R.I.P. Scout26
I know many here don't favor the U.S. getting directly involved in this little dust-up. I have been on the fence, severely conflicted on that question. Seeing this post, what popped into what's left of my brain was this: "First they came for the socialists Ukrainians, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist Ukrainian. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out— because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me."
The tank is certainly more limited now than it was at the height of the cold war with massive combined formations ready to roll with tanks as the vanguard. Between man portable missiles, drones, IEDs, and the like tanks are pretty vulnerable again. For our enemies throw in helicopters and A10s. Obviously the "armor vs. arms" pendulum moves back and forth, but right now it's definitely favoring weapons. Maybe it's time to build some Bolo's
One of the things we discovered in Iraq is that even modern tanks are pretty susceptible to the right IED.A mobility kill may not destroy a tank, but it will stop it's mission, and tie down half a platoon in recovery.
You can always build a bigger bomb than you can build a tank. Iirc it was an antitank mine rigged for command det and boosted with three 152mm shells.
It happened way more than once. Usually they were command det artillery shells, yes.
"Never get into a land war in Asia."
Ruskies just did an ICBM test launch today. That's kind of North Koreany.https://youtu.be/CO0OPE4YPdI
Apparently the Chechen hired guns are culling dissidents from the ranks in a rather violent and permanent way.https://currently.att.yahoo.com/att/cm/f-cking-shoot-them-chechen-114857260.htmlYeah, executing your own soldiers for wanting out of an unprovoked, ill-conceived, and unethical military action is sure to up your support on the home front.Brad
Ukraine is in Europe. A big chunk of Russia is, too.
Murder-suicide. Sure.
Most people suicide by double taps to the back of their head. It’s not just an Arkansas thing, contrary to popular belief.
Things that make you go Hmmm2 Russian oligarchs were found dead one day apart alongside their wives and children, reports sayhttps://www.businessinsider.com/2-russian-oligarchs-found-dead-spain-moscow-reports-2022-4Two Russian Oligarchs Die in Mysterious Circumstances 24 Hours Aparthttps://www.newsweek.com/oligarchs-murder-suicide-1699766
A few months ago, sending German tanks to a war zone would have led to public outrage. Today, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is under fierce attack because he appears reluctant to do just that.Some 55% of Germans say they want heavy weapons, such as tanks, sent to Ukraine, with 37% against.
How's this for a shift? https://www.bbc.com/news/live/world-europe-61185469?ns_mchannel=social&ns_source=twitter&ns_campaign=bbc_live&ns_linkname=6262aabe77811a20d37c93cf%26Germany%20steps%20up%20weapons%20supply%20amid%20public%20criticism%262022-04-22T14%3A18%3A39.278Z&ns_fee=0&pinned_post_locator=urn:asset:c3517cc0-df43-43c2-8055-df1bfc69b66e&pinned_post_asset_id=6262aabe77811a20d37c93cf&pinned_post_type=share
Propaganda has been effective.Putin is definitely a bad guy. Still not entirely convinced Zelensky is a good guy. He’s got titanium balls. He’s been effective at rallying Ukrainians to fight the Russians. But he’s still corrupt as hell. What isn’t clear if that corruption is just the more or less benign self-enriching corruption or the murderous totalitarian corruption of Putin, just on a smaller scale.