Russia

[Dave from down under]

It would be a good use of public money to send them there ASAP.

[johnpcapitalist]

Russia to US and Canadian right wing nutjobs, "Come home to Mother Russia! We hate the same people you do!"

Russian authorities will launch construction of a village outside Moscow for conservative-minded Americans and Canadians next year, the state-run RIA Novosti news agency reported Thursday.

Timur Beslangurov, a migration lawyer at Moscow’s VISTA Foreign Business Support, claimed that “around 200 families” wish to emigrate to Russia for “ideological reasons.”

I would bet money that within 5 years, those "immigrants" would be whining about how their embassies are doing enough to let them "come home" to the US or Canada. Not to mention they would be upset that they would be expected to learn Russian. And gun ownership in Russia is rather....dicey.

That is, assuming they didn't all end up fertilizing Ukrainian sunflowers after being used as cannon fodder.

They're obviously trolling us. I think we should troll them (and the nutjobs) back by proposing changes to the current sanctions regime to allow "temporary exports of construction equipment, electrical construction material, household appliances (including washing machines), etc. in sufficient numbers to support construction of new dwellings for as many American and Canadian family units register a desire to emigrate to Russia with their respective governments." Also grant waivers of embargoed firearms so each American expat family can take as many guns with them legally as they can carry.

Fox News and company would lose their shit if Dark Brandon pulled a move like that.

[RVInit]

Russia to US and Canadian right wing nutjobs, "Come home to Mother Russia! We hate the same people you do!"

Russian authorities will launch construction of a village outside Moscow for conservative-minded Americans and Canadians next year, the state-run RIA Novosti news agency reported Thursday.

Timur Beslangurov, a migration lawyer at Moscow’s VISTA Foreign Business Support, claimed that “around 200 families” wish to emigrate to Russia for “ideological reasons.”

I would bet money that within 5 years, those "immigrants" would be whining about how their embassies are doing enough to let them "come home" to the US or Canada. Not to mention they would be upset that they would be expected to learn Russian. And gun ownership in Russia is rather....dicey.

That is, assuming they didn't all end up fertilizing Ukrainian sunflowers after being used as cannon fodder.

They're obviously trolling us. I think we should troll them (and the nutjobs) back by proposing changes to the current sanctions regime to allow "temporary exports of construction equipment, electrical construction material, household appliances (including washing machines), etc. in sufficient numbers to support construction of new dwellings for as many American and Canadian family units register a desire to emigrate to Russia with their respective governments." Also grant waivers of embargoed firearms so each American expat family can take as many guns with them legally as they can carry.

Fox News and company would lose their shit if Dark Brandon pulled a move like that.

I like it. Especially the part where they can take as many guns as they can carry.

[Dave from down under]

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-05-12/ ... /102336812

A Russian court has given a two-year suspended sentence to a St Petersburg woman who left a note on the grave of President Vladimir Putin's parents that said they had "raised a freak and a killer".

Key points:
Irina Tsybaneva placed the note on the guarded grave on the eve of Mr Putin's birthday in October
It said Mr Putin "causes so much pain and trouble" and "the whole world prays for his death"
Critics say the Kremlin's sweeping campaign of repression has effectively criminalised criticism of the war

The court on Thursday local time found Irina Tsybaneva, 60, guilty of desecrating burial places motivated by political hatred.

Prosecutors had sought a three-year suspended sentence.

Her lawyer said she did not plead guilty because she had not desecrated the grave physically or sought publicity for her action.

Tsybaneva placed the note on the guarded grave on the eve of Mr Putin's birthday in October.

"Parents of a maniac, take him to your place," it read. "He causes so much pain and trouble. The whole world prays for his death. Death to Putin. You raised a freak and a killer."

According to the SOTA news site, Tsybaneva does not plan to appeal against the verdict.

She said she wrote the note after she watched the news about the war in Ukraine and "understood that everything is very scary, everything is very sad, and there are many dead", according to another news outlet, Mediazona.

etc

[John Thomas8]

[johnpcapitalist]

Sounds a bit like the Wunderwaffe in WWII.

