Meddling Meddlers Gotta Meddle

15 Replies to “Meddling Meddlers Gotta Meddle”

1. Ukes gotta Uke.

   The corruption and shiftlessness of Ukrainians is a running gag in Servant of the People, Vladimir Zelensky’s sitcom.

   In the first episode, Petro, the father of the protagonist Vasily (Zelensky), continually has the driveway from the lot of his rotting Soviet-era apartment complex blocked by a wealthier and better-connected young thug. All his complaints are ignored.

   The only thing that manages to convince anybody to do anything about the thug—much less do any real maintenance—is Vasily’s surprise election to the presidency.

   Petro leaves the apartment the morning after the election to find the block getting its first lick of paint since 1991. He is assured that the thug had to move away suddenly.

   (I’ve watched Servant of the People so you don’t have to—it’s not actually very funny—but if you must, Vision TV is streaming the show on its website.)

2. When I’m running for my life, a small backpack of my life’s possessions protecting me from raining shrapnel, my stomach rumbling from hunger, I often think: “why the hell isn’t anyone doing anything about parking in this place?”

   Useless gestures done to make everyone think that something is done.

   1. Consider the possibility that the initiative is evidence that conditions in Kiev are not actually as you describe them.

   2. For the record, the report is from 2016. Back before anybody thought Russia would ever reclaim the Ukraine.

   3. This is from before the invasion.

   4. mebbe theyre clearing things to make room for the influx of a lot of dead bodies . . .

3. Useless gestures done to funnel money from hard working taxpayers to parasites that are friends or family of our overlords.

4. Look at the date on that post…

   1. Agreed, but why are we getting involved with their parking problems, whether it’s in 2016 or not? Why did we spend even one dime on Kviv’s parking? Does chicago have the Russian or Albanian government trying to solve THEIR parking problems? Although…it would be a good idea for Chicago to have the Chechynian government in for some crime consulting……

      Those were rhetorical…we know it was because the “big guy” was getting kickbacks.

   2. Ah, I did indeed miss that.

   3. So it isn’t caused by captured Russian military vehicles taking up ten parking spots each??

      1. Quite right. This is about Francisco being an idiot not noticing that this was from six years ago. It’s also about being terminally naive. ALL foreign aid to all countries is always all about kickbacks and favours to particular businesses or individuals that as a politician you want to reward.

5. Nothing even comes close to matching military porkbarreling.

   Here’s who really won (and got filthy rich) in the Afghanistan War.
   https://youtu.be/mqxgP8WlxJQ

   1. The attempted beheading of Admiral Mark Holland was done by Scotty Brison in the interests of shoveling more public money into Irving Shipbuilding.

6. Foreign Aid = Money taken from poor people in rich countries and given to rich people in poor countries. (Usual handling charges apply.)