Here we go again-Ukraine once again

[Jimbuna]

Putin's ambitions in tatters: Russia ‘returning to Soviet era living' after rejection

Economic geographer Professor John Bryson of the University of Birmingham said: "Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov seems to be developing a new career as a comedian specialising in tragicomedy. On Thursday 16 June 2022, he proclaimed that Russia 'didn't invade Ukraine'. If this is not an invasion, then one assumes that all Russian forces will eventually leave Ukrainian territory. However, Lavrov did admit that 'Russia is not squeaky clean. Russia is what it is. And we are not ashamed of showing who we are'."

Prof. Bryson continued: "What Russia has shown, however, is great incompetence.

"This includes the failure to separate territorial gains from developing and enhancing the country's role in global supply chains and political networks."

As the geographer notes, Putin's educational background includes a degree in law, followed by training in counterintelligence with the KGB, the Soviet Union's main security agency.

Prof. Bryson said: "This provides an ideal background for a career in the security services but perhaps does not provide the breadth of understanding required to govern a country."

Putin, he argues, has placed his focus on geopolitics, national security, the concept of Russia as the motherland - and a fondness for the bygone Soviet era.

Because of this, too much investment has been placed in trying to modernise Russia's military and making its economy dependent on natural resources like oil and gas.

While Russia has tried to position itself as a hi-tech economy via high-profile initiatives in space exploration and military hardware - such as hypersonic missiles and nuclear arms - Prof. Bryson says that the country has "major weaknesses" in its research and development.

This, he added, "means that its manufacturing sector relies on the inventiveness of other nations."

According to the World Intellectual Property Organization's Global Innovation Index, Russia was ranked in just 45th place last year, directly behind Vietnam and Thailand.

In contrast, the US and the UK came third and fourth, respectively, behind global leaders Switzerland and Sweden.

As Prof. Bryson puts it: "Russia's ranking highlights that Russia is a low-tech nation."

Russia's relatively low score in the Global Innovation Index is, in part, the product of the country's failure to invest in research and development, Prof. Bryson said.

In 2019, the US spent 3.1 percent of its gross domestic product ($1,866 per capita) on R&D, while Russia invested only 1 percent ($263 per capita).

It has been estimated that Russia is spending a whopping $900million a day on its war against Ukraine.

Prof. Bryson said: "Russia calculates the return on this investment in terms of territory but much greater economic and political returns would come from investing in R&D."

Throughout the Russian economy, Prof. Bryson explained, there are major problems when it comes to repairing equipment and accessing the latest innovations.

In April this year, for example, Russia's supply of car parts began to run out as manufacturers in Australia, Europe and the US stopped shipping parts to Russia following the invasion of Ukraine.

Prof. Bryson said: "Russia is experiencing major problems in trying to develop alternative solutions to accessing components and this includes those required to maintain aircraft and to manufacture and repair military equipment.

"There will also be major problems in maintaining and enhancing nationally critical infrastructure systems."

Prof. Bryson added: "Russia's much anticipated new sanction-proof Lada car, for example, is an excellent indication of the weakness of Russia's R&D and manufacturing ecosystems."

The Lada Granta was previously made by Russian automaker AvtoVAZ in collaboration with Renault, although this partnership was terminated when Russia invaded Ukraine.

The recent production restart is seeing the Lada Granta Classic 2022 entirely composed of parts made in Russia and the country's allies.

Prof Bryson said: "This is a 'classic' Soviet era style car as it comes without airbags, an anti-lock braking system, emission restriction technologies, satellite navigation system or modern seat belt pretensioners.

"The car only meets European pollution standards from the 1990s.

"This is a car that can only be sold in Russia and reflects Russia's future as a country isolated from global supply chains and innovation networks."

Prof. Bryson said: "Russia may acquire some Ukrainian territory, but at what cost to the Russian people?

"There are humanitarian and climate change costs that will be experienced across the planet.

"For the Russian people there will be a return to Soviet era living."

Russia, he concluded, will "depend increasingly on its own limited and weak manufacturing and innovation ecosystems."
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world...out&li=AAnZ9Ug

[Skybird]

We in the West must really finally and urgently learn to see the difference between our perspective on the war and its cost, and theirs. For the Kremlin, things are worth it, obviously. The sanctions do at least as much damage to us then to them. They earn MORE money from selling gas and oil. They got new contracts, and shift massively towards China and India again. Both countries used the opportunity to secure very attractive price deals. Which tells something about Europe's ambition to be seen as a pace setter on climate policies... Finally, Putin sees the national characteristic of Russian citizens and Russian life in the ablity of Russians "to suffer", to put it this bluntly into words. He has no scruples to let Russians suffer, for him that is the natural state of things, since centuries. It has always been so, and many Russians do not know anything different, and willingly submit to this idea, more or less consciously.

