Ukraine - Russia Conflict

[R.Caerbannog]

Russia has to die. The Ukrainians are basically paying the butchers bill on this. All while we give them a small fraction of our old stock of cold war weapons and munitions. All of this was avoidable too, but we and the fucking Europeans (esp Germany & France) dropped the ball yet again.

Is there corruption there? You bet! That said, the secondary and tertiary order of effects this war has had on international agricultural markets is gonna be biblical. If you think Africa and the Middle East are bad, wait until their population can't get the raw resources to grow or import food at scale. Think global famine. Think people in the ME not being able to afford bread.

(Yes it's Al Jazeera, but they're not the woke MSM shitheads we have in the US. Some of their reporting is okay.)

If any one wants think of this in SF terms, CENTCOM and AFRICOM are about to get a hell of a lot busier and that's not taking into account global energy flows. The longer this drags out the worse it's gonna get.

 

[Locksteady]

Also, of all places, the Washington Post compared Biden's current vacation schedule and Trump's. Bottom line? Biden goes to wealthy donors' cribs and doesn't work.

Bottom line, per your article:

these trips make up only 24 of the 250-plus days Biden has been away from the White House.

Trump went almost exclusively to properties he owned and worked there because he thought the White House was a dump.

Also per your article:

By contrast, Trump’s 250 days spent in full or in part at properties he owned were almost all at clubs and facilities where he would be interacting with customers for his private business. His interactions with Mar-a-Lago customers in that facility’s dining room became the stuff of presidential legend. He’d often dip out to the Trump Organization golf course in Virginia on the weekend, playing rounds of golf with club members or other individuals whose identities weren’t revealed to the public.

If you have faith in the article you used as a reference, then it is far less dubious to take the article's quote at face value and conclude that most if not all of Trump's 250 vacation days were spent 'working' on his private businesses than it is to Stretch Armstrong the article's sub-10% Biden vacation metric into a 250-day "Biden goes to wealthy donors' cribs and doesn't work" comparative generalization.

I personally think there is more to it than what your article suggests and that Trump's vacation stay work wasn't necessarily limited to private business, but a person with his historical primary interest ($) would be a fool (economically) not to use his leader-of-the-free-world clout to maximize his holdings while staycationing in NY/NJ and FL.

 

[Gordus]

That I get. My dad's family is Finn; they hate the Russians with a deep passion. Oh, they pretty much hate everyone else, too, but especially Russia.

The world is a lot smaller than it used to be, and there's a much greater risk for things like this (the war, not this thread) to become personal. Although I really think the US needs to take a HUUUUUUUUGE step back, you gotta do you.

Hah. Know only one Finn. One of the nicest ppl I've met. Our first real convo was about Talvisota. Lol
To be clear though, on my part it's not disdain towards the people. I'm not really a fan of generalising like that. Sometimes, some of my Russian friends drive me mad when we talk politics and literal Kremlin propaganda is regurgitated. But what I do hate, is their politics, hypocrisy and especialy (mis)treatment of neighbouring countries.

Personaly I'm a bit divided on that. I got nothing against the US supporting other countries on request, if its a just cause or benefits them both. Others may disagree with this. To me its absolutely fine.

 

[amlove21]

No hard feelings. Its perfectly fine to have different positions on this and I can't speak for any American. I have my personal motivations, that are not "virtue signaling" but born from Russian aggression against my own people and simply sympathy for their current victims.
So yes, I'd be willing to pay a bit more, if it helps them. I'm already donating money to Ukraine for medical supplies. Will that fix the war ? Maybe it won't. But it may help a few more miserable lives out there and that's all I need. I agree with the administration part, hence the bit in my prev reply.

Sorry if you inferred my statement was about you specifically, it was meant to the American populace writ large on this issue.

A negotiated agreement would help a lot more miserable lives, I think. The scenario is a grey area of international politics and 2nd/3rd/4th order effects, and I get that. However, what we are doing now (and say, for the last year) isn't saving lives, and it's not preventing future death and only perpetuating it for no conceivable good.

 

[Gunz]

Russia retains the strategic advantage. As the invader, it can attack or not attack whenever it wants. It can chill out, hold the defensive and regroup whenever it wants. Ukraine has to fight…it has no choice…but depends on foreign military aid from countries reluctant to give it the kind of weapons it really needs—air power—because NATO is afraid of escalation and direct involvement.

