Forever Fearful: Different Century, Same Story.

Valdamir Putin is a demagogue.  It is not fake news or Western propaganda to say this statement.  I am not sure if you all are tired of war, but I am. Why is he interested in Ukraine? Well, Ukraine was a part of the former Soviet Union, as was Crimea and he annexed that in 2014, and I can only imagine that he wants to relive his glory days as the head of the KGB and reunify some demented version of the Soviet Union. Mind you, this is only a guess, and what do I know?  He has been in power since 2000, a long time for a demagogue to inflate his ego, his power, and his wealth. (Of course, this could set me up for the argument for term limits in the United States for elected officials, but we won’t go into that right now.) These deadly sins have corrupted him beyond respect for rule of law or human rights. For me, I truly believe power corrupts completely, and he is the prime example.  He doesn’t care what his people say or believe, (much like our leaders), and to be honest, if he decides to use nuclear weapons against Ukraine, then we, the world, will pay a cost. 

This fact makes me think of 1989 when I was young and the wall came down in Berlin. Being 18, I thought this was the end of the predominant threat in my lifetime, a nuclear holocaust.  I was going to be the last generation that hid under our desks. Many of us thought the threat was over.  Oh, how naive I was to think that it was over. However, there were peace activists, from a few generations before mine, that kept reminding us that these powers still had nuclear weapons and that they were still a threat. The BBC reported that Putin has put his nuclear response on high alert.  A madman has his finger on the button, now, the threat is real again.  And I don’t know if Biden will show restraint if Putin does the unthinkable. 

It will not surprise many of you that the former administration weakened our solo hegemonic status in the global community. And regardless of how you feel about it, there was a negative consequence to this sudden weakening.  This fall created a power vacuum, and both China and Russia (again, regardless of how you feel about those two governments and ours, this created a problem.) are in a race to take the empty seat.  And the real frightening fact is that the neocons of both American political parties, with their investments in Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, and Northrup Gruman, will want to take back our seat at any risk, especially after the embarrassing handling of the Afghanistan withdrawal.  (Both the Trump Administration and Biden Administration are to blame for the ending of America’s longest war only to give it back to the power we supposedly defeated 20 years ago.)  The weakening of our hegemony has set the tone for this happening since the 1980s. We have overextended our military since then at any cost. Both parties have had commanders-in-chief inflate our Pentagon budget.  And today, I read we want to increase it to $800 billion. And with the cry for blood, the majority of the American public is in favor of this move in light of Putin invading Ukraine. No one asks where the money is going to come from like they do when discussing healthcare for all or feeding people.  No one asks how we are going to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy. And War.  No one asks how we are going to pay for war and it will be our children that will pay. I am tired. 

We are a nation of violence, so it is a strange phenomenon when we are surprised that another world power behaves how we do. This fact by no means excuses Putin for his actions.  He has been this way for a long time now. Power, unchecked, corrupts completely. 

I do support the anti-war advocates in Ukraine and Russia. No one wants war, only those who gain, the wealthy and greedy for power and money, benefit from war, while the rest of us live in fear and bury our children. We can hope for peace. I strongly condemn Putin for his actions, much like I would condemn my government's actions for similar actions.  But the threat of a nuclear holocaust is real, again.  Between the pandemic, the mayhem caused by it, the greed of some of us, and the threat of climate change, it’s no wonder that my sons would rather dive into the virtual world rather than face reality.

HOPE FOR THE FUTURE

I recently attended a webinar with some peace and nuclear disarmament groups on the situation in Ukraine.  A great deal of them is genuinely afraid of this being the end of civilization as we know it.  And I tell you that I share their fear. As a mother of two teenage boys, I can tell you that they are both self-serving and empathetic for future generations.  First, there were endless wars, than a regressive turn on democracy, civil and human rights both domestically and abroad, and then a virus that stopped the world, and never mind the environmental crisis that this generation faces.  Oh, yes, and how could I forget about the mass shootings?  The mass shootings created lockdowns.  My sons have been doing lockdowns since they were in kindergarten. My oldest was in kindergarten when the Connecticut shootings happened, killing the babies that were only a year older than him.  However, the adults who need to destroy the world to save their egos are the ones in charge and the loudest of us are crying about wearing masks, getting vaccinated, and keeping wars of weapons to save the oppressive systems that we keep “reforming”. Even others, the ones I tend to agree with on a lot of issues, only seem to care about becoming political messiahs or following one, and shutting up others if they do not worship the same political god. I am sure there are still others who are tired like me, and I have met a few, but we tend not to be as loud as we should. But we do have a lot of hope in these bleak times.

Many activist groups were calling for a world peace movement!  These movements happen step by step.  We must be a people that work toward peace and nonviolent resolutions whether we are talking in our streets, our nation, and our world. (Shout out to the Nonviolent Cities Project Joliet!).  I always say that I am a peace activist, but not a pacifist, there is a difference, I will literally fight for peace. Supposedly, there are people smarter than me that need to work this out.  One person stated that we need to support the peace activists in Russia, and that has encouraged me to want to stage a protest against Putin, but it would need to be worldwide to show solidarity with the Russian people who are against this act of aggression. We definitely want to protest against any use of nuclear arms.  One activist suggested that the Nuclear Disarmament Movement needs to be revitalized in the mainstream.  It is true that this nuclear war has always been a threat, and it did not end in 1989.  My country is also part of the problem.

One group stated that there is over 50 state department (ambassador) spots empty throughout embassies around the world. And yes, you can blame the former administration’s lack of foreign policy initiatives for that. But now this major tool of diplomacy is not fully staffed which puts us at risk. Though now we must hold the US Senate and Biden Administrative accountable.  You all need to call or email them to demand they fill those vacancies. I do not care what party your Senator is, please call them! Or maybe we get the kids to do it, as the adults seem to not be present most days but whine louder than the children. 

And a pundit on the radio stated how a silver lining could be a push toward democracy once again.  As an idealist, I truly believe in a government for the people.  And this is to remind some of you that democracy does NOT mean capitalism, and capitalism does NOT mean democracy. Because as the tech billionaires will agree, capitalism does not mean you need a democracy. But the ideals, though still need a lot of work, are there.  Something that I truly believe in and will pass on to my sons and the younger generations.  We have been through so much in our struggle for human and civil rights at home and abroad.

Do I have hope that this does not escalate into a nuclear war? Yes. I do. But it starts with us demanding that the world changes and that we change. We do not have to accept things as they are, we need to move forward as a people, as a nation, and a global community to defeat the threats of war and conflict.  I am not a believer of any supernatural being, but I am a believer in hope and love. Again, I strongly condemn Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. The man is unbalanced from power and wealth. I am with the human rights defenders in Ukraine and Russia.  We need to protest against this war as we would our own government.  But remember, where there is conflict anywhere in this world, there is no peace. I need to have the hope of peace and love for my world for my sons and their future. I am not the only mother who wants a world free from violence in our homes, communities, nation, and world

So, join me and make our leaders listen! It is possible to commit to peace.