It was repeated by Russian side, including two days ago in Putin's call to Trump that ALL aims of SMO will be achieved. There will be NO "settlement", there will be capitulation either willingly or through full physical annihilation of 404 as a country.
Meanwhile, POTUS--tell me this is AI?
Per possible resumption of attacks on Iran. My take, after I recovered from Homeric laughter form Larry's description of the matter:
Is that you cannot put anything, including the most stupid and senseless thing, past this POTUS. Including, of course, a resumption of attacks and even "ground operations" with the force so inadequate for achieving any sensible results that it WILL result in heavy casualties for the US military. Well, what can I say--pop-corn time.
1. General Shamanov, now the Chair of the State Duma's Defense Committee reports (in Russian) that ukie Nazis Sergei Velichko (handle Chili) and Konstantin Nemichev, who tortured Russian POWs, have been taken by Russian special forces and now float in their snot begging for forgiveness during interrogations by FSB.
I am sure they will experience a lot of "good" attitude when they are sent to serious Russian prison but, against the background of Russia's increasing desire to return the death penalty, nobody in Russia will shed any tear if these two lowlifes are executed. In fact, it is a highly desirable outcome.
2. There is a huge misunderstanding, fueled (surprise, surprise) by Western MSM and some uber-patriotic Russian outlets that Russian-Ukrainian talk in Turkey somehow "stopped" Russian operations. Nothing could be further from the truth.
a) Head of Russian delegation Vladimir Medinsky merely articulated Ukrainian side's proposals, but NOT Russian position. He also stated that Moscow will review them and will give the answer sometime later (in Russian);
b) Reduction of the activity at Kiev-Chernigov Axis by Russian forces and I quote Medinsky "does not mean a cease fire". Russian troops still remain around Kiev and do what they were doing for the last three weeks--tying up remaining Ukie forces in and around capital of 404.
c) Russia does not want to take Kiev, which will mean a serious damage to an ancient city and even more civilian casualties. At least not now.
d) Operations elsewhere proceed as planned and Nikolaev begins to feel the upcoming (and incoming) storm.
So, I don't understand what this fuss is all about.
3. Why "like amateurs"?
I understand that Rep. Mike Gallagher graduated all kinds of "intel" universities and schools, such as National Intelligence University, but it has to be admitted that US foreign policy is run by amateurs and I, personally, never hid my awe by the catastrophic failure of the so called US "strategic intelligence", the failure continues and the United States in general, and Mike Gallaher in particular do not know shit about Russia, let alone correlation of forces and what real warfare is. I guess US military record of the last 75 years is a great testament to that. Recall this?
Mr. Gallaher, read by syllables: the myopia of American strategic planning. I also understand how difficult it is to explain to Mr. Gallaher that he is an amateur when it comes to real deterrents and modern conventional peer-to-peer warfare. So, the qualifier "look like" should be omitted in favor of "we are amateurs". Getting amateur results is what proves it all. Just take a look at POTUS.
One cannot stop pretty much anyone in the US, let alone POTUS, from saying stupid things. Saying stupid things has become, sadly, America's pastime in the last 30 years and it is all due do a precipitous decline of the American elites across the board: from politics, to military, to media to what have you.
4. Now to real professionals. Larry Johnson rebukes US media BS about 404.
I don't know at what point, but many Americans do seek out the alternative POV and the number of those Americans grows, I know this for sure. So, these are few items for Tuesday.
POTUS made a declaration in Warsaw in his speech, he stated that Russian economy will shrink two fold (hm, what it reminds me about, I wonder, wink, wink) due to sanctions and then stated something altogether strange--he stated that Ruble to US Dollar going rate is: 200 to 1 (in Russian). Well... Here is March 26 (I mean today) and here is the reality:
It is the same ol' story about "15,000 KIAs", this time about economy--it is all desperation that makes them lie non-stop top-bottom. They all lie, because they feel the end coming. Pay also attention to the news (in the picture) mentioning Daily Mail, while NY Post also runs this headline:
Well, color me surprised... not. As I state non-stop, one has to even lie professionally, by "professionally" meaning making lies believable--they cannot do that in the West due to incompetents dominating corridors of power and influence from Brussels to Washington D.C. Plus, it is my assertion for a long time that most of them in those corridors do not even understand what real economy is and why, even if it would come this, you know 200 Rubles to 1 USD, it would make little difference because Russians want Rubles, not Dollars and Ruble today, unlike it was in the Soviet Union, buys you anything you want, because Russia IS NOT the country of deficit as Soviet Union was.
