Trump can count every dollar sent to Ukraine. But he can't see the larger war those dollars help prevent, and that makes prevention one of the hardest things in government to defend
Yes, indeed - it is extremely hard to visualize what does not happen. I once asked peace builders to think about what would have happened without their work, and it proved to be extremely difficult to visualize that. The people of Somaliland are, to me, the poster children of what happens when a whole society decides to create peace through their own efforts, led by their elders and supported by their diaspora.
Wes, in the 1970s, I spent almost a year standing on a fence line at a place called Fulda in Germany. I saw Soviet troops, East German troops, and other Warsaw Pact troops marching around, looking at what we were doing while we watch what they were doing. We never fought that war. We knew what deterrence was and what all that money positioning us in Germany was saving.
Our homes. Our families. Our neighbors. Our communities. Our nation.
I'm a weirdo Wes. Every time I fly I think about most of those things. Just because I'm mechanical and know how one little thing can snowball into a big thing. And since this fascist regime is actively working on destroying every safeguard there is, I've been thinking about food safety as well. I recently reread The Jungle by Upton Sinclair which I read originally as a kid and it made a lasting impact on me. Reading it now just shows where we are heading if something doesn't change soon.
Excellent piece. I'm going to share with my subscribers.
No one talks about the USSR’s invasion of Europe, which devolved into nuclear war as Western countries were overwhelmed. The USSR was going to collapse, everyone could see it. When dictatorships fail they invariably try and ‘export the misery’. If Reagan hadn’t built up the US military so it was obvious Russia couldn’t win, would the USSR have ended so peacefully?
An excellent article, Wes. Whether you Americans or we Canadians see federal taxes, we rage. Predominant in the States is this belief that continually cutting taxes is good, the trickle down theory, etcetera. No one likes waste in governments but these preventative measures as you indicated keep many of us safe. And they’re not cheap.
I don’t even believe the full destructive impacts have hit the US yet. I see the huge decline in American soft power through the essentially destroyed USAI. And the cutbacks at NOAA and the NWS will haunt you for decades. The greatest loss to me are the incredible numbers of long serving US government employees with decades of expertise and experience. You can’t replace that experience.
And kudos to American, British, European, Australian and Canadian military personnel who for decades have sacrificed to keep our peace. And apologies for not continuing the list of other “right side” nations and their militaries.
You just described Brexit without mentioning it. The EU was designed to achieve those things and let individual countries take all the credit for their improvements.
Trump hates the EU. He doesn't hate it because he doesn't know. It's been explained to him, same with NATO. It doesnt matter.
It's not possible that no one explained USAID to him. The cruel way programs were scraped was a feature, not a bug.
One of your best, Wes.
Precisely the same paradox haunts epidemiology and infectious disease prevention (vaccinations).
People who are transactional have no 'negative' imagination.
Thanks!
Brilliant analysis and context! Thank you.
I had to look up Слава Україні! - Slava Ukrayini! - Glory to Ukraine.
PS Trump actively destroys anything that involves 'trust'. Most dangerous and the effects of that destruction are not short term!
Yes, indeed - it is extremely hard to visualize what does not happen. I once asked peace builders to think about what would have happened without their work, and it proved to be extremely difficult to visualize that. The people of Somaliland are, to me, the poster children of what happens when a whole society decides to create peace through their own efforts, led by their elders and supported by their diaspora.
Wes, in the 1970s, I spent almost a year standing on a fence line at a place called Fulda in Germany. I saw Soviet troops, East German troops, and other Warsaw Pact troops marching around, looking at what we were doing while we watch what they were doing. We never fought that war. We knew what deterrence was and what all that money positioning us in Germany was saving.
Our homes. Our families. Our neighbors. Our communities. Our nation.
We remember.
Thank you. From one of those prevention engineers
I'm a weirdo Wes. Every time I fly I think about most of those things. Just because I'm mechanical and know how one little thing can snowball into a big thing. And since this fascist regime is actively working on destroying every safeguard there is, I've been thinking about food safety as well. I recently reread The Jungle by Upton Sinclair which I read originally as a kid and it made a lasting impact on me. Reading it now just shows where we are heading if something doesn't change soon.
Excellent piece. I'm going to share with my subscribers.
Nice ‘Dire Straits’ quip!
No one talks about the USSR’s invasion of Europe, which devolved into nuclear war as Western countries were overwhelmed. The USSR was going to collapse, everyone could see it. When dictatorships fail they invariably try and ‘export the misery’. If Reagan hadn’t built up the US military so it was obvious Russia couldn’t win, would the USSR have ended so peacefully?
Thank You.
An excellent article, Wes. Whether you Americans or we Canadians see federal taxes, we rage. Predominant in the States is this belief that continually cutting taxes is good, the trickle down theory, etcetera. No one likes waste in governments but these preventative measures as you indicated keep many of us safe. And they’re not cheap.
I don’t even believe the full destructive impacts have hit the US yet. I see the huge decline in American soft power through the essentially destroyed USAI. And the cutbacks at NOAA and the NWS will haunt you for decades. The greatest loss to me are the incredible numbers of long serving US government employees with decades of expertise and experience. You can’t replace that experience.
And kudos to American, British, European, Australian and Canadian military personnel who for decades have sacrificed to keep our peace. And apologies for not continuing the list of other “right side” nations and their militaries.
You just described Brexit without mentioning it. The EU was designed to achieve those things and let individual countries take all the credit for their improvements.
Trump hates the EU. He doesn't hate it because he doesn't know. It's been explained to him, same with NATO. It doesnt matter.
It's not possible that no one explained USAID to him. The cruel way programs were scraped was a feature, not a bug.
Why? A combination of factors: all bad.
I don't subscribe because you inject your politics into what is otherwise interesting and engaging OSINT exposition.
Thanks Wes, you have clarified another important aspect that my befuddled brain now can see clearer and done in a very elegant and clear way.
Thanks again
Max