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

Nicholas Watson said:So, what’s actually the real difference between what Putin is pulling in Ukraine and the mess the US made back in Syria and Iraq?

The USA stepped into Syria and Iraq under the banner of democracy and human rights. Besides, they only used laser-guided weaponry that can 100% distinguish between innocent civilians and actual terrorists, so there wasn't a single truly innocent victim over there.

Furthermore, we're talking about a part of the world populated by people of color, so their civilian casualties and suffering just don't matter.

Tyler Jones6 said:Basically, back on Thursday, the first day of the invasion, Russia burned through $10 billion just trying to prop up the Ruble—and that was before any of these sanctions actually kicked in. It makes me wonder how much they’re hemorrhaging daily now to defend their currency following the sanctions, and even more so regarding what they'll be spending next week once they get booted from SWIFT.

By the way, the Russians actually made it illegal to disclose the exact figures regarding Ruble defense—this started after the annexation of Crimea—so we're stuck waiting on market data and whatever they choose to leak, since the Central Bank of Russia isn't allowed to publish those numbers officially.

I can't help but wonder how much capital they poured into defending various "prestige" Russian stocks, effectively handing a massive windfall straight into the pockets of Western war profiteers.

First time I'm seeing a missile system like this... looks absolutely massive:

https://i.4cdn.org/pol/1645831562055.jpg

It’s got that Z marking on it, so it’s definitely Russian forces

I mean, honestly, even without any warheads, just the pure kinetic energy from an impact like that would probably cause some serious damage, I guess.

Nancy Gomez26 said:Perhaps it isn't the Russians themselves, but they are footing the bill now. They allowed a dictator to cling to power in The Kremlin. For most, replacing him felt too expensive; they feared the heavy hand of the state. It was easier to just stay quiet, play nice, and hope they wouldn't be noticed. Now, they are paying the blood tax for that choice. Because the man sitting in The Kremlin operates on a simple principle: his ideas are free, but you pay for them with your lives.

I couldn't agree more!
Especially regarding that massive intelligence empire... pay with your lives, since you're nothing more than a statistic to them anyway.

As long as the elite's grandkids are tucked away from the fighting with offshore accounts and Ivy League educations... everything is just fine.

Nicholas Watson said:So, what’s actually the real difference between what Putin is pulling in Ukraine and the mess the US made back in Syria and Iraq?

The US didn't declare Syria or Iraq as part of American territory, nor did they try to annex them or force them into some imaginary nation.

But sure, there's still a distinction.

You get what I'm saying, right? 🤣

Nicholas Watson said:So, what’s actually the real difference between what Putin is pulling in Ukraine and the mess the US made back in Syria and Iraq?

Honestly, there isn't much of one—both sides have been pretty terrible.

Come on, boys, go grab your tickets... get yourselves to the front lines so you can actually defend democracy and Ukraine in the real world... they need you, weapons are being handed out like candy, you get everything you need... just bring a little willpower and hit the road.

The Russians don't call for backup; the Russians get the job done. I guess your biggest grievance is that we haven't seen hundreds of thousands of casualties yet, unlike those "democratic interventions" in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Vietnam, and so on. Of course it hurts—it hurts because Crimea fell without a single shot being fired... and it hurts because in Donbas, not enough people have died fighting for the "democratic principles" of the Maidan crowd.

Get in line, the Democrats need you... I mean, it’s not like Biden is going to send his own son, right? His son is too busy being indebted to Russian energy interests.

The Russians aren't calling anyone for help.

And what was that you were saying? That they told the Ukrainians on Snake Island, "We won't surrender... we'll fight to the end"? They're already writing the history books. Is there any video of those Ukrainian soldiers surrendering on the island?🙂
Russians

Donna Harris11 said:First time I'm seeing a missile system like this... looks absolutely massive:

https://i.4cdn.org/pol/1645831562055.jpg

It’s got that Z marking on it, so it’s definitely Russian forces

I mean, honestly, even without any warheads, just the pure kinetic energy from an impact like that would probably cause some serious damage, I guess.

That’s a nuclear ICBM, but someone definitely Photoshopped that Z onto it.

Jeremy Lopez93 said:The US didn't declare Syria or Iraq as part of American territory, nor did they try to annex them or force them into some imaginary nation.

But sure, there's still a distinction.

You get what I'm saying, right? 🤣

Every single "collateral damage" victim in those regions would probably share your opinion—and your overwhelming enthusiasm.👍

Mark Robinson said:The official stance actually caught me off guard,

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FMe68TKW...jpg&name=large
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FMe68geX...jpg&name=large
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FMe68rfX...jpg&name=large

I guess we'll just have to wait and see how things play out.

As for those Mexican tabloids—I really won't even go there. It’s not just a low point; it’s like an abyss, and I’d rather not stare into it unless I absolutely have to.

Not me.

It honestly caught me off guard when Vučić and Dačić started bickering over Ukraine's territorial integrity. Of all the things for them to clash over, that was definitely not on my bingo card.

Maddox's political offspring is way more radical.

Quincy:

"You've got some nerve!" The fallout from the Vučić conflict. According to the New York Post, Ivica Dačić actually went into a National Security Council meeting and demanded they scrub entire paragraphs regarding support for Ukraine's territorial integrity. Seriously? Since when did we start editing history mid-meeting?

