You’ll never guess who thinks Ukraine is worth fighting for.
The Ukrainians.
While the West simultaneously whines about Vlad and loads up on Russian natural gas, the good citizens of the UKR are putting their blood where their polling data is.
Fair to say this fight was unexpected. I did have a flash on Wednesday - did the Russians really expect to take Ukraine with 30,000 soldiers, a force smaller than the NYPD? - but I assumed that the consensus had to be right.
Maybe not.
The tactical problem - from Russia’s point of view - is twofold. The Ukrainians are fighting harder than Russia expected, and Russia’s preparations appear to have been shoddy, premised on plans for a very fast and easy fight.
Tanks without gasoline are paperweights, which is why the US Army spends so much time and money on logistics. Say what you like about the Pentagon, but it would not let its armored vehicles run out of gas three days into an invasion.
And so with every hour and night that passes, Russia’s overwhelming superiority looks more and more mythical - giving the Ukrainians reason to wonder if they can beat the bear, or at least do enough damage to him to send him back over the border.
This turn of events is both heartening and EXTREMELY dangerous…
Ditto. How is it possible to see the daily Covid lies and propaganda, and then turn around and believe what we're seeing on Ukraine. It is being spun bigtime.
The extremely dangerous part is critical. The question is: Will Putin cave or will he pull the trigger on some of their more advanced bombs etc? That comes down to: is Putin crazy and doesn't care what happens to the world if he's dead, or is he rational and smart?
I have watched VP for many years. We see him via our owned and operated DARPA media forces, far more full of bull than the best Russia Pravda machinery because we actually believe it while most Russians have nearly 100 years of distrust in their system, even though they believe in it. Putin is correct saying the majority of the Ukrainian political characters are neo-Nazi. The US and global system placed many of them in power. There is a remnant of integrity in many of these nation-states. But the skill to believe in the successful capability of the individual is a suppressed state of mind, still buried in the culture of the Soviet States.
Really? Neo-Nazi? I just donated to Ukrainian Jews who are courageously fighting against Putin's half-a$$ army shoulder to shoulder with Ukrainians and hundreds of other ethnicities against evil Russian dictator who has been robbing Russian people of its wealth for 20 years and now is robbing it of its dignity.
There are Nazi types in the Ukraine, somewhat tolerated in certain areas. That hardly suggests that the main supports the notion of a master race. Seems like one of those the enemy of my enemy is a friend deals.
There are Nazi types everywhere who want racial purity. I bet there are more of them in mother Russia than in Ukraine. Just read about Black Hundreds there.
I believe 0% of Western propaganda concerning this war. They lie about everything, why should we believe them concerning this? Bob isn’t in Baghdad anymore apparently.
And that's another problem. We're a "constitutional republic," not a "democracy." Thanks to our lazy mainstream media and a left so desperate to flush away the republic, they've created a constitutional republic that identifies as democracy. The non-stop banter about "saving democracy" is misleading at best. Bottom line, a democracy is where a "simple majority rules." And the tyranny of bare majority can be hell--as we are witnessing in our Senate right now.
We were a constitutional republic. We were born a Christian Republic. Now we're an atheistic humanist cesspool of a government with hogs and pig troths all around.
Exactly! Democracy, because it means rule by the people, ultimately ends in mob rule, which has carried any number of totalitarians into power. That’s why our Founders did not create a democratic government but a republican government. Words matter. That’s why conserving, if you will, the meaning of words is crucial. I concur, Mr Curlin.
Ukraine has a dicatatorship? ... you are a moron ... you probably believe their President is a neo-nazi as well (He is the only Jewish leader outside of Israel.)
What’s the difference between calling him a Nazi and Castro Jr calling a Jewish conservative MP a Nazi? Putin just took a page from the west’s name calling handbook - if they disagree call them a Nazi then destroy them. He’s just more violent in the implementation.
While I give Zelensky credit for staying and fighting, and I’ll take him over Putin, he jailed Viktor Medvedchuk, his main opposition, and locked up opposition journalist. That puts him on par with blackfacehitler to the north of the US. Better than Putin, but freedom and real democracy isn’t accurate. Then again, with the propaganda machines here we are a democratic republic in name only. Anywhere with a functioning press, and genuine public debate, wouldn’t elect a grumpy senile old man that hasn’t accomplished anything positive in 50 years of being employed by the government.
That said, if Ukraine withstands this Zelensky will have genuinely earned hero status and will recognize his people will literally die to be free. Brandon’s family won’t bode well in that which is probably why they keep torpedoing any negotiations as we turn our eye to Brandon shutting down more oil production here this week, and opening strategic oil reserves to lower the prices he drove up through November’s elections, despite the more than remote possibility of full possibility of an all out war - which requires oil to fight (as Russian discovering today).
Biden's curtailing our oil and gas production and cutting future access to oil and gas is what drove up prices in the first place. The increased price of oil and gas is giving Putin the $$$ he needs to put his army on the march.
Zelensky may escape with his life...but that's about all. Putin will not allow a defeat. It would take a miracle to stop that.
It will also take a miracle from God for God fearing Americans to reclaim their own lost republic and prevent a total annihilation of our nation...I believe it can happen.
Well, it’s certainly the approach Castro Jr took towards truckers to cheers from the left……….. so Putin probably just figured if it worked for blackfacehitler he’d give it a try 🤷♀️
Thanks for a reasonable counter. All opposition efforts to Zelensky have not been squelched, only those that would return a puppet government to Russia. The last puppet simply robbed people blind, the Russian method of government. Not that I am a expert but seems pretty obvious in hindsight.
In a free society with genuine public debate the best argument wins. No where on Earth meets that ideal, with some further than others.
The people of Ukraine have a right to decide for themselves between a pro-Russia stance which wouldn’t have resulted in dying in the streets today, or a pro-western stance with western countries that make terrible friends, or something in between. Suppressing the very pro-Russian voice resulted in a country that is likely too pro-western for its own survival given its geography.
Similarly, the suppression of conservative voices in the US has no doubt contributed greatly to our drift into regressive authoritarian far left insanity.
All I’m saying is that Zelensky isn’t this democracy embracing leader some are making him out to be. Neither are Brandon and Castro Jr. All are still better than Putin, but if we the people don’t stop this creeping authoritarianism the degrees that separate them will continue to shrink until we find ourselves living very much like Russians today.
To his credit Zelenskyy is rising head and shoulders above incompetent Brandon and Castro Jr because he’s putting his life where his mouth is. Weaklings Brandon and baby Castro are terrified of a cold.
The matter of degrees also matters. When Putin is the alternative, there is little left to lose.
What infuriates me about this is that we, and Germany, largely did this to the Ukrainians with our false promises going back to 1994. For 4 years, from 2017-2020 we had the energy policy to allow us to stand up to Putin, and a leader who projected strength Putin and Xi weren’t going to test. 13 months into Brandon and a generation has been flattened with idiotic Covid policies, the workforce shrunk from idiotic experimental medicine mandates (even imposed on the already immune), inflation is crushing the poor and middle class (which was very bad before this latest geopolitical disaster), and the excuses for 13 months of straight failure flowing from our propaganda machines must have Orwell rolling in his grave.
Now we have such weaklings in western leadership, and career government morons directing policy, there is more than a remote chance humanity itself won’t survive 3 more years of Brandon or any more years of the WEF destroying children, energy, prosperity, and representative government.
" Suppressing the very pro-Russian voice resulted in a country that is likely too pro-western for its own survival given its geography." There are regions of Ukraine that seem to fit that notion. Are they really pro-Russian aside from a language? I'm sure the people there would prefer to live in peace without the internal civil war in their areas. I'm no expert and have no real idea of what the average person in those areas thinks about the situation but can hardly imagine wanting to live as a typical Russian, but as I note, I'm not there. I do see that if the majority of the citizens are taking up arms that is tacit support of their government. Flawed or not, it seems they prefer their own corruption to Russian corruption.
In terms of our policy, we agree that we created a mess. We did make promises when the nukes were removed from Ukraine but that policy seemed to die as their government became a puppet state to Russia. There are many that insisted we chucked that Ukraine puppet President in a CIA sponsored revolution, somewhat news to me because I thought it organic. As with many things these days the facts get quickly muddled with counter-facts.
The US seems to have no foreign policy that makes sense. We seem preoccupied with an attempt to install a political faction forever along with an insane ideology and found covid a handy way to try. Going green has ensured an easy run for the Russian gas station and we seem terrified of his nukes as if he would risk himself in such a play. But we are in a looming financial pickle of our own making which does make us weaker. All of that can be fixed with some hard choices that Biden seems incapable of doing.
Ideologues in our government, excepting 2017-2020, have caused so much global death and destruction. 💔. I hope we survive 3 more years of Brandon. I have little kids and I don’t like where we are heading.
If they were a free country, the citizens would already be armed. Think about it. He armed them AFTER the invasion began before the capitol was overrun. He controls them, not the other way around.
so the UK and most other countries of the world are not free to you? BTW wnt to change your mind now : Former President Donald Trump at #CPAC2022: "The Russian attack on Ukraine is appalling; it's an outrage and an atrocity that should never have been allowed to occur." he also said Zelensky was a very brave man
we are 15th below the ones you listed ... Ukraine and russia were always equal in the freedom index ... now Ukraine is 98th and getting better russian 126th (Mexico and Phillipines are in the same range as Ukraine) ... The country is changing better by the month, it is amazing to watch
No, I am not changing my mind. I am against this invasion. Whatever he says about Zelensky means little, coming from the man who looked to Fauci and Birx to save America from covid, instead of God. Our current president is far more corrupt than Zelensky might be. Z. may be a brave man, but the U.S. should NOT be supporting Ukraine in this war, but opposing the invasion. We are currently supporting Russian buying millions of barrels of oil every day. I want no part of Biden, except to see him impeached and removed from office.
No, the UK is NOT free, but in their own minds. Same with us Americans. I don't know Zelensky, but Trump says nice things about blood thirsty dictators. I just see actions taken way too late and very poor planning. The weakness of Joe Biden is the reason Putin was free to invade Ukraine. That is the bottom line.
We should be concerned about our own safety with such a weak and wicked leader. We are under the judgment of God and pointing fingers at other countries. We have become a nation of stupid people, easily manipulated and controlled.
Well. Don't believe propaganda. Believe your own eyes. Did Russia capture Kiev yet as it obviously intended? Faces of Russian invaders will be washed with their own blood.
It's dangerous because China is watching intently--and helping under the table. If this Ukrainian takeover is successful, Taiwan will be next. Make no mistake: Brandon has emboldened the 2 countries that should be our biggest enemies into acting like allies against US! Godspeed to the Ukrainians, for they show far more bravery than the vast majority of our own citizens when it comes to standing up against tyranny.
The pushback from Ukrainians might give the Chinese pause. The focus is so often on what will the US do. We are weak, very weak, with Brandon in charge.
What the CCP is being reminded on is that the Taiwanese might fight just as hard for their island. Taiwan is prosperous and free (If Mao hadn’t happened and that were all of China they would have become the only superpower a couple decades ago).