That we constantly complain about Russia not using our value system to assess the consequences by our our standards, only means that Russia does not assess the consequences by our standards. So why this endless infantile lament? It prevents us from seeing the future realistically.

I also mind you that at the UN, 40 states who together represent 60% of the global population have refused to condemn Russia's action in the Ukraine. That means the - already divided! - West defends a minority opinion. WE DO NOT SPEAK FOR THE WORLD.

This is not meant to relativise our confrontation of Russia, or Russia's war, far from it. But we must be realistic about what it is about and what not, where we stand, what we can acchieve and what not, and how effective our reactions can be - and what our reactions most likely will not acchieve. That the - often already watered down and endlessly delayed - sanctions do more damage to ourselves than to Russia, should make us think about our strategy. In the end, the economic sanctions again were just a foul compromise because we once again shied away from determined military action, also were not capabole fo such action. Our status today is result of our idiotic acting in the past. We did not will to pay the price for military action, and bought a foul compromise instead. And that now starts to cost us dearly, because its a rotten foul, smelly compromise. We get what we paid for: junk policy. The nature of Russia is such that Russia can and will survive this more easily than Europe can. We aleady were sittingn inside the perfect storm, and now we mount even more difficulties and unsolvable (!) difficulties to it. Debts. Euro crisis. Energy madness. Workforc ehsdoratages. Habrour clogged down. Disrupted supply chains and dependencces on countries outside our political reach. Green Deal. Gallopping and still accelerating inflation. Threat of hyperinflation. Droughts and sweet water crisis. In Germany: rejecting nuclear energy.

We've hopelessly overstretched ourselves, and we're still adding to it every week, we morons. We can't keep this up. I do not see we can force reality this way to our liking. Reality instead will break us. Urgently high time to rediscover our sense for survival and realism! Currently EVERYTHING works against us, and that is our own fault - we made it running so. We simply are, in no way, strong enough to put our deeds were we have put our - way too big and wide open - mouth. Thats not welcomed to say and nobody wants to hear it, but thats how it is.

The rifts in Europe over the Ukraine already are clear to see, they are short to break up openly, and then widen. The longer the war lasts, the more time is ticking against Ukraine, because it depends on support from Europe. And with time, this support will - and already does! - wane.

And US cannot afford to have its attention focus distracted from China for too long. They want and need stable conditions in their back when they turn westward again.

The Ukraine will be the big looser in this, no matter how and when the war ends. The destructions will scar it for decades. The hostility will not end. The threat by Russia will always stay.

The rest of the world will - and already does - turn increasingly hostile towards the West, because from their perspective we hinder Russia from making a clear cut and so they make US responsible for the food shortage crisis that puts dozens of millions of people at risk of starvation. They do not criticise Russia, they criticise us. I disagree on the logic in that, absolutely, but thats what they do nevertheless. The war for global PR Russia already has won.

Again: 40 countries representing 60% of global population refused to condemn Russia. Many of them now sign special deals for energy and grain with Russia.


No good news in here.

[Jimbuna]

Russia is trying to make Kharkiv a "front-line city," Vadym Denysenko, an adviser to Ukraine's interior minister says.

Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg says the conflict could last for years.

In an interview with German newspaper Bild, Stoltenberg adds that the supply of state-of-the-art weaponry to Ukrainian troops would increase the chance of liberating the Donbas region.

Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has told the Sunday Times that "we need to steel ourselves for a long war"

Ukrainian authorities say their air defence systems in the Kyiv Region shot down a Russian “air object” on Sunday morning.

Explosions were heard in Vyshhorod District, north of the city centre, but no casualties were reported.

[Jimbuna]

The new head of the British Army has set out a rallying cry to his troops: to be ready to confront the renewed threat from Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.

In a letter addressed to “all ranks and our civil servants”, Gen Sir Patrick Sanders highlights the threat posed by Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.

He notes that he is the first Chief of the General Staff “since 1941 to take command of the Army in the shadow of a land war in Europe involving a major continental power”.

Gen Sanders says “Russia’s invasion of Ukraine underlines our core purpose - to protect the UK and to be ready to fight and win wars on land - and reinforces the requirement to deter Russian aggression with the threat of force”.

