. . . you find out that Belarusian dictator Aleksandr Lukashenko is removing children from their parents’ care and placing them in state orphanages on grounds of their being in a “socially dangerous situation.” [Farangis Najibullah and RFE/RL’s Belarus Service, January 22, 2025.]
These are not parents who are criminals, child abusers, drunks or drug addicts. They are people who have been charged with “spreading extremist material” — a civil violation used against those who are critical of the Lukashenko regime. And in cases of parents who may be suspected of a violation but not yet charged, the mere threat of having their children taken away is usually enough to shut them up.
One activist has said — on condition of anonymity — that the definition of “extremist material” is regularly updated by the Interior Ministry, and includes independent media websites that are banned in Belarus. Merely subscribing to, commenting on, or sharing their articles is enough to bring about an accusation of extremism. He also stated:
“A social worker told me that a special commission in the local government spends just 15 minutes per family to discuss and decide whether to add them to the list of those in ‘socially dangerous situations.’” [Id.]
So, on the basis of a 15-minute interview, children can be kidnapped and dumped into state-run orphanages, as punishment to their parents — all so that this tyrant can “win” another “election.”
I do not believe that is what the Old Testament means by “the sins of the father . . .” But neither do I believe that what the Bible says is of any concern to Lukashenko.
This week, it grows by a heartbreaking seven names — three reported on, and four others receiving “honorable mention” — including a Nobel Peace Prize winner in Belarus; an activist whose wife ran against incumbent Aleksandr Lukashenko in Belarus’ 2020 election but was forced into exile; and, in Moscow, a Russian man accused of passing classified information to a U.S. intelligence agency.
We start with this gentleman: Ales Bialiatski, being held in Penal Colony No. 9 in eastern Belarus.
Ales Bialiatski
Bialiatski, age 62 but looking 20 years older, has been labeled an “extremist” by authorities, and as such, has been singled out by the authorities for harsh treatment, including denial of medications, food parcels from home, and contact with relatives, as well as undergoing forced labor and time spent in punishment (solitary confinement) cells.
He was arrested in 2021 in a raid by Belarus’ KGB, and was held without trial until 2023, when he was convicted on charges of smuggling and financing actions that “grossly violated public order.” Labeled “especially dangerous,” he was sentenced to ten years in prison. His wife has not heard from him since August, and a food parcel she had sent him was returned to her in November. Word received via other prisoners is that his health has seriously deteriorated due to his abysmal living conditions and brutal maltreatment. [Yuras Karmanau, AP, January 19, 2025.]
His real crime: working with the Viasna Human Rights Centre of Belarus, helping people targeted by law enforcement . . . thus becoming a target himself.
Viasna’s offices were shut down and six prominent members arrested, including Bialiatski. Four others — Valiantsin Stefanovic, Uladzimir Labkovich, Marfa Rabkova, and Andrei Chapiuk — are serving sentences ranging from five years and nine months to nearly 15 years.
It appears as though a separate list of Lukashenko’s victims may become a tragic necessity.
*. *. *
In 2020, Siarhei Tsikhanouski — a well-known activist opposing the Lukashanko government — announced his intention to run in the presidential election. He was arrested two days later.
Siarhei Tsikhanouski
His wife, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, famously attempted to campaign in his place, and was forced into exile to escape arrest. Recipient of the 2024 Democracy Service Medal awarded by the National Endowment for Democracy, she remains in exile.
She has not heard from her husband for nearly 700 days. [Id.]
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya
*. *. *
And finally — because my soul cannot possibly take any more today — is Dmitry Shatresov, 40, found guilty by the Moscow City Court of “committing high treason in favor of the United States,” as reported to the TASS news agency by Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) (successor to the KGB). [Reuters, January 23, 2025.]
Dmitry Arkadyevich Shatresov – Photo from Moscow Times
The report stated that:
“It was established that Shatresov D.A., having obtained by illegal methods information which constituted state secrets, (and) guided by criminal intent, intended to transfer it to a representative of American Intelligence.” [Id.]
