sburke

Yep that is why I come to the forum. My wife is a way for a week and I have no one at home to give me snot nose replies when I try to point out something. yep thanks, I feel much better. Almost cozy. Want to snuggle? You've made an assumption based on a computer driven graphic that the individuals are too close to each other and believe THAT is the cause of your high casualty rate. Others have given a lot of reasons for other things that can be the source of casualties and shown actual troop positioning in real life combat where the individuals are about on par with CM figures. I wouldn't mind a bit better positioning by units, but most of what I have seen and read including the above pics says soldiers position a lot closer than you seem to think in actual combat. With that I will leave this thread as I know that isn't what you want to hear. Before I go though I can add one constructive item for you - how to post a screenshot compliments of Sergei. Bookmark this as even when you get used to it, it is a nice reference on hot keys to help make a better shot etc.

I think a good reading of action in the Huertgen may alter your perspective on levels of casualties especially in forest fighting.

So is the Russian Army under equipped?

What the Russian gov't would leave if it didn't have support? Really? And that is based on what previous example that Russia has voluntarily ever left anything? It was the Russian gov't that gave that figure so perhaps you could explain the discrepancy. The obvious answer is the election and hype is all a fraud, but that never seems to go over well with the pro Russian position. As to the article not debunking the Crimeans supporting the occupation. Well first it debunked the statement that ALL Crimeans were overjoyed that would include the Tatar subset. Secondly maybe this will clarify how the Tatars specifically felt. http://www.reuters.com/article/us-ukraine-crisis-crimea-tatars-idUSBREA2S09320140329 As to Ukraine never regaining control, meh. Maybe, maybe not. personally I think Russia being attached to that economic sinkhole works better for Ukraine right now despite the political insult. It also gives Ukraine grounds to sue in the int'l court for reparations. Heck if it were my call I would have Ukraine cede all the occupied Donbass to Russia. Make that mess Russia's issue. I would then go directly to joining NATO as I would no longer have a civil issue deterring membership and I'd invite NATO to build as large a base as they want and have access to Odessa and I'd plant that NATO flag right on Russia's border with a 10X life size poster of Savchenko giving Russia the finger. Not that I have any strong feelings on the issue.

It wasn't about who did what to whom. It was about the vote in Crimea that you guys keep citing as you bowing to overwhelming support. Support that you own gov't admitted wasn't there. The Crimeans were just an example of a substantial part of the population adamantly opposed and yet they don't seem to show up in those figures anywhere.

funny to you maybe, not to them. And why is there a large Tatar population in Russia... oh yeah Stalin's deportation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crimean_Tatars You guys have been so nice to them, no wonder they welcome you with open arms. As to that overwhelming support of the population you guys keep reciting as fact, it seems your own gov't didn't quite see it that way...oops. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/05/06/russian-government-agency-reveals-fraudulent-nature-of-the-crimean-referendum-results/ Funny thing about facts and information, they usually leak to the surface. I'm sure you'll have some other justification though. Problem for Russia is, no one out here believes it anymore and so the self fulfilling prophecy of the world against Russia continues.

My only problem with these conversations is they are always about Russians trying to justify current actions and others trying to show the opposite. What I find frustrating is there is this self fulfilling prophecy of Russian inferiority. Russia as part of the USSR is looked back on as the standard for Russian influence in the international arena. It was a position as a member of a bloc of states with significantly greater resources and population. The dissolution of the USSR was the final phase in the collapse of the Russian Empire. It really was no different than what UK citizens had to go through in the collapse of the British Empire (and likely what US citizens will have to do at some point). The UK has adapted and still has an influential voice in the world. Russians have not. The desperation to still feel the level of influence from Soviet days is reflected in the systemic cheating in international sport as Russia HAS to live up to the standards of the USSR. Instead of focusing on what makes Russia unique and playing to those strengths, Russia squanders it's resources trying to be what it is not. The net result is Russia accelerates it's own decline and can't even advance itself in those areas that should be it's strengths. Everything is sacrificed to a vision of past glory, a facade that is used to trick the population into allowing itself to be run by a band of criminals. it is frankly depressing.

Funny how Russia didn't seem to think it was so absolutely overwhelming to the point they heavily rigged the vote, disenfranchised the Tartar people and shut down all their outlets to representation, had more votes than the voting population etc. Once again I have to take all the Russian stated positions with a grain of salt as 1 They don't seem to match the reality of how Russia itself perceived the issue by it's actions and 2.The sources are state media which has continually, blatantly lied which most of our Russian posters admit. If Russia wants to continue to dig a hole for itself in it's international relations by continuing this behavior so be it. Putin may think Russians can rewrite the rules as Russians see fit but there is a price to pay for that. As Russia continues to slide to second and third rate power status (and make no mistake despite the Armata circle jerk fest that is where Russia is headed) it's isolation will mean a society more akin to N Korea than what Russia has the potential to be. So have your parades and Putin bare chested horseback riding porn and enjoy the decline of what should be a scientific and cultural leader. As to comparing US behavior in Iraq- While I absolutely opposed the war and still feel it was wrong, the US at least went through the motions of obtaining international consensus and left a gov't ostensibly representative of the vote of the Iraqi people. Yeah it may be totally flawed and dysfunctional, but it was a real vote that included participants completely opposed to the US- so even the worst case US example is still far superior to the fraud Russia committed in Crimea.

