The Fruits Of Victory Would Be Ashes In Our Mouth
These words from from President Kennedy’s speech on the Cuban Missile Crisis, seem to be the Russian aim, as they continue to lay waste to Ukraine.
Kennedy was talking about nuclear war, but pictures from Ukraine remind me more of the damage of atomic bombs on Nagasaki and Hiroshima or from an all-destroying earthquake.
Vlad the Mad will certainly be remembered by history in the same way as Hitler, Pol Pot and Stalin.
I don’t believe in the death penalty, but he is surely the one case, where anybody would make an exception.
I wonder how he would like Hitler’s most feared punishment. Hitler apparently, worried most about being exhibited in a zoo.
Battery And Hydrogen Trains For ScotRail ‘Could Make Scotland A Global Leader’ In Zero-Emission Transport
The title of this post is the same as that of this article in the Scotsman.
This is the first paragraph.
New fleets of cutting-edge trains expected to include battery and hydrogen power are to be ordered for ScotRail which the rail industry believes will put Scotland at the forefront of zero-emission transport.
Other points from the article.
- Talgo appear to have passed the story to Scotland on Sunday.
- Three routes are mentioned; Borders Railway, Fife Circle and Glasgow-East Kilbride.
- The new trains could help phase out diesel trains by 2035, which is Scottish Government policy.
- The Inter7City trains might be replaced by 2030.
- Talgo hopes to win an order for its factory in Fife.
Talgo’s Managing Director is quoted as saying, they are starting testing of a hydrogen and electric train with a range of 311 miles.
Consider.
- I wrote about this train in Talgo To Begin Fuel Cell Loco Trials.
- Talgo’s hydrogen and electric train would be ideal for Scotland’s railways of which only forty percent are electrified.
- A four or five-car high specification hydrogen and electric train would be ideal for the Inter7City routes, if it were built specifically for the routes.
- The range would cover all of Scotland.
- Hydrogen hubs are being planned all over Scotland.
- Scotland have 26 Inter7City trainsets.
This could be a rather nice order to fund the factory and test all the trains close to the factory.
Is there a better place to show off your new train to a prospective buyer than the Highlands of Scotland?
In A Class 319 Train, But Not As We Know It!, I told this tale.
I am reminded of a tale, that I heard from a former GEC manager.
He was involved in selling one of GEC’s Air Traffic Control radars to a Middle Eastern country.
The only working installation of the radar was at Prestwick in Scotland, so he arranged that the dignitaries and the sales team would be flown to Prestwick in GEC’s HS 125 business jet.
As they disembarked at Prestwick and walked to the terminal, the pilot called the GEC Manager over.
The pilot told him “The Scottish Highlands at this time of the year, are one of the most beautiful places in the world! Would you and your guests like a low-level tour on the way back? I can arrange it, if you say so!”
Despite knowing GEC’s draconian attitude to cost control he said yes.
The sale was clinched!
I’m sure that Talgo will exploit the scenery and the local produce.
Talgo’s Hydrogen Trains
This page on the Talgo web site, is entitled Talgo’s Hydrogen Train Will Be Ready In 2023.
This paragraph gives an overview of Talgo’s hydrogen power system.
This system is configured as a modular solution that can be installed on all types of trains, as well as in upgrades from diesel to hydrogen. However, it has been specifically designed for the Vittal platform for Commuter and Regional trains, which Talgo has presented in the bidding process for various tenders in Spain and other countries.
And these two paragraphs describe Talgo’s hydrogen trains in more detail.
This innovative system uses hydrogen batteries that provide the energy for the train’s electric motors. It is powered by renewable energy sources, such as solar photovoltaic or wind, which produce hydrogen that is stored and then used to power fuel cell-based propulsion systems, such as the one designed by Talgo. The system is complemented by batteries that increase the speed of the train when it starts, taking advantage of the braking system to recharge it.
Unlike the extended battery systems in the automotive industry, hydrogen (H2) technology is the logical answer to the needs of heavy transport and, in particular, of those railway lines that do not have catenary electrification systems, and which today depend on trains powered by diesel engines. The hydrogen system designed by Talgo enables conventional network lines to be “electrified” without the need for costly and lengthy adaptation operations, and without the use of fossil fuels.
What do they mean by hydrogen batteries? Looking at the German and the Spanish on the page, I think Talgo means hydrogen fuel cells.
The Rebuilding Of Ukraine
It should be noted that Talgo have sold trains in the past to Russia, which has a gauge of 1.520 metres, which lies between Iberian gauge of 1.668 metres and our standard gauge of 1.435 metres.
- Talgo have also sold trains to Germany, who use standard gauge.
- Talgo have built Strizh trains for Russia, that are both standard gauge and Russian gauge for running between Berlin and Moscow.
- According to the BBC and The Times, Ukraine’s railways have been an important lifeline during the Russian invasion, but pictures show they are in need of modernisation and more electrification.
