Gorazd Prah

I’ll say one thing -- this whole idea of “we are surrounded by enemies, everyone owes us, we’ve always been cheated and robbed, and now we must take back what is rightfully ours” is a very, very dangerous thing. It’s great for irresponsible demagogues and populists to quickly score political points by feeding on mass resentment and sowing division. This idea of “they are our enemies and everything is their fault” is incredibly easy to sell and very tempting to buy, because it seems to offer simple answers to very complex problems. But history shows quite well that this kind of populist revanchism has never led anyone to anything good. Nowhere and never does the ordinary hard-working person benefit from it -- the only winner is the shameless populist, the demagogue, the liar, and the hypocrite who presents himself as a messiah for the masses and feeds off anger, the thirst for revenge, hostility, and human stupidity.

Note that Putin has not appeared in public since November 7, and Russian state propaganda is actively replaying archival footage of his less recent appearances. Meanwhile, Western-supplied Ukrainian missiles are striking military targets on Russian territory, and the Kremlin's useful idiots on social media are once again howling about a "WWIII," while Putin seems to have vanished. This is precisely what happens to Russia every time things go badly. Inept appeasers always assume that Putin "will respond reciprocally." They think he'll flash his homoerotic bare torso and show the world what a macho strongman he is. Instead, every time, what happens is exactly what you would expect when a cocky street thug gets a solid punch in the face and lands on his ass. Putin retreats and disappears from the public eye to avoid being associated with humiliation and weakness. Later, he does everything he can to pretend nothing special happened, appearing on TV to open honey fairs or similar trivial events. This happened when the Russian army was routed near Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Kherson. This is what happened after the sinking of the Black Sea Fleet flagship, after drone strikes on the Kremlin, and initially after the Wagner mutiny. Our cocky big guy tsar tucks his tail between his legs and slinks away as soon as he takes a gut punch. And this is exactly what escalation managers stubbornly refuse to see and understand. You do not "escalate" the war by helping Ukraine. You escalate it when you make it clear to the cowardly thug that you are weak, that you fear him, and that you want to appease him—when you signal that you would rather let Ukraine bleed out than allow Putin to be driven into retreat. That's why we still have this terrible war.

I must say that what Joe Biden has done is truly outstanding, regardless of one’s opinion on him. Stepping aside and putting his country over himself, refraining from holding power (the most additive drug in all of history) with his stone cold fingers, making a decision to leave when he formally never had to. That’s impressive. Frankly, I didn’t believe the old man would find the strength to do it. But it appears that Joe has enough honor and respect to his own legacy to do what is right, and this deserves great respect, truly. Only the ones who are able to cede power voluntarily truly deserve having it.