http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/soviets/ en-us Sun, 12 Oct 2008 00:42:45 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2103451/posts We know that history holds many surprises. One doesn't expect to learn more about the secret history of of the Gulag than we already know from both Solzhenitsyn's "Gulag Acrcipelago" and Anne Applebaum's "Gulag: A history." This feat, however, is exactly what author Tim Tzouliadis has accomplished: the previously unknown story of the thousands of Americans who, during the Depression, sought employment and a better future in the "worker's paradise" built by the Bolsheviks. All kinds of Americans joined the exodus. Some of them were Communists or fellow-travelors but the majority were average Americans - skilled workers promised paid passage,... National Review magazine http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2103451/posts#comment Sun, 12 Oct 2008 00:42:45 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2096761/posts Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has accused Ukraine of sending military personnel to fight against Russia in Georgia. Mr Putin said that Ukrainian specialists operated anti-aircraft missile systems used against Russian aircraft during the August war. Russia has said Ukraine helped arm Georgia before the war, but Mr Putin said missile sales may have been conducted after the war already stated. And he said the systems were operated by Ukrainians. Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko said a parliamentary panel in Ukraine would investigate allegations of arms sales. She said that under Ukrainian law the president and his Security Council is... Daily Express http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2096761/posts#comment Fri, 3 Oct 2008 17:15:18 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2086020/posts We know that history holds many surprises. One does not expect to learn more about the secret history of the Gulag than we already know from both Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn’s Gulag Archipelago and Anne Applebaum’s Gulag: A History. This feat, however, is exactly what the Greek-born British documentary filmmaker Tim Tzouliadis has accomplished, in a book that should be placed alongside the others as a must-read account of the horrors Joseph Stalin inflicted upon his victims. What Tzouliadis offers is a dramatic account of the previously unknown story of the thousands of American citizens who, during the Depression, sought employment and... National Review Online http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2086020/posts#comment Fri, 19 Sep 2008 18:25:20 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2073137/posts MOSCOW -- For months, the owner of a muckraking news Web site had stayed away from his home after receiving warnings to tone down his critique of Kremlin-backed authorities in the Russian province of Ingushetia, friends said. But Magomed Yevloyev finally boarded a plane to return to Ingushetia this week, and there he encountered a surprise: The local governor was riding on the same plane, a few seats away from him in business class. When the plane landed in Ingushetia, the governor was met by a Mercedes that whisked him away. And Mr. Yevloyev was arrested at the airport, deposited... WSJ http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2073137/posts#comment Tue, 2 Sep 2008 17:59:11 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2072991/posts It has been 25 years since Korean Airlines Flight 007, carrying 269 passengers and crew, including Congressman Larry McDonald of Georgia, was fired on by a Soviet fighter jet off the coast of Siberia. At the time, McDonald was chairman of the John Birch Society (a subsidiary of which publishes THE NEW AMERICAN). Although several speakers eulogized McDonald at a Washington, D.C., memorial service 10 days following the September 1, 1983 attack, the words most remembered by both this magazine’s editor, Gary Benoit, and this writer were delivered by the late Senator Jesse Helms, who passed away on July 4.... The New American http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2072991/posts#comment Tue, 2 Sep 2008 14:56:11 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2069253/posts Russia put the West on alert for a new Cold War that the Kremlin is ready to fight, its President said yesterday. President Medvedev set tensions soaring when he recognised the independence of two breakaway republics inside Georgia. “We are not afraid of anything, including the prospect of a Cold War,” he said. Hours earlier he had ordered his Foreign Ministry to start establishing diplomatic ties with the secessionist regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia. The move brought instant condemnation from the United States, Britain, France, Germany and other Western countries. President Bush appealed to the Kremlin to “reconsider this... The Times (UK) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2069253/posts#comment Wed, 27 Aug 2008 19:05:40 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2068198/posts Georgia condemns announcement after Medvedev signs decree on independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia Russia today stepped up its defiance of the west by wasting little time in recognising the independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, Georgia's two breakaway provinces. Dmitry Medvedev, the Russian president, said he had signed decrees to that effect, just weeks after Russia and Georgia fought a short war over South Ossetia. "I have signed decrees on the recognition by the Russian Federation of the independence of South Ossetia and the independence of Abkhazia," Medvedev said in a televised announcement, in a move bound to escalate... The Guardian http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2068198/posts#comment Tue, 26 Aug 2008 12:32:21 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2063829/posts Russia announced today it has begun withdrawing its troops from Georgia. But neither Georgia nor wary and openly impatient Western powers saw any evidence of the tanks, trucks and troops leaving. "The pull-out of peacekeeping forces started today," Col-General Anatoly Nogovitsyn said during a daily official press briefing. Georgia's Interior Ministry said Russian forces had been blowing up stores of Georgian ammunition and weaponry at a base near the western town of Senaki in their drive to weaken Georgia's 29,000-strong army. Spokesman Shota Utiashvili said Moscow's troops had also destroyed the runway at the base, about 240 km (150 miles)... al-Reuters via Irish Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2063829/posts#comment