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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:30:40 PM EDT
[#1]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By RolandofGilead: 2 edgy 4 me But muh bio labs, whole foods and bildabears |
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NV, USA
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:31:00 PM EDT
[#2]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By RolandofGilead: So wait, and should Russia win, allow them to remake Ukraine as they wish, regroup, restock, and only then defend NATO. Considering Putin has made clear his plans, it seems interrupting his current plans in Ukraine is actually defending NATO but on NATOs terms. Seems plan and simple to me, and again, doesn't require troops ok the ground. Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By RolandofGilead: Originally Posted By Old_Fashioned: Originally Posted By RolandofGilead: How many countries will you be okay with Putin taking before calling his bluff? Defend NATO members, plain and simple. So wait, and should Russia win, allow them to remake Ukraine as they wish, regroup, restock, and only then defend NATO. Considering Putin has made clear his plans, it seems interrupting his current plans in Ukraine is actually defending NATO but on NATOs terms. Seems plan and simple to me, and again, doesn't require troops ok the ground. You seem unsatisfied with the current strategy the US/NATO is employing. I dont get why though. Its working really very well. Russias lost more troops and material this month then the US did in the GWOT. As more and more weapons arrive, those losses will accelerate. And the longer this goes on, the more the Russian economy will be weakened, and the more time laggards in NATO will have to purchase weapons and begin training for defense. All with really minimal risk of escalation as its well within classic bounds of Proxy War the US/Russia have played against one another since the 50's. Its really pretty awesome. |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:31:37 PM EDT
[#3]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By M4: https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/75/345AACCB-B8B5-4B6B-8015-1177018D2285-2317627.jpg Russkis can’t meme. 
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:32:58 PM EDT
[#4]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By blueballs: Please just stop. Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By blueballs: Originally Posted By nickmemphis: I am no genius by any stretch, but I am one inqusitive curious sumbitch, worse than a killed cat, so I sure would love to to hear a cogent explanation of the endgame here. I mean what the fuck FVP is thinking. I am more or less insane and retarded myself, as you all well know, probably, and I can't think of one even in a world where you can buy unobtainium sponge at the corner grocery. And sans sarcasm, I am genuinely curious. I am fond of hypothetical thought experiments just to enhance my neural net, if for no other reason. Flowers For Motherfucking Algernon. Please just stop. Putin’s end game now is the exact same one as someone who became convinced that a neighbor was a pushover and wouldn’t resist being robbed. The person did resist and their wife was killed. Putin is trying to figure out how to go back to just being an asshole antagonist that put up a fence on the wrong side of the property line and stole Amazon boxes. There is no way for Russia to ever rejoin the international community and be dealt with as before. He never,ever planned for this as anything other than a couple day war with no more Western reaction than scooping Crimea and causing the war in Donbass. This makes everything uncertain just like it’s impossible to know what an armed fugitive might do. |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:34:45 PM EDT
[#5]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By outofbattery: Putin’s end game now is the exact same one as someone who became convinced that a neighbor was a pushover and wouldn’t resist being robbed. The person did resist and their wife was killed. Putin is trying to figure out how to go back to just being an asshole antagonist that put up a fence on the wrong side of the property line and stole Amazon boxes. There is no way for Russia to ever rejoin the international community and be dealt with as before. He never,ever planned for this as anything other than a couple day war with no more Western reaction than scooping Crimea and causing the war in Donbass. This makes everything uncertain just like it’s impossible to know what an armed fugitive might do. Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By outofbattery: Originally Posted By blueballs: Originally Posted By nickmemphis: I am no genius by any stretch, but I am one inqusitive curious sumbitch, worse than a killed cat, so I sure would love to to hear a cogent explanation of the endgame here. I mean what the fuck FVP is thinking. I am more or less insane and retarded myself, as you all well know, probably, and I can't think of one even in a world where you can buy unobtainium sponge at the corner grocery. And sans sarcasm, I am genuinely curious. I am fond of hypothetical thought experiments just to enhance my neural net, if for no other reason. Flowers For Motherfucking Algernon. Please just stop. Putin’s end game now is the exact same one as someone who became convinced that a neighbor was a pushover and wouldn’t resist being robbed. The person did resist and their wife was killed. Putin is trying to figure out how to go back to just being an asshole antagonist that put up a fence on the wrong side of the property line and stole Amazon boxes. There is no way for Russia to ever rejoin the international community and be dealt with as before. He never,ever planned for this as anything other than a couple day war with no more Western reaction than scooping Crimea and causing the war in Donbass. This makes everything uncertain just like it’s impossible to know what an armed fugitive might do. Agreed |
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OR, USA
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:35:19 PM EDT
[#6]
Time to rattle our sabers!
