Why’s crickets still going ahead but not football? – politicalbetting.com

21 for 3

Apparently the ground on which the Oval is built belongs to the Duchy of Cornwall. And they have made exactly the right decision. And England are off to a flyer too. Football called this wrong but in fairness it wasn't the easiest thing to do.

Nigelb said:

Leon said:

northern_monkey said:

FPT

Leon said:

@Nigelb its like the Tet Offensive in its use of partisan warfare/sabotage behind American lines, all synchronised superbly with an outright attack on the front

Tet came as a total shock to the USA, at a time when the Americans complacently thought the war was quietening down with no major moves

In many ways thereafter the Tet was a failure for Hanoi and the Yanks pushed the VC back quite easily


But Tet broke the American will to fight. It showed Americans at home the war was unwinnable and the North would never give up, and would endure any cost. From that moment Saigon 73 was inevitable

If you’ve not read it already, you might like ‘A Bright Shining Lie: John Paul Vann and America in Vietnam’ - superb - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Bright_Shining_Lie

Won a Pulitzer.

Let’s hope the current Ukrainian operations become more Bagration than Tet.

I actually read that on my first trip to Vietnam

For me the best book about the war - and there are dozens of excellent examples - is Caputo’s “A Rumor of War”

https://www.amazon.com/Rumor-War-Classic-Vietnam-Anniversary/dp/1250117127

Did you read "Kill Anything that Moves" ?
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Anything-Moves-American-Empire-Project/dp/1250045061

No, and thanks, but I have probably read more than enough on Nam, TBH

I went through an obsessive period when I devoured whole libraries on the war, because I was travelling in Indochina all the time

https://lexfridman.com/noam-chomsky-2/

This is a good interview of Noam Chomsky regarding his views on the war in Ukraine.
His assessment of Putin and the causes of the war were pretty accurate, I thought.
The surprising aspect of his views are that he condemns the invasion of Ukraine, and agrees that we should be aiding Ukraine in its defence, with military support.
But surely that is pretty much exactly what we are doing?

The latter part of the interview was more disappointing, he trots out his more usual positions about everything America doing being bad and takes a benevolent stance to China, Iran etc.

His main message is just to seek out opposing perspectives and think for yourself, something I completely agree with.
He is certainly someone who shouldn't just be dismissed as a propogandist etc.

kinabalu said:

FrankBooth said:

kinabalu said:

Why have we got Catherine Deneuve running the show?

Belle De Jour is one of the best films ever made. If you've a strong stomach try Repulsion too. Been meaning to try The Umbrellas Of Cherbourg too.

I presume you are commenting on her likeness to Penny Mordaunt? She is the official face of Marianne the goddess of liberty.

Yes, Mordaunt. Talk about the starring role. It seemed to be all about her.

And in another shudder moment for me I realized, since I suppose it was due to her being LOTH, that it could have been Mogg. I actually couldn't have watched it then.

Due to her being Lord President of the Council, but as it's been combined with Leader of the House of Commons since 2015 that's a distinction without a difference.

JohnLilburne said:

Casino_Royale said:

I was a bit disappointed that Penny Mordaunt didn't read out a list of candidates for Lord High Executioner.

We never had one. The common hangman of London (and Middlesex) usually did the job.

Common Hangman Of Middlesex sounds like one of those antique ministerial positions, like Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster or Lord Privy Seal, generally reserved for the party chairman.

DavidL said:

Apparently the ground on which the Oval is built belongs to the Duchy of Cornwall. And they have made exactly the right decision. And England are off to a flyer too. Football called this wrong but in fairness it wasn't the easiest thing to do.

The FA were reasonable but wrong. Not the end of the world. And we are all feeling our way a bit here.

DavidL said:

Cicero said:

TheWhiteRabbit said:

Alistair said:

The Ukrainian Kharkiv adventure get ever more spectacular in the speed of their advance.

When the picture was shown with them on the very outskirts of Kupyansk I treated it with caution it deserved. Now they have photos from the centre of town.

The rumour (I don't believe it) is that the Russians are preparing a withdrawal not only from Izyum, but Lyman.

Perhaps the rumour just a few days ahead of the curve.

