We should have left long ago, but it took a President Biden to say, ‘enough is enough.’
It took a man like Biden to say, ‘I was elected president of the American people, and will do what I must to improve their lot.’
That takes guts.
Presidents came and went but it took Biden to say, ‘it’s time. We have to leave.’
And no one, no one, could in their right mind, expect a tidy exit.
The same way that no one had thought that the Afghan army, stronger in numbers than the Taliban, would choose to lay down their arms as the mujahideen advanced.
Was their country not worth fighting for?
That will be on the consciences of Afghans to deal with.
As to the chaos at the airport in Kabul, it will soon settle down as evacuations come to an end in the next few days. And if it doesn’t, so be it.
We need to rebuild our nation. We need to work on improving the skills level of our citizens, their education and health, all of which will result in greater wellbeing and productivity.
Many of our cities and rural areas are in desperate need of attention and assistance.
President Biden sees that. But the whole lot of his critics, both Republicans and Democrats, who claim to be aghast at the messy exit and the tragic scenes of Afghans clinging to a moving airplane on the tarmac of the Kabul airport, instead of empty blabber, should take a good look at themselves and ask if they’re not being unfair with Biden.
Afghanistan had long ago ceased to be geopolitically important and yet we stayed and stayed.
Almost 2500 American soldiers have died in the effort.
It has taken a president like Biden, who is mindful of our people’s needs, to put things in perspective and better allocate our resources.
It was time to leave. And it is time to reassess our role in defense of others around the world.
Here in our nation, we, the citizens, have a right to not be the victims of senseless violence. We, the citizens, have a right to have the opportunity to be the best we can be.
We can and will help others in need elsewhere in the world, even when it takes something that we ourselves don’t have enough of, but we cannot be careless with how we use our resources.
For we have also a duty to remind those we help, that they must do all they can to help themselves.
Our interventions abroad must be time limited. Are we in northern Syria to support the Kurds? Then we must make it clear that the arrangement is not permanent. Same with Iraq.
We have a large military base in Qatar, which should be enough as far as the Middle East is concerned.
The wide political divide here at home is a glaring sign of long standing neglect.
What is the use of sending troops all over the world if we don’t manage our problems here at home?
Working hard to improve our people, will help us project an image of strength that is fully grounded in reality.
Recently, in the wake of the surging Taliban offensive which soon will lead to the final assault on Kabul, the capital, an Afghan man was quoted as saying, ‘You didn’t fix the problem.’
He was angry that America was leaving his land.
America had come and stayed for 20 years but now was leaving and the Taliban would take over again.
Women would once again be forced to marry and wear the all-enveloping burqas, their possibilities for personal development deeply curtailed.
‘You didn’t fix the problem,’ said the man.
There is passivity in those words. The expectation that others are to fix the problem. The problem, of course, is the Taliban. The brutally rigid group of Afghans who wish to return to rule the country in the name of Islam.
Did America fail?
Yes, we did. Failed to fire up in Afghans who are open to change, the will and power needed to fight off the repressive Taliban and rebuild the nation.
But Afghans knew all along that America and their NATO allies would not stay forever. We had gone there to root out the terrorist group Al Qaeda after the 9/11 attacks and then stayed to boost the country’s modernization.
Afghans had to know that the foreigners would not stay forever – it was not their land – but failed to use that opportunity to summon up their own courage and work steadily to overcome their national differences and be prepared to fight the enemy.
‘You didn’t fix the problem’ is the lament of a frustrated man who, having seen how much different life can be, now will have to abide by whatever the Taliban says.
If he has a daughter over 15, then she is ready for marriage to a Taliban fighter if they so wish. Her choice is irrelevant. And truncated are her possibilities as a full human being.
‘You didn’t fix the problem,’ is the cry of Afghans who didn’t band together to stop the forces of darkness they knew were just waiting for the foreigners to leave.
But can Afghans still rise in defense of their land? I don’t think so. Of course, miracles can happen. But the likelihood is that the world has to prepare itself to read report after report of people executed because they were enemies of the Taliban.
And as soon as the dust and smoke settles after fighters on the ground capture Kabul and take over the entire country, the Taliban’s supreme leaders, now in comfortable settings in Qatar and under that government’s protection, will make their triumphant return.
The number of the executed will keep growing and we will be reminded of Myanmar’s tragedy.
Yes, America had to leave. It was time. We had to leave because we have to rebuild our nation.
Rebuild because we are not united and if we remain so we will lose our land.
But we should ask ourselves, how hard did we try to get Afghans to say, ‘We must fix our problem. It is our problem. Others can help us and we will be most grateful, but it is our problem to fix.’
‘Fellow Americans… it is with a sad heart that we witness the gradual fall of Afghanistan.
We went there 20 years ago to root out Al Qaeda and find Osama Bin Laden. In the process we connected with the Afghan people. Heard their stories, their fears of being ruled by a repressive regime. We opened schools and a university and tried our best to share our values, the right of every human being to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
We spent an enormous amount of money building up their armed forces, and our brave soldiers fought shoulder to shoulder with them against the Taliban.
Nearly 2500 of our soldiers died in the struggle.
I wish I could now tell you that what we did was enough. I wish I could now tell you that what we did has a chance to grow into something lasting. I wish.
