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Peter A. McCullough, MD, MPH's avatar

In response to a reader comment, I (John Leake) would like to add the following to my original post in which I posed the question: "Is it possible that certain hawks in Washington want nuclear war with Russia?" To be sure, I do NOT know if certain persons in Washington WANT nuclear war, but I've seen zero evidence of anyone in our government making any effort to deescalate this conflict and seek a negotiated settlement. The doctrine of "unconditional surrender" (urged by Stalin and adopted by Roosevelt and Churchill) against Nazi Germany is now apparently considered the ONLY acceptable doctrine in warfare, but I doubt the rationality of this. Whoever is in charge of our government seems to think that --with an endless supply of Nato weaponry and training going to Ukraine --Ukraine will succeed in pushing Russia out of the eastern territories and Crimea. But is this a truly realistic assumption? Likewise, it is safe to assume that if Putin's back is to the wall, he won't use a tactical (battlefield) nuclear weapon to defend his position? I keep hearing that he stands too far outside of civilized norms to be a negotiating partner, so what is the basis for the assumption he won't use a tactical nuke if his back is to the wall? It reminds me of the assumption that Saddam Hussein DID possess WMD, but would NOT use them against an invading US military. Per the simulation referenced in the Federalist article, it is well understood in military circles that war is a very unpredictable business that can rapidly and unexpectedly escalate. Accidents, miscommunications, and miscalculations may happen, with terrible, unforeseen consequences. Our military establishment knows this, but apparently considers the territorial integrity of Ukraine to be so vital to the interests of the American citizenry that it warrants an all or nothing approach with Russia, even if it means placing the American citizenry at an elevated risk of nuclear war. Finally, the you will note that my post is animated with a general spirit of distrust of the US government and mainstream media. The conduct of our government in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, and Libya--not to mention its catastrophic pandemic response --caused me to lose faith in its prudence and competence.

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Reb's avatar

That was the Ukraine plan! Even the claim of Ukraine firing the missiles because of an incoming Russian missile is false. The goal was to use the missiles as a false flag to draw NATO in, but too many are wising up to the lies coming out of Ukraine and the media! A lot less people fell for this one and it was debunked almost right away. What’s telling is those people with the data available to them knew that it was Ukraine all along, but still threw shade on Russia!

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