I note that the TASS report states that he “intended to transfer … [information] to … American Intelligence” — not that any such transfer was actually accomplished. Yet he has been sentenced to 17 years in prison.
As of the time of reporting, no response to a request for comment had been received from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, and Shatresov’s lawyer had thus far declined to answer questions. The only personal information in the Reuters report, other than his age, is the fact that he lived in an unspecified city just outside of Moscow, and worked in “logistics.” [Id.]
Is Shatresov actually guilty of attempting to pass classified information to U.S. intelligence? Or is he another victim of Putin’s paranoid purges? As an American, I subscribe wholeheartedly to the belief that an individual should be presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. So — unless and until that happens — he makes my list of those considered to be political prisoners.
Which, sadly enlarged, is as follows . . . lest we forget:
David Barnes Ales Bialiatski (in Belarus) Gordon Black Andrei Chapiuk (in Belarus) Marc Fogle Robert Gilman Stephen James Hubbard Ksenia Karelina Ihar Karney (in Belarus) Vadim Kobzev Andrey Kuznechyk (in Belarus) Uladzimir Labkovich (in Belarus) Michael Travis Leake Aleksei Liptser Ihar Losik (in Belarus) Daniel Martindale Farid Mehralizada (in Azerbaijan) Marfa Rabkova (in Belarus) Igor Sergunin Dmitry Shatresov Robert Shonov Eugene Spector Valiantsin Stafanovic (in Belarus) Siarhei Tsikhanouski (in Belarus) Laurent Vinatier Robert Romanov Woodland Vladislav Yesypenko (in Crimea) Yuras Zyankovich (in Belarus)
To each of you, I wish courage, patience, and safe home.
Would you accept a challenge to sit down at the chess table with this man?
I wouldn’t. But this man has:
And it should be quite a match. On one side, you have a callous, cold-blooded, vengeful, tyrannical, ruthless, vicious, vindictive, autocratic narcissist for whom losing — at anything — is never an option.
While across the table, you have a callous, cold-blooded, vengeful, tyrannical, ruthless, vicious, vindictive, autocratic narcissist for whom losing — at anything — is never an option.
Do you know which is which? It’s nearly impossible to tell them apart, when each believes he’s King of the World. The only discernible difference is that one, as far as the world knows, has never actually had anyone murdered.
I know that in a real-life game of chess, it’s the Queen who dominates, and not the King. But in such a testosterone-laden real-life situation as this one, I thought it best, just this once, to go for political correctness.
The Ultimate Chess Match
*. *. *
The problem is, we’re not talking about a game between friends, or even a professional match offering the winner bragging rights and a possible mention in the Guinness Book of World Records. What we are talking about is the future of 37 million people and the sovereignty of their nation.
That would be Ukraine, of course.
And its future — the fate of its people — rests in the hands of two men who care nothing about anything but their own glory.
So they’ve begun their little tap dance, or dog-and-pony show, or whatever you want to call this farce that masquerades as a diplomatic exchange.
One — the one who doesn’t seem to have killed anyone yet — has posted on his very own social media website:
“If we don’t make a ‘deal,’ and soon, I have no other choice but to put high levels of Taxes, Tariffs, and Sanctions on anything being sold by Russia to the United States, and various other participating countries.” [Steve Gutterman, RFE/RL, January 24, 2025.]
That’s tough talk . . . which, of course, requires a response. So the second tyrant, speaking through his press secretary, says they don’t see “any particularly new elements here.” And then he has his personal favorite TV host broadcast to the people this comforting message:
“What, is it possible to talk to Russia that way? What, are we losing the war? Is the enemy at our gates?” [Id.]
Again, except for the fact that they speak two different languages, they are as indistinguishable as two kids on the playground yelling at each other: “Did so!” “Did not!” “Did so!” “Did not!” . . . until their mothers call them in for dinner.
Only who’s going to call these two in from their playground before they lose control?
And that is precisely what will happen if — as the present occupant of the Oval Office has suggested — Russia is granted possession of an inch of Ukraine’s territory as part of a negotiated settlement.
