Русский корабль - иди нахуй

[BachelorTrek 3,050]

34 minutes ago, Cheeseweasel said:

 

Yes, those are the 3 most recent actors who played the Wallcrawler, that put the suit back on to re-enact the meme.  Lulz.

[BabaYaga 15,301]

7 minutes ago, Lobo said:

His latest bombing orders are rather confusing.  I mean, he's a genius...right?  But this kinda payload on obviously civilian targets...with children inside?  

Da fuh?  Is this was "Strong Leadership" looks like?  

Unguided ordinance?  Was this confirmed?  Those can go almost anywhere if the pilot isn't skilled or is trying to evade attack.  Not justifying, just trying to figure out how this happened?

[Smax 3,800]

12 minutes ago, gmr548 said:

I am extremely disappointed that someone associated with the University of Texas would produce a take that so spectacularly fails consider any potential consequences and their weight.


So, just so I’m clear, your argument is that the leader who is resorting to dropping said 1000lb air bomb on a hospital because things are going that poorly against an overmatched neighbor won’t resort to nuclear weapons when confronted with fighting a superior conventional force? And that makes sense to you to the point of supreme, bet the world on it confidence?

if you don't know the difference between bombing a hospital and deciding to end all life on the planet, well then maybe that is the reason you should be disappointed in UT

Edited March 9, 2022 by Smax

[InkaUtexas 26,006]

[Nicole44 22,064]

I blame sting ! He is spot on with his songs given the timeframe 

[MillerEP 30,492]

Translation: On March 8-9, at least 8 air targets in the area of environmental protection and in the Kyiv region were destroyed by air defense equipment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
 Fighter aircraft, anti-aircraft missile units S-300 and Buk-M1 destroyed 4 Su-25 attack aircraft, two helicopters 🇷🇺 are also confirmed by 2 downed cruise missiles.

Edited March 9, 2022 by MillerEP

[Chopper 17,239]

 

also if you want to read an article about where we are currently in the "Tit for Tat" retaliation spiral and the dangers that loom, I recommend this new Foreign Affairs journal article.

https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/ukraine/2022-03-08/how-war-ukraine-could-get-much-worse

[BabaYaga 15,301]

3 minutes ago, InkaUtexas said:

and the pair on these two guys.....

 

[Guest Lobo]

4 minutes ago, BabaYaga said:

Unguided ordinance?  Was this confirmed?  Those can go almost anywhere if the pilot isn't skilled or is trying to evade attack.  Not justifying, just trying to figure out how this happened?

I didn't use the term "unguided ordinance."  I think that's more of a City of Austin regulatory thing.  Now, Ordnance.  That's a thing.  And it appears those things are hitting civilians way too frequently to just be excused as mistaken pilots.  I think we're delving into the territory of war crimes.  But Putin is a genius...so that can't be right.

[BabaYaga 15,301]

2 minutes ago, MillerEP said:

Translation: On March 8-9, at least 8 air targets in the area of environmental protection and in the Kyiv region were destroyed by air defense equipment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
 Fighter aircraft, anti-aircraft missile units S-300 and Buk-M1 destroyed 4 Su-25 attack aircraft, two helicopters 🇷🇺 are also confirmed by 2 downed cruise missiles.

Anyone know of any Ukrainian scrap metal companies I can invest in?

[staboner 4,984]

13 minutes ago, Doc Reeves said:

 

I mean… to be fair lots of people in Russia heard him at the time. Putin just had them all killed.

