Ukraine

[EYESAILOR]

Yes you can, the brutal killing of Nemtsov was their last opportunity to stop Putin.

I think the brutal murder of Nemtsov is an example of what happens to you if you try to stop Putin

 

[dogwatch]

A Russian can only dream of enjoying the bleak outlook and failing economy that the average German enjoys.

It depends on the Russian. I know someone who became engaged to a charming young Russian woman, resident in London and the apple of her tier-2 oligarch daddy's eye. He gave the future groom a mobile phone as a present. Not any old phone. This one was jewel-encrusted with estimated dollar value running well into five figures. Vile and tasteless to my eye, plus I'd worry about being mugged if I used it in public but what do I know? True story.

I agree with you that negative generalisations about Russians are pernicious. I've known some who are highly educated and as pleasant as you could hope to meet.

 

[Ex Machina]

1) Failing economy. It is true that all the western economies are likely to suffer and there will be some recessions. A combination of governments having to make savings after Covid, the war in Ukraine and Brexit make that inevitable. But the worst predictions are nowhere near what Russia is already suffering. Recessions are not unique. We will cope
2) Pipeline destruction has caused temporary dislocation. But European fuel reserves are higher than last year and the price of oil has dropped back. Plus if it helps European wean itself off fossil fuels from corrupt, cruel dictatorships then in the long term it will be good
3) Bleak future? Come on sluggo, you live in the west don't you. You know that the bleakest future here is eden compared to much of Russia. People will complain but if you count on wholesale revolution you really are barking up the wrong tree
4) Failure to use diplomacy. The failure to use diplomacy lays firmly at Putin's door. In Clausewitz's words: war may indeed be the continuation of policy by other means. But sending tanks across your neighbours border and bombing his cities sure as fcuk isn't diplomacy

Good point , even boats have toilets in the west

 

[dogwatch]

Good point , even boats have toilets in the west

"Toilets"? Are you a sailor?

 

[Ex Machina]

And Russia is such a happy place Putin ordered the police, including riot police to expand. Up to 930.000 man.

Will they have to buy their own kit ? Make riot shields out Lada doors ?

 

[Ex Machina]

"Toilets"? Are you a sailor?

Even boats in the west have heads is a bit confusing

 

[Ex Machina]

Even boats in the west have heads is a bit confusing

And to be a real pedant one could argue that the toilet is situated in the head and is not the head itself

 

[slug zitski]

The answer to your question is before your eyes

the US is a consumer country

to maintain it’s fake prosperity , this unrelenting consumption , the US must dominate, steal , crush , kill any who interfere with it’s needs

to Maintain its fake prosperity The US has been continuously at war since it’s founding

 

[slug zitski]

A Russian can only dream of enjoying the bleak outlook and failing economy that the average German enjoys. Data from here

	Germany	Russia
GDP per capita	$51,238	$12,219
Education Expenditure per capita	$2,395	$527
Healthcare Expenditure per capita	$5,594	$334
S&P Rating on government debt	AAA	CC

The answer to your question is before your eyes

the US is a consumer country

to maintain it’s fake prosperity , this unrelenting consumption , the US must dominate, steal , crush , kill any who interfere with it’s needs

to Maintain its fake prosperity The US has been continuously at war since it’s founding

 

[Stingray~]

700 #HIMARS launchers
700 #ATACMS missiles

Are these huge numbers confirmed?

 

[LeoV]

I think the brutal murder of Nemtsov is an example of what happens to you if you try to stop Putin

Saying the Ukrainians fought for their freedom and saying Russians are just victims.
That was their moment...

Talk to your Russian friends about their opinion on the war...

 

[LeoV]

Are these huge numbers confirmed?

Yes, multiyear contracts, industry can plan enlargement.

 

[Raz'r]

Are these huge numbers confirmed?

I would think there would be many more missiles compared to launchers...

 

[motorbike]

It was a cruel attempted power-play for territory and resources, for the benefit of a few corrupt, autocratic oligarchs.

That is a narrative, and one that does not do you justice in your efforts to pin this all on Putin. You need to work a bit harder than that to get a passing grade.

Read history, make an effort to understand the region.

 

[Kiwing]

Maybe missiles don't take so long to produce?

 

[Stingray~]

Maybe missiles don't take so long to produce?

Could be.

700 HIMAR launchers is amazing to me, I think UKR has only about 20 so and they are already considered to be game-changers. Can you imagine?

 

[Kiwing]

Is 700 HIMARs what US wants for stock so they can give maybe another 50.
Also missiles are obsolete more quickly so maybe Ukraine will get another 300?

 

[motorbike]

@motorbike you talked about history. Here is a small reminder of history. In 1945 when Nazi forces were being defeated, Hitler ordered the acceleration of the holocaust- taking resources away from fighting the war. Now we have Lavrov who even as Russia is being defeated is worrying about gender neutral toilets. (Hint, in the west we all have toilets in our houses, shared by all genders, so really nothing new. Maybe one day you will get a plumbed in indoor toilet and you will understand)

Lavrov could be your father or grandfather, try talking to them about the LGBQT wars, Putin passed a law the other day outlawing gender reassignment surgery for children, same as a number of US states are doing. But liberal ideals mean that people can be what they want by identifying with it right, even children?

As for a reminder about history, the Russian's played the major part in Germanys defeat but that's barely acknowledged in the west. Most people believe it was the the UK and the Americans that won the war but 26 to 29 million Russians died in the east. Its a scale that people these days cannot imagine, which is why they don't understand either Russia or Ukraine. Most Europeans of the last generation knew someone or were directly related to someone who fought, died, resisted or suffered from the war on their own soil. That generation is passing and along with it the memory, as the EU tries to turn the bloc into a homogenous bunch of consumers. The US of course has no history of fighting on its own turf nor do the Poms but the Russians do and that is a huge part of what's going on here.

 

[Raz'r]

Lavrov could be your father or grandfather, try talking to them about the LGBQT wars, Putin passed a law the other day outlawing gender reassignment surgery for children, same as a number of US states are doing. But liberal ideals mean that people can be what they want by identifying with it right, even children?

As for a reminder about history, the Russian's played the major part in Germanys defeat but that's barely acknowledged in the west. Most people believe it was the the UK and the Americans that won the war but 26 to 29 million Russians died in the east. Its a scale that people these days cannot imagine, which is why they don't understand either Russia or Ukraine. Most Europeans of the last generation knew someone or were directly related to someone who fought, died, resisted or suffered from the war on their own soil. That generation is passing and along with it the memory, as the EU tries to turn the bloc into a homogenous bunch of consumers. The US of course has no history of fighting on its own turf nor do the Poms but the Russians do and that is a huge part of what's going on here.

Imagine if the folks in the west didn't understand the history of the eastern front. Imagine!

 

[Sidecar]

The US of course has no history of fighting on its own turf nor do the Poms but the Russians do and that is a huge part of what's going on here.

Educate yourself:

london blitz - Google Search

And not just London.