The reality, however, appears to be different… and we have to face it.
The Taliban keeps making steady advances and conquering city after city.
We continue to assist the Afghan Army by providing aerial support from our bases in the region, but it is not enough.
What happened?
We accomplished our goal of tracking down Osama Bin Laden, the mastermind of the 9/11 attack on our nation. We accomplished our goal of putting a check on Al Qaeda. But we were not able to change the core of that country in a way that makes it unlikely Al Qaeda will mount another attack on us. So, as always, we must be on guard.
What I have to say now is not easy for me. In spite of all our efforts, we could not instill in the majority of the Afghan people the will to unite, to overcome their differences and present a solid front to fight and defend themselves against the Taliban.
Twenty years we spent there and we now are leaving. We have to. It pains us to do so because unless the Afghan army and the people push back and mount a strong defense, Afghanistan will fall to the Taliban and so many Afghans will find their dreams and aspirations ruthlessly trampled upon.
But why do we have to leave?
Because we have to rebuild our nation. Yes. Our nation.
We have to raise the level of productivity in our citizens. The level of education. We have to change the social conditions that foster so much dysfunction and animosity in our land.
How is it possible that, on January 6th, a group of our fellow citizens felt entitled to plunder our Capitol in violation of our basic rules? What led us there?
We have to invest in better caring for each other so we stop those senseless acts, and the senseless killings in our cities and towns.
I know we can, if we put our hearts and minds to it. As we do, we will grow stronger and wiser.
The road ahead is long and arduous but the good news is that we are on our way.
As the world watches, our standing must be a reflection of how free we are to be the best we can be.
My administration is committed to laying down the foundation to achieve that goal.
And with the help of our fellow Republicans, it is well within our reach if we stay on task.
We can do it, I assure you. It is urgent that we do. United we rise, divided we fall.
The story of Afghanistan teaches us a great deal.
We have to constantly keep building bridges to each other. We cannot stop.
Build bridges from the urban to the rural. From the wealthy to the poor, from the well educated to the less educated, from people of one color to people of another. Build bridges from the Right to the Center and to the Left, for we are all Americans who need each other and have to trust each other to confront the challenges that life will continually bring us.
There is no time to rest. We must act.
It remains my fervent hope and prayer, that the Afghan people and their Army, will find in themselves the needed strength to resist and overcome the forces of repression and darkness that the Taliban represent. But it is up to them.
Meanwhile, we will continue to provide aerial and tactical support.
My fellow Americans, let us pull together… strive with all our might… and I assure you our nation will lead by the power of our example.
What sometimes seems inevitable may not be. Afghanistan may not have to fall to the Taliban advance. But extraordinary measures will have to be taken.
By whom?
By the Afghan people.
I recently read a report where the top American commander for the Middle East and Afghanistan, reassured President Ashraf Ghani of continued American air support. But by the end of August those attacks would be pulled back to focus only on Al Qaeda, if they represented a threat to the US itself.
That’s it.
Why is the rest of the world watching and not going to the assistance of the Afghan people as they face the mounting threat of total occupation and virtual enslavement by the Taliban?
Because they’re not seeing Afghans themselves putting an all out effort to defend their space.
Kandahar – the country’s second largest city – will soon be under siege by the encroaching Taliban. Is this not the time for all Afghans to put aside their differences and make defending their cities their number one priority ? Why can’t all able men and women request arms and step forward, ready to do battle?
Why can’t they form a circle around each of their cities and post images to the rest of the world that it is do or die for them? Post images that they are saying ‘no’ to submitting to a repressive and murderous theocracy. Post pictures and messages that they value what the West has done for them during the last 20 years and no, they will not surrender to the forces of intolerance.
Now is the time. Not when the Taliban come knocking on your door asking for you to bend to their will.
Using the internet, then broadcast to the rest of the world all that you’re doing, and the rest of the world is more than likely to join in support. But you have to put yourself out first.
Afghans have to arm the barricades to defend with their lives their right to choose how to live.
Americans or anyone else cannot do it for them.
What freedoms Afghans will have, must be defended with their own blood. With their own sacrifice. And if they are not willing to do so, then they will not have a land they can call their own.
Every piece of land on this earth that is rightly claimed by a proud people has a history written with blood. Those of us who have been fortunate enough not to spill blood in defense of our land are grateful for what our ancestors and our brothers and sisters did. And we honor them with our own efforts to build a better nation.
But never must we forget that it will take blood to defend what is most dear to us.
To lift the embargo on the island. And so I add my voice to thousands of others.
The embargo has done what it was supposed to do. Show the Cuban regime’s profound inadequacies, their lack of flexibility and imagination, their inability to stimulate markets or motivate their people to be creative and enterprising.
The expectation that the embargo would result in the demise of the regime proved wrong. So long as the government has the guns they will not hesitate to fire on their people. Or persecute and incarcerate them to bring the population into total submission.
But you now have the option of lifting all restraints on trade.
Will the Cuban government benefit from such move? They will. But the main beneficiaries will be the Cuban people.
It has been clear in their minds that their regime is a grand failure and, in due time, will act to subvert and neutralize it.
