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Bulletins and News Discussion from August 25th to August 31st, 2025 - The Limits of Electoralism - COTW: Bolivia (hexbear.net)
submitted 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) by SeventyTwoTrillion@hexbear.net to c/news@hexbear.net
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Image, and a considerable amount of the preamble's analysis, comes from this article in People's Dispatch.

A week ago, the Bolivian left-wing party, the Movement Towards Socialism (MAS), currently led by Luis Arce, decisively lost the round of elections against the right-wing. This comes after a prolonged period of "infighting" between Arce, and Morales, who previously led the MAS prior to the 2019 coup which briefly installed Jeanine Anez.

I put infighting in quotes because despite the nominal similarities between Arce and Morales, it is clear that this is not merely a counterproductive battle between two men - instead, the Bolivian left has arrived at a time of unavoidable conflict between two competing strategies. The electoral strategy is represented by Arce, who has aligned himself with a more middle-class-oriented campaign that is more economically liberal, whereas Morales represents a more working-class-oriented campaign that seeks to go further than tepid reform.

Such a conflict between electoralism and revolutionary action is inevitable in any and every developing country that 1) possesses a functioning left-wing party or organization, and 2) is under internal and/or external pressure by capitalists. This crisis must be resolved eventually - and this electoral failure is how such a crisis is manifesting right now. So while the Bolivian left has indeed lost the election, it is not yet defeated. The revolutionary campaign can, if it is willing, still ultimately stand triumphant. But what must be done is a real movement towards socialism, which goes beyond technocrats reforming from above, and instead transforms the state into a full political project of the working class, in which their movements, organizations, and protests are genuinely empowered. Such a project will involve repression by the forces of reaction, not least by the United States, but it is the only road left to take.

Last week's thread is here.
The Imperialism Reading Group is here.

Please check out the RedAtlas!

The bulletins site is here. Currently not used.
The RSS feed is here. Also currently not used.

Israel's Genocide of Palestine

If you have evidence of Zionist crimes and atrocities that you wish to preserve, there is a thread here in which to do so.

Sources on the fighting in Palestine against the temporary Zionist entity. In general, CW for footage of battles, explosions, dead people, and so on:

UNRWA reports on Israel's destruction and siege of Gaza and the West Bank.

English-language Palestinian Marxist-Leninist twitter account. Alt here.
English-language twitter account that collates news.
Arab-language twitter account with videos and images of fighting.
English-language (with some Arab retweets) Twitter account based in Lebanon. - Telegram is @IbnRiad.
English-language Palestinian Twitter account which reports on news from the Resistance Axis. - Telegram is @EyesOnSouth.
English-language Twitter account in the same group as the previous two. - Telegram here.

English-language PalestineResist telegram channel.
More telegram channels here for those interested.

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

Examples of Ukrainian Nazis and fascists
Examples of racism/euro-centrism during the Russia-Ukraine conflict

Sources:

Defense Politics Asia's youtube channel and their map. Their youtube channel has substantially diminished in quality but the map is still useful.
Moon of Alabama, which tends to have interesting analysis. Avoid the comment section.
Understanding War and the Saker: reactionary sources that have occasional insights on the war.
Alexander Mercouris, who does daily videos on the conflict. While he is a reactionary and surrounds himself with likeminded people, his daily update videos are relatively brainworm-free and good if you don't want to follow Russian telegram channels to get news. He also co-hosts The Duran, which is more explicitly conservative, racist, sexist, transphobic, anti-communist, etc when guests are invited on, but is just about tolerable when it's just the two of them if you want a little more analysis.
Simplicius, who publishes on Substack. Like others, his political analysis should be soundly ignored, but his knowledge of weaponry and military strategy is generally quite good.
On the ground: Patrick Lancaster, an independent and very good journalist reporting in the warzone on the separatists' side.

Unedited videos of Russian/Ukrainian press conferences and speeches.

Pro-Russian Telegram Channels:

Again, CW for anti-LGBT and racist, sexist, etc speech, as well as combat footage.

https://t.me/aleksandr_skif ~ DPR's former Defense Minister and Colonel in the DPR's forces. Russian language.
https://t.me/Slavyangrad ~ A few different pro-Russian people gather frequent content for this channel (~100 posts per day), some socialist, but all socially reactionary. If you can only tolerate using one Russian telegram channel, I would recommend this one.
https://t.me/s/levigodman ~ Does daily update posts.
https://t.me/patricklancasternewstoday ~ Patrick Lancaster's telegram channel.
https://t.me/gonzowarr ~ A big Russian commentator.
https://t.me/rybar ~ One of, if not the, biggest Russian telegram channels focussing on the war out there. Actually quite balanced, maybe even pessimistic about Russia. Produces interesting and useful maps.
https://t.me/epoddubny ~ Russian language.
https://t.me/boris_rozhin ~ Russian language.
https://t.me/mod_russia_en ~ Russian Ministry of Defense. Does daily, if rather bland updates on the number of Ukrainians killed, etc. The figures appear to be approximately accurate; if you want, reduce all numbers by 25% as a 'propaganda tax', if you don't believe them. Does not cover everything, for obvious reasons, and virtually never details Russian losses.
https://t.me/UkraineHumanRightsAbuses ~ Pro-Russian, documents abuses that Ukraine commits.

