Russia on brink of ... NOPE! Russia INVADES Ukraine!

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Nov 17, 2019
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What channel?
The one all the traffic passes through at Istanbul.

BLACK SEA SHIP TRAFFIC TRACKER | Marine Vessel Traffic
 
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Perknose

Forum Director & Omnipotent Overlord
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Journalist from The Atlantic sequesters himself in a hotel in order to watch Russian State TV for 5 straight days.

Here's my favorite so far (middle of Day 2)

"There’s an ad break for a male anti-impotence drug called “the Emperor’s Secret,” supposedly made in China out of various fungi. “The Emperor’s Secret can be mixed with alcohol,” the announcer helpfully advises the Russian male."

Apparently, it's a toxic mix of hysterical anti-west agitprop, Swastikas popping up everywhere, and reality shows of men beating their wives.

Fun country!

But wait! There's more! From Day 3:

"As the day continues, NTV presents a documentary entitled I Was Zelensky’s Filth. A young imprisoned woman is accused of trying to bomb Mariupol’s city hall, after the battered city held a sham election in favor of joining Russia. “Mariupol is a place of glory for Russian forces and shame for the Kiev führer,” the announcer declares. That führer, of course, is none other than Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky himself, a Jew whose relatives perished in the Holocaust. The show visits the apartment of the supposed terrorist, which is hilariously staged with an American flag and Nazi memorabilia. Can Sasha from Samara possibly believe this nonsense?

The program breaks for a commercial for Prostricum 100, another erectile-dysfunction supplement. The bottle seems to feature the drawing of a prostate. Meanwhile, on Rossiya 1 news, we learn that German Chancellor Olaf Scholtz has “fully committed himself to America. Germany can’t deal with the rising price of energy. The Greens are to blame. Germany will be turned into Kenya soon.”"
 
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Perknose

Forum Director & Omnipotent Overlord
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Beginning of Day 4:

"There is a sadness to watching this much Russian television. I have started drinking earlier and have switched from pisco sours to vodka martinis. A part of me wants to die.

But not before I catch Maria Butina’s new show on Channel 1. Butina is famous for being arrested and jailed as an unregistered Russian foreign agent in the United States. Once she was deported from the U.S., she became a member of Russia’s parliament and, of course, the host of her own TV program. (“Today’s program is brought to you by Erecton Activ. Every woman wants to be near a strong man, strong in every way. Only 2,999 rubles.”)

Today, the redheaded Butina, wearing an equally red blouse and suit pants, decides to talk about Hillary Clinton. Wait, what? Who still cares about Hillary Clinton? Apparently, Butina and Tanya from Taganrog still do.

Tense music begins. According to the program, Clinton laughed “hysterically” when she was shown pictures of the death of Muammar Qaddafi. “What kind of monster responds to a person’s death like that?” Butina asks. A “psychiatrist” appears and says, “Yes, she’s a monster. But it’s because she has had to compete with men.”"

^^^ There's 3 different state channels. This guy is watching all 3 simultaneously until his eyes bleed and his brain screams, "No mas." Apparently, your basic Russian watches an average of 4 hours a day of this stuff.
 
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Perknose

Forum Director & Omnipotent Overlord
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More Day 4:

"A so-called expert on America is produced to diagnose Hillary’s early years: “She wore big glasses, she had terrible teeth, and then she threw herself at Bill Clinton.” But Hillary is just the appetizer to the entrée of evil that really controls the strings of world government. That man is of course George Soros. “He helped the Gestapo arrest his own co-religionists and then take away their own possessions,” an announcer says to chilling background music. “George Soros. The spider.”

Of course, the image of Jew as vermin or as a spider holding the world in its web is typical and, frankly, not even very imaginative anti-Semitic propaganda. But as I watch Butina’s show, I remember that my own grandfather was a Jew born in Ukraine who died fighting Germany’s fascist armies during the siege of Leningrad. A decade after his death, another fascist named Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin was born in the city my grandfather died defending. Watching Butina and her garden-variety anti-Semitism feels like a terrible desecration of his memory.

Meanwhile, on NTV’s news program, Elon Musk declares in a clip, “All news is propaganda. People have to decide for themselves.” Russian state television could not have said it better."

^^^ Virulent, bedrock sexism and even more virulent anti-semitism. I veer wildly between ROTFWLMAO moments and deep disgust.
 

hal2kilo

Lifer
Feb 24, 2009
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More Day 4:

"A so-called expert on America is produced to diagnose Hillary’s early years: “She wore big glasses, she had terrible teeth, and then she threw herself at Bill Clinton.” But Hillary is just the appetizer to the entrée of evil that really controls the strings of world government. That man is of course George Soros. “He helped the Gestapo arrest his own co-religionists and then take away their own possessions,” an announcer says to chilling background music. “George Soros. The spider.”

