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UKRAINE

Russia's War on Ukraine: One Year Timeline

As Ukraine’s LGBTQ Soldiers Fight on the Front Line, Acceptance Grows in the Conservative Country
Ukrainian MP Submits Draft Bill Calling for Legal Recognition of Same-Sex Couples
Ukrainian Ambassador Speaks Out for LGBTQ Rights
Ukraine Ambassador Makes Historic Stand With LGBTQ Community and Brave Queer Soldiers
Time’s 2022 Person of the Year: Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the Spirit of Ukraine

Ukraine Passes Bill Banning LGBTQ Hate Speech in Media
Russian Forces Withdraw From Kherson Region
Ukraine to Consider Legalizing Same-Sex Marriage Amid War
Russia Attacks Ukraine

Ukraine War Brings Push for LGBTQ Rights, But Will it Last?
Volodymyr Zelensky Says Ukraine May Allow Civil Partnerships

Ukrainian Army Congratulates Americans on Independence Day

Volodymyr Zelensky: Person of the Year
 

The magazine’s editors have chosen the Ukrainian president as the person who has had the most influence on the news over the past year...

Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the spirit of Ukraine have been named Time’s 2022 Person of the Year. Ukranian President Zelenskyy, 44, has been called a hero by many in his country and abroad, and over the last year, established himself as a symbol of defiance and democracy while he continues to lead the nation through Russia’s unprovoked attacks on Ukraine.

Time Editor-in-Chief Edward Felsenthal announced the magazine's choice, saying that Zelenskyy has kept the world’s attention on Ukraine. “Whether one looks at this story of Ukraine with a sense of hope or a sense of fear, and the story is, of course, not fully written yet ... Zelenskyy has really galvanized the world in a way we haven’t seen in decades,” Felsenthal said.

Time Magazine Person of the Year: Volodymyr Zelensky

Time’s 2022 Person of the Year: Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the Spirit of Ukraine

In an essay revealing Zelenskyy as 2022 Person of the Year, Time reporter Simon Shuster wrote: “Zelenskyy’s success as a wartime leader has relied on the fact that courage is contagious. It spread through Ukraine’s political leadership in the first days of the invasion, as everyone realized the President had stuck around.”

Russian forces invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, and Zelenskyy refused to leave Kyiv, instead staying on the ground and supporting the people of his country. “The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a ride,” Zelenskyy told the US in February 2022.

The war in Ukraine has continued for nearly 10 months with no end in sight. Zelenskyy has made risky visits to support Ukrainian soldiers and the country at large, including a trip to the frontlines of the Donbas region in June, and celebrating with residents of the city of Kherson after Russian troops withdrew in November.

Zelenskyy told the magazine that his security was against his visit to Kherson because of the poor shape the Russians left the city in, as well as the possibility that they left behind agents and saboteurs who could harm him. But the answer as to why he did it was simple: “It’s the people.”

“My security was 100% against it,” Zelenskyy told Time during the trip to Kherson. “They took it hard. They can’t control practically anything in a region that has just been de-occupied. So it’s a big risk, and, on my part, a bit reckless.”  But Zelenskyy’s willingness to stay has inspired Ukrainians to take up arms in the fight against Russia.

“Zelenskyy gives me confidence,” a 35-year-old woman identified as Natasha in Ukraine said. “For me, Zelenskyy is the real fighter of democracy worldwide and for the peaceful future of our children and our world.”

Zelenskyy was elected president of Ukraine in April 2019, and previously was an actor and comedian. Zelenskyy was well known in the country for starring in “Servant of the People,” a sitcom in which he played a high school teacher who gets thrust into politics after a recorded rant against corruption in government goes viral. His character in the show ends up winning the presidency.

In April 2022, three years after becoming Ukraine’s president, Zelenskyy told Time he had aged and changed “from all this wisdom that I never wanted.”

Time’s Person of the Year, chosen by the magazine’s editors every year since 1927, is representative of the influence the person has had on the news within the past year.

[Source: Anna Kaplan, Today/NBC News, Dec 2022]
 

Imagine by Julian Lennon

List of Military Engagements: Russian Invasion of Ukraine
Amelia Anisovych: 7 Year Old Ukrainian Girl Performs National Anthem
Gay-Splaining the Ukraine/Russia Conflict
World Leaders Condemn Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine

Russian Invasion Runs Into Stiff Resistance

Thousands Of Georgians Protest Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine
LGBTQ Ukrainians Prepare for Abuse Under Russian Occupation
Heather Cox Richardson: Ukraine Commentary

Biden Condemns Unprovoked and Unjustified Russian Military Operation
Trump Sides With Putin as Biden Tries to Stop a War

Ukraine Island Defenders to Russian Navy: Go Fuck Yourself
John Stewart: Admiration and Respect for Zelensky

Ukrainian Americans and Allies Fear Human Rights Violations

Anti-LGBTQ Chechen Leader Killed in Ukraine
Volodymyr Zelenskyy Dancing to Beyonce in High Heels

One Year Anniversary of Ukraine War
 

February 23, 2023 marks the one year anniversary of the war in Ukraine

Ukraine’s leader pledged to push for victory in 2023 as he and other Ukrainians marked the somber anniversary of the Russian invasion that upended their lives and Europe’s security. It was Ukraine’s “longest day,” President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, but the country’s dogged resistance a year on has proven that “every tomorrow is worth fighting for.”