That . . . and much, much more will happen when Vladimir Putin sets his sights on his next victim: Moldova, perhaps, or one of the Baltic states.
Even worse, now the man in the White House is saying that Ukrainian President Zelensky “shouldn’t have allowed this war to happen . . . Zelenskyy [sic] was fighting a much bigger entity, much bigger, much more powerful. He shouldn’t have done that, because we could’ve made a deal … and Zelenskyy [sic] decided that I want to fight.” [Zac Anderson, USA Today, January 24, 2025.]
No … Surrender Is Not An Option!
True, the guy sitting behind the Resolute Desk is talking about putting more pressure on Putin, primarily in the form of bigger and more punishing sanctions. Big deal. How much good have those sanctions done Ukraine over the past three years? The war continues unabated, and Russia — while unquestionably suffering substantial economic distress — has not ceased to function, and has only increased its brutal attacks on Ukraine’s civilian population. And it has pushed Russia into further tightening its alliances with China, Iran, and other enemies of the Western allies.
And, once again, the person who would advise another world leader to give away pieces of his country overlooks the incontrovertible fact that it is Vladimir Putin — not Volodymyr Zelensky — who is the aggressor, the warmonger . . . the bully. To give him one iota of what he is demanding from Ukraine would only clear the path for his mad march through the rest of Europe.
All of which brings me to the most frightening question of all for that occupant of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue:
If Vladimir Putin — or anyone of his ilk — came banging at the proverbial gates of Washington, would you just do the easy thing and “make a deal”?
And if you have to think for even a nanosecond before answering, then you do not deserve to walk the same halls that once housed the likes of Abraham Lincoln, Franklin Delano Roosevelt and John Fitzgerald Kennedy — presidents who stood up to our would-be oppressors and kept our country safe and free.
I never cease to be amazed at the way the human mind works . . . How a single sound, or picture, or scent can conjure up a memory, which in turn leads to another, and then connects to something entirely different.
Last evening I was listening to the cover of “The Sound of Silence” by the heavy metal band Disturbed, which naturally made me think back to the days of Simon and Garfunkel. And suddenly it was the summer of 1991 again, and I was mentally back in Prague, working in the newly established office of an American law firm and reveling in the excitement of Czechoslovakia’s freedom from Soviet occupation.
The Berlin Wall had come down a year and a half earlier, and the Soviet Union was on the cusp of breaking apart. When I arrived in Prague, it was the week that the last of the Soviet military troops left the city, and the people were in full celebration mode. One of our drivers — a local man named Rudy — had scored a handful of tickets to a concert the following weekend at the Sparta football (soccer to us Americans) stadium . . . and there was a ticket for me.
It was also the “Summer of Mozart” in Prague, commemorating the 200th anniversary of the composer’s birth. Mozart was everywhere — in concerts, posters, memorabilia — and I soaked up as much of it as I could. But the event at the Sparta stadium was special, because the performer was an American star.
I had traveled 4,300 miles to see Paul Simon’s “Born At the Right Time” tour. I just happened to be there at the right time.
Paul Simon – 1991
It was a magical night: a warm summer evening under the stars, the familiar music wafting through the air, younger people from the audience dancing on the stadium grounds . . . and Czech President Vaclav Havel in attendance, clearly visible from our seats.
One of the women in our office had a tape of an earlier Simon & Garfunkel concert and brought it into the office, where we had a boombox (remember those?). One of the songs on that tape was “Homeward Bound,” and as the summer wore on — though it was clearly the best summer of my life — I became a little homesick and played that one song over and over again, until I nearly wore the tape out.
When it was time to leave my new Czech “family” and return home to the U.S., though, it was with a heavy heart. That summer had given me so much: my first experience of living as an expatriate; immersion in the culture and history of a place that had survived World War II and occupations by Nazi Germany and the USSR; the music of Mozart; side trips to castles, mountains, and a town called Pisek; all of the sights, sounds, tastes and smells of a previously unfamiliar place; and a raft of wonderful new friends.