Izyum has fallen. This is developing into a major Russian rout.

More like abandoned. But how many thousands are going to be left behind as the rout continues? Huge numbers of POWs coming up, equipment and amunition abandoned and a complete collapse in morale.

Lyman seems to have fallen also, about 35km from Izyum. The whole front seems to have been ripped open. Looks like the beginning of panic on the Russian side. As President Ilves said, this is Mukden or Tsushima. Catastrophic Russian defeat.

Taz said:

Wayne Lineker’s tribute to HM The Queen is quite something to behold.

https://twitter.com/ichlugebullets/status/1568317330945343489?s=21&t=2_klis10nnsPs8V4ZqijFQ

It is impossible to respond to that. Thank you for bringing it to my attention.

Cicero said:

DavidL said:

Cicero said:

TheWhiteRabbit said:

Alistair said:

The Ukrainian Kharkiv adventure get ever more spectacular in the speed of their advance.

When the picture was shown with them on the very outskirts of Kupyansk I treated it with caution it deserved. Now they have photos from the centre of town.

The rumour (I don't believe it) is that the Russians are preparing a withdrawal not only from Izyum, but Lyman.

Perhaps the rumour just a few days ahead of the curve.

Izyum has fallen. This is developing into a major Russian rout.

More like abandoned. But how many thousands are going to be left behind as the rout continues? Huge numbers of POWs coming up, equipment and amunition abandoned and a complete collapse in morale.

Lyman seems to have fallen also, about 35km from Izyum. The whole front seems to have been ripped open. Looks like the beginning of panic on the Russian side. As President Ilves said, this is Mukden or Tsushima. Catastrophic Russian defeat.

May this see the end of the war criminals including Putin and a chance for peace

DavidL said:

Apparently the ground on which the Oval is built belongs to the Duchy of Cornwall. And they have made exactly the right decision. And England are off to a flyer too. Football called this wrong but in fairness it wasn't the easiest thing to do.

The King needs something to watch in between quiet events this weekend too.

Still some hot football action in Scotland.



https://twitter.com/tamsellicsoniii/status/1568337366405758977?s=21&t=a7CNV-iRFSkQWIeTRyLpEw

DavidL said:

Theuniondivvie said:

Ok, if the Russian rout and Putin Untergang come to pass, is it worth having a market on which PBer is the first to turn to a quivering mass of jelly at the prospect of nuclear armageddon?

Nah, thought not.

Been muttering about that for more than a fortnight already. Its not a negligible risk.

It probably isn’t but I sense you’re not the quivering jelly type.

i have discovered the hilarity of Russia-supporting Military Twitter. Hahahahah

Meltdown

NickPalmer said:

kinabalu said:

Sandpit said:

Quite an astonishing group of people there, pretty much every living senior figure in the country.

There have never been seven living PMs before, and here they are all in the same room.

The funeral, and the coronation to follow, will be even more astonishing in their attendance.

That struck me too. A bomb there could in one stroke have eliminated the ... Nigel Farage voice ... "polidical clarse".

Have others been watching Designated Survivor on Netflix? Basically exactly that scenario (in the US).

Ha yes, in the US they actually make a point of some people not being there at key events.

Presumably there were a handful of the current cabinet missing this morning, to proclaim King George if the very worst had happened?

TimS said:

Big_G_NorthWales said:

Cicero said:

DavidL said:

Cicero said:

TheWhiteRabbit said:

Alistair said:

The Ukrainian Kharkiv adventure get ever more spectacular in the speed of their advance.

When the picture was shown with them on the very outskirts of Kupyansk I treated it with caution it deserved. Now they have photos from the centre of town.

The rumour (I don't believe it) is that the Russians are preparing a withdrawal not only from Izyum, but Lyman.

Perhaps the rumour just a few days ahead of the curve.

Izyum has fallen. This is developing into a major Russian rout.

More like abandoned. But how many thousands are going to be left behind as the rout continues? Huge numbers of POWs coming up, equipment and amunition abandoned and a complete collapse in morale.

