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Posts by brightheron64

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Russia's invasion of Ukraine: Part 5 in War in Ukraine ·
crimsoncyclist71 said:Looking at this stretched-out timeline, it's obvious how hard you're working to defend Russian fascists. Even if we play along with your fantasy and assume you're right, explain the logic: why would Ukrainians target one single, specific facility and nothing else if they truly believed it was a fascist military outpost? 🤦


Ever since I watched Rashomon—which was honestly a lifetime ago—I’ve maintained a healthy dose of skepticism regarding the concept of "truth," especially when it comes to people trying to manufacture a single, indisputable version of reality on the fly. If I even dare to bring up WMDs as a side note, I suppose I'll just be accused of falling into the whataboutism trap again...

I am not out here defending anyone, and once it is undeniably proven that the Russians did it, rest assured, they will have my full condemnation...
Russia's invasion of Ukraine: Part 5 in War in Ukraine ·
Thomas Walker84 said:It’s possible, but unlikely, given the nature of this war, why both sides are fighting, and how they choose to fight.

The Rus target homes and civilians intentionally. We saw that same kind of terror back in the Middle East. It’s a tactic meant to intimidate and force the victim to submit to the stronger side. They don't care about the destruction or the killing because, despite all their talk about "brotherhood" and the "Russian world," they aren't locals here.

The Ukrainians primarily target military objectives because they just want to defend their own land. They have no desire or interest in destroying it, let alone killing their own people or harassing the Russians living there, unless those individuals are actively supporting the aggressor. Ukrainians are fully prepared to respect minority rights, especially as they move toward joining the EU. In any case, they have zero interest in "endangering" them.

So, if Ukrainians hit a civilian target, it's by mistake; but when the Rus hit one, in most cases, that was the actual goal.

Now, there’s the sentence I’ve been waiting for...

Is there any chance this massacre was just a massive error?

From what I’ve managed to dig up in the media, the timeline looks something like this:

- Russian forces arrive at the site, clear out the local militia, bring in their own troops, and hoist their flag...
- Work is being done, things are being set up, beds and equipment are being moved in... right up until two days before the strike
- Just before the attack itself, you see crowds of people in uniform milling about the area...
- And then, in the dead of night, Ka-boom. A massacre.

It’s a very simple question—could someone on the Ukrainian side have misread the situation and thought they were hitting a new Russian camp that needed to be leveled?

Of course, if that really happened, no one on the Ukrainian side is going to step forward and say, "Oops, our bad." That’s just not how war works.

There are plenty of precedents from WWII, and these two are particularly striking:
The Laconia Incident - where a German U-boat sank a British ship carrying 1,400 Italian prisoners.
The Rakuyo mar incident - when an American submarine sank a Japanese vessel holding 1,500 British and Australian prisoners.

Strangely enough, neither the German nor the American media ran headlines saying "Sorry, shit happens.".

On the other hand, I have to ask again: why would the Russians want to eliminate the National Guard when they could trade any one of them for at least two of their own prisoners?
Or even just stage a media circus with a trial?

And if they really did intend to liquidate them, why go through all these complications? Throughout history, those kinds of things have always been handled in a much more straightforward way. Honestly, if they wanted to pin this on the Ukrainians, they could have just loaded them onto military trucks marked with a large Z one night, left them on some roadside, and waited for the fallout...

Gerald Torres84 said:Cvjetica, are you still placing your faith in the Russians?
Didn't they claim they weren't planning an invasion, asserting they were merely conducting military exercises in Belarus?
Didn't they claim a cook set fire to the ship Moskva?
Didn't they claim Ukrainians were shelling their own cities just to pin the blame on the Russians?
Go ahead. Analyze all those instances where the Russians said one thing, yet it was proven they did the exact opposite.
Do you truly believe them, or are you just whitewashing everything in the name of Putko?

I don't believe him, and I never have. But truthfully, I didn't think they would actually launch the attack.

By the way, that article you mentioned is from The New York Times, not RT, so please don't view this as being pro-Russian; it's just an attempt to solve a puzzle...
Russia's invasion of Ukraine: Part 5 in War in Ukraine ·
Benjamin Taylor6 said:Look, there is absolutely nothing difficult about firing a Grad rocket launcher from two kilometers away. At that distance, you're going to hit everything within a 300-meter radius. You find a group of shady, highly precise operators, aim over the city toward the front lines, and the rockets land just a few miles from where they were launched. And before all that, you make sure to sound the alarm so every civilian clears out to their shelters—just to ensure there aren't any "unplanned" videos being recorded.

