Four Il-76 airlifters confirmed as destroyed in Russia�s Pskov � Ukrainian intel
   

Following the overnight drone attack on Russia�s Pskov, four enemy Il-76 strategic and tactical airlifters were destroyed.
The relevant statement was made by Andrii Yusov, the representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate at the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, in a commentary to Ukrinform.

�Yes, we officially confirm this information. Four Il-76 [airlifters] have been destroyed and cannot be restored. A few more units [planes] were damaged. As for those damaged, the information is being checked,� Yusov told.

https://www.ukrinform.net/rubric-ato/3754871-four-il76-airlifters-confirmed-as-destroyed-in-russias-pskov-ukrainian-intel.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E62gTNJbaug

well burn 

In fact, this is not quite so. I am an ecologist, I myself took part in the examination of environmental disasters. But I do not see much propaganda in Russia for the use of fossil fuel sources. This is because there is no point in such propaganda and the Russian energy system is unified. The degree of development of various energy sectors does not depend on ordinary people. We have enough other propaganda, as in any other country)).
In general, gas-fired power plants prevail in Russia (about 50%). Nuclear power plants (about 16%) and hydro generation (about 18%) make up a significant part. Coal accounts for about 15%. The share of electricity produced from oil and renewable sources is very small. But many people associate the future of Russian energy primarily with the development of nuclear and thermonuclear energy. There are plans for hydrogen energy on a worldwide scale.

Interesting, thanks. We have some papers that run propaganda for the fossil fuel industry daily. Constantly running with misleading/ discredited or cherry picked stats or even going as far as paying "academics" for hire that don't even work in the a related field to say in their opinion climate change is overblown or doesn't exist, or that various replacement tech doesn�t work. It�s gross.

EDIT: I was interested to look into this further. As implied by the "low base" phrase, total Gas imports from Russia (LGN plus pipeline) have  have plummeted (slightly older but to get an idea https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/infographics/eu-gas-supply/ or https://www.statista.com/statistics/1331770/eu-gas-imports-from-russia-by-route/) but LGN makes up a larger percentage of that much lower amount.

Yes, sanctions against russia are working and producing results. Although slowly, but the gas_station-country called russia is thrown out of the civilized market and civilized relations.
 

Quote from: stoker2014 on August 30, 2023, 11:16

the gas_station-country called russia

Correction: "Gas station run by a mafia masquerading as a country."

Correction: Legitimate mafia, which is supported by 80-95% of the population. And if you speak in a language understandable to Russian serfs, then this is not a mafia, but a tsar and boyars. 

Quote from: zastavkin on August 30, 2023, 06:59

Quote from: Justanotherphotographer on August 30, 2023, 06:44

Long term renewable resources and possibly nuclear are the only solution.

I don't have much confidence in renewable resources. Most of them are not environmentally friendly. For example, wind turbines in the US alone kill over half a million birds every year.
The future belongs to nuclear and thermonuclear energy.

Could you please publish the numbers of animals that died only because of the Chernobyl reactor disaster (not only birds are meant)? Or the number of birds that die due to the thawing of permafrost soils. Or by exhaust gases from fossil fuels.

You can't find any numbers or studies on this? Funny! Have you ever asked yourself why this is so? Why there are such numbers only for wind turbines?

Yes.

How about the estimated 480 million animals lost in our catastrophic Australian bushfires a couple of years ago - the highest rate of species lost of any area in the world at that time?

More recently:

- Maui Hawaii fires
- Florida/Georgia flooding - now
- Summer in the Northern Hemisphere is playing out like an apocalypse movie: a tale of heat, floods and fire. But scientists warn this may only be a preview of the unpredictable chaos to come if the world continues to pump out planet-heating pollution. (https://edition.cnn.com/2023/07/19/world/extreme-weather-heat-floods-abnormal-climate-scn/index.html)

and also food crops:

- Climate change has ravaged India�s rice stock. Now its export ban could deepen a global food crisis (https://edition.cnn.com/2023/08/28/business-india/india-rice-ban-export-farmers-loss-intl-hnk-dst/index.html)

Is nuclear power a zero-emissions energy source?

"No. Nuclear energy is also responsible for greenhouse gas emissions. In fact, no energy source is completely free of emissions, but more on that later.

When it comes to nuclear, uranium extraction, transport and processing produces emissions. The long and complex construction process of nuclear power plants also releases CO2, as does the demolition of decommissioned sites. And, last but not least, nuclear waste also has to be transported and stored under strict conditions � here, too, emissions must be taken into account.

