More from our inbox:
To the Editor:
Re “Russia Attacks as Putin Warns World; Biden Vows to Hold Him Accountable” (front page, Feb. 24):
Vladimir Putin has declared war on Ukraine based on three outrageous lies: that Ukraine does not have a right to exist separate from Russia, that Ukraine is committing atrocities against Russian-speaking people, and that the Russian military needs to “de-Nazify” Ukraine (whose president, Volodymyr Zelensky, is Jewish).
It is shocking that in the last few days, Donald Trump, Mike Pompeo and Tucker Carlson, among others, have breathlessly cheered on Mr. Putin while trashing President Biden’s and Europe’s laudable efforts to dissuade him.
In contrast, as Ukrainians face the specter of catastrophic death and suffering, their ambassador to the United Nations spoke the unvarnished, poetic truth at an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council: “There is no purgatory for war criminals. They go straight to hell.”
Mark Keller
Portland, Ore.
To the Editor:
While conservatives have already blamed President Biden for his alleged weakness and progressives have pointed to former President Donald Trump’s apparent admiration for Vladimir Putin, we must all realize that nothing short of a massive NATO military intervention — and perhaps not even that — could have stopped Mr. Putin from carrying out his invasion of Ukraine.
I ask, then, that we not make this sad event yet another partisan squabble. Let us take time to see if sanctions work. Above all, let us please follow former Senator Arthur Vandenberg’s famous suggestion that “politics stops at the water’s edge.”
Peter K. Frost
Williamstown, Mass.
To the Editor:
Re “Europe plans tougher sanctions on Russia but aims to protect its own interests” (nytimes.com, Feb. 24):
Yes, Western nations will look bad if they “dither in the face of a once-in-a-generation conflict,” seeking to avoid the hardships that sanctions against Russia require. Worse, they must be bystanders, unable to act when a democracy falls to a dictator.
Still, it is good that, in a nuclear age, Western leaders act responsibly even as Vladimir Putin does not, cruelly violating the nation and the people of Ukraine. His actions betray weakness, not strength. He embarrasses rather than protects the people of Russia, whose suffering does not concern him in the least.
Jamie Baldwin
Redding, Conn.
To the Editor:
Re “This Is Putin’s War. But America and NATO Aren’t Innocent Bystanders,” by Thomas L. Friedman (column, Feb. 22):
Mr. Friedman argues that the “ill-considered decision” by the United States to enlarge NATO provoked Vladimir Putin, and he has “cynically exploited NATO’s expansion” to rally the Russian people to his side.
Years before he became a Russian national figure, in the course of my official duties as a Foreign Service officer, I had the opportunity to have numerous conversations with Mr. Putin in St. Petersburg. He made clear to me then, just as he later repeated in numerous public statements, that he desired the restoration of the Soviet Union and its empire.
In that sense, the current crisis over Ukraine was inevitable; as soon as Mr. Putin felt strong enough to do so, he would pursue this aim. Nor did he need to win Russians over to his side; many “average” Russians shared his feelings.
Extending NATO’s protective umbrella, therefore, was not a mistake; it probably (hopefully) will spare Baltic and Eastern European democracies from a fate similar to that of Ukraine.
Andrew Goodman
Clifton Park, N.Y.
‘The Soaring Death Rate on America’s Roadways’
To the Editor:
Re “Pedestrian Deaths Hit Highs as Reckless Driving Surges” (news article, Feb. 15):
While pandemic-induced “social disengagement” may contribute to the soaring death rate on America’s roadways in the past two years, the reality is that long before Covid-19, government and industry leaders disengaged from their moral responsibilities to ensure safety on our roads, sidewalks and bikeways.
The U.S. ranks 46th worst of 52 high-income nations in traffic deaths, according to the World Health Organization. This is not because drivers in America are inherently worse drivers. Rather, we design roads that prioritize speed over safety, supersize cars and set speed limits at dangerous levels. We are experiencing the deadly results we designed for.
Some leaders recognize that we can make change. More than 40 U.S. cities have committed to Vision Zero: safe mobility for all. A few weeks ago, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg set the national goal of zero roadway deaths, declaring, “We cannot and must not accept that these fatalities are somehow an inevitable part of life in America.”
We created today’s deadly transportation system. We can change it, too. We need leaders across the nation to re-engage and prioritize safety.
Leah Shahum
Oakland, Calif.
The writer is the founder and director of the Vision Zero Network.
