Oscar Valdes

The Cost of Carrying Guns

Consider these two examples.
About a year ago or so in Florida, a man riding a motorcycle was tapped by a moving vehicle at an intersection.
By his own admission, neither he nor his bike were damaged. But the other vehicle, driven by a woman, didn’t stop and left the scene instead.
The man in the bike followed. Another person, who had witnessed the accident, followed, too.
The woman arrived at her home, aware that the man in the bike had trailed her. She went inside, took out her gun, stepped out and pointed it at him.
The man drew his own and shot her dead.
No charges were pressed.
What stands out in this incident?
The woman should have stopped, yes, apologized and taken responsibility.
The man who chose to follow needed only to get her license plate and report it to the police. He already had a witness. But he didn’t. He chose to seek justice on his own.
Now consider this second example.
A few days ago, in Houston, a man and his wife were robbed at an ATM. As the robber fled, the man shot at him but missed. Instead, he struck and killed a 9 year old girl sitting in a passing car.
A grand jury chose to not indict the man.
So who takes responsibility for the death of the 9 year old? No one.
In both instances, the responses of the shooters show poor judgment and a profound disregard for our institutions.
The number of states which allow its residents to carry guns without a license is steadily increasing. But it does not make any sense.
What is being neglected in the two examples described above?
The level of emotional continence in the men who fired the guns. Neither had enough emotional strength to see the potential consequences of their actions.
The law let them get away with it but their behaviors are clear examples of what we’re not doing as a society.
To not require a license to carry a weapon that can kill another person is to assume that the carrier is of sound judgment. Otherwise, why would it be allowed? So why are we not measuring that?
This is our failure as a society.
We have let Second Amendment defenders carry the day without regard for the character that should stand behind it.
In the name of freedom we are failing to protect our citizens.
In the year 1789, March 4th, in the city of New York, the second amendment was put forward as part of the bill of rights. It read, ‘A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.’
That was 233 years ago, nearly a quarter of a millennium.
At the time it was justified as the nation was being formed and its institutions developed. But today the second amendment is outdated.
It has become an obstacle to our political maturation and public safety.
Why didn’t the man in the first example call the police so they, instead, would track the woman? He had all the identifying information.
Why didn’t the man in the second example, think of the consequences of an errant shot?
Now an innocent 9 year old is dead because of his poor judgment.
Neither shooter was doing anything for the ‘security of a free State’ as the second amendment reads. But the law allowed it.
Both men were indulging their lack of emotional control and poor judgment.
In Texas, there is now a motion being proposed to allow the lowering of the age for lawful possession of a firearm without a license to 18 years.
No mention is made of assessing the emotional maturity of the gun bearer.
The second amendment to the constitution is impeding our democratic progress.
In the face of growing global threats, i.e. China, it is imperative that we accelerate our civic maturation, to go hand in hand with our technological, scientific and industrial advancement.
Evidence that we are not making enough civic progress is the extreme polarization we are stuck with at this time.
What is needed now is to foster dialogue between our citizens and facilitate emotional growth. Not unrestricted gun ownership.
The second amendment is impeding our personal safety and our evolution as a nation.

