And then along came Joe.
Ice-cream Joe.
Backward-walkin' Joe.
Salad-talkin' Joe.
Along came senile old POTATUS Joe...

so many of the stories are "possibly" true. another one:

https://hotair.com/allahpundit...nside-russia-n458797

Unconfirmed reports that a Russian Military Munitions Depot has Exploded in the Belgorod Region of Western Russia near the Ukrainian Border, it is unclear what the Explosion was caused by but from the looks of it the Depot appears to be a Complete Loss.

video at link

Some Sources in Belgorod reported hearing what sounded like a Missile before the Explosion, and some Ukrainian Source are Claiming that the Depot was hit by a Ukrainian Military Fired OTR-21 Tochka-U Ballistic Missile.

Belgorod is a Russian city

quote:

Originally posted by PASig:
And notice how idiot Biden just blurted out that the 82nd Abn is training Ukrainian soldiers in Poland?

Hello, Joe? OPSEC?

We've known a brigade of the 82nd has been in Poland since things kicked-off back in Feb. US forces (and NATO partners) from a variety of units (SOF to Nat'l Guard) have been training the Ukrainian's for 20+ years, getting them up to speed for EU integration and possible NATO partnership agreements.

Nevertheless, Biden has zero filter or, sense of place and his staff has to now measure what they pass on for him regurgitate. He's like a child repeating the sharp comments he heard his parents say from the back seat, after leaving a party.

^^That may be a part of the problem. Dems, to include Dem staffers, are famous for having to be the first with whatever big news there may be and not at all known for keeping their mouths shut. How would Biden's staffers know when to muzzle him?

German States Outlaw Letter "Z" Displays As Ukraine Asks World To Criminalize

https://www.zerohedge.com/geop...ks-world-criminalize

Public displays of the letter "Z" have been outlawed in two German states, after authorities in Bavaria and Lower Saxony announced over the weekend that anyone who displays the letter - which has become synonymous with support for Russia's war in Ukraine - will be subject to a fine or three years in jail.

"The Russian war of aggression on the Ukraine is a criminal act, and whoever publicly approves of this war of aggression can also make himself liable to prosecution," said an Interior Ministry spokesperson in a Monday press statement.

The letter became a hot-button issue after tanks amassed at the Ukrainian border displayed it - possibly to distinguish them from Ukraine's tanks.

Chapter 140 of Germany's criminal code recognizes "incitement to crime of aggression" as an offense, according to Ukrainian state news agency Ukrinform. The Local reports that there have been displays of "Z" in both Lower Saxony and Bavaria. -NPR

That code requires a crime to be condoned in a way "fit to disturb public peace" though, in this case by displaying the letter in a context supporting the Russian attack, like waving it on a flag at a demonstration; it's not like everyone has to remove the Z key from their keyboards now. But this has been pointed out to be another case where a radical minority seizes upon an innocent symbol and gets to define its meaning as the law flails around. The best-known example is the ban on Nazi symbols in Germany (actually governed by different code), which naturally is making neo-Nazis use different symbols, which the government then also attempts to ban, etc. Applying the principle to a common letter just invites all sorts of problems and ridicule.

Now there are only twenty-five letters in the alphabet? I didn't use 'Z' that much, but I hope that they don't take a vowel next.

Wow, I knew China was watching all this and making lots of popcorn but a senior Taiwanese official is now saying that China is looking at Russia and reevaluating their own plans.

Hopefully by that point in time we will have a President Trump back in office or a President DeSantis and they will be afraid to make any moves with Biden and Harris hopefully gone:

Russia's military failures in Ukraine 'have prompted China to review its armed forces and delay a possible invasion of Taiwan by up to four years'

Now, in a clear face-saving attempt, Putin wants everyone to believe that he was being misled on the losses in Ukraine. What a joke! Anyone, I mean ANYONE can see what the facts are. It’s plastered all over every single news outlet, YouTube, twitter, etc etc etc. This isn’t the mid 40’s where you couldn’t verify outside of what advisors tell you. Hey Putin, you pussy, you own this; put on your big boy pants and pay the check.

https://apnews.com/article/rus...feff701af31b32ef7c8c

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. intelligence officials have determined that Russian President Vladimir Putin is being misinformed by his advisers about Russian forces’ performance in Ukraine, according to a U.S. official.

The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity Wednesday to discuss the recently declassified intelligence finding, said that Putin has felt misled by the Russian military and there is now persistent tension between him and senior Russian defense officials.

The official did not detail underlying evidence for how U.S. intelligence made the determination.

But the intel community has concluded that Putin was unaware that the military had been using and losing conscripts in Ukraine. They also have determined Putin is not fully aware of the extent to which the Russian economy is being damaged by economic sanctions imposed by the U.S. and allies.

The findings demonstrate a “clear breakdown in the flow of accurate information” to Putin, and show that Putin’s senior advisers are “afraid to tell him the truth,” the official said.

The new intelligence comes after the White House on Tuesday expressed skepticism about Russia’s public announcement that it would dial back operations near Kyiv in an effort to increase trust in ongoing talks between Ukrainian and Russian officials in Turkey.

quote:

But the intel community has concluded that Putin was unaware that the military had been using and losing conscripts in Ukraine. They also have determined Putin is not fully aware of the extent to which the Russian economy is being damaged by economic sanctions imposed by the U.S. and allies.

