The Ukrainian War Is Your Problem, Too

I have been largely silent on the plethora of raging political issues for the last year, a personal decision that has often been difficult, but primarily because of the hopelessness I felt after being confronted with illogical stonewalling of facts and verifiable truths when I tried to call attention to situations that I felt were not only untenable, but were being misconstrued and misrepresented to the harm of our country. During this time, I have been putting my efforts on other projects that will go well beyond social media, but still in keeping with my desire to help people understand the complexities of many of the situations tearing apart America today through verifiable facts and impactful personal stories (mine and others). I've alluded to that previously, and hope to have more information (finally) in the next few weeks.

But today is different. The situation in Ukraine is different. With the exception of a former political leader and those who align with him (or who cower at the thought of going against him) who are praising Putin and his illegal and immoral invasion, there is a stronger sense of unity among the American and worldwide political stratosphere when it comes to the unprovoked, unjustified, act of aggression on the continent of Europe that has not been seen since Hitler began his march to conquer Europe. And, as in the early days of that evil conquest which brought the world to its knees in death, sorrow, and unspeakable acts of depravity, there are those today who do not see this "first" invasion as big a threat as it truly is. The world cannot afford to be naive again, especially when there are nuclear capabilities that present a true threat to our very existence.

If you read his history and research his own words, it is clear that former KGB agent Putin still longs for the days of the USSR, and has plotted - and plodded - carefully these first twenty years he has been in power, alternately being "elected" as President and Prime Minister to obviate Russian law of only being President in two four-year consecutive terms as President (multiple two year terms are allowed), and laying the groundwork for a return to the time he sees as the "glory days" of the Soviet Union. He has been emboldened by American politicians and the few American "faux news" commentators (I use the term loosely) who are echoing his position, even using film footage of them in Russia as propaganda to show that there is support in America for his delusional, circuitous, self-serving explanation for unleashing the power of the Russian military on a pro-democracy neighbor - the second largest country by area in Europe after Russia. There is no need to speak to the disgust I feel about that, but it is worth noting.

The Russian aggression is not only political, this insane power-grab attempt, but financially motivated. With the lessening of worldwide dependence on oil and gas, the exporting of which represents the vast majority of Russia's economy, and the financial impact of COVID, Russia needs the rich natural and agricultural resources - Ukraine is known as the "breadbasket of Europe - of its closest neighbor and culturally-connected country economically. But more importantly, it significantly adds to the size of the already-largest country in the world (Russia, the largest country in the world, is almost twice the size of the US, to give you perspective).

And if you think Putin will stop at Ukraine, think again. The world did not, would not, stop him when he annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, following "elections" that were anything but, according to the condemnation by the non-binding resolution of the United Nations General Assembly, which rebuked the annexation (https://en.wikipedia.org/.../United_Nations_General.../262). Take a look at the map of Eastern Europe (below), and you see that Ukraine is surrounded by Russia to the north and east; is bordered by Russian-friendly Belarus to the north (bordering Russia) and northwest; and Crimea is to the southeast. Putin is literally surrounding Ukraine, and with the positioning of Crimea on the Black Sea, there is only a small swath of Ukrainian border bordering the Black Sea directly west of Crimea that is currently not under Russian control. What countries constitute the remaining border of Ukraine? Poland. Romania. Moldova. Hungary. Slovakia. All under communist control during the Cold War, despite insurgencies that occurred well into the 1960s (https://en.wikipedia.org/.../Eastern_European_anti...).

Do not forget that in 1938, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain famously announced upon returning to London from Munich that the Munich Agreement - in which Hitler was granted the German takeover of Czechoslovakia’s Sudetenland region, on the ground that its people were German and that it rightfully belonged to Germany - had achieved “peace for our time.” It was only eleven months later that WWII in Europe began, with Hitler's march across the continent of Europe. To think that Putin only wants to have a "peacekeeping force" in a neighboring democratic country, a "peacekeeping force" that is bombing and killing civilians and attempting to take over Ukraine's capital city of Kyiv, is such a blatant, ridiculous and self-serving justification for the power and land grab that it actually is, is beyond words or comprehension.

Granted, wars are different in 2022 than they were during WWII; they are no longer solely reliant on military might - which is, in and of itself, much more sophisticated and threatening now vs. 1938 - but instead also encompass political warfare, irregular warfare, cyber attacks, disinformation, and other non-physically confrontational means, in what is known as "hybrid warfare." But that is not a comforting thought, by any means. Russian has already successfully interjected harmful and politically-disruptive interference in American society, a commitment to our country's destruction so succinctly expressed in 1956 by Russia’s Communist leader Nikita Khrushchev who famously said, “We will take America without firing a shot. We do not have to invade the U.S. We will destroy you from within....”

I am currently in Munich (happily, for family reasons), and will be here for a few months before returning to Spain in late Spring. While here, I am only 742 miles from the largest western Ukrainian city of Lviv, known as the Ukraine's main cultural center and, as of February, its de facto western capital, with foreign embassies (including the US) moving from the official capital in Kyiv due to the Russian invasion. That is more than 100 miles less than the distance between Atlanta and New York City (866 miles). Perhaps influenced by having been connected by marriage to a German husband whose family lost 26 members to the gas chambers in the Holocaust in WWII; perhaps feeling the energy of Putin's evil, like feeling the power of a hurricane as it moves toward you from hundreds or even thousands of miles away; perhaps disheartened with every news cycle of the war as it unfolds, I felt the need to share these thoughts and - more importantly - to implore you that when you have to pay a little more for gas or food in the coming weeks and months, that you remember what is at stake; that you do not complain, but see meeting the challenges such situations may personally cause you NOT as a "this has nothing to do with me, I'm angry" but instead as your being able to do your part by sacrificing a little to protect so much. Support our leaders. Unify against the evil that is being perpetrated by Putin. Pray for the Ukrainian people, for the Russian people who oppose their authoritarian dictator, and for the European continent, as it faces the first war on European soil since WWII.

And please, if you can, support relief organizations who are helping the innocent people of Ukraine as they - literally - flee for their lives to safe countries (safe, at least for now) for aid and relief. Do not believe for a moment that because you are safely on the other side of the Atlantic that you are not affected by this if things go south; or that you, as one person, can't do anything about this unjust war that is being waged far from the comfort of your homes. You can.

To support the Ukrainian relief effort, please visit these sites, or google "how to support credible Ukraine relief efforts":

https://time.com/6151353/how-to-help-ukraine-people/

https://www.nbcwashington.com/.../want-to-help.../2983861/

Thank you for your time. Please feel free to share, if you are so inclined.