Outside Topic Way OT: Ukraine - Printable Version

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Way OT: Ukraine - gailtate - 03-08-2022

When Putin invaded Ukraine, I would have taken the Russians and the points.  Today? I smell The Greatest. Upset. Ever.
(This post probably has a half-life of 5 min., but I had to put it up. If you don't like it, IDGAS.)

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RE: Way OT: - cardcrimson - 03-08-2022

(03-08-2022, 11:35 AM)gailtate Wrote:  When Putin invaded Ukraine, I would have taken the Russians and the points.  Today? I smell The Greatest. Upset. Ever.
(This post probably has a half-life of 5 min., but I had to put it up. If you don't like it, IDGAS.)

I'll take the under on time it'll be up.

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RE: Way OT: - Phogge - 03-08-2022

What’s the over/under in the draft being reinstated?

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RE: Way OT: - cardcrimson - 03-08-2022

(03-08-2022, 11:44 AM)cardcrimson Wrote:  

(03-08-2022, 11:35 AM)gailtate Wrote:  When Putin invaded Ukraine, I would have taken the Russians and the points.  Today? I smell The Greatest. Upset. Ever.
(This post probably has a half-life of 5 min., but I had to put it up. If you don't like it, IDGAS.)

I'll take the under on time it'll be up.

So far, 17 minutes. I lost taking the under. . . .

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RE: Way OT: - 2006alum - 03-08-2022

Now more than ever, an obligatory reminder not to piss off the woofing gods. But gailtate I've never hoped more that you're right.

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RE: Way OT: - 81alum - 03-08-2022

I sincerely hope you are right.  But unless there is a palace coup to remove Putin, he will not "lose" in a conventional sense, although he might destroy much of the Russian military in the process.  He has the prerogative of being a megalomaniac with nuclear weapons.  He can always just resort to more and more barbarism until Ukraine is destroyed.  The longer and more gallant the resistance the closer and closer we get to chemical weapons or even a tactical nuke on Kiev.  

It took him and his allies 4 years to destroy Aleppo, which seems to be his Guernica.  If he doesn't leave, what will Ukraine look like after 4 years of this?

Speaking of which, Picasso's masterpiece depicts Ukraine 2022 perfectly.

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RE: Way OT: - French Rage - 03-08-2022

Zelensky is bringing EUTM while Putin is blaming his army's execution.

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RE: Way OT: - JohnR34231 - 03-08-2022

Always root for the underdog.

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RE: Way OT: - ca245 - 03-08-2022

(03-08-2022, 01:41 PM)French Rage Wrote:  Zelensky is bringing EUTM while Putin is blaming his army's execution.

Reminds me of a statement attributed to John McKay when he was coaching the Tampa Bay Bucaneers after leaving USC and the Bucs went something like 0-16. Asked what he thought of his team's execution, he answered: "That's not a bad idea." If I were a Russian general, I'd be a little nervous.

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RE: Way OT: - OutsiderFan - 03-08-2022

It's been a roller coaster. It looked like Russia would dominate on paper. Then it looked like Ukraine could pull off the upset. Now we are looking at a stalemate in the offing.  Even IF Russia "takes" Ukraine, good luck occupying it without death by 1,000 cuts, to both its military forces and its economy.

Unfortunately, the iron grip Russia's government has on information dissemination and dissent, is going to allow Putin to stay in power a lot longer than the world wants. His approval rating is assumed to be somewhere between 60-70% because duped Russians believe the government's nonsense that Ukraine is this terrible threat that must be taken down for Russian security.

What we DON'T know is how the Russian people will react when excruciating economic pain and suffering is brought upon them. But even that can be blamed on Ukraine to some degree. Apparently 77% of Americans are OK with higher gas prices to punish Russia for Ukraine terrorism, so Russians could be willing to pay a high economic price to stop "the Nazis" in Ukraine and their evil Western collaborators.

As we transition to renewable energy over the next couple decades, Russia will be in a world of hurt economically as a result of the Ukraine misadventure punishments, and be left behind the rest of the world. Maybe over that time, Russian citizens will topple the communist government because it will be too weak to sustain itself and fend off a popular uprising.

The moral of the story for Russia is don't build your power on lies. Once you start, you can't stop, do stupid things, break laws, and back yourself into a corner where the only way out is your own destruction.

