The Russian army

[Lilith7]

Isn't doing so well, if this article is right. I wonder if humans will ever evolve sufficiently to end wars - seems unlikely at this stage.


https://www.stuff.co.nz/world/europe/300...ssias-army

"The might of the modern Russian army was supposed to show the world that Russian President Vladimir Putin had restored his country to greatness after the humiliation of the Soviet collapse.

Instead, poor progress and heavy losses in Ukraine have exposed deep flaws within Russia.

For those threatened by PutinÔÇÖs aggression, a diminished army is a relief. Unfortunately, it also leaves a nuclear-armed power with a point to prove.


For Putin this is a crushing setback. That is partly because, although he controls a formidable propaganda machine to help drown out his critics, the loss of face threatens his standing at home."

[Magoo]

the poor russians, so industrial, so...soviet, so...threadbare
theyre still stuck in steampunk on the technology scale.
worst alcoholism on the planet (yes including the Irish)
russian condoms still have tread on them

the russian elite have a worldview of russia as a power house. theyre more like a power pole.
its a shame the citizenry can barely walk and chew gum at the same time, and couldnt really give a shit for Father Russia.
this has always been the problem with the military.

this is also why russian soldiers returning from war were sent to the gulags, they were considered cowards and deserters for not dying on the battlefield.
never a good way to motivate the lads.

[Lilith7]

the poor russians, so industrial,  so...soviet, so...threadbare
theyre still stuck in steampunk on the technology scale.
worst alcoholism on the planet (yes including the Irish)
russian condoms still have tread on them

the russian elite have a worldview of russia as a power house. theyre more like a power pole.
its a shame the citizenry can barely walk and chew gum at the same time, and couldnt really give a shit for Father Russia.
this has always been the problem with the military.

this is also why russian soldiers returning from war were sent to the gulags, they were considered cowards and deserters for not dying on the battlefield.
never a good way to motivate the lads.

Yeah, I'd heard about their high rate of alcoholism - probably just as bad with other drugs, too I suppose. I wonder if they have AA over there, poor buggers.


I suppose I shouldn't but am unable to resist - how do you happen to have such familiarity with Russian condoms??

[Magoo]

the poor russians, so industrial,  so...soviet, so...threadbare
theyre still stuck in steampunk on the technology scale.
worst alcoholism on the planet (yes including the Irish)
russian condoms still have tread on them

the russian elite have a worldview of russia as a power house. theyre more like a power pole.
its a shame the citizenry can barely walk and chew gum at the same time, and couldnt really give a shit for Father Russia.
this has always been the problem with the military.

this is also why russian soldiers returning from war were sent to the gulags, they were considered cowards and deserters for not dying on the battlefield.
never a good way to motivate the lads.

Yeah, I'd heard about their high rate of alcoholism - probably just as bad with other drugs, too I suppose. I wonder if they have AA over there, poor buggers.


I suppose I shouldn't but am unable to resist - how do you happen to have such familiarity with Russian condoms??

the russian ones are short and chunky with tread that have 'ussr' in Cyrillic down the length.
the american ones are much bigger and have 'Proudly Made in the United States of America' written down the length.

---

mr putin has shot himself in the foot quite badly.
many european countries have been weaning themselves of russian oil.
i think the finns or the dutch have been stockpiling such is their lack of faith in russias ability to supply.
this has accelerated that process markedly.

thats all russia has got. gas and oil. and theyre screwing that up. they make bugger all else to be exported anywhere. so shoddy is their workmanship much of their production has no market anywhere else.

[Zurdo]

I've had a couple of Lada's and a Ural...although the Ural had a VW engine. Talking to a guy, maybe last century, and he went to Russia to get a Ural from the factory. There were 2 Ural factories, one for export, and one for local sales...he had a tour of both. In the local production factory everyone   was drunk....in the export plant they were all sober, and the quality of product was far superior.

I have a friend who went to Russia for a couple of orphans...good kids.

[Oh_hunnihunni]

Someone on Al J was talking about banning nukes and I yelled at the screen why just nukes? Why not all war materials?

Why not indeed...

We are such stupid animals.

