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On July 22 2026 05:57 Billyboy wrote: Ukraine just fired General Oleksandr Syrskyi after massive protests. And Fedorov has been offered a position so he can continue his progress. Big win for the disrupters, and likely a blow against corruption.
Don't particularly think this has anything to do with corruption. It was two personalities clashing, and Zelenskyy just did what he thought would be the most painless and stable solution (Remember he didn't just sack Fedorov, he offered him a different position which he declined). I'm not sure anyone could have predicted people would feel so strongly about it, but it makes sense in hindsight. The people of Ukraine have seen the effect of modernization and technology, and they're rejecting the old guard in the process.
The corruption part is what Fedorov was doing for procurement. He was making it so every purchase was an open tender and generals couldn’t just pick where and who to buy your stuff for.
It doesn’t get talked about a bunch, because Russia is much more corrupt, but Ukraine is more corrupt than most (maybe all) EU countries. It’s trending in the right direction and these changes need to be made so Ukraine can join.
Even just flattening the power structure causes a lot of pushback, but do not be so naive to not think there are big dollars at play for certain powerful people as well.
On July 22 2026 05:57 Billyboy wrote: Ukraine just fired General Oleksandr Syrskyi after massive protests. And Fedorov has been offered a position so he can continue his progress. Big win for the disrupters, and likely a blow against corruption.
Don't particularly think this has anything to do with corruption. It was two personalities clashing, and Zelenskyy just did what he thought would be the most painless and stable solution (Remember he didn't just sack Fedorov, he offered him a different position which he declined). I'm not sure anyone could have predicted people would feel so strongly about it, but it makes sense in hindsight. The people of Ukraine have seen the effect of modernization and technology, and they're rejecting the old guard in the process.
Yes, he was the man they needed at the beginning of the war to hold. But that comes with a body cost that is high. Now they've had time to adapt and it's a new war. One in which Russia has no military target anymore so they'll just make it as scary as possible to civilians. Ukraine for a while will make it as visible and symbolic as well. Putin will save batches of missiles just to blow up big civilian infra whenever Ukrainians will touch something painful.
And to end the post of Leonard Cohen "That's how it goes, everybody knows, everybody knows the boat is leaking, everybody knows the captain lied, everybody got this broken feeling"
Wonderful song, no idea how I haven't heard it before today but thanks for referencing it!
The current situation, while not ideal, is one of the major reasons why Ukraine belongs on "our side". People disagree with their governments decision, they come out in to the streets despite great danger to themselves and the alleged "nazi", "dictator" or whatever everyone from JD Vance to Putin try to say about Zelenskyy he is a leader enough who respects the will of it's people to go back on his decision, and not only that, completely reverse it and remove a genuine hero from the top position of the defender of the country.
This is why all of this shit is worth it, and of course it's infinitely easier for us to say this from the safety of our homes, but democracy, real democracy is what got Ukraine into this mess and it's also why it's going to win in the long term.
And that gives me hope for the rest of the world, we who have experienced freedom and societies that exist to serve their people aren't going to give all of this up forever, no matter what technology and propaganda is deployed against us, in the long run, democracy and freedom from oppression will prevail.
It's also, to me, supremely ironic that guys like GH who opine over US public being passive and unwilling to go against the system to achieve goals is one of the people who berated Ukrainians and called EUROMAIDAN a western backed coup, unable to grasp that these people have autonomy, far more then most people he is surrounded with.
*sigh* Firstly, that Ukrainians revolting was supported by the US is a matter of fact. That fact doesn't deny Ukrainians their agency in actually doing it. Basically, I was highlighting the absurdity of opposing an Amerimaidan despite their enthusiastic support for Euromaidan while Euromaidan didn't really address any of their ostensible rationalizations for opposing an Amerimaidan.
Also establishment politicians (and their lackeys) enthusiastically cheered for Ukrainians building barricades, seizing buildings, and overriding electoral timelines because it served Western foreign policy. Yet, if Americans do the exact same thing for domestic grievances, those same cheerleaders immediately demand total institutional compliance and label it an existential threat to order.
I applied the same framing people use to oppose Amerimaidan to analyzing Euromaidan, that some of you recognized the irony is sorta my point.
