Nostr notes by Kevin Rothrock

Russia’s deputy Senate speaker, Konstantin Kosachev, accuses ...

2026-10-23T00:43:26Z

Russia’s deputy Senate speaker, Konstantin Kosachev, accuses Zelensky of making a “panicked bet” that the U.S. midterms will weaken Trump, making him pull back from his current efforts to pressure Kyiv to capitulate. Assuming MAGA does suffer, I wonder if Trump pulls back or rages harder. https://t.me/tass_agency/401840

The Kremlin appears to be pitching American Eagle with an ...

2026-10-22T18:43:16Z

The Kremlin appears to be pitching American Eagle with an exciting new denim ad campaign: Putin claimed today that "recent genetic studies" show Russians and Ukrainians are “one people.” Eat your heart out, Sydney Sweeney's genes/jeans! https://t.me/bbbreaking/240648

Trump called Elon Musk and asked him to lift restrictions on a ...

2026-10-22T18:27:08Z

Trump called Elon Musk and asked him to lift restrictions on a military-grade version of Starlink satellite internet used in Ukraine, U.S. officials told the WSJ. Service improved Thursday, though Ukrainian officials said it wasn't fully restored. https://www.wsj.com/world/trump-called-musk-and-asked-him-to-lift-ukraine-starlink-restrictions-5aeebc6e?st=nxvhBv

Considering how obsessed MAGA politicians are with the male form ...

2026-10-22T13:41:59Z

Considering how obsessed MAGA politicians are with the male form and body shaming in general, do you consider it sinking to their level or only fair to point out how ironic it is that Trump is himself a fat tub of lard?

Mediazona found that Russia’s Amediateka streaming service cut ...

2026-10-22T13:18:48Z

Mediazona found that Russia’s Amediateka streaming service cut 12 hours of political content from foreign shows it carries, including criticism of Putin and references to the war in Ukraine. Even a White Lotus joke wasn't spared. Only LGBT-related scenes were cut more often. https://zona.media/amedia

Who you gonna believe? Me or your lying eyes? Russia’s Justice ...

2026-10-22T12:47:47Z

Who you gonna believe? Me or your lying eyes? Russia’s Justice Ministry calls reports of errors in its online exhibit on Russian sovereignty “foreign-agent lies.” The exhibit featured a garbled Putin quote & gibberish passages resembling AI hallucinations. Some mistakes persist despite corrections.
https://t.me/agentstvonews/17859

Russian Industry and Trade Minister Anton Alikhanov called the ...

2026-10-22T04:36:16Z

Russian Industry and Trade Minister Anton Alikhanov called the landing technology in Tesla’s new Roadster interesting but not new, noting that SpaceX has been landing rockets on launch pads for years. All a measly "wow effect." Как тебе, Илон Маск? https://www.vedomosti.ru/auto/articles/2026/10/21/1239056-alihanov-o-tesla-roadster

that escalated quickly ...

2026-10-22T00:50:11Z

that escalated quickly

More trouble in Galicia: Poland has reportedly paused a large ...

2026-10-21T21:05:42Z

More trouble in Galicia: Poland has reportedly paused a large military aid package for Ukraine after the Lviv regional council declared 2027 a year honoring the UPA, a WWII nationalist army that killed tens of thousands of ethnic Poles. https://www.rbc.ua/rus/news/polshcha-prizupinila-peredachu-ukrayini-paketa-1792600955.html

From Stanovaya: ...

2026-10-21T18:00:07Z

From Stanovaya: https://x.com/Stanovaya/status/2112951945929400524

Trump believes Ukraine is striking Russian refineries partly to ...

2026-10-21T16:06:07Z

Trump believes Ukraine is striking Russian refineries partly to hurt Republicans in the midterms, three people close to him told The Atlantic. His aides have threatened to withhold arms sales unless Kyiv stops. Advisers say he wants a peace deal signed at his Miami-area G20 summit in Dec. https://www.theatlantic.com/national-security/2026/10/trump-putin-russia-ukraine-midterms/689096/

Go figure: Trump’s deal to release Russian diesel onto global ...