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RE: Way OT: - qwerty49 - 03-08-2022

Unfortunately, over/under is not the best framework here.  Remember when John McKay said he wanted to beat us by 2000 points?  He didn't.  But we still lost.

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RE: Way OT: - cardcrimson - 03-08-2022

(03-08-2022, 04:05 PM)qwerty49 Wrote:  Unfortunately, over/under is not the best framework here.  Remember when John McKay said he wanted to beat us by 2000 points?  He didn't.  But we still lost.

Wasn't referring to the war, just the length of time the post would remain on the board. Actually, glad that I was wrong. . ..

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RE: Way OT: - 2006alum - 03-08-2022

Shifting to ways we can help from afar, my family has been donating to Direct Relief, which works directly with the Ukrainian MOH to provide medical aid on the ground. 

It has also been recommended that if you want to help people on the ground in places like Kyiv, you can book AirBNB listings and then tell them you don't plan to come. They get the money if you book for listings within the next few days. (Though be careful because I've heard they now have some scam listings up, so check ones with a lengthy rental history.).  All of the places I've booked, the hosts have sent back really appreciative (and just damn ***** poignant) notes.

By doing this, via one of the listings I booked I was able to get in contact with someone who has been organizing convoys to get more helmets, body armor, etc. into Kyiv while they still can, and I directly transferred to his contact via Wise. There is of course a possibility this is a scam, but we corresponded quite a bit beforehand, and to be totally honest, I'm willing to run the risk if the odds are good it will directly help the resistance. If I could help pay for MiGs directly myself, I would...

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RE: Way OT: - BostonCard - 03-08-2022

Ultimately this is Yvonne’s call, but given the enormity of the situation, far be it for me to put the kibosh on the discussion, even though technically it is political.

If you are looking to a Stanford sports angle to it (aside from the analogies), there is this:

[tweet]https://twitter.com/looseshoulders/status/1497845117977182208?s=21[/tweet]

As for Putin, whether he wins or loses on the battlefield, he has already lost:
1) given Eastern European countries (plus Sweden and Finland) a strong rationale for joining NATO.
2) has exposed his army as a paper tiger
3) has done what US presidents going back three administrations have failed to do: get the European NATO allies to invest in defense
4) has convinced Europe to wean itself off Russian natural gas and will probably accelerate the transition from imported fossil fuels more generally
5) has devastated his country’s economy
6) has obliterated what was left of his reputation

It is heartbreaking that the Ukrainian people have suffered, and while I hope against hope that they repel the invaders, right now I am just praying that we can get to a cease fire to allow innocent civilians to evacuate.

BC

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RE: Way OT: - Phogge - 03-08-2022

The Rotary club of West Marin is in contact with other clubs in Ukraine. Trying to figure out the complex fund transfer.
In the meantime the club has planted a series of Ukraine flags in our community garden.

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RE: Way OT: - teejers1 - 03-08-2022

(03-08-2022, 07:29 PM)BostonCard Wrote:  Ultimately this is Yvonne’s call, but given the enormity of the situation, far be it for me to put the kibosh on the discussion, even though technically it is political.

If you are looking to a Stanford sports angle to it (aside from the analogies), there is this:

[tweet]https://twitter.com/looseshoulders/status/1497845117977182208?s=21[/tweet]

As for Putin, whether he wins or loses on the battlefield, he has already lost:
1) given Eastern European countries (plus Sweden and Finland) a strong rationale for joining NATO.
2) has exposed his army as a paper tiger
3) has done what US presidents going back three administrations have failed to do: get the European NATO allies to invest in defense
4) has convinced Europe to wean itself off Russian natural gas and will probably accelerate the transition from imported fossil fuels more generally
5) has devastated his country’s economy
6) has obliterated what was left of his reputation

It is heartbreaking that the Ukrainian people have suffered, and while I hope against hope that they repel the invaders, right now I am just praying that we can get to a cease fire to allow innocent civilians to evacuate.

BC

I'm not nearly as "optimistic" as you are regarding what this all has shown to date or what it will lead to in the future.
WAY too many wildcards, starting with the nut who invaded Ukraine - that's what a megalomaniac with absolute power (and no conscience) looks like.  Scary and unpredictable.