Do you honestly believe that much effort is worth it? A False flag involving Ukrainians killing their own people?

It’s roughly the same level of logic as if Americans had staged a scene to make it look like the Germans killed Goering instead of actually putting him on trial and hanging him like they should have (and did).

It’s just a lot of noise and a smoke screen that might last a couple of weeks before being swept away by the winds of war, because, unfortunately, there will likely be much more evil happening, and far worse than this...
Russia's invasion of Ukraine: Part 5 in War in Ukraine ·
Christian Torres3 said:Aren't you actually embarrassed to be taking the Russ's side like this?

https://twitter.com/Militarylandnet/...2ky8hvzGnf-BiA

https://twitter.com/avalaina/status/...2ky8hvzGnf-BiA

That isn't "taking sides" at all; this is war, and honestly, shit happens...

By the way, I’m actually curious to hear what you think away from the chaos of Twitter—how exactly are the Russ supposed to have killed those prisoners? Did they plant a bomb, launch a missile, set them on fire...?
Russia's invasion of Ukraine: Part 5 in War in Ukraine ·
Christian Torres3 said:Based on the available footage from Oleynivka, what would your conclusion be?

It looks like friendly fire, or perhaps just a target that was misidentified from the start...

Murphy's Military Laws
- The only thing more accurate than incoming enemy fire is incoming friendly fire.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine: Part 5 in War in Ukraine ·
Kate Lewis3 said:Look, the higher-ups never release info unless they are 100% certain. It's just how it works. Even regarding Moscow, they didn't claim it was heading straight for the bottom of the Black Sea; they just said, based on their assessment, that it's damaged and drifting toward Sevastopol.

Really?

Moscow... well, it was moving (even if just a hundred meters) right up until the moment it sank. 😁

But, since we're discussing this particular incident, I honestly find it hard to believe that the Azov troops would be considered such valuable bargaining chips for the Russians that they'd risk liquidating them in such a clumsy, senseless way.
And even if that were actually the goal, there are much more efficient and logical scenarios to consider, ranging from staging a "mutiny and attempted escape" to other possibilities...

The media coverage surrounding this war is always quite fascinating to watch, especially when you see headlines like:
"Russians strike school in Kharkiv, shell residential neighborhoods"
"We hit a Russian ammunition depot"


The reverse scenario never seems to happen—it's simply not possible... or is it?
Russia's invasion of Ukraine: Part 5 in War in Ukraine ·
So, there it is. Even though most of the world already "knows" that Russ has wiped out the Azov forces, the Pentagon still isn't 100% certain about the details...

SENIOR MILITARY OFFICIAL: I don't know that we can say definitively about any of it. I -- but, you know, what I will -- and listen, I haven't seen all of the reporting but I am told that the Russians, you know, have made claims that they have pieces of HIMARS that were used in the strike. Listen, the Russians have a lot of pieces of HIMARS, right?

I mean, the Americans have been, you know, sending a lot of HIMARS their way. So that would not surprise me. What would also not surprise me is if the Russians would -- would lead us astray, in terms of information, and tell us that the Americans had done this.

Here’s the last thing I'd say, if it happened to be an American strike, I promise you, number one, they didn't mean to do that, right? They certainly care about their own people and they care about the civilians and military in uniform of their own army.

https://www.defense.gov/News/Transcr...ound-briefing/

Why the sudden "If"? 🤔
Russia's invasion of Ukraine: Part 5 in War in Ukraine ·
Timothy Williams5 said:What exactly constitutes a million dollars to a Russian pilot? ☕
He wouldn't even be able to lug a basic water heater out of a bathroom in Ukraine if he’d had his leg amputated.

Yeah, honestly, that Russian pilot is just being dense; he clearly doesn't realize he's "handing over" an aircraft worth at least 60 million USD, assuming we're talking about a jet.

I mean, seriously, if you're going to try and seduce me or screw me over, at least be a generous benefactor about it...
Sanctions on Russia in War in Ukraine ·
Nathan Thomas12 said:Look, Iran has enough cash for nuclear missiles, yet they still can't get them.
Russia has plenty of money for plane parts and truck components, but they're still short. Their logistics guys have been whining about it for months. But hey, according to you, they'll just "find a way" to score microchips too. I guess I can't argue with that logic.

