the Ukraine is not weak jerry!

the symbol of in the top left corner of the Ukrainian flag means a lot more to me after what has happened there the last few months. it may look like a letter "U" with a bowling pin in the middle, but it actually says "Воля", which is an old word for freedom. one of my companions in Russia taught me this. he was Ukrainian, and i got the impression he didn't like westerners (see pic. below). in America, we took a sigh of relief when the supreme court declared that the results from the first presidential elections were invalid because the "western friendly" Yushenko got another chance.

as much as we Americans might think that this is a classic battle of east v. west or democracy v. communism, it is in reality a battle for Ukrainian freedom. the supreme court and congressional body have done it on their own. they dont want help from other countries with the december 26th runoffs. they haven't turned to the UN for help. there have peaceful demonstrations and negotiations in an effort to resolve the dispute not because the puppet master urges them to do so, but because they posses a pure desire to be free from dictatorship and corruption. other countries could follow this example and take matters into their own hands, which results in more autonomy and strength. in the end, the Ukraine will be stronger because they are getting through this on their own.

the desire for justice and freedom is stronger because it is their own desire, not the US's or the Un's: the people are choosing. they are overcoming fraud, assassination attempts [link], and the temptation to fall into civil war. we would do better to support the democratic process than support a particular candidate. then people wouldn't be so mad at us.