Will Cuba become another China? Benefitting from trade with the West to then start to impose a punitive and restrictive system on their people?
It is very unlikely, given Cuba’s 60 plus years of self injurious stagnation.
There are no certainties ahead but we know that the need for change is great.
And with Cuba starting to shine after the lifting of the embargo, imagine the effect on the rest of Latin America. Notably Venezuela, languishing under the Maduro dictatorship. And on Peru, which now has taken a hard turn to the left.
The possibilities of significant ripple effects are great.
And here at home, the lifting of the embargo will likely turn Florida into a democratic voting state.
Doesn’t that sound appealing?
Wouldn’t that executive order of yours ring loudly across the entire world, saying ‘The American president carries the bright torch of hope for the future of mankind.’
Recently, in response to the loss of life inflicted by the pandemic and a worsening of food shortages, protests erupted throughout the island calling for relief and in some instances for the end of the dictatorship.
The tone and intensity of the demonstrations was heated enough that it prompted Cuba’s new president – Miguel Diaz Canel – to call on the regime’s loyal citizens to pour into the streets and show their support for the government.
Diaz Canel himself, went to speak to the citizens directly. As he walked by a house in the town of San Antonio de Los Banos, where the protests had started, he stopped to talk to a woman who was sitting by her window.
He greeted her.
She recognized him and smiled in response.
Not far off, a group of antigovernment demonstrators could be heard as they marched under the vigilant eyes of the police.
‘What do you think of all of this?’ he asked the woman.
‘I knew it was going to happen, sooner or later,’ said she.
‘I understand,’ replied Diaz Canel, ‘but we have to be disciplined.’
The woman was careful to measure her words.
‘I understand… but it’s too much. Why haven’t we been able to get the vaccines?’
‘China has helped us out but they have only so much to go around. They’re helping people all over the world,’ said Diaz Canel.
‘I thought we were producing our own vaccines?’
‘We have been working on it but we don’t have enough resources. It takes the inputs from many specialized sectors in other countries, for everything to come together and produce the vaccine. But if we didn’t have the embargo, we would’ve been able to deal with it.’
The woman looked down at her windowsill.
This was her chance to speak up.
She had never had the opportunity to speak directly to the president of Cuba. She had briefly met both Fidel and Raul Castro a few times in her 62 years – Cuba was a small country – but never was in a verbal exchange with them. Now Fidel was dead and Raul had retired. Diaz Canel was the first president to follow the Castro brothers.
‘Why is it that we always blame the American embargo for everything we cannot solve?’ she finally asked.
There it was. She had said it.
Diaz Canel was surprised by the firmness of her voice.
‘We don’t have the chance to trade…’ he began but she cut him short.
‘We could trade with all of Latin America… with China and Vietnam and Europe and Africa and Canada… but if we don’t make enough things to trade, isn’t that our own fault? Why do we keep blaming the Americans? Why don’t we, instead, give people incentives to work? Give them incentives to create?’
Diaz Canel’s expression showed his irritation but he didn’t back off. ‘Look, we have one of the highest rates of literacy and one of the lowest rates of infant mortality… we send doctors all over the world to help other nations…’
The woman just stared at him, a faint smile in her eyes, as if saying… ‘So we do… and yet…?’
Diaz Canel paused and smiled at the irony. Yes, Cuba was sending doctors all over the world but the country was not dealing effectively with the pandemic. Nor with providing enough food for its citizens.
‘Something is wrong, isn’t it?’ she pressed. ‘Look, I understand that the revolution wanted to create a new man… but 62 years later it hasn’t delivered. We’re a creative people but we are blocked.’ She hesitated briefly before continuing for she knew she would say things that might come back to hurt her, but something impelled her to speak her mind forcefully.
‘The government is overcontrolling the people… we’re not made to be so restrained… no one is… people need space to come up with ideas and try them out. I’ve been a teacher for 39 years… we’re not equal… every one of my students is different… some are more intelligent than others… some have more courage than others… some are stronger than others… some are more imaginative… some are more ambitious… some more tenacious or hard working… and we need to let them interact freely with each other so they can find their place in the world. There is a role for government… yes… a role for a system that keeps the peace and helps resolve disputes and protects people from being taken advantage of… but in the end, Mr President…’ She wanted to reassure Diaz Canel that she understood clearly whom she was talking to and was grateful for the opportunity, ‘… in the end, Sir, we are not equal… like you and me are not equal… and that is okay. That doesn’t mean that we should not be kind to each other, on the contrary, that is the more reason to be so… but I really believe… from having seen so many children grow up before my eyes… that Cuba will be much better off… if the government backs off and lets people invent and trade and maximize their individual possibilities… whatever they may be. In the end, Mr Diaz, all of us have a better chance of capturing who we really are… if we are allowed to be unequal… for that is the only way that every person will come into their own powers.’
Diaz Canel nodded lightly. He looked off. The sounds of the demonstrators nearby were now fading somewhat. He had listened carefully to the woman and acknowledged that it had taken him a bit of effort to do so… but was thankful he had.
‘What is your name?’ he asked.
She thought of not telling him… but no, she could not do that to herself. She had been waiting a long time for this moment, and so had her mother before her who had blessed her with her name.
