Desperate Putin, 70, brings Soviet-era T-55 tanks as old as he is out of retirement to bolster his faltering war efforts – having already raided museums for T-62 models

long post

this war started

when naked - dressed up communism - diversity

was outlawed in russia

twenty years ago

Robert DeLong: "What makes you think Putin was trying to conquer Ukraine?
Putin even said himself that he was sure that western Ukraine would be much happier under Polish control."

So, are you telling us that Vlad the Invader wants to repeat the 1939 Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact in which Germany got half of Poland and Stalin's Soviet Union took the other half, only this time with Ukraine?
And Vlad is different from A. Hitler in what respects?

Robert DeLong: "Their only interest in (Kiev - interesting that you use the Russian spelling instead of the preferred Ukrainian spelling of Kyiv) may have been to capture Zelenskyy.
But you used the phrase conquering Ukraine, because that is the propaganda you have been fed, that Russia's intention is to conquer & reconstitute the Soviet Union.
That will never be possible as long as we are strong.
You know peace through strength."

Well, first, I don't speak either Russian or Ukrainian, so I use the spelling I see most often, there's no significance in it.

As for Vlad the Invader wishing to reconstitute the old Tsarist Russian or Soviet Empires, that obviously is the case, he has said as much himself and his actions in bullying, threatening and invading his neighbors speak louder than any words.

Remember, when A. Hitler signed a pact with J. Stalin, in 1939, that did NOT mean either one had given up even one inch of ambition to conquer more territories.
And so, we must assume the same with J. Stalin's love-child, Vlad the Invader.

As for Peace Through Strength, you've propagandized us already into a second-rate power, incapable of arresting murderers until we've arrested all our own jaywalkers!
There's no strength in that, and no peace will come from it.

Robert DeLong: "But you are working to destroy our strength, you just do not see that, because you do not believe we will ever be anything but strong.
Well, Ukraine keeps demanding more & more, and they keep using up what they are given, at record speed.
They are now asking for 600,000 shells per month.
The EU nations, the U.S., as well as, NATO are having to dip into their stockpiles to provide for Ukraine's needs."

Sure, but every western nation can easily double their defense budgets, if they need to, and ramp up production to whatever levels are required.
For comparison, the US Congress authorized circa $100 billion in 2022 for Ukraine.
That is in the range of 15% of our total national defense budget.
Contrast -- the War on Terror cost around $8 trillion over 20 years, or about $400 billion per year.
The WOT required many new technologies and downplayed the importance of some weapons now in demand for Ukraine.
So US defense industries will now be adjusting away from WOT priorities and more towards those of conventional war in places like Ukraine or Taiwan.

Robert DeLong: "It not like any of the entities, I mentioned, can put in orders for millions and have them magically produced in short notice, even if we were in terrific economic health.
That will put more burdens on the economies of all entities mentioned, of which the majority will be saddled upon the U.S. taxpayers.
But you seem to have little to no grasp upon reality, and are instead engrossed in fantasies, and your responses confirm that claim I'm making."

Nonsense, because it's pure fantasy for you to imagine that the US and our allies cannot ramp up military production in the face of obvious military threats.
The fact is US defense spending has been on a very long-term decline, since WWII, and is now at historically low levels, with our allies even less.

Robert DeLong: "See those statements also confirm that your grasp upon reality is just not there."

And yet... with many words in five paragraphs, you more or less confirmed my brief summaries.
Perhaps the difference between us is that I believe strong Republican leadership -- i.e., Pres. DJT -- can still set things right, while you seem to believe that nothing can or will make it right, and therefore we must defeat ourselves in the face of aggressive dictators like Vlad the Invader and the Xi-snake.

Robert DeLong: "Again, you miss the mark, because the problem with corruption is present on both sides of the aisle.
The difference is that the numbers of Democrats not participating in corruption, is smaller than it is on the Republican side. By how much is anybody's guess."

My view of this is that Democrats are 100% corrupt, meaning no amount of reform or leadership can ever fix what's wrong with them.
Republicans, by contrast, are just 49% corrupt, meaning good leadership (i.e., DJT) can fix what's wrong and make the country right again.

So your alleged "Uni-party" is only "Uni-" when Republicans lack good leadership.

Robert DeLong: "By supporting the conflict in Ukraine with money, ammo, weapons, & equipment, is absolutely weakening the military, along with the country, financially, as well as, diverting funds to deal with our crumbling infrastructure."

Congressional appropriations of funds for Ukraine DO NOT come out of the US defense budgets, they are in addition to.
That means, every weapon and ammunition sent to Ukraine is being replaced by money Congress authorized.
And since we and every ally are sending Ukraine the old stuff first, it means that we are upgrading our defense stockpiles.

As for our "crumbling infrastructure", that is not the real problem.
The real problem is runaway Democrat spending of multiple $trillions on social programs like alleged Covid Relief, Green New Deal and Student Loan forgiveness.
Once those are brought under control (or eliminated), the Federal budget will do fine and there will be money for essentials, including support for Ukraine.