- The Strizh trains or a development would surely be ideal for running between Kviv and Berlin, Budapest, Prague and Warsaw.
- There would also appear to be a need for a hydrogen and electric regional train to reconnect the country back together.
- Other countries using Russian gauge include Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Belarus, Moldova, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Finland.
So are Talgo positioning themselves to take part in the modernisation of Ukraine’s railways, once the war is over?
- Development and testing is done in Spain and Scotland.
- Manufacturing could be done in Spain and Scotland.
- Delivery from Scotland could either be by ship or if they were dual-gauge trains, they could be hauled through the Channel Tunnel and then through Germany and Poland.
As Talgo has the technology, I can certainly see them exploiting the Russian gauge market once Vlad the Mad has gone.
The Curious Tale Of The Queen, Putin And David Blunkett’s Guide Dog
This article on the Daily Mirror is entitled Putin Left The Queen Waiting For 14 Mins And She Broke Protocol To Make Snide Remark.
This is an extract.
According to David Blunkett, who was Home Secretary at the time, his guide dog reacted defensively towards Putin.
Mr Blunkett told the BBC : “The only time I met Vladimir Putin was back in 2003 on an official visit and my then dog barked very loudly.
“I did apologise to the Queen who was obviously hosting. I don’t think I am giving anything away when I said, ‘Sorry your Majesty about the dog barking.’
“She said, ‘Dogs have interesting instincts, don’t they?'”
Note that at the time, Putin had a black Labrador Retriever bitch called Konni.
Will Rail Baltica Annoy Putin?
Rail Baltica is described like this in Wikipedia.
Rail Baltica (also known as Rail Baltic in Estonia) is an ongoing greenfield railway infrastructure project to link Finland (via ferry or an undersea tunnel), Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania with Poland and through this with the European standard gauge rail line network. Its purpose is to provide passenger and freight service between participating countries and improve rail connections between Central and Northern Europe, specifically the area in the Southeast of the Baltic sea. Furthermore, it is intended to be a catalyst for building the economic corridor in Northeastern Europe. The project envisages a continuous rail link from Tallinn (Estonia) to Warsaw (Poland). It consists of links via Riga (Latvia), Kaunas and Vilnius (Lithuania). Rail Baltica is one of the priority projects of the European Union.
These are a few more details.
- It will be a double-track railway or four tracks if it handles freight.
- Passenger trains will run at up to 250 kph (155 mph)
- Electrification will be either 25 KVAC or 3 KVDC overhead.
- It will be a standard gauge line.
- There will be no level crossings.
- It is planned to open around 2026.
The biggest problem could be that some of the route is shared with the Russian gauge line, that connect Kaliningrad to Vilnius and then from there to the main part of Russia.
This map from OpenRailwayMap shows the railways between Kaliningrad and Vilnius.
Note.
- The orange lines are main lines.
- The yellow lines are secondary lines.
- The orange line going West goes to Kaliningrad.
- The dark grey line crossing the railway is the border of the Kaliningrad enclave, which was annexed by the Soviet Union in 1945.
- The orange line going South goes to Bialystok, Warsaw and all places to the West.
- The loop in the line is at Kaunus, where there will be an interchange between the two lines.
- The orange lines going East go to Vilnius.
- The dotted red line in the North-East corner of the map, will be new track for Rail Baltica.
The new railway will effectively squeeze itself between Kaliningrad and Kaunus.
Railway Gauges In Poland and the Baltic States
Consider.
- Most, if not all of the railways in the Baltic States are Russian gauge.
- The line between Kaliningrad and Kaunus is Russian gauge.
- Most of the railway lines in Poland are standard gauge.
- The EU likes all new high speed lines like Rail Baltica to be built to standard gauge and have 25 KVAC overhead electrification.
- Kaunus is in Lithuania, so NATO control access to Kaliningrad in sensitive times.
I can’t believe that Vlad likes the current situation and would probably prefer Rail Baltica to be built to Russian gauge, as it would enable the Russian Army to easily move tanks into the Baltic States.
Conclusion
There’s a chance that Vlad will make trouble.
Is Vlad The Bad Running Out Of Cash?
The BBC News Channel has just reported, that in a speech Vlad the Bad has said, that if you have too much money in your Russian Bank account, that can’t be supported by your salary, then he’ll seize it.
I suppose he needs to pay the gas bill on his little dacha in Sochi.
Vlad’s Childhood
Out of curiosity, I looked up Vladimir Putin’s Wikipedia entry.
This is the first paragraph, in a section entitled Early Life.
Putin was born on 7 October 1952 in Leningrad, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union (now Saint Petersburg, Russia), the youngest of three children of Vladimir Spiridonovich Putin (1911–1999) and Maria Ivanovna Putina (née Shelomova; 1911–1998). His grandfather, Spiridon Putin, was a personal cook to Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin. Putin’s birth was preceded by the deaths of two brothers, Viktor and Albert, born in the mid-1930s. Albert died in infancy and Viktor died of diphtheria during the Siege of Leningrad by Nazi Germany’s forces in World War II.
