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Hungary responds to Zelensky's appeal for support
"Hungary is on Hungary's side," its prime minister, Viktor Orban, said in a statement on Saturday, in response to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's calls for Budapest to quit sitting on the fence in the conflict between Kiev and Moscow. Orban said that, while his country could not "be indifferent" to the "Russo-Ukrainian war going on in our neighborhood," Hungary would look after its own interests first, and maintain a "Hungarian point of view." He went on to stress that Budapest "want[ed] to stay out of this war," but that this did not preclude it from helping "those in need." The statement came in response to Zelensky having urged Orban to choose a side in the conflict. Speaking to EU leaders via video link on Friday, the Ukrainian president thanked the Baltic states, Poland, France, and Germany for their support, but noted that Hungary was still declining to take a stand. He called on Budapest to "decide for yourself who you are with." Addressing Orban directly, Zelensky...
https://www.sott.net/article/465941-Hungary-responds-to-Zelenskys-appeal-for-support

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The Biden Administration's ties to Ukraine go deeper than Hunter and Burisma
A senior Biden administration official handling global energy policy recently held a high-level position at a Ukrainian state-run natural gas firm but resigned citing corruption. Amos Hochstein, who President Joe Biden appointed to be the State Department's top adviser for energy security over the summer of 2021, was a member of the energy company Naftogaz's supervisory board. Hochstein took the position in 2017 after he said government officials persuaded him to accept the offer. Hochstein wrote, in an editorial published by the Kyiv Post in October 2020: "When fears abounded in late 2017 that Ukraine's efforts to dismantle corruption were weakening, U.S. and foreign officials encouraged me to accept the (European Bank for Reconstruction and Development's) request, and join the Naftogaz board to reinforce, and help protect the progress that CEO Andriy Kobolyev and his team had made, and continue with additional critical reforms." Since 2014, the U.S. has led an effort to reduce...
https://www.sott.net/article/465942-The-Biden-Administrations-ties-to-Ukraine-go-deeper-than-Hunter-and-Burisma

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NATO's being persuaded to deploy troops in Western Ukraine and this is insanity, US military expert says
Following the Western press' claims that Russia's Ukraine operation has "stalled" and that Moscow may use "chemical or bio weapons" out of despair, US DoD sources told Newsweek and Reuters that neither assumption is right. Scott Ritter, former UN Weapons Inspector and WMD Whistleblower, has sat down with Sputnik to discuss the special operation. Sputnik: Speaking to Maverick Multimedia on 19 March, you said that Russia's special operation in Ukraine is "close to being over" in Russia's favour and that Moscow's military op will later be studied by specialists. What's so special about Russia's operation, in your opinion? Scott Ritter: I think the thing that separates the Russian special operation in Ukraine, apart from other military operations of this nature, is the fact that Russia does not intend to occupy Ukraine. This is something that the Russian leadership has said from the very start. A military operation that is designed to occupy is a much more complicated operation...
https://www.sott.net/article/465943-NATOs-being-persuaded-to-deploy-troops-in-Western-Ukraine-and-this-is-insanity-US-military-expert-says

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Biden, world leaders to announce natural gas plan for Europe: report
President Biden and European leaders are expected to announce a plan on Friday for Europe to receive liquified natural gas (LNG) shipments in an effort to reduce reliance on Russia for energy, three U.S. officials familiar with the plan told The Washington Post. The announcement is expected before Biden leaves for Poland, where he will travel to after meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Brussels on Friday, the newspaper reported. The paper noted that the details have not been finalized. The president is also expected to announce a new round of sanctions against Russia while he is in Brussels. Two people familiar with the matter told the newspaper that the sanctions would target the country's defense companies and subsidiaries, members of its parliament and other sectors. The White House announced on Thursday that the U.S. and its allies would be sanctioning 328 Duma members in addition to sanctioning the Duma itself, 17 board members from the Russian...
https://www.sott.net/article/465944-Biden-world-leaders-to-announce-natural-gas-plan-for-Europe-report

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Fact checking the fact checkers: Why does Ukraine seem to have so many Nazis nowadays?
In the history of civilization, Politics has more often than not, been a matter reduceable to the question of "whose side are you on?" Granted it is not an easy affair to discern what most-nearly approaches truth in the fog of "the present." Hindsight is 20/20 they say, although that is also not entirely true, for the interpretation of history is just another battlefield, albeit in much slower motion. In a world of increased division, where we are told there is only black or white, the best we mere "civilians" can hope for is to not get hit by the crossfire. However, that is becoming increasingly harder to do. It is not a matter of holding "opinion" any longer, it is about upholding a "conviction," not earned with your own personal scrutiny and research, but by your "faith" in such a conviction and the authorities who shape it. Increasingly, it does not truly matter what the "facts" are, but the question of "whose side are you on?" If that is what "reality" has been reduced to by...
https://www.sott.net/article/465945-Fact-checking-the-fact-checkers-Why-does-Ukraine-seem-to-have-so-many-Nazis-nowadays

