Even though a growing number of Western elites are awakening to the reality that Ukraine is headed for defeat and will drag NATO along with it, the so-called intellectual cognoscenti of foreign policy, like the editorial board of the NY Times, continue to indulge fantasies and delusions. They conclude a Sunday editorial pleading for more money for Zelensky and the losing cause with this:
Mr. Trump and his followers may argue that the security of Ukraine, or even of Europe, is not America’s business. But the consequence of allowing a Russian victory in Ukraine is a world in which authoritarian strongmen feel free to crush dissent or seize territory with impunity. That is a threat to the security of America, and the world.
The Washington and New York establishments continue to insist that Vladimir Putin is an “authoritarian strongman.” I have one word of advice — look in the damn mirror and pay attention to what is happening in the United States before you mount your moral high horse and gallop off to lecture other countries on democracy and human rights.
When I read the penultimate sentence in the paragraph above I asked myself the question, “How many political prisoners are there in Russia?” I was not surprised by the answer.
“For political prisoners, the situation is often worse, because the state aims to additionally punish them, or additionally isolate them from the world, or do everything to break their spirit,” Vaypan said. His group counts 680 political prisoners in Russia.
Guess what? The United States has prosecuted (and persecuted) twice as many political prisoners than Russia.
Hellbound and Down 