Robert DeLong: "In turn your support for Ukraine is tacitly providing support for this administration, as well as the corruption of the Uniparty actors.
Your seemingly inability to connect these dots is dumbfounding, not to mention frustrating, to the people who are trying to help you all see those connections."

So here's the real truth of this matter: you will NEVER defeat the Democrats in the ballot box by letting Vlad the Invader run roughshod over Ukraine on the battlefield.
Nothing good happens if Vlad wins, nothing bad is avoided if Ukraine is destroyed.
So you can yammer-on all you like about "Uni-party", but war is existential and there's no "silver lining" in defeat.

Robert DeLong: "The majority want to label us as traitors etcetera etcetera etcetera.
That frustration makes as retaliate with calling you useful ignorant idiots.
I'm trying very hard to keep this conversation civil, because we share far more views then we have disagreements on."

Because you drank the Russian propaganda Kool-Aid and now your brain cells are fried beyond functioning.
All you can insanely think of is: "let's give Vlad the Invader a win so somehow that might let us defeat Democrats in the next election."
It's pure nonsense.

Robert DeLong: "But this is a major one we disagree on, and you all need to wake up, and start thinking with your brains instead of reacting with your hearts, because you are not doing the world any good whatsoever, by basing your actions upon emotions. Emotions only tend to exacerbate problems, not fix them."

And yet... and yet... it is purely your emotional attachment to Russian propaganda Kool-Aid which blinds you to the utter necessity of defeating Vlad the Invader's "special military operations" in Ukraine.
Any logical analysis tells us that allowing aggressive dictators to win wars only encourages them to start new ones, and each new war will be bigger and more costly than the one we should have won before it.

Robert DeLong: "Again these childish names that you give Putin, are just that, childish.
But then again it illustrates that you are not thinking like adults."

I was just channeling my inner Trump, he's a great one for names.
These are mine:

Vlad the Invader -- dictator of Russia
The Xi-snake -- ruler of China
Little Kim -- North Korea's bad boy
The Mulla Mullahs -- Iran's money-grubbing wannabe nukers

All of these people are evil and dangerous and well deserve amusing monikers.

Robert DeLong: "Beyond that though, you misinterpret why they may have willing backed out of those regions, and instead credit the abilities of Ukraine.
Without assistance Ukraine would not have repelled them, in my opinion."

Reports from Ukraine showed Russian forces fleeing in panic with huge stockpiles of their weapons destroyed around Kiev, Kharkiv and Kherson.
So, we can only speculate how much of that was Russia's deliberate tactical "repositioning" and how much was rapid retreat forced by Ukrainian advances.
The true fact is this: Russia's maximum advance into Ukraine happened within the first months after February 2022.
Ever since, Russian forces have only retreated or held their lines at seemingly great cost to themselves.

Robert DeLong: "You are also operating on the assumption that Putin is acting in a vacuum, that there were no extenuating circumstances for his actions, and you do so because you refuse to look at the evidence that clearly shows that he was forced to act for the security of Russia."

Those are total lies, the truth is Russia could have joined NATO, as was planned in 1994 along with other eastern European countries.
That would eliminate the possibility of NATO being a threat to Russia, but Putin (not NATO) chose a different path.

Nor did NATO ever oppose Russia in the least until Vlad the Invader began invading smaller countries in 2008.

Robert DeLong: "Putin wanted Russia to become a part of NATO, and then there would be no reason to fear Russia, because by extension Russia becomes part of the EU.
But the U.S. rejected that because that would in essence mean that NATO would have no purpose whatsoever to exist, which in turn means that the U.S. would lose its hegemony that keeps Europe as a vassal state of the US."

And the lies just never stop with you, do they comrade?
The truth is, the US rejected nothing.
Russia could have applied for NATO membership -- via a MAP -- at any time they wanted between 1994 and Vlad's invasion of Georgia in 2008.
Even then, I don't think Russia had lost 100% of the west's goodwill and might have worked back into our good graces.
But Vlad the Invader loudly declared himself to be the Evil Empire with his 2014 invasion of Ukraine and from then until now that reality has slowly, slowly sunk into the minds of westerners and our friends in the Far East.

Robert DeLong: "The U.S. also chose to threaten Russia's security by breaking the promise they made to Russia to not expand NATO.
In addition, they schemed to place Putin in a box where they would become involved in a proxy war With the U.S., NATO, and European allies in Ukraine, by not getting involved in providing solutions to the hostilities in eastern Ukraine that had been ongoing for 8 years."

Do you not yourself see how insane that is?
Putin was not "rejected" by NATO, HE NEVER APPLIED!!!
And NATO NEVER promised not to expand, NATO was open to accepting Russia itself, along with other Eastern European countries.
So Vlad the Invader was not threatened by NATO, but he did himself threaten many of his smaller neighbors, including:

Azerbaijan (1990-1994);[1][2]
Moldova (1992–present);
Georgia (2004–present);
Lithuania (2006);
Estonia (2006–2007);
Poland (2006-present);
Belarus (2007); Ukraine (2014–present);
Syria (2015–present);
Turkey (2015–2016);
Kazakhstan (2021-2022);[3] and
Armenia (2022)[4] amongst others.[5]

Robert DeLong: "So, what choice did Putin have but to look to China?
I'm sure Russia didn't want to join China, because Russia doesn't trust China anymore than they trust us.
In fact, they probably trust China even less."

