The Struggle For Ukraine

[Boethius]

About 13% of Germany’s electricity is generated with natural gas. But the majority of natural gas is used for heating.

Where I live, electricity was coal generated, and cheap. The socialist provincial government expedited the banning of coal (which was happening over a longer period federally). End result was payouts to companies equalling 1/7 of our annual budget. Our electricity is now 100% generated by natural gas.

[BC]

Nonsense BS.

They did not make any meaningful steps to closing down the power plants until after Fukushima. (They closed a reactor in 2003, and one in 2005. That's immaterial.)

It's not immaterial. Meaningful steps predated Fukushima.

http://www.cleanenergywire.org/factsheets/history-behind-germanys-nuclear-phase-out

[BC]

Pure Hogwash
Wiki is for electricity, not energy,,,,, majority of gas is used / burned directly, not converted to electricity. The new green "Energiewende" has been a complete disaster for Germany. Making them more dependent on gas than ever before. Building / installing new windmills has almost completely halted / stopped in the last two years. For a reason, it doesn't work as expected. Renewable energy in Germany last year amounts to between 15-18 % of total energy consumption, depending on how it is calculated. The new gas pipeline NorthStream2 that was set to open when Russia invaded, was supposed to more than double the amount of gas to Europe for the next 10-20 years.

Obviously you focused on only one aspect of my post.  Maybe re-read to get the full gist of what I posted. 

Yes, new installations of windmills has been reduced the past years, but has not stopped. 

Across Germany, 311 new wind turbines were approved in the first half of the year. This is a slight step backwards compared to the first half of 2021 (321). Compared to "strong" wind power years, the regression is even considerable. Up to three times as many permits were issued in 2014 (895) or 2015 (699) as this year.

http://www.tagesschau.de/investigativ/swr/windkraftausbau-103.html

Do take the time to read the full article.

The drop over the last years can also be explained by low energy prices and fewer government incentives, along with other ongoing crisis like COVID and shipping/supply disruptions, and increased costs.  This is likely to change quickly and .gov is likely to step in.

For a reason, it doesn't work as expected.

Now, this is hogwash. They work exactly as expected.

[Bee Farmer]

It's not immaterial. Meaningful steps predated Fukushima.

http://www.cleanenergywire.org/factsheets/history-behind-germanys-nuclear-phase-out

All talk and no action.

Talk is cheap.  What did they actually do?  They closed 2 plants, in '03 and '05.  That's called immaterial.

Russia said they were not going to invade Ukraine either.

[BC]

All talk and no action.

Talk is cheap.  What did they actually do?

The article describes in detail what they actually did.  Turning the last switch was only the last part of a process that started well before Fukushima.

The rest is only your opinion, seemingly looking for someone to blame.

As for my opinion, take it or leave it:

The fuel price for automobiles went up approximately 50 cents since 2019 in much of the EU, around 25-30%. Yeah, folks here don't like it but take it in stride with little protest. More folks are carpooling and using mass transit, but still not as affected as the US, where prices have risen 80% in the same timeframe with few interested in carpooling or mass transit and more interested in complaining and playing a blame game.

I lived in Germany in the '70s and remember the oil crisis back then (when most folks heated with heating oil).  Thermometers were turned down, and on Sundays, cars, boats, and planes remained parked.  On weekdays only odd or even plated cars were driven.  IIRC some good came out of it. Cars got even more fuel efficient, and most trucks no longer drive on Sunday. IMO the EU will go through a tough period, somewhat similar, but we'll survive and come out better in the end.

I was also in Germany in the mid-'80s to late '90s, pre, and post-Chornobyl, and when the Iron Curtain fell, all tumultuous times.  They'll adapt and get through this crisis as well while US owners of gas-guzzling cars, pickups, and SUVs cry at the pump instead of finding better ways of getting around and investing in mass transit that appeals and is not viewed simply as 'that's what poor people do.'

In many ways, I feel folks in the EU are more resilient to crisis due to the same things you object to based on inane political and ideological fantasies that limit rather than expand freedom.

[Chelseaboy]

Latest Russian explanation for why they can't beat the Ukrainians.


It's because the Americans are injecting Ukrainian soldiers with secret serum that gives them special powers and turns them into monsters.


Really.

[BC]

Would love to check out the source of that Chelseaboy!  Have a link?

[Boethius]

Here you go.

http://www.businessinsider.com/russian-lawmakers-tout-baseless-claims-ukrainian-super-soldiers-2022-7?amp

[ML]

I think those super soldiers are all named Himars.

US will send 4 more Himars to Ukraine this week to add to the 12 already sent.

