The head of the Russian FSB (kinda like CIA) foreign services has been placed on house arrest. Their assessment that Ukraine was weak and would surrender quickly before the invasion has proven to be very unaccurate.

Some stirrings that a Russian Coup is not out of the question. 

From wlwt.com and other sources:

Veteran Fox News war photojournalist Pierre Zakrzewski has been killed in Ukraine.  Zakrzewski was with correspondent Benjamin Hall when their vehicle was struck by incoming fire. Hall remains hospitalized in Ukraine.

Ukrainian journalist, Oleksandra Kuvshynova, was also killed in the incident.

I have been watching about every news source I can get my hands on.  Benjamin Hall was leading the Fox News coverage in Ukraine, even acting as an anchor live from Ukraine.   I thought Hall, like many, was doing a great job.

That is at least three journalists that I know of that have been killed in Ukraine.  Also on Hall, for whatever reason there has been very little information released on his condition which I find a little odd. 

China violated Taiwan's airspace again yesterday.  This is a semi-regular occurrence.  This air incursion came two days after China warns of 'worst consequences' for any country that supports Taiwan militarily.  So in addition to the Russian War in Ukraine we have China, North Korea, and Iran all "acting up" within a few days of each other.  I don't know that any of this has anything to do with the War in Ukraine but the timing is noteworthy. 

2 hours ago, theguru said:

China violated Taiwan's airspace again yesterday.  This is a semi-regular occurrence.  This air incursion came two days after China warns of 'worst consequences' for any country that supports Taiwan militarily.  So in addition to the Russian War in Ukraine we have China, North Korea, and Iran all "acting up" within a few days of each other.  I don't know that any of this has anything to do with the War in Ukraine but the timing is noteworthy. 

From what I have gathered, I am not thinking there will be any type of amphibious assault on Taiwan anytime soon. Logistically it would be hard to accomplish. Taipei is more than double the size of Kyiv. Obviously if they want to divide and conquer they could, but it would be at a hefty price.

Of course, what do I know about any of this stuff? Who knows what makes these people tick?

2 minutes ago, bugatti said:

From what I have gathered, I am not thinking there will be any type of amphibious assault on Taiwan anytime soon. Logistically it would be hard to accomplish. Taipei is more than double the size of Kyiv. Obviously if they want to divide and conquer they could, but it would be at a hefty price.

Of course, what do I know about any of this stuff? Who knows what makes these people tick?

My gut feeling is if China wants Taiwan, China will take Taiwan.  Unlike Russia, I do not believe China's military is incompetent.   But to your larger point, it is tragic and I will never understand some people. 

2 hours ago, theguru said:

China violated Taiwan's airspace again yesterday.  This is a semi-regular occurrence.  This air incursion came two days after China warns of 'worst consequences' for any country that supports Taiwan militarily.  So in addition to the Russian War in Ukraine we have China, North Korea, and Iran all "acting up" within a few days of each other.  I don't know that any of this has anything to do with the War in Ukraine but the timing is noteworthy. 

In 2020 (note the year) China breaches of Taiwan airspace were the most since 1996.

1 minute ago, Voice of Reason said:

In 2020 (note the year) China breaches of Taiwan airspace were the most since 1996.

If I follow this deep dive report correctly 2021 was far worse than 2020 in frequency and kinds of attack aircraft flying over Taiwan.  Here is the main point as listed by the report:

Evaluating one year of Chinese military aircraft incursions into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone has demonstrated a steady rise in escalatory behavior, with an increase in the number of large-scale incursions and the use of fighter jets and nuclear-capable bombers. These ADIZ incursions have received much public attention and international condemnation, but they are only one example of Chinese military coercion against Taiwan.

https://globaltaiwan.org/2021/10/vol-6-issue-20/

So we can all agree it is getting worse and worse and again everyone, I don't know that this has anything to do with the War in Ukraine.

So....not of any consequence, but I admittedly am awfully eye-rolly about all the usage of "Kyiv" in the news instead of it's anglicized form "Kiev," as has been used by the western world for literal centuries now.

I'm gonna assume all of those people are consistent in also referring to "Deutschland" instead of "Germany"? And "München" instead of "Munich"? And "Köln" instead of "Cologne"? And "Österreich" instead of "Austria"? And "Nippon" instead of "Japan"? And "Eskendereyya" instead of "Alexandria"? I could go on....but I won't, because it's stupid, and the news is being stupid about it.

