schurem
24012
Praise the lord and pass the ammo! Slava heroiem! These motherfuckers do not go gently into that good night.
kedaha
24013
No, they’ve been selling it by offering convicts a tour of duty and then freedom - which is exactly what journalists have been writing the entire time. I’m not sure where you got the narrative of “die quick or die slow” from, but I’ve not come across a single article or source that claims that.
Quite the opposite;
But a video released last month showed several dozen former convicts – among them murderers, drug dealers and domestic abusers – now heading to their home towns in northern Russia, supposedly having earned pardons by surviving six months in Wagner’s ranks in Ukraine.
Wagner’s high casualty rates and accounts of violent reprisals against its own men has recently begun to trickle back to Russia’s prisons, resulting in a second recruitment drive earlier this year finding few takers, according to prisoners’ rights activists.
Funny thing is, if the President of Ukraine had done what most people would expect of a comedian turned politician, probably doing it for the lols, and GTFO’d as soon as it started, we might be talking about how Russia is unstoppable and maybe liberal democracy isn’t fit for the present and all the managed democracy guys are unto something.
And he might very well be a strategic genius, but, as in so much in life, GIGO, you can’t be a genius when all the info you depend on is from people who have every reason to lie.
So they are free citizens with military experience… are they now exempt from conscription?
You also see him knock out a BMP, according to the Reddit comments (second RPG shot, I believe, hard to see).
Jesus.
Naturally. Comparing to USSR again, of course USSR recruited prisoners to fight in WW2. But it was done in a centralized way by specific orders. Political scientists are sad about the current state of affairs in Russia not just because it’s evil, but because it’s anarchy, it’s a libertarian dream. When PMC recruiter comes to Russian prison law dictates that the guards should call the police. But they know law does not apply here. The next natural step is to get an agreement with PMC recruiters that certain respected people will be de jure drafted and de facto left out. Hell, maybe PMC recruiters don’t even have to know that some dude has supposedly joined them, what will they do, sue you after an investigation?
And of course, every Russian criminal nowadays knows how does this stuff work.
Canuck
24018
Looks like you have to sign in to be able to see it.
Houngan
24019
The thing that gets me about this is that the camera can’t record the sound. Every shot from a rifle isn’t a chuff-chuff, it’s a head-shaking blast. I don’t have any experience with RPGs, but I imagine they are even worse. I know that you can be killed by standing behind them. Every time that rifle or SAW (I guess it’s a PPK or whatever) your face is being slapped, your ears are shut down at the first round, my god. No idea how people can fight like that other than sheer terror.
Just competing with 5.56, it takes earplugs and earphones to make it tolerable, and even then it’s alarming. I never went too far down that path but it’s funny that I can taste the flavor of PSI between a .45 at 18000, a frisky pistol at 30000, a rifle at 50000. I could stand a foot away from a regular pistol with proper protection and not blink, but a basic rifle is a new world, like hitting an abutment in an uncontrolled skid. You can get used to it, but damn. That guy soaked up so much punishment despite not getting hit.
abrandt
24020
The big news today is that the UK announced they’ll be the first country to provide “longer range weapons” to Ukraine with no indication what those will actually be. Hopefully whatever is can truly choke off Russia in Crimea.
Dejin
24021
Looks like you were spot on @Soapyfrog. New government is also pro-Western.
Strollen
24022
I’m sure Andy Grove is spinning in his grave at Hungary’s government. His hatred of Russia was intense, I guess watching Russian soldiers rape your mom as a 10-year-old will have that impact.
I think it has been for a while. There were plenty of people running around with gopros and cameras in Afghanistan and Iraq, but the amount that gets uploaded, and how it’s edited is very different. The stuff we’re seeing from Ukraine looks pretty raw.
And often it’s complete with social media pages to confirm who you’re watching, and gofundmes so they can get equipped, or helped with medical treatment.
They do make for interesting documents, but it’s also death porn, so I don’t know how to feel about it. It brings home what war is really is I suppose, but I think some people would be a lot better off not watching. It’s the shittier version of Hardcore Henry.
That’s an excellent point. I actually hadn’t given any thought to the fact that Wagner is technically an illegal organization.
That level of corruption also creates two separate societies, of people who can pay to do whatever they want, and people who can’t, who have to live under the law.
I am almost not joking about Russia being libertarian Utopia. It is known that recruiting officers and detectives have flexible rates depending on what a person can pay. I imagine in prisons it’s a little different for now. But as I’ve mentioned Russian social contract for the elites seem to have shifted and probably prisons will get more libertarian in their dealings too. No trials. Maybe if some prison manager is too greedy he’d fall of the window though.
Kadyrov announces creation of his own PMC and calls Prigozhin brother.
In other news, happy 10th universary of greatest and the most realistic political thriller of all times, Metal Gear Rising Revengeance.
Quaro
24028
Yup. The short version is that Russia is weaker after the invasion by almost any metric.
Crossing my fingers for Storm Shadow cruise missiles, 350 mile range.
I’m not sure what else Britain has in that category.
abrandt
24030
The other speculation I saw was a supply of the secret long range drone they developed with/for Ukraine. But again, what is a cruise missile but a long range suicide drone?
Timex
24031
To be clear, what you are describing isn’t libertarianism at all. Being able to buy your way out of things isn’t libertarian. That’s just corruption. Indeed, it’s kind of the opposite of libertarianism, as there’s no clear set of laws that apply, and those with government power are able to extort you.
I feel like you are using the term libertarian as a stand in for “corrupt system involving money”.
