Category: Chip Hodgkins

A Second Call for a Russian and U.S. Summit

10/13/2015

Tensions are dramatically increasing in the Middle East, as the American and Russian militaries are each conducting airstrikes in Syria. This faceoff is worse than most situations that occurred in the Cold War. This superpower standoff just strengthens my belief that high ranking U.S/Russian dialogue is necessary very quickly. The Pentagon is scheduled to meet with their Russian colleagues this week to work on avoiding the competing air forces colliding. More comprehensive talks are needed immediately to avoid this potential head on train collision. A Summit on Syria, the Ukraine and other potential problem areas between the United States and Russia should be undertaken as soon as possible.

Putin’s moving of Russian military resources into Syria to help stabilize the Assad regime is a master foreign policy power play but at the same time very dangerous. He has put himself in a great negotiating position by thrusting Russia into a situation in Syria which the United States doesn’t want him. It gives Russia the leverage to minimize U.S. and NATO pressure in the Ukraine. In addition, it also may allow Russia to get out from under the Western imposed economic sanctions. At the same time, it creates a situation where too many major military powers are operating in too small an area. This makes it very easy for a possible major military standoff to occur; which may have just happened due to NATO member Turkey’s shoot down of a Russian fighter jet.

The military powers operating in Syrian airspace include the United States and many of its NATO allies. Various Arab allied nations, the Israeli air force, and now Russia. By any standard of military conduct it is a situation which is a tinderbox. In theory, is Putin wrong for being there? No. Syria has been a long time military client state and their strategy to stop ISIS and return Syria to a pre-war situation or negotiated settlement would certainly be preferable to the current situation. It may be able to stop the migration millions of refugees. The overthrowing of dictators like Saddam Hussein, Muammar Gaddafi, Honsi Mubarak and possibly Assad is understandable but not necessarily realistic or better for their people. Those dictators are horrible but the extremists who have stepped into the voids they leave are arguably worse.

The United States obviously has made the largest mistakes in the region in terms of regime change but they have also made mistakes when it concerns Russia in the region. During the George H.W. Bush Presidency the United States worked with Russia in the Middle East. It was very sensible to do so since Russia has always had allies in the region. In fact, James Baker, Secretary of State under George H.W. Bush, basically asked permission from Russia before the First Gulf War to throw Iraq out of Kuwait. Russia gave its quiet support. During the 1973 Yom Kippur War, the United States convinced Russia not to send two paratroop divisions to Cairo and Damascus to potentially fight the Israelis. Since George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton, the United States has been pulled to a militaristic, hegemonic, neo-con extreme right wing foreign policy strategy. The United States has been willing to go it alone if necessary to push their aims and has not even attempted to include Russia into the equation. This has been a recipe for disaster in Iraq, Libya and Afghanistan. Even more scary is the fact that many extreme foreign policy hawks in the United States believe they can dictate term to Moscow and anything less is appeasement. They are living in a dream world. They have convinced some Americans that Russia can be defeated in a war. Obviously, Russia cannot be defeated and war would lead to a nuclear holocaust.

It is time for the United States to engage Russia. It shouldn’t be difficult since the United States was willing to work with Iran on a nuclear agreement. Remember Russia was helpful with that agreement because they don’t want Muslim extremists to possibly be able to get nuclear material. Russia also has the same issues we have with citizens heading to the Middle East to fight with ISIS and then possibly returning home. There are many issues these two nations can work on and come up with common ground. The past rivalry shouldn’t matter and the world needs these two nuclear superpowers to work together.

