The start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine (Part 1)

velvetcyclist95 said:In Russia, they aren't even allowed to call it a war

https://twitter.com/maxseddon/status...772551682?s=21

It reminds me of Facebook and Twitter.

Betty Carter3 said:It still hasn't clicked for you that election results don't mean a damn thing. People vote for whatever is put in front of them—not necessarily what they actually want.

I suggest you compile these profound insights into a book, or perhaps a lecture series. Political science departments would be absolutely desperate for such material...

View on twitter
Look at this.
https://twitter.com/RoyalIntel_/stat...83937022681091
Just more of the same stuff floating around the timeline.
https://twitter.com/theghostofkyiv_/...45427691491329

Cleveland

swiftjackal11 said:Three days ago, they were stuttering in fear before Vladimir Putin. Now, it’s only when they see things aren't going to plan that they start making noise.

When even the inner circle starts trembling, you know exactly what kind of situation we're facing. It also tells you everything you need to know about the quality of their intelligence and their ability to execute any actual duties. Fear is the most reliable barometer for the atmosphere within an administration.

lukarak said:They're on the hunt.

Don't sleep on the National Guard.
I highly doubt some paratroopers would stand a chance at rolling into small towns and playing hero in someone else's backyard.

Let’s keep this going. It’s mostly just keyboard warriors slamming their keys, hoping some big tech firm notices their "hard work" and hands them a job—kind of like how Biden's son gets a paycheck on the taxpayer's dime. ☕

People claim they're defending themselves with nothing but slingshots, conveniently forgetting the West has been funneling weapons and pushing them into this war for eight years. But look at how much help those geniuses got in Syria; all that gear didn't do much. So why bother arming them? We're out here playing protectors for "our" Ukrainians, while acting like the world's most loudmouthed democrats.

Russia is always one step ahead. Right now, they're basically giving the Ukrainians a chance to back off on their own. Depending on how they play it, the response is coming.
Either Ukraine finds freedom through negotiations, or Russia will provide it via intervention.

casualhound42 said:The Russians couldn't care less about how long this war drags on—it's not like they're punching a clock. They’re fully aware the West isn't going to step in.

If that were true, they'd still be stuck in Afghanistan.

William Anderson5 said:As far as I can tell, Azov isn't part of those Nazi Russian forces—they're actually fighting against them.

Wait, "Nazi Russian forces"? Why not just call them communist forces then?
Their whole end goal is bringing back the USSR, not building some Third Reich nightmare.

Germany and the shipment of helmets 😂

gentleharbor3 said:I agree with you.
Once Russia launched its aggression, the damage was already done.
We all remember back in 2014 when they were discussing cooperation models,
only for Nuland to block the European Union initiative and basically say "fuck the European Union."
That’s been the playbook for the last eight years.
The Ukrainians were fed false hope that they had our backing,
encouraging them to poke the Russian bear because of the whole "fuck the European Union," "fuck Russia" mentality.
Instead of being pragmatic,
leveraging their position to maintain neutrality,
their "Western partners" egging them on to play hero against a nuclear superpower.
Reading about a "right to NATO" is laughable.
You have as many rights as you have power. Even 30 million Kurds have a "right to a state,"
but they don't have the power to actually grab one.

Exactly.
Ukraine is riddled with corruption and run by foreign players; if they had ever prioritized their own interests, we wouldn't be in this mess.
They’ve had a disaster brewing on their eastern border for eight years. For eight years, instead of fixing it, these idiots danced around with Western players, only to act shocked when they get screwed over. It's obvious: nobody is going to go to war against Russia. That would mean World War III. Where was the common sense in counting on "Western partner" aid?
Countless people died on that eastern border, but everyone pretended it wasn't happening.
They spent eight years antagonizing Putin because they thought he was toothless. Well, turns out he isn't. He had more than enough time to gear up.
Look, politics is the art of the possible. They should have settled that local issue, forgotten about NATO, and moved forward.
But no. So here we are. It's much easier to just blame Putin for everything. It’s classic Murphy’s Law: finding a convenient scapegoat is always easier than actually solving the problem. 😁

edit: I feel for the people. They aren't to blame here. They were just sold out by their own incompetent government.

https://www.reddit.com/r/CombatFoota..._near_New_Orleans/

Just some footage of a destroyed and abandoned Russian convoy out near New Orleans.

Nicholas Watson said:Wait, "Nazi Russian forces"? Why not just call them communist forces then?
Their whole end goal is bringing back the USSR, not building some Third Reich nightmare.

