What's good (and bad ) about Russia?

[Litespeed]

Putin has no reason not to be charming and nice in public.

 

He knows he will get what he wants, when he wants and from who he wants.

 

All psychopathic dictators like to smile in public.

 

 

[facthunter]

He did a lot of smiling when he was dealing with Trump. How often can all your christmass's come at once? Like taking candy from a baby. Almost too easy to be any challenge. Nev

 

 

[willedoo]

Trump's an amateur. Putin can play him like a fish.

 

 

[Marty_d]

Trump's an amateur. Putin can play him like a fish.

Of course he can, he put him there.

 

 

[willedoo]

I doubt he wanted Hillary there. Those two don't get on at all. I think her star trek suits and matching hair helmet scared the crap out of Vlad.

 

 

[Marty_d]

Star Trek had a Russian in it, at least.

 

 

[Litespeed]

Anton Checkov.

 

The most recent actor to play him died after his jack fell whilst under his car.

 

Bugger

 

 

[willedoo]

This has become a regular game. The Russian Defence Minister's plane flying in and out of Kaliningrad gets trailed by NATO fighters, who then get chased away by the Su-27 escorts. The latest one is an FA-18. Unfortunately it's a serious game. The FA-18 is armed with air to air missiles and has flown alongside the Defence Minister's aircraft in international airspace. If that's not a provocation, I don't know what is. They are all air force professionals, but the fact both parties are armed increases the risk of an incident.

 

It's quite a different situation to a normal intercept where the fighters are rarely armed.

 

 

[Methusala]

This is the plane that Russia is offering to Turkey in place of the F-35:

 

 

 

 

 

 

A very smart piece of high-tech

 

 

[willedoo]

It will be interesting to see how that pans out. Could there be a future where Turkey leaves NATO and enters an alliance with the Russia/China bloc. They would have to do one or the other, I'd imagine, as strategically, they would be vulnerable on their own.

 

The Su-57 deliveries to the VVS are due to start before the end of 2019. Once they're operational it should sort out the remaining bugs. The Russians are still sticking to the old way of having two fighter types - heavy air superiority and light fighter. There's future design plans for a 5th. gen. replacement for the smaller MiG-29. Very much in contrast with our one size fits all plan with the F-35.

 

 

[Yenn]

Turkey hasn't always seen eye to eye with the USA. When the Yanks wanted to base bombers in Turkey to attack Iraq, the Turks said No. One o the US generals is quoted as saying who the hell do they think they are, they are supposed to be a democracy.

 

Yanks and Turks have a different idea of the meaning of democracy.

 

 

[spacesailor]

Paragliding is a Big rage in Turkey.

 

I had a flight over the "BlueLagoon".

 

spacesilor

 

 

[Methusala]

I think that Turkey might end up threatening the US in Syria if it gets the Russian jets. Another headache for Bolton and Net-an-yahoo.

 

 

[willedoo]

It looks like Erdogan will know by next week if the F-35 deal is permanently off. He was just at MAKS and has left a team there to talk turkey (no pun intended) on loan deals and possible offset production in Turkey. As well as the Su-57 and Su-35, the press is saying he's also interested in the new MiG-35. It could be a future replacement for their F-16's.

 

It's looking like the Turks have finally had enough of the US and EU having a lend of them.

 

 

[willedoo]

On 8/29/2019 at 12:48 PM, Methusala said:

 

This is the plane that Russia is offering to Turkey in place of the F-35:

 

It will be interesting to get a closer at the pilot's kit once more of them are operational. Most of the proposed gear seen so far has been worn by the test pilots in the Su-57.  The Air Force has ordered 76 of them to arm three air regiments, so only time will tell whether they use the old gear or new.

 

Here's the ZSh-10 helmet for the Su-57. It's a total new design compared to the current ZSh-7.

 

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Not many changes with the mask - just a slight geometry change and a cutaway hardshell to access the bendable metal insert for nasal area adjustment. Similar to the current U.S. masks.

 

And a new anti gravity suit.

 

It would be good to get a more detailed look at it, but it seems to be standard speed jeans with a pressure jerkin type of top added. Not sure about the reasoning behind it, compared with what they already have available. Possibly to function as a light weight summer suit/G suit/pressure jerkin.

 

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[willedoo]

They've also been working on a new design of the anti gravity system in the Su-57, which they're claiming to have a 9G capability. Basically a system of computerized sensors that read all the parameters - altitude, airspeed, flight control inputs etc., which will predict the G level likely to be experienced and deliver the pressure just slightly before it's needed. The problem with current systems is that they're reactionary and are always delivering pressure with a slight time lag. Basically pulling the G's first, then getting the air pressure to compensate.

 

 

[facthunter]

They are ALL stark raving MAD.  The ME because of OIL is a boiling cesspit of potential catastrophe. The US has always regarded the ME as" OUR" OIL. and allowed the most extreme form of Islam Wahhabism to spread with oil dollars. probably because it's against Iran which is not an Arab country and is Shiia

 

The USA provide plenty of actions to MAKE enemies of more than 1/2 of the world quite easily but they don't appear to care  as long as they remain Top Dog and can manipulate capital. That's not likely to continue forever so what is the future if indeed we even have one? Nev

 

 

[willedoo]

The USA provide plenty of actions to MAKE enemies of more than 1/2 of the world quite easily but they don't appear to care  as long as they remain Top Dog and can manipulate capital. That's not likely to continue forever so what is the future if indeed we even have one? Nev

 

Very good question, Nev. If things stay on the current path, it can only get worse. On the other side of the coin, how would or could things change for the better. China and Russia do a lot of talking about how the current unipolar world is failing us, and the need in the future for a more multipolar way of running things. Sounds good in theory at least. Russia and China have a lot of friends and allies among nations, but they would need the Europeans on board for anything like that to work.

