Offside (General Discussion)

Kyle Campbell4 said:Steven Fox37, they aren't just doing the same thing; they are correcting a historical injustice. The Russian language and the Russian Orthodox Church cannot be allowed to hold sway over Ukrainian innovators. It is fundamentally similar to how local factions tried to assert dominance over us with their demands.

The reality is that you can find skinhead movements and all sorts of extremist groups in every single European nation. That fact remains true regardless of whether those countries were governed by a democracy or a totalitarian regime during World War II. However, all of that exists merely at the level of a subculture or some insignificant fringe group. For heaven's sake, that does not mean the nations themselves are Nazi. I simply cannot wrap my head around how these absolute idiots are attempting to push the insane thesis that a nation of over 40 million people is inherently Nazi. Even back home, there was plenty of chaos during the war and things got intense, but that didn't make us fascists, nor did the international community succumb to such vile propaganda from our neighbors.

Ultimately, if you are going to be that sensitive about it, then I suppose Vladimir Putin's Russia should be the primary target for hate, since they have essentially become Europe's leading example regarding such groups—all with the official blessing of the state.

By the way, today the Russians opened fire on peaceful protesters in a small town in the north of the country who had gathered to protest the occupation.

Down south in Kherson, approximately 2,000 people took to the streets waving Ukrainian flags, also protesting against the occupation.

The simple truth is that people are rebelling in occupied territories no matter which part of the country they are in. People want their own state and their own freedom... not the Russian occupation boot.

How was the Russian language ever considered superior to the American one? From what I’ve gathered, it was a situation similar to how we dealt with Italian influences here.
And it wasn't just about Russian; it involved other minority languages too, like Canadian or Romanian.

The Israelis meeting with Vladimir Putin—now that is interesting
Did they come as representatives of The West
Or just to get a firsthand look at how the denazification of Ukraine is actually playing out?

Carl Hernandez3 said:The Israelis meeting with Vladimir Putin—now that is interesting
Did they come as representatives of The West
Or just to get a firsthand look at how the denazification of Ukraine is actually playing out?

They want to play mediator. Right after Moscow, Bennett flew off to Berlin to see Scholz.

Steven Fox37 said:How was the Russian language ever considered superior to the American one? From what I’ve gathered, it was a situation similar to how we dealt with Italian influences here.
And it wasn't just about Russian; it involved other minority languages too, like Canadian or Romanian.

You admit yourself that you weren't living through it back then and couldn't voice your dissatisfaction. Maidan and everything immediately following it were simply the inevitable result of sixty years of accumulated frustration caused by having outsiders rule over them in their own country, imposing their language, culture, and religion. Eventually, things began to stabilize. Even Volodymyr Zelenskyy's victory serves as evidence that the country has moved toward a more moderate path. This man is nothing like an extremist. Furthermore, there is a Russian minority living in Ukraine, and they live perfectly normal lives. Your talk regarding "persecution" is nothing more than the exact same propaganda used by the Mexicans in the 90s, but you are likely far too young to remember the Homeland War. For heaven's sake, I even posted a video of an old Russian man screaming at the Russian occupiers to get out of his country. My friend, if things were actually as your propaganda claims, that old man would be kissing their feet with joy. Based on the vlogs I have watched, people there speak both Ukrainian and Russian quite normally. Please, do not exhaust me with cheap propaganda like Putin's magic tricks; it only drags me back to the era of the Homeland War and those disgusting Mexican lies about us.

Jacob Price95 said:First it was Gostomel, then Irpin. Those widow-makers always try to spin it like they were elite operators—what kind of fucking paratroopers were those back in 2022? 🤣Even the US 82nd Airborne wouldn't be able to pull that off without proper groundwork first, and I know for a fact they didn't do any.

Whether there are 20,000 or a million of them, it doesn't matter; it’s just a massive, pathetic failure.

But they didn't exactly disgrace themselves. From the moment they landed, they never truly lost control of the airport.