Entering the fourth week of Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine, the battle for air superiority continues to play a significant role in the war's outcome. Over 4,000 miles away, U.S. and Canadian troops held a training exercise to bolster their air defense capabilities in the arctic. The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), a binational defense operation between America and Canada, held its Operation Noble Defender in Yellowknife, Canada from March 14 to 17, where forces practiced responding to potential aircraft and cruise missile threats. Major-General Eric Kenny, Commander for the Canadian NORAD Region, told Newsweek these trainings showcase the defense operation's "capabilities" and "readiness" to its adversaries. However, he said it also demonstrates that NORAD can control North America's arctic airspace, an important factor as the arctic continues to emerge as a place for global competition. "We know Russia's capabilities, and I think it reinforces the importance of what we do within the NORAD mission set to provide air defense 24-7-365," Kenny told Newsweek. "We're seeing, the sea ice diminishing, competition resources increasing the Arctic." "Therefore, at the NORAD enterprise, we need to make sure that our ability to monitor and control airspace, in particular that over North America, becomes just as important, if not more important, than in the past," he added. Kenny notes that NORAD was initially created during the Cold War as a deterrent to the Soviet Union. As the U.S. shifts its military focus away from the war on terror to competing with fellow great powers, NORAD finds itself in a role similar to the one it played in the past. The United States appears committed to shoring up its ability to carry out defense operations in the arctic regions of North America, particularly Alaska, having also recently overseen an arctic training under the U.S. Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) aimed to teach troops the skills needed in order to effectively operate in cold weather battle. |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:35:36 PM EDT
[#7]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By SpaceGuy: No one cares, but you. Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By SpaceGuy: Originally Posted By M4: https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/75/345AACCB-B8B5-4B6B-8015-1177018D2285-2317627.jpg Turn on a news network. Any news network, at any time of the day or night, see the one thing they're covering to the exclusion of all else. Back to your regularly scheduled "programming":  |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:35:37 PM EDT
[#8]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By outofbattery: Putin’s end game now is the exact same one as someone who became convinced that a neighbor was a pushover and wouldn’t resist being robbed. The person did resist and their wife was killed. Putin is trying to figure out how to go back to just being an asshole antagonist that put up a fence on the wrong side of the property line and stole Amazon boxes. There is no way for Russia to ever rejoin the international community and be dealt with as before. He never,ever planned for this as anything other than a couple day war with no more Western reaction than scooping Crimea and causing the war in Donbass. This makes everything uncertain just like it’s impossible to know what an armed fugitive might do. But did you see that rally? He must be doing what the people want! |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:35:52 PM EDT
[#9]
 Mayor of Kyiv: "This is a war against civilians" |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:36:09 PM EDT
[#10]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By outofbattery: Putin's end game now is the exact same one as someone who became convinced that a neighbor was a pushover and wouldn't resist being robbed. The person did resist and their wife was killed. Putin is trying to figure out how to go back to just being an asshole antagonist that put up a fence on the wrong side of the property line and stole Amazon boxes. There is no way for Russia to ever rejoin the international community and be dealt with as before. He never,ever planned for this as anything other than a couple day war with no more Western reaction than scooping Crimea and causing the war in Donbass. This makes everything uncertain just like it's impossible to know what an armed fugitive might do. |
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USA
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:38:36 PM EDT
[#11]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Obo2: The f35s work heavily with software updates i'm pretty sure we could brick any of them on a whim Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Obo2: Originally Posted By MIR: Dont give any of our advanced weaponry to islamist........trust them as much as the russians and chinese.....I mean for crying out loud, has this country not learned anything at all...? The f35s work heavily with software updates i'm pretty sure we could brick any of them on a whim i'm sure it's an "export" version. but still yet, I'm sure the export version would still be invaluable to China. |
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USA
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:40:13 PM EDT
[#12]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By RickJames1999: Potatoe must have needed a Shart / Diaper change break in the middle. Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By RickJames1999: Originally Posted By realwar: Biden's call with Xi lasted 1hr-50min. Potatoe must have needed a Shart / Diaper change break in the middle. they went to commercial break and put on Muzak elevator music. |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:40:33 PM EDT
