In Soviet Russia, Kitchen Goes to You

Bold move . Or maybe it just seems bold by my American standards. I haven't been over there in a long time, but I think this kind of an attitude toward women is still commonplace in Ukraine. Still, it's amazing to think that if a politician said something like this in the U.S., he'd get slaughtered.

Yanukovych to Tymoshenko: "Go Back to the Kitchen"
Ukrainian presidential candidate Viktor Yanukovych on Wednesday told his rival for the country’s top spot, Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, to take responsibility for herself or “go back to the kitchen.”

The leader of Ukraine’s Regions Party, Yanukovych addressed supporters in the Kharkiv region Wednesday and proclaimed that he is unafraid to criticize Tymoshenko.

“I’m told that it is useless and wrong to argue with a woman,” he said. “I don’t agree with this. First and foremost, I think that if she is prime minister, she has to be held responsible for everything she says. And if she is a woman, she has to go back to the kitchen.”

Read the full story here.

Round One - The Winner Is ...

No surprises here. I'm curious to see whether the runoff election will go just as smoothly as the first round. Anyone want to take bets if there will be fraud allegations or other mishaps?

Yanukovych, Tymoshenko Advance to Ukrainian Presidential Runoff
Opposition leader Viktor Yanukovych appeared to be the winner of the first round of the Ukrainian presidential election Sunday, with Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko coming in second.

Exit polling showed that Yanukovych, who is a former prime minister and the current leader of the Party of Regions in the Ukrainian parliament, received approximately 35 percent of the vote. Polls showed Tymoshenko capturing about 25 percent of the vote.

Yanukovych and Tymoshenko will face each other in a runoff election, which is scheduled for Feb. 7. Read the full story here ...

Ukraine is Against All in Presidential Race

There is some mighty interesting stuff going on in Ukraine as of late. All of it has to do with the lead up to the presidential election this coming Sunday. It's not hard to see that the Ukrainian people are not too thrilled with the choices they have in the contest to determine their next leader. And it's also not hard to see why - given the thinly-veiled corruption and political grandstanding that goes on there. Still, it's mighty fun to watch it all go down.

"Against All" Runs in Ukrainian Presidential Election
With the first round of voting in Ukraine's presidential election less than a week away, many in the country have expressed dissatisfaction with all of the election's candidates. And that disenchantment is what one candidate hopes might improve his chances.

Rather than cast a vote for Viktor Yanukovych or Yulia Tymoshenko or any of the more than 10 candidates in the race, voters have the option of marking their ballot with a cross symbol – indicating that they are against all of the candidates.

Vasyl Humeniuk, who is among the lesser known candidates in the presidential race, is officially running under the name Vasyl Protyvsikh – which in Ukrainian means Vasyl “Against All.” Read the full story here ...

Ukraine Gets to Ready to Rock the Vote ... Well, Sort of ...

An interesting and educational look at the Ukrainian presidential election - though a little dumbed down. From what I've heard, nobody in Ukraine is particularly excited about this election - more of the same no matter who wins. But it's still a momentous occasion. I'm inclined to think neither Tymoshenko or Yanukovych will do much to improve the country's situation. If I had a voice, my support would go to Yatsenyuk - the only man who doesn't seem to have hidden motives. But I don't have a voice. All I can do is sit back and watch it all go down.

The Ukrainian Presidential Election of 2010
It's election season in Ukraine. On Jan. 17, voters in the country will take to the polls to have their say about who should guide the country through the economic crisis and represent the country's interests to both the west and Russia. Here is an overview of the election and some of the candidates.

Background and the Orange Revolution

Current President Viktor Yushchenko rose to power in the wake of a tumultuous election in 2004. Considered to be the main opposition candidate in that election, Yushchenko competed against the government-supported and Russian-favored candidate Viktor Yanukovych.

Read the full story here ...

Ukraine Bans Poker - Talk About a Royal Flush

This is silly, if you ask me. But Ukrainian and Russian politics never ceases to amaze me in its silliness. Keep in mind that this is the same country whose government intentionally threw the citizenry into a panic over the virtually non-existent threat of swine flu. Is it any wonder that the same government bans gambling just because there's a fire in a casino? Stuff like this makes me glad I live in America.

Ukraine Adds Poker to Gambling Ban
The Ukrainian Justice Ministry announced last week that they will no longer treat the game of poker as a sport. The decision was made in order to strengthen a ban on most forms of gambling in the country, which was instituted last summer.

Protests erupted in both Russia and Ukraine last summer after both countries issued bans on most forms of gambling, with employees of the gaming industry arguing that thousands of jobs would be lost.

Read the full story here ...

Travel Tips from One Man's Love Journey

Here's a riveting tale of one man's desperate search for love. Apparently there's much of it to be found in Ukraine. This brilliant work of literature is full of fun travel tips. Makes me feel like packing a bag.