Oscarvaldes.medium.com

The Winds of Freedom are Blowing. Iran

‘Women. Life. Freedom!’ cry the protesters in cities across Iran.
‘Mullahs, get lost!’
‘This is the year of the blood, Seyed Ali’ referring to the ‘supreme leader’ Ali Khamenei.
Women have led the movement, sparked by the death of one of their own, 22 year old Mahsa Amini, who died while in custody for violating the Islamic dress code – not wearing or incorrectly wearing the hijab or headscarf.
Among the many dead protesters, there are 23 children. High school age girls have joined in the demonstrations. University students, oil workers, teachers, shop owners, doctors have stepped forward to show support. The effort has yet to reach critical mass but it’s getting there.
The winds of freedom are blowing. They are blowing from Ukraine.
For over 8 months now the world has witnessed an enormous display of heroism by the Ukrainian people, pushing back against the brutality of Putin.
The winds of freedom have reached Iran.
Women have awakened, fed up with the restrictions they’ve lived under, fed up with men controlling their bodies and minds in the name of Allah. Fed up with the clerics, fed up with a government that now is selling drones to Putin so he can better kill Ukrainians.
In their cries, women are saying ‘You are inept, Mullahs! Consumed with your thirst for power you abuse your own people in the name of god. Enough!’
The clerics blame foreign interference for stoking the unrest as if the protesters were mere instruments of foreign forces.
But no. This movement is home grown and will stay as such.
What should the West do to show support?
I believe steps have been taken to facilitate internet communication, helping bypass the restrictions imposed by the clerics.
We should cancel talks with Iran to reactivate the nuclear pact that president Obama had signed onto and Trump had terminated. Trump was right on this one. Iran’s government will do anything to cheat and still build their nuclear weapons. Anyway, to reactivate the plan will require for us to pay them a large (undisclosed) sum of money. How much, I do not know. The US has not been transparent on the amount.
So it will be up to Iranians themselves, to bring their courageous movement to the point that it will depose the present government. That day is fast approaching.
Meanwhile, the more we assist Ukraine to help them push the invading Russians out of their territory, the less likely that Russia will answer the mullahs’ call for assistance in repressing their people, as desperate clerics are likely to do. Assistance as in money, equipment, advice.
I can envision a call from Iran’s president Ebrahim Raisi to Vladimir Putin.
‘Vladimir?’
‘Yes, Ebrahim.’
‘I’m getting anxious. This has not happened before.’
‘Be patient, my friend, you have the guns… fire them,’ says Putin.
‘I understand… and I see your example in Ukraine… the thousands and thousands you have sent to the grave…’
‘For a good cause,’ replies Putin. ‘I have my hands full at this moment, but as soon as I push back the Ukrainians, I can send you experts in suppression of protest movements. I can send you the team we used in Belarus, they did an excellent job. But you can talk to them on the phone, so they can give you some tips.’
‘Great, thank you,’ says Raisi. ‘But you don’t have problems with Russian women…’
‘Ebrahim, it’s a different culture…’
‘You think if I just cancelled the dress code, let women dress as they wish, they will stop protesting?’
‘Will Iranian men be able to handle that?’
‘I don’t know.’
‘I think you’re past that,’ says Putin. ‘That could’ve worked before, but you didn’t think ahead… like I didn’t think ahead to invade Ukraine while Trump was president. He wouldn’t have objected. So I’m paying for my mistake.’
‘I see. But I may have to try it… the cancelling the dress code. Otherwise, it’s killing and killing more people. And our prisons are already full. I’m afraid we’ll end up killing the children of government officials…’
‘Ebrahim… absolute power carries risks… you have to choose. If I end up having to recruit the children of government officials to go fight in Ukraine, I may face resistance here at home. But I’ll take my chances. It may not come to that. I don’t think the unity of the West will hold. Particularly as winter approaches. And then, if Republicans win both houses in the American mid term elections, chances are they will give less support to Ukraine. So it will be easier for me to push back. Plus there are western leaders afraid to commit to the war. Take for instance Olaf Scholz in Germany. He is opposed to sending Leopard tanks to Ukraine. If he did, that would be harder on us. I made a note to send him a card when his birthday comes around, thanking him.
One for Christmas, too.’
‘You keep your sense of humor, Vladimir. I’m afraid of losing power.’
‘Ebrahim… don’t let go of that feeling… and keep up the repression. Don’t be afraid to be ruthless. You can do it. I’ll ask the specialists who ended the revolt in Belarus to give your people a call. I have to go now. Oh, thank you for the drones. They’re making a difference.’
‘You’re welcome, Vladimir.’

The winds of freedom are blowing.

