ChrisO_wiki Profile picture
May 11, 2022 5 tweets 3 min read Read on X
Really important question below: why would you even design a T-72 so that the crew literally has to sit on top of hundreds of kilos of highly explosive ammunition and propellant? /1
@clmazin answered this by analogy in his brilliant script for #Chernobyl. In the (fictional) courtroom scene in the final episode, Soviet nuclear scientist Valeriy Legasov explains why Chernobyl was effectively rigged to explode: /2
"It's cheaper". That's the answer to the T-72's design flaws. It's much smaller and lighter than the US M1A1 Abrams or similar British and German tanks. But it costs a fraction of their price, at the cost of crew safety. /3
I think we often forget how much poorer Russia (and the USSR before it) is than the West. Millions of Russians still live in abject poverty, without clean water, indoor sanitation or paved roads - much as their great-grandparents did 100 years ago./4
Russia and the USSR have sought to compete with the West by making cheaper and less safe weapons because they didn't have the means to compete on quality. Unfortunately for thousands of Russian soldiers, that philosophy is now costing them their lives. /end

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More from @ChrisO_wiki

Jun 24
1/ The Russian government is a "great hypnotoad" that is trying to distract the population from the fact that things are bad and about to get worse, says Russian warblogger Anastasia Kashevarova. She complains that the government is attempting to "zombify people". ⬇️
2/ A common complaint among Russian warbloggers in recent months has been that the Russian government frequently but ineptly tries to play down the deteriorating situation with the Ukraine war, through so-called "anti-crisis" propaganda or simply not mentioning Ukrainian attacks.
3/ They point out that this is highly ineffective and erodes trust in the government, as anyone with an Internet connection can see – even on Russian pro-war Telegram channels – that things are not going well.
Read 18 tweets
Jun 24
1/ Russian commanders are being accused of failing to ensure that their soldiers do not wear neo-Nazi and far-right insignia. The practice is said to be widespread. However, a crackdown is apparently underway, with offenders being sent to die in assault units. ⬇️ Image
2/ Throughout the war in Ukraine, Russian soldiers have been photographed wearing unofficial patches representing extremist ideologies, such as death's-head insignia, Nazi runes, and the "black sun" Sonnenrad symbol.
3/ This reflects the appeal of far-right and neo-Nazi ideology among Russian nationalists. (Indeed, there is an entire neo-Nazi paramilitary group, the Sabotage Assault Reconnaissance Group (DShRG) 'Rusich', fighting alongside the Russian regular forces.)
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Jun 23
1/ Russian warbloggers have steadily become bolder in calling for Russia's leadership to be replaced to overcome the current stalemate in Ukraine. Calling the current situation "hopeless", 'Verum Regnum' calls for new leadership in Russia so that it can win the war. ⬇️ Image
2/ While well aware that open criticism of Vladimir Putin is still too dangerous a step, many warbloggers are willing to criticise "the system" in general terms or call out specific officials regarded as failing, such as Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov
3/ This kind of approach, which could be summed up as "the Tsar should replace his boyars", is clearly visible in what 'Verum Regnum' writes on Telegram:

"Do you know what a "hopeless situation" is? It's a situation where we don't like the simple, obvious way out."
Read 16 tweets
Jun 23
1/ Russia's air defence teams are manned by "homeless people, alcoholics, deserters, disabled people, idiots", complains a Russian warblogger. In the face of continued failures to stop Ukrainian drone attacks, urgent investment in robotic defence systems is advocated. ⬇️ Image
2/ 'Military Chronicle' argues that "recent incidents involving the use of attack drones against targets in Moscow and Voronezh demonstrate that the human factor is becoming the most critical vulnerability in modern air defence systems."
3/ 'Dead Heads' explains that Russia's mobile fire teams are attracting the wrong kind of recruits: "We're forming Mobile Task Forces (MOGs) and assembling them by units: homeless people, alcoholics, 500s, disabled people, idiots – why aren't they shooting down anything?"
Read 20 tweets
Jun 22
1/ The Russian warblogger 'Fighterbomber', a retired Russian air force pilot, is taking heavy flak from other warbloggers for disclosing a fuel delivery to Crimea that the Ukrainians promptly blew up. "Go fuck yourself. Preferably holding hands," he responds. ⬇️ Image
2/ On 17 June, in an apparent attempt to refute widespread accounts of fuel shortages in Crimea, 'Fighterbomber' wrote on his Telegram channel: "The audience is saying that fuel has arrived in Crimea. Lots of it. There's more coming. 😍"
3/ Three days later, Ukrainian forces struck the Kerch oil terminal's fuel depot, causing a major fire. An official Ukrainian Telegram channel trolled Fighterbomber by crediting the warblogger for the strike (it's unlikely that he had any influence on it).
Read 23 tweets
Jun 22
1/ Dozens of specialist workers were likely killed or wounded in today's Ukrainian strike in Voronezh. Russian warbloggers are dismayed, complain that the Russian government is ignoring it, and call for London to be nuked in retaliation. ⬇️
2/ Heavy missiles (it's not yet clear what type; the Russian warbloggers assume a UK/French Storm Shadow or SCALP/ER) have caused heavy damage and raging fires at the Voronezh Semiconductor Devices Plant, a vital element of Russia's missile production chain.
3/ The regional governor says that five people are known to have died, with dozens more injured. He says that while most were able to take shelter and survived, many ignored the alert and were caught up in the attack.
Read 24 tweets

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