Brunch with our Ukrainian friend yesterday
Last edited Sun May 1, 2022, 10:16 AM - Edit history (1)
Not a lot new to report, but an outpouring of gratitude for Joe Biden. He said that statues of Lenin would all be replaced by statues of Biden when this was over. As a Soviet vet of the Afghan war who fought alongside Russians, he had comments on Russian battle tactics. He said the Russians tend to reenact the definition of insanity, namely use the same tactic over and over, and expected a different result: Bomb with artillery, then bomb using planes, then send infantry and tanks. So, the Ukrainians wait out the artillery, wait out the aerial bombing, and then massacre the infantry and use javelins to demolish the tanks. Again, and again. You'd think the Russians might figure out that the Ukies were on to them, but apparently not.
He was also surprised that Putin and Lukashenko only mobilized 250,000 troops for the invasion. He said that if a force of half a million had been assembled prior to launching the invasion, the Ukrainians might have been overwhelmed. Now, it is too late, since word of how badly it is going (20% casualty rate with up to a 10% fatality rate for the invading force--appalling!) has spread, and troop morale is low, even among the Spetznaz units. No wonder Putin needs Tucker Carlson. Their own commentators won't have a lot of credibility with a population whose conscript sons are suffering THAT kind of a casualty rate.
Oh, and he liked our Putin video 
His English isn't good, but he got the gist of it, took a screen shot so he could pass it on to his friends back home. I will have to test my tea for polonium starting next week!
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