Month: April 2023

Authored by Lloyd Brown via AmericanThinker.com,

According to the media, Artificial Intelligence (AI), is the greatest thing since sliced bread. AI is so smart that some worry it could take over the world and rule mankind.

But skeptics have found AI chatbots to be more than a little left-wing.

Recently, I argued with one over the worn-out liberal claim that conservatives are fascists, a notion that the left continues to mouth even though it was well refuted by Jonah Goldberg in Liberal Fascism.

It was like pulling a tooth, but I got this crucial admission: “…conservatism and fascism are not the same thing.”

Here’s how the discussion went:

Me: What’s the difference between socialism and fascism?

AI: Socialism and fascism are two different political ideologies, although there can be some overlap in their policies and practices. Socialism is a political and economic system where the means of production are commonly owned and controlled by the state, or by worker cooperatives, with the goal of achieving greater equality and reducing societal inequalities. Socialism espouses the idea of collective ownership and distribution of resources. Fascism, on the other hand, is a far-right authoritarian political system that puts the nation and its interests above everything else, including individual rights and freedoms. Fascism advocates for a powerful government with a leader who has absolute power over the state and a strong military to maintain order and control. In summary, socialism aims at achieving economic and social equality, while fascism prioritizes the nation’s interests and gives the government absolute power.

Me: How can that be possible when the right, conservatives, oppose big government? Isn’t what you said total nonsense and liberal propaganda?

AI: I apologize if my previous response was unclear. I was attempting to provide an objective and neutral explanation of socialism and fascism. However, you are correct that conservatism is generally associated with small government and a free-market economy, which is in contrast to socialism. Conservatives generally believe in limited government intervention in the economy, low taxes, and individual freedom. Socialism, on the other hand, advocates for greater government involvement in the economy and the redistribution of wealth to create a more equitable society. While there may be some similarities between socialist policies and conservative policies in terms of their emphasis on protecting the interests of the common people, their approaches to achieving these goals are quite different. Regarding your comment about “liberal propaganda,” it is important to recognize that political ideologies and perspectives can be influenced by a variety of factors, and it is important to seek out diverse perspectives to form a more comprehensive understanding of issues.

Me: Conservatives value individual freedom, as you said. So if conservatives are right-wing, in what way is fascism right-wing if it puts the nation and its interests above everything else? If the left-wing, or liberals, are for big government, aren’t they the real fascists?

AI: Fascism is considered to be right-wing because of its authoritarian and nationalist tendencies. It is a political ideology that emphasizes the supreme authority of the state over individuals and groups, as well as the importance of the nation above all else. This means that individual liberties and freedoms are typically suppressed in the name of national unity and power. However, it’s important to note that conservatism and fascism are not the same thing. While conservatism does value individual freedom, it also places a high value on traditional values, limited government, and free-market capitalism. Fascism, on the other hand, seeks to achieve power through authoritarian means and has a strong tendency towards anti-democratic and anti-individualistic policies. Additionally, the idea that the left-wing or liberals are the real fascists is a common misconception. While some left-wing ideologies such as communism can be authoritarian, fascism is a distinctly right-wing ideology. It’s important to avoid oversimplifying political ideologies and to understand their complexities in order to have informed political discussions.

Notice that it was struggling with its answer at this point and beginning to ignore its own advice about “oversimplifying.”

Curiously, at that exact time, I got a notice that the ”socket” had failed and was advised to reload the page. When I did the discussion disappeared.

I had intended to bear down on the differences between fascism, socialism, and communism, which the bot already had conceded had similarities although it continued to insist that liberals were not fascists and fascism was “right wing.”

We must remember that artificial intelligence is artificial. It is programmed and he who writes the code is the master of its “thoughts.” My experience provides further evidence the code is not bipartisan.

But it was smart enough to reject the far Left’s claim that conservatives are fascists.

The war in Ukraine is so profitable for defense companies in the US and Europe that they’re having trouble finding thousands of skilled workers to satisfy a record influx of orders, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Part of the issue is that jobs in the defense industry require niche skills and security clearances – a problem compounded by a flood of defense companies trying to hire at the same time in an industry which has long struggled to meet recruitment goals.

“Our first priority is really to ramp up capacity, which, of course, means increasing staff,” according to Patrice Caine, CEO of French component maker Thales, which plans to hire 12,000 people this year to make submarine sensors, jets, and other military items. Caine described the situation as “tensions on some labor markets,” which they plan to deal with by outsourcing to ‘foreign engineering centers,’ as well as relying on corporate partners.

