1. OK. Let's counter that.
What is the progressive message against Putin?
Mine: sanction the shit out of him and his inner circle. Make it harder for them to drill for natural resources. Clean up US loopholes that make it easy for Russian oligarchs to hide money.
2. Cut off Russia from major financial organizations with a focus on oligarchs. Cut off visas, banks, seize property, etc. Make the oligarchs who steal from Russia LIVE IN RUSSIA. Support Russian language media that counters RT and Russian state TV.
3. increase NATO exercises with Ukraine and other states who CHOOSE a western orientation. NONE of this requires sending U.S. troops to Ukraine (which was never a consideration to begin with).
4. If we, as progressives, want our FP to be taken seriously, we should have better talking points than saying "let diplomacy work." If it doesn't, progressives have no message. No one would trust us to be a strong ally. And they shouldn't.
FINALLY: I respect that people don't want the U.S. to engage Russia like Iran, Iraq and other examples. But as someone who lives and studies this region, I have to admit that the progressive response has been very unsophisticated and, franky, weak. I want us to do better.
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I don’t disagree with the spirit of @RepBarbaraLee and @RepJayapal’s statement to avoid war with Russia, but the framing ignores that Moscow is the aggressor and that NATO is involved because Russia has long threatened many of the alliance’s ex-ussr and satellite members.
Furthermore, @RepBarbaraLee and @RepJayapal’s statement makes very legit fears of military expansionism while ignoring that people here are terrified of Russia (which already invaded and is occupying much of the country) and progressives lack a moral stance against it.
Also, the fundamental flaw with @RepBarbaraLee and @RepJayapal’s statement is that they offer no solutions to how to address Russia when diplomacy fails; also, Russia is escalating the issue, not NATO and I hate military organizations.
I have some thoughts about how progressives should understand what is happening in Ukraine.I am concerned progressives are comparing U.S. intervention in Iraq to Russia and the two are very different scenarios. I say this as a progressive and expert of this region.
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I see tweets from progressives saying the U.S. should not give weapons to Ukraine and that the NATO response could mean U.S. troops fighting Russia over Ukraine and that this is Iraq 2.0. Nothing could be further from the truth.
For one, in 2001, Iraq wasn't an aggressive state, certainly no threat to the U.S. Unsubstantiated claims about WMDs were made and oil was the primary factor. Also, America has a poor history in the Middle East as an aggressor. All true.
I'm so busy in Ukraine that I have little time for anything else, but I do wanna reflect on this Gawker piece about The Root, my former place of employment. I was mentioned, but choose not to comment.
I will not comment on the contents of the piece because its not essential for what I am gonna say. So...
The Root was the best place I ever worked because @daniellecbelton it a safe place for every type of Black person, no matter how we identified and how we viewed the world.
Before I worked The Root, I was at Jalopnik writing about the military and national security. I loved the work, but needed a change and Danielle welcomed my knowledge and reporting experience. She immediately put me on the road covering national races.
I have some things I need to share, not as a an on-the-ground journalist. But as a lover of Ukraine who has come here for years and is building businesses here and have friends who function like like close family.
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Everyone in the U.S. is asking me and every other journalist or person who lives here, "Is Russia gonna attack?" or "What is Putin going to do?"
Answer: who the fuck knows. Please stop asking!
If you live in Ukraine, as a native or as a visitor like myself, this is our reality.
As long as Putin is President of Russia and the Russian people are content with him, threat of an attack from Russia will always be a reality. Each time I visit Ukraine, I know Putin can attack. It doesn't stop me from visiting here. If Ukrainians can deal with it, so can I.