Call and write to members of Congress. R Senators James Lankford, John Cornyn, and John Thune. D Senators Chris Murphy, Michael Bennet, and Chris Coons. They are central in the Ukraine negotiations. It is going to be a very tough year for democracy, with the threats pending on so many fronts. We have to work hard for it every day and not stop. Let's help one another keep up this difficult, existential fight.
I just sent emails to all the senators on your list. Here is what I wrote, starting with Dear Senator (name),
I urge you in the strongest way possible to continue to support Ukraine's democracy and valiant fight against Putin's aggression. As a taxpayer and an American citizen, I believe this is money well spent. It is also the morally correct path to take.
Please do not let a small minority of extremists hold up funding for Ukraine. Bowing to extremists does not end well. Please do not let extremists continue to bully the rest of us with their right-wing agenda.
Thanks Nancy. I am open to contacting this group; however, I think it makes a difference for each one of us to call Congress, 202-224-3121; we each have 2 Senators and 1 Representative. I have made my voice heard. We all can spend 5 minutes speaking our minds to each of our members of Congress. If every 645 people on this sub-stack called 3 members of the U.S. Congress to support Ukraine, it might help. Furthermore, I am hoping Biden can support arms for Ukraine the same way he is supplying arms for Israel w/out legislative delay. Putin will not stop with Ukraine.
I have the letters written but how do I send them? through their official website that asks your information, including city and state? Wouldn't these letters from non-consituents simply be thrown out by staff?
In an isolationist America, in 1940-1941 Franklin Roosevelt boldly provided military support to Winston Churchill’s England, which was standing alone against Hitler-occupied Western Europe.
England was the launch pad for D-Day. The Allies won and Hitler committed suicide in his Berlin bunker.
President Truman spearheaded the creation of NATO, which was a Cold War bulwark against Stalinist Soviet Union, until the Soviet disintegration.
President Biden created an extraordinary riposte to Putin’s brutal invasion of sovereign Ukraine as part of his ‘Greater Russia’ obsession. Subsequently, President Zelensky and his courageous citizens have depended on sustained foreign supplies in their fight against a much larger Russian military.
When President Biden initiated a legislative request in October for a $110 billion budgetary supplement, I never imagined that, two months later, the urgent $60 billion for Ukraine would be in serious jeopardy. I remember the WW II song “Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition…and We’ll All Be Free.”
Instead the Trumpublicans, including Mitch the Switch McConnell and Jackal Johnson, have linked vital aid to Ukraine with a hostage/blackmail demand to reach some undefined ‘solution’ of the long-standing immigration imbroglio.
Currently Congress apparently intends soon to depart on an extended Christmas vacation leaving a boiling pot of unresolved legislative issues.
While President Biden has invited President Zelensky to the White House in a desperate attempt to get the $60 billion for Ukraine approved, Trumpublicans have invited Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Organ to a conference when his anti-Ukraine, Pro-Putin views will be highlighted.
Putin must be chuckling at what I, as a former Foreign Service Officer, consider TREASONOUS activity by the Trumpists.
Democracy's survival everywhere and the world’s balance of power are at stake in Ukraine's courageous pro-democracy struggle against Putin's murderous land and power grab.
Thank you, Prof. Snyder. So simply and concisely stated. Ukraine is at a crossroad. They need assistance now. Turning a blind eye will not help them, us, or anyone except Russia. Keep communicating what we can do to stay informed as a substack community.
He's absolutely right. It reminded me of a PowerPoint I wrote nine years ago on the genocide in Srebrenica. I quoted Grunfeld and Vermeulen (2009): "After the fall of Srebrenica and during the days of the subsequent genocide, all bystanders became collaborators with the perpetrators, resulting in the first genocide in Europe since the Holocaust." If we don't help now, our inaction is a form of action.
I'm saddened by some of the news about Ukraine and the terrible delay in providing long-term financial support to a country that has been at war for almost two years. It breaks my heart and not only for Ukraine but for Russia, too, especially the far-flung places from where so many of the troops come and die. Let us hope that politicians can look beyond their populist interests (it's hard to be Hungarian these days) and do the right thing. I'm still waiting for United24 to tell us how the Safe Skies fundraising campaign is going, but there might be strategic reasons behind not divulging the data. We know that half of the money was raised within a week.
Edward Lucas predicted in "The New Cold War" (2009) that russian money would generate corruption all over the western world, and he was right. Let's hope that the United States holds and remains a world leader. We can't afford to have russia or China take over that position because our children will suffer enormously. All children.
Re "Russia's ruthlessness and resources" I wonder whether it is a coincidence that it is a wing of the US party of fossil fuel that now supports withdrawing aid from Ukraine.
