Ukraine Defies the Doomsayers

National Review ^ | 8/15/2024 | JIM GERAGHTY

[Red6]

It is mostly over.

The Ukraine is not in the position to amass a larger force that could conduct any sort of counter offensive in the areas they lost in the East and South, since as they concentrate they will be detected and targeted.

So, they went after a softer area with a smaller force where they can put on a big show for a short time.

What this idiot tries to sell as success, is desperation.

Within days, Ukraine will be ejected (Ukrainian casualties and material losses not reported on, of course), but they will continue to lose ground in the East / South, little by little, village by village, and that isn’t a show nor temporary.

[Widget Jr]

The last two paragraphs spell out Macgregors words and actions for the last two years:

"Macgregor’s eternal vision of Ukraine is that it is a country that is always teetering on the brink of a catastrophic, intractable defeat, but somehow never manages to get there..."

"Macgregor doesn't have a particular insight into what's happening on Ukrainian battlefields. No, the reason people listen to him is because he tells a particular audience what they want to hear."

Macgregor was a capable officer. When the army passed him over for promotion to General he never got over it. Starting before he retired, he became part of the cottage industry of former officers who make their living criticizing the US military, domestic and foreign policies, while treating those of governments hostile to the West as superior.

Ukraine holding its own is a repudiation of the pro-Russia anti-west narratives that Scott Ritter, and Macgregor and others put out. The difference between trolls like Scott Ritter and Macgregor is Ritter doesn't take Ukraine's refusal to lose and occasional wins personally. He just changes his lead ins and intros to the same story he's been selling since the war started. He does not really care about Russia and Ukraine.

Macgregor treats Ukraine holding its own as a direct and personal insult. Ukraine's continued existence is making a liar out of him every time he opens his mouth. Instead of easing off, he keeps doubling down. The more he talks, the more it becomes obvious why the Army gave him a sideways promotion to retirement instead of moving him up to General officer.

[rxh4n1]

What’s this “we” Frenchy?

[gleeaikin]

If there must be war, then this is a good way to decommission our aging materiel. We don’t have to process and neutralize chemicals, and also don’t have to rent storage to keep holding it. Ukraine has made good use of our old cluster munitions by opening the shells, and repackaging the many little clusters inside for use by drones against troops in the meat waves, for example.