On a day of commemorations, reflection and tears, the Ukrainian president’s defiant tone captured the national mood of resilience in the face of Europe’s biggest and deadliest war since World War II. Zelenskyy, who has himself become a symbol of Ukraine’s refusal to bow to Moscow, said Ukrainians proved themselves to be invincible during “a year of pain, sorrow, faith and unity.”

Ukrainians wept at memorials for their tens of thousands of dead — a toll growing inexorably as fighting rages in eastern Ukraine in particular. Although Feb 23 2023 marked the anniversary of the full-scale invasion, combat between Russian-backed forces and Ukrainian troops has raged in the country’s east since 2014.

Around the country, Ukrainians looked back at a year that changed their lives and at the clouded future. “I can sum up the last year in three words: Fear, love, hope,” Oleksandr Hranyk, a school director in Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, said.

Lining up in the capital, Kyiv, to buy anniversary commemorative postage stamps, Tetiana Klimkova described her heart as “falling and hurting.” Still, “this day has become a symbol for me that we have survived for a whole year and will continue to live,” she said. “On this day, our children and grandchildren will remember how strong Ukrainians are mentally, physically, and spiritually.”

Ukraine is readying another military push to roll back Russian forces with the help of weaponry that has poured in from the West. NATO member Poland said that it had delivered four advanced Leopard 2A4 tanks, making it the first country to hand the German-made armor to Ukraine. The prime minister of Poland said on a visit to Kyiv that more Leopards are coming. Poland’s defense minister said contributions from other countries would help form Ukraine’s first Leopard battalion of 31 tanks. “Ukraine is entering a new period, with a new task — to win,” Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said. “It will not be easy. But we will manage,” he added. “There is rage and a desire to avenge the fallen.”

Air raid alarms didn’t sound on the anniversary in Kyiv, alleviating concerns that Russia might unleash another barrage of missiles to pile yet more sadness on Ukraine on the anniversary. Still, the government recommended that schools move classes online, and office employees were asked to work from home. And even as they rode Kyiv’s subway to work, bought coffee and got busy, Ukrainians were unavoidably haunted by thoughts of loss and memories of when missiles struck, troops rolled across Ukraine’s borders and a refugee exodus began a year ago.
 

Back then, there were fears the country might fall within weeks. Zelenskyy referred to those dark moments in a video address. “We fiercely fought for every day. And we endured the second day. And then, the third,” he said. “And we still know: Every tomorrow is worth fighting for.” The anniversary was also poignant for the parents of children born exactly a year ago as bombs began killing and maiming. “It’s a tragedy for the whole country, for every Ukrainian,” said Alina Mustafaieva, who gave birth to daughter Yeva that day. “My family was lucky. We didn’t lose anyone or anything. But many did, and we have to share this loss together,” she said.

The war’s one-year mark kept Ukraine’s president exceptionally busy. Zelenskyy kicked off the day with an early morning tweet that promised: “We know that 2023 will be the year of our victory!”  He followed that up with his video address, in which he also pledged not to abandon Ukrainians living under Russian occupation. “One way or another, we will liberate all our lands,” he vowed. He also addressed troops on a Kyiv square and handed out honors, including to the widow and daughter of a fallen soldier, telling them: “We will never forget.” In a Kyiv hospital, he decorated wounded fighters.

A year on, casualty figures are horrific on both sides, although Moscow and Kyiv keep precise numbers under wraps. Western estimates suggest hundreds of thousands of killed and wounded.

[Source: Samya Kullab, Hanna Arhirova, John Leicester, Associated Press, Feb 2023]
 

One Year Anniversary of Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine
Ukraine Marks One Year of War
One Year Anniversary: Timeline of the War in Ukraine
Russia's War on Ukraine: One Year Timeline
After a Year of War in Ukraine: More Misery Ahead

Ukraine War: Review of the Past Year

Associated Press: Continuous Coverage of Ukraine War

On February 24, Putin announces that Russia will invade Ukraine. Within minutes of Putin's announcement, explosions were reported in Kyiv, Kharkiv, Odessa, and the Donbas. Russian airstrike on Ukrainian Chuhuiv air base.

Snake Island, a Ukrainian island in the Black Sea, was attacked by the Russian Navy. Russian cruiser Moskva hailed the island's garrison over the radio and demanded its surrender, and was told "Russian warship, go fuck yourself." After this, all contact was lost with Snake Island, and the thirteen-member Ukrainian garrison was captured.  The ship, its crew, and at least one soldier were subsequently freed in prisoner exchanges.