Rob's Trip to Ukraine: Tips for Travelers and Russian Bride Seekers
The following article comes from one of our members who went to Ukraine this past summer. Rob H. wanted to share with you his lessons learned with the hopes of giving all our members a more realistic understanding of what to expect on a similar trip. Rob’s destination was Sevastopol, on the Crimean Peninsula, home to some of Ukraine’s more exotic tourist hotspots and world-famous beaches. Enjoy!

Long Airplane Ride from Canada

On August 6th, I flew overnight from Toronto to Frankfurt, Germany (7 hours), then after a 90 minute layover, flew 3 hours to Istanbul, Turkey. Then after a 2 hour layover, flew 1.5 hours across the Black Sea to Simferopol, Ukraine. This is the only airport in the entire Crimean peninsula, which sticks out from the southernmost tip of Ukraine into the Black Sea.

Read the full story here ...

Ukraine is Weak ... and so is Swine Flu

I'm telling you, this Ukraine swine flu stuff isn't all it's cracked up to be ...

World Health Officials Report no Ukraine Swine Flu Mutation
As the Ukrainian government continues to impose drastic measures to stop the spread of swine flu in the country, a team from the World Health Organization (WHO) reported Tuesday that there is no evidence that the virus had mutated. Read the full story here ...

Ukraine Scales Back its Swine Flu Hysteria

More swine flu nonsense out of Ukraine. I'm tempted to say that government leaders shouldn't play politics with serious issues, but isn't that what they do best?

Swine Flu May Delay Ukraine Election, Yulia Says No
Amid conflicting reports of the seriousness of swine flu in Ukraine, government officials suggested this week that it may be necessary to delay the country’s January presidential election as a result of the outbreak.

An aide to Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko suggested delaying the vote from January until May in order to give the government time to bring the supposed epidemic under control. Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, however, was quick to respond that delaying the election is unnecessary. Both Yushchenko and Tymoshenko are candidates in the presidential election. Read the full story here ...

Fedor Kicks Ass!

This was an incredible fight on Saturday. My money was on Fedor to win the whole time, of course. I wonder what he will do next - and if this fight will make him a star in America like they were hoping. We'll see ...

Russian Fighter Shows American Aufiences How it's Done
Ukrainian mixed martial artist Fedor Emelianenko broke onto to American scene Saturday night. Literally.

In a two-round battle in which the American Brett Rogers bloodied Emelianenko’s nose, the man known as Russia’s “last emperor” knocked out his opponent and showed American TV viewers why he is known internationally as “the baddest man on the planet.” Read the full story here ...

Or watch the actual fight!

Ukraine Comes Down with a Case of Swine Flu Mania

I usually don't write about Ukraine on this blog, but it's practically Russia, so why not?

I think it's a little crazy the way they're freaking out about swine flu there. As this article notes, there's no evidence to indicate that the flu is more widespread in Ukraine than it is anywhere else. Do the Ukrainians really feel the need to wear these silly masks out in public? It seems like you're just as likely to pick up swine flu in Kiev as you are in Moscow or London or New York. I don't know ... personally I'm more afraid of Yulia Tymoshenko's hairstyle than I am of swine flu.

Swine Flu Fears Spread through Ukraine
News reports have abounded in recent days about the apparent severity of the swine flu epidemic in Ukraine. Here at HotRussianBrides.com, we take such reports very seriously as many of the beautiful ladies featured on our site are from Ukraine.

But as fears of a particularly vicious outbreak in Ukraine grow, the World Health Organization has said that there is nothing to indicate that the swine flu outbreak in Ukraine has been particularly severe. Read the full story here ...

Sir Elton Wants to Adopt a Ukrainian Baby

I know this blog is about Russia and not the Ukraine, but being that the Ukraine and Russia are so closely tied, I felt that I had to comment on this story.

If you haven't heard, Sir Elton John is looking to adopt a 15-month-old Ukrainian boy. The trouble is the kid's parents aren't too thrilled with the idea.

The deal is that the boy, who is HIV positive, has been taken out of his parents' custody and placed in an orphanage. His parents, both of whom are also HIV positive, lost custody of their boy and their other child for various reasons (the mother is an alcoholic and the father is reportedly a drug addict who served eight years in prison for murder). Enter Sir Elton and his homosexual partner, David Furnish, who say they fell in love with the young boy after visiting him in an orphanage last month.

Despite their desire to raise the boy as their own, Sir Elton and Furnish were denied their request to return with the boy to England. Ukrainian officials cited a number of technical reasons for forbidding the adoption, most notably that Ukrainian law prohibits adoption by homosexual couples. Add onto this the fact that the boy's mother hopes to eventually regain custody of her son. Though the father reportedly will allow Sir Elton to take the boy as long as the father can live with him in England.

Maybe I'm wrong, but the whole thing seems wrong on so many levels. What right does Elton John have to take a young boy away from his natural parents? Just because he's a rich foreigner, what extra right does that give him?