That was when a US guarantee meant something. As a result of trump it's going to take a generation or two of honorable presidents before other nations trust the US again. For a long time they'll be thinking, "What if they elect another trump?"
It probably seemed like a good idea at the time. Too bad the security guarantees were worthless. If we had honored them, we could have avoided the whole current mess.
What if someone attacked trumps narcissistic huge ego and stated Epstein was a much better businessman than he has ever been and then see where his rants take him.
Well, it's a bit of a thought experiment at this point for sure.
If Ukraine had kept their nukes after the fall of the USSR, what likely changes?
Russia almost certainly does not invade. This is the biggest effect, by far.
Russia’s post-1991 strategy toward neighbors relies on: conventional military superiority, escalation dominance, and the assumption that conflicts stay below nuclear thresholds.
That logic collapses if Ukraine had nukes.
Even if Ukraine adopted a doctrine like:
“Nukes only used if the state’s existence is threatened”
A full-scale invasion is an existential threat.
From Moscow’s perspective:
Crimea? Too risky.
Donbas proxy war? Maybe still risky.
2022-style invasion? Almost certainly off the table.
Nuclear deterrence doesn’t require parity—only uncertainty and unacceptable cost.
I doubt that Putin would have been deterred, but we'll never know. I also doubt that the nukes France holds do that. And nukes need expensive maintenance. Reagan (!) did well with the SALT treaties.
Seriously, all of that indicates a significant lack of knowledge of foreign diplomacy throughout the years and is just simply a recitation of Trump’s BS
Thank you for a simple intelligent discussion about sensible things.
Subscribed.
And thank you both for your service. That's quite a correlation you made about the 60,000 attending the Superbowl! I'll also never see that size crowd the same way again.
And I really can't believe your commanding officers would knowingly let you fight a war and risk your lives based on false pretenses. I cannot imagine how that was for the morale of the service members knowing that ahead of time. It makes me mad that they would use our military in such a careless way.
And it doesn't give me much hope that today's military will ever say “no” to the present day POTUS or SecDef.
Thank you for mentioning the elections and how citizens could contribute. It might be scary being at the polls this year, due to talk of ICE agents being present and using possible intimidation tactics, or worse, but it's necessary that good people do get involved.
I'm encouraging all voters to send in their mail-in ballots in plenty enough time to be counted weeks BEFORE Election Day! We dont want ANY ballots being contested just because they weren't counted by midnight.
And everyone should ensure their photo ID matches their registered voting name and their birth certificate and/or bring a paper trail leading from their birth certificate to a marriage license to one's photo ID (of special importance for women!). The SAVE Act is still being debated.
There is NO strategy…it is all about what 47 gets in his brain depending on who won't bow down to him, who disagreed with him, who won't cave, who opposes him, what he gets in his head from evil advisors, actions that will demonstrate to his brainwashed cult that he is powerful and deserves their worship, what will feed his ego, what will destabilize this world
And every Confederate officer should have been lined up against a wall and summarily shot; every Confederate plantation confiscated; and every Confederate soldier should have lost the right to vote for at least 10 years.
I agree that President Andrew Johnson was much too merciful to Confederate officers and Confederate leaders. None of them should have been allowed to hold public office ever again, and the federal army should have remained in the South longer, in order to protect the voting and other political rights of blacks in the South. Shooting every confederate officer would have made Southerners even more eager for revenge, and it was reasonable for Republicans in power in Washington to try to maximize the chance of maintaining peace in the South without maintaining a large federal army there indefinitely. The North didn't want to end up like the British in Ireland, hated by all the Southerners for generations.
I would highly recommend you read history books. It is ridiculous. First of all, if we put Ukraine in NATO, that means we would be in a world war right now, which is “Trump stupid”. Secondly, the idea that we should have more countries with nukes is “trump stupid.” This is just a recitation of Putin’s talking points and you guys need to wake up and stop doing it, seriously stop it.