At the end of the day, the Russians will figure something out, but Europe? Not gonna happen.🥱

Sure, they might be able to launch a rocket, but building a nuclear weapon isn't exactly something you can just whip up on a whim... On paper, the whole process looks straightforward enough, but actually producing weapon-grade uranium—we're talking 90% U-235—or refining plutonium is a completely different beast altogether...

Nathan Thomas12 said:Look, Iran has enough cash for nuclear missiles, yet they still can't get them.
Russia has plenty of money for plane parts and truck components, but they're still short. Their logistics guys have been whining about it for months. But hey, according to you, they'll just "find a way" to score microchips too. I guess I can't argue with that logic.

At the end of the day, the Russians will figure something out, but Europe? Not gonna happen.🥱

It’s worth drawing a quick parallel here with Mexico, where gun laws are incredibly restrictive. Despite all those regulations, the cartels have so much money, so much time, and such an overwhelming abundance of weaponry—ranging from landmines to various types of launchers—that they can stand toe-to-toe against the military without breaking a sweat...
Before the heavy fighting of WWII really kicked into high gear, the US and the Russians actually had this incredible opportunity to just shut down the entire German war machine by cutting off their oil supplies entirely. It was right there for the taking, but for some reason, it never happened...

It’s the same old story, really; who actually cares about the war as long as it remains "business as usual," especially when there are buyers out there more than willing to pay a massive premium for whatever it is they want... and as for the supply lines, don't you worry, those will always find a way to open up eventually...
Russia's invasion of Ukraine: Part 5 in War in Ukraine ·
Jesse Sanchez4 said:Did you catch that story about how Ukrainians tried to lure Russian pilots into a trap along with their jets?

The whole situation is actually pretty hilarious 😁 https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1551535542180929536

It’s a star story, honestly, dating all the way back to the Korean War (think Operation Moolah—offering $50,000 for a working MiG-15, which would be roughly $560,000 in today's money).

What they're offering now is pocket change, especially when you consider the actual market value of the airframes they'd be walking away with...

I mean, is anyone really going to hand over a perfectly good Su-35 or a Ka-52 for just a million or two bucks?

It's wild... ☕
Sanctions on Russia in War in Ukraine ·
Nathan Thomas12 said:Japan's massive external debt is only half the story since most of it is internal!!
And personally? I'd take frog legs over chicken any day.
Russia could sit on a mountain of gold a trillion tons high, but if they can't get cars, trucks, planes, microchips, semiconductors, or Western machinery and tech... well, you can start listing them until tomorrow morning.

It's like that old saying goes: "Money talks, and everything else walks."

If you actually have a mountain of cash, you'll always find a way to make things happen. The real headache only starts when the pockets are empty.
Sanctions on Russia in War in Ukraine ·
Sanctions on Russia in War in Ukraine ·
goldenowl73 As if I haven't heard this all before...
Breaking News: Saudi Arabia's Crown prince announces The country will seek to increase its oil production capacity to 13 million barrels per day...

Breaking News: Saudi Arabia's Crown prince announces The country will seek to increase its oil production capacity to 13 million barrels per day...

That’s exactly what the White House is claiming...

Usually, right underneath those "Breaking News" headlines, you’ll find some additional context or descriptive text included as well... 😬

However, Saudi Minister for Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan mentioned to the press on Saturday that when meeting over the weekend, the President didn't actually touch upon the subject of oil production at all...

Farhan Said that oil production wasn't actually on the agenda during the summit, noting that it just wasn't the primary focus of their discussions... He pointed out that OPEC has been staying responsive to how the market shifts lately, and they fully intend to keep monitoring those conditions closely to ensure they take whatever steps are needed to keep everything balanced...


And here's an update from the White House, coming in just a little bit later...

but White House officials say The President won't be returning to Washington on Saturday with explicit oil production increases... Despite all the anticipation surrounding the recent discussions, it turns out the President won't actually be heading back to Washington this Saturday with any concrete commitments regarding increases in oil production...The prevailing consensus seems to be that we’re looking at steady increases coming our way in the next few months—all of this unfolding right in line with those higher production targets established by the OPEC+ group back during their August session...
Sanctions on Russia in War in Ukraine ·
swiftjackal11 said:Russia isn't trying to save their industry; they’re just funneling everything into the war and buying weapons from Iran and China.

Well, they would probably buy weapons from America too, if things were different...
Sanctions on Russia in War in Ukraine ·
I have to admit, I’m completely lost; I just can't seem to wrap my head around all of this anymore...

