From ef929a35833fed8eac4aaaf7739d4df1ed72ae00 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Garrett D'Amore <garrett@damore.org>
Date: Fri, 4 Mar 2022 18:11:54 -0800
Subject: Add note for Russian people with respect to invasion of Ukraine.

---
 UKRAINE.adoc | 77 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
 1 file changed, 77 insertions(+)
 create mode 100644 UKRAINE.adoc

(limited to 'UKRAINE.adoc')

diff --git a/UKRAINE.adoc b/UKRAINE.adoc
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..d86d3e12
--- /dev/null
+++ b/UKRAINE.adoc
@@ -0,0 +1,77 @@
+# Ukraine, Russia, and a World Tragedy
+
+## A message to those inside Russia
+
+### Written March 4, 2022.
+
+It is with a very heavy heart that I write this.  I am normally opposed to the use of open source
+projects to communicate political positions or advocate for things outside the immediate relevancy
+to that project.
+
+However, the events occurring in Ukraine, and specifically the unprecedented invasion of Ukraine by
+Russian forces operating under orders from Russian President Vladimir Putin compel me to speak out.
+
+Those who know me, know that I have family, friends, and colleagues in Russia, and Ukraine both.  My closest friends
+have historically been Russian friends my wife's hometown of Chelyabinsk.  I myself have in the past
+frequently traveled to Russia, and indeed operated a software development firm with offices in St. Petersburg.
+I had a special kinship with Russia and its people.
+
+I say "had", because I fear that the actions of Putin, and the massive disinformation campaign that his regime
+has waged inside Russia, mean that it's likely that I won't see those friends again.  At present, I'm not sure
+my wife will see her own mother again.  We no longer feel it's safe for either of us to return Russia given
+actions taken by the regime to crack down on those who express disagreement.
+
+Russian citizens are being led to believe it is acting purely defensively, and that only legitimate military
+targets are being targeted, and that all the information we have received in the West are fakes.
+
+I am confident that nothing could be further from the truth.
+
+This has caused many in Russia, including people whom I respect and believe to be smarter than this, to
+stand by Putin, and endorse his actions. The claim is that the entirety of NATO is operating at the behest
+of the USA, and that the entirety of Europe was poised to attack Russia. While this is clearly absurd to those
+of us with any understanding of western politics, Russian citizens are being fed this lie, and believing it.
+
+If you're reading this from inside Russia -- YOU are the person that I hope this message reaches.  Your
+government is LYING to you.  Of course, all governments lie all the time.  But consider this.  Almost the
+entire world has condemned the invasion of Ukraine as criminal, and has applied sanctions.  Even countries
+which have poor relations with the US sanctioning Russia, as well as nations which historically have remained
+neutral.  (Famously neutral -- even during World War II, Switzerland has acted to apply sanctions in
+concert with the rest of the world.)
+
+Ask yourself, why does Putin fear a free press so much, if what he says is true?  Why the crack-downs on
+children expressing only a desire for peace with Ukraine?  Why would the entire world unified against him,
+if Putin was in the right?  Why would the only countries that stood with Russia against
+the UN resolution to condemn these acts as crimes be Belarus, North Korea, and Syria?  Even countries normally
+allied to Russia could not bring themselves to do more than abstain from the vote to condemn it.
+
+To be clear, I do not claim that the actions taken by the West or by the Ukrainian government were completely
+blameless.  On the contrary, I understand that Western media is biased, and the truth is rarely exactly
+as reported.  I believe that there is a kernel of truth in the claims of fascists and ultra-nationalist
+militias operating in Ukraine and specifically Donbas.  However, I am also equally certain that Putin's
+response is out of proportion, and that concerns about such militias are principally just a pretext to justify
+an invasion.
+
+Europe is at war, unlike we've seen in my lifetime.  The world is more divided, and closer to nuclear holocaust
+than it has been since the Cold War. And that is 100% the fault of Putin.
+
+While Putin remains in power, there cannot really be any way for Russian international relations to return
+to normal. Putin has set your country on a path to return to the Cold War, likely because he fancies himself
+to be a new Stalin.  However, unlike the Soviet Union, the Russian economy does not have the wherewithal to
+stand on its own, and the invasion of Ukraine has fully ensured that Russia will not find any friends anywhere
+else in Europe, and probably few places in Asia.
+
+The *only* paths forward for Russia are either a Russia without Putin (and those who would support his agenda),
+or a complete breakdown of Russian prosperity, likely followed by the increasing international conflict that will
+be the natural escalation from a country that is isolated and impoverished. Those of us observing from the West are
+gravely concerned, because we cannot see any end to this madness that does not result in nuclear conflict,
+unless from within.
+
+In the meantime, the worst prices will be paid for by innocents in Ukraine, and by young Russian mean
+forced to carry out the orders of Putin's corrupt regime.
+
+And *that* is why I write this -- to appeal to those within Russia to open your eyes, and think with
+your minds.  It is right and proper to be proud of your country and its rich heritage.  But it is also
+right and proper to look for ways to save it from the ruinous path that its current leadership has set it upon,
+and to recognize when that leadership is no longer acting in interest of the country or its people.
+
+  - Garrett D'Amore, March 4, 2022
\ No newline at end of file
-- 
cgit v1.2.3-70-g09d2