Here’s the thing- NATO is in our best interest and we will need to repair relationships all over the world when our fascist govt is done. Most importantly- we need to eat fucking humble pie. We are NOT the greatest country in the world, we need to repair ourselves domestically and shore up our democracy and back seat the kowtowing to capitalism
I'll respond to you Eleanor, understanding the possibility that you could be a Russian, or a Russian bot.
Putin's "talking points" are get rid of any safety valve that Ukraine had against a Russian takeover.
And the West, overjoyed with the end of Communism, let their guard down, and Russia has temporarily succeeded in weakening all of the West over the past 20 years, through Primikov, Gerisamov doctrines, and the noxious Surkov use of propaganda.
“The Progressive movement was a political and social-reform movement that brought major changes to the United States during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. During this time, known as the Progressive Era, the movement’s goals involved strengthening the national government and addressing people’s economic, social, and political demands. Progressives saw elements of American society that they wished to reform, especially ending the extreme concentration of wealth among the elite and the enormous economic and political power of big business.”
From The Peaceful Solution:
The political right wing has been working to undo these reforms for over 100 years and now they’ve succeeded. It could take many years to restore our democracy, unless the citizens awaken quickly and take the peaceful actions of non cooperation, and economic disengagement.
How much do you want to stop His Royal Heinous and the fascist takeover of the country?
Enough that you’re willing to make a small sacrifice? Like altering your spending habits for a month or two or three? That could be all it would take to get the attention of the oligarchs (formerly known as The Robber Barons in the first Gilded Age, also The Fat Cats, The Greedy Bastards).
A brief demonstration of We, the People’s, power of the purse could persuade them to quit supporting HRH and the politicians who enable him.
We quit spending, except on essentials, businesses lose money, stock market goes down, Greedy Bastards pay attention to our demands.
We need to take our business away from people like Bozo Bezos of Amazon and the Washington Post. There are other businesses that are not out to distract and grift Americans. Fascism is everywhere today, feeding the coffers of oligarchs like the Trump family and cult. ENOUGH IS ENOGH!
Its an honor that meidas continues to get prestigious notable vets to assist in telling the truth and know whats needed to get down to head in the right direction.to prayfully bring back the moxy necessary that our reps need.we must get trump before he ever gets a chance to retreat to his bunker and kills millions .we must get those codes outta his hands by any means.god help us all and may the lord shine where theres darkness.🙏🙏🙏
If he continues on this path, he will eventually (sooner, not later) retreat to his bunker with Melania to end it all. He is daily digging himself deeper and deeper, destroying anything he can since he has never been the builder he falsely claims to be. Everything he touches turns to coal!
When I think about the tremendous work it took for the Danes to boatlift their vulnerable Jewish citizens to Sweden, saving them from the Germans, and the graciousness of the Swedes to take care of the Dane's beleaguered people until the end of the war, I am humbled. My own country turned away the ship, the St. Louis, filled with desperate refugees back to Europe and their doom at the hands of the Nazis.
I cannot forgive my nation's administration denigrating the Danish people.
Definitely not worth the time and money our defense could be better by virtue of having better defensive strategies as opposed to the massive level of raw force we now employ.
We need immediate up-to-date on attendance, speakers, all political funding, and legislation voting! Charts of political party affiliation! Ages and background info and personal wealth gains or losses! We must maintain our USA integrity and vetting all appointees and advisors etc. They are people and must be held accountable to keep our government clean! There are honest elected people who won't mind! And there are criminals who will protest!
Our democratic constitutional government needs to be able to withstand and report all interference from within and without!
I liked 👍, restacked, and now I'm commenting so that it can get to more people. Everyone commenting or simply watching the podcast should like, and restack the video if you don't want to comment. I can't wait to see Kristofer Goldsmith, and Malcolm Nance join Harbaugh with a other Meidas+ episode of Meidas Defense. I'm sure it'll be very interesting to hear these men's different perspectives. 😊
Great news that Meidas has added national security and the military perspective to the platform. I'm looking forward to hearing from veterans that are experienced, patriotic and not MAGA. Since I can't ask my Marine Corps father (deceased) for perspective on the Trump regime's assault on our military and national security, I look forward to this new column.
