Seeing is believing and that’s the problem when you’re dealing with liars who want to manipulate public sentiment. If you hear or see something, you’re inclined to believe it’s real, unless you have reason to question the source. Fake news has a long game and that is control of the masses. S/he who controls information controls perception and perception is everything.
What’s going on in Ukraine is Vladimir Putin, via Russian TV, putting out images that he wants people to see in order to bolster his “peacekeeping” claptrap. People will fight somebody that they are told is the enemy if they “see it with their own eyes” therefore it’s important that what people see is real.
Take a look at this clip. I don’t know about you, but I saw more convincing acting in 16mm film class in college.
Russian TV with alleged shelling of journalists by #Ukraine. Judge for yourself how convincing you find it. pic.twitter.com/MjN6yzgsxo
— Janis Kluge (@jakluge) February 23, 2022
Compare it with this.
And at the same the shelling by Russian on Ukraine: . As a comparison.https://t.co/HWOQpSdDGs
— Kolia Tchernikov (@KTchernikov) February 23, 2022
In this next clip, (bottom) the “reporter” is describing something horrific, but even he says “reportedly” because it’s so absurd.
It reminds me of this nonsense from RT on Monday, which seems like they stole from a Monty Python sketch https://t.co/M3BNksLA2r
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) February 23, 2022
It reminds me that many aren’t aware that Donetsk & Luhansk broke off from Ukraine control in 2014 and have been fighting ever since… but that history… pic.twitter.com/8gqk3CALND
— Bryan McNally (@BryanDMcNally) February 23, 2022
Here is the latest from the New York Times, breaking at 1:00 p.m. PST:
In its most dire assessment yet, the Pentagon said on Wednesday that 80 percent of the 190,000 Russian troops and separatist forces in or near Ukraine are now in combat-ready positions, and that a full-scale military assault is most likely imminent.
“They’re ready to go now if they get the order to go,” a senior Defense Department official told reporters.
The official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to describe Russian military operations in broad terms, said that all the forces the United States expected Moscow to assemble in the Ukraine crisis are now in place, positioned 3 to 30 miles from the Ukrainian border, if not already in the country’s contested east.
“They have uncoiled and are ready to go,” the official said, noting that it is still up to President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia to give the final order to launch an attack.
U.S., NATO and European Union officials said on Tuesday that Russian forces had started rolling into the regions of eastern Ukraine controlled by Kremlin-backed separatists, which Mr. Putin said he was recognizing as independent. President Biden called the move the “beginning of a Russian invasion of Ukraine.”
Among the military options available to Mr. Putin are an offensive into areas still under Ukrainian control that are claimed by the separatists, or a much broader, nationwide attack on Ukraine, which would trigger the largest war in Europe since World War II.
Pentagon officials say Russian forces have been preparing for months for such a large-scale assault, and are now in position to carry it out. That attack would probably include missile salvos, airstrikes, special forces operations, an amphibious assault and ground troops, and could begin at any time, the official said.
The Defense Department official echoed Mr. Biden’s assessment that Russia had begun an invasion of Ukraine in the eastern territories of Donetsk and Luhansk, but the official said he did not have details on the precise numbers or locations of the troops in the separatist-controlled areas.
There you have it. Donetsk and Luhansk are ground zero. This is where all the playacting is going on and this is where all the real action is. The playacting is being used as a pretense to invade. This is the end game of fake news, right here, folks, to give cover to a belligerent dictator’s invasion.
First of all (for conservatives who drop by here) I do in fact know of what I speak, having once been not only a jarhead but a grunt. Within infantry there are weapons specialties and my own was anti-tank missiles. We didn’t just learn how to use missiles of the time to kill tanks – we also got training in the use of explosives. (Something I really enjoyed and had some prior experience with but that’s a long story) I can assure you that explosion was no artillery shell both from the sound (or rather lack thereof including prior to the explosion) or rocket. It was also far too small to be a mortar round. So what was it? It was a small “command detonated” (set off by a nearby radio signal at the proper time – perhaps even by the “journalist” doing the filming. I wouldn’t call it an IED since it wasn’t improvised – that black smoke was intended for visual effect either through the use of black powder or a small (and I mean small) bit of military grade explosive with some other material. Hell, a freaking blasting cap in a small sealed ammo can with some black powder could have been what we saw on that video. Well, maybe not an ammo can because it would have flown through the air but give me some certain materials and once I had them I could duplicate that “attack” in a matter of minutes.
It was staged for effect pure and simple. And I’m betting every Russian who served in their army and has moved on to live their life will know it as surely as I do. Here’s the thing that might matter – even if they themselves don’t have to worry about being sent to Ukraine to fight they might well have kids (or other relatives) who are there. I’m sure that just like over here there are plenty who are blinded by dumbass worship of leaders like Putin and Trump but more are not. It’s tough to get real, accurate polling done in an autocratic country like Russia but there are indications support for this war in Ukraine is already weak. If Putin is using shit like this to sell the war to his own people it’s not going to help.
I said yesterday the one small hope I hold out is that among his oligarchs (most of whom can’t be happy about getting hit with serious financial sanctions while Putin’s fortune remains untouched) a few have the guts to quickly, maybe within the next 12 hours force him to step aside and issue “stand in place” orders to those troops while everyone figures out a way for a little bit of Russian face saving.