Keeping Ukraine in our thoughts and prayers here

[ronandannette]

I understand what you are saying. But how can whoever is firing from the tank not know who they are firing on, and how great the damage will be? The missiles in that story went right from the front to the back, and left huge holes in their vehicle (and whatever else was in their path). The dad, before he passed, said his “foot was blown off”.

Indirectily, sure, it’s Putin. But others doing his dirty work have to know what they are doing.

At least by now they do. It's a little preposterous for that narrative to continue to be circulated at this point.

 

[JLTraveling]

I understand what you are saying. But how can whoever is firing from the tank not know who they are firing on, and how great the damage will be? The missiles in that story went right from the front to the back, and left huge holes in their vehicle (and whatever else was in their path). The dad, before he passed, said his “foot was blown off”.

Indirectily, sure, it’s Putin. But others doing his dirty work have to know what they are doing.

From what I understand, they were originally told they would be firing rubber bullets. At least some of them were shocked when it turned out to be live ammunition and they received live fire in return. They're conscripted for a year, not told anything, barely trained, given ancient equipment...I'm sure some do know, but I can believe that not all of them, probably not most of them, do.

 

[Dan Murphy]

I understand what you are saying. But how can whoever is firing from the tank not know who they are firing on, and how great the damage will be? The missiles in that story went right from the front to the back, and left huge holes in their vehicle (and whatever else was in their path). The dad, before he passed, said his “foot was blown off”.

Indirectily, sure, it’s Putin. But others doing his dirty work have to know what they are doing.

Absolutely. They are as ruthless as their evil leader, Putin.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

From what I understand, they were originally told they would be firing rubber bullets. At least some of them were shocked when it turned out to be live ammunition and they received live fire in return. They're conscripted for a year, not told anything, barely trained, given ancient equipment...I'm sure some do know, but I can believe that not all of them, probably not most of them, do.

Sure. But at some point, they have to see the destruction they’re causing and know they’re firing real ammunition. They have to reload, and refuel. Conversations take place then, etc.

 

[ronandannette]

Sure. But at some point, they have to see the destruction they’re causing and know they’re firing real ammunition. They have to reload, and refuel. Conversations take place then, etc.

And is there any reason to believe they have no access to the internet and social media? They KNOW.

 

[ronandannette]

Sure. But at some point, they have to see the destruction they’re causing and know they’re firing real ammunition. They have to reload, and refuel. Conversations take place then, etc.

...and is there any reason to believe they have no access to the internet and social media? They KNOW.

 

[TLSnell1981]

DW spoke today to a friend of ours from Ukraine (another skate Mom). Her Mom and Dad are still in Ukraine (must be in their 80's, I'm guessing), and she said they were under bombardment from time to time. So far, so good.

DD19 is on her way home from college for Spring Break, and that friend's DD17 is like a little sister to our DD. They'll be spending time together this next week, and I assume we'll get an update of her grandparents' situation. Hopefully no bad news.

Say a prayer for them, please.

Absolutely! Prayers going up!

 

[mom2rtk]

And is there any reason to believe they have no access to the internet and social media? They KNOW.

We know they text with family members who likely know.

 

[JimMIA]

The soldiers know very well exactly what they are doing.

The Russian people also know by now what is going on. They don't live in a total vacuum. They know.
.

 

[dvcgirl67]

There's an article in the NYT this morning about U.S. Veterans organizing and heading over to Ukraine to fight in the "International Legion" against the Russians. One group mentioned in the article is accepting donations of frequent flier miles to help soldiers and medics get to the region to join the fight. Article listed below. In the article there's a link for the organization if anyone wants to check it out....it explains how the process would work. We just signed up. I hope they take us up on it!

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/05/...ant=1_bandit-all-surfaces_filter_new_arm_10_1

 

[BlueStarryHat]

I'm just upset and frightened and desperately sad for the Ukranian people. I have a pretty bad anxiety disorder, so I try to limit my time watching the news or 'doomscrolling' through Twitter. I keep up on it; I don't hide my head in the sand, but after 8 p.m. I watch something else or do something else. It's hard. This constant pressure in my chest reminds of how I felt during and in the weeks after 9/11. A sense of moving towards a place in history where I don't want to go.

 

[Dan Murphy]

I'm just upset and frightened and desperately sad for the Ukranian people. I have a pretty bad anxiety disorder, so I try to limit my time watching the news or 'doomscrolling' through Twitter. I keep up on it; I don't hide my head in the sand, but after 8 p.m. I watch something else or do something else. It's hard. This constant pressure in my chest reminds of how I felt during and in the weeks after 9/11. A sense of moving towards a place in history where I don't want to go.

's

 

[Pea-n-Me]

There's an article in the NYT this morning about U.S. Veterans organizing and heading over to Ukraine to fight in the "International Legion" against the Russians. One group mentioned in the article is accepting donations of frequent flier miles to help soldiers and medics get to the region to join the fight. Article listed below. In the article there's a link for the organization if anyone wants to check it out....it explains how the process would work. We just signed up. I hope they take us up on it!

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/05/...ant=1_bandit-all-surfaces_filter_new_arm_10_1

I noticed in various news articles that quite a few people from different countries were going over to help fight. That is really amazing! Thanks for posting the article.

 

[ronandannette]

I noticed in various news articles that quite a few people from different countries were going over to help fight. That is really amazing! Thanks for posting the article.