Yes. Any energy production is accompanied by thermal and other pollution of the planet. Therefore, in order to reduce the negative effect, technologies are being developed for a closed nuclear fuel cycle that provides access to 99% of the energy of uranium.  With this technology, waste from the nuclear industry is used as fuel. https://globalenergyprize.org/en/2022/05/18/georgy-tikhomirov-a-closed-nuclear-fuel-cycle-opens-up-access-to-99-percent-of-uraniums-energy/

Power plants depend on nearby water sources to cool their reactors, and with many rivers drying up, those sources of water are no longer guaranteed."

Nuclear desalination. Desalination of salt water using nuclear power can help solve problems with a lack of fresh water. In the arid regions of the USSR, this technology has been used since the early 1970s. (For example, the nuclear desalination plant at the Shevchenko NPP, which operated the world's first industrial fast neutron reactor). Such technologies can be a way out to solve the lack of fresh water on a global scale.

And yes, we also use solar energy))) https://www.shutterstock.com/en/image-photo/green-energy-on-your-balcony-multistorey-1981054277

Quote from: Annie on August 30, 2023, 18:41

(and yes, Australia is still producing coal - something I am very shameful to admit. But we (the voters) are trying. We voted out the last government - but the new one is so far no better. The politics are disgusting and we are running out of time.)

I looked at the statistics. Really. Coal-fired power plants in Australia accounted for about 54% of electricity generation in 2020. For comparison: in India in 2020 - 71%, in China 57%, in the USA 19%, in Russia - 16%.

Have a look at carbon emissions into the atmosphere, and you will get a different story if you're looking for total impact.

Australia is usually listed in the top 20 world offenders for global heating mainly due to our coal production/mining (the latter causing methane emissions) and keeping in mind that 70% is exported overseas. Plus you have to remember that we have a very small population (less than 1/10th of USA in a country approximately the same size geographically) so don't look at any per-capita stats. Basically, we are a big country with lots of natural resources that we sell to the rest of the world*.

But USA, Russia, China, India are usually in the top 5 worst CO2 emitters in the world overall.**

Anyway, its not a competition - its about everyone doing their share to fix this problem.



* If you're interested: "Australia is one of the leaders in uranium and gold mining. Australia has the largest gold reserves in the world, and they supply about 14.3% of the world�s demand. Australia is known for its vast reserve of iron ore, copper, timber, nickel, oil shale, rare earth metals, and coal. Australia is the top producers of opal and aluminum."


** 2021 article - but the most recent source I can find quickly: https://www.theweek.co.uk/news/environment/954661/climate-change-the-worst-offenders

(and yes, Australia is still producing coal - something I am very shameful to admit. But we (the voters) are trying. We voted out the last government - but the new one is so far no better. The politics are disgusting and we are running out of time.)

Don't worry about it. It is very good that Australia mines coal. Poland and Germany also mine it. Now there is a third world war, and there will not always be enough gas and green energy. Coal is a good alternative.
Moreover, the Russians are thrown out of the market with their gas.

The source said: �It�s a newer, more capable aircraft, which has a longer range and stealth, which is crucial if you are going to use them to accurately drop nuclear bombs.�

A total of 110 US nuclear bombs were stored at RAF Lakenheath until 2008, when they were removed after the threat of nuclear war subsided.

Both the Ministry of Defence and No 10 declined to comment on whether American nuclear warheads had or would be deployed to the UK.

However, the defence source added: �Why we have a special relationship with the US is because we talk to them, they talk to us and we don�t divulge secrets.�

The potential return of US nuclear weapons to British soil has been described by experts as evidence that the West has entered a new cold war.

Hamish de Bretton-Gordon, a former commander of Britain and Nato�s Joint Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Regiment, said: �This is absolutely a cold war and it is strategic brinkmanship. This is a game of poker. If the US is putting nukes in the UK, it�s a message to Russia that they are serious.

�The deterrent is only a deterrent if the enemy thinks you will use it. That�s worked for the last 75 years, but we are now in a position where a tyrant in an unstable country is threatening to use nuclear weapons and the only way to stop them is to make them see they will get it back in spades.�

Prof Malcolm Chalmers, of the Royal United Services Institute think tank, said building on the airbase means the US �could move them a lot more quickly in a time of rising tensions�, adding: �They want the option of bringing them over.�

Matt Hancock, whose West Suffolk constituency covers RAF Lakenheath, said he welcomed the �potential expansion�.

�I know only too well how special RAF Lakenheath is and recognise the importance of reinforcing our commitment to shared security and democratic values,� he said.