Lyman seems to have fallen also, about 35km from Izyum. The whole front seems to have been ripped open. Looks like the beginning of panic on the Russian side. As President Ilves said, this is Mukden or Tsushima. Catastrophic Russian defeat.

May this see the end of the war criminals including Putin and a chance for peace

I remember commenting in an email to a Russian back in February that this war ends in Putin’s death: either in a bunker / against a Kremlin wall, or in a nuclear blast as the whole Northern hemisphere goes up in smoke.

Videos on twitter of Russian troops on the move around Moscow. Could be a very newsy day.

https://mobile.twitter.com/SmartUACat/status/1568550901350031360

32 - 4

Correction now

32 - 5

Sandpit said:

NickPalmer said:

kinabalu said:

Sandpit said:

Quite an astonishing group of people there, pretty much every living senior figure in the country.

There have never been seven living PMs before, and here they are all in the same room.

The funeral, and the coronation to follow, will be even more astonishing in their attendance.

That struck me too. A bomb there could in one stroke have eliminated the ... Nigel Farage voice ... "polidical clarse".

Have others been watching Designated Survivor on Netflix? Basically exactly that scenario (in the US).

Ha yes, in the US they actually make a point of some people not being there at key events.

Presumably there were a handful of the current cabinet missing this morning, to proclaim King George if the very worst had happened?

Nah, we’ve got 650 MPs, and even more Lords, George could have picked from as needed. Not that the PM even needs to be in either House. The inherent flexibility of our system means it would always be fine.

DavidL said:

Cicero said:

TheWhiteRabbit said:

Alistair said:

The Ukrainian Kharkiv adventure get ever more spectacular in the speed of their advance.

When the picture was shown with them on the very outskirts of Kupyansk I treated it with caution it deserved. Now they have photos from the centre of town.

The rumour (I don't believe it) is that the Russians are preparing a withdrawal not only from Izyum, but Lyman.

Perhaps the rumour just a few days ahead of the curve.

Izyum has fallen. This is developing into a major Russian rout.

More like abandoned. But how many thousands are going to be left behind as the rout continues? Huge numbers of POWs coming up, equipment and amunition abandoned...

On that note.
https://mobile.twitter.com/AbraxasSpa/status/1568547974023712771

Sean_F said:

ydoethur said:

Malmesbury said:

Leon said:

rcs1000 said:

On the subject of Ukraine, my personal view is that the one thing the Russians cannot afford is for thousands - or tens of thousands - of their troops to be captured.

Dead. Injured. These can be hidden, at least in the short term.

But captured troops in Ukraine is a massive problem. Because those troops can speak. And their mothers will agitate for their return.

If there are mass captures, then I think Putin's days are numbered.

You’ve been suggesting a possible Russian collapse for a couple of weeks. You made me sit up and read, and realise you could be right. So: chapeau

As I recall various commentators were saying that the Russians had one more offensive of reserves left.

They were jeered at by the usual suspects.

The Russians had their offensive.

This is the Ukrainian counter offensive.

100 Days Offensive comes to mind…

As the much maligned Haig said in January 1918, well in advance of Michael, 'the Germans would do well to hesitate before committing to a major offensive, for if it failed their position would be critical.'

Germany probably had no choice but to roll the dice on last time. Austria Hungary and the Ottoman Empire were coming apart at the seams.

So was Germany!

Big_G_NorthWales said:

32 - 4

Correction now

32 - 5

Would it be in really poor taste to say that follows an England score of 70-1 declared on Thursday?

A warning not to get too carried away.

We have deleted our tweet of allegedly Ukrainian troops marching in Kharkiv Oblast previously reposted by multiple Ukrainian media as it shows an airsoft event.
https://mobile.twitter.com/EuromaidanPress/status/1568545399559933952

JohnLilburne said:

rottenborough said:

"Ukrainian forces were on the verge of trapping thousands of Russian soldiers in an encirclement that, if successful, would be Moscow’s worst battlefield defeat since the Second World War."

Telegraph

This is all putting a smile on my face. Go Ukraine.

Lyman and Izyum seem to have been surrendered without a fight. The Ukrainians are on the pursuit. Within about 7 miles of the border apparently. Having a beer in Riga Central Market, has made up for yesterday's delayed flight.

