the end is nigh

I was explaining to Dino what volcanos were and that I want him to fly over the volcano with a GoPro. I jumped the gun. The volcano is .... ending. The activity has reduced considerably over the past few days. Right now you can only see lava flowing if you fly overhead. Otherwise, you can see a splatter if you are patient and smoke even if you aren't. 

There are towns in Iceland where cats have curfews. Reykjavik banned dogs from the city until 1984 because they were considered farm animals. Everyone had cats instead. Now a number of places in Iceland have curfews on cats, hours by which they must be home. The theory is that, while cats aren't responsible for the tough times birds are facing, they aren't making it easier. 


Ukrainian spies snuck into Russia ahead of the invasion. This sounds like I'm making an ethnic joke. I am not. They found drunk Russians. A lot of Russian troops traded fuel and other supplies for alcohol, leaving their vehicles standed. There were tank formations without crews. This made it harder to believe that Russia would invade since clearly Russia was not ready. 


The attacks in Crimea are bringing home to Russians that they are at war. There is increasing criticism and debate on social media in the USSR. Today there was a new attack a drone slammed into the headquarters of Russia's Black Sea Fleet in Crimea. Friday there were blasts at a military airfield outside Sevastopol, the largest city in Crimea that the Russians pretended were something else. Not only is it threatening Russian supply lines, but It is also striking a psychological blow to Russia, making Russia feel like they are not invincible. 


The US is sending 40 armored vehicles equipped with giant rollers to clear minefields ahead of any Ukraine ground operation, howitzers, ammunition, and drones. 


Russia has developed quite a reputation for its cyber prowess, including its impact on US social cohesion during the 2016 election. In 2007 Estonia suffered a massive cyberattack by hackers suspected of being Russian. The attacks were right after Estonia moved a Soviet-era WWII monument. Estonia enhanced its cybersecurity. On Wednesday there was a cyberattack as they relocated part of another Soviet era WWII monument. A pro-Russia hacking group claimed responsibility for cutting off access to websites in finance, health care, education, government, and utilities. But the cyberattack failed. Websites remained fully available. Estonia got ready after 2007 and was able to repel the attack. 


Ukraine's postal service have continued to deliver the mail and pay pensions. About 50 post offices have been destroyed. 480 have been damaged. Neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night.