On March 22, 2024 a concert hall near Moscow was attacked by gunmen who opened fire on concert goers and set fire to the venue, destroying it. As of this writing 137 people have died as a result of the attack. As an American who vividly remembers 9/11 I can sympathize with the Russian civilians who were at that concert and the population that grieves for them.
Russia has played an instrumental role in curtailing ISIS activities in various countries and as such has been a target of their wrath. From all accounts there have been warnings of ISIS activity in Russia both by Russian intelligence and US intelligence. The US went so far as to post on our embassy’s website in Russia warnings to US citizens in Russia to avoid large gatherings. While this was March 7 and the 48 hour warning had expired, that doesn’t make it any less prescient. The US also warned Russia, although the Russians seem to be denying that. Although at the time Putin tried to score propaganda points by dissing the warning. So to deny it ever happened now is rather weird.
What is rather odd as well is Putin’s effort to somehow try to connect Ukraine to this attack. ISIS has claimed responsibility and also posted video of the attack on their media channel. Yet Putin is intent on dragging Ukraine into the mix. That seems to me to be a rather dangerous move on the part of Putin. It will not make Russia any safer.
BBC Report:
ISIS in Russia:
Given the earlier warnings I would have to question what the Russian government knew about ISIS activity in the country. I would also question whether or not the Russian government can, or wants to, keep its citizens safe.
Russian prison authorities reported the death of Alexei Navalny on Feb. 16, 2024. He was just 47 years old. If you don’t know who he was, he was the thorn in Putin’s side. He was the opposition leader who had the audacity to fight against the corruption that is systemic in Russia. He had the courage to stand up against Putin, calling out the invasion of Ukraine as the Russian war of aggression it is. He was the man who, after being poisoned, went back to Russia. For that he was jailed and slowly encouraged to die by Putin and the system he created.
I put his name in capital letters because he will always stand 10 feet taller than Putin or any of those who try to smother democracy and the freedom of people to live their lives. I have to admit I always thought he was foolish to go back to Russia, because I knew that eventually Putin would have him killed, just like he has so many others. But it was what he wanted and like all of us he had the right of free choice.
My condolences go out to his family and the people of Russia. They lost a good man at the hands of a bad one. A very poor trade.
A Russian voice:
An American voice:
There are still people out here who will not give up the fight.
When I was in junior high I loved the tabloids. You could pick one up at the checkout line in the supermarket anywhere. They had so many flashy, and really not very factual, articles. You can still find them, although they usually revolve around celebrities and not alien landings. Today, of course, young people get their information from the internet. But the one thing tabloids had in common with today’s internet is that facts were not always present. Facts did not sell papers, shock value did. Today it’s how do you get someone to click on your page? The solution? Clickbait, make the headline as extreme as you can. Back then it was a more innocent time where tabloids couldn’t do much harm. Today, however, we are seeing disinformation proliferate on social media platforms to the point where people are unsure of what is real and what isn’t. It can cause real world consequences that impact our lives and our future. Propagandists, both foreign and domestic, are using these platforms to further their own agendas, not ours. I don’t know about you, but I prefer to make up my own mind about things, not let someone else do it for me.
So how to counter this? I was very pleased to see that there are actually people who are trying. See the article and included video below:
This librarian is right, it doesn’t matter what beliefs you may have. What is important is basing those beliefs on facts. It may take some double checking but in the end finding the truth is like finding the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Someone once said, knowledge is power. They were right. Because knowledge will prevent a person from being used by those seeking power. In this ever more complex and dangerous world we need to be more aware of what is real and what isn’t.
Sometimes when I look out at the world I wonder who we are? I see only fighting and discord. This is the season where we should be coming together and working toward a better world. I am sending this message to all of those on the frontlines, both near and far, who are fighting for their homes.
If there is one thing the United States has stood for it is freedom.
That a significant segment of our population is ignoring a country
that is so desperately fighting for it is a sad statement to the
state of our politics today. The Ukraine/Russia war will have far
reaching consequences if Putin is allowed to prevail. Those who
would use aid to Ukraine as a tool of blackmail do not belong in our
government, because they are no better than Putin’s puppets.
To all my fellow
Americans here: This is a critical point in this conflict, not just
because the Russians are attacking, but because Congress is playing
games with Ukraine support. This Russian offensive isn't actually
meant to achieve a military goal, it's aimed at a political goal - to
try to convince Western skeptics that supporting Ukraine is a waste
of time. We cannot let them succeed with their longer term perverted
idea of geopolitics, that Russia is superior to all other cultures
and deserves to rule the world. Please pick up the phone and call
your elected representatives in Washington and let them know how you
feel. You don't need to try to convince the staffer of anything, just
let them know what your opinion is and let them know how strong that
opinion is. Most of their calls are from political busybodies. If
they get calls from new sources, they pay attention. All of them are
very interested in keeping their cushy job. We need to collectively
ensure Ukraine receives the support it so deserves. Ukraine has shown
over and over that they are indeed a worthy ally and friend. Thank
you in advance for your cooperation. Slava Ukraini!