I pray for Ukraine. War is evil. I’m shocked Putin tried to invade the whole country. The Ukrainians have something we lost - the will to fight, and die, for their country. We complain as wack job leftists destroy our kids, and the WEF destroys our prosperity. If Brandon doesn’t intervene to screw them, Ukraine might push Russia back, but then again it’s Putin and this could become much much worse. Either way, it’s a reminder our freedom isn’t free.
Do you have a link? Even if I know I’m reading it because it’s what I want to hear.
Will matters, particularly in war. If a country’s best and brightest are willing to fight and die a few of them have a better chance than the bigger army from a country whose best and brightest refuse to fight and there is no will to win.
I wonder these days if the reason we lost in Vietnam might be the will of the Viet Cong found themselves fighting McMaster’s morons? 🤷♀️
We lost because Lyndon B. Johnson interfered with the sensible conduct of that war as Commander in Chief. If you'd like some truth about that war I'd recommend "A War to Be Won" by Michael Lind.
The Viet Cong were Ho Chi Minh's horde of murderers and the South Vietnamese hated them. They fought along side the US for their freedom.
Democrat administrations ensured the triumph of the Chinese backed thugs and you'll see that same stupidity at play here too.
We lost because Lyndon Johnson was a terrible Commander in Chief. Just like Biden. The South Vietnamese fought hard for their freedom and it's ignorant to ignore that. Watch and see here as another incompetent Commander in Chief fails another country fending off an aggressor.
If China thinks the Ukrainians are tough, he ain't seen nuthin yet. The Taiwanese are better equipped and maybe even better fighters. And don't forget that Taiwan makes 92% of the chips in the world. Those plants go up in smoke if China invades.
Alex, you know for the last two years, almost all reporting by the main steam media was WRONG or manipulated into falsehood about COVID. Why do you believe all the sudden what the media reports on Ukraine and Russia is correct and accurate? I almost think the media is saying something totally opposite of the reality of what is really going on.
Agree Eddie. I confess I know little or nothing about the Russia/Ukraine situation…but I’ve been following the Covid situation avidly for the past two years and know that the mainstream media has lied to us all the way on that topic.
I certainly won’t be looking for truth or insights into the Russia/Ukraine situation via the mainstream media, which we know is controlled by vested interests, my default position is to now consider it’s all propaganda.
The reality is the Ukrainians are willing to fight to the death for freedom. Keyboard warriors (unless they are Anonymous) do not make a difference. And not a mask in sight in the Ukraine. They have bigger problems. You won't get it until your internet is down and your phone won't work.
This is a very good point. Difficult to know who to believe on this, but we do know that Putin is brutal, so no matter what, this will not end well for Ukraine.
Bingo. Before CV, I mostly read about foreign policy starting with the 'Russian collusion' hoax. The truth is that the Ukrainian gov't installed by Obama-Biden admin in 2014 interfered in the 2016 election on behalf of Hillary, and the Russian collusion hoax was created to cover it up. Trump obviously had no control over his foreign policy with Ukraine, as most of those at the State Dept were actively working against him. Ukraine is not one of our allies. Is the enemy of my enemy my friend? No. The aspect of this invasion that nobody wants to talk about is how "dangerous" this could be for the American people. We already know that liberals and neocons never fully consider the potential consequences and blowback of their actions before they act.
I wish USA citizens had their passion and courage. I still love my country but I don’t like the direction it’s seems to be going. Ukraine love their freedom and here too many want to give it away to the left.
I expected it because I knew the people of Ukraine would not lay down, even against overwhelming odds. Unfortunately the fierce resistance in Ukraine will face a greater onslaught from Putin and Kyiv will see the worse attack of all. President Zelensky declined to leave saying he need more ammunition, not a ride. Worse, too many are stuck with domestic politics myopia and completely are unable to get past navel gazing to understand KGB thug Putin has waited to attack Ukraine again. He choose this time due to the weakness in the West and the handlers of Biden showing complete incompetence in the Afghanistan debacle.
If given the choice to remove their current corrupt leader or stop Putin, Ukrainians are in a bind...a rock and a hard place. Better to lay down their arms and live to fight another day...just my opinion. I am ashamed that their corrupt government just started giving out weapons after the invasion has started. Those using those weapons are going to die facing trained soldiers and with no prospect of freedom either way.
Think you should go lay down. Americans are ashamed of the weakness you and the Obama handlers of Biden project to the world with the Afghanistan debacle and now emboldening a full invasion of Ukraine. Better to die standing than live indefinitely as a slave. SMH
My weakness? I don't believe in fighting other people's wars. I was for ending Afgh. like Pres. Trump wanted. If you want to go to Ukraine to fight with them, there is nothing stopping you, but Americans don't have a dog in this fight, unless it would be Russia, as we buy millions of barrels of oil from them, thanks to the loser in chief.
I will reserve my life to fight for my own country and my own people. God knows, we are in the toughest fight we've ever encountered in our history and the enemy holds control over our Governments at this moment and people are worried about Ukraine? It is simply a distraction. Going on 3 million illegal aliens have poured into this country in just over a year of Biden's lawless presidency. He must be impeached and removed from office with his evil cronies. There is the real fight, friend.
Second Amendment mean anything to you ? and you think their government is corrupt? They have been improving int their fight against corruption since 2014 -through two different ELECTED Presidents
Just Wednesday the Parliament in Ukraine did this: "Ukraine’s parliament on Wednesday voted to approve in the first reading a draft law which gives permission to Ukrainians to carry firearms and act in self-defence. “The adoption of this law is fully in the interests of the state and society,” the authors of the draft law said in a note, adding that the law was needed due to “existing threats and dangers for the citizens of Ukraine.”
Just a few years late and billions of dollars short. The war had already started and this was just the first draft reading...you were saying about 2nd Amendment rights?
I don't need to prove their corruption. You can find that info anywhere on the internet. Hunter Biden was evidence of that, working for a Ukrainian oil company that was hip deep in corruption as payoff for his dad, the VP's help.
I think the U.S. has much bigger corruption problems and we should not be preaching to either side.
Open carry law that sounds like, not, as you said "Their citizens were completely disarmed" ... again accurate FACTS matter. I'm sure all those gun stores (listed as gun stores) were just selling candy. ( BTW I have been to the one called Flarm ... https://flarm.ua/guns/civilne-priznachennja/vognepalna-zbroja/ established shorthly after MAIDAN in 2015)
It's hell to be proved wrong isn't it.
Abraham Lincoln once said: "you cant believe everything you read on the internet."
2014 was the time frame for Hunter's Burisma deal ... That was before the anti-corruption fight and right after Yanukobitch .... The Ukrainian investigator of Burisma was fired for not being STRONG enough in his investigation of Burisma and corruption.
(That russian disinformation system isn't as great as people believe, its too easy to refute if people really want the TRUTH)
I have adjusted my statement. The facts remain, that Ukrainians have not had rights to carry firearms. You may strain at my gnat, but I still think the camel is in front of you.
That's funny about Abe Lincoln, though untimely after calling me out for missing the mark.
In the USA in many states we do not have the right to carry firearms ... (open carry permits?) .... You haven't been to Ukraine have you. I have personally fired weapons https://www.kievshootingclub.com/all-shooting-packages/
I hope you are never in the position of fighting for your country because I would not want to be next to you. All governments are corrupt - that is how the world works. But governments can be toppled. The People always do this eventually. Just a matter of how hot your water gets.
Fighting for your country when your country is corrupt and evil is a difficult decision. I would rather be working to reclaim my country from its evil leaders. If I was of fighting age and Joe Biden called up everyone to go fight for Ukraine, I would not go. Would you?
I am in the position of fighting for my country at this very moment. The fight is not with guns and bombs, but with ideas and truth.
Our country was not always corrupt. It has become that way for very specific reasons.
Apparently the Ukrainians do not agree with your armchair opinion. They are not making a decision. Biden will not ask you to go fight for the Ukraine. However - the USA is sending help. https://www.stripes.com/theaters/europe/2022-02-24/173rd-Airborne-Brigade-Ukraine-Latvia-Russia-5128627.html History continues to repeat itself. the 173rd Airborne was the first light weapons airborne to be deployed in Vietnam. 57 years on nothing changes.
I do not support any use of U.S. forces overseas any more for other countries, nor any of our tax dollars to help any country. Our leaders are communists and will only use them like cannon fodder. I wish the Ukrainian people well.
How do you know the Ukraine government doesn't have support. A lot of them are facing Russia and NOT laying down their arms. Russia may not have enough troops to force an end. We can hope Russia is smart and not use excessive force.
I don't see any country rushing to the aid of Ukraine. The U.S. sends them arms while buying oil from Russia. Go figure. We have already betrayed Ukraine. If they leaned on us for help, it's like leaning on a cracked stick. Our nation is falling apart and Americans hardly know their end is near. The only difference between the U.S. and the Titanic, is most don't know we are sinking.
Well Germany just allowed some arms deliveries and they are walking a very fine line. The UK is pitching in as well. Others are helping but want to stay low.
You are right that Biden could get that pen back and turn US oil on. In several weeks we could could be free of Russian oil. But he is more in tune with his greens who whisper in his ear.
"Biden to me is like having a flashlight with a dying battery and going for a long hike in the woods. It's not going to work out. It's not gonna make it."
What is your Point David Frum North Korea Iran China and all Blue Checks on Twitter can must go and fight for the Ukrainian border if you have your Vaccines status card highest ranking the closer you get to be to the Russian border. The lower the mRNA shot the further away you are from the Russian border. Nobody who have not had at least one mRNA shot can not leave America.
Huh ... I am not vaccinated, I have had zero shots and have traveled to Ukraine 40 times in the last 5 years and probably 20 times during the SARS-CoV-2 fiasco ....
are they ? Havent followed much have you ... Ukraine and russia were, prior to 2014, ranked the same in the corruption index ... now Ukraine is 12 steps above russia AND IMPROVING AND ADDRESSING THE ISSUE .. try to keep up
Let's keep Biden away from doing absolutely anything. Everything he touches turns to shit. Biden would have accidently armed our soldiers with bananas.
It’s called The Fog of War for a reason. All of the reports about what is happened or just happened have to be looked at with a heavy dose of skepticism. It may not be true. However, I hope that the brave people of Ukraine beats bs k this aggression from Putin forces. Putin is not supported by his own people!
I've counted four examples of imagery and videos being false (from a disasters a few years ago to excerpts from a movie). I'd be very careful about the news you're seeing. Most certainly a battle has begun but beyond that, I'm. not sure I trust all of what we're seeing.
I am sorry, I didn't know you knew about EVERYTHING and had researched Ukrainian history and its complicated history ... did you educate yourself on viruses and COVID, did you research and form an educated decision based on differing sources?
So you have done no research in Ukraine or it's history but have taken MSM statements over the years as fact? ( Hurt your feelings snowflake. People are being bombed, how do you think they feel)
You are like the lady I was challenged by in the airport who called me a maskhole. I told her I have done massive research on the subject and would love to exchange information that she had, I may have missed something.
