To the Left—and most RINOs—the two worst human beings on earth are Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin. Leftists HATE both, passionately. Putin and Trump are the devil, Dracula, and a male Baba Yaga rolled into one. The sheer depth of loathing is, frankly, a little frightening. Leftist hatred has often manifested itself in things called Hitler, Stalin, or Mao.
I don’t like Vladimir Putin, either (another time for Trump). I think he is a thug and a gargoyle, and I unequivocally condemn his unprovoked aggression against the Ukrainian people. I don’t like Joe Biden, either, and I have difficulty deciding who is worse—Putin or Biden. Putin invades Ukraine. Biden mutilates children. I personally think the latter is far worse, though both are heinous. Both men are evil, and if either censured the devil, I would at least give Satan a hearing.
No, I don’t like Putin. But let me attempt to—historically—invade his mind, not to justify his actions, but to try to understand them. I’m not going to let the Left and RINOs do my thinking for me. And history is exciting and enlightening.
I can’t know all the rationales Putin had for invading Ukraine (thugs start wars, monsters mutilate children), but I can understand—historically—why he wouldn’t want NATO on his doorstep. Now, I believe NATO will never attack Russia unless severely provoked. But I’m not in Russia looking west, and, not being Russian, I don’t have their history behind me. From Putin’s Russian perspective, he may not be as confident of European angelic intentions as I am; Napoleon and Hitler, anyone? Putin certainly knows them and what they did to his country. In April 1920, Poland invaded Soviet UKRAINE, attempting to detach it from Russia. Maybe a justified invasion. Ask the Ukrainians, who didn’t support the Polish army at all. Maybe Ukrainians don’t like Poles very much, either. Western troops occupied Murmansk and Archangel in 1921. There were even some American troops in Russia at that time. When did the Russians ever occupy Newcastle? Have you seen the Russian army in Kansas lately?
No, Russia has NEVER invaded Central Europe unprovoked or Western Europe at ANY time. In early World War II, Stalin invaded as many European countries as Hitler did (all in eastern Europe). Still, Russia was our ally for (most of) World Wars I and II, and has never attacked France, England, Italy, or Benelux, and only attacked Germany in retaliation for wrongs. Western Europe has assaulted Russia; Russia has never reciprocated. Maybe we have forgotten that. Putin hasn’t.
NATO was formed (I believe justifiably) in 1949 as an 11-nation mutual defense pact against the Soviet Union. This communist state HAD been aggressive in Eastern Europe and had world conquest aspirations. The USSR collapsed in the late 20th century, but NATO has only expanded since then to its now 30-odd member nations. Why the expansion? Putin might (understandably) be asking that question. He must protect his interests every bit as much as Europeans must protect theirs, and a 30+ European solid country NATO force aligned against him might cause him to wonder again about European intentions. Again, THINK LIKE A RUSSIAN WITH THEIR HISTORY! And, with all this talk of adding Ukraine to NATO...I doubt Americans would be happy if China organized a 30-nation Latin American pact near our border and then asked Mexico to join. That is what Vladimir Putin is staring at to his west. Add Ukraine to it? Why?
Again, I don’t think this justifies Putin attacking Ukraine. His only possible rationale was his fear that, if Ukraine joined NATO, that body could, more easily and quickly, launch an attack on Russia which has substantial vital resources Europe needs. I repeat I don’t believe NATO will attack Russia, not in the foreseeable future at least. But I’m not Vladimir Putin with a long Russian history in my rearview mirror and with 29 European armies pointing guns at me. Putin should be wise enough to know that the current crop of spineless Euroweenies wouldn’t attack him without desperate provocation. But not wanting NATO on his border is understandable, and the West should be sensitive to that. I don’t think either side comes out of this smelling good.
Mr. Putin might be wondering (me, too) why NATO still exists. He could reason that NATO started against the USSR's communist threat. Communism disappeared. NATO didn’t—and hasn’t. Russia was even promised, after the USSR collapsed, that NATO would never be extended eastward. That promise has been broken multiple times. Who has been the aggressor in the last 30 years? If you were Putin, what would you think? He probably thinks that fossilized 20th-century Cold Warriors are still running European and American foreign policy. He might be right about that.
I certainly understand—yea, insist—Europe (and America) keep a wary eye on a nation with as many nukes as Russia has. And Putin WAS a KGB puke; he indeed has some of that left in him, too. Don’t ignore him. I’m not a total isolationist by any means. What I am is a “you threaten America, and we kick your butt”-ist. We should build good relationships through trade and commerce. This should have been done with Russia after the fall of the USSR instead of keeping the Damocles sword of NATO hanging over their head. But—pay attention NOW!—war, and its threat, is a big, very big, very profitable business. George Washington warned America to avoid “entangling alliances,” and Dwight Eisenhower about the “military-industrial complex.” These principles will never be outdated. But we never listen to history. Never.
Putin is a thug (Biden is a despicable scumbag). However, some historical perspective can help understand someone’s motivations and is essential for building good diplomatic relations and avoiding gross miscalculations. The Ukrainian war is Putin’s. And Europe’s. And Baba Biden’$. Not America’s, Nikki.
Check out my substack at mklewis929.substack.com for more articles and podcasts. Free signup. Read my Western novels, Whitewater , River Bend, Return to River Bend, and Allie’s Dilemma all available on Amazon. You can follow me on Twitter: @thailandmkl. And rumble: lewandcou
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