I understand Russian bloggers are comparing it to the Third Battle of Kharkov, in Spring 1943. That was Germany's last big victory on the Eastern front.

Driver said:

Bank Holiday for the funeral.

Are banks still a thing?

Alistair said:

Leon said:

i have discovered the hilarity of Russia-supporting Military Twitter. Hahahahah

Meltdown

Absolute johnny come lately. You needed to be there 2 weeks ago when they were convincing themselves that their 1-metre a week advance in the East was the pinnacle of military strategy and that all HIMARS launchers had been destroyed.

Coming in now is like turning on the radio for the final movement of a Rachmaninoff symphony.

Without the buildup all this pure copium would just feel forced and excessive.

Now it resembles more Gotterdamerung.

Sean_F said:

JohnLilburne said:

rottenborough said:

"Ukrainian forces were on the verge of trapping thousands of Russian soldiers in an encirclement that, if successful, would be Moscow’s worst battlefield defeat since the Second World War."

Telegraph

This is all putting a smile on my face. Go Ukraine.

Lyman and Izyum seem to have been surrendered without a fight. The Ukrainians are on the pursuit. Within about 7 miles of the border apparently. Having a beer in Riga Central Market, has made up for yesterday's delayed flight.

I understand Russian bloggers are comparing it to the Third Battle of Kharkov, in Spring 1943. That was Germany's last big victory on the Eastern front.

Yes, I'm uneasy with comparisons to Soviet defeats in WWII because they did win the war.

However, against that they were part of a major alliance that kept them going with weapons, especially motor transport, and the Germans were trying to conquer the whole empire up to the Urals. If they had stopped at Rostov and offered Stalin peace terms on that basis, they might just have got away with it, at any rate for a time.

Stalin probably wouldn't have accepted but he might finally have been removed or shot himself anyway under those circumstances.

There must be a huge row going on behind the scenes over the date of the funeral. A bank holiday has been declared which rules out Saturday. The for-gods-sake-get-it-over-with party are presumably campaigning for Friday while the we-need-an-extra-72-hours-to-get-ready party are holding out for Monday. Time is on their side.

OldKingCole said:

ydoethur said:

OldKingCole said:

32-4

You've missed one!

This may not last the three days...

Now I've said that, SA nailed on for 600.

Fell while I was posting. Beginning to wonder if we want to bat on this pitch!

I didn't know we had a choice.

another_richard said:

Leon said:

i have discovered the hilarity of Russia-supporting Military Twitter. Hahahahah

Meltdown

Putin still has this worshipper:

Will Schryver
@imetatronink
·
12h
Here at the end of the day the reality of an overwhelming and devastatingly punishing Russian victory is even more apparent than it was 10 hours ago.

The Russian-held part of Balakleya was never taken; neither Kupyansk nor Izyum are threatened; AFU casualties are catastrophic.

https://twitter.com/imetatronink/status/1568370298373967872?cxt=HHwWgMDU7cGe_MMrAAAA


Will Schryver
@imetatronink
·
7h
It's going to be fascinating to observe how #CultusUkraini deals with the creeping realization that the erstwhile #GloriousCounterOffensive has become the most decisively shattering defeat of this disastrous war.

https://twitter.com/imetatronink/status/1568448430602878978?cxt=HHwWhIDUqbTin8QrAAAA

Is this Steiner's counter-attack?

ydoethur said:

Sean_F said:

ydoethur said:

Malmesbury said:

Leon said:

rcs1000 said:

On the subject of Ukraine, my personal view is that the one thing the Russians cannot afford is for thousands - or tens of thousands - of their troops to be captured.

Dead. Injured. These can be hidden, at least in the short term.

But captured troops in Ukraine is a massive problem. Because those troops can speak. And their mothers will agitate for their return.

If there are mass captures, then I think Putin's days are numbered.

You’ve been suggesting a possible Russian collapse for a couple of weeks. You made me sit up and read, and realise you could be right. So: chapeau

As I recall various commentators were saying that the Russians had one more offensive of reserves left.

They were jeered at by the usual suspects.

The Russians had their offensive.

This is the Ukrainian counter offensive.