- - - - - - - -

The U.S. will be sending Ukraine four additional High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) in another security assistance package to be announced later this week, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Wednesday, 20 July 2022.

The systems in the upcoming package would bring the number of launchers the U.S. has sent to 16. The U.S. has sent 12 thus far, most recently sending four in a $400 million assistance package announced on July 8.

In his remarks, Austin touted other countries that have stepped up their support for Ukraine, such as the United Kingdom sending its own MLRS systems and Poland agreeing to transfer three battalions of 155mm self-propelled howitzers.

The Pentagon chief also thanked Norway for working with the U.S. to transfer two National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems, also known as Norwegian Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems.

http://thehill.com/policy/3567107-four-more-high-mobility-artillery-rocket-systems-going-to-ukraine-pentagon-chief-says/

- - - - - -

The first HIMARS were sent to Ukraine only near end of June 2022, and they already have turned the tide of the war.

http://theprint.in/world/why-us-supplied-rocket-system-himars-has-become-key-to-ukraines-defence-against-russia/1044346/

[BC]

After 6 weeks of training in Germany, even little guys are making a big difference.  (click the first link)

http://www.youtube.com/shorts/NjA8zKK7NzU

[tfcrew]

I totally agree with this article. It was suggested [and ignored] before the invasion ever began.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is an inspiring figure. And it is hard not to admire the courageous spirit of the Ukrainian army in their unequal fight against the much more powerful Russian military. But the time has come to seek a negotiated conclusion to the war in Ukraine. And the U.S. must encourage President Zelensky to take seriously the opportunity he has to bring a halt to this bloody conflict.


Otherwise, this war will grind on without end, tens of thousands more innocent civilians will die, and there is a real risk that events spiral out of control with the United States and Russia going to war. Wise leaders in Washington must avert this impending disaster.
Perhaps flush with battlefield successes in March and April, Zelensky has expanded his war aims. No longer content with defending Kiev and Kharkov, he has announced his intention to reconquer Crimea and Donbas. This is a dangerous and provocative escalation of Ukrainian military and political objectives. In fact, it is madness.


Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, arguably a violation of international law. But we must recognize the facts on the ground. Ninety-three percent of Crimean residents voted in favor of annexation. The vast majority of the population is ethnically Russian, and historically Crimea was an integral part of Russia. The people of Crimea would resist a Ukrainian invasion. And Russia would certainly never allow such an invasion to proceed.


  Likewise, the people of Donetsk and Lugansk are resolutely opposed to any forcible reunification with Ukraine. Any attempt to reconquer these territories is futile, a mere fantasy and a foolhardy delusion.


Time is not on Ukraine’s side. It is holding on tenaciously on the Eastern battlefield, but slowly losing more and more ground. NATO and the U.S. are supplying weaponry, but not men. Eventually, losses of personnel will leave the Ukrainian army in a dire predicament, tons of military material but not enough soldiers to deploy them. Prolonging the war will likely result in more Ukrainian losses.

MORE----
http://townhall.com/columnists/marknuckols/2022/07/20/averting-disaster-in-ukraine-n2610529

[Chelseaboy]

There was another HIMARS strike on the bridge from Kherson to Crimea in the early hours of this morning.

[Boethius]

I totally agree with this article. It was suggested [and ignored] before the invasion ever began.MORE----
http://townhall.com/columnists/marknuckols/2022/07/20/averting-disaster-in-ukraine-n2610529

I don’t think one can accept the referendum in Crimea. That said, there probably should be another one, conducted and monitored by international observers, such as the UN.

Only the cities of Donetsk and Luhansk are ethnically Russian. The majority of Donbas is ethnically Ukrainian. So, I think the op-ed is misinformed.

[Chelseaboy]

I totally agree with this article. It was suggested [and ignored] before the invasion ever began.MORE----
http://townhall.com/columnists/marknuckols/2022/07/20/averting-disaster-in-ukraine-n2610529

I haven't read the full article..just the piece shown.


I don't agree with it at all.


It's Ukrainian land and the orcs shouldn't be allowed to steal it...end of.


The people of Crimea and Donbas who prefer to live under orc rule can go and live in Russia...they won't have homes in Donbas soon anyway,with the way their "liberators " are shelling their villages, towns and cities.

[BC]

tf,

Likewise, the people of Donetsk and Lugansk are resolutely opposed to any forcible reunification with Ukraine. Any attempt to reconquer these territories is futile, a mere fantasy and a foolhardy delusion.

It may be more correct to state, "People in DPR occupied portions of Donetsk Oblast and LPR occupied portions of Luhansk Oblast..." but even that may be a bit iffy.