 

 

ha. yeah no shit. lord knows how many

we, and most others, were happy to see the stability for obvious nuke-y reasons. pretty sure that was teh tradeoff. and here we sit now dealing with this shit yet again. and it will be again and again and again all the way down the line. trading human life to ensure we don't kill everyone. 

pretty sure i posted this here before, but will again. And without pics to not fully dox myself. a close relative of mine was a top diplomat to russia. stood shoulder to shoulder with Putin. we got into a fight  ~3 or 4 years ago on this. He was always saying Putin is fine, Americans just need to get over the cold war. Stopped the chat for fear he was actually bugged. no shit. When I hopefully see him this summer its going to be very fucking hard for me to not go full i told you so on him. 

hey look guy who gained power in the KGB is acting like KGB guy. who woulda fucking thunk it

Edited March 9, 2022 by staboner

[BabaYaga 15,301]

Just now, Lobo said:

I didn't use the term "unguided ordinance."  I think that's more of a City of Austin regulatory thing.  Now, Ordnance.  That's a thing.  And it appears those things are hitting civilians way too frequently to just be excused as mistaken pilots.  I think we're delving into the territory of war crimes.  But Putin is a genius...so that can't be right.

No doubt.  I'd probably err on the side of indiscriminate that intentional, but no less atrocious.  

[Guest Lobo]

I would have too a few days ago.  But we're in, yet again, a new and darker set of uncharted waters.

[Chewbacca 7,780]

6 minutes ago, Smax said:

if you don't know the difference between bombing a hospital and deciding to end all life on the planet, well then maybe that is the reason you should be disappointed in UT

We know the difference.  Does Vlad?  If he feels he's cornered like a rat, do you trust the survival of the human race to his caring about ending all life on earth?  He strikes me as an 'if I can't have it, nobody can' type.  So I'd prefer to not push him to that point if possible.

[Brisketexan 105,161]

7 minutes ago, BabaYaga said:

Can't disagree with that.  Why I say this is simply not sustainable for Russia.  The longer this draws out, the more evident that there is nothing being "held back" of any consequence.  This is who they are, and better yet, the west is devouring every single byte of data on this war possible. This will be a paradigm shifting confrontation.   Single soldier anti armor/plane weapons have always been deadly, but there have never been seen in mass like this.  They are also easy to move, and relatively cheap (compared to a tank/plane), and easy to operate.  Flooding Ukraine with these seems the key.  I see this going the way of the Finnish War with Russia. 

There will be a parlay....Russia is desperately trying to take Maruipol.  They get the port, direct land link to Donbas, and the Ukes lose a steel making city.  So like the Fins, they bloody the attackers to stalemate and lose a little land in the process, but remain relatively intact and independent.

I think this has to be Ukraine's best/most hopeful play.

BTW, 956 and Shady Ray have provided fantastic insight on the European perspective and implications of this war.   And SL Express and BabaYaga are providing some great, measured straight talk on the strategic picture as it relates to the US, our interests, and how we can and should play it out.  I'm hard-pressed to think of much that they've posted that I'd disagree with.

I think the US approach during this war has been pretty damned smart, and continues to be.  No, we're not getting a glamorous victory, no, we're not going to save every civilian life.  Lots of disappointments that we aren't throwing the ball for a 75 yard TD.  But we're playing good, fundamental football -- 4 yards and a cloud of dust type stuff, letting the other side wear itself out.  And yeah, cynically, we're using Ukrainian blood and bodies to do it.  In the big picture, there WILL be blood and bodies.  That can't be stopped.  If we don't directly intervene, blood and bodies in Ukraine.  If we do directly intervene, blood and bodies in a lot of places in a much wider war.  Stop thinking there's a "good" outcome, where civilians don't die and cities aren't leveled.  We have to make our play based on a certain set of options, and none of them are wonderful.

[SL Xpress 7,516]

39 minutes ago, Brisketexan said:

Wait….we’re worried about Putin taking Armenia next? Ok. It would be super-easy….

My mind immediately filled in, “barely an inconvenience!”

As a quick segue, if you’re looking for some good humor and you haven’t already, check out Ryan George’s “Pitch Meetings” on YouTube. 

[Chopper 17,239]

4 minutes ago, Lobo said:

I think we're delving into the territory of war crimes.

[Nicole44 22,064]

Poland 🇵🇱 has bigger balls than we do! 