My dad was a Sergeant Major. He retired after 30 years of service in 1986. He passed away in December 2019. As much as I miss him, I am grateful that he hasn't had to witness this second Trump travesty. I grew up as a military brat. Every assault on our armed forces and allies by Trump and Hegseth feels like a punch to the gut. Most people focus on Trump's war on NATO and the EU instigated by Putin. But, because of my father, I'm very concerned about our abandonment of our Asian allies. It appears that no one in the regime understands the consequences of their reckless and juvenile actions.
I’ve had multiple family members go to war in my 70+ years. Thank God we no longer draft citizens. Today the government doesn’t appear to have a deep appreciation of what military actions or war truly does to this country and its people. Today it seems like war games on a game board where outcomes are a novelty to the government. It’s so dangerous. Thank you for this thought-provoking podcast. 🇺🇸🫶🏼☮️
Thanks for your thoughtful comments. We've been blessed with an all-volunteer force because citizens wanted to join our military. It's a dangerous thing if the reputation of our military as a protector of the Constitution and the people is diminished. When citizens don't want to join, they are often forced to by the state. (Take a look at Russia today sending thousands of their young men into a meat grinder in Ukraine.)
I kind of understand to whom the MAGA Republicans are beholden (except for their complete lack of morality) but I do wonder about some of the Democrats also. That’s why the primary elections are so important. No more corporate-beholden Democrats! Vote for people who want to help Americans and fix the government to have a true democracy where no one can trash the country again.
We really need 3 or 4 parties in this country. What we have today: MAGA, what's left of the Reagan-Eisenhower Republicans, Centrist Dems, and Progressives. We wouldn't allow a duopoly in business. Why do we allow it in politics?
Gunboat Diplomacy: describes the targeted use of conspicuous naval power to pursue foreign policy objectives. A powerful state demonstrates this force often by dispatching warships to the coast or ports of a weaker nation to intimidate and secure specific concessions. These demands may be economic, such as forcing favourable trade terms or collecting debts, or political, such as compelling a change in government policy or protecting foreign nationals.
Ken Harbaugh has been an excellent reporter for MTN and I look forward to seeing Ken and Joe Plenzler’s new show and columns. This is a great expansion Ben!
Thank you! Very interesting. I look forward to future shows. I really appreciate your intelligent, measured presentation and that you insert yourselves when your personal experiences are germane to the conversation. Alternative media is becoming like CNN. Panels of personalities yelling at us. We follow a lot of European commentators because we want news - real information - not personalities.
My husband lost his hearing in the army, my father's tank blew up in korea, and three of my uncles served in Vietnam. it is shameful the blatant disrespect that Trump has for veterans or anyone that is serving presently. he has made fun of veterans with disabilities and those that have been prisoners of war. he is the most disgraceful disgusting president ever to be named president of the United States.
Biden should have fast tracked Ukraine into NATO day one of the Russian invasion.
And Ukraine probably shouldn't have given up their nukes after the fall of the USSR for US security guarantees....
That was when a US guarantee meant something. As a result of trump it's going to take a generation or two of honorable presidents before other nations trust the US again. For a long time they'll be thinking, "What if they elect another trump?"
Yes. Trust is built by the drop and spilled by the bucket.
It probably seemed like a good idea at the time. Too bad the security guarantees were worthless. If we had honored them, we could have avoided the whole current mess.
Indeed.
What if someone attacked trumps narcissistic huge ego and stated Epstein was a much better businessman than he has ever been and then see where his rants take him.
Why not ask Melania which was the better man in bed??? That would send Trump into cardiac arrest. LOL
That is also a ridiculous statement
Well, it's a bit of a thought experiment at this point for sure.
If Ukraine had kept their nukes after the fall of the USSR, what likely changes?
Russia almost certainly does not invade. This is the biggest effect, by far.
Russia’s post-1991 strategy toward neighbors relies on: conventional military superiority, escalation dominance, and the assumption that conflicts stay below nuclear thresholds.