He adds: “The world has changed since 24 February and there is now a burning imperative to forge an Army capable of fighting alongside our allies and defeating Russia in battle”.

Gen Sanders sets out his goal to “accelerate the mobilisation and modernisation of the Army to reinforce Nato and deny Russia the chance to occupy any more of Europe... We are the generation that must prepare the Army to fight in Europe once again”.

A defence source said that it was not surprising the new head of the army had addressed his troops in such a way, highlighting the deteriorating security situation in Europe. Armies, he said, “train to fight”.

The letter, which has been seen by the BBC, was sent on 16 June via the Ministry of Defence's internal internet.

[Skybird]

Russian forces targeted a Ukrainian command post while senior Ukrainian military officers were holding a meeting, Russian Defense Ministry said. Moscow said they used sea-launched "Kalibr" rockets in the attack on the site near Dnipro, Ukraine's fourth-largest city.
"Over 50 generals and officers of Ukrainian military were eliminated in the strike" including members of the high command, said Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov.

So far no verification from Western sources, AFAIK.
-------------------------
At the NATO summit in Madrid later this month, the secretary-general said the alliance will declare "that Russia is no longer a partner, but a threat to our security, peace and stability." China's rise, he said, is also "a challenge to our interests, our values and our security."


I have not yet decided whether I want to laugh or cry now. Formalities...

[Jimbuna]

[Dargo]

Originally Posted by Skybird

We in the West must really finally and urgently learn to see the difference between our perspective on the war and its cost, and theirs. For the Kremlin, things are worth it, obviously. The sanctions do at least as much damage to us then to them. They earn MORE money from selling gas and oil. They got new contracts, and shift massively towards China and India again. Both countries used the opportunity to secure very attractive price deals. Which tells something about Europe's ambition to be seen as a pace setter on climate policies... Finally, Putin sees the national characteristic of Russian citizens and Russian life in the ablity of Russians "to suffer", to put it this bluntly into words. He has no scruples to let Russians suffer, for him that is the natural state of things, since centuries. It has always been so, and many Russians do not know anything different, and willingly submit to this idea, more or less consciously.

That we constantly complain about Russia not using our value system to assess the consequences by our our standards, only means that Russia does not assess the consequences by our standards. So why this endless infantile lament? It prevents us from seeing the future realistically.

I also mind you that at the UN, 40 states who together represent 60% of the global population have refused to condemn Russia's action in the Ukraine. That means the - already divided! - West defends a minority opinion. WE DO NOT SPEAK FOR THE WORLD.

This is not meant to relativise our confrontation of Russia, or Russia's war, far from it. But we must be realistic about what it is about and what not, where we stand, what we can acchieve and what not, and how effective our reactions can be - and what our reactions most likely will not acchieve. That the - often already watered down and endlessly delayed - sanctions do more damage to ourselves than to Russia, should make us think about our strategy. In the end, the economic sanctions again were just a foul compromise because we once again shied away from determined military action, also were not capabole fo such action. Our status today is result of our idiotic acting in the past. We did not will to pay the price for military action, and bought a foul compromise instead. And that now starts to cost us dearly, because its a rotten foul, smelly compromise. We get what we paid for: junk policy. The nature of Russia is such that Russia can and will survive this more easily than Europe can. We aleady were sittingn inside the perfect storm, and now we mount even more difficulties and unsolvable (!) difficulties to it. Debts. Euro crisis. Energy madness. Workforc ehsdoratages. Habrour clogged down. Disrupted supply chains and dependencces on countries outside our political reach. Green Deal. Gallopping and still accelerating inflation. Threat of hyperinflation. Droughts and sweet water crisis. In Germany: rejecting nuclear energy.

We've hopelessly overstretched ourselves, and we're still adding to it every week, we morons. We can't keep this up. I do not see we can force reality this way to our liking. Reality instead will break us. Urgently high time to rediscover our sense for survival and realism! Currently EVERYTHING works against us, and that is our own fault - we made it running so. We simply are, in no way, strong enough to put our deeds were we have put our - way too big and wide open - mouth. Thats not welcomed to say and nobody wants to hear it, but thats how it is.

The rifts in Europe over the Ukraine already are clear to see, they are short to break up openly, and then widen. The longer the war lasts, the more time is ticking against Ukraine, because it depends on support from Europe. And with time, this support will - and already does! - wane.

