I do have a certain amount of sympathy for Putin. There are many types of war.
Type 1:The Swiss had it sussed. They played their joker somewhere in the mid 1800s and they said they were not interested in wars. Wouldn't that make it a good place to run the world from? No fear of bombs, invasion or being drafted. A good place to carry out international business transactions during someone else's wars, perhaps?
Type 2: Apart from today in 1941, the US managed to avoid mass bombings, shellings and invasions. Their young men went abroad and many never returned.
Type 3: The UK was badly bombed many times - particularly, London, Coventry and air bases. Their men went to foreign lands and many remained there.
Type 4: France was bombed, mainly by their allies! They were forced to live with their enemy. That must have been difficult.
Type 5: Then there was Russia. They were bombed, shelled and invaded on a broad front. The defeated civilians were not treated well. The siege of Leningrad was horrendous. It lasted around 900 days and about 800,000 lives were lost. I can't imagine what it must have been like.
I have just had to find a recording of Shostakovich's Leningrad symphony - which they managed to perform while under siege. Music specially written, smuggled in and played by anyone they could find still alive who could work an instrument and relay it to the surrounding German army. A single finger salute if there ever was one.
Of course, for the Russians that was history repeating. Napoleon had also wrought havoc on Russia. The creation of the USSR gave them a buffer zone to stop it happening a third time. NATO was formed specifically to oppose the Russians. The buffer zone was lost when the USSR collapsed. NATO said they would not move an inch closer to the Russian border. They kept their word - they moved 600 miles closer! NATO wants to put missiles right next to Russia. I seem to remember JFK taking a dim view of that kind of behaviour. Consequently, the Russians are worried all over again.
I do have a certain amount of sympathy for Putin. There are many types of war.
Type 1:The Swiss had it sussed. They played their joker somewhere in the mid 1800s and they said they were not interested in wars. Wouldn't that make it a good place to run the world from? No fear of bombs, invasion or being drafted. A good place to carry out international business transactions during someone else's wars, perhaps?
Type 2: Apart from today in 1941, the US managed to avoid mass bombings, shellings and invasions. Their young men went abroad and many never returned.
Type 3: The UK was badly bombed many times - particularly, London, Coventry and air bases. Their men went to foreign lands and many remained there.
Type 4: France was bombed, mainly by their allies! They were forced to live with their enemy. That must have been difficult.
Type 5: Then there was Russia. They were bombed, shelled and invaded on a broad front. The defeated civilians were not treated well. The siege of Leningrad was horrendous. It lasted around 900 days and about 800,000 lives were lost. I can't imagine what it must have been like.
I have just had to find a recording of Shostakovich's Leningrad symphony - which they managed to perform while under siege. Music specially written, smuggled in and played by anyone they could find still alive who could work an instrument and relay it to the surrounding German army. A single finger salute if there ever was one.
Of course, for the Russians that was history repeating. Napoleon had also wrought havoc on Russia. The creation of the USSR gave them a buffer zone to stop it happening a third time. NATO was formed specifically to oppose the Russians. The buffer zone was lost when the USSR collapsed. NATO said they would not move an inch closer to the Russian border. They kept their word - they moved 600 miles closer! NATO wants to put missiles right next to Russia. I seem to remember JFK taking a dim view of that kind of behaviour. Consequently, the Russians are worried all over again.