And from what I can tell there’s no definitive evidence—despite some wishful thinking, the early logistic snafus and the recent Wagner Group drama—that indicate Russian resolve to continue the fight has in any way weakened.

So, either it drags on for years until some political settlement, or Russia wins by attrition. Because IMO, unless Ukraine gets the kind of help and hardware that allows it to pose a real threat and take the war into Russian territory, there’s no incentive to bring Russia to the negotiating table.

And I seriously doubt the US or our Western Allies will do much more for Ukraine than is already being done.

 

[Gordus]

Sorry if you inferred my statement was about you specifically, it was meant to the American populace writ large on this issue.

A negotiated agreement would help a lot more miserable lives, I think. The scenario is a grey area of international politics and 2nd/3rd/4th order effects, and I get that. However, what we are doing now (and say, for the last year) isn't saving lives, and it's not preventing future death and only perpetuating it for no conceivable good.

No worries, I know. Just wanted to be clear and yeah, I agree. Ofc it would be better. But as I said earlier, I personaly don't see it happening at this stage. Unfortunatly, I think this will drag. If it was another universe, a certain actor would have forced two warring parties to the table by now. But the complete opposite is true. Its their proxy war, currently with the objective of dealing as much damage to Russia as possible and vice versa. Through Ukraine / against Ukraine. Really, it was since 2000s/2008. A 2 v 1 and perhaps not for unfounded reasons. But instead of just containment, it escalated into open conflict. First economicaly, now militarily. Russia was finally puppeteering Ukraine and naturaly freaked tf out over the EU trying to insert the largest post-Soviet economy into their trade empire fold, to the point of supporting an overthrow. Which meant, they would also seize control of the gas transmission system and take away the only real political leverage Russia ever had over the EU. Not to mention, potentialy also their naval base on Crimea. So from their POV, for also not unfounded reasons, they attacked and did everything militarily to secure and broaden their naval presence in the Black Sea, on top of eliminating any prospect of Ukraine ever joining NATO. Through separatism and occupation. But there are many sides to this story and its also a fact that the Ukr parliament voted overwhelmingly in favour of signing the association agreement, that was initiated by their previous gov. Plus a large part of the population, the majority, supported raprochement. No one Head of State should simply ignore the will of the people like that.
We can argue all day, whatever was or whoever comitted the greater dick move here. To me it will always be Russia. Their policies won't change. They still bemoan the breakup and seek to "reclaim" historical "lost territory", not just influence spheres. Openly questioning the existence of entire countries since February 2022. Wheter the West/US had ever interfered in Eastern Europe / Caucasian politics, the inevitable would have happened regardless. Out of sheer paranoia. Since the early 1990s they meddle in neighbouring countries affairs and attack them on the mere suspicion that they might eventualy in a 100 years join NATO / EU. They remain opportunist warmongering profeteers who armed both sides in the first Karabakh war, made profit in the Chechen Wars and are very not reliable when it comes to any agreement. Containment is justifiable here. The way it's been handled in recent history by opposing actors, the execution, is horrendous though and wheter I like it or not, I understand that many regular people in the States, just don't want to be part in any of it. Just like none of us want to be victim to any Russian aggression and proxy wars. So I get it too and also wished all this nonsense and senseless slaughter would cease and everyone just respected eachother. But it ain't realistic. It will continue until someone gives up or both sides decide any further stupidity is really stupid and it may benefit them both to stop and settle on an agreement.

 

[Gordus]

Only to see this repeated later or elsewhere. Long way to go as civilisation.

 

[ThunderHorse]

I cant remember if I've posted this thought or not - but here is my thought on Ukraine "winning" by any measure of success - so I feel like a story is in order but first, a few caveats:
I am a home owner.
I am committed to defending my home from criminals, thugs, and ne'er do wells.
I operate under the premise that when seconds count, the cops are only minutes away.
So, here we go...

Late one night, I hear a rumbling in the other side of my home. I respond - it is my next door neighbors attempting a home invasion. They clearly seek to inflict harm on my family as they rob me of my possessions. A fight ensures; there are injuries on both sides, but I fail to repel the invaders. They make no more progress in my home, because I have them confined to the back bedroom.

