“….. that there is no good for a human being except what creates justice, self-control, courage and freedom and nothing evil except what destroys these things.”
Emperor Marcus Aurelius – Meditations 8.1
As of this writing, the war in Ukraine has created anxiety and shortages around the world. At this point in the war, we know that even if the Russians used nuclear bombs, and the Ukrainians had nothing but sticks and stones, Russia would still lose. The reason Russia can’t win has nothing to do with weapons technology or aid from the West, despite what Europeans and Americans might feel. Their losses have everything to do with what has happened in Russia.
As the historian, Will Durant observed, “A great civilization is not conquered from without until it has first destroyed itself from within.” This is true now, as it has been throughout all of history. For proof of this, let’s begin with a story from the late Iron Age in the Middle East:
Enter the Prophet Jeremiah
The Old Testament prophet Jeremiah was known as the ‘weeping prophet’, though he could have been rightly called the ‘cursing prophet’ because of the brutal things he said to the people of Judah. The Lord has instructed Jeremiah to get the people of Judah to repent or face their inevitable destruction by the Babylonians. This mission was hopeless, and the people remained dedicated to their wickedness, further fueling Jeremiah’s wrath against them.
Jeremiah 3 v 6-10 Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done? She has gone up on every high mountain and under every green tree and there played the harlot (whore).
Jeremiah 2 v 23 – 24 “See thy way in the valley, know what thou hast done……… a wild ass used to the wilderness that snuffs up the wind in (seeking) pleasure.”
Unsurprisingly, comparing your fellow countrymen to a whore turning tricks under a tree or a she-donkey in heat made Jeremiah unpopular. He was so unpopular that they made at least two attempts to kill him. His message of repentance fell on deaf ears and the Jews continued with the greatest of No, No’s, worshipping other gods.
Judah lost God’s favour and got conquered by the Babylonians in 587 BC. ‘Losing God’s favour’ might sound ridiculous, but in a theocracy, it’s downright deadly. Abandoning your god in a theocracy means giving up all that holds society and even families together.
“Beware of your friends. Do not trust anyone in your clan, for every one of them is a deceiver and every friend a liar.” Jeremiah 9 verse 4.
Whatever system of governance you live under, there must be enforcement of standards applicable to all. In a society that enshrines freedom of speech, all may speak even when the majority doesn’t want to hear what some idiot has to say. This applies to many other ‘human’ rights. The result of removing clear guidelines is a society of sociopaths and the only actual law becomes “Every man for himself.”
Ignoring their God, engaging in idol worship, listening to false prophets, unable to trust each other, and reveling in their debauchery, the city-state of Judah was out of control. As Marguerite Yourcenar said of the Romans, they were “…poisoning themselves with excess.” This made the Judeans weak and easy pickings for the Babylonians because, as always, excess and permissiveness are the breeding ground of:
Corruption – A
It is better to have one man steal ten million dollars than to have 1,000 men steal $100 each.
True or False?
True
Most people assume that the theft of money is the worst part of corruption, but it’s not. The actual worst thing about corruption is the loss of standardized institutional knowledge and procedure. Jeremiah found out the hard way, being honest amongst crooks is a good way to get yourself killed. CGP Grey has a great video named “Rules for Rulers” which has a link in the “Resources” section at the bottom of this post. The video is helpful for understanding how countries run, and it explains why leaders promote people most like themselves.
Besides going to jail, what do these men have in common?
They followed this man
Similarly, when a country has a leader that engages in assassinating political rivals and personal enrichment through the looting of national natural resources, then his subordinates will be like-minded. Keeping a cohort of greedy people under control is no simple task. The preferred methods are:
A. Pay them off with ever greater sums of money as suggested by CGP Grey
B. Have them so deeply involved in a conspiracy of corruption that there is no escape.
There is a third and more violent option that has become popular in Russia, of late.
An overly common opinion is that if the top leadership gets removed, things would be different. This is the ‘Regime change’ fallacy that certain people always babble about. It’s never that simple. At each level of the command structure, there must be a subordinate who will do something immoral or at least turn pretend to be blind when they see a corrupt act. Even if the top is removed, certain evil practices continue.
Does this mean that everyone in the Russian government is a crook?
No, that’s as idiotic as saying “All white people are racists.”
It’s not true.
What is true is that this constant undermining of the country’s finances has an actual effect on the war.
Fuel to run military vehicles isn’t there, training for soldiers that was paid for doesn’t happen, and money for food, clothing, and medicine has disappeared. The longer the war lasts, the worse the corruption will get, creating a death spiral.
Why should a Russian soldier maintain discipline, fight and follow orders if all he sees is corruption? He doesn’t, which leads to
Corruption – B
At this rate of Russian retreats and surrenders, even the French look brave
Why don’t more Russian soldiers stand and fight? Also, why steal washing machines?
The answer is also ‘corruption’ but of something different.
Let’s ask, “Who would you fight for?” There is no shortage of keyboard commandos promoting war, invasions, and terrorist/racist violence as long as they don’t get dirty or suffer any inconvenience (SEE NO.13 on this list). But who would you suffer for? Who would you get a gun, live in the dirt, and put yourself in harm’s way to protect? Close your eyes for a second, ask yourself this question, and see whose faces pop up. Except for Elon Musk’s fanboys, the faces most people envision are our mothers, wives, children, and perhaps even our fathers.
People don’t enjoy being killed for the enrichment of billionaires. We might take great personal risks to get ourselves richer, but not for other people. This is what Russian conscripts are being asked to do and they are to do it without the guns, bullets, and supplies that THEIR TAXES PAID FOR. Under such conditions, surrendering or even switching sides makes sense.
As for the washing machines, what other loot can they get? All the actual money is flowing away from them. It will take a miracle for them to get paid for their injuries or for their families to get death benefits when they get killed.
