When do the threats end? When will peace find permanent footing? When will human rights abuses end?

This story appeared on Instagram from NatGeo (click here). I will try to find the reference so the entire story can be read.

It is such a magnificent reflection of a man that survived World War II as a soldier and found peace living in the USA.

This is the year 2022. World War II ended in 1945. The peace it was supposed to bring somehow got lost in power struggles where people suffer and lose their lives.

How many more generations of human beings will have to endure the pain and suffering of others divided in a world where human life is not upheld as the pinnacle of each and every government on Earth? When will the power clashes stop and the world finally find an enduring peace where problems are confronted and competency in leadership is secure election after election?

I was born to a Korean War Veteran. Four years of his life was spent on the Korean peninsula. He expected all his life to have the end of that conflict result in peace on the Korean peninsula. When Americans go to war it is supposed to have a purpose to bring about the end of war, not continue it indefinitely.

The USA is not the great evil although as a scientist involved in climate, I expect far more of my government than it delivers all because one political party is somehow umbilicaled to the petroleum industry. Not even the car industry which is moving on to produce electric cars, but a petroleum industry that never receives a wake up call to the damage it does to my planet. Yes, my planet. I am going to start listing Earth on my return address on every envelope I send. Below the city and state and zip code I am going to put USA, Earth. It is where I live.

But, war always seems so easy to get into and peace so difficult to permanently commit to and turn to economic stability and growth. The war economy is a human rights abuse, especially when it has no end.

Russia is wrong in all it is doing. Russia's Putin wants the propaganda to win the day and maintain his ideology as the only ruling understanding of the people. There are many populations of people in Russia that do not adher to the propaganda and fight for the freedom of fair elections to bring about competent leadership that no longer embraces Russia's nuclear capacity and seeks peace with all countries.

Eugene Polinsky is an example of the direction any war should seek to take. An end to violence and a turn to economic growth and prosperity. He is a hero. He lived a magnificent life after surviving one of the most deadly wars in Earth history. It is time for the memory of Eugene Polinsky to be honored along with all the men and women that died during WWII to bring a lasting peace to Earth and an end to war and killing. They expect that. That is not an unreasonable expectation. Soldiers expect that their sacrifice means something. Their loyalty to the fight is based in a clear understanding there is something worth fighting for to bring peace.

Ukraine deserves peace as a country seeking to be neutral in all it's dealings to promote a strong economy for the well being of it's people. It is time to end this hideous idea of war.

Mr. Polinsky was celebrated at Rutgers' University in New Jersey, USA, Earth (click here).

Peacekeeping missions are deployed by the United Nations, not Russia unilaterally.

To the best of my knowledge peacekeepers don't have conflict of interests either. Vladimir Putin is going to be a problem in the region for a very long time considering Russia is as corrupt in it's politics and elections as it is.

This might be an opportunity for NATO to have deployments to the Ukraine border as peacekeepers as well. NATO needs to decide about the intensity of the threat to Ukraine. I don't see Ukraine remaining independent, so much as a member state of NATO. The deterrent this time was not there. NATO is a deterrent to Russian aggression in the region and Ukraine cannot afford to be without it.

February 21, 2022
By Andrew Osbor and Dmitry Antonov

Moscow - Russian President Vladimir Putin (click here) recognised two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine as independent on Monday and ordered the Russian army to launch what Moscow called a peacekeeping operation into the area, upping the ante in a crisis the West fears could unleash a major war.

Putin told Russia's defence ministry to deploy troops into the two regions to "keep the peace" in a decree issued shortly after he announced recognition for Russia-backed separatists there, drawing U.S. and European condemnation and vows of new sanctions....

Do different than the issues with China and Taiwan

China is complaining that Taiwan buys munitions from the US. War machines from the USA. Now, China is imposing it's demands on Olympians representing Taiwan. It isn't exactly the same circumstanes, but, because this relationship exists between the USA and Taiwan, Russia believes it can cause issues in Ukraine and Georgia. 

The people of the USA are sincerely concerned for Taiwan because when we leave countries they collapse into chaos and human rights violations as in the Phillipines. We are scared for Taiwan for very real reasons. One of the reasons we are concerned for Taiwan is because we witnessed the terror in Hong Kong. China broke it's agreement when it entered Hong Kong and caused enormous problems for the people there. These actions by communist countries are a problem.

20 February 2022
By Sam Goodwin

The Premier of Taiwan (click here) has called for an investigation into the circumstance surrounding a Taiwanese speedskater wearing what appeared to be a Chinese uniform at the Winter Olympics.

Huang Yu-ting, one of four Taiwanese athletes at the Winter Games in Beijing, posted a video on her social media page on January 23 showing her training.