[alincoln 2,381]

18 minutes ago, BamaATL said:

3.  Remember when you fill up your car, however annoying the additional cost is, that no one is shelling your home or community.  If this is the biggest sacrifice we have to make we are doing ok.  

Surly now going facebook

[alincoln 2,381]

18 minutes ago, BamaATL said:

3.  Remember when you fill up your car, however annoying the additional cost is, that no one is shelling your home or community.  If this is the biggest sacrifice we have to make we are doing ok.  

Surly now going facebook

[InkaUtexas 26,006]

6 minutes ago, BabaYaga said:

Anyone know of any Ukrainian scrap metal companies I can invest in?

Nah, the Indian ones going to buy it all. 

[DigglerontheHoof 21,204]

I've seen it said again and again (on this board and most other mainstream outlets) that the line in the sand is if Putin attacks a NATO country. 

I don't think that's the case.  I believe if he does attack a NATO country, you'd see much of the same from the West.  Harsher sanctions, much brow furrowing and little else.  That's because we KNOW we'd fuck the Russians up in ANY conventional encounter.  However, Putin still has nukes and still has the West convinced he'll use them.

So, he invades a NATO country, NATO unleashes hell and pushes in their stool, Putin is backed into a corner.  Nuke Party.

The gig is the same whether or not it's a NATO country. 

The West is petrified of Putin's unrestrained power and Putin knows it.

[InkaUtexas 26,006]

9 minutes ago, BabaYaga said:

and the pair on these two guys.....

 

IED construction 101. 

[BachelorTrek 3,050]

2 minutes ago, BabaYaga said:

and the pair on these two guys.....

 

I vote for the detonation guys who have to manually detonate the MICLIC explosive line charge (used to clear minefields) whenever it doesn't go off like it's supposed to automatically, where the automatic detonation fails too often.

The most important skill is, "DON'T TRIP when you're running away!" is what I've heard soldiers say.

Normal MICLIC operation:

[Guest Lobo]

1 minute ago, Chopper said:

Yes, a very impressive De-Nazification or whatever the fuck they're calling it today.  

I think of two Russian infantry with one rifle like the old days.  Or like the contemporary equivalent, two soviet girls and a cup.

Burn them all.  I can't believe we let Russia get this far.  So many family members served during the Cold War and are now having to watch this disgrace because we thought, "Oh no, Russia couldn't possibly be capable of this..."  They're purposely shelling children's hospitals but a little bit of social media manipulation is apparetly beyond the pale for them?  Got it.

[Cheeseweasel 26,438]

9 minutes ago, BabaYaga said:

Anyone know of any Ukrainian scrap metal companies I can invest in?

Farmers will beat the swords into plowshares. 

[BabaYaga 15,301]

2 minutes ago, DigglerontheHoof said:

I've seen it said again and again (on this board and most other mainstream outlets) that the line in the sand is if Putin attacks a NATO country. 

I don't think that's the case.  I believe if he does attack a NATO country, you'd see much of the same from the West.  Harsher sanctions, much brow furrowing and little else.  That's because we KNOW we'd fuck the Russians up in ANY conventional encounter.  However, Putin still has nukes and still has the West convinced he'll use them.

So, he invades a NATO country, NATO unleashes hell and pushes in their stool, Putin is backed into a corner.  Nuke Party.

The gig is the same whether or not it's a NATO country. 

The West is petrified of Putin's unrestrained power and Putin knows it.

There is precedent for this.  We KNEW there were active Russian pilots and ground troops in Vietnam, yet failed to escalate for the reasons given of nuclear escalation.  Same in Cuba, Iraq, Syria, and Afghanistan and probably dozens of other places we haven't heard of yet.  So it depends on the moves Putin makes.  Minor skirmishes that can be explained away, maybe not, but coordinated attacks in mass....game over.  

[MillerEP 30,492]

 

[InkaUtexas 26,006]

1 minute ago, MillerEP said:

 

This is a good follow. 

