28 Feb 6:24 AM GMT. Russia has captured the southern cities of Prymorsk & Mykhailivka while the port city of Berdiansk is about to fall. Cities like Dniprorudne, Vasylivka, Tokmak, Orkhiv& Polohy are under siege in the south. Kherson and Mykolaiv are giving tough resistance.
War Notes
In the era of gaslighting, where the official organs of news have become a funhouse mirror maze, finding any useful information on the great issues of the day as they unfold becomes a chore.
By way of IFF, here is a guide to markings on Russian vehicles:
The Letter “V” represents the Russian Naval Infantry (Marines)
The Letter “Z” represents units in the Eastern Military District
The Letter “Z” in a square represents the Southern Military District (Crimea)
The Letter “O” represents units from Belarus
The Russians sent a lot of old machines forward. Cannon fodder? You be the judge. 380 civilian deaths in a war 5 days old against a million-man Russian onslaught seems very small. It’s almost as though the Russians are being careful with civilians – not classic Russian behavior when it comes to war. Some suggest that the Russians have run out of artillery shells. I’d like to sell those people swampland.
The Russian military is bombarding Ukraine’s second-largest city with rocket strikes, as Moscow’s campaign against its neighbor continues into its fifth day.
At least 11 people were reportedly killed and an unknown number wounded in a day of bombing in the eastern city of Kharkiv.
Whatever we may think of Putin, he is no Stalin. He has not murdered millions or created a gulag archipelago. Nor is he “irrational,” as some pundits rail. He does not want a war with the USA, which would be worse than ruinous to us both. Putin is a Russian nationalist, patriot, traditionalist, and a cold and ruthless realist looking out to preserve Russia as the great and respected power it once was and he believes it can be again.
With Jo and Ho running the USA, a window of opportunity presented itself and Putin went for it. Standing in Putin’s shoes, “why not?” America neutered itself. Its military goals include making its men into women and women into men – I’m sure that Vlad shudders at that lethality.
Join Now… Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has created “The International Legion of Territorial Defense of Ukraine.” Think of it as a Ukrainian Foreign Legion – sort of.
Apply to the Embassy of Ukraine in your country with the intention of joining the Foreign Legion of Territorial Defense of Ukraine (ask a military diplomat or consul for details). Applicants can visit the Embassy in person, call or send an email to start the process.
Get your documents in order. This includes an ID, a passport to travel abroad, documents confirming military service or work with law enforcement agencies and participation in combat.
Arrive at the embassy with documents for an interview with the defense attaché and the settlement of any visa issues with the consul.
Write an application for enlistment in the Territorial Defense of the Armed Forces of Ukraine for military service under a contract on a voluntary basis. (This is in addition to Step 1.)
Receive instructions on how to arrive in Ukraine and what to bring. Military clothing, equipment, helmet, body armor, combat gloves, tactical glasses, belts and vests are recommended. “It is not obligatory,” the official said, “but a foreign soldier in his national uniform looks good for the International Legion.”
Go to Ukraine in an organized manner. Representatives of Ukrainian embassies, consulates (abroad) and Territorial Defense in Ukraine will provide assistance on the way. Contacts will be provided at the Embassy of Ukraine in your country.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is delaying decisions on new oil and gas drilling on federal land and other energy-related actions. It all has to do with global warming because if we don’t do this, we will all be dead in two years or some such.
Maybe they’ve stretched it out to ten years again? Creepy Joe Brandon and friends are confident that Americans will understand that increased energy prices all have to do with the war in Ukraine. (used to be Covid)
But all is not lost–
The Origin of the Universe
If we go with the present view of settled science, it says that the universe as we know it started with an infinitely hot and dense single point that inflated and stretched — first at unimaginable speeds, and then at a more measurable rate — over the next 13.8 billion years to the still-expanding cosmos that we know today. The unimaginable speeds exceed the speed of light…
There are other views cropping up, one of which is that a “white hole” was responsible for the universe as we now know it (below).
What might be on the other side of such a white hole? Nobody even speculates.
Implications found in quantum gravity and string theory tantalizingly suggest a universe that is, in reality, nothing like how it appears to human observers. It may actually be a flat hologram projected onto the surface of a sphere, for example. Or it could be a completely digital simulation running on a vast computer.
“Let there be light.”
Identify the Tank
BTRs are certainly old, but they are (by Russian standards) mechanically reliable and they can self-deploy w/o transporters, which sure helps the log tail. Besides, they have to put the infantry in something, and it’s not as if BMPs or trucks have meaningfully better armor. Historically, the Russians have been willing to accept pretty big losses, IDK about the modern day, reports on that are mixed.
The Russians certainly do seem to be operating in an uncharacteristically tentative manner – I can think of lots of explanations, but have no way of assigning relative likelihoods.
” What might be on the other side of such a white hole? ” Racism, obvs. Just ask the Ministry of Truth.
Tank looks like a Comet ? One of that family line, anyways.
-Kle.
It’s a Comet. Well done.
The Russians don’t have the peasant base that they had during the Great Patriotic War (WW2). It gave them the capacity to sustain huge losses. At the same time, the Ukrainian Army is not the Deutsch Heer. The Ukrainian Army in terms of quality may be on par with the Russians qualitatively, but they have a total force of 200,000 and they’re facing 8:1 odds with Russian air supremacy.