‘My name…’ she began, as she looked directly at Diaz Canel, ‘is Viva… my middle initial is L., for La, and my last name is Libertad. I was born on the 1st of January 1959 in Havana, just as Fidel and his troops came roaring triumphantly into the city. My mother, in the early days of December and already in her ninth month of her pregnancy, had changed her last name to Libertad. She wanted her new child, whether boy or girl, to have Libertad branded into them.’
‘Viva La Libertad,’ said Diaz Canel. ‘Pretty name.’
‘Thank you,’ Viva said. ‘And thank you for listening.’
‘You are welcome,’ he replied.
And with a nod he bid her goodbye and walked off down the street, his entourage in tow.
She looked after him and wondered whether Diaz Canel would remember their conversation, and whether one day, in the near future, her beloved Cuba might change course and let her people have a go at finding their own strengths.
She was a realist, too… but she didn’t want to lose hope.
They greet outside a heavily guarded country home in an undisclosed location, each man flanked by his trusted interpreter.
The two men shake hands amicably. Clearly, they have been at the same site before.
Xi – Good to see you.
Putin – Have been looking forward to this, as always.
They turn and step into a short hallway at which end a large double door opens to reveal an ample room with padded chairs facing each other and smaller seats adjacent for the interpreters.
The men stride in and take their seats.
Two attendants are standing by an elegantly draped table covered with delicacies and an assortment of drinks.
Xi and Putin nod at the table attendants and that is their cue to exit the room, so no one else except the interpreters remains with them.
Putin – How is the family?
Xi – Very well, and yours?
Putin – Very well also. Thank you.
Xi – They send greetings.
Putin – And so does my family.
Xi – Thank you.
Putin – Congratulations on landing the rover in Mars.
Xi – Thank you. We are very proud of that accomplishment. It took a lot of planning and commitment.
Putin – The world got to see that nothing will stop you.
Xi – Exactly. And we are just getting started.
Putin – How is the Belt and Road initiative coming along?
Xi – Fabulously. We’re very pleased.
Putin – What does the Belt stand for?
Xi – What we’re putting around their necks to tighten if we have to.
Putin laughs.
Xi – We are generous, but we need to get something back for our investment.
Putin – Of course.
Xi – How was your meeting with Biden?
Putin – Productive. He listens. I think I can work with him.
Xi – I liked the way you spoke at the press conference following the meeting… denied any Russian involvement in cyberattacks on America, blaming them instead for attacking the rest of us.
Putin – Keeping it simple. I like the way you’re managing the Uyghur problem.
Xi – Eventually, everyone will realize we won’t change our minds. If the world wants cheap cotton and tomatoes and polysilicon for solar panels, Uyghur labor will help provide it.
Putin – Are you really trying to make them more Chinese… the Uyghurs?
Xi – Of course. But they’re hard headed. So we teach them the right way.
Putin – I’m impressed by how the rest of China doesn’t seem to mind.
Xi – There’s not much they can do about it, and it’s all about helping China get stronger. Chinese people get that.
Putin – Trump didn’t seem to mind. He wasn’t critical of the way you’ve handled the matter.
Xi – He understands. Have you heard from him?
Putin – Have not. He’s probably a little depressed… not having all that attention he so enjoyed.
Xi – Reminds me of what life would be like if I ever agreed to step down. I can better understand why Mao wanted to stay on until the end.
Putin – I feel the same way.
Xi – And so we will govern until our last breath.
Putin – Yes.
Xi – Tell me about Alexei Navalny. I heard Biden wanted you to ensure his safety.
Putin – Yes. I went and visited him in prison, even before my meeting with Biden. I had never met Navalny.
Xi – What was that like?
Putin – He has these romantic ideas about what Russians want. How Russians are desperate for freedom of expression. Makes you wonder if they ever talk to other Russians and not just to themselves.
Xi – Will he survive prison? Biden seemed worried about that.
Putin – I will do everything possible.
Xi – Of course. You think they’ll award him the Nobel Prize for peace, Navalny?
Putin – It’s a political move, but prize or no prize, he’ll stay right there in prison.
Xi – Does it worry you that he’s started something that could, possibly, force you out?
Putin – I’ve been in power since 1999 and Russians have come to appreciate the peace at home and the respect we now have from the rest of the world. They know it’s happened because of me.
Xi – I came to power in 2013 and I can also say that my people feel great pride in being respected all over the world. That had never happened before. The one thing that many keep criticizing us about is the lack of freedom. But it’s a misconception. A thinking error. We cannot have freedom without discipline. Discipline to make sure everyone is making their contribution to the great plan for the nation.
Putin – I agree. Americans keep talking about it as if you could have it without restrictions. We have freedom in Russia. You can start a business. You can go to university. You can travel. You can even organize politically but within certain limits.
Xi – The limits being that you remain in power.
They both laugh.
Xi – Same in China. Americans talk a lot about freedom but nowhere in the world do people shoot each other like they do. I find it incredible that people in Texas worship having the right to carry a gun, as if that were real freedom. If there were real freedom in that land, people wouldn’t be so paranoid.
Putin – Too much inequality breeds paranoia.
Xi – Their real freedom is their right to vote and elect who you want.
Xi has surprised himself with the last statement.
