Superb by @phillipspobrien.bsky.social www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv... - ThreadSky

general-ben.bsky.social • 85 days ago

Superb by @phillipspobrien.bsky.social

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2024/11/biden-ukraine-policy-failures/680834/

Comments

joeh-mgil89.bsky.social•85 days ago

Yes, Joe Biden was RIGHT to treat the Ukraine War as a crisis for the US, one of several that could break out at any time (and one did, in Gaza). It was EUROPE'S job to win the war, and ours to support the European effort, while watching things in Korea, the Taiwan Straits, and elsewhere.

jussijk.bsky.social•84 days ago

So you are happy with how it has played out, I presume?

joeh-mgil89.bsky.social•84 days ago

No one is "happy" about these events, but I am relieved that the United States has been able to provide effective support without being over- committed.

your-nyan.bsky.social•85 days ago

The US disarmed Ukraine for empty promises, not Europe.

joeh-mgil89.bsky.social•85 days ago

The US "disarmed" Ukraine? You mean all those appropriations Republicans are complaining about were to buy arms off the Ukrainians?

your-nyan.bsky.social•85 days ago

Nuclear weapons, strategic bombers, long-range missiles worth trillions.

joeh-mgil89.bsky.social•85 days ago

Okay, the 1994 agreement. Point taken.

gailen.me•84 days ago

These are some valid criticisms of Biden BUT are we kidding ourselves if we think Trump will actually support Ukraine? Remember, he was impeached over trying to extort political favors from Ukraine by with-holding military aid. Trump's corrupt handling of foreign affairs suggests otherwise.

jtmunk.bsky.social•84 days ago

It was a good reading, but a little depressing

arcadiayarddog.bsky.social•85 days ago

Well, gee, I told him that over and over on Twitter but he wouldn't listen. He blew it and I'm pretty sure we can't count on the war criminal's #1 fan boy. And I'm pretty sure he blames Zelensky for his impeachment. He's already started his revenge tour. It's going to get ugly.

scrapcopper2024.bsky.social•84 days ago

Absolutely correct

ukraineman101.bsky.social•85 days ago

And this is why I was relieved to see Trump elected. At least Ukraine has a chance. With Biden Ukraine would have died..excruciatingly slowly. Maybe with Trump something different will happen.

your-nyan.bsky.social•85 days ago

Yeah, with Trump, we will quickly lose territory and start preparing for the next invasion with half of our former population.

ukraineman101.bsky.social•85 days ago

Look..I’m no Trump fan, but I think he’s going to provide Ukraine the means to fight a better fight than Biden has been. I guess we’ll have to wait and see, aye?

eg2602.bsky.social•85 days ago

Spot on. Too bad the west is sleeping itself into a weird settlement in Ukraine. Most people will not understand it, until the cheering starts in Moscow when the war is stopped, at that time it will be clear, that it is a loss for the west.

greglloyd28.bsky.social•85 days ago

Yes, it’s been agonising to watch

frankdelfinpupo.bsky.social•85 days ago

Just from the jump, I'm not bothering with this nonsense.

Biden did a brilliant job with something that had no good solutions.

How do I know that? New York isn't a smoking pile of nuclear rubble at the moment and Ukraine is still in the fight.

That's as valid as saying this was a "mess".

eg2602.bsky.social•85 days ago

Do you also measure Taiwan in the same way? Or Poland or Germany?
Your logic does not hold up besides it is in the Russian interest to keep the west afraid with Nuclear threats, but not in their interest to actually fire one.

frankdelfinpupo.bsky.social•85 days ago

And I believe, that Biden did a brilliant job of reading the room.

Seriously, the ACA was dead.

How do you think it got passed the finish line?

frankdelfinpupo.bsky.social•85 days ago

Are you asking questions? Or are you just bashing.

Because it seems here you are bashing.

I believe we must not only promote democracy at home, but defend it abroad.

We cannot be held hostage by nuclear threats.

richard2018.bsky.social•85 days ago

Ukraine is now allowed to make long-range strikes into Russia, and is doing so.
I observe that New York is still standing.
So why couldn't Biden have allowed that earlier?

frankdelfinpupo.bsky.social•85 days ago

Probably because he was taking incremental steps in the hope of both avoiding full scale war and testing Russia's resolve.

Seems they were bluffing, which is what they do quite often.

But you want to be very sure, when dealing with Nukes. A mistake means total annihilation.

ckimbs.bsky.social•85 days ago

Outstanding article that gets directly to the point, although doesn’t touch on how US policy adversely affected the European response in the early days of the war which from some countries was lamentable, be it financial sanctions against 🇷🇺 or supply of military equipment.

graham626.bsky.social•85 days ago

Ukraine’s primary issues seem to be manpower and force constitution related. All for pillorying Biden, but I’m not sure what he could do about Ukrainian manpower issues

your-nyan.bsky.social•85 days ago

Why would Ukrainians want to die in WWI-style trench warfare when the country that disarmed them sends obsolete shit instead of the capable weapons, and even that, in laughable numbers. People there are not dumb like you think of them in the US.

graham626.bsky.social•85 days ago

If it were up to me I would have sent everything on day 1, it wasn’t. Wish there was a way to defeat a ground incursion without ground forces, but I don’t believe that’s possible

your-nyan.bsky.social•85 days ago

Well, I haven't seen Americans ever fight a war in the way they forced Ukrainians to. Pretty sure ground attacks become much easier and safer after you bomb the enemy into dust.

