An Honest War
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I have been finding it convenient to start my posts with a Donald Trump quote, not because what he says is true but because he is almost a perfect foil for the truth. For example, at a recent rally, Trump said of Russia's Special Military Operation in the former Ukraine: "Vladimir Putin should have won that war in a week. He's now entering his fourth year."
An obvious question to ask is, Why a whole week? Why wouldn't Putin just drop nukes on Kiev, Kharkov and Odessa? That would have finished "that war" in a split second! To understand why this would be impossible, it is necessary to understand the difference between a war and a war crime and, accordingly, between a warrior and a war criminal. Such distinctions seem to be nonexistent for a great many people in the no-longer-so-collective West — not just for Trump. As a result, these people do not understand what has been happening in the former Ukraine — moreover, are incapable of such understanding, lacking certain concepts that are rudimentary to it.
I therefore interrupt regularly scheduled blogging with this much needed homily on what it means to fight an honest war.
In most Russian folk tales, on which all Russian children are brought up, when a "bogatyr'" (a Russian folk hero, from Ancient Turkic "baɣatur" — a brave warrior) meets the enemy, he invariably says something along the lines of "you, dragon, bandit, invader... [insert your own epithet]... come and fight me in an honest battle to the death."
Why does it have to be "an honest battle"? Why wouldn't our bogatyr' sneak up on the enemy while he is sleeping and chop his head off? Why wouldn't he invite him to a feast and poke a fork in his eye? Better yet, why not poison the well in the enemy's home village, so that his whole clan dies writhing in pain?
The answer is this: our bogatyr' intends to become friends with his enemy. He intends to live in peace side by side with his former enemy and to come to his defense against foreign invaders (and have this former enemy join forces with him). He may even intend for him and his former enemy to intermarry and intermingle culturally and linguistically (the very word "bogatyr'/baɣatur is an echo of the Mongol Empire, which was the largest land empire in history and which Russia absorbed over time).
The concept of "an honest battle" is an important element of the wisdom of the Russian people that has allowed it to form a giant empire. A victory has to be achieved in a way that allows the two sides to then live together in peace, with mutual respect and without recriminations or vengeful thoughts. That is, your opponent has to understand that your victory was not achieved through deceit, scheming, meanness, trickery, villainy or excessive force but through skill, strength and bravery. It is not a dishonor to be defeated in an honest battle — the honor is preserved by both sides, who can then come together, shake hands, honestly praise each other' valor, and make a solemn vow to remain friends for all time.
On the other hand, if victory is achieved in a dishonest manner, it becomes very difficult to then live together in peace. The defeated enemy may wait many centuries for the opportune moment to take his revenge, but that time will come eventually. Since victory was achieved in a dishonest manner, any technique, no matter how heinous, is allowed in response. Any dishonest victory puts your own civilians at risk, but the worst case is a war accompanied by genocide: if you treat women and children as legitimate targets, then your own women and children inevitably become legitimate targets in response.
Right now, the Russian military is blowing away energy infrastructure all over the former Ukraine. Is that still "an honest battle"? Yes, it is: the Russian side has repeatedly asked that civilian infrastructure be spared on both sides but received zero understanding from the other side, which continues to shell schools, clinics, markets and residential areas. The Russian rule-book basically says this: "If your enemy doesn't understand the concept of an honest battle, then it is acceptable to hit him as hard as you have to."
An excellent example of an honest war is Russia's mini-war with Georgia in August of 2008. Georgia's criminal president Mikheil Saakashvili ordered Georgian troops to attack Russian peacekeepers stationed in South Ossetia. The Russian army, in response, smashed the Georgian army and confiscated its war toys but did not invade any cities. The result: Russia is full of Georgian restaurants, Georgian wines, such as Khvanchkara and Kindzmarauli, can be found at most liquor stores throughout Russia, Georgia is full of Russian tourists (who do not require visas)... and the war criminal Saakashvili is... rotting in jail in Georgia!
This is all bad news for nations such as the US and Britain, who failed to grasp the concept of "an honest war" and whose history is a long compendium of war crimes — of which they are either oblivious or actually proud. By far the worst such failure at present are the Jews of Israel: does anyone think for a moment, after what has been done to Gaza, that Jews and Palestinians will ever be able to live peacefully side by side? The Palestinians, who outnumber the Israelis in the region almost 2 to 1, now have 60,000 wrongful deaths to avenge! This perspective does not bode well for the future of Israel.
As many people have by now realized, there will be many armed conflicts in the coming decades. The UN, organized to maintain the peace, is essentially defunct, its resolutions not worth the paper on which they are printed. Of the three nations that were instrumental in organizing it, Britain is defunct, the US is run by an inexplicable buffoon who thinks that he is God's gift to the world and Russia is doing its best to fight off NATO provocations and to limit armed conflict in its own region. There will be wars — but if they are honest wars, then there will yet be a chance for a lasting peace once they end.
[Hat tip: exsoko]
The nuclear posture written by Trenin and Karaganov should be required reading in the EU.
Besides, was war ever honest? I doubt it. The Psyops and Cognitive Warfare have increased a great deal in the West, so that a Majority of my fellow Germans meanwhile fall for the blatant lie of imminent (2029) russian invasion, those sheepish dumbf... I wonder what it's gonna take to wake them up. Hopefully not some Kiloton Explosions. By the way, many german and NATO inmates believe the US would sacrifice D. C. for Berlin. Fools. Nor will the French trade Paris for Berlin or the Brits London...
Never.going.to.happen.
You have done your work and way freakin' more than you could have been compensated for. All your books/essays are right here at the click of a mouse and free. If us Westerners aren't reading them, we're iliterate, incompetent and terrified. I really take it as an ironic warning that the 2025 title is written in a superior language I am supposed to hate and ignore.