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Frankly, with how big/the dire straits of the Russian economy I don’t see how any of those long-term projections are feasible. We are also less than a week in and using US/Euro estimates they’re already ~8k casualties. That’s just not sustainable over that long-haul https://t.co/HB6sehGLra

— Blake Allen (@Blake_Allen13) March 2, 2022

...the people who completely missed the collapse of the Soviet Union (and expected Kyiv to have fallen by now).

NEW - Russian commanders have been killed after they felt they had to move closer to the front lines, western officials say. Deputy Commander of the 41st combined arms Army killed by sniper fire. A divisional commander and a regimental commander also killed.

— Gordon Corera (@gordoncorera) March 4, 2022

#Ukraine: The Territorial Defense volunteers trying to start two T-80U tanks which were previously abandoned the Russian troops. pic.twitter.com/63c6g1ytN1

— 🇺🇦 Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@UAWeapons) March 4, 2022

The battle of Hostomel was probably an over-looked turning point. It seems the goal of the Russian air assault was to secure the airfield for Il-76s to land BTGs from Belarus for a thunder run into the capital. The NATO-trained 4th Rapid Reaction Brigade stopped them. https://t.co/XLZUsJ4yJB

— Steve Trimble (@TheDEWLine) March 3, 2022

Video suggests Russian advance forces at Hostomel were annihilated last night. Half of them don't appear to even have been able to dismount from their vehicles. When entire platoons get wiped out it's going to be hard for Russians to spin to families that the war is going well.

— Tom Rogan (@TomRtweets) March 4, 2022

Latest update from Ukrainian general staff (6pm local time): “The enemy is focussed on encircling Kyiv. But it is demoralised. Local population is showing by every available means that it Russia not welcome here. The battle continues across the whole country”

— Oliver Carroll (@olliecarroll) March 4, 2022

Not sure which unit this is. It looks like another example of why morale is likely to be low among Russian forces, poorly supplied troops, in bad conditions, who appear disgruntled and feel betrayed. https://t.co/oFJo7gXE23

— Michael Kofman (@KofmanMichael) March 3, 2022

If this translation is accurate ... then wow https://t.co/DyfAshs1GA pic.twitter.com/cIUVxgK0it

— George Conway🌻 (@gtconway3d) March 3, 2022

It’s an accurate translation. One aspect that seems to be getting lost is they’re being forced to sign paperwork so they can be discharged from the armed forces and the discharge can be backdated in order to be able to claim that these people were never in Ukraine officially.

— Y.M. (@YevgeniyM) March 3, 2022

Meanwhile, in Russia:

Forget the run on the banks. Russians are making a RUN ON IKEA before it shutters nationwide tomorrow in the latest corporate withdrawal from the country. https://t.co/N7UhrtI1nz

— Kevin Rothrock (@KevinRothrock) March 3, 2022

That's the stuff that looks good on video. Back (literally) on the ground:

A friend from Moscow is racing toward the border with the Baltics, has been driving all night—no plane tickets left. "We're trying to get there before the president's address to the nation," friend says, referring to widespread rumors that Putin is about to declare martial law.

— Julia Ioffe (@juliaioffe) March 3, 2022

St Petersburg to Helsinki train tickets are now $7500 a piece.https://t.co/VRDzHIGF0g

— the hairiest potter😳 (@Ammie508) March 3, 2022

This is Putin’s hometown and he definitely doesn’t want you to retweet
👇 https://t.co/kxIagbjQkH

— Ron Steslow 🌻 (@RonSteslow) February 25, 2022

Scenes of protests in St. Petersburg and/or Moscow are heartening, until I remember the nationwide protests of the war in Iraq under W. Tell me again when we finally ended that war, and why.  Oh, and why that wasn't a threat to democracy.

Just spoke to @christogrozev, the man who unmasked Sergei Skripal's and @navalny's assassins. He says this is an accurate quote and assessment. Knowing Christo well, I can't imagine he is winging this. https://t.co/CwhmLa5zbR

— Michael Weiss 🌻 (@michaeldweiss) March 4, 2022

This almost supports that:

Unreal.

Putin called for the “normalization” of relations with other states, saying Moscow has “absolutely no ill intentions with regard to our neighbors” and claiming there is ‘no need’ for sanctions on Russiahttps://t.co/UYcbTyxPmv

— Julia Davis (@JuliaDavisNews) March 4, 2022

I refer you to the collapse of the Soviet Union, and how many people expected that to EVER happen.

Never say "never again."