Ukraine was victorious in battles in Okhtyrka, Sumy, Trostianets, and Chernihiv. The siege of Mariupol began.  President Zelenskyy accused Russia of targeting civilian sites; 33 civilian sites had been hit in the previous 24 hours. Ukraine was victorious in the battle of Kyiv and Hostomel. Ukrainian airstrike on Russian Millerovo air base.

Ukrainian Graduates Dance in Front of Destroyed School in Kharkiv
Timeline: Russian Invasion of Ukraine

Ukraine’s Oldest Human Rights Group Fights for LGBTQ Equality

List of Military Engagements: Russian Invasion of Ukraine

Trump's Response to Putin's Invasion of Ukraine Reveals Divisions Among Republicans
President Biden Remarks on Russian Invasion of Ukraine

Ukrainian Opera Singers Perform National Anthem
Warlord Who Helped Oversee Chechnya’s Brutal Gay Purge Killed in Ukraine

On March 1, more than 70 Ukrainian soldiers killed during Russian shelling of military base in Okhtyrka. Russian missile later hit regional administration building on Freedom Square during bombardment of Kharkiv, killing at least ten civilians, and wounding 35 others.
 

Russian airstrike on Ukrainian Yavoriv military base. Russian forces take complete control of the Kherson Oblast. Ships of Russian Navy approach coast of Odessa.  Ukrainian airstrike on Russian-controlled Kherson air base.  Russian forces bomb theatre in Mariupol where civilians were sheltering.  Russian strike on Ukrainian underground warehouse of missiles and aviation ammunition.  Russian forces bomb art school in Mariuopol where 400 people were sheltering. Russian forces bomb shopping center in Kyiv.

On March 23, Ukrainian forces push back Russian forces on frontlines east of Kyiv.  Ukrainian airstrike on command post of Russian Army in Chornobayivka airfield in Kherson Raion killed Russian general Yakov Rezantsev. In ongoing battle of Kyiv, in suburbs of Маkariv, Bucha, Irpin, and Bilohorodka, continue to be shelled by Russian military and in some areas, such as Bucha and Nemishaeve, Russian forces are digging in.
 

On March 28, Russian forces regroup in order to advance towards the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Heavy fighting continues in Mariupol, where Ukrainian forces resist Russian offensive into the city's centre; City described as having been turned into "dust" by the Russian military; Civilians masacred; Mayor of Mariupol calls for complete evacuation of remaining population.

Attack on Belgorod and Mykolaiv government building airstrike.  Russian missiles hit cities of Poltava and Kremenchuk in central Ukraine, damaging infrastructure and residential buildings.

On April 3, corpses found in Bucha resulting from Bucha massacre, with at least 20 dead Ukrainian civilians; 280 bodies having been buried in mass graves. Human Rights Watch reported war crimes in the occupied areas of Ukraine — executions, rape, torture, lootings. President Zelenskyy accuses Russia of genocide and says that sanctions from the west were not "enough" to respond to Russia's actions.
 

On April 8, Train station in Kramatorsk hit by a Russian rocket strike, killing at least 57 people and wounding 109 others. 

On April 13, Ukrainian airstrike on Russian ship Moskva; Ship completely destroyed.

April 14, Two heavily-armed Ukrainian combat helicopters enter Russian airspace and conducted at least six airstrikes on residential buildings in Bryansk Oblast.

Ukrainian Army Congratulates Americans on Independence Day

Info: Demonstrations and Protests

Lesbian Couple Who Fled Ukraine Marries in Ireland

As the World Turns Toward Autocracy, A Chance to Turn it Around Toward Democracy
Ukranian Band Leonid & Friends: Chicago Cover

Ukraine’s Gay Combat Volunteers Are Ready to Fight for Their Lives Against Anti-LGBTQ Putin
Putin Accidentally Revitalized the West’s Liberal Order
Ukraine LGBTQ Organization Captures a Group of Russian Soldiers
Hallelujah for Ukraine

Standing on the Side of Russia: Pro-Putin Sentiment Spreads Online

Cheering for a Tyrant

After marinating in conspiracy theories and Donald Trump’s Russia stance, some online discourse about Vladimir Putin has grown more complimentary. The day before Russia invaded Ukraine, former President Trump called the wartime strategy of President Putin “pretty smart.” His remarks were posted on YouTube, Twitter and the messaging app Telegram, where they were viewed more than 1.3 million times.

Right-wing commentators including Candace Owens, Stew Peters and Joe Oltmann also jumped into the fray online with posts that were favorable to Putin and that rationalized his actions against Ukraine. “I’ll stand on the side of Russia right now,” Mr. Oltmann, a conservative podcaster, said on his show this week.  And in Telegram groups like The Patriot Voice and Facebook groups including Texas for Trump 2020, members criticized President Biden’s handling of the conflict and expressed support for Russia, with some saying they trusted Putin more than Biden.

