Bernhard Makes Great Points...

... while discussing yet another lament of some US special forces published in one of the military porn outlets. Speaking about problems of VSU those two American "special forces" identified, Bernhard arrives to indisputable conclusion:

The authors claim that most of the above problems could be fixed by more 'western' training which they are more than willing to sell. However, what has become of the last armies 'western' forces have trained in Iraq and Afghanistan? Both fell apart. An army must reflect the local society and culture. It can not be formed top down by outside forces. Since 2015 the Ukrainian army has been build up and trained by U.S. and British forces. What the WotR authors describe is the result of that.

Spot on. What also has to be emphasized--only few people in the US are talking openly about purely operational and strategic issues. Those constant tactical narratives are becoming boring because...

Unlike tactics as presented in the public sphere as a mere set of instructions, speaking operationally and strategically requires a very different set of skills. One CAN train a company to attack, defend and maneuver using a set of manuals. Figuring out operational part and how it trickles down to tactical level or how tactical level influences upwards to operational level is a completely different game. Specifically in the US strategic level considerations are missing altogether because there never was any practical fusion of state's political strategy and a military one. American war record is dismal and this cold hard fact cannot be changed. Bernhard gives some very good explanation.

In The Eye Of The Beholder...

 ... or a very dangerous topic for Friday. After this:

The question, bypassing Jordan Peterson's reasonable psycho-biological explanations, is simple--these types of women are not just Karenesque mental, which they are, it is a deeper issue of being undesirable. This psycho knows it, she is driven by it despite having a family and kids. I deliberately omit here posting those photos. Her husband looks like... well... I also abstain here. 

Yes, she is extremely colorless and unattractive woman and not because she IS unattractive, which she is, but because she is not feminine and projects dominance compensating for what she will never get. Well, I call it a low fuckability index, but this is all tongue in cheek, because in the end even some physically attractive women can easily turn any non-consistent masturbators and alpha males off. Woman must have femininity, which does not necessarily equal physical beauty, and intellect first of all, the rest is negotiable. People of low cultural level, which are most of celebrities and creative class, do not know the difference, hence manipulation of ugliness as IN lack of any femininity into the standard of beauty.

 

Because third wave feminism is about failing to get the intimacy, as opposed to being fucked, sometimes in a humiliating way. Intimacy is a projection of the future of relations, being only sexually appealing is mostly about regret the next day, or month. This is how developed men find wives and real women find husbands--by avoiding this paradigm. Charlize Theron is a stunningly beautiful woman, she also projects a lot of things normal men will find disturbing and repulsing.  And only perverts like Sean Penn could have found an explicit whore like Madonna attractive. So, here it is--the Friday topic on a controversial subject, granted, that the beauty is in the eye of the beholder. 

I envy the young guy who will fall, or maybe already, in love with Gabriella, in her almost Giokonda's semi-smile and incredible inner beauty which manifests itself in musical and physical way so profoundly. As it happened with me almost forty years ago. 

BTW, never found Cindy Crawford attractive. Beautiful? Yes! Absolutely cold and repulsive, everything was on her face--easily read. But that's just me. 

It is Friday... go at it...

Somehow Panie Maryla Rodowitcz still makes so many Russian hearts tremble since 1977. 

That was in Sopot... 46 years ago...

Of Course They Do.

Mr. Sullivan wants to "negotiate". 

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration is ready to talk to Russia without conditions about a future nuclear arms control framework even while taking countermeasures in response to the Kremlin’s decision to suspend the last nuclear arms control treaty between the two countries, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Friday. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced in February he was suspending Russia’s cooperation with the New START Treaty’s provisions for nuclear warhead and missile inspections, a move that came as tensions worsened after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Russia did say it would respect the treaty’s caps on nuclear weapons. Sullivan said at the Arms Control Association’s annual meeting said that the United States is committed to adhering to the treaty if Russia also does, and that Washington wants to open a dialogue on a new framework for managing nuclear risks once the treaty expires in February 2026.

This posture has zero relation to ethics or love of peace--it is a measure to somehow slow down the development of Russia's new strike technologies and to get access through inspections to at least some Russia's advancements. Reducing risks of nuclear exchange, of course, is good under any circumstances but let's not forget about technological gap which is growing between Russia and US in this field and I expect the growth only to accelerate. 

Recall, both me and Larry spoke about this on many occasions: it is not just about warheads and delivery systems, it is also about mitigating the strike. Here the US is not even in the same league, and serial deployment of S-500 which has practically full blown Anti-ICBM capability and of something we didn't see yet, including A-235 Nudol getting ready to become mobile, not to mention laser weapons development, are the means to greatly mitigate US deterrent. The US has no answer to this and that drives this desire to negotiate without any preconditions. Plus, China's deterrent figures prominently in those desires. Speaking of which. 

As Ria put it bluntly (in Russian): China Started to Systematically Mock the United States. China's Defense Minister Li Shangfu flatly refused any meetings with SecDef Lloyd Austin.