2026-10-21T15:57:00Z

Go figure: Trump’s deal to release Russian diesel onto global markets is unlikely to bring prices down, analysts tell Reuters. The promised shipments are too small to ease shortages, and Russia has little spare fuel to export. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/global-diesel-prices-seen-staying-high-despite-trumps-deal-with-russia-2026-10-21/

I realize this line reflects the consensus among mainstream ...

2026-10-21T15:45:10Z

I realize this line reflects the consensus among mainstream trans-Atlantic experts and pundits, but I think it deserves more scrutiny. Russia might well press its aggression farther west if it wins in Ukraine, but Western support for Kyiv also raises the risk of a "wider war."

Putin told U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff that Russia is ready “in ...

2026-10-21T14:02:20Z

Putin told U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff that Russia is ready “in principle” to resume three-way talks with Ukraine and the United States in November on postwar security arrangements, according to Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov. https://www.interfax.ru/russia/1124011

An open letter from more than 100 scientists and environmental ...

2026-10-21T13:28:34Z

An open letter from more than 100 scientists and environmental experts urges Russian lawmakers to revise a bill that ostensibly only streamlines land transfers. They warn it could open nature reserves to gold mining, ski resorts, and other development. https://t.me/novaya_eu_istorii/5234

Russian journalist Svetlana Prokopyeva, prosecuted years ago over ...

2026-10-21T13:21:16Z

Russian journalist Svetlana Prokopyeva, prosecuted years ago over public commentary about a 2018 suicide bombing at an FSB security service office, says investigators are searching her Pskov apartment in connection with a case of “discrediting” the army. She now lives abroad. https://t.me/severrealii/34664

lol, a Russian court has fined a woman 30k rub for reposting an ...

2026-10-21T10:59:22Z

lol, a Russian court has fined a woman 30k rub for reposting an old announcement from the federal censor about lifting its ban on Telegram (a ban that's now unofficially back in place). Roskomnadzor argues that sharing the old news today could lead to "mass unrest." https://t.me/ostorozhno_novosti/56279

One theory about today's searches at Ukraine’s central ...

2026-10-21T10:55:53Z

One theory about today's searches at Ukraine’s central bank: Governor Andriy Pyshny maybe turned a blind eye while a purported fixer for the president’s office secretly ran state-owned Sense Bank. A lawmaker has accused Pyshny of lying to parliament about what regulators knew. https://t.me/stranaua/252311

Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar on his opposition to ...

2026-10-21T10:40:53Z

Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar on his opposition to accelerated EU membership for Ukraine, saying he doesn't think a country at war can join: “It undermines the credibility of the European Union if you put some (prospective) member countries on a fast track." https://apnews.com/article/hungary-magyar-interview-orban-accountability-migration-ukraine-d55d79e603b3d7d03157531bc4ba9dd3

The talks in St. Petersburg, the ninth time that Witkoff has met ...

2026-10-21T10:24:04Z

The talks in St. Petersburg, the ninth time that Witkoff has met Putin in person, began today with a goodwill gesture from the Kremlin: the release of ‌a retired U.S. school teacher held in Russia, convicted on mercenary charges he denies. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/putin-hosts-trump-envoy-new-ukraine-peace-talks-frees-us-citizen-held-russia-2026-10-21/

Tightening sanctions does aid Ukraine, which of course has merit, ...

2026-10-20T23:48:22Z

Tightening sanctions does aid Ukraine, which of course has merit, but it's somewhat baffling to me that it's still being billed as a means to "end" the war, as though the U.S. has that economic power over Russia.

European Parliament Vice President Pina Picierno has announced a ...

2026-10-20T15:33:24Z

European Parliament Vice President Pina Picierno has announced a hunger strike to draw attention to Russian-occupied Oleshky, where civilians are trapped without adequate food or medical care. She's demanding a humanitarian ceasefire and safe evacuations.

