Ignorance is Not Strength
You may notice below that I have not listed ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, MSNBC, NPR, nor even Fox News as reliable sources of information on the Ukraine War. All of these as well as newspapers and magazines, such as the Washington Post, the New York Times, the Charlotte Observer, the Raleigh News and Observer, the Asheville Citizen Citizen-Times, and thousands of others have been ignorantly following and promoting a false propaganda narrative on the origin and conduct of the Ukraine War.
There are four main aspects for understanding the Ukraine War. The first two are its military actions and underlying political causes and actions. The third aspect is economic actions, which are very important in this war, because the U.S. and NATO plan laid in April 2018 was to bring down the Russian economy and effect regime change, removing Vladimir Putin, by financial sanctions. There have been 15 waves of a total of 30,000 economic sanctions on Russia, but it simply did not work. The Russians, who have very little government debt and vast mineral resources, simply turned to other markets, including especially China. The fourth aspect is the propaganda war. This article is essentially about the propaganda war. In order to get around the U.S. NATO, Ukrainian, and mainstream media propaganda front, the public must find the truth through alternative sources. Fortunately, such sources are plentiful, if not well known.
This false narrative equates the Russian Federation with the Soviet Union, which collapsed in 1991, and equates Russian President Vladimir Putin somehow with Hitler. It assumes the worst about Russians and that Ukraine is a democracy, and that everyone in Ukraine is a Ukrainian rightly opposed to everything Russian. It assumes the war started on February 24, 2022, and the Russian invasion of Ukraine was “unprovoked.” This is dangerous ignorance.
The truth must begin with demographic realities and historical facts. In 2014, 17 million of 45 million people in Ukraine were Russians, about 38 percent of the population. As I have often pointed out, Only 60 percent of “Ukrainians” consider Ukrainian their native language. Close to 40 percent consider themselves either Russian or a mixture of Russian and Ukrainian. These tend to identify with Russian language, culture, and Russian Orthodox religion. Nine southern and eastern regions of Ukraine have 60 to 90 percent majorities who identify with Russian culture and politics. In February 2014, a CIA, U.S. State Department, and British MI6 backed coup overthrew the elected President of Ukraine, Viktor Yanukovych, because he favored Ukrainian neutrality and wanted to maintain good economic relations with Russia. He had been governor of Donetsk, one of the two most Russian-ethnic regions. The Ukrainian “Freedom” or Right-Sector Party that seized power with U.S., British, and George Soros financing and support immediately launched cultural and ethnic cleansing programs to drive out Russian language and culture and make Ukraine more purely Ukrainian. This started a civil war in which over 14,000 were killed.
In February 2022, Ukrainian artillery, which had been bombarding Russian-ethnic civilian areas for eight years, escalated its artillery attacks ten-fold on Russian-ethnic populations and threatened military occupation of the dissident Donbas Republics in SE Ukraine. But there are vast family and friendship connections between Russia and ethnic Russians in Ukraine. These connections had a powerful influence on Russian public sentiment and the politics of the 450-member Duma, the Russian legislative assembly equivalent to the U.S. House of Representatives. Thus the American 2018 plan worked, and the Russians were provoked into intervening against Ukraine to relieve and rescue the Russian-ethnic population from ethnic cleansing and genocide. This also has to be viewed as part of the American-inspired plan to make Ukraine part of NATO and an anti-Russian military bulwark. Although not yet a member of NATO, the U.S., British, and NATO- built Ukrainian Army was already the second largest in Europe, save for the Turkish Army.
Moreover, Ukraine is one of the most corrupt countries in Europe and is now under a Zelensky dictatorship that is far more undemocratic and despotic than any other European country. The Zelensky government has even banned and confiscated the properties of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, second largest in Ukraine, because of its past connection to the Russian Orthodox Church. Nothing that comes out of the Ukrainian government can be believed. Furthermore, an estimated 1.2 million Ukrainian soldiers have been killed in a war they cannot now possibly win. In 2014, Ukraine had about 45 million people. It now has only about 19 million due to mass refugee migration, Russian occupation of five Russian-speaking states, and excessive military casualties. The United Nations has estimated that 2.3 million ethnic Russians fled to Russia, but the Russians say the number is more than 5.0 million!
Ukraine is now near economic and political collapse, yet Zelensky pushes thousands of young and many older Ukrainian soldiers into almost certain death or traumatic injury week after week in a war that has already been lost. President Trump is right in wanting to stop this tragedy. But Americans and Europeans need to know the truth. It is insane and immoral to have Ukrainians “fight to the last Ukrainian” to achieve highly questionable American, British, and NATO. Foreign Policy objectives. Below are sources that present the truth.
BOOKS
Benjamin Abelow: How the West Brought War to Ukraine: Understanding how U.S. and NATO Policies led to crisis, war, and the risk of nuclear catastrophe, 2022. 75 pages.
Jacques Baud; Operation Z, 2022. 410 pages. Frequently interviewed on YouTube. A former Chief of Swiss Strategic Intelligence and former NATO officer. My number one priority read.
Jacques Baud; Putin Game Master?, 2022. 276 pages.
Jacques Baud; The Navalny Case: Conspiracy to serve foreign policy, 2023. 122 pages.
Jacques Baud, Ukraine Between War and Peace, 2023. 303 pages. 304 pages.
Jacques Baud; The Russian Art of War; How the West led Ukraine to defeat, 2024. 336 pages.
