Russia & Ukraine

[Section 15]

Oh, and Russia is bad. (To stay on topic.)

Do people still order Russian dressing for their salads any more? (Doing my part)

[Rich]

What's loud, red and Russian?




A firetruck

[JStuart]

What's loud, red and Russian?




A firetruck

An orchestra director years ago stopped us after a poorly played section, and asked, gently, "how many of you are of Soviet ancestry (this was way back)? A couple of people raised their hands. She then said, well, all of you were 'Russian' that passage tonight!"

Back to your regular program...

[DevilHorse]

Had to dig to find this thread, but..

Apparently the Russians used the International Space Station for some boasting about some victories in their fight with the Ukraine.
The US was having none of it.
https://spacenews.com/nasa-criticize...on-of-ukraine/

Larry
DevilHorse

[swood1000]

A special radar detects a rocket being fired by a Russian artillery unit, transmits the unit’s latitude and longitude to a data-control network, which directs a particular HiMARS to fire a rocket at precisely that point.

See this video in which a Russian news crew films a Russian TOS-1a firing, and in less than a minute it is destroyed by incoming fire.

[Furniture]

A special radar detects a rocket being fired by a Russian artillery unit, transmits the unit’s latitude and longitude to a data-control network, which directs a particular HiMARS to fire a rocket at precisely that point.

See this video in which a Russian news crew films a Russian TOS-1a firing, and in less than a minute it is destroyed by incoming fire.

Amazing. That is going to hurt…

[tommy]

Without getting into PPB territory, will Putin accept the trade of Britney Griner and Paul Whelan in exchange for the Russian arms dealer? Why or why not ?

[budwom]

Without getting into PPB territory, will Putin accept the trade of Britney Griner and Paul Whelan in exchange for the Russian arms dealer? Why or why not ?

it's a good trade for him...the arms dealer is a big timer, a genuine thug much in Vlad's mold. Griner and Whelan do him little good in prison.

[TrickDribbles99]

Without getting into PPB territory, will Putin accept the trade of Britney Griner and Paul Whelan in exchange for the Russian arms dealer? Why or why not ?

That Russian arms dealer wasn't just guilty of providing false info on Federal gun forms, which is obviously a serious crime that can earn someone many years in prison. His claim to infamy is that he sold tens of millions worth of weapons directly to terrorist organizations with the express purpose of killing Americans. The AG at the time, who would know a thing or two about sending weapons to baddies, referred to the guy as the "world's most prolific arms dealer" and he was alternately dubbed the Merchant of Death.

One would hope that, if released, this man wouldn't follow in the footsteps of those 5 taliban members who, upon release from Guantanamo in a 5 for 1 swap, went right back to their old ways.

Another thought: With all of the high end weapon systems that have been dumped into the Ukraine with absolutely no ability to track their whereabouts, wouldn't this guy's prospects for recidivism be exponentially heightened? He would be like a kid in a corrupt candy store. There would have to be both assurances and a means to corroborate said assurances.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

That Russian arms dealer wasn't just guilty of providing false info on Federal gun forms, which is obviously a serious crime that can earn someone many years in prison. His claim to infamy is that he sold tens of millions worth of weapons directly to terrorist organizations with the express purpose of killing Americans. The AG at the time, who would know a thing or two about sending weapons to baddies, referred to the guy as the "world's most prolific arms dealer" and he was alternately dubbed the Merchant of Death.

One would hope that, if released, this man wouldn't follow in the footsteps of those 5 taliban members who, upon release from Guantanamo in a 5 for 1 swap, went right back to their old ways.

Another thought: With all of the high end weapon systems that have been dumped into the Ukraine with absolutely no ability to track their whereabouts, wouldn't this guy's prospects for recidivism be exponentially heightened? He would be like a kid in a corrupt candy store. There would have to be both assurances and a means to corroborate said assurances.

I can't imagine that these considerations haven't been taken.

[bundabergdevil]

I can't imagine that these considerations haven't been taken.