100 Days Offensive comes to mind…

As the much maligned Haig said in January 1918, well in advance of Michael, 'the Germans would do well to hesitate before committing to a major offensive, for if it failed their position would be critical.'

Germany probably had no choice but to roll the dice on last time. Austria Hungary and the Ottoman Empire were coming apart at the seams.

So was Germany!

Well, not really. They had defeated Russia, and had several hundred thousand troops free from that, the Americans were only present in small numbers and green, while the French army had mutinied in 1917. There was a possibility of allied collapse in 1918 too, and it nearly happened.

In a curious bit of symmetry it was the Serbian offensive on the Salonika front that kicked off the final collapse.

Being serious for a moment I haven't seen anything quite as ridiculous for years. I've been involved in some whacky ads in some strange places but this has set a new bar

Foxy said:

ydoethur said:

Sean_F said:

ydoethur said:

Malmesbury said:

Leon said:

rcs1000 said:

On the subject of Ukraine, my personal view is that the one thing the Russians cannot afford is for thousands - or tens of thousands - of their troops to be captured.

Dead. Injured. These can be hidden, at least in the short term.

But captured troops in Ukraine is a massive problem. Because those troops can speak. And their mothers will agitate for their return.

If there are mass captures, then I think Putin's days are numbered.

You’ve been suggesting a possible Russian collapse for a couple of weeks. You made me sit up and read, and realise you could be right. So: chapeau

As I recall various commentators were saying that the Russians had one more offensive of reserves left.

They were jeered at by the usual suspects.

The Russians had their offensive.

This is the Ukrainian counter offensive.

100 Days Offensive comes to mind…

As the much maligned Haig said in January 1918, well in advance of Michael, 'the Germans would do well to hesitate before committing to a major offensive, for if it failed their position would be critical.'

Germany probably had no choice but to roll the dice on last time. Austria Hungary and the Ottoman Empire were coming apart at the seams.

So was Germany!

Well, not really. They had defeated Russia, and had several hundred thousand troops free from that, the Americans were only present in small numbers and green, while the French army had mutinied in 1917. There was a possibility of allied collapse in 1918 too, and it nearly happened.

In a curious bit of symmetry it was the Serbian offensive on the Salonika front that kicked off the final collapse.

The German army was still functioning.

Rather less so the German economy. Small issue with trying to import anything.

A good example of Russian media panic (this was last night, goodness knows what they are saying now).
https://twitter.com/JuliaDavisNews/status/1568310989149605888?ref_src=twsrc^tfw|twcamp^tweetembed|twterm^1568310989149605888|twgr^81bcf99501bd30aaca450f4f9c985d5d1d39d046|twcon^s1_&ref_url=https://www.dailykos.com/story/2022/9/9/2121902/-Ukraine-Invasion-Day-199-possible-encirclement-ahead-fight-flight-and-give-up-materiel-again

Malmesbury said:

Sean_F said:

ydoethur said:

Malmesbury said:

Leon said:

rcs1000 said:

On the subject of Ukraine, my personal view is that the one thing the Russians cannot afford is for thousands - or tens of thousands - of their troops to be captured.

Dead. Injured. These can be hidden, at least in the short term.

But captured troops in Ukraine is a massive problem. Because those troops can speak. And their mothers will agitate for their return.

If there are mass captures, then I think Putin's days are numbered.

You’ve been suggesting a possible Russian collapse for a couple of weeks. You made me sit up and read, and realise you could be right. So: chapeau

As I recall various commentators were saying that the Russians had one more offensive of reserves left.

They were jeered at by the usual suspects.

The Russians had their offensive.

This is the Ukrainian counter offensive.

100 Days Offensive comes to mind…

As the much maligned Haig said in January 1918, well in advance of Michael, 'the Germans would do well to hesitate before committing to a major offensive, for if it failed their position would be critical.'

Germany probably had no choice but to roll the dice on last time. Austria Hungary and the Ottoman Empire were coming apart at the seams.

The Haig the butcher stuff was a later invention. When he died, the crowds of veterans at his funeral were huge.