And US cannot afford to have its attention focus distracted from China for too long. They want and need stable conditions in their back when they turn westward again.

The Ukraine will be the big looser in this, no matter how and when the war ends. The destructions will scar it for decades. The hostility will not end. The threat by Russia will always stay.

The rest of the world will - and already does - turn increasingly hostile towards the West, because from their perspective we hinder Russia from making a clear cut and so they make US responsible for the food shortage crisis that puts dozens of millions of people at risk of starvation. They do not criticise Russia, they criticise us. I disagree on the logic in that, absolutely, but thats what they do nevertheless. The war for global PR Russia already has won.

Again: 40 countries representing 60% of global population refused to condemn Russia. Many of them now sign special deals for energy and grain with Russia.


No good news in here.

Putin cost of war is he thinks he can do a Stalin, only difference is that soviet economy was on it best as a war economy it had millions of slaves for production and as cannon fodder Putin lacks that but wages his war in the same way without those millions he can have high profits from gas/oil but gas/oil will not occupy/control terrain and people. Manpower does Putin will lose this ending up with occupied terrain in rubble same way as the soviet had in WW2 because of that the soviet system collapsed decades later. The main dogma in current Russian propaganda is that Putin can never be wrong. He ordered that war in Ukraine, so it was the right decision.

[Dargo]

Originally Posted by Gerald

This brutal invasion into Ukraina was a careful step right in time for Putin. I believe he never have done that "if" Trump has his hands on the helm. Biden administration will not use nuke me think", and on the other side we have Stoltenberg who act like a puppet.

Soviets had the same assumption that the US would not use nuclear weapons during the Cold War.

[Jimbuna]

[Dargo]

Originally Posted by Skybird

We in the West must really finally and urgently learn to see the difference between our perspective on the war and its cost, and theirs. For the Kremlin, things are worth it, obviously. The sanctions do at least as much damage to us then to them. They earn MORE money from selling gas and oil. They got new contracts, and shift massively towards China and India again. Both countries used the opportunity to secure very attractive price deals. Which tells something about Europe's ambition to be seen as a pace setter on climate policies... Finally, Putin sees the national characteristic of Russian citizens and Russian life in the ablity of Russians "to suffer", to put it this bluntly into words. He has no scruples to let Russians suffer, for him that is the natural state of things, since centuries. It has always been so, and many Russians do not know anything different, and willingly submit to this idea, more or less consciously.

That we constantly complain about Russia not using our value system to assess the consequences by our our standards, only means that Russia does not assess the consequences by our standards. So why this endless infantile lament? It prevents us from seeing the future realistically.

I also mind you that at the UN, 40 states who together represent 60% of the global population have refused to condemn Russia's action in the Ukraine. That means the - already divided! - West defends a minority opinion. WE DO NOT SPEAK FOR THE WORLD.

This is not meant to relativise our confrontation of Russia, or Russia's war, far from it. But we must be realistic about what it is about and what not, where we stand, what we can acchieve and what not, and how effective our reactions can be - and what our reactions most likely will not acchieve. That the - often already watered down and endlessly delayed - sanctions do more damage to ourselves than to Russia, should make us think about our strategy. In the end, the economic sanctions again were just a foul compromise because we once again shied away from determined military action, also were not capabole fo such action. Our status today is result of our idiotic acting in the past. We did not will to pay the price for military action, and bought a foul compromise instead. And that now starts to cost us dearly, because its a rotten foul, smelly compromise. We get what we paid for: junk policy. The nature of Russia is such that Russia can and will survive this more easily than Europe can. We aleady were sittingn inside the perfect storm, and now we mount even more difficulties and unsolvable (!) difficulties to it. Debts. Euro crisis. Energy madness. Workforc ehsdoratages. Habrour clogged down. Disrupted supply chains and dependencces on countries outside our political reach. Green Deal. Gallopping and still accelerating inflation. Threat of hyperinflation. Droughts and sweet water crisis. In Germany: rejecting nuclear energy.

We've hopelessly overstretched ourselves, and we're still adding to it every week, we morons. We can't keep this up. I do not see we can force reality this way to our liking. Reality instead will break us. Urgently high time to rediscover our sense for survival and realism! Currently EVERYTHING works against us, and that is our own fault - we made it running so. We simply are, in no way, strong enough to put our deeds were we have put our - way too big and wide open - mouth. Thats not welcomed to say and nobody wants to hear it, but thats how it is.