In 2022, global military spending rose 3.7% to a record $2.24 trillion – with European expenditures increasing at its steepest YoY rate in at least 30 years, according to data released Monday by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, a think tank.

The labor shortage among US defense contractors has been an issue since last year, when efforts to replace workers from pandemic furloughs were accelerated – and most companies failing to hit their recruitment goals. That said, hiring has improved in recent months according to the report.

In Europe, however, the problem may actually get worse – with European governments increasing military spending, causing weapons makers – particularly munitions manufacturers – to launch large recruitment drives.

Europe’s largest defense company, BAE Systems PLC, is hiring 2,600 this year for its apprentice and graduate training programs, and several thousand more for other roles. Missile maker MBDA wants to add 2,000 workers, equivalent to more than 15% of its workforce. Others including Saab AB, the Swedish maker of the Gripen jet fighter, and Rheinmetall AG, the German company that helps make the Leopard tank, also plan to hire thousands of new workers. -WSJ

“Defense companies are worried at the moment about recruitment,” according to ADS Group Chief Economist, Aimie Stone, citing competition for talent within the industry, along with a revived civil aerospace sector and an emerging space industry. According to Stone, ADS members had 10,000 job openings at the end of last year.

UK-based recruiter, Kieran Slaughter, says the defense industry has always posed recruitment challenges, as automakers and airplane manufacturers are competing for the same talent pool, tend to pay more, and don’t require security clearances – a process which can take 2-8 weeks in Europe, and several months in the US.

“Some candidates don’t want to wait around,” said Slaughter.

What’s more, many jobs in the defense industry are highly specialized – such as warhead engineers – which Colin McClean, a managing director at BAE Systems, says are a “rare commodity.”

US Navy shipbuilder, General Dynamics, was in one of the hardest-hit sectors during the pandemic. In 2022 it hired 24,000 staff – yet, due to attrition and retirements, its net head count was up only 3,400 to 106,500.

Another shipbuilder, Huntington Ingalls Industries, is focusing on recruiting from apprentice schools and community colleges, according to CEO Chris Kastner.

“If people choose the career, they stay,” he said. “There’s the high chance of attrition now with walk-in individuals.”

Lockheed Martin VP of enterprise performance, Paula Hartley, says the space is “a tough place sometimes to recruit people to,” referring to the company’s facility in Camden, Arkansas – located around 100 miles from the state capital – which employs around 1,000 staff and plans to hire another 200 to make Javelin missiles and Himars rocket launchers. Despite holding job fairs and recruiting farther afield with sign-on bonuses and pay raises, they still have open positions posted since January.

Saab, the Swedish manufacturer, has taken to posting billboards, online ads, holding student job fairs, and a social media campaign.

Today Saab delivers Sweden’s new SIGINT-ship HMS Artemis to the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration, FMV. Read the story here –> https://t.co/w1UeI3xAS8#proudshipbuilders pic.twitter.com/olKEmruNmG

— Saab (@Saab) April 28, 2023

Imagine what would happen if peace broke out?

Authored by Petr Svab via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

It was a dream come true—or rather about to come true—when the Halls bought their forever home. It had everything they needed and more: five bedrooms, four bathrooms, a family room, a dining room, a roomy garage, good schools, and a good neighborhood. Sure, a fixer-upper, but they felt up to it. Prentiss Hall, a home improvement contractor, made it his life project, and everybody lent a hand—his wife, Tawanda, and six children, cousins, and friends.

“We were really excited,” Tawanda told The Epoch Times.

They negotiated the price down to $67,000—a bargain, perhaps, but the home demanded a daunting amount of “tender love and care.”

“The house had been sitting there for a while. I guess it had mold in it, and it needed new windows and doors and electric,” Tawanda said.

“The city made us get all kinds of permits to get the house up to code. So we went in there and just started working.”

It took about a year before they were able to move into the home in the quiet Detroit suburb of Southfield, Michigan. And it was several years before they felt “comfortable” with it, she said.

The result was worth it.

“It was a dream home. It was big enough … for our family to be there, we had plenty of rooms, big enough to have our holiday dinners, and everyone can come and be comfortable,” she said.

For a Detroit girl, it was nice to have a peaceful place to live, away from all the noise and hustle.

“We just hoped and planned to stay and grow and raise grandchildren and, you know,” she paused.

“But—,” her voice trailed into a sigh.