The online conversations reflect how pro-Russia sentiment has increasingly penetrated Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, right-wing podcasts, messaging apps like Telegram and some conservative media. As Russia attacked Ukraine this week, those views spread, infusing the online discourse over the war with sympathy (and even approval) for the aggressor.

The positive Russia comments are an extension of the culture wars and grievance politics that have animated the right in the United States in the past few years. In some of these circles, Putin carries a strongman appeal, viewed as someone who gets his way and does not let political correctness stop him. “Putin embodies the strength that Trump pretended to have,” said Emerson T. Brooking, a resident senior fellow for the Atlantic Council who studies digital platforms. “For these individuals, Putin’s actions aren’t a tragedy — they’re a fantasy fulfilled.”

Support for Putin and Russia is now being expressed online in a jumble of facts, observations and opinions, sometimes entwined with lies. In recent days, commenters have complimented Putin and falsely accused NATO of violating nonexistent territorial agreements with Russia, which they said justified the Russian president’s declaration of war on Ukraine.

  The pro-Russia sentiment is a stark departure from during the Cold War, when the Soviet Union was viewed by many Americans as a foe. In recent years, that attitude shifted, partly helped along by interference from Russia. Before the 2016 US presidential election, Kremlin-backed groups used social networks like Facebook to inflame American voters, creating more divisions and resistance to political correctness.
 

Prayer for Ukraine
Timeline: Russian Invasion of Ukraine

LGBTQ Ukrainians Prepare for Abuse Under Russian Occupation

Trump Sides With Putin as Biden Tries to Stop a War

Will Ukraine Invasion Finally End Religious Right’s Love Affair with Putin?
Robert De Niro: Speaks Out About Ukrainian Conflict

After Trump was elected, he often appeared favorable to (and even admiring of) Putin. That seeded a more positive view of Putin among Trump’s supporters, misinformation researchers said. “Putin has invested heavily in sowing discord” and found an ally in Trump, said Melissa Ryan, the chief executive of Card Strategies, a consulting firm that researches disinformation. “Anyone who studies disinformation or the far right has seen the influence of Putin’s investment take hold.”  The Russia-Ukraine war is now being viewed by some Americans through the lens of conspiracy theories, misinformation researchers said. Lisa Kaplan, the founder of Alethea Group, a company that helps fight online misinformation, said the pro-Russia statements were potentially harmful because it could “further legitimize false or misleading claims” about the Ukraine conflict “in the eyes of the American people.”

Not all online discourse is pro-Russia, and Putin’s actions have been condemned by conservative social media users, mainstream commentators and Republican politicians, even as some have criticized how Biden has handled the conflict.  “Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is reckless and evil,” Representative Kevin McCarthy, the House Republican leader, said.  And Representative Adam Kinzinger, a Republican from Illinois who was censured recently by the Republican Party for participating in the committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection, criticized House Republicans for attacking Biden, tweeting that it “feeds into Putin’s narrative.”

The growing appreciation for Putin was captured in recent polling from the Economist and YouGov, which showed he was viewed more favorably by Republicans than Biden. Another recent poll from Yahoo News and YouGov found that 62 percent of Republicans believed Putin was a “stronger leader” than Biden.  That sentiment was echoed in an informal poll online, when a QAnon influencer asked followers in the Patriot Voice group on Telegram if they trusted Putin. Nearly everyone who responded to the question said the same thing: yes.

[Source: Davey Alba, Stuart Thompson, Ben Decker, New York Times, Feb 2022]

Stories of Heroism from Ukraine
Russia Attacks Ukraine
Hillary Clinton says Republicans Support Putin Because He’s Anti-gay and Anti-Freedom
Ukrainian Opera Singers Perform National Anthem
Biden Condemns Unprovoked and Unjustified Russian Military Operation
Mitt Romney: Treasonous for GOP Figures to Back an Oppressor and Dictator like Putin
List of Military Engagements: Russian Invasion of Ukraine
Ukraine’s Oldest Human Rights Group Fights for LGBTQ Equality

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy

"I really don't want you to hang my portraits on your office walls. Because a president is not an icon and not an idol. A president is not a portrait. Hang pictures of your children. And before you make any decision, look into their eyes."
-Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Inauguration Speech, May 2019

Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy (born 1978) is a Ukrainian politician, former actor and comedian who has been serving as the president of Ukraine since 2019.

Zelenskyy grew up in Kryvyi Rih, a Russian-speaking region in southeastern Ukraine. Prior to his acting career, Zelenskyy obtained a degree in law from the Kyiv National Economic University. He then pursued comedy and created the production company Kvartal 95, which produces films, cartoons, and TV shows including Servant of the People, in which Zelenskyy played the role of president of Ukraine. The series aired from 2015 to 2019 and was immensely popular. A political party bearing the same name as the television show was created in March 2018 by employees of Kvartal 95.

Zelenskyy announced his candidacy for the 2019 Ukrainian presidential election in December 2018, alongside the New Year's Eve address of President Petro Poroshenko. A political outsider, he had already become one of the frontrunners in opinion polls for the election. He won the election with 73.2 per cent of the vote in the second round, defeating Poroshenko. Identifying as a populist, he has positioned himself as an anti-establishment, anti-corruption figure.

