After I posted, I read Josh Trevino's piece, and have to agree with him. Here's the one truly chilling passage in his essay:
"Nevertheless we have a record of only stupidity from the present American regime, whereas the present Russian regime possesses the requisite admixture of stupidity and malice."
One can safely make the case that such a state of affairs preceded both World Wars. Why, then, should we expect that it won't happen a third time? I also believe that the Russians blew up their own pipeline. While it may seem counterintuitive for Putin to destroy the thing which was making him $1 billion per month, the remark of a char\acter in the late Frank Hebert's classic sci-fi novel "Dune" keeps coming back; "The power to destroy a thing is the power to control it." Whether the Nordstream pipelines remain merely turned off or if they're destroyed, the result is the same: Europe freezes in the dark this winter, which perversely benefits Putin, as it shows that he has the power to control Europe's energy destiny given the fact that America ceded that power to him due to the Bideb Administration's war on fossil fuels.
Let me address this from the standpoint of the 20-year military veteran I am. For President Biden to take the specter of nuclear retaliation off the table is a potentially catastrophic mistake. I have been completely unimpressed by the quality and performance of Russian forces in Ukraine so far. They in no way resemble the "rompin', stompin' Red hordes" we envisioned doing battle with in the 1980s when I was stationed in then-West Germany. The nightmare vision of swarms of Russian armor bursting into all of Western Europe seems at best unlikely. And even though NATO is surely diminished as a military power, I firmly believe that it has more than sufficient conventional force to make any Russian military adventure against it a losing proposition.
That fact is precisely why Biden's taking the nuclear option off the table is such a danger. Were NATO to respond militarily to Putin's use of tactical nuclear weapons against a nation which is not a NATO member state, and if as I expect such a military action would quickly turn against him, then he has absolutely no real restraint placed on his actions against NATO, and a use of strategic nuclear weapons against the NATO states, including the U.S., is more, not less likely. Given that the pressure at home would be to depose him if Russia oligarchs saw their wealth and power being destroyed, what would he have left to lose? And the minute such a Russian strike was launched, we would have to retaliate in kind, with the inevitable global devastation that would follow.
Like Reagan before him, President Trump understood that the concept of "strategic ambiguity" - the leaving totally uncertain in a would-be aggressor's mind our true intentions - could be a powerful deterrent stance. Just as the Republican Party under Trump largely read the globalist elites out of a position of influence, he also did so to their political arm, the neocons. Now both forces have aligned themselves with the Democrats and their fantasy of bludgeoning all opposition into submission has again become fashionable inside the Beltway at a time when American economic power has effectively been destroyed. We have perversely made the world more dangerous by our fecklessness and incompetence, and are led by a President who gets led around in the policy arena as easily as Jill Biden leads himn around at public appearances. I counsel all of you to pray really hard for some manner of sanity to break out soon.
Somebody made a good point on BBC radio. The minute Putin uses a nuke, the deterrent value is over - and it’s been very effective thus far in limiting aid from NATO. Plus, the NATO forces in Europe could do a lot to damage to Russian assets with conventional weapons. That said, you’re right Biden is ridiculous to rule out nuclear retaliation.
I've mentioned this before on this site but in 2012 when BHO was reelected, I had a meltdown. Couldn't believe it happened, how could we reelect this guy?? A dear friend of our reminded me then of you overarching theme here: God is in control; He is our protector and provider, not the government. I have to remind myself of that often - sometimes several times a DAY - but it has provided me great comfort and has indeed significantly reduced the anxiety.
I agree totally! God's got this. He has a PLAN! He says He will never leave us or forsake us, but will be with us to the end of the age. I hate what I see happening in the world, but my faith says my God has a Plan for good and not for evil.
He will come as a thief in the night. Trying to discern portents and signs to figure out the When is unprofitable. We are called to live our lives, walk with our Lord, do good, and follow in His ways. If He comes, He comes. We shouldn't worry about trying to be "caught working." We should just do the job regardless. Then, at the end no matter when He comes, we will hear, "Well done my good and faithful servant."