Old Town Prague
*. *. *
“The Sound of Silence” was on that tape too. And I had always considered the Simon & Garfunkel arrangement to be unbeatable. But not long ago, younger family members suggested I listen to a version of it by someone (or something) called “Disturbed.”
“Who?” I asked.
“Never mind who it is; just listen,” they told me.
So I did, on YouTube, with the video of a man with a strong, gravelly voice and the most compelling eyes: David Draiman, lead singer of a heavy metal band called Disturbed. And . . . full disclosure here . . . I was transfixed, transported, and transformed. It is now the only version of that song that I can listen to. It is mesmerizing.
Heavy metal? Me?!! Never! Except for this one song by this one singer.
Sorry, Paul and Art. I love you still; and to this day, “Homeward Bound” takes me back to that unforgettable summer in Prague and Paul’s concert at the Sparta stadium.
But — though in an aesthetic sense it does “disturb” me to admit it — Disturbed’s rendition of “The Sound of Silence” wins the day.
I’ve been thinking that someone needs to say thank you to those public figures who are demonstrating the integrity and the courage to speak out about some of the things that are happening in our country today. And — although none of those people are likely ever to have read my blog or FB posts — I can’t think of any reason why that someone shouldn’t be me. So . . .
I would like to start with the Episcopal Bishop of Washington, Mariann Edgar Budde, who — during a service at the National Cathedral on the day before the presidential inauguration — directed a plea at the then President-elect “to have mercy upon the people in our country who are scared right now.” She was referring specifically to his executive orders, based on his earlier campaign promises, concerning wholesale immigrant deportations and anti-LGBTQ+ actions. In his inimitable fashion, he later called Bishop Budde a “Radical Left hard line Trump hater [who is] not very good at her job,” and demanded an apology. She has refused to apologize for having asked for mercy for others. [Brian Bennett, Time, January 22, 2025.]
That took integrity and courage.
Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde
*. *. *
Next is a woman about whom I have already written — just yesterday, in fact. She is Pamela Hemphill, a resident of Idaho who took part in the storming of the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, pled guilty, was convicted of a misdemeanor, and served her sentence of 60 days in prison plus probation and a fine. And now she has refused the pardon offered by Donald Trump because, in her words, “We were wrong that day. Accepting a pardon would only insult the Capitol police officers, rule of law and, of course, our nation. I pleaded guilty because I was guilty, and accepting a pardon also would serve to contribute to their gaslighting and false narrative.” [BBC News, January 22, 2025.]
Integrity and courage.
Pamela Hemphill
*. *. *
Next we have The Honorable John Coughenour, Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington, who issued a temporary restraining order yesterday, blocking Trump’s executive order ending birthright citizenship and labelling it as “blatantly unconstitutional.”
A Ronald Reagan appointee, Judge Coughenour issued the order in response to a request by Washington’s Attorney General Nick Brown and three other Democratic-led states, as an emergency measure while more legal challenges are being prepared.
Integrity and courage.
Judge John C. Coughenour
*. *. *
And it’s not just Americans who are speaking out. I cannot overlook a Danish Member of European Parliament (MEP), Anders Vistisen, who is a member of the right-wing Danish People’s Party and had this to say at an EU session in Strasbourg, France, this week:
“Dear President Trump, listen very carefully: Greenland has been part of the Danish kingdom for 800 years. It is an integrated part of our country. It is not for sale.” He the added:
“. . . in words you might understand: Mr. Trump, f—- off.” [Charles Creitz, Fox News, January 22, 2025.]
MEP Vistisen received a formal reprimand from EP Vice President Nicolae Stefanuta for his use of language that is not permitted in that venue. But even the reprimand carried its own subtle message:
“If the translation was correct, the term you used is not allowed in this House, and there will be consequences to the message you have used. It is not OK in this House of Democracy. Regardless of what we think of Mr. Trump, it is not possible to use such language.” [Id.] [Bold emphasis is mine.]
MEP Vistisen’s closing words were unquestionably rude, and certainly not within the normal boundaries of international protocol. But he spoke with honesty and passion in defense of his country, irrespective of the risk of censure.
