Posted on 03/28/2022 9:07:42 PM PDT by Zhang Fei
On my way back across the border, I met two German foreign fighters in their mid-fifties, who were also traveling back to Poland. They’d been at the Yavoriv base earlier the previous morning, when it was bombed. “The international legion is young guys who are hungry for an adventure. They’re cannon fodder,” said one. “They won’t come back from the front lines. They should leave.” He described weapons trainings done with YouTube videos.
I heard from Mamulashvili that he was sending his men to the front. “We are just soldiers, and we are fighting,” he told me. I stayed in touch with many of the fighters I’d met, at least the ones who still felt like telling me their feelings over WhatsApp and Telegram. Several days later, I woke up to a string of texts from one of the Americans I’d met outside the embassy in Warsaw. He wrote in bullet-pointed lists:
• Desertion of foreign legion is very high. Many Ukrainian soldiers, commanders incompetent. • Russian infantry horrible. 12 Westerners can beat 40 Russians. • Chechens torture POWs. No mercy to foreign legion. Don’t get captured alive by Chechens. • Lots of miscommunication with Ukrainians and lots of friendly fire incidents. • Sometimes your passports will be confiscated. • Ukrainians may rob you of your western gear and give you a broken rifle and send you to the front.
The messages kept coming. Sometimes they contradicted what he’d said before; I had no way of verifying his updates. “Ukrainians are using outdated tactics to fight Russians,” he wrote. “Their casualty count is much higher than reported. The foreign legion is being sent on suicide missions like attacking 200 Russians with 14 men.”
I didn’t hear from him again.
(Excerpt) Read more at pulitzercenter.org ...
As usual, the best thing to do is to lobby your Congressman or Senator to get Uncle Sam to do what we pay him to do - act in your behalf. We do it for potholes, which we can conceivably repair ourselves (as Rod Stewart allegedly did). There is no way a young un or a fogey armed with a battered AK can do anything to either win it for Putin or destroy Putin's war machine. Leave it to Uncle Sam to either back off on the sanctions (to help Putin win) or supply Ukraine with fighter jets and everything else it needs (to help Ukraine win).
Note that with probably 10m able-bodied men ages 18-60 called up, Ukraine doesn't lack for manpower. It's equipment that it lacks. Now - the Russians could use additional manpower. But anyone looking to volunteer for Putin's legions needs to look at the way they're (not) feeding and supplying their troops. Would foreign volunteers fare better? Bottom line - pro- or anti-Ukraine - lobby your Congressman, or donate to either cause if you want to feel useful. Do not volunteer for either side.
* It's understandable why they'd view foreign volunteers as disposable widgets even more than Washington does. No widow and orphan benefits for foreign KIA. No lifetime disability benefits for foreign WIA. On an actuarial basis, it makes excellent sense. As usual, the problem isn't being too cynical - it's not being cynical enough.
They should be honored to have the chance to die for Hunter Biden’s cocaine habit.
If you are going off to join a war where:
* You don’t know the language or culture
* You have never used their gear
* You are not trained on their tactics and operations
You had better be one of the best of the best or it is not going to end well for you.
Throughout history young men have almost mindlessly rushed to go to war whatever the cause. Many die or become forever physically or psychologically maimed. Not all youthful mistakes can be corrected without consequence.
[If you are going off to join a war where:
* You don’t know the language or culture
* You have never used their gear
* You are not trained on their tactics and operations
You had better be one of the best of the best or it is not going to end well for you.]
Do I detect a cynical view here. May be an appropriate one but nonetheless cynical. Anyone wearing a uniform is cannon fodder. If it is a US uniform, still cannon fodder, it’s why they pay you the big bucks. I lost my virginity about this crap in the early 70’s. It was like this before me and it ain’t changed since. He’ll yeah cynical and staying that way.
They should be honored to have the chance to die for Big Guy’s 10 percent! And here you are AGITPROPPING for free as your contribution for the Big Guy.
[They should be honored to have the chance to die for Big Guy’s 10 percent! And here you are AGITPROPPING for free as your contribution for the Big Guy.]
Biden made some tough guy statements about Putin. But it was Biden who delayed the Javelins and advised against sending them to Ukraine. He also ended Trump’s sanctions against Nordstream 2. In addition, Biden wants to resume the arms treaties that Trump canceled, that Putin has been cheating on for decades. The only reason Biden is backing Ukraine after the Russian invasion - he’d be cruising towards impeachment, removal and prison time if he didn’t.
Why is Putin surprised at the sanctions? He thought he owned Biden completely through Burisma. Problem is - if Putin fully exposed the steps he took to purchase Biden, the Democrats would actually have to act on their anti-Putin rhetoric instead of just yapping away without doing anything.
Wax Wagner
Offer a good bouty for Wagner ear pairs
I was military IC/PMC for many years. A bunch of buddies were, jokingly, posting legit ads to sign up with these fools. The contracts were very lucrative. VERY high pay.
But only an idiot would sign up to freeze your nads off, then likely get killed/captured/prosecuted/robbed by Russians or worse, Chechens...or.maybe even the Ukrainians.
BTW, why is your screen name Chinese?
Just wondering.
When you signed up, you were young, fighting for moms apple pie, baseball, the Chevy dad was keeping in the barn, and the little girl that kept you warm at night. I got none of that over there for either side in this fight.
A hell of a lot of people need some time working and quit playing video games. When bullets fly people die. It’s the way it is. When I saddle up and draw ammo. It’ll be here in the USA. I played the other game, now it’s at home. Be safe
The Russian MOD briefing the other day contained a speech by a general who specifically said “national troops, when captured, will be provided all the protections required for POWs. Foreign fighters are not national troops and they will be denied any such protections.”
Interesting, they said only experienced fighters need apply but it sounds like some didn’t listen.
Surprised they didn’t reject them.
[BTW, why is your screen name Chinese?
Just wondering.]
If I had to sum up the novel - it’s basically a Horatio Alger story, but for real, of an impoverished peasant who conquered a fief for himself and made himself the king of his realm. Think Spartacus - if he had carved out a chunk of Spain (rather than his native Thrace) for himself against the best the Roman legions could throw at him.
* For a flavor of the translation, the novel begins with:
Empires wax and wane;
states cleave asunder and coalesce.
and ends with
All down the ages rings the note of change,
For fate so rules it; none escapes its sway.
The three kingdoms have vanished as a dream,
The useless misery is ours to grieve.
China’s History is fascinating to research as is the culture throughout the ages.
I think it was also mentioned the Foreign fighters who are not national troops will be treated as criminals.
Yeah but they are all nazis .
Tiki torch carrying Nazis!
WWIII here we come!
“…You’re on Putin’s side….”
**********************************
Easy charge to make for one so furiously engaged in an agitprop jihad to increase America’s involvement in an unnecessary overseas war. A war in which our vital national interests are NOT involved. A war that was allowed to needlessly start either through the Biden administration’s incompetence or because they actually wanted it for their own interests.
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