Brian M Downing and the world at war. Timely, thoughtful, and nonpartisan analysis of military matters. @BrianMDowning1.
Brian M Downing The policy of Russia is changeless. Its methods, its tactics, its maneuvers may change, but the polar star of its policy, world domination, is a fixed star. – Karl Marx The war on Ukraine didn’t stem from NATO expansion. It was the result of Putin’s fixation on Read More …
Brian M Downing The Russian invasion of Ukraine is one of the clearest cases aggression since the Third Reich attacked Poland. Nonetheless, or predictably, responsibility is debated, with some asserting that NATO expansion to the east is to blame. This of course is the Kremlin’s position. It’s been picked up Read More …
Brian M Downing Soldiers take an oath to defend the Constitution from enemies foreign and domestic. For most Americans, oaths are hollow formalities but our military people, especially senior officers, see them as sacred rites. The words became incandescent from sacrifices at Valley Forge and Gettysburg, Belleau Wood and Normandy, Read More …
Brian M Downing Donald Trump, political and business elites, and a fiercely loyal base will try to bring fundamental political change to the United States. Lincoln, Wilson, and Roosevelt curtailed certain democratic principles such as free speech but only as temporary wartime measures. Trump, however, seeks permanent change in the Read More …
Brian M Downing Russia’s drive on Kharkiv earlier this year showed early promise but came to a halt. As with previous attempts to regain the initiative, around Bakhmut for example, it took little ground and incurred tens of thousands of casualties. This week Ukraine crossed into Kursk, a Russian province Read More …
Brian M Dowing Today’s populism isn’t a cult. It’s a broad-based movement that’s grown in numbers and vitality over the last fifty years. Pollsters and social scientists for the most part missed it, though anyone who saw Arbitron and Nielsen’s radio ratings knew something was up. Politicians and academics and Read More …
Brian M Downing Rural-dwellers, opponents of big government, traditional nationalists, working people, and the religious right constitute the popular base. They have emotional attachment to America. When asked if they love their country they unhesitatingly affirm it. Other Americans respond, “Well, yes…but.” The base sees the rest of the country Read More …
I recently watched three movies featuring William Holden. It wasn’t part of a HoldenFest; all three happened to be on TV in recent weeks. I’ve always admired his ability to convey a decent fellow wrestling with problems and doing so with facial expressions and vocal inflections rather than flamboyance and Read More …
Brian M Downing Religion was once central to family, community, and nation. The three formed a coherent whole. The new land created a covenant for a free, devout people. Religion and patriotism were, as Robert Bellah put it, fused into a civil religion. Both religion and patriotism have declined significantly Read More …
Brian M Downing Many in the movement see themselves as true patriots – descendants of homesteaders and workers and soldiers. Their love of America is deep and gut-level. They see others speak the appropriate words and stand for the Anthem but judge their affection as shallow and less forceful. They’re Read More …