Notes and Essays -- John Brown

A Russian jet-powered drone hit Ukraine’s National Academy of Sciences, the source of almost all of the country’s major scientific discoveries. By Kim Barker ,  Maria Varenikova and Oleksandra Mykolyshyn Reporting from Kyiv, Ukraine The New York Times Sept. 28, 2026 Updated 1:10 p.m. ET AI Overview AI Overview  Target: The building of the Presidium of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine in downtown Kyiv. Casualties: At least one person was killed and multiple others were injured or hospitalized following the daytime strike. Impact: The top floors caught fire, trapping employees who had to climb out of windows or use ladders to escape the blaze. Context: The attack occurred as Russia intensified its use of faster, high-flying jet-powered drones against Ukraine's major cities. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ] In the middle of a workday, in the middle of the Ukrainian capital, a Russian jet-powered drone struck the National Academy of Sciences on Monday, setting the top t...

The government has opened five boarding schools that are part grief counseling and part boot camp. September 27, 2026 By Steve Hendrix and Kostiantyn Khudos The Washington Post   KYIV — Viktor is the older one, by two minutes, so he is the one who feels obliged to head most directly to the war that killed his father. He and his twin brother were 12 when Viktor jr., a Ukrainian infantryman, died on the front lines. Now 15, Viktor Jr. plans to follow their father’s footsteps into whatever battle with Russia is still raging when the twins finish with this militarized school — not to mention with adolescence and with the awkward, dangerous process of growing into adulthood in a country at war. Vitalii, 120 seconds younger, plans to go into the State Emergency Service, joining Ukraine’s beleaguered ranks of rescue workers and first responders, not so much to fulfill any family destiny but because, “I like their uniforms.” Whichever branch they choose, this school puts them into a funn...

Ivan Novoselov  ·  Following Russian, interested in history and politics Updated Sep 1 https://www.quora.com/ JB: I found this article hard to follow,  but -- as an ignorant American --  read it with considerable interest. Why did Stalin perceive Ukrainians as a threat, leading to the reversal of Ukrainization, and what were the consequences of this shift? In 1952, my great-uncle graduated from Kharkov university as a medic. Yet, when he wanted to find job in Kharkov, he was told by high-ranked party members that the jobs are reserved only for Ukrainians. As the result, he moved to Belarus where he worked and lived for the rest of his life and made a spectacular career in medicine. Ukrainization was never actually reversed. Even in East Ukraine. Especially considering that for 30 years after Stalin’s death the USSR was governed by Ukrainians. Khrutschev often wore Ukrainian ethnic clothing. He wasn't a bad leader for his time, but many of his situational decisions an...

Mounting Ukrainian strikes, orders from the Kremlin are forcing industries to take responsibility for protecting themselves By Thomas Grove and Daria Matviichuk The Wall Street Journal Sept. 25, 2026 10:00 pm ET Original article contains numerous links Smoke rises from a Russian warehouse following a Ukrainian drone attack. Social Media/ UGC/ Reuters UGC / Reuters / Quick Summary   -- Russian businesses are increasingly forced to defend themselves as Ukrainian drone strikes intensify and the Kremlin mandates self-protection.  -- A Kremlin decree warned that companies failing to take responsibility for their protection against Ukrainian drones could face state seizure.  -- Russian businesses are leasing air-defense systems, building their own and hiring gunners to shoot down incoming drones. This summary was generated with AI and reviewed by an editor. Read more about how we use artificial intelligence in our journalism. When a Ukrainian drone struck one of Russia’s b...