Russia’s anti-abortion group Women for Life got over 37M rubles ...

2026-10-20T13:42:50Z

Russia’s anti-abortion group Women for Life got over 37M rubles in grants & subsidies in 2024–25, DW reports, & backs anti-abortion prayer services. Its leader, Natalya Moskvitina, entered parliament in Sept & wants a nationwide ban on “encouraging” abortions.

https://www.dw.com/ru/antiabortnica-moskvitina-polucaet-vse-bolse-deneg-i-vlasti/a-79707556

The group sends activists posing as pregnant women to check if doctors discourage abortions. It also backs an online AI series where an embryo tells its mother it loves her. 👀 At one clinic, Moskvitina tore down a contraception PSA and a health official accompanying her then stomped on it.

Omsk region lawmakers take up a bill banning retail sales of ...

2026-10-20T13:19:14Z

Omsk region lawmakers take up a bill banning retail sales of vapes and their liquids for five years, starting in March 2027. It would also double the minimum floor space for shops selling tobacco & nicotine products to 10 sq meters in 2028. The bill still needs two readings. https://t.me/gorod55ru/23334

Khabarovsk has scrapped direct mayoral elections, with its ...

2026-10-20T13:16:36Z

Khabarovsk has scrapped direct mayoral elections, with its council speaker invoking a system used ... 123 years ago. City lawmakers will choose the mayor from the governor’s nominees. Just two Russian regional capitals still have directly elected mayors. https://t.me/horizontal_russia/58752

Three people were reportedly killed when a Ukrainian drone struck ...

2026-10-20T07:22:39Z

Three people were reportedly killed when a Ukrainian drone struck a funeral-service vehicle near Pervomaisk in the occupied Luhansk region, according to local head Leonid Pasechnik. https://t.me/readovkanews/116318

Yabloko says its Omsk leader, Tatyana Schneider, faces an Oct. 21 ...

2026-10-20T07:20:34Z

Yabloko says its Omsk leader, Tatyana Schneider, faces an Oct. 21 court hearing over alleged hate speech on VK from 2011. She denies writing it, says her account has been hacked repeatedly, and accuses prosecutors of preventing her from fully reviewing the case materials. https://t.me/ostorozhno_novosti/56237

A week after Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Kyiv considers ...

2026-10-20T07:13:33Z

A week after Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Kyiv considers ⁠the matter "closed," South Korea says it will withdraw more embassy staff after Ukraine failed to address its objections to Zelensky's disclosure that two captured North Korean soldiers had been transferred to Seoul. https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/south-korea-withdraw-more-embassy-staff-ukraine-after-pow-dispute-2026-10-20/

American liberals shift with remarkable ease from criticism of ...

2026-10-20T05:33:42Z

American liberals shift with remarkable ease from criticism of the U.S. bombing of Iran to outrage that Moscow has given Tehran a fraction of the military aid Washington has sent to Kyiv.

"Broken glass! Don't walk your dogs here!" signs ...

2026-10-20T05:19:48Z

"Broken glass! Don't walk your dogs here!" signs spotted in St. Petersburg’s Vasilyevsky Island, where witnesses reported a hospital roof fire, & officials say one person died & 12 apartment buildings were damaged citywide in Ukrainian drone strikes on Oct. 18. https://t.me/ostorozhno_novosti/56235

Miners at Russia’s Northern Kuzbass coal company say some of ...

2026-10-20T04:29:59Z

Miners at Russia’s Northern Kuzbass coal company say some of them have gone nearly *a year* without pay. An appeal signed by dozens of workers puts wage arrears at over 317 million rubles ($3.8 million). A felony indictment against the CEO apparently hasn't helped matters. https://t.me/astrapress/128691

I would like Donald to know that I have Ukraine's oceans in ...

2026-10-19T23:11:17Z

I would like Donald to know that I have Ukraine's oceans in my possession and I am willing to trade them for a lifetime supply of high-speed Starlink

if I see one more headline about the AI apocalypse, I'm going ...