�The people of West Suffolk have long been proud to welcome American service personnel who live in our community. We must continue to support and stand shoulder to shoulder with our American friends and allies, especially in the face of Putin�s menacing aggression.�

�Strategic alliance�
Tobias Ellwood, the chairman of the defence select committee, said: �If the Americans believe they need to store nuclear weapons this side of the Atlantic, it is a massive indicator of how dangerous and complex our world is becoming.�

Mr Ellwood added that the UK is �part of a strategic alliance� in which �the US is our closest partner�, adding: �If they believe it is in wider security interests to place these weapons in the UK, then we should be supportive of that.�

Hans Kristensen, the director of the Nuclear Information Project at the Federation of American Scientists think tank, said analysis of official US government budgetary documents showed upgrades to RAF Lakenheath that could enable nuclear weapons to be moved to the site if required.

Currently, there are around 150 American-controlled B-61 nuclear gravity bombs stationed in Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy and Turkey.

�We are now seeing signs that they may establish nuclear weapons at Lakenheath,� Mr Kristensen told The Telegraph.

He explained the new funding secured for the base would be to �both upgrade the storage facilities for nuclear weapons and add living quarters for personnel to do the mission�.

However, Mr Kristensen warned that Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, would have to agree to any nuclear weapons being stored on British soil, as well as Nato because of its nuclear posture in Europe.

He added that any such deployment of nuclear weapons would have to be authorised by the US president.

The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) has vowed to stop American nuclear weapons from returning to UK soil. CND warned that if such weapons do return to Britain, it would �make the UK once again a forward nuclear base for the US�.

What F-16s will do for Ukraine (and what they won't)

https://youtu.be/N5hvMECcG7o

"Ukrainians have exceeded expectations again and again," says NATO chief

https://edition.cnn.com/videos/world/2023/08/30/exp-amanpour-ukraine-nato-stoltenberg-intw-083001pseg3-cnni-world.cnn

Russian military death toll in Ukraine rises to 263,490

 

The Armed Forces of Ukraine eliminated about 263,490 Russian invaders in Ukraine from February 24, 2022 to September 1, 2023, including 470 invaders in the past day alone.

https://www.ukrinform.net/rubric-ato/3755629-russian-military-death-toll-in-ukraine-rises-to-263490.html

Quote from: Annie on August 04, 2023, 16:15

Yes, there are! But I believe that the real power lies within the individuals, the voters, and that we are the ones who collectively will make a difference. But that means becoming independent thinkers.

My background is that I embraced Buddhism when I was much younger. But I am often not a very good Buddhist. I get angry, I take sides, my ego starts to take over, and I get embroiled in people's dramas. But when I see that happening, I leave the groups and disappear for a while, increase my meditation practice, and loose myself in my creative pursuits. That's why you often see me delete my posts that are not kind or too controversial or disappear from here for a while when I feel I am becoming too involved.

I am not saying that everyone should become a Buddhist (LOL) but its my way of becoming independent again. I also believe that education is important. My ex-father-in-law was an English teacher and he used to say: education, real education, doesn't give you the answers - it teaches you the questions to ask.

I have a lot of respect for you too, Wilm. I find you to be a highly educated and very understanding man and I love reading your posts - and I am sure you know all of this too.

I wrote a lot in the beginning of this thread about not labelling people, not taking sides, and understanding what is REALLY going on in the world. I believe that makes us more and more impervious to being manipulated by greedy or power hungry politicians and leaders.

This is a very strange philosophy during the war. And this philosophy will not save from evil.
Naz.is should be called Naz.is, Russians should be called rashists and orcs. Enemies must be eliminated. Everything is very simple.

I didn't see this before, but I would like to reply.

The Dalai Lama has had direct experience with this when China annexed Tibet when he was a young man, and the Buddhists had to flee the country and settled in India, which by the way was largely responsible for bringing the teachings of Buddhism to the western world. Prior to that, it was mainly isolated to Tibet.  So I wanted to see what he said about war.

Just briefly, he has said different things at different times, depending on different circumstances, whether to flee/walk away or whether to defend. But the bottom line in whatever you choose, is hatred.

In Buddhism, it is the level of hate you have for offenders that you have to let go of. Hatred is the most destruction of emotions, and it will never repair what you have lost or provide the right solutions.

Also remember Gandhi brought down the powerful British empire through peaceful resistance. This may be a different situation, but there are lessons to be learnt from it: �If this Empire seems an evil thing to me, it is not because I hate the British, I hate only the Empire.� 

For me personally, I believe its politics and megalomaniacs who cause wars, and they should be the targets (to fix or eliminate, often through the dissemination of truth to the people. The people have so much power.) but not to hate a whole country just because they were manipulated into believing what these leaders told them.

But can you defend your country through love for your country and not hate the other side? That is the difficult part - but something we should all aim for.