I call for the police - but they never come. Oh sure, they send a car - but the cops never actually come in the house to help repel these mother fuckers. Police from adjacent counties periodically stop by to help me with firearms maintenance or a few boxes of ammo when they leave but none of these mother fuckers actually stop and help me get these fucking thugs out of my house.
I'm winning though.
I'm fucking winning.
I'm winning because everyone keeps telling me I am winning.

Now, my house is a fucking mess, I can't get an insurance adjuster to come and look at the damage until these cocksuckers leave, and my kids are fucking terrified that something will happen to them in the middle of the night.
...but I'm winning

These assholes in the back of my house are busting holes in the wall, they leave the lights on 24 hours a day, they run the heating and A/C on MAX day and night regardless of the temperature. My electric bill is sky high and these fuckers wont leave. It's cool though - because tons of folks are rooting for me - and lots of my neighbors are giving me money to pay my electric bills - in fact, the money coming in seems like it is higher than the cost of my electric bills.
So, yeah, I'm still winning.

The other day these pricks busted a water pipe so now I have water damage and its probably going to get worse. It's cool though because one of my neighbors is a plumber and he has promised to give me a great deal when I am ready to fix the busted pipes. I've got roofers, and drywall folks and landscapers and even a pretty good electrician living in the area. So again, I feel like I am winning because they have ALL promised to give me a great deal rebuilding my house...
...just as soon as I get these mother fuckers to leave.

They tried to expand their control from the back bedroom to include the guest room, but I caught them in the hallway and forced them back into the back bedroom.
It was a big win for me and the family. A few of the neighbors were so tickled at my big win that they gave me a few more boxes of ammo, one of them gave me a new vacuum cleaner, and another made me a delicious pan of lasagna - and I fucking LOVE lasagna because lasagna tastes like winning.

There is no end to this in site - but some of my neighbors have been negotiating an agreement. I'm not sure how it will turn out because they didn't actually invite the sonsabitches that took over the back bedroom of my house. Who cares though - I'm winning so mother fucking big right now that I think I'm going to use some of this extra cash they gave me for paying my electric bills to go buy myself a nice big solid gold "Home Invasion Champion" trophy to put on my mantle...

Now, lets not forget our hashtag 'stand with Ukraine' campaigns - and lets not forget to replace our social media avatars with that little blue and yellow flag square that shows how much we care.
Most of all, lets keep making excuses for our current governments ability to piss away our national treasure in a way that will exponentially grow their net worth while driving the rest of our nation into the poor house.
Besides, the poors are only really good for manual labor when you cant afford robots and AI


This story, all names, characters, and incidents portrayed in this story are fictitious. No identification with actual persons (living or deceased), places, buildings, Baltic region land wars, global money laundering, or war profiteering is intended or No person or entity associated with this story has actually received taxpayer money payment or promises of being paid for services using taxpayer money nor was the author gifted with a pan of lasagna.

Fucking A! @Box with another banger. Would buy the book.

Are we still doing this? Wild.

@Gordus , did you know you can send the US Government any amount of money you want at any time? Just hit this website and you can electronically send funds. Just write "For Ukraine" in the memo block.

While I am being sarcastic and tongue in cheek here, saying "I'll pay a bit more in taxes" highlights a main problem with our government and general feelings of its citizens in regards to this little proxy war.

We currently have a conflict without an off ramp for either side. This populace thinks virtue signaling and "paying a little higher prices at the pump" is gonna fix a war, and an administration that's asleep at the wheel- Biden just started a 10-day vacation.

Also, of all places, the Washington Post compared Biden's current vacation schedule and Trump's. Bottom line? Biden goes to wealthy donors' cribs and doesn't work. Trump went almost exclusively to properties he owned and worked there because he thought the White House was a dump.

I wish all the rich folk who are trying to raise taxes would just donate to the .ByronForHunter fund. Perhaps then we could finally stop deficit spending.

 

[Marauder06]

Hah. Know only one Finn

I know a German guy named Finn. Does that count? ;)

 

[Gordus]

I know a German guy named Finn. Does that count? ;)

The name has become quite popular in German-speaking countries.