The rifts in Europe over the Ukraine already are clear to see, they are short to break up openly, and then widen. The longer the war lasts, the more time is ticking against Ukraine, because it depends on support from Europe. And with time, this support will - and already does! - wane.

And US cannot afford to have its attention focus distracted from China for too long. They want and need stable conditions in their back when they turn westward again.

The Ukraine will be the big looser in this, no matter how and when the war ends. The destructions will scar it for decades. The hostility will not end. The threat by Russia will always stay.

The rest of the world will - and already does - turn increasingly hostile towards the West, because from their perspective we hinder Russia from making a clear cut and so they make US responsible for the food shortage crisis that puts dozens of millions of people at risk of starvation. They do not criticise Russia, they criticise us. I disagree on the logic in that, absolutely, but thats what they do nevertheless. The war for global PR Russia already has won.

Again: 40 countries representing 60% of global population refused to condemn Russia. Many of them now sign special deals for energy and grain with Russia.


No good news in here.

On china for the Chinese, the markets in the west are vastly bigger than selling products to the Russian market China is not happy with Putin's operation they will not let him fall, but they are depended on the west for their economy and if that is in danger the party fears critic from the people and that is always their numero uno fear to which the Party cannot become reconciled. And Putin is a paper tiger, the lowest you can become in Chinese eyes, same view they had with Trump.

60% of global population has **** to say that comparison is... that number is a powerless number the 40% (less than that) rules the world.

[Skybird]

^ And still it is the few that currently spoil it for the many and completely ruin the match for everybody by not obeying the rule book anymore. You do not nered majorities to ruin the match. A single lonely party pooper already is enough, and he can spoil it for everybody.



It was hoped China would move away from Putin, and initially they showed no enthusiasm over the Ukraine war indeed, but recent weeks have shown that they are closing ties again with him. Because they see the agonising in Europe.



India was hoped to become a cllse ally, but they negiotiate great eeergy and grain treaties with Russia now. Their willingness to join the Wetsenr cmap agaiunst Russia, has tight limits defined by their own interests. And their own interests do not correspond that much with ours.



Not only, Ukraine loooes cuirrently. All of Europoe does, for historila reaosns, and already sinc emcuh longer than just the poast 8 years.


And additionally now the distribution battles for the increasingly scarce resources are beginning, as a result of the higher demand from the developing countries and the logistical distortions of the transport crisis.


"The era of shortage has begun", titled a German newspaper yesterday. Correctly so. And it prdicted growing international brutality when it comes to the securing of ever shorter supplies. It does not need a rocket scientist to see that. America has softened up the prohibition for insurrers to insure Russian ships and tankers. Germany's industry desperately depends on ore, rare earths, catalyst materials and heavy industrial pre-products, else we can close our little shop immediately over here: thats why in the first five months the trade with Russia went UP, not down. The Rouble is up, not down, and the Euro is spiralling down against the Dollar. The private households in Rus sia may lose, but they do not count for Russian leaders. The Russian state so far wins. America wins, suddnely the dollar is back again and the US can claim thbe lead role and the role of the onyl superpower again. Europe: is totally weak, dependent, the future looks dramatically bad, and the Euro is up in flames and national debts are doing the Big Bang.



Which does not stop the Europeans to still dream of Green Deal money-annihilation programs and deindustrialization and energy revolutions, and thnat the world is only waiiting to see the Europeans setting the exmaple and then the rest follows them.


No, they won't. Not today, and not in the future. But we destroy pointlessly the last little degrees of freedom that we might still have left. For nothing but illusions and megalomania.



We are very, very deep in the nasty brown stuff. They need a brown-stuff sonar to find us in there again. Only two things could make our situation worse: an astronomical desaster hitting earth, or another, even more dangerous pandemic.



And maybe the Chinese are already checking their inventories what other good stuff they have hidden there. Pox, maybe? Vast parts of Western populations are vulnerable to it again, because vaccinations was stopped long time ago.

[Dargo]

Originally Posted by Skybird

^ And still it is the few that currently spoil it for the many and completely ruin the match for everybody by not obeying the rule book anymore. You do not nered majorities to ruin the match. A single lonely party pooper already is enough, and he can spoil it for everybody.



It was hoped China would move away from Putin, and initially they showed no enthusiasm over the Ukraine war indeed, but recent weeks have shown that they are closing ties again with him. Because they see the agonising in Europe.



India was hoped to become a cllse ally, but they negiotiate great eeergy and grain treaties with Russia now. Their willingness to join the Wetsenr cmap agaiunst Russia, has tight limits defined by their own interests. And their own interests do not correspond that much with ours.