© Chip Hodgkins

Chip Hodgkins is a graduate of Boston University's College of Communications with a B.S. in Print Journalism with emphasis on Foreign/War Coverage. He is especially proud of a paper he wrote "NATO vs the Warsaw Pact" from his Soviet Military Policy class. He is currently President and C.O.O of WBRK-AM/FM radio stations in Pittsfield Ma. He was a member of the Rotary Club of Pittsfield for 15 years. He has won the statewide Presidents Award from Gun Owners Action League. He has been a board member of the Massachusetts Broadcasters Association. In 2010 he was sworn in as a Berkshire County Deputy Sheriff under Sheriff Carmen Massimiano. He is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the Hillcrest Educational Centers. He has covered and interviewed many famous national and international political figures. In addition to others including actors and famous sports figures.

All statements in this report are an opinion of the author. Act at your own risk. Russia & America Goodwill Association (RAGA) is not responsible for the content of the article. Any views or opinions presented in this report are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RAGA. Any liability in respect to this communication remain with the author.

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Russia, America, NATO & Baseball?

9/20/2015

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Chip Hodgkins

Tensions continue to rise between Russia and the United States. NATO war games are underway in nations close to Russia’s borders and Russia has also been holding their own war games on land and sea. Again, I ask: Why? How did we get in this situation? We talked about this in the last article, but there is another reason why the United States and Russia should not only tolerate one another but actually be friends. Baseball. That’s right, baseball. I’m crazy, you say? Okay, maybe a little. But people in America love this sport, especially the come-from-behind victory and upset of gargantuan proportions. For that reason, America should also love Russia. Confused? Hang on—I’ll explain.

    I live in New England, where the Boston Red Sox are not just a team but a religion. One of the greatest upsets and come-from-behind victories in baseball history took place in 2004. The Red Sox, having not won a world series since 1918, finally won one. In 1918, baseball fans remember, the Red Sox sold Babe Ruth to the Yankees, a team that proceeded to win twenty-plus championships over the next decades (I lost count after twenty, to save my sanity). But that winning streak came to an end in 2004. The Red Sox were down to the Yankees three games to zero in the American League Championship Series, only to turn the tables and win four games in a row, which no team had ever done before. They won the pennant and went on to win the (somewhat anti-climactic) World Series. It was not only the Sox’ first successful championship run since 1918, but it was the dramatic vanquishing of their arch rival that Sox fans had long dreamed of. That is the kind of story that makes us (well, those of us not living in New York) proud to be Americans: a tale of resilience, and courage, and determination. All attributes that Russia displayed—on a much grander and more serious scale—in World War II.

    Let me set the stage. Russia versus Germany, part one: World War I. When war breaks out Russia, along with England and France, faces off against a nation with one of the greatest martial traditions in history. After the Napoleonic Wars Prussia, influenced by the writings of the Prussian/German general Karl von Clausewitz, united Germany and created a General Staff system of military excellence the world continues to be amazed by to this day. Their military, due to this system, was not reliant on the mind of a single, dominating genius to guide them, as France was under Napoleon or Sweden was under Gustav Adolphus. Rather, Germany systematically made many of their high ranking generals military geniuses. So, when war breaks out, and Germany takes on Russia’s Czar Nicholas II’s armies, Germany dominates them. Even when they’re greatly outnumbered by the best Russia has to offer, Germany continually bests them. Russia, at this time, was a more formidable force than many historians give them credit for. They dispatched the Austria-Hungarian armies easily and consistently. Yet, when Germany comes to the aid of their allies, the Russians are beaten soundly and take millions and millions of causalities. The Russians, as always, fight tenaciously and not without significant skill. Even as they are pushed deeper and deeper into their own country, they somehow maintain a front line. However, in 1917, the nation behind the front line is economically collapsing, paving the way for the Bolshevik Revolution and the withdrawal from the war at Brest-Litovsk.