2026-10-19T23:08:44Z

if I see one more headline about the AI apocalypse, I'm going to vibecode Skynet myself TONIGHT

Trump says he's open to a three-way meeting with Putin and Xi ...

2026-10-19T20:30:35Z

Trump says he's open to a three-way meeting with Putin and Xi to discuss nuclear weapons and denuclearization (not the "Yalta 2.0" to talk about Ukraine, as described in the media). The Kremlin says it could take place at an Asia-Pacific economic summit in China next month. https://www.reuters.com/world/china/trump-says-he-is-open-joining-trilateral-meeting-with-xi-putin-2026-10-19/

multidimensional shadows ...

2026-10-19T18:47:49Z

multidimensional shadows

times are bad, my fellow americans, but we used to have slavery. ...

2026-10-19T16:31:59Z

times are bad, my fellow americans, but we used to have slavery. we used to be under british invasion (not the good kind). we used to wear ridiculous pants that couldn't hold keys or a plus-sized cell phone. don't force me to vibecode an app proving you all wrong.

European companies could face “very devastating” U.S. ...

2026-10-19T15:20:14Z

European companies could face “very devastating” U.S. retaliation if Brussels reserves part of its satellite-to-phone spectrum for European operators, limiting access for SpaceX and other foreign rivals, the U.S. ambassador to the EU told the FT. https://www.ft.com/content/d1e28d93-8574-4a46-946a-b261c401d6fa?syn-25a6b1a6=1

Welcome news if true: Russia and Ukraine are working out the ...

2026-10-19T13:28:11Z

Welcome news if true: Russia and Ukraine are working out the final details of an evacuation from Russian-occupied Oleshky and 6 nearby communities, Ukraine’s human rights commissioner says. Residents who want to leave would be taken directly to Ukrainian-controlled territory. https://t.me/echoonline_news/34930

Some teachers in Russia’s Tuva Republic are still owed ...

2026-10-19T13:23:33Z

Some teachers in Russia’s Tuva Republic are still owed September wages as October paychecks comes due. The education ministry says it sent funds on time, but locals say district officials blame the finance ministry. Meanwhile, some residents say daycare fees can’t wait... https://t.me/Baikal_People/16837

Russia’s prison service wants to implement software ...

2026-10-19T13:11:22Z

Russia’s prison service wants to implement software transcriptions and translations of prisoners’ phone calls, when they're not in Russian. The draft order presents it as an option for staff monitoring calls that currently require bringing in a translator. https://t.me/sotaproject/120060

A Donetsk court sentences pro-war blogger & RT columnist ...

2026-10-19T13:04:21Z

A Donetsk court sentences pro-war blogger & RT columnist Tatyana Montyan to 18 months in prison for inciting “extremism.” The case concerns a Dec. 2022 livestream in which she urged violence against pro-govt loyalists who, she said, conceal problems at the front. https://zona.media/news/2026/10/19/montyan

A second Yalta conference? Putin has reportedly proposed a Nov. ...

2026-10-19T05:51:49Z

A second Yalta conference? Putin has reportedly proposed a Nov. summit in China with Trump and Xi to discuss ending the war in Ukraine. Trump hasn't agreed, but WSJ's sources say Beijing wouldn't object if he did. Zelensky and the Europeans apparently wouldn't get a seat. https://www.wsj.com/world/russia/putin-floats-a-summit-with-trump-and-xi-to-decide-ukraines-fate-1cf6acc1

his oceans and seas are gone ...

2026-10-18T21:38:26Z

his oceans and seas are gone

Russian publisher AST's 2025 edition of the Soviet novel ...

2026-10-18T15:52:06Z

Russian publisher AST's 2025 edition of the Soviet novel “Eternal Call” omits part of a Nazi officer's speech used to fabricate the “Dulles Plan,” a supposed CIA scheme to destroy the USSR. Blogger Yana Karachina suggests AST may be wary of a 2015 court ruling declaring the forgery extremist. https://t.me/agentstvonews/17805

Trump signs an executive order that puts on hold a sweeping new ...