As long as they're selling above the cap of $60, they're making money for Putin on top of outrageous profits. Consumers are blamed for creating the demand supporting the price, but I'm thinking that's more PR/WallStreet/shareholder-funded spin.
I might as well add that the previous administration gave over a trillion dollars of tax breaks to corporations, accounting for a huge increase in the budget deficit. The corporate oligarchy is.
'Doing well by doing right': the title woke me up because it speaks broadly and specifically at the
same time. As we write and or call President Biden and our elected representative with the message that our Democracy is connected with Ukraine's, we will emphasize that we are DOING WELL BY DOING RIGHT as Ukraine has been doing for all of us.
Thank you, Timothy Snyder, for enlarging our understanding and vision.
Just heard Johnson. He is a total idiot. Putin is laughing and Johnson doesn’t understand why. It’s a disease of the brain shared by Republicans. I hope Biden has something up his sleeve or we are truly done for. Not to understand that supporting Ukraine makes US safer than trying to kill asylum seekers speaks of a lack of intelligence that if I didn’t know about Louisiana schools, I wouldn’t believe. Please forgive me for publishing this, but it’s the hard truth.
Have we ever had an opposition party support one foreign dictator (Putin) and invite another one, (Orban), to give advice on how to make the world safe for dictators?
For Ukraine I have made major financial contributions, studied the language, written my Senators and Rep, cried and prayed. And yet, some isolationists will destroy that country and their people for no discernible reason. In the bargain, which I guess they think is good for America, they will destroy us too.
Just wrote the White House too. Urged them to support Ukraine aid and agree to crazy GOP immigration demands if that’s what it takes.
It would be hard, but we have a chance to fix that. For the Ukrainians, this is their only chance.
Democracy is messy and only works when there is compromise. I hate what I’m suggesting, but I see no other way to get aid to the Ukrainians before it is too late.
I am outraged at the callousness of our elected officials. We have helped Ukraine but we have provided too little too late. We could have and should have provided everything they needed to defeat Putin in the beginning. I have expressed my outrage to my Congressman and both Senators because they are Republicans and part of our problem. I will call their office everyday until aid for Ukraine is approved. I will also continue to donate what I can to Ukraine monthly. They are fighting and suffering for us.
Teach history, teach history, teach history. Not because it repeats itself, but because it tells us who we are. How we got here. There are people in the US who believe Trump standing against Ukraine will save the US from WW3. Informed people know who he serves, and not to trust his word. Terrorism is beyond nations and their stated goals -- it serves Oligarchs. Follow the oil slick to see who they are.
A few days ago I read a post on Noah Smith' blog (noahpinion) in which he critiqued the current state of affairs in international relations, in which "The norm of territorial integrity is breaking down, and conquest is coming back into vogue... after the end of WWII which was fought to end the practice of seizing bits of territory from neighboring countries..." i.e., Article 2 of the United Nations Charter urging member s to refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state." He proposes that 'territorial integrity' be the guiding principle of U.S. international policy in this new cold war to avoid a return to a "Jungle-like world of empires and conquerors." https://www.noahpinion.blog/p/uphold-territorial-integrity?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=35345&post_id=139176476&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=true&r=f04a&utm_medium=email .
The spread of the idea that you can just annex half of the country next to you is now playing out in Venezuela. They just had a “vote” that half of Guyana belongs to them. Of course it’s the half with lots of newly discovered oil, so after a hundred years of arguing with Guyana, they’re just going to annex it like Putin did with the Donbass.
They’re not just annexing the resources, they’re annexing the land mass, they literally are saying that half of Guyana is now Venezuela. The same way Russia annexed 4 oblasts of Ukraine and says they’re now Russian territory.
The problem is power. Ukraine is smaller than Russia and its friends are not 100 percent reliable or capable of providing the support needed. Right has to be backed up with might.
Please don't think you can shame Republicans into funding more military aid for Ukraine. They may ultimately do the right thing, but shame is simply not something that affects them anymore.
Call and write to members of Congress. R Senators James Lankford, John Cornyn, and John Thune. D Senators Chris Murphy, Michael Bennet, and Chris Coons. They are central in the Ukraine negotiations. It is going to be a very tough year for democracy, with the threats pending on so many fronts. We have to work hard for it every day and not stop. Let's help one another keep up this difficult, existential fight.
Hi Nancy,
I just sent emails to all the senators on your list. Here is what I wrote, starting with Dear Senator (name),
I urge you in the strongest way possible to continue to support Ukraine's democracy and valiant fight against Putin's aggression. As a taxpayer and an American citizen, I believe this is money well spent. It is also the morally correct path to take.
Please do not let a small minority of extremists hold up funding for Ukraine. Bowing to extremists does not end well. Please do not let extremists continue to bully the rest of us with their right-wing agenda.
Thank you for all you do.