Pro-Ukraine Telegram Channels:

Almost every Western media outlet.
https://discord.gg/projectowl ~ Pro-Ukrainian OSINT Discord.
https://t.me/ice_inii ~ Alleged Ukrainian account with a rather cynical take on the entire thing.

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[–] Tervell@hexbear.net 43 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

trouble in wunderwaffe land... https://archive.ph/Zt4Nv

Exclusive: Maker of Ukraine's new Flamingo cruise missile facing corruption probe

The country's anti-corruption agency is looking into Fire Point's alleged ties to Zelensky's former associate, and whether the firm inflated contracts with the state. Ukraine's anti-corruption agency has been investigating the country's star deep-strike drone company — Fire Point — over concerns it misled the government on pricing and deliveries, five sources with knowledge of the investigation told the Kyiv Independent. The National Anti-Corruption Bureau, or NABU, is also looking into the co-owner of President Volodymyr Zelensky's former film studio as the alleged ultimate beneficiary of the company, sources said.

Until recently, the weapons maker was virtually unknown outside of Ukraine's defense circles, despite appearing to be one of the largest — if not the largest — recipient of Defense Ministry drone budget funds, according to documents obtained by the Kyiv Independent. But over the past weeks, Fire Point has gone on a charm offensive, promoting its FP-1 deep-strike drones and "Flamingo" cruise missile in Western media. In his first public comments about the weapon, Zelensky last week called the Flamingo Ukraine's "most successful" missile the country has in its arsenal to defend against Russia's nearly four-year full-scale invasion. Ukraine has prioritized developing long-range strike drones and cruise missiles to hit Russian targets far behind the front lines and slow Moscow's war machine.

As part of the investigation, NABU is probing concerns that Fire Point inflated either the value of its components or the number of drones it delivers to the military, or both, according to the sources, who include current and former government officials and industry representatives, all of whom agreed to speak on condition of anonymity to discuss the investigation and company details. When contacted, a spokesperson for NABU declined to comment, saying the agency could not discuss it "as it concerns the secrecy of investigations." Fire Point confirmed the existence of an investigation to the Kyiv Independent but downplayed its significance, denying the accusations and portraying the investigation as based on rumors spread by opponents and part of wider probes into Ukraine's defense procurement system. "It makes no sense to look for the secrets where there are no secrets," Iryna Terekh, Fire Point’s chief technology officer, told the Kyiv Independent.

Wartime secrecy has kept weapons production largely in the shadows. While it is currently unclear how far along NABU's investigation into Fire Point is, the probe marks one of the most significant known inquiries into Ukraine’s fast-growing drone and missile industry — and into its new darlings of defense production. It also comes on the heels of a government crackdown on NABU last month, widely seen as a response to the agency’s scrutiny of Zelensky’s associates. The current NABU investigation is tracing the firm's ultimate ownership to Timur Mindich, a businessman who co-owns Kvartal 95, the television studio started by Zelensky, three of the sources said. As the investigation is ongoing, no charges have been brought against any individuals or entities. "Rumors are going around pretty actively that (Fire Point's) drones are linked with Mindich, and I have every conviction that this version of events corresponds to reality," the government source, who is familiar with the investigation's materials, told the Kyiv Independent. NABU did not respond to any questions regarding Mindich. The Kyiv Independent was able to reach an attorney for Mindich, who said they had no information on a connection between their client and Fire Point.

more

Rise of Ukraine's drone prodigy

According to documents seen by the Kyiv Independent, the firm sold Hr 13.2 billion worth of its FP-1 long-range drones — roughly $320 million — to the government in 2024. Per its annual budget, the Defense Ministry spent a total of Hr 43 billion ($1.04 billion) on drones that year, giving Fire Point just under a third of the total. Terekh told the Kyiv Independent that the firm sold around 2,000 long-range drones in 2024. The firm sells the drones for roughly $55,000 each, which would total around $110 million in sales. Between 2023 and 2024, the company's revenue, according to publicly available corporate documentation, grew from $4 million to over $100 million. Terekh told the Kyiv Independent that Fire Point's staff grew from 18 in 2023 to 2,200 employees in the present day. A source with knowledge of Fire Point’s contracts says the company is set to receive more than $1 billion in 2025 from government contracts. Terekh acknowledged receiving funds via the "Danish model" of European funding going to Fire Point via the Defense Ministry. Fire Point also received funding as part of a 5-billion-euro deal with the German government, announced in May, Terekh told the Kyiv Independent. The former government official, who had direct knowledge of the contracts, told the Kyiv Independent that among drone companies receiving government funds, Fire Point was "without a doubt the top."

