Silicon Curtain

Oleksandra Chorna is a Blogger and Therapist based in New York. She runs platforms including on YouTube focusing on democratic politics, authoritarian slide, and Ukraine's struggle to remain independent in the face of Russian aggression. ----------LINKS:https://www.youtube.com/@UC9WVWN8qNEiy2CofIUW9Zpw https://www.instagram.com/mom_ocracy/https://www.linkedin.com/in/oleksandra-chorna-30b9088/----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Car4Ukrainehttps://car4ukraine.com/en-US/campaignsDzyga's Pawhttps://dzygaspaw.com/projectsSuperhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.orgNGO “Herojam Slava”https://heroiamslava.org/----------PLATFORMS:Substack: https://substack.com/@siliconcurtainTwitter: https://twitter.com/CurtainSiliconLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/finkjonathan/Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/4thRZj6NO7y93zG11JMtqm----------

Silicon Bites Ep406 | 2026-09-24 | Everyone around Putin knows the war is lost — except grandpa. Explosive new leaks hint at what Putin’s inner circle believe, and the picture is hardly of loyalists that are invested in a common vision. Rather a cynical and spineless elite simply clinging to power and their lives – buying more time to grift and protect their ill-gotten gains. But what if there is no plan to what, what if there never was a plan? But they are all only improvising day to day to survive? ----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Save Ukrainehttps://www.saveukraineua.org/Superhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.org----------SOURCES:UA.News — "Hackers have published Peskov's correspondence regarding Prigozhin and Navalny" (23 Sep 2026; relays Agentstvo's analysis): https://ua.news/en/world/khakeri-opublikuvali-perepisku-pieskova-pro-prigozhina-i-navalnogoPriamyi Online (PRM) — "Hackers obtained correspondence between a Russian official and Peskov, discussing Tokayev and Prigozhin" (23–24 Sep 2026): https://prm.ua/en/hackers-obtained-correspondence-between-a-russian-official-and-peskov-discussing-tokayev-and-prigozhin/UNIAN — "'Все настолько плохо, что нужно что-то делать': хакеры слили переписку Пескова" (23 Sep 2026): https://www.unian.net/world/dmitriy-peskov-predskazal-smert-prigozhina-za-tri-mesyaca-13507953.htmlTSN — "'Нельзя помочь самоубийце': хакеры слили 'переписку' Пескова" (23 Sep 2026): https://tsn.ua/ru/svit/nelzya-pomoch-samoubiytse-hakery-slili-perepisku-peskova-o-putine-prigozhine-i-navalnom-foto-smi-3174272.htmlMY.UA news cluster — "Хакеры Black8Mirror слили переписку Пескова" (23 Sep 2026): https://my.ua/news/cluster/2026-09-23-khakery-black8mirror-slili-perepisku-peskova-chto-on-pisal-o-putine-prigozhine-i-tokaeveFocus.ua — "Переписка Пескова — что в Кремле писали о Дне ВМФ, выступлении Токаева и Пригожина" (23 Sep 2026): https://focus.ua/world/768777-perepiska-peskova-chto-v-kremle-pisali-o-dne-vmf-vystuplenii-tokaeva-i-prigozhinaYahoo News — "Putin's Paranoia Exposed in Leaked Kremlin Message Trove" (23 Sep 2026): https://www.yahoo.com/news/world/articles/putin-paranoia-exposed-leaked-kremlin-210335389.htmlWikipedia — Mikhail Babich (background biography): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikhail_BabichNewsweek — "Russia's Navy Day Sees Ships Replaced With Giant Banner of Vessel" (26 Jul 2026): https://www.newsweek.com/russia-navy-day-sees-ships-replaced-with-giant-banner-of-vessel-12249515Ground News aggregation (incl. Kyiv Independent, ISW) — Navy Day parade cancelled for second straight year: https://ground.news/article/russia-cancels-st-petersburg-navy-day-parade-for-second-straight-year-amid-ukrainian-drone-threatUkrainska Pravda — "Russia again decides not to hold its 'main naval parade'" (15 Jun 2026, citing Fontanka): https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2026/06/15/8039371/The Moscow Times — "Speaking Alongside Putin, Kazakh President Calls for Freeze of Ukraine War" (26 Jul 2026): https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2026/07/26/speaking-alongside-putin-kazakh-president-calls-for-freeze-of-ukraine-war-a93339----------

Livestream with Yuri RashkinLINKS:https://rashkinreport.substack.com/https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/rashkin-report/id1183073638----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Save Ukrainehttps://www.saveukraineua.org/Superhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.orgNGO “Herojam Slava”https://heroiamslava.org/kharpp - Reconstruction project supporting communities in Kharkiv and Przemyslhttps://kharpp.com/NOR DOG Animal Rescuehttps://www.nor-dog.org/home/-----------

