The Collective West Has a Collective Objectivity Problem
By Jon Kurpis
Introduction
By historical standards, the war in Ukraine is a complex and ghastly ordeal. Adding to its challenges is the failure of officials and citizens alike to remain objective, as is absolutely necessary in matters of such magnitude. We have essentially taken a difficult and delicate situation and turned it into a diplomatic and military catastrophe. Worse still, we are actively undermining US strategic interests while allowing hundreds of thousands of young Ukrainians to die needlessly in the process.
As someone who demands the truth, I have always gone to great lengths to fact check and make sure what I read and write is accurate. Because of that disciplined approach, I have consistently been able to enlighten readers on issues they were unaware of or clearly lay out the facts in cases where they had been misinformed.
There is something extraordinarily gratifying about providing information that resonates with everyone from a working man to an intellectual powerhouse. That is a big reason why I dedicate time and energy to writing about difficult subjects. Over the years, I have been fortunate enough to earn the trust of even the most skeptical and demanding readers. And at the very least, I have managed to establish a baseline of shared truth.
To my surprise and frustration, the war in Ukraine has been uniquely challenging in terms of educating people about the basic facts. For reasons I am still trying to fully understand, formerly open minded and intelligent Americans and Europeans have refused to assess this conflict with any level of logic or honest reflection.
Time and time again, I encounter people across the Collective West who no longer feel any need to revisit their views on the war, even though these are people who used to pride themselves on that very instinct. And I am not just talking about the stubborn neocons and neoliberals who are always hell-bent on perpetuating forever wars. I am talking about the cerebral antiwar crowd too. Many of them are clinging to false beliefs despite having been presented with clear and overwhelming information that contradicts their position.
That kind of mindset, closed off to change and immune to fact, has real implications for America. Our economy, our military, our currency, our national security, and our foreign policy all rely on one thing: the ability of Americans to listen, to think, and when necessary, to pivot and change course. If we cannot do that, we will eventually lose everything that made this country great.
And it all starts with objectivity. With having the intellectual discipline to analyze matters of existential importance with the seriousness they demand. Like this war. Because once you strip away the preferred media narratives, the entire situation becomes crystal clear. The fog is lifted easily as it’s self imposed by our collective refusal to stay objective and think critically.
To that end, I am dedicating the remainder of this article and a follow up Part II to laying out five objective facts about the war in Ukraine. These are not opinions. They are not Putin talking points. They are not rhetorical devices or Russian propaganda. They are independently verifiable truths that any honest person can see once given fair consideration.
If you read this article in full and still find yourself unable to accept these facts, then I would strongly encourage you to take a second look at your information sources. Something is wrong and it’s certainly not my work.
I humbly request that you approach this material with the focus and discipline required to fully understand each example. That is the only way to build a foundation of truth which is absolutely essential if we are going to have real discussions about the issues that actually matter.
Ukraine Cannot Win The War
When it comes to military conflict, three factors are decisive: manpower, production capacity, and nuclear weapons.
Everything else is secondary.
• The side with more soldiers can outlast the one with fewer
• The side that can build and replace more ammunition, artillery, and weapons will win over the one that cannot
• And if it ever comes to it, the side with the bigger nuclear arsenal decides how the story ends
As it stands:
• Russia has far more soldiers than Ukraine and is adding over 1000 new recruits per day
• Russia’s production capacity beats not just Ukraine’s, it beats Europe’s and America’s combined
• And yes, Russia has the largest nuclear arsenal on earth
Even if the United States and every NATO country gave Ukraine their entire inventory of conventional weapons and ammo, it would still eventually run out. And there is no current way to replace those stockpiles fast enough to keep up.
Russia, on the other hand, has everything it needs to continue fighting indefinitely. They have the factories. They have the raw materials. They are building tanks, jets, missiles, and artillery at levels we cannot match right now.