Oscarvaldes.medium.com

Quotes at the start of this piece, taken from an article in the NYT dated 10/26/22

Oscar Valdes is the author of several self published books. Available on Amazon

Fetterman vs Oz in Pennsylvania

Yesterday, John Fetterman and Mehmet Oz dueled in their only debate.
I read that Fetterman showed some dysfunction in some of his replies, which stem from the stroke he had last May and will take some more time to get over.
His doctor, Clifford Chen, has given him a good health report while allowing that some cognitive dysfunction is still present.
In an article in the New York Times, also from yesterday, Dr Taylor, a neuroscientist who had a stroke 25 years ago and is fully recovered, underscored the importance of neuro plasticity, the brain’s ability to correct its deficits.
It appears that neuroplasticity is working for John Fetterman as he is making steady progress.
He did postpone debates with Mr Oz because he wanted more time to heal.
So what are some of the differences between these two men?
Fetterman was mayor of Braddock, a small former steel town, for 13 years. He worked hard to stem crime in the area. Then he used that record to get elected as Lieutenant Governor.
Mr Oz, a former cardiovascular surgeon, owes his fame to his association with the Oprah Winfrey show, and subsequently his own program, where he endorsed remedies of dubious effectiveness.
Mr Oz didn’t even live in Pennsylvania until he decided to run for the Senate. He lived in New Jersey. So he flew in to run for the Senate, on the wings of an endorsement from the great wizard of Mar-A-Lago, Donald Trump, who’s still claiming that the election in 2020 was stolen from him.
By comparison, John Fetterman has been committed to battling our social ills for a good part of his life.
I don’t agree with Fetterman’s choice to legalize marijuana, but many people do and one day it will be legal throughout the nation. But I strongly agree with his steadfast efforts to bring about criminal justice reform.
The main difference between the two men lies in their history of political involvement.
Fetterman has been socially involved and deeply so.
Oz is obviously a talented man, but it was Oprah and his own TV show which have made him a household name. Not political involvement.
We don’t need in office people who are merely famous.
We need people who have a history of grappling with our social dysfunction.
Donald Trump had zero record of doing anything to help anyone before running for office.
But he was rich.
Somehow, that appealed to many. Perhaps they thought he would lead them to riches also.
Trump has gotten away with a lot. But that story is slowly coming to an end.
Unbelievably, his endorsements still work in some communities. In Georgia he has chosen to support Herschel Walker, the former football player, to run for the Senate. Never mind that Walker has no record of prior political involvement. .
The wizard of Mar-A-Lago is again betting that his charm and charisma will be enough to put his people in the Senate.
We have to choose, don’t we? Appearance over substance.
If we make the wrong choice, we may end up joining a crowd marching to overturn an election.
We decide.

We earn our freedom every day

Rishi Sunak. Britain’s New PM.

Photo by Dominika Greguu0161ovu00e1 on Pexels.com

Good choice by his party, though it took them some time to figure it out.
Six weeks of Liz Truss, his predecessor, and a handful of horrible economic choices which
Sunak predicted would not make sense.
It is astonishing that the conservative party went for her plan even though the evidence against it was overwhelming. Cutting taxes and increasing governmental spending during a period of rising inflation? No, said Sunak, and he was firm about it.
Because of it he is now prime minister. The first prime minister of color in the UK.
Another good point for a country divided by Brexit, largely on matters of immigration.
It is also refreshing to see Britain’s parliamentary system work effectively.
Leader not performing well, out with them. Quickly.
Thank you to Boris Johnson who decided to step aside and not further delay a decision.
He had his day, and his good points, but in the end the flaws piled up.
I thank Johnson for his solid support of Ukraine. That proved to be his high point.
Kyiv will remember him well, as Zelensky has said.
My sense is that Sunak will do a terrific job.
He’s conscious of the many difficulties that lie ahead and is eager to square with them.
He gives me the impression that he has the strength of character to deal with adversity.
On the matter of his being a person of color.
It is a great step forward for Britain.
The royal family has had its troubles accepting Meghan Markle, a person of color also and Prince Harry’s wife, as one of their own. We hope that King Charles will be wiser on that count.
Sunak is clearly aware of how much is expected of him. As was the case here in America when Obama was elected in 2008.
In a Europe roiled by immigration issues, Sunak’s performance will be watched closely. How much can Europe transform its immigrants, how quickly can they make them one of their own?
There will be a lot of Sunak watching.
The man is ready for the job, exultant that he’s been trusted with the responsibility and confident that he will deliver.
In the tradition of his nation, Sunak will be a friend to America, and to the western alliance that needs to stay unified and so face down the rising Chinese threat.
Here’s to Britain, long a strong defender of democracy, proving that the system works.
And here’s to the British people, and their regenerative capacities.
Thank you