Prayer for Volodymyr Zelensky

Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky: Comedian President Who is Rising to the Moment
I Need Ammunition, Not a Ride: Zelensky Refuses US Offer to Evacuate
Wikipedia: Volodymyr Zelenskyy

John Stewart: Admiration and Respect for Zelensky Volodymyr Zelenskyy Dancing to Beyonce in High Heels

"As you attack, it will be our faces that you see. not our backs."
-Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukrainian President

As president, Zelenskyy has been a proponent of e-government and unity between the Ukrainian-speaking and Russian-speaking parts of the country's population. His communication style heavily utilizes social media, particularly Instagram. His party won a landslide victory in a snap legislative election held shortly after his inauguration as president. During his administration, Zelenskyy oversaw the lifting of legal immunity for members of the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, the country's response to the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent economic recession, and some progress in tackling corruption. Critics of Zelenskyy claim that in taking power away from the Ukrainian oligarchs, he has sought to centralize authority and strengthen his personal position.

Zelenskyy promised to end Ukraine's protracted conflict with Russia as part of his presidential campaign, and attempted to engage in dialogue with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Zelenskyy's administration faced an escalation of tensions with Russia in 2021, culminating in the launch of an ongoing full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022. Zelenskyy's strategy during the Russian military buildup was to calm the Ukrainian populace and assure the international community that Ukraine was not seeking to retaliate. He initially distanced himself from warnings of an imminent war, while also calling for security guarantees and military support from NATO to "withstand" the threat. After the commencement of the invasion, Zelenskyy declared martial law across Ukraine and general mobilization.

[Source: Wikipedia]
 

Ukrainian Graduates Dance in Front of Destroyed School in Kharkiv
Stories of Heroism from Ukraine
Fleeing War in Ukraine: Tanya’s Story
Ukrainian Students Have Prom in Bombed Out School

Timeline: Russian Invasion of Ukraine

Ukrainian Army Congratulates Americans on Independence Day

Ukraine's Premiere Ballet Dancers Swap Tutus For Guns

Ukraine Protest Song by Pink Floyd

Violinists Across the World Play for Ukraine

Ukraine LGBTQ Organization Captures a Group of Russian Soldiers
Robert De Niro: Speaks Out About Ukrainian Conflict  

And. . .  Don't mess around with Ukrainian Librarians.  In what surely is a demonstration of unyielding confidence and resilience, the Ukraine Library Association sent out a message to its members concerning the cancellation of their forthcoming conference. It says, "We will reschedule the event just as soon as we have finished vanquishing our invaders."

Natali Sevriukova cries next to her destroyed home following a rocket attack in Kyiv, in February 2022.

Oleg Rubak, a local engineer who lost his wife Katia, in the shelling, stands on the rubble of his house in Zhytomyr, in March 2022, after it was destroyed by a Russian bombing.

Russian shelling killed Ukrainian dancesport champion Daria Kurdel in Kryvyi Rih. The 20-year-old died from a shrapnel wound after a Russian airstrike on civilians hit a residential building in July 2022.

Ukrainian students robbed of a graduation ceremony have returned to the rubble of their school determined to celebrate the milestone moment. They posed in the debris of their bombed school building.

 Anna Episheva posted a photo on Twitter of her niece Valerie in a red ballgown standing in front of what remains of her school in Kharkiv. "My niece was supposed to graduate this year from her high school. She and her friends bought dresses and were looking forward to this day. Then Russians came. Her school was directly hit and destroyed. Today she came back to what is left of her school and her plans."

In July 2022, famous gay photographer Annie Leibovitz took a portrait of Olena Zelenska and Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
 

In May 2023, Ukrainian supermodel Alina Baikova made a powerful statement on the red carpet at Cannes Film Festival by wearing a outfit emblazened with the message, "Fuck You Putin."

Lesbian Couple Who Fled Ukraine Marries in Ireland

Defending Their City: Kyiv Residents Say They're Not Ready to Give Up
World Leaders Condemn Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine

List of Military Engagements: Russian Invasion of Ukraine
Streets of Kharkiv: Bach Cello Suite

LGBTQ Ukrainians Prepare for Abuse Under Russian Occupation
James Corden Refuses to Joke About the News the Night After Ukraine Invasion

Biden Condemns Unprovoked and Unjustified Russian Military Operation
Trump Sides With Putin as Biden Tries to Stop a War

Ukraine’s Oldest Human Rights Group Fights for LGBTQ Equality

Playing for the Last Time

Info: Demonstrations and Protests

Ukrainian Students Return to Shelled School to Celebrate Graduation in the Rubble

Rallies Being Held Across US in Support of Ukraine

Warlord Who Helped Oversee Chechnya’s Brutal Gay Purge Killed in Ukraine

LGBTQ Ukrainians Fear They’re on Putin’s Kill List

Stand With Ukraine: Defeat Putin

Ukrainian National Anthem
LGBTQ Ukrainians: We Will Do Our Best to Resist Russia

Lt. Col. Alex Vindman: How Trump's Coup Attempt Encouraged Putin's Ukraine Invasion

Cute Couple: Putin and Trump
 

Here's a guy who's very savvy.  I know him well.  Very very well."

