sburke

Errrr What?

Thanks for the detail. It adds to my point. The demographics impact the political decisions. And yeah back in my younger days I was a provo supporter. The Dead did a song back in 81 during a Madison Sq Garden show in memory of Bobby Sands as well. One of their very few blatantly political statements. On the subject of demographics this is also Israel's greatest fear. The population growth of the Palestinian population exceeds that of the non-Arab population. And yes I did say Palestinian without quotes. Personally, I don't think Ukraine should do a vote on the occupied territories. That would be a concession to all that Russia has done and legitimizes their aggression. I do think they could consider a UN mandate (sorry @The_Capt for the bad word) for a limited time to sort things out after which it fully reverts to Ukraine.

its a special mobilization operation....

N Ireland is a good example. It is occupied Irish territory. Ireland was conquered by England but had never conceded to that occupation. In the case of N Ireland it was a matter of how bad they wanted full national integrity or the ability to move on finally as an independent nation state after centuries of occupation. The net result for England has been a continuing political football with a disproportionate impact on English politics and a political/military pain that just keeps on giving.

Question for @Haidukand @Grigb I am trying to understand what motivated Russia to do the prisoner swap. It seems so counter to their narrative and guaranteed to upset a powerful constituency. One item of info we don't have is beyond the one MP dude, who are the other 54 Russians swapped in this deal?

NY Times news highlights this morning. Some interesting geopolitical tidbits The Morning: Bad to worse for Russia (nytimes.com)

He isn't suggesting otherwise, he's challenging folks here to start understanding the gray area we are entering. In all likelihood the Ukraine gov't is debating these very same issues.

Hitchhiking robot meets demise in Philadelphia | PhillyVoice

Logistically I think UA needs to reorganize for another push. Meanwhile the fight for Kherson continues as well as continued pushing around Lyman while there is opportunity. So no I would not characterize it as "campaign season over" so much as it isn't like moving cardboard chits on a game board. The UA has a lot of prep work to make another large offensive.

I guess they are going right now. Hey take your mobile and make sure to take lots of selfies when there and post them please.

so.... Russia has not declared war so they can go home now?

I don't think that has anything to do with what @The_Capt posted. In fact, I don't think it represents a change in position at all. He has brought this up before however that was way back before everyone decided victory was just around the corner. UA still needs to take Kherson and from the post above the RA is still fighting hard for it. It will be likely 4-6 months before we see another major offensive push by the UA. Retaking the Donbas and Crimea is quite a bit away and a lot can change between now and then so let's just see what that means before I see a post calling anyone a revisionist sellout undermining support for the UA please.

He's talking hypothetical and to Steve's point What is Ukraine willing to pay to get that territory back by force of arms? There have been no indications Russia is doing anything more than saber-rattling. However, suppose they saw actual signs that Russia was preparing nukes. Would everyone here still be all in to push the edge? There are other non-military options to keep pushing. I think the point is now that a UA victory seems all but certain, what are the options Ukraine has to restore its territorial integrity? Military solutions are not often the best and honestly seem to usually end up as a less satisfactory conclusion for more complicated issues like this. Time is on Ukraine's side so why the rush?

Hold the phone.... as an Eagles fan, born and raised in Philly (back me up here @BFCElvis) I'm okay with Dallas.

sounds like our version of a mortgage loan with a special rate for veterans. We have a veteran's loan program here, might be similar concept.

another window mishap Russian Aviation Scientist Anatoly Gerashchenko Falls to His Death in Latest Plunge Mystery (thedailybeast.com) An aviation expert has become the latest Russian official to fall to his death in mysterious circumstances. Anatoly Gerashchenko, the former head of Moscow’s Aviation Institute (MAI), died in a mysterious fall inside the institute’s headquarters in the Russian capital on Tuesday. The organization’s press office released a statement describing the 73-year-old’s death as “the result of an accident,” adding that his untimely demise was a “a colossal loss for the MAI and the scientific and pedagogical community.” Russian news outlet Izvestia, citing an unnamed source, reported that Gerashchenko “fell from a great height” and careened down several flights of stairs. He was reportedly pronounced dead at the scene.

I disagree with her.. that IS a cartoonish movie villain.

Could do something like the US 14th amendment after the Civil war.

I doubt that. Russia can barely supply the units it has, the logistics are in a total clusterfk. More bodies is just gonna make that worse with no real addition to combat power. When these folks are shoved to the front (assuming they ever actually get that far) already bad morale is going to get worse, unit cohesion (what little exists) is going to collapse. Mobilization is a red herring. The Russians feel the need to DO SOMETHING, anything, to try and salvage this disaster. By the time they even get the new recruits into their enlistment bases Kherson will probably have fallen.

or, "why is that window open?"

well, it would explain not dealing with the ammo dumps as fireworks look pretty cool on acid, however my bet would be more that they are on meth.

Elvis to the rescue!

well in both cases you have had Russian PMCs get hammered by US weapons... there is that. How That Massive Battle Between US Troops And Russian Mercenaries In Syria Went Down - Task & Purpose (taskandpurpose.com)

Russian military hospitals refuse to treat so-called "volunteers" who were wounded in Ukraine (gur.gov.ua)

Kyrgyzstan hospitalized 103 after clashes on border with Tajikistan (msn.com)