War in Eastern Europe, what's it good for ....

[MechAg94]

Dems have better uses for the money since artillery shells don't vote

But the military industrial complex does make campaign donations.   

[Angel Eyes]

What is this?

I think HankB means "Diversity, Equity and Inclusion"

(my employer does a lot of DEI *expletive deleted*it)

[Ron]

I think HankB means "Diversity, Equity and Inclusion"

(my employer does a lot of DEI *expletive deleted*it)

You mean DIE - diversity, inclusion, equity.

[HankB]

I think HankB means "Diversity, Equity and Inclusion"

(my employer does a lot of DEI *expletive deleted*it)

Correct - DEI - an abbreviation for the current lefty buzzwords, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, a gateway to FUBAR.

They've switched manufacturers before for this reason - M16 magazine contracts were awarded to "disadvantaged" businesses. After a while of making M16 mags, the business became very profitable, and was no longer "disadvantaged"  Fed.gov then took back the tooling and gave it to another "disadvantaged" business and the cycle repeated. Some did a good job, some not so good.

But the problem is that considerations OTHER than cost and reliability are the driving factors when it comes to awarding contracts.

[Pb]

Thank you.

The federal government is garbage.

[WLJ]

Gives you a warm and fuzzy feeling when you consider magazines are often the most common point of failure in firearms.

[Angel Eyes]

Gives you a warm and fuzzy feeling when you consider magazines are often the most common cause of failures in firearms.

At our local AFB, the security personnel all carry Magpul 30-rounders, not the DEI mags.

[dogmush]

I have found myself in possession of several brand new issue M4 mags.  They are brown with anti-tilt followers.  they seem to have hit the supply system about 2019 or so.  They have worked fine for me personally, but I did see a couple act up on a brigade range this summer.  The followers would stick about half way down.  The bright side is it seems to be a "they work or they don't" thing so you can tell pretty quick if you got a bad one.

[Ron]

Putin said that Russia is fighting the full might of NATO. The US and its allies, he said, are seeking to “destroy” Russia in an address to the nation last night.

[WLJ]

Putin rattling the nuclear sabers.
Not new but in light of recent Ukrainian advancements and him blaming NATO and him possibly feeling desperate something to keep an eye on.
Also add to the mix he considers the disputed territories part of Russia when he says "and when the territorial integrity of our country is threatened"

Again something to keep an eye on.

"To those who allow themselves such statements regarding Russia, I want to remind you that our country also has various means of destruction, and for separate components and more modern than those of NATO countries, and when the territorial integrity of our country is threatened, to protect Russia and our people, we will certainly use all the means at our disposal," Putin said in a Wednesday address.

"It's not a bluff," he added.

https://www.foxnews.com/world/putin-warns-west-threat-resort-nuclear-weapons-not-bluff

[MillCreek]

^^^The UK press is also reporting Western concern over the use of chemical weapons instead of nuclear.  Russia apparently still has a chemical weapons capability other than using Novichok for political assassinations.

[grampster]

And the warmongering Rs and Ds want to ramp up sanctions by setting the price for Russian oil and gas and threatening European countries if they don't go along with it.  I fail to see how someone other than Russia telling the Russians you will sell your oil and gas at this price.  Putin says Bite Me.  Halts oil and gas.    Europe freezes in the cold, electricity is sparse, cars and trains are locked down and food becomes scarce.  Riots start in Europe and governments collapse.  Putin wins!

[RoadKingLarry]

But think of how much that will help the environment!

[Angel Eyes]

https://m.gordonua.com/news/worldnews/na-protestah-protiv-mobilizacii-v-rf-zaderzhali-bolee-1300-chelovek-smi-pishut-chto-nekotorym-vruchayut-povestki-1627424.html

Text at the link is in Russian.  After running it through Google Translate:

On September 21, protests were held in many Russian cities against the partial mobilization announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin. According to OVD-Info , at least 1,342 people were detained at the protests in 38 cities.
Most of the detainees were in St. Petersburg (544) and Moscow (507). In other cities - from 40 or less.

According to OVD-Info, 51% of all detainees are women. It is noted that this is a record number: at rallies in support of opposition leader Alexei Navalny in 2021, the proportion of women ranged from 25% to 31%. At anti-war actions in February-March, 44% of women were detained.

The 24liveblog portal  writes that in some Moscow police stations, detainees are handed summons to the military enlistment office.

"The subpoenas were handed to the detainees in the Sokolinay Gora and Lyublino police departments. A man in civilian clothes entered the police department in the Marfino district, who says that he will now hand over the summons. According to the information of the detainees, employees of the military registration and enlistment office arrived at the police department in the Prospekt Vernadsky district," the report says. .

At least one of the detainees is threatened with a criminal case due to refusal to sign the summons, the portal notes.

Also:  the Moscow Exchange collapsed, prices for airline tickets out of Russia have skyrocketed, and Russian men of military age are fleeing to Finland.

[kgbsquirrel]

https://m.gordonua.com/news/worldnews/na-protestah-protiv-mobilizacii-v-rf-zaderzhali-bolee-1300-chelovek-smi-pishut-chto-nekotorym-vruchayut-povestki-1627424.html

Text at the link is in Russian.  After running it through Google Translate:

Also:  the Moscow Exchange collapsed, prices for airline tickets out of Russia have skyrocketed, and Russian men of military age are fleeing to Finland.

Oof.  That's some high proof irony.

[WLJ]

Anyone seriously think we would still be wondering who's going to win this after 7 months?
I was thinking we would be in the first part of the long term insurgency by now. Instead we have Ukraine pushing back to the border in places. Of course I didn't expect the level of NATO support that occurred.