Vlad and Xi-snake share at least two existentially common interests:

Their intense desire to dominate their neighbors through threats & intimidation, and to invade them when possible.
Their hatred of the current World Order as organized and lead by the United States.

Both would like to replace the US, EU and our Asian allies with their own domination, economic and military.
That's what makes them partners.

wardaddy: "You just don’t like us
We got it"

Naw, man, I love y'all to pieces, it's just that caterwauling noise you make about Sherman & all, you know that'd drive anybody crazy.
And then we get a real monster, like Vlad the Invader and y'all are just purrrrrrrin' like kittens -- what a nice man he is, that Vlad-guy you know, he'll fix those nasty Ukies, for sure.

What can I say?

😂

Firehath: "this war started
when naked - dressed up communism - diversity
was outlawed in russia
twenty years ago"

Historically, the word "communism", whether naked or dressed up, means government ownership of the means of production, combined with a huge government apparatus of oppression of normal citizens.

The truth about Russia is that 20 years ago it was still relatively free, perhaps freer than any other time in its history.
Today Russia is much closer to the old communism practiced by Stalin and his immediate successors.

So, no, Vlad the Invader didn't outlaw communism, he brought a lot of it back to power in Russia.

So, are you telling us that Vlad the Invader wants to repeat the 1939 Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact in which Germany got half of Poland and Stalin's Soviet Union took the other half, only this time with Ukraine? And Vlad is different from A. Hitler in what respects?

No, I'm implying that this has been the long history of Ukraine. OF course, you don't know this because you have failed to educate yourself as to the history of Ukraine. Your knowledge is limited to Russia invaded Ukraine.

At least that is the knowledge you telegraph to others, because you never mention these facts of their history. The other option is, that you know their history, but are purposely ignoring it, because it doesn't help your arguments.

Well, first, I don't speak either Russian or Ukrainian, so I use the spelling I see most often, there's no significance in it.

Since you are cheerleading the continuation of the conflict, for Ukraine, I would have assumed that more than a year into this conflict, you would have at least grasped that the 8 years of attacks upon the Russian speaking Ukrainian citizens, in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine, that you would know that the reason for those attacks were perpetrated upon them for the crime of speaking Russian. For a Ukrainian, the spelling is of Kyiv is of utmost importance to them. Well, at least for the Nazi faction at any rate.

BTW, I speak neither Russian nor Ukrainian languages either. But curiosity made me seek out why I kept seeing two distinct spelling for Ukraine's capital, and most populous, city.

As for Vlad the Invader wishing to reconstitute the old Tsarist Russian or Soviet Empires, that obviously is the case, he has said as much himself and his actions in bullying, threatening and invading his neighbors speak louder than any words.

There have been two, Georgia & Ukraine. Georgia was to quell violence along Russia's border, and I read once that the president asked Putin to intervene. But that's all unimportant, because Russia is still a regional power.

The Last Time the U.S. Invaded Mexico

Remember, when A. Hitler signed a pact with J. Stalin, in 1939, that did NOT mean either one had given up even one inch of ambition to conquer more territories. And so, we must assume the same with J. Stalin's love-child, Vlad the Invader.

First off, clever, but untrue claim, that Putin is Stalin's lovechild. If you can't refrain from propaganda, and stick to facts, it only reflects poorly on your ability to deal in facts. Probably because facts are not a strong point of yours, but propaganda is the go to for you without a doubt.

Why must we assume that what happened between to ruthless leaders, now links to a completely different leader? Do you always just throw feces against the wall, to see what might stump me? This is a perfect example where assuming, only made an a$$ of you, because I played no part in making such an assumption.

As for Peace Through Strength, you've propagandized us already into a second-rate power, incapable of arresting murderers until we've arrested all our own jaywalkers! There's no strength in that, and no peace will come from it.

Just proves that either your comprehension skills are sorely lacking, or you are intentionally lying. Of course it could be both.

What I said is that we have been weakened by a totally inept & corrupt administration, and that you tacitly support this administration by siding with their getting this nation involved in this conflict, not to diplomatically stop the aggression, but to perpetuate it, because they wanted this conflict.

He's destroying our economy, allows foreign invaders to waltz right in, while at the same time hollowing out our military. None of which concerns you or the other cheerleaders. You must be either a RINO, or someone who desires to see this country destroyed. Oops, I kind of repeated myself, because the two examples are the same thing when you look into the, with a determined investigation.

Nonsense, because it's pure fantasy for you to imagine that the US and our allies cannot ramp up military production in the face of obvious military threats. The fact is US defense spending has been on a very long-term decline, since WWII, and is now at historically low levels, with our allies even less.

No, we do not have the plants we used to have in this country pre WWII that were able to be refitted to build war material needs, but again it surprises me not, that you think it would be possible. It would take tons of investment. Since we do not have the cash on hand it would require printing of money. But with the economy in shambles and inflation becoming a real threat, that printing of money would only spark hyper-inflation to kick into overdrive.