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/3/1/residents-of-ukraines-breakaways-recount-short-lived-joy-hope

Many may now feel simply caught in the middle

[Chelseaboy]

I don’t think one can accept the referendum in Crimea. That said, there probably should be another one, conducted and monitored by international observers, such as the UN.

Only the cities of Donetsk and Luhansk are ethnically Russian. The majority of Donbas is ethnically Ukrainian. So, I think the op-ed is misinformed.

All the residents who've been ejected from Crimea since the orcs stole it,should be allowed to move back before any such referendum,and the people who took their homes not allowed to vote...and no orcs carrying weapons allowed at the voting sites either.

[ML]

I totally agree with this article. It was suggested [and ignored] before the invasion ever began.MORE----
http://townhall.com/columnists/marknuckols/2022/07/20/averting-disaster-in-ukraine-n2610529

Yes, as Chamberlain said, Hitler only wants a small piece of Czechoslovakia because of the ethnic Germans there.

Let him have that, and we will have "Peace for our time."

[Boethius]

I totally agree with this article. It was suggested [and ignored] before the invasion ever began.MORE----
http://townhall.com/columnists/marknuckols/2022/07/20/averting-disaster-in-ukraine-n2610529

I also note the author of that op-ed lives in Moscow.  That explains his myopic vision.

[tfcrew]

I also note the author of that op-ed lives in Moscow.  That explains his myopic vision.

Kill the messenger...but the facts remain. The alternative is more destruction and loss of life. There is no will in the west to engage the Russians. America does not have the leadership required to set up a front in Europe.
 

Yes, as Chamberlain said, Hitler only wants a small piece of Czechoslovakia because of the ethnic Germans there. Let him have that, and we will have "Peace for our time."

Unfortunately...we don't even have Chamberlain caliber people around [sadly]

[Boethius]

Do you really believe that millions of ethnic Ukrainians living in Donbas, after everything that has happened, would just willingly give up their lands, lands on which their ancestors have lived for centuries, and submit to the plutocratic autocracy known as Russia?


I have relatives living in Russia.  For well over 3 years, they have made it clear that all political discussion is off limits.  They are already afraid.  No such issue with Ukrainians, who have no compunction about complaining about their government.

[tfcrew]

The people of Crimea and Donbas who prefer to live under orc rule can go and live in Russia...they won't have homes in Donbas soon anyway,with the way their "liberators " are shelling their villages, towns and cities.

Do you really believe that millions of ethnic Ukrainians living in Donbas, after everything that has happened, would just willingly give up their lands, lands on which their ancestors have lived for centuries, and submit to the plutocratic autocracy known as Russia? I have relatives living in Russia.  For well over 3 years, they have made it clear that all political discussion is off limits.  They are already afraid.  No such issue with Ukrainians, who have no compunction about complaining about their government.

This reminds me of Vietnam. Most in former South Vietnam didn't care about politics..they just wanted to be left alone. It is easy for someone who doesn't have to... to say just pick up and move out. 

[Chelseaboy]

Lavrov announced today that the geographical objectives of Moscow's "special military operation "in Ukraine are no longer limited to the eastern Donbas region ,but include a number of other territories .


He added that Russia's objectives will expand still further if the west delivers long-range weapons to Kyiv.


As reported by Russian state news agency RIA Novosti.

[Boethius]

This reminds me of Vietnam. Most in former South Vietnam didn't care about politics..they just wanted to be left alone. It is easy for someone who doesn't have to... to say just pick up and move out.

That’s exactly what your op-ed is suggesting.

[BC]

12 HIMARS in UA now and another 4 on the way.

http://www.newsweek.com/russia-us-rocket-systems-himars-weapons-losses-1726753

I suspect there will be a regular supply, something like 4-8 per month as crews get trained.

It's not a panacea, but making a difference not only in striking power but a huge psychological impact as well.  I can imagine RU troops are getting quite stressed knowing they can be easily targeted by UA soldiers sipping tea and taking pot shots while driving around the countryside from a good distance behind the front lines.

[Chelseaboy]

12 HIMARS in UA now and another 4 on the way.

http://www.newsweek.com/russia-us-rocket-systems-himars-weapons-losses-1726753

I suspect there will be a regular supply, something like 4-8 per month as crews get trained.

It's not a panacea, but making a difference not only in striking power but a huge psychological impact as well.  I can imagine RU troops are getting quite stressed knowing they can be easily targeted by UA soldiers sipping tea and taking pot shots while driving around the countryside from a good distance behind the front lines.

It's making a huge psychological impact among the Ukrainian top brass too.


As a young Ukrainian lady in Kyiv says.


"Listen to the Ukrainian Government rhetoric.It's gone from "help us,they are massacring us "to "We're going to take Crimea and hit the bridge "."