Russia has a wee problem in producing what it announces. The (allegedly) fifth-generation Su-57 fighter has been in "full production" for something like 20 years, but they have a grand total of around ten aircraft in service. Compare that to the US F-35 production capacity, which is currently cranking out something like 150 examples year-in and year-out. Even Low-Rate Initial Production (LRIP), the program phase where you debug the production line, was cranking out more than ten units per year.

A fifth-generation fighter ought to be a national strategic imperative, particularly when you're trying to defend yourself against an imagined NATO invasion, since the USAF doctrine is to establish air superiority first and then invade. If you can't take on the F-35, it's going to be game over fairly quickly. But with 20 years of fear of NATO as a motivation, they still can't figure out how to build it.

Oh, by the way, anyone who knows anything about how you build stealth capabilities laughs at the Su-57 because you can peer into the inlet ducts and see fan blades for the engine. Those are highly radar reflective from forward angles so that disqualifies you at the starting line to be considered a true "stealth" aircraft.

But I digress.

The point of all this is that with the Su-57 example in mind, you can imagine just how awful Russian ability to produce this new Wunderwaffe might be, even if Putin declares it to be the highest possible priority.

The idea of an unmanned nuclear torpedo has a few other small problems. In addition to reliability, guidance and the ability to actually fulfill the mission, there's the small problem of what happens when one of these breaks. It surfaces and then at that exact moment, a nuclear warhead is up for grabs by anyone who can be the first boat alongside. While Al Qaeda probably isn't in the running, deploying in the Mediterranean would give Syria and Egypt a shot at stealing a nuke. Then the problem is what you do if someone steals a warhead? Do you detonate the warhead, which is a significant problem, or do you merely detonate a scuttling charge? In the latter case, you have a chance to scatter radioactive dust over a long distance. That either triggers a war or makes Russia more of a pariah than it already is.

We've already seen the Iranians simply grab US unmanned reconnaissance vessels operating in the Persian Gulf and dare us to do something about it, which we haven't. And they knew it going in.

So the chance that this actually gets deployed, if it can even be produced, seems fairly remote.

[RTH10260]

re the Poseidon thing: now that Russia is under western embargo for electronics it must be very difficult to produce advanced weapons in mass. Where are the electronics to use in the production machinery in the first place, not to think of what needs to go into such a torpedo.

[RTH10260]

For some time now I have been wondering about the Russian military production capabilities in general. Ukraine has been picking on the Russian tanks and personell carriers at a constant rate. We do not see any newly built replacements arriving. Instead I see reports of mothballed post-WWII tanks getting pulled from storage and an intent to get them running again and have them ugraded to current standards. But yet have to see them in the front line. Strange to me is that the news shows facility in the far east of Russia but nothing anywhere nearer to the war line.

ps. add to this that Russia is dependant on Iranian and N.Koran drones ....

[johnpcapitalist]

For some time now I have been wondering about the Russian military production capabilities in general.

ps. add to this that Russia is dependant on Iranian and N.Koran drones ....

They are extremely dependent on Western technology for almost all critical parts, because of the kleptocracy. If you sell ball bearings to the military in Russia, it's far easier to just import Western products and slap a big markup on them, which is approved by the procurement agents you've bribed, than it is to figure out how to actually build them yourself.

If you're an honest program manager in the military trying to actually build products instead of stealing as much as you can, importing Western components is a good idea because at least you'll be able to trust the quality. Russian stuff would likely be crap and they've merely bribed the inspectors to make them look good.

Parts like bearings or valves for applications like cars and food processing plants are hard enough to build well these days. But they're exponentially more complex in military applications. Valves in submarines must be not only reliable but incredibly quiet so they don't give away the location of a submarine. In nuclear powered subs, they are handling high-heat and high-pressure reactor coolant, so there's no room for a problem, ever. Impact on the wheel bearings for the landing gear of a large transport aircraft when landing are enormous, and the loss of a single large transport aircraft can be a significant problem in combat.

