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Sparks seen through the fog of war [Bumped ]


INCOMING! Snippets from cell phones.

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  • Tom Hyland February 24, 2022, 10:06 AM

    Lifted from Daily Timewaster… here’s a moment with FJB… a senile swine who is attempting to bluff the reporters in order to appear above their pathetic questions.
    https://dailytimewaster.blogspot.com/2022/02/biden-sits-in-silence-and-picks-his.html#comment-form

  • Tom Hyland February 24, 2022, 10:07 AM

    Lifted from Daily Timewaster… here’s a moment with FJB… a senile swine who is attempting to bluff the reporters in order to appear above their pathetic questions.
    https://dailytimewaster.blogspot.com/2022/02/biden-sits-in-silence-and-picks-his.html#comment-form

  • tim February 24, 2022, 10:25 AM

    Let’s keep things in perspective, at least we no longer have mean tweets.

    • Richard February 24, 2022, 11:51 AM

      Yes, one takes consolation where one can. That, and the fact that I didn’t vote for this golem.

    • James ONeil February 25, 2022, 10:09 AM

      Actually we do.

      Actually we’ve a lot more, but they’re all mean (irreguardless of gender) girl tweets.

  • Mike Austin February 24, 2022, 10:33 AM

    It would be useless to scream and jump up and down about the Ukrainian people. They have as much say in their government as do Trump supporters have in the US version. In warfare the common folks matter not at all. Soldiers do. This has been a truism of war since Cain clubbed Abel.

    The Ukrainian president, a greasy little cut-rate Al Capone named Volodymyr Zelenskyy, put his faith in Biden, Romney, Vindman and Pelosi. He paid them well for diplomatic, economic and military protection. They were as loyal to him as they are to the US. He should have negotiated with Putin. He will lose his fortune, and probably his life.

    Tough break.

    • Casey Klahn February 24, 2022, 12:26 PM

      I understand Zelenskyy was a comedian?

      • Mike Austin February 24, 2022, 1:06 PM

        He still is. He is pretending to be a president and a commander-in-chief. So is Biden.

    • Boat Guy February 25, 2022, 8:19 AM

      Yup. Like zelensky those scum are loyal only to themselves. vindman is a disgrace to his uniform

      • Mike Austin February 25, 2022, 8:51 AM

        If we still prosecuted treason, Vindman would be dangling from a rope. But then, so would hundreds more in Washington DC.

  • John Venlet February 24, 2022, 10:57 AM

    As Mencius points out Black History Month misappropriation, the Covid-19 propagandists are also feeling forlorn, though some Twitter bugs are more worried about Covid-19 than actual bombs and bullets which can kill immediately in the Ukraine. Oh, the humanity!

    • KCK February 25, 2022, 5:31 AM

      John, were we talking about visiting the doctor and the subject of Covid? Mrs. Casey Klahn & I went in yesterday, and if you’re up for it, I have the story.

      • John Venlet February 25, 2022, 9:16 AM

        Casey, I’d be very interested in hearing your doctor story. If you don’t want to post it here, hit me a john_venlet at yahoo dot com. Out.

  • Richard February 24, 2022, 11:45 AM

    Those life-and-death issues aren’t the big priority, at least not to former Secretary of State John Kerry. This morning, he expressed hope on BBC Arabic that Putin will remain a partner with the West on … climate change. ++++

    Puddin’head bugged out of Afghanistan leaving our citizens, 80 billion dollars worth of war materiel, and our NATO partners behind without so much as a fare-thee-well. And now this corrupt traitor wants to go “toe to toe with the Rooskies”, huh? Meanwhile, our guy who’s in charge of the military is still perplexed about “white rage”, gender pronouns and Diversity.
    If all that weren’t bad enough we’ve got this chucklehead worrying about Gaia and climate change.
    https://tinyurl.com/5cesfd98
    Putin has to be astonished, as to the dismal caliber of his opposition. I’m guessing the folks in the Balkan countries are in for some sleepless nights.
    And the Chi-Coms just might reckon this is an ideal opportunity to make its play for Taiwan.

    • Casey Klahn February 24, 2022, 12:29 PM

      John Kerry, the “Vietnam Vet”. Shuh-yeahhh. His mendacity is remarkable, even in this day and age.

