What do Ukraine and Taiwan have to do with each other? Well, Xi Jinping has stated that he would like his military ready to be at war with Taiwan by 2026. So, the lesson China is learning is that it will take a bit to invade a well-armed motivated neighbor.
I studied a lot of history as a college student and the study of war was part of that education. The Russians are notoriously stubborn and this war will continue for a while.
It does give both NATO and Russia and China/North Korea/Iran an opportunity for everyone to test our their alliances and their military hardware. To some extent, this is good for our military readiness in that we get to test out our missiles, our battlefield effectiveness etc. Sadly, we do that by killing a lot of unmotivated Russian troops, while helping out the Ukrainians.
Despite my contempt for the current Republican party and its mouthpiece, Fox News, it is really shocking to see any republicans leaning towards taking Russia’s side in any aspect of this war. We have defended Israel as the only friendly democracy through thick and thin and we should absolutely defend Ukraine. The notion that Russia is disposed positively towards us could not be more wrong-headed based upon history. That Trump was actively seeking to do Putin’s bidding and seeking to undermine Ukraine is unsurprising. But, to see the Republican party lining up to restrict aid to Ukraine or mimicking Russian talking points is really shocking. We are on the right side in helping the Ukrainians.
There is a great old and remarkably short book called Groupthink: Psychological Studies of Policy Decisions and Fiascoes about poor decision-making by leaders who are isolated and surrounded by yes-men or sycophants. The Bay of Pigs under Kennedy is one example. Trump could fall into this category on any number of decisions, but Putin is probably a glaring example to warlords everywhere. Groupthink basically posited that failing to surround yourself with differing viewpoints was guaranteeing a failure to see reality. And, failing to see reality has dire consequences at the international level, but also at the level of our everyday lives.
So, back to Philadelphia for a second. The City has a mayoral primary coming up on May 16, 2023. There are a lot of candidates running. The City needs new leadership, new guidance, and a new approach to woo business, employees, and visitors back to the City. Going back to the old machine politics candidates will only prolong the City’s problems. Something really needs to be done about crime, Kensington, and education. I cannot vote as I am not a resident, but I am hoping for positive change.