CMLVI

Yep, own a manual, driven manuals prior, and learned when I was young (conceptually at least, I grew up racing motorcycles, and the idea of clutch+shifting became a thing when I was about 8). Never formally was “taught” in a car, just got in and started driving one. Am 32 in Appalachia.

Democratic-> sovereign isn’t a backpedal; it’s describing two different things. You wouldn’t say that me describing some apples as green, and then saying there are 3 of them is somehow a reduction in the amount of green the apples are simple because I didn’t call them green again.

Sovereign describes the authority to do things on a territory. Ukraine is sovereign; they aren’t a territory of Russia, Ukraine answers to Ukraine on its own political matters. That does nothing to describe or rule-out democracy.

If I say “Ukraine is a democracy, who in 2019 held an election described as fair and free by international observers, in which the citizens elected a president of their own volition”, would you realize that me describing Ukraine as sovereign in no way, shape, or form, describes it’s elective process?

Cause if I need to, I will.

Sovereign as is the highest authority in the territory. The US is a sovereign nation. European countries are sovereign. In fact, most of the countries on the planet can be described as sovereign nations…

“Sovereign” does nothing to describe the type of governance the country has? Or do you have some wild insight about how sovereign actually means it’s an installed dictatorship?

So Putin, who is openly saying that the offensive isn’t going as planned, is OK sending tens of thousands of soldiers into the grinder agaisnt better equipment, just to go through surplus? He’s choosing to have thousands of Russians killed while sitting on equipment that could keep them safe?

What a guy. Noble cause he’s after, de-nazi-fying a sovereign nation, while also getting his citizens massacred in tank columns and shoddy equipment while he keeps the good stuff at home.

Unless that isn’t what he’s doing? But you did just say they were using old stuff on purpose. You wouldn’t be wrong, would you?

Lmao so what would you describe the massive losses Russia has taken in terms of lives, machinery, and munitions, as well as the open revolt Wagner engaged in? If Ukraine is losing fingers, teeth, and hearing, I imagine Russia has full on lost a limb and has bleeding to stabilize.

That rebellion was probably part of Put-daddy’s plan tho, right?