I asked her where she got her information from and she replied : "The news"
My response to her, as it is to you, "So you're a fucking ignorant lemming"
Good! Ukraine should've handed out tens of millions of guns & tens of billions of rounds to its citizens years ago, with training. Heavy weapons too. Rulers who don't trust their people with the means of mutual defense don't deserve to rule. Sadly, the people pay the price.
However...Sorry, not our problem. Enough already! Not worth risking nuclear war over. Not worth another world nanny $10 trillion intervention and more American lives wasted.
Nor would this be happening if Trump was still in the White House. Don't forget corrupt Ukraine helped demonize him while protecting Joe & Humper Xiden. So we're stuck with corrupt stupid self-indulgent perverted pansies Biden-Harris-DemComs, a sensitive tranny military, a wrecked economy after years of covid hysteria, discharging warriors for refusing vaccines, a war on domestic oil production & independence, and the idiotic way Xiden fled Afghanistan and left weapons & people behind. All these smoke signals encouraged Putin's invasion & aggression.
Flight as scheduled into KYIV on the April first, may have to fly into Warsaw now. My ass will be there, MY money as well.
What do I want the USA to do? We could argue the Budapest Memorandum forever which is useless. UKRAINE DOES NOT WANT OUR SOLDIERS, they have stated that. They need the equipment to fight the fight we should have long ago. The fight of men to be free.
What should we do, shut down the skies over Ukraine, Ukraine will take care of the rest and themselves.
I support most of that. Certainly military supplies. Shut down the skies? I don't trust the Military Industrial Complex with military intervention under Xiden-Harris & the DemComs. If Trump was there, another story. Then again, if Trump was there this wouldn't be happening anyway.
It is beyond me why anyone would believe that the Ukrainians, a nation that was almost anihilated by mass starvation by the Russians within living memory, would "not put up a fight" when they are invaded again... by the Russians. That's like thinking that Israelis would not put up a fight if invaded by an army of Nazis or the Irish would not put up a fight if invaded by the Brits. Who can be so naive as to not understand the depth of historical hatreds?
"I need ammunition, not a ride." Wow. I don't think a more concise, inspiring one liner could possibly have been uttered in the current circumstances. I guess in his previous life as a comedian, he had a little experience with one liners.
Who says tanks are running out of gas? I don't think the Russians want to use tanks within the city...just my opinion. They want to take the city with as little damage as possible to the infrastructure.
The real question is why does the Ukrainian dictator wait till the 11th hour to arm his citizens? Could it be if they were armed sooner, they would take over their own corrupt government?
Ukrainians are great people, but they would be first to tell you the govt are certainly a mafia and oligarch run kleptocracy. Zelensky has little power. I agree, not a dictatorship for those reasons.
You think so , again how much time have you spent there? I have been there 40 times the last 5 years. The government under Yanukobitch was mafia just like russia.
There are massive changes taking place, corruption is being addressed but it is slow. (when are we going to address our corruption in the USA).
Watch Servant of the People which is interestingly how Zelensky got elected. Six months ago I didn't like Zelensky and his ties to Kolomoisky etc. I was concerned, as the people were, that he was just an oligarch controlled stooge.
Recent days he has proven to be someone with REAL patriotism, not BS trying to be elected. A Churchill for our times , a MAN willing to be on the front lines in the fight against tyranny.
I said the govt not one man. He has limited power as you know, and has been impressive this week. My point is trust in govt in Ukraine, until this week, was abysmal. I spent time w all kinds of people and that is the common response (except when speaking to govt employees or elected officials). My point was its not a dictatorship, but a very flawed state awash with corruption issues. If you cant agree with that...i guess we agree to disagree.
WE are a flawed democracy as well, and I would argue we don't even try to address the issue .... Limited power, yes because he is not a dictator and they have a Prime Minister and a legislature.
As a Ukrainian would tell you, it is less abysmal now and getting better
So what you are saying is the brave Ukrainian people are NOT naive and the population does not trust the government OR ANYONE. Its why they are only around 25% vaxxed, they told the government to go to hell. When you have lived through soviet times you tend not to trust authority. You should see the fake vaccine passports that even work in Europe (lol)
IF a person has not been to Ukraine, they have not seen the changes that have taken place since 2014 and take place continually.
Just look at what they do. Their citizens were unable to carry weapons until the so-called president decided to use them as canon fodder against trained soldiers to protect his regime. Their opposition leader is in jail and opposing media is shut down. That's what dictators do. He's had months to prepare for war or to negotiate. He chose war. Biden pretends to be against Russia, but continues to buy millions of barrels of oil from them each day, then talks about sanctions. You are being played, as are many.
Here is the list of gun stores in Kyiv alone https://tinyurl.com/bdea6xbc (14 pages worth). that certainly doesn't seem to be disarmed (There is even a shooting range at the high end ATHLETIC club, Tsarsky, in central Kyiv)
RT and some others were shut down, did you ever watch them? They were all PRO-russian propaganda. (I disagree with his decision.)
For 8 years, Ukraine has been fighting against the russian invaders in eastern Ukraine (give me a fcking break if you say breakaway republics). The government and people are not rich, many soldiers buy their own bullet proof chest protectors or they are donated.
What brain dead bidet is doing has nothing to do with whether we support Ukraine or not. did you hear Trump tonight? " Former President Donald Trump at #CPAC2022: "The Russian attack on Ukraine is appalling; it's an outrage and an atrocity that should never have been allowed to occur." he also said Zelensky was a very brave man ... want to NOW make this about USA politics DA"
far from being played by a katsap lover like you. See FACTS matter not BS statements like you ahve made
FACTS matter, your propaganda is a buch of lies and half truths)
Number6, it was not propaganda I put up. It came from an article by Bearing Arms. The author noted: "the country’s gun control laws are still incredibly restrictive and don’t really recognize the right of armed self-defense." The hurried activity to change that after the war has already started is like a cruel joke. They also note in the article that if anything, they may be helping for a future insurgency after Russians take control. But let's not lie about it. Ukraine has not been a bastion of freedom.
But I'm done worrying about them when my country is in such deep trouble. May God help them survive to fight another day.
This is such wishful thinking and as such is understandable. But it took 3 weeks for the US to take Baghdad from a far inferior Iraqi army. 6 days of fighting for the city itself.
I think vigorous insurgency is a strong possibility, but every lopsided invasion starts like this, with plausible and exciting imagery of resistance until the reality of cruise missiles and hardware superiority set in. I wish Ukraine had a chance to repel this invasion, I have dear friends in Odesa. Btw an aside but it was actually 195k US soldiers at peak, very close to how many Russians are now in Ukraine I'd guess by Monday. Chechens and Belarussians on way in their own coalition of the (likely not very) willing. Russia has ethnic militias in about a third of the country. Look, we have to stay aware of the fact that there are zero social posts allowed up from a Russian propaganda point of view, and a lot of very clearly Ukrainian prop (i dont blame them, its a key part of war). But lots of 2014 footage etc and misidentifying sides etc if you understand Russian. We're all rooting for people defending their homes, obviously, but 1)the USG and social media censorship apparatus didnt just stop working and 2) no war ends this quickly.
and the Biden administration talks about sanctions while still buying billions of barrels of oil from Russian and stopping our own country from producing it. I'm thinking they actually like what's happening. When Biden or Psaki open their mouth, you know the next thing out of it is a lie.
How come no one was concerned about Ukraine shelling ukrainians for the last 8 years? Since when is it a good idea to show support for the most corrupt government in Europe? This is all the result of a US/NATO backed coup that cost taxpayers over 5 billion dollars. Is Ukraine's puppet president/actor/comedian worth 5 billion dollars? Let's just call it another regime change fail for the west and let Russia have Ukraine back.
Let’s remember that Russia killed approximately 2,000,000 Afghan citizens and lost 15,000 troops before they lost and left. What will the cost be in Ukraine ? Putin is a ruthless bastard.
When I first heard about the buildup, my first thought was that 130,000 troops are not nearly enough to take and occupy all of Ukraine. That's why I thought the Russians would slice off Donetsk and Luhansk only. Oh well, I'm not the only one that was wrong about that.
However, one has to wonder why the Russians have only committed 30,000 of those troops to the fight. Double that number and it may be over by now. Maybe Vlad is thinking the same thing I am about taking and holding Ukraine?
I've heard some rumblings that both the Ukrainians and the U.S. are warming to the idea of a neutral Ukraine (read, no NATO) if it gets the Russians to back off. Maybe that is why the Russians have committed less than their full complement? Maybe Vlad is just trying to force a result he couldn't get diplomatically? Stands to reason. And if that is where we end up, then JoeBiden and Zelensky will look even worse, since they will have ended up where they could have gotten without killing a lot of people and breaking a lot of stuff.
Absolutely not 30k. Its at least half their 200k moblization right now in country. I just watched a video in S Ukr of over 350 personnel vehicles passing thru one little village. The rest inching in, more on way. Chechen fighters coming which is a horrible prospect for anyone.
It is true that about 1/2 were held back, and it's also true that much of the remainder are being committed. Putin's plan was to strike political nerve centers, avoid indiscriminate bombing, and take out command and control. That failed.
Given the difficulty of occupying the whole country, he hoped to terrify Zelensky and the parliament into submission. Zelensky had announced he would negotiate, and neutrality was not off the table. That seems to have fallen through - Russia's demand was far reaching: the complete demilitarization of Ukraine, a ban on the import of all western weapons, the removal (and perhaps punishment) of the socalled "neo Nazi's" who opposed his empire building, a rejection of NATO, EU and any other attempt to become economically modernized. He also wants Ukraine to legally surrender the territory claimed by Republics of the east and Crimea.
Ukraine will be allowed limited autonomy, under stooges approve by Putin. It can never have trade relations with any other country than Putins.
That is a pointless negotiation. Its total surrender.
I would suggest you look up "The Gell-Mann Amnesia Effect". First coined by the late Michael Crichton. What follows is his explanation.
“Briefly stated, the Gell-Mann Amnesia effect is as follows. You open the newspaper to an
article on some subject you know well. In Murray’s case, physics. In mine, show business. You
read the article and see the journalist has absolutely no understanding of either the facts or
the issues. Often, the article is so wrong it actually presents the story backward—reversing
cause and effect. I call these the “wet streets cause rain” stories. Paper’s full of them.
In any case, you read with exasperation or amusement the multiple errors in a story, and then
turn the page to national or international affairs, and read as if the rest of the newspaper was
somehow more accurate about Palestine than the baloney you just read. You turn the page,
and forget what you know.”
Combine that with a quite long Twitter thread I found from Steve Deace a few weeks back and you will start to understand why you can't believe ANYTHING coming from ANYONE in authority as well as almost ALL MAJOR MEDIA. You have to search out sources you can trust, like this one. However, even Alex is off base when it come to IVM and Dr. Robert Malone.
I would STRONGLY URGE each of you to go to Steve Deace's Twitter feed and find that thread. It basically says that we have to QUESTION EVERYTHING you see in the media or anywhere else for that matter. We are BEING LIED TO actively.