2026-10-17T01:51:39Z

Trump signs an executive order that puts on hold a sweeping new sanctions package targeting the Russian economy, telling Congress the pause is in the U.S. national interest. https://apnews.com/article/russia-sanctions-trump-ukraine-e50c561ab805883bb4e484c092d8fadd

A Turkish crime gang known as the Daltons may have carried out ...

2026-10-16T19:07:48Z

A Turkish crime gang known as the Daltons may have carried out the September arson attack on a Starlink station in Poland on orders from Russian intelligence, Der Spiegel reports, citing the usual anonymous security sources in unspecified countries. https://www.spiegel.de/panorama/polen-anschlag-auf-starlink-terminal-behoerden-pruefen-spur-zur-tuerkischen-mafia-a-ca704779-96da-49eb-a1a0-f60522299b2f

i'm beginning to suspect that we can't trust Donald Trump ...

2026-10-16T18:51:27Z

i'm beginning to suspect that we can't trust Donald Trump *or* Elon Musk!

"Elon Musk approached Donald Trump with the idea of slowing ...

2026-10-16T18:50:52Z

"Elon Musk approached Donald Trump with the idea of slowing down Starlink in Ukraine," The Telegraph reports. “He tweeted out that he was innocent and that it was the US administration that did it. The reality is that they were both in it.” https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/10/16/musk-approached-trump-slow-down-starlink-help-ukraine/

hard times for everyone, it seems ...

2026-10-16T17:38:59Z

hard times for everyone, it seems

U.S. Senators Wicker & Cramer visited Kyiv and suggested a ...

2026-10-16T13:23:47Z

U.S. Senators Wicker & Cramer visited Kyiv and suggested a 100-day "breather from striking Russian energy assets" in exchange for expanding Ukraine’s Starlink satellite coverage up to roughly 300km into Russia to "hit the archer instead of letting the arrows fall." https://www.wsj.com/opinion/volodymyr-zelensky-starlink-deal-energy-targets-donald-trump-russia-ukraine-e313399d

I wonder what happens to U.S. policy on Ukraine once Trump is ...

2026-10-15T18:38:42Z

I wonder what happens to U.S. policy on Ukraine once Trump is finally gone. Will MAGA's lingering noninterventionist wing (or some faction of the political left) still have any influence over Washington's foreign policy? Or will the whole thing swing back to the Beltway consensus?

Hard to see how this doesn't lead to even more "hybrid ...

2026-10-15T18:34:20Z

Hard to see how this doesn't lead to even more "hybrid war" events in Europe. Increasingly bad times ahead, it seems. https://www.theatlantic.com/national-security/2026/10/ukraine-russia-trump-putin-war/689002/

ooh, new version of ChatGPT's Chrome extension ...

2026-10-15T18:20:13Z

ooh, new version of ChatGPT's Chrome extension (1.26.1005.11759) can now draw on either chat or work modes. Feedback looks much prettier and more useful.

"A Democrat president never would abandon Zelensky like this. ...

2026-10-15T16:25:31Z

"A Democrat president never would abandon Zelensky like this. He's our ally and desperately relies on America!"

As Trump presses Kyiv to stop drone strikes on Russian ...

2026-10-15T15:56:09Z

As Trump presses Kyiv to stop drone strikes on Russian refineries, Britain is sending Ukraine more Storm Shadow missiles to hit back at Russian operations targeting civilian infrastructure before winter, Bloomberg reports. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-10-15/uk-sends-ukraine-more-storm-shadow-missiles-to-hit-russian-sites

Zelensky says he had "paused energy strikes" for three ...

2026-10-15T05:54:34Z

Zelensky says he had "paused energy strikes" for three days to comply with U.S. wishes. Now? “The block [on attacking refineries] is out. We’re done,” Zelensky told FT in a "defiant interview." https://app.ft.com/content/4d79b52f-1f0d-4739-82ab-7ecfb4251326