2 search results for "Ukraine: a taste of the truth"

Russia-Ukraine: A Taste of the Truth (video)

Ray McGovern, July 7, 2022

TIME OUT! Let’s think this through. We are told that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was “unprovoked”. But was it?

How can we estimate how far west Russia’s forces will advance, without knowing why Russia invaded Ukraine in the first place? Theories abound; evidence is available but is overlooked, or hidden.

I apply the skills I learned as a Kremlinologist to scrub official statements, rinse them thoroughly, and squeeze out meaning.

This was known, back in the day, as “media analysis” and remains a lucrative tool. Often, though, it requires “getting into the weeds”. Those weeds cannot always be included in more broad-brush analyses like those of John Mearsheimer, but often add a brick or two to the foundation of his incisive conclusions.

To include weeds and bricks in digestible form I included slides. But the tone is informal, unpolished.

There was not enough time to pay adequate attention to the broader implications of the war in Ukraine. The new conditions brought on by the war in Ukraine constitute, in my view, a liminal event. Putin, in effect, has decided to put an end to Peter the Great’s (early 1700s) foundational effort to play catch-up ball with the West and shoehorn a relatively backward Russia into Europe.

Now the “window” Peter tried to break through to Europe has been closed shut – at least for the nonce. Russia is backward no more and has powerful supporters elsewhere – many of whom are similarly fed up with the West.

An iron curtain, so to speak, has been drawn down on the Russian side of Peter’s window, as Putin looks east for less threatening friends – allies even. The world has again become bipolar; but now it’s the lily-white West against pretty much the rest of the world. As the Chinese officials used to put it in the vernacular (while issuing umpteen warnings to the West), “This will come to a no-good end.”

One can but hope that the East will remain aware of Sun Tzu’s dictum of 25 centuries ago:

“Avoiding a clash with great powers does not indicate cowardice, but wisdom, because sacrificing oneself is never an advantage anywhere” (The Art of War ).

Journalists & Not-So-Much Journalists on Zelensky

By Ray McGovern, Dec. 22, 2022

One has to put some context around the appearance of Saint Volodymyr Zelensky Wednesday evening before the U.S. Congress. Those with a modicum of accurate background information could smell a rat behind all the hugs, kisses, and stormy applause. The real record renders the smell a stench. Alas, neither the accurate record nor the stench can find its way into the corporate media.

Here’s the thing – in the words of humorist Will Rogers: “The problem ain’t what people know. It’s what people know that ain’t so; that’s the problem.”

A Help Desk

One can expect serious writers like Joe Lauria of Consortium News to post some thoughts apres-St. Zelensky-tour-de-force, in due course. But everyone is entitled to some time off for Christmas and something needs to be said – like now.

Happily, much has already been written and spoken that exposes the dominant (propaganda) narrative for what it is – drivel. For example, readers can find much helpful sustenance in an extremely detailed piece Lauria wrote on July 2, 2022 about what actually happened in Ukraine over the past several years.
https://consortiumnews.com/2022/06/02/us-state-affiliated-newsguard-targets-consortium-news/

Joe’s piece came in response to spurious charges by a Orwellian ‘rating’ group, led by the usual suspects, called “NewsGuard”. Consider Lauria’s piece required reading; you may find it on the final exam.

For those who prefer video, I gave a kind of kind of tutorial on July 7, 2022, with emphasis on how Russia views the stakes in Ukraine: “Ukraine: A Taste of The Truth”.

I have also done several other videos on the general subject. (See: Youtube or raymcgovern.com.)

Not-So-Much Journalists

Reading the two articles below confirms the truth of Will Rogers’s adage – in present circumstances a dangerous one – that THE problem is “what people know that ain’t so”. You may wish to tell your friends to read/watch Lauria and me (above), as a sort of inoculation against the rubbish below:

Volodymyr Zelensky Is the Leader of the Free World
By Marc Ash, Reader Supported News, December 22, 2022
https://www.rsn.org/001/volodymyr-zelensky-is-the-leader-of-the-free-world.html
When my stomach finally settled after reading this one, I tweeted:
https://twitter.com/raymcgovern/status/1605970720189726720

Zelensky’s message: Ukraine is fighting for good over evil
By Andrew E. Kramer, December 21, 2022
https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/12/21/world/volodymyr-zelensky-russia-ukraine-news?campaign_id=51&emc=edit_mbe_20221222&instance_id=80825&nl=morning-briefing%3A-europe-edition&regi_id=69540701&segment_id=120523&te=1&user_id=e69a6cb2bbba5cd47ffe27ec9fb45fbe#zelensky-ukraine-washington