We are WAY PAST THE TIME WHEN THE MEDIA IS SIMPLY BIASED. They are actively trying to mislead us. Same with the government. Same with health authorities. And on and on.
Some of the commentors are skeptical of what is being reported, especially those "nationalists" who, sadly, can't grasp this is Ukraine's nationalism a fight of survival against Putin's imperial power. Those who know Ukraine's people, who know it's people, land, language, and culture are not surprised by this shocking level of resistance to the Russian invasion. Anyone in this thread can find numerous twitter feeds from Ukrainian civilians and soldiers, of both Ukrainian and Russian ethnic origin. One can get on the ground video journalist reporting from independent Ukrainian news outlets. Over and over, one is astounded at the bravery and defiant opposition. And yes, many of those show the carnage of armored encounters, wrecked convoys, and self-sacrifice of Ukrainian patriots. (Last transmission from Ukraine's Spider Island: "Russian Warship: Go Fuck Yourself").
While the actual claims and counter claims of losses are likely off by half (a rule of thumb) all agree that this kind of grassroots resistance and their use of effective anti-tank attacks were not how it was supposed to happen.
Of course, in the end one knows that the vastly greater military resources of Russia will grind down their victims - just as Stalin's 1940 attack on Finland was initially a shocking drubbing of Soviet forces. But Ukrainian nationalism won't die, the fury against the "brotherly nation" will be rooted in lore. There extremely brave President likely martyred by his refusal to evacuate.
Yeah that NEO-NAZI who is a Jew and was elected a few years ago.... FT has done a great propaganda job on you (BTW the radical right in Ukraine poll at less than 2%)
Two difficulties here. First, Ukrainians are receiving no outside help. Cheering them on is encouraging lambs to march to slaughter. We don't have any skin in the game, so it's no skin off our backs. Second, if this becomes a longer, bloodier and more violent affair, this only plays into Putin's hands. The more brutal he and Russians appear, the more scared the next target of Russian aggression will be when Russia comes knocking.
Shocking. Please reread your post. Do you mean to infer that when the odds are against you … fold your tent and run? For the sake of future underdogs, don’t fight?
Quite the opposite, I am wildly encouraged…Germany is stepping up to supply serious military equipment to help the Ukrainians fight for THEMSELVES. Even if they lose in the end they will forever be proud that they stood firm against aggressive dictatorial regimes. If you are a Conservative in America you can surely relate and support their effort?
No, I am saying we didn't bring any horses to this rodeo. U.S. is just standing idly by. We could have done far more, so could many others. Germany could and should have supported Ukraine months ago as the build-up was occurring. Now, we've got Russian military laying waste to a country and all we are doing is saying, "Yeah, go get'em fellas." I guess you would have been a frequent attendee at the Roman Colosseum to cheer on the Christians as they are thrown to the Lions.
I do agree at some level … see your point. Although I’ll have to disagree about my attendance to slaughters! I’m a growing fan of anyone that will fight tyranny (not necessarily militarily). In some sense aren’t the Ukrainians standing up to Putin an inspiration to anyone standing up to Cancel Culture? Obviously their stakes are MUCH higher but if you’re not willing to stand up for yourself you won’t be standing for long? What lesson would be learned from that?
Yes, resisting Cancel Culture and any form of censorship and government control is paramount to free societies. Trouble here is that Cancel Culture is what emboldened Putin's invasion. Expensive energy is funding his war and we've got U.S. leaders crying that we can't forget how dangerous climate change and the common cold are as missiles rain down on civilians. Ukrainians are not fighting Cancel Culture. They are fighting for their lives as a direct result of Cancel Culture.
Russia GDP is $1.65 trillion with 144 million people. Texas GDP is $1.84 trillion with 29 million people. I think Putin must have been looking at this invasion of Ukraine as necessary with the value of oil doubling since Old Joe took over. Ukraine is wealthy in natural resources. Knowing that the end of Putin is near as the 144 million will not accept a drop in their living standard when oil falls again... as it will.
Leaders who are facing defeat become the most dangerous in desperation to prevent defeat.
However, if Ukraine actually prevents Russia from prevailing, I wonder if the rest of the free world should jump in and crush the bear once and for all.
And then we should look toward the paper tiger of China for the same.
Ukrainians have been very brave especially their president. All this stuff about Ukraine being a dictatorship might have some truth, but Russia is must definitely a dictatorship and a cruel one at that, that has utterly crushed all opposition. I support Ukraine and wish them the best of luck if the defense of their homeland. I call of Western nations to impose much harder sanctions of Russia including oil. While declaring a state of emergency and pumping as much oil and gas here in the United States as possible (lift all restriction on pumping oil in our homeland).
The thing most people are not understanding about this is that it is SIEGE -- good old fashioned siege warfare.
So many people have been used to US tactics of shock-and-awe they don't understand that Putin has essentially surrounded the entire country and is laying siege. The goal was never a shock-and-awe capture. It's nice the Ukrainians are putting up a fight, but when their food and everything else runs out and they can neither leave nor return to the country -- they'll give up.
Alex, you are needed on a different front, not throwing out your credibility with hot takes based on propaganda.
Recon units entering cities, engaging in small arm fire and retreating is the operation that leads to intel and the larger city taking operation. It took three weeks for a WESTERN COALITION to take Baghdad, and six days to secure it. That is a smaller country with a much less well equipped and funded military. It was also after shock and awe that destroyed the countries infrastructure for years.
Western countries aren't coming to the rescue. Dumping in weapons will only cause more bloodshed (which western countries are ok with as long as Russia bleeds a little bit). The Gov't handing out AK's to civilians is disgusting. This isn't some life or death struggle for the citizenry, this is an armed conflict replacing one set of kleptocrats with another. It is in the peoples best interest to sit it out since the people who kept giving/selling Ukrainians weapons and dreams of EU/NATO partnership were all false hopes. Reality sucks, but ignore it at your own peril.
Ukraine was a backwater money skim for the elites. Right now it's a bleeding feed for Russians and Ukrainians, but will turn back to a money skim. For the US it is now the cause célèbre for all the administrations problems, a scape goat has been created to pivot off of covid.
We've also just screwed ourselves with the SWIFT action. We have no more leverage over Russia, except war. We've just freed them of any constraints up to that point.
Sadly, I no longer believe western governments or mainstream media. They have lied / manipulated / warped things for years, with Covid being the most recent … and egregious.
I’m not saying Putin is justified in what’s he’s doing. However, he has been clear about his opposition of NATO expansion into Ukraine for 15 years & he witnesses the disastrous “adventures” of the US & its allies in global wars, adds in a bit of debacle from Afghanistan withdrawal, to prompt this move. His bet is that citizens of the West no longer have appetite for war. And trust in their govts is now at an all time low (thanks again, Covid!)
And, most concerning of all - he’s also betting on Biden’s utter incompetence.
Truth - the first casualty of war.
All governments lie - the bigger the government the bigger the lie - and only a fool believes anything a proven compulsive liar says.
Question E.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g. Always.
PS. this war has nothing to do with Ukraine. It is all about Russia and Germany.
http://ronpaulinstitute.org/archives/featured-articles/2022/february/15/the-crisis-in-ukraine-is-not-about-ukraine-its-about-germany/
Ditto. How is it possible to see the daily Covid lies and propaganda, and then turn around and believe what we're seeing on Ukraine. It is being spun bigtime.
And exactly the same on EVERY ASPECT OF what they do.
Come on, man!
The extremely dangerous part is critical. The question is: Will Putin cave or will he pull the trigger on some of their more advanced bombs etc? That comes down to: is Putin crazy and doesn't care what happens to the world if he's dead, or is he rational and smart?
I have watched VP for many years. We see him via our owned and operated DARPA media forces, far more full of bull than the best Russia Pravda machinery because we actually believe it while most Russians have nearly 100 years of distrust in their system, even though they believe in it. Putin is correct saying the majority of the Ukrainian political characters are neo-Nazi. The US and global system placed many of them in power. There is a remnant of integrity in many of these nation-states. But the skill to believe in the successful capability of the individual is a suppressed state of mind, still buried in the culture of the Soviet States.
Really? Neo-Nazi? I just donated to Ukrainian Jews who are courageously fighting against Putin's half-a$$ army shoulder to shoulder with Ukrainians and hundreds of other ethnicities against evil Russian dictator who has been robbing Russian people of its wealth for 20 years and now is robbing it of its dignity.
https://celiafarber.substack.com/p/how-come-no-western-media-outlet?token=eyJ1c2VyX2lkIjoyODc0NjY5NiwicG9zdF9pZCI6NDkzMjgyMzEsIl8iOiIzeXVJMiIsImlhdCI6MTY0NTkzMzQyMCwiZXhwIjoxNjQ1OTM3MDIwLCJpc3MiOiJwdWItMjU3NzQyIiwic3ViIjoicG9zdC1yZWFjdGlvbiJ9.j4kGZubxU-D1n3r_1SJL-QjPUjLavjNIz2XRSrXsO7o&utm_source=url
There are Nazi types in the Ukraine, somewhat tolerated in certain areas. That hardly suggests that the main supports the notion of a master race. Seems like one of those the enemy of my enemy is a friend deals.
There are Nazi types everywhere who want racial purity. I bet there are more of them in mother Russia than in Ukraine. Just read about Black Hundreds there.
Never thought of it this way
I believe 0% of Western propaganda concerning this war. They lie about everything, why should we believe them concerning this? Bob isn’t in Baghdad anymore apparently.
Why should Americans be supporting Ukraine anyway? They have a dictatorship, not a real democracy....oh, that's the reason....they are like us.
And that's another problem. We're a "constitutional republic," not a "democracy." Thanks to our lazy mainstream media and a left so desperate to flush away the republic, they've created a constitutional republic that identifies as democracy. The non-stop banter about "saving democracy" is misleading at best. Bottom line, a democracy is where a "simple majority rules." And the tyranny of bare majority can be hell--as we are witnessing in our Senate right now.
We were a constitutional republic. We were born a Christian Republic. Now we're an atheistic humanist cesspool of a government with hogs and pig troths all around.
Amen, brother
So true. 😕
Ditto
Exactly! Democracy, because it means rule by the people, ultimately ends in mob rule, which has carried any number of totalitarians into power. That’s why our Founders did not create a democratic government but a republican government. Words matter. That’s why conserving, if you will, the meaning of words is crucial. I concur, Mr Curlin.
Be careful. I noted US is a republic on another post and had to fend off criticism.
Ukraine has a dicatatorship? ... you are a moron ... you probably believe their President is a neo-nazi as well (He is the only Jewish leader outside of Israel.)
What’s the difference between calling him a Nazi and Castro Jr calling a Jewish conservative MP a Nazi? Putin just took a page from the west’s name calling handbook - if they disagree call them a Nazi then destroy them. He’s just more violent in the implementation.
