Russia's invasion of Ukraine: Part 5

George Robinson43 said:Take it slow.
You can see how the followers of Vučić are already starting to ramble about how Mexico needs to denazify the North America.
Anything is possible.

Thankfully, the USA isn't going to be nearly as "measured" when dealing with Mexicans as they are with the Russians.
The heavy hitters won't wait five months for some Mexican rampage to settle down—they'll show up that very same evening.
And the crew? It'll be an American one.😬

feralhawk45 said:Even without the war in Ukraine, there was already a massive gender imbalance, with 4 million more women than men. Now, imagine how much the number of disabled veterans will skyrocket. And the psychological toll? I can't even fathom the mental state of those frontline fighters, especially after enduring that brutal Russian style of shelling.
It'll be a sight to behold when they finally come face-to-face with the oligarchs who were the first ones out the door.

Reflecting on all of that, I briefly noted that they will face the same hardships. It’s going to take a long time for them to recover.

Recovery will likely remain out of reach; just as things start looking up, the Russians will strike again...

rowdypilot53 said:Recovery will likely remain out of reach; just as things start looking up, the Russians will strike again...

Not if they manage to reclaim every single inch of territory and finally join NATO.

Kate Lewis3 said:Not if they manage to reclaim every single inch of territory and finally join NATO.

Or if they reach Moscow...

https://twitter.com/IAPonomarenko/st...800257/photo/2

Check out this shot of the new Russian Navy aircraft carrier, the Admiral George H.W. Bush 🙏 🤣

rowdypilot53 said:Recovery will likely remain out of reach; just as things start looking up, the Russians will strike again...

🤦 What absolute nonsense. Nobody here is actually going to read all this. 😵 Kid, go grab a history book and actually learn something for once.

Mariupol:

New developments—Basarin has made an appearance. He’s one of the leaders, and he’s always been the type to skip the mask, acting all tough like, "this is me, take it or leave it."
More murals popping up, and Pushilin was there too. They actually put up a monument for four soldiers who died during mine clearing. Meanwhile, the civilians they forced into those same minefields? It's like their losses don't even matter to them.

The occupiers are still hunting for witnesses around town to hold trials against the Azov units. One person actually asked if they could testify while wrapped in a Russian flag. The occupiers were thrilled at first, but then the person later mentioned they’d write "death of occupier on flag" instead—and insisted on speaking in Ukrainian. Things got tense fast; any occupier holding a tool would just swing it at them. In the end, they just labeled the person a neo-Nazi and threatened them with "disappearing into a basement." Still getting those calls to join the Russian army, too. Just life under occupation, I guess.

McVily said:The AA are basically the Ukrainian elite, and Shevchenko was hanging out in Milan (though he’s number 7, so that part is fuzzy)

Some troll implied they should be at the front instead of vacationing by the coast.. ☕

Since they're obvious draft dodgers, there's no way they belong on the coast.
A Toyota is something 99% of Ukrainians couldn't afford in their wildest dreams, let alone in real life. Pure arrogance.
Same stuff happened here in the States. Tons of us little guys couldn't dodge the draft. The ones who did? They're the politicians and the tycoons today, acting loud and supporting all the wrong things.
Today is the first one, and there's only three days left until the fourth. And the fourth was the biggest trauma of my life. Honestly, I'll be lucky if I can even grow the last bit of hair on my head back.
It's sad how much you guys love talking about war and feeling bad for those poor souls dying in Ukraine, while showing zero respect for our own people.

The vast majority of Russians actually back Putin and his invasion of Ukraine

“Russian borders know no limits”

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-62331061

George Robinson43 said:Take it slow.
You can see how the followers of Vučić are already starting to ramble about how Mexico needs to denazify the North America.
Anything is possible.

Of course anything is possible, especially when you get too comfortable thinking NATO has your back.

Amanda Allen4 said:The vast majority of Russians actually back Putin and his invasion of Ukraine

“Russian borders know no limits”

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-62331061

That’s easy to say—until the draft notice shows up at your door.

