by Robert M. Traxler

Russia has been my enemy since birth. One of my first memories is packing my “bug-out bag” as a 4- to 7-year-old Army dependent child in Germany (1953 to 1956), my father stationed there with the 9th Infantry Division (The Old Reliables).

A memory of my mother always being careful to ensure the family car had a half of tank of gas, as required for all privately owned vehicles, to flee the impending Russian invasion of Germany through the Fulda Gap with three tank armies and six shock armies.

My first assignment as a 2nd Lieutenant was with an infantry brigade in Alaska. The Brigade Commander would form us up and ask, “Why are we here?” And 2000 troops would shout in unison, “To kick the sh*t out of the Russians!”

In May 1972 the air attack imminent siren sounded at Fort Richardson Alaska; we had just mined Haiphong Harbor in North Vietnam and we were on Defense Readiness Condition (DEFCON) 2. Russian nuclear bombers entered American air space at maximum speed; they turned back when challenged by American fighter aircraft, but the “pucker factor” was high. At the Command and General Staff College we studied the best way to fight the Warsaw Pact Nations and the Soviet Socialist Republics, with emphasis on the European scenario.

I am no fan of the Russians or the Russian Federation with good reason, so please do not take this column as anything but an analysis of the current war in Ukraine.     

The first casualty of war is the truth; history tells us one of the major reasons for World War I was “Yellow Journalism.” The Spanish American War was fueled in great part by two icons of the American media, William Randolph Hurst and Joseph Pulitzer, trying to out-sensationalize (AKA lie) each other. 

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s approval rating is just south of 75%. All the talk of his overthrow by the Russian military or by political forces in Russia is a pipe dream; no one will cross Putin any time soon. Indeed, an American president has rarely had an approval rating that high.

The stories of Ukrainian border guards telling two Russia war ships to go have sexual intercourse with themselves and then dying to the last man gloriously defending snake island in the Black Sea were at least for the most part wrong. Great stories, but just not true; all 13 troops are alive and well. The media tell us they surrendered only after fighting to the last round, and none of them were even slightly wounded…?

We are told by the media that the “entire world” has condemned Putin and the Russian Federation. Not true, most of the world actively or passively supports the Russians. India has been passive in its support, and China, Venezuela, Cuba, Belarus, North Korea, Syria, Iran, and Pakistan have active support or are still doing business as normal with Russia. Add the populations of those nations together and they are by far most of the world.     

We have not stopped importing Russian oil, supporting the Russian war effort! Our government is still against pumping more oil in our nation, oil that is better quality and cheaper. Have you seen the cost of gasoline, diesel and petrochemicals lately?  By all means, we must import Russian oil in the name of saving the planet.

The Russians have very lax environmental standards for drilling and transporting oil, much more lax and more ineffective than found in our own Environmental Protection Agency rules, regulations and laws. But as we all know, we must use Russian oil in the name of saving the planet. Common sense, truth, facts be damned. Just like burning coal is a crime against Mother Earth in our nation, but fine in China, India and Russia, with Russia selling China 50 million of tons of coal a year and growing rapidly, all with less stringent environmental laws?  Common sense be damned, Go figure.   

We are outsourcing our carbon emissions to others in the name of environmental protection, and saving the planet? You can’t make this stuff up.

Oil is projected to rise to $200 a barrel; I doubt it, but at over $100 a barrel the Russian Federation makes enough American dollars to purchase 1,600,000 7.62X39 rounds of small arms ammunitions a day, or a lot of rockets bombs and missiles.

Like it or not and I do not, Russia will not be stopped in its conquest of Ukraine, and they have shown remarkable restraint so far, for the Russians. My opinion.