From Lviv near the Polish border to the capital of Kyiv and west to Kharkiv, Russian misses and drones rained down upon Ukrainian cities Sunday in apparent revenge for the damage done to a single bridge in Crimea earlier this week.
Vladimir Putin, his machismo rebuked by militant TV talkers in the days since the bridge attack, vented his spleen against innocent civilians and civil infrastructure while hiding safely behind his nuclear arsenal.
“Russia unleashed a barrage of deadly attacks on cities across Ukraine on Monday, hitting the heart of the country’s capital as part of a wave of strikes against civilians and infrastructure not seen since the very earliest days of the war.
From Lviv in the west to Kharkiv in the northeast, missiles tore through rush hour traffic and into energy facilities, in apparent revenge for what the Kremlin called a “terrorist” blast that damaged a key bridge to Crimea over the weekend.
After a series of humiliating setbacks that have piled pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin, the attacks suggested an escalation that showed Moscow retained the capacity to terrorize Ukraine’s population ahead of winter if not defeat its military.
The country’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and other officials blamed Russia for the explosions that shattered months of relative calm in Kyiv and beyond. At least 8 people were killed and 24 others injured in the capital city, Ukrainian officials said.“
Here are some recent reports and opinions from Twitter:
Russia's response to the attack on the Kerch bridge is to target civilians during the rush hour in Kyiv. Terrorising civilians far away from any front line is a desperate act, another sign of their inability to achieve a military victory in the field.
— Eliot Higgins (@EliotHiggins) October 10, 2022
They are not even trying to make this look like they’re hitting military facilities.
Russians are just randomly firing missiles upon downtown Kyiv, which makes zero sense – monuments, touristic sights, avenues.— Illia Ponomarenko 🇺🇦 (@IAPonomarenko) October 10, 2022
It makes perfect sense if one’s aim is to instill terror, Illia.
The dumbest thing about these Russian attacks is that they achieved absolutely nothing from the military post of view.
No “decision making centers” in Kyiv were hit.
Stupid hatred wiling to senselessly kill as many people as possible.— Illia Ponomarenko 🇺🇦 (@IAPonomarenko) October 10, 2022
Yup
Massive Russian missile attacks on major Ukrainian cities. Central Kyiv was hit, there are casualties among civilians. Some neighbourhoods in Lviv and Ternopil left with no electricity. Strikes continue. Russia takes revenge for Crimean bridge by killing civilians again
— Olga Tokariuk (@olgatokariuk) October 10, 2022
Stay safe, Olga.
Two museums, a pedestrian bridge, a philharmonic, an office building, a children's playground – this is not a complete list of “important military targets” that Russia has struck with missiles in Kyiv this morning.
— Taras (@tarasmi) October 10, 2022
Cowards.
Today in Kyiv feels a lot like February 24. Only it’s rage instead of fear.
— olexander scherba🇺🇦 (@olex_scherba) October 10, 2022
Here also.
Deliberate attacks on the center of Kyiv, Zaporizhzhia and Dnipro — yet another proof of Kremlin's terrorist inadequacy. Russia is not capable of fighting on battlefield, but capable of murdering civilians. Instead of talking we need air defense, MLRS, longer-range projectiles.
— Михайло Подоляк (@Podolyak_M) October 10, 2022
Yes, it is time.
Kyiv city centre right now. pic.twitter.com/hLFFBNvYec
— Matti Maasikas (@MattiMaasikas) October 10, 2022
😡🤬🤬🤬
I am in Kyiv with my family and kids. The most massive RU missile attack on Ukraine: 83 missiles, 43 downed. Strikes on Kyiv, downtown and infrastructure; many other cities. Many dead and wounded. No electricity and water now.– Russia is a terrorist state. Ukraine will prevail
— Volodymyr Yermolenko (@yermolenko_v) October 10, 2022
Slava Ukraini!
I am not sure if there is an adequate response to these crimes, given the geopolitical and military realities of the situation.
It is a hostage situation at this point, with the criminal Putin holding a gun to the head of world peace… only that gun, in this case, can destroy much of the world.
It must be loudly enunciated by as many world figures as possible that random attacks on civilian targets in crowded cities do not equate to a military operation against an isolated target which resulted in three regrettable deaths.
Russia must be denounced as a pariah state and shunned by all decent peoples.
How long they remain so depends, it must be made clear, on the Russian people’s ongoing tolerance for a terrorist at the helm of their state.
Once more, I recall this exchange from the medieval siege movie Ironclad: “This bastard king…” “Aye…” Watch for whomever excuses or tries to justify this action today…and never, EVER trust them again.
Let this also be a reminder on the fallacy of “we need to do something!” that so often seizes our side of political divide. THAT was the animating animus behind these attacks and all it did was make Putin’s situation worse. Unless you can do effective action, this quality of results is to be expected.