I believe this is exactly why liberals are unhappy, they fret about, focus on things they feel should be different. They want to change the world to fit the model in their head, to be a god and make everything conform to their idea how it should be, rather than simply adjusting the model in their head and modifying what they can control.
Frustration is when expectations and reality don't line up. Long term it leads to anxiety. Long term it leads to violence to attempt to force conformity.
Amen! God's sovereignty is difficult for our western minds to embrace; but we must, or go mad at what we see around us. Are we affecting change on our street or in our building? Start there and love those got has put in our Way!
Thank you, Erick, for this perspective. The worry thing is a big deal. Rather insulting to God since we are supposed to trust him. Trusting doesn't mean not taking the actions that we can, but we have to understand that this is his universe and we really have extremely limited control. Thanks for the reminder.
My mother in her 90’s would worry. I kept telling her don’t worry. We went to church service at her church in Laurel, Mississippi where the Pastor Dr Randy Turners service was on don’t worry about it. He said pick a time between 4 and 4:30 to worry. Unless it’s a dire emergency then save it to the next day to worry.
Faith in God is supposed to be the Christians mantra.
So Don’t Worry about it and Don’t Worry me about it.
The song you raise me up I am strong when I am on your shoulders. You raise me up to more than I can be.Be a strong Christian.
The end of the Serenity Prayer…”the wisdom to know the difference” between what you can change and what you can’t. As I’m stressing about friends in Florida and Charleston, I needed the reminder that my obsessively watching the weather channel isn’t going to change where the hurricane makes landfall. Thank you.
"I needed the reminder that my obsessively watching the weather channel isn’t going to change where the hurricane makes landfall." What an overwhelmingly profound statement! Very nicely said.
After I posted, I read Josh Trevino's piece, and have to agree with him. Here's the one truly chilling passage in his essay:
"Nevertheless we have a record of only stupidity from the present American regime, whereas the present Russian regime possesses the requisite admixture of stupidity and malice."
One can safely make the case that such a state of affairs preceded both World Wars. Why, then, should we expect that it won't happen a third time? I also believe that the Russians blew up their own pipeline. While it may seem counterintuitive for Putin to destroy the thing which was making him $1 billion per month, the remark of a char\acter in the late Frank Hebert's classic sci-fi novel "Dune" keeps coming back; "The power to destroy a thing is the power to control it." Whether the Nordstream pipelines remain merely turned off or if they're destroyed, the result is the same: Europe freezes in the dark this winter, which perversely benefits Putin, as it shows that he has the power to control Europe's energy destiny given the fact that America ceded that power to him due to the Bideb Administration's war on fossil fuels.
Let me address this from the standpoint of the 20-year military veteran I am. For President Biden to take the specter of nuclear retaliation off the table is a potentially catastrophic mistake. I have been completely unimpressed by the quality and performance of Russian forces in Ukraine so far. They in no way resemble the "rompin', stompin' Red hordes" we envisioned doing battle with in the 1980s when I was stationed in then-West Germany. The nightmare vision of swarms of Russian armor bursting into all of Western Europe seems at best unlikely. And even though NATO is surely diminished as a military power, I firmly believe that it has more than sufficient conventional force to make any Russian military adventure against it a losing proposition.
That fact is precisely why Biden's taking the nuclear option off the table is such a danger. Were NATO to respond militarily to Putin's use of tactical nuclear weapons against a nation which is not a NATO member state, and if as I expect such a military action would quickly turn against him, then he has absolutely no real restraint placed on his actions against NATO, and a use of strategic nuclear weapons against the NATO states, including the U.S., is more, not less likely. Given that the pressure at home would be to depose him if Russia oligarchs saw their wealth and power being destroyed, what would he have left to lose? And the minute such a Russian strike was launched, we would have to retaliate in kind, with the inevitable global devastation that would follow.
