War on the European Continent
No.96: February 25, 2022
Dear Friends,
Imagine waking up at four in the morning to the sounds of massive explosions rocking your city. Imagine walking out to the street and seeing an enemy fighter jet screaming over your head. Imagine hearing your government on the radio telling you to come and get a rifle if you don’t have one, along with instructions on how to make a Molotov cocktail.
If all that sounds surreal, that is because it is.
I have been saying for years now—at least privately among friends—that we have been operating with a very naive view of the world. With the post-Cold War ascendance of the United States as the singular, dominant world power, we somehow convinced ourselves that large-scale major wars are a thing of the past. “C’mon, man. This is the 21st century!” To which I say, “Read a history book. Any history book. Pick one.” The steady state of human existence has been one of war. Our little peacetime respite is an unusual pause in the normal state of affairs.
There is now once again a major land war on the European continent. If history tells us anything it is that major land wars on the European continent have a way of metastasizing beyond control. We may not be interested in war, but war somehow becomes very interested in us.
No matter what absurdities spew out of Vladimir Putin’s mouth, this was a completely unprovoked invasion of a neighboring sovereign nation. Over the last week he has denied Ukraine’s right to exist; then he said he was sending a “peacekeeping” force to small enclaves in eastern Ukraine; then he announced a “special military operation,” implying something modest and limited; then, moments later, Russian forces poured over Ukraine’s border from the north, south (Crimea), and east. Suddenly this “peacekeeping” force engaged in a “special military operation” became a mission to liberate the Ukrainian people—you read that right: liberate—from the “genocidal” Nazis—you read that right: Nazis—who were democratically elected to run the country. I’m sure that President Zelensky, a Jew, was surprised to learn that he is a Nazi.
A Hall of Shame
Before I make an attempt to comment on various aspects of this war, I want to get something off my chest first. Vladimir Putin has his defenders, and I think they are all clowns. All of them, but especially the ones on the political right: Tucker Carlson, Candace Owens, JD Vance—the list is growing by the day. Oh, and also the so-called “Nationalists” who somehow don’t think Ukraine has a right to its own national identity and integrity. That’s pretty bizarre. Anyway, absolutely nothing Putin says can or should be given any credibility, yet there are serious people who want us to believe that NATO is to blame (even though Ukraine isn’t a NATO country). That somehow, eastward expansion of NATO provoked this—what?— understandable response from Russia. Pat Buchanan was saying this 30 years ago, so it’s an old canard that won’t die. Somehow an alliance of European nations, many of them former Soviet satellite states, committed to mutual defense against Russian aggression, excuses Russian aggression? (“What do you expect them to do?” I’m asked. Respect their neighbors and leave them alone, that’s what.) This is like letting the wife-beater off the hook because, really, she shouldn’t have provoked him by joining that battered-wife support group.
One of the most depressing things about our domestic American response is how much our interpretation of events is distorted by our ridiculous, obsessive addiction to our partisan politics. Let’s clear something up: NONE OF THIS HAS ANYTHING TO DO WITH DONALD TRUMP. The former President is irrelevant, no matter how much he wants to make himself relevant: his immediate reaction to the invasion news was “That’s pretty smart,” and then, that this happened “because of a rigged election.” Give it a rest, pal.
And if you’re now tempted to tell me that this wouldn’t have happened under President Trump, that right there is part of the problem. Number one, it’s irrelevant. Such hypotheticals accomplish absolutely nothing except to scratch some primitive partisan psychological itch. And, second, even if it was relevant, it is also highly unconvincing. Donald Trump did nothing but admire, flatter, praise, and excuse Vladimir Putin over his entire term. Did he ever say a cross word? Nope. Not even when Russia poisoned dissidents on foreign soil (“You don’t think we kill people, too?” he replied.) Did he have anything to say when Russia diverted a commercial aircraft so they could essentially kidnap Putin-critic Alexei Navalny, throw him in a dungeon, and torture him? I don’t think so. He handed Putin a personal gift when, out of the blue, surprising his own Pentagon, he withdrew our troops from Syria. He attempted to extort Ukrainian President Zelensky, tying a weapons deal to digging up dirt on Joe Biden. Remember the “perfect” phone call? (It, um, wasn’t “perfect.”) Let’s just say that it is less than obvious to me that Donald Trump was going to deter Putin from his aims any better than anyone else, or even that he would have wanted to. But it doesn’t matter. At this point, it’s all just a parading of tribal political markers and fan service for the market share.
So, here’s a quick hall of shame:
Tucker Carlson is now backtracking, saying that “nobody” here is rooting for Russia. Ahem:
Here’s Ohio Senate hopeful JD Vance last week:
Somebody must’ve told him about the huge Ukrainian population in Ohio, because two days later he released this lengthy memo about how much he really, really cares about Ukraine.