Mon, 18 Aug 2008 17:38:31 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2063827/posts GEORGIA'S actions in South Ossetia were excessive and "must not go unpunished", Russian news agencies quoted President Dmitry Medvedev as saying. "What the Georgian authorities did exceeded human understanding. Their actions cannot be explained and moreover must not go unpunished," Mr Medvedev was quoted as saying in remarks to military personnel. "We take a hard line on security throughout the region, in assuring peace and stability in South Ossetia. "We will do whatever is necessary, and no one should have any illusion" about this, the Russian leader said. News.com.au http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2063827/posts#comment Mon, 18 Aug 2008 17:37:03 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2063825/posts Russian forces were today seen strengthening their positions in the city of Gori, despite assurances that they had started to withdraw troops from Georgia under a French-brokered peace plan. "The pull-out of peacekeeping forces started today," Colonel-General Anatoly Nogovitsyn, the deputy chief of staff of Russia's military, told a daily official briefing in Moscow. However in Gori, 55 miles west of the capital, Tbilisi, Russian forces showed no sign of leaving and appeared to be digging in. The only movement seen by Associated Press reporters was in the opposite direction from Russia — toward the Georgian capital of Tbilisi. In... The Guardian http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2063825/posts#comment Mon, 18 Aug 2008 17:35:30 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2048656/posts The world was well aware of Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction (WMD) stockpiles. Politicians from both parties admitted that Saddam would not disarm voluntarily, and that military force was the only solution. Intelligence sources estimate that Iraq had 100 million tons of munitions, which is an astonishing 60 percent of our own arsenal. According to the House Armed Service Committee, Saddam himself admitted to possessing thousands of tons of WMD. Since we have not found the “smoking gun” proof of a WMD arsenal, they must have gone somewhere else. Prior to our liberation of Iraq, it was clear we... Unto the Breach http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2048656/posts#comment Mon, 21 Jul 2008 05:36:02 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2039963/posts State Duma deputies warned Lithuania against agreeing to place U.S. missile defense sites on its soil, saying Wednesday that such a move could trigger a Russian military buildup in the region. moscowtimes http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2039963/posts#comment Wed, 2 Jul 2008 23:15:41 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2023702/posts Publisher Peter Osnos, who admits to personally working with former Bush White House press secretary Scott McClellan on his new book, What Happened, began his career as an assistant to I.F. Stone, the pro-communist "journalist" named as a Soviet agent of influence who was the uncle of Weather Underground communist terrorist Kathy Boudin. But the connections don't end there. Boudin's son Chesa was raised by Barack Obama associates Bill Ayers and Bernardine Dohrn, who were Boudin's comrades in the communist terrorist group, after Kathy Boudin went to prison for her involvement in an armed robbery and assault that took the... familysecuritymatters.org http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2023702/posts#comment Fri, 30 May 2008 20:59:57 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2020929/posts British soldiers seriously injured in Iraq and Afghanistan are being denied government compensation because they were wounded by the 'wrong type of bomb'. The Ministry of Defence has refused payouts for injuries under its criminal injuries scheme that may have been caused by landmines left by the Soviet army in Afghanistan or other discarded ordnance. Under the MoD's criminal injuries compensation overseas scheme, frontline troops can claim for an injury or death not caused by military operations against the Taliban or Iraqi militia. Alternatively, troops injured after April 2005 can also apply for financial support under the armed forces compensation... Guardian.co.uk http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2020929/posts#comment Sun, 25 May 2008 03:11:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1986418/posts The increasing vitriol of the Democratic presidential WrestleMania shouldn't distract from the opportunity before progressives. The election this year has the potential to be not simply a change election but a sea-change election, one that marks the end of the conservative era that has dominated our politics for nearly three decades. It could be the progressive equivalent of the conservative triumph of 1980. In 1980 Ronald Reagan, the self-described "movement conservative," took the White House from incumbent Jimmy Carter while Republicans picked up thirty-four seats in the House and gained control of the Senate, sweeping out liberal stalwarts like George... The Nation http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1986418/posts#comment Sun, 16 Mar 2008 03:22:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1960950/posts If there exists one visional depiction of the Cold War’s end, it is still a Eurocentric one, November 9, 1989, the day East Berliners joined with those of the city’s West in celebration of the Berlin Wall’s demise. Three weeks earlier, on October 19, 1989, Stalinist East German dictator Erich Honecker, facing mass internal opposition, was forced from power when the Kremlin, overwhelmed with comparable resistance on many fronts, for the first time refused to provide the East German dictatorship with the political or military cover it had come to expect in its Cold War defense of the regime’s totalitarian... Cross Action News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1960950/posts#comment Mon, 28 Jan 2008 20:23:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1954767/posts LAURENS - Republican White House hopeful Fred Thompson said Wednesday that the United State's spending on programs like Medicare and welfare puts the country on a course for the same financial oblivion that brought down the Soviet Union during the Cold War. "We're doing it in a different way," Thompson said during a radio interview in response to a question about President Ronald Reagan's strategy of outspending the Soviet Union and whether the U.S. was now on the same course. "The bottom line could be the same." Recurring spending demands for programs that pay for