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Hunter Biden bio firm partnered with Ukrainian researchers 'isolating deadly pathogens' using funds from Obama's Defense Department
An investment firm directed by President Joe Biden's son Hunter Biden was a leading financial backer of a pandemic tracking and response firm that collaborated on identifying and isolating deadly pathogens in Ukrainian laboratories, receiving funds from the Obama administration's Department of Defense in the process. Rosemont Seneca Technology Partners (RSTP) - a subsidiary of the Hunter Biden and Christopher Heinz-founded Rosemont Capital - counted both Biden and Heinz as managing directors. Heinz is the stepson of former U.S. Secretary of State and current Climate czar John Kerry. Amongst the companies listed on archived versions of the RSTP's portfolio is Metabiota - an ostensibly San Francisco-based company that purports to detect, track, and analyze emerging infectious diseases. Financial reports reveal that RSTP led the company's first round of funding in 2015, which amounted to $30 million. Former managing director and co-founder of RSTP Neil Callahan - a name that also...
https://www.sott.net/article/465946-Hunter-Biden-bio-firm-partnered-with-Ukrainian-researchers-isolating-deadly-pathogens-using-funds-from-Obamas-Defense-Department

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Waterspouts filmed off the coast of Port Kembla, Australia
A series of waterspouts have formed off the NSW South Coast, with residents around Wollongong filming the ominous weather phenomena. The waterspouts lingered on the horizon off the coast for more than half an hour, visible from much of Wollongong and Shellharbour. It comes as a severe thunderstorm warning was issued for the region, with the slow-moving cell focused on the area between Port Kembla and Unanderra.
https://www.sott.net/article/465947-Waterspouts-filmed-off-the-coast-of-Port-Kembla-Australia

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Taal volcano: thousands flee after eruption in Philippines
Thousands of people fled their homes near a Philippine volcano after an eruption sent ash and steam hundreds of metres into the sky. Taal volcano, which sits in a picturesque lake south of Manila, exploded with a "short-lived" burst at 7.22 am on Saturday, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said in a statement. It warned further eruptions were possible, which it said could trigger dangerous, fast-moving volcanic flows of gas, ash and debris, as well as a tsunami. Residents in five fishing and farming settlements around the lake were ordered to leave their homes, in the third mass evacuation in as many years around one of the country's most active volcanoes.
https://www.sott.net/article/465948-Taal-volcano-thousands-flee-after-eruption-in-Philippines

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CBC's Rosemary Barton will talk "mean tweets" on university journalism panel
The University of Ottawa's Centre for Law Technology, and Society is hosting a panel on Tuesday called "Journalists Facing Mean Tweets: What It Means for Our Democracy," featuring CBC's Rosemary Barton. Comment: Perhaps foremost in journalists minds for this conference, might be the agreed upon understanding that unregulated people are "extremely dangerous to our themselves and democracy," with an eye on keeping it safe for those 'handlers' that benefit from the many deceptions of our reality (historical, social, economic, geopolitical and climate... ). Panellists will also include Mississauga-based journalist Fatima Syed and Aboriginal People's Television Network (APTN) producer Mark Blackburn. The event will be a live recording of associate professor Elizabeth Dubois's podcast, "The Wonks and War Rooms."
https://www.sott.net/article/465949-CBCs-Rosemary-Barton-will-talk-mean-tweets-on-university-journalism-panel

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Russia says 'first phase' of special operation in Ukraine almost complete
In a scaled-back formulation of its war goals, Russia said on Friday that the first phase of its military operation was mostly complete and it would focus on completely "liberating" Ukraine's breakaway eastern Donbas region. The announcement appeared to indicate that Moscow may be switching to more limited objectives after running into fierce Ukrainian resistance in a month of war. Comment: There's no evidence to suggest that the Ukrainian resistance has been particularly fierce; it has been dirty, using civilians as human shields, and it has desperately needed billions in lethal aid and funds from the West, as well as foreign fighters and mercenaries, but there's no sign that Russia has suffered any significant setbacks. The defence ministry said Russian-backed separatists now controlled 93 per cent of Ukraine's Luhansk region and 54 per cent of the Donetsk region. They jointly make up the Donbas.
https://www.sott.net/article/465950-Russia-says-first-phase-of-special-operation-in-Ukraine-almost-complete

