This is going to go all out war, fight to the death, until Ukraine is largely destroyed because that is what has been decided by the same people who think the Iran deal is smart, so this question is purely academic.
This isn’t like China taking over Oregon. Ukraine was Russia 30 years ago. So, honestly, would living in Eastern Ukraine, turned Russia again, be so bad that it’s worth destroying everything and a series of massacres to stop that from happening?
I wouldn’t want to live under Putin either but if the alternative is a gigantic massacre, with some rapes and mass graves mixed in, and also my neighborhood getting exploded and turned to ash, then I’d at least think about it. No? This is definitely Sudetenland 2.0? Okay. Fine. Here’s your weapons. I already paid for them.
Please remember that the BEST case scenario, unless you think Ukraine is going to invade Russia and win that war too, is a destroyed Ukraine that is still right next door to Putin or the even worse psycho who comes after him.
I just want to emphasize that I voted AGAINST all of this happening but every single person who lives in a nursing home or apartment building voted for it, so now we are here.
I think most of the experts expected putin to move into eastern part and negotiate from there, but this is NOT what happened, attacking Kiev and Kharkov is totally different, I don't understand why you pretend it is. Massive war is what Russia wanted.
Why are there so many people who seem to be only capable to think in terms of black and white? No, Ukraine is not an "evil country full of evil people", neither is Russia. Both countries are basically corrupt oligarchies whose leaders do not believe in democracy and into allowing regular people a say in what their future should look like. Russia is not willing to accept that most people in western Ukraine want to join the western world and Ukraine is not willing to accept that most russianspeakers in Eastern Ukraine don't want to join them on this journey. That's what this war is all about.
There could have been a very easy solution, involving having people decide for themselves in separate referendums, supervised by neutral countries and accepting the outcome, whatever it is. What's so hard to understand here? Why did the Ukraine government insist on the present borders at any cost and regardless how the people effected think about it?
And yes, there are bad players in Ukraine, but so there are in Russia. Both regimes oppress any opposition with very questionable means and I prefer not living in either one of them. Both regimes ally themselves with ultranationists and Neo nazis and other questionable forces to further their interest. And yes I do have a huge problem with Ukraine building monuments to commemorate Nazi-collaborateurs and jewmurdering war criminals like Stefan Bandera and dedicate public holidays to them, but that doesn't make every Ukrainian a nazi. Though it should make any jewish supporter of the Ukrainian regime think twice what they really support here.
One of the great casualties of war is the cultural heritage of those attacked. In addition to the loss of life, families being torn apart, and people becoming displaced—identity and heritage is erased when beautiful cultural centers like Odessa are destroyed.
Historically, any time people have waged war on others, one of the first orders of business was to destroy their art and literature. They burn books, destroy paintings, pull down monuments, kill or threaten the educated, and erase any evidence that these people ever existed to begin with.
True. I do think, however, the credit can be shared to both sides. The left is just more surreptitious about it (the ends justifying the means, etc.) and the right has been more clumsy about it.
One thing is certain: A democracy cannot survive without a cultural heritage or without people willing to take an honest, good faith look at their own history. What we see happening here and in Ukraine is a tragedy.
Bombs and artillery shells do not sort the old from the young, they just explode and kill. So yeah, I believe that, because it's true.
So do you. You're cheering the liquidation of the Ukrainian people for being "evil" and "Satanic," and that includes everyone from babies and babushkas. That is a sick and twisted notion, Marek, and it makes you no better than Hitler.
Why? Because you're cheering the murder of every single man, woman, and child in Ukraine. You're doing the same goddamn thing Hitler did to the Jews of Europe: dehumanizing them so he could slaughter them. That is obscene, and if you're the "real Jew" you claim to be, you would not be so fucking happy to see innocent children turned into Jell-O. That's Hitlerian.
It’s a common convention in Jewish culture to avoid using the Lord’s name in vain. It’s not the best argument when dealing with a message board troll like this, Lee.
Marek or whatever the name really is, is most likely conducting research for a high school communication class on group reaction to obviously provocative “news”. And I might add doing a good job. So Marek, how are your other classes going? Does your high school offer AP classes? My guess is this is a 9th grade class. You are most definitely hitting all the talking points of RT Your use of adjectives is somewhat excessive making your statements and responses too emotional. You need to cite resources and data especially when discussing the Nazi Ukrainian military. Numbers are always good. Keep up the good work. Very thorough for a ninth grader
Aeschylus, a Greek playwriter in the fourth centry BC said, " Truth is the first casualty of war." I am not excusing the Russian thugs who invaded Ukraine but can we trust our corrupt network reporting to be truthful?