The inherent problem with a distributed supply chain is that one late part means you have nearly completed equipment sitting on the ramp. You're vulnerable at thousands of points along the way. That's why it was impossible to buy a new car at any price during much of the pandemic -- a single semiconductor part meant you couldn't ship that new SUV.

We're finally working our way out of this situation. The short term kinks naturally worked themselves out given time, as most countries are now fully open. Longer-term, there's a huge push towards "near-shoring" (Mexico instead of China) or "friend-shoring" (moving to more closely allied countries like Malaysia instead of China).

But Russia has no way to work out of the hole that they dug with their corruption. Even if they find ways to bypass sanctions for 90% of affected parts, the other 10% mean they won't be able to ship completed product for almost anything interesting.

And the Ukrainian and Western intelligence agencies are certainly paying attention to captured Russian equipment. They're looking at the wreckage of every tank they blow up, particularly anything looking like new production, to see what they left out. If they find that Russians are shipping new T-90 tanks without laser missile defenses or with manual engine control units, then they'll change doctrine to exploit that in short order.

[Sam the Centipede]

Further on Russia's supply problems: someone mused (or reported, I can't vouch for reliability) that Ukraine had been quietly buying black market spares for its T-series Soviet/Russian tanks before the invasion. This was a doubly good move: Ukraine built a stockpile of spares for its tanks while Russia found that its own tanks were missing components that had been sold to dealers, and there was little inventory on the shelves.

[Sam the Centipede]

The inherent problem with a distributed supply chain is that one late part means you have nearly completed equipment sitting on the ramp. You're vulnerable at thousands of points along the way. That's why it was impossible to buy a new car at any price during much of the pandemic -- a single semiconductor part meant you couldn't ship that new SUV.

We're finally working our way out of this situation. The short term kinks naturally worked themselves out given time, as most countries are now fully open. Longer-term, there's a huge push towards "near-shoring" (Mexico instead of China) or "friend-shoring" (moving to more closely allied countries like Malaysia instead of China).

I was never convinced by the frenzied pursuit of "just in time" inventory management: it seemed close to "almost too late". Sometimes shouting and waving contracts cannot guarantee that the supplier will deliver the necessary goodies when needed.

Obviously there is a cost to holding extra inventory, I'm not denying that. That can be the price of prudence.

[Slim Cognito]

Further on Russia's supply problems: someone mused (or reported, I can't vouch for reliability) that Ukraine had been quietly buying black market spares for its T-series Soviet/Russian tanks before the invasion. This was a doubly good move: Ukraine built a stockpile of spares for its tanks while Russia found that its own tanks were missing components that had been sold to dealers, and there was little inventory on the shelves.

Am I unrealistic in hoping that the missing components Russia needed are, in some cases, the same parts Ukraine stockpiled?

[Dave from down under]

Further on Russia's supply problems: someone mused (or reported, I can't vouch for reliability) that Ukraine had been quietly buying black market spares for its T-series Soviet/Russian tanks before the invasion. This was a doubly good move: Ukraine built a stockpile of spares for its tanks while Russia found that its own tanks were missing components that had been sold to dealers, and there was little inventory on the shelves.

Am I unrealistic in hoping that the missing components Russia needed are, in some cases, the same parts Ukraine stockpiled?

It is likely that they are the Russian parts that are in the Ukrainian tanks...

Another victory for capitalism!

[Sam the Centipede]

Yes, this war is between two ex-Soviet Union countries so they started with identical models of tanks in large part. Also, Ukraine sometimes captures Russian tanks or collects abandoned tanks (being wary of booby traps) and restores them to its own service.

At all stages, Ukraine has been more agile and intelligent than doltish, uncomprehending Russia, and not stupid enough to let contempt for their enemy lead them into miscalculation. As JohnP has emphasized, Russia's oligarchic kleptocracy and pervasive corruption are a major problem which it cannot overcome.