While I give Zelensky credit for staying and fighting, and I’ll take him over Putin, he jailed Viktor Medvedchuk, his main opposition, and locked up opposition journalist. That puts him on par with blackfacehitler to the north of the US. Better than Putin, but freedom and real democracy isn’t accurate. Then again, with the propaganda machines here we are a democratic republic in name only. Anywhere with a functioning press, and genuine public debate, wouldn’t elect a grumpy senile old man that hasn’t accomplished anything positive in 50 years of being employed by the government.
That said, if Ukraine withstands this Zelensky will have genuinely earned hero status and will recognize his people will literally die to be free. Brandon’s family won’t bode well in that which is probably why they keep torpedoing any negotiations as we turn our eye to Brandon shutting down more oil production here this week, and opening strategic oil reserves to lower the prices he drove up through November’s elections, despite the more than remote possibility of full possibility of an all out war - which requires oil to fight (as Russian discovering today).
Biden's curtailing our oil and gas production and cutting future access to oil and gas is what drove up prices in the first place. The increased price of oil and gas is giving Putin the $$$ he needs to put his army on the march.
FJB.
Let’s go Brandon!!!!! I really am beginning to wonder if the planet can survive 3 more years of this idiot.
FVP too.
Zelensky may escape with his life...but that's about all. Putin will not allow a defeat. It would take a miracle to stop that.
It will also take a miracle from God for God fearing Americans to reclaim their own lost republic and prevent a total annihilation of our nation...I believe it can happen.
I believe in miracles. The response of the Ukrainian people is a miracle.
I love my children too much to give up hope on miracles and do my part to help them happen.
Whoever calls his adversary Nazi first gets to start the war. Is that how logic of some doofuses here works?
Well, it’s certainly the approach Castro Jr took towards truckers to cheers from the left……….. so Putin probably just figured if it worked for blackfacehitler he’d give it a try 🤷♀️
Thanks for a reasonable counter. All opposition efforts to Zelensky have not been squelched, only those that would return a puppet government to Russia. The last puppet simply robbed people blind, the Russian method of government. Not that I am a expert but seems pretty obvious in hindsight.
In a free society with genuine public debate the best argument wins. No where on Earth meets that ideal, with some further than others.
The people of Ukraine have a right to decide for themselves between a pro-Russia stance which wouldn’t have resulted in dying in the streets today, or a pro-western stance with western countries that make terrible friends, or something in between. Suppressing the very pro-Russian voice resulted in a country that is likely too pro-western for its own survival given its geography.
Similarly, the suppression of conservative voices in the US has no doubt contributed greatly to our drift into regressive authoritarian far left insanity.
All I’m saying is that Zelensky isn’t this democracy embracing leader some are making him out to be. Neither are Brandon and Castro Jr. All are still better than Putin, but if we the people don’t stop this creeping authoritarianism the degrees that separate them will continue to shrink until we find ourselves living very much like Russians today.
To his credit Zelenskyy is rising head and shoulders above incompetent Brandon and Castro Jr because he’s putting his life where his mouth is. Weaklings Brandon and baby Castro are terrified of a cold.
The matter of degrees also matters. When Putin is the alternative, there is little left to lose.
What infuriates me about this is that we, and Germany, largely did this to the Ukrainians with our false promises going back to 1994. For 4 years, from 2017-2020 we had the energy policy to allow us to stand up to Putin, and a leader who projected strength Putin and Xi weren’t going to test. 13 months into Brandon and a generation has been flattened with idiotic Covid policies, the workforce shrunk from idiotic experimental medicine mandates (even imposed on the already immune), inflation is crushing the poor and middle class (which was very bad before this latest geopolitical disaster), and the excuses for 13 months of straight failure flowing from our propaganda machines must have Orwell rolling in his grave.
Now we have such weaklings in western leadership, and career government morons directing policy, there is more than a remote chance humanity itself won’t survive 3 more years of Brandon or any more years of the WEF destroying children, energy, prosperity, and representative government.
" Suppressing the very pro-Russian voice resulted in a country that is likely too pro-western for its own survival given its geography." There are regions of Ukraine that seem to fit that notion. Are they really pro-Russian aside from a language? I'm sure the people there would prefer to live in peace without the internal civil war in their areas. I'm no expert and have no real idea of what the average person in those areas thinks about the situation but can hardly imagine wanting to live as a typical Russian, but as I note, I'm not there. I do see that if the majority of the citizens are taking up arms that is tacit support of their government. Flawed or not, it seems they prefer their own corruption to Russian corruption.
In terms of our policy, we agree that we created a mess. We did make promises when the nukes were removed from Ukraine but that policy seemed to die as their government became a puppet state to Russia. There are many that insisted we chucked that Ukraine puppet President in a CIA sponsored revolution, somewhat news to me because I thought it organic. As with many things these days the facts get quickly muddled with counter-facts.
The US seems to have no foreign policy that makes sense. We seem preoccupied with an attempt to install a political faction forever along with an insane ideology and found covid a handy way to try. Going green has ensured an easy run for the Russian gas station and we seem terrified of his nukes as if he would risk himself in such a play. But we are in a looming financial pickle of our own making which does make us weaker. All of that can be fixed with some hard choices that Biden seems incapable of doing.
Ideologues in our government, excepting 2017-2020, have caused so much global death and destruction. 💔. I hope we survive 3 more years of Brandon. I have little kids and I don’t like where we are heading.
If they were a free country, the citizens would already be armed. Think about it. He armed them AFTER the invasion began before the capitol was overrun. He controls them, not the other way around.
so the UK and most other countries of the world are not free to you? BTW wnt to change your mind now : Former President Donald Trump at #CPAC2022: "The Russian attack on Ukraine is appalling; it's an outrage and an atrocity that should never have been allowed to occur." he also said Zelensky was a very brave man
You're asking, do we think the UK is free? Is Canada? Is Australia and New Zealand? Me, I don't really think any of them are.
Being free isn't black or white, a digital 0 or 1. It's a scale, a point on a spectrum.
Right now, in this country, we're a lot freer than most. Whether we stay that way is up to us.
yup
we are 15th below the ones you listed ... Ukraine and russia were always equal in the freedom index ... now Ukraine is 98th and getting better russian 126th (Mexico and Phillipines are in the same range as Ukraine) ... The country is changing better by the month, it is amazing to watch
No, I am not changing my mind. I am against this invasion. Whatever he says about Zelensky means little, coming from the man who looked to Fauci and Birx to save America from covid, instead of God. Our current president is far more corrupt than Zelensky might be. Z. may be a brave man, but the U.S. should NOT be supporting Ukraine in this war, but opposing the invasion. We are currently supporting Russian buying millions of barrels of oil every day. I want no part of Biden, except to see him impeached and removed from office.
how about tarred and feathered and run out of town on a rail?
No, the UK is NOT free, but in their own minds. Same with us Americans. I don't know Zelensky, but Trump says nice things about blood thirsty dictators. I just see actions taken way too late and very poor planning. The weakness of Joe Biden is the reason Putin was free to invade Ukraine. That is the bottom line.
We should be concerned about our own safety with such a weak and wicked leader. We are under the judgment of God and pointing fingers at other countries. We have become a nation of stupid people, easily manipulated and controlled.
You have no idea. Arming boys is an act of desperation but a formidable one. The Russians will have a really hard task ahead.
Listening to Tucker are ya? Please do a bit more research.
I listen to Tucker daily. On this topic, I disagree. But I'll continue to listen.
Yes, sometimes his research is lacking. But this whole thing is a distraction to Americans and Joe, the dead man walking, loves it.
Good point. We even helped keep them corrupt, thanks to Joe the criminal con man. God's judgment is upon us.
Well. Don't believe propaganda. Believe your own eyes. Did Russia capture Kiev yet as it obviously intended? Faces of Russian invaders will be washed with their own blood.
We might not run out of gas, but we handed the Taliban $85billion in functional arms and said “ooopps”
Said oops. But it cannot be a mistake. It was on purpose.
Right on, sister.
Now quoting facts won't help you....or maybe it will.
“Say what you like about the Pentagon, but it would not let its armored vehicles run out of gas three days into an invasion”
Not that fast. Brandon administration can do that. For sure.
Just wait for those electric tanks to charge up then they’re good to go.
True! What was that Obama quote again — don’t underestimate Joe’s ability to screw up ...
"to Pfuck things up", I think
We might leave our tanks for the enemy on day two.
It's dangerous because China is watching intently--and helping under the table. If this Ukrainian takeover is successful, Taiwan will be next. Make no mistake: Brandon has emboldened the 2 countries that should be our biggest enemies into acting like allies against US! Godspeed to the Ukrainians, for they show far more bravery than the vast majority of our own citizens when it comes to standing up against tyranny.
The pushback from Ukrainians might give the Chinese pause. The focus is so often on what will the US do. We are weak, very weak, with Brandon in charge.
What the CCP is being reminded on is that the Taiwanese might fight just as hard for their island. Taiwan is prosperous and free (If Mao hadn’t happened and that were all of China they would have become the only superpower a couple decades ago).
I pray for Ukraine. War is evil. I’m shocked Putin tried to invade the whole country. The Ukrainians have something we lost - the will to fight, and die, for their country. We complain as wack job leftists destroy our kids, and the WEF destroys our prosperity. If Brandon doesn’t intervene to screw them, Ukraine might push Russia back, but then again it’s Putin and this could become much much worse. Either way, it’s a reminder our freedom isn’t free.
Michael Beckley makes a very compelling case in Unrivaled that CCP would get smoked if they tried to take Taiwan. I believe it even more now.
Do you have a link? Even if I know I’m reading it because it’s what I want to hear.
Will matters, particularly in war. If a country’s best and brightest are willing to fight and die a few of them have a better chance than the bigger army from a country whose best and brightest refuse to fight and there is no will to win.
I wonder these days if the reason we lost in Vietnam might be the will of the Viet Cong found themselves fighting McMaster’s morons? 🤷♀️
We lost because Lyndon B. Johnson interfered with the sensible conduct of that war as Commander in Chief. If you'd like some truth about that war I'd recommend "A War to Be Won" by Michael Lind.
The Viet Cong were Ho Chi Minh's horde of murderers and the South Vietnamese hated them. They fought along side the US for their freedom.
Democrat administrations ensured the triumph of the Chinese backed thugs and you'll see that same stupidity at play here too.
Yep.we actually didn't lose the Tet Offensive. We were not fighting for our country.
We lost because Lyndon Johnson was a terrible Commander in Chief. Just like Biden. The South Vietnamese fought hard for their freedom and it's ignorant to ignore that. Watch and see here as another incompetent Commander in Chief fails another country fending off an aggressor.
If China thinks the Ukrainians are tough, he ain't seen nuthin yet. The Taiwanese are better equipped and maybe even better fighters. And don't forget that Taiwan makes 92% of the chips in the world. Those plants go up in smoke if China invades.
agree with everything, except the war over taiwan will be fought *much* differently; and xi won't make the same mistakes that putin did.
There is that too. 😩. God help us, I’m not sure humanity can survive 3 more years of Brandon.