-Donald Trump, February 2022  

If you truly take the time to read Putin’s statements throughout this conflict you cannot help but see the striking similarities between his strategies and Trump.

Both of them gaslighters to the end. They truly believe that they can just speak and alter reality. Putin, the obvious aggressor in this situation, says he is going to put his nuclear defense forces on high alert due to illegal sanctions and aggressive statements by NATO.
So as he invades a sovereign country on fictitious grounds he tries to re-enforced the false narrative claiming to his own people that they are ones that are actually under attack.

“Putin a strong leader. He’s running his country. At least he’s a leader, unlike what we have in this country. I feel that Putin is somebody I would actually get along with him. I think I would have a good relationship.”

-Donald Trump
 

"Putin has been very nice to me. He called me a genius, says I'm brilliant."

-Donald Trump
 

Trump was asked specifically what he would do different in Ukraine than Biden:

“Well, I tell you what, I would do things, but the last thing I would want to do is say it right now.”

Trump after losing reelection used the same tactics. As he tried to illegally overturn a fair election he repeated the false narrative that it was him in fact that was being cheated. Even as judges that he appointed himself ruled against him he would claim that hidden forces were working against him even though it was him on the phone trying to get officials to do illegal things. This is why a free Press is so important. Had Trump been able to control the totality of the media in this country much like Putin does in his own, we would find ourselves almost overnight in a situation where democracy would evaporate.

Putin after the fall of the USSR was but a mid level KGB agent. With a virulent hatred of the west who he blamed for bringing down his country’s tyrannical regime of which he was a part of. Unlike others in the KGB and the Soviet military he did not run to sell weapons on the black market to get rich during the collapse of communism. He instead grabbed all the secrets the KGB held on politicians and military leadership and leveraged this to a seat at the table of the country’s leadership. Using his leverage he had quickly pushed aside the President Boris Yeltsin. All the while espousing the new found advantages of Russia’s fledgling democracy. But within just a couple years he was dismantling the county’s new constitution and put himself in position to be a lifelong leader.

“When I went to Russia with the Miss Universe pageant, Putin contacted me and was so nice. I mean, the Russian people were so fantastic to us. I’ll just say this, they’re outsmarting us at many turns, as we all understand. I mean, their leaders are, whether you call them smarter or more cunning or whatever, but they’re outsmarting us.”
-Donald Trump

“We just left Moscow. He could not have been nicer. He was so nice and so everything. But you have to give him credit that what he’s doing for that country in terms of their world prestige is very strong. He’s done an amazing job. Look at what he’s doing. He's so smart. You have to give him a lot of credit.”
-Donald Trump

Putin has been spoiled and conditioned to believe he has total control. When he tries to carry those behaviors beyond his own borders there is backlash almost worldwide. He puts his country and his citizens at risk trying to project his desires into the reality.

Ukraine loves it’s independence, Ukraine poses no threat to one of the most powerful countries in the world. Ukraine freely gave up all the nuclear weapons it held after the fall of the USSR solely to show it was no threat to Russia.

Putin wants to rebuild the empire of his youth. An empire that stood tyrannically over its own people and the people of numerous other countries thru puppet regimes. An empire that threatened nuclear destruction at every turn when it didn’t get its way.

"Of all Donald Trump's marriages, the one with Vladimir Putin has been the worst."
-John Pavlovitz

This is why we should all oppose Putin at all turns. He stands contrary to all we stand for in America. He is a threat to not only our own country but our Allies around the world. The strength and unity of NATO is the primary force to keep Russia in check. Don’t let it be lost that one of the first things Trump did was try to weaken NATO.

Trump has continually complimented Putin and his leadership style. Trump like Putin, believes himself superior over democracy. He believes himself above all his fellow citizens. He believes his own interest to be over those of the country and its citizens. He expects loyalty to himself over loyalty to country and the Constitution. These are both evil men that would sacrifice us all if it gives them the power they crave.

[Source: Living Blue in a Red State]

Ukraine Island Defenders to Russian Navy: Go Fuck Yourself

Ukrainian National Anthem

Rise to Fame

Imagine you are Volodymyr Zelenskyy...
 

At 17, you win some obscure Ukrainian comedy festival and it launches your entertainment career. You develop a following—so much so, that you create a comedy troupe of sorts (Kvartal 95) and start touring in Eastern Europe. You parlay your regional fame into a movie career. Things are going okay for you. You’ve got a little money, a little fame.

