Would you bet on it? No.

Stalin appears to Putin in a dream

Putin: "What can I do to make Russia great again?"
Stalin: "Execute half the population and paint the Kremlin blue."
Putin: "Why blue?"
Stalin: "Well done comrade! I knew you wouldn't ask about the first part."

So sitting on this side of the pond and not being a military expert - but having studied a little history my guess is.

1) Russie is blocking all external access to the internet this week for its citizens (Eg. no more VPN so no more balanced view and not more dissension).
2) Internal PR will go into overdrive so Russian residents believe that this is merely a military campaign to oust the NAZI and evil West. (remember WW2 - The German people were brainwashed to believe the lies of their leaders). China is also not far behind the same thing with Hong Kong AND Taiwan moving under draconian control.
3) China is really behind this - feeding both US and Russia with info to cause infighting and weaken both parties - divide and conquer. - I have no proof - it's mere speculation.
4) China will step in when things start getting out of hand and broker a settlement (a more palatable conclusion than armageddon) - by which time China will not be hampered by the huge debts of war incurred on top of the huge debts of Covid. Lest we forget that China already has many financial problems of its own - War is a great way to resolve those debts - either by leveling up the opposition (eg East/West) OR taking control of the opposition's assets. This may be the start of the great leveling up around the world and potentially the start of more peace - or the start of a 100-year war....the outcome of which will not be pleasant.
5) We are all thinking of conventional warfare. Russia doesn't work like that. Yes, the Ukrainian people can fight a long-term gorilla war but Russia now has vacuum bombs and isn't frightened to use them. Flatten first - chemical warfare second. Higher casualties for the indigenous population - but potentially swifter in the long run... HOWEVER - you can NEVER kill people's spirits which may fester for generations - as we see all over the world with repeated conflicts over the same ground with the same arguments.

Like I said - I am not a military expert - just an observer of human actions. As the original author implied - If you want to predict the future read the past.

And to end with - we are all the pawns in the game of a few. Whether American, British, European, Russian, or Chinese. We will pay the price at the tills, through our lives or the lives of the younger generations who now fight. We are all the same - as an enlightened and very frightened Russian friend said to me over the weekend in what they think will be their last VPN posting - we are the 's' people that are expendable to those with self-interest for power. We are all the same so do not automatically blame the peasants for the crimes of the dictator - even if the peasant supposedly committed an unseemly action - that had they not have been indoctrinated with lies they would not have performed...

Who said it's a crime to listen to news reports from government officials? Certainly not the person you're quoting...

Lets look at the future outcome possibilities, because most everyone knows the current situation is a mess at the moment, and disinformation is everywhere, both Russian and the West, as the article about stepping up information versus disinformation from both sides in a prior post is key to keeping a skeptical view about everything

Possible Outcomes of the Russo-Ukrainian War and China's Choice - U.S.-China Perception Monitor

some strategic outcomes, well thought out, NOT AN OR THE ANSWER, the answer is in the future, and the future has not arrived yet.

We live in interesting times, and yes, bonds are falling / interest rates are rising, and the stock market is correcting . . .

[QUOTE=JMintzer;2072122]Who said it's a crime to listen to news reports from government officials? Certainly not the person you're quoting...


The person I was quoting:

[/Linking to an opinion piece doesn't make it so. And you seem to be very knowledgeable of just what Russia has and just what we have - strange when I was in the Marines making comments in public like that would have prompted a visit from the FBI. I wonder where you got your FACTS, I know you liked to an opinion, but you know what they say about opinions - everyone has one


You don’t think that his inference that my posts in public should prompt a visit from the FBI because the FBI is doing tea parties, do you?

interesting

[QUOTE=Aces4;2072137]He specifically stated that when "he was a Marine", and making public comments...

Remember that one Officer who was busted in rank and discharged for making comments about politics?

It has NOTHING to do with your LISTENING to, or your MAKING said comments. Huge difference... Unless, of course, you're active duty...

Great response. That said, I was going to mention China. Remember them? Also...my thoughts are that this war is a deflection of "something" that takes the world's eyes off from some things more important. Time will tell.

Putin already has nuclear weapons in Ukraine. The power plants He already is trying to blow them up

Ohiobuckeye
 

Whether anybody agrees with us or not Aces4, I think you’re right. All the comments are just making assumptions! Just 3 more yrs. of misery!

U.S.A. with 6,185

Russia with 6,500

When you are dealing with warheads many times more powerful than Hiroshima, and each side has in excess of five thousand, I do not believe the 315 variance makes much of a difference.

That’s a reach but if that’s the case, what does his former occupation and its limitations have to do with the subject at hand? Why was it even introduced in the discussion? Ok, rationalize away..

You’re right, it probably makes little difference unless one country is more prepared. Even at that, there will be no winners in a thermonuclear war. As I stated earlier, enjoy each day.

Given the nuclear ballistic missile subs we are all losers in a nuclear war