Ukraine has been left alone to fight this war.
For all of you wonderful people praying for Ukraine or showing solidarity – thank you. But, there’s a way you can help save Ukrainian lives.
Don’t show up to work.
Don’t go shopping.
Stage protests.
STRIKE.
Hear me out:
Biden and NATO have been very clear that they are ultimately being opportunists here.
They are using Ukraine as the sacrificial lamb in order to play a long game where the Russian economy becomes irreparably damaged.
They are using Ukraine as a buffer zone, a barricade behind which they can hide in order to mount their defense instead of just admitting Ukraine into NATO or making some special provision, and hence no troops from any country have yet to join Ukrainian troops here.
What to do?
GENERAL STRIKE
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It’s 6am here, and with 130 innocent Ukrainians killed and over 300 wounded (that can be confirmed) as of midnight last night, we are going to go into day two – yet again alone.
For those of us here lucky enough to not have our windows blown out from bombs, for our bodies not to be blown to pieces already… we are so, so afraid.
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I don’t know why “oh well they’re not part of the alliance so we will watch them burn while, you know, sending them some more guns, and yeah we will destroy the Russian economy over the coming months” is an acceptable response when there’s people dying at the whim of a tyrant.
Do you know what will force leaders of our countries to listen to us?
Do you know the one power we still have over their respective military mights?
The power of our labor.
Go on strike.
General workers’ strike.
Across all borders.
Don’t show up to work.
Don’t go buy your McDonald’s.
Make Biden listen.
Make your leaders listen.
This is our power that we can exercise to move mountains and to save lives.
Sanctions with intended long-term effects are fucking insulting to people who have already died and are dying here.
To everyone living in fear, afraid to turn on the lights, barely able to sleep.
To everyone hiding in a basement or bunker.
To everyone who can’t find gas or water or food.
I'm glad they get to sit in their ivory tower and “support Ukraine” but this is not enough.
This is too slow.
We are dying.
General workers’ strike.
Don’t show up to work.
Scream on social media, scream in front of city hall, that you will not let the gears of your country move until your president/prime minister/whoever is willing to step in and stop the bloodshed.
To President Biden and NATO:
Fuck you. You’ve had months to prepare for this.
And it’s clear that you decided that you would not intervene with troops.
Why?
“bEcAuSe Ukraine isn’t a member of NATO.”
You can snap your fingers and help Ukraine.
You made up the rules. You can add a provision or just fucking accept Ukraine into NATO already like it’s been begging to be for years because, hmm gee I don’t know, maybe because THIS could happen? Because Ukraine knows it is the buffer zone for NATO and Russia to fight a proxy war while it sits in the middle to suffer.
Well, we are suffering.
We are dying.
And I am sure that with your wealth and insulation from reality will let you sleep soundly knowing you made the right but tough decision to levee these harsh long-term sanctions that will cripple Russia in the long term, when you could be swooping in and stopping this invasion NOW and saving countless lives NOW.
Every minute that NATO doesn’t step up is another liter of innocent Ukrainian blood on all of your collective hands.
Stop shirking your duty to be a brother to your fellow humans who are in literal peril. Stop being up your own ass inside of an old rule book that you guys made up. Expand the rule set. Let a peace loving nation just trying to defend itself from the modern Hitler to have some help…
Citizens of any NATO country:
GO ON STRIKE.
Citizens of any country:
Go on strike.
Scream SAVE UKRAINIAN LIVES WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR GET YOUR NATO BUTTS IN THERE and repeat until you’re hoarse and then scream it some more.
Otherwise… what will make these people listen in a timely manner? Nothing.
Writing to your senators is too slow.
Writing thinkpieces is too slow.
Sending love and thoughts – while, genuinely, so so appreciated and needed – is not enough. It’s not fast enough.
Use the one power we have – the power of our labor – to halt the economies of our countries until our leaders will wake the fuck up.
We have nothing to lose but our chains.
We have nothing to lose but more Ukrainian lives.
It’s almost sunrise now.
I don’t know what to expect.
I’m amazed I still have internet and power and heat and an intact body.
I hope I can write to you again in 24 hours, but for any number of reasons that possibility becomes less and less likely for all of us here.
Please, please help.