Kyle Campbell4 said:You admit yourself that you weren't living through it back then and couldn't voice your dissatisfaction. Maidan and everything immediately following it were simply the inevitable result of sixty years of accumulated frustration caused by having outsiders rule over them in their own country, imposing their language, culture, and religion. Eventually, things began to stabilize. Even Volodymyr Zelenskyy's victory serves as evidence that the country has moved toward a more moderate path. This man is nothing like an extremist. Furthermore, there is a Russian minority living in Ukraine, and they live perfectly normal lives. Your talk regarding "persecution" is nothing more than the exact same propaganda used by the Mexicans in the 90s, but you are likely far too young to remember the Homeland War. For heaven's sake, I even posted a video of an old Russian man screaming at the Russian occupiers to get out of his country. My friend, if things were actually as your propaganda claims, that old man would be kissing their feet with joy. Based on the vlogs I have watched, people there speak both Ukrainian and Russian quite normally. Please, do not exhaust me with cheap propaganda like Putin's magic tricks; it only drags me back to the era of the Homeland War and those disgusting Mexican lies about us.

I wasn't talking about the Soviet Union in my last post; I was talking about Ukraine before Maidan, since I assumed that's what you meant.
I never said they shouldn't be allowed to speak Russian. That’s why I brought up our situation regarding Italian-language education and similar rights. According to Wikipedia, they actually had the right to use their own language in official institutions, which seems like something our minorities don't really have access to.

edit: By the way, I find it hilarious that you're lecturing me about propaganda while using a single video of one old man as "proof," acting like everyone there thinks exactly like him. I could easily show you clips of people saying they're just glad shells aren't falling on their heads anymore and that they can finally sleep peacefully—but according to your logic, that's Russian propaganda, whereas a viral video of an old man isn't? Come on.

neonfalcon16 said:But they didn't exactly disgrace themselves. From the moment they landed, they never truly lost control of the airport.

How on earth are those Ukrainians hopping around the airport filming all the destruction? The ones you’re talking about were long gone.

Bad news. In the Kherson region, defenders fled from a military base and left behind a massive haul. We're talking everything from tanks to ammunition.

Even with 5 million refugees already—these people are trying to poison us with projections of 10 million.
Who is even responsible for these projections?
Ten million refugees would essentially mean the collapse of Ukraine.

In the breakaway region of Moldova—specifically looking at the tensions there—are there actually more ethnic Ukrainians or Russians living there?
Does anyone here really understand the situation on the ground, especially given that roughly 160,000 refugees have fled from Ukraine into Moldova?
I mean, I'm talking about the areas under government control versus those held by the rebel region.

To make sure nobody starts accusing him of being a Russian spy, it looks like that guy from the negotiations was killed while out on a mission https://www.facebook.com/10006904288...4636692514425/

May he rest in peace.

Carl Hernandez3 said:In the breakaway region of Moldova—specifically looking at the tensions there—are there actually more ethnic Ukrainians or Russians living there?
Does anyone here really understand the situation on the ground, especially given that roughly 160,000 refugees have fled from Ukraine into Moldova?
I mean, I'm talking about the areas under government control versus those held by the rebel region.

It’s about fifty-fifty.

Yeah, they’re heading out through Transnistria. They can't just cut straight into the rest of Moldova, but honestly, hardly anyone sticks around there longer than they have to just to catch a ride toward Chisinau, if they aren't already trying to make it all the way to Romania. That spot in Transnistria—basically like the Palanca area—is nothing more than a transit camp.

Just so you get a real sense of how much of a nightmare it is to reach safety from Ukraine—this young Ukrainian guy, who lives with cerebral palsy, just made it to the Czech Republic with his mom and his dog. It took him a little over an hour to get settled once he crossed, but the whole operation lasted four days. From the moment they left Biti Cerkva (which is about a hundred miles south of Kyiv) until they hit Vsetín in the Czech Republic, they were on the move for 60 hours straight. If you know it’s usually a 7 or 8-hour drive from the border to Vsetín, you can do the math on the rest of that hellish journey.

The kid is actually a para-athlete representing Ukraine in boccia (that’s a sport for people with disabilities, though it’s slightly different from the game most Americans know, even if there are some similarities). This whole thing was kicked off by some folks in the Czech Republic; they reached out to all the boccia players in Ukraine, promising to handle transport and housing. They had help from buddies in Poland (who provided a medical van to ferry him through Ukraine because nothing else is safe right now) and Slovakia (who picked him up at the border and drove him into the Czech Republic). While everyone was scrambling to figure out how to get him out of Ukraine and to the border, there were at least 50 people worldwide working behind the scenes. Some guy from New Zealand was even hunting down contacts inside Ukraine through his friends.

