[Ukraine] EU: Nice minister, shame if something were to happen...

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > C-SPAM > [Ukraine] EU: Nice minister, shame if something were to happen...

«‹›3687 »

What is the most powerful flying bug? This poll is closed.
🦋	15	3.71%
🦇	115	28.47%
🪰	12	2.97%
🐦	67	16.58%
dragonfly	94	23.27%
🦟	14	3.47%
🐝	87	21.53%
Total:	404 votes

[Edit Poll (moderators only)]

Zodium: Jun 19, 2004

Al-Saqr posted:

Ok lets get one thing out of the way, since 2015, life in saudi has become extremely normalized and has reached the level of social liberalism (things like women being able to dress anything they want go anywhere and do anything and drive and travel and such) that you would see in dubai minus the alchohol and sex clubs, there is now dance parties, massive raves, sports events, both sexes participating in everything, etc. the days of the religious police is well and truly gone and hasnt been the case for eight years.

However, inversely, the state itself is much more petty and brutal when it comes to speech and political rights, ESPECIALLY social media, before MBS, you can outright criticize the government (without calling for its overthrow) and the government wouldnt care unless you physically did something.

Now, however, they are extremely anal about what people post on social media, a single tweet read the wrong way no matter how banal it is can destroy your life and make you dissappear. so in a wierd sense despite the government blowing the doors wide open for entertainment and sports and stuff, it's MUCH more politically oppressive than it used to be. Before 2015 I couldve posted alot of things that if I posted them today it's goodbye to me and my life.

Now, before 2015, yes, there was alot of really bullshit socially oppressive laws especially towards women, and social policing (like the religious police) was a gigantic pain in the rear end, that part of the stereotype is true, but the difference between how saudi arabia behaved from 1980-2015 and how Iran or afghanistan behaved was that while doing stuff outside the house was a pain in the rear end and generally extremely miserable and boring, saudi arabia was still A FULLY CONSUMERIST ECONOMY.

We were never censored in terms of music, videogames, home movies, electronics, etc. (except the cutting of films that had sex scenes in them), we had sattelite, we had the internet (with censorship of porn), rampant piracy brought anime, when we walk into the supermarket every single american cultural export (Corn Pops and Cinnamon Toast Crunch) was available, everything you wanted that revolved ENTERTAINING YOURSELF INSIDE YOUR HOUSE was not controlled or censored to the level that you would see in Iran or Afghanistan. Also, the government kept sending wave after wave of students to go to america and britain to get educated, so that double internalized pro-american sentiment because they were contrasting america and britain with the really constrained lives in saudi.

So naturally, an environment like that, american movies, games, entertainment cultural exports, etc. had a field day, and a ton of saudis were fully super duper americanized through osmosis. because entertainment inside the house was never tightly controlled the way it wouldve been in Iran and Afghanistan. It was the perfect Petri-dish of an atomized depoliticized society literally getting american stuff beamed to them.

In 1992 I was playing Desert Strike a game where you were an american apache pilot saving freedom from Saddam Husseins Tyranny, in 1998 I was listening to Marlyn Manson in the car and Playing Pokemon, and I couldve bought Dead or Alive Extreme Beach Volleyball in 2002 right off the shelf (the box had the boobs scribbled off in black marker) back then if I had an Xbox, I'm pretty sure I couldnt say that at all about Iranians at the same time period. if I hadnt bothered to pick up a book and read I wouldve never escaped pro-america fantasies. the only reason I started developing bad feelings towards american foreign policy was because of Palestine and it was the Iraq invasion that turned me into a democratic-socialist type but then the arab spring and the way america hosed us over fully set me down to Communist Crazy Town.

this was also a very good post. :tipshat:

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:05

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ? May 26, 2024 23:14

Dixon Chisholm: Jan 2, 2020

Delta-Wye posted:

and to think, of what could have been

the scoop on the front is this lizards mouth

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:07

fits my needs: Jan 1, 2011; Grimey Drawer

https://twitter.com/RT_com/status/1633497805758054402?s=20

quote:

Artyomovsk, aka Bakhmut, has been a focal point of furious battles between Ukrainian and Russian forces for months now.

