There is no neutrality in the face of evil. The russian war and genocide against Ukrainians have changed me. The russians killed three of my friends; they have beheaded, tortured, raped, and castrated thousands of my countrymen; they have destroyed the livelihood of millions. 1/n
2/ I used to be much more tolerant and accepting of different points of view. But now, my vision is more black and white. The war became personal. The pain became personal.
3/ When you are bombed almost every night for 1.5 years straight and have your country invaded, it is personal. I think everyone of us has lost someone, either on the battlefield or when rockets or Iranian drones bombed civilian infrastructure.
4/ Almost every day and night, you hear explosions in the sky. You start your day by reading reports about the next few people hospitalized or dead because Iranian drones or russian rockets crashed into one more building. And that might be the building where your loved ones live.
5/ So when I meet a person who claims to be neutral regarding the russian war and genocide against Ukrainian people, I hold them responsible for the atrocities committed by russians. There cannot be neutrality in the face of evil.
6/ A Ukrainian is judged because he or she didn’t shake the hand of a russian, belarusian, or iranian athlete, and some people dare to cast a judgment? How morally bankrupt do you have to be to judge a victim who doesn’t want to shake hands with the aggressor?
7/ Oh, but maybe these athletes don’t support their governments. Well, if they don’t support their governments, then speak up! Put on a shirt condemning the actions of their government. But no, they are silent. Morally bankrupt.
8/ Oh, but their government would put them in prison for their position. Give me a break! We, Ukrainians, at the cost of many lives, have overthrown several political regimes that wanted to become dictatorships. We stood up. We are free people!
9/ We paid the price and will continue to pay the price. Because freedom is not free. It comes with a price. For us Ukrainians, the price is especially high. But we are willing to pay it. Because it is better to die than to live as a slave.
10/ If you choose to remain neutral and silent, it’s your choice. But that choice defines who you are. You are a coward, a silent supporter, a "good russian," and history will judge you as such.
11/ To end, I want to quote some people who understood very well that there is no neutrality in the face of evil.
12/ Dietrich Bonhoeffer: "Silence in the face of evil is itself evil; God will not hold us guiltless. To not speak is to speak. Not to act is to act."
13/ Elie Wiesel: "We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented."
14/ Dante Alighieri (paraphrased): "The hottest places in hell are reserved for those who, in times of great moral crisis, maintain their neutrality."
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More than 60,000 women are now serving in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Unlike Ukrainian men, who are required to serve in the AFU to defend their country, the vast majority of women are volunteers. 1/n
2/ Most of them never held a gun before the war. They could leave the country, as the Ukrainian martial law applies only to men aged 18-60, but they choose to stay and fight.
3/ Contrary to the narratives of the russian propaganda saying that the Ukrainian people are fighting because they are forced by the Ukrainian government, these women show that Ukrainians are free people choosing to fight to defend their country.
This is a clear demonstration of where typical russians stand in this genocidal war against Ukraine. This video is from Germany! Each person who is walking with a Ukrainian flag is attacked and beaten by russians. Not in russia but in Germany! 1/n
2/ So, please stop this nonsense about “good russians.” The world needs to open up their eyes and see what russians stand for. It is a sick nation. Sick. The genocide against Ukrainian people is committed by russians.
3/ It is not Putin’s war against Ukraine. Even if you take out Putin, nothing will change. He is a symptom of a much bigger sickness.
This is how moral bankruptcy looks like. The Pope in Hungary kissed Illarion, the Russian Orthodox Church leader. Illarion is under Ukrainian sanctions for supporting russian genocide. And after kissing this war criminal, the Pope went to comfort Ukrainian refugees. 1/n
2/ Here is the list of some of Pope’s past actions and statements regarding the russian war against Ukraine:
3/ Pope has asked a russian and a Ukrainian woman to carry the cross together. Sure, what’s the difference between the evil and the good?
Amnesty International is a morally bankrupt organization with zero accountability for its actions. In August 2022, Amnesty accused Ukrainian army of endangering civilians. Then, in response to the public outcry, Amnesty commissioned an independent evaluation of their report. 1/n
2/ Now, after seeing the report from the committee, Amnesty decided not to make the results public. Move over, they tried to influence the summary of the “independent” report and they actually succeeded! The behavior of Amnesty was never about finding and reporting the truth.
3/ The Amnesty's Secretary General Agnes has personally blocked me, because I was pointing out her moral bankruptcy and demanded her resignation. What Amnesty and Agnes dis is criminal! They further enabled russian atrocities in Ukraine.
Sending “cluster munitions” to Ukraine could be the most important decision of the war. On Wednesday, two GOP congressmen pushed the Pentagon to send cluster bombs to Ukraine.
1/n
2/ House Armed Services Chair Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) and Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) initiated the push, saying: “The administration (is) not giving Ukraine the weapons it needs to win. Chief among them is cluster munitions.”
3/ I am not a military expert, but Dan Rice has been telling me this for quite some time and I definitely trust Dan on this issue. Russia has been using “cluster munitions” nonstop, and it only makes sense to provide such weapons to Ukraine.
Christina Jolos shares a horrific story of how they were escaping Mariupol last year. Here is her story: 1/n
2/ Yesterday, at our own risk, we left Mariupol under gunfire. We stayed overnight in a field in a gray zone. It was freezing outside. Thank God we are alive. We are alive to scream that everyone who stayed in Mariupol needs help!
3/ We didn't have a humanitarian convoy, no one took us out, we ran behind cars under fire, we joined a group and taped "Children!" signs on our cars. I personally put my own son in the car to the sound of a rocket exploding not far from us. No one saved us, we saved ourselves..