Ukraine Must Not Become Another Bosnia
29 November 2022
I have pointed out the similarities, and the possible similar outcomes, between Ukraine and Bosnia many times in my blogs. I have repeatedly warned against allowing anything of the sort. Here is an article on Aljazeera by a professor at the University of Sarajevo, outlining exactly the same idea. In his article Why Ukraine should not accept Bosnia-style peace, Hamza Karčić explains the dangers of allowing western “experts” and “mediators” to help in the negotiating process. If you recall what happened in Bosnia in the early 1990’s then you know the dangers. If you are unfamiliar, use this article as a starting point to learn about the horrors of Bosnia at that time, and understand why Ukraine must be supported fully, to the end, when they drive the Russian invaders from their country.
Russia is a terrorist state. Ukraine must not become another Bosnia.
We can all help the people of Ukraine succeed in their fight. Today and tomorrow all donations made to World Central Kitchen will be doubled, up to 10 million dollars! Give what you can and help feed the victims of Russia’s criminal actions.
In the meantime, the criminal Russian state continues to kill its citizens. As of today Russian war dead totals near 88,000 souls.
At the same time, Russian military incompetence, disorganisation, and poor training continues to fund the Ukrainian war effort. Let’s add more HIMARS to these armaments, and most important of all ATACMS!
Russian donations to Ukraine’s war effort.
The Russian Police State, World Central Kitchen, Russian Losses Updated, and Is the West Doing Enough?
16 May 2022
My comments for the day begin thus: Russians are falling perfectly into step with the oppressive, authoritarian state, and state sanctioned lies. The propaganda fed to them by the brutal, murderous state is not questioned; the subjects take it as gospel truth, as good Soviet (Putinist) citizens should. The work of the KGB (FSB) makes sure that fear rules that country; anyone speaking out in any way is subject to arrest as a foreign agent, with 15 years ahead of them. If this is not history repeating itself, then I don’t know what is. See Solzhenitsyn’s The Gulag Archipelago, as I seem to be repeating in blog after blog. All of this just happened, and there are still people alive who saw it and lived it the last time.
Are we doing enough? From the Telegram channel Ищи своих, from 15 May, 2022 (translated using Google Translate):
West not doing enough to unseat Putin, Iranian analyst
“Regime change in any situation, be it in Russia, Iran or North Korea, will not be possible without the intervention of an internal factor or the people.”
Amir Taheri is sure: “Putin believes that the war in Ukraine will eventually be the first step towards the “Russification” of Europe. It is important to help the Russian people understand that Putin wants to go in the opposite direction of history and bring Russia to war with all of Europe.”
There you have it. We are not doing enough- the US, Europe, the rest of the world. My immediate list- more opinions on my part- on what should be done:
- Every penny that is in any way traced back to Russia should immediately go into a fund for the eventual rebuilding of Ukraine, or for the fight against Russia right now
- Every Russian unit, every single soldier being held by Ukraine who was anywhere near the scene of any war crimes should be questioned, and if evidence indicates, put on trial immediately. The trials should be swift and just, more in keeping with Nuremberg- a year and half and they were completed. Not like the ICTY trials, and those still underway, in Bosnia- 30 years after the fact!
- Every last resource available to us, those of us outside of Russia, should be used to bring Putin and his regime down- economic means, cyber warfare, sanctions against Russia and sanctions against US companies and multi-nationals who still do business in Russia (these in place until they leave Russia for good), and finally good old fashioned subversion and psyops (psychological operations)- getting alternative information- truth, into Russia through radio, TV, social media, and even in print. Spreading accurate information in a closed society is a form of subversion. Subversion is a tactic that can gain more ground psychologically than possibly any other. We see a few overt, active subversive acts going on- the firebombing of recruiting stations for example (level 3 subversion includes sabotage). These firebombings should be only the beginning.
Again, my opinions. And yes, they are harsh. But the survival of Europe as we know it, and… not to be too much of a doomsayer here, but… possibly even our SPECIES is at stake here.
Feeding the hungry in Ukraine– an update from the World Central Kitchen. They continue to feed so many people in Ukraine- 25 million meals served to date! They are always in need of donations. See the links above, right.
Russian soldiers murdered by Putin so far- fast approaching twice the number who died in Afghanistan over the course of 10 years!
Russian combat losses as of 16 May 2022
At this point my blogs seem to have exhausted themselves… how much more information do any of us need regarding death, destruction, war crimes, and a very uncertain future for all of us? What a world we live in. So for now, some commentary, and more of the day’s news later.
I have asked myself, what is it that holds the world together? My answer- it is the international, rules-based order that we have tried to create and maintain since World War II. But rule of law, justice, democracy, and liberty are all very fragile, forever balanced on a thin line which, should they cross it, may mean their disappearance for a long time. This is nothing new; mankind has always lived on the edge of a precipice, from our hunter-gatherer days to… today. The critical difference today is in the level of suffering and destruction that one person can exact from the world by crossing that line.
How do we fight against such a threat? Simple- by doing exactly what we are doing- decisive action, continued pressure, and the unprecedented response of a fairly united world. But, the world needs to do more- there needs to be more action, more pressure, with more unprecedented responses with every day that dawns.
