Silicon Curtain

Silicon Bites Ep306 | 2026-03-24 | Russia has become a Digital GULAG, as Moscow and St Petersburg go offline. People are reverting to papers, paper maps and cash. Privileged urban Russians are losing their minds, as finally some of them wake up to the idea that the government does not exist to serve their interests, and maintain their privileges, but does not in fact give a damn about their comfort. Imagine living in one of the most digitised capital cities on the planet – because that is what Moscow is. A city where you pay for your coffee by tapping your phone, pay for everything that is electronically. Where you hail your taxi through an app, navigate by GPS, send money to a friend in seconds. A city that for years was held up — smugly, loudly, by its defenders — as proof that Russia was modern, thriving, untouched by war, despite an authoritarian government. This was a gilded cage, their argued, so why not just live life and enjoy it?!----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------SOURCES:The Moscow Times — "In Moscow, a Week of Mobile Internet Shutdowns Makes Life a Real Pain," March 13, 2026.The Moscow Times — "Widespread Mobile Internet Outages Are Lawful and Needed for Security, Kremlin Says," March 10, 2026.The Moscow Times — "Mobile Internet Outages Hit St. Petersburg After Days of Disruptions in Moscow," March 9, 2026.NBC News — "Mobile internet blackouts sweep Moscow, leaving residents feeling 'powerless'," March 17, 2026.CNN — "Internet outages disrupt daily life in Russia, fueling fears of a digital crackdown," March 21, 2026.Meduza — "The Kremlin says it's cutting off mobile Internet access for security reasons. Muscovites say they're resigning themselves to regular blackouts," March 10, 2026.Reuters (via U.S. News) — "Kremlin Says Moscow Mobile Internet Outages Are Done for Sake of Security," March 10, 2026.----------SILICON CURTAIN LIVE EVENTS - FUNDRAISER CAMPAIGN Events in 2025 - Advocacy for a Ukrainian victory with Silicon Curtainhttps://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extrasOur events of the first half of the year in Lviv, Kyiv and Odesa were a huge success. Now we need to maintain this momentum, and change the tide towards a Ukrainian victory. The Silicon Curtain Roadshow is an ambitious campaign to run a minimum of 12 events in 2025, and potentially many more. Any support you can provide for the fundraising campaign would be gratefully appreciated. https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extrasWe need to scale up our support for Ukraine, and these events are designed to have a major impact. Your support in making it happen is greatly appreciated. All events will be recorded professionally and published for free on the Silicon Curtain channel. Where possible, we will also live-stream events.https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extras----------

2026-03-24 | UPDATES #152 | The reaction was instantaneous — and chaotic. Confused and fevered. On the pro-Kremlin side, there was something close to panic. Several people immediately speculated that Remeslo's account had been hacked. He shot that down by posting video messages insisting the words were his and his alone. He looked composed. He did not appear to be under duress. The Breakfast Show interview with Plyushchev put paid to that line of speculation. Apti Alaudinov — the commander of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov's Akhmat special forces — publicly expressed alarm. He described Remeslo as someone who had always seemed completely level-headed and raised the possibility that he'd been kidnapped or was being held against his will (The Moscow Times, March 18, 2026).----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------A REQUEST FOR HELP!I'm heading back to Kyiv next month, to film, do research and conduct interviews. The logistics and need for equipment and clothing are a little higher than for my previous trips. It will be cold, and may be dark also. If you can, please assist to ensure I can make this trip a success. My commitment to the audience of the channel, will be to bring back compelling interviews conducted in Ukraine, and to use the experience to improve the quality of the channel, it's insights and impact. Let Ukraine and democracy prevail! https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extrashttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformationNONE OF THIS CAN HAPPEN WITHOUT YOU!So what's next? We're going to Kyiv in April 2026 to film on the ground, and will record interviews with some huge guests. We'll be creating opportunities for new interviews, and to connect you with the reality of a European city under escalating winter attack, from an imperialist, genocidal power. PLEASE HELP ME ME TO GROW SILICON CURTAINWe are planning our events for 2026, and to do more and have a greater impact. After achieving more than 12 events in 2025, we will aim to double that! 24 events and interviews on the ground in Ukraine, to push back against weaponized information, toxic propaganda and corrosive disinformation. Please help us make it happen!----------SOURCES: The Moscow Times — "A Pro-Kremlin Blogger Has Denounced Putin – And Nobody Knows Why," March 18, 2026.NBC News — "A Kremlin loyalist suddenly turned against Putin. A day later, he was in a psychiatric hospital," March 20, 2026.Meduza — "A longtime pro-Putin blogger published a tirade against the Russian president. Now he's in a psychiatric hospital," March 20, 2026.RFE/RL (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty) — "A Kremlin Cheerleader Rips Into Putin. A Day Later, He's In A Psychiatric Hospital," March 19, 2026.The Guardian — "Pro-Kremlin loyalist calls on Putin to go in abrupt volte-face," March 19, 2026.GB News — "'Vladimir Putin must go on trial — his war is going nowhere' blasts Kremlin loyalist," March 19, 2026.Bloomberg — "Kremlin Loyalist Turns on Putin as Russians Start to Tire of War," March 19, 2026.Kyiv Independent — "A pro-Kremlin blogger lashed out at Putin; he ended up in a psychiatric ward," March 19, 2026.----------