RT�s Igor Zhdanov followed Wagner fighters in an exclusive look at the situation on the ground.

Excerpt:

quote:

Those wounded here died because they couldn't evacuate them.

...

Those who could ran away. They couldn't reach their comrades, they left them here. Now they are being eaten by dogs.

https://twitter.com/RT_com/status/1633509539986415616

quote:

Chechen leader�s sanctioned racehorse stolen in EU country

The animal that disappeared in the Czech Republic is priced at $10 million, Ramzan Kadyrov claims

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:10

CongoJack: Nov 5, 2009; Ask Why, Asshole

hosed up to steal a dying man�s horse

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:13

HonorableTB: Dec 22, 2006

fits my needs posted:

https://twitter.com/RT_com/status/1633509539986415616

lmao

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:18

genericnick: Dec 26, 2012

Czech and Chechen. Seems like an honesr mistake.

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:19

Danann: Aug 4, 2013

Рыбарь posted:

🇷🇺🇺🇦 On a possible counterattack by the AFU near Bakhmut - Rybar (https://t.me/rybar) and Military Chronicle (https://t.me/milchronicles)

The other day Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner PMC, said that if the Russian Defense Ministry does not support the assault detachments, the situation near Bakhmut may change drastically. According to him, the AFU is planning a counteroffensive in the Soledar direction.

🔻Is it possible?

The situation of the Ukrainian grouping in and around Bakhmut is becoming increasingly critical. The main exits, through which an organized retreat is possible, are under full fire control of the Russian forces.

The NSU and TRO units near the market, lower and upper parks, as well as the Tsvetmet plant, are caught in a semi-enclosure, from which it is difficult to get out without heavy losses.

For the past few months, the AFU command has been transferring the most combat-ready units from various directions near Bakhmut to reinforce the front. However, the loss of Soledar completely undid these efforts: the "Wagnerians" conducted a successful operation in the shortest possible time, encircling and destroying a large group of the enemy in the city.

After that, the initiative in the area completely passed to the Russian troops, and the AFU was forced to retreat to active defense. Even now, with huge losses, Ukrainian formations continue to remain in the city.

🔻Why won't the AFU leave Bakhmut?

One of the tasks of the Wagner PMC was to pull in and defeat combat-ready enemy units. The "Wagnerians" have coped with this: now in the city there are separate units of eight different brigades of ground forces, DShV, National Guard and SDF group, as well as units of the TDF of Ukraine.

They are scattered forces with broken coordination, lack of communication and practically zero supply.

Some formations have already returned from re-staffing, like the 93rd Brigade Combat Team. However, most - 53, 54, 60, 61 OMBr and 56 OMBr - are withdrawn to restore combat readiness and re-staffing due to heavy losses.

🔻Why would the AFU hold the city at such a cost?

➖ Bakhmut has important symbolic significance. Its loss immediately after Soledar would seriously affect the reputation of the AFU in the information space and in the political sphere.

➖ Maintaining the garrison makes it possible to slow down the further advance of the "Wagnerites. While Russian troops are breaking through the AFU defenses, Kiev is preparing new brigades for the spring campaign, including those near Bakhmut.

🔻 Is an enemy counteroffensive possible?

The Ukrainian Armed Forces are preparing a second line of defense Slavyansk-Kramatorsk-Konstantinovka-Toretsk and are moving reinforcements with reserves. There are now at least 12 brigades concentrated at this line, as well as in Seversk (without TRO), including the newly created 47 and 67 brigades.

Some formations have already taken part in the battles for Bakhmut. These include the 17th Tank Brigade and the 28th Mechanized Brigade, as well as paratroopers from the 80th and 95th OdshbR, which are suffering heavy losses (https://t.me/milchronicles/1631) in the second line of defense.