Of course, the image of Jew as vermin or as a spider holding the world in its web is typical and, frankly, not even very imaginative anti-Semitic propaganda. But as I watch Butina’s show, I remember that my own grandfather was a Jew born in Ukraine who died fighting Germany’s fascist armies during the siege of Leningrad. A decade after his death, another fascist named Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin was born in the city my grandfather died defending. Watching Butina and her garden-variety anti-Semitism feels like a terrible desecration of his memory.

Meanwhile, on NTV’s news program, Elon Musk declares in a clip, “All news is propaganda. People have to decide for themselves.” Russian state television could not have said it better."

^^^ Virulent, bedrock sexism and even more virulent anti-semitism. I veer wildly between ROTFWLMAO moments and deep disgust.
It's almost like Republican propaganda. Hmm....
 

Perknose

Forum Director & Omnipotent Overlord
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Day 5:

"I watch a show called For Men / For Women, in which a woman is attacked on the street by her ex-husband, who, with the aid of his relatives, also kidnaps her little son. “I fell on the asphalt, and he is holding me down and beating me,” the woman says. “I lost my breast milk. I went to the police. The police didn’t do anything.”

“Nikolai drank a lot and still drinks a lot,” the woman continues. “He gets aggressive and he takes it out on people. I was his victim and had to obey him.”

The poor woman’s lament reminds me of the show I watched a few days prior (it now seems like a lifetime ago) about women being stalked and beaten by their ex-lovers. “He has a very aggressive nature,” a woman said of her former lover, the professional boxer. As does Russia in 2023. So many of the shows I’ve watched during the past five days were obsessed with the West, with our Clintons and Soroses and Von der Leyens. Russia is the spurned lover with the “very aggressive nature” taking out his inhumanity on the innocent neighbor next door. Despite all the posturing and doublespeak, Russian television announces as much to the world. Whether on the airwaves or, perhaps someday, at the Hague, the evidence has been clearly presented."

^^^ The "bolded by me above" kind of says it all.
 

Zorba

Lifer
Oct 22, 1999
15,286
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Day 5:

"I watch a show called For Men / For Women, in which a woman is attacked on the street by her ex-husband, who, with the aid of his relatives, also kidnaps her little son. “I fell on the asphalt, and he is holding me down and beating me,” the woman says. “I lost my breast milk. I went to the police. The police didn’t do anything.”

“Nikolai drank a lot and still drinks a lot,” the woman continues. “He gets aggressive and he takes it out on people. I was his victim and had to obey him.”

The poor woman’s lament reminds me of the show I watched a few days prior (it now seems like a lifetime ago) about women being stalked and beaten by their ex-lovers. “He has a very aggressive nature,” a woman said of her former lover, the professional boxer. As does Russia in 2023. So many of the shows I’ve watched during the past five days were obsessed with the West, with our Clintons and Soroses and Von der Leyens. Russia is the spurned lover with the “very aggressive nature” taking out his inhumanity on the innocent neighbor next door. Despite all the posturing and doublespeak, Russian television announces as much to the world. Whether on the airwaves or, perhaps someday, at the Hague, the evidence has been clearly presented."

^^^ The "bolded by me above" kind of says it all.
Insane how many republicans want us to become Russian Part 2.
 
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Racan

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Sep 22, 2012
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The DPICM shells are working.


Russians are worried about the situation near Bakhmut:"At the moment, the Armed Forces of Ukraine are demolishing our positions in the Bakhmut direction with cluster munitions. The counter-battery fight does not work. Everything is burning all around. The men are holding on, waiting for aviation. The General Staff has not yet handed over cluster bombs and rockets with cluster munitions to our guys for answers. It remains only to believe in our guys and our pilots."
 

Zeze

Lifer
Mar 4, 2011
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I am tired seeing everyone expecting US to be world police. This is really Europe problem, it's in their back yard, they should deal with it.
This old post made me so mad I am compelled to reply.

Please youtube some easy-to-digest world history.
  • By WW1, the world was already getting too small. In order to defend yourself, many countries correctly thought to stay offensive and increase your sphere of influence through alliance or colonization (awful).
  • What you gonna sit there and do nothing while other countries are all colonizing and getting bigger?
  • Capitalism v Communism was at its peak during WWII.
  • After WW2, the iron curtain (google it) was drawn, which is where East and West meet. Ukraine is literally in the middle, you get my drift?
  • Again, sphere of influence is important. Best offense is best defense.
  • Why does USA have a giga military base in Japan? Just to be a 'world police'? No it's directly asserting its powers through Korea and Japan (allies) against China. This is all self defense and preservation. If you leave it, then the other team will erode the relationships and take it. It's literally playing Civilization. Bigger teams = bigger strength and resources = better survival and future for you and your kids.
  • During cold war, entire Africa continent was proxy-war'd by Russia v USA, each trying to take them to their team.
tl;dr, since we built ships, the earth became small. you have a direct interest to protect your sphere of influence against the existential threat.