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UK ex-army chief warns West to prepare for 'long term degradation' of living standards amidst 'long term confrontation with Russia'
The former Assistant Chief to the Defence Staff warns the standard of living will 'get much worse' in the West as countries stand up to Putin. Comment: The West isn't 'standing up to Putin', it's trying to destroy Russia, it also has its sights on China, despite both of these countries having helped prop up the ailing hegemon for the past two decades and more. General Jonathan Shaw joined Andrew Castle amid rumours that Vladimir Putin is contemplating a scaling back of his invasion of Ukraine. Comment: Giving too much heed to such rumours during a time of conflict is surely something the general knows would be rather foolish. Because Russia neutralised Ukraine's military facilities within the first few days and it now has the cities surrounded whilst it evacuates civilians through the humanitarian corridors that it suggested and maintains. Britain's former Assistant Chief to the Defence Staff stated that the attitude of the West in the conflict has failed to look at the bigger...
https://www.sott.net/article/465951-UK-ex-army-chief-warns-West-to-prepare-for-long-term-degradation-of-living-standards-amidst-long-term-confrontation-with-Russia

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Sound of explosions reported in western Ukrainian city of Lviv, Russian warship's Kalibr missiles destroy arms depot in north-west
Today, 6:13 pm Journalists from numerous outlets report hearing the sound of explosions in Lviv, as a plume of smoke is seen outside the western Ukrainian city.
https://www.sott.net/article/465952-Sound-of-explosions-reported-in-western-Ukrainian-city-of-Lviv-Russian-warships-Kalibr-missiles-destroy-arms-depot-in-north-west

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UK woman diagnosed with Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever
A case of Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever has been identified in England, health officials have revealed. The risk to the public is very low, the UK Health Security Agency said today - after the case was diagnosed in a woman who had travelled to Central Asia. The illness is a viral disease that's usually transmitted by ticks and livestock. It's usually found in countries where the disease is in an endemic state and the virus is endemic in all of Africa, the Balkans, the Middle East and in Asia.
https://www.sott.net/article/465953-UK-woman-diagnosed-with-Crimean-Congo-haemorrhagic-fever

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Azerbaijan launches airstrikes in Nagorno-Karabakh as tensions flare
The Azerbaijani military has violated the November 2020 ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh, launching airstrikes against the forces of the breakaway region, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Saturday. The region, which is currently patrolled by Russian peacekeepers, is internationally recognized as a part of Azerbaijan, yet it is predominantly populated by ethnic Armenians. Over the past two days, Azerbaijani troops have "entered the zone of responsibility of the Russian peacekeeping force in the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh and set up an observation post," the ministry said. "Four strikes have been conducted by a Bayraktar TB-2 unmanned drone on units of the armed forces of Nagorno-Karabakh near the settlement of Furukh," it added.
https://www.sott.net/article/465954-Azerbaijan-launches-airstrikes-in-Nagorno-Karabakh-as-tensions-flare

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Poland should 'claim' Russian region, general says
Warsaw should seek to "claim" the Kaliningrad region from Russia, General Waldemar Skrzypczak has said. The region has been "under Russian occupation since 1945," the ex-commander of the Polish Land Forces claimed on the TV show 'Super Express' on Friday. "It might be worth asking for it, as it used to be with the Regained Territories," Skrzypczak said, referring to the eastern German territories incorporated into Poland after the defeat of Nazi Germany. "It might be worth asking for this Kaliningrad region, which, in my opinion, is part of the territory of Poland."
https://www.sott.net/article/465955-Poland-should-claim-Russian-region-general-says

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Biden implies US would use chemical weapons if Russia did - Sullivan has to correct him
The United States has no intention of using chemical weapons under any circumstances, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters on Friday. The comment comes after President Joe Biden said on Thursday that a Russian deployment of such substances in Ukraine would trigger "a response in kind." Biden's statement led to speculation that the US would intervene militarily in Ukraine if Russia used chemical weapons, whether by conventional means or by using chemical weapons of its own. Biden, who has thus far ruled out direct American involvement in the ongoing conflict, added that "the nature of the response would depend on the nature of the use." Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Sullivan said on Friday that Biden's use of the phrase "response in kind" was referring to proportionality, and that "there will be a severe price if Russia uses chemical weapons." Biden, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg have all warned Russia...
https://www.sott.net/article/465956-Biden-implies-US-would-use-chemical-weapons-if-Russia-did-Sullivan-has-to-correct-him

