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Paul Shelton
Sometimes problems get so big, so broad, so complicated, that it is impossible to encapsulate answers or solutions in anything short of book form. That’s about where we stand right now. Short answers seem like a struggle to write a thousand words in a few pithy opinions that don’t begin to cover the subject.
As for Russia, I can only report what my reading and life experience leads me to conclude. I have no time to offer “deep support”. Russia is a special case; one needs to dig through the deepest archives to find a history more tragic. The brutalizing of people for centuries on end, with unspeakable horrors, has been the lot of its people. Its modern incarnation still haunts the broad and bleak Russian plain, and the person of Vladimir Putin keeps the horrors alive.
Why did Putin attack Ukraine? For power and empire, plain and simple. The excuses offered by the Kremlin could not be more specious. Ukraine presented no territorial threat whatever to Russia, nor did or does NATO. The only credible threat is that a successful Ukraine might, just might, inspire Russians to finally be rid of its endless stream of dictators. The other reason? Russian corruption is so bad it even deceived itself. Russian intelligence is so out of touch it thought Ukrainians would welcome the Russian army with flowers and Ukrainians would cower to the shadows as Putin installed his puppet in Kiev. But instead, we learned that Ukraine has a national heart that wants to keep beating, and, in truth, the Russian military is a paper tiger that could easily be vanquished by NATO forces.
And what about Russia as a nuclear threat? We allow ourselves to be intimidated by a world class bully. The odds of Russia resorting to a nuclear strike are as slim as Putin deciding to wear a dress to work. It is an obvious bluff. Any nuclear choice by the Russians would spell the end of Putin’s regime in a heartbeat with no nuclear retaliation necessary.
But the bluff works, because there are always enough people afraid to challenge a bully. We entered the fray by providing weaponry to the Ukrainians. What on earth for? A failure to answer on the part of the West betrays our cowardice. One does not enter a war, proxy or otherwise, to lose people and treasure. There must be a goal, and that goal can only be one thing: to win.
The bigger question is what will Putin do if “successful” in Ukraine. The odds on bet is a quick redirection of focus to Romania through Transnistria. We have been confronted with an unspoken ultimatum: Either you stop us now, or we will continue to recapture eastern Europe. Victor Orban has already started building the structure in Hungary.
I think the West acted far too slowly and timorously in not advancing into Ukraine by Ukraine’s invitation. You don’t let a brutal bully get the upper hand. We, in fact, were handed a golden opportunity to take Putin out while the chance presented itself. Several years from now, having done nothing, we are likely to have an even more difficult choice. Without avowing the goal of victory, we are fulfilling the “jest” that we are only willing to fight to the last Ukrainian – which is a terrible conclusion to this nightmare.
Addressing the gun issue, and the passing idea that Russia would have had second thoughts about invading Ukraine if Ukrainians had guns in their closets, I can only say this: An attempt to make a rational connection between Ukrainian gun ownership and Russia’s choice to invade is risible. No hunting rifle (in every closet, to boot – be real) will stop a tank or an artillery battery.
As for guns in the US, I am convinced we are about the dumbest clucks on the planet suggesting that more guns makes us personally safer. We need to regulate guns for the dangerous tools they are. All statistics point to the prevalence of guns in a society as predictive of gun violence. We lead the world in gratuitous and deadly use of guns. All military grade guns should be owned only by certified ranges or individuals who store them at ranges – for use only within those ranges. All guns should be locked (trigger locks, removeable triggers, key or fingerprint locked, etc.) when in public and unable to be used by anyone other than the owner. These are potentially deadly, not just dangerous, but deadly, “toys”. All gun ownership should be registered beyond B-B and pellet guns, and ownership and sales treated just like vehicles, with heavy fines for violation.
I happen to think firing guns at targets is a perfectly respectable hobby, and legal hunting is actually necessary to control some animal populations. But allowing guns into social settings is a fool’s society. We are NOT safer carrying guns or having one at our bedside. Look at the statistics. We need guns for personal safety like we need more holes in our heads.
There, that’s my rant. Isn’t it great that our site can tackle the big issues, whether anyone agrees or not? Other high school sites hardly get further than birthday greetings and pix sent from someone’s visit to a beach somewhere.
Gotta go – more work to get done before my wife raises hell.
Paul
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