Of course, I don't believe in what you posted. The Russians are murdering barbarians and Putin is a murdering sociopath.
Most of the countries south of the Rio Grande are corrupt. Cuba and Venezuela are run but communist murders. Does that mean the US has the right to invade them as Russia invaded Ukraine?
Oh, I know, Lee. But I won't let his genocidal views go unchallenged. He doesn't like the Ukraine government and wants Russia to win, fine. I don't agree, but that view is fair. But painting every Ukrainian Jew as a Holocaust denier? Calling every Ukrainian citizen a Neo-Nazi monster who deserve to die under the treads of Putin's tanks?
That is Hitlerian by any standard. So I called him out on it. But yeah, I'm not going to bother beyond this.
You remind me, Marek, of Tokyo Rose of WW2 fame - a female Japanese propagandist aiming English radio programs at American troops in the Pacific theatre, berating them incessantly. Ever heard of her? You sound just like her.
I was born in Odessa, lived there half of my life, got married, had my first child. Beautiful city, beautiful sea, wonderful childhood memories. At the same time, Soviet Union was a terrible place to be a Jew, so my family left as soon as door was opened. For many years we were staying in touch with some people there, but for me and my friends US and Israel became "our countries". We were staying away from local politics and discussions about russian versus ukranian language usage, for example.
This terrible war and distraction it caused changed our perspective. Killing civilians, destroying cities, telling people in russia that Kiev was ready to attack them and this is "special operation" to prevent it - WTF????
Nicely done. At turns bittersweet and poignant but with shades of a darker side. War is war, and here is the American jumping in, cognac in hand, understanding he's privileged in knowing he can jump out. This piece brings to mind a warrior journalist from another time, Hunter Thompson. Too bad he's gone, his take on the madness in Ukraine would have been well worth reading.
This topic has been a source of extreme anxiety for me. I lived in Odessa in 2009 and 2010 and the city has become one of my most adored places in the world. If it gets destroyed, I will live in despair. If an onslaught does begin, I almost wish it could be declared an open city like Paris in WWII. It is a naïve desire, but I just can't bear to see this city destroyed. It is a jewel of Europe with the most amazing architecture and spirit like no other.
War is a fundamentally human endeavor, and will and morale are synergistic and interdependent. Arguably, will to fight is the single most important factor in war. Will to fight is the disposition and decision to fight, to keep fighting, and to win. The best technology in the world is useless without the force of will to use it and to keep using it even as casualties mount and unexpected calamities arise. Ukraine has infinite reservoirs of will and morale; Russia is running on fumes.
Your story of your visit is incredible. You have given such a visual, so much a visual, I felt I was standing right there. I want to thank you so much for that. I’m exhausted.
Back in the 60s and 70s I worked as a newspaper reporter and editor.
If I could find my damn time machine and once again pick up my red ink pen I'd be disappointed.
After reading your report, Nicholas, I'd have put that nasty pen back in my drawer.
Your bosses are blessed to have hired you.
Seriously, Nicholas, your ability to write word pictures of places and events reminds me of the first essay I edited at the University of Maine student newspaper, where I volunteered my time as a mentor.
The essay was written by a tall goofy looking 18 year old freshman whose glasses seriously did look like the bottom of a Coke bottle. That fellow's name? Steven King.
Four paragraphs into his offering I knew my dreams of writing the next great American novel was done and dusted.
I hope to read more of your work, and thank you for this excellent first person report about the people you met during your visit to Ukraine.
I understand that this war is criminal and unnecessarily cruel, but that doe not excuse lack of perspective that we often hear. For example the idea that if Odessa was "built by Europeans" this somehow excludes Russians, and more broadly that Russia is not part of the European culture - the way of thinking that is at the core of the historical tension between Russia and the rest of Europe. Resolving this tension is the key of not just ending this war, but is the key to future European stability.
Secondly, Tennyson wrote Charge of the Light Brigade many moons ago about another Russian war over Crimes, so what is going on now is not some random obsession of a crazed leader. Russia has fought over control of that region for centuries.
Yesterday I read about how the steel mill under siege in Mariupol has been the focus of intense fighting in WW2 and that it was rebuilt after the war with a purpose to be able to withstand and attack like the one it's under right now - in other words it's a fortress.