After everything was delayed for 3 years and Ukrainians lost near half a million men, ofc there are manpower problems.

graham626.bsky.social•85 days ago

Korea was arguably the last time. Not sure what a large scale conventional fight with a peer or near peer would reveal about America’s will to fight. Ukraine should never have had shell hunger and shouldn’t have its hands tied with long range capabilities . . .

graham626.bsky.social•85 days ago

but I don’t see how this would have ended up as anything other than a tough attritional fight

halfbrickmccurdy.bsky.social•85 days ago

Thank you. Superb, but also necessary as the Biden administration strives to distract from it's now historic failure. It's also noticeable who is/isn't reposting or reacting to this essay.

theenormousroom.bsky.social•85 days ago

When you try to be something to everyone, you end up being nothing to anyone.

3d-anony.bsky.social•85 days ago

If Putin were to use nuclear weapons, is a strategy of gradually weakening Russia preferable?
Biden should have trained Ukraine F16 pilots 2 years earlier.

alfaeco.bsky.social•85 days ago

I miss Henry Kissinger.
And Nixon.

naida46.bsky.social•73 days ago

#sigh

svivdic.bsky.social•85 days ago

The US has lots of F-16s, right?
But it has sent how many? 0?

pidlith.bsky.social•85 days ago

Ja, genau 0.

imaginefella.bsky.social•84 days ago

The Netherlands sent 6

rayvanriper.bsky.social•85 days ago

Blame this on President Biden? How about blaming this on comrade Putin? Maybe blame a little bit of it on comrade Trump! Lips Leroux and his monkeys.

iamsoclarescott.bsky.social•85 days ago

📌

cristian2023.bsky.social•85 days ago

And keep in mind.. Biden has at his disposal still around $7billion dollars funds for weapons and ammunition to be used for Ukraine… He is doing 💩! He is barely sending some Stingers while 7-8 ukrainian brigades are under-equipped!!!
Biden is a disaster and a traitor to the children of tomorrow!!

cristian2023.bsky.social•85 days ago

God! How much i have wished McCain would have won against Obama.. or at least Romney!!

pattern.bsky.social•85 days ago

Shows that you never know what you get from a pres. All the experience was a problem instead an asset. He just didn’t see it. All the inconsequential “red lines” over almost 3 years, they still didn’t get it. This will be a bigger tarnishing of his presidency than his failure to step aside earlier

climate-disconnect.bsky.social•85 days ago

"A crisis to be managed, not a war to be won." Perfect description of Biden's maddening approach to this conflict.

bethinq.bsky.social•85 days ago

His caution, while informed by mistakes of the past was over-applied. He never saw the opening. Caution can be an important advisor, but courage requires decisive action. Biden & Sullivan were too cautious thus rendering Russia too much time to adapt. Putin played his strongest piece ♟️-waiting…

philiphorsley.bsky.social•85 days ago

True enough about how the Biden administration managed the invasion, but I don't fully expect Pres. Trump to try to achieve the right victory for the right reasons.

bacchus666.bsky.social•85 days ago

Biden deserves the criticism, which is perfectly on the nose.

Biden should have articulated from the beginning that our strategic interest was for Ukraine to win, defined by pushing Russia to their own border and the return of Crimea.

jamesstaal.bsky.social•85 days ago

Pfffft!

rrodriguez426.bsky.social•85 days ago

You're 100% right Gen. Hodges, but let's also put blame on European allies who did the same and the far right in the USA that blocked funds for months. Ukraine has had to fight with so many ridiculous restrictions.

grandzugzwang.bsky.social•85 days ago

That article pretty much resumes it.

imaginefella.bsky.social•84 days ago

Thank you, much impressed by this article. And I'm afraid we've got to learn much more dump facts about Biden's administration. It's only the top of the iceberg.

clement-saget.bsky.social•84 days ago

This is our war too and yet we cowardly let 🇺🇦 fight it alone 🤯

#RussiaIsATerroristState committing a full-scale genocide in plain sight.
It is our duty towards Humanity to help 🇺🇦 win the war.
Whatever victory takes, right now 🔥
#SlavaUkraïni
🇩🇰🇱🇹🇵🇱🇫🇷🇩🇪🇮🇹🇪🇺🇺🇸🇬🇧🇳🇴✊🇺🇦

blueyellowgekko.bsky.social•85 days ago

An article equally well written and accurate and infuriating and saddening.

Europeans need to step the f up!

dougdash.bsky.social•85 days ago

Doing anything half ass never leads to success.

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