There is a long history between Russia , formerly the Soviet Union, and Ukraine. Regardless of what you have have read... Russia invading a sovereign country and attacking civilian targets is wrong. I wanted to see if there are any patterns in politics, policies, and general human behavior that lead us to this. I had to re-read up on the details of WW1, 2, and more recently the Cuban missile crisis. What is does NATO actually do? What do the Russian people think vs their government? I have to say, the current crisis is anything but simple, there are so many facets that got us where we are right now. This is the first time since the Cuban missile crisis where we have the threat and real possibility of nuclear attack. So what can we learn from this and why is it so important to fight for our freedoms?
Well how many times have you heard the argument that the Constitution, the Bill of Rights and even the 2nd Amendment is outdated? How many of you actually thought that we would be faced the current crisis in our lifetime? To be completely honest, I didn't think we would be faced with this, but I did know it was always possible. After all, history has been proven to repeat itself... sadly. So to all the people that said "You don't need a gun. That will never happen." Well it actually happens every day , every time a mugger or home invader is shot or runs away. What is happening in Ukraine proves to the world why freedom is so important, as we watch the Ukrainian government handing out thousands of rifles to civilians to fight Russian invaders. Bottom line our Constitution and freedoms are non negotiable, the Constitution is a timeless document.
Ukraine may be a democracy but it is far from being a free country, Ukrainian government had to hand out rifles only after the invasion... how long did it take to get all those rifles into civilian hands? Time is crucial in these situations also there is only a limited amount of ammo that each person got, maybe 6 magazines each. 6 magazine can go quick in a shootout, one to two days... to fight a war that is now into a month long.
Inspiration, greatness, pride, symbolism, corruption, and propaganda are the tools of every government when in suits them. Human nature is a complex thing and governments are made up of many people which makes it anything but simple. It seems that government or roles of power, and even Social media seems to amplify the negative aspects of our human nature. Emotion tends to rule over logic and historically we have done terrible things to each other. Fear, anger, and hysteria blind our critical thinking and we react without logic. Nearly every government has proven it's not fit to govern, even with our checks and balances system, the people need to hold the government accountable.
Propaganda is used everyday it has even corrupted our news media much further back than many people realize. For instance what triggered WW2 was Germany claimed that Poland committed atrocities against Germans and as a result Germany invaded Poland.
Germany used propaganda reports that were staged by the Germans known as Operation Himmler to justify their invasion of Poland. The real reason is similar to Putin's reason, Putin wants to reclaim Ukraine and rebuild the Soviet Union. Putin's propaganda used to invade Ukraine was again similar, atrocities against Russians and he threw in the word Nazis... Putin learned something from Social Media apparently. History repeating itself, did we learn from it, Yes and no, we can at least see the lies now. We are witnessing world history in the making.
The end of WW2 lead to the creation of NATO, North Atlantic Treaty Organization is an alliance of 30 democratic countries, so far. NATO's purpose is "to guarantee the freedom and security of its members through political and military means,”. Before NATO was the Treaty of Dunkirk which was to defend against German and Soviet Union attack after WW2, it lead to the Brussels Treaty Organization and eventually became NATO. So historically communist countries like Russia and China really see NATO, as a threat. As more countries join NATO especially countries near Russia, it makes Russia grow uneasy. The possibility of Ukraine joining NATO was unacceptable to Putin. If you look back at what lead to WW1 and WW2 is similar, when countries became more aggressive tensions grew and it lead to war. I'm over simplifying the complexities that lead up to war, but the reactions are not.
So what's different about this war? Well it's still early but the world is acting like the referee in a MMA fight, they are not stopping the fight but calling out illegal actions in attempt to curb Russia's actions. NATO has brought economic sanctions against Russia to put pressure on Putin to stop. Only problem is Putin is doubling down. Other key things to mention that are very different that didn't exist, Atom bomb ended WW2 but Nuclear power plants were not apart of the landscape.
Now Nuclear power plants are apart of the landscape and are cause for concern. Now it's illegal in the rules of war to target and attack a Nuclear power plant. So I did some research, what if a nuke strikes a Nuclear power plant? Well nobody really knows or at least it's debatable. Some say it would amplify the effects of fallout, some say the reactors would be safe and nothing would happen. Problem is a maintenance crew is required to keep temperatures in operating ranges. If there is no one left alive to maintain the plant, how long before the fuel rods melt down like in Chernobyl? So even if we avoid using nukes, a meltdown is still possible and just as devastating.
So what do the Russian people think? Well they are just as divided as we are in our politics. Many Russians are protesting the war.
Russians are divided some still think Stalin was a great man, believe or not! Some back Putin and his actions, some are in between, and then are those who are against Putin and the war. Russia has been in the process of rewriting history using propaganda to promote communism. The Russian government is struggling to win the hearts and minds of their people. No system of government is perfect or immune to corruption but communism is a direct threat to freedom.
The Cuban missile crisis was the last time we in the United States feared the threat of a nuclear strike. The fear was real, kids were taught in school to listen for the alarm and to hide under their desks... just like an earthquake drill. As if a desk would save them from a nuclear blast or radiation there after. Again this was another form of propaganda to make the public feel calm and still have some control over their lives, it kept kids busy doing something.
Fast forward 60 years and guess what we're fucked again! So by the time you're reading this, it will have been about a month into Putin's war on Ukraine. Ukraine keeps asking to enforce a "No Fly" zone over Ukraine, but many say that will escalate tensions with NATO and Russia and start WW3. Many say we need to supply Ukraine with weapons and other aid to give them a fighting chance without getting pulled into all out war.
So if you haven't already, you should be prepping and gathering supplies in case of the worst. Food and gas prices are already up, stock market panic is manly the cause now. When the shortages actual come, the prices will climb even higher. What are you doing to prepare? What is your opinion on what's happening Ukraine and Russia, should we be involved? I'm interested to hear what many of you are doing to prepare, please comment below.
Updated 8/4/2022
So we now in month 5 for this conflict, "During March, the Russian advance towards Kyiv stalled. Amidst heavy losses and strong Ukrainian resistance, Russian troops retreated from Kyiv Oblast by 3 April."
Russia's war is proving to be how Vietnam was for the U.S.A....has Putin underestimated Ukrainian forces? So what is the big picture? Is this just a distraction from something else or is it still leading to WW3? Well if you don't think so you better pay attention to what China is doing. China plans to surround Taiwan and a Russian Senator has pledged his country's support. So now there is a possibility that China and Russia will join forces, and things could escalate pretty quick or slowly one by one each country gets drawn into the conflict.
Comments