Read up how strong Argentina used to be, and what a shambles it is in now. Even though they have oil reserves, they aren't able to pull themselves out of their dire situation.

And yet... with many words in five paragraphs, you more or less confirmed my brief summaries. Perhaps the difference between us is that I believe strong Republican leadership -- i.e., Pres. DJT -- can still set things right, while you seem to believe that nothing can or will make it right, and therefore we must defeat ourselves in the face of aggressive dictators like Vlad the Invader and the Xi-snake.

Only in your weak uniformed mind did my statements, which you didn't bring forth, support your arguments in any way, shape, or form.

DJT is not a Republican, he's a strong leader who ran for office on the Republican Party ticket. He did so because he realized that the people who would support him vote Republican. He's been a supporter of both parties throughout his life. But is you are so a staunch DJT supporter, why are you then going against his advice that we stop supporting Ukraine? I think you use claiming to be a DJT supporter as a Trojan Horse cover to hide who you really are.

Even DJT is getting concerned that Biden nay so destroy this nation before he has a chance to reenter the presidency, that the nation will eb very hard to pull it out of destruction, as he will have to accomplish so much in a short period of time.

So, if you are who you claim to be, then you will immediately cease supporting Ukraine, to assist him upon his return to the presidency, by giving him more to work with, instead of less. Just as Ukraine's Zelenskyy refused to help Trump, the integrity of Ukraine will not help him either. It might be different if we win, but we are not in it to win. Time for you to start seeing that reality. If we were in it to win, we would have immediately started ramping up the weapons creation, that you think is an easy-peasy accomplishment to achieve quickly, by starting that 2014 when they made the decision to engage in this proxy war with Russia.

Bottom line is, that you are looking at the past and saying it can be done now, but it's an incorrect belief, for many reason. The nation is not even a close resemblance of what it was 80 years ago now. You are living in a fantasy world totally divorced from reality. Just like making everyone winners, doesn't really make them winners. They are only being propped up, but reality shows them what they really are, eventually.

Robert DeLong: "I prefer to vanquish evil on earth, where ever it's ugly head exists, and especially in this country before I desire it vanquished in other countries, because to ignore the evil here while worrying about it elsewhere is hypocritical."

In effect, what you are saying is, we cannot arrest a murderer until we have arrested every jaywalker in the country because jaywalking is a crime and murder is a crime and it's **"hypocritical"** to arrest one if we don't arrest all the others too.

And that is surely the very definition of utter blithering insanity, FRiend.

You need to fix that.

Let me ask you, Mr. Brilliant, do you fix your neighbors problems, before you fix your problems?

Your analogy is so ignorant, that I honestly believe my dogs could do a better job. The fact that you came to that conclusion doesn't surprise me, because it's the same kind of conclusions you have been providing all along FRiend. Worthless.

We can't go after murders, until we get all the jaywalkers.

More like, we should focus on the serious crimes, before we even contemplate the little crimes.

But only you would see it in the reverse, and make it seem as if that was what I was saying. It just shows, that you are not a serious thinker at all.

Basically you throw all kinds of propaganda (feces) that you hear that has swayed you, because you are either too lazy, or just not smart enough to exercise critical thinking for yourself, instead of offering facts. You also, throw opinions, thinking those are facts, around like they throw around taxpayer dollars. Amazingly, they have an even slightly better success rate than you.

Here Educate Yourself: The Downfall of the Ivy League | Victor Davis Hanson |

It's a rather long discussion (1 hour 45 minute), and it's not limited to just the Ivy Schools either.

Perhaps Jordan Peterson & Victor Davis Hanson might penetrate that thick skull of yours.

3rd way

is communism re - inventing itself

marxism is a religion all dressed up as science

Milton Freidman taught

objective science ( 1st way )

how the world function as it ‘ is ‘
freedom - capitalism

normative science ( 2nd way )

how you want the world to be

ideology - social engineering

As stationary arty

You make two assumptions like are your individual opinion

I’ve never caterwauled about sherman

I’ve given him credit for his terms even

Z and Putin are similar

Putin is simply stronger all around and more independent

More educational material for you to digest

Perhaps this might open your eyes to see the economic reality this nation is facing, and that you are literally helping in the demise of this nation.

For goodness sakes man, wake up. I am not the enemy here, and neither do I believe you are. You are just not well informed about the reality of how supporting Ukraine with money , weapons, ammo, along with whatever else they happen to demand from us, is only weakening this nation. In the process, it is also weakening the Europeans, along with NATO too.

Yes, Trump will be a strong leader, but that may not happen until Jan. 20th 2025 at the earliest. Unless the Q thing is real. But can we count on that to be the case? Either way, Biden can do a lot of damage to this nation until Trump is back into office. You really don't want tot assist him in his goal to destroy this nation, do you?

Robert DeLong: "No, I'm implying that this has been the long history of Ukraine.
OF course, you don't know this because you have failed to educate yourself as to the history of Ukraine.
Your knowledge is limited to Russia invaded Ukraine."

Nonsense, but "Russia invaded Ukranie" is the only history that matters right now, everything else is totally irrelevant.
What is especially irrelevant is the Russian propaganda version of "the long history of Ukraine."
None of the evil deeds of Russia against Ukraine, i.e., the Holodomor, provide justification for Vlad the Invader's actions now.