      • Mike Austin February 24, 2022, 1:15 PM

        All his men hated his guts. Remember the “Swift Vets and POWs for Truth”? When I think of the phrase “piece of shit”, I usually conjure up John Kerry.

  • Mike Austin February 24, 2022, 11:55 AM

    Stop your bitching, Richard! At least we do not have to suffer any more mean tweets!

    Oh…and about that China v. Taiwan thing: In war the enemy has a vote. China will not be acting in a military vacuum. India and Japan hate China’s guts. But then, who does not except for US politicos like John Kerry?

  • Richard February 24, 2022, 12:19 PM

    Stop your bitching, Richard! At least we do not have to suffer any more mean tweets!^^^

    Quite so, Mike. Quite so. It’s an ill wind and all that.
    Saw an earlier comment of yours referring to” things getting…spicy”. I understand Putin has raised the specter of nukes – in all this – so, things might be getting crispy,too.
    Hadn’t considered India and Japan going up against China. Interesting potential wild card, what with India having some nuclear weapons to throw about. I wonder how much bombardment Three Gorges dam, and other high-value targets could withstand? Be a shame if something happened to them. What an exciting time to be alive!

    • Mike Austin February 24, 2022, 12:23 PM

      For a cut-rate historian and political scientist like me, it is indeed an exciting time. I get to live through what historians in 100 years will be writing about.

      My guess is that India already has that Three Gorges Dam targeted.

      • Plague Monk February 25, 2022, 10:00 AM

        Frankly, I doubt that India has the means to target 3 Gorges. First off, their equipment is at best third rate(their engineers are even worse than sub-Saharan African, as I know from having worked with some of each). Also, the Indian military is very caste oriented, as is most of their society. The Brahmans who run things are openly contemptuous of the lower castes, and I’ve read that this carries into their military as well. It certainly does with their workers in the US.

        The second issue is whether an Indian strike force could penetrate that far into Chinese airspace before either being shot down or falling to pieces from poor maintenance.

        I think that either Japan or Taiwan(or both) have 3 Gorges targeted, and I suspect that the US does as well. One analyst I know thinks that is one reason why the Reds haven’t struck Taiwan yet; for fear of a non-nuclear strike on the dams, and probable mining of Chinese harbors.

        I also think that Japan has a nuclear arsenal ready to go, and that the Japanese leadership has communicated that fact to the Reds, especially after the Reds threatened to obliterate Japan with nuclear weapons. There is a good chance that Taiwan and South Korea also have stockpiles of canned sunshine, ready to go if the need arises. Nobody in their right minds trusts the US to come to their defense, and to be honest, I doubt that few Americans give a hoot if Tokyo gets a few dozen doses of tiny suns at 3 am some morning.

        • Mike Austin February 25, 2022, 11:01 AM

          India has had the Agni-V ICBM since 2018. It has a range of more than 3000 miles, and thus is able to strike every major city in China. China knows this, and I rather doubt she will risk her Three Gorges Dam by depending upon India’s caste system to save her. That part of the Indian military devoted to nuclear weapons is rather rarified; that is, only highly qualified men run the thing. Caste is irrelevant. And if India gets involved, will Pakistan sit idly by? She is an ally of China and posses nuclear weapons, but probably not ICBMs.

          A war between China and Taiwan would engulf much of Asia and its subcontinent—at least. China has not won a war since 1949. It is doubtful she has the ability to transport an army 90 miles across the ocean to invade Taiwan. Like that of the US, most of China’s economy runs on microchips. Taiwan controls 40 percent of the world’s chip manufacturing. China must take the island intact therefore. She hopes to gain Taiwan by bluster.

          An all out war by China to take Taiwan whole would be a tremendous roll of the dice. More likely than not it would destroy China’s economy and vastly degrade her military. Taiwan has been preparing for this for 72 years.

          One “known unknown” is the historical fact that Asian militaries have the habit of operating outside of political control. I hear the flapping wings of many Black Swans.