Xi – (an embarrassed look at Putin) I did say that, didn’t I?
Putin – (smiles) Yes, you did.
Xi – Well… eventually the Chinese will get to vote in free elections. But that is not the phase of development we’re in. It will take years… 30-40 years perhaps. For now we have to instill discipline in the people. And it takes time. How do you see America’s situation now?
Putin – They are in a period of confusion. The assault on the Capitol is a sign of it. There are deep fractures in the political matrix of the country that suggest opportunities that we could take advantage of… if we work together.
Xi – Interesting. Go on.
Putin – There are parts of the population in America that would prefer a system like ours. The other day, one of their generals, retired now, a Trump supporter, was quoted as saying ‘Why couldn’t we have a coup in America, like there was in Myanmar?’
Xi – Unheard of before Trump.
Putin – I’m sure the general wasn’t talking of a coup to empower proletarians…
Xi – Of course not.
Putin – … but to further empower plutocrats, the super wealthy… the ones who run the big businesses and get away with paying no taxes.
Xi – I won’t let that happen in China.
Putin – I liked the way you set limits on Jack Ma.
Xi – Right. No matter how much money you have, no matter how big your company is, you do not criticize the governing party. But you can do it in America. But please do continue giving me your opinion of America.
Putin – Biden wants to unite the country… but he can’t do it on his own. I don’t think so. He needs allies in the Republican party. The problem is that no one is stepping forward. Most of them are still thinking Trump is their best choice.
Xi – You don’t think so?
Putin – Trump is not centered enough as a person. He had his moment. But there are Republicans who could step forward and say, ‘We have to work with Biden, the country needs it.’ Until that happens, America will drift, working at cross purposes, wasting time and energy… and… giving us the opportunity to take advantage of their confusion.
Xi – What were you thinking of?
Putin – I have seen how effective you have been in suppressing the dissent in Hong Kong. I am confident you could do the same in Taiwan.
Putin and Xi look at each other as they pause.
Xi – I have thought about it. Americans are very vulnerable in the semiconductor industry, now so concentrated in Taiwan.
Putin – And it will take them years to catch up. So… it may be a great opportunity to act.
Xi – We have discussed it… the pros and cons.
Putin – I could help.
Xi – How so?
Putin – America will not go to war with me if I choose to invade and annex the Ukraine. What do they care?
Xi – Hmm… but such an action would distract them enough for us to… at the same time… invade and annex Taiwan.
Putin – Exactly… and by controlling the semiconductor market, you’ll have the world on its knees.
Xi – Indeed. Hmm. We have discussed it, the pros and cons.
Putin – My bet is… that America will not go to war with you over Taiwan, either. They’ll swallow their pride and kick themselves for not thinking ahead when they had time to do it.
Xi – Good point. America will feel demoralized, weakened.
Putin – And it will give me an opportunity to extend my influence over Eastern Europe.
Xi -What were you thinking of?
Putin – Poland, Hungary… Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia… maybe Finland. The European Union is weak, more so now since Brexit. And there’s no hiding that some prefer autocracies.
Xi – I see. We have discussed it, the pros and cons. We will be moving into Afghanistan, of course, once the Taliban take over after the Americans leave.
Putin – Good luck with that. We didn’t do well there.
Xi – Ah, but you didn’t have the Belt and Road initiative like we do.
Putin – (laughs) Tighten that belt around their necks if they don’t cooperate.
Xi – Exactly.
Putin – However… there’s always the risk… that Americans will pull together and decide to fight.
Xi – You think Biden will rally them for a fight?
Putin – There is that possibility…
Xi – If so… Americans may end up more united than ever.
Putin – They are creative… and can be very determined…
Xi – When they have a bold leader. You think Biden is that man?
Putin – Good question… I wonder… but he could be… he just could be.
Xi – We would be risking a lot if we chose to act as we have spoken…
Putin – True.
Xi – … and the rest of the world may not be forgiving.
Putin – But it is very tempting, isn’t it… since America is so divided.
Xi – Yes. But we cannot forget that our economy keeps growing… no one is growing like we are… we keep reaching more and more markets… and we may discover, as I suspect, that we can outcompete America… and not have to fire a single shot… and maybe that’s the real war we’re now fighting.
Putin – Very good point.
Xi –We Chinese are very disciplined. That’s our advantage.
Putin – (looking a bit worried) It’s a different challenge… I get that.
Xi – Do you think Russians can outcompete Americans?
Putin – Good question.
The two men pause for a moment.
Xi – What would you have to do?
Putin – I am not sure. But I worry that I will have to grant more freedom to increase competitiveness.
Xi – Which would threaten your position.
Putin – Yes.
Xi – You’re not alone… I worry about it, also.
Xi clasps his hands as he pauses for a moment.
Sometimes… I think it is inevitable.
Putin – What?
Xi – That sooner or later, Chinese will want more freedom… even demand it.
Putin – Repression works up to a point… but we can make it last.
Xi – Taking the long view… I do think that you and I… are only transitional leaders… leaders without the conviction that men are at their best when they can govern themselves.
Putin smiles to himself, pensively. And he thinks of Alexei Navalny.
Xi – Shall we eat something?
Putin – Yes.
