Showing posts with label Civil War. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Civil War. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 12, 2024

RIGHT SIDE PATRIOTS...LIVE!                                             
 
Today, Tuesday, March 12th, from 7-8:30pm EST, RIGHT SIDE PATRIOTS Craig Andresen and Diane Sori discuss 'The Importance Of 'Down Ticket' Voting'; 'The 9-0 Meltdown'; Special Council Robert Hur's testimony before the House Judiciary Committee; Haiti's 'low scale' civil war; and BiBi rejects Biden's 'red lines' regarding Rafah. Hope you can tune in to RIGHT SIDE PATRIOTS on https://rspradio1.com Click 'LISTEN LIVE' starting at 6:50 pm EST with show beginning at 7pm EST.
 
 

Tuesday, February 21, 2023

Op-ed: 
An Essay On Ukraine 
By: Diane Sori / The Patriot Factor / Right Side Patriots / Right Side Patriots 
 
...And for Ukraine's and the world's free nations it best be Ukraine for if Ukraine falls to Russia...if she falls to Vladimir Putin...the face of Europe herself will change for Putin will not stop at Ukraine nor will he take his hand off the nuclear button for madmen and egomaniacs are not constrained by the ties of common sense or logic. And it's for this reason alone that we must must continue our military and monetary support of Ukraine no matter what the naysayers in both parties here at home say for without our support Ukraine will in the end fall setting off what will truly be World War III.
 
Why so...because modern history has shown that when U.S. support for any just war is lacking or minimal at best, as it currently is with Ukraine, or when the U.S. enters a said war fairly late in the game...as we did in World War II...said war tends to last longer with more casualties and collateral damage accrued than if the might of the U.S. military had entered said war sooner rather than later. In today's truly global world, for better or worse, a world now rife with the stain of cowardly non-interventionist...Read entire article here.

Monday, February 20, 2023

Op-ed: 
An Essay On Ukraine 
By: Diane Sori / The Patriot Factor / Right Side Patriots / Right Side Patriots

History is a cruel mistress in that lessons learned are not always remembered nor acted upon in a wise or timely manner. And here I speak of the lessons of war...lessons regarding the foreboding of possible war to come as well as of lessons reminding some that things that needed to be done were simply not done.

And war is more times than not the breeding ground of small-minded men with Napoleon complexes who see today's world as but a mere chapter in the ongoing saga of what many believe to be just a geopolitical rivalry between the world's three major super powers. Afraid to the face the truth about issues way more complex than just three nations jockeying for the number one superpower position, those here in the U.S., those in Putin's Russia, as well as those in Red China, know that both circumstances and ambition, peppered with self-perceived righteousness driven in part by media dictates can, when melded together as one, be the determining factor in who becomes the victor and and who the loser with what was believed to be a just cause being relegated to the annals of war's history alone.

Such is the case, I believe, in regards to the current happenings in Ukraine for the fact is that Ukraine and Russia have a long, bloody, and ever so complicated history with each other no matter words to the contrary. In fact, in June 1945, Ukraine...then known as the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic...was among the first countries to sign the United Nations Charter, thus being one of its 51 founding members. Also remember that the then USSR actually endorsed Ukraine’s UN entry as it being a separate country...basically admitting Ukraine's autonomy...albeit a separate country that they counted on to always vote and side with them.

And while numerous conflicts did exist between the two countries in the years since then, today's highly volatile and dangerous situation started with Russia's February 2022 invasion of a country whose leaders were looking towards the future...as in Ukraine truly becoming part of Europe...instead of continuing to allow their country and her people to live in the past...a past that would see Ukraine officially returning to “Mother Russia's” fold. And with Vladimir Putin's overinflated ego coupled with his personally driven quest for history making immortality being the hoped for components that would propel Russia to victory, Putin deliberately escalated the still smoldering eight-year long conflict that began with Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea, the very action seen by many world leaders as the historic turning point for European security.

And so with his victory in Crimea, Putin gambled on both “Mother Russia's” and himself being invincible and unstoppable, with Russia being victorious in war and with his being hailed as the motherland's hero. Thankfully though, history seems to have other things in mind for Vladimir Putin as he is now being seen by many...military folks included...as not just the purveyor of major strategic blunders in regards to his underestimating his enemy's strength and determination, but also as the destroyer of what was once great “Mother Russia” herself.