Just take a look at those Russian militias running around the Luhansk and Donetsk areas.
It’s basically a messy cocktail of old-school USSR leftovers and hardcore Russian ultranationalism.

casualhound42 said:The Russians couldn't care less about how long this war drags on—it's not like they're punching a clock. They’re fully aware the West isn't going to step in.

The longer this drags on, the better. Sanctions bite harder, military costs climb, casualties rise, and domestic resentment toward politicians builds. It also gives the defenders more time to organize and arm themselves once they finally get external support. If things go south, it could end up looking like what happened in Vietnam. A superior military wants a quick victory to wrap things up, but an inferior one wins by dragging it out—forcing the superior force to bleed resources and discipline just by being there.

The Russian weaklings are actually claiming that Ukrainians are bombing them with forbidden calibers 🤣

The Ukrainian military targeted the direction of Donetsk using MLRS, along with 152mm and 122mm artillery. They reportedly fired a total of about 50 prohibited caliber shells, as well as 28 rounds from 120mm mortars.

Is this not absolutely grotesque, even by the pathetic standards of Russian propaganda?

I missed this yesterday.

Following their surrender, 80 Ukrainians from Snake Island were evacuated and transferred to Sevastopol.

https://russian.rt.com/russia/news/9...ostrov-zmeinyi

Absolute amateurish Goebbels-style nonsense.

Justin Kern67 said:This simply serves as further evidence of how the Russians act as brutal occupiers, aggressors, and killers.

No, they aren't.
But the paranoid KGB types in the Kremlin certainly are. Just like everyone serving them—driven by either pure fear or simple greed...

Andrew Martinez8 said:🤣

Bill Maher compares Russia to Kanye, Ukraine to Kim Kardashian, and NATO to Pete Davidson. 🤣

To me, though, Russia gives off total abusive partner vibes—the kind of person who refuses to accept they're actually a nightmare and just keeps projecting all their faults onto everyone else. If Russia were a person, it would definitely need some serious professional help.

Think of it like this: Russia is the father, and Ukraine is the stepmother to the kids (Donetsk, Luhansk, and Crimea) who keeps beating on two of them (Donetsk and Luhansk) with help from her various lovers (the USA, plus all those other flings from the EU, Turkey, NATO...).

That third kid (Crimea) actually managed to run back to his dad in time, and now the father is rolling up his sleeves because Ukraine isn't stepping up to her parental duties. Plus, she won't honor that agreement made over at neighbor Alexander's place (Minsk2)—the deal where she promised to stop hitting the Donbas and stop bringing all those boyfriends into the house to help her bully them. ☕

Look, I know all these analogies are totally ridiculous, but hey, let me have my fun for a second...

One thing is absolutely certain: the longer this invasion drags on, the worse things look for Putin and his grip on power.

The situation on the ground just isn't going their way. Progress is sluggish at best. Even if the casualty counts being tossed around online are inflated by half, it’s still far too many losses for the Russian side to swallow—it’s a total disaster for their overall morale.

On the flip side, I honestly can't wrap my head around one specific detail: how did the Ukrainians leave such a massive, wide-open gap along the border near the northern frontier? It’s basically an open invitation for a tank blitz and a rapid advance. Where are the anti-tank trenches? Why does it look like the Russians are just strolling across bridges like they're out for a Sunday stroll?

Americans and Britons have been consistently feeding them intel on Russian troop movements, yet somehow it feels like the Ukrainian leadership stopped trusting Westerners and just stayed paralyzed by fear of the Russians instead.

loneviper4 said:Russia has already gotten their hands on those British anti-tank systems. Honestly? Serves them right...

The more anti-tank missiles the Ukrainians send toward the Russians, the better. Let them take ownership of the hardware.

Andrew Martinez8 said:Germany and the shipment of helmets 😂

They’re being totally out of line about everything... just calculated moves.
We should be sending them anti-air tech to knock those helicopters out of the sky instead.

Betty Carter3 said:People are slamming Vučić for staying silent.

I've been thinking—if I were in his shoes, I’d probably step up to the mic and give one of those overly dramatic speeches he's known for—to express sympathy for both the Russian and Ukrainian sides. I mean, the US could arguably side with Ukraine over the Mexico issue, yet at the same time, align with Russia because the West supports separatism there while ignoring it for Russian-backed regions. It's complicated, I guess.

Then, I'd just invite both parties to come to Mexico City for peace talks.
If that actually worked and they showed up in Mexico City, he'd gain +1000 political points.

Well, he did react last night by refusing to impose sanctions on Russia.
The interesting part is that it also took Israel a relatively long time
to finally speak up and condemn
the Russian aggression under pressure from the West.
There was even some justification being thrown around that ultimately boils down
to what seems to be the only thing that matters in politics: self-interest.