Kitchener and he turned out to be right - they both said it would take 3 years to raise, train and equip an army of the scale of the Germans. Then the Germans would be outnumbered and lose.

Also, of course, Haig was the person who oversaw many profound innovations in tactics, particularly the one when he saw Monash's plans for using tanks and aircraft to support substantial infantry advances acting in concert, immediately ordered that they be made the standard throughout the army. That played no small part in the Hundred Days in itself.

Big_G_NorthWales said:

36 - 6

This lot are collapsing faster than a Johnson cabinet.

Foxy said:

ydoethur said:

Sean_F said:

ydoethur said:

Malmesbury said:

Leon said:

rcs1000 said:

On the subject of Ukraine, my personal view is that the one thing the Russians cannot afford is for thousands - or tens of thousands - of their troops to be captured.

Dead. Injured. These can be hidden, at least in the short term.

But captured troops in Ukraine is a massive problem. Because those troops can speak. And their mothers will agitate for their return.

If there are mass captures, then I think Putin's days are numbered.

You’ve been suggesting a possible Russian collapse for a couple of weeks. You made me sit up and read, and realise you could be right. So: chapeau

As I recall various commentators were saying that the Russians had one more offensive of reserves left.

They were jeered at by the usual suspects.

The Russians had their offensive.

This is the Ukrainian counter offensive.

100 Days Offensive comes to mind…

As the much maligned Haig said in January 1918, well in advance of Michael, 'the Germans would do well to hesitate before committing to a major offensive, for if it failed their position would be critical.'

Germany probably had no choice but to roll the dice on last time. Austria Hungary and the Ottoman Empire were coming apart at the seams.

So was Germany!

Well, not really. They had defeated Russia, and had several hundred thousand troops free from that, the Americans were only present in small numbers and green, while the French army had mutinied in 1917. There was a possibility of allied collapse in 1918 too, and it nearly happened.

In a curious bit of symmetry it was the Serbian offensive on the Salonika front that kicked off the final collapse.

The Germans were running out of soldiers and industry was failing, slowly but surely. Hence the inability to build tanks, for example.

The French mutiny was caused by stupid generals insisting on futile attacks, the mutineers were quite clear about their support for the war.

Part of the reason for kicking off Michael was that the Americans were starting to show up on the battlefield. The Germans knew that if they waited till 1919 they would be facing a vast American army as well as the British and French.

Alphabet_Soup said:

There must be a huge row going on behind the scenes over the date of the funeral. A bank holiday has been declared which rules out Saturday. The for-gods-sake-get-it-over-with party are presumably campaigning for Friday while the we-need-an-extra-72-hours-to-get-ready party are holding out for Monday. Time is on their side.

Isn’t it Monday 19th?

Fairliered said:

algarkirk said:

Big_G_NorthWales said:

HYUFD said:

The Reformation stands. The King has promised to defend and secure the Protestant religion in both England and Scotland not return us to Rome and the Vatican

Symbolic

Slightly more than symbolic. 'Protestant' is an archaic word but not an archaic concept. It just means 'Catholic but not Roman Catholic'. And 'catholic church' just means 'universal church' - of which the CoE modestly claims to be a little part.

The word is archaic and should be dropped because the 'protest' ceased a few centuries ago. As Father Jack would correctly say, it is now 'an ecumenical matter'.

The Church of Scotland affirmation of baptism includes the words “ I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting.”

Is HYUFD campaigning to restart the Gordon Riots?

ydoethur said:

Foxy said:

ydoethur said:

Sean_F said:

ydoethur said:

Malmesbury said:

Leon said:

rcs1000 said:

On the subject of Ukraine, my personal view is that the one thing the Russians cannot afford is for thousands - or tens of thousands - of their troops to be captured.

Dead. Injured. These can be hidden, at least in the short term.

But captured troops in Ukraine is a massive problem. Because those troops can speak. And their mothers will agitate for their return.

If there are mass captures, then I think Putin's days are numbered.

You’ve been suggesting a possible Russian collapse for a couple of weeks. You made me sit up and read, and realise you could be right. So: chapeau

As I recall various commentators were saying that the Russians had one more offensive of reserves left.

They were jeered at by the usual suspects.