Shattered Dreams

Several years in, the Halls got into financial trouble. Tawanda’s handicapped brother and her sick mother moved in with them even as all their money still went into improving the house.

“We just had a lot of things happening at once,” she said. “Before I knew it, I was behind on all my taxes.”

Property tax on the 3,700-square-foot home ran over $5,000. In a few years, the debt ballooned to over $22,000, including interest and fees.

In February 2018, Oakland County foreclosed on the home.

The next month, the county put the Halls on a payment plan of $650 a month intended to allow them to get the house back. They prepaid a few months in advance and were told that they don’t need to worry about timely payments as long as they caught up on the payments by February 2019, according to court documents reviewed by The Epoch Times (pdf, pdf).

In June 2018, however, the county suddenly transferred the property to the city of Southfield, which had a preferential right to buy foreclosed properties for the price of the debt.

The Halls were informed they had to move out.

Four months later, the city gave the property to a private company, Southfield Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative, for $1.

In early 2020, the house was put on the market and then sold for more than $300,000.

To the Halls’ shock, they learned they were not entitled to a single penny of that payout.

“I feel like someone stole from me and my family,” Tawanda said.

Less than a month later, Prentiss Hall passed away. Loss of the house put him under enormous stress, and his health deteriorated, she said.

Widespread Problem

Thousands of Americans have been put in a similar position—losing their homes and other properties over tax debts that only represented a small fraction of the property value.

In most of the country, such a practice is illegal. Local authorities are allowed to foreclose on properties over unpaid taxes, but they are required to sell them and return the owners everything above what they owe.

There are 12 states plus the District of Columbia that allow governments to keep the whole property and all sales proceeds: Maine, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Alabama, Minnesota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Colorado, Arizona, and Oregon.

Another nine states have various loopholes, mostly allowing the government to keep such properties for public use (like in Alaska, California, Idaho, Nevada, Ohio, and Rhode Island). Montana allows the government to keep all proceeds from the sale of commercial properties, not residential ones. Texas allows governments to sell properties at a discount in some circumstances. Wisconsin allows governments to keep the properties, but if they sell them, excess proceeds go back to the original owners, according to Pacific Legal Foundation (PLF), a nonprofit that has been tracking and litigating the issue.

Between 2014 and 2021, this practice has cost homeowners over $860 million in home value—equity—spread over some 6,200 homes. But those are only the cases PLF was able to document by looking at the more populous counties in the 12 states and only at homes for which there was enough information available. For thousands more, there wasn’t enough information. And there are untold more the PLF hasn’t looked at yet.

Most of the lost equity was wasted by selling the houses at a deep discount. About $30 million actually ended up in government coffers, while another about $280 million was pocketed by private investors that buy property tax debt from governments and then foreclose on the homes and sell them, based on data from nearly 4,700 property sales.

Legal Battle

For PLF lawyer David Deerson, the issue boils down to theft.

“It’s true that the government can take your property with few limits, but one of the limits is, whatever it takes, it has to pay you for it,” he told The Epoch Times.

Governments have been defending the practice on “legalistic” grounds, in his view.

“It’s commonly understood that property rights are not created by the Constitution. They’re protected by the Constitution, but they’re created by other sources of law, such as state law.”

Thus, governments have argued property owners don’t own the value of a property in excess of a debt unless the specific state law says so.

“There can’t be a property right in equity because if you look at the way the statutes are written, they don’t provide you with a chance to get your equity back,” Deerson explained the argument.

PLF and a lineup of legal and advocacy groups across the political spectrum disagree.

“In every single other context you can possibly imagine, equity is treated as a property right,” he said.

In a divorce, equity in a home is treated as part of the wealth being divided. In a private foreclosure, the bank cannot take a penny beyond what it’s owed.

“Of course, they have to pay you back the surplus equity. Why? Because you have a property right to it,” Deerson said.

“Equity isn’t treated as a property right only if it’s the government itself trying to take it.”

In 2020, PLF secured a ruling by the Michigan Supreme Court that outlawed the practice of governments keeping extra proceeds from tax foreclosures in the state. That should have resolved Tawanda’s case, but the government has continued to litigate the issue in federal courts.

In October, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, which covers Michigan, ruled the practice unconstitutional, but the state government appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, leaving the case pending.

Earlier this year, the Supreme Court announced it would pick up a similar case in Minnesota, where a 94-year-old grandmother lost her condo over some $15,000 in unpaid taxes and fees. The local government sold the condo for $40,000, again keeping every penny.