That, too, took integrity and courage.
MEP Anders Vistisen
*. *. *
Whether or not we agree with an individual’s political beliefs, their verbiage, or the timing of their statements, we — as citizens of the United States — must never lose sight of the inviolability of our Constitution, the rule of law, and the system of checks and balances placed upon our elected and appointed leaders.
The same Constitution guarantees us the right to speak out. Most of us, as individuals, do not have the public forum to be widely heard. So it is vitally important that those who do have a louder voice, use that voice to speak for the rest of us.
And sometimes that takes . . . well . . . integrity and courage.
It’s nearly midnight on Thursday, going into the third day following the big overnight snowstorm of January 21-22, and everything is still shut down.
Main roads — not just side streets — are still closed. Businesses, and even medical offices . . . closed. Schools, of course, are closed. I haven’t even seen a UPS or Amazon truck in our neighborhood, although I didn’t have anything on order this week so I wasn’t really watching for them.
I’m told some of the bigger cities here in Georgia do have road treatment facilities — plows, sand trucks, etc. But here in the small towns and rural areas, they simply don’t exist.
The American South does not do snow. But it was done to us this week, and we’ve been forced into doing it . . . mostly indoors.
I’m a transplant, a born-and-bred Northerner. A damn Yankee, very much out of my element here in the summertime (which lasts about 10 months out of every 12). But I do snow . . . or I did, when I still owned boots and heavy coats. I knew how to walk in it, how to drive in it, and how to build a snowman.
Amidst all of the hullabaloo surrounding Donald Trump’s haste to pardon between 1,000 and 1,500 criminals who had been convicted of various crimes, ranging from trespass to treason, in connection with the storming of the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, one such individual — Pamela Hemphill of Boise, Idaho — stands out as a shining example of honesty and decency that should make the others cringe in shame.
Not that they will. You need a conscience for that.
Pamela Hemphill – Nicknamed the MAGA Granny in January 2021
But how, you may ask, can I possibly suggest that someone who once wrote on Face book, “It’s a war!” . . . and posted a video of herself on her YouTube channel saying, “Let’s go to the Capitol” . . . and was later seen in the Capitol rotunda telling fellow rioters to “come on in, come on, have fun … this is your house!” [en.m.wikipedia.org] . . . how could I possibly hold her up as a role model for decent, law-abiding citizens?
Because now — having pled guilty to one count of demonstrating, picketing or parading in a Capitol building, and having served her sentence of 60 days in prison plus 36 months of probation and $500 restitution — she has refused to accept Trump’s unconditional pardon, saying “We were wrong that day.” [Robert Plummer, BBC News, January 22, 2025.]
In fact, back in June of 2023, when Trump wrote on Truth Social that Hemphill would be spending more time in jail than Hunter Biden, and added the comment, “Horrible,” Ms. Hemphill responded on Twitter:
“. . . please . . . don’t be using me for anything, I’m not a victim of Jan6, I pleaded guilty because I was guilty! #StopTheSpin.” [Wikipedia, op.cit.]
In September of that year, she also published an open letter to Congress, stating in part:
“I am not a victim of the government, the Justice Department was not weaponized against me, I was a participant who broke the law.” [Id.]
And now she has told the BBC that “We were wrong that day. Accepting a pardon would only insult the Capitol police officers, rule of law and, of course, our nation. I pleaded guilty because I was guilty, and accepting a pardon also would serve to contribute to their gaslighting and false narrative.” [BBC, op.cit.]
Yes, Pamela Hemphill broke the law four years ago. But she did not participate in any violent acts against others; she was convicted of a misdemeanor, and she has paid the penalty. But more importantly, she is truly repentant, and honest enough to admit her mistakes — not only to herself, but to the world.
And that takes courage, and honor. For that, Ms. Hemphill has my respect and admiration. We all make them, you know.
I have been asked, more than once, why I write this blog . . . why I first decided to give it a try, and why I have continued it for the past two years even though it hasn’t reached anywhere near the viral stage. In fact, if “viral” is the benchmark, then my blog hasn’t even developed a case of the sniffles.
