Ukraine is currently Staring Annihilation in the Face

Straight talk with Col Douglas MacGregor

January 27, 2023 | 8 Comments »

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8 Comments / 8 Comments

  3. @Michael
    Not wanting to run down the CSA rabbit hole, the point is not whether the economy of Russia, which is far greater than it had previously been, is capable of outspending the economies of all the Western nations, whose economies are likewise far less than they had previously been. That being said, however, even in the new economic line-ups between Russia and the West, the West will easily win such a spitting match as you suggest, but the West has no interest or capability at the moment of actually dedicating its full potential in such a match. Russia has prepared for this fight, and the West presumed that their whimsical application of sanctions would be the limit of their investment in crushing the Russians, and that was also the limit of their preparation, beyond providing the second largest army in Europe with the training and hardware it did provide, which, pre-war, was not upto the task of meeting the Russian onslaught, as we have seen.

    Russia can’t lose this war without losing its identity and its unity, and they are quite aware of this fact. Hence, such a loss presents an existential threat for them. For the US and its allies, however, a loss in this Ukraine war is as existential a threat as was its war in Serbia – it was a point of military adventurism which brought them to dally in both of these affairs and its loss was never a point of existential threat. Consequently, the US and the its partners are facing it as a less significant contest than are the Russians. This is why the US is, only under duress by its own allies, sending tanks to Ukraine, which likely won’t be capable of using them effectively before losing them. Furthermore, the number of tanks being sent are of such tawdry numbers that it doesn’t really matter if the Ukrainians held an expertise in the use of such complex military hardware which they have never had before.

    Finally, the US and Western nations are not on a war footing. Beyond their bombastic rhetoric and their routine vacation visits to the money laundering capital of the world, they have provided no preparation for a fight such as they are facing, and their lack of preparation is why the war of attrition will not end well for the West, irregardless of the economic strengths of the two sides. But, of course, we will see how things progress.

  4. Michael writes

    “This alleged weakness in the West, where it does exist, is the result of psychological warfare BY Western actors themselves against their own people. The truly scary part of this, is that this weakness has not just come upon the West, giving a potential advantage for the Russians, Iranians and Chinese; but the very same sort of weakness, is vitiating those societies as well. That does not portend a “New World Order”, as some hope, but a collapse of civilization as we know it.”

    When I explore this it becomes clear that every word is wrong.

    The weakness of the west is hardly alleged it is very real. In fact the whole system is rotting.

    “Psychological warfare”

    It is not caused by “psychological warfare” Oh no. It is a deep systemic crisis which is quite independent of any psychology.

    Or put it more simply. Replace any of the present leaders and it would make no difference.

    The system of capitalism/imperialism is rotting and can never be reformed.

    I can give many examples of this if necessary.

  5. Hi, Sebastien.

    This would be a good time for us all to get past the hilarious, unreliable and anonymous.

    Here’s my assessment, concerning Ukraine and related matters:

    1. The New Cold War.

    The first Cold War was focused on a series of proxy wars, in places like Korea, the Middle East, Iran and Latin America. Significant players were Russia, China, Ukraine, Poland, E. Germany, N. Korea, N. Vietnam and Egypt vs. a collection of alliances involving the US, Taiwan, W. Germany, Italy, France, UK, Turkey, Iran, N. Korea, Philippines, Australia, Canada, Israel and S. Africa.

    The current Cold War has players that mostly overlap the previous war, such as the US, Russia, Ukraine, China, Iran, Korea, Vietnam, Turkey, NATO, etc. Some players have changed sides, and the center of gravity of the Eastern Bloc has been shifting from Russia to China. Otherwise, the geography of the beligerents is roughly the same (and similar to the West vs. Mongol situation of the 13th Century).

    2. The Balance of Power

    The economic disparity between the Eastern and Western blocs is similar between these two conflicts, with the West holding an overwhelming advantage. What has changed, is a stark decline in strength of will, reason and moral compass in the West, which, especially under Biden, has driven Western foreign and defense policy.

    This moral decline of the West (including of Israel) has created the illusion of weakness, tempting belligerents like Putin and Xi to contemplate, like Hitler and Napoleon before them, worldwide rule.

    3. Conclusion

    Unless something happens to reverse the moral sapping of the West, particularly of the US, a worldwide cataclysm is inevitable — one with NO WINNERS among the players of today.

  7. Sebastien,

    MacGregor and Napolitano make so many hyperbolic statements, it’s tempting to simply dismiss them out of hand. I am concerned by them nonetheless, particularly the colonel’s assertion that Russia, a country with an economy the size of Italy’s, can somehow out-produce Italy, France, Germany, the UK, etc. combined in military equipment. An equivalent belief, would be a CSA dream that the southern states could ultimately win a war of attrition with the industrial North.

    The Judge-Colonel duo also cling to the notion that the Russians have been relatively unhurt economically. What has actually happened, is that the Russian and allied economies are becoming decoupled with the major economies of the world, in a fashion similar to the former isolation of the Communist states.

    This alleged weakness in the West, where it does exist, is the result of psychological warfare BY Western actors themselves against their own people. The truly scary part of this, is that this weakness has not just come upon the West, giving a potential advantage for the Russians, Iranians and Chinese; but the very same sort of weakness, is vitiating those societies as well. That does not portend a “New World Order”, as some hope, but a collapse of civilization as we know it.