Nobody believed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s announcement earlier in the week that open Russian troop advancement into Ukraine’s eastern Ukraine was part of a peacekeeping mission. Still, some thought—or at least It is hoped—that Russia would initially stick to invading contested areas in the Donbas region, where Russia-backed separatists have been fighting Ukrainian forces since 2014.
These hopeless scenarios have now been shattered as Russian aggression already began to extend beyond the regions that Putin had earlier this week designated the Donetsk People’s Republic, and Luhansk People’s Republic. It has also begun an invasion of Ukraine.
Ukraine’s Interior Ministry said—last night U.S. Eastern Time, early morning Ukrainian time—that Russian missiles had struck military targets in Ukraine’s capital city of Kyiv and in the country’s second-largest and fourth-largest cities, Kharkiv and Dnipro.
NPR journalists in Ukraine reportedOdessa and Kyiv heard explosions, Odessa and Kharkiv also experienced explosions. The Associated Press saw or confirmed the explosions in Kyiv and Mariupol, on the Azov Sea and Kharkiv in east,” and they “confirm video of Russian military vehicles entering Ukrainian territory north from Belarus, as well as the Russian-annexed Crimea to the south.”
In a statement, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine said that Russia had launched “a new military operation” against his country.
Strikes are taking place at military installations and border defense units, as well as strikes against the military. The situation in Donbas is also under threat.
The Armed Forces of Ukraine and all law enforcement agencies of state, including special ones, are currently on high alert. In an emergency situation, the National Security and Defense Council works.
Martial law will also be enforced.
Our time was earlier this morning. Zelenskyy tweetedRussia had “embark”[ing]You are on the path to evil.”
Mykhailo Podolyak, Zelenskyy advisor, stated that “a full-scale war has started in Europe.” Russia has attacked Ukraine but also the normal rules of life in modern society.
All Americans on the east coast wake up this morning to see news reports about the conflict in Ukraine.
It is a very peaceful scene today in central Kyiv as many people have fled the city to go west. pic.twitter.com/vuyLuNeApz
— Tim Mak (@timkmak) February 24, 2022
In a statement, President Joe Biden stated that he would meet with his G7 counterparts and speak to Americans to discuss the additional consequences the United States (and our Allies) will bring on Russia in response to its needless aggression against Ukraine. To prevent any aggression on the Alliance, we will coordinate our efforts with NATO Allies.
Americans do not want to see the U.S. play a major role in this conflict, according to a new A.P.–NORC Center poll. 26% of respondents said that the U.S. should take a leading role, 52% said it should have a smaller part, and 20% said no.
FREE MINDS
Restrictions on technology for sexual offenders “confuse, unfair and ineffective.”” WiredThe following is a detailed account of Jason’s case. He was sentenced and made to register as an adult sex offender after “an alleged sexting event in 2012”. The probation imposed a number of technological restrictions on him. Although he could email and send texts, text messaging was prohibited at first. While he could surf the web, he wasn’t allowed to create a social media profile. All of his online activities were monitored by an officer. Jason was able to watch a prayer stream livestream and is currently back in prison.
Because digital and mobile technologies are now integrated in every aspect of our lives, banning people who have been convicted of sex offences from using them effectively shuts them out from all career options, interactions with others, and many other benefits. The legislative response to sexual offenses has been focused on banning people who have been convicted of any type sex crimes from using the technology. Wired. It’s difficult to justify these laws, given that the internet has become the main venue for public life. This creates a large class of people who are unable to live in modern society. There is little to no evidence that this has made our world safer.
FREE MARKETS
Protests by truckers in the U.S.U.S. trucks are following Canada’s lead and heading for Washington to protest restrictions regarding pandemics. At least two convoys—the “People’s Convoy” and the “American Freedom Convoy”—are reportedly headed toward Washington, D.C. “We are not out for any type of vengeance, violence, any of that stuff,” Nicole Robinson, co-organizer of the American Freedom Convoy, told FederalistThe group will not prevent interstates from functioning, he said. “The only thing we’ve preached is what everyone has preached: Follow all laws!”
QUICK HITS
• The manufacturer of a new COVID-19 vaccine said it has 58 percent efficacy against symptomatic infections, 75 percent efficacy against moderate to severe disease, and 100 percent efficacy against severe disease and hospitalizations.
• One day into the soft launch of Trump-backed social media platform Truth Social “and even its ‘free speech’ branding is – perhaps, unsurprisingly – falling apart.”
• Another tale of a teen wrongly arrested because police officers didn’t really bother trying to rule him out:
Kansas City officers failed to do due diligence. This cost the wrongfully arrested teenager three weeks in freedom and $900,000. Now, however, it is worth $900,000. https://t.co/g5lGCcATGd pic.twitter.com/YGmFeUytED
— Peter Bonilla (@pebonilla) February 23, 2022