In a Democracy…

Not everyone chooses freedom.
It takes work to do so, and some prefer, instead, to let others do it for them.
What work is that?
The work of finding out what it is we want.
There’s a strong connection between doing what we want and personal freedom.
We can be employees of a company or a governmental agency and do as the higher ups tell us to do, but unless the given tasks are in alignment with our talents, then our time is not efficiently utilized.
Our morale will suffer.
At the core of freedom is choice. Step by step, choice leads us to what it is we want to do with our lives.
It is a journey into our essence.
Such journey may be short or long, requiring x or y resources. And it may take time.
So we may have to do things just to pay the bills as we move along in our quest.
But search we must if we want to be free.
From the start, Nature gives us clues as to what our talents may be. But it will be up to us to listen carefully to the clues, try them out to see if they fit.
Fit as in, ‘Aha! This gets me excited. This lifts my spirits, doing it gives me the sense that I am transforming my life into something I feel good about and would like to share with others. Perchance even earn their approval.’
I say perchance because the approval of others is tricky. Here one day, gone the other.
But if in the process we have found self approval, we will be able to handle disapproval.
We will be able to square with our fears, our limitations and inevitable failures that are part of the quest.
Which brings me to politics.
All of us ought to have political opinions. Having formed them we should express them.
Given that politics determine who governs and administers the resources of a nation, having and expressing our political positions is a duty to ourselves and our communities.
We cannot be truly free if we choose to not express our political positions.
Hiding our views is akin to not exercising our freedom and thus letting others snatch it away from us.
If we allow it, sooner or later we will have to pay for it.
Our delay gives time for others, often less capable than us, to rise to positions from where they will tell us what to do with our lives.
We’re seeing it today anywhere there is a dictatorship.
Anywhere a group of people spoke louder than others, then waived a stick at those who chose to remain silent.
‘Don’t you dare,’ they said as they menaced and intimidated.
It could happen here, too, if we stay silent.
In the eternal quest to defend democracy from its enemies, silence is not an option.
Silence equals failure.
Should we feel tempted to be silent, look inward to what we value and give us the greatest sense of accomplishment. There lie our strengths.
They are the cradle of our freedoms. Of our courage. Of the power needed to fight those who want to separate us from what gives us life.