Maybe Putin should watch the evening news every now and then.

quote:

Unconfirmed reports that a Russian Military Munitions Depot has Exploded in the Belgorod Region of Western Russia

Russian Generals right now:

quote:

Originally posted by gearhounds:
Now, in a clear face-saving attempt, Putin wants everyone to believe that he was being misled on the losses in Ukraine. What a joke!

It's no joke at all.

It has been suspected from the very outset that Putin has been misled by his military and intelligence staffs, that they, in turn, were misled by those below them, they were misled by those below them, and so-on.

Part of this is of his own doing. He's been firing competent people right-and-left for either disagreeing with him or failing to accomplish the impossible. So it's gotten to the point that everybody, from the ground up, has been telling everybody above them what they wanted to hear--either through incompetence or simply to save their hides.

One suspects many of them never believed they'd ever have to actually make good on what they were reporting up the chain.

Make no mistake: The Russian military's performance in Ukraine has been nothing short of an epic fail. People that know even the slightest bit about warfare doctrine are watching this and going "WTAF?!?!"

^^^^
The man was KGB- he is no fool. I do not believe that he truly believed the lies; not when there is so much clear, verifiable footage that contradicts the invalid information. This looks more like a play to pretend he believed the misinformation so he has less egg on his face. I do not buy that someone with his intelligence background could legitimately be duped by his staff.

quote:

Originally posted by gearhounds:
Putin’s senior advisers are “afraid to tell him the truth,” the official said.

Being a despot has many advantages, but the quality of information from underlings isn’t one of them.
That said, as the song goes, “A man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest.”
I agree that he is unlikely to be the clueless dupe that some are claiming, but just like the Western intelligence agencies, the KGB was not manned solely by walk-on-water supermen.

You know, Putin can say he was misled, other people can say he's misled, but the way this all plays out could just as easily tell another story.

I don't (I can't, of course) claim to know anything no one else does. But this all still looks like Putin the lifelong KGB desk pilot tried to prove he's a field operative by setting up a decapitation raid without having to tell anyone who might stop him or tell him the plan was unrealistic. After all, to this day the Russian efforts in Ukraine seem to be a grossly disorganized and uncoordinated collection of Hail Marys that would look great on TV but never work in the real world.

Is it likely he is being misled now? Sure - no one wants to explain to the most powerful despot in Europe that he screwed the pooch. But it's just as easy to believe that he excluded competent people from the initial planning process as it is to believe he was misled into going to war.

It's pretty obvious Putin was mislead by his military leaders about the effectiveness of his military. How much of that is the result of his culture of corruption, or eliminating those that disagreed with him is the only thing open for debate.
With respect to his invasion, once again, it is highly unlikely that the same military leaders that insisted the Russian military was good to go, were going to ask to hold off the invasion because they knew the military was not up to the task (and they likely assumed the Ukrainian Army was sub standard too).
And as far as Putin watching the news, why would he? He can see the gas lighting and political narratives as well as anyone else. It is far more likely that he chooses to rely on his formidable intelligence agencies. The question would then be, are they giving him the unvarnished truth?

Article from Feb 19 that someone sent to me yesterday - these are supposedly Russia's crack troops? No wonder they're getting their asses handed to them by the Ukrainians and deserting!

I saw a couple pictures recently of Russian troops in Ukraine that made me wonder just what the hell was going on over there. They all looked like a bunch of pudgy 40 and 50 something men mixed in with a bunch of barely teenage boys:

'They Drink A Lot, Sell Their Fuel': Belarusians Give Low Marks To Russian Troops Deployed For Drills

I don't know who to believe. I don't believe Putin. I don't believe Zelinskyy. I don't believe Biden.

quote:

Originally posted by PASig:
Wow, I knew China was watching all this and making lots of popcorn but a senior Taiwanese official is now saying that China is looking at Russia and reevaluating their own plans.

Hopefully by that point in time we will have a President Trump back in office or a President DeSantis and they will be afraid to make any moves with Biden and Harris hopefully gone:

Russia's military failures in Ukraine 'have prompted China to review its armed forces and delay a possible invasion of Taiwan by up to four years'

So the Rooskies and the Chi-Coms are nothing but paper tigers? All the propaganda over the years is what a powerful military these two clown countries have built. Now Russia can't successfully invade Ukraine and because of that the Chi-Coms are suddenly afraid of Taiwan? Well you don't say!

quote:

Originally posted by chellim1:
[Laura Logan video]

I don't know who to believe. I don't believe Putin. I don't believe Zelinskyy. I don't believe Biden.

"We're being lied to on an epic level." I with you in that I'm not sure what or who to believe, but I 110% believe that statement by Laura Logan is true.

Now here's your question. What happens when the America public loses 'all' trust and confidence in the government and believes 'nothing' they tell them? Where does that lead? I run projects and have for many years and I can tell you without any hesitation, when a project team no longer trusts or believes in its project manager, that project is destined to fail. I believe that's the path we're on as a country, and we need to find a way to get off it asap.