This week has been one of those weeks where I wonder if we are entering a very dark period of time.
On a normal day I get a certain number of phone calls, zoom/face-time video calls.emails, etc.. They take time, but I enjoy doing it. The rest of my time is spent on business, this blog and an online library, exercise, reading, and family.
But this week has been insane. There is no longer enough hours in a day for me to do the things that I want to do. And it all has to do with the Russia - Ukraine war, tensions with China, and the fracturing of the national and global economy.
Let me explain.
Western media goes out of its way paints a certain positive picture on what is happening in Ukraine. That Ukraine is winning, Russia is losing, and Ukraine will prevail and win this war.
But everyone I know in Ukraine is telling me a different story, They tell me that the situation is getting more desperate. Everyone knows someone who has been killed or wounded, and now there is panic that Russia's mobilization and commitment of 300,000 soldiers to the war will only mean more death and destruction.
Sighhhh ....
I try to help my friends/family members/and contacts who are still there. But there is only so much that I can do, especially when it comes to aid. I just learned this morning that half of what I ship to Kyiv gets stolen or misdirected when it enters Ukraine. This is news that I did not want to hear this morning, and it took me the entire morning and a good part of this afternoon to rush around to replace what was stolen and to send it out ASAP. People I know in Ukraine are dependent on some of the medicines that I provide to them. Failure is not an option.
The situation in Russia is different, but there are growing fears that the big war is coming.
Let me explain again.
Western media reports that Putin has ordered a partial mobilization, but my family and friends in Russia are telling me that this is not a partial mobilization, but a full mobilization. Apparently every male of military age who is not registered must do so immediately so that the authorities can then know where you are and how to contact you if you are called up. Not surprising. Everyone is expecting to be called-up.
I have a lot of friends in Europe. Half are saying that everything will be all-right, and there is no need to panic. The other half are freaking out, and they are in full panic mode. Who is right? I guess only time will tell. My money is on those who are "freaking out".
I have good business contacts in China that I always talk to and keep in contact . Some of them are friendships that go back almost 40 years when I first started to work in China in the 1980s. To say that they are livid with the US is an understatement. And it is not only because of Taiwan that this anger is coming from, but a whole list of other grievances that for some reason Washington DC has decided to poke the Chinese on. This is not a smart foreign policy move from the U.S.. The Chinese have a long memory. They are also not forgiving.
While coming home I got more bad news from a friend who made the decision to close his company of 35 years in Montreal. He is not far from my home, so I went to see him. It was a sobering experience to see him. The focus in the media is on the high cost of living, and how families are having trouble making ends meet. What is ignored is the high cost of doing business for small and medium size businesses. From what I learned this afternoon. These type of businesses cannot survive.
I just got home and I need an hour to decompress. Expect a lot of news updates and analysis to be posted this evening. There is a lot that I need to get off my chest.
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