The two men rise and walk to the table filled with delicacies.
When it begins to restrict the freedom of its citizens.
By that measure, China has already begun its slow decline.
Sure, the country remains a strong manufacturer of goods and they have made much progress in the production of electric vehicles, communication technology, artificial intelligence, renewable energy and space exploration.
But the suppression of the freedom of its citizens and the pervasive surveillance of their activities have started to slowly erode the minds of the Chinese. Slowly erode their spirit.
And the reduction in their ability to innovate will soon become clear.
Lying by the government is now the norm. That does something to the human spirit.
The large scale oppression of the Uyghurs in Xinjiang province is well documented but the Chinese government boldly denies the evidence.
If it is true that they are not guilty as charged, all it would take would be to allow a group of representatives from the rest of the world to visit the area, interview the people and see for themselves. But they won’t do it.
They won’t because their lies would be discovered.
A China that was truly confident would not object to such inspection.
If they had an open society then the matter would be aired.
If the intent in their treatment of Uyghurs was to reeducate them so they would become better Chinese, as they claim, there are certainly other ways to do that instead of secretly, which lead to practices that are coercive and inhumane.
That China can’t be honest with the world is a sign of the corruption at the top.
The corruption of a leadership for whom the preservation of power at all costs is the main objective. Never mind the full development of the Chinese citizen – an achievement only possible when freedom of expression is preserved while respecting the rights of others to do the same.
Xi Jinping has changed the laws so he can remain in power as long as he wants.
He gets to have freedom of expression. Not his people.
And so the entire Chinese leadership has reminded us how much they have in common with despots everywhere, whether in Syria, Russia, Egypt, Myanmar, Saudi Arabia, Belarus, Turkey, Nicaragua, Cuba, Venezuela.
Bullying behavior comes right along with massive lying.
In the South China Sea, the Chinese have made incursions into areas officially belonging to the Philippines while Duterte, their president, apparently intimidated by them, has chosen to look the other way.
When people in power are not confronted, their perverse instincts become more pronounced.
That is evident in China’s obsession to repossess Taiwan. The island went through many years of growing pains but blossomed into a democracy and now China wants it. China wants it, mind you, not to enhance it, but to diminish it, to strip it of the freedoms that have made it an economic powerhouse.
China wants to do with Taiwan what it is now doing with Hong Kong.
Meanwhile, businesses from everywhere in the world still race to have a presence in China because of the size of their markets and the profits that come with it.
And so that influx of foreign innovation helps China thrive. For now. But it will not last.
It cannot.
Take Russia for comparison. The enormous creative potential of that country has not been realized because of their system of governance. But in their case, there are now signs of change.
The tenacity and commitment of Alexei Navalny has been spreading through Russia and reminding them of how much they are giving up by consenting to live under the controlling influence of Vladimir Putin. And although Navalny is now in prison, the world increasingly recognizes him as the true bearer of the hopes of that nation.
There is no similar figure in China because the oppression has been so complete.
But soon enough one such figure will rise.
People who dare to take on the difficult challenges make a difference.
In Europe, Angela Merkel has been the person who came to symbolize the European Union’s possibilities. As she gets ready to step down as prime minister of the German nation, Emmanuel Macron in France will likely assume that role.
Meanwhile, from America, Joe Biden has risen to carry the vision and commitment to unite the Free World.
There is no question that China is a repressive dictatorship. Like there is no question of its ambitions to extend their influence far beyond its borders.
That China is helping other economies with their exports and imports, should not hide the fact that as a system, it is toxic to the human spirit.
China may be helping western companies get rich as their own companies do, but those riches are coming at a price.
And the price is the gradual undermining of the importance of freedom of expression.
The challenge of China to the free world is for us to address our inequalities.
They are saying to us, ‘so long as we make you rich through our markets, you will slowly value money more so than freedom, and you will become more like us.’
In answering the challenge, we must create better and fairer societies, and remind China of what is truly essential.
Our freedoms are fundamental to the preservation and enhancement of what it is to be human.
China is trampling on those.
Soon enough, it is our hope, a person or movement symbolizing resistance to their system of governance will emerge and begin the renewal the Chinese citizen deserves, so that talented nation can fully contribute to solving the problems of the world.
We will be wise to be able to recognize and support such person or movement.
Prison outside of Moscow. June 10th. Late morning.
Navalny is seated at a table in a windowless room when Putin enters. Navalny glances at him but does not rise.
Putin closes the door which has a rectangular glass window through which a guard standing outside now looks into the room.
The table is bare.
A fluorescent light on the ceiling casts a greenish opaque light into the room.
Putin sits down across from Navalny.
The two men look at each other for a moment.
‘I beat you,’ says Putin without any expression.
Navalny smiles faintly, eyes riveted on Putin.
‘No, you haven’t.’
‘Yesterday, the courts labelled your group an extremist organization, so you won’t be able to be part of any election… and no one will want to come near you.’
‘I heard,’ replies Navalny, calmly. ‘The court is like your dog. Worse. And I pity those groveling judges… who’re willing to tarnish their names and that of their children, to satisfy you… people with no sense of history.’
‘You think you have a sense of history?’ asks Putin.
