"All of Vlad's forces and all of Vlad's men, are out to put Humpty together again." (2 Viewers)

[Admiral Beez]

View: https://twitter.com/i/status/1654397764569104384

confirmed - bravely defecting right now.... at least this one who menaged to survive...

Don't you wish AFU HIMARS had the coordinates for this video?

 

[Thumpalumpacus]

Maybe he just likes rainbows.

Never thought of it that way. I logged in today to see B blueskies having given me ten more "optimistics" but not one word of comment. I think he thinks he's trolling. It's a shame he's so afraid of simple discussion.

 

[michaelmaltby]

My thoughts exactly.
We're in the west can brag all we want, but fact is that few of the wars we fought gave the desired results. You can fill in the examples yourself. Of course the same is true for the Russians. I think any escalation of the current war will be a loss for both sides. There will be no clear winner.

Any settlement of the war until the Putorcracy has been schooled on the new world's rules of acceptance will be a huge mistake, IMO ... as was the failure to forsee the need for a 'victory plan' in 1918-19.

 

[Admiral Beez]

I remain surprised that with the exception of three ex-RN Sea Kings there have been zero NATO-designed combat aircraft provided to Ukraine. Certainly there's the pressing matter of low availability of useful aircraft outside of NATO's own requirements, along with issues with logistics, support, spares and training of ground and air crews. But nothing, no NATO-designed aircraft whatsoever after nearly fifteen months since the war began?

 

[GrauGeist]

As an aside, I dig and respect the Japanese putting another carrier in the water named Kaga. Much as the original may have hurt us, I like the fact that they're courting their own history.

The JS Kaga and JS Izumo are named for provinces, as their earlier namesake were.
Japan has a tradition of naming their capital warships after provinces much like the USN used to name their warships after states or capitols of a state.

 

[Dimlee]

How much is the price???

Allegedly, the Russian MoD paid 20,000 EUR per Shahed 136 last year.

 

[Dimlee]

On a lighter note.

View: https://twitter.com/DefenceU/status/1654479297128562691

 

[Admiral Beez]

On a lighter note.

View: https://twitter.com/DefenceU/status/1654479297128562691

They weren't saying this the 1850s when Queen Victoria was on the throne. I expect they were cursing her name in Odessa and Sevastopol. But my enemy's enemy is my friend.

Crimean War - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Warspite63]

You're so much more than that...you're OUR dipshit on the internet.

And I'm just your wingman!

As Shakespeare said in Henry V: 'From this day to the ending of the world, But we in it shall be remembered; We few, we happy few, we band of dipshits. Shall be my brother' (Possibly edited. A bit)

 

[buffnut453]

I'd hoped for a little more content and analysis in this video...but probably still worth a watch. Title is "What's it like in Russia 14 months after Ukraine invasion":


View: https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-europe-65454203

 

[buffnut453]

At the Black Sea Summit in Turkey, Ukrainian protesters held their flag behind the Russian representative. Another Russian grabbed one of the flags...and THAT"s how the fight started!

FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!!

Ukrainian delegate punches Russian rep who grabbed flag amid tense talks in Turkey over grain deal

"Paws off our flag, paws off Ukraine," Ukrainian delegate Oleksandr Marikovski said after the scuffle at meetings in Ankara, Turkey.

www.cbsnews.com

 

[drgondog]

While my initial assumption was "too bad they didn't succeed", there is a possibility the whole thing could have been a false flag.

After all, it would allow all of the following

1. Escalation in Ukraine
2. Justification to crack down on dissidents at home
3. Justification to engage in increased censorship

An eruption like Yellowstone would probably affect everybody in the Northern Hemisphere (and possibly the Southern). In an ironic twist, the Russians had actually proposed firing an ICBM at Yellowstone to set it off a couple years back.

a Yellowstone eruption would be mass extinction event globally - similar to Toba 70,000 years ago. We would be distinctive only by the magnitude of ash deposits.

 

[Thumpalumpacus]

The JS Kaga and JS Izumo are named for provinces, as their earlier namesake were.
Japan has a tradition of naming their capital warships after provinces much like the USN used to name their warships after states or capitols of a state.

Oh, I get it; I understand their naming conventions. It's just that they know the power of a name. I don't think they just pulled it out of a hat; they chose it precisely to invoke the memory of Kido Butai, I bet.

 

[Thumpalumpacus]

As Shakespeare said in Henry V: 'From this day to the ending of the world, But we in it shall be remembered; We few, we happy few, we band of dipshits. Shall be my brother' (Possibly edited. A bit)

Hear, hear!