In my life, I’ve known two people, who’ve had their childhood disrupted by death.
- With one, as with Putin two elder siblings died before they were born.
- With the other, their father died when they were about eight.
Both these people received therapy and now lead normal lives.
I’ve also heard many stories of similarly seriously disturbed children, from my late wife’s work as a barrister.
So I have to question, Vlad’s state of mind from his possibly disturbing childhood.
Putin’s Father
His grandfather too, probably had a similar status to say one of the Queen’s personal staff, but they would obviously have had different beliefs.
He would have probably made sure Putin’s father’s beliefs were spot-on.
This is the second paragraph in the Early Life section.
Putin’s mother was a factory worker and his father was a conscript in the Soviet Navy, serving in the submarine fleet in the early 1930s. Early in World War II, his father served in the destruction battalion of the NKVD. Later, he was transferred to the regular army and was severely wounded in 1942. Putin’s maternal grandmother was killed by the German occupiers of Tver region in 1941, and his maternal uncles disappeared on the Eastern Front during World War II.
The NKVD were the secret police and run by Beria.
This is an extract from Beria’s Wikipedia entry.
Beria was the longest-lived and most influential of Stalin’s secret police chiefs, wielding his most substantial influence during and after World War II. Following the Soviet invasion of Poland in 1939, he was responsible for organizing purges such as the Katyn massacre of 22,000 Polish officers and officials. Beria would later also orchestrate the forced upheaval of minorities from the Caucasus as head of NKVD, an act that was declared as genocidal by various scholars and, as concerning Chechens, in 2004 by the European parliament. He simultaneously administered vast sections of the Soviet state, and acted as the de facto Marshal of the Soviet Union in command of NKVD field units responsible for barrier troops and Soviet partisan intelligence and sabotage operations on the Eastern Front during World War II. Beria administered the expansion of the Gulag labour camps, and was primarily responsible for overseeing the secret detention facilities for scientists and engineers known as sharashkas.
Note.
- Like Stalin, he was another Georgian.
- The Katyn massacre took place near Kharkiv in Ukraine.
I don’t think he would be my type of friend.
Did Putin’s father relate the stories of the NKVD into his son?
Conclusion
I’m no psychologist, but I hope that NATO and other nations lined up against Russia behind Ukraine are analysing the character of the dangerous Vladimir Putin.
In My Fathers Footsteps
This article on the BBC is entitled Hundreds Gather In Trafalgar Square To Protest Ukraine Invasion.
My father, who was born on the first of January in 1904, described himself as a left-wing Tory.
- His great-great-grandfather had been a Jewish tailor, who possibly had been born in Konigsberg in East Prussia.
- In his politically-active years before World War Two, he had been an opponent of both extremes of the political spectrum.
- He had possibly been involved at the League of Nations in Geneva, which is something I aim to prove or disprove.
- A couple of times he talked about the horrors of the famines in Russia in 1931-33, but he never expanded on what he knew.
- He was mixed up in the stopping of a member of the British Union of Fascists getting elected in the 1935 Norwood By-Election.
- He was proud to have been at the Battle of Cable Street, when as he said, the whole of the East End, stopped Mosley and his blackshirts from marching through.
I heard him say a couple of times, that Stalin could have been worse than Hitler.
He would have approved that I went to the protest today, where I took these pictures.
It was all peaceful, as no supporters of Vlad the Mad turned up.
Ukraine Crisis: Fifa And Uefa Suspend All Russian Clubs And National Teams
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
This first paragraph says it all.
Russian football clubs and national teams have been suspended from all competitions by Fifa and Uefa after the country’s invasion of Ukraine.
It looks like it is a complete ban from both Fifa and Uefa.
Vlad the Invader/Mad/Poisoner (Delete as appropriate!), is reportedly not amused.
My father, who had something to do with the League of Nations, felt that we didn’t act soon enough over Hitler and Stalin and I could argue we should have acted with tough sanctions after Putin annexed Crimea in 2014.
Eurovision: Russia Banned From Competing At 2022 Song Contest
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
These are the first two paragraphs.
Russia will no longer be allowed to participate in this year’s Eurovision Song Contest, the European Broadcasting Union has said.
The EBU, which produces the event, said Russia’s inclusion could bring the competition into disrepute “in light of the unprecedented crisis in Ukraine”.
It’s going from Vlad to verse.
Winning the Eurovision Song Contest is not easy for Russia, as although they can rig the votes, doping doesn’t help singers and musicians to perform better.
Putin Loses A Decisive Poll!
The Times is asking if Russia should be banned from international sport on its web site.
This is a screen capture.
It appears that Putin can’t win them all!