Alex, you know for the last two years, almost all reporting by the main steam media was WRONG or manipulated into falsehood about COVID. Why do you believe all the sudden what the media reports on Ukraine and Russia is correct and accurate? I almost think the media is saying something totally opposite of the reality of what is really going on.
Agree Eddie. I confess I know little or nothing about the Russia/Ukraine situation…but I’ve been following the Covid situation avidly for the past two years and know that the mainstream media has lied to us all the way on that topic.
I certainly won’t be looking for truth or insights into the Russia/Ukraine situation via the mainstream media, which we know is controlled by vested interests, my default position is to now consider it’s all propaganda.
Might as well have a look at Russia Today.
The reality is the Ukrainians are willing to fight to the death for freedom. Keyboard warriors (unless they are Anonymous) do not make a difference. And not a mask in sight in the Ukraine. They have bigger problems. You won't get it until your internet is down and your phone won't work.
This is a very good point. Difficult to know who to believe on this, but we do know that Putin is brutal, so no matter what, this will not end well for Ukraine.
Bingo. Before CV, I mostly read about foreign policy starting with the 'Russian collusion' hoax. The truth is that the Ukrainian gov't installed by Obama-Biden admin in 2014 interfered in the 2016 election on behalf of Hillary, and the Russian collusion hoax was created to cover it up. Trump obviously had no control over his foreign policy with Ukraine, as most of those at the State Dept were actively working against him. Ukraine is not one of our allies. Is the enemy of my enemy my friend? No. The aspect of this invasion that nobody wants to talk about is how "dangerous" this could be for the American people. We already know that liberals and neocons never fully consider the potential consequences and blowback of their actions before they act.
I wish USA citizens had their passion and courage. I still love my country but I don’t like the direction it’s seems to be going. Ukraine love their freedom and here too many want to give it away to the left.
I expected it because I knew the people of Ukraine would not lay down, even against overwhelming odds. Unfortunately the fierce resistance in Ukraine will face a greater onslaught from Putin and Kyiv will see the worse attack of all. President Zelensky declined to leave saying he need more ammunition, not a ride. Worse, too many are stuck with domestic politics myopia and completely are unable to get past navel gazing to understand KGB thug Putin has waited to attack Ukraine again. He choose this time due to the weakness in the West and the handlers of Biden showing complete incompetence in the Afghanistan debacle.
If given the choice to remove their current corrupt leader or stop Putin, Ukrainians are in a bind...a rock and a hard place. Better to lay down their arms and live to fight another day...just my opinion. I am ashamed that their corrupt government just started giving out weapons after the invasion has started. Those using those weapons are going to die facing trained soldiers and with no prospect of freedom either way.
Think you should go lay down. Americans are ashamed of the weakness you and the Obama handlers of Biden project to the world with the Afghanistan debacle and now emboldening a full invasion of Ukraine. Better to die standing than live indefinitely as a slave. SMH
My weakness? I don't believe in fighting other people's wars. I was for ending Afgh. like Pres. Trump wanted. If you want to go to Ukraine to fight with them, there is nothing stopping you, but Americans don't have a dog in this fight, unless it would be Russia, as we buy millions of barrels of oil from them, thanks to the loser in chief.
I will reserve my life to fight for my own country and my own people. God knows, we are in the toughest fight we've ever encountered in our history and the enemy holds control over our Governments at this moment and people are worried about Ukraine? It is simply a distraction. Going on 3 million illegal aliens have poured into this country in just over a year of Biden's lawless presidency. He must be impeached and removed from office with his evil cronies. There is the real fight, friend.
Second Amendment mean anything to you ? and you think their government is corrupt? They have been improving int their fight against corruption since 2014 -through two different ELECTED Presidents
Just Wednesday the Parliament in Ukraine did this: "Ukraine’s parliament on Wednesday voted to approve in the first reading a draft law which gives permission to Ukrainians to carry firearms and act in self-defence. “The adoption of this law is fully in the interests of the state and society,” the authors of the draft law said in a note, adding that the law was needed due to “existing threats and dangers for the citizens of Ukraine.”
Just a few years late and billions of dollars short. The war had already started and this was just the first draft reading...you were saying about 2nd Amendment rights?
I don't need to prove their corruption. You can find that info anywhere on the internet. Hunter Biden was evidence of that, working for a Ukrainian oil company that was hip deep in corruption as payoff for his dad, the VP's help.
I think the U.S. has much bigger corruption problems and we should not be preaching to either side.
Open carry law that sounds like, not, as you said "Their citizens were completely disarmed" ... again accurate FACTS matter. I'm sure all those gun stores (listed as gun stores) were just selling candy. ( BTW I have been to the one called Flarm ... https://flarm.ua/guns/civilne-priznachennja/vognepalna-zbroja/ established shorthly after MAIDAN in 2015)
It's hell to be proved wrong isn't it.
Abraham Lincoln once said: "you cant believe everything you read on the internet."
2014 was the time frame for Hunter's Burisma deal ... That was before the anti-corruption fight and right after Yanukobitch .... The Ukrainian investigator of Burisma was fired for not being STRONG enough in his investigation of Burisma and corruption.
(That russian disinformation system isn't as great as people believe, its too easy to refute if people really want the TRUTH)
I have adjusted my statement. The facts remain, that Ukrainians have not had rights to carry firearms. You may strain at my gnat, but I still think the camel is in front of you.
That's funny about Abe Lincoln, though untimely after calling me out for missing the mark.
In the USA in many states we do not have the right to carry firearms ... (open carry permits?) .... You haven't been to Ukraine have you. I have personally fired weapons https://www.kievshootingclub.com/all-shooting-packages/
The law refers to public carry.
I hope you are never in the position of fighting for your country because I would not want to be next to you. All governments are corrupt - that is how the world works. But governments can be toppled. The People always do this eventually. Just a matter of how hot your water gets.
Fighting for your country when your country is corrupt and evil is a difficult decision. I would rather be working to reclaim my country from its evil leaders. If I was of fighting age and Joe Biden called up everyone to go fight for Ukraine, I would not go. Would you?
I am in the position of fighting for my country at this very moment. The fight is not with guns and bombs, but with ideas and truth.
Our country was not always corrupt. It has become that way for very specific reasons.
Apparently the Ukrainians do not agree with your armchair opinion. They are not making a decision. Biden will not ask you to go fight for the Ukraine. However - the USA is sending help. https://www.stripes.com/theaters/europe/2022-02-24/173rd-Airborne-Brigade-Ukraine-Latvia-Russia-5128627.html History continues to repeat itself. the 173rd Airborne was the first light weapons airborne to be deployed in Vietnam. 57 years on nothing changes.
I do not support any use of U.S. forces overseas any more for other countries, nor any of our tax dollars to help any country. Our leaders are communists and will only use them like cannon fodder. I wish the Ukrainian people well.
How do you know the Ukraine government doesn't have support. A lot of them are facing Russia and NOT laying down their arms. Russia may not have enough troops to force an end. We can hope Russia is smart and not use excessive force.
I don't see any country rushing to the aid of Ukraine. The U.S. sends them arms while buying oil from Russia. Go figure. We have already betrayed Ukraine. If they leaned on us for help, it's like leaning on a cracked stick. Our nation is falling apart and Americans hardly know their end is near. The only difference between the U.S. and the Titanic, is most don't know we are sinking.
Well Germany just allowed some arms deliveries and they are walking a very fine line. The UK is pitching in as well. Others are helping but want to stay low.
You are right that Biden could get that pen back and turn US oil on. In several weeks we could could be free of Russian oil. But he is more in tune with his greens who whisper in his ear.
Yes, selling arms and sending soldiers are quite different. Biden will do what is worst for America. He serves another master and it isn't God.
Me me me ... us us us ... self centered narcissists
I wonder if that is the real epidemic...
sure seems to be be, started a few decades ago ... I understand Fraudci believes it doesn't exist so it must be real
Of course, the Russians had their own Afghan quagmire. They never figured out how to beat committed, asymmetric forces any better than we did.
Send David Frum, Uncle Joey with his son Hunter Biden to Ukraine.
The Ukrainians wouldn't accept them. Unlike us, they hate corruption
"Biden to me is like having a flashlight with a dying battery and going for a long hike in the woods. It's not going to work out. It's not gonna make it."
Joe Rogan.
Good god, Ukraine is the epitome of corruption
What is your Point David Frum North Korea Iran China and all Blue Checks on Twitter can must go and fight for the Ukrainian border if you have your Vaccines status card highest ranking the closer you get to be to the Russian border. The lower the mRNA shot the further away you are from the Russian border. Nobody who have not had at least one mRNA shot can not leave America.
Huh ... I am not vaccinated, I have had zero shots and have traveled to Ukraine 40 times in the last 5 years and probably 20 times during the SARS-CoV-2 fiasco ....
Did you get go by Camel 🐫 or Cold air Balloon 🎈? David Frum has his own Private Train. 🚆
lol /// plane connecting through Amsterdam which has been a SARS-Cov-2 fiasco on it's own.
are they ? Havent followed much have you ... Ukraine and russia were, prior to 2014, ranked the same in the corruption index ... now Ukraine is 12 steps above russia AND IMPROVING AND ADDRESSING THE ISSUE .. try to keep up
“Corruption index” 🤣 where was USA, Eu? Lap up the kool aid
USA ranked 27 ... EU is not a country but France 22nd, UK -1th
Best were Denmark and NZ ...
Rankings and score have been done for decades ... it is based on corruption as the misuse of public power for private benefit
Sorry you weren't knowledgeable enough to know that
Oh sure, like the best places to live with USA at the bottom but the world is coming to the USA . Anyway they’re all corrupt.
🤣
Let's keep Biden away from doing absolutely anything. Everything he touches turns to shit. Biden would have accidently armed our soldiers with bananas.
It’s called The Fog of War for a reason. All of the reports about what is happened or just happened have to be looked at with a heavy dose of skepticism. It may not be true. However, I hope that the brave people of Ukraine beats bs k this aggression from Putin forces. Putin is not supported by his own people!
I've counted four examples of imagery and videos being false (from a disasters a few years ago to excerpts from a movie). I'd be very careful about the news you're seeing. Most certainly a battle has begun but beyond that, I'm. not sure I trust all of what we're seeing.
Because you know NO ONE in Ukraine ... educate yourself
Ah, the "educate yourself" retaliation. Heard that a lot on the Covid issue about a year ago and it aged as well as your arrogant response.
I am sorry, I didn't know you knew about EVERYTHING and had researched Ukrainian history and its complicated history ... did you educate yourself on viruses and COVID, did you research and form an educated decision based on differing sources?
Have you done that on Ukraine?
Go back to Twitter. You'll fit in perfectly.
So you have done no research in Ukraine or it's history but have taken MSM statements over the years as fact? ( Hurt your feelings snowflake. People are being bombed, how do you think they feel)
You are like the lady I was challenged by in the airport who called me a maskhole. I told her I have done massive research on the subject and would love to exchange information that she had, I may have missed something.