[#13]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By spydercomonkey: You seem unsatisfied with the current strategy the US/NATO is employing. I dont get why though. Its working really very well. Russias lost more troops and material this month then the US did in the GWOT. As more and more weapons arrive, those losses will accelerate. And the longer this goes on, the more the Russian economy will be weakened, and the more time laggards in NATO will have to purchase weapons and begin training for defense. All with really minimal risk of escalation as its well within classic bounds of Proxy War the US/Russia have played against one another since the 50's. Its really pretty awesome. Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By spydercomonkey: Originally Posted By RolandofGilead: Originally Posted By Old_Fashioned: Originally Posted By RolandofGilead: How many countries will you be okay with Putin taking before calling his bluff? Defend NATO members, plain and simple. So wait, and should Russia win, allow them to remake Ukraine as they wish, regroup, restock, and only then defend NATO. Considering Putin has made clear his plans, it seems interrupting his current plans in Ukraine is actually defending NATO but on NATOs terms. Seems plan and simple to me, and again, doesn't require troops ok the ground. You seem unsatisfied with the current strategy the US/NATO is employing. I dont get why though. Its working really very well. Russias lost more troops and material this month then the US did in the GWOT. As more and more weapons arrive, those losses will accelerate. And the longer this goes on, the more the Russian economy will be weakened, and the more time laggards in NATO will have to purchase weapons and begin training for defense. All with really minimal risk of escalation as its well within classic bounds of Proxy War the US/Russia have played against one another since the 50's. Its really pretty awesome. I don't know why you think that. I'm arguing against people that want to be totally hands off. I think we're doing okay at the moment. |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:40:37 PM EDT
[#14]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By PurpleOtter: Speaking of propaganda... Xi Says Conflicts Like Ukraine Crisis in No One's Interests - Chinese Media Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By PurpleOtter: Speaking of propaganda... BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese President Xi Jinping told his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden on Friday that conflicts and confrontations such as the events unfolding in Ukraine are in the interests of no-one, according to Chinese state media. State-to-state relations cannot advance to the stage of confrontation, and conflicts and confrontations are not in the interests of anyone, Xi told Biden on a video call. "The Ukraine crisis is something that we don't want to see," said Xi. Xi said China and the United States must guide bilateral relations along the right track, and both sides should also shoulder due international responsibilities and make efforts for world peace. ChinaIsAsshoe says and does what is in the best interests of ChinaIsAsshoe, same as always. In this instance, they are probably correct in saying that what the Russians did and the resulting sanctions are "bad for bidness". As always, ignore what the *say* and watch what they *do*. |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:41:17 PM EDT
[#15]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Spade: I figure. It's just baffling to me. Every US soldier has optics, lasers, all that. Shit, I can have it probably overnighted from TNVC if I had the money to drop. And most Russian soldiers are running around like it's 1985. I spent 10.5 years in the US Army from 2009 to 2020. I used an M16A2 without an optic or laser pretty much the entire time. If you aren't part of the 1/3 of the Army that is in SOF or a BCT... your equipment is from 1985. |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:41:32 PM EDT
[Last Edit: hiyaboa]
[#16]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Balu: Good point. NVGs are valuable items that also happen to be relatively small, easily portable, easy to hide. Chances are 90% of NVGs issued to Russian troops would be stolen and sold on the black market. It would be an expensive investment resulting in almost no fieldable capability. They probably know this so they didn't spend money on equipping their troops with it. Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Balu: Originally Posted By PurpleOtter: Originally Posted By Spade: I just don't understand how it's 2022 and a supposedly modern military doesn't have real NVG capabilities. I remember reading articles years ago worrying that the US might have trouble in a near peer fight because of reliance on NVGs with active stuff like lasers and beacons, because a real enemy like the Russians could see them. I guess it wasn't an issue. Good point. NVGs are valuable items that also happen to be relatively small, easily portable, easy to hide. Chances are 90% of NVGs issued to Russian troops would be stolen and sold on the black market. It would be an expensive investment resulting in almost no fieldable capability. They probably know this so they didn't spend money on equipping their troops with it. Russian corruption increases with status. Junior officers and enlisted soldiers aren’t selling their NVGs, they never received them in the first place. |
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AK, USA
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:41:45 PM EDT
[#17]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By M4: Turn on a news network. Any news network, at any time of the day or night, see the one thing they're covering to the exclusion of all else. Back to your regularly scheduled "programming": https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/75/345AACCB-B8B5-4B6B-8015-1177018D2285-2317627.jpg Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By M4: Originally Posted By SpaceGuy: Originally Posted By M4: https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/75/345AACCB-B8B5-4B6B-8015-1177018D2285-2317627.jpg Turn on a news network. Any news network, at any time of the day or night, see the one thing they're covering to the exclusion of all else. Back to your regularly scheduled "programming": https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/75/345AACCB-B8B5-4B6B-8015-1177018D2285-2317627.jpg Kansas City Shuffle:  Foreseen Consequences: Lessons Learned |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:41:59 PM EDT
[#18]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By M4: Turn on a news network. Any news network, at any time of the day or night, see the one thing they're covering to the exclusion of all else. Back to your regularly scheduled "programming": https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/75/345AACCB-B8B5-4B6B-8015-1177018D2285-2317627.jpg Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By M4: Originally Posted By SpaceGuy: Originally Posted By M4: https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/75/345AACCB-B8B5-4B6B-8015-1177018D2285-2317627.jpg Turn on a news network. Any news network, at any time of the day or night, see the one thing they're covering to the exclusion of all else. Back to your regularly scheduled "programming": https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/75/345AACCB-B8B5-4B6B-8015-1177018D2285-2317627.jpg Did you miss the part where this is the biggest war to happen in decades? Probably calls for some media coverage. "Programming" lol. |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:42:43 PM EDT