I found it in a
comments section on a Ukrainian vlog and felt it needed more
publicity, even if only my small blog, so I stole it and posted it
hear for you to see. Because he or she is right and I am tired of
the Republicans who are working to advance Putin’s goal and stymie
the cause of freedom in Ukraine. Our border problems are peanuts
compared to the problems Putin can cause us.
Do you ever have the feeling that you are talking but no one is listening? Seriously disappointing. I have been wanting to write something in this space for some time, but between fall clean up and the depressing turn of world events, and those closer to home, I have found myself without words.
The world seems to be turning in the wrong direction. We continue to see the war between Israel and Hamas hemorrhaging lives both near and far. The horrendous attack by Hamas has only enraged those who see only the victims of Oct. 7. In turn the sledgehammer that Israel has used to try to destroy Hamas and its military infrastructure has only enraged those who see only the suffering of Gazans. In the United States we have seen attacks on Palestinians leading to the death of a little boy and the paralysis of a young man. We have seen hacking of a water facility in the name of those who support the Palestinians as well as threats to individual Jewish people. To put it simply this conflict has encouraged the extreme actions of those who seem to think extreme action is the only solution. Innocent people are the ones to suffer. If violence worked this conflict would have been solved a long time ago.
In the United States House of Representatives we have seen a vote taken to expel a member, George Santos, on ethics, if not criminal, violations. The Republican leadership in the guise of Mike Johnson chose to support this member. It was abundantly clear through the investigation by the Ethics Commission that this GOP member lied about his credentials and was voted in on false pretenses. As we saw down in Texas where the state attorney general, Ken Paxton, survived an impeachment effort by his own party with the support of MAGA Republicans we see at the national level the effort by Republicans to save their more sleazy members, because it is expedient for them. This behavior by House GOP leadership should be a wake up call to the venal character of that leadership. Beyond policy issues integrity and character matter. Yet the far right Republicans have managed to attain power in the House that causes dysfunction and chaos.
In Ukraine the war with Russia rages on. This is what happens when an autocrat, Vladimir Putin, is in control of a country. His actions are not checked. The Ukrainians have been fighting bravely and are waiting for much needed continued support from the United States. Support which has been blocked by the far right Republicans in the House. Their methods of “compromise” are not to compromise but to blackmail and use force to to push through their agenda, which in the long run supports Vladimir Putin. That the United States has come to this pass is because many voters have supported Donald Trump and his self centered agenda. They have chosen to believe his lies. They have fallen for the far right’s propaganda which has focused on social issues like abortion and gender identity. They have allowed themselves to ignore the dangers that forcing people to bend to the far right’s beliefs will have.
Are we to continue to be the beacon of democracy we have striven to be? Or are we going to fall into the trap of the extremists who exist in all countries? Will we devolve down to an autocracy controlled by Donald Trump? As long as there are those who believe his lies we will need to stand up and be heard. All of us. This goes beyond social or economic issues. It is our existence as a nation.
It was pointed out to me that I skipped over a very critical point in that last sentence. It is what type of nation we will exist as that I was referring to. Do we want to continue on as a democracy or do we choose to allow those who would drag us down the path to autocracy to succeed?
On Oct.7 Hamas
launched a terrorist attack on Israel killing innocent civilians and
kidnapping others. It was one of the most brutal attacks since the
advent of ISIS. But it wasn’t just the loss of life that was so
horrendous but also the loss of something less tangible, hope. Hope
for normalizing relations between Israel and the rest of the Arab
world. Some speculate that it was the possibility of that which led
Hamas to conduct this attack now.
Israel has responded
with massive force, pummeling Gaza with airstrikes. While it is
understandable that Israel would need to bring to justice those who
perpetrated the Oct.7 attack the humanitarian catastrophe that is
now Gaza is not justice. It will not bring any solution to the
Israeli Palestinian conflict, it will only feed hate. Just as Hamas
wants. Hamas has been using the people of Gaza as human shields and
by bombing Gaza Israel has fallen into the trap set by them.
As I type this the
anger around the world towards Israel is growing stronger. There are
protests in many countries and fears of the war between Hamas and
Israel spreading in the region are growing. Attacks against American
forces in the region by Iranian proxies have escalated leading the US
to respond with missile strikes. The US has sent ships to the
Mediterranean Sea as a warning to Hezbollah, but fighting is now
occurring on the Israel Lebanon border between Israel and Hezbollah.
As of this writing
there are over 200 hostages being held by Hamas and other terrorist
organizations in Gaza. Hamas has also been refusing to allow
American citizens to leave Gaza. They too are being used as human
shields. I would say this really is not working for Hamas.
None of this has
been of benefit to anyone except perhaps Vladimir Putin, whose war in
Ukraine has been going rather badly for Russia. The Middle East
going up in flames is something that would certainly distract the world
from his own brutal war.