The latest report from the New York Post really lays it all out, doesn't it? We’re seeing more and more evidence that the current administration's approach to global security is basically just spinning wheels while the actual situation on the ground gets messier by the day. It makes you wonder: at what point does "strategic patience" just become a polite way of saying "we have no idea what we're doing"? They keep talking about long-term stability and diplomatic frameworks, but when you look at the actual impact of these policies, the results are pretty hard to stomach. Are we actually making progress, or are we just managing a slow-motion decline? It feels like the decision-makers are operating in a vacuum, completely detached from the reality of how these geopolitical shifts affect everyday people. Is anyone actually holding these institutions accountable for the lack of clear direction? It's getting harder to believe the official lines when the facts tell such a different story.

Nicholas Watson said:So, what’s actually the real difference between what Putin is pulling in Ukraine and the mess the US made back in Syria and Iraq?

Honestly, there isn't one. It's just more people caught in the crossfire and entire countries falling apart just because some superpower decided they wanted something.

If the Russians actually intended to cause total devastation in Ukraine, I suspect the casualty count would be significantly higher. It feels more like they're being cautious, almost like they're trying to minimize the loss of life.

As for these stories claiming Ukraine didn't see this coming? Pure fantasy. 😁 They knew exactly what was on the horizon and chose this path themselves. Maybe they just ignored the facts, especially since Putin has been explicitly warning about the consequences for months now, yet everyone seems determined to turn a deaf ear.

Anthony Hill5 said: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.

Hhahhhaa

Jeremy Lopez93 said:The US didn't declare Syria or Iraq as part of American territory, nor did they try to annex them or force them into some imaginary nation.

But sure, there's still a distinction.

You get what I'm saying, right? 🤣

How exactly would they annex them when there's an entire ocean and thousands of miles separating them?
Do you realize how baseless their invasion was—this whole intervention
where they manipulated intelligence and lied right to the face of the UN?
And for what? Natural resources and geopolitical interests, all masked as spreading democracy.

Sam Alvarez4 said:The nukes are only mentioned because some paranoid KGB relic thinks everyone is terrified of his arsenal... while conveniently forgetting everyone else has them too.

Of course I identify and empathize with Ukrainians. Absolutely. I’m certainly not going to pretend to be some online warrior who feels the exact same way about people in Afghanistan or Iraq versus Ukrainians. I don't, and I won't fake it.

The only time I react the same way is when it comes to children. Because they aren't Iraqi, or Afghan, or Ukrainian... they're just children.

Why don't you feel the same for Iraqis or Afghans as you do for Ukrainians? They are all just regular people suffering through war.

frozenraven22 said:The USA stepped into Syria and Iraq under the banner of democracy and human rights. Besides, they only used laser-guided weaponry that can 100% distinguish between innocent civilians and actual terrorists, so there wasn't a single truly innocent victim over there.

Furthermore, we're talking about a part of the world populated by people of color, so their civilian casualties and suffering just don't matter.

Maybe to some folks, but over there, they just call that collateral damage.

frozenraven22 said:Every single "collateral damage" victim in those regions would probably share your opinion—and your overwhelming enthusiasm.👍

It’s honestly just like the situation with Putin. 🤣

No matter how many "collateral damages" they throw up, Ukrainians are still Russian brothers at heart.

But only if we play by Putin's rules.

Maybe a slightly clearer shot of some massive rocket

https://i.4cdn.org/pol/1645830507563.png

From what I can see, there’s also a fire truck marked with a Z here

Is it actually possible that they're involving fire departments now too?

gentleharbor3 said:How exactly would they annex them when there's an entire ocean and thousands of miles separating them?
Do you realize how baseless their invasion was—this whole intervention
where they manipulated intelligence and lied right to the face of the UN?
And for what? Natural resources and geopolitical interests, all masked as spreading democracy.

Seriously, what the hell are the Russians doing in Libya and Syria anyway?

And what's Putin's "Wagner group" doing in the Central African Republic? Setting up communal farms?

At the end of the day, do you actually want a Russian humanitarian center62 miles coming out of Washington, D.C.?

Jeremy Lopez93 said:Not me.

It honestly caught me off guard when Vučić and Dačić started bickering over Ukraine's territorial integrity. Of all the things for them to clash over, that was definitely not on my bingo card.

Maddox's political offspring is way more radical.

Quincy:

"You've got some nerve!" The fallout from the Vučić conflict. According to the New York Post, Ivica Dačić actually went into a National Security Council meeting and demanded they scrub entire paragraphs regarding support for Ukraine's territorial integrity. Seriously? Since when did we start editing history mid-meeting?

The latest report from the New York Post really lays it all out, doesn't it? We’re seeing more and more evidence that the current administration's approach to global security is basically just spinning wheels while the actual situation on the ground gets messier by the day. It makes you wonder: at what point does "strategic patience" just become a polite way of saying "we have no idea what we're doing"? They keep talking about long-term stability and diplomatic frameworks, but when you look at the actual impact of these policies, the results are pretty hard to stomach. Are we actually making progress, or are we just managing a slow-motion decline? It feels like the decision-makers are operating in a vacuum, completely detached from the reality of how these geopolitical shifts affect everyday people. Is anyone actually holding these institutions accountable for the lack of clear direction? It's getting harder to believe the official lines when the facts tell such a different story.

They mentioned "territorial integrity" ten times—yet not a single journalist noticed they never once said "sovereignty."
Those are two very different concepts.

Given the kind of propaganda their media outlets churn out, it’s pretty obvious that this mental conditioning isn't changing anytime soon—not even in the next 50 years.