The Case for War in Ukraine

So the key, I think, for Total Defense is for our elected officials president, prime minister, and parliamentarians to be honest with the population, explain the threat, talk to the population as if we are adult, and explain here's what we're going to have to do to deal with the threat. It's going to cost money. People going have to make sacrifice. But if we're serious about the threat then we're going to we're going to have to do what's required. That's the beginning of Total Defense.

We face Global challenges, Russia, Iran, North Korea, China, and I believe they're all connected. They are absolutely all connected, the Hamas attack on Israel in October, that was not a coincidence. Who benefited from that attack? Not the Palestinians. The Kremlin, because it distracted us, distracted resources. So we have to think strategically, which means we have to organize ourself getting organized. If we want to protect Freedom, of navigation, sovereignty, human rights, the international rules-based order that Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea hate. So explaining with Clarity what are our interests, and then set priorities.

In 1942, after 3 years of World War II, nothing but disaster for Great Britain. Nazi Germany, the Empire of Japan, Italy: victory, victory, victory, victory, 3 years then December 1941, Pearl Harbor. Now the United States, after disaster, is in the war. And what happened in January of 42? Churchill came to Washington met with President Roosevelt in what was called the Arcadia conference, and they made the decision, this is three years into it (and people are whining about two years in Ukraine) retired three years of disaster for the allies, and they decide Germany first. They had no reason for optimism, but yet, they made the strategic decision, "we are going to have to defeat Germany first, and then we're going to take care of Japan. This is while US Navy ships are still on fire in Pearl Harbor. So the political courage of President Roosevelt, and his ability to communicate to Americans why we had to do this, that was the first organizing step.

And then they made the decision to put together British and American to combine Chiefs of Staff. Now you have a structure that can plan and execute a war effort. I keep going back though, don't forget this was after three years of disaster. We had no reason to be optimistic. We, the US Army, was number 17 in the world, right behind Bulgaria at that time. And our Navy was on fire, or underwater, most of it. So you see, that's why I get a little impatient when people complain about Ukraine. "Oh there's no way they can win." Thank God Roosevelt did not tell Churchill, "...for the sake of Peace. You can't win. Go ahead and let the Germans have whatever," So yet no, they said, "what we believe in is so important that we're going to fight for it no matter how long it takes. We're going to do whatever it takes."

One year later, 1943, the Casablanca conference. Still January 1943, no reason to be optimistic. But these two guys agreed, "unconditional surrender." So a very clearly defined end state for the the war, not, "we we want to get into a position of strength for negotiating." Hell no, we're going to crush Nazi Germany. We're going to crush the Empire of Japan. We're going to crush Italy. And we're going to do everything necessary to achieve that very clearly defined strategic objective.

All right, and then they're able to talk to their populations and say, "Hey guys, we're at War. Everything we care about is at risk." And remember, most Americans did not want to come to Europe for another War, so we had to explain why. And we ended up with 12 million people in uniform by the end of the war. Great Britain ended up with almost 6 million people in uniform. They got the Congress to pass laws that allowed us to organize our economy so that the president could look at the president of Ford Motor Company and said, "You're not going to make any more cars for the next few years, you're going to make tanks." And then he turned to the president of Westinghouse and said, "You're not going to make refrigerators, you're going to make machine guns. And that's what they did. They organized, and got the potential of our Industries producing what was needed to achieve those strategic objectives. That's what we we need now.

How do we get organized so that all the incredible industrial capacity of the West is captured and put to work to defeat Russia first, not "we want to negotiate with Russia and hope for the sake of Peace." No, we we want to crush them, we body slam the hell out of Russia. And Ukrainians are ready to do it, they just need they need tools, we can do it. And I hear, "oh my God, Russia's 7% of the GDP is on Military. Every German I know told me, "Ben, there's no way Russia will invade Ukraine. Russia has the economy of Italy." Okay, big deal, so 7% of the GDP of Italy that that doesn't sound like so much anymore, but if you add together the economy of all of Germany, Poland, France, Baltic countries, Norway, Netherlands, etc., it dwarfs, it dwarfs, Russia. So the only thing we're missing is the heart, the political will to make the decisions necessary to do what Roosevelt and Churchill did.

Do we have the political will? Of course we have the capacity. And of course we have the military capability. Do we have the political will to get organized to defeat Russia first? And when we defeat Russia, I mean like the old fashioned way, defeat them. I'm not talking about invading Russia, I'm talking about kicking them out of Ukraine. Iran will not have any friends, they will not be able to support their proxies. North Korea will be stuck with a bunch of old ammunition and nobody to give it to. And China will say, "oh [ __ ], the West is serious about freedom of navigation, sovereignty, human rights, respect for international law. The West is serious. we're not going to attack anybody."

- General Ben Hodges

My only question is, "Why total?"  This sounds like a plan for nationalizing the world economy, not defeating an economically insignificant country spending 7% of Italy's GDP on weapons.

And then my next question is, WHEN are you going to actually START being honest?  All you've done up until now is LIE and CENSOR DISSENTING OPINIONS.  

My third, WHO are we "sacrificing" FOR?  Oligarch's?  Corporate Interests?  What's in a war of global conquest for the average American who  isn't even granted the courtesy of national citizenship (protected, NOT open borders)?

My last?  If we defeat "Russia first, who's on "second"?  Third?  Fourth?

There are NO arguments in General Hodges speech that justify fighting a war with Russia in Ukraine even IF Ukrainians do all the dying.  It's just an old unchecked box in a Cold/Hot War list of war plans to implement against the USSR if you ask me.  The beginning of never-ending war in support of global hegemony.