Some More Thoughts on Ukraine

First off, let's dispense with one thing: Tucker Carlson is not an authority on anything. My opinion is that if he's someone you're relying on, no dice. The Right would probably not accept my quoting Rachel Maddow, even though she has a degree in public policy from Stamford and a doctorate in politics from Oxford. Let me say this plainly: If Tucker said the Sun was going to come up tomorrow, I'd buy every fucking battery that I could get my hands on.

Second, as to the dismissal of the "borders are sancrosant" argument, that's not a good place to hang one's hat. Since the end of the Second World War, it has been the global norm that borders are not adjusted by force. It is one of the reasons why wars between neighboring nations have become rather uncommon.

Third, the Russians and their toadies are arguing that Ukrane is not really a country. If they are not, then are Moldova, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia countries? They were part of the USSR. Finland was part of the Russian Empire, is Finland a country?

Fourth, if Russia has complaints about missile systems in Europe, it has only itself to blame for that. Even TFG's administration couldn't look past Russia's ongoing violations of the 1987 INF Treaty.

Ukraine has diplomatic relations with about 180 nations. Contrast that with the Republic of China, aka Taiwan, which could easily fit the ambassadors of every nation that recognizes it in a hotel shuttle bus.

Speaking of Taiwan, care to bet how many of those arguing to stay out of this Russian-made mess would take the same tack if the People's Repubic of China decided to ramp up the pressure against Taiwan, from, say, blockading the island? How many of those arguing to let putin do as he wants would argue that "oh, Taiwan is not really a country"? I'm betting that there would be significant defections from the "do nothing on Ukraine" caucus.

What Putin wants isn't hard to understand. He wants to regain Russia's sphere of influence over its neighbors. He wants the rest of Europe to kowtow to Russia. He wants NATO and the Americans gone.

But what he has done, especially in the last six years, has had the opposite effect. Ukraine has had pro-Russian governments in the past, but that's not going to happen anytime soon, not with Russia fucking around in the Donbass region with its "little green men" war and with annexing the Crimean peninsula. Ukranians that were pro-Russian have changed their minds, thanks to Putin. Russian aggressiveness has stiffended the spines of the other nations in eastern Europe. Sweden and Finland, which were pretty much sitting on the sidelines during the Cold War, are growing closer to NATO.

Putin has backed his country into a corner where, regardless of the outcome, he loses.