Jacques Baud; Governing by Fake News: 30 years of Fake News in the West, 2024. 380 pages.
Medea Benjamin & Nicolas J. S. Davies; War in Ukraine: Making sense of a senseless conflict, 2022. 185 pages.
J. L. Black and Michael Johns, editors; The Return of the Cold War: Ukraine, the West and Russia. 2016.
Glenn Diesen; The Ukraine War and the Eurasian World Order. 2024. 314 pages. Norwegian Professor frequently interviewed.
Gordon M. Hahn; Ukraine Over the Edge: Russia, the West and the “New Cold War.” 2018. 357 pages.
Jonathan Haslam; Hubris, The American origins of Russia’s War against Ukraine. 2025. 349 pages. Recent video interviews available. Fascinating detail.
Scott Horton; Provoked: How Washington started the new Cold War with Russia and the Catastrophe in Ukraine. 2024. 678 pages. Recent video interviews available. This is going to be the go-to reference book.
Ivan Katchanovski; The Maidan Massacre in Ukraine: The mass killing that changed the world. 2024. 266 pages. Ukrainian/Canadian professor.
Dan Kovalik; The Plot to Scapegoat Russia: How the CIA and the Deep State have conspired to vilify Russia. 2017. 2010 pages.
Andrei Martyanov; Losing Military Supremacy: The myopia of American strategic planning. 2018. 249 pages. Has website. Frequently interviewed expert on Russian and American weapons systems. A former Russian Naval officer and head of U.S. aerospace laboratory. Urgent reading for those who think the U.S. has unchallenged supremacy in military technology and effectiveness.
Andre Martyanov; The (Real) Revolution in Military Affairs. 2019. 228 pages.
Andrei Martyanov; Disintegration: Indicators of the Coming American Collapse. 2021. 241 pages.
Andrei Martyanov, America’s Final War. 2024. 233 pages.
Lindsey A. O’Rourke; Covert Regime Change: America’s secret Cold War. 2018. 312 pages.
Scott Ritter and Ania K; Covering Ukraine: The Scott Ritter Interviews through the Eyes of Ania K. 2024. 135 pages. Ritter is frequently interviewed. Highly knowledgeable on military and Russia.
WEBSITES, INTEVIEWS, and ARTICLES
Here are the 20 that I most frequently consult, but there are many others worth reader discovery:
Lt. Col. Daniel L. Davis, U.S. Army (ret.). Website: Deep Dive.
Col. Douglas Macgregor, U.S. Army (ret). CEO, Our Country, Our Choice.
Dr. John Mearsheimer, University of Chicago, Professor of Political Science. Leading proponent of Great Power Realism in foreign policy, author of The Great Delusion: Liberal Dreams and International Realities. 2018.
Dr. Jeffrey Sachs. American economist and public policy analyst, Columbia University Professor. In depth experience with Russian and Polish economies and politics following Cold War. His video talks and interviews are perhaps the strongest criticism of U.S. foreign policy on Ukraine and in general. See Sachs Ukraine War Chronology article July 17, 2023:
Sachs is the author of many books but two that are relevant here are: A New Foreign Policy: Beyond American Exceptionalism, 2018, and To Move the World: JFK’s Quest for Peace, 2013
Alexander Mercouris. British lawyer with Greek political ties, gives an in depth daily review of global foreign policy issues, with one of the best summaries and analyses of the Ukraine War and Russian and NATO actions. Websites: Alexander Mercouris, The Duran.
Alex Christoforou. Gives a daily briefing of about 30 minutes from Greece, Cyprus, and other international cities, paying special attention to Ukraine. A Duran associate of Mercouris.
Ray McGovern. Retired Russian analytical specialist with CIA. Briefed the Reagan Cabinet.
Larry C. Johnson. Former CIA, State Department Terrorism analyst. Website Sonar21
Brian Berletic. Former U.S. Marine, economist. Excellent analysis of weapons systems and military logistics, strategies and tactics.
Scott Ritter is very knowledgeable of all things military and has inside contacts in Russia. He has several websites and is often interviewed by others.
Col. Lawrence Wilkerson, U.S. Army (ret).
Ambassador Charles Freeman retired high level diplomat. Often interviewed.
Dr. Gilbert Doctorow, American Russian expert, author, political analyst, located in Brussels.
Ania K. of Polish origin. Does interesting interviews educating public on basic understanding of Ukraine War. Down to earth Polish charm.
Ron Paul, former Texas Congressman and Presidential Candidate. Website: The Liberty Report.
Pascal Lottaz, Swiss interviewer, Neutrality Studies. In depth interviews.
Nima R. Alkhorshid, Brazilian interviewer. Dialogue Works.
Redacted News. Clayton and Natali Morris. News and interviews.
Judge Andrew P. Napolitano. Website Judging Freedom. Frequently interviews many of the individuals above.
Tucker Carlson interviews often address Ukraine War.
Summary
Just reading through the titles of the books is an education on the pathological self-deception of most American media and our embedded Deep State.
A quick way to catch up is by viewing or listening to video interviews. I do not agree with everything written or said by these courageous authors and video producers, but on the Ukraine War, they are vitally and overwhelmingly right. Knowledge is power necessary for peace, freedom, and prosperity.
Mike Scruggs is the author of two books: The Un-Civil War: Shattering the Historical Myths; and Lessons from the Vietnam War: Truths the Media Never Told You, and over 600 articles on military history, national security, intelligent design, genealogical genetics, immigration, current political affairs, Islam, and the Middle East. 
