What might be the best way to end the war in Ukraine (that I can see)

 C'mere. Siddown.  I've got something to say.

One person has accused me of siding with Putin.  And that's one person too many.

To this person and others who think that of me: "***** you".  Because I am the FURTHEST thing from being a Putin apologist.

NOBODY'S hands are clean in this affair.  Not Russia.  Not Ukraine (as much as many of us want to believe otherwise) and not the United States.  We are involved too.  We sent a LOT of money and war materiel to Ukraine, and it's been questionable whether it was used by that country to fight Russia or if it was diverted and sold to other interests.  It's quite possible that some of the arms we sent wound up in the hands of drug cartels in Latin America.  I love the people of Ukraine, but the matter remains that they allowed their country to be one of the most corrupt in Europe and ultimately that's on them.

What do I think the U.S. should have done?  America should have led international sanctions against Russia.  In time I believe those would have had an effect.  Russia isn't playing nice by the rules of polite international behavior and they should suffer for that.

But that is not what we did.

Ukraine is not Afghanistan.  Afghanistan has defeated invaders for thousands of years.  It is perhaps the worst geography on Earth for an army to come in and try to control.  Alexander of Macedonia learned this.  So did the Soviets.  And in time so did America.  During the Afghanistan conflict with the invading Russian the U.S. did provide the Afghans with Stinger missiles, among other things.  In time that aid did did compel the Soviets to give up and go home.  But the Afghans had the layout of the land, the mountains of their home turf, on their side.  There is no such advantage that Ukraine has.

If we try to do with Ukraine what we did with Afghanistan, we are going to widen the war into something beyond the confines of Eastern Europe.  Zelensky came to the Oval Office yesterday and made clear his ultimate demand: that American armed forces and personnel be brought into Ukraine.  And that would be a terrible, terrible mistake for us to commit.  If we did that we would be turning Ukraine it into a quagmire far worse than Vietnam was.  And this time there will be a belligerent with his finger on a nuclear button.

What do *I* see in these circumstances?  What does Chris Knight the American citizen, the historian, the man just trying to do the right thing, perceive in this matter?

The last thing that Robert Christopher Knight wants to see is any one die.  Scrape everything else away from him and that's what you're left with.  And right now I don't see Ukraine's leadership being serious about that.

So it's left to a third party, someone other than the two sides in the conflict, to try to negotiate something. Right now the best party to do that is the United States.

There are three suggestions I would make, if anyone's interested...

1.  The U.S. and Ukraine should agree to the minerals deal.  The one that was about to be signed yesterday before the dipolomacy fell apart with all the world to see.  Enacting the minerals agreement would result in an active American presence in Ukraine *without* bringing United States armed forces into the war.  Russia would hesitate - and tremendously so - to endanger lives of American civilians.

2.  Work out a deal between Russia and Ukraine to end hostilities.  End armed conflict.  Stop the killing, by both sides.  They have each drawn blood.    Ukraine has also, by way of its drone aircraft.

3.  Negotiate the borders between Russia and Ukraine.  There are many areas in Ukraine that are ethnic Russian and have long expressed a desire to be within Russia.  If Putin wants to prove that he's true to his word he will agree to annex these areas.  But Russia is going to have to give over some territory to Ukraine also.

I have never been a fan of Putin.  I think he is a despicable excuse of a supposed leader.  His soul is a dark one, no matter how much George W. Bush looked into his eyes and claimed to see a good man.  Putin wants a return of the old Soviet empire.  He has never stopped being KGB at heart.  The day he finally dies will be a good one for the world, unless he repents of his wrongdoing and tries to make right what he has done.  But that's between him and God.

But neither have I been a wholehearted fan of sending hundreds of billions of American dollars - that we can't really afford - to Ukraine, without accountability for how it's being used.  Zelensky is not the squeaky clean leader of his country that many of us want to believe he is.  He did not come into office honestly and he has demonstrated many times that he turns a blind eye to the corruption in Ukraine.

So what are we to do?

The three suggestions I just made, provided that the United States pushes them forward, is the best alternative to prolonging the war that I can see.  It's NOT perfect.  It's NOT what either Ukraine or America wants.  In a perfect world Russia would be forced to withdraw and have to make reparations.  But it's not a perfect world and the United States did play a part in exacerbating the situation.

That's the best deal that I see us making that will end the war and stop the killing.  It's the only thing I can imagine will finally end this conflict.

But don't ANYONE dare declare that I'm a supporter of Putin.  Because that only demonstrates how much of a fool that person is.

Just my .02

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I watched the meeting between President Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky

And I mean I watched the entire meeting, not just the final ten minutes that descended into diplomatic chaos.

(Here it is if you want to see it for yourself.)

The war in Ukraine is perhaps the damndest Gordian Knot of foreign relations that I've seen in my lifetime.  I am and always have been against Russia's aggression into what should be a sovereign nation recognized as such by all.  I despise Russian dictator Vladamir Putin as much as anyone can.  The sooner he dies or is somehow overthrown will be a happy day for the world.  He had no right to plan and execute the invasion of Ukraine.

