Administration Should Use Restraint in Criticism of Russia/Ukraine

American support for separation of Ukraine from Russia is something like Russia supporting a Canadian annexation of New England. Ukraine is the place Russia started. Only in the confusion of the gentlemanly end of the Soviet Union did a brave yet drunken Boris Yeltsin found wandering in a stupor around the White House lawn sign away Ukraine to a particular band of rebels. America has a post-Korean history of becoming rather swollen with military power on political affairs internationally yet short on intellect, diplomacy and understanding of real politics. Richard Nixon had an abundance of that, yet flamed out domestically with Watergate.

I do not understand the American trait of choosing belligerence over friendliness. Some believe one needs to be mean to be wealthy, or that the wealthy are not lambs. If that is so, neither does intelligence find its natural occurrence within the characteristics of cruel or predatory behavior. Perhaps the stupid and cruel or treacherous and deceptive are the scum that rise to the top of politics? Well, we will leave that philosophical question and consider the real-world potential for creating a long-term bellicosity with Russia a little later in this essay.  Russia could just launch some nukes on the U.S.A. and vice versa I suppose, yet there is a plethora of adverse elements that could arise even if it is just not sharing intelligence with the U.S.A. about Muslim terrorists.

The Obama administration has completely misunderstood the Muslim world and its ability or interest in democracy. It continues to view the world as if everyone wanted and American style democracy while losing much of America's ability for moral suasion. While the United States still has much wealth it also has much debt. The present administration fiscal policy seems likely to build up Chinese industry more so than that of the U.S.A. and transfer American investment into China though the stock market is at a record high with the surge of Chinese growth preponderantly. That policy won't necessarily be of benefit to ordinary Americans down the road with political and economic leverage transferring to the Chinese side of the Pacific.

When Ronald Reagan enabled the Soviets to choose free enterprise America and the world averted a potential nuclear conflict of vast scale. Follow up Democrats of course became rather swollen about American power and continue to do so. Russians were not militarily defeated any more than the Taliban, Al Qaeda, the Viet Cong or Iran. American leadership has often started large conflicts with second and third world nations bringing about the death of millions altogether without competence in understanding the potential for building a peace in case a military victory does not end the political cancer perceived by Washington physicians of war. Russia resisted Napoleon and Hitler and may be recalcitrant about yielding to a gayed-up Washington D.C. democrat party. Neither was it a good idea to fail to treat Russia as a peer and business partner and get really involved while accepting Russia's right to its own values. Formerly the French became protective about their culture from Americanisms and we learned to accept that. Not everyone wants a global plutocracy or Washington D.C.-Wall Street axis of corporatism determining the composition of their culture, people or economic structure.

Russia post cold war with America's failure to get enthusiastically involved failed to secure its plutonium and highly enriched uranium. As late as 1999 shoppers could walk into a warehouse in Kazakhstan and evidently bid on the latter material. Iranians visited shortly before American inspectors. It is impossible to say what they got.

Within thirty miles of Moscow plutonium was stored in a building anyone could drive a truck up to secured only by an ordinary locked door. In the Soviet Union internal security wasn't considered necessary because of the draconian power of the K.G.B. Very likely the mafias and others seeking materials of value that plundered the entire nation spirited away some. No one will ever know.

Additionally biological war materials were developed at the Caspian Sea site and through Biopreparat. Much of the materials were destroyed eventually however tons were simply buried in Siberia. The Soviets had worked on making two-part biotoxins such as a pneumonic plague that would be followed up for survivors with an attack on the immune system. Russia has a host of great scientists and can sell whatever it invents to China too I suppose if America sanctions it too much. Russia's ability to drive up American defense costs by selling technology to China is very high. While Russia won't afford to build a blue water navy able to challenge the U.S. Navy it can sell 1000 mile per hour torpedo schematics, advise on building nuclear submarines and drone submarines and provide technical assistance for construction of stealthy drone aircraft carriers-perhaps even submersible ones, and help with the Chinese Space program or even that of Qatar that seems determined to fly a craft to Mars.

Traditional American political belligerence doesn't always work nor is it always the right approach. Now and them discretion and cooperation is advised and skipping the repress the rivals path should be avoided. The administration should be careful about being international martinets, and do so only with caution if at all remembering the real-world public debt, unsecured Mexican border and further advance of transportation and communications of the rest of the world to America borders and interests. At some point China alone could shut down the U.S. economy just by stopping exports to the U.S.A. for a few months. D.C. isn't looking ahead.