Robert DeLong: "At least that is the knowledge you telegraph to others, because you never mention these facts of their history.
The other option is, that you know their history, but are purposely ignoring it, because it doesn't help your arguments."

What true history supports is Ukrainian independence, period.
There's no reason why any Ukrainian would want to be part of the monstrous Russian Empire.
And I suspect, you don't really know the true history because you've been drinking Russian propaganda Kool-Aide so long you think it's factual, right?

Robert DeLong: "Since you are cheerleading the continuation of the conflict, for Ukraine, I would have assumed that more than a year into this conflict, you would have at least grasped that the 8 years of attacks upon the Russian speaking Ukrainian citizens, in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine, that you would know that the reason for those attacks were perpetrated upon them for the crime of speaking Russian."

That is a complete 100% Russian propaganda Kool-Aide drinking lie, and you should well know it.
The truth is over half of Ukrainians speak Russian, including the president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
So language has nothing to do with it.
Helping Russia wage war against the Ukrainian government has everything to do with it.

Robert DeLong: "For a Ukrainian, the spelling is of Kyiv is of utmost importance to them.
Well, at least for the Nazi faction at any rate.
BTW, I speak neither Russian nor Ukrainian languages either. But curiosity made me seek out why I kept seeing two distinct spelling for Ukraine's capital, and most populous, city."

The names and spellings of many places have changed since I was a boy learning geography.
In this case, "The Ukraine" is now just Ukraine, and other names have changed too, i.e., Stalingrad and Leningrad.
I do my best to keep up with the latest, but really don't care that much about it.

And you calling Ukrainians "Nazis" is just an expression of your own total, complete abysmal ignorance of real history and your mind besotted-drunk with Russian propaganda Kool-Aide.

Robert DeLong: "There have been two [invasions], Georgia & Ukraine.
Georgia was to quell violence along Russia's border, and I read once that the president asked Putin to intervene.
But that's all unimportant, because Russia is still a regional power."

And right there is where you mind slips from semi-conscious into a drunken Kool-Aide propaganda induced stupor.
First of all, no president asked Putin to invade Georgia, that's insane to suggest it -- unless, of course, you are referring to then Russian President Medvedev, but that would make you not just insane, but also dishonest to the core.

Your words, "Russia is a regional power" give Vlad the Invader no right -- none, zero, nada rights -- to invade his neighbors, especially on trumped up pretexts.

Robert DeLong: "The Last Time the U.S. Invaded Mexico"

1913!! and that was provoked in a way Russia was never provoked in either Georgia or Ukraine.
Plus, Russians have threatened most of their neighbors at one time or another since 1990:

Azerbaijan (1990-1994);[1][2]
Moldova (1992–present);
Georgia (2004–present);
Lithuania (2006);
Estonia (2006–2007);
Poland (2006-present);
Belarus (2007);
Ukraine (2014–present);
Syria (2015–present);
Turkey (2015–2016);
Kazakhstan (2021-2022);[3] and
Armenia (2022)[4] amongst others.[5]

Robert DeLong: "First off, clever, but untrue claim, that Putin is Stalin's lovechild.
If you can't refrain from propaganda, and stick to facts, it only reflects poorly on your ability to deal in facts.
Probably because facts are not a strong point of yours, but propaganda is the go to for you without a doubt."

More nonsense, because Vlad the Invader is absolutely 100% Stalin's love-child, and grand-love-child of the old imperial Tsars from Ivan the Terrible to Peter the Great, Putin idolizes them and copies their behavior.
Vlad is no child of Thomas Jefferson or Benjamin Franklin, he is in no way a Jeffersonian liberal democrat (small "l", small "d"), rather, he is a Russian imperialist in the mold of the Tsars & Soviets.

Robert DeLong: "Why must we assume that what happened between to ruthless leaders, now links to a completely different leader?
Do you always just throw feces against the wall, to see what might stump me?
This is a perfect example where assuming, only made an a$$ of you, because I played no part in making such an assumption."

Did you suddenly forget your own argument?
I'll remind you:

Robert DeLong

"What makes you think Putin was trying to conquer Ukraine?
Putin even said himself that he was sure that western Ukraine would be much happier under Polish control. "

Clearly you, not me, are suggesting Vlad the Invader wants to divvy up Ukraine with Poland, just as Hitler and Stalin divvied up Poland in 1939.
I simply reminded you that Hitler's agreement with Stalin over Poland DID NOT mean either dictator had given up all other territorial ambitions, nor should we assume that if Vlad divvies up Ukraine with Poland, that is the end of Vlad's territorial ambitions.

Robert DeLong: "Just proves that either your comprehension skills are sorely lacking, or you are intentionally lying.
Of course it could be both.
What I said is that we have been weakened by a totally inept & corrupt administration... "

Right, those are your words, not mine.
I merely translated them accurately to mean: "you've propagandized us already into a second-rate power, incapable of arresting murderers until we've arrested all our own jaywalkers! "

We said the same thing, in slightly different words.