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Universities follow the politics, not the science
At the start of 2022, both Rachel Fulton Brown, an associate professor of history at the University of Chicago, and Donald J. Boudreaux, an economics professor at George Mason University, fed up with the draconian dictats and bureaucratic overreach of their respective institutions, published letters openly calling out their universities for their intellectual and moral failures in how they responded to the Covid pandemic. Fulton Brown's letter to UChicago president, Paul Alivisatos, and provost, Ka Yee C. Lee, lamented her school's failure to lead the charge against fashionable Covid mitigation policies, while exhorting the institution to change course, celebrate those who exhibited the courage to "stand for SCIENTIFIC INQUIRY over POLITICAL GRANDSTANDING," and acknowledge they have "students intelligent enough to see through the gaslighting and fear to the real questions we should be asking about what it means to be a great school." Boudreaux's memo to GMU president, Gregory...
https://www.sott.net/article/465957-Universities-follow-the-politics-not-the-science

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The Science of Evil: A personal review of Political Ponerology
A new edition of Political Ponerology, by Andrew M. Łobaczewski, edited by Harrison Koehli, is now available on Amazon.1 This strange and provocative book argues that totalitarianism is the result of the extension of psychopathology from a group of psychopaths to the entire body politic, including its political and economic systems. Political Ponerology is essential reading for concerned thinkers and all sufferers of past and present totalitarianism. It is especially crucial today, when totalitarianism has once again emerged, this time in the West, where it is affecting nearly every aspect of life, including especially the life of the mind. When I first encountered Political Ponerology, I had been struggling to understand just how totalitarian leftism had effectively taken over the United States of America. Ever since my encounters with the rabid social justice warriors as a professor at New York University — recounted in my book Springtime for Snowflakes — I began to note, with no...
https://www.sott.net/article/465958-The-Science-of-Evil-A-personal-review-of-Political-Ponerology

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US brands India's response to Ukraine war 'unsatisfactory'
India's refusal to cast aside its longstanding friendship with Russia over the war in Ukraine is "unsatisfactory," US diplomat Mira Rapp-Hooper told an online conference hosted by the School of Advanced International Studies, while admitting it was also "unsurprising." Rapp-Hooper, director for the Indo-Pacific region on the White House's National Security Council, was specifically referring to India's recent votes at the United Nations, where it has declined to come out against Russian actions in Ukraine and remained silent in the Security Council votes on the matter. "I think we would certainly all acknowledge and agree that when it comes to votes at the UN, India's position on the current crisis has been unsatisfactory, to say the least. But it's also been totally unsurprising," she said on Friday. While explaining that India had strengthened its ties with Russia for its own safety as its relationship with China deteriorated, the American diplomat suggested the country was now...
https://www.sott.net/article/465959-US-brands-Indias-response-to-Ukraine-war-unsatisfactory

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Strange new type of solar wave defies physics
Scientists have detected a strange new type of high-frequency wave on the sun's surface, and the waves are moving three times faster than scientists thought was possible. The acoustic waves, called high-frequency retrograde (HFR) vorticity waves, were spotted rippling backward through the sun's plasma in the opposite direction of its rotation. The previously unknown type of wave was described in a study published March 24 in the journal Nature Astronomy. Scientists can't see into the sun's fiery depths, so they often measure the acoustic waves that move across its surface and bounce back toward its core to infer what's going on inside. But the unprecedented speed of the HFR waves, spotted in 25 years of data from space and ground-based telescopes, has hinted that scientists might be missing something big. "The very existence of HFR modes and their origin is a true mystery and may allude to exciting physics at play," co-author Shravan Hanasoge, an astrophysicist at New York...
https://www.sott.net/article/465960-Strange-new-type-of-solar-wave-defies-physics

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Ring of Fire activity increases today, tremors hit Esmeraldas, Ecuador
A series of earthquakes hitting Esmeraldas in Ecuador on March 26th and today, March 27th 2022. Three earthquakes hit between 11 at night and 1 in the morning, with the largest measured at 5.8 magnitude on the Richter scale. Residents ran from their homes as tremors rocked buildings. Power cuts were seen, as electricity supplies were affected. Buildings were damaged by the earthquakes, with walls showing cracks and windows smashed in homes, businesses and hospitals. This is the latest in a period of tectonic activity on the Pacific Ring of Fire, including an eruption of the Taal volcano in the Philippines. Authorities are assessing this situation as it develops.
https://www.sott.net/article/465961-Ring-of-Fire-activity-increases-today-tremors-hit-Esmeraldas-Ecuador