The Stan R. Mitchell report for 3/1/22.
Discover more from The View from the Front. By Stan R. Mitchell.
The Stan R. Mitchell report for 3/1/22.
Happy Tuesday, everyone! Hope your week is off to a great start!
I will again almost entirely focus on Ukraine this edition, while including some motivation and wisdom at the end.
Russian forces, under the control of Putin, pressed deeper into Ukraine since the last newsletter on Friday.
Here’s the latest map I could find of the situation. (It’s about 3-5 hours old, depending on when you read this.)
You’ll note if you click the link that the Russians have nearly created their southern land bridge, which they wanted to establish so that they could better supply and control the Crimean Peninsula, which they invaded in 2014.
One other thing you’ll note while studying the map is that in the northern part of the invasion, there are three main pushes. That brings up this point:
So far at least, the Ukrainians have inspired the world with their fierce defense and unbreakable resilience.🇺🇦💪
But a convoy that extends for more than 40 miles, closing in on the capital of Kyiv?
Dark and vicious plans to encircle a city of 3 million, laying a suffocating siege to it? (See below.)
Without question, I fear what the days and weeks ahead will bring... 😢😭
This could be more horrific than even our worst fears. If you want a reminder of how bad this can get, take two mins to scroll through the Siege of Sarajevo, which lasted almost four years. (Fourteen thousand died in that battle and Sarajevo only had roughly 400,000 inside of it. Kyiv has nearly 3 million.)
But to present a counter view (because I never want to simply provide only my views), retired U.S. Army General Hertling said he’s not too concerned about the convoy.
I absolutely hope he’s completely right and that if the war doesn’t end, then these are simply thin-skinned targets for Ukrainians to take out (or Russians to abandon).
From a high-level view, there are three things that the Ukrainians have to hold onto at this point.
First, their sheer size as a country and their audacious (and unbreakable) spirit. To their size, I present this:
And to their audacious (and unbreakable) spirit, I share this as just one view of how they are rallying and standing strong. This is one of literally hundreds of examples.
The second thing that the Ukrainians have to hold onto at this point is that a dozen mostly European countries are now flooding in weapons to help Ukraine. Weapons are coming from Germany, Sweden, Norway, the Netherlands, Italy, etc., including Europe sending 70 fighter planes to Ukraine.
These weapons will help tremendously. Best of all, they include anti-air and anti-tank weapons, both of which the Ukrainians desperately need. Here’s just one example (there are many more):
The third and final thing that the Ukrainians have to hold onto at this point is that the response from the U.S. and Europe is wrecking the economy of Russia.
CNN reports that Russia faces financial a meltdown as sanctions slam its economy. Even if you don’t want to read that story, you can see a simple summary view on the effects of these sanctions below:
Yes, you read that correctly. Russia’s central bank more than doubled its key interest rate to 20%. Here’s more:
And Putin had hoped to use his reserves to prepare for these sanctions. But there’s a problem with that idea. Actually, a big one.
I hate what these sanctions will do to the Russian people.
It’s not their fault that Putin is both an irrational tyrant and a delusional nutcase. But sometimes in life, you must feel great pain in order to force change. And it’s my great hope that by mis-calculating, Putin has ensured his own demise.
If that isn’t the final result, then I hope the West can find an off-ramp that Putin can take. Something to mitigate this horrific mistake he’s made. And while it’s tempting to want to punish him and see this out to the end (with him under the heavy boot of some oligarch/general or a few thousand Russian civilians dragging him out into the streets), he’s sitting on thousands of nukes and he’s not showing the greatest mental clarity right now.
I think a safer (and saner) bet is that perhaps a ceasefire can be arranged and the West can promise some easing up of sanctions as progress is made in de-escalation. Because otherwise, until that final result occurs, this is only going to turn out a whole lot worse for a whole lot of people.
Okay, I know today was heavy. (It’s impossible for it not to be right now, unfortunately.)
Nonetheless, let’s end with some motivation and wisdom.
We will begin with one from Ukraine. Last week, I highlighted the incredible leadership of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. On that same note, how about this from the First Lady of Ukraine?! How inspiring?!
Now, for some more typical motivation and wisdom.
That’s it for this edition. As a reminder, please be kind and endeavor to love your fellow Americans. We need to pull this country together, and that starts with all of us.
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Semper Fidelis,
Stan R. Mitchell
P.S. Don’t forget to check out my books. I’ve written a CIA/Marine sniper series, a detective series, a private investigator series, an action-packed Western, a leadership/biography book, and two realistic war novels: one about World War II and one about Afghanistan.
About me: I am a proud vet and moderate, who wants to unite this country. I’m also a proud independent author, who used to own a small weekly newspaper for nine years that was probably (in hindsight) too generous on pricing to my advertisers and too lenient on my collection terms (I’m honestly just almost too nice). I also sought to downplay controversy, understate headlines, and never create panic, all of which is a terrible way to sell newspapers (but a responsible way for a media outlet to act). Looking back, it’s clear I had (and have) a big heart and that I wasn’t made to be some kind of cut-throat business executive. It’s this same streak in me that prevents me from signing any book deals, even big ones. I just don’t trust ruthless business executives at the big publishers. And even if I did, that very same company that I trusted could be bought and purchased overnight. Sorry, but I’ll pass on that. The truth is that while I’ve relented and signed some distribution deals, such as the one I did with Audible for my Nick Woods series, I’m just not willing to be owned by any of the big publishing houses. If I want to speak out on China? I will. If I want to send free books to military members? I will. (And I have.) I don’t ever plan to be owned by some New York publishing house. (The only person I answer to on this earth is my wife and I plan to keep it that way.) My success to this point has been made by doing it the right way: gaining one new reader or one new subscriber at a time. So join me on my journey. Let’s build a community of like-minded Americans, who believe in this country and in our fellow citizens (even those on the other side of the aisle). People who believe in small businesses and independent dreamers on their own journey, whether it’s owning a small farm or staying autonomous in their creative fields. And when it comes to politics? No name calling. No screaming. Just honest discussion and a genuine search for the truth. In the end, we truly all want the same: good government, unity throughout our land, and ethical leadership.
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More about Stan R. Mitchell:
BACKGROUND
— Prior infantry Marine, who earned the rank of Sergeant and a Combat Action Ribbon in 1997.
— 10+ plus years in print journalism, 20+ years of creative writing.
— Super picky reader, who hates slow-moving books. Also super ambitious, with his sights set on the very top of the fiction world. (See this article: Writers are crazy, and I’m crazier than most.)
ACCLAIM
“Mitchell’s writing style is sharp, snappy, cinematic, and impacts with the trauma of a hollowpoint to the head.” — Author Mark Allen
SUCCESS
Mitchell tackles his writing with skill that will blow you away. He’s sold 70,000-plus copies and had thousands of reviews on Amazon and Goodreads. Plus, all of his books average 4+ stars on Amazon.