Like Reagan before him, President Trump understood that the concept of "strategic ambiguity" - the leaving totally uncertain in a would-be aggressor's mind our true intentions - could be a powerful deterrent stance. Just as the Republican Party under Trump largely read the globalist elites out of a position of influence, he also did so to their political arm, the neocons. Now both forces have aligned themselves with the Democrats and their fantasy of bludgeoning all opposition into submission has again become fashionable inside the Beltway at a time when American economic power has effectively been destroyed. We have perversely made the world more dangerous by our fecklessness and incompetence, and are led by a President who gets led around in the policy arena as easily as Jill Biden leads himn around at public appearances. I counsel all of you to pray really hard for some manner of sanity to break out soon.
Somebody made a good point on BBC radio. The minute Putin uses a nuke, the deterrent value is over - and it’s been very effective thus far in limiting aid from NATO. Plus, the NATO forces in Europe could do a lot to damage to Russian assets with conventional weapons. That said, you’re right Biden is ridiculous to rule out nuclear retaliation.
Thank you, Erick. I really needed to hear this today. God bless you.
I've mentioned this before on this site but in 2012 when BHO was reelected, I had a meltdown. Couldn't believe it happened, how could we reelect this guy?? A dear friend of our reminded me then of you overarching theme here: God is in control; He is our protector and provider, not the government. I have to remind myself of that often - sometimes several times a DAY - but it has provided me great comfort and has indeed significantly reduced the anxiety.
I agree totally! God's got this. He has a PLAN! He says He will never leave us or forsake us, but will be with us to the end of the age. I hate what I see happening in the world, but my faith says my God has a Plan for good and not for evil.
He will come as a thief in the night. Trying to discern portents and signs to figure out the When is unprofitable. We are called to live our lives, walk with our Lord, do good, and follow in His ways. If He comes, He comes. We shouldn't worry about trying to be "caught working." We should just do the job regardless. Then, at the end no matter when He comes, we will hear, "Well done my good and faithful servant."
I believe this is exactly why liberals are unhappy, they fret about, focus on things they feel should be different. They want to change the world to fit the model in their head, to be a god and make everything conform to their idea how it should be, rather than simply adjusting the model in their head and modifying what they can control.
Frustration is when expectations and reality don't line up. Long term it leads to anxiety. Long term it leads to violence to attempt to force conformity.
Amen! God's sovereignty is difficult for our western minds to embrace; but we must, or go mad at what we see around us. Are we affecting change on our street or in our building? Start there and love those got has put in our Way!
Thank you, Erick, for this perspective. The worry thing is a big deal. Rather insulting to God since we are supposed to trust him. Trusting doesn't mean not taking the actions that we can, but we have to understand that this is his universe and we really have extremely limited control. Thanks for the reminder.
Thank you. I so enjoy your "mini" sermons. They are just the pick me up I need.
Our government is run by people worse than the three stooges.
This is where the Serenity Prayer is so comforting.
Yes and amen!
My mother in her 90’s would worry. I kept telling her don’t worry. We went to church service at her church in Laurel, Mississippi where the Pastor Dr Randy Turners service was on don’t worry about it. He said pick a time between 4 and 4:30 to worry. Unless it’s a dire emergency then save it to the next day to worry.
Faith in God is supposed to be the Christians mantra.
So Don’t Worry about it and Don’t Worry me about it.
The song you raise me up I am strong when I am on your shoulders. You raise me up to more than I can be.Be a strong Christian.
The end of the Serenity Prayer…”the wisdom to know the difference” between what you can change and what you can’t. As I’m stressing about friends in Florida and Charleston, I needed the reminder that my obsessively watching the weather channel isn’t going to change where the hurricane makes landfall. Thank you.
"I needed the reminder that my obsessively watching the weather channel isn’t going to change where the hurricane makes landfall." What an overwhelmingly profound statement! Very nicely said.