Strength, focus, determination, and history...catalysts all peppered with a healthy dose of reality finds Ukraine, the second-most-populous and powerful of the fifteen former Soviet republics, aka “satellites,” now standing its ground against one of the world's greatest armies and its ego-maniacal dictator who relishes in his having one hand on the nuclear button at all times. And as Ukraine continues to forge its own destiny as a sovereign and independent nation...a nation truly free to align itself with nations in the West...Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy continues his personal quest to find a way to balance his country's hope for the future while at the same time resolving what remains deep seated internal divisions within his own country and government...divisions not unlike those seen during the time of our own Civil War...a war that saw brother pick up arms against their own blood brother just as Russia now picks up arms against their genetically tied Ukrainian blood brothers.

Think of the Ukrainian-speaking population in the western part of Ukraine (those who support becoming part of the EU and NATO) as being akin to the north's Union soldiers...while Russian-speaking folks in Ukraine's east (those wanting closer ties with Putin's Russia) as being Confederate soldiers. Now compare and contrast the framework for each war...minus the issue of slavery which itself was more about economics than the actual breaking of black folks chains...and one can see how eerily similar they are as both wars started with so-called “breakaway territories” declaring their independence from the homeland...the Confederate states declaring independence from the U.S., the Russian-backed states of Donetsk and Luhansk doing so from Ukraine.

And also know that both wars targeted the trade and transportation networks of the opposing side. In our Civil War access was restricted to Confederate ports with European nations feigning the face of neutrality while openly supplying arms and munitions to both sides. In regards to Ukraine, last year not only did NATO nations close their airspace to Russia, but international sanctions actually helped to restrict Russian trade while we and others who supported Ukraine continued and still continue to send them military aid with neutrality, ever so wisely, thankfully not even in the picture.

Neutrality, in my opinion, is but the front of cowards for to be successful in war means one must not fear the taking of sides nor the collateral damage incurred. And while both our Civil War and the still ongoing Russia v. Ukraine War...a war that in reality is simply a war of self-determination...sees as their basic commonality a striving for national reunification coupled with both political and economic conquest. But know that more times than not it's tangible success in battle alone that determines who history portrays as heroes and who are portrayed as villains, as well as who will be determined to be the ultimate winners and losers in this modern day version of civil war.

And for Ukraine's and the world's free nations it best be Ukraine for if Ukraine falls to Russia...if she falls to Vladimir Putin...the face of Europe herself will change for Putin will not stop at Ukraine nor will he take his hand off the nuclear button for madmen and egomaniacs are not constrained by the ties of common sense or logic. And it's for this reason alone that we must continue our military and monetary support of Ukraine no matter what the naysayers in both parties here at home say for without our support Ukraine will in the end fall setting off what will truly be World War III.

 
Why so...because modern history has shown that when U.S. support for any just war is lacking or minimal at best, as it currently is with Ukraine, or when the U.S. enters a said war fairly late in the game...as we did in World War II...said war tends to last longer with more casualties and collateral damage accrued than if the might of the U.S. military had entered said war sooner rather than later. In today's truly global world, for better or worse, a world now rife with the stain of cowardly non-interventionist policies, the aggressor...in this case Vladimir Putin and Russia...is given the time, space, and media coverage needed to help stage the battlefields of war to play out in their favor. We see it now happening on a daily basis with every step forward Zelenskyy and his forces make being met by a new and more deadly barrage of Putin's savagery with the tally in civilian casualties showing no signs of waning

History, as stated earlier, has once again become a cruel mistress as we and our allies basically sit by and watch those in Ukraine bravely continuing their fight against seemingly insurmountable odds, with help from the U.S. and NATO being fleeting at best. Ukrainians are fighting for their freedom...after all freedom is and always will be worth fighting for...while we tally up the dollars and cents spent knowing well that Joe Biden's promises made to Ukraine might never come to fruition. Our problems here at home cannot compare to what the Ukrainian people are facing, and know as truth that if Ukraine does fall what's to stop Putin from overtaking Europe and then setting his sights on the U.S. I guess we'll just have to wait and see how it all plays out, but know that when madmen and fools are in control...when history's lessons learned are ignored...there truly is no safe place to call home. Case closed.

Copyright © 2023 / Diane Sori / The Patriot Factor / All rights reserved. 

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For more political commentary please visit my RIGHT SIDE PATRIOTS partner Craig Andresen's blog The National Patriot to read his latest article, Biden's Balloon-a-Palooza.
 