Some serious problems one can "throw money at." But in Russia that won't help: someone will just steal the money and leave the country!

[keith]

The inherent problem with a distributed supply chain is that one late part means you have nearly completed equipment sitting on the ramp. You're vulnerable at thousands of points along the way. That's why it was impossible to buy a new car at any price during much of the pandemic -- a single semiconductor part meant you couldn't ship that new SUV.

We're finally working our way out of this situation. The short term kinks naturally worked themselves out given time, as most countries are now fully open. Longer-term, there's a huge push towards "near-shoring" (Mexico instead of China) or "friend-shoring" (moving to more closely allied countries like Malaysia instead of China).

I was never convinced by the frenzied pursuit of "just in time" inventory management: it seemed close to "almost too late". Sometimes shouting and waving contracts cannot guarantee that the supplier will deliver the necessary goodies when needed.

Obviously there is a cost to holding extra inventory, I'm not denying that. That can be the price of prudence.

I never did get my brain around the sense of "almost too late" (as you call it, quite correctly). I worked on many systems that relied on it, and testing showed the vulnerabilities time and again. But programmers program, analysers analyse, and bean counters count beans.

I once watched as a seat belt manufacturer failed to deliver an order an 5 days later the entire car plant was shut down for a month.

[Ben-Prime]

When I was doing my master's degree work in Operations and Project Management a few years back, specifically in one of my Service Management courses, I espoused the unpopular position -- the professor disagreed but respectfully so; others were more vehement -- that J-I-T was a deliberate choice to make the supply chain less goods-intensive but more labor-intensive because management will always value labor less than goods and can find ways to make that mindset the truth.

Put more simply: While it is a waste of work-hours to spend more time chasing just-in-time inventory, some types of management view worker time as worth less than the inventory costs, since they are already paying for the labor; and even when shown how it inevitably costs more, they can't get over squeezing the most of out of the baked-in labor costs.

How this relates to the Russian view of labor versus capital assets, well, let us say no more.

[Foggy]

This is an endlessly fascinating thread. I learn so much here.

[Ben-Prime]

Off Topic

This is an endlessly fascinating thread. I learn so much here.

I feel the same way reading you say that that I felt today in my last day at Mission UK. My current department head -- the straight-up best of the 4 department heads I've had in 2 countries -- sat down at my cafeteria table when I showed up for a token appearance today (turning in my spare flat keys, my badge, etc., then running the rest of my hopping-on-a-plane-tomorrow errands, but also one last Breakfast in the Embassy cafeteria) and spent about 20 minutes over our breakfast wraps telling me that he's learned a great deal about both scientific service management *and* soft customer service skills from me than he thought he would. Bear in mind, dude is a retired E9 Marine Infantry grunt who taught himself programming while serving as a Drill Instructor at Quantico, earned his CS degree after retiring from the military, then started a 20+ year second career as a Foreign Service IT guy of which this is probably his last post before retirement. So he has forgotten more about both leadership and about IT than I will ever know.

But he told me I've filled in some gaps in his hands-on management knowledge with my own training, experience, and mindset, and that my writing skills surpass his and he's learned some rhetorical tricks from me. And that made me feel 10 feet tall and bulletproof all day despite the exhaustion of running around like a headless chi-----er, sorry, Foggy.

[Foggy]

[keith]

Every success at your new post.

[neeneko]

Put more simply: While it is a waste of work-hours to spend more time chasing just-in-time inventory, some types of management view worker time as worth less than the inventory costs, since they are already paying for the labor; and even when shown how it inevitably costs more, they can't get over squeezing the most of out of the baked-in labor costs.

JIT also requires more management, or at minimal more work to give middle managers. It requires a lot more collection of metrics and generation of reports than earlier systems.

Software dev hit the same thing.. JIT software development ends up requiring a LOT of man hours spent on metrics and reporting, all to produce something that is more expensive and buggy.