[TexasEd 8,067]

13 minutes ago, Lobo said:

I didn't use the term "unguided ordinance."  I think that's more of a City of Austin regulatory thing.  Now, Ordnance.  That's a thing.  And it appears those things are hitting civilians way too frequently to just be excused as mistaken pilots.  I think we're delving into the territory of war crimes.  But Putin is a genius...so that can't be right.

I think it is artillery.  They are lining up a battery and shelling houses.  You can see three or 4 hits in this short video.

 

[Guest Lobo]

Yeah, it was just a play on his ordinance and ordnance.  I get it.  

[MillerEP 30,492]

4 minutes ago, InkaUtexas said:

This is a good follow. 

It makes me curious as to why the US numbers are so drastically low compared to European intel. Is it because they only want to go off of what they can confirm, or it is that we don't have nearly the assets in place like the European agencies do? 

Edited March 9, 2022 by MillerEP

[Sawbonz 27,580]

9 minutes ago, BachelorTrek said:

I vote for the detonation guys who have to manually detonate the MICLIC explosive line charge (used to clear minefields) whenever it doesn't go off like it's supposed to automatically, where the automatic detonation fails too often.

The most important skill is, "DON'T TRIP when you're running away!" is what I've heard soldiers say.

Normal MICLIC operation:

[Gap03 3,308]

6 minutes ago, TexasEd said:

I think it is artillery.  They are lining up a battery and shelling houses.  You can see three or 4 hits in this short video.

 

Seems like the trajectory is more consistent with artillery than bombs, and it looks like it's raining on the 'burbs there.  That's going to be difficult to explain away, but I'm sure they'll say the Ukrainians had their own artillery next to the swingsets in someone's backyard or some similar shit.

[BabaYaga 15,301]

4 minutes ago, TexasEd said:

I think it is artillery.  They are lining up a battery and shelling houses.  You can see three or 4 hits in this short video.

 

Probably.  Attacks on cities are attacks on civilians.  It's as old as warfare itself.  You can go back to the sack of Carthage, Nanking by the Japanese, or the Allied firebombing of Dresden and Tokyo.  What I fear, as stated earlier, is the escalation.  WWI civilian casualties - maybe 17 million.  WWII - between 45-60 million.  So what does WWIII look like?

[InkaUtexas 26,006]

6 minutes ago, MillerEP said:

It makes me curious as to why the US numbers are so drastically low compared to European intel. Is it because they only want to go off of what they can confirm, or it is that we don't have nearly the assets in place like the European agencies do? 

Not sure, but that is still a lot confirmed. 

[Sawbonz 27,580]

So low end 7 k high end 12k KIA? Is there an estimate of captured/deserted?

[MillerEP 30,492]

 

[SL Xpress 7,516]

1 minute ago, Brisketexan said:

I think this has to be Ukraine's best/most hopeful play.

BTW, 956 and Shady Ray have provided fantastic insight on the European perspective and implications of this war.   And SL Express and BabaYaga are providing some great, measured straight talk on the strategic picture as it relates to the US, our interests, and how we can and should play it out.  I'm hard-pressed to think of much that they've posted that I'd disagree with.

I think the US approach during this war has been pretty damned smart, and continues to be.  No, we're not getting a glamorous victory, no, we're not going to save every civilian life.  Lots of disappointments that we aren't throwing the ball for a 75 yard TD.  But we're playing good, fundamental football -- 4 yards and a cloud of dust type stuff, letting the other side wear itself out.  And yeah, cynically, we're using Ukrainian blood and bodies to do it.  In the big picture, there WILL be blood and bodies.  That can't be stopped.  If we don't directly intervene, blood and bodies in Ukraine.  If we do directly intervene, blood and bodies in a lot of places in a much wider war.  Stop thinking there's a "good" outcome, where civilians don't die and cities aren't leveled.  We have to make our play based on a certain set of options, and none of them are wonderful.

