All Sticks, No Carrots

The human faces of war:

Soldiers lied to — people don’t like being lied to.

Sixty year old men with rifles.

All sticks, no carrots.

Don’t complain — we can make your life much worse.

What does it mean to be a Russian?

What does it mean to be a Ukrainian?

Ukraine does not want to be a world power. It just wants to be its own country.

What ‘bigger thing’ are you a part of?

When does that ‘bigger thing’ start to include requirements for membership that you refuse to comply with?

What is that weighty feeling in your upper chest that signals you are on the verge of tears?

I suspect very few tears would be shed if someone put a bullet through Putin’s pasty face. I know to reject that image, as appealing as it is. There is no way to deal with the dishonorable, and the worst thing would be to become also dishonorable.

And so more death, more suffering, cold bloodedly dealt out for one man’s ambition and obsession.