I asked her where she got her information from and she replied : "The news"
My response to her, as it is to you, "So you're a fucking ignorant lemming"
Foul mouthed, too. Awesome. Have a great night.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if UKR victorious!
Good! Ukraine should've handed out tens of millions of guns & tens of billions of rounds to its citizens years ago, with training. Heavy weapons too. Rulers who don't trust their people with the means of mutual defense don't deserve to rule. Sadly, the people pay the price.
However...Sorry, not our problem. Enough already! Not worth risking nuclear war over. Not worth another world nanny $10 trillion intervention and more American lives wasted.
Nor would this be happening if Trump was still in the White House. Don't forget corrupt Ukraine helped demonize him while protecting Joe & Humper Xiden. So we're stuck with corrupt stupid self-indulgent perverted pansies Biden-Harris-DemComs, a sensitive tranny military, a wrecked economy after years of covid hysteria, discharging warriors for refusing vaccines, a war on domestic oil production & independence, and the idiotic way Xiden fled Afghanistan and left weapons & people behind. All these smoke signals encouraged Putin's invasion & aggression.
WRONG ... Hunter was with BURISMA, a corrupt Ukrainain company (kind of like Pfizer). In 2014 Ukrainians through out their corrupt President.
RIGHT AND WRONG: The damage was done by Obama-Biden's Ukrainian government rent boys and was never undone.
BTW, who elected that corrupt president in the first place?
There you go .... in 2014 obama and bidet walked away and turned their backs when Ukraine was invaded by russia ...
Since then (until now) over 15,000 people have died in Ukraine in the russian invasion. Zelensky was not in power when Hunter was there.
What is amazing in this is that Trump supporters are backing exactly what OBAMA did.
What do you want the USA to do? Nanny every problem in the world?
How about you throw on a mask, fly over there and volunteer with YOUR ass & YOUR money.
Flight as scheduled into KYIV on the April first, may have to fly into Warsaw now. My ass will be there, MY money as well.
What do I want the USA to do? We could argue the Budapest Memorandum forever which is useless. UKRAINE DOES NOT WANT OUR SOLDIERS, they have stated that. They need the equipment to fight the fight we should have long ago. The fight of men to be free.
What should we do, shut down the skies over Ukraine, Ukraine will take care of the rest and themselves.
BRAVO!
I support most of that. Certainly military supplies. Shut down the skies? I don't trust the Military Industrial Complex with military intervention under Xiden-Harris & the DemComs. If Trump was there, another story. Then again, if Trump was there this wouldn't be happening anyway.
It is beyond me why anyone would believe that the Ukrainians, a nation that was almost anihilated by mass starvation by the Russians within living memory, would "not put up a fight" when they are invaded again... by the Russians. That's like thinking that Israelis would not put up a fight if invaded by an army of Nazis or the Irish would not put up a fight if invaded by the Brits. Who can be so naive as to not understand the depth of historical hatreds?
"I need ammunition, not a ride." Wow. I don't think a more concise, inspiring one liner could possibly have been uttered in the current circumstances. I guess in his previous life as a comedian, he had a little experience with one liners.
Yes Hope! I'd rather have a comedian in charge rather than a JOkE.
Who says tanks are running out of gas? I don't think the Russians want to use tanks within the city...just my opinion. They want to take the city with as little damage as possible to the infrastructure.
The real question is why does the Ukrainian dictator wait till the 11th hour to arm his citizens? Could it be if they were armed sooner, they would take over their own corrupt government?
You are a moron --- why do you think Ukraine is headed by a dictator. Are you confusing Ukraine with Belarus or haven't you looked since 2014?
Maybe you watch too much RT.
Ukrainians are great people, but they would be first to tell you the govt are certainly a mafia and oligarch run kleptocracy. Zelensky has little power. I agree, not a dictatorship for those reasons.
You think so , again how much time have you spent there? I have been there 40 times the last 5 years. The government under Yanukobitch was mafia just like russia.
There are massive changes taking place, corruption is being addressed but it is slow. (when are we going to address our corruption in the USA).
Watch Servant of the People which is interestingly how Zelensky got elected. Six months ago I didn't like Zelensky and his ties to Kolomoisky etc. I was concerned, as the people were, that he was just an oligarch controlled stooge.
Recent days he has proven to be someone with REAL patriotism, not BS trying to be elected. A Churchill for our times , a MAN willing to be on the front lines in the fight against tyranny.
I said the govt not one man. He has limited power as you know, and has been impressive this week. My point is trust in govt in Ukraine, until this week, was abysmal. I spent time w all kinds of people and that is the common response (except when speaking to govt employees or elected officials). My point was its not a dictatorship, but a very flawed state awash with corruption issues. If you cant agree with that...i guess we agree to disagree.
WE are a flawed democracy as well, and I would argue we don't even try to address the issue .... Limited power, yes because he is not a dictator and they have a Prime Minister and a legislature.
As a Ukrainian would tell you, it is less abysmal now and getting better
So what you are saying is the brave Ukrainian people are NOT naive and the population does not trust the government OR ANYONE. Its why they are only around 25% vaxxed, they told the government to go to hell. When you have lived through soviet times you tend not to trust authority. You should see the fake vaccine passports that even work in Europe (lol)
IF a person has not been to Ukraine, they have not seen the changes that have taken place since 2014 and take place continually.
Just look at what they do. Their citizens were unable to carry weapons until the so-called president decided to use them as canon fodder against trained soldiers to protect his regime. Their opposition leader is in jail and opposing media is shut down. That's what dictators do. He's had months to prepare for war or to negotiate. He chose war. Biden pretends to be against Russia, but continues to buy millions of barrels of oil from them each day, then talks about sanctions. You are being played, as are many.
Here is the list of gun stores in Kyiv alone https://tinyurl.com/bdea6xbc (14 pages worth). that certainly doesn't seem to be disarmed (There is even a shooting range at the high end ATHLETIC club, Tsarsky, in central Kyiv)
Opposition leader under house arrest. https://www.euronews.com/2021/05/13/ukraine-opposition-leader-and-putin-ally-under-house-arrest-after-being-charged-with-treas .. In the USA and most countries, he would be in jail awaiting trial for treason. In russia hed already be dead.
RT and some others were shut down, did you ever watch them? They were all PRO-russian propaganda. (I disagree with his decision.)
For 8 years, Ukraine has been fighting against the russian invaders in eastern Ukraine (give me a fcking break if you say breakaway republics). The government and people are not rich, many soldiers buy their own bullet proof chest protectors or they are donated.
What brain dead bidet is doing has nothing to do with whether we support Ukraine or not. did you hear Trump tonight? " Former President Donald Trump at #CPAC2022: "The Russian attack on Ukraine is appalling; it's an outrage and an atrocity that should never have been allowed to occur." he also said Zelensky was a very brave man ... want to NOW make this about USA politics DA"
far from being played by a katsap lover like you. See FACTS matter not BS statements like you ahve made
FACTS matter, your propaganda is a buch of lies and half truths)
Number6, it was not propaganda I put up. It came from an article by Bearing Arms. The author noted: "the country’s gun control laws are still incredibly restrictive and don’t really recognize the right of armed self-defense." The hurried activity to change that after the war has already started is like a cruel joke. They also note in the article that if anything, they may be helping for a future insurgency after Russians take control. But let's not lie about it. Ukraine has not been a bastion of freedom.
But I'm done worrying about them when my country is in such deep trouble. May God help them survive to fight another day.
This is such wishful thinking and as such is understandable. But it took 3 weeks for the US to take Baghdad from a far inferior Iraqi army. 6 days of fighting for the city itself.
With 400,000 soldiers. And the Iraqi Army was considered among the best non-NATO/Russia forces
And Ukraine is a much larger country geographically
I think vigorous insurgency is a strong possibility, but every lopsided invasion starts like this, with plausible and exciting imagery of resistance until the reality of cruise missiles and hardware superiority set in. I wish Ukraine had a chance to repel this invasion, I have dear friends in Odesa. Btw an aside but it was actually 195k US soldiers at peak, very close to how many Russians are now in Ukraine I'd guess by Monday. Chechens and Belarussians on way in their own coalition of the (likely not very) willing. Russia has ethnic militias in about a third of the country. Look, we have to stay aware of the fact that there are zero social posts allowed up from a Russian propaganda point of view, and a lot of very clearly Ukrainian prop (i dont blame them, its a key part of war). But lots of 2014 footage etc and misidentifying sides etc if you understand Russian. We're all rooting for people defending their homes, obviously, but 1)the USG and social media censorship apparatus didnt just stop working and 2) no war ends this quickly.
Amateurs talk about strategy; professionals talk about logistics
and the Biden administration talks about sanctions while still buying billions of barrels of oil from Russian and stopping our own country from producing it. I'm thinking they actually like what's happening. When Biden or Psaki open their mouth, you know the next thing out of it is a lie.
I am sure Biden is on top of the situation in his bunker in Delaware!
I wish we could help. I also wish Putin and Biden would kill each other.
How come no one was concerned about Ukraine shelling ukrainians for the last 8 years? Since when is it a good idea to show support for the most corrupt government in Europe? This is all the result of a US/NATO backed coup that cost taxpayers over 5 billion dollars. Is Ukraine's puppet president/actor/comedian worth 5 billion dollars? Let's just call it another regime change fail for the west and let Russia have Ukraine back.
Let’s remember that Russia killed approximately 2,000,000 Afghan citizens and lost 15,000 troops before they lost and left. What will the cost be in Ukraine ? Putin is a ruthless bastard.
Has anyone considered that perhaps a Russian victory would beat back the plans of the World Economic Forum and the Great Reset? Just a thought.
When I first heard about the buildup, my first thought was that 130,000 troops are not nearly enough to take and occupy all of Ukraine. That's why I thought the Russians would slice off Donetsk and Luhansk only. Oh well, I'm not the only one that was wrong about that.
However, one has to wonder why the Russians have only committed 30,000 of those troops to the fight. Double that number and it may be over by now. Maybe Vlad is thinking the same thing I am about taking and holding Ukraine?
I've heard some rumblings that both the Ukrainians and the U.S. are warming to the idea of a neutral Ukraine (read, no NATO) if it gets the Russians to back off. Maybe that is why the Russians have committed less than their full complement? Maybe Vlad is just trying to force a result he couldn't get diplomatically? Stands to reason. And if that is where we end up, then JoeBiden and Zelensky will look even worse, since they will have ended up where they could have gotten without killing a lot of people and breaking a lot of stuff.
Absolutely not 30k. Its at least half their 200k moblization right now in country. I just watched a video in S Ukr of over 350 personnel vehicles passing thru one little village. The rest inching in, more on way. Chechen fighters coming which is a horrible prospect for anyone.
It is true that about 1/2 were held back, and it's also true that much of the remainder are being committed. Putin's plan was to strike political nerve centers, avoid indiscriminate bombing, and take out command and control. That failed.