The Russians had their offensive.

This is the Ukrainian counter offensive.

100 Days Offensive comes to mind…

As the much maligned Haig said in January 1918, well in advance of Michael, 'the Germans would do well to hesitate before committing to a major offensive, for if it failed their position would be critical.'

Germany probably had no choice but to roll the dice on last time. Austria Hungary and the Ottoman Empire were coming apart at the seams.

So was Germany!

Well, not really. They had defeated Russia, and had several hundred thousand troops free from that, the Americans were only present in small numbers and green, while the French army had mutinied in 1917. There was a possibility of allied collapse in 1918 too, and it nearly happened.

In a curious bit of symmetry it was the Serbian offensive on the Salonika front that kicked off the final collapse.

The German army was still functioning.

Rather less so the German economy. Small issue with trying to import anything.

Which is why spring 1918 was their last chance.

In other echos of that denouement, revolution is now brewing in St Petersberg and Moscow.

https://twitter.com/JuliaDavisNews/status/1568442191848030210?t=oc6_IB1wM9xO3YBTHBM5gg&s=19

ydoethur said:

Malmesbury said:

Sean_F said:

ydoethur said:

Malmesbury said:

Leon said:

rcs1000 said:

On the subject of Ukraine, my personal view is that the one thing the Russians cannot afford is for thousands - or tens of thousands - of their troops to be captured.

Dead. Injured. These can be hidden, at least in the short term.

But captured troops in Ukraine is a massive problem. Because those troops can speak. And their mothers will agitate for their return.

If there are mass captures, then I think Putin's days are numbered.

You’ve been suggesting a possible Russian collapse for a couple of weeks. You made me sit up and read, and realise you could be right. So: chapeau

As I recall various commentators were saying that the Russians had one more offensive of reserves left.

They were jeered at by the usual suspects.

The Russians had their offensive.

This is the Ukrainian counter offensive.

100 Days Offensive comes to mind…

As the much maligned Haig said in January 1918, well in advance of Michael, 'the Germans would do well to hesitate before committing to a major offensive, for if it failed their position would be critical.'

Germany probably had no choice but to roll the dice on last time. Austria Hungary and the Ottoman Empire were coming apart at the seams.

The Haig the butcher stuff was a later invention. When he died, the crowds of veterans at his funeral were huge.

Kitchener and he turned out to be right - they both said it would take 3 years to raise, train and equip an army of the scale of the Germans. Then the Germans would be outnumbered and lose.

Also, of course, Haig was the person who oversaw many profound innovations in tactics, particularly the one when he saw Monash's plans for using tanks and aircraft to support substantial infantry advances acting in concert, immediately ordered that they be made the standard throughout the army. That played no small part in the Hundred Days in itself.

The quotes about machine guns and tanks that get trotted out miss the following

1) artillery was the big weapon of WWI - not machine guns. Which were effective if not supersede by sufficient artillery.

2) Haig was skeptical of tanks when he saw the original plans. After the first usage proved they actually worked he asked for them to be built with a higher priority than artillery. Which was highest praise possible from a Western Front commander.

SouthamObserver said:

I think the proclamation is the best part of it all. I just love the idea of the news being spread throughout the Kingdom by heralds and the announcement being read out in front of cathedrals, churches and town halls in every corner of the realm. I wonder how long it took for the news to become universal before there were the railways, let alone the telegraph, telephone and internet.

Depended on where it started!

CarlottaVance said:

Stop the War Coalition here hosting an event on Ukraine with no Ukrainians and speakers who have explicitly defended Russian aggression in Ukraine. STWC are anti-Ukraine and pro-Russia, and they are organising on the basis of halting weapons transfers to Ukraine. It’s pure evil.

https://twitter.com/OzKaterji/status/1568515417676677121

And yet so convinced helping someone defend themselves is immoral.

SouthamObserver said:

The change from 1953 to 2022 is immense, of course. But from 1837 to 1901 it was pretty major too.

The 19th century oceanic telegraph cables would have reduced the time from weeks to hours.

Fairliered said:

Driver said:

Bank Holiday for the funeral.

Are banks still a thing?

Banks, yes. Branches? Not so much.