unicorn

I was thinking more about Nguyễn Văn Thiệu. I thought he was democratically elected, although, based on your post, I looked it up, and it appears the election was generally considered fraudulent. I can only hope the intention was to set up democratic elections. This was all before my time, as I was a young boy at the end of the Vietnam War (which, in Vietnam, they call the American War 😉, having spent 10 days there in early 2023. The elections which were held in Afghanistan between the Taliban Emirates were generally considered free and fair. As you pointed out, there are many ways to rig elections, including control of the press, or simply killing one's opponents, as Putin does.

Wow. You honestly don't remember that Russia abandoned its (unelected) puppet government in Afghanistan? Maybe you might want to get evaluated for dementia? The US supported the establishment of democratically elected governments in Afghanistan and Vietnam, and provided the democratic governments with training and support for as long as it was tenable. When it became clear that the people would not fight for themselves to save democracy in their own countries, the US withdrew its support. Now both countries are corrupt dictatorships, especially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, where women have trouble getting even an education, much less a job. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women_in_Afghanistan#Second_Islamic_Emirate_of_Afghanistan_(2021-) "...In August 2021, the Taliban returned to power and established a new all-male government. The interim government has not been recognized internationally, since the international community linked recognition to respect for women's and minority rights.[89] Despite repeated assurances by the Taliban that women's rights would be respected, severe restrictions have been placed on their access to education and work. In some areas, the Taliban forced women to stop working altogether.[90] The Taliban's policy on women's right to work is unclear. Taliban deputy prime minister, Abdul Salam Hanafi, has said that the Taliban are "trying to provide working conditions for women in the sector where they are needed, according to Islamic law". This seems to allow women to work in certain sectors under certain restrictions.[62] Education in lower grades resumed only in classes segregated by gender. In higher grades (7 through 12) and at the university level, classes for girls and women have been suspended. On 27 September, the new chancellor of Kabul University, Mohammad Ashraf Ghairat, announced that women were not allowed to return to university to either study or work...". At least Vietnam has recently been ruled by people who are sane and intelligent, which I can't say is true for the Russian Federation (or the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan or Belarus).

Well, they are participating, though not with their own troops, of course. And what's this about WWIII? Do you really think Belarus and Kazakhstan would help you out if NATO gets fully involved? Or maybe the mighty forces of Kyrgystan and Armenia? 😄😄

NATO would crush the Russian Federation. We have both better quantity and quality. Narva's only 150 km from Petrograd...

https://www.forbes.com/sites/tylerroush/2024/08/23/rfk-jr-endorses-trump-after-calling-him-sociopath---his-reversal-explained/ "Despite recent public statements of support for one another, Trump and Kennedy, Jr., the two have expressed bitterness for one another in the past: In text messages obtained by The New Yorker earlier this month, Kennedy called Trump a “terrible human being” and said the former president was “probably a sociopath” while attending the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee last month. After Trump called Kennedy a “Radical Left Lunatic” whose votes would be a “WASTED PROTEST VOTE” in April, Kennedy referred to Trump’s comments as “unhinged” and a “barely coherent barrage of wild and inaccurate claims” while calling Trump “frightened” to debate him. Kennedy also said in April Trump “promised to drain the swamp” before he “filled his administration with swamp creatures” and “promised to protect our rights and then torpedoed the Constitution,” in addition to claiming Trump “ran up the biggest debt” in U.S. history during his presidency. In May 2023, Kennedy said “UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES” would he join Trump on a presidential ticket, as their positions on issues and philosophies “could not be further apart.” In 2018, Kennedy denounced Trump’s decision to not investigate a link between vaccines in children and autism, reportedly saying those who placed “tremendous faith” in Trump were “feeling enormous betrayal and disappointment.” That same year, Kennedy wrote in NBC News condemning Trump’s presidential policies, suggesting they did not “actively encourage democracy abroad” and instead reached “some of the most tyrannical governments in the world,” adding the practice was “a discredit to democracy.”...". Two of the most despicable human beings on the planet. Down there with Putin. At least Putin is a consistent murderer.

You're right. When it comes to body counts, Russia can win almost any war with almost any single country, since life is cheap in Russia. I don't see you volunteering for the fight against the hapless Ukraine, though.

Belgian gymnast Luka van den Keybus:

I was just expanding on the prior comment "...including parts of your own country occupied by Germans 1941-43...", to point out that 1943 was not the last time foreign troops have occupied parts of Russian soil. 😉 Well, your country certainly has an ample supply of corpses to keep that war going as long as it wants. Whether it can replace the military hardware and supply of trained fighter pilots is more questionable.

Lord, we need to have a rolling eyes emoji which can be left as a reaction to postings. The Chinese are hardly colonizing Cambodia. However, the Ukrainians may now be colonizing Russia! 😄 A screenshot from a video purportedly showing Ukrainian soldiers tearing down a Russian flag in Sverdlikovo, Kursk. Footage widely circulating online on Sunday appear to show at least two different groups of fighters ripping down Russian flags attached to buildings in Kursk.

If you think that remittances don't contribute to the till, you're deeply mistaken. Foreign cash coming into a country's economy forms an integral part of the economy of many countries (most notably the Philippines). Money spent by foreigners can very much stimulate a country's economy. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Remittance "...Remittances make up a significant portion of economies of developing countries. Many receive over 10% of their gross domestic product (GDP) in remittances each year, with some exceptional cases as high as a third of their GDP...".

Arthur Nory Oyakawa Mariano, Brazilian Olympic openly gay gymnast (and fitness model).

It looks as though you didn't look very carefully at all. I have to support @Moses on this one. I went through that airport just last year. Even a nod to the French colonials... 😉

Well, the Philippines is one country I've never visited. Someone considering moving there might consider contacting one of the organizations mentioned in this webpage: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_culture_in_the_Philippines I'm not recommending the Philippines out of personal experience (although I do have a number of straight acquaintances from there, and know that one of my fellow physicians was happy retiring there). It just seems from the OP, the Philippines are much more welcoming to foreign retirement than Thailand. I'd be especially turned off by the Thai policy of double-taxing the money I'd be spending there already.