Robert DeLong: "You tacitly support this administration by siding with their getting this nation involved in this conflict, not to diplomatically stop the aggression, but to perpetuate it, because they wanted this conflict.
He's destroying our economy, allows foreign invaders to waltz right in, while at the same time hollowing out our military.
None of which concerns you or the other cheerleaders.
You must be either a RINO, or someone who desires to see this country destroyed.
Oops, I kind of repeated myself, because the two examples are the same thing when you look into the, with a determined investigation."

And here, for emphasis, you repeat the idiocies in many more words -- you claim we cannot help defend Ukraine until all our own Democrats are defeated in elections, removed from power and replaced by not just Republicans, but non-RINO Republicans.
That is not going to happen, ever, and did never happen in any previous US war against a foreign power.
The one time it did happen, the Civil War, we certainly do not want to repeat today.

Our current Obama/Biden Democrat administration is, by nature, thoroughly corrupt and corrupting of anything they touch.
This may, or may not, include our aid to Ukraine, I've seen no evidence one way or the other.
But at least some aid is going there and that has demonstrably helped slow & delay Vlad the Invader's progress of conquest across Ukraine.

But you frequently suggest that if we just let Vlad conquer Ukraine, then we can somehow defeat Democrats in elections here at home.
I think that is such mind-numbing stupidity it's beyond all rational comprehension.

Robert DeLong: "No, we do not have the plants we used to have in this country pre WWII that were able to be refitted to build war material needs, but again it surprises me not, that you think it would be possible.
It would take tons of investment.
Since we do not have the cash on hand it would require printing of money.
But with the economy in shambles and inflation becoming a real threat, that printing of money would only spark hyper-inflation to kick into overdrive."

Anything is possible, given good leadership -- budgets are balanced by reducing wasteful spending in one area to free up money for more vital projects, like national defense.
It is not a problem if leaders are willing to sit down and make hard choices.
I think there are $trillions of dollars in wasteful government spending which could easily be diverted to existential matters like national defense.

So your argument here is nullified by common sense.

Robert DeLong: "Read up how strong Argentina used to be, and what a shambles it is in now.
Even though they have oil reserves, they aren't able to pull themselves out of their dire situation."

Argentina has been an economic problem-child, if not basket-case, for as long as I can remember.
They are living proof that whatever the Left touches they corrupt and eventually ruin.
The US was never that bad, until 2021, and hopefully the 2022 elections will begin to correct the worst of Democrat excesses.

Robert DeLong: "Only in your weak uniformed mind did my statements, which you didn't bring forth, support your arguments in any way, shape, or form."

Naw, you posted a long series of statements, in your own words, which can rather easily translate to my words.
So, I didn't repeat them because there was nothing for me to disagree with.
The fact that you fail to see the areas where we agree speaks loud volumes about your own lack of understanding.

Robert DeLong: "DJT is not a Republican, he's a strong leader who ran for office on the Republican Party ticket.
He did so because he realized that the people who would support him vote Republican.
He's been a supporter of both parties throughout his life.
But is you are so a staunch DJT supporter, why are you then going against his advice that we stop supporting Ukraine?
I think you use claiming to be a DJT supporter as a Trojan Horse cover to hide who you really are."

That's total rubbish because Trump certainly is a Republican, he is the leader of Republicans, both officially and by poll results.
Trump defines what the word "Republican" means, he is the gold standard by which we can measure all others claiming to be Republican.
God willing, Trump will be our president in 2025 and with a Republican congress will begin to correct the worst of today's government abuses.

Most Republicans have supported US aid to Ukraine, including Trump, who is understandably frustrated since he would have prevented Vlad's new invasion and can end it.
So, for now, what most Republicans want is that a) 100% of the aid goes to Ukraine and not be siphoned off by political corruption and b) the aid should be enough to help Ukraine actually defeat Russia, not just slow them down.

As for your alleged "Trojan Horse", I have no idea what that might mean to you, but if you read my profile, I have not changed even one word of it since originally posting in circa 2004.

Robert DeLong: "So, if you are who you claim to be, then you will immediately cease supporting Ukraine, to assist him upon his return to the presidency, by giving him more to work with, instead of less.
Just as Ukraine's Zelenskyy refused to help Trump, the integrity of Ukraine will not help him either.
It might be different if we win, but we are not in it to win.
Time for you to start seeing that reality.
If we were in it to win, we would have immediately started ramping up the weapons creation, that you think is an easy-peasy accomplishment to achieve quickly, by starting that 2014 when they made the decision to engage in this proxy war with Russia."

Just to be 100% clear, those are your words, not mine, even though you posted them as if quoted from me.

My words are these: we should do whatever we can to help defeat Vlad the Invader in Ukraine until the time when Pres. Trump can negotiate an end and settlement to that conflict.

Robert DeLong: "Bottom line is, that you are looking at the past and saying it can be done now, but it's an incorrect belief, for many reason.
The nation is not even a close resemblance of what it was 80 years ago now.
You are living in a fantasy world totally divorced from reality.
Just like making everyone winners, doesn't really make them winners.
They are only being propped up, but reality shows them what they really are, eventually."