[RTH10260]

Russia issues arrest order for British ICC prosecutor after Putin warrant
Interior ministry seeks to detain Karim Khan in wake of allegations against president over abducted Ukrainian children

Andrew Roth
Fri 19 May 2023 18.34 BST

The Russian government has put the British prosecutor of the international criminal court (ICC) on a wanted list in an act of retribution after the Hague-based court issued an arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin for allegedly overseeing the abduction of Ukrainian children.

The arrest order said Russia’s interior ministry was seeking to detain Karim Khan, who has served as the ICC prosecutor since 2021.

In March, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Putin and Russia’s commissioner for children’s rights, Maria Lvova-Belova, on allegations they facilitated the forced deportation of thousands of children from Ukraine to Russia, where many have been placed with Russian families.




https://www.theguardian.com/law/2023/ma ... karim-khan

[John Thomas8]

[RTH10260]

Looks like the independant anti-Russian fighters have delivered another reminder that the capital of Russia is not immune

Ukraine war latest: Russia says Ukraine has attacked Moscow with drones; Kyiv 'knows where Putin is in real-time'

5h ago - 14:42
'Thank God nothing exploded': Russians describe what happened during drone attack

Although attacks have become familiar for Ukrainians, civilians in Russia appeared confused as they came under assault from drones in Moscow.

One local resident, who did not give their name, said: "I heard an explosion but I didn't understand.

"I looked out of the window and didn't understand what happened. I thought maybe it's an earthquake, but then I figured out that it's most likely a drone."

Another resident, who also chose to remain anonymous, said they had seen police and security outside their building.

"I went out to find out what happened. They said it seemed that an UAV got into the apartment, the wings fell down, it crashed into the glass, the wings fell down, and the (UAV) body landed inside the apartment.

"There are three young girls in the apartment. Thank God nothing exploded."

Another described hearing a propeller sound shortly after 5am followed by a loud bang and the sound of shattered glass falling to the ground.

They said police had later cordoned the area off.




part of https://news.sky.com/story/ukraine-war- ... t-12541713

[RTH10260]

‘Spymania’ grips Russian security services amid sharp rise in treason cases
The recent arrest of a number of high-profile scientists has led the scientific community to fear they are being targeted by the Kremlin

Andrew Roth
Sun 4 Jun 2023 09.21 BST

As Russia’s war in Ukraine has grown into an existential conflict for the Kremlin over the past 15 months, its search for internal enemies has intensified, with a sharp rise in treason cases that experts have equated to a “spymania”.

While many of the treason cases focus on those allegedly fighting for or aiding Ukraine, others have burrowed into seemingly loyal state institutions, such as the scientific research centres that helped research the very weaponry that Russia is using to strike Ukraine.

Last week, the first of three hypersonic missile scientists to have been arrested on suspicion of treason went on trial in a case where the evidence and accusations remain secret. All were from a single institute in Novosibirsk, the Khristianovich Institute of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics (ITAM).

Anatoly Maslov, a 76-year-old professor of aerodynamics at the institute, is thought to be suspected of passing secrets to China, possibly a result of his participation in international conferences on aerodynamics in the 2010s.

The arrest of the respected scientist and two colleagues has led to a rare backlash among the scientific community at his institute, which published an open letter calling for his release.

“We know each of these [scientists] as a patriot and a sound person incapable of doing what the investigators have accused them of,” wrote a collective of dozens of Maslov’s colleagues, who also demanded the release of Alexander Shiplyuk, the director of ITAM, and Valery Zvegintsev, a chief researcher.

The men could face the rest of their lives behind bars, the letters read, for their “quality” work that included presenting at international conferences, publishing in international journals and participating in international projects.

Maslov has had two heart attacks and spent time in hospital since his arrest last June in Novosibirsk, Reuters reported, citing a source close to the scientist.

The cases also put the entire scientific community at risk, the letter went on, and have sent a chilling effect across research areas to anything that could be deemed secret.




https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/ ... ason-cases