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Donald Trump asks Ukraine to make territorial concessions because Russia is stronger. If we accept war as a way of resolving disputes, and if Russia will get even one square inch of Ukraine thanks to the aggression, it means that the UN is a joke and NATO stands for nothing; those with more guns rule. That approach gave us WWI. So, in 1928, nations signed the Pact of Paris, agreeing that solutions to conflicts shall be by pacific means. They forgot about it in Munich in 1938, yielding to Hitler because he had more guns. We got WWII as a result. Trump does not get that the UN and NATO protected us for 80 years from the next global war. By attacking Ukraine, Putin tells the world that values and signed accords promoting peace are worthless. By that, he started WWIII, which is not full-blown yet. But it will become hot if Putin gets any reward for starting this war.
Elon Musk asked that question on X earlier today. He should look in a mirror for answers. Donald Trump got the mandate to deport illegal immigrants violently instead of turning immigration into an economic opportunity. DOGE violently chases petty real or assumed government inefficiencies but will not touch health care bankrupting Americans nor Medicare Advantage, the scam grabbing the savings of baby boomers and giving them to a handful of billionaires. Zelensky was bullied in the Oval Office, but Putin, the violent aggressor, gets an understanding there. Trump made evil normal and noble. He awakened the worst of human nature. Sadly, on both sides of the political divide.
American military experts predicted Russia would overcome Ukraine in three days. Ukraine was still standing three weeks later, so they started talking about help. They blocked the sending of Polish aircraft fighters as too risky. Ukraine did not get what it needed the most, but it still pushed the Russians back. Ukraine stands despite getting too little too late, but the same military experts tell Trump that Russia is winning. Those experts forgot the lesson of Vietnam and lost the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. They did not learn anything from the Israelis, who destroyed Gaza and killed 50,000 people, including all Hamas leaders, but Hamas still stands, and the Palestinians’ resolve is firm. They are experts at losing. Trump trusts them, but Ukraine should not.
Observers say that Donald Trump and JD Vance provoked Volodymyr Zelenskyy into an undiplomatic squabble in the White House. They blame the Ukrainian President for responding candidly. Zelenskyy made a different error. He tried to be diplomatic in response to the verbal ambush by bullies. The reason does not work in response to the provocation. Zelenskyy could pretend to accept all the insults as the truth and acknowledge his weakness. Then, he could humbly ask Trump and Vance for their message for Ukrainians. According to Trump and Vance, what should Ukrainians do to get peace? And let them talk, asking for clarifications about borders and Ukraine’s security. Knowing what American leaders have in mind, I bet that after they finish, Zelenskyy could answer that Ukrainians do not need Trump’s help in getting peace by surrendering to Russia.
My first job was in Poland, at times when it was a socialist country. Every Monday, we wasted about half a day writing a report telling what we got done the previous week. Biggest loafers always had the most impressive reports. In socialism, the actual work outcome does not matter, but the creativity in writing remarkable reports advances people. Now, the socialists run America. Elon Musk turned into a top socialistic apparatchik. One would say, God, please save America. Sadly, when it comes to money, God is an atheist.
More than once. First, they were against Ukraine’s independence in 1991. Ukrainians prevailed. In 1994, Americans imposed on Ukrainians to give up the possession of post-Soviet nuclear weapons in exchange for the respect of Ukraine’s “independence and sovereignty in the existing borders.” Then in 2014 and again in 2022, Americans screwed Ukrainians, saying that respect does not mean security guarantees. Ukrainians can use the Budapest Memorandum as toilet paper. After the Russian invasion, U.S. support has always been too little and too late. Trump rightfully blames Biden for that, but his offer is even worse. He acts on behalf of the world’s financial elites, who make more money by prolonging the war than ending it. It is time for Ukraine to say it loudly and clearly to the world and, most of all, to Americans.
The barbarian attack by Hamas on October 7, 2023, killed 1195 Israelis. In response, Netanyahu launched a brutal war aimed at annihilating Hamas. Gaza became a pile of rubble. Israelis killed about 47,000 people in Gaza and 4,000 in Lebanon. About 400 Israeli soldiers lost their lives executing that. What for? Hamas still stands; Israelis needed to accept a compromise to get a ceasefire and the return of the remaining hostages. Netanyahu lost. The simplest way to annihilate Hamas is by treating fairly Palestinians in the West Bank. The only way to end the conflict is to acknowledge that Jews turned Palestinians into refugees on their ancestral land.
On January 11, in his CNN show, Michael Smerconish asked, “Which is more to blame for the devastation of the California wildfires: climate change or government mismanagement of resources?” Out of 56,137 votes, 73.18% blamed climate change. Climate change or not, massive fires happen often in California. It could be that changes in climate make them more frequent and more severe. However, government officials should know that and prepare accordingly. Americans blaming climate change excused decrepit administrators in California and moved the blame to the federal government, expecting that it would spend all the money we have and all the money we can borrow to stop climate change. What would be cheaper and more effective in dealing with fires in California?
In today’s press conference, President-Elect Donald Trump listed many things we do not need to buy from Canada. I have the bad news for Mr. Trump: we buy them because they are cheaper. In many ways, Canada, considered more socialist, has a better functioning free market than the U.S. Its immigration policy is one example. Thanks to that, the supermarket in Chicago can get cheaper bread from Toronto than from the bakery next door. I noticed that years ago. So, instead of focusing on Canada, President Trump should reverse our purely socialist policies. Immigration could be a good start.
For a hammer, everything is a nail. Carlson Tucker’s interview with Tom Homan shows a decent cop trying to enforce our immigration laws, which are as good and as unenforceable as Prohibition. The same politicians voted in both in the early 1920s. Eliot Ness did not make Prohibition work.
People wishing to live in the U.S. come to the country illegally because it is the easiest way to obtain legal residence. Even the best police work by the Border Czar will not change it. Many will get hurt, but maybe Americans will realize that ending illegal immigration could be as easy as ending the menace of Prohibition — by repealing our immigration laws.
Many tell us what to think. I ask my readers to be skeptical. Question me and others. 
Staying informed will help overcome our political gridlock. Your support matters.
Donations to support the writing of Henryk A. Kowalczyk are not tax-deductible.