Have you ever thought to just use your own sensibilities and empathy when looking at these things instead of seeing everything through the weird lens that you use to mock and gawk at everyone who disagrees with your methods and analysis?
It's a nicer and more healthy way of going through life.
On July 22 2026 05:57 Billyboy wrote: Ukraine just fired General Oleksandr Syrskyi after massive protests. And Fedorov has been offered a position so he can continue his progress. Big win for the disrupters, and likely a blow against corruption.
Don't particularly think this has anything to do with corruption. It was two personalities clashing, and Zelenskyy just did what he thought would be the most painless and stable solution (Remember he didn't just sack Fedorov, he offered him a different position which he declined). I'm not sure anyone could have predicted people would feel so strongly about it, but it makes sense in hindsight. The people of Ukraine have seen the effect of modernization and technology, and they're rejecting the old guard in the process.
Yes, he was the man they needed at the beginning of the war to hold. But that comes with a body cost that is high. Now they've had time to adapt and it's a new war. One in which Russia has no military target anymore so they'll just make it as scary as possible to civilians. Ukraine for a while will make it as visible and symbolic as well. Putin will save batches of missiles just to blow up big civilian infra whenever Ukrainians will touch something painful.
And to end the post of Leonard Cohen "That's how it goes, everybody knows, everybody knows the boat is leaking, everybody knows the captain lied, everybody got this broken feeling"
Wonderful song, no idea how I haven't heard it before today but thanks for referencing it!
The current situation, while not ideal, is one of the major reasons why Ukraine belongs on "our side". People disagree with their governments decision, they come out in to the streets despite great danger to themselves and the alleged "nazi", "dictator" or whatever everyone from JD Vance to Putin try to say about Zelenskyy he is a leader enough who respects the will of it's people to go back on his decision, and not only that, completely reverse it and remove a genuine hero from the top position of the defender of the country.
This is why all of this shit is worth it, and of course it's infinitely easier for us to say this from the safety of our homes, but democracy, real democracy is what got Ukraine into this mess and it's also why it's going to win in the long term.
And that gives me hope for the rest of the world, we who have experienced freedom and societies that exist to serve their people aren't going to give all of this up forever, no matter what technology and propaganda is deployed against us, in the long run, democracy and freedom from oppression will prevail.
It's also, to me, supremely ironic that guys like GH who opine over US public being passive and unwilling to go against the system to achieve goals is one of the people who berated Ukrainians and called EUROMAIDAN a western backed coup, unable to grasp that these people have autonomy, far more then most people he is surrounded with.
*sigh* Firstly, that Ukrainians revolting was supported by the US is a matter of fact. That fact doesn't deny Ukrainians their agency in actually doing it. Basically, I was highlighting the absurdity of opposing an Amerimaidan despite their enthusiastic support for Euromaidan while Euromaidan didn't really address any of their ostensible rationalizations for opposing an Amerimaidan.
Also establishment politicians (and their lackeys) enthusiastically cheered for Ukrainians building barricades, seizing buildings, and overriding electoral timelines because it served Western foreign policy. Yet, if Americans do the exact same thing for domestic grievances, those same cheerleaders immediately demand total institutional compliance and label it an existential threat to order.
I applied the same framing people use to oppose Amerimaidan to analyzing Euromaidan, that some of you recognized the irony is sorta my point.
Have you ever thought to just use your own sensibilities and empathy when looking at these things instead of seeing everything through the weird lens that you use to mock and gawk at everyone who disagrees with your methods and analysis?
It's a nicer and more healthy way of going through life.
You quoted me, but that isn't responsive to what I said.
On July 23 2026 01:06 Manit0u wrote: Another Wildberries warehouse got hit today.
It’s great, up to 4 and they have hit the 1,2,4 and 6th biggest.
For those wondering they are not just consumer goods, but also military. They have drone parts, bulletproof vests, fiber optic cable, and more. So it’s both, general economics and military logistics.
Russians must have had some sort of heads up, they changed the contracts with the sellers about 10 days ago that drone attacks are not covered by insurance.
On July 23 2026 01:06 Manit0u wrote: Another Wildberries warehouse got hit today.
Speaking of empathy, this gives me conflicted feelings about Amazon warehouse workers being "collateral damage" in a parallel. Nevermind the general trend of automated warfare with human targets/"collateral damage"
All things considered, it's hard to stay optimistic about the future.