Oscarvaldes.medium.com

Border Chaos

Our southern border has always been problematic.
It’s been difficult to get bipartisan consensus on the number of new arrivals permitted.
But there has been a shared sense that this land will grant political asylum to those fleeing repressive regimes.
We have agreed that Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua are repressive regimes in this hemisphere.
The Cuban diaspora dates from the early 60s and there is no doubt the overall positive impact such immigration has had. Miami would not be the metropolis it has become without the Cuban influx.
Venezuela’s diaspora started as former president, Hugo Chavez, who died in 2013, began to
undermine their oil industry through mismanagement. Subsequently the outflow of people increased drastically when his appointed successor, Nicolas Maduro, became a tyrant.
To date, over 7 million Venezuelans, a fourth of its population, have seen no option but leave their country and brave the enormous difficulties of emigrating to neighboring nations, not all of which have been receptive.
In recent months, more and more of those refugees turned north, hoping for asylum here in the US. At first they were able to get through but as the numbers surged, strict limitations were imposed.
President Biden has now in place a parole system, whereby 24 thousand Venezuelans per year will be allowed in so long as they arrive by air and have sponsors here in the US.
The action was determined by the upcoming mid term elections.
Mr Biden made the choice to appeal to the undecided voters who might look with disfavor on the increase in new arrivals.
But lost in the shuffle were the merits of the asylum seekers. These are mostly young people who have faced great hazards in the long journey from Venezuela, crossing the northern part of Colombia, up through the Darien Gap, then Panama and up through the entirety of Central America to finally get to our border. Mostly done on foot. To then be told, ‘No. We will no longer accept you. You have to have a sponsor and money for a plane trip. Goodbye.’
I don’t think democrats are going to get any more votes than they would have because of the refusal to grant asylum to Venezuelans.
Americans who are set against immigration will see the restriction as an electoral maneuver to get their votes, not a move born of conviction.
The choice to sharply limit the asylum offer to Venezuelans is short sighted.
Venezuelans are not the frequent requesters of such assistance. They would rather stay in their country if the conditions for their prospering allowed it. But they are fleeing brutality, imprisonment or starvation.
For those who made the difficulty journey, what is there to do now? Go all the way back? Plead for mercy from one of the impoverished Central American countries they crossed?
Their options look dismal.
Mr Biden, whom I deeply respect, and who has done a wonderful job uniting the West in Ukraine’s battle against Russia, should have stuck with the asylum option. Asylum could have been limited, pending a change in conditions in Venezuela.
We are a land of hope and we need to keep it that way because it is integral to our commitment to freedom. The same commitment that Biden has made to Ukraine and that will eventually lead to a markedly diminished Russia.
The large number of Venezuelans arriving ought to be seen as genuine seekers of relief, able bodied men and women eager to repay with their work for the opportunity granted. Men and women who can also help us fill the gap in labor shortages we face.
There are distinguished Venezuelan born people in our midst who have made important contributions to our nation, such as Leo Rafael Reif, current president of MIT (through the end of this year).
And I read that much private assistance has come forward to aid those who did make it through.
Mr Biden, there is still time. Please change your stance and allow the asylum applications of Venezuelans fleeing their home country and ready to get to work to build a better life.

Zelensky Looks to the Future

He is in his bunker in Kyiv, standing before a large map, going over details of troop movements in the Kherson area, northwest of Crimea.
What can Ukraine become? How much can it influence the present power arrangements in Eurasia?
Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, all will be affected by what happens in Ukraine. The question is how much?
He is aware of the enormous responsibility that has come to rest on Ukrainians and him, in particular.
Seven months into Russia’s invasion and there they are pushing Russia back. No one had imagined this outcome was possible. And now the expectations of him and his people are rising.
Putin is on the defensive and discontent in Russia is growing. If only it would lead to public protests. And he imagines Belarussian resistance coming out of the shadows and surging, agitating against their leader Lukashenko, a close Putin ally.
But none of that is likely to happen when he needs it the most.
So it’s up to Ukrainians, with the backing of the West, to keep up the fight. Day and night.
Like his soldiers on the front lines, he’s in it all the way. Victory or death.
No room for escaping to the West should war’s fortunes change.
That is his choice. He will send his wife and family out of the country but he will not leave his land. He will not surrender. Victory or death.
The struggle he chose has transformed him as a man. Pulled out of him all the courage he has. Even courage that he didn’t think he had. Just like with his valiant soldiers.
Still standing before the map on the wall, he leans on it touching it with his hands and forehead.
And he says to himself softly, ‘my dear land… I am yours. I never imagined I’d die for anyone but I’ll die for you.’

He steps back and returns to his seat at his desk. It’s early in the morning and he still hasn’t had breakfast. These days his nights are short. Too much on his mind.

