I am a child of the Cold War, as such I grew up with an innate fear of Russian aggression. The fear of global nuclear war was rampant in the 1980’s, especially during Regan’s first term in office. Some described him as a warmonger who would enrage the Soviets with his war rhetoric and nuclear bomb building programs. Others felt he was a hero who would stand up to Russian expansionism. In either case he would not be bullied by the bear.
Today with the war in Ukraine the old fears of the Russian empire have returned, even the threat of use of nuclear weapons has not been ruled out by the Russians. Putin has laid down the challenge that he would use nuclear weapons on any nation interfering with his “special operation” in Ukraine. The whole notion of nuclear war with the Russians is unthinkable, even for Putin. There are no winners in a nuclear war. But Putin has seized upon this opportunity to flex his rhetorical might to scare us. He sees himself as a liberator cleansing Ukraine of Nazis and resisting Western exploitation. His military machine is formidable. And his nuclear stockpile has over two thousand more warheads than the US. His invasion of Ukraine demonstrates a reckless willingness to accomplish his objectives by any means necessary. He is an unstable force in the global political scene. It has even been suggested that the war in Ukraine will encourage the Chinese who have set their sights on Taiwan. He is a scary person and these are perilous times for the cause of peace, but they are not any worse than what we have experienced before.
The NATO alliance must hold fast to its resolve to expel the Russians from Ukraine and protect the safety and integrity of its borders from aggression. Fear should have no place in our hearts. The West won the war of words before. We will do so again!