Sincerely,
Susan Troy
Done! Simple statement they should understand.
how did you send your emails? through their official website
Beautiful!
Thanks for this. I will write this morning.
Thanks Nancy. I am open to contacting this group; however, I think it makes a difference for each one of us to call Congress, 202-224-3121; we each have 2 Senators and 1 Representative. I have made my voice heard. We all can spend 5 minutes speaking our minds to each of our members of Congress. If every 645 people on this sub-stack called 3 members of the U.S. Congress to support Ukraine, it might help. Furthermore, I am hoping Biden can support arms for Ukraine the same way he is supplying arms for Israel w/out legislative delay. Putin will not stop with Ukraine.
I have the letters written but how do I send them? through their official website that asks your information, including city and state? Wouldn't these letters from non-consituents simply be thrown out by staff?
My experience is that letters from non-constituents are not thrown out, but certainly more weight is given to constituent's letters.
TRUMPIST/PUTIN BROMANCE?
In an isolationist America, in 1940-1941 Franklin Roosevelt boldly provided military support to Winston Churchill’s England, which was standing alone against Hitler-occupied Western Europe.
England was the launch pad for D-Day. The Allies won and Hitler committed suicide in his Berlin bunker.
President Truman spearheaded the creation of NATO, which was a Cold War bulwark against Stalinist Soviet Union, until the Soviet disintegration.
President Biden created an extraordinary riposte to Putin’s brutal invasion of sovereign Ukraine as part of his ‘Greater Russia’ obsession. Subsequently, President Zelensky and his courageous citizens have depended on sustained foreign supplies in their fight against a much larger Russian military.
When President Biden initiated a legislative request in October for a $110 billion budgetary supplement, I never imagined that, two months later, the urgent $60 billion for Ukraine would be in serious jeopardy. I remember the WW II song “Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition…and We’ll All Be Free.”
Instead the Trumpublicans, including Mitch the Switch McConnell and Jackal Johnson, have linked vital aid to Ukraine with a hostage/blackmail demand to reach some undefined ‘solution’ of the long-standing immigration imbroglio.
Currently Congress apparently intends soon to depart on an extended Christmas vacation leaving a boiling pot of unresolved legislative issues.
While President Biden has invited President Zelensky to the White House in a desperate attempt to get the $60 billion for Ukraine approved, Trumpublicans have invited Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Organ to a conference when his anti-Ukraine, Pro-Putin views will be highlighted.
Putin must be chuckling at what I, as a former Foreign Service Officer, consider TREASONOUS activity by the Trumpists.
SHAME ON YOU UNPRINCIPLED POLITICAL LACKEYS!
Democracy's survival everywhere and the world’s balance of power are at stake in Ukraine's courageous pro-democracy struggle against Putin's murderous land and power grab.
Thank you, Prof. Snyder. So simply and concisely stated. Ukraine is at a crossroad. They need assistance now. Turning a blind eye will not help them, us, or anyone except Russia. Keep communicating what we can do to stay informed as a substack community.
Also, Prof. Snyder always says that 'inaction' is a kind of 'action'. How very true.
Evil prevails when good men fail to act ✌🏻
He's absolutely right. It reminded me of a PowerPoint I wrote nine years ago on the genocide in Srebrenica. I quoted Grunfeld and Vermeulen (2009): "After the fall of Srebrenica and during the days of the subsequent genocide, all bystanders became collaborators with the perpetrators, resulting in the first genocide in Europe since the Holocaust." If we don't help now, our inaction is a form of action.
Indeed. Rwanda is another example.
I'm saddened by some of the news about Ukraine and the terrible delay in providing long-term financial support to a country that has been at war for almost two years. It breaks my heart and not only for Ukraine but for Russia, too, especially the far-flung places from where so many of the troops come and die. Let us hope that politicians can look beyond their populist interests (it's hard to be Hungarian these days) and do the right thing. I'm still waiting for United24 to tell us how the Safe Skies fundraising campaign is going, but there might be strategic reasons behind not divulging the data. We know that half of the money was raised within a week.
https://u24.gov.ua/safeskies
Nobody blames Hungarians for Orban. He will receive his just desserts.
Edward Lucas predicted in "The New Cold War" (2009) that russian money would generate corruption all over the western world, and he was right. Let's hope that the United States holds and remains a world leader. We can't afford to have russia or China take over that position because our children will suffer enormously. All children.
Re "Russia's ruthlessness and resources" I wonder whether it is a coincidence that it is a wing of the US party of fossil fuel that now supports withdrawing aid from Ukraine.
Absolutely.
As long as they're selling above the cap of $60, they're making money for Putin on top of outrageous profits. Consumers are blamed for creating the demand supporting the price, but I'm thinking that's more PR/WallStreet/shareholder-funded spin.