Speaking to himself, ‘I know that we will win… and then rebuilding will start… and that will take as much from me as the war… to make sure we do it well… that there is no corruption… no waste… for the eyes of the world will be upon us. And I’m conscious of my responsibility to help build a model nation… become an inspiration to others… and then a time will come when I will have to step back, let others govern, because we will be a democracy… but that won’t stop my struggle, for all of us have to remain vigilant that the forces of darkness won’t rise again.
The blood we’ve spilt has made us an example for the world… and we will not step back from the responsibility but embrace it with all we have. Oh, dearest land of mine, dearest people of Ukraine… how our struggle ennobles us all.’

The phone rings. It is his secretary. His cabinet has arrived for their daily meeting. It is 5 am.

Oscarvaldes.medium.com

Battle Over the Hijab

They sit across a table in the interrogation room of the detention center.
She is Nasrin, a beautiful woman, 31, with expressive eyes and lustrous, shoulder length black hair.
She is not wearing her headscarf.
She was apprehended earlier in the day as she walked in a business section of Teheran without her hijab.
The policeman who had detained her had written a short note which lay on the table along with her identifying information.
The security officer, a wiry man in his mid thirties, nodded to himself as he read the note. Then, aloud to Nasrin…

Officer – ‘Woman ignored my call for her to stop and instead walked faster. Another policeman that was ahead of us saw me chasing her and he blocked her path and we both detained her. Arrogant. Stubborn.’

The officer looks at Nasrin directly.

Officer – Why?
Nasrin – Because it’s my body and it belongs to me and no one else.
Officer – But you are Muslim…
Nasrin – So far.
Officer – You want to change your religion?
Nasrin – Ha! I’m well aware that if I tried that I would be guilty of apostasy, punishable by life imprisonment or death.
Officer – Yes… we are who we are… and our rules come from the prophet who heard them from Allah. So… how is Islam making you unhappy?
Nasrin – Those rules were made by men, at a time when women were subservient. The world has changed and Islam should change with it.
Officer – Have you read the Qur’an?
Nasrin – It needs to be updated.
Officer (irritated) – Nasrin… please… I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that.
Have you been to the West?
Nasrin – I haven’t. Not yet. But I plan to.
Officer – I see. What do you think the purpose of wearing hijab is?
Nasrin – To keep women down.
Officer – You are stubborn. I’m trying to help you but you’re not letting me. All you have to do is agree with the law and you can walk out. Why make life difficult for you?
Do you want me to send you to a tribunal of clerics so they can decide what punishment to give you?
Nasrin – Do you know what the real purpose of the hijab is?
Officer – Please be careful with your words because I don’t want to send you to detention.
Nasrin – The hijab is meant to protect men from their insecurities.
Officer – What?
Nasrin – A beautiful woman will attract other men’s attention and you can’t handle that…

Annoyed, the officer sits back.

Nasrin – … So you cover us up… but it’s up to us if we want to stay with the men in our lives… or go elsewhere… or simply be with no man… or woman. Our sexuality is ours… ours to share it with whom we want. That’s why this theocracy we live under is obsolete.
And the protests you’re seeing are about that. About the freedom of our bodies and the freedom of our minds.
We own our bodies and minds, not the clerics, not the ayatollahs, not the police, not you.
We give birth to men and women… if we stopped giving birth… if we refused to have you in our bodies… there would be no more Iran… that is our power. Now our work is to claim it, to affirm it.
Officer – Have you ever been married?
Nasrin – Not yet. Maybe I never will.
Officer – You don’t want to have children?
Nasrin – I don’t have to be married for that. My freedom is more important than anything else. And we, Persian women, are learning that. And it appears incompatible with living under this regime.
Officer – I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that.
Nasrin – Do you have daughters?
Officer – Yes, I do.
Nasrin – Don’t you want them to be free?

The officer leans forward, looks down at the ground.

