Quiet for a moment, but not away
It was quiet. Too quiet.
Not because there was nothing to say, but because I had nothing to give. Personal storms, loss, frustration, mourning, recovery.
Sometimes you have to let go of the sinking ship to keep floating yourself. And so: Emails remained unanswered, posts remained unanswered, thoughts remained.
For anyone who sent something and got nothing back: I'm sorry.
For those who stayed: Thank you.
“Sometimes you have to lose yourself to get your anger back.”
An article that stuck
I read something this morning. I don't know where. The article is gone, but the sentences are still like a shrapnel in my head.
It was about Ukraine.
It's about a country that's been fighting for life and death for four years now. And slowly lose.
From a behemoth who wants to destroy everything that is free, open and democratic.
Russia is slowly but relentlessly creeping into the heart of Europe. What about Europe?
Europe has promised. Meetings. Promises again. Doesn't do enough.
The reconstruction plans are already being signed while the missiles are still striking.
Who will we build later? What if we don't show a backbone?
“You cannot rebuild a city if you make the soul of its people disappear.”
America: the Protector Who Takes Pills
And then America.
That in 1994 in the Budapest Memorandum Ukraine promised eternal protection in exchange for giving up its nuclear weapons.
A historic choice of trust.
A choice that will kill them today.
Because protection turns out to depend on mood swings, campaign polls, and the amount of drugs that Donald Trump and his warlike friend Hegseth work in the night before.
Today's help, tomorrow's isolation. The day after tomorrow... Temu deals?
“Anyone who trades security for promises will end up with neither peace nor trust.”
France wants to fight. Poland has the courage. Germany is doubtful.
France says it out loud: Maybe we should just send soldiers.
Not to die, but to free Ukrainians so they can fight.
Poland wants to, but can't. NATO is stopping them.
Germany... lingers in doubt, debate, and the political comfort of waiting.
And in the meantime?
Ukrainians are dying. Russia wins.
Europe is watching.
And the citizen? He orders. Online. In bulk.
‘War in the distance is easier to ignore with a filled shopping cart.’
Our battle is called Temu
We're not going to war. We execute orders.
To Temu. AliExpress.
We buy one-euro phone cases. Fake sunglasses from Oakley. LED lights, sushi trays, car holders and TikTok trend call.
China is laughing.
With every order we bacon the Chinese economy.
And with every Yuan more we help Russia.
China supports Russia. Iran as well. North Korea as well.
Russia is not alone.
Ukraine is becoming more and more common.
“A cheap purchase is sometimes an expensive concession.”
Cars as a moral test
Do you drive a Geely Volvo? Or a BYD?
Well, congratulations. You're riding in the economic convoy of Putin's friends.
Not with guns. But with money, dependency and convenience.
What if tomorrow really skips the war? What if China invades Taiwan?
What if sanctions come? What if the deliveries stop?
Will you wake up morally, or will you miss your cheap phone case?
“Our dependence is not an accident. It is a choice.”
I'll tell my family. What about you?
I'm trying to explain. To my children.
That the world in which they grow up is shaped by what we click, order, ignore today.
That every euro to Temu not only buys a disposable product, but washes away a piece of conscience.
That luxury, convenience and indifference are weapons if you use them incorrectly.
You're telling your family? Or are you silent for peace at the table?
“The war does not start with tanks. He starts with our silence.”
English (UK)