On July 23 2026 01:06 Manit0u wrote: Another Wildberries warehouse got hit today.
Speaking of empathy, this gives me conflicted feelings about Amazon warehouse workers being "collateral damage" in a parallel. Nevermind the general trend of automated warfare with human targets/"collateral damage"
All things considered, it's hard to stay optimistic about the future.
I agree, but just as I was OK with Iran targeting Amazon data centers in the Middle East, and I guess you feel the same way, this seems like a perfectly valid target.
Good video I watched today on these strikes:
Do I feel the empathy for the lady who's business is going to potentially be ruined and her new house might not be completed because she defaults on her loan, sure, but I sure as fuck feel way, way more empathy for a poor Ukrainian who's apartment building gets blown up and considering the distinct lack of resistance to the war within Russia, it's hard for me to shed a tear for relatively well off urban Russians losing their businesses.
On July 22 2026 05:57 Billyboy wrote: Ukraine just fired General Oleksandr Syrskyi after massive protests. And Fedorov has been offered a position so he can continue his progress. Big win for the disrupters, and likely a blow against corruption.
Don't particularly think this has anything to do with corruption. It was two personalities clashing, and Zelenskyy just did what he thought would be the most painless and stable solution (Remember he didn't just sack Fedorov, he offered him a different position which he declined). I'm not sure anyone could have predicted people would feel so strongly about it, but it makes sense in hindsight. The people of Ukraine have seen the effect of modernization and technology, and they're rejecting the old guard in the process.
The corruption part is what Fedorov was doing for procurement. He was making it so every purchase was an open tender and generals couldn’t just pick where and who to buy your stuff for.
I'm not following. That sounds like an anti corruption measure to me, although perhaps not necessarily the most time effective during war time. I can see why it would cause conflict, even if neither side were doing it for corrupt reasons
But yes, the fact that Ukraine struggles with corruption isn't a secret. There's a reason they couldn't join EU even if they weren't at war right now. It's not talked about because it isn't all that important in the grand scheme of things. They can't implement the regulations and structure to deal with this until the war is over.
Croatia, Bulgaria and Romania struggled with corruption and were still admitted to EU.
All 3 of these countries still struggle with corruption, but EU has made it much better, at least in the case of Croatia.
We were forced to reform our courts and deal with some extremely blatant examples of institutionalized corruption by the EU, there are mechanism that EU has with chapters and checkpoints which are very beneficial to any country that has interest to join.
Hell, even Serbia closed a bunch of chapters and they are basically a mafia state, very similar to Russia, so I don't think that Ukraine getting the applicant status should be that difficult, or should be made difficult for them, especially considering all the shit the endured.
On July 23 2026 03:37 Jankisa wrote: Croatia, Bulgaria and Romania struggled with corruption and were still admitted to EU.
All 3 of these countries still struggle with corruption, but EU has made it much better, at least in the case of Croatia.
We were forced to reform our courts and deal with some extremely blatant examples of institutionalized corruption by the EU, there are mechanism that EU has with chapters and checkpoints which are very beneficial to any country that has interest to join.
Hell, even Serbia closed a bunch of chapters and they are basically a mafia state, very similar to Russia, so I don't think that Ukraine getting the applicant status should be that difficult, or should be made difficult for them, especially considering all the shit the endured.
I don't think "what they endured" should have any impact on if they can or can not join EU. We already struggle enough with black sheeps like hungary, as well as generally anti EU sentiment getting pushed hard by various right wing and nut job parties. Now more than ever I think its important to be serious about the goals, rules, and intentions of the EU.
As much as I support ukraine, them being a victim of russia shouldn't have much impact on their EU application apart from emphasising that they are setting themselves apart from that rogue state. I understand why people want to support it, but there are other means for their security. Its like when people made all sorts of mental gymnastics to justify the invocation of article 5 so nato can "just end" the war, Apart from the current war everything should be able to be sorted out through the already existing efforts of getting them in a position where they can faithfully join the EU. I don't believe that ukraine needs the rules bend for them, if they can make it through this war, they will make it. Esp together with the support for EU accension they receive.
On July 23 2026 01:06 Manit0u wrote: Another Wildberries warehouse got hit today.