As the Wagner PMC advances and settlements are liberated, the front line becomes larger. This leads to the need to allocate people to protect and hold positions against counterattacks by the AFU on the flanks.

🔻What can happen?

In the absence of unified coordinated actions of the PMCs and the Russian Defense Ministry, it will become increasingly difficult to hold the flanks against attacks by the AFU, and tightening the encirclement of the city will create the prospect of an enemy counterattack from Seversk, Minkovka and Konstantinovka.

To the north of Toretsk, units of the 28th Brigade and 5th Brigade, which had not actually been involved in active combat since the beginning of the battles for Kurdyumovka and Majorsk, were reinforcing and regaining strength. In the event of a counterattack south of Bakhmut, they may also be thrown into combat.

Yes, the position of the AFU in Bakhmut is precarious, but delay or interdepartmental squabbles only play into the hands of the enemy. And victory is forged only by concerted effort.

Translated with https://www.deepl.com/Translator (free version)

_{(from t.me/rybar/44367, via tgsa)}

There's like 20 Ukrainian brigades (including the 8 around/in Bakhmut) being involved in this battle drat.

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:21

Regarde Aduck: Oct 19, 2012; c l o u d k i t t e n; Grimey Drawer

i thought i could handle anything

but to steal a mans horsey...

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:21

Tankbuster: Oct 1, 2021

BULBASAUR posted:

Since we're sharing cross cultural experiences.

Moscow during and after the collapse, the late 80s and 90s, was a wild place. It reminded me more of what I thought life would be like in china or india than anything european, or even western, as a young boy coming from the US. It felt like a truly alien place, even though it was my home and my entire family was there. Village life, in particular, was pretty incredible to experience- no running water or electricity. Contributing to the dilapidation was this fall of rome feeling that hug in the air, from abandoned mega projects, to drunks laying in the streets, to incomplete infrastructure rotting away in the snow. Grotesque privatization ontop of it all. Nothing new was affordable and all the old stuff was under new management so you couldn't trust it. Villages that were supposed to get power and electricity, but were just a few months late, had to bribe people for years after to complete a project.

Going back around 2020, it was a completely different country. Clean, contemporary, modernized. I realized this when I came back. I felt like I had gone a decade ahead when I was there, and when I came back the dilapidation was obviously stateside. When I shared with my friends its natural that they didn't want to believe it.

lol that my dad said the same thing when he came to visit me while I was in the US. He took the greyhound bus because there were no trains and he didn't want to fly. Said he passed through areas that looked significantly worse than rural maharashtra; let alone kerala.

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:22

Tankbuster: Oct 1, 2021

Ardennes posted:

Yeah, having lived in Moscow/the former Soviet Union it is a bit difficult to communicate to people how much life has changed and is generally getting better (although there has still plenty of places being "left-behind"). Moscow is a modern (in some ways very modern city) with a high quality of life while other cities are catching up. That said, it is ironic that "15 minute neighborhoods" are this impossible vision in parts of the West (practically considered conspiracy) when I don't think you could walk 15 minutes in any former Soviet city and not still 12 Pharmacies and 5 different grocery stores (some of them super market sized). Other cities like Tbilisi or Baku are very livable as well even if they have their issues (Azerbaijan's nationalism is probably some of the most intense in the world period).

That said, if Moscow is the model, then it doesn't really seem to be a bad one. Sobyanin did a good job.

The whole irony is also that many Russian immigrants refuse to go back (or before the war) because their only memory is pretty much the region at its worst. And, you still have Muscovites(most of them lef thought) that really think the rest of the world, especially the US, is just so much better than the place they are currently living. I knew a couple who moved to Portland, Oregon to flee the horror of Russia...that immediately started complaining how greedy Americans are, all the homeless people, its SOOO expensive, and why are non-White immigrants allowed in northern areas?

wait can you explain the last two things?