I’ve been extraordinarily impressed with Biden and his team’s ability to get all the players on board. They’re treating this with the exact kind of importance it deserves, even extending olive branches to regimes they’ve given the cold shoulder to (for good reasons).

Someone decided to make Rubin the tweeting spokesperson, which is brilliant. They helped to get recalcitrant EU members on board for the SWFT sanctions. They got an omnibus budget bill agreed upon in principle with $13.6 billion in aid for Ukraine. The use of declassified intelligence ended up being the winning play from my view, although it should be understood I have no idea what costs were/are involved in terms of alerting the enemy regarding what we know and how we know it. 

I’m not a Democrat. I tend to be critical of how Democratic presidents handle foreign policy (not to turn it into CR, because certainly Republican presidents have made more than their fair share of mistakes - I just tend to rationalize them more - merely admitting a bias, not advocating). But I’m very proud of Biden and his team, just like I was of George W. Bush immediately following 9/11. 

This is truly going to be awful for the Ukrainian people. It already is awful. The price they’re paying for the rest of the world not to risk the end of humanity is astronomical. If someone wants to be angry about that, I feel like they’re justified. Life just sucks sometimes. No doubt about it.

But the Ukrainians are not alone. The level of support they’re receiving is unprecedented short of entering a war - from aid, to hosting over 2 million refugees and counting, to crippling sanctions and isolation, to intelligence being handed over, to volunteers signing up for service. My hope and expectation is that it doesn’t stop, even after Russia is thrown out. Because I firmly believe Russia cannot win. When the day comes the last Russian troop leaves their soil I feel confident the world will back them in rebuilding their country in ways we haven’t seen since George Marshall was the US Secretary of State. It won’t make up for the death and destruction they’re undergoing currently, but hopefully like other horrors overcome they will rise up stronger than ever. That’s certainly my vision. 

[BamaATL 16,593]

4 minutes ago, InkaUtexas said:

Not sure, but that is still a lot confirmed. 

Don't we have a history of playing it close to the vest on this sort of thing?

[Macanudo 12,990]

8 minutes ago, BabaYaga said:

WWI civilian casualties - maybe 17 million.  WWII - between 45-60 million.  So what does WWIII look like?

Insert Gary Oldman's "EVERYONE!" from Leon here.

[Blotto 23,560]

2 minutes ago, SL Xpress said:

This is truly going to be awful for the Ukrainian people. It already is awful. The price they’re paying for the rest of the world not to risk the end of humanity is astronomical. If someone wants to be angry about that, I feel like they’re justified. Life just sucks sometimes. No doubt about it.
 

Its a brutal reality when the best course forward is simply the least shitty of several really shitty options. And listening to people in the US bitch about gas prices for the next 6 months as a  result is probably gonna make me wanna rip some heads off. 

[Chopper 17,239]

31 minutes ago, Lobo said:

a little bit of social media manipulation is apparetly beyond the pale for them?  Got it.

Not sure I fully understand you. The video is Russia's posted for the intent of showing their strength to invoke fear. It's their response because they know they're losing the social media battle. It shows some of their strength along with a message from Putin saying he dgaf about war crimes.

[BabaYaga 15,301]

Reading on the UK Starstreak.  It's a nasty bitch.  Accelerates up to Mach 4, faster than any other MANPAD and has a great distance (4 miles), and that flares as countermeasures are useless against it.  Point & shoot weapon that rides a laser beam to the target before unleashing three internal warheads to increase the chances of getting a hit

Sleep well Rusky pilots....

[dcar00 14,295]

Hey great news guys!  PGA Tour Superstore has let me know that they stand with Ukraine! 

Boycott of Callaway Rogue Drivers being shipped to Russia is on.  Oligarchs gonna have some trouble hittin' the short grass(green kind) I believe.

[BamaATL 16,593]

1 minute ago, BabaYaga said:

Reading on the UK Starstreak.  It's a nasty bitch.  Accelerates up to Mach 4, faster than any other MANPAD and has a great distance (4 miles), and that flares as countermeasures are useless against it.  Point & shoot weapon that rides a laser beam to the target before unleashing three internal warheads to increase the chances of getting a hit

Sleep well Rusky pilots....