That logic collapses if Ukraine had nukes.
Even if Ukraine adopted a doctrine like:
“Nukes only used if the state’s existence is threatened”
A full-scale invasion is an existential threat.
From Moscow’s perspective:
Crimea? Too risky.
Donbas proxy war? Maybe still risky.
2022-style invasion? Almost certainly off the table.
Nuclear deterrence doesn’t require parity—only uncertainty and unacceptable cost.
I doubt that Putin would have been deterred, but we'll never know. I also doubt that the nukes France holds do that. And nukes need expensive maintenance. Reagan (!) did well with the SALT treaties.
Seriously, all of that indicates a significant lack of knowledge of foreign diplomacy throughout the years and is just simply a recitation of Trump’s BS
Eleanor, it would be helpful to post an explanation rather than just a retort, as it does nothing to advance any argument you're trying to make.
Thank you for a simple intelligent discussion about sensible things.
Subscribed.
And thank you both for your service. That's quite a correlation you made about the 60,000 attending the Superbowl! I'll also never see that size crowd the same way again.
And I really can't believe your commanding officers would knowingly let you fight a war and risk your lives based on false pretenses. I cannot imagine how that was for the morale of the service members knowing that ahead of time. It makes me mad that they would use our military in such a careless way.
And it doesn't give me much hope that today's military will ever say “no” to the present day POTUS or SecDef.
Thank you for mentioning the elections and how citizens could contribute. It might be scary being at the polls this year, due to talk of ICE agents being present and using possible intimidation tactics, or worse, but it's necessary that good people do get involved.
I'm encouraging all voters to send in their mail-in ballots in plenty enough time to be counted weeks BEFORE Election Day! We dont want ANY ballots being contested just because they weren't counted by midnight.
And everyone should ensure their photo ID matches their registered voting name and their birth certificate and/or bring a paper trail leading from their birth certificate to a marriage license to one's photo ID (of special importance for women!). The SAVE Act is still being debated.
God help us all!
This was a great start. Really enjoyed it thank you guys and looking forward to hearing Malcom!
Biden was too slow to act on multiple things. This was one thing of many that should have been fast tracked
There is NO strategy…it is all about what 47 gets in his brain depending on who won't bow down to him, who disagreed with him, who won't cave, who opposes him, what he gets in his head from evil advisors, actions that will demonstrate to his brainwashed cult that he is powerful and deserves their worship, what will feed his ego, what will destabilize this world
And every Confederate officer should have been lined up against a wall and summarily shot; every Confederate plantation confiscated; and every Confederate soldier should have lost the right to vote for at least 10 years.
I agree that President Andrew Johnson was much too merciful to Confederate officers and Confederate leaders. None of them should have been allowed to hold public office ever again, and the federal army should have remained in the South longer, in order to protect the voting and other political rights of blacks in the South. Shooting every confederate officer would have made Southerners even more eager for revenge, and it was reasonable for Republicans in power in Washington to try to maximize the chance of maintaining peace in the South without maintaining a large federal army there indefinitely. The North didn't want to end up like the British in Ireland, hated by all the Southerners for generations.
That is a ridiculous statement
Elaborate please.
I would highly recommend you read history books. It is ridiculous. First of all, if we put Ukraine in NATO, that means we would be in a world war right now, which is “Trump stupid”. Secondly, the idea that we should have more countries with nukes is “trump stupid.” This is just a recitation of Putin’s talking points and you guys need to wake up and stop doing it, seriously stop it.
Here’s the thing- NATO is in our best interest and we will need to repair relationships all over the world when our fascist govt is done. Most importantly- we need to eat fucking humble pie. We are NOT the greatest country in the world, we need to repair ourselves domestically and shore up our democracy and back seat the kowtowing to capitalism
Yeah Sara- agree Eleanor could be a bot but I find her to be arrogant and obnoxious - if not a bot.
I'll respond to you Eleanor, understanding the possibility that you could be a Russian, or a Russian bot.
Putin's "talking points" are get rid of any safety valve that Ukraine had against a Russian takeover.