[Oldfellah]

Nukes will be banned after Russia the USA, China, India, Britain and whoever else posses them have fired them off in the upcoming war, because if Russia decides to go Nuclear its all on, I recon it will be like a domino effect, lets hope everyone sees sense before its too late.

[Oh_hunnihunni]

Do you remember Neville Shute's On the Beach?

Scared to pooh out of me that did...

[Lilith7]

Yeah, I'd heard about their high rate of alcoholism - probably just as bad with other drugs, too I suppose. I wonder if they have AA over there, poor buggers.


I suppose I shouldn't but am unable to resist - how do you happen to have such familiarity with Russian condoms??

the russian ones are short and chunky with tread that have 'ussr' in Cyrillic down the length.
the american ones are much bigger and have 'Proudly Made in the United States of America' written down the length.

---

mr putin has shot himself in the foot quite badly.
many european countries have been weaning themselves of russian oil.
i think the finns or the dutch have been stockpiling such is their lack of faith in russias ability to supply.
this has accelerated that process markedly.

thats all russia has got. gas and oil. and theyre screwing that up. they make bugger all else to be exported anywhere. so shoddy is their workmanship much of their production has no market anywhere else.

That'll teach me for asking!


I wouldn't be surprised if the Scandinavian countries have been stockpiling; they're relatively sensible countries especially by comparison with Russia.

---

Someone on Al J was talking about banning nukes and I yelled at the screen why just nukes? Why not all war materials?

Why not indeed...

We are such stupid animals.

Yes - exactly. Teach peace, teach self control, & destroy all those barbaric weapons capable of slaughtering millions.

The world is a weird place. And humans are crazy.

---

I've had a couple of Lada's and a Ural...although the Ural had a VW engine. Talking to a guy, maybe last century, and he went to Russia to get a Ural from the factory. There were 2 Ural factories, one for export, and one for local sales...he had a tour of both. In the local production factory everyone   was drunk....in the export plant they were all sober, and the quality of product was far superior.

I have a friend who went to Russia for a couple of orphans...good kids.

There was a TV series a while ago, done by one of the kids adopted in Russia & brought here. Having eventually made contact with his birth family, he was helping other kids in the same situation to find their biological families.
Some of the stories were really interesting.

[Magoo]

this is us. humans.
been like this since we became cognizant. maybe even longer.
asking us not to war is asking us not to be human.
like asking a dog not to bark.

[Lilith7]

this is us. humans.
been like this since we became cognizant. maybe even longer.
asking us not to war is asking us not to be human.
like asking a dog not to bark.

But not every human makes war on others; there's the other side of our nature as well, & that's the one we need to try to develop far more. Preferably to the eventual point where violence of any kind against another living creature is unthinkable.

[Magoo]

certainly we may try.
but the other side has to try too.
therein lies the rub.
can we trust them?
well if we were ukrainian the answer would be 'no, arm yourselves'

and once again the bedouins nailed it with an old proverb
'min fadlik abtaead ean aleushb'

[Oh_hunnihunni]

For the record if dogs can be trained to be quiet, or bark on demand, human beings have no excuse.

[king1]

[Magoo]

For the record  if dogs can be trained to be quiet, or bark on demand, human beings have no excuse.

as soon as it gets with other dogs a hierarchy needs to be established.
this is done with tooth and claw.
once hierarchy is established, boundaries have to be marked and defended
and so it begins

[Lilith7]

certainly we may try.
but the other side has to try too.
therein lies the rub.
can we trust them?
well if we were ukrainian the answer would be 'no, arm yourselves'

and once again the bedouins nailed it with an old proverb
'min fadlik abtaead ean aleushb'

Clearly this is something which we all need to put some effort into, regardless of differences & I'm sure that our species is intelligent (despite daftness) enough to manage to at least make that effort. Its something which in the long term would benefit all our descendants & the planet, too.



ÔÇ£No one saves us but ourselves. No one can & no one may. We ourselves must walk the path."


ÔÇ£Just as a snake sheds its skin, we must shed our past over & over again.ÔÇØ
Buddha

Any chance of you translating your quote?

