Tom McTague Atlantic“What Volodomyr Zelensky’s Courage Says about the West”,
I find it a bit disgusting that Westerners, including myself, cheer Ukrainians on for a cause they are not ready to support. It is a dangerous stance that could increase the cost of a peaceful solution that will require only Ukrainian blood. However, this is something that can be recognized and encouraged by Zelensky, which will then be shameful.
A nation and leader are willing to do so for independence and to allow the West to have its own country. Yet, the West’s majority is dejected and cynical. They seem to be without any sense of mission or cause. The West is now unsure what it believes. Think of Angela Merkel or Barack Obama as great liberal heroes. These are deep pragmatic conservatives who constantly balance their interests by calculating and hedging. This type of governance is admirable. Helmut Schmidt (the former West German chancellor) once said, “Whoever can see the future should visit the doctor.” Visions, as an example, led to the Iraq War. Yet conservative pragmatism is also deeply limited, allowing adversaries like Vladimir Putin to take advantage, exploiting caution and shortsighted selfishness….
Stand up and [Putin]Ukraine seems to be expressing a belief in itself as righteous, dignified, heroic and embracing old-fashioned virtues. It is so tragic that Zelenskys ideas have to be attacked in order for us to remember ours.