    Fast forward to September 22, 1941, when millions of German troops launch the greatest attack in world history against Russia/the Soviet Union. What chance does Russia have? Not much, according to every military expert in the world at that time. In the 1930’s, Stalin had purged most of his high ranking officers, including most of the Marshals and Generals! That alone could have spelled defeat. What’s more, England and France’s generals in the late 1930’s thought so little of Russia’s armies and political leadership that they hemmed and hawed about even allying with Russia again as they had in World War I. What happened next? As you likely already know, France is defeated by the incredible skill and imagination of the German generals in six weeks. Six weeks! The Germans couldn’t defeat French and British armies over four years in World War I. Then Churchill and England face off against Germany in the Battle of Britain and barely survive; they need serious help, which comes not only from the United States but also from the nearly-rejected ally, Russia. By September 1941 the scariest, most capable army, maybe in world history, attacks and catches Russia by surprise. In the first days, the Russians lose thousands of aircraft and tanks, and after the first few months they lose millions of men to death and injury and capture. As in World War I, the Russians are somehow able to fall back in a semi-organized way; but by December, German scout units can see the spires of the Kremlin. The Germans capturing Moscow—the central artery of all the rail lines in Russia—would spell the end of the war for the Soviet Union, and quite likely for Britain and the United States as well. Without Russia holding down the vast majority of German divisions, it would be almost impossible to launch a D-Day operation, and the best that Britain and the U.S. could hope for would be a “Cold War” style détente with Germany. A Cold War with a Germany led by Hitler may not have ended with a whimper rather than a bang. Remember, this is the man who, in his bunker, ordered the complete destruction of Germany’s means to exist because the country had failed him. The thought of a man like Hitler with access to a nuclear button is chilling indeed.

     So what happens next is the greatest military comeback in history. In dramatic fashion and in defiance of the Germans, Stalin holds a military parade in Moscow in the now icy, snowy, bitter cold winter. Then the last 700,000 reserves Zhukov can muster up from Siberia are hurled against the practically frozen German army. The blow is tremendous, like a wounded prizefighter landing a miracle punch. The Germans stagger back and themselves barely hold the line through the winter. After that the rest is history. Zhukov methodically and systematically forces the Germans back and grinds them down with tremendous victory after victory. This allows time for Britain to regain its balance and the United States to wind up its huge military potential. Russia and the United States show how they can work together against one of the most dangerous foes in human history. The United States and Britain help in any way they can. When they can’t help with troops they do with supplies: tens of thousands of tanks, aircraft and artillery. Millions of uniforms and other supplies pour into Soviet Russia so the Red Army can push on and on. The cost for the Russians is the largest in history, with at least 27 million deaths, not to mention the wounded, prisoners, and more. What a comeback, right? What an upset, correct? And America is right there with her as a great ally.

    This is why the United States should now be looking at what we have in common with Russia: because they do many things we should love. They can be an ally, fight anyone, anywhere, anytime. They are potentially the best ally we could have. Most importantly, they are like our favorite sports teams: able to come back against impossible odds, and snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. They demonstrated this in World War II, and, in fact, even earlier against Napoleon, who many historians call the greatest military genius of all time. Don’t believe me? Well, maybe I’ll tell you that story someday, too.

© Chip Hodgkins

Chip Hodgkins is a graduate of Boston University's College of Communications with a B.S. in Print Journalism with emphasis on Foreign/War Coverage. He is especially proud of a paper he wrote "NATO vs the Warsaw Pact" from his Soviet Military Policy class. He is currently President and C.O.O of WBRK-AM/FM radio stations in Pittsfield Ma. He was a member of the Rotary Club of Pittsfield for 15 years. He has won the statewide Presidents Award from Gun Owners Action League. He has been a board member of the Massachusetts Broadcasters Association. In 2010 he was sworn in as a Berkshire County Deputy Sheriff under Sheriff Carmen Massimiano. He is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the Hillcrest Educational Centers. He has covered and interviewed many famous national and international political figures. In addition to others including actors and famous sports figures.

All statements in this report are an opinion of the author. Act at your own risk. Russia & America Goodwill Association (RAGA) is not responsible for the content of the article. Any views or opinions presented in this report are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RAGA. Any liability in respect to this communication remain with the author.

