GOLDEN YEARS

By Harold Miller

Email: hmiller@mcsmms.com

Will Santa Claus Call on Your Family this Christmas?

When Santa climbs to altitude over the North Pole, piloting his sled and reindeer in a southeast direction this Christmas Eve, he must practice extra caution because he will pass over Ukraine and Russia, and they are at war with each other.

Russia’s president Vladimir Putin attacked Ukraine almost a year ago for no good reason other than evil and greed and he has become another Hitler.

However, after months of pounding Ukraine’s cities to rubble and ruthlessly murdering their citizens, Putin’s evil and criminal action is blowing up in his face. The Western world is turning against Russia. NATO is finally acting by supplying weapons and money to defeat Russia. Likewise, the United States is supplying weapons and support which was the reason for NATO in the first place.

Some say Russia has lost 50,000 soldiers, as well as many tanks, aircraft, missiles and the miscellaneous hardware of battle. Now, Putin is cornered. He is said to be calling up 300,000 reserves which is hard to believe that he could find and train that many men before Russia is overcome by Ukraine’s far superior army.

In a recent, speech from the Kremlin, Putin said, “If the territorial integrity of our country is threatened, we will use all available means to protect Russia and our people — this is not a bluff.”

Russia is thought to have about 10 times as many tactical nuclear weapons as the U.S. with delivery systems ranging from ground-based mobile rockets to drones and ships. These are smaller than strategic weapons with shorter range and lower yield. Such weapons take out specific targets in specific areas without wide-spread destruction. However, radioactive debris would waft this way or that on wind currents. Putin is rattling the nuclear sword and fighting battles dangerously close to nuclear facilities, like he is wishing for an ‘accident’ that would trigger World War III. American diplomats have believed that Putin will never use tactical nukes because he would fear the price. But they can’t know that. On the other hand, he might tip off World War III, which might be the last war on this planet.

All of this speaks of growing disorder around Putin. His knowledgeable foes and critics call him a liar and a murderer and they are right! He will drive this trumpedup war using Ukraine as his excuse to cover his blunders. Putin’s whole adult life is wrapped up in this war with the west and he’ll drive it into the ground.

Presently the Russian president claims territories within Ukraine where his troops are losing ground. He is hinting at his willingness to use nuclear weapons and signaling a sharp escalation of the war as Kyiv vows to recover its occupied land as the ground war begins to turn against Russia.

Meanwhile, Saint Nicholas carefully navigates his sleigh over the war-torn lands of Ukraine and Russia, and most of the countries of the world below, hoping to find undamaged roofs to deliver his gifts. He has been working long and hard all year to build the precious toys in his overloaded sack. Santa is in close communication with his god, but he will never quite understand human beings like Putin and Hitler, both of whom have been responsible for the death of hundreds of thousands of innocent people who happen to be in the wrong place at the right time.

Say a Christmas prayer for your family —and mine.