Beacon2Light

In some quarters of the world, even in our world, there are voices that wish to present a counter-argument to the prevailing one about the separatists. However, a casual yet consistent eye on the news demonstrates that these are not peace-loving separatists longing for independence or at least a different direction than Kiev is offering. Some of the evidence includes: 1) Masked men outside of a Jewish synagogue pass out leaflets demanding that the Jews register 2) a mayor who is Jewish and for a united Ukraine is shot and left picture  from article    in critical condition                                                                                                           ...

Ukraine fears Russia 'ready to attack' "The aim of Putin is not Crimea but all of Ukraine... His troops massed at the border are ready to attack at any moment," Ukraine's National Security and Defence Council chief Andriy Parubiy told a mass unity rally in Kiev. Foreign Minister Andriy Deshchytsya reaffirmed that message in an interview broadcast on Sunday on a top US political talk show. "We do not know what Putin has in his mind and what would be his decision. That's why this situation is becoming even more explosive than it used to be a week ago," Deshchytsya told ABC's "This Week". Crimea's Russia-backed prime minister Sergei Aksyonov said in an impassioned address he posted on Facebook and read out on local TV that Crimea began facing a "sad fate" the moment three months of deadly protests involving a mix of nationalist and pro-Western forces toppled the pro-Kremlin regime in Kiev. "But we resisted and won! Our...

My heart goes out to Ukraine, especially those in the eye of the storm in Crimea (seemingly, virtually lost to Russia) and the eastern and southeastern portions of the country that both border Russia and boast large ethnic Russian populations. These are the areas that voted for the ousted former president that some, including me, think that Russia may like to bring  forcibly   back to power as a puppet.  This is a call to prayer for them.  See map below for the ethnic makeup of the country, i.e. Russian population:   The red areas are large percentages of ethnic Russians.  The darker the area, the higher the concentration. I have kept watch over the country and events that have transpired since the protests of November 2013, through the ouster of the president and the elected parliament's decision to go back to the 2004 constitution and Russian interference since then.  As an amateur historian, I see parallels with Hitler's taking of ...

Update: Putin Asks Russia’s Senate to Use Military Force in Ukraine By ALISON SMALE and DAVID M. HERSZENHORN   MARCH 1, 2014 As Russian-backed armed forces effectively seized control of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula on Saturday, President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia requested — and received — authorization from the Russian Senate to use military force in Ukraine. My opinion:  I think President Obama should send rapid reaction forces to the Ukraine.  We need to follow the George H.W. Bush model in the Persian Gulf War -- a build-up of forces (perhaps with NATO allies) to secure the rest of the Ukraine against a Russian takeover (like he protected Saudi Arabia from Iraqi invasion with the goal of the removal of troops from Kuwait).  We should set a red line at the border of the Crimea and do all we can internationally to get the peaceful withdrawal of Russian forces from the Crimea peninsula.  I don't think we should threaten war over Crimea, unfortun...