          • Snakepit Kansas February 25, 2022, 4:23 PM

            The time to give or allow citizenry in Ukrane access to firearms should have been a long time ago. Invasion should not have been that large or a surprise. Giving an accountant an AK47 and firing a gob of rounds in someone’s general direction is not effective. Although even field grade rifles made with modern machinery are inherently more accurate than guns made 30 years ago, it requires very good ammunition and an even better operator to make accurate shots on a human sized target beyond 300 yards. Joe Blow Average Hunter cannot consistently make a single kill shot beyond 300 yards.

            I work at a gun range with indoor 100 yard rifle range. I have had endless opportunities to help people sight in rifles and work with them to focus on moving nothing but their trigger finger when taking a shot. Tighten up that group! Still, this static bench environment is much different than actual hunting and especially of combat. I have not been in combat. Sum the total natural error of rifle barrel accuracy, ammunition inaccuracy a crappy crunchy trigger and heart in the mouth excitement when a hunter sees a big buck, and a sub-100 yard shot is not certain. I suspect a two way shooting range adds to the heart rate and bounce of the scope.

            I believe that with some training, a rifle with good barrel, decent optics and good hand loaded match grade ammunition, joe/jane blow could be effective in a suburban environment with hurting an invading force out to 350 yards. Shooting much beyond 300 yards requires training and skill, not luck. Shooting with accuracy outside of 400 yards is art. I shut up now.

    • Casey Klahn February 24, 2022, 12:32 PM

      If one looks at the map of Ukraine, it appears that the road that runs to Kiev, also runs to Moscow. Putin’s back door is wide open – that’s why he’s playing the nuke card and it’s a play from political weakness.

      • Mike Austin February 24, 2022, 12:55 PM

        Do you think that the Ukrainians could mount an invasion of Russia that would take her formidable legions to the gates of Moscow? And in the winter? Hitler himself never made it there. Napoleon did, and the result was an overture by Tchaikovsky—and 400,000 dead soldiers. I hear that Ukrainian forces are deserting in droves. But maybe that’s just the fog of war.

        Biden just announced that “Our forces are not and will not be engaged in a conflict with Russia in Ukraine…” There it is then. All that bluster. All those threats. All those meetings. All that media hype. All that planning. It all added up to nothing, a sublime emptiness, a supreme vacuity of mind and mouth. Biden is the real and true “Nowhere Man”. There is no there there.

        The results of all this foo-foo-rah? Putin gets Ukraine. NATO does nothing. Germany resumes the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. The world laughs. Biden blames Trump.

        • KCK February 24, 2022, 1:31 PM

          My assessment is that Putin recognizes some (small) possibility that forces could strike and therefore he feels the need for nuclear bluster. Ukraine, probably not, but the Polish and the Baltic states have some game. Putin has to keep every scenario, no matter how hair-brained, in mind.

          Your last paragraph is prescient.

        • James ONeil February 25, 2022, 10:22 AM

          The marches ‘long Russia’s European border; only eight or so sections of terrain allowing heavy equipment, tanks. long guns , etc., movement toward Russia. No, we all know Ukraine invading Russia t’ain’t a thang, but Ukraine as a doorway for NATO missile movement, etc. …

        • gw February 25, 2022, 11:44 AM

          NATO must rally and threaten Russian devastation if it violates the mutual defense provisions of Article 5. The fall of Ukraine will represent another chapter in Biden’s horror story, but it will likely not irreparably damage the world economy.

          On the other hand, if Taiwan falls, it could have multi-year adverse economic effects because of its dominance in semiconductor production. “Taiwan now accounts for 92% of the world’s most advanced semiconductor manufacturing capacity, according to the April report from Boston Consulting and the Semiconductor Industry Association. South Korea holds the remaining 8%.” (December 2021)

          Absent a strong defensive response by NATO, we’ll reach an inflection point. China will likely respond accordingly.

      • Richard February 24, 2022, 1:10 PM

        Could be that it’s a bluff. I recall that it was directed towards NATO, as a warning to stay out. It isn’t my impression however, that Putin will cave, as Khrushchev eventually did during the Missile Crisis. Putin has taken the measure of his potential military opposition and found it lacking. He has an enormous ego, which only serves to complicate an already volatile set of circumstances. As with all things, time will tell.

        • Mike Austin February 24, 2022, 1:24 PM

          A bluff? Maybe, but does Biden seem like a poker player? Putin does.

