OK, so here we are with the all-new RSBU on the all-new DKos platform. So far things work — but it is a major pain in the ass, mostly because it is going to take me a while to figure out how to do everything.
On another note — I am leaving tomorrow for several days to go to sunny Florida for my mother’s 90th birthday extravaganza, so I may or may not be able to post new diaries until next Tuesday. If I can’t, try to play nice till I get back.
Ukrainian Lyutyi drones struck a Russian chemical plant 1,500 km from the front. A fuel depot near Belgorod was also hit.
Any day that a gunpowder plant explodes is a good day.
Russia launched an attack on Dnipropetrovsk that left dead and wounded. Below is a description posted by a Ukrainian doctor.
More Russian stuff blowing up:
Hey Yuri, is that Santa Claus coming down the chimney?
Russian tank crews are now expendable.
2/ A Russian soldier writes to the warblogger ‘Voenkor Kotenok’: “Hello. I can’t help but tell you what’s really going on in the tank battalion of the 110th Brigade of the Russian Armed Forces (formerly the 100th Brigade of the DPR People’s Militia).
3/ “Basically, tanks are now hardly taking part in direct combat, and so every two to three weeks, two men from each company in the battalion are drafted into the infantry and sent to assaults, to fortified positions, to support UAVs.
4/ “The companies no longer have three platoons; they exist only on paper, but in reality, all the soldiers were sent to the assault, were killed, or went missing. Now it’s time for the 2nd Platoon.
5/ “They recently announced that they were training two more men for the infantry… The tankers are disappearing ingloriously. Then, most likely, the battalion will be abolished on paper. If there are no men, there will be no tanks, no battalion.
Only the best for the second-best army in Ukraine.
Russia also murdered an 8-year-old boy in Cherkasy.
The Russian army is starting to look like the Genovese crime family.
2/ Sergey Komkov writes that organised crime has become “the most widespread social virus in the Special Military Operation zone, capable of burying virtually the entire combat capability of our Russian army.”
3/ He says that an “Organised Thieves’ Den”, which he refers to with the acronym OVM, “has long been in full swing in many dugouts and personnel quarters of our armed forces in the SVO [Special Military Operation].”
4/ “And it is this OVM that often sets the tone for all combat operations, and not the strategic decisions of the Russian General Staff or other command structures.” Corruption has always existed in the army, but it has exploded with the mass recruitment of convicted criminals:
5/ “Having looked around, quickly adjusted to the situation, they have begun to establish their own prison-like thieves’ rules. The dugouts, which at best are visited only occasionally by junior officers, have acquired their own “bosses.”
6/ “Especially since the environment and conditions themselves are highly conducive to this. In the SVO zone, no one has a name anymore. There are only certain “call signs,” which in many cases closely resemble prison nicknames.
7/ “For example, “Evil,” “Mord,” “Hoopoe,” “Grenade,” and the like. Thus, the so-called “thieves’ carousel” has begun in the SVO zone!
8/ “As soon as a new contract soldier arrives at a combat unit, he is immediately “offered,” as one or another “boss” puts it, to transfer part of his contract earnings to a designated bank account. They are given a card number for the transfer.
10/ “Anyone else who also expressed a desire to indulge in alcohol, drugs, and prostitution must pay extra. For example, in one unit in the SVO zone, according to information I have, girls for soldiers were delivered for 20,000 rubles [$265] per hour.
Companies that had large footprints in Russia are learning the meaning of the word confiscation.
Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good.
Russia bombed a dam in Pechenihy with guided KAB bombs but failed to destroy it.
Just when we get rid of Orban in Hungary we have to worry about elections in Bulgaria and now Slovenia. I was wondering why this parliament speaker is doing this until I read that he is Serbian.
There is a line forming to see who gets to be the new Biggest Pain in the Ass for the EU.
Hey Viktor! Are you getting my office ready?
Here’s some good news when it comes to bringing war criminals to justice. There are now enough European countries signed on to form a Special Tribunal for Russia’s genocidal war. Can we give them jurisdiction over the Trump junta as well?
The Gagarin aircraft facility that was bomb earlier has sustained serious damage.
WTF Israel!!!!
It sounds like a lot of drones, but how long will these last? A week?
Oh darn! I won’t get to Moscow until next week so I’ll miss out on this once-in-a-lifetime chance to meet the guy we can blame for giving the world Elon.
Urban Combat 101
Another 1,010 Russians whose luck ran out, plus 50 artillery systems.
These guys might want to increase their life insurance coverage.
Cheering for the Russian Army is like being a fan of the pathetic New York Mets.
HODGES: Yeah, Russians may not have any tanks available for the upcoming parade.
DeBATTO: Well, fake ones, maybe some Potemkin tanks, but you’re right. And if they cancel the parade, that will be a big psychological hit to the Russians.
What a king-sized asshole Vance is.
Let’s check in on the Russian economy.
You should take the stairs anyway. It’s better for your health.
Have the oligarchs finally had enough?
Kushner and Witkoff remind me of Lucy and Ethel working at the chocolate factory. They have no clue what they are doing. They are scheduled to visit Ukraine soon. I hope Ukrainian officials take them to the funeral of the 8-year-old boy or maybe to an underground school in Kharkiv or to Sloviansk to see what their buddy Vlad has been doing.
Zelenskyy appears to no longer give a fuck about keeping Trump happy.
This will come in handy when it comes time to round up the war criminals.
Some good news on the procurement front.
Ukraine will probably get to Mars before we do.
Comforting a frightened dog in Sloviansk.
Bringing new Kombat Kittens into the world.
Comments didn't load?
Your browser or an extension may be blocking them. This can happen with Firefox Strict mode, uBlock Origin, Brave, or ad blockers. Try disabling your ad blocker for this site, or switching Firefox's Enhanced Tracking Protection to Standard mode.