JUAN SALINAS II
campus editor
juan.salinas465@my.tccd.edu
Editor’s Note: This piece was written days before the full-scale invasion and was under the pretext that Russia’s grievance was NATO Expansion or that Russia would invade the two Russia-backed territories of Ukraine.
The world is on high alert due to Russian troops stationed near the border of Ukraine.
But, is it really worth spending money and potential lives on a conflict that doesn’t even affect the U.S.?
This isn’t our fight, and we shouldn’t be involved or at the forefront of the discussion. It hasn’t even been six months since we left Afghanistan, and the war hawk politicians are already looking for the next war to support.
“We also urge your administration to deploy a U.S. military presence in the Black Sea to deter a Russian invasion,” wrote 15 Republicans in a letter to the White House
These Republican politicians are advocating for World War III, and it’s quite outrageous and simply just out of touch with the rest of the nation.
Fifty-three percent of Americans believe we should stay out of the conflict, according to a poll by CBS News.
But like always, our government does the exact opposite of what we want. It has actively poured gasoline on the fire for the past few weeks, sending troops around Europe and weapons to Ukraine, closing its embassy.
All this is happening despite Ukraine’s government’s request to de-escalate.
“The truth is that we have different information,” Ukraine’s president Zelensky said. “And now, the best friend for enemies is panic in our country. And all this information helps only to create panic, doesn’t help us.”
Ukraine is telling us to crack down on the Cold War rhetoric. Instead, it seems like our government is using them as a pawn in a geopolitical chess game.
Even a member of the Ukraine parliament is frustrated with U.S. media reporting of the conflict because it is causing their economy to destabilize, so we are doing more harm to this country than the Russian soldiers surrounding their borders at this point.
It seems that this conflict is due to Russia not wanting NATO to expand eastward, and the U.S. military base in Poland is seen as a threat.
According to President Putin, the U.S. promised the Soviet Union that NATO wouldn’t expand any further.
This claim is up for debate, but the Russian government is putting a line in the sand on this issue.
President Joe Biden could easily revoke the invitation given to Ukraine in 2009 by former President Barack Obama.
While this will hurt the U.S.’ ego, it will help avoid nuclear destruction, or if he wants to maintain the “red monster from the East,” he could move the military base. Classic Cuban missile crisis moment.
And no, I’m not a Russian Sympathizer hoping and wishing on the downfall of the West. I’m just a lower-middle-class American that is tired of the U.S. government spending trillions upon trillions of dollars on foreign nations and for the military but can’t spare a dime to help the working class.
We should let the EU take the lead on this. It is their continent, for God’s sake. While there is still a chance cooler heads will prevail, the U.S. is doing anything in its power to make sure it doesn’t.
It is time to look in the mirror and realize that we have many problems domestically. It is time to take a step back from the world stage.