Psychology will tell us that the use of terror is the most effective way to control a person, a group of people, a country… and a world (this final item, at least in theory.) Terror is being used against us- against Ukraine, and all the people of the world who choose freedom and democracy over tyranny and authoritarianism. Our world has far too many madmen as “leaders”, foremost among them, at present, is of course Russia’s Putin. The level of terror he is responsible for inflicting has truly not been seen since the 1940’s. Our response- the response of the world, has to be commensurate at least, and in truth much stronger and greater to insure order is maintained and to facilitate Putin’s downfall.
But we- the “west,” need help. As I have said in the past, the people of Russia are being held hostage. It is imperative that they stand up to Putin and his followers, do their part in this fight, and become a part of the free world. This will not be easy, there will be suffering and death. But if they do not, all indications are that they will be subject to Stalin, revisited; to a new reign of terror, which means suffering and death. The choice it theirs- stand and fight, or cower and remain oppressed.
In the meantime, as governments continue to pressure Russia, we as individuals must continue to focus on Ukraine, on sending food aid through such organisations as the World Central Kitchen and medical aid through the Ukrainian Red Cross Society to name just two of many options. We must continue pushing corporations and government representatives around the world to keep the pressure on. We also need to make sure we do not forget about other countries that are in precarious positions, such as Moldova, Bosnia, Kosovo, Serbia, Georgia, and Hungary. These are countries where Russian influence must be checked. These are countries that need our support, countries that are helping Ukrainian refugees and have a desire to become part of the EU and NATO. The rest of Europe, the west, the free and democratic nations of the world must help facilitate these desires if the free world, the precarious world we live in, is to prevail.
Here are the latest Russian combat losses from the Telegram channel The Center for Countering Disinformation. Numbers in black show previous day’s totals, red are those added for yesterday. The Ukrainian military is superior in every way to that of Russia, except of course in the sheer numbers of bodies it can throw into the war to be killed. But that is apparently not a concern for Russia.
Russian combat losses as of 04 April, 2022
How to Help
Jim Hicks in his book Lessons From Sarajevo, A War Stories Primer speaks about how war is presented to those not present in it. He addresses the relationship between victim, aggressor, and observer, and how the media so easily inserts the observer into the equation using images, words, and video to elicit a “proper” response, such response dependent on agenda of the outlet of course. Hicks tells us this is nothing new; he cites Walt Whitman’s writing about the Civil War in the United States, and of course there are many earlier examples; we most often label them propaganda. What is new is how quickly we become party to the action, with information shared instantly and constantly, and most importantly the fact that we can take action and not merely maintain the attitude of the observer.
Being an observer, sitting on the sidelines and feeling sorry for the victims is the position most of us take. There are feelings of sympathy, pity, compassion, and shock which perhaps get us to anger, shame, and frustration. We arrive finally at helplessness as a spectator. But we can all become actors. The simplest way is to help feed the survivors of Russian aggression.
The World Central Kitchen posted a video yesterday showing some of the damage in the places they are now reaching inside Ukraine – yes, they are helping to feed people in devastated areas of the country. Donations to the World Central Kitchen help feed Ukrainians who have been under siege for many weeks- this is a positive action that we can all be part of, no matter where we are, or how helpless we feel.
Dispelling One More of Putin’s Myths
6 March 2022
As we move forward during these dark days, with the Russian military openly and illegally killing the citizens of a peaceful, democratic, and sovereign nation, one myth used by the perpetrator of these criminal acts must be dispelled. Most people have heard, somewhere in Putin’s continued rhetoric, about NATO’s promise not to expand eastward. This is one of his key arguments for the invasion of Ukraine.
The short answer to Putin’s statement is that NATO never gave such a promise. There is no truth in Russia’s claim that sovereign countries such as Ukraine and Georgia are, by the agreement, not allowed to join NATO. As the text of the document reads, Russia agrees to
“respect for sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of all states and their inherent right to choose the means to ensure their own security“.
Further, the fact that Putin has himself initiated war upon Ukraine seems to void many parts of the document, which assumed peace on both sides. The arguments against Putin’s claims are many; they have all been clearly laid out in the various links below.
As background, Putin is referencing the 1997 NATO Russia Founding Act (full text), one of a number of documents created to keep peace and stability in the region in the post-Soviet era. Russia agreed to and signed the act, along with others over the years which were equally important in maintaining peace, stability, and the sovereignty of nations in the region. Historically, the agreement began much earlier than 1997, with discussions on the reunification of Germany, Poland’s bid to join NATO, and even with the discussion of Russia becoming a NATO partner.
The summary of the act issued by the US State Department on 15 May, 1997 can be found in archived form here.
NATO refutation of Putin’s claims, posted on 27 January, 2022 can be found here.
A Guardian article from 12 January, 2022 clearly lays out and refutes the main claims, and gives background on the Act as well as other points of negotiation with various world leaders over the years.
DONATE TO HELP FEED UKRANIAN REFUGEES
Final word, if you are thinking about how you can help the people of Ukraine, donating to the World Central Kitchen is a safe and fast option which will show immediate results. They are feeding thousands of refugees at numerous borders crossings, as well as in the country of Ukraine. This link will take you directly to their donation page.
At Five AM 