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RE: Way OT: - cardcrimson - 03-08-2022

FWIW, I really appreciate that this thread has been allowed to exist. Wondering what the chance that a special ¨Ukrainian" section/board/forum could be set up, similar to what was set up for Covid. Perhaps we could even keep it civil.

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RE: Way OT: - ca245 - 03-08-2022

(03-08-2022, 09:09 PM)teejers1 Wrote:  

(03-08-2022, 07:29 PM)BostonCard Wrote:  Ultimately this is Yvonne’s call, but given the enormity of the situation, far be it for me to put the kibosh on the discussion, even though technically it is political.

If you are looking to a Stanford sports angle to it (aside from the analogies), there is this:

[tweet]https://twitter.com/looseshoulders/status/1497845117977182208?s=21[/tweet]

As for Putin, whether he wins or loses on the battlefield, he has already lost:
1) given Eastern European countries (plus Sweden and Finland) a strong rationale for joining NATO.
2) has exposed his army as a paper tiger
3) has done what US presidents going back three administrations have failed to do: get the European NATO allies to invest in defense
4) has convinced Europe to wean itself off Russian natural gas and will probably accelerate the transition from imported fossil fuels more generally
5) has devastated his country’s economy
6) has obliterated what was left of his reputation

It is heartbreaking that the Ukrainian people have suffered, and while I hope against hope that they repel the invaders, right now I am just praying that we can get to a cease fire to allow innocent civilians to evacuate.

BC

I'm not nearly as "optimistic" as you are regarding what this all has shown to date or what it will lead to in the future.
WAY too many wildcards, starting with the nut who invaded Ukraine - that's what a megalomaniac with absolute power (and no conscience) looks like.  Scary and unpredictable.

Twenty some years ago, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Francis Fukuyama wrote “The End of History.” But today we have China under Xi and Russia under Putin. One can never be too sure what the future will be like.

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RE: Way OT: - PVTree - 03-08-2022

A way I read people can help the people of Ukraine directly is by "renting" their AirBandB units without any intention of staying there, of course. Money is deposited into the person's bank account the day after the start of your reservation.

Unfortunately, I've also read that scammers have taken notice and are creating fake ABB listings to get some money. You can avoid the scammers by seeing if the listing has old reviews from pre-war guests.

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RE: Way OT: - BostonCard - 03-08-2022

(03-08-2022, 09:09 PM)teejers1 Wrote:  

(03-08-2022, 07:29 PM)BostonCard Wrote:  Ultimately this is Yvonne’s call, but given the enormity of the situation, far be it for me to put the kibosh on the discussion, even though technically it is political.

If you are looking to a Stanford sports angle to it (aside from the analogies), there is this:

[tweet]https://twitter.com/looseshoulders/status/1497845117977182208?s=21[/tweet]

As for Putin, whether he wins or loses on the battlefield, he has already lost:
1) given Eastern European countries (plus Sweden and Finland) a strong rationale for joining NATO.
2) has exposed his army as a paper tiger
3) has done what US presidents going back three administrations have failed to do: get the European NATO allies to invest in defense
4) has convinced Europe to wean itself off Russian natural gas and will probably accelerate the transition from imported fossil fuels more generally
5) has devastated his country’s economy
6) has obliterated what was left of his reputation

It is heartbreaking that the Ukrainian people have suffered, and while I hope against hope that they repel the invaders, right now I am just praying that we can get to a cease fire to allow innocent civilians to evacuate.

BC

I'm not nearly as "optimistic" as you are regarding what this all has shown to date or what it will lead to in the future.
WAY too many wildcards, starting with the nut who invaded Ukraine - that's what a megalomaniac with absolute power (and no conscience) looks like.  Scary and unpredictable.

I don’t disagree with your take at all.  I think Putin has lost, but I don’t think that means that everything will turn out well for Western democracies.  In the best case scenario, it has brought misery and destruction to the Ukrainian people, a refugee crisis of 2 million and counting, a potential food crisis in countries that depend on Russian and Ukrainian wheat, higher energy prices for everyone and the potential of having to restart coal plants to make up for reduced gas.  And then there is the possibility of the conflict inadvertently widening, and even though I would consider this an unlikely event, that “megalomaniac with absolute power (and no conscience)” controls the world’s largest nuclear arsenal.

So, yeah, this qualifies as an L for everyone.

BC

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