Yes, the Ukranians have 300,000 in the reserve army, but I don’t know how good they are and what equipment they field.
Yeah, I presume that if the Russians want it enough, they will eventually grind down the Ukrainians, even if the latter somehow fought “perfectly”. It could easily go much quicker than that, of course. Although it seems like the Russians might have been expecting / hoping it would already be over by now.
-Kle.
Centurion?
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Well, I think you’re right in that Putin certainly took advantage of the situation given the weakness of the west but I still think he’s bordering on irrational.
What’s on the other side of a white hole? There’s your next novel, Larry!
Putin is poised to seize Ukrainian land and resources. In order to deal with Russia, one should first, think like a Russian.
Is there another side to a black hole?
Ask Obama maybe, IDK?
Comet
Yes!
That Russian tank looks like Biden’s _Residency, sitting there and burned out useless BUT everyone is cheering that it made it to the White House.
Tonight’s “chat” should be illuminating, assuming it happens. Short of some miracle med’s I give Mr. Fail 20 minutes, maybe 30 if he took a lot of nap time over the weekend while the world needed American strength and leadership. I feel a coup coming (well, another one.)
Maybe he stays in the White House for security reasons and gives a pre-recorded lecture, broadcast to Congress?
…from the fake Oval Office set across the street.
When have we seen a photo of Mr. MAGU behind the Resolute Desk doing actual work? Haven’t seen one. Yesterday I used “smog” of war, my definition of what we see, designed to obfuscate…like his basement campaign, all smoke and mirrors.
He could speak, take breaks and they could edit it for Congress, which will clap at the appropriate places.
Wag The Dog…..
Yeah, but will the Dem “Gals” wear white as a sing of unity/equity/equality, or is that now bad form?
To paraphrase a comment found elsewhere – can he string together five sentences without making up a number of new words?
No. With everything their pumping into him I’m half expecting a massive short circuit.
I’m not actually watching the circus, too depressing seeing the useless sector lie with impunity while running my country subterranean in real time.
Came in for a snack, re-read your comment…my new thought is, watching Biden is akin to going to a NASCAR race; everyone is drinking beer, eating nachos, and with expectant anticipation, waiting for the big wreck. For that they’ll pay $100 a ticket.
I’ve been guilty of paying for that ticket…
You could seek penance at the next Le Mans, assuming you could get there since MeglaMan is being a boil on the world’s rearend…altho I heard from “the science” morons that a mask and 6′ social distancing will now protect you from nukes.
pretty sure that btr is ukranian. they use the older russian equipment too. no markings, but it could have been burned off. is that rust or brown paint? bodies? all those battles, no combat footage? i know, put my tinfoil hat away.
Reporting is very thin.
Now, admittedly, the Russians want to suppress that sort of thing as a habit, and in the West, actual journalists have become almost extinct.
However, there is plenty of room available for what you suggest.
IDK if that’s what’s going on, but I wouldn’t call it foilhat territory.
-Kle.
I will continue to not listen to Xiden, the fraud. Yeah, just a drop in the ocean but it is my drop.
I say ship all of us old farts over there, we already have military experience for the most part, we are use to being yelled at by DIs and our wives. We get up early and several times during the night so the long hours aren’t a problem, we like guns and we are cranky as hell and what soldier on the other side would want to confront a bitching, cranky old fart that would shoot you for disturbing his nap?
…wearing “Old Guys Rule” tactical shirts.
Great concept, goes along with those axioms:
1) Never tick off an old guy.
2) Life in prison (or death) isn’t much of a deterrent anymore.
So what you’re saying is [read this out loud in your best Cathy Newman voice] The universe is NOT turtles all the way down. It’s really a giant psychedelic jellyfish.
I’m asking if it is…in a Cathy Newman voice.
I know you read Cdr. Sal. As he just stated, the sanctions being imposed on Russia are the equivalent of a blockade. There is a lot of talk about the possibility of Putin using nukes (which I don’t believe he will)….. But if the sanctions really begin to hurt wouldn’t unleashing hackers on our infrastructure be just as bad, be hard to retaliate against, and allow him to maintain some plausible deniability?
Imagine simultaneous cyberattacks on the power grid, banking and supply chain computer systems.
A blockade is a declaration of war. Yes, I read CDR Sal. The potted plant that was installed, charts a course for us all.
Wondering if the depends will have the presidential seal tonight?
He may need to double up – it’s a long talk.
One of the shortwave stations I’ve been listening to has reports from their missionaries (it’s a Christina broadcaster) that things are worse for the Russians than is being reported. Several large convoys were taken out, and losses on both sides were high.
That news is a few days old, so I don’t know what the current situation is.
Interesting. Not surprising if true.
Concur with Cederq… And yes, there is a ‘fog’ of false media and reporting surrounding this one…
The media lies as you say.
BTW….Where’s Russia’s vaunted Air Force?? They seem to be MIA….
The air defense systems that Ukraine is using keeps them away (for now) from key military installations and the cities. My understanding is that Russia has air superiority and possibly supremacy. The Ukrainians are having difficulty maneuvering and that 40 mile long Russian column appears to be intact. Imagine if the Ukraine AF had a squadron of warthogs with F-22s flying fighter cap? Or Apaches? Goodbye 40 mile column.
If the Ukrainians had that kind of fire power then that column would resemble what was left on the highway from Kuwait City to Iraq in the 1st gulf war I think
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