Silicon Bites Ep402 | 2026-09-17 | Flares at a Danish Helicopter, Drones over Lithuania and Moldova, Fire on Poland's Doorstep — Putin Has Stopped Deterring Europe and Started Shaping the Future Battlefield. Two flares. No warning. No radio call. One passed within metres of a Danish military helicopter over the Baltic Sea on Monday. A few metres more, and Denmark would be burying aircrew killed by a Russian warship in international waters.Moscow did not apologise. Moscow handed out a medal. On Wednesday, Russia's Defence Ministry announced that Andrei Belousov had awarded the ship's captain the medal "For Courage". The courage in question was firing pyrotechnics at a helicopter on a perfectly legal monitoring mission. It is a pattern, not an isolated incident. It also forces the question Europe keeps dodging. Is Putin still trying to deter us, or has he already moved into the next phase?----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Save Ukrainehttps://www.saveukraineua.org/Superhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.org----------SOURCES:Bloomberg, "Denmark Says Russian Warship Fired Flares at Helicopter," 15 Sep 2026 — https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-09-15/denmark-says-russian-warship-fired-flares-at-helicopterDefense News / Reuters, "Russian frigate fires flares towards Danish military helicopter," 15 Sep 2026 (Frederiksen quote) — https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2026/09/15/russian-frigate-fires-flares-towards-danish-military-helicopter/The Moscow Times, "Belousov Awards Warship Captain for 'Skillfully and Decisively' Firing Flares at Danish Helicopter," 16 Sep 2026 (Bruus quote via Reuters; corvette Soobrazitelny) — https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2026/09/16/belousov-awards-warship-captain-for-skillfully-and-decisively-firing-flares-at-danish-helicopter-a93724The Moscow Times, "Denmark Summons Russian Ambassador After Frigate Fires Flares Toward Military Helicopter," 15 Sep 2026 — https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2026/09/15/denmark-summons-russian-ambassador-after-frigate-fires-flares-toward-military-helicopter-a93709Al Jazeera / AFP / Reuters, "Russia warns Denmark after near miss in Baltic Sea," 15 Sep 2026 — https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/9/15/russia-warns-denmark-after-near-miss-in-baltic-seaThe Irish Times, "Nato jets shoot down drone violating Lithuania's airspace," 15 Sep 2026 (von der Leyen quote) — https://www.irishtimes.com/world/europe/2026/09/15/nato-jets-shoot-down-drone-violating-lithuanias-airspace/LRT / BNS, "Nausėda: drone shot down over Lithuania was Russian Gerbera headed for Ukraine," 16 Sep 2026 — https://www.lrt.lt/en/news-in-english/19/3054232/nauseda-drone-shot-down-over-lithuania-was-russian-gerbera-headed-for-ukraineMeduza, "Ukrainian electronic warfare apparently knocked a Russian attack drone off course and into Lithuanian airspace," 16 Sep 2026 — https://meduza.io/en/news/2026/09/16/ukrainian-electronic-warfare-apparently-knocked-a-russian-attack-drone-off-course-and-into-lithuanian-airspace-the-country-s-president-saysMezha, "Moldova Reports Two Drone Airspace Violations During Russian Attack on Ukraine," 14 Sep 2026 — https://mezha.net/eng/news/c1fec6fb_moldova_reports_two/----------

Andrew Ryvkin was born in the Soviet Union, grew up in Boston, then spent close to two decades in Moscow. He studied History and International Relations at St Petersburg State University and subsequently worked across media, advertising, PR and political television. He published glossy magazines in which Kremlin talking points appeared alongside luxury advertising, produced political talk shows that simulated pluralism while maintaining the state line, and worked within the milieu surrounding Vladislav Surkov and other Kremlin political managers. He now writes for outlets including The Atlantic and Air Mail, lectures on information warfare and authoritarian media systems, and is publishing a memoir, provocatively titled 'The Propagandist'.----------LINKS:https://andrewryvkin.com/https://andrewryvkin.substack.com/https://x.com/andryvkin?lang=en-GBhttps://daviscenter.fas.harvard.edu/about/people/andrew-ryvkinhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewryvkin/https://www.theatlantic.com/author/andrew-ryvkin/----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Car4Ukrainehttps://car4ukraine.com/en-US/campaignsDzyga's Pawhttps://dzygaspaw.com/projectsSuperhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.orgNGO “Herojam Slava”https://heroiamslava.org/----------PLATFORMS:Substack: https://substack.com/@siliconcurtainTwitter: https://twitter.com/CurtainSiliconLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/finkjonathan/Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/4thRZj6NO7y93zG11JMtqm----------