‘I do… and one day you will be sitting on this side of the table… because real judges, not clowns, will pass judgment on how you’ve misled our people and corrupted government.’
Putin shakes his head, dismissively, an expression of pity for Navalny.
‘I can’t deny you your fantasies… which is all you have left… just fantasies.’
Navalny has his eyes on Putin as he clasps his hands and rests them on the table.
‘I am in complete control of your life…’ continues Putin, ‘you live because I allow it.’
Navalny doesn’t flinch. ‘You really think you can keep the Russian people silent?’
‘I do,’ returns Putin, ‘not just silent but happy… for in surrendering to my will they have discovered they like it.’
Navalny turns away for a moment, the expression sad, as he thinks of the quiet agony of his beloved Russia, surrendering to the will of a man. How did it get to this point? Where were the bright lights of Russia, the intellectuals, the poets, the writers? Where were they that they didn’t scream in horror at their nation’s slow descent into their present state?
Navalny now glances at the guard peering into the room through the small glass window.
He returns to stare directly at Putin.
‘You may well kill me… I’m well aware it could happen any moment… even today… whenever you wish to give the order… but the movement I’ve started is far greater than me… I’m awakening this great country, my land… awakening them to see how you are holding them back… just so you can remain in power. Look at yourself… what regimes do you defend in this world? Assad in Syria, who’s been butchering his people for years… Myanmar’s generals who’re wantonly killing brave protesters … Maduro in Venezuela, who has impoverished and destroyed a once prosperous nation. In all of them, you have aided in the brutal repression of freedom… aided in the denial of people’s rights… while causing immeasurable suffering. Tell me, just how do you sleep at night?’
Putin smiles with self satisfaction. ‘Very well. Right through the night.’
Navalny closes his eyes for a moment, the expression grim.
‘Why did you want to see me?’ he asks. ‘What for?’
‘I’m not sure,’ begins Putin. ‘I suppose that I take pleasure in seeing an opponent defeated… maybe beg for mercy.’
‘Go to hell, man. Go to hell,’ replies Navalny angrily as he pulls up in his seat. ‘Do not imagine for a moment that you have crushed me or our movement. You will never do that. And none of us will ever beg for mercy from a despot like you. You can have me killed right now and I will die a free man, not a slave like the Russians who bow to you. So, go to hell, Putin.’
The guard at the window, struck by Navalny’s intensity, cracks the door open and takes a step in.
Putin calmly waves him off. The soldier closes the door and returns to looking through the window.
‘You cannot take our thirst for freedom from any of us,’ continues Navalny, firmly, ‘no matter how many rules you pass, no matter how many of us you poison, like you did with me… but you’ll never know what freedom is… no, it’s not in you… the only thing in you is the desire to oppress and control others.’
Putin sits back in his chair and crosses his arms. He stares at Navalny.
‘I didn’t poison you,’ he says calmly.
‘No? Then who did?’
‘I don’t know.’
Navalny shakes his head slowly as he looks down at the ground in disbelief.
‘There are other actors in Russia…’ says Putin softly.
‘Other actors?’
‘People I have no control over.’
‘What a convenient excuse. I suppose that includes all those responsible for cyberattacks on other nations, and the hackers who interfered in the elections in America.’
The two men look at each other directly.
‘You really expect me to believe that?’
Putin shrugs his shoulders.
‘I believe nothing you say to me, nothing,’ says Navalny. He glances off for a moment, then returns to face Putin.
‘Why don’t you walk away while there’s still time… before you start turning your machine guns on Russians protesting in the streets… before you start massacring your brothers and sisters and our children in broad daylight…’
‘That will never happen,’ says Putin, calmly. ‘My great accomplishment… has been to turn Russia into a politically docile nation… capable of great accomplishments in other areas… but politically docile.’
‘Like in China,’ says Navalny.
‘China has learned much from us.’
‘Yes… the wrong lessons. I cannot understand how an intelligent man like you has chosen to ignore assisting your land in its development. I cannot understand how you stubbornly refuse to see that Russia needs to grow up… to evolve politically… to learn to give up supporting autocrats… communists… despots like you… and rise to become a nation that values freedom of expression… and to be able to support the quest for freedom in other nations… anywhere in the world.’
‘You want Russians to be like Americans?’
‘Russians need to learn how to become enlightened Russians. We may find things in common with Americans but we want to find our own path… like any other self respecting people in this world. We want to find our uniqueness.’
Putin nods slowly.
‘Americans have their own problems they are struggling with,’ continues Navalny, ‘like race, and the idolatry of the super entrepreneur, which has led to the absurdity of their not paying any taxes, which fosters inequality…but to their credit, Americans keep working on it. Sometimes they have a dinosaur sneak in to lead them, but they eventually get past them.’
Putin rubs his nose as he weighs Navalny’s words.
‘I am amazed to hear you talk… it’s like you live in another world… maybe that’s why I wanted to see you today.’
Putin leans forward a little, speaking softly.
‘Russians want nothing of what you talk about… they have found peace in their souls… and peace is having a strong boss… like Stalin… and yes, like me. They like to have a father figure who helps them go to sleep quietly at night… go to sleep knowing that their country is feared in the world… that no nation dares to pick a fight with us. But you don’t get that.’