RAGA News
www.RAGA.org

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Chip Hodgkins: Russia is in the wrong, America is also in the wrong. The fix is new dialog. A Summit. Fast!

8/25/2015

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Chip Hodgkins

How could this have possibly happened? The world’s two superpowers faced each other down for years in the Cold War, and then this brinksmanship suddenly ended in 1989. These powerhouse nations had the chance to change the world together for the better. In fact, in many ways they are more suited to be natural allies than potential enemies. Yet today it looks as if they are ready to resume a second Cold War or, even worse, a hot war over the Ukraine. Many don’t see the danger! The focus of the populace and the politicians is on ISIS, Donald Trump, and a possible Iranian nuclear peace deal, which the neo-cons in the U.S. Congress—not surprisingly—are already fighting. What we need to focus on, and fast, are the missed opportunities that have slipped past since 1989.

Russia has made some serious mistakes due to Vladimir Putin. He has failed his mentor Boris Yeltsin in many ways. In an interview conducted by Mike Wallace of 60 Minutes in the early 2000’s, Wallace questioned Yeltsin on the brutally harsh way the Russian press treated him. Yeltsin shook it off. He said it was an essential part of a free Russia, and assured Wallace his successor would continue that essential freedom. Well, that has not happened. Indeed, in recent years, Putin has cracked down on the freedom of the press in the same way that he has traditionally cracked down on any political opposition that dares challenge him: with ruthless efficiency. In order to garner popular support at home, he has paired such domestic clampdowns with foreign adventurism, taking back parts of Georgia and the Ukraine, while also intimidating the Baltic States and Finland. Such flexing of Russian muscles has left Western Europe, NATO and the United States uneasy, to say the least.

Although Putin is clearly in the wrong on multiple fronts, the United States has done a great job of pushing him in that direction. At the end of the Cold War, U.S. foreign policy under the direction of Reagan, Shultz, Bush 41 and James Baker made verbal assurances that American would not extend NATO towards Russia’s borders and would attempt to oversee a peaceful transition in the region. Russia took that as a sign of the beginning of a new world order and the foundation for a peaceful Russian transition from communism to a more liberal and capitalistic system. Yet that did not happen. Why?

For starters, the beginnings of what we now term neo-con foreign policy were developing in the Bush 41 circles. Why else wasn’t there a Marshall Plan for Russia, to help its transition to a stable market economy? The U.S. under Bush 41—and to a lesser extent under Clinton—began thinking it might be better for the U.S. to be the world’s sole superpower, or in other words a hegemonic global force. This was accelerated under the disastrous takeover of foreign policy by the neo-cons in the Bush 43 administration. Not only was Russia not helped economically but NATO began a major expansion eastwards. One could make a strong case for Poland being made a member due to its betrayal during World War II, but the list ends there. While most U.S. citizens likely saw this eastward encroachment by NATO as an altruistic attempt to improve the daily lives of those living in Eastern Europe, the neo-cons knew, at heart, what it really was—old fashioned power politics, pure and simple.

American neo-cons weren’t satisfied in being the first among equals; they wanted domination. Didn’t they know a nation that has constantly been invaded throughout its history would react badly? Invasions by Mongols, Tartars, Turks, and more recently Napoleon and Hitler has taught Russia that they should have a buffer zone to deter would-be invaders. Any American politician who denies that history and criticizes Putin on this issue should face reality. Boris Yeltsin would also have reacted negatively and defensively to these U.S. moves. Even the most liberal-minded and anti-Soviet thinker and leader, Alexander Solzhenitsyn, considered a Russian sphere of influence over the Ukraine, Belorussia and parts of Kazakhstan as essential to Russian security. That the neo-cons have dragged U.S. foreign policy so far to the right is truly scary.

