Ukraine

[KQ]

[Bunion 2020]

The unmitigated gall of talking down to Alina back in March after she asked him to speak out against the war should have been the apex of his deluded self-importance. Should have been.

Waters has been a royal Douche for a long time, he has recently elevated his game to Grand-master Douche.

[KQ]

Sting, a first-magnitude rock star from Britain 🇬🇧, interrupted his concert in Warsaw on Saturday evening to denounce russia’s war on Ukraine as “an absurdity based upon a lie” and warn that democracy is under attack worldwide.

Addressing the audience with assistance of popular Polish actor Maciej Stuhr acting as an interpreter, he said that democracy is “in grave danger of being lost unless we defend it.”

“The war in Ukraine is an absurdity based upon a lie. If we swallow that lie, the lie will eat us. The lie is terrified by the truth. The truth must be heard. And we must not lose this battle,” Sting said.

“The alternative to democracy is a prison, a prison of the mind. The alternative to democracy is violence, oppression, imprisonment, and silence,” the musician said, running his hand across his neck in a throat-cutting gesture.

After his speech he performed “Fragile,” whose lyrics include the words that “nothing comes from violence and nothing ever could.”

[bennymac]

Cono has a long history of being on the wrong side - a long history coupled with a short memory

[LongShortLong]

Peacenik enlightenment:
Level 1. Violence is bad, war is evil, we must not fight. We must disarm.
Level 2. Oppression is bad. Violence is bad, war is evil, we must not fight... unless there is no other option. We must have the strongest, most willing army. As a corollary, we must also have a strong diplomatic corp to generate other options.

I've reached level 2. I'm trying to figure out is Cono at level 1, or perhaps there is a level 3 I am not aware of?

[subtle plague]

Peacenik enlightenment:
Level 1. Violence is bad, war is evil, we must not fight. We must disarm.
Level 2. Oppression is bad. Violence is bad, war is evil, we must not fight... unless there is no other option. We must have the strongest, most willing army. As a corollary, we must also have a strong diplomatic corp to generate other options.

I've reached level 2. I'm trying to figure out is Cono at level 1, or perhaps there is a level 3 I am not aware of?

Level 3: nuke from Orbit and behead the remains!!!

[PB]

Level 4; give a shout for those smirking AI Overlords.

[Toadman]

There is another level. Level -1, human suffering and subjugation and appeasement to avoid war and death. Torture is allowed. Rape is encouraged. But at least you are alive, and that is better than death.

[PB]

Can't tell if serious.
I'm an optimist, though, so assuming you're not.

[LongShortLong]

It's a serious consideration. The Afghans seem to have chosen that approach. Or at least fate lined up such that they have it. And living as a Russian doesn't seem that terrible. I think most of them are not tortured. Some North Koreans prefer to go back after living in the west a few years. Although, I struggle with the idea there's any greater peace under dictatorship. The history of war and violence is filled with dictators. The modern dictatorship shows no sign it's changed. E.g. how many countries has Lord Poot invaded? Chechnya, Georgia, Ukraine, Syria, Ukraine again. Am I missing some? Do Belarus and Kazakhstan count?

So I'm going with not serious.

[subtle plague]

Definitely joking. I mean even rod wouldn't go that far. Unless...maybe if you could invest in Russian torture Tool manufacturers.

[jono]

Definitely joking. I mean even rod wouldn't go that far. Unless...maybe if you could invest in Russian torture Tool manufacturers.

Reminds me of the description as quoted in A Woman in Berlin from 1945, "Better a Russki on the belly than an Ami on the head." Gallows humor, the joke that's not joking?

[Brownski]

Has this been shared? I haven't been keeping up with the thread. North Korea wants in apparently.

https://news.yahoo.com/north-korea-o...140833833.html

[Toadman]

Can't tell if serious.
I'm an optimist, though, so assuming you're not.

Sarcasm.

And AI's non-apology apology is just so much bullshit.

https://www.reuters.com/world/europe...rce=reddit.com

"Amnesty International deeply regrets the distress and anger that our press release on the Ukrainian military's fighting tactics has caused," it said in an email to Reuters.

"Amnesty International’s priority in this and in any conflict is ensuring that civilians are protected. Indeed, this was our sole objective when releasing this latest piece of research. While we fully stand by our findings, we regret the pain caused."

[MultiVerse]

Amnesty saying their priority "is ensuring that civilians are protected" makes it a deeply cynical apology because they're helping Russia legitimize attacks on Ukrainian civilian infrastructure. They've provided cover for Russians to attack civilians. It's something the Russian propaganda apparatus is already putting to use:



There are no legitimate targets in Ukraine. Not for Russia.

[PB]

Wait ..... by AI I meant Artificial Intelligence or Alien Invaders. Much more predictable and fair than Amnesty Intergalactic.

