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PaperclipPerfector  10mo ago (text post)   33059 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of June 19, 2023

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pretty strong military hegemony in NATO and America.

That's a smug illusion, which is being dispelled by the inability of the entirety of NATO to give Ukraine enough weapons to defeat a militarily inept country with the nominal GDP of Italy.

Russians are being barely competent and are not even trying that hard when it comes to war-economy measures.

I see you‘ve now embraced the pro-ukrainian side‘s italian gdp comparison argument your friends so derisively dismissed in the beginning, preferring a more flattering and delusional comparison to the US. I hope you guys adjust your claims regarding russia‘s rightful place in the world accordingly. How much shit are we supposed to take from a poorer italy?

I didn't 'embrace' anything - but even if you do PPP adjustment, Russia just has the GDP of Germany, which means American Empire has .. how much.. 5x more ? 6x more ?

And somehow..

Right, despite possessing 10x (PPP) to 25x(nominal) the economic power of russia, the West (US, EU + UK), have barely given enough aid to equal the russian military budget. If someone's not trying, it's us. Somehow... it was still enough to inflict territorial losses on the russians.

Territorial losses ?

Russia still has Crimea and the separatist republics.

The 'equipment' given so far seems to have been used up assaulting tiny patches of land and has been now sitting out in the open in no man's land for weeks.

This video here probably shows 10% of tanks, IFVs given to Ukraine sitting abandonded in a few square kilometers of fields.

EDIT: added the video link.

This video here probably shows 10% of tanks, IFVs given to Ukraine sitting abandonded in a few square kilometers of fields.

You seem to count some subset of tanks. Poland alone gave Ukraine around 330 tanks and 240 IFV (per https://www.oryxspioenkop.com/2022/08/a-european-powerhouse-polish-military.html ).

This field has far less than 10% of that.

This field has far less than 10% of that.

I mean the 'Western' aid of 'superior' Bradley, Leopard tanks, not superannuated T-72s given last year, which have already probably been used up during the winter.

not superannuated T-72s given last year, which have already probably been used up during the winter.

There is no evidence or indicator of that. Some were lost, but nothing indicates catastrophic losses of all of them.

'Western' aid of 'superior' Bradley

why scare quotes?

It's not that great.

Not that even 'great' IFVs would help much, when you're faced with minefields to the horizon hundreds of meters wide, supersonic atgms and drones directing artillery.

It's not IFVs and bravery you need, but jamming, artillery and ability to deny enemy fires on you. Clearing a minefield goes slowly, and tanks are easy prey to guided missiles or artillery.

kherson and kharkov offensives. Obviously I'm not counting the gains russia made while we were still debating amongst ourselves what to do about it (zaporizhia), or even earlier, where we debating if we would do anything at all (crimea and donbas). Even taking your "probably" at face value, 10% of a few dozen tanks is nothing compared to the 2000 tanks and 2500 IFVs documented russian losses(oryx on the conflict. As you know, so far, the vast majority of our aid has not been in tanks, but it was clearly effective nonetheless.

Here we go again. The Russians aren't even trying!

You'd think after more than a year of the world laughing at them, they'd start trying already.

I'm not saying they're not trying.

I'm saying they're so bad at this, they've mobilized so few people, they've messed up with munitions productions - yet they still haven't been beaten.

I see we've come all the way from 'resistance is futile, Russian strength is overwhelming and their victory inevitable' to 'it's abject proof of weakness you haven't defeated the Russians already.'

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