Naw, the pure fantasy is your claim that the US is weaker today than we were 80 years ago.
In fact, we are infinitely more powerful and capable.
The difference is relative -- in 1945 the US GDP was around 40% of the world's total output, while today we are perhaps 25% and both China and the EU each rival our GDP.
We may still be the first among equals, but we don't stand alone as we did in 1945.

But we still have huge advantages over China and the EU, advantages which can still make us world leaders, if we want to be, and we should want to be because the alternatives are not nice to contemplate.

Robert DeLong: "Let me ask you, Mr. Brilliant, do you fix your neighbors problems, before you fix your problems?"

The answer is: you address your worst problems first.
You don't wait to arrest a murderer until after you've arrested all the jaywalkers, that would be insane.
And when it comes to big countries invading their little neighbors, that will always be our problem too, because it directly attacks the rule of international law on which the American world order is based.
It begins to return the world to the Law of Empires, meaning stronger countries invade & annex their weaker neighbors.
That world will not be friendly to us.

Robert DeLong: "Your analogy is so ignorant, that I honestly believe my dogs could do a better job.
The fact that you came to that conclusion doesn't surprise me, because it's the same kind of conclusions you have been providing all along FRiend.
Worthless."

And here you took over 40 words to say exactly: nothing.
That is certainly a proof of your brilliance.

Robert DeLong: "More like, we should focus on the serious crimes, before we even contemplate the little crimes."

Unjustly invading a foreign country is the most serious crime imaginable, especially when accomplished by mass killing of civilians and unlimited destruction of property.

Our Democrats' "crimes" in this country are matters of elections, laws and law enforcement, and correcting them will require a far different effort than defeating Vlad the Invader's naked aggression in Ukraine.

Robert DeLong: "But only you would see it in the reverse, and make it seem as if that was what I was saying.
It just shows, that you are not a serious thinker at all."

And here again you used over 30 words to say nothing, another proof of your manifest intelligence.

Robert DeLong: "Basically you throw all kinds of propaganda (feces) that you hear that has swayed you, because you are either too lazy, or just not smart enough to exercise critical thinking for yourself, instead of offering facts.
You also, throw opinions, thinking those are facts, around like they throw around taxpayer dollars.
Amazingly, they have an even slightly better success rate than you."

And here you prove yourself to be the closet Democrat that I suspected -- or perhaps a "reformed" Democrat who still thinks the way you were taught to think as a Democrat.
And you already know what that is without me saying it -- Democrats, by their natures, look deep into their own souls to find the worst evils imaginable there, and then they accuse Republicans or their own wickedness!

Here's the truth: you have presented no facts -- zero, nada, zip, zilch facts -- to support your arguments, but have instead only blasted forth with Russian Kool-Aid drinking propaganda.
And then you accuse me of your own misdeeds.

Robert DeLong: "It's a rather long discussion (1 hour 45 minute), and it's not limited to just the Ivy Schools either.
Perhaps Jordan Peterson & Victor Davis Hanson might penetrate that thick skull of yours."

If you fantasize that I disagree with either of them, or that they agree with you, then you are as delusional as can be.

Here's the proof of it: unlike Robert DeLong, Victor Davis Hanson never blathers blatant Russian propaganda as if it were true.
And Jordan Peterson, to my knowledge, does not expound on international relations.

Nonsense, but "Russia invaded Ukranie" (sic) is the only history that matters right now, everything else is totally irrelevant. What is especially irrelevant is the Russian propaganda version of "the long history of Ukraine." None of the evil deeds of Russia against Ukraine, i.e., the Holodomor, provide justification for Vlad the Invader's actions now.

First off, Putin couldn't even begin to use Holodomor as justification for the invasion, thus he never has. Now Ukraine might be using that as justification for having executed an 8 year long reign of terror upon the Ukrainian Russian speaking citizens of eastern Ukraine. But even that would be wrong of Ukraine to do. If you knew what you were talking about then you would know that the Holodomor, a man-made famine that convulsed the Soviet republic of Ukraine from 1932 to 1933, peaking in the late spring of 1933, was part of a broader Soviet famine (1931–34) that also caused mass starvation in the grain-growing regions of Soviet Russia and Kazakhstan. Was it intentional, or a major mistake made by Stalin? Either way, his decisions impacted more than just Ukraine. Bottom line, it was the fault of Stalin who was the Soviet Union's leader. Putin wasn't even born yet, but you are attributing it to him.

Do you justify what Ukraine was doing to the Ukrainian Russian speaking citizens in eastern Ukraine? If so, then you are a hypocrite, but it proves that you can't begin at the point of invasion. For when you do you leave out why the invasion occurred in the first place.

It also allows you to ignore the attempts Putin made in the 8 years prior to the invasion to stop the hostilities in eastern Ukraine. They were the Minsk Agreements. Putin tried to get the international community involved to make Ukraine live up to the agreements Ukraine had signed in 2014 & 2015. We found out later that Ukraine never intended to honor the agreements they signed, and that the international community had no intention of seeking a peaceful resolution.

But I love how you speak out of one side of your mouth about Trump, and your love & belief in him, while out the other side of your mouth you go completely against what he is publicly saying about Ukraine.