A recent Associated Press interview with Fire Point reported the firm was producing 100 of its long-range FP-1 drones per day. Those numbers would total around $2 billion annually. Terekh told the Kyiv Independent that 100 in a day is the maximum the firm can produce. Between contracts, they do not hit those quotas, but they are set to produce roughly 9,000 this year, she said. Those figures don't include its FP-5 "Flamingo" cruise missiles that it similarly began advertising recently. It is currently impossible to confirm Fire Point's production figures independently. The effectiveness of its weapons is also difficult to gauge, as the government does not publicize that information. Terekh put the percentage of their drones that hit their Russian targets at 55-60%. According to the Kyiv Independent's reporting, the FP-1 is today an effective deep-strike drone, but that did not seem to be the case in 2024 — when the company was already selling large quantities of the drone to the Defense Ministry. The two industry sources allege that within a short time after formation in 2023, the company was turning out barely functional drones while receiving massive preferential funding from the government. While producing ineffective drones in its early days is neither illegal nor necessarily unethical, a company that benefits from political favoritism while delivering a subpar product raises questions about oversight and accountability. In the case of Fire Point, it looks to have been designated as the heir apparent of Ukraine’s deep-strike ambitions from the outset.

The people behind Fire Point

According to the source in the government, the investigation began roughly four months ago — shortly before a high-profile crackdown by the Zelensky administration to curtail NABU's independence last month. The government source told the Kyiv Independent that Fire Point's origins "seem to be a priority for (NABU’s investigation) at the moment." There are no obvious links between Fire Point and Mindich. It’s not clear how the NABU investigation is tracing the connection to Zelensky’s former business associate. The people formally linked to Fire Point are new to the drone industry. Following the start of the full-scale invasion, the two fundraised for a non-profit organization called Civic Hub, which turned into a long-range drone project, according to the NGO’s website and social media posts. Terekh also ran Frieden, a charity fund based in Germany. Skalyha, for his part, is a veteran of Ukraine's film industry and did the location scouting for Ukrainian movies "Luxembourg, Luxembourg" and "Egregor."

...

Terekh's background is equally unrelated to the defense industry. Her previous firm, the Terekh.Group, created artful concrete installations, for which she ended up on Forbes Ukraine’s 30 under 30 list in 2022. Then, in December of last year, she was selected to be on a business council that met in the President's Office, in the ranks of many of the wealthiest businesspeople in the country. Sira Rechovyna, the corporate entity behind Terekh.Group, has never reported an annual revenue above $70,000. And at the end of April, Yermak named both Terekh and Skalyha to a new government council of 82 businesspeople, alongside business leaders from cellular giant Kyivstar and Ukraine’s answer to Amazon, Rozetka. In that council, Terekh was listed under Terekh.Group.

The Kyiv Independent reached out to the President's Office, asking about any connections it has with Fire Point, but did not receive a reply by the time of publication. "Nobody can choose between Yermak and Mindich as to who we are associated with," Terekh quipped, dismissing high-powered political backing as rumors. She also blamed the Digital Transformation Ministry for targeting Fire Point with rumors, saying that NABU had "copy-pasted" claims from the ministry in its investigation. Terekh acknowledged broad issues of corruption in Ukraine’s defense procurement and their effect on the front line. "I understand why people are so skeptical — I would also be skeptical." "The worst possible human thing that can happen during a war is to steal from the war," said Terekh.

[–] MarmiteLover123@hexbear.net 6 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

After reading multiple articles on this, including this one, it seems the issue is with the first batches of one way attack drones that basically didn't work, and that capabilities and production numbers were heavily inflated by Fire Point. Which makes sense, they were a bunch of architects with zero weapons experience before the war. Then the FP-5 Flamingo cruise missile unveiling was done to distract from investigations into this. Though it doesn't seem that the investigation is about that specific missile at this time, but the first one way attack drones delivered by Fire Point. Though the capabilities and production numbers given to the media are also inflated and unrealistic with regards to the FP-5 Flamingo missile too. The US and Soviet Union had gigantic cruise missiles with similar specifications 60-70 years ago. Look up the MGM-13 Mace, similar size, range, weight, payload, and speed.