Jeez you really have an interesting bent on things. The major similarity between Afghanistan and Ukraine is that in both Russia invaded a sovereign nation to impose a gov't of it's choosing. There always seems to be some justification that is generally poorly documented if at all and even more usually totally contradictory. You fit your logic to match your desires. No wonder Russia is such a mess if this is how what I would consider the most open minded of it's population thinks. Truly sad. So you don't have any view of standing on principle or moral grounds - the mob rules? You have no idea how depressing that sounds to the West. It essentially means Russia can't be negotiated with. The country simply needs to be isolated from the rest of the world to limit the harm it can do to others as essentially it has become a bully nation. In case you didn't notice there was a large movement in the west opposed to the war in Iraq. We have had trials (admittedly short circuited by political leadership) for illegal intervention actions (Iran Contra). There seems to be no such desire in Russia and those that do argue for it are risking execution by the state. I hate to sound pissy, but you guys deserve Putin. We on the other hand don't so I know I'll be pressing my congressional representative to support strengthening NATO even if it means I pay more taxes.

Just to be clear from the link you provided, their conclusion was - In particular, the Buk TELARs of Ukraine’s 156th Anti-Aircraft Regiment, which was based near Luhansk, Donetsk, and Mariupol in 2014, do not share any visible similarities among the compared characteristics with Buk 3×2, either in Russia or Ukraine. We can say with confidence that on 17 July 2014, the Russian Buk TELAR numbered 332 of the 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade based in Kursk was filmed and photographed in eastern Ukraine. This specific Buk, previously identified as Buk 3×2, was filmed moving to the center of the launch area estimated by the Dutch Safety Board for the missile that downed MH17. As the Dutch also found a piece of the Buk missile in the plane's wreckage, we can fairly conclusively say MH 17 was downed by a Buk and the only evidence in existence points to a Russian Buk operating in occupied Ukrainian territory. Agreed? Or is there some other message hidden in there somehow?

You missed his point, the shooting down of the Aeroflot plane would have been intentional. Just like the Moscow Apt buildings the FSB orchestrated to make sure Putin easily took power. Whether there is anything to the Aeroflot theory, I have no idea but it would be consistent with actions Putin took previously and therefore nowhere near as far fetched as all the BS nonsense the Putinbots have splattered everywhere.

Funny how this supposed well spring of opposition has not lead to a lot of support for DPR/LPR - even the supposed insurgents have complained about the lack of support. And the supposed insurgency was admitted started by Russia flunkies coming up from Crimea after Russia illegally seized that. I smell the distinct ordure of horse manure in the whole argument that Russia is supporting a home grown insurgency. As Russia has shown a very consistent pattern of lying I don't find it a stretch to call this as still another. Considering even you admit Russia has lied repeatedly, it is kind of on you to back up your statements otherwise they are just gonna get tossed into the heap with the rest of Putin's BS. While Russia is busy trying to protect the rights of poor oppressed Russian descent folks in Donbass, you think maybe they can spare a moment for all the Tatars being denied their basic rights in Crimea?

Thread heading for closure. Hey look an iceberg! How close do you think we can get, my drink needs a few cubes.

You don't aim a missile defense system at a country, you aim it at incoming missiles. So if Russia doesn't intend to launch missiles Voila! it isn't aimed at Russia. Russia's argument is so incredibly stupid it is amazing that anyone buys into it. Poland: "Hey I am buying a bullet proof vest." Russia : "Don't aim that at me" Poland: "I am not, it is just there in case someone tries to shoot me," Russia: "Preventing me from shooting you is an attack on me!" Poland: " What the f**K, you would shoot me? I better keep my bullet proof vest!" Russia: "If you wear that bulletproof vest I might shoot you" Poland: "Freakin nut job, I am damn well wearing this vest all the time!"

Trying to dodge the sex offender registration list?

Just for you Panzer. ;-)

It's nothing new. When I was in high school every year history class would only ever get to the late 1800s by the end of the school year.

Yeah, BF fix or do sumfink

You obviously did not sit through the credits "German soldier motivational speech provided by Ken aka C3K" the scene in the movie is actually take 2 in the first take the Germans literally tried to eat the tank there is still some fall out over the dental plan for those extras. Most smiled like hockey players after the scene. In an interview with the director he mentioned they saved the original for a WW2 nazi zombie movie he is working on interestingly enough this has also led to discussion of a new entry in a military jpurnal about the "Ken" or "C3K" factor in war where motivation can become so strong as to dilute the technical effectiveness of a weapon as the user now takes whatever it is be it a rifle, Javelin, AT4 etc and simply uses it as a club

Yes but does the quote still show? Your intern still reads all my posts as she know how to cipher the secret messages within. (Ovaltine) Back to to the quotes I tried this again with ken's comment. I am on a iPad so ymmv on this. I double tapped the top of the quote till a plus appeared and backspaced. It removed the whole quote and it did not reappear in my comment window. It also had the odd effect of making Ken's beer disappear as well, but most considered that a bonus.

