When I was a kid we’d a crazy little Jack Russell called Patch. He had one blue eye and one brown eye, was white except for the brown patch over his brown eye. His life story is worth of a Disney movie, one where my Mam is the brave heroine rescuing him (and almost losing her life) from a woman who made Cruella DeVille look like Mrs Claus. Anyway, one defining trait of Patch and every other ‘Jack’ I’ve seen is how they ‘carry’ a paw, usually one of the front ones. Now, I asked both Grandads and lots of people, why? The answer everyone said is - Attention or How they fake being injured to lull bigger dogs/animals.
Before you ask, what’s in those sticks Alan got as a gift from an Indian shop in Moscow - NO! I’ve never done any type of drug, so behave! Just, hear me out. This time last year I was to go to India and between the jigs and reels, I didn’t make it. The first time was over a name issue and I was on the way back into Moscow, messaged my friend that I wasn’t heading East after all. He thought I was turned back due to a pending mobilisation announcement. That happened the next day. Now, in that move Russia got in soldiers who recently left contracts with the forces, lads who’d finished their military service and also some specialists from the reserves. Having seen their quick win go out the window when the ex-Israeli PM got a promise from Vladimir Putin that he wouldn’t kill Vladimir Zelensky. Russian troops, idling outside Kiev kept idling. And then in April withdrew, not knowing the conflict would continue after Boris Johnson’s orders to Zelensky. Suddenly Moscow copped that they needed numbers and did it.
At the time and since, I’ve been disappointed with getting more bodies to throw in. The lies and madness surrounding the mobilisation here were infuriating. The truth, if told right, would have been far more impactful in the West. I still begin to get emotional remembering videos made of men hopping onto buses in Moscow, villages near Voronezh and Ulyanovsk. All I read about, in western media, was Siberian ethnic groups, Dagestan and “poor people” being dragged up. It was lies. all lies and it hurt to see it, when again the truth was far more compelling. But the “western for corrs” who tremble at the thought of leaving their cafes in Moscow relied on stringers or rumours. Dagestan has one of the lowest military service rates among young men, because they typically run away, give fake documents, lie or bribe. Being actually made to go train terrified many. Siberian ethnic groups pride themselves on their fighting ability and “poor people”, the poor fight the rich man’s wars.
For over a year there have been constant mobilisations in Ukraine. 100s of 1000s of men have left the country and there is no extradition process to send them home. Last week that began the madness. The Polish newspaper’s headline was pure clickbait and of course, media Google translated and ran with it. They’d begun extraditing, were beginning, were about to and on and on. Suddenly Austria said they wouldn’t extradite men. Poland’s border police said only with good cause. And on. And on. Meanwhile, Kiev passed a law to mobilise women. And people with ‘mild disabilities’. Videos keep coming of men being pressganged into service. Daily I see them on Ukrainian channels and I keep count of how many men are stuffed into vans or cars and driven away. It’s 1 in 11. And most of the time women, girls and older men intervene to stop it. But the one thing I keep asking and have asked people who know far, far better than me in Ukraine - Why?
Back to the Jack Russell thing. Ukraine’s professional and amateur football leagues are in full operation. They have teams in Europe. Shaktar Donetsk will play Barcelona in the Champions League. Surely Ukrainian players can let a Mother stay home with her family and go serve at the front, or drive trucks? I mean, they’re fit, active young men. My friend Filip, who lives on Ukraine’s Black Sea coast, sent me photos of the waterfront with lots of young men enjoying their lives. Ganna, a sociologist from Kiev and former colleague in a Russian Uni, told me that her institution have raised fees by 75% this year. Almost double, yet their intake was 128% of the plan. Across Ukraine universities have upped fees by 50-170%, she showed me the figures and admissions are up. Boom time for universities that present young men with “excuse slips” from military service. But despite that, she says, Ukraine has at least 1 million men of fighting age they can call on.
So why the children, old, infirm and women? Why are these desperate measures coming out now? I asked a retired Ukrainian officer. One who, until 2017, had served with the Ukrainian navy and who maintained contact with Russian counterparts. He accepts that Crimea should be in Russia, that Donbass should have a new vote and that there should be criminal courts for the worst offenders and truth, peace & reconciliation commissions for the country. He had this to offer.
We (Ukraine) don’t need to drag people from the street, or extradite. You call someone up, they refuse, you block them from social service, travel abroad, take away passports, deny voting, all measures. You don’t drag them from their cars or beds. What is this Tsarist Russia? No, this is all without reason. That is, good reason. Reason that military planning wants.
I asked him, so why is it happening?
Look how poor we are! Please Joe Biden, give us long range weapons. Please, whoever, we need this, that, billions for an election. So, it’s this. Give more, poor Ukraine. Or it’s for all those bloodthirsty dogs here and in the West - we have nothing left to give. Our men are dead, now we offer the girls and sick people. It is for attention or to stop all this.
I thought about it yesterday when the G20 rounded on the US and their allies in refusing to condemn any side, instead calling for peace. Emmanuel Macron, the man who could barely speak or be heard over the boos of his own people in Paris on Friday evening, said “Russia is now isolated.” ‘Patch’ Scholz said the same thing - “Russia is now isolated.” I thought, lads, come on. Have ye not been following the speeches? Or don’t ye listen to little people? Obviously not. Macron has told he will not let the French Ambassador leave Niger, a huge break with diplomatic protocol. Can you imagine the reaction if Neale Richmond got his way in Ireland and a decision was taken to make the Russian Ambassador persona-non-grata - and Vladimir Putin said, he stays where he is lads. However when you consider France used to own Niger and desperately needs cheap resources from there…..
But back to the Jack Russell thing. Is Kiev softening up their cheerleaders for death with a move towards peace? Was Anthony Blinken’s 2-day visit to iron out how they’ll back down, get a ceasefire going and hold elections next year? Are they just looking for more weapons? What’s not clear is just how much Moscow is in the loop. Right now, Ukraine is losing 1000s of men a week and the material losses means replacements have nothing to fight with. Peace and reconciliation need to come quickly. Ukraine can mobilise enough fit, young men to keep fighting for 4-5 years (according to the ex-officer) but they need weapons and machines. So just what is going on? I have no clue. I’ve laid out possibilities and it could be one of them, all of them, or none of them. But if something happens to stop this dying that’s all being done in vain, then it’s a good thing. Because ultimately, the men, women and children in Ukraine and Russia who have died won’t be around to enjoy the peace.
history repeats itself,,, canon fodder. The white feather in first world war now the digital age yet the corporates still make money at the expense of lives