And the West, overjoyed with the end of Communism, let their guard down, and Russia has temporarily succeeded in weakening all of the West over the past 20 years, through Primikov, Gerisamov doctrines, and the noxious Surkov use of propaganda.
That is a ridiculous statement, ad infinitum. 🍸
While I agree, the Russian invasion started in 2014 with invasion of Crimea...
The Russian invasion
From Encyclopedia Britannica
“The Progressive movement was a political and social-reform movement that brought major changes to the United States during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. During this time, known as the Progressive Era, the movement’s goals involved strengthening the national government and addressing people’s economic, social, and political demands. Progressives saw elements of American society that they wished to reform, especially ending the extreme concentration of wealth among the elite and the enormous economic and political power of big business.”
From The Peaceful Solution:
The political right wing has been working to undo these reforms for over 100 years and now they’ve succeeded. It could take many years to restore our democracy, unless the citizens awaken quickly and take the peaceful actions of non cooperation, and economic disengagement.
How much do you want to stop His Royal Heinous and the fascist takeover of the country?
Enough that you’re willing to make a small sacrifice? Like altering your spending habits for a month or two or three? That could be all it would take to get the attention of the oligarchs (formerly known as The Robber Barons in the first Gilded Age, also The Fat Cats, The Greedy Bastards).
A brief demonstration of We, the People’s, power of the purse could persuade them to quit supporting HRH and the politicians who enable him.
We quit spending, except on essentials, businesses lose money, stock market goes down, Greedy Bastards pay attention to our demands.
Royal Heinous. Good one!
Royal heiney.
We need to take our business away from people like Bozo Bezos of Amazon and the Washington Post. There are other businesses that are not out to distract and grift Americans. Fascism is everywhere today, feeding the coffers of oligarchs like the Trump family and cult. ENOUGH IS ENOGH!
General strike/ boycott is the last real power we as a people have! If only we had a leader…
Or unionize!
Its an honor that meidas continues to get prestigious notable vets to assist in telling the truth and know whats needed to get down to head in the right direction.to prayfully bring back the moxy necessary that our reps need.we must get trump before he ever gets a chance to retreat to his bunker and kills millions .we must get those codes outta his hands by any means.god help us all and may the lord shine where theres darkness.🙏🙏🙏
We have a lot of work to do together to preserve our republic.
If he continues on this path, he will eventually (sooner, not later) retreat to his bunker with Melania to end it all. He is daily digging himself deeper and deeper, destroying anything he can since he has never been the builder he falsely claims to be. Everything he touches turns to coal!
In case anyone doubts that the Danes - and Swedes - are fierce and capable warriors, remember: they are the descendants of the Vikings.
They know how to survive in the worst conditions and prevail.
They are indeed. I’ve trained with them. Tough soldiers.
When I think about the tremendous work it took for the Danes to boatlift their vulnerable Jewish citizens to Sweden, saving them from the Germans, and the graciousness of the Swedes to take care of the Dane's beleaguered people until the end of the war, I am humbled. My own country turned away the ship, the St. Louis, filled with desperate refugees back to Europe and their doom at the hands of the Nazis.
I cannot forgive my nation's administration denigrating the Danish people.
Ohio is flipping BLUUUEEE
As a former Buckeye, I applaud this.
Definitely not worth the time and money our defense could be better by virtue of having better defensive strategies as opposed to the massive level of raw force we now employ.
ME2!!!
we need to constantly call our senators and congressmen and let our concerns be known
We need immediate up-to-date on attendance, speakers, all political funding, and legislation voting! Charts of political party affiliation! Ages and background info and personal wealth gains or losses! We must maintain our USA integrity and vetting all appointees and advisors etc. They are people and must be held accountable to keep our government clean! There are honest elected people who won't mind! And there are criminals who will protest!
Our democratic constitutional government needs to be able to withstand and report all interference from within and without!
Yeah, getting rid of the Citizens United ruling would help too.
Agreed, everything in our lives is effected by it.