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:23

FirstnameLastname: Jul 10, 2022

fits my needs posted:

https://twitter.com/RT_com/status/1633509539986415616

my tiktok for a horse

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:23

Turtle Watch: Jul 30, 2010; by Games Forum

all my neighs gone�

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:26

AnimeIsTrash: Jun 30, 2018

BULBASAUR posted:

Going back around 2020, it was a completely different country. Clean, contemporary, modernized. I realized this when I came back. I felt like I had gone a decade ahead when I was there, and when I came back the dilapidation was obviously stateside. When I shared with my friends its natural that they didn't want to believe it.

This was my experience visiting new delhi after years. I don't even recognize the city anymore.

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:28

CongoJack: Nov 5, 2009; Ask Why, Asshole

My republic for a horse!!

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:34

euphronius: Feb 18, 2009

the Chech republic

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:34

Regarde Aduck: Oct 19, 2012; c l o u d k i t t e n; Grimey Drawer

lift the siege of Bakhmut in exchange for the horse

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:37

Frosted Flake: Sep 13, 2011; Semper Shitpost Ubique

lol is the story that this Ukrainian fishing boat or whatever violated the Maritime Exclusion Zone during a major military exercise, while tensions in the region were extremely high, and it wasn�t boarded and searched?

What�s the point of all of those maritime surveillance aircraft overflying the route of the pipeline if the fiends slipped past unnoticed?

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:40

Danann: Aug 4, 2013

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:46

Marenghi: Oct 16, 2008; Don't trust the liberals,
they will betray you

Oh those poor North Koreans living under a despot. They need democracy so they can work as slaves mining resources for their southern neighbours on the American's behalf.

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:49

Lord of Pie: Mar 2, 2007

CongoJack posted:

hosed up to steal a dying man�s horse

name changing to Czechia was just a long con to steal Kadyrov's life insurance check

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:49

V. Illych L.: Apr 11, 2008; ASK ME ABOUT LUMBER

Frosted Flake posted:

lol is the story that this Ukrainian fishing boat or whatever violated the Maritime Exclusion Zone during a major military exercise, while tensions in the region were extremely high, and it wasn�t boarded and searched?

What�s the point of all of those maritime surveillance aircraft overflying the route of the pipeline if the fiends slipped past unnoticed?

also the crew is somehow still at large despite not being connected to any intelligence agency

it really is very, very stupid

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:52

Regarde Aduck: Oct 19, 2012; c l o u d k i t t e n; Grimey Drawer

Marenghi posted:

Oh those poor North Koreans living under a despot. They need democracy so they can work as slaves mining resources for their southern neighbours on the American's behalf.

that's a charitable interpretation

i think they were just saying all the Northerners would die and then the South would just move in

# ? Mar 8, 2023 23:53

Nix Panicus: Feb 25, 2007

South Koreans arent working the mines themselves.

Its also slightly terrifying that people will literally describe every aspect of colonialism, down to calling the people living in the target nation 'underutilized', but consider it a good thing to be cheered and endorsed

Also love that 'North Korea never rebuilt its industry' is just tossed out there so incuriously

# ? Mar 9, 2023 00:02

Ardennes: May 12, 2002

Tankbuster posted:

wait can you explain the last two things?

I mean the cost of living in Portland is literally like 3-4 times Moscow at this point, so they weren�t expecting they would have to make 3-4 times what they made in Moscow to have the same quality of life (probably more factoring in a car and health care etc). They moved to a place with a worse work to life balance.

They didn�t think Mexicans would be in Oregon because it is a �white state� and they wanted to escape the horrors of Moscow where there would be non-white Russian citizens on the metro minding their own business.