 

The U.S. has problems due to biting off more than they can chew, which is sending them broke. It's only the power of the dollar, and as you say, capital manipulation that keeps them afloat. But they seem to be increasingly swimming against the tide these days. It's hard to understand their continual mischief around the world, and what the point of it is. I suspect there's a lot of irrational thought goes into it, and a lot of flawed reasoning. The U.S. is no doubt sailing into stormy waters, and at times like that, friends matter. But they seem to be shooting themselves in the foot in that department. China, Russia, and the Europeans have genuine friends, whereas the U.S. has only vassals, most of whom would drop Uncle Sam like a hot rock if they had the power to stand on their own two feet.

 

 

[willedoo]

On the subject of the Su-57, here's a photo of it's OBOGS unit, the KS-50. Looks simple enough on the outside. There hasn't been much published about it's performance, but it appears to work ok. The U.S. has been having a bit of hypoxia trouble with their units in some aircraft types. Seems to be gremlins that are very hard to identify in a lot of cases.

 

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[Methusala]

Th USA has a particularly severe geographical problem in attaining their hoped aim of world domination, being isolated from the rest of the 'rich' world by 2 oceans. This is why they have in excess of 200 foreign bases. The Russians have the largest gas reserves in the world and can supply customers through pipelines. China has the greatest industrial potential and can supply the largest percentage of their markets via the belt and road project.

 

Projection of power by the USA requires total naval dominance and this is unlikely to be achieved because:

 

a. The US does not have the industrial capacity to realise this.

 

b. They probably aren't able to overcome the corruption inherent in their neocon capitalist system to deliver the defence hardware needed, and,

 

c. As Keating colorfully put it , "Aircraft carriers go blub, blub, blub."

 

The US 'freedom gas', is more expensive than the Russian and it must be delivered by (vulnerable) ships, not static pipelines. The Europeans are showing that they understand and are enthusiastically embracing Nord Stream 2.

 

I understand that Trump wishes to de-escalate US military interference in the world so as to concentrate on re-powering the domestic productive economy. He has to face the reality that Commander in Chief does not carry as much power as Putin or Xi can exercise in their respective spheres.

 

This may all become irrelevant if the globe becomes uninhabitable within a few years.

 

 

[willedoo]

Th USA has a particularly severe geographical problem in attaining their hoped aim of world domination, being isolated from the rest of the 'rich' world by 2 oceans. This is why they have in excess of 200 foreign bases. The Russians have the largest gas reserves in the world and can supply customers through pipelines. China has the greatest industrial potential and can supply the largest percentage of their markets via the belt and road project.

 

Projection of power by the USA requires total naval dominance and this is unlikely to be achieved because:

 

a. The US does not have the industrial capacity to realise this.

 

b. They probably aren't able to overcome the corruption inherent in their neocon capitalist system to deliver the defence hardware needed, and,

 

c. As Keating colorfully put it , "Aircraft carriers go blub, blub, blub."

 

The US 'freedom gas', is more expensive than the Russian and it must be delivered by (vulnerable) ships, not static pipelines. The Europeans are showing that they understand and are enthusiastically embracing Nord Stream 2.

 

I understand that Trump wishes to de-escalate US military interference in the world so as to concentrate on re-powering the domestic productive economy. He has to face the reality that Commander in Chief does not carry as much power as Putin or Xi can exercise in their respective spheres.

 

This may all become irrelevant if the globe becomes uninhabitable within a few years.

 

Methusala, I think you hit the nail right on the head.

 

 

[Old Koreelah]

 America has lost its way. 

 

This once great democracy has been corrupted by an ultra-wealthy elite who steal with impunity.

 

They elected an outsider to "drain the swamp", but he turned out to be the biggest reptile of all.

 

Science is ridiculed, religious nutters are rarely questioned and politics is fatally polarised.

 

Paranoia seems to be out of control. The place is awash with guns and their arms industry has a stranglehold on foregn policy; with only a fifth of the world's people they spend more on weapons than the rest of the world combined.  Since WWII they've bullied much of the world with their military and economic power, but now their almighty  dollar is on the slide. Several countries are building alternative trading currencies so they can escape US sanctions. 

 

We in the outer empire worry that Uncle Sam might not come to our aid if we really need them, so we redouble our efforts to ingratiate ourselves. We live in worrying times, perhaps more so than 1929 or 1939.

 

 

[facthunter]

They will come when it suites them and leave you hanging when and IF it suites them. The Military Industrial Complex is alive and well even if it's existence kills us all. PROFIT rules. They have always created enemies to justify their expenditure. and dominance. Cowboys, the WILD West and slavery have never quite gone from the scene. Democracy for them has been a useful COVER to clothe their exploits in but is so selective and corrupted to now have little meaning . The People don't get much say  nor real information which are the essential basics of a functioning democracy. Nev

 

 

[Yenn]

Where is there a real democracy? Certainly not in Australia or the USA. The UK democracy looks to be folding up. I think I agree with Churchill.

 

 

[facthunter]

At the moment quite a few Poms etc would agree with you.  Shutting down the Parliament isn't a good look. It's the PEOPLE's house. We will see  how this one works out. Nev