I really thought I had a solid grasp on what "international sanctions" actually meant in practice, but then I saw this... 🕺

July 15th (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia, the world's leading oil exporter, more than doubled its imports of Russian fuel oil during the second quarter to power its electrical plants in an effort to meet the massive summer demand for air conditioning while freeing up its own crude oil for export instead.
Russia is selling its fuel at deep discounts because international sanctions following the invasion of Ukraine have significantly limited their pool of buyers.

This surge in fuel oil sales—which is essential for electricity generation—highlights a major hurdle facing President Joe Biden as his administration works to isolate Russia and choke off its energy export revenues.

Data obtained by Reuters reveals that between April and June, Saudi Arabia imported 647,000 tons (roughly 48,000 barrels per day) of Russian fuel oil through various ports, compared to just 320,000 tons during the same period last year.

https://www.world-today-news.com/exc...-markets-news/

So, if I am reading this correctly, the Saudis are essentially buying up cheap, "sanctioned" Russian diesel to cover their own domestic needs, which allows them to save their high-quality oil to sell at full market prices??? 😵
Russia's invasion of Ukraine: Part 5 in War in Ukraine ·
I was just sitting here thinking about how much things have changed lately, and I couldn't help but reflect on the sheer scale of everything we're witnessing... It really makes you pause, doesn't it? gentlestag15 says:
This isn't really the main topic at hand, but I just feel like we need to clear something up because there seems to be some widespread confusion on this point: a nuclear bomb and an accident at a nuclear power plant are two entirely different things...
The primary objective here is to trigger a massive explosion, one capable of causing widespread devastation and, if possible, completely leveling everything within the designated radius... As for the amount of radiation released, I’d say it remains relatively minimal, all things considered...
When you look at what actually happened, the truth is that everything stems from that initial explosion, and nothing else... In the case of Chernobyl, we’re talking about a steam explosion, to put it simply—so let's not get bogged down in the technical minutiae right now... Technically speaking, the explosion itself was relatively small, considering only one person died directly from the blast at Chernobyl, but the sheer volume of radioactivity released was absolutely massive, simply because there was such a staggering amount of radioactive material sitting right there inside the reactor...
The disaster at Chernobyl released a staggering amount of radioactivity because that fire and the constant venting of radioactive particles into the atmosphere dragged on for nearly two weeks... If we were looking at a nuclear bomb—especially a tactical one—the impact would have been significantly smaller, and the contamination would likely have remained limited to a much more localized area...
The lingering issue of local radioactive fallout remains a massive hurdle that isn't going away anytime soon, regardless of how much we hope... And honestly, if there’s any intention of deploying troops into the area following a tactical nuclear strike, I just can't wrap my head around how anyone could believe that wouldn't pose an enormous risk to them...

Exactly that...

Timothy Williams5 said:Right, because when Russia drops bombs on Ukraine, they apparently have a steady easterly breeze blowing for a year straight. That’s just how those bombs work.

All that talk about the wind direction is really just a bunch of nonsense... Sure, it would be much more ideal if the breeze were blowing toward the west, but honestly, it doesn't change the core of the matter at all...

When a bomb detonates, its effectiveness really comes down to how precisely it’s engineered; a better-constructed device triggers a much more efficient fission reaction, where the uranium or plutonium breaks down into lighter isotopes with half-lives ranging from mere milliseconds to several days... That’s exactly why, decades later, life in cities like Hiroshima and Nagasaki has returned to a beautiful, peaceful normal...

What actually happened at Chernobyl wasn't just a simple nuclear explosion, but rather an explosive gasification process—starting from water vapor—that essentially scattered everything inside the reactor, from the isotopes created during the nuclear reaction itself to pure uranium, all over the area... Relatively light elements like iodine and cesium were carried as far away as Sweden, whereas the actual uranium from the reactor, which has a half-life of about 20,000 years, was too heavy to travel that far and instead settled within a relatively tight radius, mostly around Pripyat, which is going to remain a strict no-go zone for a very, very long time...

Christian Torres3 said:It’s worth noting how those supposedly "precision" Russian missiles just leveled apartment buildings in Vinnytsia, leaving two civilians dead in their wake.

Russian Rockets hit The City of Vinnytsia this Morning. One of The Three Rockets Fell near a new maternity hospital
Six people injured, two dead—including a young child—according to the head of the National Police. They're still working on the final casualty count.
https://twitter.com/Gerashchenko_en/...BhDgNZQcaLnUxg

It feels like Russia's math is basically: "You have more apartment buildings than we have warehouses."


