It wouldn’t feel right to not discuss the events that have transpired over the past few days.
That said, here’s a few of my thoughts.
How to Support Ukraine
I happen to know a colleague who is based in Kyiv, Ukraine. The situation is pretty dire.
He reached out to me and told me the following.
People ask me if I need anything. I don’t, all I want my guys that fight for our freedom alive!
You may donate a «Save Life» fund — they buy and repair things like metal detectors and protective suits for bomb defusers, binoculars, termal vision scopes and such things — https://savelife.in.ua/en/donate/ (they also accept BTC)
Or donate directly to the Army via National Bank of Ukraine — https://bank.gov.ua/en/news/all/natsionalniy-bank-vidkriv-spetsrahunok-dlya-zboru-koshtiv-na-potrebi-armiyi
Instead of glamorizing flags in your social media handles, donate to causes like the above and show your support for those in need affected by this situation.
What is Going on…
The short answer, it’s a total mess.
The conflict itself has been going on since 2014 and for awhile was a long stalemate between Russia and Ukraine. There have been several skirmishes during this time along the neighboring border between the two nations but, things started to escalate around October 2021.
In October 2021, Russia began moving troops and equipment to the Ukrainian border. Fast forward to December 2021, the United States and other NATO allies rejected demands from Russia’s foreign ministry calling for military action to be ceased in Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
So, clearly tensions have been escalating.
On February 24th, 2022 we received the news that Russia launched a military attack on Ukraine.
The aftermath is quite despairing.
My brother who is currently stationed in Fairbanks, Alaska has received deployment notice recently. In our conversations, he’s fairly certain he will likely be deployed to Germany or Ukraine instead of Iraq.
It goes without saying, but I don’t expect this get much lighter anytime soon.
Support those you know in Ukraine through donations and being there for them during these times. They really need it.