Speaking of empathy, this gives me conflicted feelings about Amazon warehouse workers being "collateral damage" in a parallel. Nevermind the general trend of automated warfare with human targets/"collateral damage"
All things considered, it's hard to stay optimistic about the future.
I agree, but just as I was OK with Iran targeting Amazon data centers in the Middle East, and I guess you feel the same way, this seems like a perfectly valid target.
Do I feel the empathy for the lady who's business is going to potentially be ruined and her new house might not be completed because she defaults on her loan, sure, but I sure as fuck feel way, way more empathy for a poor Ukrainian who's apartment building gets blown up and considering the distinct lack of resistance to the war within Russia, it's hard for me to shed a tear for relatively well off urban Russians losing their businesses.
Yeah, as far as I know, there were no deaths or injuries reported with the data centers, so that is a lot easier to accept as a clean strategic classification.
I know Amazon warehouse workers that definitely are not fans of what the US government is doing domestically or abroad. I believe any sensible person (though we were focused on empathy) would have conflicted feelings about writing their deaths off as collateral damage to US foreign policy.
Presumably some Russians are similar to that. Some are also pragmatic. Others are idiotic supporters of the regime, and some are likely enthusiastic authoritarians or fascists (which also feels familiar).
Obviously, rationalizing a comparative lack of empathy by pointing out the greater harm done abroad and the lack of domestic opposition (given the consequences of even tepid objections in Russia compared to the US) leaves us in a dangerous spot. Surely you can at least see how that logic does not bode well for civilians in a declining US that is increasingly likely to have some pretty nasty chickens coming home to roost so to speak?.
On July 22 2026 05:57 Billyboy wrote: Ukraine just fired General Oleksandr Syrskyi after massive protests. And Fedorov has been offered a position so he can continue his progress. Big win for the disrupters, and likely a blow against corruption.
Don't particularly think this has anything to do with corruption. It was two personalities clashing, and Zelenskyy just did what he thought would be the most painless and stable solution (Remember he didn't just sack Fedorov, he offered him a different position which he declined). I'm not sure anyone could have predicted people would feel so strongly about it, but it makes sense in hindsight. The people of Ukraine have seen the effect of modernization and technology, and they're rejecting the old guard in the process.
The corruption part is what Fedorov was doing for procurement. He was making it so every purchase was an open tender and generals couldn’t just pick where and who to buy your stuff for.
I'm not following. That sounds like an anti corruption measure to me, although perhaps not necessarily the most time effective during war time. I can see why it would cause conflict, even if neither side were doing it for corrupt reasons
But yes, the fact that Ukraine struggles with corruption isn't a secret. There's a reason they couldn't join EU even if they weren't at war right now. It's not talked about because it isn't all that important in the grand scheme of things. They can't implement the regulations and structure to deal with this until the war is over.
Fedorov was the one with the new procurement being blocked by Syrskyi. Syrski was kept and Fedorov removed, this is one of the reasons why the protests came.
The procurement process is also helping in the front, allowing the commanders on the front line to order what they need instead of top down is a huge win for those. Corruption aside each group needs different things and different amounts.
Well fighting corruption is below stopping Russia it is super important. Any resources leaving the system through corruption are resources that could have been used to fight the Russians.
On July 22 2026 05:57 Billyboy wrote: Ukraine just fired General Oleksandr Syrskyi after massive protests. And Fedorov has been offered a position so he can continue his progress. Big win for the disrupters, and likely a blow against corruption.
Don't particularly think this has anything to do with corruption. It was two personalities clashing, and Zelenskyy just did what he thought would be the most painless and stable solution (Remember he didn't just sack Fedorov, he offered him a different position which he declined). I'm not sure anyone could have predicted people would feel so strongly about it, but it makes sense in hindsight. The people of Ukraine have seen the effect of modernization and technology, and they're rejecting the old guard in the process.
The corruption part is what Fedorov was doing for procurement. He was making it so every purchase was an open tender and generals couldn’t just pick where and who to buy your stuff for.
I'm not following. That sounds like an anti corruption measure to me, although perhaps not necessarily the most time effective during war time. I can see why it would cause conflict, even if neither side were doing it for corrupt reasons
But yes, the fact that Ukraine struggles with corruption isn't a secret. There's a reason they couldn't join EU even if they weren't at war right now. It's not talked about because it isn't all that important in the grand scheme of things. They can't implement the regulations and structure to deal with this until the war is over.
