A trouble with democracy is that we tend to believe politicians when they say they plan to do something. For example, Russian president Vladimir Putin’s recent actions:
- Putin signs a United Nations-brokered agreement to allow Ukraine to ship grain using the city of Odesa’s Black Sea port
- Democracy applauds
- Putin sends cruise missiles into Odesa’s Black Sea port
Putin’s not-so-secret weapon is how he uses democracy against us. Putin always decides – the opinions of the Russian people do not matter. Putin does not honor his word. Democracies are different. Democracies converse – county to county, leader to leader, constituent to constituent – before taking action. During this time, Putin attacks. A war against Ukraine is a war against the US and every other Western nation.