The "DPR" sent 20,000 men to war as an "army" and, according to its own report, lost almost all of them killed or wounded. The American Forbes writes about this, paying attention to the appeal of the "ombudsman of the DNR": as of the beginning of November, the separatist group allegedly lost 3,746 soldiers killed and 15,794 soldiers wounded. "Yes, we assume that some of the wounded then returned to the front. And that the quasi-republic of 2.3 million people has recruited more soldiers," writes columnist David Axe. "But even if it was another 20,000 people, this army only officially lost about half of its fighting force." These are catastrophic losses ― because, for example, according to American standards, an army unit is considered incapable of serious combat operations after losing 31% of its combat strength. In the "army of the DPR" everything is much worse ― and it is not surprising, Axe writes, considering the fact that Russia gives the "allies" extremely outdated weapons and sends them to the often hopeless, most difficult areas of the front. Why is this important now? Because fresh batches of those mobilized into the Russian army are in approximately the same condition. They also lack weapons, ammunition, and skills. Therefore, "in the near future, expect the number of killed and wounded Russians to jump sharply," the author concludes.
The author of the essay in The Bulwark, Cathy Young, is surprised by the depth of the decline of Russian propaganda and the level of public debate. While Ukrainians are rejoicing over the liberation of Kherson, Russian ex-president Dmitriy Medvedev writes that Russians are fighting Satan, waging a "holy war against the Western world." Propagandists from Russian television assure that the country lacks a dictatorship and the government is too soft in the fight against liberal "pests". Russia is descending deeper and deeper into the "twilight of human civilization," writes Young, imposing sanctions on writer Margaret Atwood and actor Jim Carrey in a push to ban just something. The ideologue of Russian nationalism and "pro-war guru" Alexander Dugin calls on Putin to return the autocracy, and Yevgeniy Prigozhin confirms that the "Wagnerians" under his control executed a former soldier who was captured by Ukraine and repented of his actions. It is not known where these problems with morality can lead Russia, Young writes, adding that Russian society is now unable to qualitatively oppose the macabre government. An example of a modern Russian protest was the phrase "Net v***e", regarding which the court recognized that what is meant is not the actually prohibited "No to war", but "No to woble", dedicated to a breed of fish.