My personal favorite though, recently, has been the abundance of news reports spell the Ukrainian capitol with its English translation equivalency from Cyrillic (Kyiv), and then in that exact same report they refer to the Russian capitol as its anglicized name, Saint Petersburg, rather than its English translation equivalency, Sankt-Peterburg.





That is all.

1 hour ago, Colonels_Wear_Blue said:

So....not of any consequence, but I admittedly am awfully eye-rolly about all the usage of "Kyiv" in the news instead of it's anglicized form "Kiev," as has been used by the western world for literal centuries now.

I'm gonna assume all of those people are consistent in also referring to "Deutschland" instead of "Germany"? And "München" instead of "Munich"? And "Köln" instead of "Cologne"? And "Österreich" instead of "Austria"? And "Nippon" instead of "Japan"? And "Eskendereyya" instead of "Alexandria"? I could go on....but I won't, because it's stupid, and the news is being stupid about it.

My personal favorite though, recently, has been the abundance of news reports spell the Ukrainian capitol with its English translation equivalency from Cyrillic (Kyiv), and then in that exact same report they refer to the Russian capitol as its anglicized name, Saint Petersburg, rather than its English translation equivalency, Sankt-Peterburg.





That is all.

Oh my goodness...Thank You!  I actually had to look it up to make sure they were talking about the same city. Figured I just wasn't "woke" enough.

Here is an update on Benjamin Hall:

We have an update on our colleague Benjamin Hall who was seriously injured while reporting outside of Kyiv on Monday. He is now safe and out of Ukraine.

Ben is alert and in good spirits. He is being treated with the best possible care in the world and we are in close contact with his wife and family.

And again, two of his colleagues who were also in the vehicle — cameraman Pierre Zakrzewski (55) and local producer Oleksandra “Sasha” Kuvshynova (24) — were killed in the same attack.

On 3/4/2022 at 11:18 AM, theguru said:

I don't think anyone that matters has an appetite for a no fly zone which by extension would put America at war with Russia.

I have been hearing a lot of chatter about some covert operations but that comes with risk too.

I was listening to a retired General speak last night, he wants us to send Ukraine the Switchblade 600:

SWITCHBLADE® 600 LOITERING MISSILE

Switchblade 600 represents the next generation of extended-range loitering missiles, delivering unprecedented RSTA support and featuring high-precision optics, over 40 minutes of loitering endurance, and an anti-armor warhead for engaging larger, hardened targets at greater distances. 

As an all-in-one, man-portable solution, Switchblade 600 includes everything required to successfully plan and execute missions and can be set up and operational in less than 10 minutes.

https://www.avinc.com/tms/switchblade-600

I just listened to a news report that brought up the possibility of America sending the Ukrainians these Switchblade Drones.  I don't know if it is the 300, the 600, or both but here we are 12 days later as the slaughter of the Ukrainian people continues. 

It was interesting listening to "The Daily" yesterday which highlighted what people in Russia are thinking. There obviously is more access to information, but the bulk of it is controlled. It is still being portrayed as a a "military exercise" and you run the risk of being locked up for several years for saying it is a "war." The military exercise is to help free the Ukranians under nationalistic Nazi control.

"Whoever controls the media, controls the mind." - Jim Morrison

1 hour ago, bugatti said:

It was interesting listening to "The Daily" yesterday which highlighted what people in Russia are thinking. There obviously is more access to information, but the bulk of it is controlled. It is still being portrayed as a a "military exercise" and you run the risk of being locked up for several years for saying it is a "war." The military exercise is to help free the Ukranians under nationalistic Nazi control.

"Whoever controls the media, controls the mind." - Jim Morrison

The BBC and Sky News have done a good job telling this story too. 

And yes, A Special Military Operation they say...

I haven't seen the specifics yet but we are giving the Ukrainians some drones that were described as cutting edge.  

As some of you know by now, the Drones interest me a lot for several reasons and I can't wait for more details.  Also in a Terminator movie sense, we have drones that are much, much more advanced than the large, clunky ones that appeared in the movie but we are still about a decade from fielding similar bipedal Terminators as seen in the movie. 

Back to the Switchblades, according to a NBC news report The United Kingdom is the only foreign country that so far has been authorized to purchase the Switchblade.

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