How Russia treats those lost or injured and their families. Sinking of the Rostov on the Don submarine. and broader questions, with introductory rant

Full disclosure: RantWoman missed sessions at FCNL's recent annual meeting about the war in Ukraine. RantWoman means to see what is possible to review but in the meantime, RantWoman HAS OPINIONS and questions. RantWoman finds it hard to speak to some points one might reasonably be expected to lobby about. 

Some points RantWoman considers:

--There IS opposition to the war in Russia: journalists, military and political figures, and the families of troops. Conditions for opposition voices are brutal, but the opposition persists. Sensible voices should be amplified; there is also A LOT of garbage propaganda and disinformation and countering that is absolutely necessary.

--Sanctions are having an impact on Russia.

--Various scenarios come up about collapse of Russia, Putin being deposed or replaced in an election. IT will be VITAL to have informed specialists in the picture to influence the international impact of these possibilities.

--RantWoman supports Ukraine's right to territorial integrity and political self-determination.

--This point includes cluster bombs. Cluster bombs are monstrous weapons. One source (Beau)noted that Ukraine already knows they are going to have to invest in lots of de-mining after they drive Russians out, so what are some more explosives to deal with. Another source (Jake Broe) pointed out that Ukraine is disassembling cluster bombs and using the bomblets inside to arm drones. Both points are icky. RantWoman considers it appropriate to concentrate on analyzing the gee-whiz aspects of drone warfare, what help might be needed after the war and how to pay for the war damages through seized assets.

--For better or worse, RantWoman considers it appropriate for Russia's neighbors to have a role in the conduct of the war and which weapons get used how.

--In many cases US and European weapons shipments to Ukraine are cleaning out old stocks which of course will then be used to justify building newer better ones. Watch that issue play out.

--The war is mostly going VERY badly for Russia and Putin is making the some of the same mistakes Stalin made in WWII. That is unfortunate and Russia should stop it. RantWoman saying that is not going to make it so.

--Historian Anne Applebaum writes of the sequence of Putin foreign policy where he thinks he is continuing to win, partly because Western powers have not stood up to his assaults on Georgia, Ukraine, Syria as firmly as they might have. Fear of acting though for conflicts between nuclear powers makes firm statecraft all the more important. Timeliness also matters: Russia would be much less dug in in the territories it seized in 2014 if there had been firmer international response. RantWoman has no opinion her about what might have been possible in alternate realities.

--The legacy of Ukraine and Belarus giving Russia back nuclear weapons deployed on their territory when the Soviet Union fell apart needs to figure in thinking about both nuclear weapons issues and the how to manage a nuclear power plant under occupation concerns.

--There is a whole de-carbonize the global economy angle that RantWoman is not going to try to comb through with respect to European dependence on oil and gas exports from Russia as well as how India, China and other oil-producing countries interact with the sanctions regime. 

Here, though, RantWoman is going to continue to post videos she finds informative in hopes that others can draw useful information from what RantWoman culls off YouTube.

RantWoman thinks this channel MAY be created by AI and then edited by a human, either that or read by really good text to speech. However, RantWoman has no reason to doubt the substance of this story.

DW: Families of Russian troops in Ukraine protest war

Silicon Bites: DRAMATIC increase in many violent crimes among people returning from the front but others being used for patriotic education

Also fear of "afghan Syndrome."

HORRIFIC realities of trying to provide support to veterans

Oh Gee, you mean this stuff happens in Russia as well as the US?

Times Radio: how Russians really feel about Putin's invasion of Ukraine

CNN: Ukrainian drone pilot and congressman

The Icarus Project: should the world take Belarus sudden interest in resolving the conflict seriously?

When Lukashenko talks Putin is moving his lips.

Watch the whole video

What are different theories of victory?

Infographics: What do Russian military think of the war in Ukraine

Will western delay prompt Ukraine to undertake more desperate actions.

Russia: commitment to long war. Different perceptions in different countires. Watch the whole video.

See other videos from this channel.

Snark from X / Twitter and click through to the Timothy Snyder item

If #Russia wants out of the the #UkraineWar stalemate they should leave. Stop feeding untrained poorly equipped bodies to the meat grinder. Respect #Ukraine territorial integrity. Also listen to many antiwar voices inside Russia. https://t.co/JzzRp83JXC

— Dorene Cornwell (@DoreneFC) November 24, 2023