 

[Devildoc]

Hah. Know only one Finn. One of the nicest ppl I've met. Our first real convo was about Talvisota. Lol
To be clear though, on my part it's not disdain towards the people. I'm not really a fan of generalising like that. Sometimes, some of my Russian friends drive me mad when we talk politics and literal Kremlin propaganda is regurgitated. But what I do hate, is their politics, hypocrisy and especialy (mis)treatment of neighbouring countries.

Personaly I'm a bit divided on that. I got nothing against the US supporting other countries on request, if its a just cause or benefits them both. Others may disagree with this. To me its absolutely fine.

I understand. I know a lot of Russians; I don't have an issue with the folks I know. But I understand their sentiment, though. Something about that old quote which I am butchering, so I will paraphrase, 'a person is good, people are bad.'

Some of my Finnish family, particularly the older generation, remind me a lot of our very conservative, racist southerners here (I have some of those in my family, too). They make me a bit uncomfortable lol.

 

[AWP]

Some of my Finnish family, particularly the older generation, remind me a lot of our very conservative, racist southerners here (I have some of those in my family, too). They make me a bit uncomfortable lol.

I worked with a guy whose parents had immigrated from Finland, but some of the family remained. He had an uncle his family half-acknowledged because he fought for the Germans in WWII.

I forget the uncle's name, but it was pretty unique. Anywho, I found it attached to a YT video and my coworker confirmed it was him.

The uncle was a SS-Hauptsturmfuhrer (Army Captain equivalent) in the Sicherheistdienst. THIS is something my coworker did not know, but the uniform and markings were clear enough for identification.

Sicherheitsdienst - Wikipedia

 

[Devildoc]

I worked with a guy whose parents had immigrated from Finland, but some of the family remained. He had an uncle his family half-acknowledged because he fought for the Germans in WWII.

I forget the uncle's name, but it was pretty unique. Anywho, I found it attached to a YT video and my coworker confirmed it was him.

The uncle was a SS-Hauptsturmfuhrer (Army Captain equivalent) in the Sicherheistdienst. THIS is something my coworker did not know, but the uniform and markings were clear enough for identification.

Sicherheitsdienst - Wikipedia

So far as I know the folks in my family who fought in the Winter War and WW2 fought for Finland, but it's true that a lot fought for Germany and the Soviets. I think it's good for the country that they are just about entirely removed from that generation.

 

[Gunz]

I know a German guy named Finn. Does that count? ;)

I know a German guy whose last name is "Kraut"...and he named his daughter Eva.

 

[Gordus]

Ukraine launched another drone strike on the Black Sea Fleet. It's getting smaller and smaller.

This is the third Ropucha class armed landing ship that's been struck. Looks like this one was damaged enough to be tilting/sinking. That could be the costliest loss after the Moskva. Those small surface drones seem to be very effective.

Lot of drone strikes in general on Russian territory lately, besides small Ukr ground incursions into bordering regions.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1687356495514505216

https://twitter.com/x/status/1687348006549385216

https://twitter.com/x/status/1687365692348084227

 

[AWP]

Another set of videos plus a description and photos of the boats the Ukraine is using. Pretty slick design.

Ukrainian Drone Boat Scores Direct Hit On Russian Warship

 

[Gordus]

Another set of videos plus a description and photos of the boats the Ukraine is using. Pretty slick design.

Ukrainian Drone Boat Scores Direct Hit On Russian Warship

Its also impressive to me that they now keep reaching around Crimea and attacking Novorossiysk, Russia proper. Russians have thwarted several attacks but something always gets through.

 

[AWP]

Its also impressive to me that they now keep reaching around Crimea and attacking Novorossiysk, Russia proper. Russians have thwarted several attacks but something always gets through.

Plus it ties up resources for a 24/7 mission to protect various maritime targets like ports, ships, and bridges. Mobile assets will eventually break, leading a gap on coverage or committing even more assets to cover the gap.

 

[Gordus]

Plus it ties up resources for a 24/7 mission to protect various maritime targets like ports, ships, and bridges. Mobile assets will eventually break, leading a gap on coverage or committing even more assets to cover the gap.

Yeah. Some $ quarter million sneaky squirrel boats are causing hundreds of millions USD in damage and tying up, wearing down an entire fleet. I'd say that's quite effective. *Caugh* Build drone fleets & loitering swarms *Caugh*

 

[Muppet]

This is kinda funny.