I can understand that sentiment. If you really believe in something, you should do something about it. And if you don't do anything, it casts doubts on what you say you believe. On the other hand, this contrasting approach is just as dangerous. There is a siren song that says that if you have an opinion about what is good and what is evil, and you have the capacity to do something about it and fight for good against evil, then you should do it. Not doing so means you are somehow complicit in the evil you refuse to stop. But there is a great conceit that you can determine what is good and what is evil and that you should impose this view on others because you have the might to do so. This is how we got into a 20-year war in Afghanistan, how we knocked down Iraq without being able to stand up a successor government, and how we got stuck in Vietnam. There is still a difference between believing in what's right and believing it's your place to set things right.
Under Kant yes knowing what is evil would call on to you act against this. Under Utilitarianism though you would have to weigh the consequences of that action. I think Ukraine is very much that situation but if you see how the Biden has handled it he is threading the needle of action but trying to avoid a commitment of US or NATO troops.
While I appreciate your point here, and it's well taken... you are leaving out where I explained, or at least notioned to the evaluation of capacity. Of course the US cannot be involved in every atrocity, and cannot be "world police." You also cannot discount the inherent beliefs, desires, and capabilities of those you want to help.... meaning the Afghanistan people were too tired of war, and didn't have the leadership to fight for their land against the Taliban taking over so the US should have better evaluated where there was someone who truly wanted your help, and wanted you there. In the case of Ukraine... man... at least from my perspective, this is NOT a country that is either aloof to a hostile invader taking away their freedoms to rule, and certainly not a group of people who aren't reaching out to the US and the West for help. I know Ukrainians that live here now, but just moved over here a few years ago, and have family there. It's a situation where IMO neglect, and sitting back and saying... not my war... doesn't stand the moral test. However morals aren't everything... there also is strategy & our own objectives to consider... mainly promoting Democracy & free societies that are self governed. You also aren't knocking down Ukraine and installing a puppet regime that the people don't want. They have Democracy. They have leadership and government they believe in. The US if it is helping and getting out of the way afterwards, I don't see why this is comparable to Iraq in any way. Just to be clear I don't WANT the US to be at war with Russia, or to be sending over billions every month for any war regardless. I just don't think there's really a good choice here, and if the geopolitical stability of Europe isn't enough, the moral & logical reasoning makes it a no-brainer to at least help them fight and try to remain a free democracy. With so many countries like North Korea, China, etc. all highly interested in invading their neighbors as well relatively soon, showing them that it comes at a very very high cost is worth it to global peace and prosperity. If this war can end in the next year with Putin achieving little, and costing him greatly while the world sees a free society triumphing... it'll be a huge moment for this next generation of war or peace & prosperity. Everything is a calculation, and nothing should be done without alot of thought. Sounds simplistic enough but when even when it comes to "do we do it for morals, and what is right or not" that process removing the emotion & pushing logic should still stand.
I don't really disagree with you on anything here. I think there are lots of good reasons to support Ukraine and I actually approve of what our government has done to support them so far. It just rubbed me wrong the flak Space Ghost was catching. Nothing in international relations is a no-brainer, and there is a big gulf between seeing people like Putin doing something bad and making decisions about what you should do about it. Maybe we should be supporting Ukraine, maybe doing even more than we're doing, but there should be some space for people to say, yeah it's wrong but we should keep our noses out of it. I don't agree this time, but it's a legit policy position.
Groupthink can be especially harmful during wartime. BTW, I think our government (the admin) is typically mucho groupthink when it comes to war, so there is that. Just the nature of government to operate in secret during an active war by a selected few. But I do think Biden is playing a pretty well-tuned note so far, threading the needle between holding back Putin while not pushing Putin to the edge, holding Europe together, and keeping it tolerable to the US (and EU) public.
Kiril Stremusov, the bat-**** crazy Kherson traitor who was appointed deputy governor "died in a car accident". He was an anti-vaxxer and heavy conspiracy theorist, and is notable for putting out cringe-worthy youtube videos. Genuinely probably was more than a little mentally ill. I'm assuming his car accident was the closest they could get to a 6th floor window in a war zone. He would have been a severe embarrassment if captured and because he was unpredictable and borderline crazy he was probably a big security risk. Also, they probably didn't want to bring his crazy back to Russia proper like they do with trusted collaborators. I could even see him refusing to leave Kherson and demanding the Russians fight to the last man. Definitely bad news either way for Russia. Probably the most high profile collaborator the Russians had in Ukraine. Not particularly someone important, but a very front-and-center face of "Russian" Kherson. [BBC]Kherson Russian-appointed deputy governor Stremousov 'killed in car crash' Video below details a press meeting where he publicly tells Russian defense minister Sergi Shoigu to shoot himself a couple of months ago. Guessing he didn't clear this script with the Kremin beforehand.
Under the Embassy of Hungary in Warsaw, people tried to pull Orban out of Putin's ass. We believe that when the Prime Minister of Hungary looks at the world from a different perspective, he will finally be able to see that Russia is a terrorist country, that its gas is not only terribly smelly, but also deadly, and that it is precisely because of this country and its politics the world is currently experiencing an economic crisis. We keep our fingers crossed for you! Natalka Panchenko
[Al Jazeera]Live news: Russia tells troops to withdraw from Kherson city Shoigu actually announcing it: Big victory for Ukraine, who totally isn't winning according to some. The timing of Stremusov's "car accident" is suddenly more suspicious.
Russia is an historic enemy of the modern the West/ US led world order while Iraq and Afghanistan were not. I think the main difference is we could beat the Iraqi army and Taliban army very easily and with very minimal casualties but we didn’t handle the “post war” situation well at all. Despite the US’s overwhelmingly geographic advantage, events outside of the US still matter and effect us.