Then, you create and star in a TV show TV show (Servant of the People) where you play the president of Ukraine—a guy who gets elected practically by accident (in the series, a viral video rockets his character to political stardom). People love it—so much so, that they create a political party called Servant of the People and base their platform on your character. Ukrainians (actual Ukrainians) run you as their presidential candidate on the Servant ticket. Practically by accident, you win.

You are now the character you played for four years, but in real life. You now run a moderately sized Eastern European nation.
 

A couple months after you’ve been inaugurated, the President of the United States rings you up. Now, remember, you need the United States. You need their money. You need their weapons. You need their backing—because there’s this guy in Russia who’s pretty well convinced that he owns your moderately sized country, and you can’t defend your sovereignty on your own. You talk to the US president. He says he’ll get you the stuff you need to defend your moderately sized country. But, first, he needs you to do him a favor…

The phone call roils the political universe for months and leads to only the third impeachment in the history of the world’s most powerful country. You were at the center of it.

Now, not three years into your real life presidency, it’s you against the 21st century edition of Adolf Hitler. Your citizens are drilling with wooden guns. Geriatrics are lining up to serve in your military. Things are looking grim. You record a selfie video that reaches every corner of the universe, telling the world not to be surprised if you don’t survive the weekend. The world is on tenterhooks waiting to see if you do. Every freedom loving person on earth is thinking about and hoping the best FOR YOU.

[Source: Matt Hooper]

President Biden Remarks on Russian Invasion of Ukraine Info: Demonstrations and Protests

As the World Turns Toward Autocracy, A Chance to Turn it Around Toward Democracy
Hallelujah for Ukraine

  Symbols of a Proud People
 

Slavic Goddess

In Kyiv, Ukraine is the monument commemorating the country’s 1991 independence. The figure at the top is the Slavic Goddess Berehynia, who represents the "Protectoress of the Home." She holds a viburnum branch, the national symbol for women, motherhood, the soul of the nation, and love. And love. And Love.

National Flag

The national flag of Ukraine has two equally sized horizontal bands of blue and yellow.  What does the Ukraine flag signify?  And what do the blue and yellow colors represent?  The bottom half of the flag symbolizes a golden field of grain.  Ukraine is the world's 4th largest exporter of barley and corn and the 5th largest exporter of wheat. The top half of the flag symbolizes clear blue skies. Sky above grain, or freedom above bread. 

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Sunflowers

The sunflower is the national flower of Ukraine.  Sunflowers (sunyashniki) are especially loved in Ukraine, where golden fields of them face the sunrise in the east. They are Ukraine’s national flower, and in folk imagery represent the warmth and power of the sun, which was worshipped by pre-Christian Slavs.
 

In a strange twist, the fact that Ukraine is one of the world’s largest producers and exporters of sunflower seeds and sunflower oil is partly due not to pagan practices, but to those of the Orthodox Church.

The Orthodox Church comes into the story because during Lent, believers were not supposed to use butter or lard for cooking. Since sunflower oil was a fairly recent arrival, there were no specific restrictions on its use. Sunflower culture took off.  By the 1800s, there were big fields of them all over Ukraine and western parts of Russia, and people were chewing the seeds and spitting out the shells.

Snarky Signage

A Ukrainian company in charge of building and maintaining roads said it was removing all road signs that could be used by invading Russian forces to find their way around the country.

"The enemy has poor communications, they cannot navigate the terrain," the company Ukravtodor said. "Let us help them get straight to hell."

It posted an edited photo of a standard road sign in which directions to nearby cities have been replaced with profanities that could be translated as "Go fuck yourself", "Go fuck yourself again" and "Go fuck yourself back in Russia".
 

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Beauty Queen

Miss Ukraine, Anastasiia Lenna, joins the fight to defend her country.  A beauty queen and former Miss Ukraine, she have ditched her high heels for combat boots. After the Russian invasion, Anastassia stepped outside to protect her motherland and have reportedly joined the Ukrainian military to safeguard her nation.

Following the footsteps of their president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the people of the country have voluntarily taken up arms to assist their country’s military.

Ever since the Russian invasion, Lenna has been sharing various Instagram stories addressing the crisis. Lenna, who represented Ukraine in the 2015 Miss Grand International beauty contest, shared a series of photos of herself where she can be seen carrying a gun and is in military uniform.

Ukraine has 36,000 women serving in the military. It has one of the largest number of women serving in active combat roles.

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Hallelujah for Ukraine

Final Thoughts

I can’t make the world peaceful.
I can’t stall tanks from roaring down roads.
I can’t prevent children from having to hide in bunkers.
I can’t convince the news to stop turning war into a video game.
I can’t silence the sound of bombs tearing neighborhoods apart.
I can’t turn a guided missile into a bouquet of flowers.
I can’t make a warmonger have an ounce of empathy.
I can’t convince ambassadors to quit playing truth or dare.
I can’t deflect a sniper’s bullet from turning a wife into a widow.
I can’t stave off a country being reduced to ash and rubble.
I can’t do any of that.  The only thing I can do is love the next person I encounter without any conditions or strings.
To love my neighbor so fearlessly that it starts a ripple that stretches from one horizon to the next.

