Miscellaneous And Off Topic Subjects

[Dr. Strangelove]

Is that the seat that Lt. Gov. Fetterman and Connor Lamb are running for on the other side?

Yes. Both are polling well against Dr Oz. Against McCormick it would almost certainly be a tighter race

[AlabamAlum]

Hope Dr. Oz wins because maybe that will keep him from promoting quackery on TV.

[THE_WIZARD_]

STFU

[AlabamAlum]

Jeff,

If I don’t get a travelogue on Portugal from you soon, I’ll be revolting!

[THE_WIZARD_]

You are revolting.

[AlabamAlum]

Wiz, if I eephus loft a beach ball belt high down down the center of the plate, I don’t need your Mendoza ass taking a cut. It was Buchanan bait. Now back tf down, Frozen WingMonger

[THE_WIZARD_]

Sorry bud. Just trying to help.

[Mike]

You don’t seem like much help.

[THE_WIZARD_]

Yeah well looks can be deceiving...

...but not in this case...

STFU

[Jeff Buchanan]

Western media has been reporting "massive" numbers of Russian troops and equipment massing and preparing for an assault on eastern Ukraine and have been about to start an offensive for about a week now. Emphasis on repeatedly reporting "about to start" ......The implication is that this is a powerful and unbeatable army.

Fred Kagan, who writes for AEI and manages the CTR project I follow, wrote a piece on Saturday that scolded US officials both inside and outside DOD for characterizing the Russian Army, in its present deployment status, as this unbeatable war machine. Kagan points out several important things. These are the same soldiers, now battle fatigued, who before that "ran into the woods" around Kiev surrendering in mass to Ukrainian forces when the shooting started. These are elements or what's left of Russian armor that, unduly exposed, got rocked by Ukrainians firing NLAW and Javalin anti-tank rounds. These are severely damaged BTGs being rushed back into battle with some units having sustained up to 30% damage and/or loss of personnel.

It's reported by Ukrainian GUR that the Russian Army is offering huge bonuses of up to 300,000 Rubles or about $3500 to return to the front and shoot down Ukrainian aircraft or kill Ukrainian armor, soldiers and artillery This is the same Russian army that advanced on Kiev in a chaotic, poorly coordinated operation that got it's ass kicked by the Ukrainian regular and self defense units and had to retreat back into Russia and Belarus. The western media paying little attention to the remarkable defense of Kiev was more interested in portraying that the Russians will be back.

Finally, Russia is resorting to Draconian measures to move ill-prepared and poorly motivated reserves in Russia to the front and to conscript citizens into service, none of them capable of being anything other than cannon fodder. It is an intentional, well designed propaganda tool that demonstrates massive numbers of Russian soldiers that will quickly overrun Ukrainian defenses. It's "doomism." Moreover, it has the impact of normalizing the west's perceptions of the atrocities being perpetrated by the Russian Army. As usual, commitment for Ukraine wains as western citizens and officials ask, is this worth it to prolong the inevitable end game where Putin gets his way. Putin absolutely understands this and is using it to his advantage.

The net result, that is far greater than the impact alone of Putin getting his way, is the destruction of the global economy being suffered as a result of the war and all the implications of that to poverty, hunger and standards of living world wide. The west is defaulting to an untenable position of accommodation. The free and democratic world will suffer long term consequences for acquiescence instead of military confrontation with the unjustified fear of nuclear war if NATO acts militarily in support of Ukraine - another hammer on western resolve Putin is using.

[AlabamAlum]

Damn, Buchanan is giving me the icy shoulder. Message sent and received. I’ll see you in hell, bastard.

[Jeff Buchanan]

I saw it ....... I'll be in Lisbon Portugal enroute to Amsterdam on Jury 11th and 12th. Just for you, I'll chronical that visit. From there I'll travel south to Basel Switzerland on the Rhine then on to visit my daughter in Lausanne. Her 2yo daughter just underwent an open repair of a VSD. A 4h procedure, she was up, cheerful and eating in 2d, out of the hospital in 5 and 12d out returned to her pre-school routine unaware of the scar on her chest or acting if if she was in pain. Unlike her parents and me, she was acting as if nothing particularly scary just happened. Her 4yo brother is the only once that seemed concerned about the healing sutures on her central chest.

[AlabamAlum]

I’m debating between Lisbon and Porto. Probably won’t have time for both. Any recs are appreciated.

And Switzerland is absolutely picture book gorgeous. The little villages along the mountains are just wonderful. Glad the granddaughter is doing well and that she got the VSD fixed. It’s scary.

[AlabamAlum]

But didn’t you just get back from Portugal? Maybe I have that confused.

[THE_WIZARD_]

I thought JB only hated THE_WIZARD_