IGX

videos to mobilize volunteers as i understand :)

the author of this movie was accused of disrupting the mobilization in Ukraine
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bIPCvCERghQ[/youtube]

Smet wrote: At the same time maintaining the conflict is costly and is weakening Russian economy and undermines the popularity of the government.

You are mistaken in the second part.
Believe me, Putin never was so popular as right now.

I see that Putin is still firmly in control and the Ukrainians are getting their asses kicked.

Maybe some of these Ivy League educated Douchebags pontificating in the press don't know what the fuck they are talking about?

I see that Putin is still firmly in control and the Ukrainians are getting their asses kicked.

I don't think anyone was expecting the Kremlin to burst into flames. Putin has a firmer grasp on a squishier turd of a country. Acting like Russia is doing great is like Charlie Sheen doing his #winning campaign.

One thing the West does not understand is the resilience of Russia. Since the beginning of times things were never uniformly easy in that country and socio-economic gaps have always been significant. Sanctions - as always - are hurting the innocent, but not to the point where new Revolution becomes possible. Russians are tough and will adjust to the hardships. At the same time external interference - or its perception - reinforces national spirit. Crimea is a good example of this mechanics: most Russians could not give a fuck about it, one way or another, but when taking it back pisses off the West and especially Pindostan - "the Crimea is ours, motherfuckers!"

Russian psyche does not follow the same logic as the Western one. I am not idealising it, but there are differences that cannot be understood by simple explanation. There are even more differences, I think, with Anglo-Saxon mentality than with most European nationalities. The only way to deal with it is to leave it the fuck alone.

I see Putin has yet to read the New York Times and immediately surrender.

Sangoma wrote:One thing the West does not understand is the resilience of Russia. Since the beginning of times things were never uniformly easy in that country and socio-economic gaps have always been significant.

Read that the Red Army turned over three times from 1941 to 1945. The Nazis killed them that fast.

One in four Byelorus died in the Nazi occupation.

Read that Russian cuss words for "whore" and "slut" have Mongol origins.

These people have had a hard history.

If Russia and Putin are so wonderful and the US is so diabolical, then why are almost all of the former Soviet satellite states either in NATO, or trying to gain entry?

"The difficulty in understanding the Russian is that we do not take cognizance of the fact that he is not a European, but an Asiatic, and therefore thinks deviously. We can no more understand a Russian than a Chinaman or a Japanese, and from what I have seen of them, I have no particular desire to understand them, except to ascertain how much lead or iron it takes to kill them. In addition to his other Asiatic characteristics, the Russian have no regard for human life and is an all out son of bitch, barbarian, and chronic drunk."

Is this any less true now than when Patton said it?

cleaner464 wrote:If Russia and Putin are so wonderful and the US is so diabolical, then why are almost all of the former Soviet satellite states either in NATO, or trying to gain entry?

It's a reasonable question.

Nobody likes being occupied. How long has it been since the US Civil War and how many Southerners are still hostile to "Yankees"? The Soviet Army left Eastern Europe only a short time ago.

Who wouldn't like a little "aid" money from Brussels, being able to send people to work in rich countries so they send money home? Get some cool NATO weapons and training?

Shafpocalypse Now wrote:"The difficulty in understanding the Russian is that we do not take cognizance of the fact that he is not a European, but an Asiatic, and therefore thinks deviously. We can no more understand a Russian than a Chinaman or a Japanese, and from what I have seen of them, I have no particular desire to understand them, except to ascertain how much lead or iron it takes to kill them. In addition to his other Asiatic characteristics, the Russian have no regard for human life and is an all out son of bitch, barbarian, and chronic drunk."

Is this any less true now than when Patton said it?

As long as clichés by ignorant idiots go - as current as then. And as appealing to the ignorant idiots in the U.S. as clichés about Americans are to ignorant Russians. To his defense Patton was a dyslexic (and a general) and therefore probably wasn't capable of constructing such complex sentence.

What amazes me is how a small country like Ukraine, not exactly thriving or having burgeoning military stocks to begin with, can weather this fight for this long? Same with Syria, how the fuck are people there still waking up day in and day out to fight after this long? Wouldn't their resources be depleted by now?

One of the surgeons I work with is a Ukranian from Kiev. Interestingly enough, he is more pro-Russian than pro-Ukranian. According to him, lots of Ukrainians and non-Ukranian residents believe that the conflict has been initiated and maintained by the outside forces, namely USA and EU.

On the more disturbing note, everyone in Ukraine expects some sort of trouble on the 24th of August, which is the Ukraine Independence Day. Apparently both side amassed large number of troops on the border and the trouble is a matter of time. The next couple of days will show if the expectations are correct.

Luke wrote:What amazes me is how a small country like Ukraine, not exactly thriving or having burgeoning military stocks to begin with, can weather this fight for this long? Same with Syria

Because "total war" isn't being waged. If Russia wanted to, they'd have Ukraine conquered completely in a week, but invading and conquering is a bad look these days and would cause a response.

UKRAINE FAILED ATTEMPT TO ‘BREAK RUSSIA’? KISSINGER WARNS U.S. “STOP BACKING KIEV AT ALL COSTS”

Former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger has hit out at American and European Ukraine policy, saying it ignores Russia’s relationship with its neighbor, and has called for cooperation between the White House and the Kremlin on the issue.

“Breaking Russia has become an objective [for US officials] the long-range purpose should be to integrate it,” the 92-year-old told The National Interest in a lengthy interview…

[…]

“The relationship between Ukraine and Russia will always have a special character in the Russian mind. It can never be limited to a relationship of two traditional sovereign states, not from the Russian point of view, maybe not even from Ukraine’s. So, what happens in Ukraine cannot be put into a simple formula of applying principles that worked in Western Europe.”

TerryB wrote:

Luke wrote:What amazes me is how a small country like Ukraine, not exactly thriving or having burgeoning military stocks to begin with, can weather this fight for this long? Same with Syria

Because "total war" isn't being waged. If Russia wanted to, they'd have Ukraine conquered completely in a week, but invading and conquering is a bad look these days and would cause a response.

Yeah of course. Knowing 2000 troops have died in one part of your country would fuck with your head. This will just keep going on and on won't it?

Sangoma wrote:One of the surgeons I work with is a Ukranian from Kiev. Interestingly enough, he is more pro-Russian than pro-Ukranian. According to him, lots of Ukrainians and non-Ukranian residents believe that the conflict has been initiated and maintained by the outside forces, namely USA and EU.

So the US/EU made Putin annex the Crimea and dump a shitload of troops in the country? If the US was actually committed to exacerbating the situation, a lot of Russian hardware would be smoldering on the border right now.

Your Ukrainian friend sounds like he's exercising the Russian form of political correctness. Especially in a country that is increasingly concerned with the squelching of free speech.

As the price of oil continues to drop, I imagine that the US and the EU will be the source of all sorts of bedevilment "uncovered" by the Kremlin.

Saber-rattling is expensive, and the rubles axailable for such activities will soon be very dear. Especially those flights over the Aleutians.