As tensions between the US and Russia intensify over the escalating Ukraine Crisis, the economically failing Russia provocatively tests its ability to conduct a worldwide war. Given Russia’s “training exercises” include nuclear bombers, the potential for a nuclear war may be rising. At the very least, the Putin government is attempting to intimidate Europeans and Americans in order to discourage us from bolstering our support of the faltering Ukrainian military and ratcheting up more sanctions that could doom the Russian economy for years to come.
What really complicates the situation is Russia’s newfound love affair of the rogue state North Korea. A couple steps behind Moscow, Pyongyang has recently chosen to escalate its rhetoric to include threats of a nuclear strike against the United States. Recognizing North Korean government is extremely insecure, domineering, and delusional when it comes to understanding its actual significance in the world, it has long been a concern that North Korea would be willing to use nuclear weapons without contemplating the implications of doing so. Although the US may be safe from a North Korean nuclear attack, we are not safe from a Russian nuclear strike. Unfortunately, it appears the current generation of Russian leadership does not respect the devastation of a nuclear blast while it also appears Russia may be lowering its threshold for a nuclear response. Absent a greater number of facts when it comes to Putin’s thinking and North Korea in general, the possibility that Russia would be willing to transfer superior nuclear technology to North Korea must be considered.
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Attracting as many, if not more, viewers than voters on Election Day, Americans spend nearly twice as much on the one day of the Superbowl than they did for the two years of the most costly election in US history. If Americans felt the same level of passion and commitment to government as they do football, the US government would not be a dysfunctional mess.
Not only would the roar of the American People deafen the whispers of special interests, fans would be so in tuned to “the stats” of the governance game that political leaders would have no room to spin the truth. A great deal of the problem is that government is a far more complicated subject than sports while government is neither business nor pleasure, i.e. there is no immediate reason to pay attention to government on a regular basis. Politicians long ago realized it is easier to win elections if they avoided educating voters on the issues and simply played to their emotions. As the saying goes, “answer the question you want to answer, not the question you were asked.” In other words, politicians avoid the issues, especially when they do not have the answers or when they know their views run counter to voter interests. |
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April 2020
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