So, basically POTUS lying openly to everyone merely proves the level of desperation in D.C. regarding this whole 404 business, after all, the US wanted to see Russia getting her nose bloodied there, but it turned out quite differently. Again, I reiterate, those who "planned" Iraq and Afghanistan, it goes logically, would have huge difficulties understanding and assessing what goes on in Ukraine today. I just have one advice--hire more lawyers and PR people, they will show you how to plan and assess military campaigns properly, or how to govern (wink, wink).
Here are VSU soldiers surrendering (Nazis--are a different thing, they will be annihilated or taken prisoners and persecuted):
They will be taken care of (medical, food, bathing, rest) and after filtration will be either sent back home or given an option to form police forces in newly freed regions of Ukraine serving for new Military-Civilian Administrations. Per the amphibious ship Saratov, it is a loss and being a very old ship she will be struck down. The ammo compartment exploded due to hit by cassette warhead and it started a massive fire. The fire was dealt with, but this old ships is a goner.
Mariupol: a drastic drop in intensity of Neo-Nazi response by heavy weapons is reported (they simply are running out of ammo) and the city sees law and order returning. As War Gonzo reports: the actual size of fanatical Nazi force in Mariupol was around 20,000, most of it is annihilated and two pockets which are left and shrinking both contain roughly of 3,000 each. This was yesterday. Judging by reports of very many Nazis trying to escape Mariupol even dressing in women's clothing Mariupol's operation is at its end and most what is left is smoking out a remainder of what was considered the best fighting force in 404, and de-mining the city.
Here are some specimen taken POW by Kadyrov people. I think they might be Azov but I am not 100% sure.
The first thing which is checked for belonging to Nazi groups are their tattoos and then indicators of carrying and using small arms. Then FSB and LDNR Security people take it from there. In Russia, meanwhile, the idea of return to death penalty is now being circulated on the level of State Duma. I think it is about time. Macron meanwhile talks about introduction of coupons for the right to buy groceries in France (Oh, boy, USSR of late 1980s comes to mind) and after watching yesterday people in one of the French grocery stores fighting for vegetable oil, yep, seems like this is coming. Don't tell me that I didn't warn about it. Here is you primer for the weekend.
One trick ponies, arrogant, uncultured, badly educated--we know that. We knew this for a long time now. But here is an excellent example how the words of real professional--and Colonel Douglas MacGregor is a real deal--can shake and leave searching for words even such an indomitable figure as Tucker when the professional insight is presented. Watch to the end.
What MacGregor says is nothing new. Many people, me included, spoke about this for many years. It is impossible to explain to some think-tankdom sinecure abusing political "scientist" or lawyer who constantly prod incompetent US political elite towards wars of aggression that reality, economic, military, geopolitical, you name it, is such that the main danger for the United States and the world is not in the US' strength but its weakness. It is this weakness, which cannot be cured under present conditions, and delusions of grandeur which carry with them a grave danger when ignorant adventurists at the American political top may decide to "go all in" and be shaken into the realization that the world operates, and always operated, not in accordance to their fantasies but reality.
As I always say: what is going to happen in case of real war when the United States military loses after the first salvo several thousand people and possibly an aircraft carrier in one day? What will be a decision process after that in Washington D.C.? Will lowlife journos from the New York Times and CNN provide a sound advice? I am sure Don Lemon has a lot to say about combined arms warfare. Or will it be Thomas Friedman? The loss of competence in the United States today is appalling, it comes hand-in-hand with a complete detachment from human reality and the necessity for players like Russia to seek an alternative communications, such as Shoigu stressed a couple days ago, when speaking about the contacts with the US military. It is not just that the United States is non-agreement capable--that is an old story. One literally cannot talk to anyone in D.C. since it is a complete mental ward. To speak to WHO? And I don't mean mentally and physically declining Joe.
Paul Craig Roberts recently wrote a nostalgic and very relatable piece titled I Have Outlived My Country. He writes:
It is highly relatable when speaking about Soviet Union of 1960s and 1970s, funny how things go in parallel more often than we suspect. Sadly, highlighted in yellow is not true anymore in the US and the country is run by a cabal of Ph.Ds in pseudo-"sciences", which completely eradicated any semblance of a critical thinking and ability of dealing with facts in most people. When Joe Biden is removed from the office--no, there is no "if", just when--due to his inability to be POTUS, Kamala Harris, a lawyer by education and a woman who has zero understanding of the world outside, forget about complex issues of foreign policy and military, she will be controlled by a neocon lobby which will sell its ignorance and arrogance as a foreign policy and warfare "expertise", which was never there. Make your bets, ladies and gentlemen, on how the process of implosion will accelerate for the United States once it will get into the conundrum from which there will be no good exit. Not that it exists now. It doesn't.