[Magoo]

certainly we may try.
but the other side has to try too.
therein lies the rub.
can we trust them?
well if we were ukrainian the answer would be 'no, arm yourselves'

and once again the bedouins nailed it with an old proverb
'min fadlik abtaead ean aleushb'

Clearly this is something which we all need to put some effort into, regardless of differences & I'm sure that our species is intelligent (despite daftness) enough to manage to at least make that effort. Its something which in the long term would benefit all our descendants & the planet, too.



ÔÇ£No one saves us but ourselves. No one can & no one may. We ourselves must walk the path."


ÔÇ£Just as a snake sheds its skin, we must shed our past over & over again.ÔÇØ
Buddha

Any chance of you translating your quote?

yes
'keep of the grass'

we can put the effort in, because we believe in the innate goodness of spirit of mankind.
this belief is misplaced peace can only occur at the end of a gun, and only temporarily at best.

'you can dye your hair but you cant change your roots'
magoo

---

the story of the alligator and the mouse crossing the river springs to mind.

[Lilith7]

Clearly this is something which we all need to put some effort into, regardless of differences & I'm sure that our species is intelligent (despite daftness) enough to manage to at least make that effort. Its something which in the long term would benefit all our descendants & the planet, too.



ÔÇ£No one saves us but ourselves. No one can & no one may. We ourselves must walk the path."


ÔÇ£Just as a snake sheds its skin, we must shed our past over & over again.ÔÇØ
Buddha

Any chance of you translating your quote?

yes
'keep of the grass'

we can put the effort in, because we believe in the innate goodness of spirit of mankind.
this belief is misplaced peace can only occur at the end of a gun, and only temporarily at best.

'you can dye your hair but you cant change your roots'
magoo

---

the story of the alligator and the mouse crossing the river springs to mind.

I think that sooner or later humans are going to comprehend that being governed by the more brutal, violent side of our nature hasn't helped humanity as a species. And that, if we want real progress we'll find ways to harness & control our violent side, channel it into something more useful. That energy could perhaps be used instead to create, invent far more useful & benevolent things rather than who's got the biggest gun, & who can kill more people.
 
And it may be that you're right & that will only happen at the end of a gun, at least initially. But while we may be capable of enormous stupidity, we're also capable of its opposite & that's what may one day lead us onto a different path. it might be something which must be taught in schools eventually but we need to start putting more effort into finding ways of changing for the better.
As long as we don't annihilate ourselves & our world first.

[Magoo]

yes
'keep of the grass'

we can put the effort in, because we believe in the innate goodness of spirit of mankind.
this belief is misplaced peace can only occur at the end of a gun, and only temporarily at best.

'you can dye your hair but you cant change your roots'
magoo

---

the story of the alligator and the mouse crossing the river springs to mind.

I think that sooner or later humans are going to comprehend that being governed by the more brutal, violent side of our nature hasn't helped humanity as a species. And that, if we want real progress we'll find ways to harness & control our violent side, channel it into something more useful. That energy could perhaps be used instead to create, invent far more useful & benevolent things rather than who's got the biggest gun, & who can kill more people.
 
And it may be that you're right & that will only happen at the end of a gun, at least initially. But while we may be capable of enormous stupidity, we're also capable of its opposite & that's what may one day lead us onto a different path. it might be something which must be taught in schools eventually but we need to start putting more effort into finding ways of changing for the better.
As long as we don't annihilate ourselves & our world first.

that sounds too hard.

[harm_less]

I think that sooner or later humans are going to comprehend that being governed by the more brutal, violent side of our nature hasn't helped humanity as a species. And that, if we want real progress we'll find ways to harness & control our violent side, channel it into something more useful. That energy could perhaps be used instead to create, invent far more useful & benevolent things rather than who's got the biggest gun, & who can kill more people.
 
And it may be that you're right & that will only happen at the end of a gun, at least initially. But while we may be capable of enormous stupidity, we're also capable of its opposite & that's what may one day lead us onto a different path. it might be something which must be taught in schools eventually but we need to start putting more effort into finding ways of changing for the better.
As long as we don't annihilate ourselves & our world first.

that sounds too hard.

So killing your fellow man is the soft option? Your reasoning seems a little flawed at best.