I’ve been debating whether or not to weigh in on this for weeks now... but I suppose I'll just go ahead and say it...

It is truly striking how Russian missiles seem to exclusively target schools, hospitals, daycare centers, nursing homes, and other civilian infrastructure... claiming women, the elderly, and infants in the process... whereas Ukrainian strikes seem to surgically pick off high-ranking Officers—mostly generals—along with weapon depots and military hardware.

Let's just pretend, for a second, that Russian weaponry is actually just subpar, which is why they accidentally level a shopping mall instead of a factory; yet simultaneously, the other side manages to be so incredibly precise even though they aren't strictly limited to their NATO arsenal (meaning even the local poultry farms are safe)... Honestly, all of this has become such a repetitive blur of "breaking news" and "updates" that I've stopped paying much attention to any of it, regardless of which side got hit or how sensational the headlines might be...
Russia's invasion of Ukraine: Part 5 in War in Ukraine ·
Donna Wells2 said:Not to mention a sudden shift in wind that could blow a radioactive cloud directly over Russia and Belarus.

If that’s the case, how did the Chernobyl cloud end up drifting all the way to Sweden and even across our neck of the woods here in America?

The math is actually pretty straightforward, even when you throw in those "if" variables... "if winds blow in a easterly direction...."

Just like the D-Day landings in Normandy depended entirely on the weather forecast, isn't it the exact same logic we have to apply to a potential tactical nuke strike? It's almost as if we'd say: let's pull the trigger once we get a heavy easterly breeze blowing from a Siberian anticyclone...
Sanctions on Russia in War in Ukraine ·
Terry Green3 said:The Baltic states just got another reminder of how little anyone actually cares about them.

Lithuania is going to follow the European Commission's advice and allow sanctioned Russian goods to transit by rail through its territory toward the Kaliningrad Oblast—that enclave cut off from mainland Russia. According to the Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the previous trade rules, which blocked the transport of sanctioned items, were "more acceptable."

It’s always been that way, along with everything else... It’s really just a matter of following orders and knowing when to stay in line, because at the end of the day, you have to tie the horse exactly where the boss tells you to...
Russia's invasion of Ukraine: Part 5 in War in Ukraine ·
Anthony Hill5 said:It appears Putin is heading to Iran next week to beg for military assistance.

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/07...smid=url-share

It looks like he’s finally realizing just how much sharper Zelenskyy actually is than him...

And let's not even get started on any potential oil deals—even if they're just excuses—between Russia and Iran...
Russia's invasion of Ukraine: Part 5 in War in Ukraine ·
Timothy Williams5 said:... and also:

The fairly influential Russian commentator Dmitriyev (who commands over 100k followers on Telegram) is weighing in on why the proposed solutions to counter Ukrainian missile strikes are essentially useless. His core argument is that the "decentralization" required by distributing ammunition runs directly contrary to the very nature of the Russian military and government structure.

You can find the source here.

A few more thoughts regarding the effectiveness of those Ukrainian missile strikes. There is a lot of chatter lately about how to minimize the damage from them. Beyond just beefing up air defenses, people are suggesting things like dispersing ammunition depots, avoiding clustering armored vehicles at a single base, making sure helicopters aren't lined up in neat rows, and generally embracing decentralization across the board. But here is the fundamental issue—you can certainly decentralize, but if you do, you end up with an entirely different kind of force, one that bears no resemblance to a Russian or Soviet-style military. Decentralization isn't just a tactical shift; it fundamentally clashes with the architecture of both the military hierarchy and the state apparatus itself. Furthermore, if you actually distribute ammo into various stockpiles and move vehicles into scattered forest locations, you would logically have to push decision-making authority down to those specific forests and depots. However, for centuries, that power has been meticulously concentrated in a single central point. That concentration is exactly how authority is preserved. To suggest decentralization in this context is to suggest something far more destabilizing than mere military losses.

"But here’s where the real issue lies—you can certainly opt for decentralization, but you’d end up with an entirely different kind of military force, nothing like the old Russian-Soviet model. Decentralization fundamentally clashes with the core structure of not just a military, but of a centralized state government as a whole."

That is an undeniable truth...

Just to put things in perspective:

"The true quality of a German officer during World War II was found in the fact that they weren't just capable of leading their own squad, but could actually offer valuable insight regarding the positioning of a platoon or even a company. A detachment leader must be able to command their unit and use their weapons effectively, sure, but that's just the baseline. They have to be able to lead at the platoon level, possessing the capacity to think strategically within a company..."