Given the difficulty of occupying the whole country, he hoped to terrify Zelensky and the parliament into submission. Zelensky had announced he would negotiate, and neutrality was not off the table. That seems to have fallen through - Russia's demand was far reaching: the complete demilitarization of Ukraine, a ban on the import of all western weapons, the removal (and perhaps punishment) of the socalled "neo Nazi's" who opposed his empire building, a rejection of NATO, EU and any other attempt to become economically modernized. He also wants Ukraine to legally surrender the territory claimed by Republics of the east and Crimea.
Ukraine will be allowed limited autonomy, under stooges approve by Putin. It can never have trade relations with any other country than Putins.
That is a pointless negotiation. Its total surrender.
I would suggest you look up "The Gell-Mann Amnesia Effect". First coined by the late Michael Crichton. What follows is his explanation.
“Briefly stated, the Gell-Mann Amnesia effect is as follows. You open the newspaper to an
article on some subject you know well. In Murray’s case, physics. In mine, show business. You
read the article and see the journalist has absolutely no understanding of either the facts or
the issues. Often, the article is so wrong it actually presents the story backward—reversing
cause and effect. I call these the “wet streets cause rain” stories. Paper’s full of them.
In any case, you read with exasperation or amusement the multiple errors in a story, and then
turn the page to national or international affairs, and read as if the rest of the newspaper was
somehow more accurate about Palestine than the baloney you just read. You turn the page,
and forget what you know.”
Combine that with a quite long Twitter thread I found from Steve Deace a few weeks back and you will start to understand why you can't believe ANYTHING coming from ANYONE in authority as well as almost ALL MAJOR MEDIA. You have to search out sources you can trust, like this one. However, even Alex is off base when it come to IVM and Dr. Robert Malone.
I would STRONGLY URGE each of you to go to Steve Deace's Twitter feed and find that thread. It basically says that we have to QUESTION EVERYTHING you see in the media or anywhere else for that matter. We are BEING LIED TO actively.
We are WAY PAST THE TIME WHEN THE MEDIA IS SIMPLY BIASED. They are actively trying to mislead us. Same with the government. Same with health authorities. And on and on.
Good luck and God Speed.
Some of the commentors are skeptical of what is being reported, especially those "nationalists" who, sadly, can't grasp this is Ukraine's nationalism a fight of survival against Putin's imperial power. Those who know Ukraine's people, who know it's people, land, language, and culture are not surprised by this shocking level of resistance to the Russian invasion. Anyone in this thread can find numerous twitter feeds from Ukrainian civilians and soldiers, of both Ukrainian and Russian ethnic origin. One can get on the ground video journalist reporting from independent Ukrainian news outlets. Over and over, one is astounded at the bravery and defiant opposition. And yes, many of those show the carnage of armored encounters, wrecked convoys, and self-sacrifice of Ukrainian patriots. (Last transmission from Ukraine's Spider Island: "Russian Warship: Go Fuck Yourself").
While the actual claims and counter claims of losses are likely off by half (a rule of thumb) all agree that this kind of grassroots resistance and their use of effective anti-tank attacks were not how it was supposed to happen.
Of course, in the end one knows that the vastly greater military resources of Russia will grind down their victims - just as Stalin's 1940 attack on Finland was initially a shocking drubbing of Soviet forces. But Ukrainian nationalism won't die, the fury against the "brotherly nation" will be rooted in lore. There extremely brave President likely martyred by his refusal to evacuate.
I stand with Ukraine.
We don't know ANYTHING about this conflict we are just being told about it by the lying MSM. I hear from a Kiev resident that it is BS, a distraction.
What does your contact say is really happening?
Maybe Joe will bring in the Taliban to fight Russia in Ukraine. The Taliban is well armed. That way no U. S. troops will be involved.
The NEO-NAZIS in Ukraine are a tough bunch...backed by NATO/US puppets. Read up on the history of Ukraine in the last 10 years.
Yeah that NEO-NAZI who is a Jew and was elected a few years ago.... FT has done a great propaganda job on you (BTW the radical right in Ukraine poll at less than 2%)
What is this all really about, seems tissue to me. This video gives one Possible explanation, they're not trying to kill civilians, they hit biolabs the 1st day. https://rumble.com/vvsq5l-ep-2711b-planned-long-agods-stronghold-and-bio-weapons-destroyedtrump-never.html
Two difficulties here. First, Ukrainians are receiving no outside help. Cheering them on is encouraging lambs to march to slaughter. We don't have any skin in the game, so it's no skin off our backs. Second, if this becomes a longer, bloodier and more violent affair, this only plays into Putin's hands. The more brutal he and Russians appear, the more scared the next target of Russian aggression will be when Russia comes knocking.
Shocking. Please reread your post. Do you mean to infer that when the odds are against you … fold your tent and run? For the sake of future underdogs, don’t fight?
Quite the opposite, I am wildly encouraged…Germany is stepping up to supply serious military equipment to help the Ukrainians fight for THEMSELVES. Even if they lose in the end they will forever be proud that they stood firm against aggressive dictatorial regimes. If you are a Conservative in America you can surely relate and support their effort?
No, I am saying we didn't bring any horses to this rodeo. U.S. is just standing idly by. We could have done far more, so could many others. Germany could and should have supported Ukraine months ago as the build-up was occurring. Now, we've got Russian military laying waste to a country and all we are doing is saying, "Yeah, go get'em fellas." I guess you would have been a frequent attendee at the Roman Colosseum to cheer on the Christians as they are thrown to the Lions.
I do agree at some level … see your point. Although I’ll have to disagree about my attendance to slaughters! I’m a growing fan of anyone that will fight tyranny (not necessarily militarily). In some sense aren’t the Ukrainians standing up to Putin an inspiration to anyone standing up to Cancel Culture? Obviously their stakes are MUCH higher but if you’re not willing to stand up for yourself you won’t be standing for long? What lesson would be learned from that?
Yes, resisting Cancel Culture and any form of censorship and government control is paramount to free societies. Trouble here is that Cancel Culture is what emboldened Putin's invasion. Expensive energy is funding his war and we've got U.S. leaders crying that we can't forget how dangerous climate change and the common cold are as missiles rain down on civilians. Ukrainians are not fighting Cancel Culture. They are fighting for their lives as a direct result of Cancel Culture.
Warsaw Jews put up a hell of fight against the Nazi’s with nothing but guts.
They had some guns. Needed a lot more, plus heavy weapons. They were killed by gun control.
And yet 90% plus of them died. If they had more brains and had not been disarmed, but we saw what happens, or at least read about it.
China is watching
Russia GDP is $1.65 trillion with 144 million people. Texas GDP is $1.84 trillion with 29 million people. I think Putin must have been looking at this invasion of Ukraine as necessary with the value of oil doubling since Old Joe took over. Ukraine is wealthy in natural resources. Knowing that the end of Putin is near as the 144 million will not accept a drop in their living standard when oil falls again... as it will.
Leaders who are facing defeat become the most dangerous in desperation to prevent defeat.
However, if Ukraine actually prevents Russia from prevailing, I wonder if the rest of the free world should jump in and crush the bear once and for all.
And then we should look toward the paper tiger of China for the same.
No, our Pentagon would drive them to the middle of Kyiv and leave them there.
Ukrainians have been very brave especially their president. All this stuff about Ukraine being a dictatorship might have some truth, but Russia is must definitely a dictatorship and a cruel one at that, that has utterly crushed all opposition. I support Ukraine and wish them the best of luck if the defense of their homeland. I call of Western nations to impose much harder sanctions of Russia including oil. While declaring a state of emergency and pumping as much oil and gas here in the United States as possible (lift all restriction on pumping oil in our homeland).
The Duran provides many updates, more objective than western media. They are on youtube (https://www.youtube.com/c/TheDuran/videos), rumble and locals
Foggiest fog of war ever
Why dangerous?
Because Putin is a “strong man” with nukes and he’s backed into a corner. He’ll fight dirty to change that perception.
because Russia may need to send more forces and more firepower, and this skirmish could escalate into wwIII
That’s my question too. “Extremely dangerous” how?
The thing most people are not understanding about this is that it is SIEGE -- good old fashioned siege warfare.
So many people have been used to US tactics of shock-and-awe they don't understand that Putin has essentially surrounded the entire country and is laying siege. The goal was never a shock-and-awe capture. It's nice the Ukrainians are putting up a fight, but when their food and everything else runs out and they can neither leave nor return to the country -- they'll give up.
Some good data appearing at THE SAKER and Moon of Alabama.
Alex, you are needed on a different front, not throwing out your credibility with hot takes based on propaganda.
Recon units entering cities, engaging in small arm fire and retreating is the operation that leads to intel and the larger city taking operation. It took three weeks for a WESTERN COALITION to take Baghdad, and six days to secure it. That is a smaller country with a much less well equipped and funded military. It was also after shock and awe that destroyed the countries infrastructure for years.
3 day hot take LOLing @ Russia based off propaganda is not a good look. Was it Ukrainains with cardboard guns https://mobile.twitter.com/BrianJamesESQ/status/1497661283872608259 and mags falling out https://mobile.twitter.com/BrianJamesESQ/status/1497674272470355970 that bolster such belief . Tell me your hot take when Putin takes most of Ukraine with the infrastructure in tact.
Western countries aren't coming to the rescue. Dumping in weapons will only cause more bloodshed (which western countries are ok with as long as Russia bleeds a little bit). The Gov't handing out AK's to civilians is disgusting. This isn't some life or death struggle for the citizenry, this is an armed conflict replacing one set of kleptocrats with another. It is in the peoples best interest to sit it out since the people who kept giving/selling Ukrainians weapons and dreams of EU/NATO partnership were all false hopes. Reality sucks, but ignore it at your own peril.
Ukraine was a backwater money skim for the elites. Right now it's a bleeding feed for Russians and Ukrainians, but will turn back to a money skim. For the US it is now the cause célèbre for all the administrations problems, a scape goat has been created to pivot off of covid.
We've also just screwed ourselves with the SWIFT action. We have no more leverage over Russia, except war. We've just freed them of any constraints up to that point.
You won't see freedom loving Ukrainians become refugees in US army bases. They would vote Republican
Sadly, I no longer believe western governments or mainstream media. They have lied / manipulated / warped things for years, with Covid being the most recent … and egregious.
I’m not saying Putin is justified in what’s he’s doing. However, he has been clear about his opposition of NATO expansion into Ukraine for 15 years & he witnesses the disastrous “adventures” of the US & its allies in global wars, adds in a bit of debacle from Afghanistan withdrawal, to prompt this move. His bet is that citizens of the West no longer have appetite for war. And trust in their govts is now at an all time low (thanks again, Covid!)
And, most concerning of all - he’s also betting on Biden’s utter incompetence.
And from some accounts the Russian Soldiers are having a moral dilema with this invasion, as they should....go figure....
If I called you Hitler and neo-Nazi first do I have the right to start a war? Quite a logic, isn't it?
This is how WWIII starts.
Imagine China moved into Mexico and was perched on our doorstep, like NATO would be, in Ukraine, if they were part of NATO.
We wouldn't stand for that.
Then, remind me why Russia should feel differently & I should hate them and want $6 BILLION taxpayer dollars sent to Ukraine.