Nasrin – When we get our freedom, which we will, men will discover freedoms of their own that they didn’t know were possible.
Officer – What?
Nasrin – Your keeping us so controlled, keep you from becoming better men.

The officer looks straight at Nasrin, the expression stern. But then, to her surprise, he breaks into a chuckle as his eyes soften.

Officer – You’re going to put your hijab back on and you’re going to walk with me out of this place. We will walk two blocks, with you wearing your hijab. Then you will go your own way.
And if I ever see you again… I will ask you to share a meal with me.
Now, put your hijab back on and let’s walk out.

Nasrin does so, and the two walk out of the detention center. The guards at the entrance bow respectfully to the officer as he and Nasrin go by.

Oscarvaldes.medium.com

China and Reeducation

They are very clear about it.
‘The Communist Party knows what is good for you. So you have to do as we say.
If you don’t, then there will be consequences.’
One such consequence is being reeducated. You are taught the right way to think.
‘Party people have tried very hard to do the thinking for you, so you should be grateful to be the recipient of such wisdom.’
Xi Jinping has even put his ‘elevated thoughts’ into a booklet, ‘Xi Jinping Thought’, just like Mao Ze Dong did before him with the little Red Book.
Is there a cost to trying to do your own thinking?
Just ask the Hong Kong dissenters who are now in prison or exile, after the celestial powers of Xi Jinping came down hard and crushed them in 2019.
China is asking the world to respect their way of doing things, because that is best for their people. Never mind asking the Uyghurs in Xinjiang province how they feel about it. They, too, like Hong Kongers, have felt the mighty Chinese fist.
China is presently holding their 20th National Congress, where Xi Jinping is expected to be reelected to a third 5 year term as president. Speculation has it that he’ll ask for a fourth term at the next congress in 2027. And on and on.
China has studied carefully the downfall of the Soviet Union, to ensure they don’t make the same ‘mistakes.’ Mistakes being anything that erodes the party’s integrity and clout.
As far as they’re concerned, Gorbachev was an idiot and weakling and his policies of Perestroika (restructuring) and Glasnost (opening) exactly what to avoid to prevent the erosion of their power.
But Gorbachev was no idiot. Instead he opened the way to free many countries that had languished under the tight controls of the Soviets. Sadly, the reforms he made possible didn’t last in Russia itself. He transferred power to Boris Yeltsin in 1991 and then Yeltsin chose Putin as premier in 1999. That was the big mistake.
Had Yeltsin been a better judge of character, Russia would not have been saddled with the profound limitations of Putin.
With the enormity of the atrocities committed by him, the likelihood is that the post Putin era will be one of greater openness. The very opposite of what China would like.
Which may create tensions between them. Let’s hope so.
People in power in China have persuaded their citizenry that deferring to a one party system is the answer. They have been told to sacrifice their freedom to accomplish their goals of world domination. The Chinese population is under close surveillance and lacks freedom of speech.
They have made enormous material progress in the last 40 years, in large part due to their opening to the West which brought in ideas and technological knowhow.
That in turn stimulated China’s own creativity.
But the mistake they make is to think that freedom can be sacrificed.
Even in open and democratic societies, not all people choose freedom. But those who do are the ones who keep the forward thrust of nations alive.
Human beings can sacrifice freedom temporarily to attain certain goals, but it should not be for long. Being distant form it ends up diminishing us.
China is going through a prosperous period at present. But it won’t last.
As the pace of prosperity begins to diminish, the communist party and its army of non thinkers will rage against its perceived enemies which will lead to disastrous actions.
Cruelty of the same dimension as what we’ve seen in Ukraine, lies in the future of China.
We’ve seen it with Uyghurs and Hong Kongers. They’ll try to do it also with Taiwan.
We, meanwhile, should do all we can to increase our strengths – industrial, military and civic – so we can go to the assistance of those in need like we do today in Ukraine.
The reelection of Xi Jinping for a third term is not a good sign.
China’s reluctance to be open has already had enormous consequences. After the outbreak of CoVid 19 in Wuhan, they refused to cooperate with the World Health Organization to investigate the source of the spread.
When Australia asked for an investigation of such action, China responded with trade restrictions on that nation.
That’s who they are. Creative in some ways, backwards in some others. Always controlling.
We should not let down our guard and must keep strengthening our country and the West.
Otherwise, China will be reeducating us into thinking like them.