# ? Mar 9, 2023 00:05

Some Guy TT: Aug 30, 2011

Slim Jim Pickens posted:

South Korea is one generation removed from a society of villages and urban shanty towns.

its actually closer to two generations at this point and this is part of the problem thats completely crushing the countrys morale especially among young people the rapid development paradigm is no longer a convincing one for why the country is dogshit because instead of parents going well i had to walk a mile both ways to get to a school where teachers beat the poo poo out of me so i think were doing ok now theyre going well i had to do basically the same things youre doing right now and i hate my life and nothing will ever improve

theres been a huge collapse in optimism basically because one by one all of the excuses for why the countrys social and economic problems exist have stopped being relevant and not only have these problems continued to exist theyre somehow getting worse the long term failure of the candlelight rallies has killed any kind of political momentum for change because that was the most extreme form of action anyone was even capable of envisioning under the highly fetishized peaceful demonstration model of political change which remains the only form of agitation the countrys culture is willing to acknowledge as legitimate and if that didnt work theres nothing else that can

# ? Mar 9, 2023 00:05

Tankbuster: Oct 1, 2021

AnimeIsTrash posted:

This was my experience visiting new delhi after years. I don't even recognize the city anymore.

its still a rapey shithole. My leaf relatives have switched over to mumbai for flight connections because my cousin kept being groped.

# ? Mar 9, 2023 00:08

Nix Panicus: Feb 25, 2007

I imagine theres a huge difference going from 'growing up sucked because we were rebuilding our war torn nation and building new cities from scratch' to 'growing up sucks because we made no effort to make it better, gently caress you'

# ? Mar 9, 2023 00:09

Tankbuster: Oct 1, 2021

Ardennes posted:

I mean the cost of living in Portland is literally like 3-4 times Moscow at this point, so they weren�t expecting they would have to make 3-4 times what they made in Moscow to have the same quality of life (probably more factoring in a car and health care etc). They moved to a place with a worse work to life balance.

They didn�t think Mexicans would be in Oregon because it is a �white state� and they wanted to escape the horrors of Moscow where there would be non-white Russian citizens on the metro minding their own business.

are they paying reparations?

# ? Mar 9, 2023 00:10

yellowcar: Feb 14, 2010

Frosted Flake posted:

lol is the story that this Ukrainian fishing boat or whatever violated the Maritime Exclusion Zone during a major military exercise, while tensions in the region were extremely high, and it wasn�t boarded and searched?

What�s the point of all of those maritime surveillance aircraft overflying the route of the pipeline if the fiends slipped past unnoticed?

extremely funny how the osint dork narrative shifted from "we were 100% aware of and tracking all sea traffic in that region during that exact time frame" to "okay maybe except this one"

# ? Mar 9, 2023 00:11

genericnick: Dec 26, 2012

Haven't read the NYT's garbage but do they actually claim they did it while the exercise was ongoing?

# ? Mar 9, 2023 00:15

Tankbuster: Oct 1, 2021

I love sailing my rogue band of mercenaries on a pleasure boat in the middle of naval exercises to blow pipes up.

# ? Mar 9, 2023 00:17

Marenghi: Oct 16, 2008; Don't trust the liberals,
they will betray you

Nix Panicus posted:

South Koreans arent working the mines themselves.

Its also slightly terrifying that people will literally describe every aspect of colonialism, down to calling the people living in the target nation 'underutilized', but consider it a good thing to be cheered and endorsed

Also love that 'North Korea never rebuilt its industry' is just tossed out there so incuriously

North Korean economy did pretty good post war comparatively against the south.

All the ire it gets as proof of socialism as a failed ideology focuses mostly on the 90s and succeeding decades. It's just accepted as North Korea's fault and never linked to the collapse of it's main trading partner for oil. People just accept the anti-communist narrative and fail to connect oil to the economy. The source of fertilizer, fuel for farm equipment and for transport just vanished, and somehow that isn't why they experienced a massive famine.

# ? Mar 9, 2023 00:17

Ardennes: May 12, 2002

Tankbuster posted:

are they paying reparations?

