Russo-Ukrainian War - 2022 Edition - Part 4

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TEXTILE GUY

TEXTILE GUY

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Paulsie said:
AfricanTech said:
You come across as a basically decent person.

Must be hard to be so conflicted as the true horror of Russian occupation is exposed.
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The US has the right to do what they like.
But this for those who keep asking the question "how does the US influence politics and decisions of other sovereign countries" (and the EU).
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This .....

Agreed.

Having said that, I honestly believe the US is better off with a more democratic and liberal Russia, rather than where RU is today.
I honestly believe this what the US wants - an economically active Russia, with more freedoms.
The US got cheap oil, all be it small quantities from RU. Canada more so.
The US sells a lot of stuff into RU - or used to.
The US businesses can operate there in an open market economy and raise revenue for the US.
For the EU, Russia was their energy provider

The American people can be somewhat insular, arrogant and xenophobic. This I know first hand.
But, the US did not plan the war. Putin did. In fact, the US warned about the imminent war, and took a hiding for it.
The bigger issue with the US right now, is China and a divided US.

Lets also realize that US presidents and policy has changed FOUR times while Putin has been at the helm .....

Lets also note that Russians are the second largest Slavic immigrant population in the US and number around 3million people. I don't believe they particularly want this war.

But, having said all of this - we cant loose sight of the fact that Putin chose this path.

All of his reasoning with regard to NATO, well - this was the case when Gorbachev dismantled the USSR - NATO was there. It wasn't an issue then and in fact, nuclear missiles were dismantled. Russia became part of the world. This allowed them to become the gas and oil giants they were. Hell, they even got tech and space exploration going.
Putin wanted Russia to be a part of NATO - why - because Russia has China on its doorstep.

The fact that Kyiv chose to go its own way, pro EU, corruption and all - is of no concern to Russia. Russia made it their concern.
The fact that UA has its own dialect - language - again, is of no concern to Russia.
The Russian people in the Donbas are in fact Ukrainian. They are welcome to go to Russia if they don't like being Ukrainian.

This whole war - has to do with what Putin wants it to be - and although its right to question, prod and poke, again, we cant loose sight of the fact that one man pulled the trigger.
We cant also loose sight of the fact that not ONLY NATO countries condemn this, or are sanctioning Russia.

For me, I can see the effect on the UA, but, I can also see how this will affect the Russian people, for years to come. As one Russian lady told me - this has basically split her family. Her and her brother in their 40s no longer talk to their folks. The folks being pro, and her and her brother wanting to go back to 2021 Russia.

Whatever the reasoning behind Putin's crazy ideals - he is not only destroying the Ukraine, but Russia too. And the fact is, he has provided the opportunity to allow the US to poke in the affairs of Eastern EU. He has provided the opportunity for NATO to grow. He has provided the climate that has lead to all the deaths in the war.

I have no doubt that not all Ukrainians are angels either - but again, Putins flight of fancy provided the opportunity for them to knock off a few Russians.

The man is a crackpot, but I personally don't think it reasonable to tar all Russians with the same brush. Equally, one cant always blame the West or the US for all the worlds ills.

I also feel, that some OPs in this thread are OTT - and some have faced bans for it, but @Paulsie sometimes becomes the whipping boy for the somewhat over zealous OPs, and often gets a bad wrap where he doesn't deserve to. My opinion.

Equally, not every retort, response, poke from an OP needs a response - sometimes a no response speaks volumes.

Anyway - enough of this deep introspection, back to the matter at hand ................
 
TEXTILE GUY

TEXTILE GUY

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Russia’s economy won’t recover to pre-war levels before the end of this decade as it reels from Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and ensuing sanctions.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/busines...ets-live-news-strike-france-inflation-latest/
That’s according to Scope Ratings, which forecast that by the end of 2023 GDP will be about 8pc below where it was in 2021.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/busines...ets-live-news-strike-france-inflation-latest/
After 2023, potential growth will drop to between 1pc and 1.5pc a year from the 1.5pc to 2pc achieved before the war, the agency said.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/busines...ets-live-news-strike-france-inflation-latest/
According to the report, seen by Reuters, heavy spending on the faltering war effort, limited access to western technology and negative demographic trends will all continue to hurt Russia’s economy.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/busines...ets-live-news-strike-france-inflation-latest/
Levon Kameryan, an analyst at Scope, said: “The Russian government, helped by the Bank of Russia, has used windfall export revenues to mitigate the immediate domestic economic impact of the war in Ukraine and sanctions, but the longer-term outlook has worsened.”
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Solarion

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The Trutherizer said:
China's also pretty uncivilised I must say.
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Chinese products speak for China. Absolute rubbish. They cannot get anything right not even pop rivets. The rivet shafts are made of cheap "metal" which is really just Western car parts melted down into a mish mash of impure stuff that resembles metal and they make stuff out of this that we buy at exorbitant prices. The pop rivet shaft snaps off every time and you are left with this sharp protrusion.

Chinese nuts and bolts, tools, hammers etc all complete ****. The spanners bend and rust, adjustable wrenches snap off at the head.

You cannot repair anything electrical from China because the units don't have wiring, it's all thin sheet metal conductors all connected with the potentiometers, lights, transformers all actually part of the metal housing and body. It is built to break and built to not be able to be fixed. Assuming you can actually break it open in the first place. They snap shut everything deliberately and seal it with glue.
They are awful, truly awful as manufacturers.
 
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wingnut771

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Solarion said:
Chinese products speak for China. Absolute rubbish. They cannot get anything right not even pop rivets. The rivet shafts are made of cheap "metal" which is really just Western car parts melted down into a mish mash of impure stuff that resembles metal and they make stuff out of this that we buy at exorbitant prices. The pop rivet shaft snaps off every time and you are left with this sharp protrusion.

Chinese nuts and bolts, tools, hammers etc all complete ****. The spanners bend and rust, adjustable wrenches snap off at the head.

You cannot repair anything electrical from China because the units don't have wiring, it's all thin sheet metal conductors all connected with the potentiometers, lights, transformers all actually part of the metal housing and body. It is built to break and built to not be able to be fixed. Assuming you can actually break it open in the first place. They snap shut everything deliberately and seal it with glue.
They are awful, truly awful as manufacturers.
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They made our 6 x 360 tonne turbines for koeberg, dropping one of them. :oops:
 
Dave

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TEXTILE GUY said:
I also feel, that some OPs in this thread are OTT - and some have faced bans for it, but @Paulsie sometimes becomes the whipping boy for the somewhat over zealous OPs, and often gets a bad wrap where he doesn't deserve to. My opinion.

Equally, not every retort, response, poke from an OP needs a response - sometimes a no response speaks volumes.
Click to expand...

Pssst.... OP is original poster, like the Highlander there can only be one (per thread) ;)
 
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