PLF is in the process of arguing the case before the Supreme Court, with the first hearing scheduled for April 26.

The case, Tyler v. Hennepin County, could decide the fate of Tawanda Hall and thousands of others.

“I’m hoping that they can change the law because it’s unfair to a lot of families who put their lives into their homes,” Tawanda said.

‘Wrong’ Argument

While the issue may seem clear-cut, courts have been split on it for decades.

In Nebraska, for example, the state’s Supreme Court has affirmed the practice. So did, last year, the federal appeals court for the Eight Circuit, which covers several states that allow the practice—Nebraska, South Dakota, and Minnesota.

It was the split between the Sixth and Eight Circuits, both stemming from PLF cases, that likely prompted the Supreme Court to pick up the issue, according to Deerson.

He didn’t think the Nebraska Supreme Court was malicious in its ruling.

“We just think the court got it wrong,” he said.

Read more here…

“I, at least, think of myself as a moderate,” Elon Musk told Bill Maher during an appearance Friday night on the comedian’s HBO show.

Despite being decried by all asunder as a ‘far-right conservative operative’ or some such hyperbole, Musk said:

“I spent a massive amount of my life energy building sustainable energy, you know, electric vehicles, and batteries, and solar. It’s not exactly far-right.”

Musk made his opinion clear a year ago – he hasn’t changed, the world has…

pic.twitter.com/Q9OjlJhi7f

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 28, 2022

And somehow in all this divisive bullshit, ‘allowing’ free speech has become a virtue of the far-right, the enablers of violence, the fascists

“Free speech used to be a left or liberal value, and yet we see from the quote ‘left’ a desire to actually censor, and that seems crazy.”

“I think we should be extremely concerned about anything that undermines the First Amendment,” Musk said.

More explicitly regarding his acquisition or, and changes made at, Twitter, Musk said:

“My concern with Twitter was to that it is somewhat of the digital town square and it’s important that there be both the reality and perception of trust for a wide range of viewpoints.“

Maher responded that he does not tweet any more because “it’s too easy to get canceled” by a mob.

“Because you may be the mayor of tweet town now and I’m glad – I like it that the mayor likes my jokes – but the reason I don’t do it anymore is because the mob of mean girls is still there and that has not changed.

Like, it’s too easy to get canceled and I don’t even know what pisses them off: they’re so nuts, these kids.

I feel like I’m walking on a roof with a blind fold: I could fall off anytime, that was the most innocuous thing, but it’s like, you know, I said George Washington was a great president – oh how dare you,” Maher continued.

“You have to say, like, what does canceled mean? You know – I mean, yes, if people attack you on Twitter that’s one thing – but frankly that’s just going to increase engagement. So I would just ignore it,” Musk replied somewhat prosaically.

And so Maher stepped it up a little more:

“You have talked about this woke mind virus in really apocalyptic terms,” Maher asked Musk

 “I don’t – you should explain why you don’t think it’s hyperbole to say things like it’s pushing civilization towards suicide. First of all, what is the woke mind virus?”

Musk responded much more clearly this time:

“I think we need to be very cautious about anything that is anti-meritocratic and anything that results in the suppression of free speech,” Musk said.

“So, those are two of the aspects of the woke mind virus that I think are very dangerous, is that it’s often very anti-meritocratic, and you can’t question things. Even the questioning is bad.”

Maher agreed, and asked Musk where he thinks this ‘woke mind virus’ originated from:

“I was trying to figure out where it’s coming from. I think it’s actually been a long time brewing, in that it’s – I think it’s been going on for a while, and the amount of indoctrination that’s happening in schools and universities is I think far beyond what parents realize,” Musk said.

Watch the full interview below:

Authored by Jonathan Turley,

In a surprising statement to The Wall Street Journal today, Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito says he has a “pretty good idea” who leaked a draft opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. He strongly suggested that it was someone who opposed the opinion and wanted to pressure the justices not to go forward with the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

Alito told the newspaper “I personally have a pretty good idea who is responsible, but that’s different from the level of proof that is needed to name somebody.”

Alito’s confidence runs counter to the two-page statement of the court that the team led by Marshal of the Supreme Court Gail Curley “has to date been unable to identify a person responsible by a preponderance of the evidence.” That is a standard lower than “beyond a reasonable doubt.” It is often used in civil cases, but the evidence was viewed as below that standard.

