how are you doing?

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ro
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how are you doing?

Post by ro »

not a political thread, just a check-in with our friends in estonia, japan, scandinavia, and elsewhere during this scary time.

how are you doing?
Dreamweapon
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Re: how are you doing?

Post by Dreamweapon »

Yep - good call ro.

Hope EVERYONE'S OK. We're living in crazy difficult times full stop.
Billy_Whizz
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Re: how are you doing?

Post by Billy_Whizz »

I have several friends in Ukraine. One has had to flee her home in Kharkiv and is sleeping in a small shack in a nearby village with 3 other people, one is spending current days listening to explosions from her basement, one is sleeping on the subway, one is sleeping on a sofa with 2 other people, sleeping in their clothes in case they need to escape quickly. I get regular updates from them (phones still work thankfully) and there are constant sirens, constant fear, and they're watching (largely via social media channels because they don't have the luxury of a TV) footage of their cities being destroyed. Borders to Romania may be open, but it's safer to stay inside in their bombed out cities than to risk going outside. This is crazy. Just fucking crazy.
REVOLUTION * PURITY * LOVE * SUICIDE * ACCURACY
Dreamweapon
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Re: how are you doing?

Post by Dreamweapon »

Is there anything we can do as a collective force on here?
ro
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Re: how are you doing?

Post by ro »

sounds like a nightmare.

Dreamweapon, i’ve just noticed the World Central Kitchen is once again providing aid where it’s needed:

https://wck.org/
Billy_Whizz
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Re: how are you doing?

Post by Billy_Whizz »

Dreamweapon wrote: Thu Mar 03, 2022 10:03 am Is there anything we can do as a collective force on here?
Short of flying in there to fight or to pick up people and bring them to safety there's not much we can do other than things like Ro suggested and look at charities giving aid. People need necessities... those who've fled need food, clothes, medication, shelter... those who remain need a safe place to go to or weapons to defend themselves. Supplies are short.

I've managed to get a friend in Romania to offer my friend Eva and her ill mother a place to stay... she will take them in. But even this is currently impossible. They have no way to get to the border. I know about 1m people have gone to Romania so far, but unless you're in Lviv or somewhere else in the west then it's hundreds of miles to travel. And it's safer to stay underground that to try to escape. So even though I have this very kind offer from someone to take in my friends it's currently not possible. They can't get to the border. Everything is shut down. There is no means to get there.

I'm not a rich man, I currently only have debts, but even if I could send money to help people it would be a waste of time. It's almost impossible to send money to Ukraine. Cash by mail is risky at any time and clearly won't get there safely anyway. You can't really send money online. PayPal is banned in Ukraine. I can send by Western Union but this means the money needs to be picked up from a Western Union point in Ukraine... and how many of them do you think are open? And this is assuming people could get to them anyway.

Sorry to ramble a bit, but I feel pretty helpless right now. My friend Nastya (who is from Kharkiv which I'm sure you'll know is quickly becoming a burnt out, bombed out wasteland) sends me updates every day and everything I see is just shocking. It looks like something out of Mad Max or whatever. It's 20-fucking-22 and this shit is happening...

I should also mention that I have a few Russian friends who are nothing to do with any invasion or war or whatever, and they're currently suffering terrible abuse from people purely for being Russian: "HOPE YOUR HOUSE IS BOMBED AND FAMILY KILLED. FUCKING SLAG." "KILL ALL RUSSIAN". People are just seeking out any Russian people online and doing this kind of thing. It's madness. Add to this how Russian people are being affected by the huge price rises and shortages of fuel, food etc all due to a madman that they don't even like and don't even want in power... no good is coming from any of this.

Apologies for the rant. This is the first war in my 40+ years that has affected people that I'm very close to.
REVOLUTION * PURITY * LOVE * SUICIDE * ACCURACY
ro
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Re: how are you doing?

Post by ro »

Billy Whizz, what an awful feeling, helplessness, especially with your loved ones in such danger. i’m glad you can talk about it here & only wish we could do more to help.

it seems like it’s only getting worse over there
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