I might as well add that the previous administration gave over a trillion dollars of tax breaks to corporations, accounting for a huge increase in the budget deficit. The corporate oligarchy is.
A question arises vis-a-vis what's been happening at COP. What is the complication for the allies of Ukraine -- recently emphasized by Putin's travel to the MidEast -- of "… Since Abu Dhabi and Dubai are major oil producers, they were pleased to give their Western oil company allies a major role in revising the narrative." per The American Prospect article: COP-Out 28 (https://prospect.org/environment/2023-12-12-cop-28-uae-climate-change-flop/?vgo_ee=2BYNpjcG4hLL9xBzq8jVBQdU9XCDhSxpjSgnbk9tQ1Docc1FVow%3D%3A3TjcJekKxmFaApeVzyPjc4QnB2zcB%2Bbv)
'Doing well by doing right': the title woke me up because it speaks broadly and specifically at the
same time. As we write and or call President Biden and our elected representative with the message that our Democracy is connected with Ukraine's, we will emphasize that we are DOING WELL BY DOING RIGHT as Ukraine has been doing for all of us.
Thank you, Timothy Snyder, for enlarging our understanding and vision.
Just heard Johnson. He is a total idiot. Putin is laughing and Johnson doesn’t understand why. It’s a disease of the brain shared by Republicans. I hope Biden has something up his sleeve or we are truly done for. Not to understand that supporting Ukraine makes US safer than trying to kill asylum seekers speaks of a lack of intelligence that if I didn’t know about Louisiana schools, I wouldn’t believe. Please forgive me for publishing this, but it’s the hard truth.
Thank you, Virginia, for the hard truth.
Have we ever had an opposition party support one foreign dictator (Putin) and invite another one, (Orban), to give advice on how to make the world safe for dictators?
And thank you, Carol C, for adding to the hard truth!
For Ukraine I have made major financial contributions, studied the language, written my Senators and Rep, cried and prayed. And yet, some isolationists will destroy that country and their people for no discernible reason. In the bargain, which I guess they think is good for America, they will destroy us too.
Just wrote the White House too. Urged them to support Ukraine aid and agree to crazy GOP immigration demands if that’s what it takes.
It would be hard, but we have a chance to fix that. For the Ukrainians, this is their only chance.
Democracy is messy and only works when there is compromise. I hate what I’m suggesting, but I see no other way to get aid to the Ukrainians before it is too late.
Слава України
I am outraged at the callousness of our elected officials. We have helped Ukraine but we have provided too little too late. We could have and should have provided everything they needed to defeat Putin in the beginning. I have expressed my outrage to my Congressman and both Senators because they are Republicans and part of our problem. I will call their office everyday until aid for Ukraine is approved. I will also continue to donate what I can to Ukraine monthly. They are fighting and suffering for us.
In order to help Ukraine, we need to increase emphasis on preventing fascism in the United States.
Slava Ukraine 🇺🇦!
Well said!!
Teach history, teach history, teach history. Not because it repeats itself, but because it tells us who we are. How we got here. There are people in the US who believe Trump standing against Ukraine will save the US from WW3. Informed people know who he serves, and not to trust his word. Terrorism is beyond nations and their stated goals -- it serves Oligarchs. Follow the oil slick to see who they are.
A few days ago I read a post on Noah Smith' blog (noahpinion) in which he critiqued the current state of affairs in international relations, in which "The norm of territorial integrity is breaking down, and conquest is coming back into vogue... after the end of WWII which was fought to end the practice of seizing bits of territory from neighboring countries..." i.e., Article 2 of the United Nations Charter urging member s to refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state." He proposes that 'territorial integrity' be the guiding principle of U.S. international policy in this new cold war to avoid a return to a "Jungle-like world of empires and conquerors." https://www.noahpinion.blog/p/uphold-territorial-integrity?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=35345&post_id=139176476&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=true&r=f04a&utm_medium=email .
The spread of the idea that you can just annex half of the country next to you is now playing out in Venezuela. They just had a “vote” that half of Guyana belongs to them. Of course it’s the half with lots of newly discovered oil, so after a hundred years of arguing with Guyana, they’re just going to annex it like Putin did with the Donbass.
A vote to annex another country’s resources, that’s rich!
I suppose the will soon decide that Might makes Right!
They’re not just annexing the resources, they’re annexing the land mass, they literally are saying that half of Guyana is now Venezuela. The same way Russia annexed 4 oblasts of Ukraine and says they’re now Russian territory.
The problem is power. Ukraine is smaller than Russia and its friends are not 100 percent reliable or capable of providing the support needed. Right has to be backed up with might.
Please don't think you can shame Republicans into funding more military aid for Ukraine. They may ultimately do the right thing, but shame is simply not something that affects them anymore.