Generational Dynamics World View News

[Cool Breeze]

The main thing I get from Ukraine is that a certain president's son, and others in the political/elite class, have made a lot of money there and are trying to protect their investments.

You can't even get them to be even somewhat honest about this obvious and glaring fact. To not admit that the puppet Zelensky and the preservation of Ukraine as such was to continue the grift and slush fund of politicians, is just shameful. If they admitted that they'd have actual reason to see why Russia does what it does, and is justified. That's why they don't.

[Cool Breeze]

Our government has also shown a notable lack of concern about national security, so the idea that they are trying to avert WW3 rings hollow, too. Why Ukraine? Why now? Why is the left so hawkish all of a sudden? That’s what first got my attention. How did the most corrupt man in the world (Zelensky) become Churchill incarnate? I tell you, there’s something fishy going on, and I want no part of it.

I've told you all why. I'm glad at least you understand in part, JDav.

Putin isn't evil. The real chaos mongers are pushing him to make decisions that have no good outcome, no matter what he chooses, for Russia itself or other nations globally or in the region.

JDav has figured it out. I hope others have too. I'm content that at least some around here generally understand what's going on.

[FullMoon]

JDav:
What do you mean one is right and one is wrong. American treatment of First Nations was WRONG. If Putin prevails what he is doing will be wrong till the last syllable of recorded time.

You are correct - both are wrong, equally wrong. You can’t argue that Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is evil and the white man’s conquest of America was not. But what recourse do the Indians have now? Are we willing to return our lands to them?

We are all selectively blind to the evils of the world. I include myself in that statement. Clearly Putin is acting with evil intent. But why are we making a stand in Ukraine, when we did nothing in Rwanda, Burma, or anywhere else? It’s very noble for you and I (and Xeraphim) to demand that we do something, but believe me - the idea that the Ukrainian people are being raped and murdered is very low on the priority list of the people who are deciding to involve us in the conflict. They’ll use that to gin up our support, but they’ve demonstrated time and again that human life is expendable when it comes to achieving their goals, or when it doesn't further their goals.

Money and power are always their primary goals, but it’s been obvious for the last year and a half that the specific goal of those currently in power is the destruction of the US and comeuppance of the American people, so forgive me for questioning their motives in Ukraine. When our government is demonstrably evil in one area, I have a hard time believing it to be virtuous in another.

Our government has also shown a notable lack of concern about national security, so the idea that they are trying to avert WW3 rings hollow, too. Why Ukraine? Why now? Why is the left so hawkish all of a sudden? That’s what first got my attention. How did the most corrupt man in the world (Zelensky) become Churchill incarnate? I tell you, there’s something fishy going on, and I want no part of it.

The Russian bear has been keeping the DOD budget circus running Very profitably for generations. Of course it's about money and those who argue otherwise are on the payroll.

[Tom Mazanec]

It is too late to make the Amerindians whole. Yes we should have helped Rwanda et al. but we goofed. That we did wrong before does not make it OK to stand aside now when there may still be time.

[Xeraphim1]

My point is that from a spiritual perspective, evil is evil no matter the form. You can argue that the invasion of Ukraine is more evil than what we do within our own borders, but I disagree. Have you ever seen anyone strung out on meth or heroine, that came illegally across the border, or seen someone die from an overdose? I have. Our politicians not only allow a good bit of it to happen, but encourage it through their policies and actions. How is that evil different from what Putin does? I'll tell you how - Putin only kills the body, but we're killing souls.

Jesus' ancestors invaded and conquered the Holy Land. Not only did God condone it, he ordained it. They plundered and raped, and killed everyone and everything. Clearly then, not all wars of conquest are evil. God will judge.

I have ancestors who survived the Trail of Tears. I have some who didn't. Was that not part of a war of conquest, as was the whole creation of the country known as the United States? If you're American, how do you square that with your views on Russia/Ukraine?

I'm only asking - Why is Ukraine so much more worthy of our time, talent, and treasure than other areas of the world, or than our own citizens? I haven't seen you make the case, other than, "but Putin invaded Ukraine." Convince me as to why this is the most important battle of our time, why it's so urgent to save Ukraine while my own country rots from inside.

There are different degrees of evil with some being worse than others. Not stopping drugs coming over the border is a form of evil. Shoveling people into ovens is a more extreme form of evil. Do you see the difference?

What happened 10 or 50 or 100 or 5,000 years ago is important as a point of reference and context but they are in the past and we can't do anything about them. We CAN do something about what is happening right now.