Adam Dunigan is a 2026 Democratic congressional candidate in Northern Virginia / Virginia’s 8th District. He is a former Marine combat veteran who deployed to Afghanistan, later earned a bachelor’s degree in social psychology and a master’s in international relations from Harvard, moved to Virginia in 2014 for national-security work, and eventually served as a CIA case officer. He resigned from the CIA to run for Congress because he believed U.S. democracy was “backsliding” under Trump. ----------LINKS:https://www.adam4congress.com/https://x.com/adamduniganhttps://ballotpedia.org/Adam_Duniganhttps://www.instagram.com/adamduniganva8/https://secure.actblue.com/donate/adam-dunigan-1----------ACTIVE CAMPAIGN:We are raising funds for 5 of 15 Vampire DronesSilicon Curtain for Kupiansk Vampires. Dzyga’s Paw, together with Jonathan Fink, is joining forces to raise $40,000 to provide the Khartiia Brigade with Vampire Drones.https://dzygaspaw.com/silicon-curtain-for-kupiansk-vampiresThese heavy bombers are designed to destroy manpower and equipment, as well as for remote mining. The Vampire UAV, manufactured by Skyfall, has proven itself to be one of the most effective weapons in the Kupiansk direction. Skyfall is one of Ukraine’s largest defense tech companies, producing Vampire bomber drones, various modifications of Shrike FPV drones, P1-SUN, Shahed drone interceptors, communication systems, and components.----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------PLATFORMS:Substack: https://substack.com/@siliconcurtainTwitter: https://twitter.com/CurtainSiliconLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/finkjonathan/Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/4thRZj6NO7y93zG11JMtqm----------DESCRIPTION:----------CHAPTERS:----------THE 'FAITH UNDER SIEGE' TEAM ARE KIND SUPPORTERS OF SILICON CURTAIN: WEBSITE: https://www.faithundersiege.com/TRAILER: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftGtdC-aO3kFILM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-E4gJWdsyAACHANNEL: https://www.youtube.com/@UCx-2kTPvk4Z505gS2ZEch-A REVIEW: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt35428172/----------