A weird Odessa fact, aside from the mayor depicted in this article, is that Mikhail Sakhashvilli, former President of Georgia (Europe), has later spent some time as a Governor of the Odessa Oblast. I don't think I have ever heard of a case of a former president of one country who later gets involved in politics in another. In other words, Odessa seems to attract interesting characters. Nevertheless, I wish them safety and peace.
Regardless of what happens, this city will not "disappear tomorrow". It outlasted worse, and many incarnations of Russia, so it will outlast this one as well.
"...as bald as Jada Pinkett Smith..." Perfect simile. Topical and apt, so the reader has a mental image immediately. How many unfortunates who are looking to be offended (for someone ELSE who happens to be rich and powerful, btw) immediately saw it otherwise??? BTW, when the mayor of Odessa was described, I immediately thought of Colonel Nathan Jessup: "Son, we live in a world that has walls, and those walls have to be guarded by men with guns."
This is going to go all out war, fight to the death, until Ukraine is largely destroyed because that is what has been decided by the same people who think the Iran deal is smart, so this question is purely academic.
This isn’t like China taking over Oregon. Ukraine was Russia 30 years ago. So, honestly, would living in Eastern Ukraine, turned Russia again, be so bad that it’s worth destroying everything and a series of massacres to stop that from happening?
I wouldn’t want to live under Putin either but if the alternative is a gigantic massacre, with some rapes and mass graves mixed in, and also my neighborhood getting exploded and turned to ash, then I’d at least think about it. No? This is definitely Sudetenland 2.0? Okay. Fine. Here’s your weapons. I already paid for them.
Please remember that the BEST case scenario, unless you think Ukraine is going to invade Russia and win that war too, is a destroyed Ukraine that is still right next door to Putin or the even worse psycho who comes after him.
I just want to emphasize that I voted AGAINST all of this happening but every single person who lives in a nursing home or apartment building voted for it, so now we are here.
I think most of the experts expected putin to move into eastern part and negotiate from there, but this is NOT what happened, attacking Kiev and Kharkov is totally different, I don't understand why you pretend it is. Massive war is what Russia wanted.
Our Left is supporting Nazis with your money: https://amgreatness.com/2022/04/25/nazis-in-ukraine/
Thank YOU for your content!
Why are there so many people who seem to be only capable to think in terms of black and white? No, Ukraine is not an "evil country full of evil people", neither is Russia. Both countries are basically corrupt oligarchies whose leaders do not believe in democracy and into allowing regular people a say in what their future should look like. Russia is not willing to accept that most people in western Ukraine want to join the western world and Ukraine is not willing to accept that most russianspeakers in Eastern Ukraine don't want to join them on this journey. That's what this war is all about.
There could have been a very easy solution, involving having people decide for themselves in separate referendums, supervised by neutral countries and accepting the outcome, whatever it is. What's so hard to understand here? Why did the Ukraine government insist on the present borders at any cost and regardless how the people effected think about it?
And yes, there are bad players in Ukraine, but so there are in Russia. Both regimes oppress any opposition with very questionable means and I prefer not living in either one of them. Both regimes ally themselves with ultranationists and Neo nazis and other questionable forces to further their interest. And yes I do have a huge problem with Ukraine building monuments to commemorate Nazi-collaborateurs and jewmurdering war criminals like Stefan Bandera and dedicate public holidays to them, but that doesn't make every Ukrainian a nazi. Though it should make any jewish supporter of the Ukrainian regime think twice what they really support here.
Which agency do you work for?
How the fuck did you escape nurse Ratchet? She's getting old...
One of the great casualties of war is the cultural heritage of those attacked. In addition to the loss of life, families being torn apart, and people becoming displaced—identity and heritage is erased when beautiful cultural centers like Odessa are destroyed.
Historically, any time people have waged war on others, one of the first orders of business was to destroy their art and literature. They burn books, destroy paintings, pull down monuments, kill or threaten the educated, and erase any evidence that these people ever existed to begin with.
In the US, much of this is being done by the left.
True. I do think, however, the credit can be shared to both sides. The left is just more surreptitious about it (the ends justifying the means, etc.) and the right has been more clumsy about it.
One thing is certain: A democracy cannot survive without a cultural heritage or without people willing to take an honest, good faith look at their own history. What we see happening here and in Ukraine is a tragedy.
Give it a fucking rest, bro. Ukrainians are being slaughtered and you're calling them Satanic prostitutes? Just shut up.