health care, welfare and social... AP http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1954767/posts#comment Wed, 16 Jan 2008 20:58:29 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/1947355/posts Calling most existing textbooks “Russophobic, the Putin Regime has approved a revised version. The new Russian history textbook praises President Vladimir Putin as “a savior in the heroic tradition of Joseph Stalin.” "I have analyzed books on Russian history in neighboring countries and come to the conclusion that our neighbors excel at educational Russophobia," said Alexander Filippov, editor of the new textbook. “They portray Soviet domination of Eastern Europe as a bad thing. Overlooked is the fact that Russian tanks are all that stood between these nations and Western decadence. As we have seen, since the withdrawal of this protection... AZCONSERVATIVE http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/1947355/posts#comment Wed, 2 Jan 2008 22:31:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1906224/posts The official presidential portrait of John Fitzgerald Kennedy tells quite a story. His pensive expression, curled shoulders and folded arms are not mere emblems of the physical ailments he so manfully absorbed; they help cut the figure of a northeastern liberal -- a Democrat -- who through inspired oratory and steely resolve faced down Soviet communism. This, at a time when many were resigned to the inevitability of its expansion. But Kennedy -- historic though his presidency was, and beatified though it has become -- in his time was not breaking the mould of the Democratic party in the United... Guelph Mercury http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1906224/posts#comment Thu, 4 Oct 2007 00:38:37 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1901534/posts Fifty years ago, a small Soviet satellite was launched, stunning the U.S. and sparking a massive technology research effort. Could we be in for another "October surprise"? Quick, what's the most influential piece of hardware from the early days of computing? The IBM 360 mainframe? The DEC PDP-1 minicomputer? Maybe earlier computers such as Binac, ENIAC or Univac? Or, going way back to the 1800s, is it the Babbage Difference Engine? More likely, it was a 183-pound aluminum sphere called Sputnik, Russian for "traveling companion." Fifty years ago, on Oct. 4, 1957, radio-transmitted beeps from the first man-made object to... Computer World http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1901534/posts#comment Mon, 24 Sep 2007 21:01:49 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1899005/posts Newspapers like to play gotcha games with presidential candidates and their stump speeches. Most of the time, the fact-checking sessions focus on number-juggling on tax proposals and spending policy, and they find plenty of daylight between claims and reality. However, when the Washington Post attempts to fact-check Fred Thompson on historical references, they reveal more of their bias than of Fred's. They try to take apart Fred's claim that Americans "have shed more blood for other people's liberty than any other combination of nations in the history of the world", and manage to completely miss the point: The number of... Captain's Quarters http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1899005/posts#comment Wed, 19 Sep 2007 16:12:01 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1885136/posts “Al-Qaeda Stronger than Ever.” “U.S. Concern at Al-Qaeda Strength.” These and similar titles accompanied news stories that began breaking during the second week of July, announcing leaks of a disturbing new classified intelligence report. Prepared for President Bush by the National Counter Terrorism Center (NCTC), the five-page report entitled Al-Qaeda Better Prepared to Strike the West paints a picture of a revived, more dangerous terror network led by Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri. The Associated Press reported on July 11 that an unnamed counterterrorism official familiar with the still-unreleased report paraphrased the briefing paper as finding that al-Qaeda is... The New American http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1885136/posts#comment Thu, 23 Aug 2007 01:12:39 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1882538/posts Russia and China today carried out joint war games after both had warned the US not to interfere in central Asia. Some 6,000 troops and hundred of armoured vehicles and fighter jets took part in military manoeuvres in the Ural mountains watched by the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, and his Chinese counterpart, Hu Jintao. The two men, as well as the leaders of a clutch of former Soviet central Asian republics, had taken part in yesterday's regional summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. The meeting concluded with a thinly veiled warning to the US to keep away from the energy-rich... Guardian UK http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1882538/posts#comment Fri, 17 Aug 2007 13:53:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1882556/posts RUSSIAN President Vladimir Putin sent 14 bomber aircraft on patrols far beyond its own territory today, marking the permanent return to a Soviet-era practice. Mr Putin said the resumption of flights was a response to security threats posed by other military powers. “We have decided to restore flights by Russian strategic aviation on a permanent basis,” Mr Putin said at joint military exercises with China and four Central Asian states in Russia's Ural mountains. “Today, August 17 at 00:00 hours, 14 strategic bombers took to the air from seven airfields across the country, along with support and refuelling aircraft. “In... Herald Sun http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1882556/posts#comment Fri, 17 Aug 2007 14:18:31 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1878336/posts MOSCOW (Thomson Financial) - A Moscow court has given the green light for the seizure of 100 pct of the shares of the Russian oil group Russneft, Russian news agencies reported, citing a Russian interior ministry statement. 'A Moscow court has approved the seizure of 100 pct of the shares of the company. Russneft shares have now been seized,' the statement said. The ministerial press office was unavailable for comment. The seizure follows a judicial procedure launched in January by the interior ministry's committee responsible for tax arrears. Another Moscow court had found in favour of the Russian fiscal authorities... Forbes, AFX News Limited, Thomson Financial http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1878336/posts#comment Wed, 8 Aug 2007 21:01:28 GMT