U.S. and NATO troops are now in the Ukraine training elements of the Ukrainian Army and National Guard. These troops, and the government that leads them, are far from perfect in their own right. The real bottom line, however, is that U.S. foreign policy has to stop looking at this situation as being about “democracy and freedom”; rather, we need to practice “realistic” foreign policy with Ukraine and Russian, just as we practice it with a country like Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is a reactionary monarchy and morally despicable in many ways, yet they have been our closest Arab ally in the Middle East since the Reagan administration. This is how the U.S. needs to look at Russia.

Russia and America are in many ways natural allies, unlike the United States and Saudi Arabia. We are both ethnic melting pots, predominantly Christian, and we have both had major issues with Muslim extremists in the last twenty years. Look at the major foreign policy strides we have made together over the last few years. Syria will be free of chemical weapons and Iran will be halted in development of a nuclear weapon. Not so bad. Each of us needs to take a deep breath, step back and set up a modern summit so we can truly try to understand one another. Maybe we can resolve our differences and get back on the path we left in the mid-1990’s. It is never too late and we owe it to humanity. Neo-cons and their aggressive, bellicose thinking need to be swept once and for all into the dustbin of failure. At the same time, Putin, who purportedly enjoys his massive ill-gotten wealth while ruling with the kind of iron fist not seen since the Soviet era, needs to wake up and change his ways, or another Boris Yeltsin will come along and do it for him. What is the date for a Russian and American summit? Please make it soon.

© Chip Hodgkins

Chip Hodgkins is a graduate of Boston University's College of Communications with a B.S. in Print Journalism with emphasis on Foreign/War Coverage. He is especially proud of a paper he wrote "NATO vs the Warsaw Pact" from his Soviet Military Policy class. He is currently President and C.O.O of WBRK-AM/FM radio stations in Pittsfield Ma. He was a member of the Rotary Club of Pittsfield for 15 years. He has won the statewide Presidents Award from Gun Owners Action League. He has been a board member of the Massachusetts Broadcasters Association. In 2010 he was sworn in as a Berkshire County Deputy Sheriff under Sheriff Carmen Massimiano. He is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the Hillcrest Educational Centers. He has covered and interviewed many famous national and international political figures. In addition to others including actors and famous sports figures.

All statements in this report are an opinion of the author. Act at your own risk. Russia & America Goodwill Association (RAGA) is not responsible for the content of the article. Any views or opinions presented in this report are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RAGA. Any liability in respect to this communication remain with the author.

RAGA News
www.RAGA.org

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Please welcome Chip Hodgkins, a US-Russia Military History Expert and RAGA's Newest Team Member!

8/25/2015

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Chip Hodgkins

Chip Hodgkins is a graduate of Boston University's College of Communications with a B.S. in Print Journalism with emphasis on Foreign/War Coverage. He is especially proud of a paper he wrote "NATO vs the Warsaw Pact" from his Soviet Military Policy class. He is currently President and C.O.O of WBRK-AM/FM radio stations in Pittsfield Ma. He was a member of the Rotary Club of Pittsfield for 15 years. He has won the statewide Presidents Award from Gun Owners Action League. He has been a board member of the Massachusetts Broadcasters Association. In 2010 he was sworn in as a Berkshire County Deputy Sheriff under Sheriff Carmen Massimiano. He is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the Hillcrest Educational Centers. He has covered and interviewed many famous national and international political figures. In addition to others including actors and famous sports figures.

RAGA News
www.RAGA.org

0 Comments

A Second Call for a Russian and U.S. Summit

Russia, America, NATO & Baseball?

Chip Hodgkins: Russia is in the wrong, America is also in the wrong. The fix is new dialog. A Summit. Fast!

Please welcome Chip Hodgkins, a US-Russia Military History Expert and RAGA's Newest Team Member!

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A Second Call for a Russian and U.S. Summit

Russia, America, NATO & Baseball?

Chip Hodgkins: Russia is in the wrong, America is also in the wrong. The fix is new dialog. A Summit. Fast!

Please welcome Chip Hodgkins, a US-Russia Military History Expert and RAGA's Newest Team Member!

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Archives

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