He added  “It was a part of an effort to prevent the Dobbs draft…from becoming the decision of the court. And that’s how it was used for those six weeks by people on the outside—as part of the campaign to try to intimidate the court.”

The statement suggests that such information on the specific suspect was shared with the justices.

If this was a clerk and the evidence is known to all of the justices, it would be interesting if the justice responsible for the appointment felt comfortable in recommending the young lawyer for later employment.

Alito’s statement contradicts those in the media like NPR’s Nina Totenberg who insisted that “the only [theory] that makes sense” is that a conservative leaked the opinion.

“That’s infuriating to me,” Justice Alito says of the theory.

“Look, this made us targets of assassination. Would I do that to myself? Would the five of us have done that to ourselves? It’s quite implausible.”

At the time, I criticized Totenberg’s claim as entirely unsupported and illogical.

We know from the investigation that clerks (but not justices) were asked to sign affidavits after their interviews and the marshals emphasized that “If investigators later determine any personnel lied to the investigators, those personnel would be subject to prosecution for a false statement.”

In a weird way, it seems even more troubling that the likely culprit may have been identified, but has proceeded into practice as an attorney.

As I have previously written, this was a crushing blow to the Court and its traditions of integrity and civility. You cannot be an attorney after violating these core principles of our profession. This is akin to being an atheist priest or an arsonist architect. It is simply incompatible with our core identity, including being “officers of the court.”

Whoever is responsible for this leak violated the most fundamental rules of ethics in our profession. It was a betrayal of not just the Court and the bar, but the public in shattering the confidentiality of the judicial process.

What is even more troubling is that, if the culprit were to come forward, the individual would likely be lionized by many. Indeed, I would not be surprised if, after the statute of limitations has passed, there could come a time when this person may want to take “credit” for this disgraceful act. However, that may not occur for some time since this person likely wants to continue to practice as a lawyer despite violating an oath, making false statements, and disrupting the highest court.

Yet, it did not change the result. Indeed, it may have backfired. If this was a liberal, the effort to pressure the Court may have only reinforced the resolve of the majority to hold firm on the position from the Dobbs draft.

Iran’s navy has released new footage showing elite commandos seizing a foreign vessel in the Gulf of Oman two days ago.

The Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker Advantage Sweet had been moving Kuwaiti oil to Houston under Chevron, but while en route was boarded by Iranian troops who propelled down to the vessel’s deck from a helicopter, the footage shows.

Two days ago, #Iran Navy seized a tanker in #Oman Sea which was carrying several tons of oil to the United States. 8-2306, an ASH-3D Sea King helicopter of #IranianNavy Aviation was used by the Navy Marines for capturing this Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker named ‘Advantage… pic.twitter.com/5dtE8bmDlo

— Babak Taghvaee – The Crisis Watch (@BabakTaghvaee1) April 29, 2023

“Advantage Sweet was seized by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy while transiting international waters in the Gulf of Oman,” the US Navy said Thursday.

But it was later revealed that the Iranian assault on the vessel was in retaliation for the United States days prior to this seizing Iranian oil that was bound for China. 

“US authorities ordered a tanker of Iranian crude oil to redirect towards the US in recent days, in a move officials believe was the trigger for Iran’s decision to capture a US-bound tanker on Thursday,” the FT reported Friday. 

“Three people briefed on the situation said the US had intervened to summon a ship loaded with Iranian crude, originally destined for China, as Washington looks to step up enforcement of sanctions on Tehran.”

More footage aired on Iranian state media:

#Iran|ian navy commandos seized a US-bound tanker “Advantage Sweet” in the Gulf of Oman. It seems the tanker was captured in retaliation to the recent seizure of an Iranian oil shipment by the #US.

Read here: https://t.co/v631aDkBVx pic.twitter.com/amwxrvWmGj

— IWN (@A7_Mirza) April 29, 2023

Meanwhile, Iran is boasting that it is stepping up hosting joint maritime drills with its more powerful military partners China and Russia…

Iran welcomes the expansion of joint military drills with China, and believes such exercises will help defuse the threat posed to both nations by American-led unilateralism, Defense Minister Mohammad Reza Ashtiani has said on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) defense ministers meeting in New Delhi, India, held on April 28-29.

“The regional and international situation is changing, and as a result, the expansion of relations between Iran and China has become more important than in the past,” Ashtiani said, speaking to his Chinese counterpart, Li Shangfu, on Saturday.