Not only, Ukraine loooes cuirrently. All of Europoe does, for historila reaosns, and already sinc emcuh longer than just the poast 8 years.


And additionally now the distribution battles for the increasingly scarce resources are beginning, as a result of the higher demand from the developing countries and the logistical distortions of the transport crisis.


"The era of shortage has begun", titled a German newspaper yesterday. Correctly so. And it prdicted growing international brutality when it comes to the securing of ever shorter supplies. It does not need a rocket scientist to see that. America has softened up the prohibition for insurrers to insure Russian ships and tankers. Germany's industry desperately depends on ore, rare earths, catalyst materials and heavy industrial pre-products, else we can close our little shop immediately over here: thats why in the first five months the trade with Russia went UP, not down. The Rouble is up, not down, and the Euro is spiralling down against the Dollar. The private households in Rus sia may lose, but they do not count for Russian leaders. The Russian state so far wins. America wins, suddnely the dollar is back again and the US can claim thbe lead role and the role of the onyl superpower again. Europe: is totally weak, dependent, the future looks dramatically bad, and the Euro is up in flames and national debts are doing the Big Bang.



Which does not stop the Europeans to still dream of Green Deal money-annihilation programs and deindustrialization and energy revolutions, and thnat the world is only waiiting to see the Europeans setting the exmaple and then the rest follows them.


No, they won't. Not today, and not in the future. But we destroy pointlessly the last little degrees of freedom that we might still have left. For nothing but illusions and megalomania.



We are very, very deep in the nasty brown stuff. They need a brown-stuff sonar to find us in there again. Only two things could make our situation worse: an astronomical desaster hitting earth, or another, even more dangerous pandemic.



And maybe the Chinese are already checking their inventories what other good stuff they have hidden there. Pox, maybe? Vast parts of Western populations are vulnerable to it again, because vaccinations was stopped long time ago.

If I had those thoughts I would already jump off a bridge these are only assumption of if..., when... The world is an unexpected and unplanned eruption of its own accord, un-engineered by anyone, born in chaos. The tinder is there. What sets it alight is a mystery.

P.S. the Chinese have so much trouble with corona on the moment they're not thinking to add another that will disrupt their production their economy is slowing because of corona the corona lockdowns has hindered their production as Xi Jinping wants to become a Mao he is to busy with that.

[Skybird]

What you call "if" and "when" in fact is already happenign all around us, and since quite some time.

Maybe you got so used to it that the desaster became your nerw normal and you do not even rewlaise/perceive it anymore? If so, you are not alone. Most people tick like that.

Until the waiter comes and puts the bill on the table. Then they suddenly are silent, eyes wide open, and wonder what happened. And worse: they realise they do not have enough money with them.

"Unfair!" Trumpists say.

"Antisocial!" says the lefties.

"How could we have known?" says the Europeans.

Three messages, one and the same meaning: "Leave me alone, I do not want to be responsible."

[Dargo]

Ukrainian forces fighting in eastern Ukraine have been experiencing desertion for several weeks. This is reported by the British Defense Ministry based on intelligence information. According to the information, there is also little motivation on the Russian side to fight.

The ministry reports that several Russian units do not want to follow orders from on high. It is also likely to be difficult for Russia to put legal pressure on the military because, according to the Russians, this is officially a special military operation, not a war.

The ministry also says that there are fierce artillery battles going on around Sievierodonetsk, in the Lugansk region, but that there is no movement on the front lines.

[Dargo]

Originally Posted by Skybird

What you call "if" and "when" in fact is already happenign all around us, and since quite some time.

Maybe you got so used to it that the desaster became your nerw normal and you do not even rewlaise/perceive it anymore? If so, you are not alone. Most people tick like that.

Until the waiter comes and puts the bill on the table. Then they suddenly are silent, eyes wide open, and wonder what happened. And worse: they realise they do not have enough money with them.

"Unfair!" Trumpists say.

"Antisocial!" says the lefties.

"How could we have known?" says the Europeans.

Three messages, one and the same meaning: "Leave me alone, I do not want to be responsible."

Think it is more in life like Lenin as he neared the end of his life, he was revolted by his creation. “You think you are driving the machine, and yet it’s driving you and suddenly other hands than yours are on the wheel,” I am a European toke my responsibility result was threatening with jail by the state will not hold me back I know they're not driving the bus to hell I make my future not them also do not need them they got nothing to offer me.