But what can be done about that?  More to the point, what should the role of the United States be?  We've already given hundreds of billions of dollars in funding and war materiel to Ukraine.

It's now an open and very serious question: what has become of all of that support that our politicians in the past few years have cheerfully given Ukraine?

Russia isn't going to withdraw from Ukraine while Putin sits in the Kremlin.  It's doubtful that if and when the war ends that Russia is going to cede over the territory they've won back to Ukraine.

I believe that President Trump is trying to make the best of the situation in the best interest of America: end the war and stop the loss of life.

Back to the matter of yesterday's meeting between Trump and Zelensky and their respective delegations in the Oval Office...

For the first forty minutes things are going as well as this kind of thing could.  Trump is being very gracious to his guest.  In fact, it could even be said that things are going in Zelensky's favor.  And then right around the forty minutes mark Vice-President J.D. Vance breaks in from where he's been sitting and brings up what is, I think so anyway, a good point: that on Joe Biden's watch the official United States rhetoric didn't match the United States's actions.  That there was never any real attempt at diplomacy on the part of the United States government.  Instead the U.S. became something that pumped billions upon billions of dollars into Ukraine's war effort and apparently this was not good enough for Zelensky, who Vance accused of not being thankful enough.

It's pretty clear that Zelensky wants something that the United States and other countries in Europe cannot provide without bringing about a larger conflict with Putin's Russia.  And Zelensky isn't budging about that.

I've had time to contemplate what happened yesterday and the larger scope of things.  And from where this blogger is sitting, it does seem as though Trump's strategy is the best one.  I'm not saying it's the most likable.  But it will bring about an end to hostilities sooner.  The minerals deal that was almost signed yesterday at the White House, before relations broke down between Trump and Zelensky, wouldn't put "boots on the ground" in Ukraine.  But it would put American interests firmly in place in that country, something that could be just as effective at giving Putin pause about furthering his aggression.

It's not a solution that makes anyone happy.  It certainly does not me.  In my perfect world Ukraine would kick Russia out on its ass, retake the captured territory and sue for reparations.  There would be international sanctions against Russia for invading a sovereign country.  But that perfect world does not exist in real life.

Maybe someday, after Putin is gone, there can be a return to Ukraine's intended borders.  Perhaps a Russia without leadership hellbent on bringing back the glory days of the Soviet Union's vast empire will be fully ready to join the family of nations.  But that day isn't in the foreseeable future.  We've got to take what we can get.  

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Lenten Blogging 2022: Day 28

Russia's invasion of Ukraine may go down as the textbook example of all the wrong ways to try to take over a neighboring country.  I'm reading the reports (whichever ones may be accurate) and it just blows my mind how unprepared Putin was in sending his forces into Ukraine.

First of all: WHY did Russia commit its forces during the winter?  The vehicles have gotten bogged down in mud and mire, just as any armchair strategist knew would happen.  But this seems to be the classic pattern for Russia.

There does not seem to be a reliable system of replenishing food, ammo and replacement artillery.

Speaking of that artillery, there are reports that the Ukrainians have more tanks now than when the war began, because they keep capturing Russian tanks and painting Ukrainian markings on them.

The Russian trucks and other vehicles in the invasion convoys have shoddy tires, and other problem parts, which can arguably be traced back to corruption among the oligarchs.  These are NOT sturdy pieces of equipment they road to war on.

The fight to take Kiev is now approximately three weeks behind schedule.

Odessa and other cities along the Black Sea coast have not been taken.

There are widespread accounts of Russian soldiers giving up.  Morale has collapsed.

The Russian army has now lost more personnel than it did during ten years of occupying Afghanistan.

 Russia continues to be ostracized by most countries.  Putin has blown thirty years of building up goodwill, for sake of a war he cannot possibly win.

All of these reasons and more, are going to be studied at great length in history books sooner than later.  Russia is NOT the great power that it claims to be or ever was.  And it's going to take decades to undoe the damage of this debacle.  The best thing to happen now is for Putin to step aside... or  be made to step aside.

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Lenten Blogging 2022: Day 20

Wow.  Day twenty of writing a new blog post each day during Lent.  I'm starting to believe that I can actually pull off this thing.

Yesterday while looking at the blog stats, I discovered something that startled me.  Over the past 48 hours, this site has received three visits from Kiev, in Ukraine.

Someone going through tribulation that I cannot comprehend, for whatever reason thought to visit my blog.  Actually, at least two someones.  Two of the visits were repeats from the same IP address.

I really don't know what to say, about that.  Except this:

Whoever you are, I am praying for you and your fellow Ukrainians.  You are not forgotten.  You have friends out here.  And maybe someday, sooner than later, we can properly introduce ourselves to each other.  Maybe someday we will get to meet in person.

I would very much be honored to know who you are, who out of all the blogs and websites out there, you picked this one.

