Thinking Out Loud
Working through my very different positions on conflicts in Ukraine and Israel.
I’m trying to think through my Ukraine vs. Israel position and your comments are requested to help me work it out.
I never supported US involvement in Ukraine.
But people who say the Ukraine situation isn’t our war are wrong – Pottery Barn wrong.
Pottery Barn has the “You break it, you buy it” policy and we (via the Democrat administrations) broke it.
We may not like it, but when an American president gets the government involved, we are all involved – and there is a litany of Russian aggression that was allowed to go largely unpunished under several American presidents.
Clinton negotiated all of Ukraine’s Soviet era nukes away.
Russia annexed Georgia under Bush.
Obama and Biden failed when Putin "annexed" Crimea and the Donbas and the names of Obama, Biden, Nuland indelibly stamped on the 2014 “Color Revolution” in Ukraine.
Biden was either eating pudding or sundowning – or both - when Russia invaded Ukraine.
Just the facts.
Where was NATO?
Since Ukraine is not a NATO member, the better question is “where was the EU?”
Well, Great Britian and the EU were too busy getting assimilated by Islam to bother with Ukraine until it was too late.
Now I need to do Israel.
I have always supported Israel.
Israel is like America’s dowager aunt who keeps getting picked on by the thugs in her neighborhood and we have to go over once in a while and help her crack some heads. I must admit that it has always been easy for me to support Israel because the war there is not over politics, land or treasure, it is a war of extermination. Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran, and the rest of the radical Islamist regimes in the region say so.
If there was a war where America could legitimately say that we don’t have a dog in the hunt, it is the war between Israel and the Axis of Islam (Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah), and yet I feel compelled at a spiritual level to support it.
But I get people like Marjorie Taylor Green who wonder why we are pouring taxpayer money into both. Ukraine is going to be another place – like Afghanistan and Iraq - that cost the US trillions of dollars, and we get nothing for it. The Globalists think we need to get involved in world conflicts, but we are never to take territory or resources and we are never allowed to benefit financially or strategically in any way, shape or form. With a premise like that, it is easy to see how someone could become an isolationist – because what is the point of wasting material and human capital with no return?
Some point out that Israel has a 400-billion-dollar national debt vs. the US’s $37 trillion, so sending them over $3 billion a year seems a little excessive. I see that perspective.
The shame is that these two conflicts have devolved into a proxy battle – at least here in the US - between Republicans (Isreal) and Democrats (Ukraine). Except for a few who either support both wars or neither of them, these issues break along party lines and have largely become an ideological battle, and ideological battles obscure the real costs in human lives.
I applaud President Trump for taking the politics out of the Russo-Ukraine conflict and putting the focus on saving the lives of people on both sides. While America does own part of this conflict, President Trump was not part of the decision process. He was even impeached for talking to Zelenskyy about corruption that came about because of Democrat meddling in Ukraine. I don’t see a way to victory for Ukraine. Negotiation is the only way out.
I also applaud his support of Israel in a war with an opponent what is never going to stop and is impossible with which to negotiate. Israel’s only option is complete victory, something that is attainable.
I’m not saying I am right in either case. I’m just saying it is easier for me to understand the GOP led investment in Israel than it is the Democrat led investment in Ukraine.
First, your explanation is right on target. I too have divergent views on involvement in the two conflicts.
I believe we have a duty to work to end the Russia/Ukraine war for all the reasons you state. In addition to the reasons you document, there is the loss of life on both sides. Ukraine is not a member of NATO, but is on the path to membership. That's one of the "reasons" Putin gave for the war. The problem with NATO is the member nations usually won't get involved in a conflict anywhere that the US doesn't approve of, and DJT certainly doesn't support our boots on the ground there.
The US does have a history of interfering with Ukraine, and using it as a home for some dangerous labs that would not be allowed in the US.
Great Britain is no longer a western nation, as is the EU. All of them are being assimilated by Islam and will soon be overt enemies of the US instead of covert as they are today.
In my opinion, Trump is correct in working to end this war. Both sides need to understand that failing to make peace will invoke whatever actions we can take to make their lives miserable.
As for Israel, again, I agree with you that we should support them, My reasoning is simple. The Israeli government is on the front line of the war against the invasion and takeover of the western world by Islam. There is no time in Islam's history when they were not attempting to conquer/convert other religions, and this is the current manifestation of that aggression.
Europe is under attack, the US has enclaves of Islam here, and there are issues of defying our laws in favor of Sharia, and the continued spread, violently if necessary, if Islam is part of their religion and worldview. To not support the Israeli government in their conflict with Islam would be to allow the genocide of the Jewish people living there, the surrender of the Holy Land in total, and the strengthening of supporters of terrorism like Iran. We must support Israel.
I close with your words "I’m not saying I am right in either case. I’m just saying it is easier for me to understand the GOP led investment in Israel than it is the Democrat led investment in Ukraine."
I think the Ukraine analysis needs more development. Would be good to include what caused the war (besides FJB eating ice cream). What is Russia trying to accomplish? Is it mainly to keep NATO weapons from being positioned closer to Moscow? Or were they trying to gain some strategic resources? Or was it some secret labs with COVID (or worse) research they wanted to destroy? Or Nazis? We can't really tell from most news outlets. BTW - pretty sure Ukraine is not in NATO yet. Also pretty sure that is something Putin wants to prevent.