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RIGHT SIDE PATRIOTS...LIVE!
 
Tomorrow, Tuesday, February 21st, from 7-8:30pm EST, RIGHT SIDE PATRIOTS Craig Andresen and Diane Sori discuss 'An Essay On Ukraine'; 'Biden's Balloon-a-Palooza'; and important news of the day. Hope you can tune in to RIGHT SIDE PATRIOTS on https://rspradio1.com. Click 'LISTEN LIVE' starting at 6:50 pm EST with show beginning at 7pm EST.
 

Monday, August 15, 2022

Op-ed: 
The U.S. v. China...An Unlikely Scenario 
By: Diane Sori / The Patriot Factor / Right Side Patriots / Right Side Patriots Radio

Nancy Pelosi went to Taiwan knowing well the political problems her trip would cause what with China considering Taiwan but a breakaway province that needs to be brought back into the Chinese fold. And this is no matter that the Taiwanese people consider themselves to be a self-ruled nation and not part of China proper, whether Taiwan is officially recognized as an independent country or not. And with Biden's recent reaffirming that the U.S. would defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion, the stage was set for China to raise the tensions up a notch by conducting "military drills" that surrounded the island in a show of strength that some consider to be an actual prelude to war.

And musings of a possible war between China and Taiwan are being spoken of in hushed tones on both sides of our political isle as Biden tries to pretend being a commander-in-chief what with the recent drone take down of al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, But pretending is usually a game played by those with truths that must be kept hidden, and the truth where Biden and his fellow Democrats are concerned is that the timing of al-Zawahiri's demise did succeed, for a awhile at least, in taking our minds off their deliberately destroying our economy. And yet destroying our economy has quite literally become the Democrats payback tool of choice to help them “save face” come their November shellacking, with a possible war with China being but an added distraction used to their advantage.

And while history has shown that war itself, whether just or not, does spur on a nation's economy as war is the epitome of big business...a manufacturing windfall and a jobs creator on par with little else...history also shows that the best time to initiate a war is when your opponents leadership shows weakness across the board.

Enter Joe Biden's Afghanistan exit fiasco which emboldened Vladimir Putin to invade Ukraine, and where Biden's promises made to President Zelensky concerning U.S. equipment helping to fight this unjust war remains undelivered to some degree; Biden's now fingers crossed behind his back May promise made to Taiwan that a Chinese invasion of their country “will not happen” and “will not be attempted” saw the caveat being if the world could convince Beijing of the potential "long-term disapprobation" coupled with long term ramifications should China dare to do so. And both are the direct result of Biden's weakness having now helped to set the stage for China's current muscle flexing as the once thought to be “status quo”...as in the unofficial U.S. and our allies agreed upon “balance of forces” regarding Taiwan...now shows outward signs of crumbling. After all, America under Biden's stewardship can no longer be trusted to back up words said nor promises made.

And while China's leader, Xi Jinping, and his People's Liberation Army (PLA), coupled with the internally driven political dynamics of the Chinese Communist Party favor national security priorities and the “saving of face,” the enforcement of China's sovereignty becomes paramount above all else, And with China physically and militarily outnumbering the forces of Taiwan, Xi's ultimate goal of conquest has now been emboldened by China's recently ended military drills. But more importantly, we now find that China's military strengths overpower those of the U.S. in a number of key areas, which could, if  Biden were to keep his promise of coming to Taiwan's aid if China were to invade, actually become even more unbalanced in Red China's favor.

And while Biden's words spoken are words that carry no true legal weight as Biden has now twisted, for his own personal political gain, the meaning of the 'Taiwan Relations Act of 1979,' the very act that allows an American president to sell defensive weapons and arms to Taiwan minus the promise of us sending boots on the ground to the break away would be island nation. And this allows a simple non-binding agreement on paper, coupled with ongoing bipartisan Congressional support for increasing arms sales to Taiwan, to ramp up both the tensions and the voices of war.

And with Taiwan's Intelligence Chief Chen Ming-tong still seeing any conflict between the two countries not likely to happen before 2024, I believe that to be but a hoped for fingers crossed guess especially with Christina Chen, an assistant research fellow at Taiwan's top military think tank, stating just the opposite as she sees the “likelihood of a military conflict in the Taiwan Strait in the near term getting high.” And sadly, I must agree with Ms. Chen that the probably of such an event occurring currently does outweigh the possibility of it not occurring, but it's not for the reasons most think. How so? I say a conflict between China and Taiwan will not only be over quite quickly what with China holding the military trump card, but with the fact that Biden will in the end give but lip service to Taiwan in the same vein he has given it to Ukraine...promises made not kept... promises that should never have been made in the first place.

