So, war it is

When I was a kid, we lived near a SAC base (Strategic Air Command) where the nuclear bombers were stationed. Depending on the prevailing winds, the noise from the B-52’s flying over was so loud that it rattled the windows and shook the house. I’d wake up and wonder, “Is this the real attack?”

I was 8.

I’m bitter that the West squandered its historic opportunity to ally with Russia. Now, the best we can hope for is Cold War 2.

You might already be weary of Ukraine conflict news but things are barely getting started over there. The just-finished referendums in Ukraine’s breakaway regions, the easternmost and Russian-speaking regions, fundamentally transform the conflict. Before the referendums, the legalistic Putin (Putin is a lawyer) maintained that Russia was only aiding the quasi-independent regions. Now that the disputed regions have voted to join Russia, Putin considers any attack on these regions an attack on Russia itself.

The West does not recognize the referendums; Putin maintains that the regions are in its national interest. So the ground is prepared for escalating conflict.

The Biden Administration shut down negotiations in March, and–can anyone doubt?–sabotaged the Nord Stream pipelines. The Biden Administration worked hard to bring about this conflict and now it has what it wants. The only ones happy about the situation, other than the Administration, are arms dealers, and enemies of the U.S.

I expect to see articles in the Western press asking rhetorically, “Is nuclear war really that bad?”