heading to New Castle County–specifically to one north Wilmington house district where Democrats have a choice: go with an incumbent or make a change. Listen to The Green at 3 and 7pm for more
https://twitter.com/DelawarePublic/status/1560657926456573954
https://twitter.com/DelawarePublic/status/1560651406763491328
Rally for likes and retweets https://twitter.com/cotto4change
Please see the following from Delaware Human Resources Claire DeMatteis email response justifying switch to privatizing Medicare benefits for State retirees because of “unfunded OPED liability”….DeMatteis wrote “If combined with a sustained effort to carveout 1% of the prior year’s budget each year to the OPEB Trust Fund (as was done in FY23), the unfunded OPEB liability could shrink to an estimated $3.1 billion by the Year 2050”.
I’ve got an idea Ms. DeMatteis, let’s put that $122 million in BS Leg Hall improvements into the OPED liability fund and also add the other “Carney/Geisenberger “BUDGET SMOOTHING” $200 million into the kitty and shrink that liability number dramatically over the years. LET’S NOT put the retirees’ benefits into the corporate profit scheme. You can read about this latest scam here> https://www.delawareonline.com/story/opinion/2022/08/12/delawares-public-retirees-must-reject-medicate-advantage-plan/65400504007/
Representative John Kowalko
Is Claire DeMatteis a real person? I mean, I’ve seen her, but I’m not sure blood courses through her veins. She seems soulless to me.
Her responses have been pretty much soulless. More to come from my personal experience in the last week with my Highmark BC/BS experience although I am an active employee paying for the top comprehensive plan available. DeMatteis says there is no abnormal pattern in denials of benefits and that’s as disingenuous a response as you can contrive. I’m appealing the denial I received in today’s mail regarding a surgical procedure I underwent last Friday. LET’S ASK CLAIRE DEMATTEIS WHAT CHANCE DOES A RETIREE HAVE OF FAIR AND HONEST MEDICAL ACCESS IF AN ACTIVE EMPLOYEE (who has the added benefit of being a legislator) CANNOT GET IT?
You have my cell if any of you wish to discuss these horrific circumstances that retirees and active state employees face now.
Rep. Kowalko
They both went to St. Mark’s together. Gotta wonder what kind of dogma the teachers filled their heads with.
She’s an apparatchik, pure and simple. Ironic that Catholics are so concerned with the soul when so many of them haven’t got one.
My St, Marks’ friends in the later 70s (met while we were at UD) were highly motivated in aiming to change the world for good. Like my partner, the late Tom Daniels, who was a 1965 Sallies graduate, I’d somehow found a shit ton of local Catholic-raised progressive-types to bond with as a young adult. Just sayin.
Most disappointing read yesterday was Paul Baumbach on Facebook giving cover to the state’s Medicare Advantage for pensioners. The commenters were not happy.
“Rep. Paul Baumbach
I have had a lot of emails in the past several days regarding the change in healthcare coverage for Delaware‘s retirees beginning on January 1. I’ve tried to share useful information, I have tried to field specific questions. I received this email late today, after constituent returned from the information session held by the University of Delaware and Highmark
“I was pleased w/the very comprehensive & detailed descriptions that the Highmark & SilverScript reps gave as well as the UD rep who clarified questions that were asked & answered at today’s 2-hour Zoom session.
My perception is that all concerns were addressed thoroughly. There were ~90 participants & ~50 questions that were asked & answered after the presentations. I felt there was excellent engagement by all. The questions I had were asked by others so I was satisfied that my concerns were addressed.
In the interim I explored other Medigap supplemental health & drug plans – an eye-opening awareness as to the annual cost up to $3,000. Therefore, financially the plan UD/the state is proposing is a good deal, unless I should be diagnosed w/some devastating illness that depletes my finances (I pray not).
Thankfully I am healthy (so far) & the wellness incentives in this plan toward preventative actions will further enhance my current exercise routine/wellness activities.
I am confident in moving forward to roll over to the proposed Highmark Medicare Advantage plan.
Thanks for being there to listen to my concerns.””
Some examples:
“Really? This doesn’t answer the questions raised by John Kowalko ‘s opinion letter In The news journal. Could we open this up a little more to the general public?”
“”unless I should be diagnosed w/some devastating illness that depletes my finances (I pray not).” What the hell does THAT mean? Does it not cover a “devastating” illness? What good is this Medicare Advantage plan if it doesn’t cover everything? Paul, can you elaborate on that? [Husband] attended the same UD session online and this did not come up in the session. Is something being hidden in this plan? That it doesn’t cover everything?”
Paul probably can’t get past the OPEB liability.
@Nancy: How many of those Catholic progressives still identify as Catholic, and if so, why? I was raised Catholic, too — that’s how I know it’s a cult.
Re: Paul Baumbach. With apologies to El Som, I have never trusted him. He’s a corporate lawyer. I don’t care how much progressive legislation he writes or votes for, I don’t trust him to stick up for the little guy, because he doesn’t work in a field that sticks up for the little guy.
He doesn’t see the Disadvantage in that program because, as he notes, he’s healthy. Fuck that guy.
she was “perfect” for her gig running the prisons. That is if you believe the prison population deserves no human dignity. The lady is the definition of “horrible person”
There is a certain irony that she is implementing a deal that will equally screw retired electeds and high-level state employees. For the average teacher, Deldot and DHHS employees this will be an unmitigated disaster. Way to go Claire and John you’ve brought Mississippi level of care to Delaware!
I have JUST the public elective office for her. Cue the Firesign Theatre:
“You’d be just PERFECT for Dog Killer, Dad. You’re a NATURAL.”
Patients are calling our practice left and right, afraid of what benefits they’ll lose and which providers they may not be able to see, asking about the new plan. It’ll be a mess for the next 3 months.
Then comes the thousands of people who aren’t paying attention and don’t realize there’s a change at all. That’ll be hell in January.
I e-mailed a rep from Highmark telling her that whatever outreach or communication effort they’ve undertaken, double it, because there are going to be a lot of confused people very soon.