View original postView original postOne of the things all of us here can probably agree on is that the first month and a half or so of Donald Trump’s return to office has not been boring.
View original postI think it depends. Most European members still do not meet their minimum expenditures on defense, which many Americans are not happy with. We essentially backstop their defense so that they can spend more on healthcare. For the US to stay in NATO, NATO members need to meet their obligations.
Yes. The alliance needs a mechanism to enforce this, either for each NATO member individually or a combined and collective figure for all member states that aren’t the USA. Fat fucking chance, I’d say. If you have a different idea let everyone know.
View original postThey also need to not engage in bellicose actions that are designed to drag the US into a needless war. If no one ever wanted to let Ukraine into NATO, it could have been agreed on with Russia in 2022 and millions of young Ukrainians and Russians would still be alive today. Instead, Tony Blinken and Jake Sullivan decided to see what would happen if they refused to try diplomacy, much like what would have happened in 1962 if the USSR hadn't removed missiles from Cuba.
View original postEurope has gotten into a box it can't get out of. Putin is Hitler and any negotiations are appeasement, and the mantra is "Russia cannot be allowed to prevail", but the reality is Russia will prevail, and by the Summer of 2026 at the absolute latest (assuming total support by Europe at a level able to replace lost US funding), and the only way to stop that from happening is for NATO states to enter into direct war with Russia.
This! This is what spurred me to make the post. For the fourth time in about 100 years Moscow needs to be saved from itself, with the form of government not seeming to much matter. And for the fourth time over that exact same period Europe has reacted to a fire in its own yard with fits of handwringing and spells of paralysis born of selfishness and cowardice. I freely admit that’s a crude, unkind, and somewhat unfair view.
This is also why I have a lot of conflicting thoughts about NATO. It’s frustrating and expensive to remain, but do we dare let them go it alone. Their track record is shit. I’m more or less a believer in “the business of America is business”, so I probably favor exiting. It should , however, be done in transparent and orderly manner over a period of time which allows allies to adequately prepare for the change.
View original postAs a result, Europe has no plan as to how to move forward, only pathetic PR statements and some wishful thinking. If Europe continues down this path or, God forbid, wants to let Ukraine in NATO, then the US should give Ukraine the US spot in NATO and run, not walk, away from the alliance.
View original postFinally, NATO was always about projecting US power and influence, and it was clear to earlier generations that this made the European states effectively vassals of the US. The newer generation doesn't like to be reminded of the power imbalance, but Europe combined is only 50% of the US economy, and it's dropping. If they ratchet up defense spending it will be at the cost of more social programs, which an aging and dying Europe cannot afford to cut without risking even bigger unrest than it has seen.
View original postSo I guess the US should only stay in if the Europeans start to do what they're supposed to do, namely, meet their minimum spending and shut the fuck up when the US tells them to do something.
View original postNo, under no circumstances. Total economic blockades of those states that try is acceptable, military action is totally acceptable as well, up to and including the use of our nuclear weapons against them.
View original postNo, under no circumstances. See my response to Question 2, above. The world is already dangerous enough. Imagine a world where the Democratic Republic of Congo has nukes.
How do you view Trump’s efforts at rapprochement with Russia? I think he’s going about it in way that’s simply going to give the idea a bad name. Do you see it as imperative for Russia to restore good relations with Europe? Will there need to be some sort of atonement or act of contrition, performative or otherwise?
*NM*
- 14/03/2025 10:54:47 AM
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