Coffeesforclosers

I wish your argument had worked on North Vietnam or the Taliban. We'd live in a better world.

Yup, I have been. France has as sprawling, "informal" Empire amongst its old colonies in West and Central Africa. Those nations are bound to France and French-run financial institutions by a lot of arm twisting and shadowy treaties. A ton of money and strategically critical raw materials got funneled into French coffers for pennies on the dollar. Doesn't surprise me that those chickens have come home to roost. -However- If Putin and Wagner are behind it, and Putin and Wagner are basically bragging OJ style about how they're behind it, then the game is afoot. France+ African Allies vs Putin, Wagner and African allies. Putin just backed out of the black sea grain deal, then blew up all of Ukraine's grain exporting ports. Which wete the major suppliers of grain foodstuffs in Africa pre-War. He just went to the African Union and tried to strongarm them with veiled threats against their food supplies, which he largely controls unless the AU shifts suppliers. African leaders who are sympathetic to Russia in a lot of other spheres are not impressed, notably Egypt and South Africa So now there's lots of talk that West African alliances and/or the African Union will intervene militarily. Probably with a blank check from the French. Which is more egg on Macron's face, as he's been massaging Russia from the start, trying to forge an image for himself as a "realist" and a "peacemaker". Just to have Russia turn back around and kick him in the balls.

Wait a minute... a political attack has to be factually correct in order to be effective? If Ron DeSantis believes that, I've got John McCain's mixed race love child from the 2000 Primary on the line. She's selling bridges in Brooklyn.

Sure, why not? They can put a "Most Improved" banner next to their "We Almost Beat Buffalo Twice!" banners.

BB would sacrifice at least one of his sons to coach Josh Allen.

"Son, calling everyone who isn't MAGA a child grooming woke mob leftist globalist communist war monger is a great way to get eight years of Joe Biden." Dean Wormer.

So DeSantis was ready for another lay up fight against the clown car that is the Florida Democratic Party. He was not ready to be hit by black Republicans...all of whom are either running against him, or have already endorsed Trump. ...aaaaannnndded just like that, he's back on the defensive. On a race issue, right after he fired a staffer for posting some possibly, maybe, nazi imagery. I was told this guy was smart. Still waiting for the proof. He's great at running up the score against gong show opposition with a rubber stamp legislature to help him. How's about he wins a fight against someone who can hit him back?

Sounds a lot like what we did to the Plains Indians.

U.S. Official Shares Details of Secret ‘Track 1.5’ Diplomacy With Moscow Russia has started its Forever War. They've got no plan except that they can't lose. Even when we want to let them off the hook...they refuse because that looks like losing to them. So they'll continue their current plan of bluster, bull####, and hoping they can shovel cannon meat into Ukraine until NATO gets sick of it and goes away, or forces Ukraine to the table. Everybody knows this ends with a deal. Nobody in Russia who matters wants a deal.

Impeachment. Aka the least effective tool in the constitution for reigning in presidential misconduct. Goes like this. Charges are brought up, cases are made, President receives a trial in the Senate, Senate votes to acquit on party lines. Nothing is accomplished. 100% virtue signalling because no one will ever whip 66 Senators to vote for something besides farm subsidies or defense spending. Move on and quit wasting everyone's time.

The Bills are 5-1 against NE since Brady left. Shouldn't they be copying what we're doing?

You can add Popasna, Sevierodonetsk, the 1st Kherson counter offensive, and Soledar to that list too. Doesn't mean the Ukrainian army's been wiped out twice.

MSM gonna MSM. But given what Ukraine wanted to achieve, and what they've achieved so far, it's more right than wrong. Ukraine tried a good, old fashioned Desert Storm style breakthrough. It failed for a bunch of reasons, none of them good for Ukraine. They're fighting an attritional war right now, focusing on killing Russian commanders, blowing up ammunition dumps, cutting supply routes, and destroying Russian artillery, and they're doing "ok". But it's definitely a Plan B because plan A was defeated.

If it's that obvious, you should have no trouble posting a link to a source.

What an enlightened position! Have you considered writing a strongly worded post on a message board?

It's a rough puzzle to put together. Surovikin's disappeared, a raft of of very competent VDV officers, starting with Mikhail Teplinsky, are on the chopping block supposedly. Now LPR/DNR Ultra-Nationalists are being scooped up and black bagged. However, Shoigu and Gerasimov are untouched. So, I agree, it looks like Prigozhin finagled his way into Putin's inner circle. I just wonder what leverage he has over Putin that's keeping him alive. I still think it's to secure Wagner's loyalty, so they can be used for an attritional offensive against the truly massive defensive lines between Belarus and Kyiv and win the war* but we'll see. *Maybe, possibly, it beats years more attritional war. Russia doesn't have the bottomless manpower reserves the USSR/WarPact did.

Wait a minute. I was told that Ron DeSantis is smart. Looks like the Florida Democratic party is just a clown car, and he was running up the score. Ever since he started fighting opposition with the cash, discipline, and brains to fight back, he's looked like a hump.

Ask Quebec. Somehow, they make it work.

...Sure? You're the first person to bring this claim up in this thread, so where does it come from?

They'd need a real army and a creditable air force that can take airspace from the Russians when the Russians want to keep it. Right now they have a real army and an air force that that gets its hits in when it can and lives to fight another day.

Correct. Which is probably why nobody who participates in this thread on a regular basis utilizes the basic narrative from the news. Europe though, oddly enough, has gone from a bunch of profit obsessed hedonists who would sell their grandparents for a 15% annual return in their index fund...to openly debating funding the whole Ukrainian army indefinitely. This is the brave new world Russia created by deciding to invade. And since Russia just threatened to attack any ship of any country docking in any Ukrainian port... I don't think they're in the mood for peace unless they're convinced war will not get them what they want, at a reasonable price.

Yes they certainly do. I want those disputes resolved firmly in Ukraine's favor. For instance, Russia's annexation of Ukrainian land corresponds almost exactly to the Novorossiya breakaway state outlined by the Donbas Separatists back in the 2010s. Which incorporates all of Ukraine's coastline and its most economically viable areas. Keeping it is a non-starter.

This war is going to end with negotiations. IF this goes through, it's the EU telling Russia they can't just wait everyone out until everyone gets bored and Russia gets what it wants. Meaning a long war strategy is less viable. Meaning peace happens sooner. But it's Europe and Military commitments. So I'll believe it when I see it, for any European country west of the Oder or the Danube to commit to it that is.

The EU is debating the creation of a fund that would bankroll Ukraine's Army for years. A very smart piece of diplomacy if it goes through.

Here's all 400 episodes where he talks about Replacement Theory, or conspiracies abouthow the Democrats have some kind of agenda to import voters via illegal immigration.