Are Ukrainian babies blown to bits by Russian bombs getting what they deserve, too?
Bombs and artillery shells do not sort the old from the young, they just explode and kill. So yeah, I believe that, because it's true.
So do you. You're cheering the liquidation of the Ukrainian people for being "evil" and "Satanic," and that includes everyone from babies and babushkas. That is a sick and twisted notion, Marek, and it makes you no better than Hitler.
Wow. You're insane.
LOL concise
😂😂
I’m always here for your comments, Kevin!
🤗🤗🤗😎😎
(no more Ms. Doodles?)
No more of what?
Why? Because you're cheering the murder of every single man, woman, and child in Ukraine. You're doing the same goddamn thing Hitler did to the Jews of Europe: dehumanizing them so he could slaughter them. That is obscene, and if you're the "real Jew" you claim to be, you would not be so fucking happy to see innocent children turned into Jell-O. That's Hitlerian.
I didn’t know that. Why hasn’t God destroyed Germany, Russia, or the U.S. then? Haven’t they all participated in those things too?
I thought he was a genicidal warlord. Make up your mind.
Marek, why do you have trouble spelling the word God?
It’s a common convention in Jewish culture to avoid using the Lord’s name in vain. It’s not the best argument when dealing with a message board troll like this, Lee.
I just learned something, Kathleen. Thanks.
Hmm... and what about Russia? Haven’t they done those things too? Shouldn’t they also be due for some sort of reckoning by that logic?
And they told me religion was full of love and grace...
Elliot, I’d like to think this publication is a place that realizes that attacks on religious beliefs are below the belt.
Obviously, people can use religion as a weapon, but it’s not the religion itself that is at fault, it’s the person using it as a battering ram.
Yeah I know, just trying to remind Marek of that.
Marek or whatever the name really is, is most likely conducting research for a high school communication class on group reaction to obviously provocative “news”. And I might add doing a good job. So Marek, how are your other classes going? Does your high school offer AP classes? My guess is this is a 9th grade class. You are most definitely hitting all the talking points of RT Your use of adjectives is somewhat excessive making your statements and responses too emotional. You need to cite resources and data especially when discussing the Nazi Ukrainian military. Numbers are always good. Keep up the good work. Very thorough for a ninth grader
Unfortunately, this might be how some people interpret love and grace when their inner lives are so tumultuous. :(
War is hell. I pray for peace. I wish our leaders desired peace. Thanks for making the trip.
Aeschylus, a Greek playwriter in the fourth centry BC said, " Truth is the first casualty of war." I am not excusing the Russian thugs who invaded Ukraine but can we trust our corrupt network reporting to be truthful?
Of course, I don't believe in what you posted. The Russians are murdering barbarians and Putin is a murdering sociopath.
Most of the countries south of the Rio Grande are corrupt. Cuba and Venezuela are run but communist murders. Does that mean the US has the right to invade them as Russia invaded Ukraine?
Of course it doesn't.
Have you taken your meds today?
Apparently not. Most of the pharmacies in Vladivostok are closed.
Where are you posting from? Is it Moscow or some other s*ithole Russian city?
Does Vlad the Impaler pay you by the word, or by the post?
Vlad the Poker:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGa73NrtRfs
William, don't bother. Marek's on the side of the Barbarians pouring through the gate. Too far gone to be saved now.
Oh, I know, Lee. But I won't let his genocidal views go unchallenged. He doesn't like the Ukraine government and wants Russia to win, fine. I don't agree, but that view is fair. But painting every Ukrainian Jew as a Holocaust denier? Calling every Ukrainian citizen a Neo-Nazi monster who deserve to die under the treads of Putin's tanks?
That is Hitlerian by any standard. So I called him out on it. But yeah, I'm not going to bother beyond this.
You remind me, Marek, of Tokyo Rose of WW2 fame - a female Japanese propagandist aiming English radio programs at American troops in the Pacific theatre, berating them incessantly. Ever heard of her? You sound just like her.
OK, Adolf, we know you love the smell of Ukrainian blood in the morning.
Apocalypse Now is worth referencing. Especially now.
I was born in Odessa, lived there half of my life, got married, had my first child. Beautiful city, beautiful sea, wonderful childhood memories. At the same time, Soviet Union was a terrible place to be a Jew, so my family left as soon as door was opened. For many years we were staying in touch with some people there, but for me and my friends US and Israel became "our countries". We were staying away from local politics and discussions about russian versus ukranian language usage, for example.