Bonus info:
  • The world is observing how this Ukraine war is playing out. How far is US willing to protect Ukraine against Russia? This is a huge tell. Why?
  • Is US going to also protect Taiwan (democratic offshoot from China) if China decides to invade Taiwan to 'reclaim their land'?
History in the making...
 
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Racan

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KMFJD

Lifer
Aug 11, 2005
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rather in depth thread on some of the stuff that was sent to Ukraine, interesting

~In total the Pentagon has spent by now at least $777.55m to increase US 155mm artillery ammo production capacity
 
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cytg111

Lifer
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Perknose

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Everyone who thought Putin was in serious, immediate trouble as leader majorly underestimates the servile Russian pysche, say I, a noted international observer (in my own mind.) I just don't see it happening, even given Putin's massive blunder in Ukraine.
 
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fskimospy

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Everyone who thought Putin was in serious, immediate trouble as leader majorly underestimates the servile Russian pysche, say I, a noted international observer (in my own mind.)
I’m not sure if having to arrest one of the war’s biggest boosters for turning against you and calling for your removal is a sign of strength.
 

Perknose

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I’m not sure if having to arrest one of the war’s biggest boosters for turning against you and calling for your removal is a sign of strength.
Being able to kind of is. Ex KGB and one time non-entity Putin knows how to maneuver -- stealth and timing. Just who do you think is going to come for the effing Tsar?
 

zinfamous

No Lifer
Jul 12, 2006
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I’m not sure if having to arrest one of the war’s biggest boosters for turning against you and calling for your removal is a sign of strength.

eh, it's the Russian way. What you and I call strength isn't the same as how Russians see it. See: history.

For one, consider the coup against roundly unpopular, perpetually inebriated Boris Yeltsin. The tanks were in Red Square, and all it took to calm down the internal invaders was for some aid to prop a stumbling Yeltsin up onto one of the tanks and for him to simply tell them to go home. Suddenly, he was the leader again, and Russians everywhere cried. Or whatever.

See: Wagner insurrection. We look at this as weakening Vlad. The Russians likely don't see it this way. You can pretend you understand this and that what you are saying is correct, but it simply isn't true in Russia. It defies common understanding.


You simply can't understand Russia from a western perspective. You can't. There's a reason that dozens of similar phrases like this have endured for generations.
 

Perknose

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eh, it's the Russian way. What you and I call strength isn't the same as how Russians see it. See: history.

For one, consider the coup against roundly unpopular, perpetually inebriated Boris Yeltsin. The tanks were in Red Square, and all it took to calm down the internal invaders was for some aid to prop a stumbling Yeltsin up onto one of the tanks and for him to simply tell them to go home. Suddenly, he was the leader again, and Russians everywhere cried. Or whatever.

See: Wagner insurrection. We look at this as weakening Vlad. The Russians likely don't see it this way. You [We] can pretend you understand this and that what you are saying is correct, but it simply isn't true in Russia. It defies common understanding.


You simply can't understand Russia from a western perspective. You can't. There's a reason that dozens of similar phrases like this have endured for generations.
^^^ This. Exactly!
 

fskimospy

Elite Member
Mar 10, 2006
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eh, it's the Russian way. What you and I call strength isn't the same as how Russians see it. See: history.

For one, consider the coup against roundly unpopular, perpetually inebriated Boris Yeltsin. The tanks were in Red Square, and all it took to calm down the internal invaders was for some aid to prop a stumbling Yeltsin up onto one of the tanks and for him to simply tell them to go home. Suddenly, he was the leader again, and Russians everywhere cried. Or whatever.

See: Wagner insurrection. We look at this as weakening Vlad. The Russians likely don't see it this way. You can pretend you understand this and that what you are saying is correct, but it simply isn't true in Russia. It defies common understanding.


You simply can't understand Russia from a western perspective. You can't. There's a reason that dozens of similar phrases like this have endured for generations.
Nah - I don’t buy any of this. For example the Wagner rebellion absolutely weakened Putin significantly. It taught people that you can lead an armed rebellion that kills numerous Russian soldiers and marches on Moscow and get away with it. It encourages more of the same. Even worse, people in the streets were cheering Wagner on!

Nobody knows if now Putin is so weak that he will be overthrown but nothing about Russia is particularly confusing. Strength is what matters, and Putin looks weak.
 
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