It looked interesting, but not ferocious.  Looks can be deceiving.  Yikes good hunting Ukraine.  

[MissingInAction 25,113]

40 minutes ago, alincoln said:

Surly now going facebook

Tell me your first car model and your favorite rock song. 

That's your porn name! Lol

[smuggs 9,353]

16 minutes ago, MillerEP said:

 

 

I should've known those fucking commies would send a negotiator named "Slutsky."

[SL Xpress 7,516]

23 minutes ago, DigglerontheHoof said:

I've seen it said again and again (on this board and most other mainstream outlets) that the line in the sand is if Putin attacks a NATO country. 

I don't think that's the case.  I believe if he does attack a NATO country, you'd see much of the same from the West.  Harsher sanctions, much brow furrowing and little else.  That's because we KNOW we'd fuck the Russians up in ANY conventional encounter.  However, Putin still has nukes and still has the West convinced he'll use them.

So, he invades a NATO country, NATO unleashes hell and pushes in their stool, Putin is backed into a corner.  Nuke Party.

The gig is the same whether or not it's a NATO country. 

The West is petrified of Putin's unrestrained power and Putin knows it.

I don’t agree. I hope we don’t find out, just like I hope China doesn’t test us militarily in the Indo-China Sea.

The thing with NATO countries, specifically the Baltic States, Poland, and Romania, is the US has troops there. 

Have you noticed a huge sticking point for Putin is no more NATO expansion? If Putin had no concerns about the West’s resolve to trigger Article 5, why not just let Ukraine join NATO after all? Why make a big deal about the Baltic States or former Iron Curtain countries becoming signatories? The truth is it does concern him. He’s not willing to pressure NATO countries militarily the way he is non-NATO countries. 

There’s also this sense that Putin’s going to do whatever he wants now because the West is just standing by doing nothing. That’s not true. Putin is not doing well primarily because of Ukrainian resolve and skill combined with their own incompetence. But Western support for the last 8 years and ongoing has played a major factor as well. Putin will never be able to do whatever he wants ever again. 

I don’t think some of you realize how much of a watershed moment this is for Putin’s Russia, and it’s not a good one. Yes, things will never be the same for the West, but I’m looking at a future that suddenly looks much brighter. I’ve never seen the NATO alliance look so united.

For Putin he’s going to be facing a cratered economy, a brain drain, a disgruntled wealthy class, a starving lower class, a shattered infrastructure suffering from severed links with western supply chains, and the weakest amount of pull on the international stage since he took office. By the time Russia manages to shift course - whenever that may be - so much havoc will have been wreaked it’s going to take a couple of decades to recover. At least. And as soon as the internet is opened to their populace again - which it will have to be unless they want to look to North Korea’s economy as their ideal - a whole new generation of younger people with the needed skills and curiosity will find out what Putin did in their country’s name, and their trust in their government’s propaganda will be greatly diminished. 

Honestly just need to guy to keel over for any reason whatsoever and we could still get something that faintly resembles a happy ending. No, not that kind of happy ending…well, maybe. I guess that kind, too. 

[TexasEd 8,067]

5 minutes ago, BabaYaga said:

Reading on the UK Starstreak.  It's a nasty bitch.  Accelerates up to Mach 4, faster than any other MANPAD and has a great distance (4 miles), and that flares as countermeasures are useless against it.  Point & shoot weapon that rides a laser beam to the target before unleashing three internal warheads to increase the chances of getting a hit

Sleep well Rusky pilots....

 

3 minutes ago, BamaATL said:

It looked interesting, but not ferocious.  Looks can be deceiving.  Yikes good hunting Ukraine.  

Actually is an anti-countermeasure surface to sir missile.  It is a big deal because of the laser guidance that cannot be jammed with ECM or decoyed by flares.  The shortcoming is it is line of sight.