[Last Edit: 715700]
[#19]
I went to grad school in Vienna and though not my nation always hated seeing the Russischen Denkmal monument for “liberation”. It’s had a minor makeover with paint
 Attached File |
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OR, USA
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:43:14 PM EDT
[#20]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By x248716x: i'm sure it's an "export" version. but still yet, I'm sure the export version would still be invaluable to China. |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:43:38 PM EDT
[Last Edit: BerettaGuy]
[#21]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Jozsi: The only ones calling Hungarians nazis are people like you and the Russians. Nobody else.......but we are constantly reminded that we were Hitlers last ally during the war when in fact it was a coup and installation of a puppet Nazi that did it. In the end.. Hungary has been constantly neutral with the Ukraine situation because of your minority rights laws in place currently in the largely FORMERLY EX Hungarian regions of Ukraine that was ALWAYS Hungarian since the year 1000 AD. Your laws prevent the education and speaking of Hungarian in those regions and for several years, Ukraine has largely ignored Hungary's protest about it. In the end, Ukraine isn't perfect but for people to say it is.....are willfully being ignorant. Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Jozsi: Originally Posted By BerettaGuy: Originally Posted By dillydilly: Originally Posted By Blasko: For sure but not totally accurate, my wife’s maternal side of the family is from rural areas near where the Ukrainian border is and suffered from the Ukrainians aligned with Germany in ww2. Heard some very bad stories Ya it went both ways. I know that the Banderovtsi were aligned with the Nazis but they killed their own too. That's not accurate. Stephan Bandera spent most of the war in a German prison camp and his brother was executed by the Nazis. Ukrainians only "welcomed" Germans in the first few weeks they came into Ukraine just so they could fight the Russians since Stalin murdered 7-12 million of them in 1932. Some Ukrainians agreed to fight with the Germans against Russia but never swore any allegiance to Hitler. Never (I have read the agreements for the Galicia SS). Also, the Galicia SS funneled weapons to the Ukrainian Insurgent Army who were at war with Nazis and Russia. The Nazis took my Ukrainian grandparents home and business and executed many Ukrainians in their village for helping the UPA - they wound up in a German prisoner camp. My mother is still alive and still remembers all of it. Funny how no one calls Hungarians, Italians, or Romanians Nazis these days... See my post on this page: https://www.ar15.com/forums/General/OFFICIAL-Ukraine-conflict-thread/5-2499714/?page=65with two links to a two part series on the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (if you like war documentaries you will like it). https://m.day.kyiv.ua/sites/default/files/main/openpublish_article/20111222/475-8-1.jpg Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) recruitment poster showing UPA soldier bayonetting two effigies, one Hitler and the other Stalin. The only ones calling Hungarians nazis are people like you and the Russians. Nobody else.......but we are constantly reminded that we were Hitlers last ally during the war when in fact it was a coup and installation of a puppet Nazi that did it. In the end.. Hungary has been constantly neutral with the Ukraine situation because of your minority rights laws in place currently in the largely FORMERLY EX Hungarian regions of Ukraine that was ALWAYS Hungarian since the year 1000 AD. Your laws prevent the education and speaking of Hungarian in those regions and for several years, Ukraine has largely ignored Hungary's protest about it. In the end, Ukraine isn't perfect but for people to say it is.....are willfully being ignorant. Buddy, you misunderstood me. I wasn't calling ALL Hungarians or Italians (I'm also half) or Romanians nazis because they were allied with them. I was making the point that Russia and the duped alt-right are calling Ukrainians Nazis but they leave out nations which were formally allied with them. If Russia would ever invade Hungary, the first thing they would do is call Hungarians Nazis because of WW2. I am familiar with the area of Ukraine on Ukraine's SW border where the Hungarian government pumps millions of dollars a year to get Hungarians (of Ukrainian citizenship) elected into office to take over the area and that even the street signs are in Hungarian. I'm sure Putin got the word to your president that if he stays as neutral as possible, Putin will give this entire area over to Hungary (I mentioned this a few weeks ago on this thread). Hitler made the same promise. Whether or not Hungary should be given some of this land, that is for another discussion. As for Ukraine's government, I have been VERY critical about the way they have been doing things over the past 30 years (especially since I worked with them before communist Yanukovych came in). I am very proud how hard they are fighting and I pray they defeat Russia who has been trying to erase them for well over 500 years. |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:47:01 PM EDT
[#22]
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:47:06 PM EDT
[#23]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By PurpleOtter: Putin is rumored to be purging the Kremlin of Russian officials he blames for the faltering invasion of Ukraine Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By PurpleOtter: Rumours are spreading that President Vladimir Putin, enraged by military setbacks in Ukraine, has launched a purge of some of Russia's most powerful officials. On Thursday, reports in Ukrainian media claimed that Putin had fired Roman Gavrilov, the deputy chief of Rosgvardia, the Russian national guard. Rosgvardia had deployed into Ukraine alongside the regular military and suffered heavy losses as Ukraine resisted with unexpected ferocity. Christo Grozev, the lead Russia investigator for the outlet Bellingcat, said three sources confirmed the firing to him. The Russian newspaper Kommersant meanwhile reported that Gavrilov had resigned. One source told Bellingcat that Gavrilov was detained by the FSB's military counter-intelligence department over "leaks of military info that led to loss of life", while two others say it was "wasteful squandering of fuel." The details of top-level moves in the Kremlin are difficult to confirm because of Russia's penchant for secrecy, the high costs of speaking out of turn, and the long campaign by Russia to destroy its independent media. But even what can be seen suggests that all is not well in Putin's inner circle. Per Ukraine? Umm... |
