Russian Invasion of Ukraine

[Gunnar]

Jake Broe's take on 10 Reasons Why Russia Invaded Ukraine seem quite plausible to me. I'm not sure if they are the top ten reasons, but I have little doubt that they are among the reasons that Putin finds compelling. In particular, the facts that Ukraine has Europe's 2nd largest proven natural gas reserves and that Russia's population is declining year by year, along with its economy and power must certainly be factors concerning to Putin.

His other videos on the subject also seem quite knowledgeable, well-reasoned and thought provoking. Check them out.

[Moksha]

For what it is worth, Koch Industries and Haliburton are sticking with Russia.

[Gunnar]

For what it is worth, Koch Industries and Haliburton are sticking with Russia.

Why does that not surprise me?

[Gunnar]

Thanks for the information on the missile shortage, Gunnar, that's not one I'd come across.

In general though, I'm encountering far more information lately that both Russia and China have serious supply chain vulnerabilities due to their reliance on imports, and mass imports in the case of China. This is not a good position for expansionists.

Russia is not self-sufficient like the Soviet Union was.

I'm glad you found it informative. I have long found you to be one of the most informative participants here, and I am happy to be occasionally able to return the favor.

[Jersey Girl]

I don't know if anyone is interested or has already donated to humanitarian causes for Ukraine. We've donated to the Red Cross. I think this 5.5 minute video will show another good opportunity to support the human needs of Ukraine.

Wanna join the food fight?

'It's very important that we are here with them right now': Chef Jose Andres on food aid for Ukraine
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mL_pb5Czz7M

Be a food fighter right here:
https://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraine

[MeDotOrg]

At the age of 17, my brother enlisted the Marines in 1965. In Vietnam he served as a radio operator for his platoon, calling in air support when possible. Half the time the combatants were in such close proximity they ended up bombing themselves.

He told me about the first time he saw someone killed: A Vietnamese peasant saw their platoon approaching his village, and ran from them. One of the marines shot the man in the back, went over to the body, turned it over and put his cigarette out on the dead man's tongue.

In order to survive, you totally disconnect from your feelings. Heroin helped.

My brother struggled with addiction for most of his life. About 6 months after finally getting clean, he had organ failure and died. He is buried in a military cemetery south of San Francisco.

When you fight in a 'front line' war, the enemy is in uniform and you know the person you are killing is there to kill you. When you fight a war against population of partisans, you don't know who to trust, and misplaced trust could be instantly fatal. Cutoff from the norms of your life, you become judge, jury and executioner, many times within seconds.

Now the Russian soldier has even more to deal with. Most were not told the nature of their mission, it having been sold as a fight against fascist elements of Ukraine, and not an invasion and occupation. Many elements are cut off from command structure. In this pressure cooker, human beings resort to extremes. Some 'double down' on the mission, killing with brutality. Some literally walk away. Some frag their leaders.

As I wrote in another post, crap runs downhill. A military structure with rigid hierarchies and brutal discipline will have more disruption at the unit level when cut off from command and control.

Anyway, Matt Gaetz can't accuse the Russian Military of being too 'woke'.

[Moksha]

[Chap]

Yes indeed.

Fortunately, in the US there are other channels available. On the downside though, Fox needs to keep its audience overdosed on fear and hatred in order to keep them coming back, whereas a monopoly channel can relax a bit from time to time.

[Jersey Girl]

Obama on Ukraine and Putin. Just over 11 minutes.

Obama says Putin has changed since he was in office
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4bDuFJuriw

[Gadianton]

Fortunately, in the US there are other channels available.

Yet unfortunately, I've heard commentators say a few times, "how can we get the truth about what's happening on the battlefield in Putin's face?"

How little they understand. That would be like asking how to get the real results of the 2020 election to Trump. If that couldn't be done, and it couldn't, there's zero chance of educating Putin.