God bless you and be with you.

 

 

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Lenten Blogging 2022: Day 17

Oleksii Kyrychenko of Kiev, Ukraine took this photo of his nine-year old daughter.  He titled it "Girl with Candy":

A few days before the Russian invasion he took this photo:

Let us pray that Kyrychenko's daughter, and all of the children of Ukraine, can be brought through this present madness.  Of all the things that are lost in war, childhood innocence must be among the most tragic.

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Lenten Blogging 2022: Day 7

Of all the photos that have come out of Ukraine in the past two weeks, it's the one most heart-wrenching to me.  The photo that says it all about what that evil bastitch Vladimir Putin has done to that country.

I came across it on Facebook.  On one of the many dachshund-related groups that I'm a member of there.  It was a few days ago.  And I've been thinking about it a lot.

It's a photo of a Ukrainian woman, fleeing the destruction.  In her arms, she is holding her dachshund.  Keeping it safe amid the turmoil.

I saw that photo and it damn nearly broke me.

I have a dachshund also.  Her name is Tammy.  She turns ten years old one month from today.  She and I have been through a lot together.  We look after each other.  She's been there for me through a lot that's happened in my life.  And in return, I like to believe that I've given her a good life.  I'm hoping that we have many more years together (dachshunds can sometimes live to be twenty, maybe a bit more).  Tammy sleeps in the bed next to me every night.  We curl up together.  I can't imagine my life without her, and I know that one day I'm going to hurt very much when she is no longer with me.

I saw the picture of that Ukrainian woman and her dachshund, and it broke my heart.

Why is this war happening?

I don't agree with Lindsey Graham on everything but he's right.  Someone in Russia needs to KILL Putin.  Needs to blow him away or slip some polonium into his salad or whatever.  He is a madman.  A lunatic who God only knows what he's going to do with his hand over the button that could launch three thousand nukes at the civilized world.

I don't know much.  But I know this:

In Ukraine, tonight, a woman is desperately holding onto her dachshund.

And it pisses me off, what has happened to her and her country.

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Lenten Blogging 2022: Day 2

The Russian people did not wake up pokey one morning last week and decide to invade Ukraine.  Neither did the Russian people occupy Poland and impose the Iron Curtain.  The average subject of the emperor didn’t care where Pearl Harbor was if he even knew it existed at all.  The Protestants and Catholics of Northern Ireland spent decades blowing each other up… why, exactly?  The typical Palestinian when pressed on the matter can not say why he wants to shove every Jewish man woman and child into the sea.

 

I’m reading stories now about Russian soldiers in the field crying and wanting their mothers.  They didn’t want to be there.  Many of them claim that they didn’t know they were going into Ukraine to begin with.

 

I’m also reading about the Ukrainians holding Russian soldiers hostage and parading them in front of cameras for social media.  And showing photos of dead Russians.  Some are claiming that doing so violates the Geneva Convention.  To quote Patrick Swayze from Red Dawn: “I’ve never heard of it!”  Swayze then answers his friend’s concern about what makes “us” different from “them”: “BECAUSE WE LIVE HERE!”

 

It’s hard not to sympathize with the Ukrainians.  They didn’t ask for war.  And war is hell.  Why shouldn’t they reciprocate in kind?  If someone breaks into your house, you have the right to stop them by any means necessary including acts of violence.

 

But I digress.

 

All of this and more, did not come about because entire populations simply decided to go to war and wipe out another people.  They instead came about by the machinations of a relatively small minority.  Sometimes not even that much.  Too often it comes down to one man.  One man whose sanity is questionable at best.

 

(Sometimes I find myself thinking that there would have been peace in the Mid-East a long time ago already, were it not for that idiot Yassir Arafat rallying his people toward hate and violence.)

 

There have been many such men.  Men who by accident or design have come to control the lives and deaths of millions.  I can tick off a bunch right now: Stalin, Pol Pot, Amin, Kim, and of course Adolf Hitler.

 

Right now, that man is Vladimir Putin.  Dictator of Russia.  And he is following right along with his predecessors.  The big difference is that Putin has it in his power to destroy the world as we know it.

 

So the question that’s been running through my mind, the question that has been asked by many before me and will no doubt be asked by many more to come still, is this…

 

Why do we allow ourselves to follow madmen?  Why do we even tolerate them?

 

Solzhenitsyn was right.  If the people had only resisted.  If only they had chosen to fight back.  Had decided that they would kill Stalin’s agents when they came instead of cowering in fear.  But instead they played along as the victim.

 

Why is it so hard to say “no” to lunatics?

 

When are people like the Russians going to say “enough” and topple the madman controlling their country?

 

 

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Ukrainian folk version of AC/DC's "Highway to Hell"

Just for the heck of it...

"Highway to Hell" performed with tambourine and accordion. Again I declare: truly we are living in the age of wonders!

Seriously though: what a fun cover! And these guys are obviously enjoying their work. Gotta smile about the whole thing :-)

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