The economic and military corruption has corrupted the Russian soldiers’ will to fight. There is little chance that the Ukrainian troops will set foot on Russian soil, therefore Russian conscripts have little that they would defend to the death.
Fighting to the last washing machine sounds stupid.
A decisive battle is one where both sides clearly understand who has won and who has lost. They have already fought all the decisive battles of this war. New or different weapons and more men mean nothing if a soldier’s will to fight is broken.
If people will fight for their own homes and own families, how do you get citizens to fight foreign wars? The answer is you:
Bullshit – 1
Do you remember when he found weapons of mass destruction and brought freedom to all Iraqis? Me neither. What Iraq has now that it did not have before Operation Iraqi Freedom is American oil companies.
The encomienda system of the Spanish conquistadores, the ‘civilizing influence of the British, and the ‘rescue’ of the Egyptians by the Kushites all have the same thing in common – “Greed” by another name.
What the invaders always offer is the exchange of intangible ideas for very tangible goods.
The Kushites having been conquered by Egypt, adopted their ways and religion. A few generations later, they felt Egypt had become ‘decadent’, so they conquered the country to ‘restore’ order to the Egyptians.
The encomienda system of the Spaniards ‘converted’ the Native Americans of Central and South America to Catholicism in exchange for their gold and silver. The British gifted their efficiency of governance in return for everything that wasn’t nailed down in their territories.
As for the USA, ‘freedom’, ‘democracy’, and ‘fighting communism’ come at a high price. If you doubt this, ask the people of Chile, Cuba, El Salvador, Vietnam, etc. Somebody has to pay for all of their weaponry so it may as well be the people who get invaded liberated by the US Army.
The de-Nazification of Ukraine is no less plausible than anything mentioned above. In exchange for the kind favour of getting rid of Nazis – or Satanists which is equally plausible – the Russians gain abundant natural gas reserves, five percent of the world’s mineral resources, oil, wheat, and unlimited household appliances.
The Ukrainians should consider themselves blessed!
Human Greed and Pride are the true banners of colonialism, expansionism, and empire-building. But it is foolish to assume that the ruling class of any country would only steal from other nations to enrich themselves. Examine the true winners of BREXIT and ask how much bullshit did they create to win the vote? As bad as this is when it comes to bullshit
Bullshit – 2
To get others to buy into your crap, you must think and speak as if you believe it yourself. With a decade of experience as a political speechwriter, I share an unpleasant truth for all would-be bullshitters, “Never trust your own bullshit.”
To reach this level of assery on the battlefield, the Russians bathed in their own bullshit. Here are a few things they had to disregard:
- How willing the Ukrainians were to fight
- The level of support from NATO
- Support of other Slavic nations
- A total underestimation of Zelensky as a leader – Yes, we all thought he was only a clown.
- Sanctions and their effects – Yes, everyone knew they were coming
- Most notably, the belief that Ukraine would never adapt or counteract Russian strategies in a war that STARTED IN 2014.
Know thy enemy and know yourself. Then, in one hundred battles you will never be in peril.
Sun Tzu – The Art of War
Refusing to change up BS is always an act of prideful self-deception. Using the same method and strategy in a conflict that has lasted for almost a decade must lead to defeat. Combat, whether between men or nations, requires frequent changes in tactics. There is a video that proves this point. Warning: the video contains violent combat sports but if you want to see the annoying prick Prince Naseem Hamed get lifted off his feet by a punch, click the link in ‘Resources’.
Conclusion: Lessons in Personal Development From The Russo-Ukraine War
Russia is losing the Ukraine War, not because of the military technology or tactics of the Ukrainians but because their underlying social structures have been weakened over several decades. The habits of the Russian political machinery are the country’s downfall.
As the affairs of countries so too are the affairs of men at the personal level.
“If you live a pathological life, you pathologize your society and if enough people do that, then it’s hell.. . . decide if that’s a place you’d like to visit or even more importantly if it’s a place you’d visit AND take all of your family and friends….”
Dr. Jordan Peterson.
One pathological person exploiting the pathologies of their society until it fractures or collapses is a tale as old as time. Whether you lived in the time of Jeremiah, Germany between 1933 – 1945, Uganda 1971 – 1979, United States 3rd November 2020 – 6th January 2021 or present-day Russia, the same pathological mindset always leads to death and ruin.
Across the centuries, the people who follow the pathological personality give the same reason for participating. “I was only following orders”, “they misled me”, “We weren’t really serious (It was all a joke), and “He tricked us into doing this” These same themes have shown up from the Spanish Inquisition to convictions of the January 6th US Capitol attackers.
Reality shows that the truth is more banal. Most people are lazy. Intellectual, moral and spiritual laziness (Deadly Sin: Sloth) causes people not to think. Being better tomorrow than you are today requires work and a touch of discipline as opposed to just thinking you are better.
Key Takeaways:
Don’t poison yourself with excess – Whether the excess is alcohol, drugs, social media, etc avoid it. Moderation in all things.
Avoid being corrupted and do not corrupt others – Like cancer unchecked corruption spreads and kills.
The first principle is that you must not fool yourself and you are the easiest person to fool.
Richard Feynman
Other people find it easier to bullshit you when you bullshit yourself.
Being intellectually and spiritually lazy today makes your life harder tomorrow.
In the post “Why Should I Be Good” it’s explained that there are concrete reasons to live not only a good life but a life of goodness. Get started on that after you leave a question or a comment concerning implementing the key takeaways. I’ll see you in the next post.
PS
These are ANXIOUS times!! if you suffer from mild anxiety or depression, writing can help. This Web MD article explains some of the mental health benefits of keeping a journal. There are other benefits of writing which you can read about in this post, “4 Reasons You Need To Write, Often”.
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