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NY, USA
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:47:13 PM EDT
[#24]
Flightradar24 is keeping track of commercial aircraft leased by Russia Russia is not returning commercial aircraft. They've started re-registering them. |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:47:43 PM EDT
[#25]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By ad_nauseam: That's why it's such a dilemma. It's a lose-lose-lose situation. They cannot advance, they cannot leave and they cannot stand in one place, do nothing. There are no good outcomes. The best one would be an internal revolt, Oligarchs appointing another head of state in Kremlin but that's doubtful (but not impossible). Big problems for the west, the rats are backed into a corner with no real viable exit strategy, and that makes them very dangerous. There is just no exit strategy that is going to help Putin here in the short term let alone the long, no off ramp he can take to end all this and walk away unscathed. He may be able to crush Ukraine's standing army, but the cost to the Russian military will be massive and reverberate throughout Russia, and the economic damage from sanctions will continue. The west wont let him just keep UKR under any circumstance and there is certain to be a well funded insurgency leading to more blood and treasure lost, and he knows it. If he cuts and runs he has just wasted a massive amount of blood and treasure for nothing. That wont play well ether and I cant see him holding on to power in that situation and I think he knows that as well. I believe he is running out of options quickly and his power is going to start to be challenged more and more. He has to act soon or he knows it is over for him. What he is willing to do to hold on to power is the real question. It's clear his military isn't strong enough to go toe to toe with NATO so pushing a conventional war into the west isn't going to happen. He cant cut and run and face the certain unrest at home that would bring. What options does that leave him but Nukes to try and scare the west enough they back off? |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:48:29 PM EDT
[#26]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By x248716x: wonder if he fired the guy that selected the chinese tires that go flat. Fired? As in "Ready, Aim, Fired." |
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OR, USA
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:48:30 PM EDT
[#27]
Reportedly the Russian embassy in Washington DC.
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:48:32 PM EDT
[#28]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By M4: Turn on a news network. Any news network, at any time of the day or night, see the one thing they're covering to the exclusion of all else. Back to your regularly scheduled "programming": https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/75/345AACCB-B8B5-4B6B-8015-1177018D2285-2317627.jpg I wonder why? A nuclear power is rattling their nuclear saber against a large chunk of the free world, giant economic battle is being waged, and the global supply chain is being disrupted but I'm sure no one would notice any of that. |
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CO, USA
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:52:58 PM EDT
[#29]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Chokey:
Turkey Shoot??? |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:54:00 PM EDT
[#30]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Boedy: Big problems for the west, the rats are backed into a corner with no real viable exit strategy, and that makes them very dangerous. There is just no exit strategy that is going to help Putin here in the short term let alone the long, no off ramp he can take to end all this and walk away unscathed. He may be able to crush Ukraine's standing army, but the cost to the Russian military will be massive and reverberate throughout Russia, and the economic damage from sanctions will continue. The west wont let him just keep UKR under any circumstance and there is certain to be a well funded insurgency leading to more blood and treasure lost, and he knows it. If he cuts and runs he has just wasted a massive amount of blood and treasure for nothing. That wont play well ether and I cant see him holding on to power in that situation and I think he knows that as well. I believe he is running out of options quickly and his power is going to start to be challenged more and more. He has to act soon or he knows it is over for him. What he is willing to do to hold on to power is the real question. It's clear his military isn't strong enough to go toe to toe with NATO so pushing a conventional war into the west isn't going to happen. He cant cut and run and face the certain unrest at home that would bring. What options does that leave him but Nukes to try and scare the west enough they back off? Even 'the big guy' trying some back room deals wouldn't allow for "yeah that'll work!" type thinking. |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:54:32 PM EDT
[#31]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By goneshootin: Flightradar24 is keeping track of commercial aircraft leased by Russia Russia is not returning commercial aircraft. They've started re-registering them. |
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OH, USA
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:54:41 PM EDT