I do have a handful of loyal readers from various parts of the world, though; and I appreciate them more than they can know. I write for them, of course; and on those rare days when I’ve thought about quitting, I keep going because I don’t want them to think I’ve died.
But I also do it for myself.
I started it because I was bored. And I chose writing because it’s an outlet . . . for my thoughts, my observations, my opinions, and yes, even my feelings. I don’t expect masses of people to be swayed, influenced, or greatly moved by my words. If it happens that someone is, now and then, that’s a bonus. But mostly, I keep writing because it feels good: I enjoy it, and it’s cathartic.
And if I add some lovely background music, a cup of chamomile tea, or occasionally a glass of wine, I have the makings of a perfect evening on my own — just me and my iPad. And some Haagen-Dazs, because you can never have too much Haagen-Dazs.
*. *. *
So, how do I choose my subjects? For the most part, I don’t; they choose me. I’m a news junky, and by the time I’ve waded through several daily online news sources, I have the makings of a slew of commentaries. Sometimes it’s difficult to narrow them down to just a couple each day, though I do have my favorite topics — world politics being at the top of the list. But my interest might be piqued by a story about a surfboard-stealing sea otter named Laverna living off the coast of California, a volcanic eruption in Iceland, or an archaeological dig in Türkiye.
Laverna … sans surfboard, but looking sassy nonetheless
Sometimes I simply reminisce, and harangue my readers with tales of my youth, or the years of my travels. Most of my friends and relatives near my age are gone now, and it feels as though I’m talking to them when I write about years past. As long as I don’t start getting answers from them, I figure I’m still running on a full tank.
Well . . . almost, anyway.
But enough about me. There was plenty in this morning’s headlines to keep me busy for several hours, and I’m anxious to get to it. In fact, with the start of the new, potentially controversial four-year presidential term here in the U.S., I foresee a limitless source of inspiration . . . for me, and for the late-night TV hosts.
(Did I say “potentially” controversial? Ha! Silly me!)
While Vlad, Xi and Don — the 21st Century’s Tinker-to-Evers-to-Chance triple threat — are warming up in the dugout, that superstar pinch-hitter, Volodymyr Zelensky, has come forward to try to save his team from the agony of defeat.
Enough mixed metaphors, analogies and allegories for you? Right . . . me too.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky – Davos, January 21, 2025
What President Zelensky actually did yesterday was step up to the dais at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, and tell it like it is:
“All European countries must be willing to spend as much on security as is truly needed, not just as much as they’ve gotten used to during years of neglect. If it takes 5% of GDP to cover defense, then so be it, 5% it is.” [Stephen Collinson, Caitlin Hu and Shelby Rose, CNN’s Meanwhile in America, January 22, 2025.]
His first order of business is, of course, to save his country and end Russia’s war of attrition — now going into its fourth year — while there is still something left to save. But that isn’t his only concern. He was also emphasizing the urgency of the need for all of Europe — in this time of threat from Russia, and uncertainty from the United States’ new administration — to remain united and committed to its own defense:
“Most of the world’s now thinking — so, what’s going [to] happen to their relationship with America? What will happen to alliances? To support? To trade? How does President Trump plan to end wars?” [Id.]
Day One: Signing Executive Orders
And he went on:
“Will President Trump even notice Europe? Does he see NATO as necessary? And will he respect EU institutions? Will President Trump listen to Europe, or will he negotiate with Russia and China without Europe? … Europe needs to learn how to fully take care of itself, so that the world can’t afford to ignore it.
“Right now, it’s not clear whether Europe will even have a seat at the table when the war against our country ends.” [Id.]
*. *. *
As we in America begin another year worrying about the skyrocketing cost of everything from eggs to education, what Taylor Swift will be wearing to her boyfriend’s next game, and whether TikTok will be blocked again, Europe is engaged in a battle for its literal survival.
That sort of puts things into perspective, doesn’t it?
The Blog About Everything … and Sometimes Nothing 