Why should we place any importance on Ukraine? Because right now it is suffering invasion by a brutal autocratic regime. Russia has been a problem almost since Putin took over due to his megalomania and revanchism. Europe would be a more peaceful place with more funds going to solving social issues were it not for Putin's need to compensate for... something. The US would be able to mostly ignore Europe and concentrate and the actual foe, China, where it not for Putin constantly dragging US attention back. The US might actually be able to reduce defense spending and either cut taxes or take care of other needs.

Is Ukraine the "most important battle of our time"? No, and I never made that argument (yet another logical fallacy). Supporting Ukraine in its efforts to defend itself preserve an independent country, push back on the idea that attacking others to steal their territory is just fine, and helps remove the ability of Russia to continually engage in these actions. If Russia's military is in tatters and it doesn't have to money to support let alone rebuild, that provides a safety net for the rest of the world.

As to "our country rots from inside", that's an unrelated issue that would exist (or not) regardless of whether or not the US supports Ukraine.

[Xeraphim1]

JDav:
America's treatment of First Nations was WRONG. But that is whataboutism. Ukraine is important for the same reason Czechoslovakia was important in 1938. We did not react then, and we got Poland in 1939. Putin wants everything that was once part of Russia's Empire back under his control? Does that include Alaska?

As I get older I'm developing a more fatalistic approach to everything. What happens will happen, according to God's will, and in reality I have zero power to do anything but accept it, even if I don't understand it. God can take the greatest of evils and turn it into something good, as he did 2000 years ago. He will do the same here...

I guess that's the short version of everything I've been trying to say. I see evil everywhere and it's all of a piece to me. It all comes from the same place.

Fighting the evil will beget more evil. Not fighting it will beget more evil. it's a Catch-22

The usual way that God acts to cause something is by giving people the ability to do it. Despair is a sin.

[Xeraphim1]

JDav:
America's treatment of First Nations was WRONG. But that is whataboutism. Ukraine is important for the same reason Czechoslovakia was important in 1938. We did not react then, and we got Poland in 1939. Putin wants everything that was once part of Russia's Empire back under his control? Does that include Alaska?

Putin wants Russia's Empire back under his control, so he kills, rapes, and annexes land. The young US government wanted to expand its borders, not reclaim them, so it killed, raped, and annexed land, as brutally as Putin is doing now. It's not whataboutism. I just don't understand why one is right and acceptable and one is wrong, or is it just that time has passed and the victors write the history? If Russia succeeds and a hundred years go by will what they did today be acceptable? On a spiritual level I can see (but not understand) that it's according to God's plan, but can someone explain it to me on a human level?

We can't do anything about evil that was committed in the past. We can do something about evil that is happening right now. It seems you want to justify closing your eyes, turning away and talking about something else bad. Fine, if that's what you want to do. Don't pretend there is any moral superiority in it.

[DaKardii]

Based on the latest reports, it appears that the man who assassinated Shinzo Abe targeted him for his association with the Japanese branch of the Unificationist movement (aka the "Moonies").

He also appears to have no core political beliefs, so it's highly likely that the co-conspirators (if any) came from a group that also has it out for the Unificationists (because if he has no core political beliefs then he had no incentive to search for co-conspirators among any other kind of group).

Based on that information, I'd narrow down the list of possible co-conspirators to the following:

1. A rival sect (of either Christianity itself or a NRM derived from Christianity)
2. China
3. Japanese communists
4. Japanese ultranationalists
5. North Korea
6. Radical atheists
7. Radical Buddhists

[Navigator]

The outcome for Japan may well be the modification of their Constitution to allow them to become involved militarily outside of self defense.

I believe that they may finally have the national referendum to modify Article 9 of their constitution, and that it will pass due to the strong "Abe would have wanted it" sentiment now prevalent in Japan.

[JDav]

JDav:
America's treatment of First Nations was WRONG. But that is whataboutism. Ukraine is important for the same reason Czechoslovakia was important in 1938. We did not react then, and we got Poland in 1939. Putin wants everything that was once part of Russia's Empire back under his control? Does that include Alaska?

As I get older I'm developing a more fatalistic approach to everything. What happens will happen, according to God's will, and in reality I have zero power to do anything but accept it, even if I don't understand it. God can take the greatest of evils and turn it into something good, as he did 2000 years ago. He will do the same here...

I guess that's the short version of everything I've been trying to say. I see evil everywhere and it's all of a piece to me. It all comes from the same place.

Fighting the evil will beget more evil. Not fighting it will beget more evil. it's a Catch-22

The usual way that God acts to cause something is by giving people the ability to do it. Despair is a sin.

Yes, despair is a sin, but not in the context you imply. Despairing of God's mercy is a sin. And I do neither.