However she appeared to be wearing a Chinese team suit in the video, copping a raft of backlash from Taiwanese fans on social media.

Huang has since apologised and removed the video, saying she received "too many unnecessary comments as well as messages sent to her privately.”

“Sport is sport. There is no nationality in the world of sports," she wrote.

"Every athlete is a friend when we are not competing against each other....

Chronic war and human rights abuse.

The difference between Georgia and Ukraine is that Putin has imposed a chronic war on Ukraine. That is not the case in Georgia. Ukraine is going to have a chronic threat from Russia within it's borders, in Crimea and Eastern Ukraine.

The issue in Eastern Ukraine is that the rebels are supplied munitions by Russia. The civil war could easily end there if Russia would stop causing war by imposing it's military industrial complex on the rebels. The reason the rebels continue their fight is because they would become war criminals with Ukraine when the fighting finally ends.

I think there is a place in this for the United Nations to seek to help the people of these regions that are marginally held by Russia through oppression and lies. There are plenty of examples of agreements that end wars and bring about prosperity. The diplomacy must continue and end the conflict and division imposed by Russia. All people are important and the land they live on is just as important. These countries should not be burdened by decades long war. Solutions have to be found to end the hatred.

There is no MInske Agreement Putin is willing to subscribe to. He has done this before in Georgia.

Russia (click here) recognized South Ossetia and Georgia's other breakaway region, Abkhazia, as independent states after Russia and Georgia fought a brief war in August 2008.

Georgia considers Abkhazia and South Ossetia are disputed territories and occupied by Russia. The only countries that recognize Abkazia and South Ossettia as independent from Georgia are Venezuela, Nicaragua, Nauru and Syria.

As to whether the two countries are okay. It all depends who one talks to. This takes place because of strong ethnic divisions in these countries.

February 21, 2022

By Yuliya Talmazan, Alexander Smith and Allan Smith

Russian President Vladimir Putin  (click here) on Monday formally recognized the independence of two Moscow-backed breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine where Russia has been supporting armed separatists in an eight-year conflict.

The move by Putin was seen by the United States and its European allies as a dramatic provocation and possibly part of a pretext to invade Ukraine. The U.S. and European Union both swiftly announced sanctions.

Many experts believe that Moscow's formal recognition will effectively scuttle a previous ceasefire agreement that some Western allies hoped could provide a route out of the crisis.

In a wide-ranging televised speech Monday evening, Putin described Ukraine as a historical part of Russia that was illegitimately taken from Moscow and is now run by a “puppet regime” controlled by the U.S. and the West.

"Ukraine is not just a neighboring country, they are a part of our culture," he said....

It is another Taliban Style takeover. Those that can leave now, should leave and seek asylum in The West.

Russian state TV claims the Queen, Prince Charles, and Prince Andrew (click here) are pushing for war in Ukraine to distract from scandals at home.

Does no one in Russia know it's government aggressive stance at the Ukraine borders? Ukraine is surrounded. How ignorant are Russians to their governments corruption? This is the information network in Russia. Amazing. Is it run by Murdoch?

I don't know why The West and namely NATO is not coming to the defense of Ukriane. When Putin invades Ukraine he won't stop there. We already know that is the fact. We know Russia makes long term plans and this is one of them. He wants to reconstitute the Soviet Union and this is the first step. He has been planning this for a long time. There was never any doubt that once Crimea went to Russia there would be consequences for the entire country of Ukraine. I think NATO needs to realize they need a strong border with Russia that ends these ambitions that are nothing more than ideology.

I think NATO needs to take a hard line with Russia and end the aggression that is laced with human rights violation. Enough is enough. This is not a matter of ending a runaway Donbass regime, this is about invading the entire country and destroying it's democracy. Corruption will return quickly. I think The West needs to decide about the invasion and what it cares to do about it. Ukraine can't stop Russia. 

Ukraine is a neutral country. Putin has no respect for that.

February 21, 2022
Andrea Mitchell and Dennis Romero

The U.S. (click here) has warned the United Nations that it believes Russia has plans to kill large numbers of critics, dissidents and "vulnerable populations" in Ukraine or send them to camps after an expected invasion.

The Kremlin denied the report on Monday, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov calling it an “absolute fiction.”

Ambassador Bathsheba Nell Crocker, the U.S. representative to the Office of the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva, recently made the assertions in a letter to the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, the contents of which were first reported Sunday evening by The Washington Post.

NBC News obtained the letter, which says, "We have credible information that indicates Russian forces are creating lists of identified Ukrainians to be killed or sent to camps following a military occupation."...