It seems as if we hear this all the time now, about both sides, but mostly about Russia.

"Ukraine is losing the war. They are running out of troops."

"Russia is losing the war. Soon, they will be pulling convicts out of prisons and sending them to the front."

The last thing I would expect to hear coming out of a war zone, is the truth. Choose the propaganda which comforts you.

quote:

Originally posted by Rightwire:
On the flip side, if Ukraine were to target all of the Russian military museums they'd likely put a quick end to the war.

Then Biden would have to give them weapons that could strike deep into Russia.

McCain and Graham went to Ukraine years ago stoking the fire.



Lindsey Graham Calls for U.S to Start Shooting Down Russian Military Aircraft

https://slaynews.com/news/lind...ign=daily-newsletter

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) has called on Democrat President Joe Biden’s administration to start shooting down Russian military aircraft.

Graham made the call after a Russian fighter jet collided with a U.S. drone on Tuesday.

“They shot down our drone,” Fox News host Sean Hannity said to Graham during an interview Tuesday night.

“What should our answer be?”

“Well, we should hold them accountable and say that, ‘If you ever get near another U.S. asset flying in international waters, your airplane will be shot down,’” Graham responded.

“What would Ronald Reagan do right now?

“He would start shooting Russian planes down if they were threatening our assets. American foreign policy’s in free-fall.”

quote:

McCain and Graham went to Ukraine years ago stoking the fire.

I generally can't stand Lindsey Graham. He's always talking so tough, while gambling with other people's lives...
I wonder how much he collects from the MIC?

ETA: Looks like about $15 million in the last election cycle:

Senator Lindsey Graham’s Pro-War Super PAC Bankrolled by Defense Contractors
https://theintercept.com/2015/...defense-contractors/

PAC Profile: Security Is Strength
NOTE: This committee is a single-candidate super PAC in support of Lindsey Graham (R) .

PAC Summary Data, 2019-2020

Total Raised $14,727,213
Total Spent $15,024,601

https://www.opensecrets.org/po...0573733/summary/2020

quote:

Originally posted by YooperSigs:
Pence is actually running? Who in their right mind would vote for him?

So what has Pence been up to recently?

Last Saturday, Pence attended the annual Gridiron Club dinner, which is an event of, by, and for the D.C. Establishment, where he said the following:

History will hold Donald Trump accountable for Jan. 6.

Make no mistake about it: What happened that day was a disgrace, and it mocks decency to portray it in any other way. President Trump was wrong. His reckless words endangered my family and everyone at the Capitol that day.

Clearly, Pence was referring to Tucker Carlson for debunking some of the hoaxes peddled by the Democrats and the media about the protests of January 6 that went overboard.

Pence had expressed similar sentiments about Trump in his book, claiming that Trump's "reckless words had endangered my family and all those serving at the Capitol."

If that was bad, Pence stooped farther down, lavishing blandishments at the mainstream media. Perhaps he is hoping to take their newfound love to the next level.

We were able to stay at our post in part because you stayed at your post. The American people know what happened that day because you never stopped reporting.

So what is the strategy here?

According to Politico, Pence's advisers believe that these kinds of speeches could "help Pence win over his most skeptical audience these days: Washington insiders and journalists."

How did the same article in Politico reacted to Pence's flinging mud at his former boss?

While he called it critical to be transparent about what happened on Jan. 6, he continues to fight a subpoena to testify about that day — a stance he has argued is based on protecting the separation of powers as president of the Senate.

While the Gridiron remarks were harsh, they were not done with a camera rolling.

Politico makes sure it distinguishes Pence, who seems to be pushing the "violent insurrection" narrative, and the Democrats, who are pushing the same claim. Politico is telling its readers that Pence didn't go far enough, and hence his commitment is questionable.

What they are saying is that even if Pence is accepted to the D.C. club, he will get a figurative table in a desolate corner and no Beluga caviar.

Last year, even after Pence had attacked Trump, New York Magazine carried a piece entitled "President Mike Pence Would Be Worse Than Trump."

Mike Pence had a slim chance of becoming the GOP nominee for 2024 even before his attacks on President Trump, and now that he is trying to appease the D.C. Democrat establishment, that slim chance has become minuscule.

There are a few possibilities here.

Perhaps Pence and his advisers are delusional.

Perhaps Pence is delusional, and his advisers are merely looking to make some easy money before Pence disappears into the night.

The most likely possibility is that Pence knows he has no chance with MAGA voters, who decide the nominee during primaries, but will run anyway in order to add "former presidential candidate" before his name.

That title will enable him to hike his speaking fees and get a better book or podcast or other media deal.

It also keeps him relevant; the media will give him prime-time slots to fling mud at Trump.

Prior to Trump, Republicans such as Pence had an important role in D.C.

They were pro-life, pro-marriage, and anti-abortion, which earned them conservatives votes, but when it came to other issues such as big government, open borders, and wars abroad, they sided with the Democrats.

And of course, they were expected to be gracious losers, such as Romney and McCain.

For issues that really mattered, there was not much difference among the Bushes, Clinton, and Obama.

It's hard to say if Pence is a useful idiot for the Democrats or if he was an establishment Republican pretending to be a MAGA Republican.

https://www.americanthinker.co...ga_republicans_.html

quote:

So what has Pence been up to recently?