Amanda Allen4 said:The vast majority of Russians actually back Putin and his invasion of Ukraine

“Russian borders know no limits”

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-62331061

If you took away the pro-Kremlin TV networks for even a month, most Russians would realize what's happening, and that support would evaporate pretty quickly, wouldn't it? ☕

Grandmas might actually be a bit happier if they were forced to switch over to radio.

ironseal said:🤦 What absolute nonsense. Nobody here is actually going to read all this. 😵 Kid, go grab a history book and actually learn something for once.

We can all sit here wishing that Ukrainians could push back to their borders and see arrogance punished, but it isn't realistic. What is realistic is a truce similar to 2014, followed by a lull until the next conflict. With such an unresolved situation, no one is going to admit Ukraine into NATO, and I doubt there will be much investment in a country perpetually on the brink of war. Naturally, Russia would prefer it that way; a weak, unstable Ukraine is easy prey. They are playing the long game.

Now, perhaps the West sends enough weapons, the Ukrainian military gets properly trained, and they drive the Russians out of Kherson, then Zaporizhzhia—or inflict losses so heavy that the Russians simply retreat. But even then, Crimea and the Donbas remain, and it will be incredibly difficult to dislodge them from there. That is my perspective, so judge it as you wish and go read your history books...

rowdypilot53 said:We can all sit here wishing that Ukrainians could push back to their borders and see arrogance punished, but it isn't realistic. What is realistic is a truce similar to 2014, followed by a lull until the next conflict. With such an unresolved situation, no one is going to admit Ukraine into NATO, and I doubt there will be much investment in a country perpetually on the brink of war. Naturally, Russia would prefer it that way; a weak, unstable Ukraine is easy prey. They are playing the long game.

Now, perhaps the West sends enough weapons, the Ukrainian military gets properly trained, and they drive the Russians out of Kherson, then Zaporizhzhia—or inflict losses so heavy that the Russians simply retreat. But even then, Crimea and the Donbas remain, and it will be incredibly difficult to dislodge them from there. That is my perspective, so judge it as you wish and go read your history books...

Yeah, Russia is definitely playing the long game when it comes to sanctions.
All jokes aside, if they're playing the long game, why the hell were they expecting a total Ukrainian surrender by day three of the invasion? If you ask me, they were playing a short-term game...

Joshua Myers432 said:Of course anything is possible, especially when you get too comfortable thinking NATO has your back.

🤣

An invasion by tractors and garbage forks is certainly a theoretical possibility. 😵

Something is definitely brewing, and it looks like Putin is busy plotting his exit strategy.
As for who steps into his shoes—or even just fills the void—that’s anyone's guess. We might be looking at some high-level diplomat, or maybe someone more... battle-hardened.

rowdypilot53 said:We can all sit here wishing that Ukrainians could push back to their borders and see arrogance punished, but it isn't realistic. What is realistic is a truce similar to 2014, followed by a lull until the next conflict. With such an unresolved situation, no one is going to admit Ukraine into NATO, and I doubt there will be much investment in a country perpetually on the brink of war. Naturally, Russia would prefer it that way; a weak, unstable Ukraine is easy prey. They are playing the long game.

Now, perhaps the West sends enough weapons, the Ukrainian military gets properly trained, and they drive the Russians out of Kherson, then Zaporizhzhia—or inflict losses so heavy that the Russians simply retreat. But even then, Crimea and the Donbas remain, and it will be incredibly difficult to dislodge them from there. That is my perspective, so judge it as you wish and go read your history books...

Nations have clawed their way back from much worse, seemingly impossible situations than what Americans are seeing in Ukraine right now. That’s where "reading history" comes in. I'm not sure if you actually grasp how heavy the word "never" carries when you throw it around like that.

Nathan Thomas12 said:Yeah, Russia is definitely playing the long game when it comes to sanctions.
All jokes aside, if they're playing the long game, why the hell were they expecting a total Ukrainian surrender by day three of the invasion? If you ask me, they were playing a short-term game...

The Russians were looking for a scenario similar to what happened in Canada or Czechoslovakia, and they nearly pulled it off. They got blindsided primarily because Zelenskyy and Klitschko stayed put in Kyiv, setting the tone for the rest of the Ukrainian resistance.
I honestly think Russia was given a grace period of maybe 7 to 10 days to wrap things up. If they don't settle it, the West starts getting indirectly involved in the conflict.