The High Price of Becoming History

According to Reuters, in recent months the pace of mobilization in Ukraine has doubled. More than two years after the start of the war, the defending state still fails to recruit enough soldiers to even stabilize and hold the front line, let alone to advance. At the same time, as the local media suggest, it’s becoming more and more difficult for recruiters to fulfill their tasks. The population is not only tired of the fighting, but also losing faith in the possibility of winning the conflict. Citizens who have not yet been mobilized are looking for an opportunity to avoid conscription or even leave the country. Local newspapers report every week about new detentions at the border, corruption scandals and the tragic consequences of Ukrainians’ attempts to cross the Tisza River. According to the latest data, the raging river has already claimed several dozen human lives.

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‘Peace’ Seems To Be the Hardest Word

Reprinted from Bracing Views with the author’s permission.

With apologies to Elton John and Bernie Taupin, “peace” seems to be the hardest word, for both Democrats and Republicans.

This is hardly surprising. The National Security State is the unofficial fourth branch of government and arguably the most powerful. Presidents and Congress serve it, and the SCOTUS carves out special exceptions for it. Back in the days of a bit more honesty, it was called the Department of War. And so it remains.

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