[#32]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By outofbattery: Putin's end game now is the exact same one as someone who became convinced that a neighbor was a pushover and wouldn't resist being robbed. The person did resist and their wife was killed. Putin is trying to figure out how to go back to just being an asshole antagonist that put up a fence on the wrong side of the property line and stole Amazon boxes. There is no way for Russia to ever rejoin the international community and be dealt with as before. He never,ever planned for this as anything other than a couple day war with no more Western reaction than scooping Crimea and causing the war in Donbass. This makes everything uncertain just like it's impossible to know what an armed fugitive might do. I would compare Putin to Hitler in the way of how authoritarian warmaking is done. Hitler had early, brilliant, victories. Namely, France. This gave him credibility with the people and staff to continue to make decisions HIMSELF on the warmaking and tactical decisions of Germany. Putin had early victories flipping Georgian territory in Azbakhia, South Ossetia, and Crimea into defacto Russian territory, along with what had happened to the DPR and LPR, too. However, the hubris ended Hitler, and will doom Putin. Because they were emboldened in victories, they can and do point their fingers at subordinates for not carrying out their orders properly, despite making insane, blundering mistakes and mis-calculations. Hitler ordering terror bombings. Taking on 3 major powers at once. Pushing Stalingrad to defeat. And so on. Putin is using the same exact friggin' playbook: Make all the decisions, and assume your subordinates have no capabilities of seeing you're in the wrong. Inversely, even Stalin knew that his victories came because of his staff, and slowly gave power over to Zhukov and others to push the war, eventually leading to victories. I wholly doubt that Zelensky has made many if any decisions in the war, other than be stubborn, tenacious, and pleading for more guns - and that's about the best decision a leader could ever make, delgate the warfighting to the warfighters and get TF out of the way. I say all of this to say Putin has the same end goal: Remake Novoryussia. I think most SHOULD HAVE KNOWN THIS FROM THE START. Its why his goals were't just Crimea, Azbakhia, Ossettia, or the Donbass regions. Its why we saw Lukashenko's maps including, literally, Novorussia from the beginning. That was his goal: Take it all back. Take the Baltics. Take Ukraine. Heck, I've seen posts that Putin asked Poland to carve up Ukraine even just a few years ago which was the literal Novoryussia map. Putin is clearly high on his own gas, and I think the only off-ramp for him now is lead or cyanide-based. Just like Hitler. |
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CO, USA
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:55:24 PM EDT
[#33]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By dillydilly: 3 weeks later and they finally decide to go on the dl. That’s the one thing I was questioning since the start in that it was widely known what and how many arms were flowing into the country. I think he was talking about what he was getting, and asking for more, to get as many nations as possible to contribute. I think enough nations have signed up to provide munitions that maintaining OPSEC is a bigger advantage. That’s a good sign that he isn’t worried about quantity and I think he has been advised high quality is coming in he’s been advised not to discuss. |
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OR, USA
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:56:05 PM EDT
[#34]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By j_hooker: Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By j_hooker: Originally Posted By Chokey:
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:56:49 PM EDT
[Last Edit: hiyaboa]
[#35]
The missing part of the clip released yesterday of the tank getting knocked out in Mariupol.
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:58:10 PM EDT
[#36]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By hiyaboa: The missing part of the tank clip released yesterday.
There’s some missing parts there alright. 
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Posted: 3/18/2022 12:58:26 PM EDT
[#37]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Balu: Snipped from above: "Russia has consistently said the war in Ukraine was a "special operation" to protect Russian-speaking Ukrainians." They keep saying this but Mariupol for example has a majority Russian speaking population and they are pulverizing the city with bombardment. I'm sure those ethnic Russians are thrilled with Putin saving them from evil Ukrainians by destroying their homes and liberating their loved ones from having a pulse. Even a cursory look reveals that the pretext/excuses presented by Kremlin propaganda are pure bullshit. Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Balu: Originally Posted By PurpleOtter: A video address by Hollywood actor Arnold Schwarzenegger to the Russian people was trending on Russian Twitter on Friday and has sparked reaction. In it, Schwarzenegger warns Russians they are being fed misinformation about their country's assault on Ukraine. Addressing Russian President Vladimir Putin directly, he says: "You started this war, and you can stop it". His intervention has been praised by Russians who oppose the war in Ukraine. Writing on the Telegram app, opposition politician Lev Shlosberg said it had been filmed "with respect towards us, Russian people". "Arnold Schwarzenegger has a unique ability to talk to anyone with persuasion, respect and on equal terms. Wits, power and justice. Have a listen. Think about it. Understand," Mr Shlosberg said. Also on Telegram, liberal journalist Anton Orekh said his message contained no "Russophobia". "We are outcasts in the world.. Arnold is one of the few people who addressed Russians not as savage orcs, but as good people who have lost their ways," Mr Orekh said. But a pro-Kremlin spoof account, Barack Obmana on Twitter, derided it, saying "the opinion of paid US talking heads" mattered little to Russians. Russia has consistently said the war in Ukraine was a "special operation" to protect Russian-speaking Ukrainians. But in his video, Schwarzenegger said the Kremlin was lying to Russians when it said the invasion was intended to "denazify" Ukraine. Ukraine did not start the war, but "those in power in the Kremlin" did, he said. By 13:00 GMT the video had been viewed nearly 25m times and had been retweeted 325,000 times. Snipped from above: "Russia has consistently said the war in Ukraine was a "special operation" to protect Russian-speaking Ukrainians." They keep saying this but Mariupol for example has a majority Russian speaking population and they are pulverizing the city with bombardment. I'm sure those ethnic Russians are thrilled with Putin saving them from evil Ukrainians by destroying their homes and liberating their loved ones from having a pulse. Even a cursory look reveals that the pretext/excuses presented by Kremlin propaganda are pure bullshit. Oh, haven't you heard?