And Candace Owens? I have a hard time believing she will long be keeping her job at the Daily Wire, with “useful idiot” hot-takes like this:
Yep. She really did take Putin’s rant at face value.
Okay, I got all that out of my system.
A Hall of Fame
So, now that the missiles and bullets are flying, what do we do? I am no foreign policy or military expert, but here’s my layperson’s take. There are a variety of things to be done, but they all must serve a singular purpose: Make it hurt to the maximum degree. The only possible deterrent at this point is to make this invasion wholly untenable for Putin, his cronies, and the Russian people.
Untenable financially: President Biden needs to stop holding back sanctions like he’s trying to conserve dry powder for some future emergency. This is the emergency. Enact every possible sanction, including cutting Russia off from the global SWIFT financial system (Biden claims that Germany and Italy are resisting that, but there are rumors that the U.S. is privately opposed, also). Seize the property and yachts of every Russian oligarch, freeze their bank accounts, and kick their kids out of our universities and put them on a plane to Moscow forever. Make it hurt.
Untenable militarily: NATO should be flying and shipping in weapons by the ton. Oh, this will escalate, you say? Maybe so. But let’s keep clear who escalated what, exactly. They invaded a sovereign nation, and allies coming to aid is just part of the package deal that goes along with that. So far it appears that the Ukrainian military is giving Russia more than it bargained for, and there is a small chance, a sliver of a window, to make this a humiliating defeat for Putin. Everyone assumes that Russia will prevail, and they probably will. But they don’t prevail until they prevail. And until that time, the Ukrainians deserve all the materiel they can get.
As for the Ukrainians, from what I can tell they are very tough, very proud, very heroic people. If Putin thought this was going to be a leisurely walk in the park, he was wrong. While we have to take every single bit of news with a very high dose of skepticism (the fog of war is very foggy, and rumors are just rumors), it does appear that Russia’s initial invasion has not gone exactly according to plan. Their elite special forces took an airport near Kyiv, only to lose it again in a Ukrainian counter-offensive. They appear to not have accomplished air superiority, which is utterly incredible—and embarrassing. Ukrainians are holding their own, and acquitting themselves impressively. Starting at the top.
President Zelensky is a guy who was elected from the Ukrainian entertainment world. Seriously: he played the President on a TV comedy show. It turns out that he’s quite the leader in reality, too. His address to the Russian people on the eve of the invasion is gripping:
His follow-up after the invasion, equally so:
And here he is this morning, reassuring his people that he and his staff remain in Kyiv:
He seems like the kind of guy a nation can—and will—rally around in times like these.
Then there’s the “Ghost of Kyiv.” Take this one with a few grains of salt, but there’s a rumor of a Ukrainian Mig 29 pilot who has allegedly downed six Russian jets. They’re calling him the Ghost of Kyiv, like he’s an elusive superhero. It’s likely just a bit of morale-boosting propaganda, but it is great morale-boosting propaganda. So I give it three cheers. Is this a glimpse of the Ghost?
Next up, the thirteen Ukrainian border guards on Snake Island. A Russian warship told them to lay down their weapons to avoid bloodshed, and they replied—well, you can read the subtitles yourself.
All thirteen are confirmed dead.
Then there’s the lady who cursed a Russian soldier and told him to put sunflower seeds in his pocket. Why? So flowers can grow when you die on Ukrainian soil.
And then there’s the bravery of the common civilian. This lovely woman maintains her cheerful countenance in front of her children.
And this man sends his family away as he goes to join the fight:
And, finally, Ukrainian Christians doing what Christians do in times like these:
Here are some of the lyrics from that song:
When I fear my faith will fail
Christ will hold me fast
When the tempter would prevail
He will hold me fast
I could never keep my hold
Through life's fearful path
For my love is often cold
He must hold me fast
Chorus: He will hold me fast
He will hold me fast
For my Savior loves me so
He will hold me fast
“Life’s fearful path,” indeed. And that’s the last, but certainly not least, thing we can do. We can sing and we can pray. That, too, is consistent with our singular goal of making this painful for Vladimir Putin and Russia. Appealing to the King of kings and Lord of lords, to whom all tinpot worldly dictators must answer, is itself an act of defiance and resistance. In fact, it’s the most important one.
But after the “Amen,” our Ukrainian brothers and sisters should grab their rifles, too.
Kyrie Eleison
In regards to your first paragraph---I found that the most surprising thing would be MY government telling me to come get a rifle if I don't have one. Oh, maybe that's why they want to confiscate ours so they can give them back when they decide we need them. (hear the biting sarcasm).
Brilliant analysis as usual Brian. I always look forward to your posts.
We have sung this song several times in our church. I will never sing it the same way again--without tears.
Thank you Brian.
I’ve observed that in wartime(including this one), in God’s image bearers, virtues like fatherhood, heroism, family, the idea of sovereign nation and healthy patriotism comes to the fore naturally, dwarfing evil ideologies to the ground, at least for the moment.