About fvcking time. The only legitimate "buyback" is known as "stock options" which are granted to people working at the company. Obviously, clowns populating a spin machine, aka US media, immediately jumped on the fact of Nikki Hailey leaving Boeing's board of directors and started to speculate that this is the move designed to get Nikki into the WH as VP or, maybe, even as POTUS. I understand that only qualifications pundits have are those of sorting out different varieties of shit, but Hailey, being incompetent idiot and being considered as a viable candidacy for any top two posts in US political hierarchy is a sign of times, the end of times that is. As if we don't have enough problems in hoarding enough booze to survive, in adequate mental state, upcoming presidential debates between current orange genius and senile imbecile Biden, who seems to be positioned to finally qualify the DNC and Democratic Party as an ultimate freak show.
Speaking of the "geniuses" and the reasons why Russia, as an example, sees no value in talking to Trump. As Daniel Larison points out:
As I wrote previously, last vestiges of the geopolitical competence in the United States are concentrated primarily around armed forces professionals--it is understandable, since they have to plan based on more-or-less realistic data. Yeah, let's call it "more-or-less". The main hawk in Trump Administration today is Richard Grenell, a run-of-the-mill mediocrity who passes under the title of "diplomat" in the US and who is now Director of National Intelligence and is known for creating a shitstorm in Germany, while being an ambassador there, and, in general the guy who is utterly unqualified for either diplomat or "intelligence" positions probably even in the Kingdom of Lesotho (nothing personal against this fine country). But that is the story of the American geopolitical "thought" in the last, well, many years.
Obviously, the main question remains--how Grenell sees (hint, he cannot--he has degree in Public Administration) this "larger attack" on Iran. Pompeo, another geopolitical "thinker" and insane hawk, who graduated West Point in 1986, at least should have some clue on how modern battlefield is shaped and what happens in it--I think--but there is no guarantee that fat Mike actually remembers any of it. So, here we have a bunch of chickenhawks with dubious religious indoctrination (like Pompeo) trying to kill as many US servicemen in the ME as humanly possible by mounting a "larger attack" on Iran. What can possibly go wrong, right? But even Pompeo, I think, is not well versed in the realities of modern warfare against such state actor as Iran and should be periodically reminded that the United States doesn't have a viable object (bases, HQs, industrial plant) and troop level (brigade, regiment, company) Air Defense capable to stop Iranian cruise and ballistic missiles. So, no surprise then, that it is namely, for all its major flaws, US military which pushes against these insane ideas. I would suggest to Mike Pompeo and Grenell to concentrate on the only thing that are good at--imposing sanctions. As I said many times--more sanctions on Russia, please. I mean it.
I think that Mr. Porter doesn't understand the zest, so to speak, of this historic moment because he is correct that Russia is "watching" how America "tears itself apart", but he avoids, for some reason, mentioning of the fact that in this case ALL FBI counter-intelligence resources should be concentrated on investigating Democratic National Committee (DNC), which, together with Democratic Party's many rank and file DO "tear" America apart and thus, by definition by Mr. Porter, must be considered Russian operatives. If Mr. Porter doesn't believe me, he surely should listen to his very own direct big boss, POTUS:
But while repeatingdelusional BSabout Russia "wanting to watch" and "conducting brazen operations"Mr. Porter, accidentally, gets one thing semi-right:
“To put it simply, in this space, Russia wants to watch us tear
ourselves apart, while it seems that China would rather manage our
gradual economic decline over the course of generations," Porter said.
Semi-right Porter is because he thinks that only China wants to manage "gradual economic decline over the course of generations", because Russia not only wants but already DOES manage this decline in a number of different military-political ways, some of which are beyond the grasp of even China. But it is good that Mr. Porter at least acknowledges that there is some "decline" (granted a very speedy one on a historic time scale--within single generation) of the United States and this one is primarily due to a roughly 30 year-long very acute (End of History) delusion about America's real place in history and greed and utter incompetence and malice of US "elites" who, not Russia or China, screwed their own country royally and continue to do so non-stop. But then again, me writing this, could be construed as Russian "interference" or, Tucker Carlson could easily be accused and charged with being a Russia's asset because Tucker is exploiting "lines of division". And, in fact, "exploited" those even more maliciously by publishing NYT's #1 gigantic bestseller precisely about how America tears itself apart.
Did Mr. Porter and FBI ever try to investigate, as an example, some US neocons for warmup? Hm, I don't think so they will--otherwise Mr. Porter's career will go down really fast. So, back to fighting Wind Mills with all Quixotic zeal and looking for the lost key in the dark alley under the lamp post merely because it is well lit there.