With “friends” like these, Tehran is likely to feel emboldened to go after more international tankers, and especially those carrying crude bound for the US. At the same time, some Congressional hawks have been calling on the Biden administration to get even more aggressive in cracking down in Iran’s sanctions-busting activities.

Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

The imposition of mask mandates among school children during the pandemic did not affect the incidence of COVID-19 infection, according to research conducted in Finland.

The study, published in the journal BMC Public Health on April 21, was conducted in three Finnish cities—Helsinki, Turku, and Tampere. These cities had similar baseline incidences of COVID-19 between August and September 2021. At the time, the federal government had recommended using masks in schools for children aged 12 years and above. In Helsinki and Tampere, the national recommendation was imposed as mandates at schools while in Turku, the mandate was levied on kids aged 10 and above.

The research team looked at the effects of masks on two groups of children—those between seven and nine years and those between 10 and 12. While the seven to 10-year-olds were not subject to mask mandates, 10-12 years olds had to wear masks.

“According to our analysis, no additional effect was gained from mandating masks, based on comparisons between the cities and between the age groups of the unvaccinated children (10–12 years versus 7–9 years),” the study said.

“Face mask recommendations in schools did not reduce COVID-19 incidence among 10–12-year-olds in Finland. This may indicate that COVID-19 cases in schools merely reflect community infections than school outbreaks.”

Ineffective Masks

The Finnish study cited Spanish research on mask mandates in schools which found that masking was not associated with lower COVID-19 incidence or transmission. The transmission risk in schools was found to be lower than in households.

It also cited a late 2022 study from the United States which found that lifting mask requirements was associated with an increase in COVID-19 cases among students and staff.

“However, this study aggregated data from all age groups, making it difficult to determine how the effects of mask recommendations might vary by age,” the Finnish study stated.

Multiple other studies have also suggested that masks may be ineffective when it comes to controlling COVID-19.

On April 13, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said that it could not find evidence as to whether N95 or similar medical-grade masks protect clinically vulnerable people from getting seriously ill from the disease.

A review by the UKHSA of thousands of primary studies about the effectiveness of face coverings could not find anything on whether wearing N75 or similar respirators could protect people or not. This is quite significant given that N95 respirators are considered to be very efficient in filtering airborne particles.

Mask Harms

In addition to being ineffective, wearing masks also turns out to be harmful. A systematic review of 2,168 studies that looked at the adverse effects of wearing masks during COVID-19 found that many people suffered from health consequences like headaches and itching as a result.

Read more here…

The day after Russia mounted large-scale airstrikes and cruise missile attacks on cities across Ukraine, drones penetrated Crimea air defenses on Saturday and blew up a fuel depot in the peninsula’s main port of Sevastopol. 

Home to Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, the port city has throughout the war come under sporadic long-distance drone attacks from Ukraine, also as President Zelensky has continued to promised its “liberation”.

Throughout much of Saturday a huge fire raged in the Kazachya Bay district of the city, with governor of Sevastopol Mikhail Razvozhayev first announcing on Telegram that “according to preliminary information, it was caused by a drone strike.”

He also confirmed the fire’s very large size, at “around 1,000 square meters” – as social media images and footage circulate showing a massive fireball and smoke cloud. 

“There is no threat to civilian infrastructure,” he said of the attack which resulted in no fatalities or injuries. Later in the day the fire was reported to be under control and contained by emergency responders.

A video after 2 hours since the explosions atbthe oil terminal in Kozacha bay pic.twitter.com/J7hdIEf6dK

— Giorgi Revishvili (@revishvilig) April 29, 2023

According to more from Russian state media, “The governor also revealed that the oil storage had been targeted by at least two unmanned aircraft, the first of which was shot down by the depot’s guards.” And further, “The second one, however, made it through, causing the massive fire.”

Ukrainian UAVs have of late also been making it deep into Russia-proper, with a drone on Monday being found crashed in a forest outside of Moscow.

Ukrainian forces are trying to make life uncomfortable for Russian leadership, given the recent rumors of “assassination” attempts using drones. 

BREAKING: Massive smoke spotted from miles away after an oil storage facility in the city of Sevastopol in Crimea was targeted in a drone attack pic.twitter.com/tDM3kt06Xu

— Insider Paper (@TheInsiderPaper) April 29, 2023

Last month President Putin himself visited Crimea for ceremonies marking the the ninth anniversary of its annexation from Ukraine through the ‘popular referendum’ held by authorities there, which resulted in an overwhelming vote to join the Russian Federation.