In recent months, the war in Ukraine has taken a surreal turn. With much military effort that is costing them a substantial loss of soldiers, the Russians continued their slow advance in the regions they have chosen for their invasion of the country.
For their part, the Ukrainians "invaded" a region of Russia with limited strategic importance and have laid out a "victory" plan. It includes the proviso that NATO invites the Ukraine to join as a member - a step that if implemented, would surely firm up a Russian decision to keep going "to the end".
Meanwhile the Western powers continue to support Ukraine by way of funds and military equipment, but never in sufficient volumes to allow for any decisive move. Although Ukraine has ended up a client state of the West, collectively the member states of the bloc are leaving it to dangle militarily. Many of its citizens are getting increasingly tired of the war.
It is a pity that the countries which could serve as mediators (no matter that the US and its allies would dislike any intervention on their part) have not been proactive on this issue. Those countries would be Turkey, India and China.
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VALUES
Interestingly, in Malta and beyond, values are proclaimed frequently at all levels - political, economic, diplomatic, religious. This has almost always been happening and does not date from today. What's also interesting to note is how just as frequently, while values are being extolled, they get ignored or are applied according to what's convenient. For instance:
On a political level - "The protection of the natural and urban environment has to be sustained in the best interests of citizens". In the same breath, "development" permits are granted that simply benefit big business.
On an economic level - "Market competition is best in the promotion of modern development". Then if competition really is working in sectors that suddenly get labelled as "strategic", sanctions and embargos come into play.
In diplomacy - "International law in the conduct of war has to be fully respected". Yet when Israel violates it in the most flagrant way, Western powers might "deplore" the occurrence but continue with business as usual.
In religious affairs: "Profits should not be made by exploiting people's human weaknesses." Malta has become a big player in the gaming industry but no "religious" warning was ever issued about this.
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FERTILITY
In a majority of countries... from China to the US to Europe (Malta included) and with the major exception of India, fertility has declined. In a few decades, the world population is forecast to be in long term decline.
We are told that the economic prosperity that has been achieved led to such an outcome. In part, the prosperity resulted from the fact that both men and women are entering or have entered the world of work, run according to market rules. People have less time to manage a family, more spending money with which to enjoy a better life, and they no longer need so many children who will be there for them when they get old.
Some argue (with reason) that a planet with less children will be a less pleasant place that will slowly lead to the extinction of the human race. Meanwhile many other species are declining in number and might also disappear. The exceptions seem to be certain insects, among which ants and cockroaches.