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The principles that rule this blog

Principles that will govern my thoughts as I express them here (from my opening statement):


  • Freedom of the individual should be as total as possible, limited only by the fact that nobody should be free to cause physical injury to another, or to deprive another person of his freedoms.
  • Government is necessary primarily to provide those services that private enterprise won't, or won't at a price that people can afford.
  • No person has a right to have his own beliefs on religious, moral, political, or other controversial issues imposed on others who do not share those beliefs.

I believe that Abraham Lincoln expressed it very well:

“The legitimate object of government is to do for a community of people whatever they need to have done, but cannot do, at all, or cannot
so well do, for themselves — in their separate, individual capacities.”


Comments will be invited, and I will attempt to reply to any comments that are offered in a serious and non-abusive manner. However, I will not tolerate abusive or profane language (my reasoning is that this is my blog, and so I can control it; I wouldn't interfere with your using such language on your own!)

If anyone finds an opinion that I express to be contrary to my principles, they are welcome to point this out. I hope that I can make a rational case for my comments. Because, in fact, one label I'll happily accept is rationalist.

Monday, April 21, 2014

What will happen in Ukraine?

Already we have seen the Crimea detach itself from Ukraine, ultimately to join Russia — where it belonged until 1954, when Nikita Khrushchev transferred it to the Ukrainian SSR (of course, Khrushchev was himself a Ukrainian, which might have had something to do with it). Other parts of Eastern Ukraine want to do the same thing, and many of the people in the area are ethnically Russian, not Ukrainian, so it can be justified on self-determination grounds. The Ukrainian government is trying to hold onto these areas, and succeeding in some places. But should they?

There's been an agreement between Russia and Ukraine that, in theory, leaves those areas in Ukraine. But nobody seems to believe that Vladimir Putin will really hold off his attempts to take at least some of these territories for Russia. And I think, as I've said earlier, it really makes sense to divide Ukraine and give to Russia the areas where the culture is Russian, not Ukrainian. Let's face it, this leaves a more homogeneous Ukraine, which can be more European, as the majority of its citizens want, without offending the Russian-speaking minority, which should be free to join Russia if they want.

But will Ukraine, and the world, allow this? I wish they would, but I have no confidence that they will.

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