[Mick]

How Putin’s War in Ukraine Became a Catastrophe for Russia - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

This article may be behind the paywall.  Excellent history up to this point.  Does talk about how unprepared the Russian pilots were at the start of the war.

Yes, I would recommend it too, though the bulk of the article focused, I thought, on the early revelations of Russian corruption, incompetence, and decay.  It seemed to suggest, however, that not a lot has changed--the rot is just too deep, so Russian hopes to reform its military and to start performing better doesn't seem that plausible.

I sometimes think that Americans just don't fully understand the horrific consequences of endemic corruption--but the Russian military is now a vivid example. 

Thank goodness for Russian corruption--and the tunnel-vision of its myopic leadership.

I wonder how that endemic corruption has affected their nuclear program. Also wonder how corruption in the Chinese system has affected China.

[Mick]

How Putin’s War in Ukraine Became a Catastrophe for Russia - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

This article may be behind the paywall.  Excellent history up to this point.  Does talk about how unprepared the Russian pilots were at the start of the war.

Yes, I would recommend it too, though the bulk of the article focused, I thought, on the early revelations of Russian corruption, incompetence, and decay.  It seemed to suggest, however, that not a lot has changed--the rot is just too deep, so Russian hopes to reform its military and to start performing better doesn't seem that plausible.

I sometimes think that Americans just don't fully understand the horrific consequences of endemic corruption--but the Russian military is now a vivid example. 

Thank goodness for Russian corruption--and the tunnel-vision of its myopic leadership.

I wonder how that endemic corruption has affected their nuclear program. Also wonder how corruption in the Chinese system has affected China.