Simply and to the point, Joe Biden will continue to use Taiwan as but a mere diversion with Taiwan ultimately becoming the much needed sacrificial lamb that helps take the collective mind of America off our failing economy as well as our falling presence on the world stage. But even worse, I think, is that Biden will play a dangerous game by throwing the proverbial ball in China's court to see just how far they will go regarding Taiwan...as in will there be a complete military absorption of Taiwan back into the Chinese fold or will the ultimate takeover be political in name only not unlike that of Hong Kong?

While neither scenario is good for Taiwan the latter might make more sense for China as it would allow much needed trade between our two nations to continue on while still allowing China their coveted Taiwan prize. And not to be forgotten, whether we like it or not, is the fact that China v. Taiwan is in reality China's own civil war that they alone must fight for unlike Ukraine, which is a sovereign nation, Taiwan unfortunately is not.

However, for China to go into Taiwan militarily...to physically destroy the break away island province like Putin has tried to do to Ukraine...I believe is not an option China really wants to do no matter its decades long military threats, for to do so would surely severe what economic ties we have left with China, which could include our cutting off of all modes of trade. Remember, China's economy is basically financed by trade with the U.S...we are it's biggest customer if you will...something Xi knows well. And for Xi to lose American dollars would send China's economy into a tailspin from which they might never recover, never mind that cheaply made Chinese goods already over flood the U.S. market. Bite the hand that feeds your nations coffers might just be incentive enough to keep China's takeover of Taiwan more like the aforementioned political takeover of Hong Kong, which would still garner China a publicity victory of sorts and would leave Joe Biden with egg on his face.

Simply, China would win Taiwan courtesy of military muscle flexed minus tangible battles fought with little Taiwanese blood being shed, while the U.S. again losing like we lost in Afghanistan in that we would have played Taiwan like we continue to play Ukraine with leading from behind diplomacy again being the order of the day. So while a war between China and the U.S. over Taiwan might remain on the table for some it's thankfully, I believe, not a likely scenario...at least not in the near future...for there is something that many forget, as in China's mutual defense treaty with North Korea along with its strong friendship and both national security and economic ties with Putin's Russia.

Translation: a U.S. war with China could well morph into a war with both Russia and North Korea as well, something that would not end well for all parties involved. And that's never mind the possible nuclear option, which in today's heated political climate remains always on the table, nor is the fact that even if a stalemate of sorts were to be reached between us and China over Taiwan we could find ourselves becoming Taiwan's permanent and very expensive sole means of defense, and we all know how well that has worked out in the past...can you say Iraq and Afghanistan.

And besides, if China were to actually attack Taiwan they most likely would do so via a surprise attack, meaning we would not be militarily ready for war let alone be able to come to Taiwan's immediate defense for remember that no matter his words spoken Joe Biden cannot on his own decide that we will go to war to defend Taiwan, only our Congress can do that as written in 'Article I, Section 8, Clause 11' of the Constitution which expressly gives that power to Congress alone. And the time factor needed to get a declaration of war would allow China the time to quickly overpower and capture Taiwan as they have long been prepared for war. Simply, our military is not ready to take on China...nor anyone else for that matter...thanks to the Biden administration's woke neutering of America's fighting forces...a truly sad commentary indeed...a commentary that needs rewriting before it's too late for us all. Case closed.

 Copyright © 2022 / Diane Sori / The Patriot Factor / All rights reserved. 
 
*************************************************************************************         For more political commentary please visit my RIGHT SIDE PATRIOTS partner Craig Andresen's blog The National Patriot to read his latest article, The FBI and DOJ – A Crisis of Credibility.

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RIGHT SIDE PATRIOTS...LIVE!
 
Tomorrow, Tuesday, August 16th from 7 to 8:30pm EST, RIGHT SIDE PATRIOTS Craig Andresen and Diane Sori will discuss 'The U.S. v. China...An Unlikely Scenario'; 'The FBI and DOJ – A Crisis of Credibility'; and important news of the day. Hope you can tune in to RIGHT SIDE PATRIOTS on https://rspradio1.com. Click 'LISTEN LIVE' starting at 6:50 pm EST with show beginning at 7pm EST.