For the record, the US military and intelligence community severely underestimated Russia’s resiliency and industrial capacity. Even so, they still knew Ukraine could never win if it came down to production. That is why they pinned the entire war effort on US lead economic sanctions. More on that next.
Bottom line: Ukraine cannot win this war. They could not win it in 2022, and they cannot win it now. The math is what it is.
US Sanctions Against Russia Are A Failure
We were told the sanctions would cripple Russia. That they would topple Putin and collapse his regime. What actually happened was the exact opposite.
• Russia’s economy is growing at 4.1 percent
• Real wages are up since the war began
• Many countries including the US are still trading with them
• In terms of support at home and abroad, Putin is stronger now than ever.
And it is not for lack of effort. The United States and its EU partners hit Russia with more than 28,000 sanctions. But Russia adapted quickly in ways the Collective West never saw coming. They secured massive deals with non-Western nations like China and India who were more than happy to buy cheap oil in bulk. They implemented their own system after being removed from SWIFT. They shifted trade away from the dollar and started using other currencies.
The bigger issue is this: The rest of the world noticed!
Other countries saw what happened to Russia and realized how easily the US could use its financial system as a weapon against them. As a result, many began taking steps to reduce their own reliance on the dollar. US sanctions ended up accelerating de dollarization and pushing the world further away from our financial networks.
The sad truth is this: Former President Biden’s sanctions on Russia have been an unmitigated disaster. For America, they weakened our influence, disrupted world markets and hurt the dollar in the longterm. But for Russia, the sanctions turned out to be manageable and ultimately an unexpected opportunity.
Russia Is Not the Soviet Union
What I am about to say should be obvious. It should not need to be said. But here it is: Modern Russia is not the Soviet Union.
The two systems could not be more different.
The Soviet Union was a single party communist regime that controlled every aspect of life. It was based on Marxist Leninist ideology and it sought confrontation with the West. Today’s Russia is nothing like that. It is a federal republic with a capitalist economy.
Whereas the Soviet system was closed off, modern Russia depends on global trade, especially energy exports, to fuel its economy. The Russian state does not own all industries. The government is not exporting communism. They are not trying to remake the world in their image.
Two points here are key:
First, when the Soviet Union collapsed in the late 80s and early 90s, everyone rejoiced. Not just Germans, Poles, and Ukrainians. The Russian people, including Putin, were just as happy to move past that failed ideology and way of life. Russia has no interest in bringing it back.
Second, we have to remember what made the Soviet Union an actual threat to the United States. It was not just that they had nukes. It was that they rejected our system, sought to spread communism worldwide, and were building the arsenal to back that mission up. Modern Russia does none of that. It may have its own political structure, but at its core it aligns with many of our values, especially anti communism and Christian identity.
Russia is not looking for a fight with the United States. They do not hate our culture. They do not see us as enemies. They see us as cultural equals, fellow Christian nations, and potentially strong trading partners.
Saying Russia is the Soviet Union is just as ridiculous as saying modern Germany is still Nazi Germany. It is an intellectually lazy comparison, and it collapses the moment you actually look at the facts.
This ends Part I of The Collective West Has a Collective Objectivity Problem. If you made it this far and did so objectively, it should be clear that Ukraine cannot win the war, sanctions didn’t work, and modern Russia is not the Soviet Union. Check back for Part II in the coming days. The final two facts are a bit more complex and a lot more interesting.
Jon Kurpis
Email | jonkurpis@protonmail.com
Twitter/X | [at] kurpis
Disclaimer:
This Substack is a personal platform and reflects only my individual thoughts, opinions, and perspectives. Nothing published here should be interpreted as official communication or correspondence in my capacity as a councilman. The views expressed do not represent the positions of the Borough of Saddle River, its governing body, or any other elected official or municipal entity.
Very well written article article. You make some excellent points and brought out a few facts that I didn't know. But don't forget that Russia is still a brutal dictatorship where opposition to Putin is a death sentence.