The lengths our government will go to for its American citizens in trouble abroad is pretty incredible. Being an American is like being in a class unto ourselves among the global citizenry.

Whether that is a good thing or bad thing is not a discussion for this board. But it is definitely a thing.

[budwom]

The lengths our government will go to for its American citizens in trouble abroad is pretty incredible. Being an American is like being in a class unto ourselves among the global citizenry.

Whether that is a good thing or bad thing is not a discussion for this board. But it is definitely a thing.

Yes indeed. And I really think it needs mentioning that Griner did a really really stupid thing, especially considering the current state of U.S. - Russian affairs. There are always limits to what the U.S. can persuade the Russians to do, and those limits are way more extreme right now.

[Bluedog]

Yes indeed. And I really think it needs mentioning that Griner did a really really stupid thing, especially considering the current state of U.S. - Russian affairs. There are always limits to what the U.S. can persuade the Russians to do, and those limits are way more extreme right now.

And many American diplomatic experts don't like the "trade swaps" because it encourages places like Russia to detain our citizens for flimsy reasons so they have leverage to get back someone else we have detained. Yes, Griner did something incredibly stupid but certainly not something that would be even close to a months long prison sentence in the U.S...I'm sure she wishes she double checked her packed bag...

Just as Whelan wishes he didn't attend someone's wedding in Russia. Whelan also has Canadian, British, and Irish citizenship (born in Canada, lived in U.S. prior to Russia detainment), so you'd think that those countries would also be supportive of getting him out, but seems like it's on the U.S. to make the moves if they want to do so.

[budwom]

And many American diplomatic experts don't like the "trade swaps" because it encourages places like Russia to detain our citizens for flimsy reasons so they have leverage to get back someone else we have detained. Yes, Griner did something incredibly stupid but certainly not something that would be even close to a months long prison sentence in the U.S...I'm sure she wishes she double checked her packed bag...

Just as Whelan wishes he didn't attend someone's wedding in Russia. Whelan also has Canadian, British, and Irish citizenship (born in Canada, lived in U.S. prior to Russia detainment), so you'd think that those countries would also be supportive of getting him out, but seems like it's on the U.S. to make the moves if they want to do so.

Indeed. Vlad is in a strong position...a lot of folks in the U.S. government are VERY unhappy about letting the arms dealer go...

[CameronBornAndBred]

Indeed. Vlad is in a strong position...a lot of folks in the U.S. government are VERY unhappy about letting the arms dealer go...

Not justifying anything, but at least that guy has served 10 years of his 25 year sentence. It's not like he'd be going home without punishment.

[PackMan97]

...a lot of folks in the U.S. are VERY unhappy about letting the arms dealer go...

Fixed that for you.

We should at least be making a comperable trade. This is the same as saying I'll trade you two apples for an entire apple orchard.

[tommy]

Fixed that for you.

We should at least be making a comperable trade. This is the same as saying I'll trade you two apples for an entire apple orchard.

You can say that, but what's comparable to an international arms dealer, that Russia is holding?

[Acymetric]

You can say that, but what's comparable to an international arms dealer, that Russia is holding?

Wrong question, because our goal isn't to trade the arms dealer. I think we'd rather keep him.

The question is what are we holding that would be comparable to Griner for an "even" trade? I have no idea, but I'm also pretty confident Russia wouldn't be interested in an even trade anyway.

[Skydog]

Vlad loves making us miserable. He knows that holding Griner makes many in the US upset (most Americans know little about the other prisoners) so she isn’t coming home any time soon.

[Phredd3]

Vlad loves making us miserable. He knows that holding Griner makes many in the US upset (most Americans know little about the other prisoners) so she isn’t coming home any time soon.

I agree, in principle. The irony is that every "free Brittney" social media comment makes it harder to actually get Brittney back home. I think this is the bottom line reason the U.S. is offering such an unbalanced trade. However, I do think it is possible that this trade might be unbalanced enough to actually work.