I'll go with "because the way he handled Jan. 6th was guaranteed to leave him without a constituent base and with no choice".

I'll put my money on the eventual nominee being someone who's learned to navigate around the historical "insiders" and the mainstream media rather than someone who's still stupid enough to suck up to them now.

Pence is just trawling for dollars and attention. He's going nowhere.

This. Financing presidential campaigns for the most part is nothing more than legalized bribery; you just declare everything you're doing is campaign-related and your campaign pays for it. It's the Beto-el-corrupto way....run for a public office without any hope of winning to get some of that sweet campaign cash.

quote:

Originally posted by Il Cattivo:

Pence is just trawling for dollars and attention. He's going nowhere.

Video of the Reaper incident is online. That pilot ain't Tom Cruise.

Russia. What a shit show. I did see in the news that Russian museums are starting to see old tanks being pulled and sent for refurbishment. Another sign Russia's war is not going well.

quote:

Originally posted by IrishWind:
I did see in the news that Russian museums are starting to see old tanks being pulled and sent for refurbishment.

Really? And you believe this?

Choose the propaganda that comforts you.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by BansheeOne:
Video of the Reaper incident is online. That pilot ain't Tom Cruise.

So not being a military man, should the Reaper pilot have taken some sort of evasive but perhaps limited action to avoid a potential collision? Obviously, this wasn't the Russian intent but was not known at the time.

quote:

Video of the Reaper incident is online. That pilot ain't Tom Cruise.

We say the Reaper was in international waters, the Russians say it was not. With satellites there ought to be proof of exactly where it was brought down.
So, what's our response?
We give a press conference, at the Pentagon, with a "strongly worded" rebuke. We said the Russians would have to be "more professional".

Send up another Reaper over international waters with a proximity charge with tungsten frags.

From the video it looks like Maverixky misjudged his pass, struck the back of the reaper damaged the prop.

Not sure why they would try such a risky approach, it's not like the Reaper has a tail gunner. They could have simply over flown it and dove in front of it while dumping fuel if they were trying to FOD the engine or disable the camera systems.

Opinions may vary but I don't think ramming is an effective method of intercept, if you want your own aircraft back.



Additional commentary - https://youtube.com/shorts/SekIKwg4jC8?feature=share

quote:

Originally posted by Balzé Halzé:

quote:

Originally posted by IrishWind:
I did see in the news that Russian museums are starting to see old tanks being pulled and sent for refurbishment.

Really? And you believe this?

The Daily Mail is a lot more credible than anything Russia Today or any Kremlin backed source has to say.

quote:

Originally posted by Rightwire:
From the video it looks like Maverixky misjudged his pass, struck the back of the reaper damaged the prop.

Not sure why they would try such a risky approach, it's not like the Reaper has a tail gunner. They could have simply over flown it and dove in front of it while dumping fuel if they were trying to FOD the engine or disable the camera systems.

People are suggesting it's due to cockpit visibility issues up close. At it is, he wouldn't have seen the drone after he pulled up anyway. Hotshot is lucky if he brought the plane back to base.

"Maverixky, you did an incredibly brave thing. What you should have done was land your plane! You don't own that plane! The people of Mother Russia do! Comrade, your ego is writing checkskys your body can't cash!"

Russia has a lot of OLD, obsolete tanks in the field as does Ukraine (since that’s where they got them). There are verified tanks as old as T 64’s and even T-62’s but I doubt they came from museums. More likely they came out of Cold War storage, were refurbished, and sent afield.

This vid contains a volcanoing bubble top turret which at newest is a nearly 50 years old T-72 Ural. Newer T-72’s have redesigned slanted armor add on plates. The Russians have been refurbishing old machines and fielding them, likely to wear down defenses and consume enemy munitions. There’s no doubt they have done the same with conscripts. There’s something decidedly creepy about a dead tank creeping along with an obviously dead crew.

https://funker530.com/video/ru...by-ukrainian-ambush/

quote:

Originally posted by IrishWind:

quote:

Originally posted by Balzé Halzé:

quote:

Originally posted by IrishWind:
I did see in the news that Russian museums are starting to see old tanks being pulled and sent for refurbishment.

Really? And you believe this?

The Daily Mail is a lot more credible than anything Russia Today or any Kremlin backed source has to say.

Why are you insinuating that ANYONE is relying on 'Russia Today or any Kremlin backed source' here? NOBODY has mentioned them at all since that was reported...Well, nobody except for you!

Not to mention that some (most?) of that article seems to be written to push a particular narrative, and in terms of supporting the headline, a little light on sourcing...

quote:

Vladimir Putin is desperately emptying Russian museums of obsolete tanks to repurpose them for his creaking war effort, it has emerged.

Ageing Soviet-era T-62s are seen being 'modernised' in a round-the-clock factory in Chita, Siberia, in alarming footage.

The drive to retrofit the decades-old tanks highlights the desperation of Putin's military machine - while Ukraine is being supplied with the most modern Western tanks.

'It is sad that the number of exhibits of military museums will be reduced,' said one report.

Just another salvo in the never-ending Propaganda war!