The Tuttle Twins in Ukraine

From around the world, we’ve watched in horror as Putin-led Russia launched a military assault on Ukraine. Across news stations, the chilling sounds of bomb sirens and explosions could be heard in live dispatches from Kyiv and across Eastern Europe.

Videos of fighter jets, missiles, and armed civilians shooting at tanks have circulated heavily in our social media feeds. In this instant-information age, the world is being reminded once again of the horrors of war.

Even as I write this email, the carnage continues into its third day: warfare to this degree has not happened in Europe since World War II. It would seem that many in the political establishment, along with the beltway pundit class, would like us to see this situation as an extension of WWII.

Already, I’m beginning to hear establishment figures on both sides of the aisle beat the war drum. Talk of NATO, allies, and “peace through strength” have worked their way back into the conversation. Commentators have already started comparing non-interventionists to Nazi sympathizers.

If you remember the discourse regarding our presence in the Middle East over the last 20 years, it’s a tale all too familiar. The not-so-subtle implication that if you oppose the United States acting as a policeman for the rest of the world, you must hate freedom, democracy, and all that is good.

Polling shows that only 25% of Americans want their country to get involved in the conflict between Ukraine and Russia. But don’t be surprised if our wishes are ignored. The motives of the war machine go far deeper than public opinion — it’s called the military industrial complex for a reason. War, one of our nation’s most powerful corporate and political interests, is a matter of business.

I shared on Facebook a couple of days ago that we’ve recently been working on Ukrainian translations for The Tuttle Twins books. We have a network of partners in that country who are helping distribute our books on the ground. And wouldn’t you know… just last week, we finished the Golden Rule book, which teaches the importance of the Non-Aggression Principle and the dangers of blowback.

How timely, then, that this book is being made available in a country the same week it’s under attack from Russia. I reached out to our partner on the ground to let him know I was thinking of him and his team, and hoped they would be able to stay safe.

His reply:

“Thank you for your support. We appreciate that today you are with us, especially when we hear the sounds of air raid sirens or watch fights with Russian helicopters.

“We have a wonderful example of common cooperation with you. Maybe someday in the future you will write another book so that children will understand the results of sharp struggle between free initiative and totalitarian violence on the example of war.”I was planning to visit Ukraine this summer. Obviously that is no longer happening. How tragic, the aggression of authoritarians who use the state’s military might to harm and kill others.

World history is filled with such violence, of course — but this carnage is of little consequence to those who see the world as one big game of Risk where people are collateral damage to be expended in pursuit of power and control.

The silver lining? Even Putin’s own people aren’t buying into his attempts to take Ukraine back. Across Russia, hundreds of protests have sprung up, with thousands of citizens calling for the end of the invasion. It’s hard to overstate the bravery it takes to stand up to a tyrant like Putin in his own country (and even his own hometown!)… Especially in a country without the same free-speech protections that Americans and other westerners enjoy.

Thanks to ongoing support from our community of readers, our team is able translate these crucial ideas of liberty to be distributed from continent to continent.

As you know, rulers change, empires rise and fall, but the truth does not evolve over time. It remains constant, even in the face of scary circumstances and uncertain times. And we couldn’t be more honored to play a part in telling the truth.

The sooner we can help young minds understand the importance of non-aggression, free trade, and self-ownership, the sooner we will see an end to the kind of tyranny and heartbreak we’re witnessing right now.

Stay the course… and don’t give up hope.

—Connor