WilliamM

New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/13/style/racy-gay-scenes-in-how-to-get-away-with-murder-draw-a-following.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=mini-moth&region=top-stories-below&WT.nav=top-stories-below

I really appreciate all the good wishes I received today. The best way to approach a veteran is to ask about what he/she actually did in the military. I have never met anyone in the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Coast Guard who did have at least two or three good and funny stories. I know I have more than my share. Again, thanks to the people here. Your good thoughts on Memorial Day and Veterans Day always cheer me!

I had an orbital fracture and a cheek-bone fracture as the result of a bad fall three years ago. It's impossible to assess the extent of the orbital fracture in the seconds or minutes after it happens. Even after being taken to the emergency room and going through all the tests, x-rays, etc., it took a while. I only learned anything the next morning when the head doctor called me and said that an operation was not needed. He forecast that every other doctor would recommend an operation. He was right. I am fine, except for some minor lingering difficulty looking up. But, you do not lose your sense of proportion at any time, and shooting someone many times should never have been an option.

I believe the problem now is not bodies left in a field, but who (the separatists) has control of the bodies in refrigerated rail cars and morgues. Yes, it is extremely disturbing to everyone, especially the families. It is unfair to characterize all the separatists at the crash site as thugs strutting around with guns. That's just not the case. Some of the separatists have been very helpful and caring, but not the leadership. Based on an e-mail from an British-American friend at the crash site sent at 12:34 AM this morning Ukrainian time.

When the directive was issued, it was NOT known that the separatists had weapons that could reach above 32,000 feet. The separatist had shot down Ukrainian planes at a lower height earlier in the week. Experts have been quoted in newspapers and said on TV in the last few days that the Malaysians did nothing wrong in flying at 33,000 feet.

Not everyone still considered Eastern Ukraine a major war zone after Putin removed a large number of Russian troops from the Ukraine/Russia border. In reality, things have been falling apart in Eastern Ukraine, despite some major recent government victories near Donetsk. Maryinka and Mariupol are still under separatist control, yet Kiev has been shelling both cities regularly this week. Yesterday, CNN was showing radar reports of commercial planes still flying over Eastern Ukraine after the Malaysian plane was shot down

My understanding from watching CNN almost non-stop is that the Malaysian plane was flying a slightly different route than most commercial airplanes because of weather problems to the south. And we know that the separatists had shot down two Ukrainian planes earlier this week. If that message was from Strelkov, it is the first time anyone has broken the news. I believe Strelkov is de facto minister of defense in the DPR (Donetsk People's Republic). Borodai is "prime minister." We probably will not know much until the DPR's next press conference, and see who shows up to discuss the situation and answer questions. A friend was recently discussing Strelkov's extension and impressive military experience with Russia, including serving in Bosnia on the Serbian side in the 1990s. I agreed, but there comes a time for many people when twenty years of combat experience is too much; that may be true for Strelkov.

I have a good friend who is a freelance reporter near Donetsk. He posted several hours ago on Facebook about arriving at the crash site tomorrow (Friday) morning. Good luck. If there was any logic here, I would speculate that the splinter separatist groups are responsible, not Strelkov and Birodai. They are thugs of the first order, but capable of conducting long press conferences (see YouTube) and very occasionally sounding as if they know what they are doing -- whatever the Kremlin tells them.

The major TV news networks and cable are covering the crash non-stop. The Malaysian plane came down in between Donetsk and Luhanak, an area contolled by the separatists. The Ukrainian government has been saying for the last few days that at least one of its planes was shot down by a missile also near the Russian border. The two separatists leaders, Strelkov and Borodai, have stated many times that they are Russian "volunteers" from Moscow. But, there are also separatists, who are pro-Russian and resent Russian leaderships, rather than Eastern Ukraine leadership. If the separatists shot down the Malaysian plane, it would be the culmination of a tricky situation for Putin; he maintained somewhat aloof from the chaos in Eastern Ukraine lately. But, rogue activity was always a possibility with available Russian weapons. Right now there's no proof the plane was shot down!

The Grass is Singing by Doris Lessing. Lessing is the oldest person to ever win the Nobel Prize for Literature (2007), but was unable to travel to Stockholm for the award. She's still alive at age 93. Many of her books are about life in Zimbalwe; she is superb on British colonialism.

Ryan & Fredrik