Bayraktar

A Ukrainian-language song from the war (with English subtitles).

It's simple music with simple lyrics about what I expect are relatively minor victories (the destruction of some Russian invading forces by Turkish-made Bayraktar drones). But I think the very simplicity of the defiance, coupled of course with the reality of what's going on, makes it oddly affecting. [UPDATE: The video I originally posted, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15nzkGlidyg, was taken off because of a copyright complaint; here's a replacement, though it has just the sound and the subtitles.] [FURTHER UPDATE: I had a chance to look for a better video, and found one for which I liked the videos but thought the subtitles were suboptimal; I'm including it immediately below, followed by the one with just the audio and the subtitles.] [FURTHER UPDATE, 3/22/2022: Both the videos are gone, but here's a replacement, thanks to @craigsuperstar on Twitter:]

https://youtu.be/bKEmRiq-8Mg

The subtitles also help the Ukrainian-language lyrics work for people (like me) who know Russian but not Ukrainian, though they of course also make the message comprehensible for English speakers.

Comments

[DaivdBehar]

Great song about Warfare 2.0.

[DaivdBehar]

Video stupidly removed. I would have never seen it, but for this post. The publicity or other value should be deducted from any legal claim. Even with claims of damage to reputation, such as being called a sex offender, "As a result of this false allegation, did you get more dates? The value of more dates should be deducted from the damage." That is a third grade arithmetic math word problem. It is quite beyond the understanding of the lawyer.

[John F. Carr]

There is at least one other military themed video for this song, similar in theme but different in scene selection. I had not seen this version. The other was categorized by YouTube as adult-only content, despite being no more graphic than this one. I guess kids can't be allowed to see little pixels being vaporized. There are also several music videos without battle scenes. I think this is the rare case when the copyright owner, if it is copyrighted, is happy to get free publicity from copies.

The implied call to blow up Putin is a nice touch. It won't happen: Bayraktar can't reach Moscow.

Some folks on YouTube who could plausibly know what they are talking about noted that we saw a few videos of Bayraktar attacks early and not much recently. Unclear whether bad weather, Russian defenses, or a new PR strategy is responsible.

[John F. Carr]

...and it's already gone. "This video is no longer available due to a copyright claim by Clash Report."

[rsteinmetz]

I think it's for the video used.

[Krayt]

Come on, everybody, "Booo Clash Report! Booo lawyers!"

[DaivdBehar]

The lawyer profession needs to be deterred.

[rsteinmetz]

It has occurred to me that Ukraine is about the size of Texas with a larger population. Anyone familiar with Texas will know it's largely empty making it hard to occupy. Plus Ukraine seems to have a lot more trees.

[DaivdBehar]

The big lesson? Every law abiding citizen should have a gun safety course in high school and carry a weapon. Have an army of 30 million adults waiting for any invader. If you fail to fire on an invading soldier or on a violent criminal, in our case, get a fine of $100.

[dwb68]

So much for gun prohibitionists argument "you dont need a rifle because the government has tanks and nukes" lmao. As if Iraq did not prove what a dumbass argument that was against rifles, now we have Ukraine to prove it too.

[DaivdBehar]

Yes, thanks to lawyer Commissars of Poltical Correctness hobbling our warriors, the US was chased out of 6 countries by Stone Age savages with $50 weapons.

[dwb68]

So far my favorite is the Ukrainian girl in the shelter singing "Let it go" (it you haven't seen it: https://youtu.be/iVGCpJahFp0).

[mydisplayname]

"The calm is unlikely to last. 'Right now prices are prints on a screen. In four weeks they become reality,' says a trader. If tensions rise further, energy and metals may have to be rationed. Private firms and personal lives will have to painfully adjust. The rich world would sputter. Poor countries could go bust. In the end Russia may buckle—but not before the broken chain snaps back at the rest of the world with huge violence."
https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2022/03/12/can-the-world-cope-without-russias-huge-commodity-stash

[DaivdBehar]

Put that in your third grade math word problem. The answer comes out, kill Putin.

[Absaroka]

"can-the-world-cope-without-russias-huge-commodity-stash"

If we can't, we'd better learn how. You can't afford to be dependent on someone like Putin.

[John F. Carr]

Lyrics: https://lyricstranslate.com/en/bayraktar-bayraktar.html

[Goju]

I have to disagree with these being minor victories. In the long run, they may not change the outcome, but the successes of the Ukrainians' have given the lie to the strength of the Russian forces. In particular, the Russian air force has not been the overwhelming force it was considered. The videos of captured Russian soldiers has shown a huge lack of loyalty and support for Putin.

I discount the calls from the oligarchs for Putin's demise. It sounds shocking but it may just be a way to get Putin's opposition to expose itself. Considering his background and usage of assassinations, my guess is that his security is pretty tight. If serious, calls for Putin's demise would pretty much guarantee instant reprisal.

[John F. Carr]

Al Jazeera points out how little we know about Bayraktar use. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/3/11/turkey-drones-use-ukraine