1/ Russian soldiers are being reportedly "demilitarised" by their own brutal and corrupt commanders, who extort money from men they call their "slaves" and "disposable" before sending them into unsurvivable assaults. ⬇️
2/ The 'All-People's Truth' Telegram channel describes how 'Surgeon', the commander of the Russian 1194th Motorised Rifle Regiment, located near Ozarianivka near Bakhmut, has "established his own rules" that violate army orders and the laws of war.
3/ The blogger says that "the volunteers located there are called 'meat', 'slaves', 'disposable'" by their commander. An audio recording corroborates this, with a man describing them as "my slaves... You can beat him, you can tie him up."
4/ According to 'All-People's Truth', Surgeon is "sending them on senseless 'meat assaults' without additional additional reconnaissance, without artillery cover, even without the support of motor transport.
5/ "The wounded and shell-shocked are not taken to the rear, the command does not organize evacuation measures.
6/ "Those who disagree are sent on their 'last journey' into hell itself at the first opportunity, having all their documents, phones and even their soldier's badge taken away.
7/ "And at the same time, there is constant extortion of money, the wounded are required to pay money just to go to the hospital. Those who refuse to pay the wounded are sent again on 'meat assaults'.
Humanitarian aid sent by relatives and volunteers does not reach the soldiers.
8/ "Relatives receive information that their loved ones are considered missing in action, or transferred to another military unit, military unit 44744, which is more like a virtual one.
9/ "It is not possible to find out anything specific from the command of military unit 29593 [the 1194th Regiment].
The situation is critical, if this continues, then why should we fight if such commanders "zero out" our own boys❓"
1/ Russian escort agencies are seeking women with advanced skills in video games such as Counter-Strike and DOTA, to work as 'gamer girls' for $3,000 a day for members of the Saudi Arabian royal family. Sleeping with the clients is not compulsory. ⬇️
2/ The VChK-OGPU Telegram channel reports that the super-rich now want to spend their leisure time playing video games with "gamer girls", a trend that Russia's 'modeling agencies' are capitalising on.
3/ The channel reports: "In addition to the standard requirements for applicants in the top category of “gamer girls”, they now need to have a “large gaming background”."
1/ Due to the effect of Ukrainian drones' suppression of Russian logistics, Russian soldiers are having to walk up to 35 km (21.7 miles) per day to form up for attacks, evacuate the wounded, reach frontline positions, or go to the rear. ⬇️
2/ The Russian warblogger 'Vault No. 8' writes:
"[A]t this moment, when the enemy has a huge numerical superiority [with drones] in the lower skies, the front line walks long distances every day.
3/ "Evacuation teams can walk 20 kilometres [12.4 mi] every day on the days of our attacks.
Supplies carriers also, about 20-25 km [12.4-15.5 mi] with a heavy load every day.
Infantry when moving to the assault, to the entrenchment and to rest – 10-20 km [6.2-12.4 mi] each.
1/ Russian soldiers are being trained to stand still if they are targeted by a drone, in the hope that the operator will not notice them if they are not moving. This tactic misunderstands how drones are being used and is lethally unsuccessful, as a Russian milblogger explains. ⬇️
2/ Commenting on a Ukrainian video of an FPV drone flying into a stationary Russian soldier's head, the 'Philologist in ambush' describes the tactic of "freezing like a post" as "some monstrous nonsense" imparted during the (brief) training given to newly recruited soldiers.
3/ "Human vision (especially with a weak drone image) is really good at capturing objects in motion, whereas static objects can be missed, and freezing in a well-masked environment (in particular, in untrimmed greenery) can help to some extent. But there are nuances!
1/ Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine complain that they have been overwhelmed since the New Year by a tsunami of paperwork. The sudden burst of activity by the militrary bureaucracy has led some Russian milbloggers to hope that it means an imminent ceasefire. ⬇️
2/ The Russian milblogger 'Vault 8' spots "signs of a possible détente":
"After the New Year, the paperwork, contrary to expectations, did not go down, but remained at the same level and even increased."
3/ "No matter who I talk to from different units, the same Paris-like movement is going on everywhere:
1) A total check of material property and write-off of losses. So that there are as few cold cases and criminal cases as possible, while write-offs can be in military order.
1/ Let's talk about rule of law versus rule by law.
Rule of law is the legal system that applies in democratic states, and is foundational to democracy. It holds that the law is the supreme authority to which everyone, including government officials, is subject.
2/ This is traditionally illustrated by the image of 'blind Justice', usually depicted as a blindfolded woman standing with a sword and set of scales. The blindfold denotes impartiality; the sword, authority; the scales, balance and fairness; the pose, steadfastness.
3/ In autocracies – notably Russia and China today, and so-called 'Herrenvolk democracies' like apartheid South Africa and the pre-Civil Rights southern United States – a different system has operated: rule by law, rather than rule of law.
1/ It's a joke, I know, but there's a nugget of truth here: until 1914 the North Sea was generally known in English as the German Ocean. The name "North Sea" was sometimes reserved for the Atlantic north of Shetland (which is now generally known as the Norwegian Sea).
2/ The British renaming of the German Ocean wasn't simply a unilateral creation of a new name, however - the term 'North Sea' had already been in use for centuries by the Dutch, who originally named it in opposition to the "South Sea" (off Frisia, the modern Wadden Sea).
3/ Ironically, the Germans themselves didn't use the term "German Ocean" but followed the Dutch and Danes in calling it the Nordzee. So although the British change of name was political, it simply brought the naming into line with its North Sea neighbours.