          And Khrushchev did not cave to the callow JFK. He got Kennedy to:

          1. Remove the American Jupiter missiles in Turkey
          2. Allow the USSR to send conventional arms to Castro
          3. Promise not to invade Cuba.

          It was a massive strategic failure—a surrender, in fact—on the part of the US. The media portrayed it as an incredible success on the part of JFK. It royally pissed off the CIA—and then came Dallas.

  • Dirk February 24, 2022, 1:14 PM

    Just another case of “ Monkey see,,,,, Monkey Do”.

    I do find it amusing that in a nano second we’ve gone from trump trump trump trump, to Ukraine Ukraine Ukraine.

    NOTHING happening in Ukraine has any impact on costs of living here in the US. Entirely different, zero nexus. Yet this douche bag president is already blame it bad ol Putin for our inflation.

    Which reminds me how can the economy “ Really” being kicking ass, when inflation is runaway.

    I read Martin Armstrong daily, guys amazing. After twenty years, he is a cut above anybody else with world reviews

  • KCK February 24, 2022, 1:45 PM

    These are pretty much the better vids I’ve seen – nice catch on all of these, GvDl.

    When I watched the helicopters – the first vid, the first time, I missed the outgoing missile because: Macbook. Here on my big screen iMac I caught the full story so be sure to watch this at full screen. The alarm that sounds like a spastic telephone is the battery ready on a Stinger (it will burn your hand if you place it wrong) and it means: fire this right now! When the missile goes out, the helicopters lose their shit and fire flares to confuse the heat-seeker. I couldn’t tell if the hit occurred but it’s possible. This vid is what the Vietnam war veterans used to call an eye fuck. My apologies to the women and the pastors present, but some things in the military haven’t got a proper translation. It means the ironic beauty of war and the natural environment.

    The vid suggests the landing of troops (Kiev) but I stand by the theory that these are Spetnaz type guys (they all seem to have VD). Here is what I think is happening. The Spetnaz guys went into Kiev a week ago in unmarked cars and in plain clothes, and hung around the Kiev airport until D Day. The troop transport helicopters are carrying their buddies and supplies, but the mission is not an assault to capture the airfield. It is a special op with the mission to preserve the airfield from destruction; when it does get assaulted, the parachutists will drop from the sky, then large troop transports will land on the captured runways and, Bob’s yer Uncle, the airport is Russias and the real show begins. These airborne light infantry must be relieved by tank units within 24-48 hours or face annihilation.

    The Su-25 fast movers. Very impressive stuff. Also, when you are driving your car and suddenly a military war convoy appears, it’s a good idea to yield the road to them. It sucks to be caught in a war zone under fire and is one of the badder ideas anyone will ever have. Leave.

    The munitions. One looked like a MOAB. Holy Ship!

  • ghostsniper February 24, 2022, 6:54 PM

    Looks like 2 neighboring HOA’s squabbling about spending each others money and differences about alternating shuffleboard nights. yawn

    The real story is the one they don’t want you to notice, and most don’t.

    • Tom Hyland February 24, 2022, 8:41 PM

      “THESE are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their HOA; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered.”

  • Tom Hyland February 25, 2022, 9:21 AM

    Pat Buchanan has written a concise appraisal of who Putin is, where he’s coming from, and how the man insists this will never be any of our business unless interference becomes a perpetual US motive.
    https://buchanan.org/blog/did-we-provoke-putins-war-in-ukraine-159120#more-159120

  • Dirk February 25, 2022, 10:28 AM

    The “ Hip 8” helo’s are an outstanding platform, we snuck a bunch home, when we fled astan. I’m not following the day to day stuff. What any of us think is moot. I did hear about the pilot , the “hero of Kiev”, shot down 300 Russian aircraft on one tank of gas.

    Non of the crap coming out of Ukraine’s accurate, all propaganda, like every other war. Did like your vids GV.

    Irk

    • Mike Austin February 25, 2022, 11:06 AM

      Yep. Truth is the first casualty in war, and has been since Sumer. Many aspects of World War II are still not known. When the Russian flag flies over Kiev, then we will know something meaningful. Not before.