‘You are so wrong about what Russians want…’ responds Navalny with fervor, his expression filled with wonder, ‘Russians want to dream… dream with their eyes open and under a bright sun… they want romance…’
‘Romance?’ asks Putin.
‘Yes, Russians want to fall in love with freedom… and all its possibilities.’
Quietly amused, Putin takes in Navalny’s enthusiasm. ‘I knew there was something wrong with you… but didn’t know you were a romantic.’
Navalny sits back in his chair. He now seems tired, despondent. How could Russians have endured this man governing them for 20 years?
Navalny closes his eyes for a moment. Why did Putin really come to see him?
He looks Putin in the eye. ‘Why are you here?’
‘I wonder about that, myself,’ replies Putin.
Putin has been thinking to himself that there is a strength about Navalny that he finds appealing… a commitment that drives the man to put his life on the line for his nation… to endure being poisoned and still return to Russia knowing he would be imprisoned, maybe even killed. And as Putin secretly admits to his rival’s boldness… the courage to defy whatever may stand in his way… even death itself… Putin quietly acknowledges that he envies Navalny.
‘Oh, yes…’ he begins again, ‘there was something I wanted to tell you… you know how there’s been talk that you would be awarded a Nobel Prize for Peace?’
Navalny looks intrigued. Yes, of course he knew that.
‘Well…’ continues Putin, ‘… now that our courts have ruled you and your movement an extremist group, I don’t think the West will have the guts to go forward with that idea.’
Navalny lets out a laugh.
‘You poor man,’ Navalny says, his expression bright again, ‘of course they will. They will do so now more than ever. Like the Americans say, just to rub it in.’
Putin frowns. ‘No, they won’t. They won’t dare embarrass me like that.’
‘Yes, they will,’ says Navalny defiantly, with relish. ‘Your actions labelling me an extremist just moved me to the front of the line.’
But Putin is not laughing.
‘And, of course, you won’t let me go receive the prize but I and all Russians with a thirst for freedom will smile in our hearts that the world acknowledges our yearnings.’
Navalny leans forward, brashly. ‘Is that what you really came here to tell me?’
Putin stares back at him with simmering anger.
‘The world is not afraid of you, Vladimir… they know who you are. They know what you mean, and they stand by the Russian people who want to be free.’
‘I will be meeting with Biden in Geneva on the 16th of this month…’ says Putin.
‘I know… just try to be on your best behavior when you meet…’
‘Why?’
‘Because Biden is not Trump.’
Putin rises from his chair abruptly as he looks down at Navalny.
‘It is up to us to light up the fire that will warm the hearts of all Russians, and we will do it,’ says Navalny, with renewed strength.
‘And up to me to pour cold water on them,’ replies Putin, icily.
Dr Aruna Khilanani, a psychoanalyst, was criticized by Yale University for expressing violent thoughts in a lecture she gave as part of grand rounds on April 6th. During the virtual lecture, she spoke of how hard it was to talk about racism to white people.
The doctor has a practice in New York that specializes on the subject.
I have not seen the videotape which viewing has now been restricted by Yale to their own community, after a writer had posted an audio version on Substack this last Friday.
My opinions are based on the article ‘A Psychiatrist Invited to Yale Spoke of Fantasies of Shooting White People,’ which appeared in the New York Times dated 6/6/2021.
Both the views of Yale University and of Dr Khilanani are presented in the article.
It is clear that Dr Khilanani is very angry about her experience with racism and she is very vocal about it.
The problem I see is that during her presentation, the line between therapist and sufferer was blurred.
In the lecture, as described in the article, we got to hear aspects of the sufferer’s pain and her fantasies of retaliation.
The doctor has never overstepped her boundaries in real life, which is why she felt the freedom to speak of her fantasies with great candor.
But such candor proved too unsettling for the audience. The attendees knew what the subject would be in advance. But the raw quality of the content proved most unpleasant.
I think the audience expected to hear how the profound pain of racism gets dealt with and neutralized. They expected to hear how such pain is defanged. They expected to hear how the analyst got to transform and soften it.
Instead they got a version of someone in the thick of her struggle.
Dr Khilanani gives the impression of having made a strong commitment to the study of racism and to finding ways to resolve it but she’s still working her way through.
Her path to resolution of such burden may not be yours or mine, for all of us have unique capabilities and may come up with different solutions, but I see her honesty as an important statement and as such must be heard and respected.
Yale University has their viewpoint, too, and it largely reflects the desire most people have that this problem we all face will find answers that are peaceful. We all want that.
But acknowledging the fullness of the pain is essential to get to such answers.
As the doctor says at one point, ‘My work is important. I stand by it. We need to heal in this country.’
At the end of the article a Yale professor is quoted as saying that, as a guest of the university, the doctor was free to speak on campus but that her views ‘must be soundly rejected.’
I disagree.
Dr Khilanani put it best, ‘my speaking metaphorically about my own anger… was a method for people to reflect on negative feelings… if you don’t, it will turn into a violent action.’
She has a point.
Oscar Valdes oscarvaldes.net
Also available on apple and google podcasts, anchor.fm, Spotify, buzzsprout.com and others.
Please see the videos Letters to A Shooter in YouTube.com
Oscar Valdes 