I’m Announcing I’ll No Longer Have Russian Dressing on My Salad

I am announcing my refusal to add Russian dressing to my salad. Just kidding. I was never going to have a salad.

We’ve achieve peak stupid.

A Catholic priest was arrested last week after dousing the Russian embassy gates in Dublin with red paint.

“I feel frightened and powerless,” Father Fergal MacDonagh said. “The only thing I could do was, in solidarity with the people of Ukraine, to pour paint on the gates on the building that is spreading lies and deceit and misinformation about what is happening.”

The only thing? Praying isn’t an option? Holding adoration? Any of these ringing a bell?

Netflix banned an adaptation of Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina because Russia is bad. I’m hearing rumors that the first half of Rocky IV will be banned which will include the part where Ivan Drago, played by esteemed non-Russian character actor Dolph Lundgren, kills Apollo Creed dressed in red, white, and blue. The only permissible part to watch is when Rocky knocks out said Drago.

Also cut will be the speech Rocky makes about us getting along with Russians. This will be replaced by a scene from Rambo. Rocky will now be seen to firing a rocket launcher into the crowd.

In response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the International Cat Federation (FIFe) announced two restrictions it would place on Russian cats. Its first restriction was that “no cat bred in Russia may be imported and registered in any FIFe pedigree book outside Russia.” The second restriction was that no cat belonging to a Russian may be entered into any FIFe show outside of Russia.

The Guardian reports:

Earlier this week Maison de la Poutine, a French restaurant chain serving the French-Canadian favourite poutine – chips, cheese curds and gravy – complained of receiving insults and threats because of the similarity, in French, between the name of the emblematic dish and that of the bellicose Russian president.

In Canada, a Russian pianist was pulled from an upcoming set of performances – even though he had spoken out against the war in Ukraine. The Montreal Symphony Orchestra said in a statement it would be “inappropriate” for 20-year old Alexander Malofeev to perform a series of concertos this week.

Malofeev, who has family members in Ukraine, has previously criticized Russia’s “terrible and bloody” decision to invade the country. The Montreal symphony said it would welcome back Malofeev “when the context allows it.”

On Wednesday, the Cardiff Philharmonic Orchestra announced that it had decided to exclude Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture from a performance next week. It explained that playing the piece – which commemorates Russia’s victory over Napoleon’s invading forces – would be “inappropriate” given events in Ukraine.

This kind of lumping of all Russians into one basket is how you end up with internment camps.

This “othering” is a warmup to demonizing other groups as well such as…um…I don’t know…maybe certain people the left think of as deplorables?