2026-03-23 | UPDATES #151 | Ilya Remeslo and the return of the Psikhushka – Political madhouse and state terror in Russia as a Kremlin attack dog turns to bite the hand that previously fed it. On Tuesday night, March 17th, 2026, a man who had spent a decade doing the Kremlin's dirtiest work — hounding dissidents, filing legal complaints against journalists, and personally helping to put Alexei Navalny behind bars — sat down in his flat in St Petersburg and did something nobody saw coming. He turned on Vladimir Putin. And within forty-eight hours, he was inside a psychiatric hospital.This is the story of Ilya Remeslo. And if you think you've heard everything about how the Putin regime eats its own — you haven't heard this. We’re only just getting started. ----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------A REQUEST FOR HELP!I'm heading back to Kyiv next month, to film, do research and conduct interviews. The logistics and need for equipment and clothing are a little higher than for my previous trips. It will be cold, and may be dark also. If you can, please assist to ensure I can make this trip a success. My commitment to the audience of the channel, will be to bring back compelling interviews conducted in Ukraine, and to use the experience to improve the quality of the channel, it's insights and impact. Let Ukraine and democracy prevail! https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extrashttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformationNONE OF THIS CAN HAPPEN WITHOUT YOU!So what's next? We're going to Kyiv in April 2026 to film on the ground, and will record interviews with some huge guests. We'll be creating opportunities for new interviews, and to connect you with the reality of a European city under escalating winter attack, from an imperialist, genocidal power. PLEASE HELP ME ME TO GROW SILICON CURTAINWe are planning our events for 2026, and to do more and have a greater impact. After achieving more than 12 events in 2025, we will aim to double that! 24 events and interviews on the ground in Ukraine, to push back against weaponized information, toxic propaganda and corrosive disinformation. Please help us make it happen!----------SOURCES: The Moscow Times — "A Pro-Kremlin Blogger Has Denounced Putin – And Nobody Knows Why," March 18, 2026.NBC News — "A Kremlin loyalist suddenly turned against Putin. A day later, he was in a psychiatric hospital," March 20, 2026.Meduza — "A longtime pro-Putin blogger published a tirade against the Russian president. Now he's in a psychiatric hospital," March 20, 2026.RFE/RL (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty) — "A Kremlin Cheerleader Rips Into Putin. A Day Later, He's In A Psychiatric Hospital," March 19, 2026.The Guardian — "Pro-Kremlin loyalist calls on Putin to go in abrupt volte-face," March 19, 2026.GB News — "'Vladimir Putin must go on trial — his war is going nowhere' blasts Kremlin loyalist," March 19, 2026.Bloomberg — "Kremlin Loyalist Turns on Putin as Russians Start to Tire of War," March 19, 2026.Kyiv Independent — "A pro-Kremlin blogger lashed out at Putin; he ended up in a psychiatric ward," March 19, 2026.----------

Silicon Bites Ep305 | 2026-03-24 | What is Russia testing? A drone crashes on a Lithuanian lake. A village called Lavisas. Varėna district, southern Lithuania. It’s 3:04 in the morning, local time. The forest is dark. The night is cold and the lake is frozen. And then — an eerie buzzing that lasts forty seconds. Followed by a blast and by burning fragments spinning up into the night sky and raining down onto the ice. Security camera footage captured the entire sequence. Lithuanian broadcaster LRT published it this morning. Forty seconds of engine noise, then a detonation, then fire falling from the sky onto a NATO member's territory — twenty kilometres from the border with Belarus. Accident or test? Trial run for a major provocation? Within hours of that blast, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was in a secure briefing with his chief of military intelligence, Oleh Ivashchenko. And Zelenskyy emerged with a stunning announcement that lands like a political detonation. Russia, Ukraine's intelligence services have confirmed, is planning to deploy four new long-range drone control stations on Belarusian territory. ----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------SOURCES:Reuters / US News & World Report — "Lithuania Says a Suspected Drone Enters Its Airspace, Crashes Into Lake Near Belarus" (March 23, 2026)Aerotime — "Suspected cross-border drone explodes in southern Lithuania" (March 23, 2026)Global Banking and Finance — "Lithuania Reports Suspected Drone Crash Near Belarus Border" (March 23, 2026)RBC-Ukraine — "Drone crashes in Lithuania on March 23 near border with Belarus" (March 23, 2026)UA.NEWS — "Lithuania is convening a national security commission following the crash of a drone near the border with Belarus" (March 23, 2026)Reform.news — "Unknown Object Falls And Explodes Near Belarusian Border In Lithuania" (March 23, 2026)Charter'97 — "At Night, An Explosion Occurred In Lithuania Near The Border With Belarus" (March 23, 2026)Pravda EN — "Lithuanian Armed Forces claim drone fell in Varensky district" (March 23, 2026)----------SILICON CURTAIN LIVE EVENTS - FUNDRAISER CAMPAIGN Events in 2025 - Advocacy for a Ukrainian victory with Silicon Curtainhttps://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extrasOur events of the first half of the year in Lviv, Kyiv and Odesa were a huge success. Now we need to maintain this momentum, and change the tide towards a Ukrainian victory. The Silicon Curtain Roadshow is an ambitious campaign to run a minimum of 12 events in 2025, and potentially many more. Any support you can provide for the fundraising campaign would be gratefully appreciated. https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extrasWe need to scale up our support for Ukraine, and these events are designed to have a major impact. Your support in making it happen is greatly appreciated. All events will be recorded professionally and published for free on the Silicon Curtain channel. Where possible, we will also live-stream events.https://buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtain/extras----------