Fedorov was the one with the new procurement being blocked by Syrskyi. Syrski was kept and Fedorov removed, this is one of the reasons why the protests came.
The procurement process is also helping in the front, allowing the commanders on the front line to order what they need instead of top down is a huge win for those. Corruption aside each group needs different things and different amounts.
Well fighting corruption is below stopping Russia it is super important. Any resources leaving the system through corruption are resources that could have been used to fight the Russians.
Large corruption cases are also bad since it hollows out support for aid/donations/help. Consider the classical negative examples in some African regions where people assume the government for that region will skim off the money and nothing reaching the people that needs it. Or the Palestine/Hamas issue. These types of PR are hugely negative if you rely on peoples' goodwill, which Ukraine indirectly does.
Waging economic warfare by bombing industrial production and commercial distribution centres to push out an invading army that targets civilians (human safari in Kherson), residential buildings, clearly marked red-cross vehicles, and tortures prisoners is well within the bounds of an ethically run war. Russia still has many more young men to feed into the meat grinder, so to save lives (including Russian) it's better to grind their economy to a halt any way they can-- like targetting the shadow fleet.
It may be difficult to be optimistic about the future but the way Ukraine has run their war has been inspiring. I am reminded of a video of a surrendered Russian soldier who asks: "Will you take us prisoner or kill us?"
That and they are storing their military gear and shipping it to the front lines right from it, so it’s also a military target. The one warehouse had 78000 military pieces.
6 of the top 10 in size have been hit. Looks like it will be daily for next couple weeks. Then what? I didn’t guess this remotely. Maybe something with internet/ data centers, but that’s a wild guess.
On July 26 2026 10:13 Falling wrote: Waging economic warfare by bombing industrial production and commercial distribution centres to push out an invading army that targets civilians (human safari in Kherson), residential buildings, clearly marked red-cross vehicles, and tortures prisoners is well within the bounds of an ethically run war. Russia still has many more young men to feed into the meat grinder, so to save lives (including Russian) it's better to grind their economy to a halt any way they can-- like targetting the shadow fleet.
It may be difficult to be optimistic about the future but the way Ukraine has run their war has been inspiring. I am reminded of a video of a surrendered Russian soldier who asks: "Will you take us prisoner or kill us?"
I think part of this is that Ukraine is very dependent on outside support. If you start committing war crimes, people in other countries start to ask if they really should continue supporting you.
Meanwhile, if you act like the good guys, other countries can feel good sending you military equipment.
From the Ukrainian perspective, war crimes and targetting civilians would be a strategically really bad idea. And i assume leadership knows that, and are on top of not getting bad press.
Oh, there's lots of utility... even with outside support. Not shooting surrendered prisoners makes it more likely you get more surrenders in the future especially if you think the other side has poor morale.
On July 26 2026 10:13 Falling wrote: Waging economic warfare by bombing industrial production and commercial distribution centres to push out an invading army that targets civilians (human safari in Kherson), residential buildings, clearly marked red-cross vehicles, and tortures prisoners is well within the bounds of an ethically run war. Russia still has many more young men to feed into the meat grinder, so to save lives (including Russian) it's better to grind their economy to a halt any way they can-- like targetting the shadow fleet.
It may be difficult to be optimistic about the future but the way Ukraine has run their war has been inspiring. I am reminded of a video of a surrendered Russian soldier who asks: "Will you take us prisoner or kill us?"
I think part of this is that Ukraine is very dependent on outside support. If you start committing war crimes, people in other countries start to ask if they really should continue supporting you.
Meanwhile, if you act like the good guys, other countries can feel good sending you military equipment.
From the Ukrainian perspective, war crimes and targetting civilians would be a strategically really bad idea. And i assume leadership knows that, and are on top of not getting bad press.
You could say one video might be a fluke or a false flag operation, but seems like there are multiple videos that Ukranians posted themselves where they slam drones into civilian cars at gas stations, mostly in Belgorod region.
It's such an unforced error too, because now you're just giving munition with no real rebuttals to the other side, which is something they more or less didn't have for the past 5 years.
EPT![[image loading]](https://i.imgur.com/9VH6dmC.png)