We earn our freedom every day.

Oscarvaldes.medium.com

Putin Makes Offer to Zelensky

It’s early morning and they speak thru a top secret video link. They both have aides with them but we only see the two on the respective screens.

Putin – Good morning.
Zelensky – How many missiles have you sent us today?
Putin – I’ll get to the point.
Zelensky – Speak.
Putin – I can offer you a deal.

Zelensky shakes his head slightly, like we’ve been through this before.

Putin – I want to end the war.
Zelensky – Then pull back to the borders we had before 2014.
Putin – Listen to me… I’m willing to do that in the East… Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhya, Kherson… all goes back to you…

Zelensky leans forward, interested.

Putin – … but I keep Crimea.
Zelensky – No! We’re getting back all our territory. We won’t accept anything else.

Putin lowers his eyes for a moment.

Putin – We’re losing people every day… you are, and I am, too… we can stop this.
Zelensky – Since when has that been important to you? You started it. No one was threatening you…
Putin – What happened, happened. You need to think more broadly. How long you think the West will support you? It’s costing them a lot of money to keep you well armed.
People are unhappy with all the restrictions… the shortages… inflation… and there will likely be a world recession. In America, the democrats may lose the mid term elections. Some Republicans are talking of cutting back on support for Ukraine if they gain control of both houses. But if we make a deal, the West will be grateful and relieved… and you’d be helping democrats win the mid terms. Biden will be especially grateful… and that will open the door to investments in Ukraine… to rebuild…
Zelensky – What you’ve destroyed.
Putin – We need to look forward. I am what I am and did what I did, but you and me, we can stop the losses. Do you want a war that will last forever?

Zelensky rubs his face.

Putin – I will not surrender Crimea and I can keep the war going on and on and on.
Think of the lives we can save.

Putin joins his hands in front of him as he looks directly at Zelensky.

Putin – I need a deal… that’s why I’ve come to you. I have no illusions that Europe will return to buying oil from me… but some of the sanctions will be lifted and that would be good for me and my people.
Zelensky – You must be getting pressure from some groups in Russia…
Putin – Could be… but I’ve dealt with it before.
Think of it this way… if we make a deal right now… both Ukrainian and Russian lives will be spared. If we make a deal right now… we can order that all shooting stop today… this moment… and we hold our gains until we sign the papers. Winter is almost here.
Zelensky – I need to think it over and discuss it with my people.
Putin – Your time thinking and discussing is measured in lives… for I will keep shooting missiles into your land.
Zelensky – And we will keep firing back.
Putin – It’s up to you and me.
Zelensky – Why do you want to keep Crimea and not the East?
Putin – I love the sea… Crimea is surrounded by water… and Russians like to go there on vacation.

Pause

Putin – Look, I can’t walk away with nothing. Surrendering the East is already a defeat. But I will not surrender Crimea, even if it means keeping the war going on and on and on.
The world is ready to invest in Ukraine… so, essentially, you have won. I accept that.
But I keep Crimea.
Zelensky – Have you talked about this with anyone else?
Putin – No one.
Zelensky – When did you first think about it?
Putin – It’s been on my mind for a couple of weeks. We can change the mood of the world… you and me… if we compromise. It’s up to us. Volodymyr… think about it…you will go on to be an admired leader for the rest of your life. I won’t. I will have to live with the consequences of my mistakes… and do everything I can to stay in power. Do we have a deal?

Oscarvaldes.medium.com