You are one confused person. You unwillingness to acknowledge the totality of the causation of this conflict, means that you harbor some sort of bias towards Russia, which I understand completely, because I fell for that myself.

Ukraine had broken free of Russia when the Soviet Union ceased to exit after imploding financially. Putin had no interest in Ukraine. Then they pulled a coup d'etat against a duly elected president and Russia retaliated by seizing the Crimea in 2014. If his intentions were to seize Ukraine as you claim, why did he wait 8 years to mount an invasion? Why were two Minsk agreements drafted to stop the kinetic conflict in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine? It was only after those efforts failed to produce any positive results that Putin then decided to invade Ukraine.

Sounds to me that he had no desire to invade Ukraine, but did so, only to stop the hostilities that Ukraine itself had created. Beginning with Poroshenko and then expanded by Zelenskyy against the eastern Russian speaking Ukrainian citizens, who had done nothing to deserve the attacks upon them. The separatists talks began after the physical attacks against them, not before. Just in case you try to use that lie as justification.

What’s to stop China from sending more tanks to Putin?

They'll come with Chinese tank crews, supported by Chinese infantry, Chinese CAS, and Chinese logistics ... and their orders won't say anything about Ukraine.

Firehath: "3rd way is communism re - inventing itself
marxism is a religion all dressed up as science"

Communism is reinventing itself in Russia, even as we speak.
It is reverting to the old Stalinist definitions -- maximum state ownership of, and control over, the Russian economy, combined with police-state & gangster enforcements of political conformity.

And it is also happening in the USA under Democrat leadership, though thankfully so far, to a lesser degree.
All this other nonsense that we see so much of -- "woke-ness", "diversity", "Green New Deal", "Social Justice Warrior", "Politically Correct", "Anti-Fascist", "Black Lives Matter", "Critical Race Theory" and on & on ad nauseum -- all that is diversionary to the central power-grab of government allied with & ruling over big tech companies.

Sure, you can call it communism reinvented, if you wish, or Marxism 2.0.
But in reality, it's just Big Government doing what big governments by their nature try to do -- grow ever bigger and more controlling.

wardaddy: "You make two assumptions like are your individual opinion
I’ve never caterwauled about sherman"

Then I apologize, sincerely, for trying to paint you with the same brush.

wardaddy: "Z and Putin are similar
Putin is simply stronger all around and more independent"

The difference between them is that Putin is the aggressor and Zelenskyy is the victim of Vlad the Invader's naked aggression.
Putin is a known long-time murderer of his internal political opponents and even foreign leaders he doesn't like.
Putin's invasion has killed tens of thousands of civilians and destroyed hundreds of billions of dollars' worth of Ukrainian infrastructure.
Zelinskyy has no similar record.

So far as we know, Zelenskyy was honestly elected in 2019.
Putin was probably elected honestly the first time, in 2000, but Russian elections since suggest intimidation and control -- in 2018, Putin's main opponents got less than 7% of the vote combined.

As for their independence, it appears that Putin is leaning on the Chinese Xi-snake for support, so how independent will that make him?
Zelenskyy, obviously, is looking for military help whereever he can get it, be that the USA, EU or elsewhere.
Russia's invasion means Zelenskyy's only real independence is to decide when & how to continue fighting for Ukraine's freedom.

LOL, I didn't think you would bother listening to the video. It was way beyond your attention span.

What's even funnier is the proof you offer up is nothing more than your proven defective opinions.

In other words, you provided no facts at all.

While I'll agree that VDH was spouting, shorty after the invasion, propaganda that we are subjected to, he seems to be catching on more today and has slightly changed his narrative. Burt he's still not willing to state his new opinion fully.

Your knowledge regarding Jordan Peterson is no better either:

Jordan Peterson on Ukraine conflict

Robert DeLong: "More educational material for you to digest
Perhaps this might open your eyes to see the economic reality this nation is facing, and that you are literally helping in the demise of this nation."

Thanks, but I don't think I need lessons in what's wrong with the USA these days.
There's no doubt Democrats are driving us down into a hole as deep as they possibly can, a hole that will be very difficult for even the best Republican leadership to climb out of.

And I think, perhaps, you might understand the Democrats' thought process, or how Democrats' brains work.
They are eager to jump into wars, from Korea to Vietnam to Kosovo and Iraq, maybe because they think it's mostly Republicans who will be fighting & dying there.
But once the going gets tough, then they are just as eager to advocate for American defeat and withdrawal, as most recently in Afghanistan, so that they can glory in America's reduction in stature & status as the world's leader.

Today Democrats are in their "let's go to war" phase in Ukraine, but you can be certain they will abandon that the moment they can figure out a way to blame Republicans for their defeat.

The result will be America's standing in the world suffers serious additional damage, and there's no way to predict how long it will take good leadership to repair.

Regardless, the real actor here is Vlad the Invader, who has chosen to make war against Europe and the West, while taking on China as his economic and military ally.
The results will not be to our liking in any case, but will be far worse if Vlad succeeds in Ukraine.

That is my whole argument, in a nut-shell.