No, it is just literally like a 1 bedroom apartment in Portland is like 4 times that of Moscow with higher taxes etc. Basically, someone middle class in Moscow probably could buy an apartment ouright (without a mortgage) by their mid-30s if they played their cards right (not a programmer even just someone with a fairly normal job), but that is pretty much ridiculous in Portland now.

I think part of it is that Russia has some of the lowest rates of English language penetration in the world (India or even China is far more exposed), and so information just doesn't filter easily into Russia. Ideas about the outside world are vague and often extremely outdated/strange. They think America of 2023 is the America of 1995 (there is even a "Friends" themed cafe in Moscow). Because of this only the most hardcore Britain/America worshippers learn English, and usually they views of the world are ... hideous and cruel.

Marenghi posted:

North Korean economy did pretty good post war comparatively against the south.

All the ire it gets as proof of socialism as a failed ideology focuses mostly on the 90s and succeeding decades. It's just accepted as North Korea's fault and never linked to the collapse of it's main trading partner for oil. People just accept the anti-communist narrative and fail to connect oil to the economy. The source of fertilizer, fuel for farm equipment and for transport just vanished, and somehow that isn't why they experienced a massive famine.

It is also why the West is still constantly paranoid that some more oil may be leaking into the DPRK from different directions, but Juche was just a recognition of the reality at hand.

Ardennes has issued a correction as of 00:29 on Mar 9, 2023

# ? Mar 9, 2023 00:19

Frosted Flake: Sep 13, 2011; Semper Shitpost Ubique

genericnick posted:

Haven't read the NYT's garbage but do they actually claim they did it while the exercise was ongoing?

The alternative is that it was done later, when tensions were even higher, and surveillance was about the same.

Without the ongoing NATO exercise, presumably there was Russian air and naval activity in the area too.

# ? Mar 9, 2023 00:25

tristeham: Jul 31, 2022

Ardennes posted:

Yeah, South Korea's demographics issues are perhaps slightly more delayed than Japan but as severe, and at this point North Korea is actively gaining on them. The route for victory for the DPRK is the long play.

inshallah

# ? Mar 9, 2023 00:27

Seatbelts: Mar 29, 2010

Weka posted:

New weapons system for Ukraine - Australian paper airplanes!

https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidh...sh=379704b9b8a2
https://archive.ph/nxavu

"ohr nor! everyone else I using metal and stuff! I told you Stacy!"

# ? Mar 9, 2023 00:30

Ardennes: May 12, 2002

tristeham posted:

inshallah

The one hope is as relations between China and the West break apart, that invariably the taps will open up on North Korea and the current growth would only accelerate further. That said, it is a powerfully way to keep South Korea neutral (although I would put it past them to "Ukraine" themselves eventually).

# ? Mar 9, 2023 00:31

Tankbuster: Oct 1, 2021

hey the mother country made planes out of wood during ww2. So aussies should make drones out of cardboard.

# ? Mar 9, 2023 00:32

January 6 Survivor: Jan 6, 2022; The
Nelson Mandela
of clapping
dusty old cheeks

( o(

V. Illych L. posted:

also the crew is somehow still at large despite not being connected to any intelligence agency

it really is very, very stupid

Yeah I too have kissed a crew of underwater pipeline saboteurs... no you wouldn't know them, they uh go to another school. In canada

# ? Mar 9, 2023 00:34

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ? May 26, 2024 23:14

Nix Panicus: Feb 25, 2007

Ardennes posted:

The one hope is as relations between China and the West break apart, that invariably the taps will open up on North Korea and the current growth would only accelerate further. That said, it is a powerfully way to keep South Korea neutral (although I would put it past them to "Ukraine" themselves eventually).

endless lmao that everyone in the west is taught the DPRK started the Korean War, and not the dictatorial mass murdering RoK regime

# ? Mar 9, 2023 00:34

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > C-SPAM > [Ukraine] EU: Nice minister, shame if something were to happen...

«‹›3687 »