[Nick1911]

Anyone seriously think we would still be wondering who's going to win this after 7 months?
I was thinking we would be in the first part of the long term insurgency by now.

Right?  The red army isn't what it use to be.

[K Frame]

Right?  The red army isn't what it use to be.

Some of the Youtube comparisons between today's Russian army and the Red Army that invaded Finland are pretty interesting.

[dogmush]

Anyone seriously think we would still be wondering who's going to win this after 7 months?
I was thinking we would be in the first part of the long term insurgency by now. Instead we have Ukraine pushing back to the border in places. Of course I didn't expect the level of NATO support that occurred.

I tend to think, and have said, that Ukraine is doing well and may well win this.  I hope they do. However, it's worth remembering that Russia still has things they could do that they haven't.  Yes the obvious WMD assets, but even things like strategic bombing (or missileing) with conventional weapons.  Or even just another half a million bodies.  Quantity is it's own quality in some ways. Putin could still choose to make a desert and call it peace.

[MechAg94]

Right?  The red army isn't what it use to be.

If there is any mistake that Putin made it is this.  It became obvious the Russian army was poorly maintained and poorly equipped beyond the few leading units.  That leads to some interesting speculation about their future.  Outside of nuclear threats, the conventional military threat from Russia appear much weaker than anyone thought.  Which leads to speculation that the nuclear threat might be hollow as well.

It also leads me to speculate about just how strong the Chinese military really is.  Do they have the same corruption issues?  Probably, but who knows how deep that goes.  Of course, we have our own issues.

[cordex]

I tend to think, and have said, that Ukraine is doing well and may well win this.  I hope they do. However, it's worth remembering that Russia still has things they could do that they haven't.  Yes the obvious WMD assets, but even things like strategic bombing (or missileing) with conventional weapons.  Or even just another half a million bodies.  Quantity is it's own quality in some ways. Putin could still choose to make a desert and call it peace.

Sure, but in January I'd have said Russia would coast through Ukraine in weeks.  Never would have expected them to hold out as long as they have, smash as much Russian gear, much less be making counteroffensives and retaking some ground.

[WLJ]

If there is any mistake that Putin made it is this.  It became obvious the Russian army was poorly maintained and poorly equipped beyond the few leading units.  That leads to some interesting speculation about their future.  Outside of nuclear threats, the conventional military threat from Russia appear much weaker than anyone thought.  Which leads to speculation that the nuclear threat might be hollow as well.

I bought up at the beginning of all this the fact their GNP is smaller than S. Korea's now. They just don't have the finances for anything long term. Add to that an extreme amount of corruption. But even still the current situation and how badly the Russian performance has been to this point and for that matter how well the Ukrainians have performed has surprised me.

It also leads me to speculate about just how strong the Chinese military really is.  Do they have the same corruption issues?  Probably, but who knows how deep that goes.  Of course, we have our own issues.

We have more trans in high command positions than the Chinese and our troops have undergone intense sensitivity training. The Chinese don't stand a chance.

[HankB]

. . .  Putin could still choose to make a desert and call it peace.

That's kind of what they've been trying to do - the intial Russian strategy was "walk in, take over, and set up a puppet government."  Thanks to the ungrateful Ukrainians, that didn't work out so well.

So the updated strategy was "Bomb and shell the crap out of everything, then move in to occupy the rubble." This had some initial success - they HAVE occupied a big chunk of Ukraine - but again, thanks to the uncooperative Ukrainians, this isn't working all that well, either.

I wonder how much actual unrest there is in Russia. Some stories say people who were taken into custody for protesting are being handed summonses for military service, Russian airlines have been ordered not to sell tickets to men of military age to fly out of the country, and an outbound traffic backup 20 miles long has been seen at the Finnish border. Other people are simply walking out to countries that have lenient entry requirements for Russian citizens. Considering how tightly Russian media is controlled, I suspect things inside Russia are worse than we hear. How harshly the state security services ultimately behave towards the Russian people remains to be seen. When the USSR was coming apart, I remember that the military and even the KGB didn't do what the leadership wanted. I've no idea what would happen today inside Russia if internal dissent really became significant.

We have more trans in high command positions than the Chinese and our troops have undergone intense sensitivity training. The Chinese don't stand a chance.

Diversity is strength - we hear it all the time. The Chinese leadership - political and military - are all Chinese. And probably straight Chinese besides. No question, they'd be toast in any conflict.

[K Frame]

"It also leads me to speculate about just how strong the Chinese military really is.  Do they have the same corruption issues?  Probably, but who knows how deep that goes.  Of course, we have our own issues."

I'm a hell of a lot more worried about the Chinese military than the Russian military. The Russian military never gave any true indication that it recovered from the decay that happened in the last years of the Soviet system and into the post Communist era.

No one that I know of was saying "Wow, the Russian Federation army is as scary and as capable as the Soviet army ever was."

Everything I saw on Russian military readiness raised serious questions about their overall capabilities. Where the concern came in was on sheer weight of Russian arms -- sheer numbers of tanks, planes, and men. As Stalin had said, quantity has a quality all its own.

But, even that was quite over optimistic as we've seen. Russian performance has fallen dramatically short of even those limited expectations.

I don't think China's military is even remotely close to as bad off as the Russian army is. 

[WLJ]

Note how the drive on Kyiv broke down under it's own weight with poorly maintained vehicles breaking down jamming the highway up to the point supplies couldn't get to the forward units making them sitting ducks. Maintenance takes money and forethought, both things in short supply in Russia today. And how much of that money was lost in corruption which is rampant in Russia. Putin though he could brute force his way in but the Soviet bear of the cold war is in a walker and someone stole one of the wheels.
The Soviet army of the 1980s probably could have done it as an afterthought.