Counteroffensives, Cleaning, & A Bonfire

“All warfare is based on deception.” – Sun Tzu, The Art of War

The valiant soldiers of Ukraine’s Armed Forces perfectly demonstrated how the above statement still holds true in modern warfare by launching two simultaneous counteroffensives in the Kherson & Kharkiv regions against the occupying Russians.

The Kherson Counteroffensive began on August 29 and is still ongoing.  The end goals are to expel all Russian forces from the region and liberate the occupied city of Kherson.  Right now, it looks like this will be achieved and I hope this will be true.  The Kharkiv Counteroffensive started on September 6 and recently ended on October 2.  Ukrainian forces managed to liberate “over 500 settlements and 12,000 square kilometres” of land.  Deception played a key role in this stunning achievement.

In the weeks leading up to the counteroffensives, Ukraine publicly stated, on many occasions, that they would be launching a counteroffensive in the Kherson region.  Russian responded to these announcements by redeploying thousands of soldiers to that area.  Most of the troops came from the Kharkiv region.  Ukraine went ahead and began attacking on August 29, further keeping the Russians unaware that this was just a ploy. 

To be honest, I think everyone, including me, fell for this, because the Kherson region sits next to the island of Crimea.  Liberating Kherson will enable Ukraine to launch a future attack and sever the land bridge the Russians established between Crimea and the eastern occupied territories.  It only made sense for Ukraine to focus its efforts here.

Just a few days later, on September 6, the Ukrainian military launched its surprise counteroffensive in Kharkiv and caught the occupying Russian forces completely off guard.  The element of surprise was so much that Russian soldiers fled in a mass panic, leaving behind much of their equipment and ammunition.  Some Russian units tried to establish defensive lines along natural barriers, but thankfully, these didn’t work.  Ukrainian soldiers were welcomed as liberators by civilians who described abhorrent conditions they endured under Russian occupation.  Torture chambers, execution sites, and mass graves have been discovered and are currently being investigated.  The counteroffensive concluded with the encirclement and liberation of Lyman. 

Ukraine’s government and military humourously thanked Russia for all the “donated ammunition and equipment” they left behind.  I’m sure it’ll all be put to good use in the fight for Ukraine’s freedom.  I also hope the success of this campaign will ensure NATO’s continued efforts in supplying Ukraine with all the resources it needs to liberate its lands from the Russian orcs.

Progress on the Kherson front is slower, but still in Ukraine’s favour.  The stunning success in Kharkiv must have left Russian forces demoralized.  They’re still fighting back, but in an organized withdrawal manner.  This is to prevent Ukraine from capturing more equipment, ammunition, and prisoners.  Even though Russia formally & illegally annexed the provinces of Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Luhansk, and Donetsk on October 2, it’s beginning to appear that Russian forces may fully withdraw from the western side of the Dnipro River and the city of Kherson.  I hope this happens.  It would be even better if Russia withdrew all its forces from Ukraine, including Crimea, and go back to recognizing the 1991 borders, but unfortunately, that’s not likely to happen anytime soon.

Keep fighting Ukraine.  Slava Ukraini!

Professional cleaners came to Inuujaq School on Saturday, October 1 to clean the air ducts.  I can’t remember the last time they were cleaned, so I assumed they were filled with dust.  My assumption was confirmed when I took a closer look at the air duct covers that were removed prior to the cleaning.  Expensive equipment laid all around the school and I saw three contract workers using them.  They managed to finish their work before Monday.  The air inside the school felt cleaner than before.

The cadets of 3045 Army Corps enjoyed an evening bonfire behind the airport on Saturday, October 9.  The corps has been holding bonfires at the woodpile behind the airport since 2013 when we began cleaning the shoreline.  The wood from the pile comes from discarded pieces that float from Arctic Bay to this shoreline during the brief summer months when the waterways are open.

I procured the assistance of the same RCMP officer who help me with the garbage cleanup in September.  We also acquired an ATV, trailer, and a red pickup truck.  Thanks, Frank!  A few cadets assisted me in buying the necessary food from the local Co-op.  Everything was ready to go when the day arrived.

Twelve cadets attended the event.  Attendance was taken and the bonfire supplies were loaded onto the trucks.  The cadets divided themselves between the red & RCMP trucks.  I drove the red truck.  The RCMP officer drove his truck and towed the trailer.  The ATV was attached to the trailer.  We arrived at the airport at 6:45pm.

The ATV was unloaded and the trailer was attached to the ATV.  The cadets transferred the supplies from the red truck over to the trailer.  There was still enough room for the cadets to pile into the trailer.  The senior cadet drove the ATV, trailer, and cadets down to the shoreline.  The RCMP officer & I walked.  The weather was relatively calm but cold.

The cadets built the bonfire while I organized the food on a circular table.  The table has been there for many years and will probably stay there for many, many more.  The food consisted of hot dogs, buns, marshmallows, granola bars, juice boxes, ketchup, and mustard.  Other supplies included flashlights, roasting sticks, paper towels, toilet paper, matches, Firestarter sticks, garbage bags, and two cots for seating.  The cadets got the fire started just after 7pm.

The fire slowly grew to an acceptable size.  The roasting sticks were handed out and everyone began roasting hot dogs & marshmallows over the open flames.  Tragically, some were lost in the fire, but this is to be expected.  I compensated by buying more than enough hot dogs & marshmallows for everyone.

Nighttime arrived and we were surrounded by darkness.  The cadets continued feeding the bonfire with pieces of wood.  The flames bathed us in light and kept us warm.  There was brief break in the clouds and we saw a full moon.      

The bonfire lasted until 8:30pm.  We smothered the fire with snow and loaded the remaining supplies onto the trailer.  The cadets were driven back to the trucks at the airport.  I was the last person to leave the bonfire site.  Leave no cadets behind.  The most senior cadet dropped off the ATV & trailer at an agreed spot while the RCMP officer & I drove the cadets home.  Everyone made it home safely by 9:15pm.