Geez I hear all the time we have to be sure before we bring OUR fascist to task for a mountain of crimes. The Ukrainians knew what putin would do and THEY STILL TOOK HIM ON!!!! Our legal system sits on its thumbs worrying about certainty. Everyday our fascist is loose is another rally to erode our democracy. WE ARE A NATION NOT WILLING TO FIGHT AND SACRIFICE FOR OUR FUTURE. I’m ashamed of what we are in light of the purity and ferocity of the Ukrainians. Fact.
Yep.
I seem to get the idea that you simple do NOT understand the difference between warfare and THE AMERICAN LEGAL SYSTEM.
How many Americans (especially non-whites) are sitting in jails today because the legal system spent too little time “worrying about certainty” and felt a “need” to punish someone for the crime? That is how the legal system fucking works, you moron. You’d rather simply lock someone up without 100% certainty that the accused committed a definite crime, is that what I’m reading here? Because it sure as hell looks like it. Maybe you’ve forgotten Trump’s 2016 rallying cry of “Lock her up?” You know–lock up Hillary Clinton for some alleged crimes (none that were actually ever defined by Trump). In this country, we expect the legal system to “dot every i and cross every t” before even accusing someone of a crime, much less taking them to court. But, there seem to be a whole lot of people who are more interested in exacting vengeance than in ensuring justice is done.
You ever gone to jail in America joe? Sure every cop is ‘certain’ every time they handcuff someone. They look the other way until they can wait a few months to discuss it with those politicians known as prosecutors. Then they throw you into jail to wait 10 months while you get your speedy trial. You sir are the privileged moron. And if you’ve never served as a veteran what the fuck do you know about war? Just go back to pontificating from the safety of your desk. You made my point. The poor get railroaded and the rich & powerful get a fucking pass. That’s how our so called legal system works pal. Get real. This is a goddamn war…just look at the million plus killed by Trump with covid…or the dead children at the border…or the innocents shot dead in elementary schools…or the destruction of the planet by the rich who WILL destroy all of us. So you believe there’s never been any evidence? What a moron.
No, what’s moronic is thinking that going your kind of full lynch mob mode is a superior alternative to the current justice system, flawed and imperfect as it remains. Your whole argument ignores two solid facts: 1) neither you nor I ever bothered or would bother trying to overthrow the government and 2) the guys who did have a hell of a lot more reach than either of us. Recall that the neocons were born out of the baby Republicans involved with Nixon and his various crimes, none of which were touched on thanks to Ford’s pardon. Are you honestly telling me that you want a repeat of that here, just so you can FEEL better? No?
I say this with love: sit down, shut up and if you really DO want to put that outrage to work, focus on helping out with the midterms, where the real danger dwells now.
There’s a false comparison between a cult calling for locking up Hillary when no crime had occurred and calling for a man who betrayed the highest office in the land who led a violent mob 21 fucking months ago to BE CHARGED WITH A FUCKING CRIME. Then he stole 11,000 documents and still hasn’t been charged. His public criminality has been going on for 6 years in front of us all and NO CHARGES. If you think you or i wouldn’t have been taken in custody years ago then you and Joe live in ivory towers. I have direct experience with the law on many levels which I won’t elaborate here but to keep saying the wheels grind slowly is justice is bull. It does NOT grind slowly if you are poor, black etc. Oh and it often is on the WRONG side of truth, fairness and justice. I can testify to that. It’s easy to believe things with limited experience. By the way Joe, as a former member of Mensa, if I’m a moron then prove you are not by your score on an IQ test. I do agree this next vote will either avoid disaster or Hell is coming. I’ve donated money to all kinds of races out of my state. Have you? Have you joe? If not…put up or shut the hell up. I say with love of course.
Welp, can’t the same be done to vlad’s bunker? Jus asking 🤷🏾♀️
I remember a time, not so long ago either , when the U.S. knew who its friends were and who their enemies were. Russia has never been a friend of the U.S. When the U.S. broke away from England when it was a colony, Russia was ruled by the Tsars and they wanted nothing to do with democracy or countries dabbling in it. During WW I and WW II Russia/U.S.S.R. was an ally for as long as it was convenient for them to be one and no longer: not a friend. It’s pretty effing obvious to anyone with working brain material between their ears that Russia is not our friend now and is in fact pretty damned close to being our outright enemy. For an entire political party of the U.S. to be so under Putin’s thumb, thinking Putin has any good will for our country, is frightening and considering that political party could have control of either house of congress and/or (G_d forbid) the w.h. should scare everyone with a modicum of intelligence into pissing themselves. The fact that this same party will stoop to, and is planning on, cheating to gain power ought to be more than a little concerning to Americans.
Spike, rest assured that Russia’s not “damned close to being our outright enemy,” it is now and always has been our outright enemy. From the monstrous Stalin right through to the coward Putin, with only Gorbachev as an exception, every Russian leader has declared the USA his enemy and vowed to destroy it. Kruschev was the most prescient: he predicted they’d destroy us from within, without needing to fire a shot. Trump’s MAGA GOP is doing exactly that, with lots of help from Murdoch’s evil media empire, abetted by Republican politicos who care only for their own lust for power and money.