 Attached FileDoesn't that just give you a warm fuzzy? 
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OR, USA
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Posted: 3/18/2022 1:00:32 PM EDT
[#38]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By CS223: Many are leased by CMB Financial which is a Chinese company. So Russia is ripping off the Chicoms? Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By CS223: Originally Posted By goneshootin: Flightradar24 is keeping track of commercial aircraft leased by Russia Russia is not returning commercial aircraft. They've started re-registering them. |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 1:00:46 PM EDT
[#39]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By hiyaboa: The missing part of the clip released yesterday of the tank getting knocked out in Mariupol.
That explains some things. |
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NV, USA
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Posted: 3/18/2022 1:02:04 PM EDT
[#40]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Spade: I figure. It's just baffling to me. Every US soldier has optics, lasers, all that. Shit, I can have it probably overnighted from TNVC if I had the money to drop. And most Russian soldiers are running around like it's 1985. Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Spade: Originally Posted By AlmightyTallest: Originally Posted By Spade: Originally Posted By SpaceGuy: Paywalled, but I've gleaned a ton of info from comments and such. Ukrainians are using drones + bombs in the night via STARLINK of all things to fatally wreck the convoys. They have 50 squads of drone operators running missions all night long, because Russian NV/Thermal is so pitiful they can walk up and blow the convoys up. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/specialist-drone-unit-picks-off-invading-forces-as-they-sleep-zlx3dj7bb I just don't understand how it's 2022 and a supposedly modern military doesn't have real NVG capabilities. I remember reading articles years ago worrying that the US might have trouble in a near peer fight because of reliance on NVGs with active stuff like lasers and beacons, because a real enemy like the Russians could see them. I guess it wasn't an issue. It's not that our enemies don't have some decent night vision and thermal systems, the real secret is that every soldier in our military has access to it. Wearable goggles on the noggin, with an IR laser on your rifle make for some very rapid ends to arguments at night. If we would need to have more light discipline, we can do that too. I figure. It's just baffling to me. Every US soldier has optics, lasers, all that. Shit, I can have it probably overnighted from TNVC if I had the money to drop. And most Russian soldiers are running around like it's 1985. In the pre-NVG days, parachute flares were a huge thing for night fighting. Do Russian squads even have flare guns? |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 1:02:30 PM EDT
[#41]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Old_Fashioned: Defend NATO members, plain and simple. Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Old_Fashioned: Originally Posted By RolandofGilead: How many countries will you be okay with Putin taking before calling his bluff? Defend NATO members, plain and simple. NATO isn't under threat. The only threat is nukes. They act like Putin is Blitzkriegging across Europe or something. So far, he can't get through Ukraine without taking heavy losses. At his current rate, he'll need 10 years to rebuild after this, especially with sanctions. He's already lost probably 10% of his forces, maybe more, and he still has a lot of ground to cover, including most cities. Then, he gets to try to hold a country of 44 million that hate him with 150,000 troops. That's the bulk of his military. Putin is not on a path to taking over Europe, he's on a path to destroying his military power and his country. |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 1:03:07 PM EDT
[#42]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By realwar: Biden's call with Xi lasted 1hr-50min. Lots of begging... |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 1:09:17 PM EDT
[#43]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By hiyaboa: The missing part of the clip released yesterday of the tank getting knocked out in Mariupol.