Nah I delete 90% of what I think about posting as essentially being useless. So I am an expert at deleting my own drivel. It can be done! Try refreshing your screen after you delete the quote box.

I think the fundamental flaw in any thinking about Russian offensive action in Ukraine at this point is making sure one understands Putin's perspective on risk and reward. He definitely feels maintaining a low level frozen conflict as long as possible if the costs of doing so are low is acceptable. A high risk conflict would have to have an appropriate reward. The Donbass itself is mostly a loss leader right now for Putin. Part of retaining it is pride and/or generating nationalist fervor, part is hindering Ukraine's focus on fixing it's very serious internal issues (a true anti corruption drive that is successful might eventually have a backflow on Russia) and part I think is simply psychological - f**king with the west. It has had a cost that does have long term consequences to the health of the Russian economy and it's isolation in the world. Given all that I think Putin is getting everything he can out of it already that is worthwhile. A deeper commitment increases the risk while providing nothing really new in reward. The difficulty of the position is that a cleaned up Ukraine is probably a far higher risk for Russia than the loss of face to Putin of giving up the Donbass. Even if he wanted to walk away from the Donbass now, he has the tiger by the tail. Leaving means it is harder to influence events in Ukraine, staying is going to become increasingly costly and is already a drain. Anyone remember what was going on in Germany and why before the Berlin wall went up?* If Ukraine becomes an appealing place with less corruption and starts developing a higher standard of living, things get really hard for Putin. * a really good read on events in 1961 and I think a very objective view - hint no one comes out squeaky clean on this. If anything Kruschev is probably the most sympathetic character. The parallels of mis understanding what is important to your opponent and the constraints they are struggling with is enlightening. and incidentally China was screwing the Kremlin back then too. https://www.amazon.com/Berlin-1961-Kennedy-Khrushchev-Dangerous-ebook/dp/B004LRPDTQ?ie=UTF8&keywords=berlin%201963&qid=1464309376&ref_=sr_1_1&s=books&sr=1-1 In June 1961, Nikita Khrushchev called Berlin "the most dangerous place on earth." He knew what he was talking about. Much has been written about the Cuban Missile Crisis a year later, but the Berlin Crisis of 1961 was more decisive in shaping the Cold War-and more perilous. It was in that hot summer that the Berlin Wall was constructed, which would divide the world for another twenty-eight years. Then two months later, and for the first time in history, American and Soviet fighting men and tanks stood arrayed against each other, only yards apart. One mistake, one nervous soldier, one overzealous commander-and the tripwire would be sprung for a war that could go nuclear in a heartbeat. On one side was a young, untested U.S. president still reeling from the Bay of Pigs disaster and a humiliating summit meeting that left him grasping for ways to respond. It would add up to be one of the worst first-year foreign policy performances of any modern president. On the other side, a Soviet premier hemmed in by the Chinese, East Germans, and hardliners in his own government. With an all-important Party Congress approaching, he knew Berlin meant the difference not only for the Kremlin's hold on its empire-but for his own hold on the Kremlin. Neither man really understood the other, both tried cynically to manipulate events. And so, week by week, they crept closer to the brink. Based on a wealth of new documents and interviews, filled with fresh-sometimes startling-insights, written with immediacy and drama, Berlin 1961 is an extraordinary look at key events of the twentieth century, with powerful applications to these early years of the twenty-first.

Major doesn't have to mean strictly military terms. Major can simply be an effective attack that undermines the spin one side or the other puts on an event. So for example, it didn't take many minor incidents which in and of themselves caused few US troop losses to make the Mission Accomplished photo op moment by President Bush look pretty sad. A successful ISIS attack on a military compound questions the spin Russia has put out on their effectiveness in Syria. Yes it is only one incident, but it is media and a loss. It demonstrates a capability along with the bombings in Latakia that provides a counter to Putin's message. Hopefully for his sake he doesn't do a Mission Accomplished photo op or statements about the light at the end of the tunnel as odds are this is only the first of the attacks like this.

a "land fire"? Maybe a translation issue here. We are talking an airbase with concrete or asphalt. What land would be burning to destroy all those helos? They park in a field of charcoal briquets?

How exactly did you determine ISIS never got closer than 5-6km? They wear a special "I am ISIS shoot me" sign as they did recon on the base? Look how insecure NATO facilities are in Afghanistan and repeat to me with a straight face that Uber Russian ISIS sniffers know who is a sympathizer working on their airbase. I need a good chuckle today. Now the argument that ISIS didn't claim it carries far more weight. If they did they'd be broadcasting it to the high heavens as a glorious victory for Islam. I am betting more on inept drunken supply guys accidentally setting off a fuel dump.