“From this day to the ending of the world, But we in it shall be remember’d, We few, we happy few, we band of brothers …”.— William Shakespeare.Those words were bravely spoken by Shakespeare’s Henry V, on St. Crispin’s Day, before the historic Battle of Agincourt, in 1415..Outnumbered, five to one, the unexpected English victory against the French army boosted English morale and prestige, crippled France and started a new period of English dominance in the war..And you don’t have to be a literary person to know what those words mean. Every day is St. Crispin’s Day in Ukraine as it battles superior numbers of invading Russian forces..The moment that changed the world, for me, happened on Friday..It was the brutal execution of an unarmed civilian, by invading Russian forces. .No mas, I say, no mas. No more Mr. Nice Guy. It’s time, my friends, to get into Vlad Putin’s face, and, come what may..As Russian troops closed in on the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, Anastasiia Yalanskaya insisted she would stay, even while her friends and family fled around her, MSN.com reported..The young Ukrainian woman was delivering food to a dog shelter in Bucha, 30 km outside Kyiv, on Friday when she was shot and killed alongside two men..Yalanskaya’s friends and family say her car was deliberately targeted at close-range by Russian troops. News agencies have been unable to confirm the circumstances of her death..That was it, for me. The breaking point. I have seen enough..Grow some balls, US Secretary of State Antony Blinkin, along with your White House puppet masters, President Joe Biden & company..Come on Boris Johnson, Emmanuel Macron and Olaf “I know nuthink!” Scholz, it’s time to walk the talk..It’s time, in John F. Kennedy style, to get in Putin’s face. And not in a small way, ladies and gents, I’m talking in a big way..Allied forces led by the US should launch an immediate attack on Russian troops in Ukraine, and decimate them. .Bring in the F-35s, bring in the A-10 Warthogs, the MQ-9 Reapers … no prisoners. Terminate every last Ivan that is threatening this harmless European nation. Before he sucks us into a war on his terms. .Ukraine has asked for help and they need help. The US went in and fought the Iraqis in Kuwait, so why can we not go into Ukraine?.Putin has said any nation that supports a no-fly-zone (NFZ) over Ukraine, would become an enemy combatant. Hey, I’m fine with that. I’ll even send the bugger a postcard, thanking him!.In that case, we don’t use NATO. .The US, the UK, perhaps even France and Germany, and Canada too, have enough airborne weapons, to carry this out on our own. We don’t even need boots on the ground..And for those who say, this action could spark a Third World War and possibly the end of mankind, I’m sorry to say, we are already in a Third World War! .Wake up, and smell the coffee … we cannot afford to throw Ukraine under the bus, and we must stop this lunatic from any future expansionism..If we don’t stop him now, we will just have to do it later. Better now, than later, I say. Bite the bullet and do what we have to do..Get in his face, just like Jack Kennedy did with Soviet Union leader Nikita Khrushchev, during the Cuban missile crisis..The Russians — the same nation President Ronald Reagan accurately labelled, “the Evil Empire” — are turning into butchers, killing civilians. .We can’t stand by, any longer. It’s time to call Putin’s bluff. .And I’m not alone in thinking this way..Former Canadian military commander Rick Hillier is also fully on board, and he’s a helluva lot more rational and knowledgable than I am..“Hey, this got escalated when Putin said he was going to invade and then did,” Hillier told the CBC in an interview, when asked about the fears of escalation..“It got escalated when they attacked the infrastructure, those buildings where the civilians are … it gets escalated every time there’s a Russian tank, fighting vehicle or soldier that crosses that border into the Ukraine and attacks..“What they need is a no-fly-zone. We have the technology, we have the forces, we have the capability to do it and say very clearly to the Russian people, not just to Putin, here’s what we are doing because we cannot accept what’s occurring.”.Could Canada do more? Yes, said Hillier, who served as the Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS) from 4 February 2005 to 1 July 2008..Especially long-range weapons systems, not just grenades, machine guns, anti-tank weapons and rockets, which are short-range weapons..“First of all, wonderful on what Canada’s offered. Now, let’s get it into the hands of Ukrainian troops … they will be very, very valuable when you get into a fight in the cellars and the buildings and the high-rise buildings inside Kyiv,” he said..“But what they really need now are those long range-systems. You know, for example, automatic grenade launchers that can reach out four kilometers. .“Why doesn’t Canada just go buy a hundred thousand rounds of things that kill tanks and fighting vehicles and fly them in and allow them to get at those columns of Russians who appear to be stuck on the road … who appear to be lacking fuel and even food ….“I mean, oh my Lord, that’s a target-rich environment in my former profession. And one kind of weapon system … could destroy that entire column..“Putin cannot lose on this one. He has got to win. Over the next four to five days, he’s gonna double down … he’s gonna strike more of those critical infrastructure targets that are going to include civilians. .“And the loss of life will go high and he’s gonna control most of the Ukraine except for the built up-areas where the fighting can go on for a long time, unless the West gets some real practical aid on the ground.”.Hillier — known for his plain-spoken language and focus on frontline capabilities — was a popular commander, earning the nickname “Uncle Rick.”.When speaking to troops on parade, he would frequently call them into a circle around him rather than delivering a generic speech from a podium while they stood to attention. .At briefings, Hillier asked every person what they thought about a situation at hand — regardless of their rank, language or nationality. Truly he was, and is, one of Canada’s best, which is why we need to listen to him..As for the lunatic Russian leader with his hand on the nuclear button, Hillier didn’t back down one solid inch..“That (argument) doesn’t hold any weight with me,” he said. “You know, if every time that we say no to something and Putin says, ‘Hey, you will face severe consequences’ … we might as well give up now, give in to what he wants. .“Hey, do you wanna go as far as the English Channel, by the way, because you know, he’s going to … by threatening to use the nuclear button. .“He’s not gonna use that nuclear button. He wants to live. He wants to enjoy the fruits of what he is building, in his view. And in his demented mind and his cronies around him who run Russia, they want to enjoy it all. So he’s not gonna use that nuclear button. .“We’re letting him manipulate us. We’re at the end of a whip and he’s cracking it all the time. Time for us to actually say, quite clearly, this is unacceptable. And here’s what we are doing, this is to protect the Ukraine.”.And I am totally in agreement. Bring it on, I say. I know my European friends won’t like hearing this, but I don’t think we have a choice..No matter what Putin says, no matter what he does, no matter what he infers, what he threatens, it just doesn’t matter. The man is a pathological liar, anyway..And if he wants to die, by all means, let’s oblige him..He has crossed the Rubicon, by a country mile, and we must stop him. .This is Hitler invading Poland, all over again, and broad sanctions are not enough..Seizing yachts from Russian oligarchs, who made their fortune 30 years ago, is also not enough. We must stand up to barbarism..And if Vlad doesn’t like it, too bad pal, too bad. It’s time we, the world, show him we mean business. .Dave Makichuk is a Western Standard contributor. .PTacitus27@gmail.com