<hoists a mug of Fireman's #4>

 

[Thumpalumpacus]

May 5 (Reuters) - Russia's main mercenary group announced plans on Friday to pull out of the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, but Ukraine said the group's fighters were reinforcing positions to try to seize it before Russia marks victory in World War Two day next week.

Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin said his men had been starved of ammunition and would expect the army to take their place in Bakhmut next Wednesday, jeopardising what has long been Russia's main target in its attempt to carve up its neighbour.


"My lads will not suffer useless and unjustified losses in Bakhmut without ammunition," Prigozhin said in a video accompanying a written withdrawal announcement addressed to the head of general staff, the defence ministry, and President Vladimir Putin as supreme commander.

The announcement said "bureaucrats" had held back supplies despite knowing that Wagner's target date to capture the city was May 9, when Moscow holds its World War Two Victory Day.

"If, because of your petty jealousy, you do not want to give the Russian people the victory of taking Bakhmut, that's your problem," Prigozhin added in the video.

Russian mercenaries vow to quit Bakhmut, Ukraine says they are piling in

Russia's main mercenary group announced plans on Friday to pull out of the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, but Ukraine said the group's fighters were reinforcing positions to try to seize it before Russia marks victory in World War Two day next week.

www.reuters.com

I guess the on-again/off-again is off ... again.

 

[GrauGeist]

Oh, I get it; I understand their naming conventions. It's just that they know the power of a name. I don't think they just pulled it out of a hat; they chose it precisely to invoke the memory of Kido Butai, I bet.

The JS Izumo certainly has large shoes to fill, as the IJN Izumo was an armored cruiser that served the IJN from the 1890's through the 1940's.

As far as thr JS Kaga goes, I can see it being named to honor the IJN Kaga carrier. Both the Kaga and Akagi were two of Japan's greatest carriers.

 

[Thumpalumpacus]

The JS Izumo certainly has large shoes to fill, as the IJN Izumo was an armored cruiser that served the IJN from the 1890's through the 1940's.

As far as thr JS Kaga goes, I can see it being named to honor the IJN Kaga carrier. Both the Kaga and Akagi were two of Japan's greatest carriers.

You're right that it's name is part of the geographical system the Japanese have historically used for large surface-warfare ships -- cruisers, battle-cruisers, and BBs alike (Kaga being a BB conversion, the naming convention still holds).

But I don't for a moment doubt that they are also wanting to channel the wartime Kaga's spirit. All navies like that sort of thing, and Kaga gave what must be inspiring wartime service between 1937 and its demise in 1942.

Thanks too for mentioning Izumo's history, I'll go read its wikipage and see if there's enough to spark further digging. This is why I love this forum, it kickstarts so many interesting dives for me.

 

[Zipper730]

a Yellowstone eruption would be mass extinction event globally

Yeah it would be absolutely devastating: It would have disastrous effects on weather patterns, plant and animal life and even if we invaded Russia, it'd be irrelevant.
BTW: The idea the Russians had claimed about nuking Yellowstone was that it would set in motion a positive feedback loop that would activate all volcanoes along the Pacific Rim. The thing is that Russia has a side on the Pacific Ocean which would mean they'd be pulverized too even if we didn't fire back (and we could definitely get our weapons off before theirs hit). They might as well just blow their own brains out.

 

[Thumpalumpacus]

BTW: The idea the Russians had claimed about nuking Yellowstone was that it would set in motion a positive feedback loop that would activate all volcanoes along the Pacific Rim. The thing is that Russia has a side on the Pacific Ocean which would mean they'd be pulverized too even if we didn't fire back (and we could definitely get our weapons off before theirs hit). They might as well just blow their own brains out.

... not to mention that Yellowstone is likely too far away to have such a direct effect. The nearest Ring-of-Fire volcanoes in Washington state are 550-650 miles away.

 

[Zipper730]

I'm going to say it was Goebbels.

Actually the Big Lie concept was coined by Adolf Hitler: The idea was to tell a lie so bold and audacious that nobody could possibly believe somebody would have the impudence to distort the truth so boldly. He was claiming that mendacity and a proclivity for the big lie was a common behavior intrinsic to Jewish people.

Goebbels or not...

"If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie. It thus becomes vitally important for the State to use all of its powers to repress dissent, for the truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, the truth is the greatest enemy of the State."

Generally censorship and propaganda go together...