And then there's this. I wouldn't have even thought it but I suppose there are many Russian ex-pats around the world that might feel compelled.
https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/fed...inst-fighting-for-russia-in-ukraine-1.5804185

 

[JimMIA]

There's an article in the NYT this morning about U.S. Veterans organizing and heading over to Ukraine to fight in the "International Legion" against the Russians. One group mentioned in the article is accepting donations of frequent flier miles to help soldiers and medics get to the region to join the fight. Article listed below. In the article there's a link for the organization if anyone wants to check it out....it explains how the process would work. We just signed up. I hope they take us up on it!

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/05/...ant=1_bandit-all-surfaces_filter_new_arm_10_1

On ANY kind of donation, I would be super-careful that the organization was legit. There are lots of scams floating around.

We have "veterans," dressed in fake camo gear, begging at intersections. Just because someone makes a claim doesn't mean it's real. Neither does the NY Times falling for the scam make it real.

 

[JLTraveling]

The soldiers know very well exactly what they are doing.

The Russian people also know by now what is going on. They don't live in a total vacuum. They know.

Some do. Probably many do by now. But I've seen interview after interview of Russians living in Ukraine, literally in the middle of the shelling, who are calling family members back in Russia to tell them what's happening. And the relatives are just like, nope. Putin wouldn't do that (attack without provocation/hit civilian targets/etc.) Think about the political polarization in this country, with an entirely free media. Russia has propaganda TV. Period. Whatever your political persuasion, imagine that the ONLY readily available "news source" is the channel run by your political opposite. A Russian guy who runs a legit website and news outlet for Russians is operating out of Latvia, and I saw an interview with him talking about all the VPNs and proxy servers and everything that Russian people are using to be able to access his coverage. Some are doing that, but again, many don't even believe that they need to. They believe what they're being told on state TV, which is that it's a special operation to take out the Ukranian Nazis.
.

I'm just upset and frightened and desperately sad for the Ukranian people. I have a pretty bad anxiety disorder, so I try to limit my time watching the news or 'doomscrolling' through Twitter. I keep up on it; I don't hide my head in the sand, but after 8 p.m. I watch something else or do something else. It's hard. This constant pressure in my chest reminds of how I felt during and in the weeks after 9/11. A sense of moving towards a place in history where I don't want to go.

I also have bad anxiety, and I feel the same. It's definitely a scary time right now. Hang in there.

 

[dvcgirl67]

On ANY kind of donation, I would be super-careful that the organization was legit. There are lots of scams floating around.

I agree, and I didn't link it for that reason. But this one appears to be on the up and up....simply an organization that is stringently vetting former military members who would like to go train, fight or act as a medic in Ukraine. They are not set up as a 501c3....and so they aren't accepting monetary donations. They are linking veterans with people who are willing to use their FF miles to book travel to the region. That's a risk we're willing to take with our miles....others may feel differently.

 

[Karin1984]

The soldiers know very well exactly what they are doing.

The Russian people also know by now what is going on. They don't live in a total vacuum. They know.

I do not fully agree. I think that some of the soldiers, especially those sent first might not know what they were getting into.

And I think that the average Russian might not know what is going on. Not just because of state controlled media, but also that till a decade ago travel outside Russia was not affordable for a lot of people. The level of English is not great. Social media is not that widespread as it is in other western countries .

Here in the Netherlands, and probably in Germany, is an expression: wir haben es nicht gewußt.
This is German for "We did not know". They say it comes from a village near a concentration camp Buchenwald. It was the first camp to be dismantled after the war in April 1945. This sentence was apparently the villagers said. They didnt know what was happening a few feet from their village.

The question always remained, how much did the average German know, and also how much did the average Dutch person know about what was going on. There will never be a clear answer to this. Some researchers say it was a public secret. But as the guilt is too big to live with, people need to say they didnt know for their own sanity.
Other theory is, people knew, but didnt believe it. It is so far beyond comprehension that one human would do something like the Holocaust to another.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kno...st_in_Nazi_Germany_and_German-occupied_Europe
I believe that for certain people it was known. But also for many it wasn't. Most people in a war want one thing: go one with their lives as normal.

 

[JimMIA]

I do not fully agree. I think that some of the soldiers, especially those sent first might not know what they were getting into.

Most people in a war want one thing: go one with their lives as normal.

They might have "willful blindness," but I believe both the troops and the Russian public know very well what is going on.

I'm also well aware of "wir haben es nicht gewußt." It's nothing but a feeble excuse that nobody believes.

I've been to Dachau, where the citizens of Munich could smell the burning flesh from the crematories, but swore they didn't know. They had prisoners working in their farm fields in prison uniforms and obviously starving to death, but "wir haben es nicht gewußt." That's why the American liberators marched them through Dachau and showed them the huge piles of starved dead prisoners awaiting cremation.

When you pull the trigger and your gun makes a loud noise, you know you fired a shot. When people shoot back at you, and kill the soldier next to you...you know this is not training. When your country agrees to a ceasefire to allow people to evacuate and you fire a cannon and their cars explode, you know this is not a drill.

When thousands of Russian citizens are arrested for large street protests, the people of Russia know. When your next door neighbor is grieving their soldier son who was killed in Ukraine, they know. When the government of Russia announces that one of their top generals was killed during a "special military operation" in Ukraine, they know.

The people of Russia know, and I believe the vast majority of them support the war in Ukraine. It's their war; they own it.

 

[Neapolitan Ice Cream]

I understand what you are saying. But how can whoever is firing from the tank not know who they are firing on, and how great the damage will be? The missiles in that story went right from the front to the back, and left huge holes in their vehicle (and whatever else was in their path). The dad, before he passed, said his “foot was blown off”.

Indirectily, sure, it’s Putin. But others doing his dirty work have to know what they are doing.

I think the reports are pointing towards troops that haven't seen any "action" yet