This is just a rough draft off the top of my head. But professional oversight and enforcement is sadly lacking at present, needs revamp!
100%!!!
I liked 👍, restacked, and now I'm commenting so that it can get to more people. Everyone commenting or simply watching the podcast should like, and restack the video if you don't want to comment. I can't wait to see Kristofer Goldsmith, and Malcolm Nance join Harbaugh with a other Meidas+ episode of Meidas Defense. I'm sure it'll be very interesting to hear these men's different perspectives. 😊
Thanks for the kind words. And thanks for sharing this!
You're quite welcome! 😊
Great news that Meidas has added national security and the military perspective to the platform. I'm looking forward to hearing from veterans that are experienced, patriotic and not MAGA. Since I can't ask my Marine Corps father (deceased) for perspective on the Trump regime's assault on our military and national security, I look forward to this new column.
Thank you! What did your dad do in the Corps? We look forward to future conversations!
My dad was a Sergeant Major. He retired after 30 years of service in 1986. He passed away in December 2019. As much as I miss him, I am grateful that he hasn't had to witness this second Trump travesty. I grew up as a military brat. Every assault on our armed forces and allies by Trump and Hegseth feels like a punch to the gut. Most people focus on Trump's war on NATO and the EU instigated by Putin. But, because of my father, I'm very concerned about our abandonment of our Asian allies. It appears that no one in the regime understands the consequences of their reckless and juvenile actions.
Wow. That's quite a career.
I’ve had multiple family members go to war in my 70+ years. Thank God we no longer draft citizens. Today the government doesn’t appear to have a deep appreciation of what military actions or war truly does to this country and its people. Today it seems like war games on a game board where outcomes are a novelty to the government. It’s so dangerous. Thank you for this thought-provoking podcast. 🇺🇸🫶🏼☮️
Thanks for your thoughtful comments. We've been blessed with an all-volunteer force because citizens wanted to join our military. It's a dangerous thing if the reputation of our military as a protector of the Constitution and the people is diminished. When citizens don't want to join, they are often forced to by the state. (Take a look at Russia today sending thousands of their young men into a meat grinder in Ukraine.)
your congress has shown a lack of will to act.
I kind of understand to whom the MAGA Republicans are beholden (except for their complete lack of morality) but I do wonder about some of the Democrats also. That’s why the primary elections are so important. No more corporate-beholden Democrats! Vote for people who want to help Americans and fix the government to have a true democracy where no one can trash the country again.
We really need 3 or 4 parties in this country. What we have today: MAGA, what's left of the Reagan-Eisenhower Republicans, Centrist Dems, and Progressives. We wouldn't allow a duopoly in business. Why do we allow it in politics?
Gunboat Diplomacy: describes the targeted use of conspicuous naval power to pursue foreign policy objectives. A powerful state demonstrates this force often by dispatching warships to the coast or ports of a weaker nation to intimidate and secure specific concessions. These demands may be economic, such as forcing favourable trade terms or collecting debts, or political, such as compelling a change in government policy or protecting foreign nationals.
Ken Harbaugh has been an excellent reporter for MTN and I look forward to seeing Ken and Joe Plenzler’s new show and columns. This is a great expansion Ben!
Thank you! Very interesting. I look forward to future shows. I really appreciate your intelligent, measured presentation and that you insert yourselves when your personal experiences are germane to the conversation. Alternative media is becoming like CNN. Panels of personalities yelling at us. We follow a lot of European commentators because we want news - real information - not personalities.
Thanks for your kind words.
Welcome to Meidas. I enjoyed listening to you both.
Thanks!
Thank you, guys, for filling our information gap in this area! I have been looking for a platform dealing with precisely these issues
Wonderful! Welcome. Please tell your friends!
My husband lost his hearing in the army, my father's tank blew up in korea, and three of my uncles served in Vietnam. it is shameful the blatant disrespect that Trump has for veterans or anyone that is serving presently. he has made fun of veterans with disabilities and those that have been prisoners of war. he is the most disgraceful disgusting president ever to be named president of the United States.