Ukraine
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UKRAINE IS A LAB FOR WESTERN WEAPONS: https://www.theapricity.com/forum/sh...41#post7649341
Russia is indeed big, ruthless, and counting on the sanctuary of its territory. But at the same time, Russia has been badly bloodied. But, perhaps, that should come as no surprise. For behind Ukraine lies the power and the problem of the West, understood, as he defines it, in the old-fashioned sense of a free coalition of states led by the United States. Remember that you can never do "enough" to free Ukraine from the shackles of the past and to create, as the Guardian explains, "a new national identity based on events repressed or rewritten by the Soviet regime". That much appears to be obvious. Cohen also admits with disarming frankness that this is, in many ways, a war between a calcified society lost in its brutal past and a free society looking toward a decent future. But it appears obvious, at least, to Cohen, that "we" are not doing enough and "we" in the West are sacrificing nothing beyond modest financial resources. "War weariness" in Western democracies, he claims, is a tired trope. The true picture is of a person one step away from declaring, "Onward,. Christian. Soldiers". As a number of analysts have noted, spending some tens of billions of dollars to shatter the land and air forces of one of Russia, one of our chief opponents, is both a bargain and a triumph, and a great way to spend, but Cohen goes further to say that spending some tens of billions of dollars more, for as long as it takes, is no less worth it. Obviously, for him, and others like him, there's no better way to spend taxpayer money. For as long as it takes. But what can be said of Russia can also be said of America as a whole. And the same can be said of Britain and Europe. The Economist, quite rightly, points out that Europe increasingly wants to be seen as a unified force, and it is also worth noting that the story of Britain and the story of Europe have always been intertwined, as the Guardian notes. But not always in a good way,, and sometimes but not always peacefully and contentedly. America's capacities and resources are "not infinite", but neither are they exhausted. Although it may now be cracking, and overstretching won't be conducive for them or the EU as a whole, or for both the host and the intruder. Like many observers, Cohen paints a rosy picture of the transatlantic community, but the reality is that America is on its knees, struggling to get up, and it obviously needs extraordinary measures now. It is also, as the Guardian rightly notes, "a very tribal place." These have already been observed by several investigations. For instance, it was observed by Christianity Today back in 1970 that the showy facade of affluence, technological advance, great knowledge, military might, and a high standard of living cannot hide the internal rot. Macdonald (1998) rightly predicts, both on theoretical grounds and on the basis of social identity research, that as other groups become increasingly powerful and salient in a multicultural society, the European-derived peoples of the United States will become increasingly unified; among these peoples, contemporary divisive influences, such as issues related to gender and sexual orientation, social class differences, or religious differences, will be increasingly perceived as unimportant. Experts have long predicted this on theoretical and observational grounds. Macdonald went on to say, and it is widely expected, that these groups will eventually develop a united front and a collectivist political orientation vis-ŕ-vis the other ethnic groups. Other groups, moreover, will be expelled if possible or partitions will be created, and Western societies will undergo another period of medievalism. Either way, it is the likes of Eliot Cohen who seem to be self-serving and to be implicitly guilty of employing double standards and hypocrisy for deception and manipulation and for outside consumption by the globalized community, but most importantly seem to be promoting a war that could bring them new power. Here is the key passage in the Atlantic article, and one that is likely to set off alarm bells for those who care about the direction our country is headed. Cohen seethes with resentment and complete frustration along the way. But hey, who can blame him? Especially with despised leaders like Sunak at the helm. To quote Cohen:[/SIZE]
The real reasons for reluctance look to be timidity and a lack of imagination. So perhaps the best thing for Western leaders who cannot bring themselves to treat war as war is to clarify for them what they have to fear if they do not take the actions that both strategic calculations and moral imperatives demand. In a world where a large predatory state is stalled but not beaten decisively, the only resort for its smaller neighbors is to acquire weapons of cataclysmic power. Their leaders would be irresponsible if they did not consider that option.
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Originally Posted by LETTER "Z"
United Kingdom
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