I can’t force peace on the world. But I can become a force of peace in the world.
Because sometimes all it takes is a single lit candle in the darkness to start a movement.
Let me be a candle of comfort in this world. Let me burn with peace.
-John Roedel

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On the edge of war, one foot already in, I no longer pray for peace. I pray for miracles.
I pray that stone hearts will turn to tenderheartedness, and evil intentions will turn to mercifulness,
and all the soldiers already deployed will be snatched out of harm's way,
and the whole world will be astounded onto its knees.

I pray that the whole world might sit down together and share its bread and its wine.

I pray that we might truly love one another.
I no longer pray for peace. I pray for miracles.
-Ann Weems

When you clean your weapon
When time and again, you clean your weapon
When you rub strong-smelling oils into your weapon
And shield it from the rain with your own body
When you swaddle it like a baby
Even though you’ve never swaddled a baby before —
You’re only nineteen, no baby, no wife —
The weapon becomes your only kin
You and the weapon are one.
When you dig trench after trench
When you dig this precious this hateful earth by handfuls
Every other handful reaches your soul
You grind this earth between your teeth
You don’t, you never will have another
You climb into the earth like into your mother’s womb
You are warm and snug
You’ve never felt this close to anyone before
You and earth are one.
When you shoot
Even when it’s at night and you don’t see the enemy’s face
Even when night hides the enemy from you and you from the enemy
And embraces each of you as her own
You smell like gunpowder
Your hands, face, hair, clothing, shoes —
No matter how much you wash them — smell of gunpowder
They smell of war
You smell of war
You and war are one.
-Borys Humenyuk

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They want us to be afraid.
They want us to be afraid of leaving our homes.
They want us to barricade our doors and hide our children.
Their aim is to make us fear life itself!
They want us to hate.
They want us to hate 'the other'.
They want us to practice aggression and perfect antagonism.
Their aim is to divide us all!
They want us to be inhuman.
They want us to throw out our kindness.
They want us to bury our love and burn our hope.
Their aim is to take all our light!
They think their bricked walls will separate us.
They think their damned bombs will defeat us.
They are so ignorant they don’t understand that my soul and your soul are old friends.
They are so ignorant they don’t understand that when they cut you I bleed.
They are so ignorant they don’t understand that we will never be afraid,
we will never hate and we will never be silent for life is ours!”
-Kamand Kojouri
 

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Do you remember when you heard the news
stunned and brokenhearted there was so much we could lose
I remember and I can’t believe my eyes
A world in embers, ashes of the truth, lies and alibis
but I will keep a candle burning to turn this darkness into light
I will not surrender, I’ll remember what was wrong and what is right on this cold Ukrainian night

Quick as lightning, a cunning slight of hand
Manic misdirection, cast a shadow on the land
I remember feeling helpless feeling lost
But in the twilight a spark of hope remains beneath this winter frost
but we will keep a candle burning to turn this darkness into light
We will not surrender, we’ll remember what was wrong and what is right on this cold Ukrainian night

Moving shadows, thunder in the night
Children fear the dark, the craven fear the light
but we will keep a candle burning to turn this darkness into light
We will not surrender, we’ll remember what was wrong and what is right
And we will light another candle for all the dreams lost in the night
We will not surrender, e’ll remember what was wrong and what is right on this cold Ukrainian night

-James Lee Stanley and Jim Wilson

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Prayer for Volodymyr Zelensky

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I'm not much of a pray-er, but I prayed most fervently and throughout the days that there would be no war in Europe. And I still pray for the protection of Ukraine, and for the people of Russia who are proving their distaste for war in demonstrations. I pray for the leaders in the EU and NATO who walk a balancing act of wanting to help Ukraine and being constrained by the limits of treaties and boundaries. I pray for the innocent of Russia who will suffer from the sanctions, and from the soldiers on both sides who will suffer bloodshed for the pleasure of one monomaniacal dictator. I send prayers of strength and safety to Volodymyr Zelensky, who has stepped up for his people.

I pray that this war will be short and that Ukraine will prevail. I pray that the rest of Europe and the NATO countries are not forced to join in. I pray that Putin, clearly mentally ill, is deposed. His casual talk of nuclear weapons is chilling.

I pray for President Biden, as he navigates these stormy seas. He has supporters in many of the former presidents. And one who is rooting for Putin. Our own country is on the brink of losing the identity and democracy. I pray that we can hold on to our democracy, this brave experiment. I pray we have an upswell from the silent moderate majority and take back the reins from the extremes.

But the primary focus of my prayers is just please please end this war. End all war. War in Europe and the Middle East and Asia and Africa and South America. Tensions boiling to civil war in our own country. Peace come.  Beat the swords into plowshares and the guns into toys, make the tanks into strawberry planters, and the missiles into canoes.  Plant wildflowers instead of IEDs.  Share tea and pastries. Share stories, share music, share dreams.  But please, please, war no more.

-Mary Bubenzer