[LongShortLong]

Question about Russian gas. Do they have gas to export?
There's much talking head chatter about the severe reduction in Russian gas exports to Europe, and potential shutoff of same. E.g. this DW report https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B_st...TQCq4m&index=6

The general opinion seems to be that Russia is artificially shorting the gas supply to make Europeans cold and pressure European politicians. What if Russia isn't shorting Europe so much as protecting its domestic distribution? The great Google (sloppy research) tells me Russia consumes 475 bcm of gas. They also have allies and contracts with non-hostile countries who they would supply first. They can store about 75 bcm. With access to western goods sanctioned, how much natural gas can Russia produce and distribute? Everything from the gas wells, to compressor stations, to distribution networks very likely relies on western supplies, equipment, and technology to remain operational.

In 2021 Russia produced 762 bcm of natural gas, and exported approximately 210 bcm via pipeline. Exports + use /= production, but it's close enough for argument. If the cutoff of western goods reduces production by 30% (234 bcm), then Russia has no spare gas to export. It seems reasonable that this could be the case. I don't know how often a compressor turbine needs service, but it seems totally reasonable the service interval is less than three years, perhaps much less than three years. These are high tech machines, meaning Russia doesn't make them, and likely can't service them. So, a 3 year service interval means the loss of 1/3 of capacity by Feb 2023. Russia may not have spare gas to export.

Similarly a gas field needs new exploration and new wells, and existing wells need various procedures performed to keep them producing. Probably dependent on western tech, consultants, supplies, etc. If you don't or can't do this, production declines. There's probably other parts of Russia's gas system that needs continuous access to western technology.

[Harry]

Snitches get stitches.

https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2022/08/6/7362172/


Sent from my iPad using TGR Forums

[J. Barron DeJong]

UKR telegraphs loudly for weeks that they’re going to go on the offensive in Kherson, drawing in a mass of Russian troops, then destroys the bridges RU needs to use to supply them all:



https://twitter.com/phillipspobrien/...0GTfXzgUoBTU9w

[summit]

That could allow UKR to isolate and destroy the Russian forces, but ultimately UKR needs to actually cross... no bridges how will UKR do that? I don't think they have many bridging units? Or do they?

[Toadman]

Question about Russian gas. Do they have gas to export?
There's much talking head chatter about the severe reduction in Russian gas exports to Europe, and potential shutoff of same. E.g. this DW report https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B_st...TQCq4m&index=6

The general opinion seems to be that Russia is artificially shorting the gas supply to make Europeans cold and pressure European politicians. What if Russia isn't shorting Europe so much as protecting its domestic distribution? The great Google (sloppy research) tells me Russia consumes 475 bcm of gas. They also have allies and contracts with non-hostile countries who they would supply first. They can store about 75 bcm. With access to western goods sanctioned, how much natural gas can Russia produce and distribute? Everything from the gas wells, to compressor stations, to distribution networks very likely relies on western supplies, equipment, and technology to remain operational.

In 2021 Russia produced 762 bcm of natural gas, and exported approximately 210 bcm via pipeline. Exports + use /= production, but it's close enough for argument. If the cutoff of western goods reduces production by 30% (234 bcm), then Russia has no spare gas to export. It seems reasonable that this could be the case. I don't know how often a compressor turbine needs service, but it seems totally reasonable the service interval is less than three years, perhaps much less than three years. These are high tech machines, meaning Russia doesn't make them, and likely can't service them. So, a 3 year service interval means the loss of 1/3 of capacity by Feb 2023. Russia may not have spare gas to export.

Similarly a gas field needs new exploration and new wells, and existing wells need various procedures performed to keep them producing. Probably dependent on western tech, consultants, supplies, etc. If you don't or can't do this, production declines. There's probably other parts of Russia's gas system that needs continuous access to western technology.

Smart move for Europe that is dependent on Soviet gas is to ramp up military assistance to UA to end the war, or force Putin's hand. But Euro politicians seem to be slow walking military assistance begrudgingly adding a few tanks here, a few mobile artillery systems there.

The grift in the Russian oil biz has got to be off the hook. They probably need to spend twice as much rubles for half the bang for the buck you would get in the Western World or ME.

[neufox47]

That could allow UKR to isolate and destroy the Russian forces, but ultimately UKR needs to actually cross...

Or do they?

[jono]

That could allow UKR to isolate and destroy the Russian forces, but ultimately UKR needs to actually cross... no bridges how will UKR do that? I don't think they have many bridging units? Or do they?

Per Pravda Ukraine, they actually hit the equipment next to the bridge that had been repairing it. The Russians had expected to open it by the end of the week and the structure did not get any more damage. Maybe the Russians wind up being the ones to actually blow the structure by the end of this, but of course if they do that means they've accepted a massive loss on the other side.

[Percy Rideout]

Pootin has invested heavily in building out the lever of nationalist media to get his talking points out. People hear them from different sources and don't always realize that's because those sources are all shilling the same stew. It seems obvious, but denial is a helluva drug.

Did you just describe the current state of affairs in American media?

If all your talking points mesh perfectly with what CNN is bleating on about, then maybe, just maybe you are a victim of the propaganda machine that is alive and well here in America.

[J. Barron DeJong]

Did you just describe the current state of affairs in American media?

If all your talking points mesh perfectly with what CNN is bleating on about, then maybe, just maybe you are a victim of the propaganda machine that is alive and well here in America.

JFC. Are you really comparing CNN to Russian state media?