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin on Thursday said he welcomes any opportunity for engagement with China’s military leadership in the future, despite Chinese Defense Minister Li Shangfu declining to meet with him during the upcoming IISS Shangri-La Dialogue. Speaking in a joint press conference in Tokyo with Japan Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada, Austin said it’s important for countries with large, significant military capabilities to be able to talk to each other to manage crises and prevent events from spiraling out of control. Austin also said China continued to make provocative intercepts of U.S. and U.S. allies’ aircraft in international waters and air space, which prompted more communication attempts between the Pentagon and the Chinese Defense Ministry.

And these are just some issues pertaining a complete overhaul of global balance of power and this wouldn't have been compete without Ben Wallace parading himself and UK as clowns, with this dude embarrassing himself and UK's "elite producing machine", Sandhurst including, because they, evidently, do not study real war there anymore. Speaking to WaPo (behind the paywall) this proud product of British military "school" (or kindergarten) didn't exclude the possibility of 404 taking Crimea back when "Russia will run out of required equipment". Boy, they do grow them dumb in London. Well, what do you expect from the military establishment whose only war-making capabilities are reduced to false flag SAS operations, killing civilians and conducting terrorist acts. As rumor has it (I have no independent confirmation) a number of British officers have been killed in Kiev during Russia's latest missile strikes. Medvedev's recent statement gives a hint of sorts that Russia is now in business of reducing the numbers of NATO "advisers" in 404. London in general, and Wallace in particular still do not understand the significance of this picture, and continue to make mistake by misidentifying themselves in it.

In the end, using Premier League analogy--in the game of geopolitics, Russia is Manchester City, UK is a weekend amateur team of employees of local post-office competing against teams from local brewery and meat packing factory. Or, using a purely British, Kiplingian analogy--Tabaqui. I warned about this 7 years ago. As classic Soviet cartoon Mowgli portrayed it: 

Or as the common wisdom has it--one has to play in a proper league. Otherwise it ends with this;

I couldn't resist, LOL. I am sure Rio Ferdinand never experienced such a prostate exam, performed by Carlos Tevez, before or ever since.

Scott Just Returned From Russia.

Boy, do we have a treat--first Larry with Judge, and now Scott. 

 

Larry With Judge.

Excellent discussion. 

 

Congratulations, Nebraska.

You did well in elections. What a nice Senator. 

No comments are needed.
 

In Related...

 ... developments. 

Japan and the US are in discussions on joining forces to develop interceptors capable of shooting down hypersonic weapons, Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada has said. Hamada made the announcement at a press conference after talks with US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in Tokyo on Thursday. “Regarding defense equipment and technology cooperation, we’ve agreed to deepen cooperation and to advance discussions on unmanned aerial vehicles as well as the possibility of joint development in the future of an interceptor to counter hypersonic technology,” he said.

Or, as Derek Zoolander would say...

... continuing talking about this conversation will, certainly, ensure the advancement in this field as long as it suits US military contractors. Japan, for all her magnificent robotics, cars and other consumer technology is not big on military rocketry, being a recipient of the American air defense systems for decades. While Congo-class Aegis equipped DDGs of Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force are good ships, they still are the carriers of same ol' SPY-1D radar and a variety of SM-3 missiles honed (allegedly) for anti-ballistic missile defense. Considering a dismal performance of US made air defense complexes in the last decade one can easily conclude a very low level one has to start from in order to create something capable of going full Monty against straight flying hypersonic weapons. Against violently maneuvering ones? Good luck with that...

Meanwhile, the never-ending story...

May 30—WASHINGTON — Lockheed Martin's F-35 engines are being overworked and could lead to an extra $38 billion in overhauls in the next few decades to help cool radar and other components of the fighter jets, according to government auditors. "The cooling system is overtasked, requiring the engine to operate beyond its design parameters," the Government Accountability Office wrote in its 91-page annual report released Tuesday. "The extra heat is increasing the wear on the engine, reducing its life, and adding $38 billion in maintenance costs." Unless there is an effective fix, engine overhauls might come sooner than expected and add another item to the Pentagon's $1.7 trillion estimate to operate and maintain the fleet until its operational end in the late 2080s. 

Boy, this (barely) flying embarrassment of a combat aircraft just cannot get out of a forest of problems. I am sure NATO countries and America's lapdogs in Asia will be happy to get this lemon. After all, as "sources" continue to report:

The GAO's report disclosed that the cost of the Block 4 upgrade has grown by an additional $1 billion to $16.5 billion, and half of Lockheed's 2022 aircraft deliveries were late. However, the demand for F-35s has grown internationally. Global interest in the fighter jet has increased since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 and tensions with China have increased. 

Ah, yes, F-35 is a good match against SU-35 or SU-57, wink, wink. I wonder what will Turkiye decide on her indigenous fighter and what may become a stop-gap measure for Turkish Air Force in coming years. Something tells me it will not be F-35. At this stage combat proven packages such as SU-35 with R-37 or same for SU-57 look extremely attractive for many. F-16 is nearing a complete obsolescence in the modern battlefield with supersonic speed and now that Erdogan secured his Presidential tenure things may start happening pretty fast.