This terrible war and distraction it caused changed our perspective. Killing civilians, destroying cities, telling people in russia that Kiev was ready to attack them and this is "special operation" to prevent it - WTF????
Nicely done. At turns bittersweet and poignant but with shades of a darker side. War is war, and here is the American jumping in, cognac in hand, understanding he's privileged in knowing he can jump out. This piece brings to mind a warrior journalist from another time, Hunter Thompson. Too bad he's gone, his take on the madness in Ukraine would have been well worth reading.
This topic has been a source of extreme anxiety for me. I lived in Odessa in 2009 and 2010 and the city has become one of my most adored places in the world. If it gets destroyed, I will live in despair. If an onslaught does begin, I almost wish it could be declared an open city like Paris in WWII. It is a naïve desire, but I just can't bear to see this city destroyed. It is a jewel of Europe with the most amazing architecture and spirit like no other.
War is a fundamentally human endeavor, and will and morale are synergistic and interdependent. Arguably, will to fight is the single most important factor in war. Will to fight is the disposition and decision to fight, to keep fighting, and to win. The best technology in the world is useless without the force of will to use it and to keep using it even as casualties mount and unexpected calamities arise. Ukraine has infinite reservoirs of will and morale; Russia is running on fumes.
https://euphoricrecall.substack.com/p/russias-achilles-heel?s=w
Nuclear war is a fundamentally INhuman endeavor, and nuclear weapons overcome all will to fight.
Cute.
Your story of your visit is incredible. You have given such a visual, so much a visual, I felt I was standing right there. I want to thank you so much for that. I’m exhausted.
The ambulance driver’s Russian sister must be a democrat. They don’t let facts change their minds either.
Back in the 60s and 70s I worked as a newspaper reporter and editor.
If I could find my damn time machine and once again pick up my red ink pen I'd be disappointed.
After reading your report, Nicholas, I'd have put that nasty pen back in my drawer.
Your bosses are blessed to have hired you.
Seriously, Nicholas, your ability to write word pictures of places and events reminds me of the first essay I edited at the University of Maine student newspaper, where I volunteered my time as a mentor.
The essay was written by a tall goofy looking 18 year old freshman whose glasses seriously did look like the bottom of a Coke bottle. That fellow's name? Steven King.
Four paragraphs into his offering I knew my dreams of writing the next great American novel was done and dusted.
I hope to read more of your work, and thank you for this excellent first person report about the people you met during your visit to Ukraine.
When I read the headline I was sure it was going to be about Portland or Seattle
Astounding. I'm glad I read this impressive essay. It reminded me a bit of P.J. O'Rourke in Lebanon in the 80s.
I understand that this war is criminal and unnecessarily cruel, but that doe not excuse lack of perspective that we often hear. For example the idea that if Odessa was "built by Europeans" this somehow excludes Russians, and more broadly that Russia is not part of the European culture - the way of thinking that is at the core of the historical tension between Russia and the rest of Europe. Resolving this tension is the key of not just ending this war, but is the key to future European stability.
Secondly, Tennyson wrote Charge of the Light Brigade many moons ago about another Russian war over Crimes, so what is going on now is not some random obsession of a crazed leader. Russia has fought over control of that region for centuries.
Yesterday I read about how the steel mill under siege in Mariupol has been the focus of intense fighting in WW2 and that it was rebuilt after the war with a purpose to be able to withstand and attack like the one it's under right now - in other words it's a fortress.
A weird Odessa fact, aside from the mayor depicted in this article, is that Mikhail Sakhashvilli, former President of Georgia (Europe), has later spent some time as a Governor of the Odessa Oblast. I don't think I have ever heard of a case of a former president of one country who later gets involved in politics in another. In other words, Odessa seems to attract interesting characters. Nevertheless, I wish them safety and peace.
Regardless of what happens, this city will not "disappear tomorrow". It outlasted worse, and many incarnations of Russia, so it will outlast this one as well.
Beautiful piece! I read him in the Washington Examiner. He never disappoints, certainly not here.
"...as bald as Jada Pinkett Smith..." Perfect simile. Topical and apt, so the reader has a mental image immediately. How many unfortunates who are looking to be offended (for someone ELSE who happens to be rich and powerful, btw) immediately saw it otherwise??? BTW, when the mayor of Odessa was described, I immediately thought of Colonel Nathan Jessup: "Son, we live in a world that has walls, and those walls have to be guarded by men with guns."