At the same time, they’re working on pulling out another teammate of his. That guy is from Nikopol, so things are a bit more complicated there, but based on the latest word, it looks like they’ll pull it off successfully too.

Both of them were actually supposed to be in Chicago at the start of April for an official international tournament we're hosting (it counts toward the world rankings, you know). Whether they’ll actually have the heart to come, I guess we'll see, but they’ve been invited to attend on our dime, even if they just come as guests.

Speaking of para-sports, probably nobody is paying attention, but the Winter Paralympics kicked off today. After the first day, leading the medal count is Ukraine, sitting pretty with 3 gold, 3 silver, and one bronze.

For the statisticians out there...
A page documenting confirmed equipment losses...
Every single item listed is backed up by photographic evidence...
https://www.oryxspioenkop.com/2022/0...equipment.html

Glory to Ukraine...

casualskipper65 said:Just so you get a real sense of how much of a nightmare it is to reach safety from Ukraine—this young Ukrainian guy, who lives with cerebral palsy, just made it to the Czech Republic with his mom and his dog. It took him a little over an hour to get settled once he crossed, but the whole operation lasted four days. From the moment they left Biti Cerkva (which is about a hundred miles south of Kyiv) until they hit Vsetín in the Czech Republic, they were on the move for 60 hours straight. If you know it’s usually a 7 or 8-hour drive from the border to Vsetín, you can do the math on the rest of that hellish journey.

The kid is actually a para-athlete representing Ukraine in boccia (that’s a sport for people with disabilities, though it’s slightly different from the game most Americans know, even if there are some similarities). This whole thing was kicked off by some folks in the Czech Republic; they reached out to all the boccia players in Ukraine, promising to handle transport and housing. They had help from buddies in Poland (who provided a medical van to ferry him through Ukraine because nothing else is safe right now) and Slovakia (who picked him up at the border and drove him into the Czech Republic). While everyone was scrambling to figure out how to get him out of Ukraine and to the border, there were at least 50 people worldwide working behind the scenes. Some guy from New Zealand was even hunting down contacts inside Ukraine through his friends.

At the same time, they’re working on pulling out another teammate of his. That guy is from Nikopol, so things are a bit more complicated there, but based on the latest word, it looks like they’ll pull it off successfully too.

Both of them were actually supposed to be in Chicago at the start of April for an official international tournament we're hosting (it counts toward the world rankings, you know). Whether they’ll actually have the heart to come, I guess we'll see, but they’ve been invited to attend on our dime, even if they just come as guests.

Speaking of para-sports, probably nobody is paying attention, but the Winter Paralympics kicked off today. After the first day, leading the medal count is Ukraine, sitting pretty with 3 gold, 3 silver, and one bronze.

🙏

I really hope the Ukrainians didn't catch sight of that support rally held in Chicago
Man, it’s just demoralizing—it doesn't encourage anyone at all--honestly
Especially when you see people like Čićko and the rest of them

Did you see the chaos involving those 17 deaths?
It's why Americans get so worked up about this stuff—it just escalates until you have full-blown fan hooliganism style riots

Everything from south of the US all the way down to Chile is basically just a collection of failed states at this point

Man, you're talking about 17 deaths? Please. The cartels kill way more than that just during their random street shootouts

Paul Sanders5 said:Everything from south of the US all the way down to Chile is basically just a collection of failed states at this point

Man, you're talking about 17 deaths? Please. The cartels kill way more than that just during their random street shootouts

It’s almost as if South China were to suggest that what’s happening in Ukraine is just a typical weekend in some frozen northern city.

Paul Sanders5 said:Everything from south of the US all the way down to Chile is basically just a collection of failed states at this point

Man, you're talking about 17 deaths? Please. The cartels kill way more than that just during their random street shootouts

It really feels like there's a massive effort being made to turn Chile into one of those places, too.☕

Carl Hernandez3 said:Did you see the chaos involving those 17 deaths?
It's why Americans get so worked up about this stuff—it just escalates until you have full-blown fan hooliganism style riots

It’s hard to believe. I read the news report saying there were only 22 injured, but then I watched footage where people were clearly being killed. If it really ended with only 17 dead, I guess that's probably for the best.