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NY, USA
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Posted: 3/18/2022 1:09:18 PM EDT
[#44]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By PurpleOtter: They are ripping off the financial institutions that underwrote the loans to purchase them. If they fly them out of Russia they will be immediately repossessed on landing. The other issue is the clock is ticking on the PCMS upkeep. If they are not maintained according to international standards they are not allowed to operate in most of the world's airspace. That's one of the reasons why China denying them certified parts is such a big deal. Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By PurpleOtter: Originally Posted By CS223: Originally Posted By goneshootin: Flightradar24 is keeping track of commercial aircraft leased by Russia Russia is not returning commercial aircraft. They've started re-registering them. Apparently most of them are registered in Bermuda and they've already been stripped of being considered air worthy. It'll be interesting to see if they try to fly out of country with them. |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 1:10:53 PM EDT
[#45]
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Posted: 3/18/2022 1:11:26 PM EDT
[#46]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By M4: Turn on a news network. Any news network, at any time of the day or night, see the one thing they're covering to the exclusion of all else. Back to your regularly scheduled "programming": https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/75/345AACCB-B8B5-4B6B-8015-1177018D2285-2317627.jpg |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 1:12:16 PM EDT
[#47]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By Chokey:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FOJYsn7X0AUZlGz?format=jpg&name=large
The other day a P-8 was circling over a small patch of the Atlantic, I wonder if they found the sub. |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 1:12:51 PM EDT
[#48]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By outofbattery: Putin’s end game now is the exact same one as someone who became convinced that a neighbor was a pushover and wouldn’t resist being robbed. The person did resist and their wife was killed. Putin is trying to figure out how to go back to just being an asshole antagonist that put up a fence on the wrong side of the property line and stole Amazon boxes. There is no way for Russia to ever rejoin the international community and be dealt with as before. He never,ever planned for this as anything other than a couple day war with no more Western reaction than scooping Crimea and causing the war in Donbass. This makes everything uncertain just like it’s impossible to know what an armed fugitive might do. Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By outofbattery: Originally Posted By blueballs: Originally Posted By nickmemphis: I am no genius by any stretch, but I am one inqusitive curious sumbitch, worse than a killed cat, so I sure would love to to hear a cogent explanation of the endgame here. I mean what the fuck FVP is thinking. I am more or less insane and retarded myself, as you all well know, probably, and I can't think of one even in a world where you can buy unobtainium sponge at the corner grocery. And sans sarcasm, I am genuinely curious. I am fond of hypothetical thought experiments just to enhance my neural net, if for no other reason. Flowers For Motherfucking Algernon. Please just stop. Putin’s end game now is the exact same one as someone who became convinced that a neighbor was a pushover and wouldn’t resist being robbed. The person did resist and their wife was killed. Putin is trying to figure out how to go back to just being an asshole antagonist that put up a fence on the wrong side of the property line and stole Amazon boxes. There is no way for Russia to ever rejoin the international community and be dealt with as before. He never,ever planned for this as anything other than a couple day war with no more Western reaction than scooping Crimea and causing the war in Donbass. This makes everything uncertain just like it’s impossible to know what an armed fugitive might do. Concur |
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Posted: 3/18/2022 1:12:54 PM EDT
[#49]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By spydercomonkey: Several endgames could provide a sliding scale of victory -Putin goes full Orc, levels much of Ukraine and eventually takes it over casualties be damned, then turns FSB loose against the insurgents, while driving much of the population of non-Russian Ukrainians into the EU. -Putin conquerers the southern port cities, creating a land bridge from Russia to Crimea to Transnistria in Moldova. This would cut all of Ukraine off from the sea, forcing Ukraine to have to work with Russia in some capacity to access the ports/ black sea. (notably his best fighting seems to be in the south...) -Putin fucks up enough shit in Ukraine that he creates sufficient pressure on the Ukrainian govt to offer him a good deal to leave (ie give up Crimea officially to Russia, Donbass autonomous buffer, never join NATO or EU) Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By spydercomonkey: Originally Posted By nickmemphis: Originally Posted By ad_nauseam: That's why it's such a dilemma. It's a lose-lose-lose situation. They cannot advance, they cannot leave and they cannot stand in one place, do nothing. There are no good outcomes. The best one would be an internal revolt, Oligarchs appointing another head of state in Kremlin but that's doubtful (but not impossible). I am no genius by any stretch, but I am one inqusitive curious sumbitch, worse than a killed cat, so I sure would love to to hear a cogent explanation of the endgame here. I mean what the fuck FVP is thinking. I am more or less insane and retarded myself, as you all well know, probably, and I can't think of one even in a world where you can buy unobtainium sponge at the corner grocery. And sans sarcasm, I am genuinely curious. I am fond of hypothetical thought experiments just to enhance my neural net, if for no other reason. Flowers For Motherfucking Algernon. Several endgames could provide a sliding scale of victory -Putin goes full Orc, levels much of Ukraine and eventually takes it over casualties be damned, then turns FSB loose against the insurgents, while driving much of the population of non-Russian Ukrainians into the EU. -Putin conquerers the southern port cities, creating a land bridge from Russia to Crimea to Transnistria in Moldova. This would cut all of Ukraine off from the sea, forcing Ukraine to have to work with Russia in some capacity to access the ports/ black sea. (notably his best fighting seems to be in the south...) -Putin fucks up enough shit in Ukraine that he creates sufficient pressure on the Ukrainian govt to offer him a good deal to leave (ie give up Crimea officially to Russia, Donbass autonomous buffer, never join NATO or EU) LOL. Now list the potential positives for Ukraine sending Pootin & his minions packing with their tails between their legs. Please try to include Donbass & Crimea in your summary. Thanks! @spydercomonkey FIGHT, Ukraine! 
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Posted: 3/18/2022 1:12:57 PM EDT
[#50]
Quote HistoryOriginally Posted By PurpleOtter: Reportedly the Russian embassy in Washington DC. https://i.redd.it/t8strra586o81.jpg Stop the clock! Someone hung a sign up?!
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